Collect moments, not things

Spain, you really are more wonderful than I thought! I've been fortunate enough in my life to have visited Spain many times before on family holidays and with friends, but this year I'm discovering there is a lot more to Spain than the sun (which has finally returned, keeping my fingers crossed) and the sandy beaches. The truth is I love exploring new places and travelling, for me it's an important thing in life. I love disconnecting from busy life and escaping to a new place. I also love new adventures and finding things off the beaten track, there are lots of magical things in this world to see. Life is short and the world is wide. I think you have to appreciate the little things in life- like the sun shining over the sea or a cute little pretty building.  

These past 2 weekends I have made the most of having friends also on their year abroad. Last weekend I went to Granada and I fell in love. I was able to be a real tourist by going to visit Alhambra. It was one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen and it truly captured my heart. It also made great photographs on such a sunny summer feeling day. It wasn't just the Alhambra that took my breath away,Granada as a city was incredible, although I still don't understand why it's called 'pomegranate' when there aren't any pomegranates in Granada. My friend and I made the most of international food options and went to an all your can eat Chinese restaurant, one day I'll learn that just because it called 'buffet libre' doesn't mean I have to try and eat everything 😂. We also went to the Nevada shopping centre, I love shopping but sometimes, like any young girl, I buy a little too many! I loved Granada so much that I didn't want to come back to Lucena, I could've lived in Granada quite happily, but of course I secretly love Lucena. 

Granada was such a dream that I thought i wouldn't find any other Spanish city that I loved as much. I was wrong. This weekend I've been in Cadiz to see another friend. I really love being able to see friends whilst I'm here in Spain, people who I can be completely myself with and have a genuine catch-up with. Also, both of these friends are also language assistants so it's nice to compare stories and have a laugh over funny stories we have; there's always something new with teaching  and no day is ever the same. Thank you for each having a unique character that makes each day new and exciting, you really are helping to make my experience in Spain a lot better!! 😌 please don't become rebels anytime soon!! 

I've been to cadiz twice before, I went in June when my dad and I came to see what Lucena was like. I decided to go for a solo day trip to Cadiz. That trip wasn't very successful because I got off at the wrong train station far away from the city centre and nearly missed my train home, but mishaps make stories eeey! I also went back in October to see my friend then, and we spent lots of time on the beach and talking about how being abroad is actually really hard. It's nice to see how much my friend has achieved and how she's built a new life in Cadiz since I last saw her. Unfortunately the weather this weekend has been awful, there was no beach opportunity, I nearly got blown away with the strong winds. We decided to explore a new place. We went to Puerto de Santa María. When we first arrived, there wasn't anything interesting to do, so we went to Aldi, it was very exciting and brought back university memories. But eventually we found the tourism office and discovered there were things to do. We went into the cathedral, saw the castle and a palace. It was a really cute place and I would definitely visit again. My favourite part about Cadiz was being able to see the sea. I love the sea, it's such a calming place and I love the sound of the sea.  

I hope all of you have had the most amazing weekends too, and enjoying the sunshine! I'm sure a lot of you are enjoying Araceli's pilgrimage down the mountain. Hope you're ready for another Monday!