Cheese: the glue of friendship

It may be many years of friendship (Brooke: 21 years, Lindsey 8 years, Nicole: 4 years) that have bonded me to my best friends. It may be our shared memories, like high school shenanigans and malicious mischief with Brooke and Lindsey, or the past summer we spent backpacking Europe. Nicole and I's college memories of freshman dorm debauchery, road trips, and an 18 hour day at Disneyland probably did a pretty good job of solidifying our bestie status.

However, in all those collective years of amity, my college best friend and my high school best friends never really came together. There was only one thing that could bond my lovely ladies together after all this time: ooey gooey melted cheese. 

C'est la vie

What I would give to be in Paris walking along the Seine at this moment...probably the same thing I would give to actually have finished editing all my photos and be talking about this summer and not the last. Then again, why would I want to give up reliving the memories of the most dazzling adventure I've had to date. 

Recalling my memories from Paris is like slipping into a black and white movie; everything is far away and as if from another time. It's an image of a life that I could not have possibly lived. 

Adios Spain

When it came time for my last day in Spain, I descended (via sketchy bus) from Ronda to the seaside city of Málaga. 

Even though I knew I was flying to my next destination from Málaga and therefore would have stop there eventually, I somehow had myself convinced I was only rolling in for the morning and not actually spending a day/night there. I was wrong: I had a whole day! 

So with that I booked a quick bed at the Oasis Backpacker's Hostel and went out into the hot sun to make the most of my wholly unplanned day. 

Barcelona Bites Back

Sometimes unfortunate things can happen while you're traveling, and like in life, you just have to take them in stride and handle the situation. Our second day in Barcelona started well enough, but concluded with a bit of a struggle, in the form of two stolen cell phones. 

We all like to think that we're conscientious enough to not get our stuff stolen. That all those crime alerts about ripped away cell phones are just dumb people not paying enough attention. Really though, it can happen to the best of us, especially when traveling in a foreign country known for its master pickpockets. 

Barcelona sits on the southern coast of Spain, along the Balearic Sea. Brooke, Lindsey, and I thought we would take advantage of a beach day, being the California girls we are. However, though they may be beautiful, Barcelona's beaches are nothing like California. People line every inch of the sand, and there are panhandlers consistently harassing you. 

"Mojito! Mojito! Fresh mojito!" 

Buona Notte Firenze

It could be argued whether my Mom came to visit just me or just Italy, and the generous answer would probably be a combo of the two. But really, if we're honest, she came for the carousel. 

In Piazza della Repubblica there is a restored early 20th century carousel ran by the Picci family (see story here). From what I have been told it only runs from November to May, but since I arrived in January, it has been present for my every jaunt through the city center. Though I was many times tempted to jump upon the 20 horse parade, I continued to hold out hope that my mama (and Jewel) would cross the Atlantic and be with me for that first ride. 

I was not let down. 

Giving Thanks

Well Halloween has come and gone, One Direction Day (let's just pretend it's an official holiday) was celebrated properly, and to round out the pre-Christmas holiday season a jolly-good Turkey Day was had by all! 

Now, as I do with all holidays, I take Thanksgiving pretty seriously. I mean what's not too love? You get to see the ol' fam-bam, miss school, and best of all, eat all day! And I did plenty of eating. However, in an attempt to burn calories and support a good cause, Thanksgiving was started with a brisk Turkey Trot 5k run walk. 

The Michael Bratton II Turkey Trot is is a charity run for depression and suicide awareness began by the Bratton family after the loss of their 25 year old son in 2006. This year was the 8th annual run and the cause has steadily grown each year, rounding out at around 2,000 participants this year. It's both a great cause and a good start to a day of being thankful for what you have, especially those people in our lives we love. 

The kids and I were up bright and early for the event. We ran a brief leg of the track and then proceeded to laugh/walk our way through the rest of the event. 

Dinner for two

"Girls do not dress for boys. They dress for themselves, and, of course, each other. If girls dressed for boys they'd just walk around naked at all times." 

-Betsey Johnson

Oh the wise, wise Betsey. Thankfully my girl's-night-out date, Miss Rubi, entirely appreciated my outfit, as did I appreciate her sky-high heels. We also both appreciated some very decadent food. 

The Birthday month is officially over, which is a pity, but Rubi and I made sure to go out with a bang: a good ol' Happy Birthday to us! We treated ourselves to dinner at The Melting Pot.