2 Weeks of School Down

Allright, just finished the second week of school! I have to say that having class makes Monday-Thursday go by extremely fast. Today was my first day of my new grammar class, too. We're doing a pretty intense study of the differences between the preterite, imperfect, and pluscaumperfecto, so it's challenging but definitely doable. It's going to help me a lot in becoming more confident and fluent with my grammar. The teacher, Julia, is very nice but has no problem being blunt. Today, she had us each tell a story in the past tense and then had everyone discuss each mistake we made and why it was wrong. Also, if you make a minor error when you're talking, she'll stop you and talk you through why what you said was incorrect. It's not like any instruction I've ever had before, but it's definitely going to make me better, which will be extremely beneficial... especially in May when I have to take my proficiency test!

After siesta today, I decided to wander Camino de Ronda a little bit. I needed a few things, so I figured it would be a good time to go get them. I got a converter for my camera charger, flip flops to wear in the shower at the hostel, a clutch, highlighters, a deck of cards, and paperclips. Big day :-) I also decided to venture to the grocery store that's on the ground floor of my building (for those who don't know, I LOVE grocery shopping. Absolutely LOVE it!). It was cool to go in there but definitely made me miss home food. I ended up getting some granola bars for our trip tomorrow... you gotta have bus snacks, right?

Right now, Carlos is sitting on my floor telling me about horseback riding in Morocco and apparently there's something about a door that looks like a tiger (a la Aladdin). I'll make sure to look for that next weekend when we head to Morocco :-)

Long Wednesday and Pictures of the Piso

Maria and Carlos

My closet... Dane's T-shirt displayed where I can see it every day :-)

My nightstand and bed (haha yes, I brought my stuffed polar bear to Spain. As Kate Gosselin would say, it's my "comfort item")

Lobby of the apartment building

My building from the street... I'm the balcony above the one with the plant

My street (Camino de Ronda)

I realized that I never put pictures on the blog, so I'm going to try to keep adding more :-)

Today was busy! I had class from 11:15-2:45, then ate my bocadillo in the CEGRI computer lab, left with Julia at 3:30 to get to the school we volunteer at by 4:00, then volunteered from 4-6, then walked back to CEGRI for class from 6:30-8:15 and came home to dinner on the table. Crazy!

I did get switched out of my grammar class today. Funny/slightly embarrassing/very humbling story is that I got placed in the lowest level of grammar classes based on my placement test. I would like to defend myself and point out that I was extremely homesick and jetlagged the day we had to take them (our second day here) and the topic for the essay was "write about your trip to Granada". The absolute last thing I wanted to do was relive the whole leaving process (I'm far enough away from it now to admit to all of you that I sobbed through security at O'Hare). So, long story short is that I only managed to squeeze out a few sentences for my essay and my test had teardrop stains all over it (Don't worry! I'm better now!). In any event, my teacher today switched me into the class that I should be in as a Spanish Education major. So now instead of having three classes Monday and Wednesday and one class Tuesday and Thursday, I'll have two classes each day. That'll be a nice change of pace on my busy days.

Volunteering today was so much fun. We played soccer again, and it seriously cracks me up how into the sport these kids are. They know all about it and are all phenomenal players. Today, Ana got frustrated and touched the ball with her hand and all of a sudden ten voices started screaming "¡MANO! ¡MANO!" (Hand! Hand!). They are very, very, very competitive little kiddos. 

Tonight is just a chill night. Going to work on my essay for Literature and rest up for our weekend in Madrid!

Exciting Day

Today was a pretty eventful and exciting day! I'll go in order from least exciting to most exciting to keep everyone's attention

4.) The internet man came today because Rosario decided to switch providers. She said that the internet was very slow before. I beg to differ. The internet was remarkably fast before and is now kind of dragging. However, I have ZERO room to complain because I am still SO lucky to have WiFi! So as long as I have working internet I will be a happy camper.

3.) My life was changed today when I was introduced to torta de chocolate, which is an incredible Spanish pastry. There's a little pastry stand in the plaza by our school and Miguel Angel raved about the pastries during orientation. I had a little time to kill after I worked out so I decided to give it a shot. HOLY. COW. I can't even describe how good this thing was. It's going to be difficult to make this a "sometimes food" :-)

2.) At our favorite tapas bar, which we have decided to call BA2 (b.a.dos), we made friends with Maho, who works there but was just hanging out tonight. He recognized us from being in there so much and we're totally best friends with him now. We told him about Kam's and how much we love it and how BA2 is our Kam's in Spain. He then proceeded to yell out "THIS IS KAM'S!" in his thick Spanish accent for the rest of the night and threw up the "K" sign for Kam's (I'll post a picture later). SO fun!

1.) The most exciting part of the day. During dinner, Maria started choking on hamburger and bread. After showing symptoms of FBAO (foreign body airway obstruction), I instructed her to stand up and, bracing myself with one foot positioned between hers, gave her five inward and upward J-thrusts to the abdomen using my clenched fist and hand approximately an inch and a half above the belly button. (All of my JEM friends will laugh at this. Everyone else might think I'm a tool. I should explain that when I teach lifeguard certification classes, this is how I have to explain how to give the Heimlich maneuver.) In any event, I gave her the Heimlich and after six abdominal thrusts, she was able to breathe again. This is another why EVERYONE should have basic First Aid and CPR training, as well as have basic knowledge of an AED :-) 

So, that's my exciting day in Spain! Tomorrow I promise to post pictures of the piso and some others that I've taken.

Two Weeks Down

Just some pictures of my favorite person under 24 hours old and her big sister, my favorite almost two-and-a-half year old :-)  Now the post for the day...

Two weeks down. Wow, it feels good to be able to say that. It's comforting that things are starting to get more familiar and less scary. Even things as simple as knowing that I have to turn the doorknob left to get out of my building and that there are lightswitches in my hallway for when I come home and can't see anything are making life a little less stressful over here.

The first week dragged on and felt like it was never going to end, but the second ended up going by decently fast. I'm hoping that the weeks will keep getting faster and more fun as time goes by, routines get established, weekend trips get underway, and visitors start to come. Gina and I were saying the other day that we just can't wait until it's February. I feel like once I don't see "leave for granada" on my iCal (calendar program for Mac that I'm already addicted to) I'll feel a lot better and a lot more like I'm making progress in this whole thing. I don't want to wish the time here away, but I'm definitely ready to feel like I've made a significant dent in my stay.

I also forgot to mention that on Sunday night, Betsy and I went out walking around 8:00 because we were both getting the Sunday homesick blues. We ended up walking by Dunkin' Donuts (well, here it's called Dunkin' Coffee, but same thing) and getting donuts. THEY TASTE AMERICAN! We decided it might have to be the place to go when we feel homesick. Just the fact that I can have something here that I can also have in the United States is comforting. 

My goal for today is to figure out the schedule for the group classes at my gym... My friend Kaitlin took a spinning class at her gym and said it was really fun. I want to try!

NINA IS HERE!

First and foremost, I want to send a huge congratulations to my cousin Arne and his wife Beth for the arrival of their second baby girl! Nina Kathleen Hendricksen was born at 1:53pm today and weighed in at 7lbs 13oz. Everyone is doing great and I cannot wait to get home and see her in May! I'll be sure to post pictures once I get them.

Today marked the beginning of our second week of classes at CEGRI, and it was great to return to the structure of the school week after the weekend (Wow, I never thought I'd say that!). I had grammar and literature this morning and then ate my bocadillo (turkey and cheese... my favorite) during the break before law this afternoon. It was a pretty solid school day, nothing really new to report on the CEGRI-front.

The kids and I had dinner together tonight, which always makes for an entertaining meal. They are so funny! We had chicken noodle soup (which had hard-boiled eggs in it and was amazing) and tortilla española con espinaca (basically an omlette with spinach... yes, I ate it. I'm growing up!). 

We also planned a trip to Madrid for this weekend which should be a great time! We're going to head up Friday morning and come back Sunday evening. I'm excited to start to travel and get to know Spain better. 

Lazy Sundays

Ok, remember what I said yesterday about Saturdays being really slow in Granada? Sundays make it feel like a ghost town!

I started off today by going to church down the street with Julia and Clarissa. It was a really interesting experience. We walked in and there was a band (complete with electric guitars and drums) playing really pretty and really intense worship songs. There was a screen behind the band that was essentially a karaoke screen so that everyone could know the words, and the entire congregation was clapping to the beat, dancing, and singing along. It was pretty cool! The pastor gave his sermon and then we hung around afterwards and talked to some people in the congregation. These people had so much energy! Everyone was coming up to us and kissing us and introducing themselves... It was nice to feel so welcomed! I think next week I'm going to try to check out mass at the Cathedral to see how that is, too. I like seeing all of the different ways of life around here. 

After church, I walked home (in the rain again... I seriously think they were intentionally lying to us about the whole drought thing) and came up to find the kids' dad cooking. Apparently on Sundays we eat one big meal in between lunch and dinner (lunner?) all together. The dad made couscous and it was pretty good. I'm getting more adventurous, even eating the peas and carrots! 

I took a long siesta after the meal and spent some time catching up with people from home. Homesickness started to get bad again, but I think it's just the lack of structure for the day. Betsy said she's feeling the same way, so I think a few of us are going to go try to find something American-ish in a little bit.

Hope everyone is doing well... missing all of you!

Saturday in Spain

**I'm not sure why the formatting on this post is so bad. I tried to be fancy and add the map, but I think I did it wrong! Sorry!**

Saturdays in Spain have a really interesting vibe. The streets are pretty quiet and everyone walks slower and takes their time more than usual (which took some getting used to for "walk-with-a-purpose" Sally). I live on Camino de Ronda, which, if you look at Granada on Google Maps, is by far the biggest street in the city:

View Larger Map

(The highway is basically the edge of Granada, everything to the right of Camino de Ronda is the city). It's so crazy, though, because this street that's normally really hustle-and-bustle is so quiet on the weekends. Everyone stays in, relaxes, and catches up with family. It's pretty cool-- that's my kind of weekend!

Anyway, after eating my usual three galletas (breakfast cookies) for breakfast, I headed out to the gym. Betsy decided to sign up, too, so we worked out together for about an hour. On my way home (probably a ten minute walk), I decided to stop in some of the stores that I always see but never venture into. It was really fun! I was laughing because they're basically Spain's version of Target. They're much smaller, but they have anything you could want. It was fun to check them out and really fun to people-watch inside. I managed to refrain from buying anything but I think I'll be making a return trip sometime soon. 

I did venture into one store, called araña (spider), that made me laugh hysterically. It looked just like a clothes store, but it had kind of a punk vibe. My favorite part was when I got to a big display of buttons that you can buy. I won't go into detail, but let's just say that they all had the words you never learn in Spanish classes but you learn your first few weeks abroad. I really can't picture anyone wearing them in public, but I think that's the American in me talking. It might just be a Euro thing.

I'll be sure to update later; it's almost time for lunch-- pollo y salsa (chicken and sauce) today! (Oh, and by the way, I had salad and spinach lasagna for dinner last night. That will be really shocking for those of you who know that I tend to eat like a 3-year-old :-) )

CEGRI has a good idea with this whole "no class on Friday" thing... I've done a lot today!

I wasn't feeling well last night so I let myself sleep in until 10:30 today, which was awesome. I went to the gym this morning, too. It's so funny to look at the gyms here-- they are so tiny compared to the ones at home! Also, it's really rare for women to work out. The women here just smoke all day and walk everywhere in stiletto boots to burn off calories :-). But it was really cool! I'm excited because I think a lot of girls from my program who live around me are going to join the gym, too. It'll be nice to be able to work out together and go to group classes and stuff like that. 

After my workout, I went to meet up with Julia and Clarissa at la fuente de Isabel la Católica, which is a big fountain in the middle of Granada. We walked around a little bit from there, stopping by the old Arabic baths and checking out some rebajas (sales). I came home, ate lunch with Rosario (seafood soup!), took a siesta, and then finalized plane tickets with my dad and Matt for their trips! What an awesome pick-me-up! My dad's coming in 26 days and Matt's coming in 57... It will be really nice to have their visits (plus Lauren's) to break up the time. I'm already planning things I want to show them in Granada, too.

I also had a huge pick-me-up when I met up with my friend Gina from ISU. She's studying abroad in Granada this semester, as well, and we got together for churros y chocolate (churros and chocolate!) to catch up and talk about the whole study abroad thing. She's feeling a lot of the same things I am and it was so great to talk to her. 

I got home and Maria had a friend over. I was skyping with my dad when they came in and started joining in on the videochat... It was so cute! I am so lucky God put me in this homestay. Rosario is wonderful and the kids are adorable. The kids are at their dad's this weekend, so it's going to be pretty quiet around the piso!

Study Abroad Roller coaster

On our second day in Granada, Miguel Angel was telling us about the roller coaster that most students go on during their time abroad. It was basically a sin graph, with two highs and two lows. He said that this was what the four months looked like for most students. Two highs and two lows. 

Uhhhh... I think I go on that roller coaster four times a day. 

This is without a doubt the hardest thing I've ever done in my life. I'm a girl who likes consistency. I'm the one who takes awhile to transition from home to school and school to home, even though I absolutely love both places. I'm the little girl who got homesick sleeping over at a house that was two blocks away. I love things to be the same and I don't like being away from home. And yet right now, I'm 5,000 miles away from home and in a place where literally everything is different. 

At the same time, there's the part of me that thinks that this culture is really cool. I love seeing the way people interact and the different kinds of stores and restaurants that they have. It's absolutely gorgeous here, too. Plus, I can already feel my Spanish improving and I know how much that's going to help me in the future. I've met some really cool people that I like to hang out with and I'm really looking forward to being able to travel around Europe soon.

So I keep going up and down on this roller coaster. I have moments where I think, "Four months isn't so long and I have so much to experience in that time" and I have moments where I hear a plane overhead and want to sprint to the airport and jump on a plane to Chicago. I really am trying to make the most of this experience, but it's definitely hard.

I am trying to make strides and trying to make the roller coaster have more highs than lows. I joined a gym on my street so that I can work out, I talked to a few girls that I know that have done the semester abroad in Granada and asked them for advice, I've started planning some trips with my friends for weekends here, and I've been planning visits from my dad, Matt, and my cousin Lauren for the coming months. I know this is tough, but I do have faith that the roller coaster will start to smooth out pretty soon.

GOOOOOAL!

It's an historic day. Today, January 21, 2009, I scored a goal in a game of soccer.

The goalie may or may not have been five years old. Minor detail.

Helping out at the school was so much fun today! It's a little after school program that we help out with and it was so interesting to watch the kids interact and the teacher/student interactions in Spain. I got to be with the infantíl group which consisted of eleven kids, ages three to eight. They were hilarious! We started off in gimnasio (gym) and played fútbol (soccer) for about an hour. It was a boys vs. girls game and the girls, unfortunately, got creamed. Our goalie was Juana, who is seven years old and would have fit right in on the AYSO Green Girls. *For those who need backstory, the Green Girls was my kindergarten soccer team, coached by my mom. Our motto was "no crying, keep trying". We lost every game of the season because we were always too busy looking at the grass, making daisy chains, doing cartwheels, or talking to do anything.* Every time a ball went into our goal, I would yell "No pasa nada, Juana!" (Don't worry about it!) and she would give a thumbs up and punt the ball into the ceiling. So cute! I did manage to score a goal, which ended up being one of three points for the girls' team (the boys had twelve). It was really cool, culturally, to see how into soccer the boys were. It was such a big deal to them, and they were TALENTED! After they won, they picked up some random knick-knack from the gym and carried it around, chanting "hemos ganado la copa del mundo" (we have won the World Cup).

After gimnasio, we went to informática, which is basically computer class. The kids were learning about shapes and spent the hour drawing diamonds on Paint. While they were drawing, they were asking me where I was from and were astounded to know that I speak English. When they found out, I think there was a solid ten minutes where I kept hearing "hello!" "thank you!" "goodbye!" "red" "blue" "apple" "milk" and any English word they knew. It was pretty adorable.

Carlos and Maria also decided to show off their English at dinner today. We were all eating when Carlos tapped me on the arm and said "Puedo decir algo en Inglés" (I can say something in English). I asked him to and he said (in his little Spanish accent) "Put the plate on the table". Apparently third grade is studying food in English right now. For the rest of dinner, he kept rattling off the names of anything he knew (spoon, knife, fork, plate, hamburger, soup, bread, etc.). It was really fun to help him and to listen to him trying to pronounce everything. It definitely makes you realize how cool it is to learn a language and to be able to use it to communicate.

Tomorrow's the last day of class before the weekend!

Inauguration Madness

First of all, Happy Birthday to my aunt Jenny :-) Now today's blog!

Spain is going CRAZY with the inauguration today. So many people have been talking to us about Obama and congratulating us on our new president. We went to an Irish pub called Hannigans and Sons to watch the speech (the only English version available in Granada) and it was so crowded that a lot of us had to stand outside in the hail to listen... so crazy! The bar was PACKED and was decorated with posters and balloons. My favorite part was definitely the Irish and Spanish bartenders sporting "Team USA" doo-rags. It was pretty overwhelming to see what a response the inauguration elicited around the world, and that's coming from little miss "John-McCain-is-my-homeboy". And I ran into my friend Gina who goes to ISU at Hannigans! It was so good to see her!

After Hannigans a lot of us went out for tapas to the same place we went the first night we were here (I still don't know the name of it, but they give the best tapas by far!). We then decided that we should go to the free salsa/merengue class that the school offered. I'll wait while everyone has a good laugh at the idea of me salsa dancing. I'm very coordinated. So we went to the class and had a lot of fun-- I won't be signing up for the full 8-week course due to my extreme lack of coordination and my painfully awkward dance moves, but it was definitely fun to try!

I also signed up for a gym membership this morning! I knew I wanted to when I got here, and I was able to find a gym pretty close to my house with a good 3-month rate (and they give discounts for CEGRI students!). I'm excited to try it out tomorrow! The guy helping me sign up was very patient, which I really appreciated. There's a fingerprint recognition system to get into the gym, and I couldn't figure it out for the life of me! I've got it down now, though, I think :-) I'm excited to try some group classes in Spanish!

Another funny part of today was when it started HAILING around 5:30pm. Now, remember how I said it never rains in Granada? Well it never EVER hails here. People were looking around like aliens were invading the city. It was pretty funny to watch everyone's reaction. My favorites were the little kids yelling "nieve! nieve!" (it's snowing! it's snowing!)

Tomorrow I think I'm going to look into volunteering at an elementary school in Granada with Julia and Kathy. It should be pretty interesting! I figure I want to squeeze as much language practice in as I can and absorb as much of the culture as I can and this would be a great way to do it.

First Day of School

We had our first day of school today! Our school is this really old building (I'm talking 500+ years old) in the middle of town. It's really cute and so different from what I'm used to. 

We had to leave at 8:30 to get to school by 9:00, so I headed out at 8:15 just to be safe. I have no shame and had my map out the entire time, trying to figure out where the heck I was going. It doesn't help that in Spain, a common gypsy trick is to ask people for directions and pickpocket them while they're explaining, so nobody wants to stop and help you. I did end up seeing a lot of police that were conducting traffic, and they were extremely nice and helpful. I also ran into Lisa, Betsy, and Melissa (all on my program) when I was about halfway there, so we walked the rest of the way together. I have a nice walk to school-- it's not too confusing once you know where you're going and I have all well-lit and busy areas to walk in. 

We got our class schedule and mine's pretty nice. I have grammar and literature Monday and Wednesday "mornings" (their mornings last until 3:00pm, though) and law Monday and Wednesday nights and conversation on Tuesdays in the late morning (again, it starts at 1:20). I really like all of my teachers so far. Law seems like it might be tough, but I think I can do it. Our teacher for that is absolutely hilarious-- he's a lawyer from Granada named Sergio. He wrote the book we're using, so he always refers to it as "el libro más importante, más fantástico, y escrito por el hombre más guapo de todo el mundo" (the most important and fantastic book, written by the most handsome man in the world). 

I also got my cell phone today! We've all been on wild goose chases trying to find them but I was finally able to snag one-- yesss! 

I was laughing all day because it's drizzling here (literally a mist) and EVERYONE had their umbrellas open. It never rains in Granada so when it does, everyone freaks out. It's also kind of scary because the streets and sidewalks are all cobblestone or marble. I have trouble walking without tripping on dry concrete, so this was pretty scary! I managed to stay upright, though-- big success!

I'm really missing everyone back home... I'm still trying to grasp the whole "four months in Europe" concept but can't really fathom it, especially because I feel like I've already been here for a month with all of the new things I've experienced. I'm hoping that the classes help the time go by pretty fast-- I miss the US!

La Alhambra

WOW my legs are tired!

Today we all went to La Alhambra, which I thought was just a castle, but it turned out to be an a really old city with multiple castles in it. It's at the top of the biggest hill I've ever climbed in my life. Holy cow it was tiring --but great exercise-- but the hill allows the Alhambra to have amazing views of the city. The city was really interesting, especially when you consider that it was built in the 14th Century. I did feel bad because I'm a little bit dense when it comes to art, architecture, etc. (my favorite part of going to the Art Institute on The Lane School field trips was getting to eat McDonalds for lunch...) but I was still able to appreciate the Alhambra. 

We got there around 11:00 and toured the grounds for four hours before having lunch (our host moms packed us bocadillos, or sandwiches). We were all starving after our intense hike and the amount of walking we did around the grounds, so all of us inhaled our bocadillos. An interesting thing about Spain (this will only be interesting to people who like food as much as I do) is that they have french bread for their everyday bread. Wonderbread is considered a HUGE luxury and very gourmet here. Who would have thought? 

We got done with our Alhambra visit around 5:00 and decided to go somewhere to sit and have something to drink, but we had the hardest time finding somewhere. Everything in Spain is closed on Sundays! The atmosphere is very interesting over here. We managed to find a café called (appropriately) La Alhambra and sat around and had coca cola light.

I'm back at the piso now and really thanking God for putting me in this great environment. Everyone generally likes their host family, but I'm definitely having one of the smoothest transitions into homestay so far. Internet, central heat, and a very patient and interactive family are enormous blessings.

Moved in and doing a LOT better!

Thank you everyone for the homesick prayers-- I'm starting to feel a lot better!

I have moved in with my host family! Rosario (my host mom) came to pick me up at the hostel and drove me home with her friend Salo.  They were both so nice, chatting with me, asking me what I like to eat, etc. Rosario said that I spoke Spanish very well and that she was impressed—That’s a relief!

We got to the piso and the kids were waiting. Maria is ten (turning eleven next week) and Carlos is eight. They are both hilarious and so full of energy. They helped Rosario show me around the piso (apartment). Rosario was so welcoming, repeating “Estás en tu casa” (“you’re in your house”) over and over again. The piso is really cute… I have my own room with a balcony that looks over the street, a lot of space… it’s very nice.The best part, though, is that WE HAVE INTERNET!! It's extremely rare to have it in Spain, so I'm very very very lucky! (I'm not sure why this is all underlined?)

 Rosario went to the mercado, or grocery store, to pick up food for lunch (we had chicken and fries), and Maria watched me unpack and chatted with me the whole time. She’s absolutely adorable.  The kids are both huge Bears fans, too! I think they had a girl live here awhile ago who was a Bears fan… however they learned it, though, they love “Los Osos de Chicago” (The Chicago Bears).

I’m feeling really good right now…. Without a doubt the best I’ve felt since arriving here.  It’s just nice to have my suitcases unpacked, have some time to decompress, and be able to get away from orientation (which Miguel Angel referred to as “boot camp one”. Apparently “boot camp two” comes in April when we go hiking? We’ll see!)

Tomorrow we tour the Alhambra, which should be pretty cool! It's the big castle from back when Granada was a Moorish epicenter. I'll be sure to post some good pictures, especially now that I have such good internet connection :-)

I also want to thank everyone who has commented so far and apologize that I haven't gotten the chance to reply! The internet at the hostel was painfully slow, so now that I have a good connection I'll try not to be such a delinquent. 

Here's another iMovie that I made of the first few days (bear with me, I'm a little obsessed with my new computer...)

Host Family Day!

Quick entry to let everyone know that I'm getting picked up by my host family in two hours! I'm kind of nervous, kind of excited, and a lot hoping that this helps me start to get settled and makes the idea of being here for four months a little more appealing. I'm not sure what the internet situation will be like once I'm moved in, but I'll hopefully be able to find something close to home. If not, the school has WiFi Monday through Friday, so I'll still be blogging.

Send up a prayer for me that this homesickness starts to go away pretty soon; I'll keep everyone updated!

Full Day #2

Ahhhh I had a whole blog and it got deleted! The internet at our hostel is going in and out like crazy. I got dropped from Skype and AIM today which was really frustrating, especially with the whole homesick thing really starting to hit. 

Last night we went to a discoteca, which, I learned, isn't really my scene. First of all, as a lot of you know, I'm a girl who likes my sleep. I'm the one who leaves at 12:30 (at the latest) and goes to bed, even if I'm having a ton of fun. So it's kind of hard that people in Granada don't even go out until 2:00am. We went to get a bite to eat and some wine, left there at 12:45am, came back to the hostel, and went to the discoteca around 2:15am. I had a huge headache (one of those where your brain feels like it might explode) and the strobe lights, techno, and Spanish PDA were not helping at all. I came home around 3:15 and was just exhausted, homesick, and didn't feel well-- terrible combination!

Today we had our housing orientation and then I came home to go online and nap. I felt a little bit better after my nap but am still in my adjustment phase. We went on our tour of the Albacín and Sacramonte, two of the oldest parts of the city this afternoon. It was crazy because all of the buildings there are well over 1,000 years old. We got great views of the Alhambra and it was a very cool tour. However, I learned that the old part of Granada makes San Francisco look flat. Hills, stairs, steep inclines... wow!

We've got our welcome dinner tonight and I'll make sure to blog after (if the internet cooperates) to let everyone know how it goes. I'll also try to post pictures from today!

Missing everyone!

Blogging like it's my JOB

Hahaha posting yet again! I was just so excited and had to share my first Spanish victory!

First of all, let me explain how weird the streets of Granada are. They have NO direction, look like alleys, have street signs on the buildings occasionally... so hard to figure out. But we did our "survival tour" today and I felt like I started to MAYBE feel a little more comfortable. So Betsy and I were STARVING (picky eaters do not eat in Spain) and decided to go to the pizzeria we had found on the tour... and we FOUND IT! We were so excited. Then we ordered in Spanish, got exactly what we wanted, and talked with the waiter a little bit. And then we decided we wanted chocolate really bad, so we went to a bakery by our hostel. We managed to order, tell the woman we wanted to eat inside, and pay the cashier without a problem. SO encouraging! 

The scary part is that we came out and there was a RIOT in the street. It's a protest against Israel and there are probably 400 people of all ages screaming and jumping on cars and burning things, and it's right outside our hostel. It was scary but there was a huge police presence so we felt pretty safe. 

I also need to point out that I've seen why the motto of Granada is "no pasa nada en Granada" (for those who didn't know, "no pasa nada" means "no worries" or "it's not a big deal"). It's such a relaxed atmosphere, which is really cool sometimes and sometimes the American in me is internally looking at my watch and tapping my toe. I'm sure I'll adjust to it, though. The thing that was SO weird for me to see was at the pizzeria, this guy was there with his (adorable) daughter, who was probably three. He sat her on a barstool and was talking with her and then walked outside to have a cigarette and talk on the phone. She just sat there, talked to the workers, they gave her chocolate... That would NEVER happen in the US! 

It's also strange that they number their floors differently. Instead of the ground floor being the first floor, the first floor up is the first floor. So our fourth floor hostel room is actually on the fifth floor... lots of stairs!

Well I think we're gonna be heading out soon, I'll keep everyone posted! Thanks for keeping up with me :-)

Getting Adjusted

First full day in Granada! It's been an interesting day with lots of ups and downs.

Homesickness set in this morning big time. I woke up for our orientation still so exhausted and starving, just not really feeling all that great. Betsy felt the same way so we went to a bakery next door to get some breakfast because we couldn't find the hostel breakfast. We saw these things in the display case that looked like biscuits so we thought they would be a good call. FALSE. The lady asked us "pescado o carne?" (fish or meat).... uhhhh. They ended up being mystery meat filled pastries, so we ended up having a bottle of water for breakfast. We went to cultural orientation next and it was foggy and gray outside and all I could think about was home. I got a little teary, but Miguel Angel, the director of our program, made me feel better when he got to the part about culture shock. He said that most people start out in the honeymoon phase and start to hate it a month in, but that some people are very reluctant at first and slowly ease in. I'm hoping that's what happens for me.

We took our tests and had a break (so i got a coca cola light... NOT THE SAME AS DIET COKE :-( but still helped me feel better) and then did academic orientation, which made me more calm. I do better when I have a routine, so hopefully once classes start I'll be good. Then I went to lunch with a lot of the girls (like 11 of us) and had half of a ham and cheese sandwich. Julia got something with goat brain in it, but I still think that I was adventurous because I ate the tomato on my sandwich! Baby steps :-)

Now we're getting ready for our survival tour of Granada, where they're going to show us the main things we'll need to know. I'll let everyone know how it goes!

In Granada!

We're heeeeere! The airport connection ended up not being as much of a pain as we had thought it would be. We were all able to get on the next flight and arrived in Granada around 3:15pm. After a very delayed but very entertaining bus ride, we ended up at our hostel. We're in the middle of town in a pretty nice place. It's been fun to explore the city tonight (even if by "explore the city" i mean wander a few blocks). We went to two tapas bars for dinner and drinks. It's really nice because, in Andalucía, you get a free tapa, or appetizer, when you order a drink. So we had drinks at one bar and ended up having bocadillos y patatas fritas, or sandwiches and french fries, for dinner. They were delicious!

Now we're at the hostel, all exhausted from the day of travel. I'm definitely ready to catch some z's... placement tests start at 9:30am tomorrow!

Blogging from the plane

Apparently this didn't really work the first time... let's try again!

Blogging from the plane! (Well, writing the blog entry in Word and I’ll actually post it later when I have internet). This is pretty exciting…

Right now it’s 9:32pm Chicago time and we’re probably somewhere over the Atlantic, but I’m not really sure. Nights in Rodanthe is on, but I can’t really concentrate on it. I’m a little nervous and there’s a ton of turbulence... and I love The Office too much! We had dinner already, which was some sort of chicken with rice, bread, cheese, and tiramisu (and vegetables and some sort of creamy looking thing that looked a little shady so I didn’t try it). I did have a split of  champagne with dinner, which the flight attendant told me was called cava in Spanish. Good to know!  Aaaand it was gratis (free). Can’t beat that! There is definitely something going on with my tooth and right about now is when I wish I hadn’t been stubborn and had gone to the dentist again to have it checked out. My friend Julia said this was how she felt when her wisdom tooth came in, so hopefully that’s what it is… Everyone keep your fingers crossed that I don’t have to pay a visit to the dentista when I get to Spain.

The plane is really really REALLY big—much bigger than I’m used to. I’m in row 32, seat G. The way that it’s configured is that there are two seats on the left (A & B), then an aisle, then four seats, (D,E, G, H)  another aisle, and two more seats (J & L). I’m trying to figure out why C, F, I, and K got the shaft…

I’m seated between two really nice girls. One is going to Sevilla and one is on my program. Lisa, the one going to Granada, is actually the one who my mom asked to hold my hand through security while I was tearing up (don’t worry, I was actually able to walk through alone).

My mom, my dad, and Matt came with me to the airport to drop me off. We went to a restaurant in the Hilton called The Gaslight Lounge for lunch-- Great food, phenomenal company, and an… interesting atmosphere. We then went to the terminal, checked me in, and they stayed with me as long as they could in the security line. Saying goodbye was really tough, but I knew it would be.  I had my phone at the gate, which for some reason was really upsetting. It was almost like my family and friends were close to me physically but I knew that I couldn’t see them or talk to them on that phone for four months. So, after teary phone calls to my parents and Matt, I turned it off and felt a little more like I had bitten the bullet and was en route.

We had a lot of fun at our gate, sitting around and talking about the trip. I’ve already met a lot of cool people on my program, which is exciting. We were laughing the first few times they made announcements in Spanish and all of our faces lit up when we understood them. Then we got on the plane and the announcements got longer, more complicated, and faster, and we realized we may have gotten excited too soon!  I’m sure the pace of the language will come soon, though. I’m just excited to get settled in Granada!

Here’s a slideshow I put together on the plane… I’m loving my new Mac! The slideshow has pictures from the last few days. The song is “Let’s Get it Started” by the Black Eyed Peas, but I couldn’t figure out how to get the part I wanted to play to play. It works, though J I’ll hopefully figure out all the iMovie tricks soon.

 

Miss everyone already!

Con amor (with love),

Sal

UPDATE: 10:17pm CST. My tooth is starting to feel better, and using the power of self-diagnosis (because, as many of you know, when I feel remotely sick or am mildly injured, I become a physician and diagnose myself, usually with the worst-case scenario), I have determined that it is my wisdom tooth coming in, which I can handle…. Just as long as I don’t have to have root canal #4, especially in another country. 

Travel Shenanigans

Arrived safely in Madrid! The flight wasn't bad at all, but sleeping wasn't happening for me. I wrote a blog entry from the plane that I'll post right after I post this!

Now we're in the Madrid airport and apparently our travel agent got us tickets from Madrid to Granada on the wrong day (they're for the 13th and it's the 14th here). It's kind of a pain but hopefully won't be too big of a deal... just a LOT of hanging out in the Madrid airport. It's fun to get to bond with the other kids on the program over this mishap, too.

I'll blog again as soon as I can! Miss everyone already

Less than 48 hours to go

Hoooooooly cow it's getting close to being time to go!

I think I'm about 90% packed, which is a huge relief. I'm sure I'll get on the plane and have an "OH-NO-I-FORGOT-SOMETHING" moment, but hopefully it will be something small and not something crucial. It's weird not packing things like my cell phone charger, hair dryer, straightener, etc. I think the hardest part about packing so far has been choosing which seasons of Friends to bring! (For those who are concerned, I decided on 6, 7, and 8... I needed to be able to watch Dick Clark New Year's Rockin' Eve, the holiday armadillo, and Joey's interview with Soap Opera Digest. It was really hard not to pack "PIVOT!"). All four seasons of The Office did make the cut, though. My good friend Libby studied in Seville last year and said that watching American movies and TV shows helps curb homesickness at the beginning, so I'm taking her advice and packing my favorites. My room is a complete disaster, but that'll be fixed soon.

The toll packing is taking on my room

All I need-- slippers, shoes, seasons 6-8 of Friends, and peanut butter and crackers

Yesterday was a very productive day. My mom and I did some damage at Target and got me all set, then went to lunch at Ed Debevic's (in Yorktown mall) and got two pairs of good walking shoes.

We did have a minor crisis today when my laptop CRASHED! Thank you, thank you, thank you God that it decided to crash tonight rather than three days from now when my dad isn't there to help me figure out what to do! We're gonna be heading out tomorrow to (hopefully) get me a new one. Everyone keep your fingers crossed that Apple in Oak Brook has them in stock.

Had a great day today otherwise-- lunch with my mom's family at Egg Harbor (minus my cousin Arne and his wife, Beth, and their daugter, Abbie, who are waiting on their second girl to be born any day now!). Then my mom and dad and I went out to Algonquin to have dinner with Matt and his parents at Port Edward, which was a ton of fun and such good food!

Tomorrow's going to be a day of more getting ready, a few errands, and some really tough "see-ya-laters" (I don't do "goodbyes" :-) )

One week left in the USA

Today is a big day for two reasons.

#1.) Today officially marks the big "one week until I leave" milestone. Oh. My. Gosh.

#2.) I got my host family's information today! I'm living with a woman named Rosario and her two kids, a 10-year-old girl and a 7-year-old boy. I asked my friend Michele (who studied abroad in Granada this past summer) if she knew anything about them, and she said that she's pretty sure they were her friend's host family and that they are wonderful... what a relief! Apparently the kids are adorable and very interactive, which I would love! I'm very excited to get to meet them. I have to figure out a gift to bring Rosario and gifts for the kids this week.

Starting to feel less and less like I'm going to throw up and starting to get more and more excited!