(Post written November 30, 2014)

On the wall of our hotel in Valencia there is a quote that perfectly sums up my feelings.

“Traveling is the only thing you pay for that makes you richer.”

I am so lucky to have had so many opportunities to travel. While everyone has different experiences, traveling has allowed me to truly discover who I am and who I want to be. Every journey that I take shapes me, enlightens me and challenges me. I absolutely would not be the same person I am today without my past travels.

That being said, being in Spain has solidified my decision to make my next travel location somewhere culturally different than what I am accustomed to. Spain was absolutely fantastic, but it did not push me outside of my comfort zone as much as I was expecting. The Spanish customs, history and language are similar to other European countries that I have visited in the past so I did not really experience any significant struggles or adjustments. I was shocked that I barely had any language issues while in Spain – my italian and english worked perfectly well. Of course, I will probably return to Italy before I make my next big journey…but watch out Brazil, Argentina, Russia, South Africa – I will be coming for you soon enough. 🙂

That being said, these past couple of days have been very bittersweet. As my trip in Spain winds down, its hard to not be wistful to leave this wonderful country. Every city that I spent time in captured a little place in my heart. (Mara will be happy to know that Valencia took the prize as my favorite city in Spain. Although I’m not sure I can really root for Valencia until they change their color to something besides orange…just saying.) At the same time, cuddling with my cat, sleeping in my own bed, seeing my boyfriend, friends and dad, all seem super appealing. While Spain has been awesome, there is no better feeling that arriving home sweet home.

We spent our last few days in Valencia visiting some of the main tourist attractions: mainly the Oceanographic and the Bull Fighting Museum.

To be honest, I am not a fan of bull fighting. Actually, I think it is one of the stupidest things that I have ever heard of. Let’s raise animals to be big strong creatures with no fear so that they can become a spectacle and then die. Oh wait, and then let’s train humans so that they can risk their lives in the name of entertainment. Because that is all bull fighting is…entertainment for the crowds. Why this continues to be a tradition in Spain is beyond me. Risking lives of humans and inhumanely killing animals does not seem pleasurable nor enjoyable to me.

However, it was interesting to visit the museum as well as the bull fighting stadium.

Mom, Mara, Molly and I went through the museum rather quickly as it was not that large. There were various costumes on display, showing the styles of the bull fighter throughout the years. There was also a film that showed a bull fight from beginning to end. Molly was the only one brave enough to watch the entire film (I left as soon as I realized the bull was going to die haha).

After the museum we went into the stadium where the bull fights still occur in Valencia today. Although the stadium looks quite big on the outside, it actually was not that big on the inside. We were able to go out to the center of the arena and do some good acting.

The day after going to the Bull Fighting Museum, the four of us went to Oceanographico – the largest aquarium in Europe.

Not to sound like a child…but it was SO COOL.

There were so many animals of various origins. Without a doubt, my favorite exhibit was the dolphin show. I continually forget how intelligent and well trained dolphins can be. The entire show I was enthralled with all of the tricks that the dolphins did.

Yes, that would be a human riding a dolphin like a surfboard.
New goal: find a pet dolphin.

While at Oceanographico we also went to the “artic” and visited the penguins!

I wish that the pictures we took of the penguins would do them justice, but they do not accurately describe the adorableness of the animals.

I mean who knew penguins were kind of chubby? And that they would swim over and stare at you through the glass (clearly a sign of natural curiosity)?

Besides the penguins we saw so many other types of animals – whales, sea lions, star fish, sting rays, jellyfish and even sharks!

As you might imagine, there were a plethora of little children at Oceanographico. My favorite moment is when you walked into one of the rooms and you hear 4-5 children scream…”There a four, no five, no there are SIX NEMOS.”

Yes, they would be referring to our good old Disney friend Nemo.

(Side note: If you happen to know spanish, or ever learn it, Mara has a great joke about fish. I’m sure she would be happy to share if you ever want a laugh 🙂 )

Another neat thing about Oceanographico is that it is part of a “City of Arts and Sciences.” All of the buildings were built within the last couple of years and were designed by a local architect that is internationally known.

I wish I had had the time to visit some of the other buildings besides the Oceanographico, but guess that means another trip will have to happen, huh?

Hasta Luego Espana! Homeward bound 🙂