I started using one of the Centro de Lenguas Modernas computers to write this blog. Not a smart idea! The computer itself´s capacity to have more than 2 windows open at the same time is seriously disappointing. Gladly, there are 24 computers in here and as long as there´s an open spot and the computer is not locked from Windows, I can just switch. Moving on the the Microsoft Office that I was just ATTEMPTING to use... from 97´! WE ARE IN 2012 hahah that kills me.

Honest, a lot has transpired and I have a lot of ideas to share so YES I will jump, and scatter, and skip, and leap around. Please brace yourself. I´m going to talk about everything from spanish things, to what I´ve been doing to keep up with things in lif in general, and anything as simple as holidays and customs.

Soon (I really mean that) I will be posting a page exclusively for the food I have experienced here. That may not interest some of you but you have to understand that the food alone is a huge part of our experience here in homestays, let alone a huge part of la cultura española. As a required part of our program through Central College, my fellow students and I have the pleasure to dine in the comfort of our own homes(tays) for every meal. Yes, every meal is provided, but the discrepancies and variances of what all is available to each and everyone of us to crazy! Generally you eat breakfast at what time you have to get things done. We all have class, my entire family has school or work so generally they eat around 8 ish or so and I´ll have cereal for breakfast around 9 or so after I´ve ran, showered, gotten ready, and am about to leave for class.

Mi horario de clases
My class schedule:

Mondays:
10:30-12:30 Frances
(Come home for lunch and I have time to run and do what I wish)
5-6:30 Literatura Espanola
7-8 Fonetica
8-9 Granada Seminar
Home for Cena

Tuesday:
Generally an early morning, up at 7:15 to run and have adequate time to shower and leave for school at least by 930
10-11:30 Civilizacion & cultura
1-2:30 Produccion Oral & Escrito
(Choosing to get a bocadillo packed for every Tuesday so I don´t have to run back and forth from home!)
4-5 Tutorias
6:30-8 Literatura hispanoamericana
Home for Cena

Wednesday:
Earlier morning an option if I have a mtg in the afternoon, which happens sometimes
10:30-12:30 Frances
(Come home for lunch)
5-6:30 Literatura Espanola
7-9 Practica en el sitio de Faisem
(Return home for cena)

Thursday:
10-11:30 Civilizacion y cultura
1-2:30 Proccion oral & escrito
(Come home for a late lunch if I wish, have time to run/exercise in between)
6:30-8 Literatura hispanoamericana

Viernes
-Most Fridays = no class! [:)]
-Depending on the week I either have M/W classes or T/TH classes
-If I don't volunteer on W night then I come in the afternoon for a bit on Fridays.

The word siesta has once again become a foreign word for me. I don´t have time to! My ´free time´ in between classes is filled up with 25-30 minute walks to and from school (depending on the site where I have class, I have 3), doing homework, using the computer lab, or running and doing workouts.
Of course we try to make time on the weekends to have fun...sometimes a little too much fun:) I know my dad will just LOVE reading that, huh Dad?

Celebrating Holdays – Valentines day!

    Not typical for men to get flowers or for large baskets full of candy for your lovers and friends. If someone is celebrating for the day they may choose to wear red and then in that instance you can wish them a Happy Valentine´s Day but generally Spaniards do not wish one another this salutation normally! And in comparison to us in the United States we live for this day to express our emotions...just check Facebook. Especially on a day like this, Facebook tells all.

    I celebrated with some tapas, amigos, y chupitos. I find that´s the best way to go. Of course I support showing and sharing love too so I gave candy kisses and lollipop hearts to my friends while we shared croquetas, papas fritas, y alas de pollo, and a few friendly games of fooseball.

    What made my Valentine´s Day the most special was the package I discovered had arrived at my school from my parents! So many goodies to enjoy and to share from my family to my host family here in Spain. They were very grateful for the sweet chocolate con mantequilla. Sure, I had to lug all of my treats home carrying that box in my arms for my long walk home but it was just the perfect size. I have a beautiful family!

Speaking of family and el Dia de San Valentin, I also helped my little sister, Paloma, with her English class. She had an exam the next day and wanted my help reviewing! I like spending time with her and especially like helping her. Honestly, I just wish I could always understand her! She talks so fast and with a great accent so sometimes in regular conversations I don´t always know what she´s saying. I definitely need to hang out with her more and get on her level.

More family matters..

I found out that my host father, Antonio, has 2 horses! In a small pueblo located in the Sierra Nevada...can you believe that! I only hope that when they do some more family activities they invite me on them. He told me that when it gets better weather maybe we can all go, I certainly do hope so!

Blogging! Seems to be a task that I have completely forgotten how to do. Which is very unfortunate for me because there´s so much to catch up on and unfortunate for all of my avid readers. So quickly, so as to not waste any more time I want to apologize for being selfish and not sharing my experiences as much as I said I would be. From here on out I think I´m going to try for shorter posts, more frequently so I can make sure to share the things I really want to and really need to, in a timely manner:).

PARIS! Was beautiful, as I´m sure you can probably imagine. I will keep this short, as this was a while ago. We (friends Anne Marie and Katie) took this trip on the 2nd of February until Sunday the 5th. We did all of the touristy things that we could possiblty do in 2 ½ days. We saw:
La Cathedral de Notre Dame
L'arc de triomphe (both of them! Which was a crazy real life experience for me)
The Royal Palace
La Louvre (but bring the stereotypical students that we are, did not go inside because we didn´t want to/have the money to spend on it. We found out later that on Sundays before 5pm it´s free! Not sure if that´s just for students but by that time we were to be already grounded back in Spain in our hometown, Granada.)
L´arc de Triomphe du Carrousel – getting to visit THIS monument over all of them is what meant the most to me. My sister and I when we were young (how old?) we had to build a structure and this was what we came up with, with the help of our parents. And with the help of our dad literally to construct the monument.  What I remember the most were the horses and soldiers we had to put up on top. I never in my life imagined that I would see the actual architecture
L´oblelisque
Powerwalked Les Champs-Élysées – Tuvimos prisa (we were in a hurry) because we had to meet Katie´s friend at the bottom of La Tour Eiffel. Since I had to go to the bathroom and we couldn´t stop in any restaurant or café unless we bought something it was less than an enjoyable stroll. We had in the L´arc de Triomphe de l’Étoile in our view of the horizon to guide us there, for it was our next stop.
L'arc de triomphe de l’Étoile – until I traveled to France I had no idea that TWO of these existed. Let alone that this one was twice the size of the smaller scale one that my sister and I had made!
La Tour Eiffel – freezing and cold sweating because we had been running, in fear of arriving late, we made it! I could barely feel my fingers after 5 hours or so of walking around in the cold. Although dressed for warm weather with my layers of 2 jackets, gloves, earmuffs, 2 pairs of socks, and a scarf, the wind and weather got to me. It got to us all! I finally made it to the bathroom... and boy, did I need it.

We saw everything that we had wanted to/intended to see. We navigated the trip very well. After living and traveling in Spain I definitely felt confident to say that Paris was much easier to spend time in. The streets don´t wind and angle like the ones in Spain. They want you to find where you´re going with relative ease. So again, the navigation was without difficulty, but the trip was not without challenge, of course!
The weather was one of the hardest things to get over. We had a great time in Paris but the weather made some of it almost unbearable, namely the wind.
Although we were well-equipped, in my pair of boots at least, that Anna Marie happened to borrow for our long excursion day, did not do well in the cold, and we honestly thought that she had gotten frostbitten on her toes. We stopped in Starbucks to warm up with some coffee before making our way to the first L´arc and on from there, because we had already made a trek to get to the Lourvre. It was here at Starbucks that two boys with city maps or something of the sort tried to come to our table and play a trick on us. A typical method of stealing is coming up to them with a map, generally when they see something of yours that´s valuable on the table. Fortunately for me in this scenario, it was my iPhone. As soon as Boy #1 started to move his map to rest onto our table directly over my iPhone I recognized the scheme and pushed his hand away before any damage could be done. Maybe if they were speaking a language that exists in some part of the world I would have been focusing more on what they were saying, but o well. Rookies ;)
Next challenge, higher in level of difficulty ,was THE sickness. We had one full day in between returning from Marruecos and then leaving to fly to France. We took it easy during the day but made a point to meet some granadinas and students before an early flight. THE sickness seemed to only get worse as my time went on in France and I would have to find a bathroom anytime after we ate, anytime I had excruciating stomach pain (which was very often). It was unlike anything I´ve ever remembered experiencing in my entire life thus far. Maybe that´s an exaggeration but it was not an ideal situation for a trip abroad in the extreme cold, with a lot of walking and a lot of things to see.
And what was the only medication that I had with me? Tums, that tasted like...candy. They were left with my host parents from the girl who studied abroad previously with my family. They came in assorted colors and they literally tasted like sweets. Initially I was glad that I had kept them in my duffle bag that I had brought to Marruecos. But the more I consumed them the more I´m convinced that they were candy since they didn´t really seem to help me that much, or as much as I hoped they would.
I feel that I handled it as best as I could, besides the fact that I had to, I wanted to have a good time and make sure that my friends did too! We stayed in a really great hostel. It had wifi available to us in the lobby and occasionally in our room on the 5th floor. They provided free breakfast in the morning, and we were easily able to find a shuttle service back to the airport when we needed it at about 4.15 am on Sunday morning. Our second night our roommates in the dorm room were two German boys and an Argentinian. It was nice to be able to spend the night talking and listening to music with new amigos desarollarndo amistades nuevos. Katie´s father was also in town and he helped make sure that all the while we were in France we were well accomodated. For our last dinner on Saturday night Katie invited Anna Marie and I to her Dad-Daughter dinner and he treated us all! We had filling entrees with dessert too, while we watched a French soccer game in the background. For dinner on Friday, the night of our full day of excursions, we invited Katie´s friends mom out to dinner with us. We found a really nice Pizza bar and she ended up treating us too! We were very grateful and feel very blessed. Saturday night, since we had the shuttle service picking us up at 4.15 in the morning, we didn´t purchase a night for the evening since we knew that we wouldn´t be sleeping and we felt essentially would be a waste of money if we  purchased this. Our new friends, the two Germans, and Argentinian, were still in our old room for the night, with a Brazilian we had met earlier, and with an American. They let us hang out in their room and then we went out for a little while to a spot that they wanted to check out. Although we were tired, we went for the sake of enjoying our last night and opportunity to hang out in Paris. Our friend Rob had met up with us at our hostel because we all had the same flight to catch in the morning.
Our flight left at 7.20AM and we got there with more than enough time to spare. I´m glad we left when we did because I heard later from other students in my program that also traveled to Paris, that it snowed all day! And then later on I saw it in the news.

Overall a very exciting, brisk, detailed, and upbeat trip to Paris. It was a clean, fun, and lively city. I would without a doubt go again....in the summer.

These posts are way over due but better late than never!
Marruecos Day 1

After 3 hours on a roomy Spanish bus, WHICH INCLUDED a partial game of going on a picnic, bocadillos from our host families, sharing authentic Spanish grab bag candy, and trying to find comfy ways to “sleep” to no significant avail, a 20 minute rest stop at a gas station for more snacks for some, a bathroom break for most, and Mahou for some of the boys, and listening to the rain sing a pitter pater on the roof, we made it to Algeciras!

It was dark, luminous, and wet when we arrived. We were all a little out of our element. The area didn’t seem to be the greatest, especially in comparison to Granada, even with its huge amounts of construction everywhere. We figured we weren’t going to be staying at a 5 star hotel comparable to the comfort of our pleasant homestays. It seems Algeciras would maybe be just a quick stop for tourists. The rooms were cozy, although cold and engulfed with smells of smoke and must, and my roommate and I, Fatima, couldn’t figure out how to turn on our television. At this particular hotel there were no remotes because you had to pay a 8 euro fee to retrieve it from the reception desk. When you turn on any of the TVs the channel that happens to be on is what you get. Nick, Griff, Fatima and I and others spent some time watching Salvame, a tv show discussing plastic surgery, after some of us had spent some time lounging in a bar listening to music (and videos) that portrayed a little of the Arabic culture we were about to encounter. I got a splinter when letting Fatima into our room and we spent 5-10 minutes getting it out…and that’s how the night began. After a late night and early morning, we awoke at 6:30am to get engorge in the luxury of a 10 minute shower with amenities! As you can probably recall I’m limited to 5 minutes back in Granada. The water was scorching hot but as you can probably imagine, still very nice.

We had 7am breakfast and enjoyed a more typical light Spanish breakfast of a buffet of assorted ham, cheese, bread, juice, and wonderful/much needed coffee. At 730 we traveled on a “quick” bus ride where we rode into the morning sunshine. Our view was a majestic mix of clouds, skyline, and greenery. 

What we didn’t realize at first was that off in the distance the welcoming horizon was really water! From Algeciras to Tarifa, Spain we held ferry tickets. Next Stop: Tangier, Marruecos across the Mediterranean Sea. The ferry was incredible, it had a luxurious cruise feel. The wavy ride was calmed by the comfort of a much needed snooze. We set foot on African soil ecstatic, refreshed, and eager for what lie ahead! After walking through the port we found our van for the weekend for the 14 of us in Group 3, 16 including our driver and Justin our Morocco Exchange leader (and former Peace Corps Volunteer, originally from Iowa).This is the core group that we would be with for the next few days to multiple cities and multiple sites (additional group shots to be added later).

In a “world” of Islam, Muslims, Arabs, Morrocans, and Africans, most of us didn’t exactly know what to expect. Immediately after arriving in Tangier we drove to DARNA (“our house”), a women’s center that operates to help educate women, provide them a location to practice trades and essentially become small business owners, and give these women and girls’ refuge and solace. We were able to see a handful of women and girls at work working on projects in the looms in our tour of the center. We had lunch scheduled here after and enjoyed it with two new friends who had given us the brief tour of DARNA. They would be the first people to introduce what it means to be a Muslim in Morocco in Africa, discussing everything from family matters, food, traditional garb, religion, U.S. Foreign policy, Moroccan politics, the current king, international issues, cultural diversity, women’s rights, startling history, and PDA in the country.These new friends were a young girl, only 19 and a guy, 25 years old. It was an interesting conversation although we were all very tired, namely because the two had varying opinions on certain situations in Morocco, that made it much more intriguing! We each were given tea with a huge dish of chicken, vegetables, and cous cous and ate until we couldn’t anymore.

Afterwards we drove to a city called Asilah, located along the Atlantic coast in preparation for the long drive to Rabat, the capital of Morocco. Upon arrival in Asilah we left everything but our necessities and cameras.

Morocco Exchange also provided each of us with a binded book on what to expect, history, what to do, what not to do, etc. so on any extended travels in our van we had the chance to take a look if we wanted to learn something new.

Just some brief notes: Four times a day there is a call to prayer that can literally be heard from every location in the city. Children my age already know 5+ languages: standard Arabic to communicate with all Moroccans, their Arabic dialects depending on where they live/where they’re from, French which is considered the business language, English that they all learn in high school and WELL I might add. In most houses toilet paper is generally scarce and hot water in the sinks etc. not typical either. Some feel that the government is too much in the people’s business. Many do not support U.S. foreign policy activity, namely with wars and foreign relations with other Islamic nations. There are stray cats everywhere and anywhere! The term passing lane does not seem to exist, but thankfully for us our driver seemed like a professional. Eat only with your left hand!

Before Rabat, we each rode camels! Enough said. 

The everyday markets are massive where everything can be sold from fruits to entire animals and fresh fish. Depending on where you go in the city some parts are definitely cleaner than others. Even in the central parts of the city, for example, the capital there is a lot of trash on the floor and uncleanliness. The shanti towns, that exist in many third world countries, literally were large zones of what appeared to be boxed, very enclosed and close housing for the extremely poor. It was definitely  hard to grasp how large some of these zone areas are. It help put into perspective the discrepancy not only between how we live in the first world but also the drastic difference between lives of many Africans and Moroccans. The uncleanliness had no effect on the people that we had the pleasure to spend time with; all of the Moroccans were extremely agradable! They were more than welcoming, wanting to share all of their culture with us.

When we first met our host family we know that it was going to be very difficult to communicate. The only person that had a pleathera of knowledge in the English language was “Fati(ma) Souza”, a 22 year old student and the niece of our new host mom. She would not be staying with our for the duration of our visit, this made our cultural experience with a new family a little more challenging when she was not around to translate for us. “Auntie” (I have no idea how to spell her real name) and “Yu-sula” were overly accommodating and their generosity shined through in every gesture –nods, smiles, hand movements. 

Courtney, Malissa, and I were welcomed home with a beautifully decoated room to share. The design is very common to find in Morocco. The rooms are basically equivalent to large living rooms that we have in the states. What became our beds is really one continuous seat that borders the entire room so the middle is open. No shoes allowed on the carpet and shoes are required on the tile floor. Our first night for dinner we were welcomed with a fresh salad, chicken, bread, orange juice, and olives. Morocco was the first place in my experience abroad thus far where I was given juice to drink with my meals. I absolutely loveeee juice.

We were more than grateful and very satisfied. One thing that pleased us the most was that upon arrival we found toilet paper in the family bathroom! 

For breakfast, amazing "flatbread" with cream cheese that we recognize from the states and warm tea. My roommates Courtney, Malissa, and I had to walk through the market daily to get to our Exchange meeting points and activities. We were guided by a familiar Spotted Cow sign and a street sign that we could actually read RUE DADDA. Our walk was a lot more relaxed because we were seeing Rabat in a new light, literally, because we hadn’t seen it in the day yet.

We made our way through Rabat by way of van to visit an NGO in Sale. It was called “Hope for Salé”. Unfortunately for the day the center was empty and we were not able to meet any of the students and children that attend their center. Instead we had another long group discuss with 3 Moroccans that work and volunteer time in this center. One was very conservative and a devout practicing Muslim and the second was very much more liberal on the political and religious spectrums, the third didn’t speak as much. This made for some very interesting and comical discussion! At the center of the front of the room there was a framed picture of the current king, King Mohammed VI.

Later we would also visit the Roman Ruins, Chellah and the Mausoleum of King Mohammed V. Experiencing this part of the culture was great for us because we had the  chance to run around in the nice weather (at the ruins) and climb things and have photo sessions. At the Mausoleum the same happened with less climbing but there were many guards for us to take pictures with!

We returned to have lunch with our families before we would go explore Rabat's Kabash (old fort), street life, and the Medina market. For lunch, we met many more nieces of Auntie, majority of whom spoke English! We watched the American movie, Aquamarine while we ate. A fresh pasta salad with more bread, beef and potatoes in the large dish in the middle, and to the left the orange plate is sweet potatoes which we fell in love with. After asking many questions and tasting ingredients, we found out the secret ingredient and how to make it. We also had freshly made fruit smoothies!!

On one of our walks back to the central meeting point with Fatima we stopped at a local merchant, selling and making Sugar cane juice! It reminded me of my very own family and our culture. When I was younger and we would visit Florida on family vacations and to visit family, I remember us bringing back sugar cane with us and Dad making the juice in the blender. This experience brought back great memories! Since the man was Fatima's neighbor, he gave it to us for free. The best things in life are truly free:) The picture also gives a brief idea of the close proximity on the streets of local vendors etc.

It was nice to be able to do this before we went on our cultural exploration with Moroccan students that volunteer their time with Morocco Exchange. We literally walked around for hours around Rabat, as aforementioned to see the Kabash, old fort, street life, and Medina. We did some shopping at the local markets, negotiating prices for the perfect buys.  From the very top of the city where we could overlook Rabat and Salé all the way down to the water and coastline, back up again. A little exhausting but very worth it and enjoyable with our new friends Mehdi and Soufiane. To finish our get together we sat at a little local café to talk some more. Some of us had coffee, others of us decided to go with milkshakes, all on Morocco Exchange!

Before being able to turn in for the night after a very active day, we met 2 more Peace Corps volunteers working in Africa, and also a Fulbright Scholar as well. They shared with us about living and working in Morocco and answered any and all of the questions that we had. Next stop was the Hammam (the public baths!), optional for everyone. Men and women have their separate Hammams. Generally women go with underwear on and that's it. As a group we decided to go in swimsuits/sports bras and shorts and although we felt comfortable in this manner, by how everyone else was dressed (or not dressed...) we did feel a little out of place. Everyone was really friendly and helped show us the ways of how to get the most use of out the Hammam. In this one there were three rooms, the walk in, the second, significantly warmer and humid, and the last, very hot and humid. There were people sitting in there with a greenish henna substance all over them in the "sauna". The entire experience was very liberating, cultural, and fun. The necessary 'tools' were provided for all of us: something to 'scoop' the water, packages of brown soap, an individual rag to scrub all of our dead skin cells off, and buckets of hot water to pour and wash with. After we changed it was back home to have our last dinner with our new family! It was very light but the very typical Moroccan soup was very tasty, with bread, hard-boiled eggs, and dates.

For our last day in Morocco we would spend a lot of time on the road traveling! We drove to the Rif Mountains (which the scenery reminded me a lot of my time traveling in Colorado). We spent time with a family living in a mountain village. We talked about everything from education, simplicity of life, and economic challenges of rural areas in Morocco. We prepared lunch together as a group with fresh fruit and vegetables so we could enjoy a pleasant picnic meal outside with nuts, dates, tuna, and spotted cow cream cheese --all of the perfect ingredients to make amazing sandwiches. All week long water bottled water was provided for us so we would not have to chance drinking the Moroccan water. The sun was comforting, as was our time talking with our new friends: a young student who was our translator named Mohammed, and a family, who were gracious enough to open up their home to us.

To wrap up our final adventures in Morocco, after hiking to the top of a mountain with the husband and his son, we said our goodbyes and thank-you's for a drive to Chefchaouen, a city located in the mountains. First as a group we walked around the Medina to learn some background information about its Moorish and Jewish inhabitants as well as its historical link to Al Andalus. We had our own time to shop, which meant more negotiation of prices and talking with local vendors, with whom we could use our Spanish! For the evening I stayed with Anna Marie, Fatima, and Katie in what we dubbed the 'pent house suite' since we were on the very top/roof terrance. As a group we had a very special celebration dinner in the Medina of Chefchaouen followed by sharing reflections of our thoughts on our journey. Mainly we discussed how rewarding we felt this trip was for all of us, how we would want to do it again and revisit Africa, and how there's a lot we want to take back from this trip and share with others. 

Morocco Day 4

At 7 am the majority of the group participated in a hike up a nearby mountain during the sunrise to look down at the city of Chefchaouen below us from outside of the city gate. It was beautiful to say the least. We had breakfast in the local plaza after making our trek back down the mountain and were allowed to do more shopping if we desired. To conclude our journey we drove through the mountains, fields, and cities, to Ceuta before crossing the Moroccan-Spanish border, where we would regain the hour time difference we often forgot existed and would take our final boat journey across the Strait of Gibraltar. We arrived in Algeciras, Spain an hour later, where we would have to embark on another 3 hour journey back to our real home, Granada, Spain.

To Courtney, Malissa, and I it's still a mystery where our host family showers on a regular basis. (We never really asked).
To the group, it's still a mystery why in America we are so close-minded, unintelligent, and unaware compared to Moroccans.
& To me it's still up in the air when I'll be returning to Africa again to have another great experience, but maybe someday!

Reflections

I felt these were more than necessary seeing as in only 2 days I'll be leaving the 'comfort' of my new European Continent for another.. AFRICA! We'll all have to essentially start over again as we submerse ourselves in another culture with languages none of us speak. After doing it once (upon arrival here in Spain) we all feel like we're ready for anything.

The most important realization (of the week):
What we've been doing here for the past 2 weeks is not real life. Friday we will complete our final week of orientation with the official level exam and after that day life will change drastically for us. 4 days in another city of Spain traveling to Morocco until Tuesday.. then we are free to travel wherever we want because we don't start semester classes yet. Once we do finally start classes and have our approved schedules for classes we won't all be heading together to classes, or seeing one another as frequently. We won't be having all of the professors we have become accustomed to and know that we are second language Americans and take the time to get to know us and make sure that we understand.
Classes will be spread throughout the week ranging anywhere from the early morning to late nights with lots of time to spare in between.
I think that the walks will begin to feel much longer as we have to up the number of times we walk to and from home and school. We also will be beginning tutorial classes in 'Granada Seminar' and Phonetics. So not only will our class schedules feel crazy hectic for a while, we're adding 2 different possible locations!
So there will be more possibility to get lost, to lose track of time, possibly a larger workload, and the chance that I won't see the friends that I've connected with, as frequently as I am now.
On the other hand, I'm hoping that all of this change brings greater probability to meet Spaniard students and make Spanish friends. That's one of my top goals. That and speaking Spanish all of the time. There are students in the program that insist on/don't really try speaking the language when we have every opportunity to do so. I honestly start to feel a little bad when I am speaking English and everyone around me speaking the language that I came here to speak with fluidity.

Reflections on my Morocco Exchange and what's to come:
A brand new host family for our time there! We get to pair up 3 to a room which is great and may even get to choose our roommates. This makes me VERY happy :)
-As aforementioned, exposure into a completely brand new culture and way of life in a different area of the world, a continent that is classified as third world. That's exciting enough because not many people have any desire to see what life in the South is really like. They have no care if that gap exists and to see what the discrepancies really entail. I do. *FOOD is going to be cool to make comparisons with. Although every family and the way their kitchens operate in comparison even to their own neighbors and culture, my next blog will attempt to portray the difference in Spanish and African (Moroccan) cuisine. I'm excited!
-Communicating with the people there? The official language is Arabic but they also speak French and another language. I hear that the students that we will be meeting with etc will speak English and will be easy to communicate with. It's just equally amazing to me the fact that I can be exposed to additional languages in such a quick trip. (Of course there are foreigners that I can hear, French, German, etc. walking through the streets of Granada.)
-CAMEL RIDES! It's supposed to be a surprise event but they always do it for the Exchange program, to my knowledge at least and I must say I would be kind of disappointed if we didn't get that part of the experience ha.
-Pretty much all of our time there is on a set schedule because this isn't simply a vacation for us but an educational experience. This explains exactly what we'll be up to! http://www.moroccoexchange.org/ and I'm sure all of our excursions, meetings with the Morocco Exchange program are going to be in English. (It was founded by an Irishman, I believe.)
Here's a fun fact for you. 40 euros = 444.55 Morocco Dirham. That was the recommended amount that we bring with us!

After Morocco Exchange
We have time to travel but I HAVE NO IDEA WHERE TO YET! The Czech Republic, Italy, France? I don't know!

I must start getting ready for class and such now though but I wanted to make sure to get this in. Despite all of the quick change and fast pace speed we're moving at, I'm excited and ready for more!

Although it's Sunday I wrote this post for yesterday. Enjoy the view:)

We’re about to spend our first full weekend here in Granada. After only 7 days staying with our host families I can definitely say that we’ve seen a lot, done a lot, and trust me, so much has happened!

To recap, we are at the school for class and program meetings at least twice a day for typically a total of 4.5+ hours, not including the extra time that we spend there to use the computers and free access to internet at the CLM center.  Monday we did group excursions to explore the city center and see historical landmarks in Granada. Namely “The Cathedral” and everything having to do with Los reyes catolicos, Isabel y Ferdinand. I wish I was more knowledgeable to share as many facts as 

I learned but to give you a little taste, here are some pictures: and all of the pictures have been posted to Facebook!

Before we began our little hike up to the top of what is also called, Albayzin, Aurelio created a love story. Albayzin el novio and Alhambra la novia. He told us there were three different parts to their love affair. It was a little similar to the love story between Romeo and Juliet, simply Spaniard style. Eventually they would have to (and have the chance to) embrace their love, but only could at the top where they could clearly see (and be with) one another. Literally. The only part that he spoke in English was “Sexy Sexy Boom”. That’s how he described the story in essentially different chapters. We would climb to the top, reaching each of these chapters along the way before we finally reached the climactic ending. To reach the top of Albayzin we were walking on an incline for a trip that he said would only take about 10 minutes. We made it in a lot more because we were stopping every two seconds to take pictures! He didn’t mind too much (I don’t think) and would simply wait for the lot of us.

When we reached the first sexy and the second sexy, you can only imagine our amazement. Each managed to somehow be more marvelous than the first. The second, especially astonishing, made us all eagerly anticipating the view at the very top of the Albayzin. (This picture is from the BOOM! -- the VERY TOP).

We made it to the BOOM and felt like we were on top of the world! It was fascinating not only to see the panoramic view of Granada with the Alhambra in shining in front of us, but also all of the people resting there, painting there, enjoying one another’s company, and playing and listening to music. How often do we get a chance to see literally everything at once?

Now this is living.

I plan to go back, hopefully multiple times! Everything’s always only a walk away. I haven’t been in a car since coming to my new home and the taxi that I took from the GRX airport. I want to come back especially to photograph the sunset from the top. A friend and I, Liasor, talked about coming here to run too. Because of the incline it would be challenging and fun! Atonio (my host father) recommended the same too and suggested a route up similar to what we took on the tour and then coming down on another side that is much steeper but has a view unlike any other.

Wednesday was the Barca-Real Madrid game! We went to a local bar called Fusion Pasion because we were already late for the 10 o’clock start and stayed until the final moments to see if Barca’s second goal would win the game.

Thursday we had our first Intercambios exchange. In my intercambio group I have Courtney, Griffin, Roberto. Our Spanish student’s name is Helena and she’s great! So nice right from the start, easy to get along with, and easy to talk to. After exchanging information, Veronica, our program director took all of us, probably four or five small groups with their Intercambio student, for tapas. So we had a few drinks and experimented with some tapas in the company of our new friend. We will have to plan various meetings throughout the semester together to get to know one another, hang out, and it’s also required. The events include things like tapas, which we completed this week, hiking, and el cine (the movies). It’s going to be nice to have an established core group that I know I’ll have to see during the semester.
Friday was more meetings and our first Friday night in Granada;) We hopped around different Spanish bars and talked with a few foreigners! It was our first LATE night and it was worth the wait. It’s cold at night, which is only a minor inconvenience.

Tonight is our first Saturday night! It’s almost 11pm and I’m almost ready to go. I still need to decide what to wear but I wanted to get this post in! Hasta luego!

Results

Now THIS is living!

...Or that´s what I would say that at least if with the first prueba tests I had tested into the level I need for my major requirements. The other girls from Bradley University and I tested very similar, into the lenguas y culturas program (levels 5 and 6 on this first exam), when we need to be/were aiming for Estudios Hispanicos.

Right now  you're asking, 5? 6? What does that mean? In order to finish my second major, Spanish, I need to specifically successfully enroll and complete in three courses here in Granada for the semester. Unfortunately, these courses are only offered in the Estudios Hispanicos program (levels 7 8 9 on this first exam). Nobody placed higher than a 7 although some students did fall into the 6+ category, although it didn't exist prior to now.

How do I know how the other students placed? It´s standard for Spanish professors to read out aloud all grades of every student on assignments and exams like this. A lot of the people that placed in the 6 6+ and 7 categories are ones that I feel (we feel) we converse with easily, similarly, more advanced at times. It´s a little discouraging and leads us to speculate...maybe we haven´t been learning like these other students.. But not to worry, again, this is not the official exam AND even our program director says no os procupeis because the official exam we are going to take at the end of our 2 week orientation. We have the opportunities to advance with this final placement as well as make changes to our schedules based on necessity. I need Estudios Hispanicos. I need this challenge. For the next two weeks we will be placed in our designated programs with professors that will be evaluating our skill level as well to determine if changes should be made as well... which makes me happy to hear. I know my grammar´s not perfect and my speech not flawless, but I want this so bad! (Obviously not just for my major, this is for me! I want to successfully become fluent in this language so I can move onto other ones! French first.. and then Creole, which I have a varying working knowledge in already.)


Now THIS is living!
 
Or maybe I would say that if I didn´t get lost for over an hour trying to make my way back home... On Monday I didn´t go home on the route that my señora gave me so I have not had a chance yet to figure it out! Although it was a beautiful day out, bright and warm, it was not fun trying to manuveur myself around the bending and crossing streets to no avail. Eventually I found some fellow CCA girls who always travel in packs but I was already late for my lunch time with Antonio. We found our way to an area that I knew well and from there I went to have lunch and calm myself. I had some soup for lunch and then upon leaving my apartment for another trip to the CLM, encountered a beautiful specimen in the elevator!

But hey, it happened/happens/and is bound to happen again!

But I'll say it again.. Now THIS is living! -->The view from my apartment in the morning:

Breathtaking. (Ignore the construction) and imagine it at night!

Lo hice! (sin fotos)

My first trip to school:

Este manana, tuvo que caminar a escuela (CLM) solamente yo y mi plano (mi mapo). Estuve un poco confuso una vez o dos, pero lo hice! Llegue a CLM a tiempo y segura, aunque hacia frio y estaban lloviendo.

This morning, (Monday) I had to walk to school (at el Centro de Lenguas Modernas), only me and my map. I was a little confused once or twice, but I did it! I arrived at the CLM on time and saf, although it was cold and raining.

Monday morning began our first official week of orientation, which entails frequent meetings and excursions during the day time and a period of designated class time from 4-7 in the evening. This means frequent trips back and forth from the CLM and our meeting point, cerca de las figuras de reyes católicos en calle reyes católico. Honestly, I was a little nervous because in my previous experience navigating the streets of Madrid I found myself lost very frequently. On my runs through the streets in Granada, thus far, I have been familiarized myself with the twists and turns much better and already feel tenfold more comfortable. Nonetheless, I faltered on my first trip alone to our very first meeting on the 20+ minute walk, and as a result, found myself a little more than anxious.

And when I was most unsure of myself I found comfort in the growing sound of the beats of a familiar song...and the sound of Rihanna´s voice. I passed by one clothing shop and around 10 in the morning, she was finding love in a hopeless place. I passed by another, and Rihanna was already singing a different song to me. I took a deep breath, and carried on.

Orientation:

Cada manana, mi día va a mirar como eso: por dos semanas. Despierto antes de las 9 o algo a si y desayuno sola porque mis padres tienen trabajo y mi hermanita tiene escuela.

Every morning, my day will look like this for 2 weeks. I wake up before 9 or something or something like that and eat breakfast by myself because my parents have work and my little sister has school.

On my first day attending the CLM, I had a rules and compliance meeting with my fellow CCAers, an excursion with Group 1, and then later on, at 4, had to return for the first official-unoffical level test "quiz".

Group 1´s excursion was to the explore the city center, so essentially we were walking from 11:30-2 and then Megan and Brielle and I continued to walk around the city until we had to return for the exam period at 4pm. In between this span of time we consumed churros con chocolates (my first of this trip, finally!) y tambien Brielle compro un teléfono.

Mi familia:

My señoras name is Marisa and my father, Antonio. They are one of the younger couples out of the Granadinas that participate in this foreign exchange program thrrough CCA, so I am very lucky for that alone! My sister´s name is Paloma, and she is 9. Marisa is una profesora for students that have mental disabilities and problems learning and my father is a doctor! Although they are not married, they live together and have had nurmerous CCA study abroad students before me and we all live together. I also have a new pet, named Garfil. Yes, a cat. Basically, what´s mine is his. I´m told he loves las chicas entonces, he comes on my bed and hangs out and sleeps frequently. My half eaten chocolate peanut butter protein bar that I had set on my bed while I was unpacking my suitcases, became his as well. By the time I realized he was licking it...it was already too late. At nighttime for my first night in my brand new room, while I was trying to get under the covers, he had already taken the liberty to make himself more than comfortable so I tried to slip under the half he wasn´t on so as not to disturb him. Sometimes I forget he´s there because I´m not accustomed to having animals in the house:)

The food we´ve been having is very great! A lot of fresh vegetables, always fruit (even ones I had never heard of), and meat so far! And Paloma really likes sweets, which I need to try to stay away from. Unknowingly, I had brought mi familia various types of candy commonly found in the United States along with postcards of Chicago, and I think she really liked that.

When I want to shower I am limited to 5 minutes, which is definitely not something we Americans ever hear. The program requires that we as students are all given 15 minutes tops (a recommended 10 minutes) to do what we need to do. The reason being is that water, along with light (and electricity) can be very costly in Spain so we all have to make sure to be very cautious with usage in our respective homes.

My family seems to be very nice! And again, I will repeat, tengo mucho suerte! Mi familia es joven y, espero (y ya pienso), divertida! Obviously I don´t want to disappoint them in any way or break any of their rules, so... I want to get to know them well as soon as possible. Mi familia no habla ningun ingles! Except for Paloma who is currently taking a few classes. I need to ask her a little more about it though, as well as learn a lot from her.

I have my own bedroom and bathroom! My new home is beautiful and since I am up high on the 7th floor in an apartment it reminds me of a NY/Chitown high-end spot.

To conclude, I am blessed.

I wanted to include pictures in this one but unfortunately have not had the chance to! I haven´t been on my own personal laptop since I arrived on Sunday. I am using the computer center at the CLM before class. Check back for pictures in this post/the next is sure to have some (and is almost ready to be submitted).

All things go!

These past 9-10 hours of flying have definitely been an adventure. I've essentially been traveling non-stop since I left the airport around 11:30 am Friday afternoon. With a 2:30pm flight scheduled and the first snow of the SEASON upon us (in the Chicagoland area), I had to give myself adequate time to make my flight. Unfortunately for me, when I booked my flight I was not getting advised by a booking agent or anything of the sort so I chose what seemed like the best option for me -- the cheapest.

This meant that I would fly from Chicago to NY. From NY to Madrid, followed by a quick flight from Madrid to Granada. It sounds simple but I made it a little more complicated than I would have liked (had I known better), and there were also some other matters along the way to make things a little more frustrating. In New York I was required to switch airports. I located a CHEAP shuttle very easily but had to personally transport all my suitcases (a LARGE red duffle, two ME-size roll suitcases, and my carry-on "purse"), from one airport to the next. I thought that would be the worst of my problems. In Chicago I had to pay the AA baggage fees for two suit cases, in addition to my second being over weight. When I got to the Iberia terminal they tried to tell me that the receipt of payment for my luggage at AA was insufficient and that I would have to pay the exact same fee over again! After speaking with a supervisor, numerous Iberia employees at the counter, as well as a mysterious Iberia employee on the phone, they "waived" all of the fees for me except for the overweight baggage fee which I still had to pay. Seeing as this issue all arose because of this mistake made by the AA employee in the lack of producing an adequate receipt..I (should be) will get my money back. It still makes no sense to me how two airlines partnering with one another do not have a better system than this, especially when by their request, passengers literally have to re-check in their bags. I felt the entire situation was ridiculous and frankly, I was a little overwhelmed trying to explain my situation to them.

I will never travel like that again.

Despite this inconvenience and having to go through security another time, I did meet one of the students also studying in my Central College program which brought some relief. I had a traveling partner before the long haul from NY to Madrid. The flight was tranquil, just like the first. This second flight I was able to enjoy from my number one preference, the aisle seat. Although, I must say I have developed a new-found respect for the window seat. Watching the entire cityscape of NY at nighttime with all of the beautiful lights, bridges, buildings, cars, and boats, was breathtaking. (I was just in NY, as of the 4th of January, so I'll say it was good to be back[:). 

When checking in for my flights online, on impulse I selected the low calorie options. So at 10pm CT or so when our meals for dinner came, in the luxurious comfort of my aisle seat I received fresh fruit, rice cakes, vegetables, chicken, and rice. I already had dinner at the airport two hours prior so I didn't have much other than the fruits and vegetables. At 1:35am CT we were receiving our breakfast. This time I received a tomato and cucumber sandwich on wheat bread with more fresh fruit and low calorie jelly. I ate the fruit and jellied a piece of bread. I was content. I made myself sleep as much as I could, which I appreciate now. The only thing I would have changed about my experience on this specific trip abroad is traveled with a water bottle! I do it in the states; I never forget my water bottle. It saves time/$ so I do not have to purchased one at the airport and refilling is so simple. So forgetting it now makes no sense to me while for 6+ hours I forget a bottle and have to keep asking for refills in my tiny plastic cup. Minute detail! and honest mistake.

 When Fatima and I arrived at Madrid Barajas airport I found that it was easy to navigate myself around the huge airport because it was all very familiar to me from traveling there in June of 2011. It was a long walk (and pretty quick air tran ride) to our final destination, our final gate. After the stamping of our passports and our final pass through security, we found ourselves greeted by 15 or so of our fellow study abroad companions. 

So I bought myself a water, finally using euro! Anna Marie, a Bradley companion, took a taxi to our hotel where we will be staying for the evening. Carrying our 4 large suitcases up 2 1/2 flights of stairs wasn't exactly enjoyable but it can't touch our excitement. Although it's only 8:20 AM I feel energized, rejuvenated, excited, and a whirlwind of other emotions now that I am finally HERE. Words cannot express the excitement, pride, and enjoyment, and BLESSINGS..etc. 

The weather is beautiful and as always, so are the people. We're waiting for Tesla to join us in our room here. Our plans for the day consist of a run around the city before we re-freshen up from all of our travels, and EXPLORE! So we can look into telephones, adapters, and any other necessities that we need (including getting to know our new home!). Later on we will meet up with the students in our program to get to know one another and have some fun before Orientation tomorrow.

Orientation is at a nearby hotel for a period of time unknown to me at this moment in time, but I will find out soon! After orientation I will finally be given the names and address of mi nueva familia! Then another adventure begins... I will have to transport all of my luggage to another location to find my way home.

Now that I'm safely abroad, I'd love to hear from you! Please comment and say hello:)

My #EatPrayLove holiday experience in NYC has come to an end and I am back to reality: a 1-week countdown until my departure to Spain. It’s exciting but still brings anxiety at the same time!

Just wanted to give you a little update with a quick post on what I’m up to for final preparations. It may all sound pretty basic, but trust me, I'm putting a lot of time and effort to make sure I get everything in and done:)

I’ve been home since Wednesday and so far I have:

Gone to the tailor for my business clothing – a pair of gray slacks tailored for cheap! Taken care of some business with the bank. Reintroduced myself to the gym instead of just the sidewalks and stop lights. Prescription medicines, found out that not only have I had a cold for almost a month but I have a sinus infection. Continued to pack all of my little necessities. Studying Spanish! Adequate research on traveling abroad/in Spain. Starting to say goodbyes. X-rays (after not having any substantial care after 12 years) on my back.

To look forward to:

Reunions and goodbyes with friends! X-Ray results. Eye appointment. Dental appointment. Hair appointment. Packing everything into suitcases! Making a travel budget. Making necessary arrangements for travel. Studying Spanish and more research!

New year’s resolutions?

Be more patient with my family (soon to be families!) and myself as well, because living in a foreign language will be a challenging task. Be more proactive (life after graduation?) = stay busy and productive, and take advantage of every opportunity! Do my best to help strengthen family ties (since we're all so spread out!). 

It's almost time for champagne, confetti, party favors, and the ball drop! Here I am, coming to you, LIVE and love from New York City:)
This week in NY city I think was the perfect preparation for my adventures to come in Spain. I’ve been staying with my best friend, Erin, at her place in NYC in the outskirts of Manhattan. (She graduated in May from Bradley and has been maneuvering herself around the state of NY since then and has landed herself a job with a marketing/PR firm and a beautiful, cozy little apartment.) So although I’m with someone that clearly knows their way around these parts, and with my sister, Rachelle too, I still feel like I’m “on my own” in this big city, which I feel is preparing me for where I’ll be in just a few short weeks. There are so many things to do and people and places to see that it is a little hectic trying to make sure we get everything in done in the short amount of time that we have here. Cousins on my mom’s side. Cousin’s on my dad’s side. Grandparents.  Aunts. Uncles. And they’re everywhere! And if I'm being honest... love it! This is the only thing I’m missing in my little world in Illinois. My family. And I know I'll be missing it all even more while I'm overseas BUT thankfully I continue to be supported, reassured, commended of/for my decision to pursue this dream of mine.

I planned this trip for me, to see my family. I especially wanted to see my grandparents before I left for months in a different country without easy accessibility to them. This trip so FAR has turned into long days roaming the streets of Manhattan, NYC, and the Bronx followed by longer, almost sleepless/restless, evenings and mornings spending time with Erin and my sister as well as cousins, Uncles, and my aunt. All nothing short of amazing/good fun besides minor set backs of tired eyes, extreme hunger, and a little bit of a cold. After the NYE festivities tonight though it will become the more family oriented trip that I had intended it to be, starting off with a large family dinner and spending the rest of the trip roaming the streets of Queens, Brooklyn, and the surrounding neighborhoods.

Back to the planning aspect, to prove the little point I’m trying to make here, I’ve been trying to take control of the planning coordination as much as possible while we’ve been here. A perfect example of the idea that if you want something you have to go and get it, if you want to see it, go out and make it happen. That’s the mentality I need to have while in Spain. In one day we made it to: Metropolitan Museum of Art. St. Patrick’s Cathedral. Rockefeller Center to see the infamous ice skating rink and larger than life Christmas Tree. and a reunite with Times Square. The following day we took on the Bronx, and had the opportunity to spend hours watching a football game at the new NY Yankee Stadium. Just to name a few.

It's NYE and everyone is scrambling to find the perfect place to be when midnight hits..and the standard heartbreaking question, who will I share a special new year's moment with.. I  schedule this trip to satisfy my #1 priority (again, family) but also killed two birds with one stone, and avoided Illinois scene; there's no where I'd rather be tonight:) The only thing that I would change is to have my parents out here in NY too. 

Right now the only love I need is the love I have for the world around me and my desire to know it better. What that should really entail is me starting to enhance my directional skills and my conversational Spanish skills, both which I have not been paying too much mind to this winter break so far. My month at home with my family is nearing the end. I do feel I’ve gotten a substantial amount of things done in my short return to the nest but it's still too short of a time!... I could not leave for Spain without turning my bedroom at my parents house inside out to clean it out and fulfill the phrase “Everything must go!”. New year. Fresh start. Out with the old.

It’s going to be a great year. It’s going to start off with spending time with family all over the U.S. Possibly a quick trip back to Peoria and making lists and, of course, checking them twice.

Happy New Year!
Be safe tonight. I know we (Erin, Rachelle, and I) will be doing our best to do the same;P