My boyfriend came to Seville to visit me for two weeks. It was incredible to spend this experience with him.

He loved Spain and was really interested in learning the culture. David was such a good sport trying all the food and he even spent time getting to know my host family. It was amazing to see him make them laugh even though he doesn’t speak Spanish at all. His genuine humor was not lost in translation. We got along so well and it made me so happy to see my worlds combine in this way.

One of the greatest parts of our time together was the fact that we rented a scooter. We had so much fun on this little 50 cc scooter. We were able to see parts of Seville that I never would have found without it. It gave us the freedom to drive around and around as much as we wanted and wherever we wanted. It was a new thing to be driving around this town that I’ve only been walking around for the last four months. I learned the traffic laws in Spain (there aren’t any, in case you were wondering!) and how gas stations work. Some of the gas stations are like pit stops along the road. You just take a little jug handle, have the attendant pump your gas and continue on down the road.

We did take a day trip to the beach in C�diz. I was happy that he got to see this city while he was here. It is a really pretty and traditional part of Spain with all of the white houses. And the beach was really pretty- the water was sparkling blue.

While David was here it was Feria. This “fair” exceeded my expectations in every way. Not only was it the most incredible carnival we had ever seen, a city basically pops up and everyone is dressed in their very best Flameno attire. This little city is made of “casetas” which translates as “tents” but they are so much more than tents. They are these little constructions (with plumbing) where the party of Feria takes place. There is streets and streets of them. Everyone is having fun and everyone is in the best mood. The food at the fair was great. We had some warm waffles with chocolate and whipped cream, bu�eulos (little donut shaped, funnel cake like bites), chicken, sandwiches (we ate a lot!). There were a ton of games (just like at our carnivals back home). We thought it was really funny when we saw the traditional Spanish jam�n being raffled off as a prize! Being a part of Feria was incredible and we loved every second we spent there.

My boyfriend is a firefighter and an EMT. He is really interested in all emergency services. While he was in Seville we toured fire stations and he loved learning about how things work over here and sharing with the Spanish firefighters how things are done at his station back home. It was great (but a huge challenge) for me to translate for David and the firefighters. It was so worth it though, because he really loved this. He bought a bunch of souvenirs from the Seville fire station and they even had some free merchandise to give to a fellow bombero!

Overall, being able to share this experience meant everything to me. It was the little things like sitting by the river and walking through this beautiful city together that I’ve lived in for the past four months. Not only was I able to show him the Seville that I’ve gotten to know, but we were also able to discover new things together and make the most of the time that we were given before he headed home.

Location: Hotel Melia Lebreros, Seville Spain