Segovia, Malaga, and Reality

I had the fortune of spending the entire weekend in two completely distinct yet fundamentally Spanish provinces: Castilla y Leon and Andalucia. Segovia, a city to the north and located in the former of the two provinces, is a beautiful historical mountain town, set against an impresive 2,000-year-old Roman aquaduct and home to the castle that inspired Sleeping Beauty. The weather was lovely, the arcitecture impressive, and the pastries incredible. The girls and I had the fortune of trying Tarta de Ponche, a pastry encased in sugary dough with three layers of rum cake, pumpkin filling, and toasted marshmallow. Later we drove up to La Granja, the royal family's vacation palace nestled in the woods and surrounded by fountains. Throw in a rollercoaster and this could've been a trip to Disneyland.

Wasting absolutely no time this weekend, I woke up at 4:45am the next morning and my roommate and I caught a plane to Malaga, a southern coastal city on the Mediterranean facing the African coast. Though Annie and I had planned to spend the entirety of the weekend on the beach, we found a nice castle, a fortress, and an enchanting cathedral to explore in the city... that isn't to say we didn't take full advantage of the location/spend at least four hours on the beach each day. Again, the food was fabulous--but that's to be expected of Spain by now--and I came back content and a slightly darker shade of white (off white?).

But now reality is hitting. And it's hitting hard. I've been sucker-punched into the real world: classes end this week, finals start next Monday, the final day of my internship is Wednesday, and I leave Madrid, Spain, Europe in ten days. Yo aluncino, de verdad. I really can't believe it. So while usually these posts try to provide some sort of cultural commentary on the places I've been, the only thing I can think about is the place I'll be going soon: home. I'm both so excited to return to the states and practically devasted to leave behind the people I love here. There's no way that I could ever duplicate this experience, nor would I want to. It's just I'd like to experience it all just a little longer...