Bittersweet Goodbyes!

So I'm sure many of you are wondering why I'm heading back to Madrid since I had already been..... Well I am heading to the Madrid airport to then depart to the US! I am so excited to be with my loved ones and take care of some unforeseen circumstances. Stephanie and Sadie decided to join me to see me off and stay for a couple of days. It was a 7 hour bus ride from Barcelona to Madrid and we arrived to the metro station. The girls were heading on line 5 and I was headed to the airport on line 8. Then it was time to separate. This was literally the hardest part of it all. The girls have been such a big part of my experience and I've spent countless hours with them it was slightly surreal going separate ways. You don't expect to get this close to strangers but I love these girls like I've known them my entire life. I've had ups and downs, family and friend issues and homesickness and these girls have been there for me through it all. I couldn't imagine this experience without them.

Stephanie :

From the moment you introduced yourself I knew we would get along. You have been such a great friend to me through this experience and I can't thank you enough. We have shared so much together and gotten so close I couldn't have made it through Alicante without you! Even introduced me to Nutella! Your creative and free spirit inspires me so much and I know we will be friends forever. You're truly a unique and beautiful soul..... 😘😘

Sadie:

Oooooo Sadie what can I possibly say about you. You have the biggest heart in the world and you're a sweetheart. Since day one when you walked in after your traumatic airport experience in tears laughing at yourself I've loved you since. You've showed me to find the good in all people and that as much as you may dislike someone to find what makes them sparkle ⭐.From hearing about your sad Sadie stories, vining, kevin, daily CNN updates and watching every parade possible out of your window these memories will stay with me always. As crazy as you are, you're an amazing, smart and beautiful person inside and out. I've never met anyone like you and probably never will. ILYYYYYYYY ❤❤❤❤😍😘

The train door closed and the three of us crying like babies is when it really hit me that i would be returning home. It was like a movie scene. You both have been so influential in my life. God brings people in to your life for a reason and I truly believe we were meant to meet. I never thought after 6 weeks I would get as close as I have with you two but I am blessed to have met you both. I love you girls with all my heart and i know we will meet again someday. 

Love my girls 

My experience abroad has truly been life changing. I have learned so much about myself , others and an entire new culture. As I board my plane all of my memories are flashing through my mind and I wouldn't have changed my experience one bit. I never expected traveling to change my life this way but it really has. I view life in a completely different perspective and have had the experience of a lifetime. I had some of the best professors I've ever had, amazing new friends, and seen some of the most beautiful places in the world. 

Lessons:

- Life is too short to worry about things that we have no control over

- People will come and they will go never put anyone on a pedestal

- don't sweat the small stuff 

- You create your own happiness

- You can never judge a book by its cover

- there's something beautiful about uncertainty

- we all come from different walks of life, one is not better than the other 

- everything happens for a reason

- take a leap of faith

- experience it all! Eat the food, speak the language, and try everything at least once

- worry only about today - morocco

- see the beauty in everyone - Sadie

- be creative, unique and don't care - Stephanie 

- Worry about yourself - Alejandra 

- just smile and live your life and everything else will fall into place

Returning home ✈

My life will never be the same again, I will never be the same again. España you have made me a new person. You have not seen the last of me!

Muchísimo gracias! 

Besos 😘😘😍😍

Barcelona

The girls and I embark on another adventure in Barcelona! We literally finished finals and dashed over to our apartment packed and headed to the train station. The 5-hour train ride was average, nothing major and I say next to Jenny another girls from our program from Chicago. We arrived in Barcelona then jumped onto the Metro (tram) over to the hostel. I've become quite the navigator while in Europe which will surprise my mother. But when your lost and mom is no where in sight, you just have to figure it out yourself. We arrived at Yellow Nest Hostel and I forgot to mention that tho trip was last minute! So yes, a group of 6 girls headed to Barcelona with no tickets and no reservations! If you know anything about me you know that I am a bit OCD and always need a set itinerary wherever I go. But I've learned that being spontaneous and sometimes just heading out and laying your head wherever you can is actually fun. Yellow Nest Hostel was really nice and was full of young adults mainly students studying. We were all separated by twos and I was paired with Rachel. Rachel and I headed to room A and had 4 Mexican guys and a French girls as Roomates. One of the Roomates Victor was a 28 year old student completing his masters in micro bionics Engineering over in Germany. We all started up all night and exchange stories about Mexico, the US and France. They have all spent time in the US and surprisingly missed all of the fast food options, Taco Bell, chipotle , in and out , and Wendy's. The rest of the guys showed up after a night of partying but I was so tired I didn't hear a thing at 3 AM but woke up to a room full of Latino Men. Lol 

Party Animals! 

Since we had no prior planning the hostel was hostel had no availability for the next night but had room in another hostel called Garden Hostel. We headed back to the Metro and headed to our new home. Garden Hostel is located in a more residential area and is so adorable! We were greeted by Felipe at the front desk and he was such a great help. We were assigned our rooms and went to unpack and rest. 

Pin where your from! I was the only visitor from Cleveland or Toledo! 

Leave your mark.

Sitting area. 

We got settled in and decided to go exploring again and visit the famous parque de Guell. Before leaving Felipe was kind enough to supply us with a map that he personally highlighted sights we might want to see with notes of which  train to take and tips. He is such a blessing!  The park was absolutely gorgeous and huge! It was filled with flowers and beautiful gardens. The casa de Gaudi an amazing architect that I became recently obsessed  with. His work is amazing and was filled with different buildings of his work in the park.

We wanted to look like a couple! Lol

Next we went exploring, got lost and ended up at La Sagrada Familia another work if Gaudi. If you are ever in Barcelona it is a MUST see!  

Beautiful even under construction! 

We did a bit more sight seeing and headed to Las Ramblas shopping area before heading back to the hostel. We we even randomly ran into the Barcelona Pride parade!

Awesome parade! Spain was actually the 2nd country in the world to legalize Gay Marriage in 2004! 

We arrived back at the hostel right in time for the hostel BBQ! We sat in the garden ate great food and chatted with fellow travelers. This is probably my favorite part of traveling, meeting new people from all walks of life and exchanging experiences. I met a medical student from Georgetown in DC and told him how much I loved DC especially after staying with a friend of my mother's in Arlington for the inauguration. He asked me the name and I said Tony Baca he's an ER doctor and the kid was like "what you know Tony Baca, he's an awesome physician!  And I hope to shadowing him soon!" What a small world! After takin for awhile the girls and I decided to shower and head out for the night! In Barcelona the best nightclubs are near the pier. We decided to check out this club and here is where the adventure begins! After a sufficient amount of drinks we were dancing , losing an earring and meeting tons of people and having a great time we decided at 4 am (which is considered going home early) it was time to go home. Over by the train station we met Pol and Vicente two very attractive Spanish guys around our age who we all instantly became friends with. Surprisingly we ran into Grace and Alyssa two other girls from the Alicante program.  We wanted to keep the night going so the guys invited us to some pubs where more locals would be. Yes, I know Melanie don't go off with random strangers but hey I was in Barcelona and decided to take a chance! We went to a private party, hung out with the guys and the headed to the beach / pier and had some great conversations. Pol is a recent graduate and working as an aircraft Engineer for Iberia Airlines and Vicente was a international business graduate who just recently started a new program. These guys were so nice and not creepy! The genuinely wanted to show us a good time and show us the city. By the time we noticed it was 7:00 am and the sun was coming up, the guys walked us over to the train station and gave us directions home as they went on their own train home. We exchanged Facebook information to keep in contact! I was so excited to go to bed! 

The next morning Stephanie, Sadie and I check out of the hostel and purchased bus tickets to Madrid. We explored more of Barcelona and had a blast. These two girls and I have become amazing friends and I really have grown to love them. We ended up accidentally running into Casa Batllo another amazing Gaudi building and the Cathedral! 

Casa de Battlo! 

Cathedral

Unbelievable! 

Stephanie, Sadie and I literally had a blast here! We sat on a bench and people watched for over an hour and the things we saw were funny to say the least. Europeans are interesting creatures!  We met up with Bridget and Kara my two favorite Iowa girls for some Vino. Then it was time to head back to the hostel, grab our luggage and head to the bus station and next stop was Madrid! Barcelona was  blast and the sights are beautiful! A must see tourist area! 

Dora with her map! This map was my lifesaver the entire weekend!