So I'm currently sitting looking at my empty armoire and freaking out a little bit. This has been where I've lived, slept, cried, laughed, done homework, hung out with people, made friends, and grown over the last three and a half months. How do I just say goodbye to a place that's changed my life so much? How is it possible that I actually am not ready to leave yet?
I've decided that it's not going to be terribly difficult to say goodbye to the city of Granada itself, but it will be very difficult to say goodbye to everything that I associate with this place, like all of my friends and memories. I know I'll still have both of those things, but it just won't be the same back in Chicago and Champaign. I think I'm going to feel, at least for a little while, like I'm missing part of myself. Because how do you go from seeing people every day to not seeing them at all? And furthermore, how do you go from sharing the same experiences and the same hardships back to normal life?
I think Steve put it really well. He said, "while I'm not ready to leave Granada yet, if everyone else went home and I was here by myself, I don't think it would be worth it to stay." Granada, for me, is the people I've met, the friends I've made, and the memories I'll hold on to for a long time. Some of my favorite memories are:
-Walking around looking for/avoiding zombies in the Alpujarras with Steve
-Batan
-The last day we had in Rome - perfect weather, we saw beautiful things, and I was just on top of the world
-Walking around Barcelona with Melissa and having a really good conversation with her
-The bike tour through Tuscany
-Salsa lessons
-Short-sheeting Steve's bed in Florence
-Devon's birthday/Camborio
-Farewell dinner/Granada Diez
-Just being able to relax
-Getting to walk around in Paris with Brett and talk
-The wind storm in Algeceiras (haha...)
-Hanging out in the biblioteca
-Halloween
-Thanksgiving dinner
There are a few things that I'm not going to miss, however, such as:
-No central heating
-Crappy Internet
-Nonexistent customer service
-Cigarette smoke EVERYWHERE
Don't get me wrong, I am very excited to go home and see my parents, Paul, Stratford House, and the Banambra (in that order), but leaving is still sad and hard to handle. I want to go home for Christmas because I am so excited about giving everyone their presents (and I hope nothing breaks while I am traveling, because I would be so incredibly upset, especially the liquids...) and I am so excited (strangely enough) to see all of my aunts and uncles and cousins and just enjoy a good, old-fashioned Christmas with them.
I am definitely not excited for the next day and a half. We have to take a bus to Malaga from 7p-9p, then a train from the bus station to the airport from 1015-1045 (or something like that), and then hanging out ALL night in the Malaga airport, checking in at 4 in the morning, taking a flight from Malaga to Paris from 705a-930a, having a layover in Paris, then taking a nine and a half hour flight from Paris to Chicago from 115p (Paris time) to 340p (Chicago time). AND I'm really congested, so it's probably going to hurt to fly. I decided that my nose is protesting the insane amount of cigarette smoke that I've been around the last three and a half months by choosing to not let me breath anymore. Darn cigarette smoke... It probably also doesn't help that my hair stays wet for several hours due to it being too cold in the apartment for the water to evaporate off of my head.
I am definitely a different person leaving here than I was coming here. I am so much more relaxed, I trust the Lord infinitely more, and I know and really understand that people are so much more important than school could ever be and it's okay to take breaks from studying and hang out with people, and I know that the Lord has got complete and total control over my life, and He knows what He's doing, and I can trust that and not be afraid. I think I am a lot more liberal as a person, more outgoing, more human, but I love the Lord so much more and I trust Him so much more, and even though those two things seem contradictory, I can't imagine myself growing in any other way. I am a liberal Christian, and I love it. I don't know that I've been happier with myself as a person, ever, so that has to be something good.
Well folks, I made it. See you on the flip side.
Dos besos...
Showing posts with label travels. Show all posts
Showing posts with label travels. Show all posts
Saturday, December 13, 2008
Monday, November 17, 2008
Barca!!!
So... Barcelona is officially my favorite city in Spain that I've visited so far.
It really was just wonderful. We had gorgeous weather (low 60's the entire weekend) and there is just SO MUCH to do there!! We visited Las Ramblas (a famous street with lots of shops that runs into the Mediterranean), the beach (they're actually fake and the sand gets brought up from Egypt every few years), the statue of Christopher Columbus "pointing to the sea", the Plaza Real (built by the Bacard family - yes, when you thought Bacardi rum, you were thinking correctly), the old palace for Ferdinand and Isabel, Sagrada Familia, Park Guell, Casa Mila La Pedrera and Casa Batllo (but didn't go into either of these, just saw them from the outside), the Picasso museum (this was wonderful, and I decided that I like early Picasso a LOT and I really don't appreciate later Picasso very much), and lots of other random places.
We also signed up for a cooking class where we learned how to make sangria and paella. The sangria was absolutely fantastic!! I'm super excited to get that recipe and try it when I get home - it's supposed to be better if you let it sit overnight first so I'll definitely have to do that. The paella was decent, definitely not as good as when my senora's dad makes it. It did have prawns in it (read: shrimp with a head, eyes, antennae, skin, and feet) but I braved the storm and peeled and ate them, and actually thought they were quite delicious!
The only really bad thing about Barcelona is that the people who run the gift shops are all REALLY pushy. We'd go into a store and if we spent even more than a couple moments looking at something, they'd come up to us and tell us how much it was. AND they followed REALLY closely behind us ALL the time, and it really made me not want to buy anything from them, so I really didn't.
I absolutely LOVED the Sagrada Familia and Park Guell (see my Picasa album for pictures!!). I'd seen it all in pictures before and it was just thrilling to get to see it in person and take my OWN pictures of the places! I really wanted to go inside Casa Batllo as well but it was 16,50 euro to get in, which was WAY too expensive... I was just so excited to see all of Gaudi's stuff, since I'd done a presentation on him in high school. It was fabulous!
So... yeah, Barcelona is pretty amazing as far as Spanish cities are concerned, and if given the opportunity, I'd go back in a heartbeat (because there was still stuff that we didn't get to see because we didn't have enough time).
I've got one more trip to Madrid to see Megan this upcoming weekend, and then I am done traveling. While I'm sad that I'm not going to get to see EVERYTHING that I want to see here in Europe, I think, on the whole, I made good decisions about my travel destinations and I enjoyed my time in them. Additionally, my feet have been yelling at me this last week and a half to STOP WALKING EVERYWHERE ALL THE TIME! Goodness, they are tired. I think it's some sort of combination of all the traveling I've done and just plain walking everywhere, but my feet are looking forward to a break, a day where they don't have to be constantly walking.
Also, I can't believe that I'll be home in four weeks! It's such a weird thought for me, because for a lot of this trip, I thought it would never end, but now, the end is FAST approaching and I can't believe how quickly it seems to have gone (quickly and not at the same time). I mean, I'm visiting my sister this weekend, and then it's Thanksgiving, and then almost right after that I'll have finals, and then I'm going home. It's like, bam! bam! bam! all going at once.
I feel like a rock that has been traveling over this giant hill for the time that I've been here, at least since the halfway point. Right after the halfway point, I felt like things were still moving decently slowly, but now I'm rolling and picking up speed now that I'm halfway down the hill. Such an odd thought to be almost done with such a life-changing semester...
It really was just wonderful. We had gorgeous weather (low 60's the entire weekend) and there is just SO MUCH to do there!! We visited Las Ramblas (a famous street with lots of shops that runs into the Mediterranean), the beach (they're actually fake and the sand gets brought up from Egypt every few years), the statue of Christopher Columbus "pointing to the sea", the Plaza Real (built by the Bacard family - yes, when you thought Bacardi rum, you were thinking correctly), the old palace for Ferdinand and Isabel, Sagrada Familia, Park Guell, Casa Mila La Pedrera and Casa Batllo (but didn't go into either of these, just saw them from the outside), the Picasso museum (this was wonderful, and I decided that I like early Picasso a LOT and I really don't appreciate later Picasso very much), and lots of other random places.
We also signed up for a cooking class where we learned how to make sangria and paella. The sangria was absolutely fantastic!! I'm super excited to get that recipe and try it when I get home - it's supposed to be better if you let it sit overnight first so I'll definitely have to do that. The paella was decent, definitely not as good as when my senora's dad makes it. It did have prawns in it (read: shrimp with a head, eyes, antennae, skin, and feet) but I braved the storm and peeled and ate them, and actually thought they were quite delicious!
The only really bad thing about Barcelona is that the people who run the gift shops are all REALLY pushy. We'd go into a store and if we spent even more than a couple moments looking at something, they'd come up to us and tell us how much it was. AND they followed REALLY closely behind us ALL the time, and it really made me not want to buy anything from them, so I really didn't.
I absolutely LOVED the Sagrada Familia and Park Guell (see my Picasa album for pictures!!). I'd seen it all in pictures before and it was just thrilling to get to see it in person and take my OWN pictures of the places! I really wanted to go inside Casa Batllo as well but it was 16,50 euro to get in, which was WAY too expensive... I was just so excited to see all of Gaudi's stuff, since I'd done a presentation on him in high school. It was fabulous!
So... yeah, Barcelona is pretty amazing as far as Spanish cities are concerned, and if given the opportunity, I'd go back in a heartbeat (because there was still stuff that we didn't get to see because we didn't have enough time).
I've got one more trip to Madrid to see Megan this upcoming weekend, and then I am done traveling. While I'm sad that I'm not going to get to see EVERYTHING that I want to see here in Europe, I think, on the whole, I made good decisions about my travel destinations and I enjoyed my time in them. Additionally, my feet have been yelling at me this last week and a half to STOP WALKING EVERYWHERE ALL THE TIME! Goodness, they are tired. I think it's some sort of combination of all the traveling I've done and just plain walking everywhere, but my feet are looking forward to a break, a day where they don't have to be constantly walking.
Also, I can't believe that I'll be home in four weeks! It's such a weird thought for me, because for a lot of this trip, I thought it would never end, but now, the end is FAST approaching and I can't believe how quickly it seems to have gone (quickly and not at the same time). I mean, I'm visiting my sister this weekend, and then it's Thanksgiving, and then almost right after that I'll have finals, and then I'm going home. It's like, bam! bam! bam! all going at once.
I feel like a rock that has been traveling over this giant hill for the time that I've been here, at least since the halfway point. Right after the halfway point, I felt like things were still moving decently slowly, but now I'm rolling and picking up speed now that I'm halfway down the hill. Such an odd thought to be almost done with such a life-changing semester...
Monday, October 27, 2008
Venice!!
And... my Venice update.
We had quite the interesting time finding our hostel. It was on the mainland (and pretty far in), so we had to take a bus, but the directions from the hostel were really bad, so we ended up at the Marco Polo airport. We found the street on the way back (after asking in two different pizza parlors), but then the street address didn't exist. We found a building that had the same name as our hostel, but when we buzzed, no one answered. So we were out there for about an hour before this Italian woman came in her car and let us in. And she only spoke Italian so we couldn't be like, "where the heck were you? We've been here for an exceptionally long time." But we got it all figured out (we just didn't end up going back into Venice because we were so tired of trying to figure out travel situations). The hostel was really pretty; it was more like a mini-apartment, which was great. We did wake up to a rooster crowing, though...
We also just walked around in Venice, since we only had one day to explore. We went to Saint Mark's Square (but I wasn't nearly as impressed as I thought I was going to be because it was just the cathedral and then a big open space with a bunch of shops all around it). We also took a boat to Murano and got to see a blown glass demonstration, and it was phenomenal. He made this little glass horse in like five minutes. The only thing is that when he finished, as people were leaving, he took it and just pitched it! It was crazy that he didn't just sell it to someone.
But Venice was really pretty. We did get lost like four or five times because a lot of the streets ended at a canal, or just ended for no apparent reason.
We were all pretty ready to head back to Granada, though. We did have one heck of a travel day. To save the unnecessary words, I'll just list our itinerary:
411 bus from hostel to island of Venice
Arrive 430ish
540 shuttle from Venice to Treviso Airport
Arrive 640ish
8am flight from Venice to Rome
Arrive 9am
115pm flight from Rome to Madrid
Arrive 330ish
530 bus from Madrid to Granada
Arrive 1030
Home.
It was SUCH a long day. We did keep ourselves occupied in the early morning hours (the first two buses) by discussing (in GREAT detail) what we would do if zombies attacked. No joke. The conversation lasted probably around two hours.
But I am glad to be home, and will be posting another update immediately following this one documenting my new situation!
We had quite the interesting time finding our hostel. It was on the mainland (and pretty far in), so we had to take a bus, but the directions from the hostel were really bad, so we ended up at the Marco Polo airport. We found the street on the way back (after asking in two different pizza parlors), but then the street address didn't exist. We found a building that had the same name as our hostel, but when we buzzed, no one answered. So we were out there for about an hour before this Italian woman came in her car and let us in. And she only spoke Italian so we couldn't be like, "where the heck were you? We've been here for an exceptionally long time." But we got it all figured out (we just didn't end up going back into Venice because we were so tired of trying to figure out travel situations). The hostel was really pretty; it was more like a mini-apartment, which was great. We did wake up to a rooster crowing, though...
We also just walked around in Venice, since we only had one day to explore. We went to Saint Mark's Square (but I wasn't nearly as impressed as I thought I was going to be because it was just the cathedral and then a big open space with a bunch of shops all around it). We also took a boat to Murano and got to see a blown glass demonstration, and it was phenomenal. He made this little glass horse in like five minutes. The only thing is that when he finished, as people were leaving, he took it and just pitched it! It was crazy that he didn't just sell it to someone.
But Venice was really pretty. We did get lost like four or five times because a lot of the streets ended at a canal, or just ended for no apparent reason.
We were all pretty ready to head back to Granada, though. We did have one heck of a travel day. To save the unnecessary words, I'll just list our itinerary:
411 bus from hostel to island of Venice
Arrive 430ish
540 shuttle from Venice to Treviso Airport
Arrive 640ish
8am flight from Venice to Rome
Arrive 9am
115pm flight from Rome to Madrid
Arrive 330ish
530 bus from Madrid to Granada
Arrive 1030
Home.
It was SUCH a long day. We did keep ourselves occupied in the early morning hours (the first two buses) by discussing (in GREAT detail) what we would do if zombies attacked. No joke. The conversation lasted probably around two hours.
But I am glad to be home, and will be posting another update immediately following this one documenting my new situation!
Florence!!
So... this is my Florence update. : )
Florence is such a beautiful city; I actually spent most of my time here just walking around and looking at the city, rather than doing anything in it (because everything costs a lot to get in). We didn't have very good weather on Tuesday or Thursday (the days I was actually in the city), but that's okay.
On Wednesday, we did this bike tour through the Tuscan countryside and it was a B-E-A-Utiful day (you should check out my pictures to see just how amazing it was)! It was quite interesting to re-learn to ride a bike (I'd only ridden once in the last eight years...), but I had a really good time. We got to see how they make and ferment and bottle the wine (and we got to taste it, of course) in this absolutely gorgeous castle. Our guide, Mary, was also pretty amazing; she had a great sense of humor and definitely knew what she was talking about. Basically, the countryside was beautiful, the wine was good, the weather was perfect, and the people were fun. It was just a great day all around.
Then I went and watched the sunset up at Piazzale Michelangelo, and it was wonderful (even more so because I found a sunset setting on my camera).
Thursday I hit up the Duomo, and I was pretty impressed. The inside of the church itself wasn't that cool, but the outside and the cupola and the dome were amazing. I walked all 467 steps to the top, and just relaxed up there for a little bit. It wasn't busy at all, so that was wonderful.
I also visited the Santa Croce basilica, which (unfortunately) was under some sort of construction, so there was lots of not pretty stuff covering all of the pretty stuff, but I still thought it was a wonderful building.
Yeah, even though I didn't see too much, I really enjoyed my time here (especially in the Tuscan countryside), and I am going to post my next update immediately following posting this one documenting my time in Venice.
Florence is such a beautiful city; I actually spent most of my time here just walking around and looking at the city, rather than doing anything in it (because everything costs a lot to get in). We didn't have very good weather on Tuesday or Thursday (the days I was actually in the city), but that's okay.
On Wednesday, we did this bike tour through the Tuscan countryside and it was a B-E-A-Utiful day (you should check out my pictures to see just how amazing it was)! It was quite interesting to re-learn to ride a bike (I'd only ridden once in the last eight years...), but I had a really good time. We got to see how they make and ferment and bottle the wine (and we got to taste it, of course) in this absolutely gorgeous castle. Our guide, Mary, was also pretty amazing; she had a great sense of humor and definitely knew what she was talking about. Basically, the countryside was beautiful, the wine was good, the weather was perfect, and the people were fun. It was just a great day all around.
Then I went and watched the sunset up at Piazzale Michelangelo, and it was wonderful (even more so because I found a sunset setting on my camera).
Thursday I hit up the Duomo, and I was pretty impressed. The inside of the church itself wasn't that cool, but the outside and the cupola and the dome were amazing. I walked all 467 steps to the top, and just relaxed up there for a little bit. It wasn't busy at all, so that was wonderful.
I also visited the Santa Croce basilica, which (unfortunately) was under some sort of construction, so there was lots of not pretty stuff covering all of the pretty stuff, but I still thought it was a wonderful building.
Yeah, even though I didn't see too much, I really enjoyed my time here (especially in the Tuscan countryside), and I am going to post my next update immediately following posting this one documenting my time in Venice.
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
ROME!
Holy cow, I'm in Italy!!!
I'll try to be as concise as possible to save you all the boredom of my impossibly long stories.
So we got to Rome on Friday without a hitch (yay!), and didn't end up doing too much. We met some Australians who were staying in our hostel and recommended this pizza place that charged you by the weight (and it was fantastic, by the way). We also visited the Piazza della Repubblica, which was really pretty at night. Unfortunately, I couldn't get really good pictures of it because I couldn't get my hand to stay still.
Saturday we went with the Australians to see the Vatican city. We didn't get there until ten because one of them (Dan) thought there was this free tour at 1030 (but this wasn't true), so we ended up getting in this HUGE line to see St. Peter's Basilica. We had a bunch of tour guides come up to us and ask us if we wanted a guided tour, but they were all really expensive, so we kept saying no. But then we found out that the pope (for whatever reason) decided he wanted to close the Sistine Chapel at one and that we weren't going to get in to see it if we stayed in that line. We eventually haggled this one tour guide down to 20 euro (including admission fee when everyone else on the tour paid 25 euro and then the 14 euro admission fee; it was pretty sweet). I really liked our tour guide, and what's more, I LOVED the Vatican Museum and the Sistine Chapel (we got in JUST in time to see it), and St. Peter's Basilica. I felt like I was walking around with my mouth wide open the entire time.
Then on Friday night, we took ourselves on a walking tour through Rome. We saw the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, the Roman Forum, the Coliseum, the Pantheon, Trevi Fountain, adn the Spanish Steps. I got some pretty sweet night shots of them (which you should check out on my pictures page).
Saturday, four of us went to the Villa Borghese, specifically the Galleria Borghese. Oh. My. Goodness. It was absolutely amazing. The walls and ceilings and even the floors were just COVERED in all of this fabulous art. AND I got to see Bernini's David, Apollo and Daphne, adn Rape of Persephone. I was completely blown away. We also got to check out the Villa itself for a little while and it was just so pretty; it was like this giant part with all of these sculptures and fountains, and it was just wonderful.
We got to see the Coliseum and the Roman Forum on Saturday, and they were both SUPER cool. The Roman Forum was actually a lot cooler than I thought it was going to be (it helped that we had a really good tour guide). I was just really excited to have gotten to see both of those things at night and then again during the day. I felt like I learned a lot, too, so that was a bonus.
Sunday we took ourselves on a tour of Rome, and we actually walked across the entire main part of the city throughout the day. We visited Santa Maria degli Angeli (has the MOST beautiful stained glass I've ever seen), the Trevi fountain (which wasn't on because they were working on it), the Pantheon (amazing dome!!), St. Ignacio di Loyola (BEST CEILING EVER!!), Piazza Navona (sad that the fountain was under construction), Castel Sant' Angelo, and then just walked down the Tiber River. It was a fantastic day.
So... I think everyone should visit my Picasa page and look at all of the wonderful pictures that I took. And I will update again after Florence!!
I'll try to be as concise as possible to save you all the boredom of my impossibly long stories.
So we got to Rome on Friday without a hitch (yay!), and didn't end up doing too much. We met some Australians who were staying in our hostel and recommended this pizza place that charged you by the weight (and it was fantastic, by the way). We also visited the Piazza della Repubblica, which was really pretty at night. Unfortunately, I couldn't get really good pictures of it because I couldn't get my hand to stay still.
Saturday we went with the Australians to see the Vatican city. We didn't get there until ten because one of them (Dan) thought there was this free tour at 1030 (but this wasn't true), so we ended up getting in this HUGE line to see St. Peter's Basilica. We had a bunch of tour guides come up to us and ask us if we wanted a guided tour, but they were all really expensive, so we kept saying no. But then we found out that the pope (for whatever reason) decided he wanted to close the Sistine Chapel at one and that we weren't going to get in to see it if we stayed in that line. We eventually haggled this one tour guide down to 20 euro (including admission fee when everyone else on the tour paid 25 euro and then the 14 euro admission fee; it was pretty sweet). I really liked our tour guide, and what's more, I LOVED the Vatican Museum and the Sistine Chapel (we got in JUST in time to see it), and St. Peter's Basilica. I felt like I was walking around with my mouth wide open the entire time.
Then on Friday night, we took ourselves on a walking tour through Rome. We saw the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, the Roman Forum, the Coliseum, the Pantheon, Trevi Fountain, adn the Spanish Steps. I got some pretty sweet night shots of them (which you should check out on my pictures page).
Saturday, four of us went to the Villa Borghese, specifically the Galleria Borghese. Oh. My. Goodness. It was absolutely amazing. The walls and ceilings and even the floors were just COVERED in all of this fabulous art. AND I got to see Bernini's David, Apollo and Daphne, adn Rape of Persephone. I was completely blown away. We also got to check out the Villa itself for a little while and it was just so pretty; it was like this giant part with all of these sculptures and fountains, and it was just wonderful.
We got to see the Coliseum and the Roman Forum on Saturday, and they were both SUPER cool. The Roman Forum was actually a lot cooler than I thought it was going to be (it helped that we had a really good tour guide). I was just really excited to have gotten to see both of those things at night and then again during the day. I felt like I learned a lot, too, so that was a bonus.
Sunday we took ourselves on a tour of Rome, and we actually walked across the entire main part of the city throughout the day. We visited Santa Maria degli Angeli (has the MOST beautiful stained glass I've ever seen), the Trevi fountain (which wasn't on because they were working on it), the Pantheon (amazing dome!!), St. Ignacio di Loyola (BEST CEILING EVER!!), Piazza Navona (sad that the fountain was under construction), Castel Sant' Angelo, and then just walked down the Tiber River. It was a fantastic day.
So... I think everyone should visit my Picasa page and look at all of the wonderful pictures that I took. And I will update again after Florence!!
Thursday, October 16, 2008
Italy!!
Hi Everyone!
Starting tomorrow, I am going to be traveling through the fabulous country of Italy for the next ten days! I will try to update during the trip, but I'm not sure how often I'll be able to get online.
Right now, I need to go home and pack (and try to figure out how to fit ten days' worth of stuff plus a laptop into my backpack without it exceeding 10kg or the weird dimension requirements... yay?)
If nothing else, I will let you all know how it goes when I get back!
Italy, here I come!!!
Starting tomorrow, I am going to be traveling through the fabulous country of Italy for the next ten days! I will try to update during the trip, but I'm not sure how often I'll be able to get online.
Right now, I need to go home and pack (and try to figure out how to fit ten days' worth of stuff plus a laptop into my backpack without it exceeding 10kg or the weird dimension requirements... yay?)
If nothing else, I will let you all know how it goes when I get back!
Italy, here I come!!!
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Morocco??
Oh. My. Goodness. This weekend was absolutely insane. We spent SO much of it either traveling or waiting to travel; it was absolutely ridiculous. We left Granada at one on Friday to get to the boat station, only to find out (after the three hour bus ride and being at the port for about 1.5-2 hours) that there were no boats going out because of the bad weather. So we had to spend the night in this sketchy "hotel" that we nicknamed the Bates Motel, because it was seriously that sketchy. It was dirty and the beds were uncomfortable and a lot of the windows didn't lock so they kept flying open because of the wind and the showers mostly just dripped out of the shower heads. We were seriously in the middle of a crazy windstorm, though. I was sitting with Maggie and Kelly and all of a sudden, half of their blind got RIPPED off and flew away. The three of us started screaming and Kaitlin and Katie (who'd walked in just in time to see it get ripped off) started laughing. It was really quite scary.
After dinner, a bunch of us girls decided to brave the storm in search of a grocery store. Holy cow, it was SO windy! Two girls lost their shoes and had to chase them down, and two girls almost got swept away, it was so windy. We were honestly walking at like 45-degree angles for parts of it because the gusts were just so strong. It was the worst when we'd cross a street; Devon actually had to accept the help of this sketchy guy because otherwise she was literally going to blow away. I was really the only person who wasn't really having problems with the wind, which was odd considering I was the smallest in the group. It was a lot of fun, though, and we have some interesting stories, so that's good.
Saturday we had to wake up early to be at the boat station by nine so we could "get on a boat", but we got there and found out there wasn't a boat until eleven. Then when eleven rolled around, we found out that there still weren't any boats, and we might just be going home. About two minutes later, though, they told us that there WAS a boat at one that we were going to take. The boat ride rocked a bunch of people, though, because the water was really choppy so a bunch of people (in our group and not) got motion sickness. It was also really foggy so the boat ride took longer than it should have.
We finally made it to Africa but had to cross the border from Spain to Morocco (because Spain has two cities on the continent of Africa that belong to them, so we docked in Ceuta). There, the travel agent decided to tell us that our guide didn't speak English OR Spanish, and only Arabic and French. We were like, "seriously, can anything ELSE go wrong on this trip?" The guide came on the bus and started talking in Arabic, but then switched to English and Spanish. Dear travel agent: that was NOT funny.
We made it to Tetuaon, but I was really sketched out by it. I swear it was a city FULL of men. There were pretty much literally no women on the streets, and all of the men just stared at us as we walked by them. So uncomfortable. I'm also pretty sure we walked past the black market, because there was this street that was just lined with car parts and electronics and all of this other really random stuff. Then we got to this market-thingy and I was pretty grossed out by that because there was all this fresh meat just hanging out (not refrigerated) and some of it had flies on it. Gag. I think it was the combination of the fact that it got dark really fast and the weather wasn't good and it was just really dirty, but I was not a fan of Tetuaon. They also took us to a Moroccan rug shop (Moroccan rugs are apparently some of the best rugs in the world, second only to Persian rugs, which means they're EXPENSIVE). I thought it was weird that they took a bunch of poor college students to a place where they were asking like a thousand euro for a rug.
Our hotel for Saturday night was MUCH nicer than the "hotel" on Friday night; it was only three months old so everything was brand new, clean, and much more comfortable. The only downside to this hotel was that the showers were definitely all COLD. But the food was good, and it was just someplace to sleep for the night.
On Sunday we went to Chef-Chaouen, and I liked it a LOT more than Tetuaon. It wasn't so much a city as a smaller town, and the weather was nicer, and it was just all around prettier. Everything was blue and white (their colors) and with the nice day, it was just really pretty. We did get roped into going into a blanket shop (they must have had a deal with these places or something), but they wouldn't barter (which IS weird here), so one of the guides took a couple of my friends to another store where they would barter and were selling basically the same things. It was kind of scary, though, because he left with them and then came back alone, and we were like, "what did you do with our friends?!?" They did come back eventually (after we'd left the blanket place), but it was just kind of scary for the moment. I got to go shopping, though, and bought little things for some people, so I'm excited that I actually have stuff to give to people when I get home. (Don't worry, I did get something for myself too).
All in all, with all of the traveling and waiting we did, we spent about 26.5 hours in Morocco out of the 58.5 hours in the weekend (from 1pm Friday to 1130pm Sunday). AND, out of those 26.5 hours we spent in Morocco, I think we only spent 14 hours not traveling or sleeping. It was kind of upsetting, and I think we're going to try to get some of our money back (if for no other reason than the fact that the "hotel" we stayed in on Friday night was no where near as nice as the one we were supposed to be staying at (The one we stayed at on Saturday night). We also didn't get to ride a camel (because we were supposed to do that in Tangiers, but skipped the city all together because we didn't have time). Don't get me wrong, I had a good time, but i would have liked more time in Morocco with less traveling/waiting.
After dinner, a bunch of us girls decided to brave the storm in search of a grocery store. Holy cow, it was SO windy! Two girls lost their shoes and had to chase them down, and two girls almost got swept away, it was so windy. We were honestly walking at like 45-degree angles for parts of it because the gusts were just so strong. It was the worst when we'd cross a street; Devon actually had to accept the help of this sketchy guy because otherwise she was literally going to blow away. I was really the only person who wasn't really having problems with the wind, which was odd considering I was the smallest in the group. It was a lot of fun, though, and we have some interesting stories, so that's good.
Saturday we had to wake up early to be at the boat station by nine so we could "get on a boat", but we got there and found out there wasn't a boat until eleven. Then when eleven rolled around, we found out that there still weren't any boats, and we might just be going home. About two minutes later, though, they told us that there WAS a boat at one that we were going to take. The boat ride rocked a bunch of people, though, because the water was really choppy so a bunch of people (in our group and not) got motion sickness. It was also really foggy so the boat ride took longer than it should have.
We finally made it to Africa but had to cross the border from Spain to Morocco (because Spain has two cities on the continent of Africa that belong to them, so we docked in Ceuta). There, the travel agent decided to tell us that our guide didn't speak English OR Spanish, and only Arabic and French. We were like, "seriously, can anything ELSE go wrong on this trip?" The guide came on the bus and started talking in Arabic, but then switched to English and Spanish. Dear travel agent: that was NOT funny.
We made it to Tetuaon, but I was really sketched out by it. I swear it was a city FULL of men. There were pretty much literally no women on the streets, and all of the men just stared at us as we walked by them. So uncomfortable. I'm also pretty sure we walked past the black market, because there was this street that was just lined with car parts and electronics and all of this other really random stuff. Then we got to this market-thingy and I was pretty grossed out by that because there was all this fresh meat just hanging out (not refrigerated) and some of it had flies on it. Gag. I think it was the combination of the fact that it got dark really fast and the weather wasn't good and it was just really dirty, but I was not a fan of Tetuaon. They also took us to a Moroccan rug shop (Moroccan rugs are apparently some of the best rugs in the world, second only to Persian rugs, which means they're EXPENSIVE). I thought it was weird that they took a bunch of poor college students to a place where they were asking like a thousand euro for a rug.
Our hotel for Saturday night was MUCH nicer than the "hotel" on Friday night; it was only three months old so everything was brand new, clean, and much more comfortable. The only downside to this hotel was that the showers were definitely all COLD. But the food was good, and it was just someplace to sleep for the night.
On Sunday we went to Chef-Chaouen, and I liked it a LOT more than Tetuaon. It wasn't so much a city as a smaller town, and the weather was nicer, and it was just all around prettier. Everything was blue and white (their colors) and with the nice day, it was just really pretty. We did get roped into going into a blanket shop (they must have had a deal with these places or something), but they wouldn't barter (which IS weird here), so one of the guides took a couple of my friends to another store where they would barter and were selling basically the same things. It was kind of scary, though, because he left with them and then came back alone, and we were like, "what did you do with our friends?!?" They did come back eventually (after we'd left the blanket place), but it was just kind of scary for the moment. I got to go shopping, though, and bought little things for some people, so I'm excited that I actually have stuff to give to people when I get home. (Don't worry, I did get something for myself too).
All in all, with all of the traveling and waiting we did, we spent about 26.5 hours in Morocco out of the 58.5 hours in the weekend (from 1pm Friday to 1130pm Sunday). AND, out of those 26.5 hours we spent in Morocco, I think we only spent 14 hours not traveling or sleeping. It was kind of upsetting, and I think we're going to try to get some of our money back (if for no other reason than the fact that the "hotel" we stayed in on Friday night was no where near as nice as the one we were supposed to be staying at (The one we stayed at on Saturday night). We also didn't get to ride a camel (because we were supposed to do that in Tangiers, but skipped the city all together because we didn't have time). Don't get me wrong, I had a good time, but i would have liked more time in Morocco with less traveling/waiting.
Thursday, October 9, 2008
MOROCCO TOMORROW!!!
I'm so, so excited to travel outside of Spain, I can't even tell you. And I'm going to be with a group of like 25-30 other people, so I'll be safe, and I'm just really excited. Plus, it was 190 euro for everything (travel, food, hotel) so how could I pass that up?
I'll let you all know how that goes on Tuesday when I get back and have Internet access again (because Monday is Columbus day and that's apparently a big enough deal to not have classes. AND have everything else in Spain be closed...)
I'll let you all know how that goes on Tuesday when I get back and have Internet access again (because Monday is Columbus day and that's apparently a big enough deal to not have classes. AND have everything else in Spain be closed...)
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
Complain-y
So... I just found out yesterday that my grammar exam that I thought was next Thursday is actually this Thursday (a.k.a., tomorrow) because of an error in the syllabus...
SURPRISE!!!
Also, I'm going to be really glad when Semana Blanca is over, as awful as this sounds, because I am tired of planning a trip for five other people who are actually getting annoyed at the fact that I'm planning things. I've been sending everyone in the group e-mails with updates and such, and I had to send another one because I found some trains that we could take while we're over there, and I told a girl in the room that I'd sent her another e-mail, and she was like, "another one??" like it was really so terrible to just read the e-mail and think about it for a second or two and then respond to it. Sorry for making your lives easier by taking care of everything so you don't have to think about it at all. My bad...
SURPRISE!!!
Also, I'm going to be really glad when Semana Blanca is over, as awful as this sounds, because I am tired of planning a trip for five other people who are actually getting annoyed at the fact that I'm planning things. I've been sending everyone in the group e-mails with updates and such, and I had to send another one because I found some trains that we could take while we're over there, and I told a girl in the room that I'd sent her another e-mail, and she was like, "another one??" like it was really so terrible to just read the e-mail and think about it for a second or two and then respond to it. Sorry for making your lives easier by taking care of everything so you don't have to think about it at all. My bad...
Monday, October 6, 2008
Weekend Update/Travel Plans
Good news: I am feeling one hundred percent better!! YAY!!!
So this past Friday, I went to Cordoba with half of my classmates and, I have to be honest, I was kind of disappointed in how not impressive the city is. The only thing really to see there is this Mosque-Cathedral that, coincidentally, Cordoba is famous for. It was a mosque way back in the day and then the Catholics came and turned it into a Cathedral and it was just really pretty and impressive (especially considering it was built a SUPER long time ago and is still standing).
In other news, I am signing up today to go on the trip to Morocco this upcoming weekend, which I am super excited about, because it's going to be my first real trip outside of the Granada area, and a lot of my friends are going.
I'm actually pretty excited about the next couple of months, because this is when I'm going to be doing all of my traveling. The itinerary is as follows:
10-12 October: Morocco
17-26 October: Italy (17-21 Rome, 21-24 Florence, 24-26 Venice)
31 October-2 November: chilling in Granada (after Italy, I figure I'm going to need it)
6-9 November: Madrid visiting Megan!!
13-16 November: Barcelona
21-23 November: Switzerland!! (Hopefully Ticino, but I actually have to plan this first)
28-29 November: Sevilla (assuming I have enough money)
5-8 December: chilling in Granada and preparing for finals
12-14 December: preparing to go home; Malaga (yeah hanging out in the airport all night with ALL of my stuff!); HOME!!!
So yeah, as you can see, I'm going to be pretty busy, but I'm so thrilled about it all, I don't even care how busy it's all going to make me. :) And I feel like I'm not really traveling outside of Spain too, too much (three trips outside of Spain, three trips inside Spain, plus the Alpujarras and Cordoba trips, and Megan visiting Granada, so like six trips inside Spain, plus all the weekends that I've spent just chilling here). So I still feel like I'm enmeshing myself in Spanish and not abandoning it completely in favor of English-speaking countries or whatever.
So this past Friday, I went to Cordoba with half of my classmates and, I have to be honest, I was kind of disappointed in how not impressive the city is. The only thing really to see there is this Mosque-Cathedral that, coincidentally, Cordoba is famous for. It was a mosque way back in the day and then the Catholics came and turned it into a Cathedral and it was just really pretty and impressive (especially considering it was built a SUPER long time ago and is still standing).
In other news, I am signing up today to go on the trip to Morocco this upcoming weekend, which I am super excited about, because it's going to be my first real trip outside of the Granada area, and a lot of my friends are going.
I'm actually pretty excited about the next couple of months, because this is when I'm going to be doing all of my traveling. The itinerary is as follows:
10-12 October: Morocco
17-26 October: Italy (17-21 Rome, 21-24 Florence, 24-26 Venice)
31 October-2 November: chilling in Granada (after Italy, I figure I'm going to need it)
6-9 November: Madrid visiting Megan!!
13-16 November: Barcelona
21-23 November: Switzerland!! (Hopefully Ticino, but I actually have to plan this first)
28-29 November: Sevilla (assuming I have enough money)
5-8 December: chilling in Granada and preparing for finals
12-14 December: preparing to go home; Malaga (yeah hanging out in the airport all night with ALL of my stuff!); HOME!!!
So yeah, as you can see, I'm going to be pretty busy, but I'm so thrilled about it all, I don't even care how busy it's all going to make me. :) And I feel like I'm not really traveling outside of Spain too, too much (three trips outside of Spain, three trips inside Spain, plus the Alpujarras and Cordoba trips, and Megan visiting Granada, so like six trips inside Spain, plus all the weekends that I've spent just chilling here). So I still feel like I'm enmeshing myself in Spanish and not abandoning it completely in favor of English-speaking countries or whatever.
Monday, September 22, 2008
Weekend Update
Another post-weekend update!
This weekend was pretty chill; I got to hang out with Melissa some (finally!), relaxed, started studying for my first exam (in Linguistics that I THOUGHT was on Wednesday but just found out it's not until next Monday, so that's pretty fantastic), and found a church to go to!
I'm so happy about this last one. It's called Iglesia Evangelica (so it's an evangelical church if you didn't get that) and I went with Brad and Kaitlin. Everyone was so friendly and I just felt really welcome and really relaxed right away. I understood almost all of what was going on too, so that was a bonus. We met a whole bunch of people after the service (it was actually harder to understand people at this point because everyone was talking and it was kind of loud), and specifically a girl from California who studied abroad and ended up just staying here in Granada. She told us about how all of the young adults meet up on Saturdays at 8pm and hang out and go out to dinner together, which I definitely want to do. And I asked her about a bible study during the week and she said that she'd find out for me and let me know (because they're going to do one, just not sure when/what yet). Because I really liked it but I'm going to be gone a lot of the weekends (October 10-12, 17-19, 24-26, 31-Nov 2, 7-9, AND 14-16 for certain) but I still want to be involved in the church.
I think I'm going to do this as my "tarea externa" for Culture (we have to enmesh ourselves in a group of Spaniards) and I was going to volunteer somewhere, but this is just so much more what I would like to do if I have to talk to Spanish people. Everyone at the church was just so nice and happy that we were there. So I'm very happy. And I'll be in Granada for the next two Sundays, so hopefully by then, the whole bible study thing will be figured out.
I'm also attempting to finish planning for the week break that we have and hostels are SO EXPENSIVE in Italy. My goodness! I sent the group an e-mail with a whole bunch of hostel possibilities and hopefully they'll actually be diligent in getting back to me so I can book those tomorrow. I think we might end up being cozy and sharing beds and stuff, but we'll see what people think about that.
This weekend was pretty chill; I got to hang out with Melissa some (finally!), relaxed, started studying for my first exam (in Linguistics that I THOUGHT was on Wednesday but just found out it's not until next Monday, so that's pretty fantastic), and found a church to go to!
I'm so happy about this last one. It's called Iglesia Evangelica (so it's an evangelical church if you didn't get that) and I went with Brad and Kaitlin. Everyone was so friendly and I just felt really welcome and really relaxed right away. I understood almost all of what was going on too, so that was a bonus. We met a whole bunch of people after the service (it was actually harder to understand people at this point because everyone was talking and it was kind of loud), and specifically a girl from California who studied abroad and ended up just staying here in Granada. She told us about how all of the young adults meet up on Saturdays at 8pm and hang out and go out to dinner together, which I definitely want to do. And I asked her about a bible study during the week and she said that she'd find out for me and let me know (because they're going to do one, just not sure when/what yet). Because I really liked it but I'm going to be gone a lot of the weekends (October 10-12, 17-19, 24-26, 31-Nov 2, 7-9, AND 14-16 for certain) but I still want to be involved in the church.
I think I'm going to do this as my "tarea externa" for Culture (we have to enmesh ourselves in a group of Spaniards) and I was going to volunteer somewhere, but this is just so much more what I would like to do if I have to talk to Spanish people. Everyone at the church was just so nice and happy that we were there. So I'm very happy. And I'll be in Granada for the next two Sundays, so hopefully by then, the whole bible study thing will be figured out.
I'm also attempting to finish planning for the week break that we have and hostels are SO EXPENSIVE in Italy. My goodness! I sent the group an e-mail with a whole bunch of hostel possibilities and hopefully they'll actually be diligent in getting back to me so I can book those tomorrow. I think we might end up being cozy and sharing beds and stuff, but we'll see what people think about that.
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
Planning is so stressful!
I'm currently attempting to plan for my Semana Blanca (going to Rome, Florence, and Venice) with four others, with only one other person actually here, one not sure if he wants to go on all of the trip with us, one on his way back from his house because he FORGOT that we were meeting today, and one who also forgot but told her senora she'd go home for lunch so she's not here either.
SUPER stressful.
I'm currently attempting to plan for my Semana Blanca (going to Rome, Florence, and Venice) with four others, with only one other person actually here, one not sure if he wants to go on all of the trip with us, one on his way back from his house because he FORGOT that we were meeting today, and one who also forgot but told her senora she'd go home for lunch so she's not here either.
SUPER stressful.
Monday, September 8, 2008
Update
Hello everyone!
Sorry for not updating in a while, but things have been kind of busy here lately, so I felt like I needed to gather my thoughts before I told them to you all so that they actually made sense (hopefully a lot of you read this! Don't forget to say hello and let me know how you're doing!)
Last weekend we went on our class trip to the Alhambra and it was one of the coolest things I have ever seen in my life. I have pictures up on Picasa, and I really encouarge everyone to check them out. This place was basically a mini-town for all of the Muslim kings WAY back in the day (we're talking hundreds and hundreds of years ago) and almost all of it is still in really good condition. The designs on the walls and floors and ceilings were just absolutely ridiculous and so intricate and involved; they were really breathtaking. I felt like I was walking around all wide-eyed with my mouth wide open the entire seven hours that we were on the tour. I felt like I learned a lot too, which I was excited about. For example, I learned that the majority of the wall is carved out of stucco, which isn't even that durable of a material, but it's lasted an unbelievably long time in the Alhambra! Everything was just so huge and majestic and unbelievable (that we were actually looking at something this old, that it was made that long ago and still exists today, and that the people back then actually made this). Even though the tour was seven hours long, I feel like I need to go back and experience more of it, because I felt rushed going through parts of it because we only had a certain amount of time (since we were a group) for the tour.
We also started classes this week, and I'm pretty excited about them (geeky, I know, but that's just the kind of person I am). I'm taking Culture of Spain (which should be a good class, but the teacher is always really intense/passionate, so it's kind of hard to read her), Grammar II (because I figured I can always use more help in grammar, and I'm right), Spanish Linguistics (which makes me feel like I'm learning a new language in a foreign language), Art History (which I'm SUPER excited about because I love the professor and every Thursday we go out into the city and find something that we're learning about because Granada's so old, it's experienced pretty much everything), and Culture of Islam (which I'm not sure I want to stay in because I'm not sure how entirely interested I am in the subject material or in the teaching habits of the professor). CEGRI is interesting in that it's a language school and only students within the program are taking classes here, so we're with all American students. But I'm really okay with that because I think I'd be even MORE intimidated if I was in classes with Spanish students.
I also started taking a salsa class, which I absolutely love. Those of you who know me really well are probably really surprised because I cannot loosen up for the life of me, but this class is just so much fun. The instructor is this little Spanish man and he's got a really good sense of humor and is a really god teacher, and the best part is that we can all understand him for the most part! I'm also taking the class with a really good group of people, which makes it all the more fun. Plus, I'm learning to loosen up a little and dance something real, so who can say no to that??
Thursday night we went and saw a flamenco show, which was best described by Rick (one of the guys on the trip) as "tap dancing on steroids." Holy cow, these people moved their feet SO fast and they were just so good! I did feel bad for one of the girls, though, because her shirt came almost entirely unbuttoned so by the end so she had to hold it closed while she finished dancing.
Friday and Saturday we went up into the Sierra Nevada mountains, to the Alpujarras, and hiked for about six hours each day. It was a ton of fun and absolutely gorgeous (these pictures are up on Picasa too!). The air was fresher and I felt completely in my element climbing the mountains and wading in streams and doing a little bit of rock climbing at our resting points. The eonly bad thing was that our guide was like booking it up and down the mountain and since it's her job, it was a lot easier for her to do it than for us to do it, so we sometimes had a hard time keeping up with her. Also, when we were going down, it was super precarious so you pretty much had to keep your eeys down the entire time to make sure you didn't fall and die so we didn't get to see too much of the scenery going down the mountain. It reminded me of something Chris Gottlieb would love to see, so hopefully you're reading this, Chris, and you look at the pictures, and are motivated to visit Spain to climb the Sierra Nevada Mountains! (Everyone else too, but specifically my mountain climber friend).
Lastly, I thought I'd post the places that I'd like to travel and see if anyone has any specific suggestions (definitely go, don't go, see this while you're there, etc):
Sevilla
Valencia
Greece
Cordoba
Italy
Rome
Venice
Florence
Switzerland
Madrid
Barcelona
Portugal
So yeah, just let me know what your thoughts on these places are, okay? Especially you, Melissa. : )
Sorry for not updating in a while, but things have been kind of busy here lately, so I felt like I needed to gather my thoughts before I told them to you all so that they actually made sense (hopefully a lot of you read this! Don't forget to say hello and let me know how you're doing!)
Last weekend we went on our class trip to the Alhambra and it was one of the coolest things I have ever seen in my life. I have pictures up on Picasa, and I really encouarge everyone to check them out. This place was basically a mini-town for all of the Muslim kings WAY back in the day (we're talking hundreds and hundreds of years ago) and almost all of it is still in really good condition. The designs on the walls and floors and ceilings were just absolutely ridiculous and so intricate and involved; they were really breathtaking. I felt like I was walking around all wide-eyed with my mouth wide open the entire seven hours that we were on the tour. I felt like I learned a lot too, which I was excited about. For example, I learned that the majority of the wall is carved out of stucco, which isn't even that durable of a material, but it's lasted an unbelievably long time in the Alhambra! Everything was just so huge and majestic and unbelievable (that we were actually looking at something this old, that it was made that long ago and still exists today, and that the people back then actually made this). Even though the tour was seven hours long, I feel like I need to go back and experience more of it, because I felt rushed going through parts of it because we only had a certain amount of time (since we were a group) for the tour.
We also started classes this week, and I'm pretty excited about them (geeky, I know, but that's just the kind of person I am). I'm taking Culture of Spain (which should be a good class, but the teacher is always really intense/passionate, so it's kind of hard to read her), Grammar II (because I figured I can always use more help in grammar, and I'm right), Spanish Linguistics (which makes me feel like I'm learning a new language in a foreign language), Art History (which I'm SUPER excited about because I love the professor and every Thursday we go out into the city and find something that we're learning about because Granada's so old, it's experienced pretty much everything), and Culture of Islam (which I'm not sure I want to stay in because I'm not sure how entirely interested I am in the subject material or in the teaching habits of the professor). CEGRI is interesting in that it's a language school and only students within the program are taking classes here, so we're with all American students. But I'm really okay with that because I think I'd be even MORE intimidated if I was in classes with Spanish students.
I also started taking a salsa class, which I absolutely love. Those of you who know me really well are probably really surprised because I cannot loosen up for the life of me, but this class is just so much fun. The instructor is this little Spanish man and he's got a really good sense of humor and is a really god teacher, and the best part is that we can all understand him for the most part! I'm also taking the class with a really good group of people, which makes it all the more fun. Plus, I'm learning to loosen up a little and dance something real, so who can say no to that??
Thursday night we went and saw a flamenco show, which was best described by Rick (one of the guys on the trip) as "tap dancing on steroids." Holy cow, these people moved their feet SO fast and they were just so good! I did feel bad for one of the girls, though, because her shirt came almost entirely unbuttoned so by the end so she had to hold it closed while she finished dancing.
Friday and Saturday we went up into the Sierra Nevada mountains, to the Alpujarras, and hiked for about six hours each day. It was a ton of fun and absolutely gorgeous (these pictures are up on Picasa too!). The air was fresher and I felt completely in my element climbing the mountains and wading in streams and doing a little bit of rock climbing at our resting points. The eonly bad thing was that our guide was like booking it up and down the mountain and since it's her job, it was a lot easier for her to do it than for us to do it, so we sometimes had a hard time keeping up with her. Also, when we were going down, it was super precarious so you pretty much had to keep your eeys down the entire time to make sure you didn't fall and die so we didn't get to see too much of the scenery going down the mountain. It reminded me of something Chris Gottlieb would love to see, so hopefully you're reading this, Chris, and you look at the pictures, and are motivated to visit Spain to climb the Sierra Nevada Mountains! (Everyone else too, but specifically my mountain climber friend).
Lastly, I thought I'd post the places that I'd like to travel and see if anyone has any specific suggestions (definitely go, don't go, see this while you're there, etc):
Sevilla
Valencia
Greece
Cordoba
Italy
Rome
Venice
Florence
Switzerland
Madrid
Barcelona
Portugal
So yeah, just let me know what your thoughts on these places are, okay? Especially you, Melissa. : )
Thursday, August 28, 2008
IN GRANADA!!
I made it! The flight was SOO long and I didn´t sleep at all from Chicago to Paris. I sat by a nice girl, Erin, though so that was really good. The food on the flight was okay, nothing phenomenal but definitely edible. Then when we got to Paris we had to go through customs for some strange reason and I wanted a stamp on my passport and they stared at me funny and laughed at me but I don´t care because I got it. Then we didn´t even think and went through security so we were stuck in the ITTY BITTY Paris terminal for three and a half hours. I slept a little bit but not too much. I was pretty passed on the flight from Paris to Málaga, though. When we got to Málaga, we went to get our luggage and then saw it rotating on a different belt so we had to run and get it, and then one guy lost his luggage so we had to sit and wait LONGER in the airport while they got all that mess figured out (another hour and a half) and then we finally left and had a two hour bus ride to Granada, but it was really pretty. We went through the mountains and got to see the Sierra Nevada and TONS AND TONS of olive trees. It was really cool. Once we got to Granada, we got into our hostel but we had to take this tiny lift up and it only fit one person with their luggage at a time. But I´m rooming with three really nice girls (Shannon, Erin, and Caitlin) so hopefully I´ll be okay. The four of us were all so exhausted and didn´t want to go to a tapas bar because you have to order alcohol to get the tapas and we really didn´t want to get alcohol and we didn´t want to pay a lot that we ended up eating at this chinese place, which was only okay, but we were all so tired that we just didn´t care and we all passed out.
This morning, we woke up at 910 and we had to be downstairs ready to go at 945 (because we set the time on the alarm for AM instead of PM last night so it was 910PM when we woke up) so we all panicked but made it okay and we just signed up for all of our classes and now we´re taking a break before we have more orientation.
I really can´t wait to get to my host family´s house and start classes and just get into the swing of things because I feel very disoriented being here right now and very out of place. So hopefully things will get better from there. I do like the people that are in the program so far, though, so that´s always good. I just can´t wait for things to feel normal and not like I´m a complete and total outsider.
This morning, we woke up at 910 and we had to be downstairs ready to go at 945 (because we set the time on the alarm for AM instead of PM last night so it was 910PM when we woke up) so we all panicked but made it okay and we just signed up for all of our classes and now we´re taking a break before we have more orientation.
I really can´t wait to get to my host family´s house and start classes and just get into the swing of things because I feel very disoriented being here right now and very out of place. So hopefully things will get better from there. I do like the people that are in the program so far, though, so that´s always good. I just can´t wait for things to feel normal and not like I´m a complete and total outsider.
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