“What I Love About Sundays”

Holy cow, what a weekend! It was long, lovely, and much needed. However, it ended on a bad note. But more about that later.

Friday, we finished our final exams of the intensive period, woohoo! I think that they went well, and I am satisfied with the first three weeks of my studies here. After exams, I decided that I needed a mental break, so I took to the roof, my new favorite location in my house. I put on my bikini and slept in the sun for close to three hours. It is such a great place to sit and read, listen to music, look at the views of the houses around me, and just enjoy the sunshine of the gorgeous weather we had all weekend! And when it gets too hot in the sun, I can put up a big sheet over the clothesline and sit underneath it in the shade, like a little fort!

After an afternoon of taking in the sun, I went out to dinner at an Italian restaurant (with a Spanish flare to it) with some of my girl friends. We got pizza, and I ordered bacon on mine. Yet I always forget that bacon here is NOTHING like bacon in the states! It is not crispy and delicious, but soggy and basically uncooked. No me gusta. I have to remember never to order it again while I am here! But after I picked the bacon off, the pizza was good! After dinner, we walked around Plaza Alfalfa a little bit, stopped into some shops, and I bought a scarf with shades of green that will be perfect for Saint Patrick’s Day! (Which I will be spending in England with my friends Brittany and Wesley!) Then Ebony and I went back home and had a nice relaxing evening reading our books.

On Saturday, no surprise, I spent quite a long time on the roof. Ebony and I enjoyed the sun and listened to music and read our books. Our friend Mikaela came over for awhile and joined us. Then we had lunch, hot dogs and chips and little mozzarella stick things, and it felt like being home again in the summer. It was the first “American” meal that I have had cooked for me since I have been here, and although I am loving the Spanish food, it was very nice to have. Later in the afternoon, our host mom Tony left for her hometown of Cadiz (where Carnavale was) for the day. Ebony and I met up with some friends and we went shopping, and then we went to another Italian restaurant for our friend Megan’s 21^st birthday. This one was much better than Friday nights, and I got Spaghetti with four cheese sauce. AMAZING. Then we went to Rayas Helados, an ice cream shop that is very popular here. It was the best ice cream that I have ever had. All in all, it was a very good food day!

Then Ebony and I went home and got ready to go out to the discoteca, Buddha. We went with our friends Jovita and Malik, and it was such a fun night! Malik is such a fun and nice guy, and I am very glad that I have a new friend. We actually went out somewhat like normal Sevillanos: we didn’t go out until 12:30am, and returned home at 4:30am. Not as long as some people stay out, till around 7am, but we are making progress! Haha.

I slept in late today, woke up and had breakfast, avoided the roof for once so that I didn’t get a sunburn, and then Ebony and I went to meet Mikaela for a walk around the city. It was so gorgeous and sunny out, and we wanted to explore new areas of the city that we haven’t seen yet. We started out just going around the centro, through side streets and little neighborhoods. We walked along the river, and then we went over the Puente de Los Remedios, the bridge that leads to Los Remedios, a district neighborhood of Sevilla. We decided that it wasn’t our favorite part of the city, overall. Then we came back across the bridge and walked into the Plaza de Espana, which is easily my favorite place in Sevilla. After enjoying the Plaza for awhile, we walked back to Mikaela’s house, and met up with Michele, and we went to Mass at 7pm. The church we went to is much smaller than the cathedral, but just as beautiful, and less crowded.

After mass is when the nonsense happened. We went to a café to get some sweets, and as we were sitting and talking, and man came in trying to force us to take pamphlets from Starbucks. We kept saying no, and refusing, but he kept demanding that we take them and he wouldn’t leave. After saying no over and over again, and him flashing the pamphlets around, he finally left. However, he had taken Michele’s wallet with him. At that point, it was too late to do anything except to go back to Mikaela’s house so that Michele could cancel her credit cards online. It baffles me that a man would walk inside a coffee shop off the street just to rob someone.

Other than that, it was a great weekend. Classes start tomorrow. Off the bed now!

"Who Put the Glad in Gladiator?!"

So a brief post on today before I head off to bed:

TODAY WAS AWESOME! We had our last day of continuation period classes, hallelujah! Then we boarded a short bus ride to Italica, the first capital of the ROMAN EMPIRE! Woah! It was amazing. The ruins of the Coliseum (one of the three largest in Europe!) were amazing to see. Once again, words and pictures can do it no justice. Just come here, okay?! Come visit me!

All in all, today was amazing. After returning home from Italica, I put on my bikini and headed to the rooftop of our house with my towel, pillow and ipod for some prime tanning time in the Spanish Sun. Needless to say, I ended up falling asleep on the roof for an hour. Best siesta I have yet to take! My back and shoulders hurt now from laying on the stone, but oh it was so worth it! After my tanning, I was called down for lunch, which was my favorite creamy vegetable soup, some awesome little breaded cheese/meat ball things, a half bocadillo with a fillet of pork with lemony sauce, and some cerveza. After lunch, I returned to the roof, where I continued my siesta, which was more like a food induced coma. I woke up after thirty mins and studied on for my exams, and then came back down to relax, change into normal clothes, and get ready for dinner. Dinner was equally delicious today: roasted chicken with white wine/lemon sauce, cream of vegetable soup, and fresh bread. I am a full and happy girl, right now.

Tomorrow, I have two final exams, and then I will spend the afternoon napping on the roof, and then getting ready to go out to the discoteca with mis amigos.

Tony is going away to Cadiz this weekend to visit her family, so Ebony and I will be here with Manuel. We plan to spend more time outside enjoying the sun and exploring the city more.

Loving Spain. Loving the sun. Loving my life.

“Just Get Back on the Bike”

This week has been one of those weeks. I mean, of course I am thrilled as all get out to be here, and very very happy, but I think that I am hitting the second stage that they talked about in the study abroad orientations. The first two weeks I was definitely in the “honeymoon” stage, where everything was completely wonderful and amazing (don’t get me wrong it still is!) But this week, I think I have hit some more of the cultural differences first hand, and not all of them are as easy as I thought they would be.

For instance, the home life is grand, but now that we are established and actually living like a real family, things are just like they are in any “normal” family: not always rainbows and butterflies. We have been having some scheduling conflicts with Tony about when we eat our meals. This week, she seems to have forgotten that a schedule exists at all. I understand that we are just guests in her home, and in Spain, drinking/eating lunch in the street at a café is very common. However, when she goes out to eat and doesn’t return forever, leaving us to our own devices, it presents a problem. The problem isn’t that we can’t feed ourselves; it is that we have to go back to school after lunch, and this week, we have been cutting it pretty close to the wire with time because of this wacky schedule. I know she is still getting used to us, and it isn’t her fault, but I feel slightly frustrated with Tony the past few days. I know that things will improve with time, though.

However, today, since we ran out of the house, I needed to just take a mental chill pill and calm down. It was a gorgeous, hot, sunny day today, and so I walked down to the river, got a big cold drink, and sat on the riverbank, soaking in the sun. The riverbank is essentially the Sevillan version of the beach. Everyone lays their blankets out on the grass on the bank, and sun baths and socializing while bikes and mopeds go zipping by along the path behind. It really helped to bring me back down to earth. For me, it is so easy to forget about worries, here. A little bad thing can happen, or something might annoy me, or I can’t understand someone as well as a I want to, but then I literally just have to OPEN MY EYES, look around me! I still maintain that it is impossible to be sad here. I watched an elderly women learning how to ride a bike, while I sat by the riverside. A younger lady, I suspect her daughter (?) was teaching her. If the old woman faltered, the daughter was always there to catch her, and the old women always kept trying. The whole thing just filled me with hope, though I can't really say specifically why. It just felt good.

After taking in a large dose of vitamin D from the sun, I walked back to the school to meet Ebony. Then we went to a student travel agency to book our trip to LAGOS, PORTUGAL! Woooohoooo! We are very excited for a weekend on some of the most beautiful beaches in the world. I can’t wait, but I also have many other trips to look forward to before then: Gibraltar, Spain; London&Bath, England; Grenada, Spain; Madrid, Spain; and of course, Prague, Czech Republic.

After booking our trip, we came home for a bit and did some homework, and I looked into trains around Europe. I went to mass at 8pm at the Cathedral with a few friends for Ash Wednesday. The attendance was definitely higher than any mass I have been too, yet, and the cathedral was packed to the brim. Mass lasted a lot longer than normal, and there was also music, which was nice! Getting ashes was a new experience though. In church at home, I am used to getting a charcoal black cross of ash across my forehead. Here, the ash was very fine powder and light gray, and it was just smeared across my forehead by a priest who looked like Bill Hader. (I know that was probably a silly/inappropriate thing to think well looking at the priest, but I am an SNL buff, and it made me smile).

I walked home and ate some late dinner at 9:40ish (late for my family, but totally normal by all Spanish standards. They usually eat dinner between 8:30 and 10:30). Now I am finishing up homework, and headed off to bed. Tomorrow, I have my last day of intensive period classes, a visit to the Roman city of Italica, and then studying my life away for my exams on Friday. I am looking forward to spending the entire weekend in Sevilla. Time to tan on my rooftop terrace? I think so.

Carnavales, Discotecas y Setas

Since I left you last, I have had many weekend adventures. On Friday, some girls and I went to a discoteca called “Buddha” to get our first taste of the young nightlife in Sevilla. It was a very nice dance club, much nicer and cleaner than anywhere else I have been to in the states. It had four stories and the only word I can use to best describe it is…lush? It had an air of luxury, with rich golden colored tapestries, images and statues of the Buddha everywhere, and dim lighting with dance floors and disco balls on every floor. It was interesting to see how differently young people dress to go to the club here than in the states. It is still more dressy and formal in Sevilla, even during the night. All of the young men were wearing a dress shirt with a sweater over the top, some with jeans, some with khakis; and the ladies were wearing dresses or skirts but they all had tights on, and there was not a low cut shirt in sight. Modesty is valued highly here, and I respect that quite a bit. It shows that you don’t need to show off a lot of your body in order to look beautiful.

After we all parted ways to go home, I received a call from my friend and she told me that her host mother had locked the deadbolt at her house, which she did not have a key for, so she could not get into her house. Despite how many times she called and called her mother and rang the bell, no one answered. I told her to come over to sleep at my house, since she had nowhere else to go. I let her sleep in my bed, and I went upstairs to sleep in the guest room. In the morning, Ebony woke me up, and we went to meet her friend Rob, who is studying in the city of Grenada, which is only a few hours from Sevilla. His group came to visit Sevilla for the day, and so we went out for tapas with him at our favorite restaurant, and then we took him up the Giralda (the top of the cathedral) to see the amazing view from the top. After he left, I went home to get ready for carnavale. Carnavale is like a mix of mardi gras and Halloween, except it puts any American Halloween party to shame with its amazingly creative costumes. My friends and I all wore different colored wigs because we didn’t want to spend a lot of money on elaborate costumes. We took the bus to Cadiz, which is a city about two hours south west of Sevilla, on the coast of the Atlantic Ocean. Once we arrived, it was chaos: people in costumes everywhere. The streets were crowded and packed with people of all ages. I didn’t really think that it was appropriate to have such small children there when there was so much drinking going on, but it is a part of their culture, so I guess they all grow up with it. We arrived in Cadiz at 8pm, and we didn’t return to Sevilla until 4:30am! It was much too long for me, because all there really was to do was walk around amidst the chaos and socialize with people and look at the various costumes. I thought that it would be more like carnavale in Brazil or Venice, where there are parades and music and cultural demonstrations. But Cadiz was just a pure fiesta. Needless to say, I was very glad to return home to Sevilla and sleep for a long long time.

Sunday, I spent the day sleeping and relaxing, as well as finishing up homework.

Today, Monday, I went to class till 1:30pm, then I came home to eat lunch and do my homework. I had a bit of a cultural misunderstanding with my host mom when I tried to hang some of my clothes out to dry off the balcony from my bedroom. She told me it was very impolite to hang my clothes there, and that I should do it on the rooftop clothesline that we have. I told her that I didn’t have the key to open the terrace door, and I had to hang my wet clothes somewhere. I apologized profusely, trying to understand how to make things right, and she showed me where the key was and I moved my clothes. It put me in kind of a bad mood because I don’t like to disappoint her, but at the same time I also didn’t understand how clothes on a balcony were so offensive. In retrospect, I know that I should have asked her before I put them there. At least I know now for the future. After lunch, I went back to school to use the computers and the printer to write an essay, then returned home to nap for a while.

However, the best part of my day, which made all of the other bad things worth it, was getting to hang out with my intercambio, or Spanish speaking partner, Paz! She is so sweet and she is so understanding with my Spanish, because she is also learning English. She took me out for ice cream and we walked all along the river together talking about anything and everything. It makes me feel much more confident that she can understand me, and very rarely has to ask me to repeat myself or clarify something that I have said. She is very shy to speak English with me, but she is definitely good at it! I want to help her get better like she is helping me with my Spanish. After we walked along the river, we walked back through the heart of the city, and then we went to this large monument of sorts called “la seta” which means mushroom. It’s a large white structure that is shaped somewhat like a mushroom, I suppose, and you can go to the top of it and see all of Sevilla. It is the most beautiful view, especially at night. And all the doubts and tiny pangs of homesickness that I had this morning fell away just like that when I saw the city that I have come to love, all lit up and beautiful. I can’t wait to hang out with Paz again, and I am so glad that I have a Spanish friend to show me around and tell me all about the city.

This week, the intensive period ends, and the continuation period begins on Monday, so I will be finished with the two classes that I have now, and begin three new ones. I am excited and scared all at once. I know that if I could handle these classes though, that I can also handle the new ones.

I hope everyone has a great week! I miss you all!

King of Hearts.

So, since I left you last, things have been a rollercoaster. I am learning more about the culture everyday, and also learning more about the new friends that I am meeting and the people around me. Some people here are very homesick, or have bad home stays for many different reasons, but it seems that few are truly delighted or happy to be here. I guess that I am used to not seeing my family a lot, so it makes it easier for me to be away from them. I have had a few small moments of homesickness, but nothing major that makes me want to go home or leave this amazing place.

This week has flown by! It is already Thursday night! School was better this week, easier than the first. I am finally adjusted to the time difference and the schedule of my days/nights. Monday was my new friend Erica’s 21^st birthday! We didn’t celebrate until last night though, and a group of girls went out for dinner together and it was very fun! Tuesday was Valentine’s Day, and a group of girls went to the dorms to watch a cheesy movie and drink wine and eat chocolates. It was very fun! We watched something borrowed and hid our wine from the staff that was lurking in the common area. Even though it is allowed to have it there, we still felt like they were judging us for having it. Who knows? After we left, Ebony and I went home and drank some more wine with our host family, tried to flamenco dance, and we talked about relationships and just laughed and laughed all night. It was a great Valentine’s Day! And to top it off, Brent sent me roses and a teddy bear! Best surprise EVER! I am so lucky to have him in my life.

Today was long, but good. I had class, then we went to visit the cathedral and take an in depth tour. The art history there is fascinating and beautiful, so of course I was totally geeking out about it. I saw a real life painting by GOYA! Almost died a little bit. They basically had to drag me away from it, I was staring so long. After the tour, we climbed the 34 ramps to the top of the cathedral tower. Yes, ramps, not stairs. They had ramps so that horses could carry people who could not walk up to the top of the tower. It was a hike, but the view was so worth it! You can see all of Sevilla from the top! It was a clear day with sunny blue skies, and it was such a beautiful site. Afterwords, I walked back home and relaxed before lunch. I attempted to study for my exam tomorrow but ended up watching 3 hours of Gossip Girl instead. Had to catch up!

Tomorrow begins a great weekend: I have one class, and then I have to go with the girls to buy masks because on Saturday we are going to Cadiz, a city southwest of Sevilla, on the coast of the Atlantic Ocean for CARNIVAL! Spring is the season of carnviales in Spain, and it is a huge cultural tradition. Lots of costumes, practical joking, fun, dancing, drinking, and partying in the streets. Think of it as Halloween, but with no scary costumes, only fun ones! And then throw mardi gras in there. It’s a combo of the two. And tomorrow night we are going out to our first discoteca in Sevilla! I could not be more excited!

I hope everyone is well. Kisses.

<3 Jenn

Family&Faith

So, yesterday, I took a day trip to Cordoba, one of the oldest cities in Spain. However, if you want to know more about that, check out my pictures on facebook. It was a lot of fun, and had many beautiful things, but in this post, I want to talk about some other things.

The first of those things is family. I got a huge lesson last night on how important the family unit is, here. When my roommate Ebony and I came home around 8pm from Cordoba, we called up the stairs as usual to say hello and how are you to Tony and Manuel. They usually say hello back, and we go put away our things in our room before coming upstairs to hang out with them. When we called out, Manuel answered back, but Tony didn’t, but we could hear her talking, so we figured she was on the phone. When we came upstairs, Manuel was in the living room watching tv, and Tony was still in the kitchen. Usually, we let her be in the kitchen until she comes out and talks to us, because she is usually busy doing something or another or cooking dinner. But last night….she didn’t come out. For a while. Manuel went in there to talk to her, and there was a hushed conversation in Spanish, and I didn’t really understand most of it. Eventually, Manuel called me into the kitchen, but not Ebony. At this point, I was not only confused, but worried, too. What was happening? Were they having a fight? Breaking up? Is Tony okay? I had so many questions running through my mind. Was I in some sort of trouble for something?

Tony wasn’t looking at me, or Manuel. She had her eyes down and on the stove. The following conversation went something similar to this (in Spanish, of course, but if I wrote it like that, none of you would be able to read it):

Manuel: you asked about Tony when you came home, right?

Me: yeah, of course. We asked you how she was doing and if she was on the phone.

Manuel: See, Tony? They did ask, just like I said.

*Tony is still looking away, ignoring both of us*

Manuel: Tony, it’s fine! *laughs*

*Tony looks up and I see that she has tears in her eyes. This makes me instantly horrified and sad*

Me: TONY. What’s wrong?!

Tony: Nothing.

Me: Are you okay?

Tony: No.

Me: Why? What’s wrong? Please tell me?

Tony: No.

Manuel: Tony, everything is fine. Don’t worry about it.

Me: What is going on?

*at this point, even though minimal words were being exchanged, I felt so lost in translation, feeling like there had to be something huge that I was missing out on, here.*

Me: Tony, why are you crying? Are you okay? Did Ebony and I do something wrong?

Manuel: Tony thinks that you and Ebony didn’t ask about her or want to talk to her, and you’ve been gone all day and she missed you.

*at this point, words in any language were not necessary. I ran over to Tony and embraced her in my arms, hugging her fiercely, both of us crying now, and me telling her…*

Me: TONY. We love you so much! You’re the best mother ever and I need you to know that!

*we’re both crying, she is muttering things like, siii, siii, te quiero mucho.*

*Ebony, who missed all of this, walks into the kitchen to see me and Tony crying, and Manuel laughing*

Ebony: what’s going on?! Tony, Jenn, why are you crying?!

*Manuel repeats the story of how Tony thinks we didn’t miss her while we were gone today*

Ebony: What?! TONY?! *runs to us, group hugging commences*

Me: Tony, we love you so much. You are the best mother that we could ever ask for, please don’t cry! We thought you were on the phone, so we didn’t come in to see you. We are so sorry. Please don’t cry. We love you!

Tony: I know, I know. I’m sorry I got so emotional *still crying* I just love you so much, you are my daughters. You mean so much to me.

*even more crying now, everyone hugging.*

Me: Tony, you are our family, now. You are so important to us! *I run over and grab Manuel, he joins the group hug* And Manuel! You’re like our Spanish father, and we love you too!

After lots of hugging, crying, my makeup flooding down my eyes, and lots of reassurance, love, and kisses later, we were all sitting together eating dinner, laughing and loving life with nothing but streaked makeup and tear stained cheeks to show that we had been crying only minutes ago.

I felt horrible to see her cry like that, because of something she thought that I had done to her. The feeling in the pit of my stomach was guilty and raw. It wrenched at my heart to know that after only 12 days, I have a mother who cares for me that much. Family is so important here, and this example shows how important it is to communicate love and show your gratitude and emotion for one another. I will never ever again take Tony of Manuel for granted again, as if I ever did in the first place. I have been hugging her nonstop today to make sure she knows how much she is loved.

The second topic I want to discuss is that of faith, which ties in rather well with family. I went to my first church service here in Spain, this morning. The cathedral is vast and beautiful. They truly glorify God through their structures. Although the mass was slightly different than mine is at home, and I couldn’t respond to the prayers and verses like I wanted to, I enjoyed it. No matter what language is being spoken, you can still feel the Holy Spirit touching your soul. I spent a long time talking to God and telling him how grateful I am for all the blessings that have come into my life, recently.

Faith and Family are the foundation of a good life. I knew that before, but I know it even more now.

<3

'Lost in Translation"

I feel like there are too many things that happen to my every day to write about. Even the 15 minute walk from my home stay to the school is an event in itself, trying not to get hit by a car or a motorcycle. However, yesterday was a particularly “bad” day, the only poor one that I have had since being here, in fact. My roomie and I are becoming good friends, and we love to stay up and talk at night. Last night was no different, and we only ended up sleeping for three hours before we had to wake up for classes. Ay, que pena. Yesterday, and for the next two Thursdays, we have excursions in groups through the city. Classes end early, and we go around 11:30 to different locations. I went to Alcazar, an ancient and beautiful Spanish fort, essentially. It’s like a walled city that was used during wartimes. It has both Catholic and Muslim influences in its architecture because of the changing hands that were in control during the 11-1300’s. The buildings were beautiful, but what I loved the most were the gardens. Hedge mazes, coy ponds, palm trees, orange and lemon trees, peacocks roaming free, everything was like a dream. Except for the fact that I was so tired and hungry that I was basically stumbling through it all in a blur, although it was a happy blur.

This is where things got…interesting. I left Alcazar with mi amiga, Mika, and we started to walk through one of the main plazas to head back to our homes, which are close to each other in the same barrio. We saw one of our friends, Britney, walking alone so we called out to her. She looked dazed and confused, and she was holding a small leafy plant in her hand. I looked at it and I knew that she had had an encounter with the gypsies. The gypsies here have a long history of displacement, and they have origins in India, Portugal, Morocco, Romania and Southern France. They speak a blend of Spanish and some other languages as well, and it is well known that they like to try and scam people in the streets and pick pocket them, especially blonde American girls, like Britney. The “gitanos” try to lure you in by offering you these plants. If you take one, they then try to read your palms. While one gypsy woman is holding your palms out, other are distracting you by murmuring all sorts of words in foreign languages. While this is happening, other gypsies, usually children, are robbing your pockets/purse. Unfortunately, this happened to Britney, and her camera was stolen. The police were no help at all, since this happens a lot, there really isn’t a whole lot that they can do about it, sadly.

Not only did Britney get robbed, but my roomie Ebony lost her diamond necklace from her boyfriend. We assumed for a while that it had also been stolen, however, we luckily found it under the dresser in our closet after tearing our bedroom apart.

In good news, I love my host parents and I am getting to know them more and more as the time goes on. I am learning so many new things from them about the culture here, as well as new words and phrases that I never knew before. I can’t wait to see how much I have improved in my Spanish 3 months from now. When I came home the other day, Flamenco music was blaring from our stereo and the two of them were cooking and dancing around the kitchen. I love how much they always love together. Que romantico. My madre, Tony, took Ebony and I shopping the other night to some of her favorite local places. It was nice to see the city from a local perspective, and it was the first time we went out with her to explore the city. She took us to a church that is specifically meant to pray to specific saints for your different wants/needs. She bought us the customary red candle, which you hold in your hands while you pray to the saints for whatever you so desire. Then you light the candle, and place it amongst the other hundreds of red candles that are glowing there, and dancing in the dark night. It was a beautiful site, and since I am catholic, I felt like it helped me get closer to my faith. I have a feeling that it will grow and deepen the longer that I am here.

It’s only been 8 days since I’ve been here. It feels like 8 months and I am not complaining one bit.

“First Day of School! First Day of School!”

I felt like Nemo today, so excited to go to school for my first day in Spain! Last night, Ebony and I stayed up talking until 3am, but we had to wake up for class at 7! Uf! We had a fast breakfast with tostado con mantequilla y pate, espresso con leche, y jugo de naranja. Every morning at breakfast we have fresh squeezed orange juice and espresso that is made fresh with a French press. Best drinks I have ever had!

Ebony and I walked to school, about a 15 minute walk from our casa. It was a beautiful morning. I get the feeling that every day here is going to be beautiful. When we got to school, we found our schedules hanging on the wall on the main floor of the building. In Spain, the first floor of a building is called “planta baja” or, lower floor. Then what we would call the second floor, they call “la primera planta”, or the first floor. So for example, if a building has three floors in total, the first floor at ground level is called “planta baja” (ground/lower floor), the first flight of stairs up is called “la planta primera” (first floor), and the second flight of stairs is called “la planta segunda” (second floor). Es interesante.

For the first three weeks, all of the students are in what is called “the intensive period”. It’s basically like grammar, writing, reading, speaking, etc. Like a Spanish bootcamp so that the rest of our classes won’t be as difficult (hopefully). I only have two classes during the intensive period. I have class Monday-Friday from 9am-1:30pm. I wake up at 7am, shower, eat breakfast, and walk to school with Ebony. Then, I have my first class, Present Day Usage, from 9am till 12noon. But there is a half an hour break from 10:30-11:00 when everyone can go out and get coffee or something to eat. In Spain, every pretty much eats two breakfasts: one early in the morning before class/work with the family, and then another with friends around 10:30 or 11:00. When you eat breakfast with friends, it is usually in an open air café. You drink café and eat toast with ham on it, typically, or something fruit. After this half hour break, I return to the same Present Day Usage class from 11:00-Noon. Present Day Usage is a class all about speaking, but specifically about Spanish that is spoken in SPAIN and in the region that I live in, Andalucía. In Andalucía (the south of Spain), the people speak with an accent called “Castellano”. To the untrained ear, it sounds like the people have a horrible lisp when they are speaking. “C’s” and “Z’s” are pronounced with a “th” sound, and any word that has the letter “s” in it, the “s” basically gets dropped off and you can’t hear it. It’s very hard to get used to at first, especially since I was mostly taught “Mexican Spanish” or “South American Spanish” in school. But I like my professor a lot. Her name is Ana, and in Spain it is common to call the professor by their first name. Since it is a class about language use, she was telling us “palabras sucias” or, “swear words”, and other slang words that you wouldn’t be able to learn in a text book. Speaking of book, I don’t really have one for the class, just a pile of photocopied articles. The profe says that she doesn’t want to spend too much time on reading, just on conversing and speaking.

After Present Day Usage is done at noon, I have a 15 minute break until my next class, Advanced Spanish Reading, starts. It is with the same profe, Ana, and in the same classroom. Go figure. I don’t have to move for four hours. Haha. Advanced Reading is about learning reading tactics so that it is easier to understand long essays, novels, or really any written material in Spanish. This class gets done at 1:30, so it goes by really quickly, and then I go home with Ebony and I am done with classes for the day. Ebony has more classes to go back to after lunch, though. Today, we went to the book store to buy our books for class. For Advanced Reading, I had to buy a book that cost €17, which wasn’t that bad, especially since I only need one book! Way cheaper than books at CMU! The bookstore I went to was called “Beta” which of course made me think of all of my favorite fraternity men at home in Michigan. After the book store, I went to buy a hairdryer at the pharmacy. Then we came home and had lunch. Typically, lunch is late. Around 2:30 or 3pm, and it is the largest meal of the day. My madre is the best cook in all of Spain, I think. I am so lucky to have her! After lunch, Ebony went back to class, but I got to take a 2 hour nap. Oh man, I LOVE SIESTAS SO MUCH. It is so nice to relax in the middle of the day. After my nap, I woke up at 5pm and relaxed at the house for a while and watched some Spanish TV with my madre and her boyfriend, Manuel. We talked about Spanish politics, weather, families, Christmas, dogs, everything. I have so many questions! I ask them EVERYTHING that comes to my mind. They are so open and friendly. They answer every tiny and crazy question that I have to the best of their ability. Today during lunch, I burped and covered my mouth immediately because I was embarrassed and apologized profusely. But they told me that this is MY house, too, and they want me to be comfortable here and to be myself. They are the greatest.

At 8pm, I went to meet my “intercambio”, speaking partner, whose name is Paz, which means Peace in English! So cool. We went to a restaurant and ate outside and had “vino tinto” which is red wine that is carbonated. Kind of like a wine cooler. She is 23 years old and studies at the Universidad de Sevilla. She knows so much about the city and I am so glad that we are going to be friends now and we can go out together. Afterwords, I walked home by myself for the first time at night. And I didn’t get lost! So proud of myself! At my casa, my family was in the living room eating and relaxing, like every night. I love the feeling of family here.

I just finished my homework, and I am going to bed soon. Buenas Noches,

Jenn <3

Vida Diaria

Spain, Spain, Spain. You amaze me every day. I love that there are constant things to do and explore!

On Saturday morning, we were supposed to have a bus tour of Sevilla with our program. However, Ebony and I woke up late, and therefore rushed to eat breakfast and ran out of the house. The bus tour left from La Plaza de Espana, which is about a 30 minute walk from our casa, on the other edge of the centro district. However, since we had never been there before, we didn’t know the way, and we didn’t know how long the walk would talk. Before you know it, its 11:15 and we are still walking. The bus was supposed to leave at 11. We were disappointed that we missed the bus, but when we got to La Plaza de Espana, suddenly it was all worth it. I didn’t want to be on a bus at all once I found the Plaza. It is the most beautiful piece of architecture that I have ever seen. The Plaza is shaped like a large and open semi circle, with two large towers on each end. In the middle, there is a large and beautiful fountain. But it was very windy that day, so the water was spraying everywhere and it was cold! I will definitely be returning there a lot during the rest of my time here. Once it gets scorching hot, I’m sure that the water will feel good.

La Plaza de Espana has the most beautiful tile work I have ever seen, and that is saying something, since I worked in an Italian Art Gallery for three years! There are tiles that represent every region and city in Spain. The columns that hold up the Plaza are beautiful and Corinthian, looking like they came straight from Italy. The Plaza was built in 1928 and showcases the renaissance revival style in Spanish architecture that a lot of the city has in other buildings.

Gardens and pathways surround the Plaza, and it feels like you can get lost in them like Alice in Wonderland. Although, in some ways I feel as if I have already fallen down the rabbit hole, and this is just a dream that I will wake up from soon, too good to be true. After we walked around the Plaza for a long time, a group of us girls walked around the city more, making our way home slowly, enjoying all the sights of the city. We walked across the bridge of el rio Guadalquivir, making our way into the neighborhood called Triana. We walked along the river and admired the city and the smell of the oranges. We walked back across the Triana Bridge, which was designed by the same architect who designed the Eiffel Tower. Closer to home, we stopped at a café and had chocolate suizo, swiss hot chocolate. In Spain, hot chocolate is really just like a melted chocolate bar: thick, creamy, rich and hot, with lots of whipped cream on top. But their whipped cream tastes better than anything that I have ever had in the states! Mmmm! Then Ebony and I went home for dinner, which was fantastic as always; a soup with garbanzo beans, potatoes, and some tiny little noodles, with fried fish, fresh salad, and of course, fresh bread and oranges. After dinner, we rested a bit and got ready for our first night out on the town in Sevilla!

In Spain, the days typically go like this: wake up fairly early, go to work/school, and then around 2, everything closes down for a few hours for “siesta” which really just means “rest/nap”. Everyone returns home to eat together and rest or take a nap. Then everyone returns to work/school for a few more hours. After this is done, people walk the streets, meet friends for coffee, or return home to rest and be with family. Resting and family are two very important things in Spanish life. Dinner is usually between 8 and 9pm, but it can even be later, up till 10pm! Very late, in American perspective. But here, nightlife is also very important. Everyone, young and old, goes out late, and stays out late, often until the sun rises. My madre described Sevilla as a city where people “live in the streets” because everyone is always out and about in the plazas socializing and enjoying the weather and fresh air.

Our first night out was good. We didn’t really know exactly where to go, so we wandered around a bit trying to find kids that looked our age. The drinking age here is 18, so it is pretty typical to see young people in the streets or out at the bars at all hours of the day and night. My madre even had beer with her breakfast this morning! Drinking is just a casual part of the culture here. We ended up at two different bars. The first one had more of an “adult” atmosphere: casual, calm, quiet, refined. The second bar was a discoteca where lots of young students our age were, dancing and socializing with loud music and flashing lights.

We returned home “early” by Spanish standards, at 2am. We went to bed and slept for quite some time. Sundays are days to relax, go to church, and be with family. Today, we ate lunch at 3pm, and then we went to a “tienda chino”, asian store, to buy some notebooks because our classes start tomorrow. We also went to a chocolate café to eat churros con chocolate. SOOO delicioso! But very filling and we accidentally ordered wrong because one order is meant for four people, which we didn’t know! First cultural mixup haha.

Classes start tomorrow. Voy a mi cama ahora para dormir! Buenas Noches <3

La Llegada.

So, I finally have a moment to sit down and write. The past few days have been a whirlwind of activity. I finally feel like I have adjusted to the time difference, a bit. I am still tired, but I am actually functioning now, in contrast to mere hours ago when I was literally falling asleep sitting up.

The journey to Spain began with my mom taking me to O’Hare International Airport in Chicago, and dropping me off at security. I didn’t cry, I told myself it was time to be a big girl and face the world ahead of me. It was still very sad to leave her behind though, especially since it was her 55^th birthday on the 1^st, the day that I flew out!

The airport wasn’t as crowded or hectic as I expected it to be. I went to the counter and asked them to print my boarding pass, which they did with ease. At the same time, they checked my bag and told me that it would be checked all the way through to Sevilla, even though I had to catch another flight in Madrid. It was nice to know I wouldn’t have to worry about that later, when I knew I would be very tired from flying. Then I went through security, also much easier than I thought it would be! Once I put my belt and shoes back on, I went to find my terminal and my station. I arrived very early, so I had plenty of time to walk and find it. I stopped at a currency exchange station in the airport and got some Euros so that I wouldn’t have to worry about finding an atm or a bank once I got here. I am very glad that I ended up doing that. Also, a tip if you ever go abroad: make sure you tell your bank that you are going so they don’t deactivate your account or freeze it if they see action in a foreign country. They can also order currency for you if you do it far enough in advance.

I found my terminal with ease and sat down and proceeding to play the waiting game. I was filled with excitement/nerves/fears/questions. Thankfully, Michele found me shortly after I arrived and we sat together and talked about all the emotions we were going through. We met a couple from Traverse City that was going to Madrid to go hiking. We also met a few other students that are in our program at the CCCS.

And then the moment arrived, and I finally had to take my first ever plane ride. I found my seat, which was in the middle of the plane in the middle aisle. The plane that we took was HUGE. Well, maybe it isn’t in comparison to other planes, but for me, it was HUGE. However, it was not a full flight, so I was on the aisle seat in a row which had 4 seats, and no one was sitting in said row except for me, so I had lots of space to spread out during the flight. Take off was a teensy bit scary, but once we were in the air, I tried to pretend that we were on a bus and not really thousands of miles above the ground. In a twist of irony, I ended up sitting right across the aisle from my roommate, Ebony, so we got to meet and talk for a good portion of the flight. Since it was an 8 hour overnight flight, we were served breakfast and dinner, which weren’t too shabby for all the jokes that I’ve heard about airplane food. Dinner was chicken, mashed potatoes, green beans, tuna salad, cheesecake and white wine, with coffee afterword. However, all of these events happened within the first hour of the flight. The rest of it dragged on. I watched the in flight movie which was “In Time” that one with Justin Timberlake, and it was pretty good. Then I tried to sleep by stretching out across all 4 seats in my row, but there were seatbelts jabbing me in all sorts of uncomfortable ways, but at least I could lie down and listen to my ipod. I didn’t sleep but I got some rest just by closing my eyes. I read a cornucopia of magazines, and finally they served us breakfast (fruit, pastries and coffee). About an hour later, we finally landed in Madrid, Spain. This is where the fun begins.

Now, I know I said that the plane was huge…but….the Madrid airport is just GINORMOUS. Our layover was only about 40 minutes and it took us half an hour of literally running, riding escalators, elevators, and people movers, to make it to our terminal in time to board. The airport was eerily quiet though, another thing that I did not expect at all, especially for it being so large. There was literally an entire shopping mall in this airport with some of the most expensive and designer labels in it. There were also multitudes of restaurants and shops. However, it was only 9am local time when we landed, so not many flights were coming in and out.

The plane from Madrid to Sevilla was smaller than the first plane, and we had to go outside and use a scary staircase to get into it. But the flight was short, less than an hour, and this time I had a window seat and actually had the courage to look outside. It was a clear and beautiful day and the view was breathtaking. Even though I was exhausted and sweaty from running all around with a backpack and a duffle bag, the journey has definitely been worth it, so far! When we arrived in Sevilla, we had to pick up our checked bags, and then we waited for the CCCS shuttle to come pick us up and take us to our hotel for the night. We waited about three hours for the shuttle to come. When it did, we went outside on Spanish soil for the first time, and I was amazed to see palm trees! I did not know that Spain had palm trees! We drove for about 10 minutes to get to the hotel, La Plaza de Armas. It was really comfortable, fancy, and modern. We got an hour to relax before lunch, and I took a shower to get rid of the travel funk I was in. At lunch, I was exhausted and facing foreign food was the last thing that sounded good to me. So I stuck with pasta and tried not to face plant in it from sheer jet lag exhaustion. After lunch, I took my first infamous Spanish Siesta. What a lovely and amazing two hours of sleep it was. Generally, the Spanish don’t sleep that long during a siesta, but I was so tired that I wanted to get every minute in that I could before orientation that night.

Orientation was brief, but informative, and it was followed by dinner in the hotel. I was convinced that I was going to fall asleep instantly when I got back up to my room, but sleep evaded me last night. I think I only slept for a total of 3 hours on and off. When I woke up this morning, I was still tired, but took a shower and pushed my way through breakfast. I mean, how can I NOT be happy?! I am in SPAIN for crying out loud! La cosa de mis suenos! After a walk to the center, where I will be taking most of my classes, we came back to the hotel for one last time, grabbed our luggage, and went out to the street to catch taxis to our homestays.

Luckily, Ebony and I live right around the corner from the hotel we were staying at, so we only walked for about five minutes. We live in a walk up apartment in Plaza Puerta Real. This house is so amazingly gorgeous, inside and out. You enter on the street level, and the front door opens up into a hallway with dark stone floors. There is a stone stairwell around the corner, which takes you up into the first level of the house. There is a living area with two chairs, a couch, a large circular coffee table, and large bookshelves on the walls. Everything is rich, with warm colors and textures. The couch is ruby red and the chairs a soft creamy white. The floor is a rich wood through the entire casa. The room that Ebony and I share is on this floor. We have a balcony that we can walk out onto and look over the plaza and see the people eating lunch and drinking café; men whizzing by on mopeds and vespas; women whose arms are laden with shopping bags from all of the best European designers; and small children with dogs and their parents, who are leisurely strolling behind, arm and arm. But it’s like that here: everything is slow. There is no hurry to life. People take time to enjoy the outdoors; drinking their cafés in the many outdoor restaurants and bars. Meals are an event, a time to reconnect with family or friends and to enjoy the food that you are eating and truly savor the flavors.

Speaking of food and family, my host mother, Antonía, is one amazing cook and one amazing lady. She is 47, but she looks like she is 35, probably because of the healthy lifestyle that these European women tend to lead. Every Spanish woman I have seen is absolutely breathtaking. “Tony” as we call her, is divorced, and she is still getting over it, since it was only a year ago that it happened. However, today we got to meet Manuel. Manuel is her “amigo”, but Ebony and I know that they are totally in love. Manuel is the perfect gentleman. He has been here all day and he ate dinner and lunch with us. When we tried to get up to clear our plates, he told us “as long as I am in this house, I will do that for you. Maybe on another day when I’m not here you will have to do that for yourself.” He waits on Tony hand and foot, and it is clear that he adores her. So preciosa. In Spain, the Catholic church rules the land, and so in many homes, men and women still play very traditional gender roles. For example, the woman does the cooking, cleaning, and domestic things, whereas the man works, earns money, and is quite the gentleman not only to his wife/girlfriend, but to every other woman that he comes in contact with. When Ebony and I were trying to figure out how to get into our casa, an old man on the street came up to us and asked us who we were looking for. We told him Antonía, and he said that she was a very nice lady and that she cooks very well. When we told her this later, she said that she loves Pepé, her neighbor. There is such a sense of community here, and although I have only been in my new casa for one day, my host mother has already treated me as if I were her own daughter.

Tony has no children of her own, so she has travelled around the world TWICE in her lifetime. The casa is filled with amazing artifacts, pictures, stones, masks, paintings, charms, rugs, and every other cultural icon imaginable from all the corners of the globe. However, there is still that unmistakable Spanish feeling to it. It is very clean and cozy despite the towering piles of magazines that adorn the tables, all if many different languages. There are a lot of things from Africa, since that is Tony’s favorite place other than Spain. She said if she had a child, she would name her Africa.

The meals have been great. Pepé didn’t lie: she is a great cook. For lunch we had grilled merluza (hake), and a cream vegetable soup that was so flavorful and amazing. There was also some sort of potato/egg/shrimp pasta salad with a creamy white sauce. I don’t care much for shrimp, but I ate some anyway and it was still great. And of course, there was fresh bread and fruit, as there is with every meal, so I am learning. During lunch, we talked to Manuel and Tony about politics in Spain and the freak weather they’ve been having here. They think it’s cold. For me, it feels great outside. At night it gets kind of chilly, but it is manageable, and they both said that in a few weeks the temperature will rise greatly and only continue to get hotter into the spring. After lunch, Ebony and I walked to the Center (Manuel of course drew us a very detailed map) to have our orientation about the computer systems and things to do in the city. After this, a group of 4 of us chicas went exploring through the city.

Sevilla is like a labyrinth. Every street is more like an alleyway: narrow, cobblestone, buildings rising up on either side; and yet somehow, cars, mopeds, and people all seem to effortlessly flow through them. The streets don’t have a grid formation, like a typical American city. They twist together like spaghetti noodles. But I absolutely love it. I was all about getting lost within the city, discovering everything there is to see. There is so much to look at; my eyes can’t seem to take it all in. Palm trees and orange trees everywhere. Tall building, but not highrises or skyscrapers. Huge churches, statues, and monuments. The architecture here is amazing. It is like everything that I have ever imagined and more.

I could write so many things. But this has already been long winded. If you have read this long, I applaud you and thank you.

Buenas Noches,

Jenn

A Little More Info

Now that we've gotten my nerves and emotions out of the way, let me tell you a little more about my actual program and classes that I will be taking once I arrive in Spain.

The first day that I fly in, I will stay at a hotel in Sevilla and have an orientation with all the other students in the program. I will be studying through the program CCCS, the Center for Cross Cultural Study. I will be taking 12 credit hours this semester. The first three weeks are what is known as "the intensive period" where I will be taking 3 credits worth of writing and speaking in Spanish to make sure that I am ready to fully transition into the daily use of the language. I feel confident in my Spanish speaking, writing, and listening abilities, however, I know that it will probably feel difficult and overwhelming in the beginning even though I know that I have a high level of fluency in the language.

After the intensive period is over, I will have my remaining 9 credits in 3 classes: History of Spain from 1492-Present; Cultural Anthropology of Spain; and Spanish Literature from 1800 (I think?)-Present.

I am very excited about all of my classes! I am grateful that I got to pick them all out with my adviser to suit my needs and interests. My majors are Anthropology and Spanish, so I am very excited about all of my classes, especially the anthro one. All of my classes will be taught solely in Spanish, and I have agreed and signed a "no English" contract for the duration of my time in Spain (unless there is an emergency, of course). I am determined and excited to use the beautiful Spanish language on a daily basis.

While in Spain, I will be living with a host family. I know the name of the mother, and the name of my student roommate, but no other info about them just yet. I am very excited to meet them all! I hope that my roomie and I get along great and wear the same size shoes haha ;) I will be living in the "centro" district, which is the downtown area of Sevilla. I am veryyyyy excited about this, since that means I will be close to all of the fun things to do, as well as within walking distance to all of my classes! I will have a bike, though, since Sevilla is AWESOME and has this public bike rental program called "Sevici". For 40 Euro/year, you can have access to bike racks which are located all over the city. You just enter your pin number, which unlocks a bike, then you can use the bike and return it to the nearest bike rack when you are done with it. AMAZING. I can't wait to use it!

Right now, I need to sleep. But now I am more excited than nervous. However, I know I will go back and forth between the two a lot within the next 24 hours. Wish my luck!

Jenn <3

Here. We. Go.

Hola Amigos!

So, it's finally here. The day has come. In this case, I guess I should say "the night" has come. I am sitting in my aunts home in Chicago, IL waiting for the morning to finally arrive so my lovely mother can drive me to O'Hare International Airport, where I will finally depart for SEVILLA, SPAIN, after months and months of preparation, progress, packing, and many teary goodbyes to friends and family.

The bags are packed. 3 of them, in total. One large, red, swiss gear suticase on wheels which will be checked for the duration of the flight; one small adidas duffel bag for my carry on; and my backpack, which will carry my laptop, book, magazines, and miscellaneous small things which didn't manage to find their way into my suitcase.

Surprisingly, the packing wasn't the hard part for me. It took me less than 3 days to narrow my choices down, and arrange and pack them properly into their locations. My high school English teacher, Ms. Gilman, was kind enough to let me borrow the swiss gear suitcase, meaning that I didn't have to go out and buy one for the trip. That woman is a Godsend.

The hard part so far has been realizing that this is all ACTUALLY HAPPENING. It is not a dream, folks! Despite how surreal it has felt to be telling people about my trip, tomorrow the dream will finally become reality. My roommates, boyfriend, and friends can attest to the fact that I spent many days crying over the details for this semester abroad. There were moments when I didn't think that it would be possible due to financial reasons, family reasons, and life in general just getting in the way of things, as it often tends to do.

But here I sit on the floor of the guest bedroom. Hours away from the moment that I have been waiting for my entire life....

Another fun fact that some of you may or may not know: I have never flown on a plane before. Yepp, you read that correctly. My first flight will be an 8 hour long trek across the Atlantic. Ridin' solo. Thankfully, another CMU student, Michele, will be going to Sevilla as well and we will be able to meet up in Chicago and fly on the same plane.

Airports bring up most of my concerns and anxieties for this trip, right now. The hard part of saying goodbye to my loved ones is over (except for when I have to hug my mother goodbye tomorrow at the airport--ON HER 55TH BIRTHDAY! Yes, I feel like a terrible daughter flying out on my mother AND my younger sister, Emily's, birthdays). Now, I just have to battle my way through the foreign land of the airport and try not to get lost in a sea of travelers or get pick-pocketed by someone. There's security, checking my bag, exchanging money, printing my boarding pass, finding the right terminal, and of course customs. If I can make it through all of that alone, it will be a miracle for someone with NO airport experience and no one by my side to help me along.

I could talk forever and ever about the emotions I am feeling. Nervous. Anxious. Excited. Sad.

I will keep you posted on when I land and how the flight goes. Keep me in your thoughts and prayers.

Siempre en mis pensamientos,

Jenn <3