The Last Few Weeks in Neverland

Don't worry, I'm still alive.

My last three weeks in Europe were so jam-packed with school and traveling that I didn't have time to breathe, let alone write an informative and entertaining blog post. (Do you like how by saying that I'm implying the ones I post are informative and entertaining??) Therefore, since this post is going to be a novel, feel free to break it down into different sittings so as not to overwhelm yourself with informative entertainment.

My last two available weekends in Spain were spent at the beach, which was a welcome change from the touristy destinations we had been visiting previously. The second-to-last weekend, we traveled to Lagos, Portugal with the entire group to enjoy each other's company without the usual stress of school. We started off the trip by driving out to Sagres, the most "southwesterly" point of Europe. It was absolutely gorgeous! Then, we made our way back over to Lagos. Our hotel looked like it was straight out of an IKEA catalog. While the beach was beautiful, the water was so cold that our feet went numb just trying to stand in it. Each meal we had there consisted of whole fish - that's right, eyes, teeth and everything. Yuck! But it was so relaxing to just lay out and enjoy the beautiful weather with everyone!





The last weekend, our magnificent traveling group took our last trip to Nerja, a gorgeous beach on the Mediterranean Sea. This was my first time seeing the Mediterranean and it was every bit as beautiful as I had hoped. Giant rocks line the beach and water and the sand is full of pebbles of all sizes! Between the crystal clear water, the rocks and the gorgeous huge mountains in the distance, it gives Ronda a run for its money in being the most gorgeous place I've ever seen. I spent all of Saturday laying on a float in the middle of the sea. Life doesn't get much better than that!





Our last week in Sevilla was a flurry of individual and group presentations, papers, quizzes and finals. That week probably qualifies for the most bittersweet week of my entire life. On the one hand, it was so stressful that I was happy to almost be finished with school forever. But on the other hand, it was unbelievably sad to realize that it was my final week in Neverland.





After finals were over, we headed back to Madrid for a final night together. At this point, all of my previous claims that "I never cry" went out the window as I gave tearful goodbyes to the wonderful friends I made and I headed off to bed early. The alarm went off at 3:30 am and I headed for the airport to embark on my last adventure before returning home.

For those of you who don't know, I was born in the Netherlands when my father was stationed at an Air Force base in Soesterberg between 1984 and 1988 and then we moved to England for two months and, subsequently, Germany for two and a half years. But, after moving to America in 1990, we have never been back. So, Mom decided to host me around the Netherlands for a few days to show me all our old haunts.

So that morning, Mom met me in Eindhoven, a little town in the Netherlands, and we drove through the countryside, stopping in Zeist before meeting her old Dutch friend, Kristen. This was an especially meaningful day for me because I was able to see the house I lived in after I was born and the Air Force base in Soest that my dad was stationed at all those years ago. Kristen also took us to the cutest little restaurant for pannekoeken, a crepe-style entree that comes with many different toppings. Kristen ordered cinnamon-caramel apples for mine and ham and cheese for Mom and they were both delicious! After a fun-filled day with Kristen, we headed into Amsterdam where we settled into our cute hotel room and called it an early night. We spent the next couple of days riding through the canals on the Canal Bus Tour and visiting the Rijksmuseum, the Van Gogh Museum and the Anne Frank House.










A very exciting moment for me was while at the Van Gogh Museum. I was standing in a room observing yet another beautiful piece of work by Van Gogh when all of a sudden, a man enters the room I am in. Having been in Spain for almost two months without seeing the familiar faces I am used to in America, my initial reaction was joy at seeing a familiar face. I was so happy that I almost went up to him and gave him a hug because I was so glad to see him. However, upon clearing my head and placing the face, I realized this was not an old friend of mine from Athens or Newnan... no, no, no. This was Owen Wilson!! Luckily, I regained sanity in enough time to not make a complete fool of myself and I left him alone. But, we passed by each other a couple of times and it was just one of those moments you know shouldn't be a huge deal, but it makes you feel special all the same.





Anyway, Amsterdam was beautiful and I am so glad that I was able to experience my "homeland" after all these years! But that wasn't the end to our journey. That night, we took the overnight ferry to England. It was really nice because you felt like you were on a cruise ship even though you were paying less than it costs to stay in a hotel!

The next morning, we woke up in England and took the train into London where we spent the day going by Westminster Abbey, riding the London Eye and shopping around in Chelsea. We ended up staying in an adorable hotel in Horley called the Skylane that was about five minutes from Gatwick Airport. It seriously looked straight out of a Sherlock Holmes book and came complete with its own pub. The place must have been over 100 years-old. Over the next couple of days, I was able to see Billy Elliot, stop off in Notting Hill, ride the Big Bus Tour and even meet up with a new friend. I was truly moved by London and all of its history and fabulous architecture! But after two months being away from home, I was ready to head back. So, after three fun days of playing the standby game in the London airport, we hitched a flight to America and made the 9-hour journey back home.








Since then has been a whirlwind of transition. Between picking a house and getting the ball rolling with jobs, life is anything but boring and I am so excited to see what happens in the weeks to come!

I've Never Been Fonda Of A Place Than Ronda

Friday morning, Mallory and I got up bright and early, met eight beautiful ladies at the bus station and took the 10 am to Ronda, a small town a little ways away from the Mediterranean. While the bus from Madrid was very smooth and enjoyable, the ride to Ronda was MISERABLE! The road we were traveling on was extremely windy and we made about 15 stops total, no joke. Strike one for Ronda.

When we arrived, it was just in time for a torrential downpour which lasted right until we found a hostel. Strike two.

So, we sit in our hostel for an hour, enjoying being able to sit in a place together without having to purchase anything (well, other than the room itself). Finally, feeling slightly guilty about sitting inside when we only had a day there, we wandered out into the streets of Ronda. We had been told to visit some bridge for a good view, and, luckily, it was only a three-minute walk from our place.

Let's just say that upon arrival at that bridge, Ronda's strikes disappeared. It hit one out of the park for us.



This bridge is extremely pretty on its own, but the valley it stretches over is the prettiest place I have ever seen in. my. entire. life.



After looking from every angle we could, we pretended to care about the rest of the town and walked the streets for a while. The people were extremely nice and the town was adorable, but when you have seen that kind of beauty, you can't stay away. So, we went back to the bridge and found a trail that would take us down into the valley.

The trail was beautiful and littered with foliage and waterfalls. A few older structures are scattered over the path and there is a new, gorgeous view at every turn. To the right, the bridge extends over a ravine, for lack of a better word, with three or four waterfalls and green everywhere; straight ahead are striking cliffs; to the left, there are rolling hills covered in different greens; and in the vast expanse behind it all is a mighty mountain range. We happened to be hiking down just when the light strikes the hills like a spotlight on stage. This made for a beautiful sky and perfect pictures.

Several of us, not having taken any pictures of ourselves really since senior year of high school, took a photo shoot and the best of those have made it to the blog. :)







After we had hiked most of it, I just sat down on the edge of one of the rocks and it felt like I was just sitting on a cloud in the middle of it all. The panoramic view was breathtaking. All you can say at a moment like that is "Thank you." This place was the most tangible evidence of a Supreme and Sovereign Creator - God's fingerprints are everywhere.