Today marks one week back in Spain. I have been the busiest little española with a week full of excitement and settling into my new casa.

Meeting families for private English classes, getting ready for school, learning the bus routes around the city, helping other Americans set up with phones and apartments, nightly fiestas in the peña, and attending my very first fútbol game are only a touch on the non-stop week that has flown by. 

One of the great things I experienced this week are LAS FERIAS.
Whether you call it the carnival, the fair, or the fan fair; Spain knows how to do it right.

The county fair back home is something I always look forward to. I found a ton of similarities in our fairs and the spanish fairs.

But there are also some very unique rides, games, and gastronomy to a Spanish fair that you won't find in the US.

If there is one memory I'm leaving with, it is my ride on the Rodeo ride, the toro loco (crazy bull...and that it is!) as La Whitney calls it. Sit on the bull and try to hold on while it jerks you in every direction possible. 

Amidst trying to hold your dress down, you'll be falling on top of small children, each other, and trying to get back up on the bull before the ride is over. I'm pretty certain the worker on the ride had never heard so many American screams of "Oh my God!" before in his life.

America, take notes: Best. Ride. Ever.

Getting ready to leave this week....FOUR MORE DAYS!!!!! (But who's counting?)

...I've been thinking a lot about what I'd like to accomplish in the next chapter of life.

Forget new year's resolutions. Now is the time to live, and live right! (Cue inspirational music). Different from my bucket list, these are personal goals, hopes, and aspirations I'm striving for in the near future.

10 things I Want Accomplish this Year
1. Make new friends, but keep the old.
2. Take a trip somewhere I don't have the desire to visit.
3. Read a novel, in Spanish.
4. Fall in love with something new.
5. Spend one week without internet.
6. Attend a futból match. 
7. Dress like a european.
8. Spend less money.
9. Affect the life of a student.
10. Remember how blessed I am.

What do you want to do in the next year of your life? It doesn't have to be January 1st to begin new goals, and you don't have to be loco enough to pack up and move across the world to have new aspirations for yourself either. Share with me some of your own!

Conversations lately have become very repetitive. 

In the dentist's office today, I had basically the same conversation with three different people. Let's just take a glimpse at all the (sometimes stupid) questions I've been asked.

Do you speak Spanish?
Where is Spain? South America?

So, you're studying abroad?
Oh, you can teach English? Is that like, a job there?
Will you get paid?

Do you have a Spanish boyfriend?
Are you going alone? Why?
Do you have a place to live yet?

Is it hot all the time there?
Is the food really spicy?

How long will you be there?

Of course, all of this is followed by: I am so jealous! I wish I would have done that when I was younger! You are very lucky, just make sure you are safe!

In short, my answers usually go like this: No, I don't. Not even answering that. No, I'm a college graduate. Yes, duh. Yes, duh again. No, I don't, thanks for the reminder! Yes. Because! Yes again. No. No you tonto, that's Mexico! I have no clue. And, I know, I am very excited. Cue fake smile.

I know people are sometimes honestly interested, and sometimes just trying to make small talk, but overall...I'm sick of the questions! I hate to be cynical, but ask me something about why I want to go, how I got this opportunity, or if I'm nervous or scared. Challenge me people!

To quote Elvis, which I don't think I've ever done in my lifetime...'a little less talk a little more conversation' would be nice! End rant.

I've made a small list of things I'll miss about the US. But there are so many things I'm looking forward to in the year(s) ahead.

1. Fiestas. Claras, cañas, and Spanish wine (or for the hard drinker in me...Vodka Negra). Staying out until daylight on Friday and Saturday nights dancing to my favorite Spanish songs, because that's just, what they do. Discotecas.

2. Tapas. Small appetizers you eat with a drink in bars. The spanish word for lid. An old legend describes a King who put a piece of jamon over his drink when the wind blew through the bar. Now ham and other small appetizers are called tapas. And they are delicious. Tortilla de patatas. Croquettes. Aceitunas. Tostada con tomate. 

3. Siestas. In all reality, I won't take siestas everyday. Nor does any Spaniard I know. The always working American girl in me won't have time for that. But the fact that I COULD if I wanted to, and still not be socially labeled as an 'old lady', 'lazy youknowwhat', or a 'burnt out youngster' is a wonderful thing.

4. People watching. Seeing the old men and women in their Sunday best window shopping as they hold hands, and the little girls and boys dressed with bows in their hair pushing miniature baby buggies.

5. Transportation. Letting my feet take me wherever I need to go. Walking past old Spanish architecture, even a 900 year old cathedral on my way to meet a friend. Riding through the Spanish countryside, on two-lane roads, scenic land on all sides of me.

6. The language. A bit of a challenge for me, but still something I love. Castellano will be spoken to me, about me (hopefully good things) and written, all around me. Note: Stop signs say STOP. Weird, right?

7. Soccer. Ahem, fútbol. I don't know all the rules, I can't play very well, but I love watching the Spaniards obsess over it, and the passion they have for their teams. This year, I'll have to become a loyal fan. But hmm...which team should I choose? ¡VAMOS!

There is no list that could put into words everything that is so amazing about Spanish culture.

But this is a start to the list of the things to come in the next year of my life. I'm getting so excited!

Things you don't know about Spanish apartments:
-The washing machine is in the kitchen. Usually next to the oven (if your piso has one) Dishwashers are uncommon.
-There are no dryers. Clothes are hung out to dry. 

-The dining room table is also in the kitchen. A kitchen separated from the dining room table is called a "cocina americana" (an american kitchen). 

-There is no A/C. That's right Floridians, you read it correctly. In Northern Spain where I'll be living, it doesn't pose as many problems, because the open windows and a cool fan for the summer months can suffice. But southern spaniards, how DO you do it!? 
-Each room is separated by a door. Kitchen, each bedroom, living room... all rooms have a separate door, usually without locks.

-All windows have shutters. Heavy duty shutters that block all light, and let you siesta for hours and hours in total and complete darkness. 

-Bathrooms have a bidet. I'll let you read up on why and for what purpose. In my apartment, we'd always used it for washing our feet. Perfect size for an in-piso pedicure.

As I prepare for the move, I have been spending the summer working hard, but trying to enjoy every moment of what I'll no longer have in the year ahead of me.

Family and friends are absolutely at the top of the list. There is nothing like spending time with the people you love.

But the diva inside of me is going to have a long list of things I'll be missing at home.

1. Shopping. Yes, european fashion is high-quality and I am certain my wardrobe will gain some amazing advantages through living abroad, but clothes aside, how am I going to live without the dollar spot at Target? The cheap earrings at Forever 21? And Macy's shoe department!? In addition, I love the convenience of shopping here, jumping in my car and heading to Tar-jhay when I need something. In Spain, one stop shopping becomes seven or eight stop shopping. I will need to take a bus to the mall, and any odds and ends product I'll need will be bought at a specialty store. No such thing as Wal-Mart, Target, or Publix.

2. Country music. Sometimes, nothing excites the southern girl inside of me like hearing the first notes of "Friends in Low Places" and blasting Garth Brooks with my windows down in the car. My I-pod will be properly loaded before I go, so the radio-up-windows-down routine may just be changed to a singing-on-the-street-having-Spaniards-looking-at-me-like-I'm-crazy one.  

3. My Bed. My parents never did a 180 with my room when I moved out and turned it into a home gym or office...so my bed, is still, MY bed. It is large, and fluffy, and has a perfect imprint of where I lay. I've lived in many places and been in many other beds aside from my own (...that sounds wrong), but there is nothing like the cloud of perfection that is MY bed. 

4. Food. Sushi. Frozen Yogurt. Chick-fil-a. In Spain, the food isn't necessarily limited, but it is different. To-go is nonexistent, and ingredients in even familiar foods are not the same. Different meat in hamburgers, different cheeses on top. Ask a Spaniard if they know how to make Macaroni and Cheese. They will say "Of course!" proceeding to make you noodles, with cheese, and tomatoes. Not the same. 

Maybe all of these things that I'll miss seem, superficial. Afterall, I'm moving abroad! I'm living the dream! 

But I know that in moments, I will be sad. I will miss America. 

Those days when I'll want to curl up with some to-go food in MY bed listening to Garth Brooks, I'll think of how lucky I am to have this opportunity, and how amazing friends, family, food, and dollar spots are waiting for me back in America. 

What would you miss if you were away from home for a long time? What makes a house a home to you?