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!!