Hẹn Gặp Lại, Barcelona (see you again, Barcelona)

Dear Barcelona,

When I first chose you, it wasn’t out of a grand dream or careful planning. In fact, it was the opposite. I needed a study abroad program, I needed Spanish for my degree, and I needed somewhere that would make it easy to fly to other countries. You seemed like the obvious, convenient choice as a city that would serve as a launching pad for other adventures.

I didn’t pick you because I knew you. I picked you because I had to. I thought I would use you as a home base, a place to rest between bigger, shinier travels.

But from the moment I landed and breathed in your warm, salty air, something shifted. You were never just a stepping stone. You were alive, breathing, calling me to notice you. And slowly, day by day, you became the story, not the background.

Compared to my time studying abroad in the U.S., where everything felt so structured and planned, you taught me a completely different way of being. There, my life was filled with deadlines, color-coded planners, and a sense of urgency to get everything exactly right. But here with you, life feels different. 

You move slower, softer, more intentionally. You taught me how to wander without guilt, how to get lost in narrow streets without panic, how to let days unfold without checking a clock every hour. You taught me that sometimes, the most beautiful plans are the ones that were never made at all.

And your people—oh, your people. I didn’t know how much they would matter to me. I didn’t realize how much love and life could exist in the way strangers smile at you on the metro, or the way a waiter patiently listens to your broken Spanish without a trace of annoyance. 

You showed me community in its purest form, and you reminded me that kindness doesn’t need to be flashy to be powerful. It just needs to be real.

At first, I thought my favorite memories would be the trips I took from you: the flights to other countries, the new cities I would check off my list. But what I didn’t expect was that no matter where I went, it was always you I missed. It was your sunsets over the Mediterranean, your winding Gothic alleys, your balconies spilling over with flowers. You became the place I compared everywhere else to. You became the place that felt like home.

You changed me, Barcelona. You made me slower to judge, quicker to smile, softer in my expectations of life. You taught me how to live inside a moment instead of always reaching for the next one. Being here has been life-altering in ways I didn’t even realize I needed. You gave me a piece of myself back—a version of me that is braver, freer, and infinitely more open to the world.

This isn’t a goodbye. Not even close. This is a beginning. 

One day, I will find my way back to you—maybe older, maybe wiser, but still carrying all the love you planted in me. 

Until then, keep a piece of me tucked safely into your skyline, your sea breeze, your streets humming with life.

I’ll see you again, Barcelona.

You’re part of me now.

Con todo mi corazón,
Chi <3