The Last Days

That's sounds so foreboding or something. The Last Days. The End. It also sounds so sad. (Sorry Laura, I know you hate that word.)

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.

¡PRAGUE!

I don't even know where to start with Prague. We laughed, we cried, we sang...

We got there on Friday afternoon and decided to explore the area around our hostel a little bit. We came across this really nice park and just sat, all thinking about how we were finally there. We'd all looked forward to this trip all semester. But we were all pretty hungry, so we went into the older part of town, near Old Town Square, to find a sushi place. Sushi! Yes I know, we were in Prague and got sushi, but I've craved it all semester. My friend Joelle and I decided to split a platter, and we figured we got to choose what we wanted. Well, a little while later, our waitress comes back and says, "Do you realize you ordered like, 100 pieces of sushi?" We were like, what?! We explained we wanted the platter, and she said, "Oh, that's chef's choice. I just figured you were really hungry." So we almost had to eat 100 pieces of sushi... :)

The next day, we started the whirlwind that is sightseeing. :) First, we went back through Old Town Sqaure on the way to Bohemian Bagel, more affectionately named BoBagel. It was our favorite place to eat in Prague-- we went 3 times. :) Then, we made our way over the Lesser Side, which is where the Prague Castle is. There's also a cathedral, royal gardens, and a street called Golden Lane around the castle. The views from the castle were amazing. :)




We left the Prague Castle and headed back down toward the river to see the Charles Bridge. We stopped along the bank for a few minutes and watched a little boy play with a swan and some ducks. He was too cute! Then we headed up to cross the Charles Bridge. Unfortunately, it's become such a touristy place that there are a ton of vendors on it. It was cool to see the artwork, but it took away from the bridge itself-- there are some really pretty sculptures along it.

On Sunday, we visited the Jewish Quarter, the famous Astronomical Clock, and the John Lennon Wall. We went in one synagogue that had the names of 80,000 Jewish Czechs written on the walls, honoring them as victims of the Holocaust. We also went into an old Jewish cemetery. As I was walking through the cemetery and thinking about WWII and other things, something occured to me. I was in Europe. Where they fought WWII. I have been to places that were devastated because of the war. In the U.S., I feel like a lot of people (myself included) often look at WWII as something that happened in Europe, that even though we were involved, it still happened "over there." And I realized that I was "over there." It's hard to describe the feeling I had-- it's just one of those things that you have to experience for yourself.

We were planning to go to a concentration camp on Monday morning, but the only bus that went would've have gotten us there late, and we wouldn't have had time to get back in time to go to the airport. So instead we just kind of wandered around Old Town, seeing random places we hadn't had time to see before. It was rainy and gross, but hey-- how often are you in Prague?

Feria de Abril and Mallorca

Sevilla is known the world over for its celebration of two famous festivals, Semana Santa and Feria de Abril. Semana Santa, or Holy Week, is the week leading up to Easter. Brotherhoods from different churches around Sevilla create "pasos," or large floats, that they parade through the streets. It is a very religious and sombering week. Feria de Abril, however, is a week-long party. Sevillanos spend crazy amounts of money during this week-- there are rides to take their kids on, each ride costing about 3 euros; there are Feria dresses to buy, which start at about 200 euros for the worst ones; and there are special Feria foods and drinks to buy during the entire week, just to name a few. I wasn't too excited about it, to be honest. I'm not really sure why. But mi amiga MacKenzie talked me into going a couple of times, and it's actually really fun (although it's admittedly more fun if one is a Sevillano). We went once during the day and once at night, and the atmosphere is really different. All-in-all, Feria was definitely something worth witnessing-- there really aren't words to accurately explain it.

As fun as Feria is, a few friends and I decided that we wanted to get away from Sevilla for a few days at the end of Feria because that is when all the tourists come in and the Sevillanos leave. So being Sevillanos :), it made sense. We started looking at flights and stuff and came across a really cheap flight to the island of Mallorca. It's part of the Balearic Islands in the Mediterranean Sea. Sounded like a perfect, relaxing beach trip, so we booked it! And relaxing it was! We literally laid on the beach all day. The weather was perfect, and even though the water was a little cold, we waded out anyway. We had such a good time just lounging around-- no having to get up early to start a day filled with sightseeing, no classes, no responsibilities... It was a perfect weekend that came just in time. :)