Week 24: It's Not Adios, Just Hasta Luego

"Porque Madrid, en realidad, no es nada especial. No tiene un gran río. Ni apenas rascacielos. Ni canales, ni lago. Ni gloriosas ruinas. Ni mar. A Madrid, le falta muchas cosas. Pero tiene la gente por las calles. El rincón inesperado. La variedad. El contraste. La animación constante. Y sus costumbres. Vale la pena levantarse temprano--por una sola vez--para vivir un día la vida de Madrid."

I stumbled across this gem this past week, and it only seemed fitting to include it in my last post. It says: in reality, Madrid isn't anything special. It doesn't have a great river. Or a lot of skyscrapers. It doesn't have canals or a lake. Or glorious ruins. Or the sea. Madrid is missing a lot of things--but the people, the madrileños, make up for it. The unexpected corners and plazas. The variety, the constrast, the constant movement. And the customs and traditiona, it's worth the pain of getting up early--at least once--to live a day in the life of a madrileño.

To me, this captures Madrid perfectly. When you hear people talk about the big European cities, Madrid seems to be overlooked in favor of Barcelona, Rome, Paris, London, etc. Because Madrid lacks a lot of the sights that most people associate with Europe, but Madrid has something better than that--the people and the madrileño lifestyle. I've never met people more friendly and in love with life. Living here for the past six months has taught me a lot, but most importantly its taught me how to be flexible and stop and smell the roses. Why waste the day stressing out over things I have no control over, when I can walk down the street to Parque del Oeste, Templo Dubod, or walk down Princesa and Gran Vía into Sol, or spend the afternoon laying in Retiro?  Madrileños, and Spainards, amaze me, and I'm bringing part of them back with me. 

This past week has been bittersweet because as excited as I am to be going home, seeing my friends and family, celebrating my birthday, and getting ready for my senior year at Purdue; it also means that I have had to say goodbye to all the wonderful people I've met and say goodbye to my favorite places in the city. 

To my parents, thank you for giving me the opportunity to live my dream and see the world. I've dreamt of living in Spain since I was a junior in high school, and now I can happily say I've achieved it. 

To Amy, Mamen, Diana and Ksenja, thank you so much for all the support and encouragement you have given us through the past six months. You encouraged us to completely submerge ourselves in la vida madrileña and gave us the opportunity to be completely independent here.

To Purdue Study Abroad, thank you for giving me the opportunity to participate in the WIPT program. I first learned about this program when I was a senior in high school, and it's one of the main reasons I chose to do my undergrad at Purdue. After hearing all about the WIPT program, and now having participated in it myself, I can say that it truly is one of the best study abroad programs in Madrid.

To Madrid, I love everything about this city and I feel as though a piece of me is staying here. But, that's okay, because I'm coming back for it. So, I'll be seeing you real soon :)

Hasta luego y besitos,

Kelsey