FSI, I knew thee well

I did my final out-processing at the Foreign Service Institute (at the National Foreign Affairs Training Center) today. Normally on such occasions, we tend to say the parting is "bittersweet." Not so in this case; although my time at FSI has been mostly informative and fun, I'm completely ready to move on to post and put my training to use.

Spanish took its toll, but I loved ConGen. Every day I would come home from school and think, "I chose the right profession." I love the thought of helping U.S. citizens abroad and even of being "on the line" and conducting visa interviews. We should probably check in about two years from now and see if I still feel the same. :) I learned a lot, but surely have much more to learn. For now, I'm excited about the work that lies ahead.

A few memories of the FSI campus:

The room where the Flag Day ceremony took place.

Flag Day with a few of my colleagues. Oh, my, how young they all are. :)

Me and Ben, right after A-100.

The campus in spring.

The statue of Ben Franklin is located just outside of where I was in A-100. It represents Franklin's role in US diplomacy.

Many was the time my Spanish classmates and I would walk the 1-mile loop around campus, speaking only in Spanish, praying that we would achieve the necessary score in our evaluations.

Another view of the campus. Beautiful all year round, but especially in the summer.