El fin

So, all of these recent blog entries have been written with quite a bit of delay. I had intended on writing them right away when I got back to the states, in order to best preserve my memories, but for some reason I never wanted to sit down to write about them. Maybe it’s because I’ve been busy enough back in the States, or more likely it’s because I don’t want to end the journey. As long as I don’t have my last memories from Spain written down, then in some way I never really left, right? I think I’ll leave it that way, and just say that leaving Spain was one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to do. It really did feel like leaving home. Perhaps the best illustration I can give is one of me sitting on the plane for around nine hours, without sleeping despite having hardly slept in days, without playing my iPod, without reading the book I had taken along. I didn’t do a single thing other than pick at my food and stare into space. Nine hours of nothing has never passed by so quickly.
What surprised me, however, was how I felt when I touched down in Chicago. For a while it didn’t really sink in that I was actually back on home soil, but once I did start warming up to the idea I found myself walking around with a huge smile on my face as I waited for my flight to the Twin Cities. I was truly happy to be home, when all I had felt during the prior months was dread at the prospect of leaving my Spanish life behind.
The five weeks I spent at home this summer were truly special. I enjoyed them more than I ever thought I would, and that has certainly continued since I have moved to Madison, where I have completely fallen in love with this city. Having a few summer weeks to really learn what this city is about, to see a side I had never really experienced much before, has been exhilarating. Madison is a truly unique place. My house feels wonderfully homey, the Saturday farmers market (one of my favorite places on Earth, despite all my travels) is just a few blocks away. The smell of brats grilling fills the Madison air every balmy evening, the sun sets as beautifully over Lake Mendota every night as it does over the Atlantic in Lisbon. There have been countless hours to spend playing frisbee and volleyball in the parks, to swim in any number of lakes, and to run along the shore as the sun sets on Mendota. I could never ask for better friends than those I have here. It has been a treat to be back with all of them again.
My year in Spain was the best of my life. It changed me in many ways, and opened my eyes to what is possible in life. But it would be a lie to say that I didn’t think this coming year could be just as great… in different ways, of course. Summer in Madison is paradise.