ay de mi alhama.

I honestly thought today was never going to end. Don't get me wrong, I adored Granada. The Alahambra was outstanding. But it was hot. And Granada, you are full of baby mountains that make walking feel like I'm running another half marathon. I'm not exaggerating. The baby mountains were so bad that when we came down from the Alhambra, we PAID to take a bus. You know they're rough when you don't even want to walk down the mountain. Plus, we had to take out bags with us. Yucky.

I'm glad I got to see and experience the Alhambra, even though I was worn out and tired of Europeans not having any sense of personal space. In high school, we studied a poem called " Romance de la pérdida de Alhama." it's from the viewpoint of the Arabic ruler of Granada when the city was conquered by the Reyes Católicos. It's very sad and full of adoration for Granada and despair at having lost it. Besides it being one of the most important things in Spain, I wanted to see the Alhambra because Núñez (I think) made me study about it in high school. I can't believe I'm seeing and living down the street from monuments and buildings and palaces that I've spent the past six years studying and pining after. The closer I get to leaving, the harder I know it's going to be.

I'm glad I ended up going to Sevilla and Granada this weekend instead of leaving the country for a day and spending tons of money on plane tickets. I love Spain, why wouldn't I want to see as much of it as I can?

We made it back to Madrid after a five hour bus ride complete with loud phone talkers and a noisy small child. Luckily, Paloma was ready for us! We had fried pork chops, fresh cut tomatoes, and mashed potato soup. I imagine it was puréed and it was incredible. She talked with us for a long time during dinner, telling us about her trip to Disney World 20 years ago and how the plane almost crashed. She loves roller coasters and hit up every one of them at Disney. Obviously, she loved Epcot. She told us she loved Disney just as much if not more than her kids! I know I say this a lot and gab on and on about Paloma, but she is such a blessing in this experience. I don't know what I would have done here with a different adoptive mom for four weeks.

My body is yelling at me again; the shoulders demanding sunburn relief, the feet calling out for band aids for the open blisters, and the muscles are still mad but thankful for the weekend's workout. To bed I go.

P.s. my best friend leaves for Tanzania tomorrow. Please say a little prayer for her sometime. She's going to need a lot of strength to keep up the courage she's already demonstrated and a lot of patience to deal with traveling and a new culture. I have every faith in Deacon Krista, but it can only help if we all lift her up in prayer. Love you, dear future roommate! Stay safe, and keep in touch. See you in August!