Hasta luego España...

Hola amigos! So after my time in Barcelona, it was time to prepare for finals! I studied and studied and studied some more! Which partly explains why these blog posts are so delayed. Obviously I was determined to do well in my classes! My Art and Architecture professor kept telling me to have faith in her--I was in her office hours every chance I got! I think the stress of finals or perhaps the lack of sleep in Barcelona contributed to me getting sick...so that wasn't fun...but after my finals were over, I recovered! I received my report card and found out I got As in both my classes! I was so proud of myself and truly feel as though I learned so incredibly much about topics I had never learned about before! I didn't know a single thing about Spanish architecture...and I knew very little about Spanish art and 20th century literature...but I now have so much confidence with these subjects! Needless to say, I was feeling pretty great!

In celebration we went to La Piedra for the last time. As a reminder, La Piedra is a huge rock outside the walls of Toledo. We hiked up once again, watched the sunset, and reflected on our time here in Spain...it was absolutely beautiful. I began to realize that while I would miss Spain, I would miss my newfound friends the most. Without my friends, this experience would not have been the same. I feel so lucky to have met such special people. They truly opened up to me...they shared some hard times they experienced in the past...told me about their families...told me about their friends...and simply let me into their lives. They taught me so much about life...they inspire me to be a better person...to be confident just being myself...and to appreciate the little moments. Our time on top of La Piedra will truly never be forgotten...NEVER.

On top of La Piedra! One of the most breathtaking views
I've ever laid eyes on!

And we're the luckiest people in the world!

The next day Paula, my host sister, painted my nails and accompanied me to my hair appointment! While I was a little nervous, I was determined to go out on a limb and get it cut! I mean, it'll grow back, right?! So I brought in a picture for the hairdresser, but my hair didn't quite turn out like the picture. In fact, it was a little lop-sided. I asked her to fix it and of course she did. We then walked out and I checked it out in the mirror at my host family's house. I wasn't a big fan at first, but thankfully my friends were very supportive and complimentary! They made me feel a lot better about it, and now I've grown to like it more! Overall I'm glad I tried something new and got my hair cut in Spain!

Paula and me!

Then it was time to get ready for the graduation ceremony! Paula and my host mom went with me, although my host dad drove us. I was surprised to find out that they drive a Range Rover! The streets we drove on to get to the university were so narrow, that the mirrors of the car scraped against the city's walls...and my host family didn't even seem to mind!

Lookin' good!

When we arrived at the university (after somewhat of a scary car ride), Paula told me she was nervous to meet my friends. She was so cute and hanging all over me! Perhaps she finally realized that it was my last day there, and for that reason, she was extra nice! Haha!

All cute before the ceremony!

I got my diploma, baby! 

After the ceremony, we had refreshments and I walked around saying my goodbyes! I especially wanted to thank both of my professors and the director of the program, Yuki! I wrote them all letters expressing my appreciation! Profesora Fernández, my professor for Spanish Art and Architecture, is the most passionate and energetic Spanish professor I've ever had! She made learning fun and really taught me a lot! Profesor Fuentes is also very passionate--while his class was a bit more challenging, I definitely improved and enjoyed it! And Yuki supported me from the moment I arrived in Spain! She checked in on me every so often, and then ended up taking me to my lovely doctor's appointments! I truly appreciate her!!!

Profesora Fernández!

Profesor Fuentes y Paula!

Gotta love Yuki!

Of course I had to thank my host mom as well! She was very generous and supportive throughout my 6 weeks in Spain. I wrote her a letter and gave her a beautiful butterfly magnet I got from Barcelona--she collects magnets and puts them all over her fridge! Interestingly enough, she gave me a Toledo magnet! Great minds think alike! And then I gave Paula a Violeta bracelet--her favorite Disney channel star!

Mi madre española y hermana española!

So as hard as it was to believe...it was our last night in Spain...and my host mom told me to go out and stay out! We had to be at the Toledo bus station at 5:45am, so she said to just stay out all night! She explained that it's bad to get only a couple hours of sleep so I might as well just sleep on the plane. I had to listen to my mother of course, so we went out! I got back around 4am, made sure I had everything packed, called my boyfriend and parents, and then we left for the airport! My host mom got up just before I left and said goodbye. Paula was so groggy...she didn't even know I was leaving! It all happened so fast. It was very anticlimactic! I felt incredibly numb. I thought I was supposed to be sad to leave Spain, but I couldn't have been happier! I missed my family and friends so very much...I missed America in general so much. I knew I would miss my new friends who all went to different universities, but I was excited to get back to my normal way of life. I felt so very fortunate to have lived in Spain for 6 weeks, but it was extremely difficult for me to reflect on my experience at the time. All I could think about was getting home to see my family--not too much else was on my mind! But in an effort to recount my experience, I wrote letters to my friends and we promised to see each other again someday. For some reason it felt like I was breaking up with them! I already miss 'em so much! Thankfully my good and new friend Sarah was flying back to Ohio--and we were on the same flight! It helped to be with her during this time of mixed emotions!

Adiós España! I hope to see you again
someday!

After a very long flight (that I slept through thankfully!) we finally landed in America! I couldn't help but shed some tears! I was so thankful to be back! I couldn't wait to see my family! Sarah and I navigated Customs and Chicago O'Hare beautifully! While the Customs officer interrogated me with a couple basic questions (Where were you? How long were you there? Why were you there? Where were you born?), it all went smoothly. I must say though, I can't imagine how nervewrecking it would be if I were not an American citizen. I mean, I was nervous to answer just these basic questions! But before long I was on my flight to Cleveland Hopkins! We had a ton of turbulence...it was pretty scary going through the storms. I heard there were even several tornado warnings in the area. But I thankfully met a girl who was just at a Dance Marathon conference in Chicago--she was sitting right next to me and we talked a ton about BuckeyeThon and the DM at her university. She made the flight much less scary!

Eventually we landed safely and I walked off the plane and through the airport. Then I saw my family standing right next to baggage claim! I hugged them and was simply so grateful to see them! As I turned the corner I saw Chris, my boyfriend. He told me that he wouldn't be able to come to the airport because he had class early the next day--he's taking summer classes at OSU and I of course live a little over 2 hours away from campus. I knew it would have been hard for him to make it with his class schedule, but I was so glad to see him! I missed him so much! It was such a nice surprise!

So now that it's been two weeks since I returned to America, I've had some time to wind down and get back to the swing of things. Overall my time in Spain has helped me become more independent and confident. Not only am I more confident about my Spanish skills, but I am more confident about who I am as a person and what I am capable of doing. I realized how much I appreciate the people I love...and how much I need those people in my life. I realized how lucky I am to live in America but at the same time how lucky I am to have had the opportunity to experience a different culture. The Spanish culture has taught me to "go with the flow" more often and to take some time for a "siesta." More than that, I now have a much greater appreciation for America, Ohio, and Stow, my hometown. I have a new sense of adventure and now want to take advantage of any opportunity to explore my surroundings--even if that means traveling to different places in Ohio! Beyond that, I am so very grateful for air conditioning...American food...ice in my drinks...boy I could go on forever! But the main emotion I feel is gratitude. I'd especially like to thank all who made this trip possible. Thank you to everyone who has supported me in this endeavor. And thank you to all of the friends, professors, directors, and many other people who made this an experience of a lifetime!

THANK YOU!

So with that, instead of saying adiós--it's hasta luego! I'll reunite with my friends sometime down the road and I'll be back to Spain in the future!