The Final Days

I’m so unbelievably close to the end of Spain, and I can’t really wrap my mind around that fact. Maybe it’s because I spent two weeks in California for Christmas and then came back, but I feel like I’m again just going on a short trip home before returning to Madrid for another extended period of time. It hasn’t hit me that I’m truly leaving, but perhaps that’s for the better so I don’t spend my last few days wallowing in despair over leaving this amazing place.

I really wish I were a talented enough writer to successfully convey my love for this place. When I first arrived in Madrid in 2006, I wrote in my journal that I felt that I was happy and floaty and in love while walking around the city, and I still feel that almost every day.

Yes, I am looking forward to going back to California, and I’m extremely lucky to have such a great place and wonderful friends and family to return to, but, at the moment, it’s hard to get very excited when I’m living in this dream world. It definitely helps knowing that I can come back in a little over a year if I choose to do the Spanish Ministry of Education’s Cultural Ambassador Program.

Madrid has been even better than ever these past few weeks. The cold has finally gone away (though we’re still getting a lot of rain), I survived finals, which weren’t bad, I’ve been doing some more traveling, my mom and sister came to visit this week, and I’ve been having a lot of good times with friends.

The World Cup has been really fun to watch in a country that’s so passionate about fútbol, though, unfortunately, I’ve had to miss Spain’s three games so far due to an exam, traveling, and a wedding reception. But they play Portugal in the round of 16 on Tuesday night, so I’m super excited to go to a bar to watch that.

If I don’t write again before I leave, see you in California!