Something is new in the state of Denmark

Beware! This post is going to be extremely self-centered. Feel free to skip it.

I have been mentally comparing this academic year with the last one. The thing is, since I failed the agrégation last year (I even hate saying it), I am doing it all over again, going to the (mostly) same classes, living in the same place, and so on. So nothing has changed much, really. And still, everything is different... Exam-wise I am more stressed out because it's the second attempt and there is more pressure, but I know what to expect, which helps a lot. Many of the students preparing for the exams are new, and some teachers were replaced by others. It's a blend of new and old faces inside the same picture.

There are a couple of persons I already knew, but whom I am getting to know better. I realize I have quite a hard time making friends. It takes me forever to trust someone enough to really bond with them. Or rather, only a very small number of persons can make me feel safe enough to go there. Last year it didn't happen once, and I felt very lonely. So I am amazed at how everything is/feels different now. I hope the persons I am getting to know better now will become real friends.
Only time can tell!

Here are my Christmas presents from Frank. He took them in Beijing: