Things I know.

Last week I packed my things and said goodbye to Conchita (aka The Cheetah).

 After a brief trip to the north of Spain and one night back in Barcelona with a few remaining friends, I lugged four months worth of stuff to the airport.

Then I flew away from one adventure and toward the next, arriving at home to be welcomed by the loving arms of family and friends.

During my plane ride home, I began to jot down a list of a few things I learned while in Spain, over many conversations and in unspoken words, alone and together, from the people around me and those oceans apart. Here's that list.

1. Europe is overrated, a bit too civilized and stuffy and cold. I'm more into jungles, tropical beaches, and wilderness to explore.

2. Moralism doesn't equal truth.

3. I'm actually proud to be an American.

4. A sea is nothing like an ocean.

5. No matter where I am, I can be content and happy if I find the will within myself to be so.

6. Happiness isn't real unless it's shared, but time spent well alone can be a path to truth.

7. Intangible things like laughter and beauty need no language.

8. Real courage is in the naming of your fears. 

9. Sometimes good things do happen after midnight.

10. I may never do Loma's $2 challenge, but I fared alright on my own €5 challenge for a week.

11. I need the ocean in my life.

12. Generosity isn't as ubiquitous as I thought, but it may still present itself in places you never expected.

13. Spanish food as a whole isn't all that impressive. Real Italian food, on the other hand, lives up to the hype.

14. With the right attitude, making friends is easy.

15. I'm actually not that fashionable.

16. European toddlers are way too stylish.

17. There's a public bathroom on every corner in Spain, well, not really, but you get what I mean.

18. I like hot weather more than I knew.

19. There's more than one genre of electronic music. still can't identify them.

20. My friends are greater than I deserve and greater than I could ever ask for.