Morocco!

Right before I left Spain, I made quick trip to Morocco with a group of people from my Spanish church. We had a great time learning about the culture, religion, and tasting the local cuisine. Here are a few pictures:

Look - "Coca-Cola" written in Arabic!

In Morocco, people don't have individual ovens, they have a community oven. Everyone brings their dough to the community oven and this guy bakes it for them!

A market in Morocco:

Inma holding a baby turtle for sale in the market:

The End

As I recall, the last page of my favorite childhood fairy-tales finished by displaying these two famous words. But I always wondered – is the story really over? Do the characters go on living? If so, what happens to them? Do they continue to be as happy as they are at the moment when the fairy tale ends? I don’t think I ever really discovered the answers to these questions, but I guess I always kind of assumed that the characters’ lives did go on, but that it would be quite unrealistic to assume that they could continue living at the climax of happiness for every moment in the future. I guess my fairy-tale really isn’t much different. This is the end, and today I was hit in the face with the reality that my time is up. My adventure is over. And it turns out that sometimes the more you love something, the harder it is to let go of. Spain will always be a part of who I am. As I thought about how hard it is to leave the place I have grown to love so much, I realized how much harder still it is to leave the people I love in this place. I can’t really begin to describe, nor will I explain all the ways, in which this experience has impacted me; but just to say that it’s been life-altering, and that I don’t come back the same person that I was. I’m discovering that life is a continual journey of learning and growing, and all I can say is that this part of my journey has been truly unforgettable. This time has been more than I ever could have expected, and I am exceedingly thankful to God for it.
What I also know is that I’m not the only one who has changed in the last 8 months. Time has a way of changing the people and places I left, too. I’m excited to discover those changes, and re-integrate into my own culture and people. I’ve missed my family and friends and I’m ready to invest more of myself into their lives.
So, the question remains – do the protagonists continue to live at the climax of happiness for all of time? I don’t think so. But I think they do know that those moments wouldn’t be nearly as exhilarating if they hadn’t fought the dragon first. They probably even know that there may well be more dragons to fight in their futures. But I don’t think for a moment that they will back down. They’ll go out and fight. Why? Because they have more confidence this time, they’ve done it before, and because they know there’s another exhilarating moment to follow.

All Grown Up...

Where does the time go? It seems like just yesterday little Jane and I were playing princesses, jumping on the trampoline, or having secret meetings in the back yard that connected our two backyards. Fast forward to twenty years later, Jane and I are both living in Spain at the same time! I'm sure that at 5 years old we never could have imagined that our paths would lead us in such a direction. But here we both are, loving our siestas and soaking up the Spanish culture. This past weekend Jane came to visit me in Córdoba and we had a blast together. We explored the city, went to several tourist sites, and discovered the May feria. It was my perfect last weekend in Spain!

Jane and I at the Mosque of Cordoba:

Jane and I in the castle gardens in Cordoba:

At the May Feria!

One More Chapter

On May 15th, Lara and I decided to add one last chapter to The Adventures of Lara and Sarah, Part I. We took a road trip through the incredible (and highly allergenic) country-side of Andalucia to visit the town of Arcos de la Frontera. Arcos is a charming white Spanish hill town. I highly recommend making a stop there if you find yourself on a road trip through southern Spain! Lara and I have had so many adventures in such a short time, and have become close friends in even less time. I have valued Lara's friendship so much and will continue to do so. I'll be looking forward to her trip to the U.S. next summer!

Arcos de la Frontera:

Arcos de la Frontera:

The small Spanish hill town of Espera:

Surprise Goodbyes

Inma threw me a surprise goodbye party last weekend (May 16th)! It was so sweet and I loved having one last opportunity to spend time with some of the people who have been really important to me here in Spain!

From left to right: Inma, Sandy, Nani, Ivonne, Me, Norma, Maria Luisa, Susy

J'aime Paris!

They say Paris is the City of Love, and they don’t lie. I fell in love in Paris – with the city itself, the people, the language, the history, the architecture, and so much more. I was nervous before going because I thought that the language barrier would be a problem, and because I had been told that the Frenchies can be rather rude to Americans. The opposite was true. Every single French person I interacted with treated me with total respect and courtesy. Also, virtually all of them spoke basic English.

I found that French men are hopeless flirts and never miss an opportunity to flash you a smile or give you a wink. Normally this type of behavior might annoy me, but somehow, French men do it with such class. I couldn’t resist giving them a little charm back because they are so adorable and how could any woman resist a man speaking the most beautiful language in existence to her? It’s my theory that French men must be born romantic. I’m content to have left France with that impression of French men and to still be too naïve to have learned any of their negative qualities. :)

The French language delighted me. I wanted to learn French before going to Pairs, but now, I’m dying to start learning as soon as possible. I loved being surrounded by the language and just listening to the sounds it makes.

All the sites I went to were amazing, of course, and having only three days in Paris was really just a tease. However, I did get to see a few of the city’s charms such as: Le Musée Louvre, La Tour Eiffel, Sacré Cœur, Place de la Concorde, Arc de Triomphe, Place Vendôme, Les Invalides, and Notre Dame.

In summary, I loved it. Paris has enchanted me. Since my trip, I’ve been trying to think of any possible excuse to lay aside all my life responsibilities and move there. I’m still working on the excuse. Let me know if you can come up with one for me (remember, it would be helpful if it could pass the “parent test”). Anyway, I can only hope that returning to Paris is in my future, and recommend that you take a trip to Paris if you want to fall in love, too.

Another VIP visitor :)

I had a great time hanging out with Joann in April! We both really enjoyed her visit. And for the record, she totally does know Spanish! No translations needed for this tri-lingual chick. ;)


Retiro Park in Madrid...

*For more pictures of Joann's visit, see facebook.