the last days

This past week and weekend have brought a few teary-eyed moments, lost of laughs, and many more memories.  Here's a glimpse at some things I did over the weekend and some other things I've done this week.

Madrid

I wanted to go to Madrid one last time before leaving, because why not since I live where I can just hop on a train and be there in 40 minutes? Pilar went with me last Friday evening after school, and we visited the Botanical Garden and walked around the center of the city.  It was beautiful at night with all of the lights.  We finished off our visit with a calamari sandwich and waffles with chocolate (which is a normal dessert).  I'm confident I'll be back in Madrid at some point in my life, but it was still bittersweet to say goodbye to such a beautiful city that I've gotten to know very well.

The Botanical Garden or Jardines Botanicos

Beautiful sunset at the Royal Palace

Plaza Mayor

Trail Race

Saturday afternoon (it started at 5:30pm) I "ran" in a 14K trail race in Camarma.  I say "ran" because I ran the first 8K of the race, and then I was stopped and driven by car to the finish line.  Evidently I wasn't running fast enough, because the race volunteers pointed to their watches and said we needed to drive back... A little embarrassing, to say the least.  Ironically, I was running under a 12 min-mile pace, which is pretty good for me, especially considering the elevation and that I have a torn hip labrum.  All of the racers were pretty legit.  I still got the race t-shirt and ran half of it, so I guess it counts.

Vici, Jessie, and me

me and Pilar

Sometime before I got kicked out of the race ;)

Alcalá de Henares

After the race, Pilar, Jessie, and Vici (a new friend we made at the race) went to a restaurant in Camarma for a tapa.  Pilar, Jessie, Alva, and I had planned to go to Alcalá that night to see the town and visit some sites, but it ended up being Pilar, Vici, and I!  We had a great time visiting a fancy restaurant and a tetería or tea shop.  Just like leaving Madrid on Friday, it was a strange feeling to leave Alcalá that night- even though this technically wasn't "my town," I still got to know it very well and felt like it was part of my daily life more than the city of Madrid.  

Sunday afternoon hike

Pilar and I have gotten into the habit of going for long walks/hikes on Sunday afternoons.  We usually go with Yolanda, and sometimes her dog comes too!  We hiked about 6 miles on Sunday before it rained that evening.  Pilar had wanted to take me to one of her favorite trails for a day-long hiking "excursion," but we never got to because the past few weekends were rainy.  

Tuesday girls' night

Typically on Tuesday nights, I go to one of the other ECA teacher's houses to watch the Bachelor.  Since the season is over, we've been without a set plan for our Tuesday nights.  This week, Carly's parents were in town visiting, so she had us over for dinner and cooked a meal for us!  It was fun to meet her family and have a special last time together.  

Carly, Lauren, me, Natalie, and Emily

Hair cut

Wednesday night, Pilar cut my hair!  I'd been saying that she should cut my hair before I leave because why not! She gave me a trim and some layers, and I learned some new hair-related vocab. 

Today is my last day in Spain, and I truly cannot believe it.  I'm also not really letting myself believe it, but I'm sure it will set in tonight and after school.  Right now, I have 0 desire to go home, even though lots of fun and exciting things are ahead of me, but I'm looking forward to celebrating the last day of school with my kiddos!