Things I am Going to Miss in Spain:
-EVERYONE that I have met here...my host Mom, Isabel, all of her friends that I have met, everyone that worked at the fund, but probably Jose Luis the most!! Yuki, Miguel and all the reception guys! All of my friends that I have met as well from all over the world and sitting in the sala de estar and complaining about our classes in English and Jose Luis (the Spanish police) coming in and yelling at us every time. Also, Doctora Quintas and all my patients (Esperanza, Conchi, Margarita, Mauro, Angel, Ramon, Inma). Each one affected me in a different way, and I loved talking to all of them! I will be thinking about all of them each Monday. :) Also, Nuria and all the kids (Agnes, Agnes' sister--I forget her name!, Sofia, Danny, and Carlota). What a great group of kids! Hopefully we can keep in touch and they can speak fluent English to me in a few years.
-the beautiful scenery...no matter where you went! Also, every day was a new and exciting adventure!!
-the great character and old charm of the city! Even the doors are gorgeous! I am also going to miss the patios/courtyards that are in the center of almost every building here.
-the fresh fruit. I absolutely loved how we would eat fruit after every meal. I am arriving back to the states at a bad time for fresh fruit...
-all of the walking that I did and taking public transportation. Sometimes way more convenient than a car and it is just nice that public transportation is so abundant here and available for everyone to use.
-the laid back lifestyle. Not everyone is running around with their heads cut off hurrying to the next thing on their agenda that day.
-NO CLASS FRIDAYS!! And next semester at SNC I have 4 on Fridays. Uh oh.
-all the traveling I did! I have become good at reading a map..
-the mall, Luz del Tajo. Such a nice mall! I am also going to miss their fashion here A LOT!!
-the food. Although I am making a list of the American foods I am going to scarf down as soon as I arrive in the states. And I am excited for Kraft singles again and deli turkey.
-siestas!! Even though I hardly took advantage of that awesome part of the culture while I was here.
-the library in the Alcazar. I loved studying there...it actually made studying kind of bearable. The views were phenomenal and they had this great room with tons of tables to study and it was always quiet!
-the big blue track and the Park of Tres Culturas. Such an awesome (and flat!) place to run! I will also miss my maintenance friend guy and the people I would see there on a daily basis.
-the cathedral. What an amazing thing to walk by multiple times a day on the way back to my house. Each day I would see something new or look at it through a different perspective. Incredible, just incredible.
-sitting outside at a bar/restaurant under umbrellas and with heat lamps. so cozy!
-tapas and casual drinking. I feel like in the states the mind set is when you go out to drink you either can't drink or you have to get hammered. Here, in Spain, it is very typical to go out with friends and just sit and have a drink or two and eat tapas. A much more different mindset here.
-only being an hour bus ride away from a major city in Spain (Madrid).
-reading "Aqui" each week when my host Mom would bring it home for me. This is the magazine that she writes for!
-the weekly markets with everything you can imagine for sale!
-police directing traffic even when there is hardly any haha!
-la ruta de Don Quijote (the route of Don Quijote). Little did I know but I walked down the same roads Don Quijote did many times a day!! We lived right in the middle (almost) of his route.
-the fact that I have been living in a much "safer" culture for the past three months, with very little violence, etc.
-Spanish dulces (sweets)...they are to die for!!
Things I am NOT Going to Miss:
-the milk. It is much sweeter than ours and doesn't require refrigeration until opening. It is weird.
-Fake chocolate milk. I am sick of the fake stuff, Nesquik and Cola-Coau. This is not the same people!!
-the absence of bagels. No where to be found in Spain. It really is quite a shame!!
-Eating mystery meals quite often. I would ask my Mom what exactly I was eating and she would just reply with "carne" which means meat. But what EXACTLY am I eating...what TYPE of meat? I never knew...
-the cobblestone roads. Why yes they are a great part of history and by the end I did get used to walking on them, but they sure do hurt your shins and tear up the bottoms of your shoes!
-EVERYTHING being a hill. I told my Coach that I am going to be a hill expert when I get back after all the hills (and stairs! they sure do love their stairs too!) I climbed in Europe.
-their eating schedule. Eat a very small breakfast when you wake up, eat a huge lunch at 3 and then eat a small dinner at 9 or 9:30...with no snacking in between. WHAT?! I love my snacks.
-watching TV and not understanding all of it. I can't wait to watch TV in English again.
-trying to figure out the darn bus schedules here. I still don't think I've gotten it right!
-doors that shut really quickly behind you.
-there is only heat in my house for 8 hours a day, from 1pm-9pm. This is kind of dumb, in my opinion, because for a good portion of that 8 hours no one is even in the house. And there was no AC when I first arrived with the 90 degree temps. This one makes me sound like a spoiled brat...
-having to say a little prayer every time I got in the shower that hopefully we would have hot water that day.
-the fact that they don't have grass and when you do finally see some grass it is usually just turf...disappointment.
-not hearing anything about American football!! especially when the Pack attack are doing so great this season.
-the lack of pretzels and real JIF peanut butter
those darn cobblestone roads...my shins did hurt from those especially when we were traveling and walking everywhere!
ReplyDeletecan't wait to see you in a couple weeks!