and while the answers are fresh in my head I thought this was something I would share with you:
1. There isn't just one way to live.
I further explained that life across the world is lived differently. Here, it's not a custom to get your bill directly after you finish your food. You could sit there all day and you probably wouldn't get the bill until you asked for it. Tonight we ate dinner at 9:45, and that's perfectly normal here. Family members come home from work during lunchtime (which is around 2:00) and then stay for a little nap before going back to work. The way people live here isn't "wrong" and there is no "right" way to do things. Just different.
2. Try new things.
I then explained the extent to which I am a ridiculously picky eater and how nervous I was about liking my host mom's food. Even though I haven't like a lot of the new foods that I've tried, at least I tried them, and there were many that I did like. but trying things doesn't just speak to the food aspect of this experience, but also trying to integrate myself with Spanish students and trying to better my language of Spanish. It's important to always challenge yourself and never get stuck in a rut.
3. Things don't always go as planned...scratch that... things never go as planned.
From having a million issues with my credit card not working, to having to ask strangers for money to get on a bus back to Sevilla because we only had pounds, to being lost in Paris and having strangers on the street google map us directions, to sprinting through the madness that is the Madrid airport to barely make a flight..it's safe to say that with every experience comes something unexpected. and what would a study abroad experience be if everything did go as planned? I'll tell you what--boring.(but don't worry--it's impossible for everything to go as planned). Stories are the best part of this experience.
--
I was talking to one of the guys from our hostel in Paris a few days after our trip. He asked me how the rest of our stay was in Paris. I said it was good but we got a little lost going to Versailles.
and he said, "ohhh how boring tell it the spectacular way"
Which made me realize that it's all about the stories. How will I tell the story of my study abroad experience to you all when I get home? Well, if you're reading this, chances are you've read a bunch of my other posts and already know a lot of the stories.
but more than the stories that I will tell people, it's about the stories that I will remember and how I'll remember them.
This seems like a very "the end is near" type of post but I've got about a month left on this crazy journey and I'm about to seize the story moments.
and one more thing. You don't have to be in a foreign country to live a good story. It's about everything from the people around you, the decisions you make, the trains you miss, the interactions you have with a barista at a coffee shop, what you choose to witness on your walk to class. You can create a good story anywhere.
Sorry got a little deep there. Why? Had two good conversations today.
1. Talked with a friend from home and we shared stories from our semesters. He said he's so jealous and wants to go to Spain so he can have some of these good stories. but I realized, he had great stories too and he's in the US. Which is when I told him, yes, Spain is great, but you can create a good story anywhere.
2.Booking hostels for my spring break trip with my friend Sara. We had a recommendation from a friend also studying abroad to stay at a "party" hostel in Budapest. While we enjoy to go out once in a while I wouldn't consider either of us hard-core partiers. but my friend highly recommended the hostel and then I remembered, try new things and we decided.. hey, let's create some stories...
Don't worry parents. I'll be safe and smart--and dad, I'll make sure to "Keep my head on a swivel."
Sending Smiles From Sevilla,
Rebecca
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