Yes, you guessed it. This is yet another piece of writing about Toledo, Spain, my favorite place on Earth. If you know me, you know how much this place means to me. And if you have been there, you can understand why. Toledo is a medieval city unlike none-other, situated in the center of Spain, a country with a culture that can’t help but make you love life. Toledo is beautiful and breathtaking to any traveler, but living there for a full semester during my time studying abroad really changed my life forever.

I can’t thank Toledo without first thanking the people that made this place so special. It was my Spanish host family who made me laugh every single day and loved me like a daughter. You will forever be my second family. It was my friend, Maria, who helped me with my Spanish and cared for me like a true companion. You will always be one of my best friends. And it was my professors and program coordinators at my school that made the learning and the classes meaningful and who gave me the confidence and support I needed to prove to myself that I am capable of speaking Spanish all day, every day. You are still, to this day, my favorite teachers.

Thank you, Toledo, for teaching me about life and how to live it. You showed me that family and friends are really what is most important. You showed me just how fast time passes and the importance of enjoying every moment. Thank you for challenging me to do things I never thought were possible, for teaching me that with an open mind and a “send me” attitude, I can do anything.

It is clear that my semester in Toledo changed me. However, when I think about Toledo, I don’t just think about my semester abroad sophomore year. I think about all that happened after that semester because Toledo changed every aspect of my life. Toledo, thank you for giving me a new perspective on life. Thank you for all the opportunities, both professionally and personally, that you brought me and gave me the confidence to seize. Thank you for instilling in me new aspirations and for giving me the confidence to go out and pursue my dreams.

Finally, Toledo, thank you for continuing to be my second home across the world. For being a place I can always go back to, something I will keep doing for the rest of my life.

I will never stop talking about this place, writing about it, and sharing my Toledo experience with everyone I meet. I am extremely grateful to say I have a place, an experience like this, that has been so impactful on my life. My hope and prayer is that you, too, will someday have a place like this and an experience that you can look back on and truly say, “I wouldn’t be where I am today without it.”