Sieze el Día

If you are considering a move to Spain… to learn Spanish, experience another culture, be in Europe to travel, look no farther… go to Salamanca.

Forget the beach, the warm weather, the international schools… go to Salamanca. It is a wonderful college town, just the right size to balance small town friendliness with big-city activities, full of beautiful architecture, museums, concerts in the Plaza Mayor, inexpensive, one of the most beautiful cathedrals I’ve seen in Europe, and a golden light that reflects off the sandstone buildings at dusk that is magical. We hardly heard English spoken. Time to reflect on our year may change my mind, but today, I’m enjoying and highly recommending Salamanca.

It is our last day in Salamanca today and our last day in Spain. To catch the blog up, we pulled our daughters out of school in Javea after the mid-April term. We decided to homeschool and travel and see more of Spain and Europe before returning to Colorado near the end of June. It was bittersweet saying good-bye to Javea and the wonderful friends we had made there. We were truly surprised and appreciative of the heartfelt connections we made with people. We had some wonderful good-bye lunches and days at the beach, and we look forward to seeing those friends again and keeping those connections alive.

We have since been in Barcelona and Salamanca to enjoy more of Spain. I loved Barcelona, like all big cities. Loved the architecture mostly and museums and vibrancy of life. It was less enjoyable for the girls and Scott, who has been battling a stomach bug for over a month. Salamanca has been a wonderful place to complete our time in Spain.

We go on vacation tomorrow to Turkey and Greece, then London and New York and on to home. Some of you may laugh and think, “haven’t you been on vacation for a year?” No, a move like this is challenging and full ups and downs. It’s not all vacation and idyllic days. But it is a journey I highly recommend.

Scott and I enjoyed our last Spanish menu del dia today and laughed and cried remembering what we have been through over the past two years that got us here. It was a year full of growth, some days magical, some days dark. We wouldn’t trade it, good and bad, for anything. We look forward to going home to Colorado and seeing what we make of life next.