i know i still haven't updated spring break part 2, but right now the only things i can think of involve spain. as of today i have 18 days left which is insane to me. i keep thinking about things i will miss, things i wish america had, and things that i will definitely NOT miss when i come back. especially after going to that culture shock workshop last week. so if you will, here is a little list i've compiled.
THINGS I MISS:
-Friends and Family: of course i miss you all, and being here has made that the hardest thing in the world. knowing that i have so many different friends and family members scattered around the world makes the latitudes and longitudes, but i can't wait to be reunited with you all! i also miss alpha phi very much and can't wait to have that structure back into my life :)
-My bed: i know i know, a stupid one. but sometimes there just isn't a better place then your own bed.
-Jimmy Johns: let's face it, the sandwiches here are awful. the hard bread, the disgusting ham and lord knows what else. all i'm craving is a #14 Bootlegger Club!
-Chipotle: I should have put this above Jimmy Johns, although this list goes in no particular order. I MISS MEXICAN FOOD! i thought mexican would be popular here. it's not. this will be one of my first foods back aside from CHINESE food. i am seriously getting hungry right now/angry that i can't have this delicious food for another 18 days.
-Fresh Food/Cooking: one of the first rules Gloria told us about her home was that we weren't aloud to cook. I miss cooking! more then that, i miss cooking my own fresh food. gloria doesn't cook a lot of fresh vegetables, salads, or fruit for that matter. the whole carb diet of spain was fun at first, but not it's just annoying. i can't wait to cook healthy for myself when i'm back in my apartment!
-No socks: i can't take this wearing socks and slippers in the house anymore. i know it's weird, but i like my feet being cold, and i like feeling carpet under my feet. carpet! that's another big thing i miss. but i can't wait to walk around barefoot like a savagely uncivilized person.
-Air conditioning: who doesn't like air conditioning on a hot summer day? here we have our windows open all the time and pray for a nice breeze. (maybe we do have AC but if so, gloria definitely doesn't turn it on)
-Cell Phone: can't re"call" (see what i did there?) what it was like to text on my phone or call someone in America just because i miss. i swear i will never take that thing for granted ever again. i mean i was never the best at having that thing glued to me in the past, so now i'm actually afraid of having a phone too. that's going to take some getting used to.
-Car: i don't mind taking the metro here, but when i want to get somewhere fast i usually have to leave an hour early for everything which is annoying to say the least. i can't wait to drive, but i'm definitely going to start walking places that i wouldn't normally walk to in the u.s. that i used to think were "far away." i also can't wait to live closeby back in milwaukee. a 10 minute walk is absolutely nothing.
-iPod speakers: i miss jamming out. i guess i miss a functioning ipod as well. and functioning headphones.
-Shower: my shower at home is the best in the entire world. here i have to hold the shower head when i shower and the pressure is awful.
-Four Loko: yup.
-People being nice: i miss kindhearted and friendly people. in spain i'm afraid everyone wants to kill me, even when i'm speaking in spanish to them.
-Working out: although i've done a fair share of running in retiro park, i miss going to the rec, or lifetime to work out. people here don't work out and i need that in my life. i can't wait to get back into the swing of lacrosse during fall ball season in september.
-Forever 21/cheap clothes/things being less expensive: everything here is insanely expensive. i can't imagine a top being $5. that wouldn't happen in a million years here. it stresses me out how expensive everything is here. i can't wait for less costly things. AND i'm dying to see american money again.
-Speaking English: i'm getting annoyed that i can't speak well anymore. i'm going to miss spanish, but i miss english more.
Things I DON'T MISS:
-doing my own laundry: it's nice to have my laundry done for me instead of alotting a certain day of the week to wash and fold clothes. probably the best deal about having a hostmom.
-homework: i really don't have homework here. but then again, having the busy work sometimes help you understand the material better. guess what, i still don't miss it.
-milwaukee bars: spain nightlife is insane here, i mean i do miss the select few bars in milwaukee but nothing tops the nightlife in madrid. i definitely don't miss the early nights back home. here staying out until 6 am is now frowned upon and is in fact encouraged.
-no time for naps/no free time: back home the time to take a thirty minute nap was hardly existent. i love all the free time i have here to do whatever i want and to explore the city. i will cherish my free time left here, and will cherish my freetime back home whenever i have it VERY much.
-staying in one place for an entire semester: here i can travel around the world, and i have barely stayed in one place for an entire month. i won't miss my inability to do that next semester.
-alcohol free dining halls: it's nice having a few drinks after (sometimes before grammar) class, especially for a wonderful 80 cents. i will miss that aspect back home.
-american coffee: best coffee i ever had was in italy. and i always wondered why i didn't like coffee...here i love it. but back home, it tastes like dirt to me.
-milwaukee weather: everyday is at least 80 degrees and perfect. i have definitely taken that for granted, and sometimes i forget what milwaukee can be like.
-living inside: here we live out on the streets, walking around, eating lunch, eating dinner, or just chillin in the park. back home it's like we all hibernate and hide in our houses. i won't like that aspect very much upon returning.
not being able to drink on the streets: i can't believe i won't be able to botellon anymore :( that's the most fun part about spanish nightlife
Things I WON'T MISS:
no privacy: gloria walking in on me/yelling at me = self-explanatory.
the way spaniards communicate: i don't get my friends sometimes. they are either too direct, or so indirect that it confuses the heck out of me. it's not even the language barrier they are just so odd sometimes. i'm excited for my friends to speak to me in english again.
different social cues: people STARING. hence now I need to work on my staring because it has gotten bad over here.
bad internet at school: okay you think the internet is bad at marquette? i've never had worse or more unreliable internet then at complutense. i can't wait for some stability when i'm writing a paper and need to look something up and it doesn't take 2389572498 minutes.
my classes in another language: WOW, saved the best for last. the ability to zone out, or actually rather the ability to understand what is being said in a class.
these are just a few that i thought off of the top of my head, but there are so many wonderful things i'm going to miss about spain! i think i can say it's been the best learning experience of my life, and so much of me has changed for the better. i can't wait to go home and be with my loved ones, yet there are so many parts of me that want to stay...forever. i guess it's push and pull right now. i'm pretty torn.
JUNE 1ST= when i land in minneapolis
JUNE 5TH= ETA for when i return to milwaukee. who knows it might take a few more days to get there after i'm in the loving arms of my mother.
THINGS I MISS:
-Friends and Family: of course i miss you all, and being here has made that the hardest thing in the world. knowing that i have so many different friends and family members scattered around the world makes the latitudes and longitudes, but i can't wait to be reunited with you all! i also miss alpha phi very much and can't wait to have that structure back into my life :)
-My bed: i know i know, a stupid one. but sometimes there just isn't a better place then your own bed.
-Jimmy Johns: let's face it, the sandwiches here are awful. the hard bread, the disgusting ham and lord knows what else. all i'm craving is a #14 Bootlegger Club!
-Chipotle: I should have put this above Jimmy Johns, although this list goes in no particular order. I MISS MEXICAN FOOD! i thought mexican would be popular here. it's not. this will be one of my first foods back aside from CHINESE food. i am seriously getting hungry right now/angry that i can't have this delicious food for another 18 days.
-Fresh Food/Cooking: one of the first rules Gloria told us about her home was that we weren't aloud to cook. I miss cooking! more then that, i miss cooking my own fresh food. gloria doesn't cook a lot of fresh vegetables, salads, or fruit for that matter. the whole carb diet of spain was fun at first, but not it's just annoying. i can't wait to cook healthy for myself when i'm back in my apartment!
-No socks: i can't take this wearing socks and slippers in the house anymore. i know it's weird, but i like my feet being cold, and i like feeling carpet under my feet. carpet! that's another big thing i miss. but i can't wait to walk around barefoot like a savagely uncivilized person.
-Air conditioning: who doesn't like air conditioning on a hot summer day? here we have our windows open all the time and pray for a nice breeze. (maybe we do have AC but if so, gloria definitely doesn't turn it on)
-Cell Phone: can't re"call" (see what i did there?) what it was like to text on my phone or call someone in America just because i miss. i swear i will never take that thing for granted ever again. i mean i was never the best at having that thing glued to me in the past, so now i'm actually afraid of having a phone too. that's going to take some getting used to.
-Car: i don't mind taking the metro here, but when i want to get somewhere fast i usually have to leave an hour early for everything which is annoying to say the least. i can't wait to drive, but i'm definitely going to start walking places that i wouldn't normally walk to in the u.s. that i used to think were "far away." i also can't wait to live closeby back in milwaukee. a 10 minute walk is absolutely nothing.
-iPod speakers: i miss jamming out. i guess i miss a functioning ipod as well. and functioning headphones.
-Shower: my shower at home is the best in the entire world. here i have to hold the shower head when i shower and the pressure is awful.
-Four Loko: yup.
-People being nice: i miss kindhearted and friendly people. in spain i'm afraid everyone wants to kill me, even when i'm speaking in spanish to them.
-Working out: although i've done a fair share of running in retiro park, i miss going to the rec, or lifetime to work out. people here don't work out and i need that in my life. i can't wait to get back into the swing of lacrosse during fall ball season in september.
-Forever 21/cheap clothes/things being less expensive: everything here is insanely expensive. i can't imagine a top being $5. that wouldn't happen in a million years here. it stresses me out how expensive everything is here. i can't wait for less costly things. AND i'm dying to see american money again.
-Speaking English: i'm getting annoyed that i can't speak well anymore. i'm going to miss spanish, but i miss english more.
Things I DON'T MISS:
-doing my own laundry: it's nice to have my laundry done for me instead of alotting a certain day of the week to wash and fold clothes. probably the best deal about having a hostmom.
-homework: i really don't have homework here. but then again, having the busy work sometimes help you understand the material better. guess what, i still don't miss it.
-milwaukee bars: spain nightlife is insane here, i mean i do miss the select few bars in milwaukee but nothing tops the nightlife in madrid. i definitely don't miss the early nights back home. here staying out until 6 am is now frowned upon and is in fact encouraged.
-no time for naps/no free time: back home the time to take a thirty minute nap was hardly existent. i love all the free time i have here to do whatever i want and to explore the city. i will cherish my free time left here, and will cherish my freetime back home whenever i have it VERY much.
-staying in one place for an entire semester: here i can travel around the world, and i have barely stayed in one place for an entire month. i won't miss my inability to do that next semester.
-alcohol free dining halls: it's nice having a few drinks after (sometimes before grammar) class, especially for a wonderful 80 cents. i will miss that aspect back home.
-american coffee: best coffee i ever had was in italy. and i always wondered why i didn't like coffee...here i love it. but back home, it tastes like dirt to me.
-milwaukee weather: everyday is at least 80 degrees and perfect. i have definitely taken that for granted, and sometimes i forget what milwaukee can be like.
-living inside: here we live out on the streets, walking around, eating lunch, eating dinner, or just chillin in the park. back home it's like we all hibernate and hide in our houses. i won't like that aspect very much upon returning.
not being able to drink on the streets: i can't believe i won't be able to botellon anymore :( that's the most fun part about spanish nightlife
Things I WON'T MISS:
no privacy: gloria walking in on me/yelling at me = self-explanatory.
the way spaniards communicate: i don't get my friends sometimes. they are either too direct, or so indirect that it confuses the heck out of me. it's not even the language barrier they are just so odd sometimes. i'm excited for my friends to speak to me in english again.
different social cues: people STARING. hence now I need to work on my staring because it has gotten bad over here.
bad internet at school: okay you think the internet is bad at marquette? i've never had worse or more unreliable internet then at complutense. i can't wait for some stability when i'm writing a paper and need to look something up and it doesn't take 2389572498 minutes.
my classes in another language: WOW, saved the best for last. the ability to zone out, or actually rather the ability to understand what is being said in a class.
these are just a few that i thought off of the top of my head, but there are so many wonderful things i'm going to miss about spain! i think i can say it's been the best learning experience of my life, and so much of me has changed for the better. i can't wait to go home and be with my loved ones, yet there are so many parts of me that want to stay...forever. i guess it's push and pull right now. i'm pretty torn.
JUNE 1ST= when i land in minneapolis
JUNE 5TH= ETA for when i return to milwaukee. who knows it might take a few more days to get there after i'm in the loving arms of my mother.
miss and love you all. i'm coming home.
No comments:
Post a Comment