When we came to Spain in January, my group Winter 4 arrived with another group, the Winter 2s. We spent so much time together that first week that we all just hit it off and became really good friends, even though we ended up going to different universities. For some reason, though, the Winter 2 group was scheduled to leave a week earlier than we were. So, MacKenzie, being the wonderful planner that she is, decided to have a Picnic in the Park as a kind of last hoorah. We had our señoras make us bocadillos (I don't think I'll ever use the word 'sandwich' ever again), we brought drinks and snacks, and we spent the afternoon lounging the in shade in our favorite park, Maria Luisa. It was bittersweet, though, because the Winter 2s gradually got up and left, walking away from us for the very last time.
The next week was finals for us, but did that stop us from enjoying our last weekend in Sevilla? Absolutely not. ;) I even went to a bullfight. My house-mom's ex-husband got tickets for Nabilah and me, which was really nice of him. It was definitely an experience, one I'm glad I didn't miss. I mean, it wasn't something I can say I'm a fan of, but it wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be, either. It was another of those times when I really felt like I was in Spain.
So the next week, we did the finals thing. Whatev. It was nice that school was finally over, but we also knew that it meant that our time in Sevilla was over as well. On Thursday afternoon, we all met up for one last goodbye. Even though everyone else was leaving on Friday night on the overnight bus to Madrid, my friend Joelle and I were leaving late Thursday night and early Friday morning, respectively, so Thursday afternoon was our last time with everyone. The whole time I was there, I kept looking around thinking, "This is it. Everyone else is busy planning for tonight, but for me, this is it. I can't believe it's over." One by one, everyone left, and we had to say our goodbyes. There were tons of people around, staring with confused looks. They seemed to be thinking, "Why are all these American 20-somethings hugging and crying in the middle of Sevilla?" I never did cry that afternoon, though. It wasn't because I didn't want to. Anyone that knows me knows that I can't just cry; I have to wait on it to hit me. I knew that it would later. So for all of you who wondered why I couldn't shed a tear, that's why. ;) It isn't because I don't miss you. We've been apart for less than a week, and I already can't imagine not going back to Sevilla and seeing you guys sometime soon...
After that, I had to rush home because I forgot that Mari, our house-mom, was going to teach Nabilah and me to cook tortilla de patata! I biked from Plaza Nueva to my house in record time: 20 minutes! (It usually takes 45 minutes to an hour if I take the bus...) It was a good last night with the family, but again, all I could think about was the fact that it was all about to be over. My house-sister Pacita and her husband Luis let Nabilah and me put our "niece" Alejandra to bed that night since it was a special night. They tried to explain to her that I was going home and that I wouldn't be coming back to stay with them anymore, but she's only 3; she just didn't understand. She always liked to talk to us about colors when we put her to bed-- she knows them in Spanish and in English. :) But then Luis came in to get her to go to sleep (she likes to just talk to us), and when we walked out of the room, I just lost it. She really has become part of my family, just as Pacita, Luis, Mari, the new baby Graciela, Chema, Javi, and the rest of the clan have. When Pacita went to bed that night, we hugged and cried, too. And the next morning, up bright and early to catch my flight, all I could do was hug Mari and cry; there just weren't words. It's hard to explain this situation to someone who hasn't experienced it. The only thing I can think of to say is that over the past semester, we (as in study abroad students) all created a new... well, life. We started at a new university, we made new friends, we became part of a new family, and we became citizens of a new city. That doesn't mean we forgot about the "other" life back home in the States, we just did what everyone does when they move to a new place: we started over in that new place. And unlike with our life in the States, when we said goodbye to our friends and family and to Sevilla, we weren't sure when or if we would see them again, especially see all of them together.
On Friday morning, Chema (whose role is a little difficult to explain haha), drove me to the airport. Along the way, we made small talk. (What do you say? "Nice knowing you, have a nice life"?) He put in a CD and started telling me that he'd gotten it in a place in Greece. It isn't in Greek, he just got it there. It was really good, and I told him I liked it. When we got to the airport, he took it out and handed it to me. "When you play it in the States, you can think of us," he said. "I have another one, just take it." I didn't know what to say. That's the kind of family I lived with. The kinds of friends I made. And as I sat on the runway waiting to take off, the only things I could see of Sevilla were the interstate signs that said "Sevilla, this way." And knowing that that would be the last time I would see those signs for a very long time, I started crying as the plane took off.
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