Back at it again..One year later..

So I started blogging last year before heading out to Spain. The excitement was overwhelming thinking about living in the country of my dreams for an entire school year and I wanted to document everything and share it through pictures and my writing. Of course, I got busier as the day approached and stopped blogging shortly after I got to Spain. My goal was to write everyday but I didn’t and since I didn’t meet my goal I shortly gave up. Well writing everyday is a bit of an overachiever goal considering I was in a new environment and I was not going to sit in front of a computer writing about my day rather than enjoying and cherishing it. However, now looking back I would make it a goal to write once a week which is exactly what I will be doing from now on. The book The Artist’s Way motivated me to take the approach of one day at a time; to not overwhelm myself. I have been practicing and implementing the wisdom of that book into my twirling life. Therefore, I have been committed in writing 3 pages every morning. Through my morning reflection pages I am able to find peace and inspiration for the rest of the day. I write my thoughts and feelings on a few of my incomplete traveling journals and will continue to do so…Now, I will balance blogging and my morning reflection pages. I am looking forward to all the writing especially because it’s free writing and I don’t have to follow any particular format that will restrict my creativity.

Over the last few weeks I have been reading a lot and reflecting upon my interests. I have made a decision to go back to Spain solely on my gut feeling.  Of course it is once in a lifetime opportunity to go live in the magical city of Sevilla in Andalucia but more than that; it feels right in my heart. Because I have decided to go back it means I have to prepare a lot of paperwork such as my long term student visa. I am not looking forward to doing all the busy work and paying all that money. Unfortunately, for me there is no way around it and I have to prepare everything little by little. I had the appointment at the consulate for tomorrow but that is not going to work out because I was not able to get the medical clearance I needed. It’s ok! I took a deep breath and realized that it’s meant to happen that way. I rescheduled for the following week so I have more time to prepare. The worst thing I could do is show up and be unprepared; waste my time and waste the consulate’s time. Next week I will have everything in order and I will feel great! I won’t receive my visa until October but that is ok because I didn’t think it would be possible for me to get back to Spain any sooner than mid October either way. I will keep calm and carry on..=

blog #3 L.A. trip that ended with nutella martinis and "best friends" necklace

After pressing the snooze button 10 times, I wake up late as always and quickly begin getting ready. I had to make it to L.A. for my eye exam and I was scared that I would not make it there on time. Time is of the essence but I run on brown people time, meaning I am always late. No matter how hard I try or how early I try to get somewhere I usually fail miserably.This is something that really bothers me about myself and that I am working on fixing. I find it rude and immature. I hope that this year abroad teaches me to be on time.

The most inconvenient thing about driving to L.A. is the traffic. It is always so unexpected and you have to hope and pray that you get lucky and not catch too much traffic. Fortunately, I was able to make it on time and get my eye dilated. Thanks to that I was blind for about 5 hours. It was not all that bad only because I bumped into my friend Tracie. We had been planning to hang out before I left and we finally got to catch up. She led the blind person (me) around Westwood and she was able to run errands with me which I was extremely thankful for it. I couldn’t leave Westwood without having Indian food from the restaurant down the street from my old apartment. We caught up and reminisced about our experience working at SEIU this summer. We could not believe the 8 week internship had gone by so fast. We missed our coworkers and the pay but we definitely did not miss all the driving we had to do. After enjoying a delicious Indian arroz con leche for dessert we walked past the weekly farmers market and said good bye. I realized that this was the second good bye out of many. The first good bye was this past weekend and they have only been getting harder. I will continue to think of it as if I was leaving for a month rather than a whole year.

At night I met up with one of my closest friends. Ana Paz had been working at the MTV studios all day for a movie premiere. We were supposed to meet up in Santa Monica afterwards since the studio is close by. Earlier I had been talking to a girl who will be doing the same program as me and we were talking about meeting up before we left to Spain. Turns out that she works at MTV and she was also working on a movie premiere. I asked them if they knew each other but they said they didn’t. I still think it’s a “small world”. The more people I meet the more I realize that everyone is somehow interconnected which I find extremely fascinating.

Ana and I had a great time at the Promenade. She recently moved up to L.A. which had been a dream of hers ever since I can remember. I knew that this outing would be a bit emotional because I would say bye to one of my best friends so I tried not to think about the fact that I would not see her for another year. Walking down the promenade, we bumped into a booth that sold necklaces. We searched for 15 minutes but nothing would win our heart over. Ana suddenly picked out a necklace with a broken heart that said “friends” and we both thought it would be the cutest thing if we could find the missing piece. A few seconds we both saw the missing piece which was “best”. Being the superstitious as always, we thought it was meant to be. We got one for one another and exchanged pieces. I now have the “friends” and she has the “best”. This moment meant a lot to me because she is one of the people that I love and care for the most. She has been dear to me since high school and I can really call her my best friend. I will miss her dearly but as she says “she will be living vicariously through my experiences”. Our amazing night ended with a delicious nutella martini that a bartender from a crepe restaurant made especially for us. We cheered and laughed about anything and everything just like best friends do. L.A. always makes me happy.

I just read my horoscope and this got me really excited for my trip. It reads “Passion and temptation might appear in your life, through a new person that you will meet and who will completely turn your senses upside down”.  I know the “maybe” is a bit annoying but I’m hoping that it turns into a “will”.

blog #2 Delaying the packing

I continue to delay the packing. It’s a mind game. If I pack at the last minute it will feel like I am packing for another one of my normal trips that I’ve made before and I won’t feel as bad about leaving for a whole year. Also, the fact that I am only allowed to check in one bag and take a 20 lb carry one makes it a bit more difficult to believe that I will be gone for such a long time. I was not planning on taking so many things in the first place but just being able to check in one bag really limits to what I can take with me. I know for a fact that I have to take winter clothes, which are the heaviest and my least favorite to wear. If it was up to me I would wear dresses and flip flops every day. I will miss the Cali weather so much especially the weather in Orange County. We are so spoiled! 75 degree weather most of the year, who could complain?  I will also make sure to throw clothes that I can dress up and down. 

So I keep hearing “what are you doing your last few days before leaving, any big plans?” 

Every day has been a Saturday this summer. Thankfully, I have been able to catch up with a lot of friends and family as the summer went by. Now, I just want to continue enjoying my family and close friends before I head out.  I consider myself extremely lucky because I am constantly receiving text messages, calls and emails from people wishing me good luck or wanting to hang out with me before my departure. I feel loved and also think that it has dawned down on other people more than it has on me. This is a blessing and a curse. It is easy for me to act on certain things without thinking twice about it. Often times I don’t realize what I have gotten myself into until I am stuck doing it. For example, traveling to Spain might be one of those “crazy ideas”. 

Today, I was able to visit the happiest place on earth. Going to Disneyland always makes me happy.  I am a kid at heart which is why I decided to get a Disney pass. I was not able to go the last few months because I was always too busy with school or work but now I have all the time in the world to relax and enjoy Disneyland. For those of you who know me relaxing is never on the top of my list so this has been a real treat.

Slowly but surely I am finishing everything that needs to get done before I head out. Tomorrow I will get my phone unlocked and hopefully I will be able to get it to work once I get to Europe. I need to teach my mom how to video chat with me so that we can see each other often. I know that video chatting will be very helpful for both us. I love technology. Communicating across the world has become extremely easy which is fascinating to me. 

I will also be making my last trip to Los Angeles tomorrow. Leaving my favorite city for a whole year is definitely going to make me sad but I am even more scared of falling in love with Spain and not coming back to California. Don't get scared now. I'm just kidding. I'll be back in a year.

Remember 9/11..off to Spain in one week.

I begin blogging on this historic day. Today is 9/11, which marks a decade since one of the most tragic events in the United States. As an American, my heart aches on this day knowing that so many families endured such horrible times knowing that their loved ones would no longer go home. I take a moment to remember all the fallen Americans, heroes and the thousands of innocent lives that died. Your suffering and the suffering of your families will continue to live my heart. 

Today has been a very interesting day, an epic day I would say. My mom made an offer to a beautiful house and for those of you who know my family and our situation you know this is a huge step. I am extremely happy and proud of my family for making this decision and I pray that this dream comes true because they truly deserve it. I would have loved to be a part of this new beginning for them but the fact that I had an input about the house and in a strange way got to pick it fulfills me. I will be back to Orange County to enjoy it soon. Also, my mom told me that she will be getting married this week! Whoa! Many important things have occurred today! 9/11/2011 is a day to remember forever. 

One week from today I will be embarking one of the most exciting experiences of my life. I will be arriving in Galicia, Spain where I will be working as a cultural ambassador also known as a language and culture assistant with the Auxiliares Program. I find myself in a very unique and exciting opportunity. I consider myself to be blessed and there is no better word for it. I have the support and love from my family and friends. I even have the encouragement from strangers I’ve met along the way and think that this is once in a lifetime opportunity. Also, I have the blessings from HIM, a higher power who has kept me strong and healthy to go forward with this commitment. 

Life has worked its magic for the past year and slowly but surely made me realize that this is the best decision possible. I was scared at first, excited but scared of the possible things that could have gone wrong and that can still go wrong. It is not easy for anyone to move to a foreign country especially alone and with minimal knowledge of what you’re getting into. However, while I’ve waited patiently the pieces slowly began to fall into place. Thanks to this decision I have met Chris, a great guy whose family and him will be welcoming me in Spain and opening their doors to help me get settled. I am extremely thankful to have them in my life. 

I had been feeling a bit uneasy about the whole “leaving for a year” situation. I can imagine that I will get home sick and miss my family very much but I am hoping to acclimate quickly. Going to the orientation a couple days ago was very beneficial and necessary. Returning auxiliaries shared their experiences with us and gave us tips on how to prepare for what lays ahead. I was very excited knowing that a lot of opportunities will come after completing this program. The returning students had nothing but amazing things to say about their experiences which made it more encouraging for me.  I worry not just about traveling Spain, I am also taking into consideration my life goals and future career path. I hope to reflect while I am abroad and find my niche. 

So I haven’t started packing per say but I did pick out my clothes today and unfortunately I am taking a lot of warm clothes. I heard it gets cold.  I figured that if I start the packing slowly it will be an easier transition both for me and for my family. Either way I will be gone in a week and it will be a pool full of tears the whole drive to LAX. The plan is to go celebrate the Mexican Independence at the Placita Olvera in downtown Los Angeles and then head to the airport that way I get to both show my Mexican pride right before leaving to the land of the Conquistadores and to spend happy moments with my family right before crying my eyes out. This will be a very interesting week and great year long journey of self growth. I am very especially excited to share my experiences through my blogs.