Terrific Tuesday.

Woke up to the noise of construction outside our window- and I mean loud construction. What a terrific Tuesday it already is- it will get better though I just hate the mornings and especially hate getting woken up by construction- its always something or has always been something on this trip- EVERY DAY. Our friend Joe- who was in the Hostel with us left today so a whole new crew is about to come in for tonight- this should be interesting. Oh and on a side note: Spaniards definitely don’t eat breakfast like we do- they say “free breakfast” in the hostels but then you get up to go get it and it’s like these weird cookie things and milk- not exactly my kind of breakfast.

Started the daily somewhat of a routine again with washing my face and brushing my teeth- I’m getting low on face wash though and THAT, THAT RIGHT THERE is not good at all. Looks like I might be playing connect the dots with myself if I don’t get some more real soon- two days til I get my luggage from the airport- if I can just make it two I’ll be golden. By the time the morning washing face/brushing teeth rituals were over it was well lunchtime. Long curly hair, don’t care- white shorts and a black tee- I was off to find me some lunch before we hit up the Barcelona bus tour!

I couldn’t exactly tell you where we ate lunch because there’s been so many places so far that they all start to run together but I can almost guarantee you it was somewhere with chicken or pasta. Lunch was decent I do remember that- and we got our workout in because finding the Barcelona bus tour activation booth was nowhere close to easy. A long day of touring the city was ahead and we couldn’t have been more excited. Only one problem- it was hotter than hell outside and we definitely got our fair share of sun on that bus, but it was totally worth being a “slight problem”.

If I could write all the details down there would be SO many. OHHH MYYY GAHDDD this was seriously the best investment I’ve put my money into all trip. Barcelona has SO much to see. The architecture here is absolutely breath taking. There’s so so so much everywhere, so many buildings, parks, cathedrals, monuments, statues, palaces, on and on. You buy this bus pass and you can get on and off of these tour buses throughout the day to see all the neat stuff if you wanted to. There’s 3 different routes and they take about 2.5 hours each to go around. It’s an all day kind of thing- Candra and I got on the bus at 2 and we didn’t get off until 845pm.

Two words:

Antoni Gaudí.

This man was straight genius. You may have heard about him before but if not he basically was a huge influence to the city of Barcelona today. He designed and created a surplus of buildings that are still standing. GENIUS. If you’re ever in Barcelona you have to go see the cathedral and visit his park, you will be blown away. Candra and I had the chance to stop by the cathedral- Sagrada Família- and the park- Park Güell- today. My camera died so thank goodness Candra had just enough juice left in hers to get some of the park pictures! The cathedral is one of the most visited places in Spain- and I had the chance to go inside it and even say a prayer- talk about a memorable moment. Every inch of that cathedral in inscribed with some kind of art in the walls or ceiling even floor- so much Catholicism to it its unbelievable- straight genius is the only way to describe it. And if that doesn’t make you love your faith all the more then I don’t know what does because that is full of God’s word- incredible.

Stopped by hard rock café for dinner after finally getting off that bus route- that was after we almost missed the bus to get home- we would. Ate a niceeeeee Texas BBQ burger, which brought a little bit of home to my mouth. It’s not exactly Spanish but it was there and we were hungry so we said whatever and stopped in. Candra and I were waiting in line just like everyone else for a seat outside when all of the sudden these two men just out of nowhere sit down at a table. The waitress I guess saw the look on our faces- whatever that look was- and made sure to let them know. After about 5 minutes of them being disrespectful to her, they get up and left. Kind of work out nicely because then the guy in front of us got seated there, and right after him not even 30 seconds later we got seated- YES.

Dinner was delicious and sorbet was even better on the way home. Once the destination of our hostel was reached, we hopped in the shower and got ready to meet some new people. You can always tell who speaks English and who doesn’t because when you walk down the street and people are handing out flyers –people as in they talk English- they spot you out like no other and give you this sort of respect that is just known- I don’t really know how to explain it but it makes sense, hopefully. Hung out with plenty of English speaking people tonight and made so many more new friends! Ended up going to Boulevard- which is a nice club- and danced the night away American style with Candra. Let me just tell you though- those short stack creeps- yeah the ones from the beach club last night- those creeps somehow someway ended up being at the same freaking place as us tonight. And what happened this time? They decided it would be a good idea to grab Candra again and pick her up this time and try to kiss her. I kept my cool- obviously- but I DID NOT like that and Candra will be the first to tell you haha. Needless to say- they got a few words out of me and Candra’s heart dropped for them haha I just thought it was funny that she would be scared for them. Looking back, its pretty hilarious- after their creepy selves left we got in a good laugh.

Met Arturo and Marc tonight as well. Arturo is from Guatemala but lives and studies in Barcelona- his brother actually studies in the states though- I thought that was pretty neat. Marc is our CRAZY FUNNY Canadian/Spaniard friend that is over in Spain for the summer visiting family and I think for water polo but is staying with Arturo in Barcelona for a couple of days. They went to school a couple years ago together and met because they were both athletes. Anyways long story short- we all had fun dancing together- but I’ve seriously got to learn how to dance Spanish style like salsa and flamenco and what not because I’m not exactly good at that yet haha.

After a long night and day for that matter I am finally going to sleep. Not sure what tomorrow is going to bring but it’s our last night in BARCELONA so it’s a must to make the most of it!

Life is without meaning. 
You bring the meaning to it. 
The meaning of life is whatever you ascribe it to be. 
Being alive is the meaning.
- Joseph Campbell

A 6 Euro cab ride.

A 6 Euro cab ride, arm full of luggage, train check in, and 3 hours later I am FINALLY in Barcelona! Was going to write my blog on the train but instead passed out from exhaustion. I feel like I’ve just been going, going, and going and I want to rest but then that thought of “when are you ever going to be in Spain again” goes through my head and I think to myself- well, I can always sleep later- I have the rest of my life to do that.

I’m not sure whether it will be 2 years, 10 years, or 50 until I come back but I would love to more than anything just live here for a couple years while I’m young. I think while we have so much energy and dreams and so much life ahead of us its good to experience different lifestyles and just get up and go. I’m not saying I’d want to live here forever but having a few years of cultural diversity under my belt would definitely be worth it.

They say traveling, and studying abroad, and doing things like this change your life- but you never believe it until you actually experience it. My life has been changed that’s for sure. Not that I’m any different as a physical person, but to say the least my knowledge and cultural enhancement has been ENHANCED.

Taking a step back and looking at the day- I woke up again, completely exhausted, and packed my stuff for the train ride to Barcelona. I swear- I should have listened to my professors when they said take half the stuff out of your suitcase when you pack it because you’re seriously not going to need it. Yeah, maybe I am going to need all this stuff in Seville but DANG, right now, carrying all this heavy crap with me to wherever we go is just a pain in the freaking butt. After carrying all of my stuff to the train station and successfully getting on the train, I got situated to write the rest of my blog and then passed out hardcore. This time, I was the one to take the nap instead of Candra and that’s a record. As we put all of our stuff away we received headphones to watch the movie but I jacked those suckers and listened to some good ol Dave’s again while I slept. Yes, pointless you can say to listen to music while you sleep because you really aren’t listening I know but Dave’s is always a good way to relax- even if you’re sleeping- plus it drowns out the noise.

Barcelona we arrived and a cab ride to our hostel was the first thing we did! UM HOLY CRAP, it is beyond crowded here. Successfully checked into our hostel, got our beds, and went out for the rest of the day. Side note: the streets in Barcelona smell so terrible. You feel like you just swam in an ocean of poop- literally- and of course they we’re fixing or draining some kind of sewer outside of our hostel- YUM. And on another side note: I’m not exactly used to living with 4 other people I’ve never met in my entire life- especially creepy ones for that matter- so staying in the hostel with 4 other people excluding Candra is a completely new experience to add to the list. It’s not half bad though, just completely a new experience as I said. Sat down for a nice lunch, ate some of the best pasta I’ve ever had in my entire life, tested out the white Sangria, and 58.97 Euros later we got the bill. This was the most expensive meal of the whole trip so far. How can a bowl of pasta with a drink and bread cost 58 euros?! That’s just straight crazy to me, but I guess that’s what we get for staying in the direct center of town where they know they can raise the prices because people will still pay to eat there.

After paying for our MOST EXPENSIVE MEAL this entire trip, Candra and I went for a little adventure to find our favorite store- El Corte Ingles. Had to get some new hairspray and what not because you know Candra so casually dropped hers down 4 stories haha. You can seriously find anything and everything in these- It’s like Macy’s on roids. 

Went on with our day, tested out the ice cream- or sorbet for me- and it was delicious as usual. I really need to stop eating it, I’m gonna gain like 20 pounds by the end- which is NOT going to happen but you get the point. Came home to the hostel to change and then out to dinner. In the midst of that- took a quick nap, skyped, and facebook creeped. Went out for dinner, met two guys and a girl- who are beautiful- that came to Barcelona on a surfing trip and just decided to stay and never go back- LEGIT. I love that. I think its so great to just LIVE- like who would really do that- hardly no one- but if you have enough ambition, guts, and love it’s perfect. SO GONNA DO IT- WATCH. Met some more people- who gave us a free ticket to get into Opiummar which is an EXTREMELY nice club on the beach that costs 20 euros alone to get in- that’s expensive. Too bad by the time we got ready, and took a cab there, they wouldn’t let us in. But you know, being the people Candra and I are, we went to the other side, met the bouncer not on duty tonight, and got the hookup. Didn’t have to pay at all to get into TWO clubs- it was real fun. Real interesting guy- first his name was Check- that’s interesting and second he was from Paris but lived in Barcelona to work- that’s even better. Candra and I pretty much had our own body guard all night long- I felt like an important person. On a side note: I really don’t like when little short stack creeps that I’m like twice their size grab Candra and try to pick her up and take pictures with her because of her blonde hair- like who does that freaks? All I’m saying is they better check their selves or I’ll do the honors of wreckin- no joke.

And if you didn’t already know- can I just tell you how much I ABSOLUTELY LOVE dancing and music? Because I absolutely love it. I’m not sure why or how I love it so much but it’s probably my favorite thing to do- maybe I got that from my mom. Oh and p.s.- if they weren’t already obsessed enough with America- they play pretty much all the AMERICAN music we like in every club which is even better. Although- I do have my favorite Spanish club songs already!

And as I lay here and look back on today, I am again so thankful for the many opportunities and blessings I continuously find in my life due to my faith, family, and hard work. It’s so easy to just take advantage of every new day but I challenge you to really just soak up every new day for all that it is. Pick out 3 things you want to give or see out of that day and make it happen. Look back on the joys that happened within that day even if its something as small as missing someone and the thought of missing him or her that popped into your head- that’s a joy. Then of course let them know because that’s always nice and it’s never a bad time to let someone know how much you care- no matter how far away you are.

As we light a path for others, we naturally light our own way.

- Mary Anne Radmacher

Just Dreamin.

Last night was the first night I haven’t come home to a freaking crazy party outside our hostel and actually got a decent sleep- until the church bells did their trick in waking us up. I don’t know why but I wish I would have known before booking the hostel that 1) they don’t believe in slash don’t have air conditioning 2) that we going to have to carry our luggage up 6 flights of stairs 3) that the church bells are a natural alarm clock RIGHT OUTSIDE OUR WINDOW and 4) this are was the place to be for fiestas because I swear every night I end up thinking to myself- what Is seriously going on?! Spain must just really like to celebrate and party for everything todos los dias!!

In any normal daily routine- if you can even consider us to have one of those- we woke up early to of course go to the beach because who doesn’t want to save money and who doesn’t want to be at the beach all day? SHOOOOOOOOT I’d be at the beach everyday back home if I could. Stopped by cafeteria cite downstairs outside our hostel for a nice lunch- or breakfast to them- and had myself the BEST bowl of yogurt and fruit I’ve ever ate. It like melted in my mouth. Homemade yogurt with granola and fresh banana, OMG SO GOOD. It was even better though because it had like a different texture and a different build than our yogurt back home mmm. And also on a side note: this place makes the BOMBEST QUESADILLA ever. Never had a better chicken quesadilla than from here.

Walked to the bus station just down the road to get on número dos por la playa. The goal for the day: try to see how many people we can get to play back with us. We just said hi to anyone and everyone who looked our way haha I mean if they’re already going to look at us- which without doubt they do every minute of the day like we’re creatures or something- then why not get a few laughs in?! So we did. Made some legendary raps on the bus- even recorded it. Obviously I'm all about documentary this trip- you only live once so why not make the best of it and make sure to record it along the way so you can look back on all the memories. It seems logical to me. From the bus we walked to the usual pit stop- the Super Mercado. And did you know that its called “Alle syed” as in “Ali said” haha get it? I thought that was clever. Met up with Ryan, James, and Oscar on the beach- our American (well Ryan and James I guess) friends- and had ourselves a nice little day. Was dying to play some sand volleyball but we got football instead- that works too.

I swear- I don’t know what is up with the people here but some of them just have the weirdest style ever. I just don’t get why shaving your head and leaving a patch of dreads in the back is attractive? I am in Europe after all. Along with all the topless women and dreaded people on the beach there are children running around everywhere, and a good selection of Spaniards to look at. And don’t think the children wont approach you in the water and grab your butt because by all means they are not scared to do so. Haha all Candra and I wanted was a nice cool off in the water but instead all we got was a pretty funny story- it’s kind of one of those you have to be there to think its hilarious stories but here it is anyways. These two little brats and their older brother were just chillen in the water along with Candra and I a little in front of them. Well the smallest child- probably around the age of 7- grabbed Candra's butt. So naturally thinking it was an accident she said “bueno” as in its all good. He did it two more times after that- which I think he though we thought it was funny because we were dying laughing, it was uncontrollable. A mix of huge waves rocking us everywhere, little boys grabbing Candra's butt and salt water in our mouths was hilarious to us. THIS LITTLE BRATTY BOY CHASED US. So here we are 20 year olds getting chased in the water by a 7 year old- classic. It was like a game of unwanted tag in the ocean- keep in mind he asked us if we had boyfriends… are you kidding me?!- What is wrong with this child. And to end it all- the grand finale- it wasn’t just Candra's butt he wanted to grab. He straight tackled me  in attempts of pulling off my bottoms and grabbed my crotch- COOL… NOT. I don’t know if he thought that he could successfully pull off my bottoms but I'm like twice this little kids size so of course its not going to work haha. And totally clueless that he was about to straight full on tackle me- as I was just trying to get the hell away from him, laughing my butt off- he tackled me pretty much into the ground of the shallow part of the ocean as I drank a gallon of salt water- thank you SO much little brat. It was the craziest thing and he is by far going to be the biggest perv when he gets older shoot.

The sun was overcast at first and a little hotter today. I put sun block on my shoulders and face and what not 4 times and for some reason today of all the days I got toasted- SWEET. The Argentineans were supposed to be at the beach today too but we didn’t see them ALL day until Ryan and Oscar were leaving and they happened to walk by. Can you say perfect timing? We got to see our friends again yay! They are so good looking its unreal- and let me tell you, they have the most beautiful eyes. We spent about an hour or so with them just hanging out and having conversation and then we sadly said goodbye because Candra and I were hungry- but before we went, we made SURE to get a picture! Too bad I don’t live here. I could really dig this lifestyle.

Off on a mission for a shower, nap, and dinner, we headed for the hostel. I blogged, Candra slept, and 2 hours later we went to the center to find a place to eat. After sitting down twice at two different places, the third time was the charm and we found the right food. What’d I tell you about the number 3- always a good sign. I ate a delicious meal of pasta and met a crazy French/Spanish guy who ended up sitting with us while we ate dinner haha just to talk to us. He was actually pretty fluent in English and he only knew it from watching English movies and playing video games hahahaha GO FIGURE. Super intelligent guy- makes bank off creating or designing websites. Also ended up seeing more Germans that Candra met the other night- not the same old creepy ones as before- and sparked a conversation. On a side note: Germans think Americans are dumb. But I of course made sure to prove that wrong- and I did haha. I am now home, burnt to a crisp, full as no other, and tired to the max. So glad I got to finally skype my family after 3 days of not at all- love you mom and dad so much and I wish I could be there to watch you play bud but know I love you and am supporting all the way from Spain. Miss you John if you’re reading this and wish you were home more so I could see your face with everyone else. Leaving Valencia in the morning and heading to Barcelona for a new life experience! Cheetah girls get ready- I’m about to top your Disney movie. And don’t worry Chana- ill take plenty of cheetah girl pictures just for you ;) hahah I love you and I’ll be thinking of you while I'm here- wish you could be with me BUT DON’T WORRY, we’ll go again someday- no but seriously. What a crazy beautiful life- I love it. Love and miss yall all so much and only hope the best for everyone back home. As for me, I’ll just be accomplishing dreams over here.

Oh and p.s. HAPPY FATHERS DAY to all the wonderful hardworking, supportive, loving fathers out there, including the best- MINE <3 I love you daddy.

When I let go of what I am, I become what I might be.
- Lao Tzu

Lazy day.

It’s Day 3 in Valencia. That means tomorrow is our last full day here- sad, but on the bright side that also means that we’re headed to BARCELONA!! Can’t believe how fast time is flying by, I seriously feel like we just got here. Although, it does feel like we’ve been here for forever as well.

Today was a slow day. We slept in, took our time getting ready for the beach, ate a long lunch, and casually strolled to the bus stop. Stopped in at our local super Mercado, got some snacks and a few waters, and finally headed to the beach. Once we were there we sat in the usual spot- just in front of the “Pans” restaurant straight down the boardwalk. As I always do- I fell asleep for a nice little nap on the beach and woke up to Candra telling me how hot she was haha so the water it was! So many people have been telling us that its going to be at least 15 more degrees in Sevilla once we get there which only means this whole no air conditioner thing is just going to get worse. Oh well guess I’m just gonna have to buy a fan or two.

Everyday is filled with so many details I could seriously write even longer of a novel explaining them all to you, but I know that would get boring quick so I’ll try to keep it to a minimum. To start- on the beach we turned many heads again with the blonde freaking hair and potentially could have picked up some creeps in conversation but good thing I have amazing dodging skills so that wasn’t a problem. Sat down right behind these sexy Argentineans- which we didn’t know they were from there at the time- and by the end of the day we were pretty much the best of friends. Come to find out- they all play some sort of professional soccer for Valencia, I think its semi pro or something but I could be wrong. That explains why earlier in the day they were SO good at soccer, and dribbling the ball and doing tricks was just like every day routine- which now that I think about it, most likely it is DUH. To say the least, they fell in love with us right away.

I LOVE talking to foreign people. It is the best way to learn a language because you have no other choice but to speak the language to get what you want them to understand. We definitely hung out with them the rest of the day on the beach and perhaps caught a wave or two here and there.

From the beach home it was- just after a handy dandy stop to the super market because we were STARVING. A box of cookies probably isn’t the best idea but whatever I did it anyways, ate the whole box, and enjoyed every minute of it. We did eat some good meals though today- one of which being delicious quesadillas from the place next door our hostel.  When the destination of home was reached, you better believe we chilled to the max out. Facebook creeped a little bit and just laid around- UNTIL- we got a phone call from our American football friend inviting us to go to the bar in Valencia called “Portland” owned by a fellow Americano! That was after we found out how to finally type in a Spain number correctly. A few friends and a night ahead, we headed off to L'Umbracle to dance the night away so legitly-, which was by far the most amazing club I’ve ever been to, EVER. BEYOND beautiful inside. Danced the night away American style like we always do and Candra even danced with a flamer up on stage- priceless. James and I had a game going on of who could we get to feel the most awkward by pointing at them and then just dancing- it was awesome needless to say. YOU SHOULD HAVE SEEN THE GIRLS' FACES.

And to top off the night I'm hitting the hay because we’ve got another longggg long day at the beach ahead of us tomorrow!! Go out and conquer all that you want to reach. My daddy always tells me “Prove what you can do and you can have anything”. SO DO IT- START TODAY!!

Today is the first day of the rest of your life.
- Anonymous

People are such a big part to everyday.

Well, we overslept and missed out on our free breakfast this morning- darn. Another early morning for a long wonderful day on the beach! The bus system is becoming a little more familiar; I’d have to say we definitely don’t look so stupid anymore figuring out where we need to go, get off, and how to get home. But I think with any new situation it just takes a little time to get your bearings and then you start to learn how things work.

Do you know how wonderful it is to be woken up by loud church bells? NOT AT ALL. I mean please don’t get me wrong, I’m all about church but shoot when I’m sleeping- especially in the morning being that I really don’t like mornings at all- PLEASE don’t ring your church bells right outside my window. It’s not like I can walk my little American self down the 6 flights of stairs, outside and over to the church, knock on the door and say- oh hey, yeah I was wondering if maybe by chance you could stop ringing your church bells, or maybe not so loud so you know I could decently sleep- I’d get jumped pretty sure. I guess being awake early is it instead so here I am.

Got up and got ready for the beach. Since we missed breakfast it was already lunchtime anyways and we were starving. Here they eat like 3 plates for lunch. The first one is just an appetizer but big enough to be a plate in America, the second one is the main course and it’s even bigger than the first plate, and the last plate is whatever you choose as your desert. There is no way I can eat a full blown meal for lunch here- after one plate I’m stuffed. Oh and by the way, America is SO cheap compared to Spain holy moley. You think everything is so cheap here because of the euro system but if you think about it, one euro is two American dollars or so- EXPENSIVE. After lunch I had to go on a mission to find a towel because I was obviously not thinking straight when I packed- knowing that I was going to be at the beach- I did not bring a towel to lay on! Used my bargaining skills- thanks daddy for teaching me those, you do learn from the best- and saved myself about 4 euros. Passed out for a good nap on the beach listening to some good ol Dave Matthews again- if you couldn’t tell I kind of love him- and acquired some new tan lines. Although I must say I will have the best Chaco tan line ever when I get home and my watch tanline already is ridiculous so I can only imagine what it’s going to be like when I get home.

The people you meet in life are so interesting. For example: walking to the bus stop leaving the beach today, a tiny tiny man – I was twice his size- stopped us and said hello. Just a simple old man wanting to have a conversation, his English wasn’t half bad either. He was born in Valencia and had lived here all his life but went to an American school in Valencia way back when and that’s where he learned his little bit of English and has just been practicing since then with people to get better. He definitely did not look like he was born and raised here but who knows- this is Spain and with that comes a variety of people. It was neat- he asked us to talk to him in Spanish and he’d talk back in English so we could both learn- that was until we veered off to the super market and said adiós. And as far as the beach goes- I think it’s automatic that we attract attention, people just know we’re not from here but hey that’s okay, it’s nice meeting so many new people. It’s hotter than a mother here so we of course cool off in the water. One of those times cooling off in the water an older like 40 something year old man struck up a conversation with us- not exactly the attention Candra and I wanted, because I feel like when you start having a conversation with one person then every one else wants to look at you and try to listen and so on- and of course asked us where we were from. So being the proud Americans we are, we told him from America. He said that he could tell and being the curious Americans we are we of course asked why. In response he told us because we are very CLASSY beautiful woman not like the women here who walk around with tops off and blah blah blah. So all you CLASSY CHI OMEGAS reading this- that’s a shout out to you HOLLAAAR!

Do you ever feel like sometimes it’s easy to pick people out from their country? Here just like the Spaniard picked us out, when we see an American or a potential American we can pick them out like apples and oranges. It’s always nice though because yes we’re here to practice our Spanish language but once in a while just speaking English about the same customs is so much better- handshakes that are so automatic in America don’t exist here. Lucky for us there was an American sitting not too far- he had a Wilson football, was probably 6’3, and was built - tell me that’s not American. He’s actually from Plano, Texas which is all the better and is playing in an American semi pro football league over here just because of it as a way of being able to come to Spain and hang out here for a while- that’s pretty cool. If there was something like that for women you better believe I’d be all over that program- free everything except for your plane ticket- PARADISE. Someday I want to come back and just live here for 6 months or so with Spanish roommates and all- you’d be completely fluent by the time you left. He taught us that people here call American people “giddys”. Not quite sure as to what that means but I’m thinking that’s a slang term not in a bad way but as a label, if that makes sense? I love meeting new people for several reasons- 1) it culturally enhances you as a person and 2) having friends in a new place is always fun because then they can tell you what to do, where to go, and also hang out with you- hopefully tomorrow we’ll be able to test that theory out.

Came home for a nice clean shower- which by the way is nothing like the US, you have to hold the little shower head up when you want to rinse and if not it just hangs there- and as we walked through our door we heard what we would hit the ground for in Texas, gunshots, outside our window, or so we thought. Almost had a heart attack for a split second only to realize it was like a confetti cannon for a celebration that was taking place right outside our hostel. You should have seen Candra hahah oh my gahd HILARIOUS- we both jumped a little. Got all the sand off and headed out for a nice relaxing night in Valencia, dinner and everything! That was of course after Candra knocked her newly purchased can of hairspray from madrid out the bathroom window and down 4 stories causing all kinds of ruckus- priceless. Had a tasty meal called paella de pollo with a HUGE water. When the waiter asked me what size water I wanted I didn’t think it was going to be this MASSIVE bottle of water- don’t worry I took a picture of it for yall to see. Over heard these germans sitting two seats behind us ask the waiter where we were from and sure enough what did the waiter do? Came and asked us where we were from and reported back- that was awkward. Ended up talking to them for a bit but lost them ASAP considering they were like slightly creepy. Maybe I shouldn’t say creepy because it’s not like they were weird we just didn’t want to be around them and all they wanted to do was talk to us to learn more English and our customs and on and on and on. Politely we said goodbye and moved on- but before then I made sure to learn some new words/sayings in German. Ran into some girls our age from Madrid just visiting Valencia on vacation. Two spoke English the other two didn’t. One girl actually studied in the states for a whole year so that was easy communicating haha. Met some MORE Americans from Washington- two visiting their sister who actually studies in Saragossa- who were remarkably pleasant to be around and are staying in Valencia until Sunday like we are! Hopefully we’ll be able to hang out with them again and just have ourselves an enjoyable time.

And to end the night we came home to again NOT BEING ABLE TO SLEEP DECENTLY, JUST DECENTLY, BECAUSE ITS ALWAYS SOMETHING. Either extremely hot, loud, church bells, music, people partying, ALWAYS SOMETHING. So it’s probably best if I just lay my head down and try to pass out despite all the conditions so that I’m not completely exhausted for the beach tomorrow.

Set goals for yourself, make bucket lists, and reach them. There is no limit as to where you can go, what you can reach, and what you want to achieve out of life expect the limits you put on those measures yourself. I dare you to reach for the biggest and best, to achieve, and to make memories out of your dreams. Its possible, you just have to believe and do.

There is no passion to be found playing small -
in settling for a life that is less than the one you are capable of living.
- Nelson Mandela

Laugh a little bit.

I laughed all night last night. Have you ever done that? Do you know how good that feels? I LOVE laughing all the time- in fact I do laugh majority of the time about everything just because I’m a giddy person. If you don’t usually laugh during the day I would advise you to try it sometime because the warm feeling and happiness you get out of it I think is worth something.

It’s the end of the first day in Valencia and I am dying of heat in our hostel room. They don’t believe in air condition here- man were we spoiled in Madrid, had that baby cranked to like 16 degrees Celsius every night for bed and during siesta and for whenever we wanted it to be that cold because we could. Now we have to sit in this miserably hot hostel room on the 6^th floor with only a window open that doesn’t provide much breeze in a sports bra and undies. YES- it’s that hot.

Honestly I have no idea how I’m still running right now considering I really haven’t gone to sleep yet but hey you only live once as I said before.  Getting everything situated for the train station today was a little bit stressful but we somehow figured it out like we always do and successfully made it to VALENCIA! I was suppose to sit in a different coach than Candra on the train ride to Valencia today but thank God no one sat in the seat next to her so I got to just stay there the whole ride- which wasn’t bad at all. Just when I started drifting though we were here so that nappage didn’t work very well. Ate lunch within the train station since we had to wait 2 hours for our hostel anyways and attracted some interesting people. Sometimes I feel like I have three heads on my shoulders or something because the way people look at us is a bit ridiculous at times. My exact thoughts: Have you never seen an American before? Is it that out of place weird that Americans are in your country or is there just something on my face? Haha its SOO bad, and sometimes uncomfortable. I just feel bad for Candra because she’s the one with blonde hair over here attracting all the attention and usually I can get by without anyone saying that many words.

Took a taxi to our hostel and this nice little guido jersey shore looking taxi driver only charged us 4 euros instead of taking every outside route to make double than that. He was such a punkin! He was telling us about all these places that we could go to eat and what not and how to get to the beach and on and on- we tipped him well. Checked into our new hostel successfully and headed out the door to find the bus to the beach. That only took 10 min and about half my pride in stupidity but that’s okay haha we learned something new. Just like that saying goes you learn something new everyday- well I feel like I really do every day, it’s pretty spiffy. Found the beach and oh man were we in for a surprise. The motto for this trip: what the hell did we get ourselves into. TOPLESS BEACHES DO REALLY EXIST IN SPAIN. And it’s so normal and natural for them to just walk around topless like no big deal! Do you know how uncomfortable I would feel doing that?! OH MAN- I would be so uncomfortable the whole time haha. But it’s still a really nonchalant beach. Everyone is so laid back and there’s every type of person there. Mostly kids our age, which is even better because that only means Candra and I can make some more friends to add to our list! Met some French boys today who also spoke fluent Spanish- thought about you and Romain, Cassandra. They were trying to help us out on what activities there were to do and what not BUT it was a little more challenging with them. Also ran into some more Americans studying abroad here haha- totally picked them out wearing new balance and southern proper- what frat daddies.

After 6 hours and a good in and out nap for an hour or so we were ready to get that sand off our bodies. Showered up and out for dinner we explored the city a bit- or just got lost a couple times, it’s all the same. Got some gelato after dinner that was not half bad and found our way back to the hostel to settle down. Its been a long day and I think a slight moody one at that but that’s most likely due to lack of sleep- it’s so worth it though. To finish, I’m gonna hit the hay before I get my butt chewed any more but I’m excited to see what tomorrow brings again and hopefully I can make it through the night without waking up too many time because of the heat! Do something nice for someone tomorrow- even if it’s just holding the door. It takes just a simple two seconds to go out of your way to do something nice for someone else and you never know how much that is going to impact or influence their day. Think about it.

Actions speak louder than words.
- Anonymous

Tips.

If I could give a few tips learned from the day I’d have to start with, don’t forget to never wear pants in 100 plus degree weather. You will feel like you’re living in a sauna and you will have sweat uncomfortably on your body. Second, don’t forget to turn your map right side up so that you don’t walk the opposite direction for 20 min to end up realizing your no where close. But do take random paths because they might just lead you somewhere cool- like the Templo de Debod. Third, explore the parks because they are so interesting and take stupid pictures because it’s fun. Fourth, don’t stand behind a cut out bullfighter and señorita for a picture thinking it’s cool because really, a lady will pop out two minutes later and charge you a euro because you did. Fifth, don’t be afraid to make new friends. If I would have never been open to speaking with people, I would have never had the opportunity to explore the different cultures within the Madrid culture, and I would have never had the chance to just genuinely hang out with a variety of people in the city all together. It’s life experiences that help shape and mold us to what we are today so let yourself be the wet clay and start to molding.

This is one of the best memories in my lifetime so far and if you EVER get the chance to go to Madrid- DO IT! You will love that decision for the rest of your life. In the past 3 days my Spanish has legitly gone from okay to better… in JUST 3 DAYS. I can’t even imagine what it’s going to be like after a long month of being submerged in it. Here in Madrid everyone loves Americans. They always want to talk to us, look at us, be around us- they think it’s the coolest thing ever that we’re American… not that we’re displaying/announcing that or anything. The people are so nice and really it’s a pretty safe place to be. Besides all the homeless people, gypsies, and beggars on the streets, it really is perfectly safe. It’s so scary at first yes because you have no idea the environment, have no clue what the streets are, and obviously you’re not very familiar with your surroundings yet- but give it a day and you feel like you could live there. There are two things I have noticed the most out of Madrid. One: There are so many police within the city just on a regular basis compared to America and Two: I’ve never heard so many sirens throughout the day/night in one city constantly. And on a side note- Madrid is the 2^nd most populated gay city in the world- which I was informed of by a native from Madrid- so it’s been interesting to people watch on the streets.

Today was perhaps the longest day ever, but it was the longest brilliant day ever. Woke up around 11, ate breakfast at the hostel, took a shower and put some clean clothes on- pretty typical. Did some more walking around and touristic scene things.  Decided to wear my new European pants but as I said earlier that was a pretty stupid decision of me. Walked all the way down to the so called “Cathedral” only to find out that I of course had read the map wrong but does that surprise you? Didn’t think so. So after sweating beyond point of return we had to take a breather in the shade on a sketchy park bench. I’m not quite sure if graffiti is legal or not over here but it’s everywhere, and when I mean everywhere, I mean even on the trees. Took a different path than planned for but hey that’s okay, and ended up finding some really neat treasures. Ran into a model posing in the park- she must have been so heated wearing those expensive furs in 110-degree weather. I would want to die if I was the one who had to wear all those fancy clothes in this weather. Couldn’t stand the heat anymore so we headed back to Palacio Real walking about 7mph, which is pretty fast for walking. Sometimes I forget that you know I’m not this small short legged woman and that I actually have daddy long legs so when I decided to walk faster than I already do, it’s like sprinting for everyone else. Poor Candra- at least we’re getting one hell of a leg workout while we’re over here! Ate at a nice restaurant called Sabatini I believe. I finally got to try out the Tapas- which I guess I didn’t really know what they were, but they tasted great- and Candra had good ol spaghetti. I ordered a bottle of water, you know botella de auga, and ended up with the mouth watering 4 Euro costing carbonated mineral water in a glass bottle- charged and everything. In case you didn’t already know what that was don’t worry about it- SICK NASTY. Made it through the Madrid desert to SIESTA and had a niceeee 3 hour nap, I did not want to wake up but you know, we had things to do being our last day and all. Was not feeling so hot after waking up, although I did skype a couple of people including my parents, which was refreshing. SKYPE ME IF YOU HAVE IT!! I would love to see anyone and everyone’s face all the way from Spain!

Ran around a little bit more in attempts of finding the train station but decided before we got there that we were just gonna take a cab because it was the best way to go. Found ANOTHER cool park, people watched, watched the Spanish rowing team practice after school and headed back to get ready for dinner. Ran into a couple of our American friends- or I guess I should say met our new American friends and decided to hang out with them on our last night in Madrid! They’re from NYU, Oregon, and FSU I believe. Met a Spaniard- that didn’t even look Spaniard- named Christian from Madrid that was half Spaniard half Italian and could speak fluent English, fluent Spanish, and fluent Italian- crazy. This kid was highly intelligent, just the way he thought about everything and his perception on life and the things within life and so on. Candra and I pretty much talked to him the whole night- got so much insight on another way of thought. The best part about that was that he could read me like a book- everything about me and that was interesting because you know sometimes its just nice to hear what other people see you as or your habits or the way of doing things, along with your instinctive emotions. I seriously want to live in Madrid. I could do it. Also, met a couple of Germans named Jonas and Marcel who taught me how to say I love you in German- ich liebe dich <3. Talked to them for FOREVER too, and the girls they were with straight up CRAZYYYY. They wee all over the place radical haha it was awesome, different way of life. Needless to say, COULDN’T OF HAD A BETTER LAST NIGHT IN MADRID. Well usually our bedtime would be passed by now but we decided to stay up all night chit chatting and what not, even had a nice breakfast this morning with our Spaniard friend Christian, because we can and why not- you only live once and we’re in Spain so we’re soaking all of it up! Candra and I did have a train to catch at 10:40 this morning, which meant we had to be ready to leave Madrid sadly by 9, luggage packed and everything. Sad day. Each moment in life is a memory so be thankful for the moments you’re given and embrace the cultural diversity- it’s so rich.

It is impossible to begin to learn that which one thinks one already knows.
- Epictetus