Hello from the great state of Iowa!
Yes, I am home in the United States... finally (por fin). After traveling out of a backpack for three weeks I was ready to get home to my bed and shower. Like I've said before, if I can't be in Spain, Iowa is the next best place, huh? :)
My last day in Paris turned out to be one of the best days of my trip. Why? Well, I met up with my wonderful and beautiful Aussie friends (Nicci and Jade). We had an amazing time eating a picnic lunch under the Eiffel Tower. It was delicious. A French baguette, a wheel of cheese from Holland (I think...), strawberries, pistaccios, and fudge and wine to top it off. It was nice to have some company and great conversation. Don't get me wrong, traveling alone is great and has its advantages but in Paris, you definitely need a wing-woman or two, especially when they're as fantastic as my Australian friends.
The plane ride home was a decent nine hours. I occupied my time with the movie Invictus, finishing my book and trying to take a nap (FAIL). Turns out I was up for about 48 hours altogether with only a few hours of shut-eye. Weird to be home in the States. Great to see my parents and soon friends! It was definitely a strange feeling to come home to Burlington, Iowa and see that nothing has changed. Barely. My mom has a few new decorations, there's a house on my street that is getting a facelift and construction on Roosevelt but besides that... same ol' Burlington. There is something comforting about that too. On the other hand, there is something strange about the feeling of coming home where nothing has changed and feeling like the last six months have only been a dream. Everything feels surreal especially when you are as jetlagged as I am.
Speaking of jetlag, I was up at five am this morning. Wide awake. So my dad and I went out to breakfast at the golden arches (McDonald's, of course). It was... well, McDonald's. Tasty... I guess. Today I am getting my haircut (finally!!!!!) and going to one of my favorite places in the USA - TARGET! whoop whoop! :) Yesterday my mom and I had a wonderful pedicure... finally my calluses are gone! Then we met up with mi padre at the farmer's market. I won't lie, even though it is a fresh, local farmer's market, the food will never even rival Spain and was a little disappointing. Food just tastes better in Spain. I can't even describe it. After we went to Lindo Mexico - REAL MEXICAN FOOD! oh my gosh - heavenly.
As of now, seven thirty am here, I am drinking my second cup of non-Spanish and therefore not-as-good coffee and am washing my clothes, or what little clothes are still not in pieces. My mom couldn't believe that I wore the same pair of jeans my whole 18 days traveling with the exception of wearing leggings a few days here and there. To my defense, I am European by now and jeans take up a lot of room in your backpack and are quite heavy. Since I didn't wash them or have a dryer, by the time I reached home, I could practically pull them off my hips without unbuttoning them. Needlesstosay, they are in the dryer as we speak. On high. :)
Update soon.
Dos besos
Sarah
PS I just added the pics of my recent excursion through Europe. I apologize because they are not specifically organized according to their city. The main reason being there are over 700 photos and I uploaded them all together while I was sleeping. And a few of the Paris pics are out of order. My sincerest apologies. Due your best to determine where I'm at. Lo siento.
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