Well, with 10 months, 5 countries, 12 classes, 5,913 photos and 31 blog posts now behind me, I have to say goodbye to Sevilla for a little while. This has undoubtably been the best (not to mention the fastest) year of my life and it was worth every penny and the fact that I’ll graduate a semester later than the rest of my class. 
Studying abroad has been a goal of mine ever since my parents gave me the travel bug at a young age and hearing stories of other students’ adventures outside the US. I feel very fortunate to have had this opportunity and know that any future advice I may give to potential study abroad students will be biased, since every situation here has been perfect from my host mom to my classes. It’s scary thinking I’ll be out of school soon, but just like Spain is entering a new chapter of their history with this morning’s newly crowned King Felipe VI, I will be starting a new chapter as well.
As a closing for this blog, that I almost never started, I’ll just list a few of the things I’ve learned and will miss once I’m back in my other home.
Things I’ve learned:
*You don’t need a lot to be happy.
*The best souvenirs are photos (and memories, of course).
*If you step outside your comfort zone, in any sense of the word, you will thank yourself later.
*The world needs to adopt the concept of tapas.
*Try new foods because you may end up loving them…except never eat huevas de atún. Seriously, don’t.
*With a positive attitude and an open mind, your experience will be that more special and unpredictable.
*If you are a student, take advantage of museum discounts/free entries.
*Tinto de verano con naranja is better than with limón.
*You don’t actually realize how big the US is until you’ve lived outside of it.
*You CAN survive a whole year with one suitcase of clothing.
*If you live here and don’t have a preference in regards to a fútbol team, GET one. 
A few of the innumerable things I’ll miss:
*Hearing people cheer in the street/from other apartments when Sevilla scores a goal
*Watching my host mom make mantones in the living room
*My long walk to class and the CIEE center
*Hearing random musical selections like Pirates of the Caribbean in the background of tv programs and news
*Being surrounded by history
*Seeing the Torre del Oro and Calle Betis while crossing the Guadalquivir
*Hearing my host mom ask me daily, “No quieres más??” at the end of meals and “Tranquilaaa”
*Drinking café con leche out of my chipped lemon coffee cup every morning
*Consistent warm sunshine
*The beautiful Plaza de España
*Sunsets from my window
*Seeing 80 year old women wheel their grocery bag/carts
*Saying “vale” instead of “okay”
*This conversation:
-Cómo te llamas?- (What is your name?)
-Hilary
– Eelary?!
-No, HHILary
-Oh, HEElary!
(this is the point where I give up)
-AH! Como HEElary Clinton!
Despite the difficulties saying goodbye and preparing myself for reverse culture shock, I’m really excited to see my family after 6 whole months and to show Javi part of my country! 
So with that, I will NOT say “adios” but simply “hasta luego!” With two Spanish “besitos” of course. 🙂
Mi Vida en Sevilla 