Oporto

So not last weekend but the weekend before last weekend I went to Porto, Portugal with Christy, Matt and Nathanael. We had an awesome time! Thursday night we ventured to the Madrid airport for an overnight stay. Though we didn't sleep at all (and played hours of card games) it wasn't a bad stay. Friday morning we left Madrid around 5:45 in the morning and landed in Portugal around 6 a.m. (an hour behind Spain). Once we landed we took a train and were in the center of Porto by 7:30 a.m. Of course we couldn't check into our hostel that early, so after we dropped off our bags and had a quick breakfast, we decided to walk to the ocean.

Little did we know that we would be walking for the next four hours, but that was okay! The weather was gorgeous and we were excited to be in Portugal. We walked down to the river and walked along it until, taking pictures and enjoying the scenery until we finally reached the ocean. The waves were huge! There were lots of rocks and cliffs to climb on, so we spent over an hour walking along the beach and climbing on rocks and collecting shells. For lunch we ate a tradition Portuguese dish, basically a pile of different meats smothered in bread, cheese and a spicy tomato sauce. I know it sounds awesome but it was too much for me. I ended up eating McDonald's later. :-/

After lunch and a bit more exploring we headed back to our hostel. Once we arrived around 2:30 p.m. we all passed out. We were exhausted! But once we all woke up and showered it was time for dinner. We found an awesome restaurant with the best wine ever (Port wine, duh). I ate a fried sausage type thing with potatoes and it was soooo delicious. And the wine was amazing and we had an awesome time. Overall, Portuguese food was really satisfying!

Saturday morning we woke up and walked toward the cathedral in Porto. We paid two euro to walk up the steps (only like 150, I think) to take pictures. It was a bit cloudy and chilly that day, but it was still fun. After grabbing some lunch we paid for a hop-on/hop-off bus tour (that we never hopped off). It went all around the city, along the cost and to the main sites. The ticket also let us take a boat ride and a wine cellar tour. The boat ride was fun but we missed our wine cellar tour. We were all really bummed out but we got dinner and wine instead and we were happy. I had seafood and of course, it was incredible. After dinner it started to rain so we walked across a bridge back into the main part of time and we headed back to the airport to spend another lovely night in an airport! It was freezing so we didn't sleep at all. Needless to say, I was very cranky in the morning. Sorry everyone!

Sunday we got back into Toledo by 11 a.m. and I fell right asleep until 6 or so. I ate and did some homework and fell back asleep around 10 p.m. We did so much that weekend and I was exhausted. This past Friday we went to Segovia for an excursion, an excursion I've already been on. It was fun and the food was good but it was a long day. This past weekend I spent time working on an essay about Diego Velázquez and working on other homework. Right now we're watching "Te Doy Mis Ojos," a Spanish film that I have already seen. Tonight the group is going out with an Ohio University alumna that lives in Madrid. Also, tonight is a big football match against Manchester United and Barcelona, so it should be a good night.

I have only one more class before a long weekend of studying for finals. However, this time next week I'll be packing to go home, so strange but exciting! Next time I blog will probably be in America, yay! So until then, hasta luego!

PS - Though my Spanish mother can be a crazy, obsessive woman, she does make an amazing gaspacho.

Time to Complain

I only have three weeks left in Toledo, that's crazy! I have a feeling these next few weeks are going to fly by. This weekend I'm off to Porto, Portugal with three of my friends from the group. It should be a fun weekend! The weather might be a bit chilly (in the low '60s compared to the '80s we've been experiencing) but it'll be nice to drink some port wine and see the ocean. Next Friday we're going to Segovia for the day, which was fun last quarter so I have the same expectations this time around. Only two more weeks of class before a three day weekend and our finals. Then on June 4th I'm flying home! It will be strange.

Last weekend I saw Lobezno (Wolverine) at the movie theater with Matt, Matt and Nathan. Everyone should see it! I liked it a lot and was very impressed with how much I was able to understand the film, which was entirely in Spanish. I might see Star Trek or Angels and Demons next weekend but I don't want to watch a film that's too dialogue heavy or I definitely won't understand it. I'll just have to catch up on movies once I return to the United States!

So life has been interesting around here. My Spanish mother is a bit crazy and definitely has OCD and control issues. Whenever my bed isn't absolutely perfect I hear about it when I get home from school. If I don't carry enough things to the table for lunch or dinner then I am scolded. If I don't shut the lid to the toilet I get to hear a story about how rats can climb through the pipes and our house will be infested. If I shower longer than 3 minutes or EVER have the lights on during the day then they show me their electric and water bill. Finally, last night, I was like "Mari Carmen, I'm not perfect and everytime I do something right I always get scolded for something new." Like lately it's been the toilet cover, which she has never complained about before I started making my bed the "proper" way. And I'm sure once I continually shut the seat cover then something new will come up. I'm just tired of her yelling at me (not yelling, but scolding) like I'm 10 years old. I know how to make a bed! I carry the glasses, the water, the silverware and plates to the table! Sue me if I didn't grab the napkins. I sometimes do my homework in my room and not at the school, I'm sorry if the natural light isn't bright enough to read my book. I'm just... ready to come home and be messy again, I guess. Also, she gets really offended when I don't want to go to the farm on the weekends. I've been to the farm more weekends this quarter than I've stayed in Toledo. Please forgive me if I want a weekend with hot water and the Internet to do my homework. She also asks a lot of questions about the United States and completely judges me for my way of life. When I told her that my parents both make dinner and both clean the house and sometimes we bring food home from restaurants for dinner, she was completely appaled. She practically said how dare you not make food every night and her daughter and husband both work and Bea still has time to make dinner. Welcome to the 21st Century, lady, people are tired at the end of the day and picking up Skyline is not a crime.

Okay, rant over because I'm sure it's not that interesting. I really do like Mari Carmen and Manolo but I can't seem to do right in their eyes and my way of life in America isn't good enough. And if they tell me that we eat cat meat in Chinese restaurants one more time, I will scream.

So I've been complaining a lot and I should stop, plus I need to do some homework before I leave for Portugal tonight. I'm excited to travel to a new place and also excited to get out of the house for a few days. Before I know it, it will be only 2 weeks left in Toledo. I can't wait to get home to my real mom and dad. Hasta luego!

Burn!

I am very sunburned. Ouch! I guess that's what happens when you spend an entire day outside without sunscreen. I went to the farm this weekend with my Spanish family and we had perfect weather! The sun was out, there wasn't a cloud in sight and there was the perfect amount of wind. Well that wind denied me the chance to actually feel the sun so now my chest is blistered and my face is peeling, oh well.

Besides burning myself, I had a pretty great weekend. Thursday night some friends and I went to the Valley for a big outdoor celebration. Every year the "younger" crowd go the Valley and camp out and drink all night. Well after walking up the mountain to get to the valley I was in a pretty terrible mood and only stayed for about an hour or so. But it was like a giant festival with booths and candy and outdoor bars. And the view of Toledo at night from the top of the mountain was beautiful. Though I wouldn't admit it then, I can now, it was worth the walk... or the hike.

Friday I spent the day laying around the house watching movies and sleeping. I headed up to the school for a few hours to use the Internet but everything in town was closed because of the holiday. Saturday I went the farm, finished all of my homework and took a nice nap (outside) but now I'm paying the consequences. Sunday was Mother's Day so I was able to enjoy a huge meal of lamb and other delicious foods with my extended Spanish family. It was a very fun day but I was forced to sit in the shade and wear a hat.

I'm already half way done with classes for the week with not much homework so far! This weekend I plan on staying in Toledo and not venturing to the farm. I have a paper I need to start working on since I have less than one month left in Spain! Not much else to report except that in a few short hours I will putting vinegar on my chest to sooth the burn... it actually works ! Hasta luego!

Realizations

So right now I'm trying to avoid starting my homework. Analyzing poetry in Spanish is so difficult for me! However, I find myself complaining a lot lately about my homework load and such. Then I realized that I only have five weeks left in Toledo! I should not be spending my time complaining about my homework load, no matter how heavy it may be or however difficult it is to complete my work. Though five weeks seems long-ish, my time in Spain is quickly coming to an end. I've already spent four months here and I've had some amazing adventures and experiences. But how am I going to feel once I go home? Will I be sad? Relieved? Anxious? I know I will be happy to see my friends and family and to be back in the United States, but I'm worried about the reverse culture shock. I truly have changed while being here and I'm afraid that those changes will not translate into English. I guess only time will tell.

Every day seems to go by more quickly than the last. Is it already 4 p.m. on Wednesday? Do I really only have one more class before the weekend? Is it really two weeks until I go to Portugal? And then only a month and one week until I fly home? Time goes by too quickly here. I will miss Spain, I will miss Toledo and I will miss speaking in Spanish most of the day. But the more I think about it the more I'm ready to come home. Five weeks seems like the perfect amount of time to spend in Spain before returning the States.

Before I begin analyzing poetry and purchasing plan tickets to Porto, Portugal, I recommend that everyone read Salmon Fishing in the Yemen by Paul Torday. I don't know how I found time to begin, finish and enjoy a book while being here but it was really good and if I can find the time I'm going to begin his second novel, The Irresistible Inheritance of Wilberforce. I'm off now, don't catch the swine flu, hasta luego!

London/Orgaz Photos

Just two of my new best friends, Diego (left) and Sergio. This was at Bea and Edu's apartment after a wonderful weekend in Orgaz. Mari Carmen just invited me to go back on Saturday with them. I can't wait to see the farm again and hopefully it won't be as windy.

One of many heads and antlers around our house in Toledo and the Orgaz house. I'm not exaggerating when I say there are at least 100 sets of horns between both houses.

Some of the chickens! And the big (scary) turkey.

Sarah and I at Stonehenge. We had a long but fun day visiting Windsor Castle, Stonehenge and Oxford. Very windy but worth it!! Especially because there were lots of cute sheep all around the stones.

Sarah and I on the London Eye. You can see some of Big Ben behind us on the left. Very pretty views and clear skies that day!

St. Paul's Cathedral in London.

British Museum in London.

I'm surprised at myself for updating so quickly! Last night I went to a cafe called Ñaca Ñaca with some of my friends. I had Doritos for the first time in four months and they were delicious! After spending over an hour at the cafe I went home to finish some homework, take a shower and eat dinner. This morning I had poetry and after class we went to the mercadillo. I walked around with our professor, Emilia, all morning and helped her pick out some olives and gifts for her friends. It was a good morning! Then after lunch I spent 3.5 hours reading for literature but I am finally done with reading "Esteban Werfell." In a bit I'm going to head back home for dinner, a shower and to read for history. This weekend we're off to Aranjuez (for an excursion I've already been on, oh well) and back to Orgaz on Saturday. I hope the next two days go by quickly because I am tired. Well off to finish some e-mails and then home, hasta luego!

Time Goes By So... Quickly!

It seems like I updated a few days ago, not two weeks ago! Time has gone by so quickly and I hope it slows down just for a bit. London with Sarah was amazing! We were able to see Madam Toussad's Wax Museum, ride the London Eye, visit Stonehenge and Oxford, see a Harry Potter castle in New Castle, go to Scotland for a day and visit numerous museums. The weather was pretty nice with only a bit of rain on the last day (which we spent shopping) and though it was a bit chilly I can't complain! I think with the trip I had with my mom and after Semana Santa in London, I've seen everything there is to see.

After coming home from London I immediately left Toledo and went to my family's farm in a pueblo called Orgaz. They have two other houses in Orgaz and a lot of land. They have goats, sheep, chickens, turkeys, cats and geese. I spent the afternoon on Saturday on the farm with Manolo and Mari Carmen and then Carmen and I went to their other home in Orgaz. While there we watched an old Spanish movie together and I fell asleep because I was pretty exhausted from my London trip. After dinner I went straight to sleep. Sunday morning Carmen and I went to mass at a gorgeous church. The churches here are amazing, so much more elaborate than churches in the U.S. After mass we picked up her mother and went home to work on lunch. I was able to meet their children, Elena and Beatriz, and their husbands and children, Sergio (8 months), Julia (2 years) and Diego (7 months). All were precious! After a long lunch and great conversation I went back to the farm for a bit. I didn't get home until about 8 p.m. that night and then I had to spend some time on homework! But it was a wonderful Holy Week, an interesting Easter and a great weekend.

This past week was the first week in about a month that I've had a strict schedule. It was so nice! Though I have a lot of reading to catch up on for my literature class and learning how to analyze poetry is coming slowly but surely, I'm so thankful to have a stable schedule. Classes are much easier this quarter and I'm participating so much more. I have a new confidence in my Spanish skills and I feel really good about my Spanish abilities. I am also so happy that I decided to stay another quarter. For a few days there I was pretty lonely and wanted to go home. But now I've become really good friends with the group and classes are going really well so I have nothing really to complain about! I still love Toledo, if possible.

Right now I just finished up my poetry homework and am off to Zocodover for coffee and to hang out. Tonight I have a lot of reading from my literature book, "Obabakoak," and a new episode of The Office to watch. It's really nice not having the Internet at my home because I get a lot more work done. Though I miss being able to chat anytime online, it's for the best that I don't have that distraction. Well I'm off to Zoco now! I have photos of my London trip and my Orgaz excursion on Facebook but I'll make a new post later with some pictures. It's raining now and I'm wearing sandals. Oh well! Hasta luego!

Changes

So the new group is here and I'm in love! Everyone is really nice and always wanting to speak in Spanish so I feel really comfortable with them. So far my teachers have singled me out but that was to be expected. Arancha, my culture professor, seems really proud of me and my Spanish skills now. She remembered in the very beginning that I rarely talked and was pretty shy in class but now I'm talkative and participate a lot more! This quarter I plan on being more serious in my studies and try to participate everyday. I want to go the extra mile to learn and improve my grades from last quarter.

My new family is also amazing. Mari Carmen and Manolo are the sweetest people ever. I call Manolo my "bajito" because he is so short! We joke about it all the time. He works on his farm everyday and brings home fresh fruits and vegetables. They make their own sausages and seasonings so naturally everything is delicious! So far I've had amazing soups and chicken and desserts. Three French girls and two Italian girls are staying with them right now so our table gets pretty crowded at meal times but I love the company. Tomás, the cat, is so sweet and is my new little "brother" as Manolo likes to call him. Every single wall in the house is covered with antlers and deer heads, haha. Though it was a bit freaky at first I'm very comforable now and the stuffed birds don't bother me either. My room is nice and big, no Internet, but I have lots of space. My previous family was perfect but if possible this family is even better.

Tomorrow morning I'm off to London to meet Sarah for her Spring Break and my break for Holy Week. We'll be visiting New Castle and Scotland as well so I'm pretty excited! Right now I'm in the cafe at school but I'm going to leave soon to eat paella with the Italians. I love paella! More updates after my week in London, hasta luego!!

I'm on Spring Break!

So yes, it has been about two weeks since I've last updated my blog but right now I'm on Spring Break... well, one of two that is. This is going to be a quick update, and I promise to write an extended entry later, because my mom and I are just booking train tickets to Madrid then we're off to walk around Barcelona.

Since my last update I have taken my final exams, moved out of my Spanish house and met my mother in Madrid for our European tour! We started off in Madrid (just a day spent walking around and in the Prado art museum) and then flew to Paris on Monday. We spent a few days in Paris, taking a bike tour of Versailles and visiting the major sites. Quick note - Mom wants me to say "tell everyone we saw Jim Morrison's grave!" Hey, we saw Jim Morrison's grave.

Thursday we took the high speed train to London. Though Paris was awesome I think London is one of my new favorite places. It was crowded but I loved being surrounded by English (first time in three months). We did some of the touritsy things but my sister Sarah and I will be returning in April for my second Spring Break. Hopefully we'll take a trip to Newcastle and maybe Ireland and Scotland, but I plan to see more of London in April.

This morning we woke up bright and early and were bombarded at a zoo that was the Gatwick Airport. Then of course our flight was delayed (bomb threat) so we sat on the runway for about an hour. But we finally arrived back in Spain (seeing signs in Spanish was oddly comforting) and now we're in the hotel in Barcelona about to step out for dinner and walking around. Tomorrow afternoon at 5 p.m. Mom and I are taking another high speed train back to Madrid! I can't wait to show my mom Toledo, hopefully she loves it as much as I do.

So far we have had perfect weather and I hope I didn't just jynx us now. It has been sunny and maybe a bit chilly in Paris and London, but sunny and brisk the entire week! Right now it's only 13 degrees and the sun is going down but we're hungry and I hope Mom will like paella!! Off we go so until next time (with a more in-depth look on our European tour, I promise), hasta luego!!!

Rome

I was lucky enough to be able to spend this past weekend in Rome! Even though I have final exams this week (already two down with one to go) and did not have a lot of time to study for my grammar exam on Sunday, I had to take the opportunity to travel to Italy.

Our flight left at 7:10 a.m. on Friday so instead of spending money on a hostel in Madrid, Shannon and I decided to spend the night in the airport. Though Thursday night we almost took the train instead of the metro and we had a terrible night’s sleep in the airport, by 7:30 a.m. we were on our way to Rome!

After checking into our hostel at 11 a.m., we ate sandwiches at the train station and had our first batch of gelato. I hate chocolate chip and Shannon had walnut, both were so delicious! We bought a 48-hour tour bus ticket (only 22 euro) and went on our first excursion around 12:30 p.m. We saw everything! Including Trevi Fountain, the Spanish Steps, the Coliseum and St, Peter’s. While at Trevi Fountain, Shannon and I indulged on our second round of gelato, this time I ate mint chocolate. It was so good!


After our last stop at the Coliseum on Friday we headed back to our hostel. We had a free pasta dinner at 7 p.m. (not too bad), talked with our Argentinean and Brazilian roommates and went to bed around 9 p.m. I was exhausted from lack of sleep and traveling around Rome all day. These two Greek girls tried to take our beds but they hadn’t extended their reservation, so I had a bit of panic for a few minutes but all was resolved and I had a great nights sleep.

Saturday morning Shannon and I had breakfast at the hostel and then hopped back on our tour bus at 9 a.m. We headed straight for the Vatican and bought our tickets and tour. We spent almost five hours in the Vatican’s museums, the Sistine Chapel, the tomb of the Popes and St. Peter’s! My favorite part of the day was visiting St. Peter’s. It is huge! The picture doesn’t give its size or beauty justice, but it’s just an amazing place to visit.


After leaving the Vatican, Shannon and I got pizza for lunch! And when I say pizza I mean we both ate an entire pizza. Each. Yes, it sounds gross but it was really thin and delicious and our cereal from the morning didn’t leave us fully satisfied. After enjoying our (entire) pizza, we grabbed the next tour bus to go to the Coliseum. Well the bus driver took a really long way and we got there at 4:15 p.m. but entrance had closed at 4 p.m.! We were pretty mad that we missed the Coliseum by 15 minutes but we walked around again, saw some ruins and then walked to the Pantheon. Of course it was time for our third round of gelato! This time I ate strawberry and chocolate.


We went shopping for a bit at the tourist shops and made our way back to our hostel. We ate dinner at a cute restaurant near the Coliseum and our hostel (I had cheese ravioli, yum!) and got more gelato after dinner. This time I opted for a “healthier” substitute and ate kiwi and lemon. Shannon had this strawberry yogurt flavor that was delicious so I have decided that the first chance I get to eat gelato again I will get that flavor.

Sunday morning we woke up bright and early (around 6 a.m.) and left Rome at 10 a.m. to head back to Madrid. We made it home to Toledo around 3 p.m. and after talking with my parents on the phone I headed to school to “study.” Yesterday was our grammar final and I think I did reasonably well. I should be getting an ‘A’ unless I royally bombed the final (which I know I did not). This morning was our literature final. It was only four essay questions and I think our professor should be grading them fairly easily. I’m not sure what I’ll be getting in this class. I turned in all assignments and participated as much as I could, but it’s hard when he only calls on three people. This afternoon I’ll be heading back to the school to study for my last exam, my history and culture final. This is the exam I’m most worried about and since I did not do so well on our practice final I know I will have a lot to go over. Though exams have me stressed out I’m getting more and more excited for my mom to come for Spring Break. In one week we’ll be in Paris! I should be getting my things together now so until next time, hasta luego!!

Segovia

This past week was quite a busy one! I sat around and did homework on Sunday so it all started with Monday afternoon. I met up with two of my intercambio partners, Ángel and Mar, at a bar near my house. Halle, Brian and I spent about two hours eating tapas and speaking in Spanish and English with Ángel (with his adorable son, Iván) and Mar. It really helps my Spanish. We’re even meeting up this afternoon to play games and cards.

Tuesday my friend Kristin came to visit me in Toledo! She’s currently studying in Luxembourg but had a mini-Spring Break this week and was traveling around Spain. I am so happy she made time to come see me! We did some touristy things around Toledo including the “Zocotren.” It’s a small train that leaves from the main plaza inside the Casco and drives outside of Toledo and gives you some amazing views. It is only about 45 minutes long but it offers some brief history on Toledo and I took a lot of photos. Kristin had to leave Wednesday afternoon but we had a lot of fun together! And I hope I impressed her with my Spanish skills.

Wednesday morning during history we went to the Santa Cruz museum. We saw some paintings, ancient chemistry materials and antique clothes. It was pretty interesting but our tour guide was definitely a vampire. Wednesday afternoon we had another ruta of Toledo. We went to a museum with some statues and then to a Jewish museum. Toledo is known for a period of time in history of peace among the Jews, Christians and Muslims. Toledo’s art is heavily influenced on a mixture of these three religions. Over the past eight weeks we have been visiting museums and sites of these religions.

Friday morning our group left Toledo at 8:30 a.m. to drive to Segovia! We arrived around 11 a.m. and walked to the aqueduct. I can’t even explain how incredible it was so here is a photo:


After our guide, David, gave us a brief history lesson of the aqueducts, we headed to the Alcazar. According to our tourist guide (because it can explain Alcazar better than I can) during the Middle Ages the Alcazar was one of the favorite residences of the Castile Monarchs. Once the court moved to Madrid the Alcazar became a state prison for over two centuries. In 1762, king Carlos III founded the Royal Artillery School in the Alcazar (until 1862). The Alcazar now holds the General Military Archives and is a frequently visited site of tourists.

So needless to say there was a lot to see at the Alcazar! The tour was about an hour long and we saw the various rooms of the palace, the museum of military and we even got to climb a tower to the top of the palace for some amazing views.


We headed over to lunch after our Alcazar tour. I had pasta and then fried chicken and French fries. Very Spanish, I know. We had an hour of free time so most of us got a café con leche and played “mafia.” It’s a card game that we used with coins, but it kept us occupied. We took a tour of the Cathedral of Segovia (which looked exactly like the Cathedral in Toledo), had another hour of so of free time and then headed back to Toledo around 5:30 p.m. I was pretty exhausted so after dinner with Liz I came home, watched the end of National Treasure 2 and went to bed.

Yesterday I spent my morning packing up things I want my mom to take home, making a list of things I want my mom to bring me, writing e-mails, writing in my journal and cleaning my room. I met up with Liz for lunch and then with Halle and Brian for intercambio and games. The four of us went to Ángel’s house and spent over four hours with him, his wife Olga and out other partner Mar. We talked for about an hour, ate food and drank wine and played Taboo and Spoons. It was so much fun! We’re meeting up with Ángel and Mar again on Monday.

I have spent most of today relaxing and messing around on the computer, not doing homework, like most Sundays. Only one more week until Shannon and I go to Rome and only two more weeks of class until my mom comes and we go on our European Spring Break! Hasta luego readers, until next time!

Carnaval!

This past weekend in Spain was Carnaval! It's the weekend before Holy Week and basically it's a weekend of parades, concerts, parties and costumes. Thursday during our grammar class our professor María took us to a costume shop outside the casco. I bought wings (alas) and a headband for antennae (antena) to dress up as a butterfly (mariposa)!

The festivities don't really start until Saturday so I went to a bar on Thursday night for a few hours and came home pretty early. Friday during the day I ate lunch with my family, went to the mall, bought a new shirt and ate pizza for dinner! I just really wish I had ranch dressing... I went out to a bar again Friday night and had a lot of fun! It's those nights when you have no expectations that turn into the most fun. I slept late on Saturday to rest up for the big night! I got lunch with some friends during the day and walked around Toledo a bit because the weather was so nice. I only had to wear a sweater. Around 5 p.m. we walked to Avda. Reconquista to watch the parade.

The parade was awesome! The children running around had the cutest costumes. My favorite were two little boys dressed as princes. The parade was a little over an hour long (actually longer but there was a break in the middle and we had left already) and it was so much fun. The best part was this 20-minute period of ancient Egypt. The dancers looked exhausted though! Their costumes were amazing, their choreography was fun and their floats were massive. They did not throw candy into the crowd like in America but we did get covered in quite a bit of confetti. And now I'm deaf because the music they played was so loud.

After the parade I went home to get dressed quickly. I wore a blue dress to match my butterfly costume. Shannon, Liz and I ate doner kepab (the best food ever) on the street and drank tinto de verano (red wine with lemon juice, it's similar to sangria). There was a concert in the middle of Zocodover and so we spent the night dancing and enjoying the creative Spanish costumes. It's much more popular here to wear costumes in a group. I don't know how many groups of 5-10 girls I saw wearing the same exact costume! We went to O'Brien's, of course, for a few drinks and I grabbed a taxi home around 3 a.m. It was a really fun night! Carnaval was a blast.

Yesterday they had the burning of sardines in the river and fireworks but I didn't make it down to the river. I could see some of the fireworks from my window though. Nothing too exciting has happened since my weekend in Barcelona until now. Classes are going fine, maybe a little boring at times and sometimes we're given a lot of homework, but they're manageable. We were supposed to watch a movie last week called "Nueve Reinas" but the movie did not have subtitles (in Spanish nor in English) so we couldn't understand most of the words being said. Hopefully ESTO will find a copy that has subtitles because it seemed really funny. We have another tour of Toledo this week and the group is going to Segovia on Friday. My good friend Kristin (who goes to Miami and is studying in Luxembourg) is coming to visit me tomorrow and Wednesday. I'm excited to hang out with her and show off my Spanish skills to a French speaker!

Everyone is starting to mentally prepare to leave (in three weeks) but I'm getting excited for the new group of students and a new experience in Toledo - the spring! I can't wait for Spring Break with my mom and then I'm excited for new Spanish classes and a new family. Lots of new things to come! This evening I'm having intercambio with Brian and Halle and I think Ángel is bring the Spanish version of Taboo and we're going to teach him how to play American card games. Should be fun! Hasta luego!

Things I Miss

Free refills
Though it’s probably better that I consume less sugar and caffeine here, I get very thirsty while eating at restaurants. The first beverage served (whether it be water, coke or whatever) is smaller than drinks at home and then I am are not offered [free] refills once finished with my first.
Separate checks/paying with credit cards at restaurants
Even if you ask for separate checks ahead of time the waiters are not likely to offer this comfort offered in the states. Therefore I pay with cash 9 times out of 10 and then I have go to the ATM more than I would like.
Driving/riding in a car
The busses (that I take four times a day) can get crowded, they are starting to get hotter as the weather is getting warmer and it’s impossible to keep your balance if you’re standing. I miss driving in my car, singing along with the radio and not having to pretend that I can speak Spanish perfectly when the person next to me starts to speak to me.
Ranch dressing
It is nowhere to be found! I only just had barbeque sauce for the first time at McDonalds on Saturday but I cannot find ranch anywhere! I just want to dip my French fries in ranch!!
Censored television
I know it sounds weird that one would miss censored television but now everyday during lunch I’m bombarded with images of bloody, dead bodies and naked women. I guess I’m getting used to it now but I think I will always be disgusted when I see a pig being slaughtered on screen.
Cold milk
The milk here is not refrigerated. Someone told me the milk has a special additive that allows it to stay fresh outside of the refrigerator. Even though my family refrigerates milk after they bring it home, the taste is not the same and they don’t keep their refrigerators at a very cold temperature. I would love to eat cereal for breakfast one morning but not with warm milk.
Smoke free restaurants and buildings
Everyone smokes in Spain. It sucks when I’m eating in a restaurant or having coffee in a café and someone is blowing their cigarette smoke right into my face. It is something I won’t ever get used to.
My friends, family and cats
It’s so unbelievable hard to be away from my friends and family this long. I can’t count how many times I’ve wanted to call or text my friends to tell them something simple and then remembering that it costs too much money. I’m lucky that I’m able to iChat with my family but I’m constantly sad that I’m so far away from everyone that I love at home. And of course I miss my cats. I am excited because next quarter I’m living with a new family that has a cat named Tomás!

Things I Do Everyday

There are quite a few things that I find myself doing or seeing every day. I decided that because I find it interesting you might as well! So here is my list:

• Eat at least three oranges (or "mandarinas") a day
• Eat bread (or "pan" which resembles a baguette) with every meal
  
• Drink café con leche with milk that is not refrigerated
• Cough because someone is smoking inside a building (the one thing I absolutely hate)
• Watch "Cuatro" (a popular news channel) that is not censored
  
• Watch a T.V. show with Carlos, a singing chef, during lunch at 2 p.m.
  
• Ride the bus into the casco at least four times a day
  
• See a sign that says "Rebajas" (sales) in every three out of four stores
• Take a siesta
• Tell our dog, Tusca, to "chissss" because she never stops barking
  
• Say "sí" at least ten times a day even when I actually don't understand what's being said
• Refer to my Spanish/English dictionary (a lot)
• Listen to lovely chirping that isn't from birds but the sound at the crosswalks
  
• Accidentally misspell an English word or write it in Spanish if I'm not concentrating
  
• Say "qué," "cómo" or "repite" at least ten times a day when I really don't understand
• Complain about the homework load that isn't even that terrible but sometimes speaking and hearing Spanish 24/7 really gets to you!

If I think of more things I'll add to this post. Of course something new happens every day and I write everything my personal journal. I truly love Spain, I should say it more, and I was smiling the entire time I made this list. It's nice to have continuity in a place that you don't feel 100% comfortable in (yet). I swear I'm getting there! I should start working on some homework before dinner in an hour. However I'll probably watch more T.V. on surfthechannel.com! Hasta luego!

Routine, Barcelona, Relax

Whoops, I have been bad about updating! Nothing too interesting had been happening which finally means I have settled into my routine. Every Tuesday I have community service (I speak English with students at a language school), we usually have a ruta of Toledo or a Spanish movie to watch during the week and we have intercambios. So there was really nothing out of the ordinary to report until now!

Last Friday we visited two palaces in Aranjuez and Escorial. Both were beautiful but it was a long day. We met at 9:00 in the morning and drove to both locations (all in all about 2 hours away from Toledo). The first palace in Aranjuez was exactly what I thought a palace would look like. Extravagant rooms (and a lot of them) decorated with many paintings and a lot of gold. I did find the decorations a bit tacky though, but who am I to judge the decorations of the king's summer palace! We then drove to Escorial (in the mountains so it was foggy and beautiful) and had a pretty fantastic lunch. The palace in Escorial was not as elaborate as Aranjuez but it had amazing tombs on the bottom floor and huge marble rooms. The gardens at each palace were breath taking! We returned home that night and I had a pretty normal weekend of watching TV on surfthechannel.com, spending time with friends and finishing homework.

This past weekend some of the group and I went to Barcelona! It was absolutely amazing, I love it there. We took an overnight bus on Thursday so we arrived at our hostel at 7:30 in the morning on Friday. Though we were technically not supposed to check in until "midday" (as the man at the counter kept saying) he let us move into our 14 person room. The room reminded me of an orphanage. Each bed had it's own walls and a curtain for privacy which was nice in the end. Though some people snored and I didn't have a blanket, I passed out. Overnight driving does not offer the best sleeping conditions...

We took a brief nap and woke up and got ready around noon. We ate a quick lunch and walked around Barcelona to the ocean, through the streets and eventually to a mall on the water. Theresa, Liz and I shopped for a bit and continued to walk around Barcelona until that night. We got chinese food (sooo good!) and hung out in our hostel with three Austrailian girls we met who were so much fun. After dinner we went to a bar for Liz's birthday and got home pretty late.

Saturday morning Thresea took a bus tour with Christina, so Liz and I walked around with Bridget and Isabel in the Gothic Center, Las Ramblas and around some old cathedrals. Since I had been to Barcelona before I wasn't too disappointed that we didn't see the major sites and it was nice to walk around the city and enjoy it like I hadn't had the chance before.

Liz and I finally found the last two Twilight books in English and since we were pretty tired from our days of walking around, we went to dinner and came back and read for a bit and watched Twilight on Bridget's iPod. Sunday morning we woke up bright and early and took our bus back to Madrid and then to Toledo!

I didn't get home until about 10:30 p.m. and had to work on homework, blech. It wasn't too much but I stayed up really late and I'm tired today. Right now I'm about to finish up my Literature homework and finish more of our online class, AVE. We have a ruta of Toledo this week and I'll finally get to spend another weekend in Toledo. It's so much more releaxing and less expensive than traveling. Plus I continue to love Toledo more and more! I don't have any more trips planned until the second weekend in March when I'm going to Rome with Shannon and Liz. And then my mom is coming to visit for about 11 days over Spring Break and we're planning on traveling to London and Paris (plus Madrid and Toledo). I can't wait!

I'm starting to get e-mails about the second session I'll be in Toledo which is making me more excited about Spain in Spring. I need to start choosing classes and packing up my winter clothes. It really does get warmer and warmer as the days go by. I need to finish homework now so hasta luego!

Why So Windy?

Seriously! Why is it so windy here? Every night I wake up to my window getting attacked by nothing but air. It's a lot louder than you think it would be. There is even a gust in our house that forces my door open and pulls it back so it makes the most obnoxious creaking noise. The wind was so strong on Thursday it even killed a few people in the north! I don't understand! At least it's not raining...

So this past week was busy, busy, busy. I had a lot of homework (that takes me a bit longer to do because it's all in Spanish) and another tour of Toledo, but it was awesome. Though they can be inconvenient and take two hours, it's really nice to see new and different parts of the city. Sorry Kit that we complained a lot about time constraints this past week!!

However the weekend didn't come soon enough! I'm not sure what I'll when I return to America and I won't have a three day weekend every week. I took it slow this weekend, hanging out with friends and relaxing around the house. I caught up with TV shows and actually did some homework ahead of time! I ate at two really good restaurants but nothing compares to the food my host mother makes. Marisa is a great cook! I just feel really bad when I can't finish everything. They eat so fast and so much here that I can hardly keep up. Alberto actually told me that I needed to eat more and was shocked at the amount I left on my plate tonight. (I actually did leave more than usual tonight, it might have been the peanut butter and banana I ate at 7). He wasn't mean about it, just surprised that I don't practically lick my plate like he does.

Needless to say our dinner was delicious tonight. It was a soup with peas, ham and fried egg. I love it when we have soup for dinner because I can actually finish all of my bread (because I dip it in)! They loveee bread here and I can see why. It's so delicious and Marisa buys it fresh at least every other day. I feel bad for the people who don't have great cooks like I do, I've only had one meal that I didn't like and that's because it had a ton of mayonnaise.

This upcoming week will probably be another busy one. I'm sure I'll get a lot of homework from my literature teacher and I have to examine a church by Wednesday for my culture class. We have another tour of Toledo, community service (an hour to speak with a class in English only), intercambios (1/2 hour in Spanish, 1/2 hour in English) and an excursion all day on Friday.

I don't mind all of the extra activities because I would be bored if I sat around all day, but it does suck that I live so far outside of the casco. I need to leave at least 30 minutes early to wait at the bus stop (5-15, depending on the day and time), ride the bus into the casco (15 minutes) and then walk to school (10-15 minutes) to get anywhere on time. I hate wasting over an hour each day traveling to the main part of the city, but I do like where I live. It's newer and has a lot of great stores, restaurants and sites around. Every part of Toledo is amazing.

I might complain about homework and travelling to and from school, but I am excited for community service, intercambios, our ruta and our excursion this week. I love it so much here and I thank myself everyday for deciding to stay until June. It is a long time and I miss my friends, family and Ohio University more everyday but I don't regret my decision at all.

I need to get back to translating a song for literature. Until next time, hasta luego!

Some Pictures of Granada

Granada at night.

Gardens, a building and the view of Granada from La Alhambra.

Sitting at La Alhambra overlooking Granada.

One of the many gardens and buildings at La Alhambra in Granada.

Granada, La Alhambra

I had an amazing weekend in Granada! The weather was perfect (about 17 degrees Celsius), the city and the Alhambra were absolutely breath taking! It reminded me of a mixture of Toledo and Madrid but unique. And the Alhambra is one of the most beautiful places I have been to in my entire life. I’m sure it’s 100 times prettier in the Spring so maybe I’ll try to go back later this year.

Friday morning I woke up bright and early to catch a 9 a.m. bus from Toledo to Madrid. After eating a sandwich and buying snacks for the road, our bus left for Granada at 11:30 a.m. I mostly slept, listened to my iPod and re-read the last Harry Potter book. We had a half an hour break at a rest stop so we arrived in Granada around 5 p.m.

We hopped on another bus, got off on the wrong stop, so we had to walk up to our hostel. The weather was really nice and we were able to see the city a bit so it wasn’t too bad. I roomed with Halle, Liz and Jess and our room was in a building across the street from the other nine girls. We actually had five beds but were only “allowed” to use four. It became a personal storage bed.

We walked around some streets near our hostel and found a small grocery store to grab some food. After snacking on bread, cheese and tomatoes, we all got cleaned up and ready to go out. We all went to a few bars around our hostel but I came back around 1 a.m. It was a long day and we had another long one ahead of us!

We had another early morning on Saturday as we woke up around eight to walk to the Alhambra to buy tickets for an afternoon visit. They only allow a certain number of people in each day so we wanted to be sure to get tickets, even though it is winter.

We returned to the Alhambra around 2 p.m. for the most amazing day ever. The buildings, gardens and views were absolutely breath taking. Though most of the gardens were bare because it is the winter, I could imagine flowers and green everywhere. Liz, Jess and I actually picked an orange from one of the many orange trees inside the walls. It looked so ripe and delicious but actually tasted like a lemon. At least we can say we ate an authentic Spanish orange from the Alhambra!

Unfortunately we were unaware that we were supposed to go to the palace at 2 p.m. so we missed our tour. Everyone else was able to walk around inside for the thirty minute allotted time period so I got to see their beautiful pictures. The three of us spent well over two hours walking around outside and I took over 100 pictures of the city of Granada and all of the impressive architecture and gardens in the Alhambra.

The people who work at the Alhambra leave cat food out for stray cats so they were all over the place. Apparently the tourists love them so we made friends with some cats. It made me miss mine at home!

Saturday night we walked around again, ate gyros for dinner and then most of us stayed in and talked, played card games, read and went to bed. This morning we had to catch a bus at 10 a.m. We arrived in Madrid at 3:30 so we had to take the 4 p.m. bus to Toledo. We had “lunch” at McDonald’s in Zocodover (the main plaza inside the walls of Toledo) and then I came home, unpacked, wrote in my journal and checked my e-mails. I should start on some homework now and dinner will be in about an hour (9 p.m.). I plan to go to bed early after dinner, school tomorrow!

I had an amazing weekend and I look forward to more weekend trips and our upcoming day trips. Hasta luego!

Granada Bound!

Not much has happened in the past three or four days. I've gone to school a lot, completed a lot of literature homework and taken some siestas. Our group has been on two tours of Toledo, which have been cold, but very interesting! We've also met some possible partners for our intercambio. These "intercambios" are Toledo natives learning English whom we talk with for half an hour in Spanish and half an hour in English. Everyone was really nice and easy to talk to! Our group also watched a Spanish movie Wednesday night, "La lengua de las mariposas." It was really sad, sort of random, but a really good movie about friendship and freedom.

Tomorrow I'm going to Granada with 12 other girls from our group. This post is going to be short and sweet so you can be prepared for a longer one on Sunday or Monday (or sometime after we return). I also need to finish packing some things together and getting some sleep. It should be a fun weekend!

Until my next post about Granada, hasta luego!
Amanda

Many Tour Guides

Friday night I met up with some friends from the group to browse more shops and get dinner inside the casco. I bought a brown cardigan from a popular store here called Zara. It’s very warm and I actually wore it twice this weekend and when I was just sitting around the house.

More or less everyone from the group had been at the school on Friday to use the Internet, therefore we all met at McDonald’s for dinner. McDonald’s is seriously so much better here than it is in the states!! After dinner and a bit more shopping, we went this café called Naca Naca (which we have gone back three or four times now). It’s in Zocodover so it’s pretty central and has the best, thickest hot chocolate I’ve ever had.

Saturday morning I woke up bright and early to meet at the bottom of the escalators at 9 a.m. for our excursion to Madrid. Though it was freezing outside and I was tired from a long week, I was really excited to head back to Madrid.

Once in Madrid we took a quick pit-stop at a café for tea and a snack, then the group headed to the Prado art museum. Our tour guide lead us around the museum and focused on five or six paintings. I don’t normally like older art, as it sometimes all looks the same to me, but these paintings were absolutely amazing! Especially because most of them weren’t even painted with paints but with other materials like egg whites. I hope one weekend we can take an extended trip to Madrid and I can spend more time in the Prado.

We were given about an hour and a half for lunch. I ate at a restaurant called Zahara with Liz, Adrienne, Jaclyn, Jasmine, Kerry and Kate. I had an amazing hamburger and a coke! My family only drinks water in the house (which is a good thing) so it was nice to have a coke.

After lunch we met with another tour guide in Plaza Mayor. The plaza was full of street performers and musicians so that kept us occupied while we waited for our tour to begin. Our guide gave us some history lessons at the Plaza Mayor and many more as we moved on to more plazas and statues and we eventually made it to the Palacio Real (Royal Palace). The cathedral situated in front of the Palace was amazing. It was completed about 15 years ago after being built for 100 years. It was pretty contemporary and had amazing art work on the ceilings. The Palace was huge and amazing as well, with 2,800 rooms I think our guide said.

The cathedral next to the Palace.

After our guided tour we took another coffee break before the bus picked us up at 6 p.m. Almost everyone fell asleep on the hour drive back to Toledo. However, we weren’t down for the count! Once home, I got ready, checked my e-mails and got ready for tapas. I met Liz, Halle and Jess for tapas at this bar called Picasso. Though the calamari was not breaded like I’m used to and the bruschetta had toppings like goat cheese, sardines and salmon, it was delicious! After dinner we headed back into the casco to meet up with the rest of our friends. It was an “early” night when I came home at 3 a.m. but I was pretty exhausted from our day in Madrid.

Sunday was dedicated to homework, sleep and lunch with Halle at an American restaurant called Rock & Ribs. I talked to my family on the phone and met up with friends at Naca Naca after dinner. This morning I had my first Cultura y Civilizacion class. The first hour was devoted to asking everyone in class what they were doing in a certain year (any year between 2002 and 2008) and what they looked like in that year. We then discussed a brief time line of Spanish history and were given a simple but fun homework assignment. After class I hung out at the café for a few minutes before returning home and passing out. I was so tired! Marisa made a really delicious stew for lunch and then I had to leave again and meet up with the group for a ruta (tour) of Toledo.

Our ruta was about two hours long. Our tour guide showed us various parts of the city and gave us the history or legends of each place. We visited ancient churches, walked down to the river and I took a lot of amazing pictures. Though it was cold as always I got to see some amazing things today.

Now I’m in another café at the school about to finish up some homework. I plan to head back home around 9 p.m. for dinner. Overall it was a great weekend and I look forward to what my second full week in Toledo will have in store. Until next time, adios!!

Routine

Monday afternoon about ten people from the group and I walked around the confusing streets of Toledo. They are extremely curvy and skinny and there are a lot of them! Every time a car is coming through someone yells “coche!” and we run to squeeze against the building walls. But it was still amazing and gorgeous! It’s so old and beautiful here in the old city, I don’t really mind the confusing streets… sometimes.

Marisa, my host mother, has made me delicious lunch and dinner after delicious lunch and dinner! I love having a huge meal in the middle of the day (around 3 p.m.) because it really does keep me full before a smaller dinner at 9:30 p.m. I never snack but we do eat a lot of carbs.

Tuesday night Becca, who lives about 5 minutes away, met me at my apartment at 9:30 and we walked together to Santa Teresa, another neighborhood outside the casco (walls of the old city). We met up with a few friends from our group and found a nearby bar to hang out. Another study abroad group was visiting Toledo for the night, so we met about 20 or so Americans at the bar. I drank “cole mocha” which is red wine and coke. I thought it was quite tasty and for only 2 euro, I couldn’t resist.

Though I got home around 2 in the morning and had to wake up at 8, I wasn’t too tired on Wednesday. We had an orientation for school on Tuesday, which was just a short introduction to our classes and quick tour of the buildings. I had been using the Internet in the café in one of the school buildings, but I recently discovered a secret corner in my room where I can use someone’s WiFi from the apartment complex. I am so happy to be connected to the world again at all times!

Wednesday afternoon I met up with some more friends at a café to drink café con leche and talk. I really like everyone in our group and I feel we all get along really well. It’s a nice break to just sit and talk (in English) with familiar faces instead of struggling to speak in Spanish 24/7 with our families, not that I’m having too much trouble!

Thursday was our first day of actual classes. My first class, at 9 a.m., is my literature class. Our professor, David, made everyone read a paragraph or so from our text book and then he would take over and talk for a few minutes, and then choose someone else to continue reading. We learned about important literary concepts that I’ve known since freshman year of high school. I guess it’s nice because it’s easy and I’ve had this knowledge for a while, but it was pretty boring and sometimes confusing in Spanish. We also have a lot of reading for homework which might take me a while. I will probably start reading on Sunday though it isn’t due until Tuesday morning.

My second class was my advanced conversation class. So far I absolutely love that class and our professor, Maria! She’s really easy to understand and a great teacher. She’ll correct you when you make a mistake, not in a condescending way, but in a way that really helps you learn. And of course, no English, so when we don’t understand a word or concept she’ll describe it in Spanish instead of giving us a direct English translation. I’ve already learned new vocabulary faster than I have with other professors. I think this class might soon become my favorite Spanish class or even my favorite class of college thus far. It just seems fun and helpful, which is really nice.

Last night our entire group (minus one person) all met at a bar called O’Brien’s and eventually we made our way to the discotheque! It was so much fun to spend time with everyone, take pictures and dance to American music. I hope we make it a point to go to a different discotheque every weekend and meet new people.

Though I had one day where I broke down and cried, the rest of my time in Toledo has been absolutely amazing. I miss OU and my family and friends so much but I love it here so it’s hard to tell how I feel sometimes. My Spanish skills are already improving in ways I didn't know possible and I can sense that I'll be learning even more new skills really soon! Tomorrow we’re taking a day trip to Madrid and I have high hopes that it’ll be a lot of fun and I'm excited to visit El Prado museum!

Hasta luego!!

The First Five Days

Hello! Remember me? (This was written yesterday at 3 p.m.) Be prepared for a long blog because this is the first time I have had Internet!

I am currently sitting in my room in my house in Buenavista, Toledo, eating chocolates that I received from Los Reyes (the kings)! My feelings about Spain over the past five days have gone from “I’m completely in love with it here!” to “Oh my God, this place is terrible, take me home now.” Right now I’m in between optimistic and sleepy. Optimistic because I know that once I’m on a schedule, a normal routine, I’ll be able to feel more comfortable in my new setting. And sleepy because I just ate a lot of paella with shrimp, clams, oysters, chicken and vegetables, with bread and a baked apple for dessert. Yum!

Traveling to Spain with Liz wasn’t too terrible, just tiring. I really enjoyed my drive from Cincinnati to Columbus with my mom and sisters and after checking over 110 pounds of luggage, we ate lunch at Max & Erma’s. Liz and I waved goodbye to our families after security and we were off! Our flight from Columbus to Philadelphia was less than an hour long. In Philadelphia we spent some time on our computers, checking Facebook and e-mail. We wanted our last meal in America to be, well, “American,” so I had chicken fingers at Friday’s and Liz a hamburger. Our flight from Philadelphia to Toledo was… uncomfortable. I think I slept about 15 minutes every hour (on a 7 hour flight), messed up an easy Sudoku puzzle and ate stale pasta. However, once we began landing in Madrid all drowsiness and unhappiness went away.

Four other members of our group, Kate, Adrienne, Jaclyn and Mike, were on our flight as well. We went through immigration fairly quickly and we were all able to get our luggage just as quickly. After checking one of my suitcases into a locker at the airport, the six of us took a bus to a metro station (later I will realize that this was pointless). Liz and I said goodbye to our friends and began a stressful two hours of directing ourselves through the metro and then through the streets of Puerta del Sol. Though we were frustrated, sweaty and anxious, we finally found our hostel with the help of some Canadians and a few friendly locals.

Without meaning to, we took a three-hour nap. Traveling is exhausting! And though it was 4 p.m. when we woke up, it felt like it was 10 in the morning. When we finally emerged from our hostel, Liz and I walked around Puerta del Sol, Plaza Mayor and other surrounding areas for a few hours. At dinner we ate bread, baked potatoes and chorizo at a bar. It sounds simple but it was actually really delicious and just what we needed. It had been a long day so we returned to our room, read for a bit, and fell asleep around midnight. We didn’t wake up the next day until 1:30 p.m. It was completely unintentional (but later we found out that the other group had slept in until 4 p.m.)! We left our room, walked around and ate a quick lunch of sandwiches. Every shop in the area was having a rebajas (sale) and so I took advantage of that and bought two scarves at H&M. Liz and I found an Internet café and spent an hour or so on Facebook and such. We went back to our hostel to drop off our purchases and headed back out for dinner. We spent a good three hours in a café drinking coke and eating paella and cake. It was really nice to just sit and talk about how we were missing our families and it was strange that (on that day) everyone would be moving back into school.

On our third day in Madrid, Liz and I met up with our teacher, Kit Brown, and got a mufarena (muffin) and café con leche (coffee with milk) for breakfast. We then took advantage of the sunny day and took a scenic walk to La Reina Sofia art museum. La Reina Sofia is amazing and it was free that day! Though I have been there before, all of the art, including the Guernica by Picasso, was just as incredible. The museum closed at 2:30 p.m. (it was Sunday) so we said adios to Kit and continued to walk around, grabbed a quick lunch and just enjoyed the Puerta del Sol.

The next morning we woke up early and checked out of our hostel, no problems. After a donut and coffee at Dunkin Coffee, we navigated (with much more success) the streets of Puerta del Sol and the metro to the airport. We met the rest of our group and though we had to wait for four people on a delayed plane, we began our 45-minute drive to Toledo.

My family includes Marisa, her husband Alberto, and their two children (Alberto and Laura). Alberto and Laura are grown and do not live at the apartment, but I met Alberto (32) and he was really nice and tried to talk to me a lot. Tusca, the dog, is large and black and very friendly. He’s like 14 years old so he just lays around and lets you pet him. Marisa is very sweet and patient and tries to talk to me a lot. Her accent is really hard to understand at times, but usually if I repeat a word I don’t know she’ll explain what she means. I love Alberto! He reminds me of a grandpa. He’s really helpful, has a comforting laugh and is always willing to ask me questions and talk, or just sit and watch TV. I like spending time with him the most. He took me to school yesterday for a group meeting and rode the bus with me and showed me where to go and how to get home.

I ate a plate of pasta and tomato sauce and a friend egg for lunch yesterday. It was really good! However, the Albertos ate their food really fast and then Marisa came in and just watched me eat. It was a bit strange but I just acted like she wasn’t staring at me. I unpacked, cried because everything was overwhelming, talked to my dad and wrote in my journal. Alberto and I went to school and I finally got to talk in English! I didn’t get home until about 10:30 that night because Halle and I helped Jasmine get to her apartment. After we got lost trying to find her apartment, we got lost trying to get back to Buentavista. But we did and then Marisa made me amazing fried fish and chopped up tomatoes. I fell asleep and didn’t wake up until noon today!

I showered and received a perfume set from Marisa for Los Reyes (a celebration her for the three wise men). I gave Marisa and Alberto buckeyes (American chocolate is very funny here) and a photo book of Cincinnati. Alberto and I sat and talked about Cincinnati for a long time and it helped me a lot to feel more comfortable. I just got done eating our large lunch now and am waiting for 4:30. I’m meeting with some friends from the group to explore the old part of Toledo, inside the walls (I live outside the walls, in a newer part) at 5.

Tomorrow we have orientation and a tour of the school and they have Internet there. I was able to steal someone’s Internet in the apartment building for about 5 minutes but it was a very weak signal. Hopefully I’ll find a better place in the house to connect. Until next time (with a much smaller post, I promise)! I miss everyone so much but I know that I'm only just beginning my amazing journey.
Hasta luego,
Amanda