Summer lasted for a very long time this year in Spain-I was wearing sandals and skirts up until about a week ago. But finally fall is here! Every day its a bit colder and a bit nippier outside. The air smells crisp and cold, and I like to imagine I can smell fireplaces burning wood. Leaves are falling everywhere, and I can kick them about as I walk around Logroño. If I catch a whiff of anything that smells like spice or cinnamon, I get giddy! I love it! I can finally break out the jackets, scarves, and cute boots that have been hidden away in my wardrobe (that’s right, wardrobe, no closets for me here!) If only there was a Starbucks on my street where I could grab a pumpkin spice latte between classes, I would be in autumn heaven!
I love everything about living in Spain, but the one thing I miss the most this time of year are the changing leaves that have characterized October and November for me since I was a little girl. I remember helping (being forced) to rake the leaves in my yard when I was younger and then jumping in all the piles afterward. I loved going hiking with my dad and sister in the woods around Virginia and Maryland. And then when I was in college in lived in the Pioneer Valley in Western Massachusetts, which for me has to be one of the most beautiful places in America, and probably the best place to see the leaves change. For me, the fall is a very special time; it is when I feel most inspired and just so happy to be outside. To say that fall is my favorite season is an understatement. But my favorite thing about fall has to be Halloween!
Halloween is my favorite holiday, hands-down. Pumpkins, candy corn, costumes, haunted houses, spiderwebs, Hocus Pocus, ghosts, apple cider, witches, candy apples, haunted hay rides, and Halloween parties, I love it all! Halloween is becoming popular in here, but it is no where near the level as it is back home, which means I have to make do this year. Spaniards would not understand if I dressed up for school or carried candy around with me. It is also damn hard to find a good fat orange pumpkin in these parts! And I will literally pay someone to send me candy corn! Luckily we have a 5 day weekend this weekend (gotta love Spain and its holidays), so I am going to take advantage of this time to have an awesome Halloween party with my friends here, as well as travel a bit around La Rioja and see the leaves change here. I am very excited because La Rioja has vineyards everywhere, and when the leaves change on the vines, it’s just gorgeous. So hopefully I will get a taste of fall here in Spain. I’ll leave you with some of my favorite photos of fall in Virginia around my parents house and New England, where I went to school.
Do you love fall as much as me? Do the leaves change where you live? Is Halloween your favorite Holiday? Have you ever celebrated Halloween abroad?
About the author
Liz,
You have a way of making just about anything look and sound great! Summer is just beginning here, but this story has me thinking of fall, my favorite season.
John
aaah- made me mohosick! I need you around so we can dressup, take photos, and dork out. I actually miss those endless hours and days in the library studying- remember the table we used to put our books on to save? Ah, those were the days!
I also miss leaving you messages on your bike.