Until Next Time, Thank You.

So many faces in and out of my life,
some will last some will just be now-and-then.
Life is a series of hellos and goodbyes
I'm afraid it's time for a goodbye again...

The lyrics from Billy Joel's Say Goodbye to Hollywood have been playing on repeat in my head for the past three days. Every great artist has their sentimental "goodbye," song: The Beatles's Hello Goodbye, In My Life, John Denver's Jet Plane, Closing Time by Semisonic, Five For Fighting's 100 Year's, the list is infinite. You see, the thing about these set of lyrics that makes it so spot-on and poignant, is that it is impossible to know for sure which faces will last, and which will just be "now-and-then." It is 12:02 pm on Sunday, January 31, 2016,  I am sitting in the Madrid airport with a broken heart and tear-stained eyes.

Being a seasoned-traveler, I feel like I am supposed to be accustomed to falling in love with a city, and then having to leave it. The happiest place in the world is, in my humble opinion, the arrivals gate at any airport. The arrivals gate stands for the start of an adventure, the most dramatic "hello," the place for beginnings, where "goodbyes" are on no one's mind. But as happy as I was to hear the familiar American accent and be in the arms of the ones I love after landing in Philadelphia, nothing could take away the melancholy feeling I have already started to experience (and will be putting my family through) for the next few days. All of these fragments of memories are flooding my mind, and I'm too terrified of forgetting any of them, so I'll write them down as fast as I can, wipe the tears away from my eyes, and remember that these faces, and these memories, will last.  Here we go:

I've spent two and a half weeks:
speaking and translating
stumbling over words
improving my Spanish
learning Spanish slang and Spanish curse words
meeting awesome people
finding and beholding the most breathtaking views
revisiting places I've already seen
seeing them completely differently
drinking cappuccino and cafe con leche at least once a day
goofing around in madrid
climbing the mountainous streets of Toledo
flirting with Spanish cities...and Spanish boys
looking up to see the unbelievably detailed architecture of Madrid's buildings
daydreaming of dramatic and unrealistic adventures in Spain
squealing and laughing till my abs hurt and considering that my workout for the day
shoving chocolate y churros in my face in my favorite Chocolatería, San Ginés
learning how to do a head stand in a gym class in Alcobendas
belting out lyrics to every song on my phone through the Alhambra with my best friends
learning how to dance Bachata and Reaggaton in Disco Tecas
walking down cobblestone streets
basking in the light that seeps in to the Alhambra
eating incredibly cheap tapas in Granada
picking oranges off trees in Córdoba
taking siestas everyday, because why not?
pretending to be a local (even after they figured out I'm not)
eating jamón y queso sandwiches for every lunch
eating jamón iberico with every meal
finding hidden gems in very touristy cities
leaving my fishbowl, and adapting a new one
becoming a native in a foreign (but familiar) place
seizing every day and every moment
searching through tiendas
wandering through Toledo
succumbing to wanderlust
learning a little history of the country
seeing old friends from years back
taking selfies with random Spaniards on the streets
taking selfies with my best friends
taking selfies with Lex and Spanish police
teaching flamboyant Spanish moms the hoorah
dancing bachata (and hoorah) with Spanish parents all night
taking at least 10 seconds to be present at least once a day
talking to groups of kids about all things America (with a focus on iPhones)
acting like a celebrity in Severa Ochoa
being the JEFA!
taking pictures
putting my phone down to enjoy the moment and the view
taking more pictures
eating, eating, and eating some more because "¡estoy llena!" is not a part of the Spanish vocabulary
becoming best friends with people I've known my whole life
becoming "hermanos" with people I met a few months ago
becoming a member of 19 families

To my hermanos, my families, and my new friends from around the world,
Thank you for taking me in, showing me your world, and giving me the opportunity of a lifetime. Thank you for being my brother in Spain, my sister, my blonde best friend, my Stella Magnolia, Lex, and Klon Krew, my chungas and malotas, and my girls who I explored Córdoba with at night (and to those malotes/canis, we all need them in our lives), my best friend who I'm stealing from my chica, thank you for teaching me how to dance like a Spaniard. You all know who you are among that long list. Os quiero con todo de mi corazón.

To Spain,
You have my heart forever, you are my other home in this world. For better or worse, you and I will always be in a long distance relationship. They say that absence makes the heart grow fonder, and every time we see each other, I know this to be true. Eres mi amor, por vida.

To Mommy and Daddy,
Thank you for giving me this experience, for encouraging me to get up, get out, and explore uncharted waters. Thank you for giving me the world.

Until next time, thank you for endless adventures.

Madrid, outside the Royal Palace

selfies with strangers

a selfie with Lex and a Spanish Police Officer, as mentioned above

km 0 is the exact center of Spain, found in Puerta del Sol in Madrid

my chicas: sophie, Paola, Paula, Claudia, Carmen, Lex, Claudia, Sara and Me <3 comment-3--="" nbsp="">

Jorge and I, a friend I met years ago and got to spend time with again for the past two weeks:)

Eric and I with some Spanish friends, including Omar, another friend from another year who I got to see again this time in Alcobendas!

Stella Magnolia, Lex, and Klon...pinkie promises 

the cutest couple and the best friends an American girl could have

my new best friend, Laura (she's mine, Sara, sorry not sorry)

before the adventure even began, leaving for the airport...it feels like you wait and wait for it to start, and it's over before you blink your eyes

tapas...

...paella tapas...

...and even more tapas

Ivan and I
I consider Ivan like a brother from around the world; he was on the exchange last year and stayed with our family friends, so by default, when he became a part of their family, he became mine too.

the making of churros at San Gins

a vintage book shop that sold the coolest post cards, paintings, polaroids, books, stamps, you get the idea

More Madrid

Chocolate y Churros at San Ginés

goofing around in Plaza Mayor, Madrid

Madrid, and Alcobendas specifically, is very popular for graffiti. This is one of our friends' favorite basketball court, covered wall-to-wall in beautiful graffiti

Charlie's Angles?

Claudia and me, one of my sisters

Marcos and me at the basketball courts

just hanging out

one of my favorite photos ever