The Rain in Spain isn't only in the Plain

Ok! Things have been a little busy, so I haven't really taken the time to update this. Well, yesterday was the first day of class here in Espana! I think classes are going to be great. Our teacher's name is Theresa, and she's a way cute girl. I call her "girl" because she wants to be called "senorita," not "senora." She says that she's not old enough to be called "senora!" :) I have both of my classes with her: 321 (Spanish grammar) and 345 (Iberian Civilization).

Last night my roommate Lyn and I took a nap until 8:00 PM! Bad idea... Siesta is just too great! And we're just exhausted. We live 35 minutes away on foot from the university and the Plaza where we always meet everyone. Most of that is uphill as well! It's kind of annoying because everyone else lives like 5 or 10 minutes away and can get there in a blink of an eye, but we have to leave a lot earlier. By the time we get home everyday, we're absolutely exhausted and all we want to do is sleep! That's the case for me anyways. So, last night after sleeping our lives away, we met back with the group to go eat Tapas at a bar and to watch the REAL Madrid soccer game with the locals. Well, we were running a little bit late, so we started to jog in order to get there in time. We actually cut about 10-15 minutes off the trek, but by the time we got there, no one was in sight! Well, we weren't just going to turn around and go home, so we set out looking for everyone by peeking inside every Tapa bar we could see. No luck! Finally, we ran into some people in our group and were directed to where everyone else was. The only problem: the bar they chose only served beer, nachos, and french fries. Hmm... Not so Spanish if you ask me. So, after hanging out for a bit, we left, stopped at a candy shop to buy some sweets for the walk back, then made the long walk home. By this time, Lyn and I were both starving! Sadly, our family was so into the game that we didn't want to bother them and ask for food. I stayed and watched the game with the family, then another show afterwards about Spanish families living with tribes in the deserts and rain forests of Africa (it was quite hilarious!), then finally went to bed after Skyping with the fam. Good times!

Today, we started our 345 class. Almost everyone in the entire group from BYU was in it! I absolutely LOVE the people in my group! It's so much fun to be with them. Today after class, we met together to plan a trip we're all taking on our free weekend. There are three trips going on: one group is going to Gibraltar/Morocco, one is going to Portugal, and one to Barcelona. I'm going to the Portugal one because it's still a different country, but it's a lot safer than the Morocco trip and isn't as expensive. Plus, Portugal has some awesome beaches, beautiful sights, and fun markets. I'm really excited! Ok, anyways! We met together after class to plan our trip, then we went with a group of people to a cathedral, a palace of the archbishop (it looks like a giant castle, even though it's practically insignificant compared to some of the others we'll be seeing pretty soon!), and then to a free archaeology museum. All this was right around town! Everyone is super fun to be with, which is good considering I'll be spending every moment of the next two months with them. Bring it on! :)

This morning when we were walking to class, it was raining. Surprise!!! It's so cold here! That's something I definitely wasn't expecting. My family keeps telling me they're enjoying 80's in Utah... I'm a little jealous of that! I didn't really pack for 50 degree weather! The rain here is a little strange too. It's more like a constant mist that doesn't turn off. Anyways, it was raining, and we were running a little late, so we had to run a lot of the way to class. It turns out that 30 minutes is not sufficient time to get to the school. When we arrived, a few minutes early, we were drenched in sweat and rain! I already felt gross because I was wearing a big hoodie, ugly tennis shoes, and baggy jeans. Yeah for scaring off everyone I come in contact with! :) Ha! Anyways, I looked down at my pants and realized that they're really really baggy. They definitely fit well before I left! I think I've lost about 5 pounds in the first week, which is kind of crazy. It's all the insane amounts of walking/running because we're late and the lack of food. But hey, who's complaining? I thought I would be gaining weight here! Nope. Definitely not.

For lunch today, we had a broth soup with noodles, followed by a healthy portion of cooked garbanzo beans and potatoes, then finished off with an assortment of meats. This included vaca(like a pot roast) complete with bone, chorizo (sausage), pata (duck), and sangre con cebollas (congealed blood and onions in a casing). I was OK until he started explaining the duck and the blood. Truthfully, I don't do so well with foreign foods... Blah! I couldn't get myself to try the blood thing, and I didn't really like the sight of the duck, so I just stuck with the ones I knew. :) I know, I'm a baby when it comes to food! I'll try to be better. Otherwise, the food here hasn't been very bad. Earlier I mentioned that I lost weight because we don't eat much. Really, what we eat is pasta, bread, random bits of meat, and fruit. It's not bad at all (usually!) but I just usually don't get enough and we burn it so fast that I'm hungry a lot. No complaints though! I'm having a lot of fun with everything. Once we start traveling, it'll get even better! Our first trip is tomorrow. We're going to Segovia! Tonight, we might go dancing at a discoteco. Not sure if we will, but we'll see! Should be fun no matter what. This post was really long, but it covered 2-3 days, and everything else that's been on my mind! This is also acting as my journal for right now because I haven't been able to find a cool one yet. There are tons of shops around, but we haven't been to a ton. Hopefully that will change soon!