I am no longer a kid anymore.... so sad, so sad

Hello all, this might be the last blog for this adventure from Huelva, and I am just going to warn everyone that this might be long, somewhat boring, and randomly written. So if you insist on reading I advise get some popcorn or gomitas (if my addiction has contaminated you) and see how I try to summarize my time here.

As my days are winding down here in Huelva, Spain I have really started to think how fast time flies. For me the first few months were horrible and I really questioned whether this was a good decision. Now that I look back on the cold days in our piso and the hard time getting the stupid thing called the NIE and all the hardships that we encountered our first few months it all seems as if it was some other time in my life.... some time years ago, not only months ago. Itś difficult to describe how much this city and this country has become a part of me. I honestly cannot remember what it is like to live in Seattle, although I was just there 3 months ago. I cannot imagine myself waking up and not walking down Roque Barcia hearing ¨buenos dias" o "que hay". For the last 8 months this country has become my home, and I must admit that although I have complained and said some bad things about this place, it has left a great impression on me, and I will really miss being here, and the life that I have here.
When I leave here and return to Seattle, I´m going to miss many things but to save you guys from falling asleep I´ll keep the list and explanations short: I will miss

1. the pace of life... Never in my life have I felt more free to do absolutely nothing. At first it was weird and I felt bad about it, but it is what Spanish life is about... relaxation. When I am stressed out with school and a hectic schedule I will probably slip back and daydream about my times on the pier and the plaza enjoying life.

2. the chance to practice the language... Although English will always be my first language, i will definitely miss having the opportunity to use Spanish and hearing it all around. i know it´s going to be very different when i hear the TV in English all the time. Being forced to speak Spanish has reminded me why I fell in love with this language in the first place, and how the language is what brought me to Spain.

3. living cheaply... no longer will i be able to buy things so cheaply... gone will be the cheap good fruit and the gomitas... I really don´t know if i´m going to survive... but luckily I have my mom to help me out with that.

4. padel... what a shame we discovered this game so late... although I´m not going to front and say that I´m good at it... but I guess trying counts for something when I´m playing with a person who grew up with a racket in her hand... I guess you can´t really play padel with just your hand right? If i ever come back to Spain i would definitely pick up padel and they should also bring it to the states, it is probably one of the greatest games out... so fun. I have to admit I must work on the whole finess thing.

5. getting into places for free... soccer games, basketball games, clubs (although we don´t go to them often), it´s so nice to not have to pay for entrance fees to these things, because it´s a small town or we have nice friends that get us in.

6. the people i have met along the way... although we have not mad a ton of friends, the ones we have made have been great friends who have helped us adapt to Spanish life, and I will miss them dearly.

-Juanjo and Manolo or intercambios turned padel playing partners. I will miss our times together talking about random topics but usually converging to one in particular (which I will not name..) I don´t think i´ve ever thought i´d be friends with librarians but I´m going to go ahead and give Juanjo and Manolo the "my favorite librarians" title.

-Concha and Family. This family has become my family away from home. Concha is the mom that feeds me, and makes sure that I´m ok. I´m going to miss our weekly conversations and coming over to her amazing house. i will miss Jose´s nice funny remarks and the way that he reminds me of my real father. It will be hard to say goodbye to Maria and our weekly classes. I feel as if she has truly learned something. She is so bright and i know that with time she will definitely be able to speak English, probably better than me. She has become like a sister to me, taking the place of my younger sister while I´m here.

- Nia, my great co-worker. I will never be able to go drink coffee with anyone but you. Who will listen to me as i complain about the kids and how they are going to be the end of me? I will miss our weekend adventures and our crazy conversations. But I guess you only live on the other side of the country. We´ll see each other soon right? Remember change your status if something happens. :)

As for the things I look forward to... the list goes on forever, however, mainly I'm looking forward to seeing my family and my friends. My mom's incredible food, sitting in my room and being surrounded by my own things, and feeling as if I'm not living out of a suitcase. I would really like to look forward to an American guy who has that swagger, that the Spanish men are missing, who's tall, and has a frame that doesn't look ridiculous, and of course who speaks my language. :)

My job this year has taught me many things, however the biggest is that I love children. There have been times they drove me to the brink however I am going to miss my students... especially Pablo, who's sooo cute, and the biggest Betis fan and who is going to be a mathematician when he grows up. I will miss them saying hi to me everyday and their energy. Their outlook on life reminds me to try to be optimistic and to live life without fear of falling from a swing or tripping when trying to play soccer and that a kiss makes all wounds go away.
My year here has given me a new found respect for teachers... I bow down to all teachers and all that they do... but all I really know is I am meant to be a student, not a teacher. I have enjoyed some of my days at work, because the children can be very sweet and adorable, but I will not lie and say there hasn't been any hard days. In the end, there will always be fond memories along with bad ones... and I'm going to try and delete my memories of my first class on Tuesday morning ASAP!

This year has given me a lot of time to think about myself and what I want to do with my life. I have truly missed school and being apart of a University atmosphere, I miss my backpack and my pencil pouch... I know that is nerdy, but I am looking forward to hopefully going back to that. Being so far away from home has taught me that I can make it on my own... I do have discpline when it comes to saying no to nice shoes, that might come as a shock for people, but I am very proud of the way I've grown as a person. I now cook, clean and do everything necessary to live on my own, and I think my mom would be proud of me. I guess since I'm turning 23 soon... I'm not a kid anymore, although I really just want to go to recess all the time and play some dodge ball.

With my year of exploration almost behind me... I'm ready to return to my life, and start a new chapter, getting started on the goal I've had all my life. Although I'm leaving Spain at the end of this week, this may not be the end of my stay in Spain, I can see myself settling down here, but that is way down the line, once I've completed my dreams and my education... that gives me enough time to find a Spanish man to marry, someone who is tall and doesn't think I'm from China.

Before I go, I'd like to say that this year would definitely have not been the same without Ally with me. We have gone through a lot this year and I don't know if I would have survived without her. Spain would never be the same if we hadn't experienced it together because the memories are endless. Although we may be going separate ways next year, that doesn't mean the adventures of "la rubia y la morena" are going to end, we have future travels in the works. We would definitely make a great team on Amazing Race... so look out for us there. There may be many things about this trip that i cannot express fully to you guys at home, but I will always have Ally to understand me. So... Chica, thanks for learning to do the laundry, cook and wash dishes.. it has made being stuck with you 24/7 less awkward, and no one had to get hurt. Now we're off to Greece, and taking a 3 months separation because we've spent too much time together the last 9 months, but don't forget we have Text Twist Fridays. :)

Thanks everyone for reading and wanting to know about us. I hope you've enjoyed our adventures and as always I wished you guys had been here to experience them with us. Hasta pronto!!!!

Con carino,
ngoc :)