I remember when I was first considering
doing this program. I started to read a
lot of blogs and was trying to gather information on what I was going to be
facing if I did this. Expat was a word
that I came across a lot but didn’t really know what it meant. An expat is a person who has been banished or has withdrawn themselves or their allegiance from their country. It’s pretty interesting how it works because
while living abroad I’ve felt more patriotic than I ever had at home. Especially on Thanksgiving. I started to realize how much I appreciated
24 hour restaurants, peanut butter, jalapeños and the mental simplicity of
speaking my native tongue.
In between Christmas and New Year’s Eve
Tiffani and I went to Scotland, both Glasgow and Edinburg. It was a very eye opening experience for me.
When people would ask me where I was from
I would say, “Texas, but I live in Spain..”
And while I was eating haggis and trying various types of Whiskey, I wasn’t
missing peanut butter. I missed Spain. I missed the sun and the olives. I missed the jamón, café and tapas. I missed wearing tights and cute
scarves. I missed most of all speaking
Spanish. I have become so accustomed to
speaking Spanish to any stranger (and most friends) that when I met someone in
Scotland I had to remind myself that they spoke English.
I learned a lot more too. I learned that Texas isn’t my only home, that
Spain has wiggled itself into my heart as well, despite its faults. I learned that I don’t like Scotland nearly
as much as I thought I would. It’s too
damn cold.
I belong in Spain, I belong in
Texas. I belong somewhere warm,
somewhere I can go to the beach, somewhere that I can float the river. Somewhere that the sun makes an appearance
and actually sticks around past 4pm.
Last summer I would start floating at 4pm!! (That’s right Scotland, your days are short,
SHORT, SHORT!) But as a wise man once
told me:
“Learn by going where to go.”
So thank you Andres, for sharing that bit
of wisdom, I’m working on it.
Oh yea, and always verify the dates on
your plane ticket carefully. ;)
I loved every part of my trip, seeing you, traveling to another country, and especially falling in love with Scotland. I hope there are more opportunities for you travel and maybe you'll fall in love with another country like I did and love more than just Spain :-)
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