Sunday Funday: Poolside

Summer is Madrid has arrived! Por Fin!

Although the walk home from the train station in the afternoons is sweltering,

I am so happy not having to put on a jacket in the morning and be able to enjoy the warm night air sitting outside on a terraza. 

It's my last week in my apartment so Saturday I spent all day packing my stuff and making sure everything fits into my suitcases. eeeks.

Sunday a few friends and I went to one of Madrid's public pools for a day of sun, swimming and relaxing.

It was no Alicante but it was glorious and a wonderful escape from the city heat!

So happy swimming, getting a tan, playing Spanish Bananagrams and of course having ice cream and Sangria.

Then ending the day with my favorite Indian food.

 More info on Madrid pools if you're interested!

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Happy Father's Day!

{me and my daddy in prague 1990}

{me and my daddy in prague last year}

happy father's day to the best dad in the world!

a friend recently said to me that i'm going to have a very hard time finding a man for myself that lives up to the standards that my dad has set for me.

she is absolutely right.

thanks a lot daddy. i blame my singleness on you ;)

(i'm sure you did it on purpose)

love you so much!

see you in 28 days!!!

it's people that matter + one month countdown

"remember... you can go anywhere in the world--to the most beautiful places imaginable--searching for happiness. but in the end, a pretty view is just wallpaper. it's people that matter."

photo and quote via Stefanie Hurtado

This is exactly what I've been trying to explain to people when they ask me about living in Spain, my adventures, the amazing experiences, my travels. 

Walking around a historic city, listening to old Spanish people having intense conversations, swimming in the Mediterranean, meeting new people, learning Spanish, trying new foods and learning about different cultures are such incredible experiences, but part of me always felt a little (and sometimes a lot) sad that people I would have loved to share  these experiences with, the views, the beauty, the uniqueness ,weren't with me.

For fear of sounding like this experience didn't matter, that the views were taken in vain, that my friends here aren't important or that I wasn't happy,

I assure you this experience mattered. 

It has mattered greatly.
Do I even need to mention all the traveling I was so unbelievably fortunate to do.

And I was/am very happy.

I have made friends I am so grateful for, had so much fun with and now have an excuse to travel all over the US and Europe to visit!

I am a stronger person and so much more confident in myself and my abilities to get through rough times, obstacles and frustrations.
I learned a lot about myself. 
My abilities, my limitations, capabilities and a sort of thrill {but sometimes terror} of stepping outside of my comfort zone, how much alone time I like before going crazy, my priorities and the issues I still need to work on.

All that being said, the countdown begins.
One month from today I will head back to my people.
Back to be surrounded by the people that matter most to me.
I have very mixed emotions {accompanied by disbelief and a little bit of nausea} but I am so excited to start new adventures back in California.

With all my memories, souvenirs, photographs, personal growth and a few extra pounds of shoes and clothes I've acquired I will also 

come home with a huge new appreciation, love and happiness to be with the people that matter most to me.

Alicante

a plop of pictures from our weekend in alicante.

i had a very difficult time narrowing down the pictures to share of the view from our apartment.

waking up to that view, spending all day at the beach, swimming in the very cold sea, sangria on the beach, views from the castle and of course valencian paella...

take me back!

back to where in all started...

Remember a year and a half ago when I moved to Barcelona?!

Finally went back to visit and had the best weekend ever! ;)

cava & friends

Makamaka Beach Burger Cafe

 biking to the beach. my dream life.

 long, ridiculous, fun nights out with friends i forgot how much i missed

 Brunch and Cake for the morning after... large coffee and large OJ please

BBQ, city view and sunset watching from a friends beautiful terrace

This weekend was my first time back in Barcelona since I moved away last May.

I am in a severe post weekend/trip blues after the ridiculous amount of fun I had all weekend long.

We went straight to the Champañeria when I got in which clearly meant the weekend was going to be awesome.

While living in Barcelona I was very homesick and lost and I think I blamed a lot of that on Barcelona not on my own personal unhappiness with myself.

Now going back more happy with my self, a new confidence, more calm and bit more satisfied with the path I'm on, I see Barcelona in a whole new light...

And you guys, Barcelona is awesome!

I still don't feel that it's typical Spain or the best place to learn Spanish, 

( not because they're speaking Catalan, because it's a British, American and German hotspot!)

but Barcelona has so much to offer between the weather, the delicious, food, the big city, but still smaller city feeling, a fantastic biking system, fun nightlife, beautiful windy streets of Gotico and Borne,  the beach(!) 

and my friends that are the whip cream, cherries and sprinkles on top!

{I get a lot of emails about Barcelona recommendations and am now very motivated to do a proper visiting Barcelona post.

 If you have any places/suggestions/advice please share!}

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Honfleur is for Lovers {Part 2}

The second day in Honfleur we woke up to a farmers market.

Yes, a french farmers market where everyone carries around their adorable french straw baskets picking up their usual cheeses, meats, bread, fruits and veggies like this was a normal Saturday on the coast of France.

We, on the other hand, walked around with huge ridiculous tourist smiles, squealing at every new cheese stand. 

I'm not sure how we dragged ourselves out of there with only cheese, jam, honey and fruit.

Paris is beautiful and a must see but this trip to Normandy has me itching to visit and explore so many other small french towns and regions. 

Gijon... not quite what we expected

{seems very strange to be posting rainy, cold photos after a weekend of sun and beach but I gotta get through sharing the rest of my april travels!}

Really funny story about Gijon...

So, remember this NY Times 46 Places to Go in 2013?

Well, two of those places are in Spain and naturally I want to visit them while I'm here.

While planning our trip to Santander and the day trips we would take I figured we should go to the town on the list that's in the north, Gijon.

So we take a 5 hour train from Santander to Oviedo where we met up with California family friends who were there for a wedding and then another 30 min train to Gijon.

We get to Gijon and after walking around for awhile, seeing the town, the beach, the views, we were very very confused as to how this could be a top 46 place to see in the WORLD!

Expecting something amazing, beautiful, breathtaking, charming and top 46 place in the world status, Gijon had some big shoes to fill and we were definitely disappointed.

WELLLLLL....

5 hours back to Santander on the bus, I google the NY Times list again and realize 

WE WENT TO THE WRONG TOWN!

It's Getaria that's on the list, not Gijon!

Getaria is also in the North but in Basque Country in between Bilboa and San Sebastian.

Wooooops! My bad!

Good thing my mom and sister were still happy we got to see so much of the countryside on the train so it wasn't exactly a wasted day.

The moral of the story?

While Gijon has some charming parts, it is most definitely not a NY Times top place to go in 2013....