ohh we're halfway there... :(

This past Friday marked the halfway point. Three weeks have past, but I still have three more to go! So much more to do and so much more to see.

So I guess I left off Sunday getting back from Barcelona. Well, Sunday night we went to a bullfight. I was so excited because when you think of Spain, one of the first things so come to mind is... a bullfight! To be honest, I didn't know much about them. I kind of thought the torero (bull-fighter) just kind of waved his red cape around and tried to anger and dodge the bull. Well, unfortunately that's not all. There a few different steps to each bull fight. And each include harming the bull. Yes, the last step is the torero and his red cape "dancing" around the bull. But after a few minutes of the duel, the torero kills the bull. I cried during the whole thing and was sobbing by the end. There were a total of 6 bulls, and after the first one, I could not watch anymore. A few others felt the same way, so we left. Even though I didn't stay, I can now say I've been to a bullfight and can check that off my life list.

Lunes (Monday): Our directors Diego and Manuel scheduled a fútbol game for us at a rec field near the Betis Fúbol stadium! My team ended up loosing, but it was so much fun getting to run around. I played forward for a bit and then goalie. I literally have not played since I was 5, but I don't think I was too terrible...

Martes (Tues): We had our second round of tests in each of my cultures classes and they weren't as bad as week 1 thankfully. Hopefully each week will get better and better. Later in the afternoon we had our first Sevillana (type of Flamenco) dance lesson! Francesca and I were partners, and I think we got it down pretty well! Th feetwork e and the handwork aren't bad on there own, but putting them together is super tough. At the end of class when she had us put feet and hand motions together to music, I literally was just walking in circles flailing my hands around. Those of you lucky enough to have witnessed my sweet dancing skills can probably picture this perfectly. After dinner a bunch of us went to hang out near the cathedral. The sight of the cathedral at night is breathtaking. I'm going to miss just sitting around a park bench with the awesome people in my group outside the beautiful historic cathedral. Why don't we have stuff like that in Alpharetta??

Miercoles (Wed): After lunch, instead of taking our ciesta, Liz and I decided to spend the afternoon in Parque Santa Cruz. We went to a market, got some pineapple juice, and posted up on the fountain benches in the shade of giant magnolia trees. It was so peaceful reading in the quiet sunshine. I felt like I was in a movie. After reading and relaxing for a bit, we met the group at Plaza de los Virgenes to go the El Museo de Bellas Artes. The museum had a bunch of Sevillana artwork. It was pretty, but nothing in comparison to El Prado in Madrid. We were rewarded though with chocolate con churros at a stand near the river. It was my first time eating them and I thought they were really good, but not quite as sweet as I was expecting. I'd like to try them again somewhere else though. I mean duh, if it's chocolate, I'm in. Wednesday night Liz and I decided to have a night in. So glad we did because 1) Liz and I watched one of the prettiest sunsets ever outside our window and on the rooftop of our home, and 2) I got a lot accomplished: I made my facebook photo album, journaled, and got to skype with some loved ones :)

Jueves (Thurs): Early this morning was Corpus Christie. It started at 8:30, so we got to see a little bit before we had to go to class. It is a huge deal here where there is a procession of saints and hermandades (brotherhoods) on a path of rosemary through the streets of Sevilla. The final part of the procession is a huge float-like contraption with Jesus on it, and it represents the body of Christ. Tons and tons of people line the streets to watch this long procession. It's one of the biggest religious celebrations in Spain, so it was such an honor to get to watch and be a part of it! In the afternoon, we had SALSA lessons and oh my goodness it was awesome. Our instructor was this short, small, spanish man with sweet dance skills. He was so entertaining to learn from, and the dance is upbeat and sassy, so we decided salsa is way more fun than Sevillana. After our lessons, a few of us wondered around near the school and came upon this restaurant that advertised there tapas of the day: caracoles (snails). We've seen signs at restaurants all around town that have advertised them, so we decided to go on a limb and try them. Now I've had escargot before last summer on the cruise with Hannah, but these snails looked like garden snails that I find in my backyard at home. They brought us out a bowl of broth with tons of tiny, cooked, garden snails! They actually weren't too bad, it was just strange eating them straight out of their little shell. Ok, enough details on that. That night the entire group went out to Plaza Alfalfa and ended up playing and hanging out on this little playground!

Viernes (Fri): Friday was definitely a struggle in class. After a long, busy week, it's so hard to keep my eyes open during class. But I do LOVE Carlos' class, and he makes every day interesting and fun. Friday afternoon, Liz and I got to have a loooong ciesta break. After lunch, I got caught up on the Glee episodes I've missed! It was the first time that I've watched American telivision in 3 weeks. It was nice to have a little kick of American culture, plus I just love Glee and am glad that I'm all caught up :) That evening, we met Manuel and the group to go to Barrio Macarena ( ayyyy Marcarena ayeee). Macrena is one of the wealthier neighborhoods and is well known for their Virgin during Semana Santa. We went to the Macarena Museum and got to see parts of the Macarena procession from Semana Santas from different decades/centuries. We also got to peek our heads in a mass at the Macarena Catholic Church. After the museum, we treated ourselves to the postres (desserts) we earned from our long walk to and from Macarena. Of course, dessert was just an appetizer for our dinner at the TEXMEX restaurant! Not going to lie, I have missed mexican food. It's one of my favorites, and Spanish food is nothing like Mexican food. Spanish mexican food was not quite as good as El Azteca back home, but it was nice to have a little change. With stomachs full of tacos and refried beans, we went on on the town near the river...

Sabado (Sat): Today, Diego took us on a day trip to Carmona. It was about a 45 minute bus ride to the "frying pan" of Andelucia. It was dry and hot, but the sights we saw were worth it. We climbed up old forts and got to see old castles. It's a quaint, quiet city in the countryside. I felt like we pretty much saw all there was to see in the few hours we were there, but it was worth the trip just for the views we got to see of the town and countryside and our fun little photoshoot.

Tomorrow we are going on a day trip to Jirez for a winery tour! I'm so pumped because it seems like such a European thing to do, and I want to experience as much as I can while I'm here! Bahhh I love Spain.

Besos to all!

iceBarcelona

I will start off with saying, Barcelona was a success!

Thursday evening, we arrived at the airport at 6:45 for our 10:40 flight. A little early, but better to be safe than sorry right? So, we sat around, ate our bocadillos, got our tickets stamped, passed security (after getting buzzed because I forgot to take off my shoes...), and made our way to our terminal. After waiting a while, one of the ballin' girls on the trip, Paige, went and talked to her "brother" who works at the airport. He gave her the inside scoop that the French pilots were going on strike, and so our plane would not even leave Barcelona to get us in Sevilla until 11pm, which meant we would not board until 1am. Soooooo we sat in a circle in the middle of the airport and read, played games, and of course, divided our entire study abroad group into houses at Hogwarts. We may or may not have a few Harry Potter fans... But eventually, we arrived in the Girona airport, took an hour bus ride to Madrid, and took a taxi to arrive at 5am to our hostel in the Gothic District. It sounds sketchy, but it was in the best location because it was right next to the 2 main roads! Now our hostel was exactly like you would imagine. 25+ rooms with only 3 single bathrooms. Definitely a new experience, but it was great! The madre of the hostel was so sweet and accomidating for us.

Friday we woke up from our short slumber, and ventured 2 doors down from our hostel and stumbled upon the heavenly restaurant called Bready. It caught our eye because it advertised waffles and pancakes! So we enjoyed some delicious breakfast, and continued on our Gaudi filled journey! We started at Parque Guell. There were so many neat structures! There were caverns and caves and building/houses that looked like either a) Floops Castle from "Spy Kids" b) the gingerbread house from Hansel and Gretal, or c) a house from WhoVille. We then walked to La Segrada Familia. It is this HUGE church that began being constructed in the late 1800's and won't be finished until around 2026 or so. We walked around gazing at other Gaudi masterpieces until evening. We then braved the metro (so confusing) to get to the beach and to the ice bar. Yes, a bar COMPLETELY made of ice. As we walked in off the beach boardwalk, there are flames on either side of the doorway. Toward the back there was a freezer door with a thermometer reading -13 degrees C. They gave us coats and gloves, and in we went into what felt like Antarctica, buttttt it was SO legit. There were tv's, jammin music, an ice sculpture of La Segrada Familia, cups made of ice, decorations of ice, benches of ice, ice ice ice! Definitely one of the coolest things ever.

Saturday consisted of walking around and shopping! There are so many cute and affordable stores you could spend days exploring. Not being the biggest shopper, I got tired really easily and didn't get anything. Nothing quite caught my eye, plus I felt like a lot of the stores in Barcelona were very main stream and looked like things I could get back home. I'm excited to go to the "mercados" here in Sevilla to try and find something special :)

Saturday night was a night that... never ended. Literally. So our flight back to Sevilla was at 6:45am Sunday. We didn't want to have to pay for another night in our hostel, so we decided to live homeless for a night. The lovely hostel madre let us keep our bags in the lobby while we galavanted in the city. We ate dinner along Las Ramblas, drank the freshest juice (pineapple-coconut) I have ever had at the farmers market, and made it to the magic fountain. The fountain was like the Belagio of Barcelona. There was a water show complete with dancing colors and music. We continued through the never ending night: chatting at a cafe till 1:30, getting our bags from our hostel, taking the metro to the bus station, waiting an hour for our 3:45am bus, riding over an hour to the Reus airport, and finally boarding our plane home to Sevilla.

Barcelona: a crazy, busy, fun filled, worth every penny weekend.

yes, i stink at blogging, but here's an update!

Ok, so my friends know that I am terrible at getting photos up on time on facebook, etc. So I'm sure it is no surprise that I am not very good at keeping up with my blog... But I promise I'm trying! I just forget about it with all my daily activities! Ok so here's a short little update from where I left off...

Thursday: Saw Barrio Santa Cruz which is the older neighborhood in Sevilla. There were beautiful buildings and gardens. Then we went to this cafe and me Liz, Isabel, and Isabel, shared this delectable chocolate cake. It was kind of like my mom's ooze cake, but to be honest, I like Mom's better! That night, Liz and I decided to turn it in early because we needed REST (and so did our feet!)

Friday: That evening we had a scavenger hunt through the city! We had different locations we had to take pictures at, had things we had to buy, and questions we had to answer! It was so fun running around the city and having to use our spanish to ask people directions and questions! Jack, Pooja, Bahar, and I made a great team, and came in second. After that, our directors took us to a tapas bar for dinner and then to one of the locals favorite bars. It was covered in beautiful tile and I felt kind of like a local (not really considering we draw stares everywhere we go...)

Saturday: morning we left for Cadiz! We got to our hostel (which was really nice!) and then spent the entire day at the beach. The wind was strong so it blew the sand all about, but that did not stop us from laying out, reading, talking walks, and playing in the water (only knee deep because it was FREEZING). We were on Playa Victoria, and it's supposed to be one of the best beaches in Cadiz. That night we all went to a sea food restaurant (I had swordfish- and loved it!) and then hung out at this pirate restaurant. arrrrrg.

Sunday: One of the coolest things ever happened today...We woke up and took a bus into downtown Cadiz. We stopped at a hole in the wall bakery and I had one of the best blueberry muffins ever. Then we drank some coffee in a plaza, and walked to the cathedral of Cadiz. At the cathedral there are tons of restaurants and people just roaming around. We walked around and stopped at this tent where 2 indigenous men were playing these reed flute instruments. We took pictures with them, and they realized we were American. So one of them asks, "do y'all know titanic? can one of you sing?" Liz and the girls said "Whitney go!" So, I volunteered to sing, I get up to the mic, he has me do a mic check, and then starts playing "My Heart Will Go On (the Titanic song)". So I start singing as they are playing, and slowly a crowd forms around me at the tent!! It was so incredible and definitely one of the coolest places I have ever sang! Hey, you never know, I may not come back to America, and just join the indigenous reed flute band and travel the world... haha kidding. maybe...

Sunday night: The Betis fútbol game! Gosh, so many people crammed in such small space! As we waited in line to enter the gates, everyone was smushed up next to another sweaty, hot, cranky. Our seats were up high, but we could still see great! The game was so exciting and the crowd was so energetic and emotional! Betis WON and so once again, the walk home was filled with sounds of cheering and honking horns.

Monday: Had our first culture test. Not so easy. But, at least I know what dear Carlos expects. I absolutely love him as a teacher and his class, but the test was pretty tricky. Our activity of the day was cooking lessons. Well, more of a cooking demonstration because we didn't actually get to cook, only go to watch a lady cook. Oh well, I with a recipe I think I'll be able to cook up a nice Spanish meal upon my return! That night, we went to our favorite hole in the wall flamenco place. I hope it's a new Monday night tradition!

Tuesday: Yesterday was culture test number 2. Not as hard as the other class, but still no walk in the park. That afternoon we toured La Alcazar, the palace of Sevilla. It was stunningly gorgeous and I wish I could just time travel and live there for a week to see what it would be like to live in a beautiful palace with the largest and prettiest gardens I have ever seen. There were acres of gardens and Liz, Jack, and I had a photo shoot. I think I could have spent hours there walking around. Then last night, Diego took us to a legit professional Flamenco show! The singer, guitarist, and dancers were incredible. Nothing like I've ever seen in the states.

Today: After class we... HAD A FREE AFTERNOON! The first one yet, but instead of enjoying it, Liz and I have been writing a paper. Oh well, at least we are getting it out of the way. Tonight is a pescados fritos dinner with the group so I have to get going!

This weekend is BARCELONA! Our flight is tomorrow night and I'll be back Sunday morning. I am so pumped, so I will be back to blog next week! Sorry this is so long, I hope you were able to live through it :)

Love and miss all at home!

so much to do, so little time

I can't believe I have already been in Spain for a week. Part of me feels like I've been here forever because I feel like I know and have seen so much. But the other part is like WHAT? ONE WEEK DOWN?? I feel like there is still so much to do and so much to see and such little time! I love it here so much and I don't think I'm going to want to leave it...

But my feet will be glad to leave, because they hurt very badly. By the end of the day, my feet literally feel like they are going to fall off. I have never walked so much in my life. The walk to class is about 30 minutes and center of town is past that, so no matter where I go, a 30 minute walk at least is necessary. But I don't mind. It is so beautiful everywhere I go and warm sun shines down on me, so it's a-ok with me to walk. Plus, it's my daily exercise :)

Yesterday was a great day. Class was awesome as usual consisting of spanish culture, movies, and music. Liz and I have been singing this song by Marisol, "The Vida es una Tombola" for 2 days. After class, we ate our sack lunch (prepared by Lina) on the roof before going to tour the Cathedral. Let me tell you, I think it the most incredible piece of architecture in the world. Pictures just don't do it justice. It amazes that such an incredible, detailed, stunning cathedral was built in the 1500's. Oh, and what is also neat is the Christopher Columbus' tomb is inside.

After a long afternoon at the cathedral (which included a 33 story climb up a tower), an ice cream stop was in order. I had chocolate truffle and tiramisu and it was muyyy delicioso and just what I needed to get me through the long walk home. The ice cream and the anticipation of what Lina was making for dinner powered my tired feet.

So what is quite awesome, is that we got to be here during one of the biggest soccer games of the year. Sevilla vs Madrid for La Copa del Rey. Liz and I and some others in our group went to this pub to watch the game with a bunch of the locals. And may I just say that the locals go LOCO for soccer. Everyone is yelling and cheering and singing. People are even more passionate here about a soccer game on TV than students on a Saturday in Athens. It's like nothing I've seen. Well, SEVILLA WON 2-0, and so, the streets went crazy. Everywhere, cars were honking, people were cheering, and flags were waving. It seemed like the ENTIRE city of Sevilla came out to celebrate. I am so glad I got to experience it.

Ok so I am very tired, and going to take my ciesta. Hasta luego!

I'M HERE!

I am FINALLY in SPAIN!

We arrived in Madrid Friday morning and spent the day exploring. We walked around the streets and had lunch at El Museo de Jamon (The Ham Museum). After walking around for a bit, we all went back to the hotel to take a ciesta (nap) before dinner. After eating dinner at the hotel, we wondered around Gran Via (the street our hotel is on), but it was COLD and started to rain, so a bunch of us went to Panes and drank some caffe con leche!

Saturday we went to El Museo de Prado. So much beautiful artwork! That night was the 100 year anniversary of Gran Via (the street our hotel was on). There was a huge celebration in the streets, and in the evening there was a light show on one of the buildings and a concert with an orchestra and 3 famous singers.

Sunday we left Madrid at about 12pm to drive to Sevilla! We stopped once in the middle of nowhere for lunch, and then made it to Sevilla at about 7:30. My roommate Liz and I absolutely LOVE our madre (the mother of the house we're staying at). Her name is Lina and she has a little yorkie. It's just the 4 of us in the apartment, but so far her cooking has been delicious and she is so kind to us!

Today was the first day of class. The day was great consisting of a rooftop breakfast, class, a walking tour of Sevilla, a nice outdoor patio dinner, and a flamenco concert! Liz and I got lost twice walking to and from class, but I think we have now conquered the streets of Sevilla!

Internet comes and goes, so I will try and update as much as I can :)

BESOS!

T minus 4 days

Only four days until I leave for Spain! I cannot believe it. It doesn't seem real; that in just a few short days I will be living in another country across the world. I look forward to sharing all my adventures with you...