August 3 - Let’s Go to the Beach Beach

In order to save a few Euro, I set my alarm nice and early so I could make it to hotel breakfast on time. I sleepily got dressed and made my way to breakfast with my classmates. We all ate and talked about our blogs before meeting up with our professor for our daily plans. Per usual, we hopped on the metro near the hotel and made our way to our first stop of the day.

We all went to another house, this time not by Gaudi. This house was called Casa Amatller and it was literally next door to Casa Batllo in the Area of Discord. Similar to Gaudi, this house had a unique architecture style and also had many influences from nature in its details. I loved the stained glass windows and the way that everything is preserved and it looks nearly as pristine as it would have been when the house was built. We toured the house for a while and learned a lot about its history. The tours we have booked have all been thoroughly enjoyable and so insightful.

After the house, we had a few hours in between our next tour so we were free to go off on our own. I decided I needed some more time alone so I went off (safely of course) and went shopping in the nearby plaza. I picked up some souvenirs and took my time to just enjoy not being in a rush. I went into practically every shop along the way and even went to a gelato shop I had been eying. At this point, it was starting to rain so I sat inside and watched the rain while eating my pistachio gelato. I hadn’t really felt homesick but the rain and influx of first day of school pictures made me miss Tucson and my family. But I have less than a week here and knowing that I will be home soon made me feel much better.

Once the rain began to die down, I went back out again to window shop some more. I had over two hours until my next group event and it was an hour walk away from the gelato shop so I decided to just go on foot and see more of the city. I saw so many things I hadn’t seen before and stopped in tons of boutiques along the way. As I walked out of the center of the city towards the outskirts, I noticed a complete shift in the atmosphere. It may have been the time of day or where I was but everything was so peaceful. I walked through a big park and imagined what my life would be like if I were here for longer than two weeks. I could see myself sitting in the park for a picnic on a sunny day. I could see myself walking a dog around the city or sitting in a small apartment drinking coffee. I have never been away from my family for more than a week at a time and even though I miss them I realized in that moment that I am capable being on my own. I realized that I have grown so much on this trip. I am confident enough to go out on my own and grocery shop and do my laundry and communicate with the locals. I have fallen in love with Spain and my long walk through the city got my mind racing with all of the possibilities that lie ahead of me in the future. Maybe someday I will be able to live on my own in a different city, maybe even a different country.

I spent my long walk daydreaming about the possibility of staying in Spain for a while until I made it to my destination. I still had about 45 minutes until I had to meet up with my class so I decided to keep up my self reflection and walk to the beach since it was only five minutes away. I sat by the water reflecting on life and thinking about where I have been and where I see myself in the future. Up to this point, I have lived a life full of so much love and so many incredible things. Sure, I have had to overcome many obstacles but I have truly found so many wonderful things and I am so excited to see what life has in store for me in the future. I let the waves wash over my toes and picked up a few seashells before walking back to my destination. It was a perfect day for self reflection and I am very grateful that I was able to get time to think and look back on my life experiences. This trip has truly shown me a new side of myself and I know it will be one of the best things I take back with me when I go home.

The big destination for the afternoon was a digital art exhibit focused on Gaudi. We were able to see a unique projection show following his art styles and influences. It was really similar to an exhibit I had seen in Phoenix that focused on Frida Kahlo. The museum had many interactive art pieces that were fun and quite different from the other experiences we have undertaken while abroad. The most exciting part of the museum was an interactive virtual reality experience that we all got to enjoy. I have only done virtual reality on a small scale so having an entire room full of twenty college students all in a virtual space was quite a sight. We chased each other around and truly let our fun sides come out in this space. All of us had an absolute blast and I would highly recommend doing virtual reality experiences with a large group of friends.

We left the museum all giddy and still riding that high of fun from the VR. We were all hungry though so a few of us went to a nearby Italian restaurant and decided to have a picnic by the beach. We ordered takeout, grabbed drinks at a supermarket, and made our way over to some benches by the water. The food wasn’t the best but it was filling and we may have cut up some of our leftovers to feed to the pigeons. We were there at the beach for a while just watching the birds, enjoying the view of the ocean, and talking about anything and everything. I have truly bonded with my classmates and I enjoy all of them and their company. This program and this study abroad experience have been well worth it in every single way. We enjoyed our time by the water before deciding to turn in for the night and work on our blogs. We took a bus back from the beach to the hotel and many of my friends hung out in my room for a few hours while we worked on our projects and discussed the trip thus far.

This trip has truly been the best experience of my life. I have learned so much about the history and culture around me but I have also grown so much as a person. I have made some absolutely incredible friends, seen so many dream destinations, and I have made memories that will last a lifetime. I am so grateful to everyone who has supported me along the way and everyone who has helped get me here. I truly appreciate and love every single one of you. Even though I wish I could stay here forever, I am so excited to go home and see you all again.

♡ Katie