Primer día de clases

Today was my first day of class! I had 2 classes: Spanish for Business and Latin American Short Stories. They are both entirely in Spanish, so they will be difficult, but I think I will definitely like them. This morning was a struggle for me. I woke up around 6:30 and left on the metro at 7:30 to get there for 9:00 to be on time for my first class. I was sooooooo tired in class and struggling to stay awake. My host mom doesn't drink coffee, so I think I'm going through caffeine withdrawal... Anyway! For the rest of the day I took a siesta, explored the city a little with some friends, and got ice cream (which I've been craving since I got here.) I got all my school supplies, so I'm ready for my next round of classes tomorrow! 

            La Catedral de Sevilla on my walk home tonight!

Mis primeros días en España

I am officially settled in my new home in Spain. The first day in Spain was definitely a long one. Another girl in the program and I arrived in Spain around 6AM on Thursday. We got our luggage (I was so nervous it wouldn't make it) and got a cab to our hotel in Madrid. Our room wasn't going to be ready for several hours, so we wandered around the city and got churros and hot chocolate. So delicious! As soon as we got into our rooms, we had about 10 minutes to change and get ready to go on a museum tour and a walking tour of Madrid. After not sleeping for about 24 hours, an art museum was not the best place to be. But, it was great to see the city and after we slept for a few hours, we had dinner and went out with some of the other girls in the program. 

 

                          Churros and hot chocolate!          

                      

           Plaza Mayor de Madrid

                            La discoteca

On Friday, we took a bus from Madrid to Toledo, which only took about 40 minutes. The city of Toledo is so beautiful and full of history! We had a tour with a resident of Toledo (quien fue muy guapo), and saw several of the churches, synogogues and other amazing buildings throughout the city. After the tour, our group split up for lunch. A group of us went to a place where they serve typical Spanish food and I was a little freaked out because the shrimp in my paella still had eyes...BUT I want to be open to everything! The people in Toledo were so nice and really open to speaking with all of us. I'm trying to talk to as many people as I can to practice my Spanish!

                          View of Toledo from above

           My roommate, Kim, and I!

                                                            Our tour guide!

 

 

 

 

  

                         Catedral de Santa María de Toledo

 

      There was a parade/play going on in the streets!

 

 

On Saturday, we left Toledo and took a bus to Sevilla to meet our host families! I'll talk more about it in my next posts!

Snow...

I've run into some travel issues today-mostly snow! Unfortunately, my original flight was cancelled, then my second flight was cancelled, so now I'm leaving tomorrow night. Hopefully the snow subsides and my flight leaves without a hitch tomorrow! Originally, ISA, my study abroad provider, was supposed to pick me up at the airport, but since my flight is delayed, I'm not sure if I'll have that luxury. I'll be doing my research tonight, since I may have to meet my group at the hotel in Madrid. Wish me luck!

Thoughts of the Day

Thinking about how nice it will be in a way to not have constant access to all my social networks and texting while I'm abroad. Isn't it terrible when you get together with friends and everyone is glued to their screens?

NYC

Aside from preparing to go abroad, I've been trying to enjoy my last few weeks in the U.S.! This past weekend, my sister, Erin, and I traveled to New York City for the day. New York is such am amazing place to be, especially around Christmastime. We spent the day shopping, exploring and even ice skating in Rockefeller Center! We had dinner at Guy Fieri's new restaurant, which is right near Times Square. It was delicious! Visiting NYC makes me want to live there more and more every time I visit.

                      

                        Erin and I ice skating at Rockefeller Center!

Housing Assignments

I received my housing assigment for Spain! I will be living in the Triana area of Sevilla. I will be staying with a woman named, Juliana, and there will be one other student staying in the house as well. I am excited to have a roommate that will be attending the same school and program that I am! The house where I will be living is about a 40 minute metro ride from my school, Pablo de Olavide. I am a little nervous about figuring the public transportation system in a foreign country, but hopefully I will get the hang of it quickly. 

As soon as I got my housing assignment, I went to google maps to explore my new city. Triana is located on an almost-island off of the Guadalquivir River. From what I have read, Triana has a strong flamenco culture and it's own festivals throughout the year. I can't wait to explore my new city! 

With just a week until I leave, I'm onto my next daunting task, packing...