Emily and I flew into SVQ on Monday night. Being back in Seville felt great. I was only away for four days but I really missed it. I realized that I feel comfortable in Seville now, as if it is a second home (I guess a third home, following PSU). I was so excited to have this opportunity to be back and to spend the week in Seville with my best friend.

We walked to our hostel but being Emily and I, of course we went to the wrong one first, haha. We eventually found the one that we would be staying at for the week. The facilities were new and nice. There was a bar and a roof top terrace with a pool. The only issue was we did not have any privacy (like we did in Barcelona with the curtains). I took the top bunk (which I would fall out of multiple times- including once bumping all the way down and landing in Emily’s suitcase…) Now I know why my sister always had the top bunk when we were younger- I’m way too clumsy to be trusted up there, haha!

We met a lot of interesting people in the hostel, including a woman who was originally from Sweden but who has lived all over the world (but mostly in the United States). She was a teacher in the past and one night she, Emily and I had a great conversation about the direction of education in the United States. She was very excited to hear about what we were learning about in our university classes and it was really uplifting and motivating to hear this woman’s perspective on the importance of our future careers. She believed, as we do, that we can and will make a difference in our future classrooms.

It was pretty difficult living in a hostel for over a week straight, especially when we stayed in a 12-person room with one bathroom. One morning, I just got out of the shower and Emily was about to get in. She put her things in the bathroom and then remembered she had to grab her towel. As she came out of the bathroom to get her towel, one girl from Italy who was staying in the room with us asked if she could use the “toilet.” Of course we said yes, thinking she would just use the bathroom quickly before Emily got in the shower. Unfortunately, she took this as an invitation to shower herself leaving Emily and I confused and wondering where the miscommunication came in…

Of course there were a lot of other interesting people in and out during the week. We met people from all over the world and it was really cool.

Emily and I had an amazing week in Seville. We went to all of the beautiful sights in Seville like the Plaza de Espa�a, the Catedral and Los Reales Alcazares. I loved seeing Emily being just as amazed as I was (and as amazed as I still am). It was really nice to be reminded how much beauty there is here, and Emily helped me realize that I should not take a single moment for granted while I am in Seville.

We also saw a flamenco show with dinner one night. It was actually pretty funny because in the middle of the performance, a man went up on the stage (which was right next to our table) and started singing. It was very strange and we were unsure what was going on. Was he a part of the show or was he just trying to upstage the singer? Either way, it was a good flamenco show and I was glad that Emily got to see this traditional piece of Spanish culture while she was here.

Even though I’ve been in Seville for two months now, Emily and I still got lost multiple times. It is very hard to navigate this labyrinth of a city! Regardless, we always laughed everything off and had an amazing time exploring Spain together. I feel so blessed that we had the opportunity to experience this together! I am beyond happy that she was able to visit for spring break it was just a shame how fast the time flew by! It was very hard to say goodbye to her last Sunday, but I just realized that instead of being sad that she left, I should be happy that we had the experience.

Location: calle almirante ulloa, Sevilla