My mantra as I enter my final few weeks in Barcelona is, I'll sleep when I'm back home. While this sounds a lot like it has to do with staying out late and taking advantage of the night life Barcelona is well known for, well, it's actually the quite opposite. I'm running out of time in this city I've fallen in love with and that is terrifying. I want to go back to Park Guell and Sagrada Familia. I want to wander the streets of the Barrio Gotic and get lost in medieval Barcelona. Most of all, I want my next three weeks to slow down because I'm just not prepared to say goodbye yet.
Then, on the other hand, I keep finding the urge to find some relaxing downtime because I feel as though I'm always running around. This is the paradox of being abroad - the act of having a general feeling of panic that you don't have enough time to accomplish all that you want to, but also just wanting the ability to catch up on three/four months of sleep that has been lost in the abyss of taking classes, exploring, speaking another language, traveling, and so much more. I've yet to figure out how I want to spend my lasts as and weeks in Barcelona, but I know that I'm never going to be completely ready to leave. I've grown accustomed to the slower lifestyle, the emphasis on family and friends, and a sense of adventure that I have never tapped into while in DC or back home in Connecticut.
I think I've done it. I think that I finally understand what causes study abroad students to have severe abroad withdrawal and with the biggest look of nostalgia to explain to others how it was the most amazing experience of their entire life.
Here's to making my last 24 days count,
Billie