Bye

My Madrid experience is over. Traveling Europe is over (at least for time being). And I am currently adjusting to life post-abroad.

More recently, I have had a little time--actually a lot of time with the roughly 26 hours it took for me to land back in Denver--to look back on my abroad experience. It was four or so months of many firsts. Four months of challenges. And four months of personal growth, heightened independence and inexplicable experiences. Namely, it was a semester of:

• Spanish
• many other languages: French, Danish, Dutch, Portuguese, German, Catalan, Basque, etc.
  
• 9 countries
• 4 nights spent in airports
• 8 different hostels
• 6 hotels
• a dorm-like setting with some other friends
• a bed and breakfast
  
• 18 flights
• 3 trains
• 17 buses (both long-term destinations and tour buses)
  
• 23 cities
• 8 subways (Madrid was the nicest and most convenient; London was the most crowded; Paris generally stunk)
  
• 17 newly tried beers
• 23 ATM withdrawals
  
• Picasso, El Greco, Monet, Michaelangelo, Goya, Velazquez, Warhol, Da Vinci, Rafael, Salvador Dali, among others, via Prado, the Louvre, the National Gallery, the Picasso Museum, the Reina Sofia, Guggenheim (Bilbao), etc.
• 25+ churches/cathedrals/monasteries such as the Notre Dame, Sagrada Familia, St. Paul's, etc.
  
• four main bodies of water
  
• 3 or so "man-scarf" ventures
• a broken I-Pod
• over 1500 pictures
  
• 5+ all nighters
• large consumption of: omelets, bread, albondigas (meatballs), fruit, flan, tortilla espanola, patatas bravas, bocadillos, Twix bars (my preferred vending machine snack in between classes), among others...mostly courtesy of Senora.
  
• 11 papers
• 5 exams
• 2 group projects
• one terrible sunburn
• 3 vomiting episodes via dairy products and a non-cooperative stomach
• one vomiting event in the Madrid airport upon arrival. More than likely due to my nerves and anxiety of my new situation.
  
• one proposition by a hooker
• one proposition by a man trying to sell us a disease ridden puppy :(
• countless propositions for drug purchases
• 0 haircuts
• a weak attempt at a pony tail
  
• a significant wrong turn; we ended up in the neighborhood where the previous week more than 10 men were arrested for plotting to blow up the Barcelona metro; it was a sketch part of town to say the least. I did not tell Momma about this one until safely back in D-town...
  
• 10+ times where Spaniards tried to guess where I was from...more often than not choosing Germany and the Netherlands before to their surprise, settling on the States. I liked not obviously standing out, that is, until I would rock a backwards baseball hat (a dead give away).
  
• 22 blog posts
• SCHOOL tours of a brewery, winery, and a Spanish Cava facility.
• one trashcan fire unfolding before my eyes
• a Spanish Presidential Election
  
• 40+ times where I was (at the very least) temporarily lost.
• a weakened dollar. It was 1.44 or so when i arrived and over 1.6 a few times near my final weeks.
  
• hundreds upon hundreds of miles walking Madrid and other cities (school was about 2 each way; I would say we averaged about 10 a day when traveling with the boys).
  
• 11 new albums purchased on I-Tunes...my attempt at staying connected to American culture
• Real Madrid futbol
• Scandinavian snow
• An Irish all day downpour
  
• typical bitter European winter wind
  
• a week in Barcelona with only a backpack
• a week and half Spring break trek over six countries...also only with a backpack
  
• Dublin for St. Patty's
  
• almost daily tapas bar experiences
• a bullfight
• a failed bullfight due to rain
• Big Ben
• the Anne Frank House
• the Churchill Museum and War Cabinets. Simply, a London must!
  
• Gaudi architecture
  
• the Tivoli
  
• the Eiffel
• Shakespeare's Globe
• Sintra
• the Canary Islands
  
• THE Rosetta Stone, housed by the British Museum
  
• the famous las Ramblas Street in Barca--and I did not get pick pocketed
  
• the Alhambra
• Toledo
  
• the Red Light District
• Cervantes' house (the guy that wrote Don Quixote)
  
• Belgium chocolate
• Belgium beer
• Belgium waffles
  
• French fries with mayonnaise
• Pintxos in Pais Vasco (a variation of Spanish tapas)
  
• Guinness in Ireland
  
• French crepes, quiche, and escargot
  
• English tea as well as genuine fish and chips
• a roommate
• a Manny (con Afro)
• a Ms. Talentowski
  
• a one-dimpled golfer
• a Beatles obsessed Polack
  
• another Tie-ler
• Californians
• Chicago natives (majority of students from IWU)
  
• Texans
• a Saul (my Mexican business professor)
• a MFS (the director)
  
• and even one annoying Finish man named Tommy (see Valencia post)

Just to name a few things...

All of which, equated to my positive Euro experience.

Generally it was a great couple months. And I could give you the norm and highly overused explanations for describing my trip:

"Blah, Blah, Blah...it was life-changing. I learned so much about myself while enjoying the perks of travel as well. I enjoyed new food, new culture, a new language and on the whole, a new environment...More Blah...I will never be the same."

True, I did learn a lot about myself, grew more independent and loved adjusting to a completely different environment. And truth: I am a much different person on the other side. But the prior is far too common and far too corny for my liking.

Yet, it is near impossible to sum it all up in a way that you the reader will TANGIBLY understand. I am coming to grips that I can never in words REALLY describe an abroad experience and its effects accurately.

Let us just leave it at this then:

Great decision.

A mere favorite chapter in my life.

Good memories.

Some amazing fellow travelers.

I grow more facial hair on this end.

I appreciate other cultures.

I value my own more.

Was blessed to have such an opportunity.

Onward...