So, as of 5 hours ago, I have a new house, a new family, and along with that, a pet schnauzer-like dog, a parrot (who never fails to greet you upon your entrance, with a friendly ‘buenos dias’), a bat, a turtle and a weekend beach chalet on the Mediterranean sea.
6 hours ago, I left my mother (the biological one :) at the Madrid Airport.
20 hours ago we were walking on the 11th century wall in Avila, Spain.
25 hours before that, I was taking an economics exam.
What is this ever-changing world we live in?
Everything has changed so fast, I couldn’t tell you how I got here, but here I am, and I will be spending my last three months in this adorable house on dolores street. I would say that things should be slowing down soon, but that’s just not how things decided to sort out. This week, with a madrileño concert, a St. Patricks day party, the town dance, and packing for spring break in Germany— there’s really no time to sit and reflect on all of these changes.
Let me explain- My mother came for a long weekend to visit her daughter and the historic town of St. Teresa of Avila (which would be, not so surprisingly, Avila). We started out the mini-vacation shopping on Gran Via in Madrid and enjoying my favorite spots throughout the city, among which include a little calzone shop, ‘happy bakery,’ J&Js English booksellers and café, and little Chinese stores that sell cheap juice and chips. The next day I enjoyed showing my mom about my life in Tres Cantos- we lunched with a friend and her family, and enjoyed some ham with some Rotarians for dinner (Spanish ham is not just any ham, mind you. It is THE ham).. The next day we left for Avila after I had finished my 3 mid-term exams (Yes, great timing, all of this). A 3 hour dinner of Castilian soup and St. Teresa soup was enjoyed by all (all two of us), followed by getting lost in the winding avilian streets (yes, avilian streets, I am allowed some poetic licence) at thirty minutes till midnight. We found our hotel and the next day we did all of the tourist activities—walking on the famous wall, going into cathedrals and chapels, seeing Teresa’s ring-finger in a box at her mini-museam.
Frozen by the mountainous chill, we returned to Madrid to eat churros and chocolate and enjoy the numerous street performers that flock to Sol on Saturday nights.
Now she should be in Portugal and on her way home to welcome our new exchange student from Brazil who moves in today. As I unpack all of my belongings in my new house, my new house on dolores street.
