Solo in Spain: The Story Behind the Journey

     Two Thousand Three.  It was the year I graduated from college and received my Bachelor of Arts Degree in Spanish.  With two failed attempts to study abroad in Mexico under my belt, I glided across the stage with my degree in one hand and a passport in the other.  As my family and friends cheered me on from the stands, I was certain that the world would be waiting for me to explore it.

     I'd worked for the same corporation nearly half of my life.  What started as a part-time job after high school led to spending money for college and ultimately the financing of this thing called adulthood.  I'd settled into the uncertainty of cube nation.  With each passing day, a restlessness gnawed at me that I now recognize as my intuition begging me not to forget my dreams while paying the bills.

Temple Expiatorio de Sagrat Cor at Tibidabo

     Luckily for me, I 'd opened my big mouth and told more than a few friends about my dream of studying abroad in Spain.  Little did I know, those friends would begin to hold me accountable.  Year after year, I would get questioned about the status of my trip abroad.  My responses went something like “I’m searching for the best schools” or “The flights are too expensive.”  One day, I stopped making excuses and decided to be honest with myself.  I was afraid.  There, I said it.  The person who had been on five solo trips (stateside of course), was now afraid to take it to the next level.  To be quite honest, my dream seemed too big to conquer.  So, I started with what I do best…research!  I researched everything…Spanish schools, housing, banking, vaccinations, wireless service, safety, transportation, hospitals, consulates, restaurants, attractions and airlines most likely to lose my luggage.  Nine years after graduating from college, I decided to blow the dust off my degree and combine my profession as a researcher with my passion for travel. The result was a two week long, intensive study abroad adventure in Barcelona, Spain. 

     As a look back at my collegiate years, I realize that those two attempts at study abroad weren’t failures at all.  They worked in my favor.  I was supposed to study abroad as a business professional, not as a student.  It was destined for me to study in Barcelona and not Guadalajara.  It was meant for me to see the very sites in person that I had been quizzed on in my “La Historia de España” class.  I was supposed to go alone and meet a ton of beautiful, smart, and fun individuals traveling solo just like me.  Had I gone with friends, it would have been a different experience altogether.  I doubt I would have enrolled in school or been as open to meeting new people.  To be quite frank, the entire journey would have been spent translating and naming the ingredients in paella.  Cheers to following my intuition and going solo.  The things I longed for prior to my journey (house, husband, and Louboutin's) were no longer top of mind.  Instead, I had a newfound love for architecture, gelato, and Picasso.  I wasn't bothered that my hair was in a constant state of frizz because I’d rather feel the balmy breeze as I walked along Platja Barceloneta than have perfect hair.  With each passing day, I grew to love the fact that no one looked like me.  My adoration for Spain had been solidified.   In just two weeks, everything had changed.  Singles On Lifelong Adventures was born out of that life changing experience.