On the other side...

So apparently more people have been reading my blog than I thought :) Its a wonderful realization, and its been quite a few weeks since my last post. like many other people who have blogs, i found myself at a loss of what to say... when you experience so many new things everyday for a weeks straight, its hard to filter not only which treasures to share, but how to adequately share them so that your reader may get the closest resemblance to your experience- how it tastes, it smells, how you feel, and what thoughts raced through your mind at the moment. it can be a very daunting task, therefore, i found myself simply taking it all in in the moment, only to share with you all, in hind sight, the new, the beautiful, and the ugly.

Feeling the rhythm of spain in a flamenco dance class!

Kissing a crawfish as I get a taste of Spanish paella.

Enjoying the scents of Espana w/its beautiful magnolia blossoms.

my ending time in madrid, spain was a very bittersweet time. like most people who dont normally live together, or those that do ;), the bitter came in appearances of readiness on all my roomates part to return home and go our separate "living" ways. i couldnt have asked for greater roomates during this month abroad, we've done and experienced so much together. we were each others family while we were gone and God really blessed me with caring, respecting, and funny new friends :) in the end, though, it was time for us to return to our own homes and rest properly :)

Cheering my 25th birthday with champange filled chocolates! :)

Adam and Jason embarking on a paella-eating feast. Paella is a common spanish dish similar to our jumbelia (sp?). Rice, seafood, spices. Muy delicioso!



i also found myself joining fellow classmates at our favorite restaurant/bar called El Santo. a nice cozy sized bar, this place was not only classy and beautifully decorated with the celebrated theme of "Los Torros", including pictures and articles of bull fighters and the like, but it also hosted some of the most memorible people of my entire month in spain. Mounir and Pedro worked as a bartender and owner of El Santo and fell in love with our group as we fell in love with them. We shared drinks together, laughs, talks, smiles, and love as we rested there with them throughout the weeks after class. Mouni made a mean "tinto verano" (summer wine) and it proved to be the most refreshing drink of the summer of '07 for this chica. ;) They commented on the friendliness and sweetness of our group, and that us coming in to visit them was a treat. It was a treat for us indeed, to find a home and some friends in a foreign land where we are so far away. Gifts from the heart were exchanged and wishes to visit each other again were expressed. I am deeply thankful for gifts of friends like Mounir and Pedro. :)

Adam, me, Pedro, Nikki , and Mounir chillin on our last night there. :(

Liz and I toasting to her first taste of fresh sardines. yummmm!



i also must mention other Spanish friends who helped to make my experience in Spain wonderful. The hostess with the mostest who went above and beyond to take care of our group was miss Marisol and my friend Salvador, who toured with us, had fun with us, and took my friends and i for a fabulous bike ride around Parque Retiro en madrid on my birthday (one of the highlights of my trip!). my new friend Claudio is another person i am thankful i met. we practiced spanish/english together and he wasnt easy on me when it came to practicing. i got so agrivated at times b/c he made me talk in spanish... but now im thankful for it :) although i enjoyed the city and the beautiful country of spain, it was the people whom i lived and journeyed with that made me love spain. again, i am extremely thankful for this. :)

Beautiful Marisol and mi profesor Oscar Cabrera.

Mi amigo Claudio y yo enjoying a refreshing pineapple juice! :)

lastly, but certainly, not least, my school (studies and classmates) were the driving force within my trip. they were a source of inspiration, encouragement that was found in class and through studying, a source of challenge, as we are all from such different worldviews, and kinship, and we traveled, struggled to speak the language, experienced museums and met new people together. i've loved getting to know everyone, especially my professors, senor cabrera and senor powell, a little bit better. each person is different in their own way, each has something different to contribute, and each has a thumbprint on my life that i am so thankful for.

Most of our group over at our apartment for my birthday :)