El día de los enamorados

I thought, and was hoping, that Valentine's day wasn't celebrated much in Europe. But now, I think it is a bigger of a holiday here than it is in the states. All the tapa bars had special couples menus and the shop windows were drowning in red hearts. So my friend and I decided to make the best of it and made sappy valentine cards for the girls. We went all out, with pink construction paper and sticker hearts and Lindt chocolates. On the way home, I bought a rose for my Spanish mother, who seemed to like it a lot. As I was leaving to meet my friends, she insisted that today didn't need to be a day only for couples. She said it was for all the people you loved (aww). But then she changed her mind and said that today might be geared more for couples. The six of us (minus one, who was on a ski trip) went to a Mexican restaurant and had burritos and margaritas con sal. Sharing stories, laughing and eating bonbons, it was one of the sweetest Valentine's days ever. Sometimes, in the midst of the stresses of being in a foreign country without your regular support system, it feels lucky to even find one or two really good friends. But I'm grateful to be already making so many lasting memories with six other chicas. Plus, we got free chupitos from the restaurant and went for chocolate croissants after dinner. Can it get any better?

chupitos to end the night