26 May 2011

It has taken me forever to get this entry up and I am sorry about that. After my London trip, which was my last blog entry, I went to Venice with Hannah for literally about two days, but it was probably one of the most laid back trips I have been on. Even though I had bought a travel guide for the city, we just ditched it and decided on our one whole day to wander around the city and see what we could find. Venice is a maze. Literally. Quite a few times, we found ourselves going in circles, finding dead ends at either a wall or heck, even the water. We did get lost for about an hour past the Plaza San Marco trying to get our bearings. Thank God we did because we could not find where we were on the map, but Hannah managed to figure it out. We ended up not really going into anything, but on Saturday morning, before we were leaving, the line outside the Basilica was huge and we had our stuff with us, so we figured not to mess with our chances on that one. Instead we thoroughly enjoyed our time there just seeing the beauty of Venice, eating home cooked pasta by the hostel kids, Italian pizza and even gelati. It was a nice, relaxing two days considering I generally like to have a plan but instead decided to just go with it.

Since then, I have completed my studies at the university which means I have had about a week and a half of summer vacation in Spain. I have gone to the beach a few times, staid in and read quite a bit, and kept Rachel company on her last day here since she ended up leaving earlier than planned. During this time, we also had new doors put into the apartment which turned out to be an eventful three days and one really stressed Maria. There was sawdust everywhere and Maria is a bit of a neat freak, but seeing as she has been an ama de casa for goodness knows how many years, this is to be expected. It is her job, her comfort, so to see her house in a state of chaos was a little stressful for her. Now though, we have beautiful doors. I started packing last week after watching Rachel's struggles, and I am glad I tried it out because I might not have been able to get everything to fit. So, I have now reworked everything and should be ok. Tomorrow is the last day I have in Alicante, and part of that will be spent in the University area, eating a fairwell lunch with the other students in the program, turning in the cell phone I have been more attached to than I probably should have been, and locating a shirt that I want to remember my time at the university. Sadly, my flight is at the awful hour of 7am on Saturday, so I have to be up and have a taxi at the house by around 4:45. That will be a rough, loooooong day as I make my way homeward.

Do I have any regrets from this time abroad? Yes, but not with what I have done, because even in my worst experiences, my toughest times, I came out of it with some lesson learned about myself, the world, or life. My regret is that I did not spend enough time enjoying Spain itself. I had wanted to go to Barcelona, and would still like to, and I have heard that the north of Spain is beautiful too. And I fell in love with Andalucia, so I hope to go back there sometime. I never really left Alicante, or explored what was near because I was always saving money to spend on my bigger trips, so I never went to Elche or any of the other close communities. But, I did enjoy what I had the time to see, and I have lists of things for my next time I am out here, if there is a next time, which I hope there is. I am thankful for the experience, as it has taught me about myself, about others from my country and from Europe. Perhaps I am not so enamored with Europe as I had been, but it still a continent to admire. I hope to explore more of it, as well as South America after graduate school perhaps. I definitely believe that my horizons have broadened, as cliche as that sounds. So, adiós, hasta luego, y buena suerte with all that lies ahead for you.

11 May 2011

I just got back from London trip 2. This time, we were able to breathe a little more and actually got a chance to do quite a bit.

Day 1 (Friday):

We woke up and decided after breakfast that we were going to walk over in the direction of the London Eye, Westminster Abbey, and the Houses of Parliament. I don't know how many of you know London, but it really isn't a walking city. We walked and got some Starbucks for lunch ('cause they have sandwiches and caffeine- two essentials in my book). We also corned a souvenir shop on our walk that I was able to get most of my gifts and what not at for around 15 pounds. Note- that includes me, my mom, my dad, my brother, my sister-in-law, and my grandpa. They were little things though. Also, find the locations with 15 for 1 pound postcards. I split that with Rachel and Logan, so we paid practically nothing each for 5 postcards. As we continued our walk, we encountered a tourist office, where we pre-ordered our tickets for the London Eye that day and perused the broadway shows that were being offered. Sadly none were really in our price-range AND in a good seating area. We finally made it across one of the bridges to the London Eye, where we exchanged our receipt for our actual tickets and then saw a 4D video about the London Eye. It was free and 4 minutes long. I liked it other than the 3D aspect solely because 3D usually makes me really dizzy. We finally ate our sandwiches and then hopped in a bubble and took our ride around the wheel. I got some great pictures of the city from it, but it was hard getting my camera to focus because of the glass. After that, we took a siesta of sorts in the green at Westminster Abbey because we had pretty much been on our feet all day at that point. We then started our walk back to the hostel, which required a stop at the tourist office to book our tickets for Westminster, and a stop at a shop on the way back. Cutting that out, we calculated about an 1 and 40 minutes worth of walking from Westminster to our hostel. We decided for dinner to try out a nice little Indian restaurant a few blocks away from the hostel. I was pretty tired by the end of this, but this is only the beginning of our adventure. 

Day 2(Saturday):

Logan and Rachel had made friends with "Canada" as we called her, or Sam which is her real name the night before while I had been showering, and she tagged along with us on our adventure. We originally planned on going to the Houses of Parliament and touring Westminster, but we were only able to visit the houses. I really enjoyed the tour, other than the fact that you can't sit down the entire time, and you also can't take pictures. However, I did come out of that with a classic picture that they took of me when we were going through security before entering. The picture was taken while I reached up to move my hair. After this, we decided that we needed to have a traditional English lunch, so we popped on over to a pub nearby. I tried some bangers and mash, Logan and Rachel opted for the chicken and mushroom pie, and Sam went for the fish and chips with "garden" peas, aka non-mashed peas. She didn't feel good after, so we sent her back to the hostel while we decided to try and find the Camden market. That didn't turn out quite as well as planned. Apparently we didn't make it far enough but it was starting to get late in the day so we headed back towards our hostel after Rachel did some quick work figuring out which bus takes us where. For dinner, we collected Sam and went to a Chinese restaurant near to our hostel as well after realizing that the pub Logan wanted to go to was the same as the one we went to for lunch. They all have different names, but belong to the same chain. 

Day 3(Sunday):

I have no clue how they did it, but Logan and Rachel had me up at 6something in the morning because we had decided to go to Westminster for a service. The one that sounded best to Rachel and Logan for our schedule for the day was the 8am communion service. The day started out rainy, but after the 30 min service, it was sunny (I should note that we had beautiful weather ALL weekend). We tried out this little French themed cafe before heading over to the British museum to wander around a bit. I think we calculated about a 2 to 3 hour visit there before meeting up with Emma, a friend of ours from Hollins who is studying with the Hollins program at the University of London. She took us around the area of the university to show us where the classes take place and we stopped at a Pret A Manger to grab lunch. After that, Emma pointed us in the direction of Platform 9 and 3/4 for Rachel and Logan, but we decided to take an hour detour in the gift shop of the British Library. When we had found it, we realized that it was only open for an hour more, so we just decided to chill in the gift shop. I wouldn't have minded looking at some of the other stuff, but obviously, time would not permit that. Once they kicked us out, we finally made it to King's Cross for the obligatory Harry Potter pictures with the trolley in the wallpapered wall. We then went to Mangosteen for dinner (that is a Thai restaurant, and yes, that is our 3rd and final night of Asian cuisine). 

Day 4(Monday):

Windsor Castle is pretty awesome. That is all we basically were able to do that day because we had to hop trains to get to Windsor and then we spent about 3 hours or so touring the castle grounds. Other than a brief cloud of rain which sent us into the closest building, the Middle Ward giftshop (notice a trend?), it was sunny with a crisp wind. I fell in love with the architecture of the castle, which led to my purchase of a book about it. While on the grounds, we saw Queen Mary's Dolls' House, the State Apartments (some of which had been burned in the 92 fire but are fully restored if not remodeled), the changing of the guards there (somewhat), and St. George's Chapel, complete with the grave of Henry VIII and his 3rd wife as well as symbols for the 24 knights of the garter or something like that, which the newly married Prince William and his father are both a part of. Once we finally left the grounds, we found a wool shop right there that we perused for a bit and then started our hunt for a lunch, which turned out to be at a pub where I tried a steak and ale pie. After that we hopped on the trains back to town and then went over towards the university to meet up with Emma and surprise some of the other Hollins women there because they were having their own little version of the HDP (History Department Party) with one of the History professors at a nearby pub. It was nothing like the HDP back at school, which is good because I would probably not be able to write about it. Basically we were sitting around a table catching up and discussing different things with the professor. I felt a little bad for Logan because she doesn't go to Hollins, but she fit perfectly with us. It was nice to see some of my friends again, even though I wasn't able to see all of them. It did make me miss home even more, especially knowing that this Saturday they are going back to the states. After a happy hug, but a sad departing, Emma, Rachel, Logan and I went to Benito's Hat, which is a lot like a Chipolte for those of you who have been to one. So now we have added Mexican to our list of food we had (recap: Indian, Chinese, Thai, English/French, Mexican). We stopped for some frozen yogurt after that and then said our final fairwell to Emma as we went back to the hostel. 

Day 5(Tuesday):

Our flight was not until the evening, so we had plenty of time to fit in an attempt to see the changing of the guard at Buckingham and an actual tour of Westminster, complete with the tombs of many famous monarchs and poets and even scientists, such as Charles Darwin and Isaac Newton, as well as some still more amazing architecture, and a final stop at a giftshop. This was however not our last shop. We did have to stop by the university for a sweatshirt and shirts for Rachel to take back to her family, but after all of this, and an Italian lunch, we raced ourselves back to the hostel, collected our stuff, got one more picture by the telephone booth, and ran like the wind to the bus, then the train, then the gate. We finally got to our houses around 1 am. We unfortunately had to split a taxi because the bus stopped at midnight, and we got in at 12:15. 

So, we are at today, which consisted of me waking up late, showering, napping, eating lunch with my new Japanese roommate/housemate Mayuko from Osaka and rushing off to one of my last classes. We found out today that we have to write a summary along with the presentation, so Sunday, my mom's birthday, will be one very long but very necessarily productive day seeing as my presentation is at 11am the next day. We (the American students) are still trying to figure out if we have to come after our presentations, or at least that last week we are here. If not, then I have two weeks to finally relax and enjoy the city and beach a bit more. I am thankful that we do not have a final exam in my class. Oh, I should probably explain why I can't work on my project over the next few days. I leave for Venice tomorrow afternoon. I will spend the evening, all day Friday, and a bit of Saturday morning/afternoon in Venice and be home Saturday evening. I could work on the plane or at the hostel, but I also foresee a lot of sleeping left over from the London trip sneaking into my schedule while there, especially with my sore ankle. Always be prepared if you have old joint injuries. I think that is everything, so I will update after Venice, and then of course over the next few weeks as I finish up my time here. 

4 May 2011

Here are some pictures that I promised. The video formats are not that great, so they are not uploading properly. I hope you enjoy.

Semana Santa

Dublin

NERJA

Hope you liked the pictures! I will be going to London for the next five days so I can actually get a chance to enjoy my time instead of trying to cram it all in to 2 days. After that, I have an extremely short trip to Venice planned with another girl from the program, and then I have my final presentation for my class. These next few weeks will be really busy!

30 April 2011

Oh wow! I have just finished two crazy weeks! Last week was Semana Santa, or Holy Week. Everyday, there are processions with nazarenos or brotherhoods who walk with candles, crosses, and carry a replica of a saint or Jesus. They look a little weird to American students because the hoods of the traditional outfits remind us of the KKK, but they are nothing like them at all. In fact, here in Alicante, they are a lot more laid back. Children participate in the processions, either in bands or just walking as representations from their school or church, handing out candy to the other kids standing along the side of the road. Also, women are involved in everything, which is also not traditional, but is comforting to see. Before the week was up, my spring break started. A friend wanted to go to Dublin to see a movie that will not be showing in the states, and since I have never been, I decided to tag along. We only had two days there, but we met an old old friend of hers at Trinity College and she gave us the poor man's tour of the school and some of the surrounding sites. We also just enjoyed roaming the city, especially because pretty much everything was closed on Good Friday, so there wasn't much to do. Saturday, we tried to find out about the movie, but of course it still wasn't available even though it was supposed to be opening that day. To make up for it, we went and took a tour of the Guinness Storehouse, where at the end, I got my free pint and it took me almost an hour to finish it because I am not much of a beer person, but you got more to drink for free if you got the pint than if you opted for the coke, go figure. Plus, it was a once in a lifetime opportunity to drink a free Guinness. We went to see Red Riding Hood instead since we couldn't go to the movie she wanted to see. The next day, we went to Malaga, back in Spain. Our intention was to stay there for five days and explore the area, maybe go to another town for the day, all because one of our professors loves the city. Well, when I booked the hotel, I thought I had booked something within the city, or at least pretty close to the city, because I knew it wasn't actually in Malaga. So we took a taxi. Turns out, the hotel was in a pueblo an hour and 15 away from the city, so the taxi was 97 euro. Note to all who plan to travel= double check where the hotel is and transportation to the place. There was a bus but we did not know about it until too late. However, the mishap turned out fine. We enjoyed spending the five days in the pueblo, visiting caves, walking around and admiring the black sand beaches. It was beautiful. Traveling back to Alicante turned out to be a lot more stressful than anticipated, and I will spare the details on that, only noting that we did have to buy another ticket from Madrid and so stayed in the airport for around 6 hours. That was a long, long, LONG day. I was so happy to be back in Alicante. I have spent the last two days relaxing and trying to get some more stuff done before my next trip back to London with Rachel and Logan. I am looking forward to this one because I think it is a little more well-planned than this last one. But eh, you live and you learn. That is precisely why I am here after all. It is weird to think that in a month, I will be back in the states trying to adjust back into the time difference. But until then, I intend to enjoy what time I have left in Alicante, and get this project for class finished!

* If you would like to see photos from Semana Santa, Dublin, and Nerja, I will be putting them up later, as well as some video footage from the processions

7 April 2011

Here is a video from part 1 of the ascent to the top of the Eiffel Tower:

Here is a video from part 2 of the ascent to the top:

Now that I have officially finished uploading info from Paris, I figure I might as well let you know some more about what I have been experiencing here in Spain, the main theme for this blog. Well, now that I am down to just taking my university class, I have a lot more free time. I still have some reading to do, but I only have class twice a week, so since I got back from Paris during my class, I only had to go once this week. The weather here has been improving and so I spent a few hours at the beach with Rachel today. I needed that lazy time and I most definitely need the color from the sunshine (my arms and legs are totally different colors). For those of you who have never been to Europe before, like me before I came here to study abroad, the likelihood of you experiencing topless beaches is probably slim to none. We think that within the few hours we were at the beach today we saw about eleven women without the tops, quite a few in thongs, and a few men in speedos. It was definitely a different experience. The Spanish, or rather the Europeans in general, have a different idea about body exposure for sure than Americans. Be prepared when going to beaches while here. Also, make sure to note that there is a chance that you will see people completely naked, which, thank God, I have not had to deal with yet, but a few of my friends have. It surprisingly didn't bother me as much as I thought it would, but I know that it still shocks some of the other students here with me. We have such a different mindset, wondering why they do it. It is the same as I discussed in my social realities project on sexuality in Spain, it is rebellion on a minor level from the censorship of the era that the Spanish were under Franco. They feel that they should embrace their freedom; if they can do this, why shouldn't they? At least that is what I have been observing in my time here. It definitely has been making me think more about my culture and how we take advantage of our freedoms or take them for granted, etc. I still can't say that one is better than the other, but just that they are different. Just some food for thought. 

6 April 2011

I have returned from the beautiful city of Paris as of yesterday. I had a very eventful trip. Saturday, when we left, the plane was late all in all (arriving to get us, and arriving in France). We had a little bit of difficulty navigating the Metro system when we got there, but by the end, we had it down pretty good. Rachel and I took a night bus tour of the city, seeing all of the beautiful sights of Paris lit up, including the Eiffel Tower in all of its sparkling glory. After the tour, I got us lost but we found a wonderful little crepe shop where we grabbed some dinner on our way back to the hotel. Sunday, we woke up a lot later than intended, so we didn't get a chance to visit Versailles, but, as it was the first Sunday of the month, the Louvre was free to enter and so we got to go in and see the Mona Lisa, among the other marvelous artwork (including the palace itself).
We couldn't resist some gift shopping in the carousel of the Louvre, where among other cute shops, you can find an Apple store, 2 Starbucks, a Mc Cafe, McDonald's, Swarovsky, Virgin Mobile Music and Video Library... The list of stuff just goes on and on. Monday was our last full day so we went to Notre Dame and took a peek inside the cathedral (sorry we did not see any hunchbacks) and enjoyed the craziness of the pigeons while we waited on our friend Nick to catch up with us. We then proceeded on a walk to La Sorbone (?) so that we could see Kelly, a fellow Hollins student who has been studying in Paris this semester, but before we met up with her to eat at an American themed restaurant, we located a vintage jewelry shop where we proceeded to drool over all of the classic beauty. Nick and I were sent on a mission to meet Mina, another CCCS student, at Notre Dame so that we could continue our tour of the city while Rachel and Kelly stayed behind. Of course, Nick and I got us lost, but we found the Luxembourg Gardens and so Rachel and Kelly caught up with us there. From there, we proceeded to the Eiffel Tower, where Rachel and I rode the elevators to the top and I bought some French Champagne to celebrate. It was definitely an experience. That night, Rachel and I found a quaint little French restaurant that had a 3 course meal for 10 euros. The one waiter (or co-owner, not sure) liked us so much, especially since I let him have the tulip Nick plucked for me from beside the tower. He put in in a cup of water on our table and gave us free rose wine. I tasted real French onion soup, boeuf  bourguinon (beef stew for those of us who can't pronounce that) and an apple tart. It was so delicious and we were having so much fun that I accidentally left a bag with a few little gifts behind. When we went back in the morning, and I tried my best to explain to the manager what happened in simple English, and thankfully the bag had been placed safely by the bar.

We then hurried off to the Eiffel Tower to get a few more photos with the tower, but we weren't free from harassment by the gypsies and other con-artists that flock around the tourist attractions. I fell bad for giving one any money, but I was having trouble pushing her away so gave her 3 euro and ran. Another con-artist tried 3 different languages with us but we continued to ignore him and his friend. When we got to the bus station to catch the bus to the airport they immediately went on break, which was supposed to be 10 minutes but was really pushing 20. In the mean time, the bus came and was getting ready to leave so one of the other workers caught the bus before it left so that the very angry line of customers didn't storm the cashiers. As it was, we were told to shift the lines we were in and then they still didn't open right away. It was frustrating, but we finally were on the bus, which Mina and I slept on the entire ride to the airport. The airplane was half an hour late, but we managed to get back into Alicante on time. I am very glad to be back, especially knowing that I only have one class to worry about right now, so I can take my time a lot easier now. I do have to start planning for fall term back in the states, but for now, I think this weekend I will be at the beach catching up on some articles for class. Bring on the 80 degree weather!

I have included a video of the tour sparkling for you, as well as a view of what I had to deal with to see the Monna Lisa. 

1 April 2011

Today is my last day of program classes! I have an exam at 11 am and then I am free. I just have my university class (I am in the semi-integrated program). In the afternoon, there will be a going-away coffee thing for the Spanish studies program whose last day ever is tomorrow. They will be leaving on Saturday. The international business program leaves a little later into the month of April, where as the semi-integrated and integrated students (of which I am a part of) are staying until the end of May. I am excited but also homesick. To make up for it, the weather has been beautiful the last few days with sunshine and highs in the low to mid 70s.

I just helped Rachel move into her new room (same apartment, but better room) and studied a little. We had fajitas for dinner and I was reminded of how much I miss our American food. Mmmm. We are going to Paris Saturday through Tuesday which I am excited about. I don't know French, but I am curious, plus I am in Europe so I figured, hey, why not? There will definitely be a blog post about our trip when I get back. I am sure there will be some story to be told from it.

Anyways, it is midnight, so I need to actually try to get to bed. I have a lot to get done tomorrow. Buenas noches!

27 March 2011

So I am sitting in my room, attempting to start reading one of my many articles for my social anthropology, not too excited about it because, though the subject matter is interesting, the way it is written is frustrating... Well, anyways, I hear this band playing and of course, I am quite confused. I know it is Sunday, but I didn't think there was particularly any special celebration for today. Well, it gets louder so I decide to go investigate and come to find that there is a small procession through my neighborhood of our Bellas de Houguera (I think that is what they are called- I will double check). So, I run back to my room, grab my camera, and filmed the last 34 sec on the street closest to me. They went by on the other street (they walked the blocks) but the battery had died mid-filming attempt. It is not my best filming job, but I hope you enjoy.

20 March 2011, Part 2

The last Falla we found and were way too close to when they ignited it.

 Before: 

After:

This is the only video that it will let me upload. Sorry I cannot put up more. 

20 March 2011

I am sooooo tired! We got home around 6 am this morning from the festivities in Valencia. There are really no words to explain Las Fallas because America has nothing like this. But, I can tell you this much, I am all fire-worked out for the rest of the year. I have never been in a big city during a celebration like this. Kids were throwing firecrackers randomly while we were out and about, their parents totally helping them light them. I was close to the Plaze de Ayuntamiento for the mascleta at 2pm. I couldn't really see anything, but I most certainly could feel it. Blogger won't let me upload the videos right now but I am working on that! Sorry! They will be up soon.

17 March 2011

Happy St. Patrick's Day everyone! As a general update, this weekend, 9 buses of students, primarily extranjeros are taking a really long day trip to Valencia from 8:30 am to 3:30 am (yes that is "am"). We are going to Las Fallas, a celebration unique to Valencia celebrated for about a week until the 19, the day of their patron saint, who's name I cannot remember at the moment. It started as a tradition when carpenters burned whatever they had left over in their studios and has now expanded to a time of excess spending on artistic displays, the fallas themselves, which are built and decorated and then at the end burned. There is also a concert of explosion called the mascleta, an art of pyrotechnics where it is nothing but the smoke and smell of the gunpowder as well as the sound that pulses through your entire body. This takes place in the afternoon, and is supposed to be the day we go? I am not sure, but I will find out! There will definitely be a blog post and pictures after we get back, praying that I do not get pic-pocketed while I am there.

6 March 2011

I went out for Carnaval yesterday. That was definitely an experience. Rachel and I didn't go out until 12:15 last night and we saw all sorts of craziness. People were dressed up in all sorts of group costumes, like a family of pirates, a royal family, groups of Waldos (as in "Where's Waldo") the Simpson's and even Futurama characters. There were girls dressed as flies, a couple of people dressed as food pyramids. There were also some really inappropriate costumes, knowing that Spain is not as shy about sexual content. People were out in the street dancing and drinking. If you weren't drinking like crazy, you probably weren't enjoying yourself as much as possible in their eyes. There was one really drunk girl that was being wheeled out of the area who decided to grab onto me on the way out. She was having a really rough time standing or accomplishing much of anything. I did enjoy some chocolate and churros before heading back to the apartment, but of course that couldn't be accomplished without getting my hair dipped in the chocolate or even having us get hit on by two drunk Zorros. As much as I wanted to have chocolate brown hair, I just didn't want to do it that way. I also woke up with a faint smell of smoke in my hair. Yum. Definitely a different experience.

4 March 2011

Yesterday, I had my second intercambio, an interchange with Spanish students who help Americans and other foreign students with their Spanish in exchange for practice in the other's language (for me, that means I help with English, he helps me with Spanish). I am in a group of four, with one other American girl from my program, and our partners are two young Spanish guys. We met last week to get to know each other a little better and so yesterday was our first of six required sessions. I think that we are going to meet up more because we all seem to like each other and we are eager to practice. It is nice getting a chance to spend time with Spanish students because for the past two months I have been studying with Americans and a few from other countries (at least with the ones from other countries, they don't know English, so we practice in Spanish haha). I also met my "brother" (the son of my host-mom) today when I got home from my exams. So, in total, I have met her brother, her son, and one of her daughters. I laughed a little at myself because my instinct when I meet someone new is to reach out and shake their hands, something I have to fight because it is much more common for people to kiss on the cheeks, not necessarily with someone new, but it is usually the gesture between friends and family. I am getting better at it, but I still have that split second of "Oh yeah, I need to do this..." I need to rest up because it is Carnaval here. Tomorrow night my friends and I are going to go out all dressed up. I think it is going to be fun. I also hope to go to the beach a little tomorrow too, even if it is just to walk around down there because, well, the Mediterranean Sea is just a few minutes away!  

26 February 2011

I had a request from one of my followers to update you on my excursion to London last weekend. For starters, the fact that I have been surrounded by Spanish for almost two months now is actually taken a turn for the better. When we got to London, I had trouble remembering that I could speak English there and that everything would be in English. Thankfully, the only people who caught me saying little things in Spanish were my fellow students, Matt and Nick, who both had their moments as well. When we got off the plane, we took a train ride that brought us closer into town where our hostel was. We stayed at the Astor Victoria, which was my first hostel experience, and I liked it there very much. We left our luggage in the luggage room and then proceeded on our journey. After lunch at a quaint little cafe, we then walked along the Thames to the Tower Bridge. I do not know the mileage, but that was not a short walk. We did happen to pass most of the major monuments to get pictures at, such as Parliament and Big Ben,Westminster Abbey, the Millennium Bridge (only famous to Harry Potter fans- the one that the Death Eaters attack and destroy in HP6),and of course the Tower of London and the Tower Bridge. We decided to take the tube back to the hostel and then on to China Town for supper. The next day we went to the British Museum to see an exhibit on the Book of the Dead. The last item was a 37 meter long "book" from a rich man's daughter's tomb. It had originally been one piece, but they had trimmed it so that they could frame is easier. I was just in awe at how well preserved this stuff is. We then continued our hunt for the last few major stops along the way (such as Buckingham Palace and Platform 9 and 3/4). After all of this, plus an excursion that got Nick and I lost trying to find a knitting store (which was closed anyways) we went to the London Apollo and enjoyed the Ben Folds Lonely Avenue Europe Tour, the thing we were coming to see. We did have to deal with drizzle and the fact that we could see our breath, so it was really nice to come back to the sunshine here on the Med. coast.

Today was one of those days that I thank God I chose Alicante. Who doesn't like the idea of spending a few hours relaxing on the beach with friends?

25 February 2011

The weather is beautiful here. It has been in the mid to upper 60s and sunny all week. Needless to say, while I enjoyed my break in London over the weekend, it was glorious to return to my new home here in Alicante. With weather like this, and the forecast looking just as wonderful for tomorrow, I am planning on walking to Postiguet which is the little beach literally a 15 minute walk from my apartment. There are also little shops and vendors along the Esplanada right there. According to one of the guys in my program,either the Burger King or McDonald's (both of which are located by the beach) has beer on the menu. I don't intend to take that up but I think I am definitely going to do some browsing and studying there most of the afternoon. Fresh air and sunshine are something I need right now.

12 February 2011

This past weekend I went to Granada and my camera quit working when we got to the Alhambra. I was very unhappy about this because the Alhambra is one of the most beautiful things I have seen. Tuesday, I turned 21. This week we figured out what university class I will be taking- Social Anthropology of Spanish Pueblos. The sociology class I wanted to take was going to have a book in another dialect/language (Valenciano) and the students were allowed to do homework in Valenciano as well as ask questions in it. I was one of two extanjeros (exchange students) in the class. I decided that was not for me. This other class has more Americans in it, which has its benefits and its consequences, but for the most part, I think this one will work much better for me. This coming weekend I am going to London with two guy friends to see a Ben Folds concert, Platform 9 and 3/4, and a museum exhibit on the Book of the Dead and mummies. I have a lot more coming up.

30 January 2011

Today, I was fed paella again and as always, Maria's cooking is excellent. Holly and I went to a mass at one of the churches near by and it was the shortest service I have ever been to in my life. There was no sermon, which cut it back by 15 minutes based on standards I am familiar with. We were done at 12:40. Church had started promptly (something strange for the Spaniards I have been around) at noon. I barely understood what was going on. I could only pick up bits and pieces of the things that I am familiar with. Last night, we went to our same little bar cafe down a few blocks from us to watch the Hercules/Barcelona game on TV (Hercules is the Alicante futbol team). Sadly, Hercules lost. It was definitely an experience to watch it and I don't know if I am willing to pay to see one live because it is not my favorite thing in the world (being the uncompetitive child that I am). However, I will take futbol over bull fights any day.

26 January 2011

I think I have definitely hit the part of culture shock that everyone has been warning me about. Today, in my intermediate Spanish grammar class (which I only took because I needed grammar review) I felt like the teacher was talking down to us for a bit, like she thought that we couldn't understand. Well, there are people in the class who are generally having problems with the class, and my last paper wasn't quite what she wanted, but I don't know, I just had this weird feeling from her. Maria, my host mother keeps telling me different things about the house, like I need to turn my heater off at night, don't use this mat when you shower, use this one, etc. They keep complementing my roommate for how much better she is getting at understanding what they are saying. I feel very frustrated. I am trying to keep a good attitude, but it is hard. I don't feel like I am improving any. I am trying hard, but having a roommate makes me want to speak English to her, especially because it frustrates me to speak Spanish with her (it is just so much more easier in English), and it doesn't help that our host mom also knows some English, so she will revert to that if she thinks we don't understand, and I only nod sometimes, so I think she thinks that I don't understand. I also am adjusting to having tuna A LOT more than usual, considering back home I really don't eat it at all. She even put it on our pizza the other night for flavor. I ate a tuna, bacon, and cheese pizza. Definitely a new experience. I have spent a lot of time in my room lately because it is so cold. I want to watch tv because I have time, but even with a radiator and blanket, I still feel like hibernating out in the living room. Instead, I have been reading a leisure book I brought with me (in Spanish). It helps a little with comprehension, but what I need is more practice speaking, especially with someone patient. Well, we just finished lunch so it is siesta time for me.

25 January 2011

I think I am beginning to master the 4 minute shower. Who would have guessed that about me? I just went on one of the group trips this past weekend to Valencia, where we visited the cathedral, Lonja de Seda, the outside parts of La ciudad de artes y ciencias, and passed a palace (whose proper name I cannot remember). It was beautiful. Today I am working on booking my own trip with two friends to London for a concert. I am also hoping to visit Italy and Portugal while I am here, as well as a few of the well known Spanish cities. Intercambios, or language interchanges are supposed to start this week with the Spanish students, but I haven't heard anything about that. I hope we find out soon because I could use some help with my Spanish. I am also finalizing classes for the continuation period that starts next week. Things are starting to pick up.

17 January 2011

So I am sitting in my room working on some stuff for school when all of a sudden, there are these loud explosions. Holly and I thought there was a war. Apparently, somebody nearby is happy about something and is setting off fireworks and firecrackers. Holy Crap! This is definitely a different experience hahaha. I wish you could hear it.

15 January 2011

I have now completed my first week of classes. My language class starts at 8am which is not cool, but at least I have the siesta. I am slowly adjusting to this public transport thing, though the buses can be frustrating when you aren't exactly sure which one to take. I am acquiring blisters from so much walking. The Spaniards definitely walk more and the campus is significantly larger than my home university's campus. Unfortunately I now have a cold, so I wasn't able to go out last night, but hopefully I can tonight. I don't want to stay cooped up here at home too much. I do want to experience the country I am in. It is definitely hard to adjust to such a different lifestyle from what I am used to. My host mom keeps trying to feed me, but I am not always hungry for as much as she wants to give me. Yes, I am walking most everywhere, but I am trying to cut back on portion sizes. Probably not the best idea to try and start being healthier when going across the ocean... I am currently trying to figure out where important shops are for me to use to find things I need, on top of finding things I want (the latter definitely won't be as hard for me haha). First on my agenda is to find better shoes! I brought really cheap walking shoes because I did not foresee the need to wear them that often, and the boots I bought, while comfortable to a certain extent are a bit too big and were never really intended for walking the amount I have been and will be doing. As for classes, I think I will be ok because I have understood the professors so far. I am meeting new people, but unfortunately, I have only primarily met Americans, though I have met one young woman from China, another from Germany, and there is a young man in my class from French Switzerland. Hopefully I get a chance to meet Spanish students soon so that I can practice my Spanish with them, and they can practice English with me because that would definitely help us both. Right now, the culture shock is definitely starting to take its toll on me and I keep having the debating feelings of enjoying myself and wondering when I get to go home.

7 January 2011

We actually managed to get on a bus and walk around part of the city of Alicante. It was beautiful. We ate at this restaurant and had authentic sangria and some different tapas, including jamón. We were stuffed, yet decided on getting some ice cream on our way back to the bus stop. There were a lot of cool shops, but they were pretty expensive. One thing that was different was seeing a lot of shops catering to men who dress well. Also, people seem to stare at us more than we are used to in the United States, even if they haven't actually heard us speak in English. They also seem to smile less, despite how laid back they are, or at least seem to be. I guess that is something I will have to get used to. Tomorrow we have orientation and Sunday we will finally go "home" with our Señora.Somehow I need to print out copies of my passport because I left mine at home and I don't actually have a printer with me (shocker). I am nervous about messing up. This is a big deal for me as a Spanish major and I want to do my best.

6 January 2011

I made it to Alicante and found Holly. We love our room (now that we know how to work the phone and the electricity). I also can get on the internet now. We have a view of the Med. It is really pretty from the balcony. We are definitely sufferers of jet lag. Last night, at like 1 something, we thought we would try to look for food. Nothing was open. So much for a night life around the hotel haha. We did however meet this really weird drunk woman when we tried to ask about open restaurants. She tried to talk to us but there was definitely a language barrier. There was also some creepy guy checking us out. Once we decided she was no help to us, we went back to the hotel and shopped the vending machines. Today has gone better. We went to this little market run by  a Chinese-Spanish guy and got some snacks there and sat out by the water. We found Gone with the Wind on in Spanish which was entertaining. Things are starting to improve.

5 January 2011, Part 2

Because my flight was late leaving Dallas, I was unable to make the flight to Alicante. I have no way to contact Holly or my parents because I can’t figure out the phone thing. I’m alone and confused. I don’t know if Holly will wait for me or not.  The flight doesn’t even leave for another hour. I just want to get to the hotel and sleep. I want to call someone and talk to them but I can’t. 

4 January 2011

I have already arrived at Dallas and am at the gate I believe I am supposed to be at. I had to ask a flight attendant. That’s what you get for getting cheap flights. I will be here for the next five hours. Yay. Unfortunately for me, I still cannot access WiFi no matter how hard I try and I am not paying for Tmobile’s Day Pass. Sorry. So I get to read all my different books. Very dull here. I am hoping to get to Madrid safely. 

5 January 2011

I am currently on the flight to Madrid, watching the movie “Eat, Pray, Love.” In a certain way, I feel that I relate to her by traveling to find out who she was because in a sense that is what I am doing.  There are however quite a few differences between us haha. I am studying in another country, or will be when we land.

 I am excited but also extremely nervous. As it is, I am a chronically early person (“to be early is to be on time, to be on time is to be late, to be late is to be left behind” being the mantra of my family) and the flight is going to land 55 minutes behind schedule. Thank God they gave us an hour boarding time. I have to go through passport control and figure out gates and terminals. It is currently 4:00 am in Madrid; 10:00 pm back home in Virginia.

It hasn’t sunk in yet that I am on the way to another country, one whose culture fascinates me and pulls me in. I have already met a few new people, but unfortunately none of them are going to Alicante. I honestly have no clue what my experiences will be like. I just hope it will all be worth it.  

3 January 2011

So I have not even left the United States yet and this trip has already become interesting. After dropping my mother off in Richmond and then riding to DC with my dad, we check in to the hotel and go to dinner. It isn’t until after dinner, when we come back to the hotel to check me in for my flights tomorrow that the trip takes a twist. As my dad is punching in information about the flights, I head back to our hotel room to get my passport so we can look at the number. Because the hotel room is free (thanks to Dad’s abundance of rewards points) we have a room way down at the end of the hall. I finally get down to the room and the fire alarm goes off. Not being sure if it is an accident, a drill, or legitimate, I stand there like a deer in the head lights. Finally I decide that I should go back to the front of the building to see what my dad is doing and to see what the staff wants us to do. Note: There was a fire exit right next to me, across from our room, which for some reason I decided to ignore? As I get to the elevators, I see a maintenance man running to them and I get the faintest whiff of smoke. Sure enough, as I get to the front desk, the managers are calling in the fire and calling the hotel next door to see if they will take care of us while things are taken care of back at our hotel. So, Dad and I walk out to the car to wait, after a nice chat with some business man who had been about to take a shower about the same time the alarm went off. We wait, and wait, and wait some more. Sirens are blaring as tons of fire trucks come to the building (more than necessary because they weren’t sure what size hotel it was). Eventually the manager comes to tell us we can warm up in the other hotel’s lobby, which we decide to do. I curl up in a chair with a blanket I had found in our car and wait, not sure if I should laugh or cry or what exactly I should be thinking about. I was concerned about the laptop, phone, and passport that were trapped in the room. People were coming in asking what was going on next door. Others were seeing if there were available rooms at this hotel. The manager at that hotel was having a booming night thanks to the fire. After awhile the maintenance man comes over to talk to some of the staff at the other hotel. I listen a little and realize that he is speaking Spanish, go figure. He was speaking way too fast, but I could somewhat get the gist of what he was saying. What is going on in my hotel? It sounded like sprinklers had come on in the building and water is everywhere. I tell Dad so we walk back over to the building, which now has significantly less fire trucks outside of it. One of the managers says that we can go back in, the fire is contained on the first floor and they almost had it out. So, we go back to the room and get my passport and phone, and start the whole process of checking me in for tomorrow all over again. As we are in there, shower guy comes in and decides he’s going to the other hotel. It looks like a lot of people made that decision. As it was, there really weren’t that many people to begin with. The look in the manager’s eyes made me feel sorry for him. Dad tells me we aren’t leaving: “Hey, at least we know the fire alarms work and the smoke smell is barely there anymore!” So now, after a shower and a fight with the WiFi that hasn’t gone so well, I am writing this entry as the official start of the adventure. Tomorrow, I leave early from DC and spend about 7 hours in Dallas before I fly to Madrid, hit passport control, find Holly in her bright pink, and fly on to Alicante.