Spain. You were where I went for my first study abroad experience in the Spring of 2017. It was my first time living out of the town I've always called home.
In the beginning I was afraid, but of course I would not show it to the people that were encouraging me to chase after my wildest dream. My yearning to understand the culture, the language, and all the little pieces that formed you made me drawn to you. And in the end, you ended up breaking my heart.
You made me stumble
In the beginning, understanding a new way of life was difficult. I was forced to use the language in a way I was never able to use it in my home town. I had to understand what times to eat, sleep, and that being late for class was acceptable.
I learned that staying out all night was a must and catching up with a professor by drinking a beer in the cafeteria was common. I walked through streets until I was sure I would be able to walk where I needed to in my sleep. You made me stumble A LOT, but I learned so many valuable lessons from those stumbling moments.
You made me think
My mind was constantly comparing everything between Spain and the United States. From the way I ordered food at a restaurant to how I dressed everyday when I went out in public. I learned that the people of Spain ALWAYS look their best and you only wear workout clothes when you are actually going to workout.
I was always thinking of questions to ask my new friends since we would sit for hours in the same place talking and enjoying each others company. Spain you always made me think, but that is how I started to conform to the ways of the Spanish lifestyle.
You changed me
As the months went by I would catch myself saying phrases and automatically understanding what to do in situations that arouse. Like knowing how to signal the bus driver to let me off the bus, learning that pre-parties started at 11pm, you did not go to the club until 2am, and even when your order a drink at a restaurant you have to pay to refill it.
All of the new habits I learned became automatic because you were changing me. You did change me. I was given a perspective that I would have never received if I would have not been willing to take the risk. The risk that provided me with lessons that will last forever.
I fell in love
This one was the hardest. You did not only make me fall in love with the people of Spain but with the group of individuals that came from around the world to satisfy the same yearning I had, to understand more about you. The people that I spent long nights dancing with, having multiple dinner parties with, and constantly having weird tan lines from going to the beach were the ones I fell in love with.
We hardly knew each other but it felt like we had known each other for years. I never felt alone because I always knew there would be someone there for me to share my moments with.
Man you made me fall, but I am happy you did.
I had to leave you
As the end of May came to a close, I knew that it was time for me to return to my home country. Saying goodbye to the people that I shared 5 months with was agony and I felt like my heart was breaking in two. But later on I realized that it was not breaking, but so many good memories filled it with love that it made leaving that much more difficult.
For those who wish to see Spain I encourage you to take the risk, because in return it will give you an adventure full of laughs, happiness, and love.
Time is like an ending of a novel, it eventually comes to an end. But, memories are the things that make that time ever lasting.
Till I return.
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