Turning 25 in Spain

I was actually sort of dreading my birthday....not because I was turning a quarter of a century old, but because I wouldn't be able to celebrate it with my fiancé and my family.  Plus, cake here really isn't that great and all I was craving was one of those amazing ice cream ones from Dairy Queen.  However, my girlfriends here managed to make this one of the most special and memorable birthdays EVER.

On Thursday, May 12th, I went to school as normal.  Thursdays usually are long days for me because even though I have fewer classes than normal, they are all spread out throughout the day.  Therefore, I end up having three free class periods which I usually spend reading or catching up on my world news online.  This is usually followed by a three-hour break in the area and then a two-hour conversation class with a 16-year-old.  He lives so far away from my apartment but so close to my school that I always stay in the general area of my school without going home.  Thursdays, therefore, end up being 13-hour days when all is said and done.  I leave at 7:20am and don't return until 8:20pm.  Which is why I am super glad I don't work Fridays because I am always EXTREMELY exhausted after these days.  Luckily though I had told my two-hour private class the week before that the 12th was my birthday and they told me not to come.  So going to school on my birthday didn't seem so bad because I knew I wouldn't have to suffer through such a long and agonizing day.  I didn't tell any of my students it was my birthday because they would have gotten even more riled up....and I can barely control them as it is.  My fellow auxiliar brought me some chocolate that she had gotten while traveling as a present- and seeing as how much I love chocolate, it was a wonderful surprise.

I went home after class and enjoyed my free late-afternoon and even fit in a short siesta before meeting up with my girlfriends.  I assumed that only one or two of them would come out since we couldn't meet up till almost 9pm as it was since some of them had private classes till 8pm and in addition most of them work on Fridays.  But my friend Lindsay secretly invited the whole gang of girls out and almost ALL of them came.  So not only was it that much more special but it was also a surprise.  We met in an area of the center of Madrid called Malasaña- it's where the young people hang out.  There are a lot of hipster places to drink and dine.  We went to a delicious Italian take-out called La Vita é Bella.  We got two pizzas and then stopped at a convenience store and bought a few bottles of red wine.  Then we headed to Plaza Dos de Mayo (which is outdoors) and stuffed our faces with pizza and drank some wine.  In Spain it used to be legal to drink outdoors WHEREVER and all the time.  Today it is technically illegal after 10pm but even if the police come they will simply tell you put away the bottle.  So here we were, enjoying some mild but nice weather and sitting outdoors in a plaza in Madrid eating some amazing pizza and drinking some good, red Spanish wine.  It was perfect.  My three best girlfriends here: Lindsay, Jeneé and Lauren further surprised me by getting me gifts!  Lindsay gave me a beautiful card and some jewelry (bracelets and stud earrings), Lauren bought me a gourmet cupcake from a little bakery called Happy Days and some comforts from home at the American Store: Doublemint gum and a Cherry Coke (they discontinued selling this here a while ago because of its lack of popularity) and Jeneé refused to let me pay for anything the rest of the evening....including my red wine.

Jeneé and I with our gourmet cupcakes 

(Jeneé celebrated her birthday the week before)

More girls joined before we finished eating.  So in all there was me, Lindsay, Jeneé, Lauren, Blanca, Silvia, Anna, Leah, Grace and her boyfriend.  Most of us headed to this hipster bar in Malasaña that plays ALL American 50s-70s music- it's fabulous.  We drank a few Coronas and danced the night away.  We all barely caught the last metro at 1:30am.  We decided to continue to celebrations the following evening (Friday) since no one worked on Saturday.

Lauren, Anna, me and Lindsay

Grace, Jeneé, Lindsay, me and Anna

I came home that evening feeling so fortunate and so lucky to have so many wonderful people here who care about me.  They truly helped to make this such a memorable birthday!

On Friday we continued the celebrations by all dressing up.  I had bought a cute dress a while back but hadn't ended up wearing it on my actual birthday since we kept that night more casual.  So Lauren and I  met up at Jeneé and Lindsay's apartment Friday evening around 10pm.  We chatted and drank some wine and then headed out near Sol.  We went to several different places and overall had a fabulous night- just us girls.

Lindsay, Jeneé, Lauren and me

Celebrating my birthday in a foreign country with some awesome girls made me realize just how hard it will be to leave these people in a month and a half.  The bonds you grow with people living abroad are so different and so strong.  Its hard to explain but I think sharing experiences abroad with people makes you grow closer and understand one another in a way thats different from people back home.  I am certain I will always remember each and every one of the wonderful girlfriends that I have met here since they have truly touched my life.