Editor’s note: The Enquirer-Journal followed Hannah throughout the semester with monthly updates and excerpts from her blog. This is the last article in the series.

MONROE -- Forest Hills senior Hannah Potter came home Feb. 13 after a semester in Egypt. She spent the first night back home opening Christmas presents that her family saved for her.

Through a scholarship from the National Security Language Initiative for Youth, Potter was encouraged to limit phone calls and e-mails back home and immerse herself in a different culture.

“It was just nice to be back with my family and talk with them,” she said.

From browsing Egyptian markets to watching a high school basketball game, Potter said readjusting to life in Union County is hard, but appreciates the time she has with friends and family again.

Prior to her time abroad, Potter wanted to go to college and major in international studies.

“My experience in this program reassured that desire,” she said.

Potter also plans to stay in touch with her host families and other students from her study abroad program.

“There were a lot of people that made a huge impact in my life, so for the rest of my life, they will be a part of it,” she said.

Q: How would you describe your experience abroad in two sentences or less?

A: “Absolutely amazing. I learned so much about myself and the world, and I had some unforgettable experiences and made friends that I will have for the rest of my life.”

Q: How did you feel about leaving Egypt when you boarded the plane to go home?

A: “Boarding the plane to leave did not seem real. I felt like I was going to wake up the next morning and be in Egypt again. I felt very sad to leave my friends and my host family. I was also in an anxious period to be finished with orientations and plane rides and to simply be back home.”

Q: Has the transition back home been easy? Bittersweet? Do you miss Egypt yet?

A: “The transition back home is different. It is a whole different lifestyle, and it all happened so abruptly. One day I am in Egypt, and two days later I am at school, going to soccer practice and watching basketball games. It is different seeing my friends again, but it is a good different. They have all been very welcoming, and I feel like our relationship is the same as it was before I left. It is weird sitting in school, and I start thinking about how my life has changed so much. All the people sitting around me have just been pictures and messages the past six months, and now I am back in class and laughing with them. ... I came from one of the biggest cities in the world back to rural North Carolina. I am not saying one is better than the other, but it sure is a change. ... I can view things as kind of an outsider now.”

Q: How did studying abroad stack up to your expectations?

A: “I am not very sure of what my expectations were for a study abroad program, but I know that I had an experience that I could have never dreamed of. I discovered so much about myself throughout the program and made some amazing friends along the way. ... There is just so much we can learn from other people and cultures. I can’t wait to discover what the rest of the world holds.”

Q: What now? Will you stay in contact with your host families? Focus on traveling to another country? Stick around Union County?

A: “I think about Egypt every day and the people I met there constantly. It is hard to say that I am itching to go back. I had a wonderful, wonderful experience there, and I cannot say that I would pass up the option to go back if someone offered it to me now. However, in reality, that option is not availiable, so I need to focus on now. I appreciate the time I now have with my friends and family, and I know I will enjoy my time with all of them. ... My administrators and teachers have been very helpful throughout this whole experience, and they are working with me to rejoin my classes. I am very grateful to all the help I have received from them. I will finish the semester and graduate with my class.”