Kendal Paul

On our last day in Valencia, my roommate and I started the morning off saying goodbye to the two Italian teenagers who had been staying in the house with us. After this, we went out for one last cup of coffee at the cafe by the university and then bought some snacks for the rest of our journey.

Once we got back home, our homestay family sat down for one last lunch with us. We talked about how nice it was to have gotten to meet and get to know one another. Isabel and I also promised to return one day to Spain and pay the family a visit. After the meal, our homestay mom and dad helped us carry our luggage to the car and took us to the fútbol stadium for our bus to Madrid.

At the stadium, everyone got to say goodbye one last time to their homestay family and stretch their legs before a long drive. Kylie and Jess's family even brought their dog for the goodbye. While everyone was sad to say goodbye, most were equally relieved to be able to speak more English. With all the luggage packed away, we started a long drive to Madrid. We arrived in Madrid and checked back into the NH Hotels. In about a half an hour, the group changed into their nice clothes for the welcome dinner and went downstairs to meet Manu. After a quick assessment, Manu decided we should not walk, and so enough taxis had to be flagged down for 23 people. We traveled across town and went into the lower level of a tavern for our final dinner in Spain. An array of food was prepared for us at the tavern--everything from bread to fried sardines. While not all of the food was eaten, it was all appreciated.

The room was called to attention at the end of the meal for a round of speeches from everyone on the trip. Each person reflected on how much they had grown in these short three weeks and thanked all of the teachers and staff who had brought us all together for this life-changing experience.

While we will be heading home tomorrow, I am confident none of us are returning as the same person we were on May 7th. We've made friends, gained experiences, and grown as individuals and people. But now it is time for our next adventures.