Happy New Year

2011 proved to be another unbelievable year for me. I enjoyed my last undergraduate semester at UW-Madison, and graduated from college after that. I strengthened old friendships and made some new ones during another fabulous Madison summer. I finished out my career at Visitor and Information Programs, letting go of an important part of my Wisconsin Experience. I even packed up my things and moved to Spain, starting another monumental adventure. And I'm still only 22-years-old.

I hope 2012 will be just as incredible, and it undoubtedly will be different. First of all, I have a Spanish address. But more importantly, I have officially started a new chapter in my life. Molly Rivera: Former College Student. Although I don't like to say it out loud, for the first time in my life, I am not a student. I will no longer have the comfort and routine of a school schedule. No more organized social activities, no more built-in vacations, no more excuses for being broke, and no more student discounts (you really don't realize how great they are till they're gone). Everything I knew how to do for almost my entire life is now gone.

Additionally, for the first time in my life, I do not have a real plan. Sure, I know that I will be living in Spain and will try my hand at teaching English, but I honestly don't know what my life will be like six months from now. For that matter, I don't really know what my life will be like six weeks from now. I have indeed completed my TEFL course, and do have some teaching hours lined up already, but I really don't know how it will turn out. Will I enjoy teaching English? Will I have trouble keeping work? Will it pay my Spanish bills? Will I still be able to lead the Spanish lifestyle that I oh-so enjoy? And when will I finally be able to travel? And when will I finally go back home? And what in the world will I do after all of that?

I have always had a lot of questions to consider in my life, but at this moment I have no stinkin' clue how to answer any of them. I have always been the girl who knows the details of her path to the future fairly well. But at this moment, and for the first time, I have no stinkin' clue.

And so perhaps it is fitting that this year I spent New Year's Eve on the other side of the ocean without close friends and family, yet another first for me.

After a whirlwind of a holiday in Sicily with good kin and warm company, I abruptly returned to the reality of my new but empty Spanish home. My roommates had all gone home to spend time with their families, and the few friends that I had made in my TEFL course also had left the city, either to go back to the U.S. or to travel over the New Year. And so I suddenly found my social life quite non-existent, and if it weren't for the powers of Skype, I undoubtedly would have been terribly lonely. But thanks to modern technology, I had a few relaxing days at home, enjoying some American television on illegal internet sites, reading, and hanging out on Skype. And all of that wasn't so bad, until I realized that I had absolutely no plan for the looming New Year celebrations, which increasingly seemed completely unacceptable.

Luck struck again, however, and I learned that one of my fellow teacher friends had stayed behind in Barcelona for New Years. So Jesse and I quickly made plans to properly bring in 2012.

After a bit of research, we learned that the place to be in Barcelona at midnight is Placa Catalunya, the main plaza in downtown Barcelona-- a Spanish Times Square, if you will. I also remembered an old Spanish tradition from my time in Sevilla: As the clock strikes down to midnight with 12 seconds to go, it is customary to eat 12 grapes, one for each second, until you reach midnight.

So, I bought a package of fat, green grapes and enjoyed a romantic dinner at home before heading to the square (is it cool or sad to have spaghetti and red wine by yourself in an empty house on New Year's Eve?) When I arrived to find Jesse, I was pleasantly surprised to see that he had coincidentally made two new American friends that day. They were friendly, enthusiastic, and enjoying their holiday in Barcelona. We only needed to chit-chat for a few minutes before realizing that we would be great friends, and also that we would spend the night in good company.

We found Placa Catalunya to be beautifully lit with hundreds of holiday lights and crowded with both Spaniards and international visitors alike, dressed in typical New Year's Eve class. We found a spot in the street, enjoying the atmosphere and readying the grapes and bottles of champagne we had sneaked past security.

Jesse and I in Placa Catalunya

Never in my life had I spent New Year's Eve in such a place- usually I spend it at someone's home, surrounded by close friends (except last year, when I spent it in downtown LA at the ROSEBOWL!!!). But this time, I was in a gigantic city, under the vast Barcelona night sky, surrounded by (a lot of) strangers.

New friends to celebrate the New Year!

Strangers to celebrate the New Year!

Grapes at the ready

In all the excitement, midnight came quickly. Before I knew it, a serious thought occurred to me: "Can I eat 12 grapes in 12 seconds?! I should have practiced! WHAT WAS I THINKING?!" I suddenly felt very anxious, but my nerves had no time to cause a scene as the clock began to chime. I began to stuff the grapes into my mouth, uncontrollably giggling (which surely didn't help things) and trying to keep up with the racing time, while also frantically reminding myself that these were the last few seconds of the epic year of 2011 and I should therefore have an air of serious reflection and gratitude as a thanks to the universe for giving me such a great year. And then as I shoved the last grape into my cheek, fireworks exploded and people broke out in song. 2012 had arrived.

We lingered around the plaza for a while after, drinking our champagne and mingling in the crowd. When we finally felt we had sufficiently experienced the celebration, we decided to head elsewhere. Unfortunately, our new friends had to go straight to the airport to catch an early flight. So after we said a rather sad goodbye to our new friends, Jesse and I started walking towards the sea.

We flopped down in the sand and took in a big breath of the night air. We sat in silence listening to the waves. I finally sighed, expressing that familiar feeling of utter contentedness with a bit of anxiety as my thoughts turned to the unpredictable future and I stared into the dark abyss in front of me. Seeming to read my thoughts, Jesse said, "I know. It's like the next 365 days are straight ahead of us."

I knew exactly what he meant. The waves and the sea breeze seemed to be actively participating in the celebrations to bring in the new year. Unrelenting and unstoppable, there was nothing we could do but face the oncoming tide.

But I wasn't scared. After all, I've heard the Mediterranean Sea is a warm body with a manageable current.

Bring it on.