Buen Provecho

Kate and I got so excited to see bacon cheeseburgers on our plates tonight!!! Buuuttt, our excitement was dashed after the first bite. The meat here is so much different and not quite as good as in the U.S. It was still a good meal but I can't wait for a REAL burger when I get back. ohhhh and some spicy Tex-Mex sounds amazing as well...and McAlisters!! Obviously I think about food quite a bit here :)

We are headed for Barcelona tomorrow evening! YaY!

No tengo ganas de estudiar para mi examen de mañana pero es necesario.

Adiós hasta domingo.

Slow Down

The pace of life here seems to be so much slower, in a good way. The siesta after lunch allows for families to come together during the middle of the day. Everyone strolls at a leisurely pace and you hardly ever see someone rushing down the streets. I have decided that "hast" is not in the dictionary here in Sevilla. While the people are productive, they seem to take life less seriously and work only to have enough to live comfortably. Days are long here, meals last over an hour with conversation, and even our house madre stays up until one or two in the morning. At first this slow pace and weird eating times annoyed me but now I'm starting to admire and enjoy their customs. Every ounce of enjoyment is squeezed out of the Sevilla day.

Just a few thoughts :)

Cosas Extrañas

Another week of classes but, on the plus side, Barcelona this weekend!! We started Sevillanas dance classes today. Hilarious. This whitey can't dance :) Luckily there are others that are right there with me. You better watch out though, I might come back with some moves...jk jk

Anyway, I tried Pato today. Sounds innocent enough, right? NO. It is actually duck liver block! It's really popular here but is so disgusting. Nunca más.

I was told that I need to blog more often so this is my attempt...

Off to class in a bit so that's it for now :)

Rain in Spain

We finished another week of classes here in Sevilla. I had my first oral test on Thursday and it went well. Yesterday we went to Córdoba which is a city about 2 hours from Sevilla. We visited a Cathedral that was beyond beautiful. The building was originally a mosque that was converted into a Cathedral during the reconquest. The Cathedral was literally placed right in the middle of this huge mosque. It is pretty incredible to see the merging of the two cultures (Moors and Catholics) in the architecture.

Work has been going well. It seems like each day is going to have its theme. The first day was the old lady bossing me around and the second was an old creeper. This creeper stayed at the cafe during my entire shift talking to me the whole time. I could only catch half of what he was saying but he did blow me a kiss and profess his love for me as I walked out. Funny stuff.

Last night Sarah, Ashley, and I went to a Spanish movie at Nervion Plaza. We saw "Que fue de los Morgans"... "Did you hear about the Morgans?" The movie was entirely in Spanish and didn't have any subtitles. I understood pretty much everything except when they would start arguing so fast that I couldn't keep up. We went to the little supermarket and bought some snacks to take with us (best cookies I have had in my life). It was one of the best nights so far.

That's it for now :)

Just Smile

Yesterday was my first day working at Entre Dos Hermandades. Interesting and exhausting are the most fitting words. I got there at 4pm and found Antonio, the man who gave me the job. He started showing me around explaining everything so fast that it was hard to comprehend. All of the men who work there are really nice and patient with the language barrier. (It's not so much the language as the accent and lisp) They also pointed out how tall I am since I have to duck to get into the kitchen area. I pretty much tower over everyone there... =)

This one lady, who spoke a little English, came in to have a beer right about the time I arrived. She asked me where I was from and told me that I looked like I came right out of the movies (instant brownie points for her). She kept telling me, in her broken English, "Just Smile, just smile". As the hours ticked by she was persistent to stay and help me on my first day. Even though I was taking instruction from Antonio and the others who work there, she would grab my attention and tell me exactly what SHE thought I should be doing right then. This quickly got old.

So of course the first day on the job is stressful...but in a different language?! It was the definitely the most overwhelming experience yet, but I think that I will learn a lot over the semester. Even though there were times when I was completely lost, I was impressed by how much I could understand. Antonio and the others let me dive right in, teaching me what each drink is and how exactly to make it. There lapses in excitement when the cafe would be completely empty but those were needed to rejuvenate for the chaotic moments. I was so relieved when the three hours were finally over. It's not that I didn't enjoy the work or the people, but that much Spanish is a brain workout.

That's it for now... :)

Breaking News!!

Soooo...I just got a Spanish internship for the semester!!! I wasn't sure I was going to be able to find a job but it all fell into place today. I am going to be working at a little cafe called Entre Dos Hermandades. Asking for this job and trying to explain everything in Spanish was definitely the most intimidating thing I have ever done. I was so nervous but the owner of the cafe, Antonio, was beyond nice and helpful. (he even gave me a free coffee while we talked, chyeah) He said he had two girls from Tech work for him two years ago so he knew exactly what was going on. He told me that I get to pick my hours and that my schedule is completely up to me. Right now I'm scheduled to work on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 4pm-7pm. Ahhhh so excited :)

One week down

We just finished a little more than one week here in Sevilla, but it feels like we have been here longer than that. I can now find my way to the school, la calle Sierpes, and Nervion Plaza without getting lost. If you ask me to go anywhere else I will get completely lost like yesterday. I really do love the city and all of it's history. The buildings are so intricately designed and the medieval part of town is gorgeous. Tomorrow we are headed on our first excursion to Italica. This Spanish town is only twenty minutes outside of Sevilla so it will be a day trip. The city is built on top of Roman ruins. Apparently wherever you go around here you are almost certain to find ruins if you dig a bit.

We are going our for Tapas tonight which is a very Spanish thing to do. Tapas are small appetizer like meals that you go out for to socialize and drink beer or wine (the latter being my preference of course). Anyway, that's what's going on here. :)

Blame it on the Weather

Morning came too soon today. After class Kate and I decided to go to Nervion Plaza for lunch and to look around. We both didn't feel very well and missed home so we decided that today would be "America Day". The mall had a TGIFriday restaurant so we ate chicken fingers and fries. After looking around the stores for a while we headed back to the house. It was raining like crazy and the wind was ridiculous so we had to stroll arm in arm to get under our small useless umbrella. We finally got so frustrated we ditched the umbrella and started running in the rain. I can't even imagine what onlookers were thinking since we were just standing there laughing so hard - one of those hysterical laughs of surrender. We finally made it through the "hurricane" but had to wring out our socks.

On to other tidbits...

When the weather isn't terrible Kate and I like to go out and explore the city. We live in a cute neighborhood called Nervion with lots of stores and coffee shops. We also seem to spend a lot of time in our room which Kate has effectively named our "Woman Cave". Don't worry though, this cave is not at all isolated. We have our very own creeper who lives across the alley. Every night we can see him sitting at his desk popping his head up to look through our window. We try to keep the lights off so it is harder for him to creep, but this unrelenting peeper, known to us as Inspector Gadget, will not even turn away when you stare him straight in the eye.

At lunch and dinner we go out to the kitchen to eat with our house madre y hermano and talk about everything and anything. We also enjoy watching the mother-son duo banter; these interaction really give us a glimpse in to the true family culture of Spain that few outsiders get to enjoy.

Well, that's all I have for now. First quiz tomorrow a few more hours of studying to go. Buenas noches! :)

Travel mania

So I know this is a bit late in coming but I've been trying to get used to everything here.

A little bit about traveling to Spain

Wednesday January 6th has, in my view, yet to end. Even though it is 10pm Thursday here in Sevilla, we haven't really slept in almost 48 hours. It has been interesting to say the least and most definitely a learning experience. We arrived at DFW airport around 10:30am and I made my way through security after telling my parents goodbye (somehow I held back the waterworks). Once I got in the terminal, Tech students going to Sevilla started to congregate comparing flight itineraries. It turned out that we were all, eight in total, flying to Madrid together. Thirty minutes after our flight was supposed to leave we finally departed. Of course, this setback transformed a comfortable hour and a half layover into a ridiculously stressful situation. We arrived in Boston to find out that we had to walk ten minutes, take a trolley, and go through an additional security before making it to our next flight. With only 20 minutes until our plane was supposed to depart we were certain that we wouldn't make it. The eight of us stayed together and would never leave until everyone was there. It was incredible to see how we all bonded together since none of us were comfortable with international travel. We arrived in Madrid, late of course, and had only 15 minutes to make it to our next flight. This airport was like none I have ever seen. I am used to DFW where all the terminals are basically in the same building. Here, we had to take a train to our next gate and go through customs. (I was so excited to get my passport stamped! One of many to come) We literally walked up to the ticket counter as they were making the last call and were rudely greeted by a "Estas muy tardes". I was quite relieved once we made it on the plane to Sevilla. This flight only took 45 minutes and we had finally reached our destination!! Although we had made it safely, Sarah and my bags were no where to be found. We made our way to the baggage claim where we had to get information in SPANISH. By this time, my brain was fried and my body was on Texas time so English would have probably sounded like gibberish. The lady behind the counter began to speak and I understood nothing......I'm pretty sure my mouth most likely fell open as I stared blankly back at her. I responded with an emphatic "Say What??!" and received the most confused and irritated glare. This is something I wouldn't say in the US and couldn't believe it was my first response during a Spanish discussion. Anyway, we hailed a taxi in Spanish and made our way to the hotel where we took our first siesta!

Hopefully I will be able to write later and keep you updated as I go!

:)

Spain Blog

Just a little info about this blog. I am studying in Seville, Spain for the semester! As a part of my Honors college requirement I will be keeping a blog while abroad. I've never been the "blogger" type so we will see how this goes :). Part of my requirement is to relate my experiences to an assigned book, that I need to read at some point, and the rest will just be my random postings. Follow if you'd like = ]

Two days

SO, I only have a little more than 48 hours before I leave for Spain. INSANITY! To say that I'm freaking out is a vast understatement. AHHHHHHHHH. Anyway, I guess I need to go start packing and decorate a lamb cake for my niece, JoLee's, 1st birthday party. Talk to ya from SPAIN!