El Fin

El Fin.

            As I’m writing this, I’m on the airplane, a little more than half way through an 8 hour flight from Madrid to New York. As you can imagine, I have a little bit of free time on my hands here so I figured I’d write my final post now and post it during my five hour layover until I finally get to Boston! But, for some reason I couldn’t get wifi at the NY airport…so now I’m posting this after finally getting home. 25 straight hours of traveling including taxi, buses, walking, and two flights is absolutely exhausting and I think I’ll need to sleep for about 7 days straight once I’m home. Pretty sure my hand/arm/legs/butt have all fallen asleep at some point and I still have 3 hours left and I’m about to skydive home rather than stay in this little cubicle seat any longer…

            With a 6 hour bus ride before, and now this flight (that never seems to END….) I’ve had a lot of time to think about this amazing experience as it’s coming to an end. It’s impossible to pinpoint every perfect moment in the past 105 days, because there were too many. But, after thinking about everything, I’ve decided that I’ve learned 3 huge lessons while I’m here, and they’re what I’m going to take away the most from study abroad.

3.) BRING A NECK PILLOW WITH YOU NEXT TIME YOU GO ON A LONG TRIP. Probably wasn’t the huge life lesson you were expecting me to say, but this one was a brutal lesson to learn. I almost borrowed my boyfriend’s before I left, and decided I’d probably be fine without it. NOPE WRONG. Flights, bus rides, and waiting are extremely uncomfortable, no matter how long or short they are. Like I said traveling was sooooo so draining with the planning and the execution no matter where I was going, and the least I could’ve done was treat myself with a little pillow to rest on while it’s going on. Will I have permanent neck damage from twisting my head in weird positions against every window/seat I’ve traveled on during this trip? Time will tell. Bring something comfy…you won’t regret it.

2.) PICTURES DO NOTHING JUSTICE.

I have seen some of the most beautiful scenery, places, and people over the past three and a half months that I’ve ever seen in my whole life. But, most of the time, trying to capture it is pointless because its beauty is so unexplainable in real life and a picture really can’t show how perfect it is. I did take a good amount of pictures while abroad, because I want to remember what I got a chance to see, and they all came out great. However, not a single one compares to the memory of the actual place. It’s like going to a concert; spending the entire time trying to videotape/record the singer or band is cool after when you have something to see, but putting away the iPhone or camera and just simply enjoying the music without any distractions is so much better. It’s the exact same thing with taking pictures of travels. Seeing the world through a lens isn’t necessary when you can put it away and see it with both eyes and take it all in fully! Take a few pictures, but don’t be glued to the screen and miss out on what’s actually in front of you.

3.) GO.

 Literally. If you have a place you want to see in your life, make it happen. Money is money and time is time…if either of those are stopping you from exploring the world then change it! I was terrified leaving for abroad; it was extremely out of my comfort zone, especially going with a program where I knew no one. It’s exactly what I needed. I’d always wanted to go to Europe and in the past 105 days I’ve gotten to see Spain, Morocco, England, France, Italy and Portugal. Life honestly couldn’t have gotten any better, and I thank God every day for giving me the chance to see all those amazing places. I know I need to go back to Sevilla again one day for sure, because it’s permanently a huge part of my life now. I made a list on a bus ride back to Sevilla after a trip, and wrote down every single country I want to go see. If I don’t put in the effort and really try, it won’t happen. Don’t let excuses or fear stop you from experiencing the culture of the world, because I truly believe there is nothing more important than realizing that America isn’t the only type of culture there is, and every one of them is beautiful in their own way.

I’m going to miss all the people I’ve met along the way, and it scares me a little that this has ended so quickly. However, it has made me appreciate America and my life in New Hampshire more than I ever have in my whole life. I LOVE YOU ALL! If you’ve kept up with the blog this whole time, you’re awesome and I’m happy I got to share my experience with you. I’m hoping to make an iMovie collage eventually so everything is all in one spot. Once this flight ends in 10 years hopefully my legs will work again and I’ll be able to see everyone soon :)

Para la última vez, gracias por leer, mis amigos. Nunca olvidaré este año. Sevilla, no me ha dejado. Hasta nos vemos,

~Mollie, Molly, Mali, Male, Mely, Meli, Moley:)

Agridulce

Agridulce. 
I'd bet anything that this isn't the right context for that word in Spanish, which means bittersweet. But, I think it's pretty and it's exactly the right word in English to describe my situation.
I'm sitting outside at a café and this is my last blog post I'll write in Spain. Just ordered espressso with ice for the last time (hallelujah...I'm so excited for regular coffee again), and the last time I'll have to attempt to pour the burning coffee into the ice cup only to spill it all over the table and burn my hand. Gonna miss moments like these!! Seriously though it's the stupid little things like that make this experience what it's been and I love all of them. It's honestly unreal that I've been here for 103 days. But, I'm listening to my summer playlist as I write this and it makes me so excited to be home in two days, even though I'm really sad to leave at the same time.

Since I last wrote, I've finished finals, gone to Portugal, and gotten to experience La Feria in Sevilla.
Lagos was absolutely beautiful, and the BEST way to ever celebrate the end of school. Three days on the beach with my friends and literally no worry in world; can't get better than that.

I finished finals on April 30th, and have just been hanging out until I leave tomorrow night. My program wanted to give us the chance to experience La Feria de abril so they let us stay an extra week, because it's something really culturally important to Sevilla. (It's pronounced "La FEH-ree-a", and Brendan has been pronouncing it "Fur-EE-ah" just to piss me off so I'm setting the record straight for everyone so you're correctly educated. DON'T LISTEN TO BRENDAN.) I'm so glad they let us stay because it's one of the coolest things I've ever gotten a chance to be a part of. It's pretty much a week long party, where everyone goes to drink Rebujito (chamomile sherry mixed with 7-UP...surprisingly not bad), dress up in beautiful flamenco dresses, and dance Sevillana all day/night long.

There are hundreds of "casetas" set up in rows, which are individual tents where families or companies host their own private parties all week. Walking by there at night is something you have to do in your life. Each one is decorated differently, with chandeliers, plants, lanterns, etc. to give them their own personal style. They each have a different name too like beach/ski houses in America have. You can walk around for hours and just look in awe of how cool they all are, while the friends and family members of each one eat and drink and dance flamenco the whole time.

There are public casetas too, for the peasants like me. KIDDING I'm exaggerating. But they're for people who don't have connections to people who own private casetas, and they're just as awesome. I did get a chance to go into the Fútbol club private caseta last night, and it was so cool to see. But I felt super out of place in my sundress while all the girls were beautifully dressed in flamenco gowns, so I went back to the public tents. It's like Titantic where the upper elite deck is cool to be at but the lower barrack level is even better and more fun. Just kidding again....kind of....
They have free entrance and the bar at the back is decently priced, and filled with extremely happy people dancing up a storm on the stage. It's the best place to people watch and enjoy the real cultural experience, and it's unlike anything you could ever see in America. YOU HAVE TO SEE LA FERIA SOME TIME IF YOU GO TO SPAIN! It's been my favorite cultural immersion the whole time I've been here.

I'll have one more blog post, which I'm hoping to write during my four hour layover in New York on Friday, as a goodbye post after this amazing adventure. This shout out is for everyone back home: See you all very soon :)

Desde España, por la última vez, gracias por leer. Espero que ustedes lean mi última entrada como una conclusión de todo, y estoy triste que necesito terminar esta aventura tan increíble. Hasta viernes!

-Moll