It's time to say goodbye!

Last night was a fabulous night in Madrid! I went to dinner with Emily and her sweet family! It was so nice to meet them (officially.) I felt like I knew them already because of our skype conversations, but it was so exciting to have her family here! I was greeted with smiles and hugs! We had great tapas at a cave restaurant next to where we ate one of our first nights in Madrid (the first time.) We had the usual Tortilla Espanola, pimientos, croquetas and of course bread and churizo. It was delicious! We tried to get nun cookies after but they were already closed up for the day. I’ll be attempting again today! We walked around the city and visited the bullfighting ring in Ventas. We wanted to see our madre in Quintana where we lived in Madrid but for some reason, she decided to go out on the town! Our sweet madre never left when we were there but the one time we wanted to see her she wasn’t at home! It was fine though, because we went to our usual café and saw our friends that work there. They had missed us! We were greeted with smiles and ice cream… couldn’t have asked for a better night!

My last day in Spain is practically over! It started off well… I suppose. I accidently slept through breakfast, but that’s okay! Sleeping in was nice. We went to lunch at VIPS, and by we I mean all of us except Emily! This separation anxiety thing is just not working out for me! No worries, I saw her a little later… now I’m getting ahead of myself. After lunch, Taylor, Molly and I went to Retiro Park. It was so nice having today to hang out there for a little bit. We went to the rose garden, the lake where I had lunch everyday, and ate our popsicles in the shade. It was a little toasty outside, I’m feeling the consequences now but it was worth it. After Retiro we ventured back to the hotel for our last Spanish siesta! As soon as we woke up it was practically time for dinner at the hotel! Then, I met Emily and her family to say our goodbyes! I know you will be surprised, BUT I didn’t cry. Perhaps that will come tomorrow. It’s bittersweet. I love Spain and I have a new respect for this culture. This has been my home for the last 2 months… But, I feel accomplished and my time here is done. I have no regrets, new friends, and priceless memories.

All the packing is done, and my clothes are laid out for tomorrow morning. We are leaving the hotel at 7:30 in the morning so we will be getting an early start! I’m so excited now that I don’t even know if I will be able to sleep tonight. Our flight leaves around 11:30 in the morning my time…, which is 4/5:30 at home so I’ll be arriving in the land of sweet tea and BBQ around 5:30 pm with a smile on my face!

I can’t believe it’s time to say goodbye to Spain, what an adventure this has been. Spain, you’ve been so great to me, you’ve taught me so much, but it’s time for me to go home. Hasta luego : )