I can't believe how blessed I have been. I don´t know how I got so lucky.

It’s been a long time since I’ve had a solid update on here, but my life really picked up a lot in the month of November. I’ll begin with Halloween. Max (one of my best friends from home) is studying in Barcelona and, having been there with him for a weekend the year before, I knew I loved the city and was planning to visit for thanksgiving, if not more than once. He and his friends were hosting a Halloween party at a castle in the hills outside of the city, complete with spooky decorations and whole animals being grilled over the fire. It sounded too good to be true, and after sufficient peer pressure, I made some last minute tickets to go up to Barcelona (1hr 20min) by plane. I spent the entire first day in the rain roaming the streets with Max, frantically searching for a costume at any sort of reasonable price. I’m pretty confident in my creative abilities to make anything out of just about anything… I just needed a Salvation Army or something to work with, but as there were none to be found, with about an hour before the party we found some orange plastic tablecloths and a green headband and went as pumpkins; they actually turned out to be a big hit! The party was a lot of fun, and his friends were great… all hilarious and really welcoming. The next day was also cold and wet, so not a lot of tourist activities were accomplished, but hopefully that will be taken care of later. The only negative of the trip is that my camera was stolen out of my backpack soon after I arrived. I’m not sure why, but that sort of thing doesn’t really get me that down. I mean, it sucks, but I can always get pictures from other people I’m with who have cameras, and hey… worse things could happen. It’s just a material possession. I really have shitty luck with cameras though… that was number 3…!

After that, the whirlwind of trying to stay up on elections and results and aftermath was tough, but it ended up with more positives than negatives, though I was extremely disappointed with my home state (see below). However, Barcelona was my first time away from my roommates, and it really made me realize just how much I had grown close to them and how much I truly appreciated them. They had really become my family here in Malaga, and all day everyday I was with any or everyone of them. Just coming home and having everyone in the kitchen, cooking and talking, or at night going out doing some activity together, or just staying in and playing a game, watching a movie, or just talking, we were always together and I loved being with them. Despite being more or less 8 of us in an apartment made for 5, I wouldn’t have it any other way. I’ve absolutely loved having so many different people around that function so cohesively and enjoy each other’s presence so much. Before going out, we usually drink some beer or wine in the apartment (almost always playing a game), but what ended up happening is that we never want to leave! People may or may not come over with us, and we just end up staying in playing and laughing until like 2:00 or 3:00 before we realize it’s already late and we have to leave if we want to make anything of our night! I’ve taught a lot of games that everyone really likes, but I also spread the plague of the Rubik’s Cube, teaching a couple roommates a few basic steps, and now there’s two – Marcelo and Marcos that are addicted.

Butttttt now everything is changing… Last Friday Daniela, probably the roommate who I had grown the closest to, left to travel before returning to Brazil in December. She is an amazing person, always laughing, and probably the person most full of life that I have ever met. Always singing, always dancing, and the type of person where anything instantly becomes an inside joke so that everyone has their own special little relationship with her. I took the bus with her to Madrid this last weekend because I went to Salamanca despues, and we had a looong, sad goodbye in the bus station. Also, Marcos, who has more or less been “squatting” in our apartment for the last six weeks, finally decided to move on, continuing to travel I think until February when he also goes back to Brazil. He is hilarious and extremely polite, sometimes too polite, where he is always trying to forcefeed you food that he made or let himself do the dishes even if he didn’t eat or cook the food. Also, he looks exactly like Dennis Quaid. When I found out he was coming to visit, I figured it was maybe a night, or a weekend at most, but six weeks and 3 or 4 official “despedidas” (goodbyes) later, he finally left. Without the two of them around these last few days, the apartment has truly seemed dead. It’s a lot colder and darker in general now in Malaga, and overall the apartment has lost a lot of life. Marcelo, “the grandpa”, leaves on Friday, too, and Juliana in 2 weeks! Marcelo and Juliana were the first ones I met in the apartment, and instantly invited me to eat with them before I had even set down my bags. Marcelo is very curious and is always talking, either about Brazil or asking questions about my experiences in the United States, as he has spent time in Detroit and Boston, and knows/likes American culture a lot. We all make fun of him that he is the other American since it’s usually me up against the 4 Brazilians. Juliana and I spent a lot of time together the first week after I moved in because at the time she was only working a couple nights a week at the discoteca, and she kind of introduced me to the city, as well as the night life which she knows plenty about! We went to the feria together in Fuengirola which was incredible. Also, we both love to dance and the first couple weekends we stayed out a couple times till 6 or 7 in the morning. I know some other people are going to move in, but it’s really hard to imagine life in the apartment without the four of them. The only one left is Alexia from France and her boyfriend Manu from Malaga, and I love them both, but since she was gone for my first month I don’t quite have the same connection. Oh well, I also look forward to the change, and maybe now being a little more alone… or “independent”… I will get to know the city a little better and start to get more of an organized schedule with exercise or other hobbies.

It didn’t make it any better that I went to Salamanca last weekend for a couple days with my old host family. I was soooo happy to see them, and they seemed equally happy to see me. It was freezing in Salamanca, but we had a great time together, not really doing a whole lot more than going for walks and just hanging out and catching up. Combined with my roommates leaving, and being with loved ones that are as close to real family as it gets, it has caused me to feel my first pangs of homesickness. Nothing too strong, but it’s the first time that I find myself once in a while thinking about home for once, whereas I never was before.

I will have a lot to distract me though – Barcelona for Thanksgiving 11/26 – 11/30, Morocco for a weekend Dec 12-14, and then Germany with the German family from Dec. 20- Jan 2. I’m gonna get back in January and turn around and it will already be May in no time, I already know. It’s gonna fly by from here on out.

Hope this catches most people up on things. Feel free to send this around to anyone who may not be reading this, because I would love to hear from everybody! Much love.

A few scattered photos:

Malaga (more or less... 3 photos put together hastily)


Malgueta beach


Cordoba, sea of columns


Cordoba, jardin del alcazar


Salamanca, reunited with my host family!