Things I love/Things I miss

Now that I've been here in Madrid over half of the semester... I'm thinking it's a good time to take stock of all the changes that have happened in my life in the last 2 months... of course, I've experienced a lot of new things, but surprisingly, life also feels pretty normal and comfortable over here. Everyone always talks about how study abroad changes you... makes you open up your perspective, makes you experience the unfamiliar and make it familiar... it does. Yet, I feel like the same girl I've always been. With that intro... here are a few things I've discovered here in Spain that I love, and a few things I miss about the U.S./home.

A Few Things I Love About Spain:

-people are a little more chill sometimes
-churros con chocolate
-speaking Spanish
-meeting lots of new, interesting people
-the small class sizes I have here at SLU-Madrid
-the tightknit Institute program at Church
-people seem to live healthier lifestyles in a lot of ways... more exercise, better eating habits, etc.
-seeing/learning about so much history... it's completely integrated into the culture
-small, neighborhood grocery stores
-cute, well-behaved dogs everywhere!
-having so many amazing places to visit so close to where I live... in Madrid and outside of Madrid
-my Madrid friends (from my SLU program and Church)
-doing new, interesting things, all the time

A Few Things I Miss:

-watching movies (I'm not a huge movie buff... but I don't have any DVDs and I never watch movies... I miss that)
-being able to have people over
-being able to cook my own food (just once in a while)
-feeling like I can communicate what I really want to say sometimes
-my family and friends!
-alone time (just once in a while.... overall I am a social gal and love being with people, but once in a while, I'd like to have a little retreat house... where I could veg out, sing out loud without people hearing me, hehe, write, think, etc.)
-my guitar/violin
-Peanut Butter and Chocolate ice cream from 31 Flavors :-)

Well, I can't complain, life is amazing, wherever you are, and it's interesting to see what things you enjoy about the changes or miss from before. I'm trying to just soak it all in here and enjoy it, since I'll get to enjoy the things I miss soon enough, but this my one chance to enjoy life in Madrid. Entonces, a toast to Madrid!