It Could Be Worse

That's become my new mantra of late. It seems my last couple weeks here have really wanted to test my character. But I'm glad I had to go through some of these things, it really has shown me things about myself I didn't know I had in me before this.

So a couple Thursdays ago now, the 4th, I was leaving for Venice in the afternoon right after classes. After my Spanish class I realized I had left my purse in the cafeteria at school 2 hours earlier. The purse had my passport and camera. I went to lost and found and back to the cafeteria, spoke with security, looked in bathrooms and trash cans...nothing. Finally I went with Hannah and another friend Lindsay over to our program offices. They have a copy of my passport there, but told me I'd be unable to travel with it even though I'd be still in the Schengen area (which is the group of countries in Europe that no longer have border controls when traveling amongst them). One of the women called the American Consulate for me and found out I could receive and emergency passport. It was 12:15, we were supposed to catch a 1:15 bus to the airport. The airport is an hour away from Barcelona. Hannah and I ran outside, grabbed a taxi, and sat in a painfully long ride, got to the Consulate at about 12:40ish, went through security and they were waiting for me with the paperwork. $100 dollars, a crazy passport picture, repetitive paperwork, and a half hour later, I had my brand new "fake" passport. Well, not really fake, but close enough...30 minutes for a passport? Kinda crazy. Anyway we bolt through security, I yell back to Hannah to grab the cell phones while I hail another cab (I think the security guard thought we were crazy at this point). We take another cab ride to the opposite corner of Barca (of course), and manage to make the 1:45 bus. Ok, breathe.

We made it to the airport, got on the flight, landed in Venice, got off the plane and onto the bus. Hannah forgot her camera on the plane. Not our day. We went back in but they said that nothing was found on the plane. So at this point Hannah and I were somewhere between a bit down and completely delirious and laughing a lot. At least we could laugh. And going along with the theme, it could have been worse...I still had my wallet! My wallet, credit cards, cash, cell phone, and keys were all on me and not in my purse. We weren't hurt, it was just bad luck. So we decided to enjoy the weekend. And we did...mostly. It's a beautiful city, we walked everywhere (not much choice there, we weren't up for swimming), saw a couple glass shops (and by a couple i mean one every 5 feet), took a gondola ride (our gondoleer only spoke Spanish ha), and got attacked by pigeons. That might have been the highlight of the weekend. Unfortunately due to the circumstances, there will be no photo album from good old Venice.

Hannah and I headed back to Barcelona Sunday night. Our flight was supposed to be at 6:15, but why would that actually work out? We had to be bussed to another airport because of fog and ended up taking off at 9:15. At least they let us bring our duty free bellinis through the second security check.

After Venice, I had a few days of hell as far as finals go. Two papers, a presentation, and the two hardest finals I have. All within two days of each other. But it felt really good when it was over and I actually ended up getting a 9/10 in my Spanish class. I believe that roughly translates to around a 4.0 actually in our terms. That's the only class I've heard about so far, but I'm very happy about it. Especially considering I'm living in a Spanish speaking country...

However, things don't end there, my head had been itchy all week and yesterday morning I ended up finding lice. LICE. I thought I wouldn't have to deal with lice again until I started having kids! I'm assuming it was from the hostel in Venice..that city just had it out for us. Soo I lotioned and shampooed and combed all day yesterday. Went out last night and came home only to find more. So I went through it all again today. It feels much better so I'm hoping I got most of it, but it's always something.

Tomorrow I have a paper and a presentation followed by my last final on Wednesday. Elena is planning on cooking a dinner here for me her, her husband, and then Hannah and her host parents. I'm looking forward to that. I really lucked out with my host parents and I'm going to miss them, especially Elena! She breaks my heart, talking about how much she'll miss me but that she doesn't want to think about it just yet. She said she has a bunch of stuff planned like shopping for after I leave so she'll stay distracted. She's just the sweetest.

Anyway, time to go study some more so I can go out for a bit and take advantage of my last week here. Last week!! When did that happen? Can't wait to see everyone SO SOON!

So I had a bit of a rough week/weekend. Thursday after classes I wasn´t feeling well so I went home and slept for a couple hours. When I woke up I felt really sick and unfortunately that turned out to be a terrible stomach bug. I was getting sick every five minutes for 2 hours and that´s when I got a bit concerned because I could tell I was extremely dehydrated. My señora took very good care of me though and did take me to a clinic nearby. I had to get an I.V. of Zofran and a liter of liquid to rehydrate. It was hell. But I´m lucky Elena was there to take care of me! And I´m feeling so much better now. It really made me miss home though because it was scary and I didn´t have anyone I was really comfortable with, Elena wasn´t even allowed in the room when the doctors were either asking me questions or putting the I.V. in. It was tough because I could barely talk and I had to speak Spanish! I couldn´t even hold my own head up. So I obviously really wanted to be home, at least it´s all over now!

The other thing making me a bit homesick right now is that it´s Thanksgiving week. I love Thanksgiving and that it´s a holiday all about eating and family, my cousins from Maine are coming down to Connecticut this year and I´m going to miss them :( I´m hoping to be able to video Skype with my family at some point. And they are holding a Thanksgiving dinner for our program here with all the traditional foods like turkey, mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce, apple and pumpkin pie of course. It´ll be nice to be with other Americans who are also missing home, but I really wish I could be there for the holiday. At least I´ll be home for Christmas!

I only have three weekends left here, only two in Barcelona! Ah the countdown continues. I plan on enjoying every last second I have here, but I am really looking forward to coming home. Mostly I just want my work for the semester to be done! Granted I know I´ve had a pretty easy time here being abroad as far as workload goes. But the downfall is that all the work that really counts is at the end. So I have two papers, a presentation, and 3 finals to prepare for all within the next couple weeks. I´m pretty confident with 3 out of my 4 classes, I´m doing well in those. I´m struggling a bit with Intro to the European Union though and need to focus on that paper and final. Anyone want to write a paper about the collapse of the Berlin wall and how it affected the European Union because of the subsequent fall of socialism for me? Oh and then while you´re at it just look up all the committees of the EU and their policies :)

My friend Chris from Boston is here visiting this week! It´s so good to see a familiar face and it´s made me even more excited to see the rest of my friends from home. I can´t wait to reunite with everyone! I know it´s only been a few months, but I feel like I´ve been gone for ages. I think coming back might be a bit of a shock, especially with the weather I´ve been hearing about. It´s still pretty mild here, this week is the coldest it´s been so far and it´s still in the 50s and sunny during the day. Then on top of that I need to start making money as soon as possible! I miss making money, I´ve never been one to like just spending and not having an income. Although I guess who would like that unless you have a bottomless savings account. I think I should have some money left over to hopefully at least get me through the first month of groceries. And real classes...dun dun dun.

Oh! I almost forgot, I got to go to an FC Barça game last night with Hannah! It was such an awesome experience. We were sitting literally four rows back from the field in a stadium that holds almost 100,000 people. The atmosphere was amazing and literally buzzing with energy, I´ve never heard refs take so much crap and not say anything, they must be used to it ha. I felt like any little thing called against Barça warranted a flood of insults from the fans. And on the other end, I can´t imagine what the players must feel when 100,000 people are chanting Barça, must be pretty intense. I´m not even a big fan of soccer, but I just love sporting events and the energy that comes along with being at a game. I´m so happy that we got to see that and I´ll post pictures from the game sometime soon.

I guess that about sums up this week. I´ll try and keep updating about my last few weeks here!

Bonjour from Paree!

Well, I'm actually back in Barca now, but just spent the weekend in Paris! I can't believe it's over, it was the first trip I booked a while back, and now it's done...time flies. Before I get into Paris, I'm sorry I haven't blogged in awhile, I've actually been busy with school work (imagine that!), and there hasn't really been too many new or interesting things to update about.

Paris was incredible. It is such a beautiful city, and I wish I had more time there. We got there Friday morning (I met up with Mark who flew in from Scotland) and the bus dropped us off right near Arc de Triomphe. So we got to see that, although the lift to the top was closed that day for some reason. Then we walked down Champs Elysees, a beautiful street although quite expensive. We actually didn't have a place to stay yet as our Couchsurfing had kind of fallen through. Couchsurfing is a program through the internet that allows young travelers to contact people in different cities who have a couch that they can stay on for free. It's really a great program and saves people a ton of money that would be spent on hostels or hotels. And it's a perfect way to meet new people, native to the area who a lot of times will show you around the city you're staying in. Anyway, our plans hadn't quite worked out so we ended up roaming the city for awhile, which ended up being great. I enjoyed just wandering down random streets and taking in the sights.

Luckily, most people in Paris speak English, at least enough to get by in, because both Mark and my knowledge of the language doesn't go far past bonjour, bonsoir, merci, etc. But we got pointed in the right direction to go for hostels and internet cafes. We ended up finding a reasonably priced hotel, dropped our stuff off and headed out to an internet cafe to try and contact the Couchsurfer for the next night. We ended up being successful with this, and got to stay for free with him on Saturday night, his name was Olivier. Anyway, after the internet cafe we headed down to the Lourve, which is free after 6, and got to roam through Egyptian and Greek artifacts. It is such a beautiful building and area! I'm really happy I got to see both the inside and outside of it. After that, we were exhausted from traveling and walking around so we just called it a night.

Saturday morning we started out by going to Notre Dame. The cathedral was just as impressive as I thought it would be. The inside is amazing with the high ceilings and stained glass windows. We were going to go up to the top, but the belfry was closed because it is in use from 11:30-2:30; we thought we'd head back later, but ended up running out of time. Paris is not a small city, and the metro is not the easiest to navigate, so travel time definitely affected some of our plans! But we walked from Notre Dame to Sainte Chapelle. This church had a beautiful room of huge stained glass windows, I only wish we had been there on a sunny day because I'd imagine the light coming through would be incredible. After that we had a nice long lunch and then made our way over to the Eiffel Tower of course. We actually got there at a good time, the line wasn't too long and we got up when it was still light, but then changing over to dark. There was no sunset as it was too cloudy, but the views were still breathtaking. I really liked seeing the city light up from above as it got darker. (I have so many pictures of everything, I made two albums that I'll post to this site, so check them out!) When we got down, the tower was lit up blue and every once in awhile they have white glittering lights with the blue lighting underneath. The tower was twinkling when we got to the bottom of it, it was perfect.

After that we met up with Olivier who brought us to his apartment just outside of Paris. For dinner we went to a great little crepes place and then just had a relaxing night hanging out at his apartment. The next morning we had to leave at about 9:30 to catch the bus back for our flights, but it was a very satisfying trip.

I found that being in Paris was almost surreal because there are so many things there that I grew up seeing pictures of and hearing about, and then to actually be seeing them for myself was just incredible. I'm so lucky to have had the opportunity to go there, and I hope I can make it back some day and spend a little more time exploring the city. (Aunt Kath and Aunt Sue, I'll go back there anytime with you!!)

Now I have just one trip left to Venice in December. I only have four weekends left in Europe! I say it every time I think, but it's mind-blowing how fast the time goes by here and how much I've seen since September. I can't wait to catch up with everyone over the holidays and tell more stories :)

Sí se Puedes!

Which is the translation chant for Yes, we can! and what we were chanting here in Barcelona on Wednesday morning as results rolled in. The Democrats Abroad election night party was a lot of fun. I went with Hannah and my friend Max and then ran into some other people we know from school while there. The energy was incredible, and it was a great place to be. When Obama won states like Pennsylvania and Ohio the excitement was palpable and the cheers drowned out the voice of the newscasters. Throughout the night I kept realizing how big this night was, even before the results started coming in, and how amazing it is to be a part of it. I can say that I cast a vote during this historical election and I've never been prouder to partake in something. The results of it all are unreal. Not only the fact that Obama won, but everything that comes with that victory. Our first black president, to be honest I wasn't sure that I would ever live to see that. The way the country came together to elect Obama; people put aside their differences and maybe vote democrat for the first time in their life. And it was because they knew it wasn't about democrats vs. republicans this time, it was about needing a change not only for our country but for the whole world. I'm just so happy and so proud that I'm part of this. I can't wait to be home for the inauguration, and I heard I missed some pretty great victory night rallies in Boston.

On another note, midterms are over, one was pretty rough, but the rest went well. I come home only 6 weeks from today. I can't believe it, that sounds like such a short amount of time. It's going to be weird to be home, but I can't wait.

Steph's last night here last Sunday was a lot of fun. We essentially ended up going on a bit of a walking tour around Barcelona and I got to know the city even more than before. I had been to all of the places that I took her, but I had never walked to all of them. A few times during the walk I had light bulb moments and though "Oh, I had no idea these things were so close to each other and that that little road connects it all." It's funny after being in this city for over two months that I still hadn't realized it, but at the same time it definitely took me more than two months to really know Boston. More like two years.

Last night I went out with a girl that I met at the election night party, Lou. She showed us this little bar in the Gothic Quarter that her and her friends go to and I loved it. The music, atmosphere, and people were just great and I had so much fun. It was really small, but that made it even better. I enjoyed hanging out with Lou and her friend a lot and I hope to continue hanging out with them. It's nice to still be making new friends.

As for now, I'm off to go boot shopping with Hannah and Anjali :) Look for pictures soon, I'm hoping to upload some from this past week as soon as possible!

So I had a pretty interesting weekend here. My friend Steph is here for the weekend, and it was great having someone from home here! Unfortunately the weather has been pretty awful, we did get to go see Sagrada Familia and Parc Guell yesterday though and the rain held up for us. I've been wanting to go to Sagrada Familia since before I came to Barcelona, so I'm very happy to have finally done that. The building is absolutely stunning; the detail and design make it unlike anything I've ever seen before. Gaudí was really a creative genius and I feel so lucky that I get to see his work up close. We decided to wait in the line to take the lift to the top and it was absolutely worth it. The view of the city was amazing, and then instead of taking the elevator back down, you walk down through one of the towers. This let us get unique views through different windows and also had some mini balconies that we got to stop and take pictures from. The spiral staircase for the second half of the way down was a bit scary. It had a railing on one side, but nothing on the other and the edge of the spiral only came up to about my ankle. (Mom, I don't think you could have done this part of the tour, your knees will probably go weak just from my pictures :P) Then we spent some time taking pictures around the outside facades, but again it's definitely one of those things that photos just don't do it justice.

After that we went up to Parc Guell. It was my first time back there since my first week here, even though it's only a 20 minute walk from me. Oh well, having a friend here was the perfect excuse to return. I enjoyed walking through it as much as I did the first time, even more really because this time I wasn't on a guided tour of it and was free to roam where I wanted. And again, Gaudí's works never fail to amaze me no matter how many times I see them. (I'll post pictures of everything as soon as I get some time to upload them!)

Hopefully today we'll get to see some more of the city, but it is raining a lot. And I have midterms to study for. I know! The horror of it!! I actually have work to do this weekend. 3 midterms between Monday and Tuesday. Oh well, at least I'll be done in time for Tuesday night an the election party. Hopefully I will have more than one reason to celebrate that night.

The large amount of rain this week has made me realize that I did not pack for wet weather. Not sure why, but I just didn't bring much rain appropriate gear. My biggest problem is shoes, I really need to buy some new shoes because flats just don't cut it in rain and mud. Ah well.

Oh yes, and it was Halloween on Friday. It was definitely amusing to see who dressed up and what the costumes were. Walking around that night, I saw a surprising amount of Spaniards dressed up. Halloween is not a traditional holiday here, the holiday they celebrate is called Castanyada. They eat these really sweet dessert things called panellets, they're kind of like marzipan, and made from flour, almonds, and sugar more or less. They drink some sweet wine and traditionally stay up all night (although I think that has become more of something just the young people do, and I'm not sure how common it is even with them anymore). Then the next day is All Soul's Day, and they visit the graves of their family and bring flowers. But Halloween has been catching on more and more and little kids of course love it, as well as people my age. I personally didn't dress up this year, but I have enjoyed seeing all the pictures from Boston of the Halloween parties!

So yeah, things are great here. Today starts week 10, which means I have less than 7 weeks left now. Mindblowing. I still miss home obviously, but I'm truly so happy right now too. I just still can't believe how lucky I am to be here and having this experience, and at the same time have so much to look forward to coming home to. Life is good :)

Politics

As the election looms ever near, I thought I'd give you all a bit of insight as to what it's like to be overseas during such a huge election for America. It has been an eye opening experience to say the least. It's not that I ever assumed that Europeans weren't interested, I just never really thought about how interested they are. People here are as if not more enthusiastic, knowledgeable, and interested than many Americans. And it makes sense, obviously, we're a powerful country that affects everyone in the world. But it got me thinking because for instance I would never know who Spain or England's candidates are. Hell, I don't even know really anything about Canada's government system.

Here there's graffiti in the streets saying Obama '08 (and even more explicit things against Bush). Most conversations lead to politics at some point, and usually pretty quickly. When I was in Ireland I'd say that once people found out I was American, 95% of them immediately asked me about my opinion about the candidates. Everyone also gives a look like ok you better say the right thing (Obama is the only right thing). Palin is the laughingstock of Spain just as much as in America. And most people know what they're talking about, they know the state of the economy, the risks and benefits of the potential outcomes. And they're all as scared as I am that Americans will make the wrong choice...again. I feel a sense of frustration on their part that they can't vote and that the decision is up to us. Considering our track record, I can understand where they're coming from. But the frustration also stems from the fact that they're educated on the issues, and they want to be able to express their opinion in a way that matters because it will affect their lives too.

The elections being the constant topic of conversation does get to the point sometimes where I have to say ok, let's talk about something else for a bit. And not because I'm not interested in what they have to say or because I don't want to express my opinion, it's just so often and the conversations go on for so long that sometimes I'd just rather enjoy my beer and talk about the weather. But don't get me wrong, I do value many of the conversations I've had and I have certainly learned a lot.

I'm grateful to be here for all that I've learned, and I'm grateful that I've had the opportunity to express my opinion, an American opinion, to Europeans and perhaps teach them something too. Even something that may seem obvious to us: that Americans don't all think the same. Most people understand that more or less, but I have had a couple conversations with people who generalize a lot. One person in particular (from France) immediately assumed I was pro-Bush, pro-McCain, etc. and I had to have a 20 minute conversation with him to convince him otherwise. But the rewarding part of that conversation was at the end when he said thank you for talking to me, I really did think all Americans thought the same way and now I know better than to assume (I swear he said that, I was surprised considering how the conversation started). Now that was an extreme case, most Europeans aren't exactly that naive, but if I could change one person's mind about generalizing, then I'm happy.

At first I was disappointed that I wouldn't be in the States for the election and what, I think, either way will be a watershed in history. But now I'm grateful that I'm here in Europe during the process, and have had the privilege of seeing America from an outsider's point-of-view. Like I said, it's really quite eye-opening and something that I'll never be able to experience again.

I joined Democrats Abroad and they'll be having a party the night of the election. It was 30 euro for the ticket, and includes open bar till midnight, tapas, entertainment, and most importantly live big screen coverage of the results. I'm going with one or two friends and I am so happy that I won't be watching by myself, or falling asleep. The results will come in around 3ish or later our time, and I plan on being up all night if necessary. I'm really excited that there's something like this going on in Barcelona. So that's just what I've seen, experienced, and learned being here during the election. Now let's just hope everything turns out for the best a week from now.

Madrid

This past weekend I got to go to Madrid with my program. It was great traveling somewhere else in Spain and I really liked the city. It's definitely different from Barcelona; we were all discussing which we preferred and some people liked Madrid better or vice versa. For some of us though, including me, it was difficult to say which was preferred because we were only in Madrid for the weekend, not living there. I think I prefer Barcelona as far as living, from what I can tell, but again it's hard to say definitively. We did have perfect weather, the parks there are absolutely gorgeous, the nightlife was really fun, and I got to see friends from Northeastern that are in Madrid through our international business program. I was actually in their program freshman year of college and would have been there with them now had I not switched to regular business.

We left Friday morning and got to take the Ave train, which is their high speed train cutting the travel time in half (3 hours opposed to 6+). We arrived in Madrid around noon and had some free time, then went on a walking tour around the oldest part of the city. The palace was very impressive, I didn't get to go inside, but it's huge! Our tour guide said there are about 2,500 rooms in it. Friday night I went out for tapas with about 12 people from our group. In case I haven't explained tapas or you're not sure what they are, it's a very traditional Spanish way of eating, and I love it. Things come in smaller portions and generally a table will order several different things and everyone shares it all. So the dinner was a lot of fun, and after that I went to meet up with my friend Thad from NU. We went to a club called Kapital, a night club with seven floors and different music on each floor. It was a pretty crazy place, but we had a lot of fun dancing all night. Saturday we went to a contemporary art museum called Reina Sofia and saw more of Dalí, Picasso, and Miró's work. We all took a siesta after that and then went out again for the night. We were celebrating our friend Anjali's birthday and actually ended up at Kapital again, it was fun to experience the club and dance with a new group of people too!

Sunday we had the day to ourselves and it just so happened to be the day the sheep were crossing through Madrid. Twice a year, in the fall and the spring, the shepherds bring the sheep from the mountains (going south for the winter and back north for the summer) and pass through a main street in Madrid on their way. The streets close down and lots of people come out to see all the sheep, I got some great pictures of them and one with one of the shepherds! After that we got some lunch and then spent the afternoon hanging out in a park called El Retiro. It was huuuge, with a lot of different sections. There was one place that had open water and row boats, statues and fountains, another area with very structured landscape, and further in an area with just dirt pathways, moats and waterfalls, and lots of trees. We just walked around it for awhile and relaxed in the good weather before heading back to catch the train.

It was fun experiencing a new city in Spain and I really wish I had more time to go to other cities. Unfortunately I don't have any free weekends left before I leave! Well I guess that's not really an unfortunate thing so much as a lucky thing considering I have great plans for each weekend I have left here.

I'm definitely settling in again and getting past the weird homesickness I had for a lot of October. I never felt like I wanted to go home or anything, but I was missing Boston and my family a lot. I still do, but I'm appreciating Barcelona more especially after spending a couple weekends away. Realizing that I'm halfway done here has also changed my perspective a bit. It's crazy to think I have so little time before I go home, and it's made me truly look forward to each day that I have left.

I'm excited for this weekend because my friend Steph is coming to visit and that gives me the perfect excuse to do all the "touristy" things that I haven't gotten around to doing yet. Lucky for me, the touristy things here are things even the locals do because they're all beautiful places to visit and see.

This week I have a bunch of little things to get done. Emails to catch up on, tests to start studying for, pictures to post, and some things with classes to figure out-like what I'm taking in January! Oh and I voted today! I never received my ballot that I was supposed to get for some reason, so I had to do go online and print one out, then figure out how to correctly package it (a couple envelopes are involved) and then figure out the Post Office over here. It actually went much more smoothly than I thought, and it feels soo good to finally have my vote sent in. (I did do it express so I promise it will get there in time! Within two days actually.) It's great to see how many people are voting from abroad, especially people I know from places like Colorado, North Carolina, and Pennsylvania. I can't believe it's only a week away! Scary kind of...

Well I'm very happy to hear that even more of my family members are reading and enjoying this now! I really love being able to share this experience with you, and I truly appreciate hearing the feedback too. Keep checking out the pictures, I'm going to be posting some from Madrid as soon as I have the time. Miss and love you all!

Refreshed

It's amazing what a weekend away can do, and it's funny that even though I'm practically on vacation for four months, I get vacations within my vacation. Rough, I know. But Ireland was a pick me up for a lot of reasons. If you've read my last post or talked to me at all, then you'll know that I kind of had a little bit of a fun time there ;) But besides falling in love with the country, it gave me motivation. I feel like I have something to work towards now in regards to my future because I'm very serious about figuring out a way to live there for awhile after I graduate. I'm going to start exploring my options as soon as possible.

It was also a great change of scenery. It came at a perfect time, we're about halfway done here and I hadn't been out of Barcelona yet except for a couple day trips. Leaving for the weekend and changing up my routine a bit was wonderful. I came back feeling like a different person. It helped a lot that Sunday I was completely and utterly exhausted and was able to fall asleep by 11:30. Sundays can sometimes be a bit of a tough day, there's usually not much going on and they often turn into lazy days. But that means at night I can't fall asleep well since I haven't done anything all day. It also can be a tough day for homesickness because of lack of distraction. This Sunday though, I just rested, fell asleep easily, and got a solid 8 hours. That means that Monday I woke up feeling great, better than I have in awhile. I'm usually tired during the school day, but Monday I had lots of energy. That also made a big difference at my homestay, I was so much more excited to talk to my señora for awhile because I had the energy to make the effort. It's amazing what some good sleep can do!

I've also been in such a good mood because it's so much fun to look forward to things. I've realized that half the fun of going somewhere is planning it and then anticipating it. Because once it happens it always flies by and then it's just done. Of course there's always the memories, but why not enjoy it even longer in the present by enjoying the feeling of being excited about something every day. Like this whole week, I'm so happy that I got to go to Ireland and I will never forget that trip, and at the same time I get to be soo excited about going to Madrid this weekend! We'll be getting there at about noon on Friday and getting back to Barca at about 9:30 on Sunday, so it's a pretty full weekend. This trip is through our company so our train tickets, hotel rooms, and some museum trips are already taken care of. (Of course through the money we've already paid them with the tuition, nothing is ever quite as free as it seems.) But that made everything even less stressful as far as this trip goes. I'm really looking forward to seeing another part of Spain, too.

Mostly, the weekend away was good because it changed my outlook back to what it was pre-homesickness. I'm looking forward to every second I have to spend here, and plan on taking advantage of whatever I can. And of course whatever my budget allows :) Sometimes I get caught up in thinking that I have to be doing something new and exciting every single day, but when it comes down to it, that's just not realistic. Being here for an extended period of time means taking advantage in different ways than I would if I were here for only a week. Things like just making sure I look around and appreciate where I am and how lucky I am to be here, or popping into a shop just to browse, or trying a random new restaurant or different type of food. Those small things are the best way to take advantage of my time, it doesn't always have to be about going sight seeing or traveling. I feel confident that by the end of my time here, I'll be very satisfied with my experience, and know that it has changed me for the better.

Pictures!

So I found a way to post links to my photo albums for people who do not have Facebook. The links are on the right hand side and will bring you directly to the album. Enjoy!

Galway, Ireland

I don't even know where to begin. This was such an amazing trip, and I'll probably use adjectives like amazing and unbelievable a million times in this entry, I just wish there were better words to use to describe it there. I have a new favorite place in the world, I'm absolutely in love with Ireland. I never thought I would feel the way I did while I was there, and if I was worried about the amount of travel time versus the amount of time actually spent there, I'm not now. I would leave again tomorrow and do it all over again.

It might sound corny, but I felt a happiness and peacefulness that I've never felt before. The countryside is breathtaking, from the huge open fields and rolling hills, to the jagged coastline and limestone rock everywhere. The people were incredible, just so friendly and welcoming. It's much different than here in Barcelona. Catalonians are just naturally more reserved and not as openly friendly. Once you get to know them they are, but right off the bat they don't come across as friendly. It was nice to be around such outwardly nice people for awhile though. And the other great thing about the Irish was my sense of humor fit in perfectly there! It's difficult to joke around in Spain because my sarcasm (and quick wit of course) don't translate well.

So we got to Galway at 3 on Friday a bit tired I'd say. The night before we had gone to a concert and got stuck in a town outside of Barca for a bit because the bus we were supposed to take wasn't running due to construction I believe. Anyway, I got home at 3 on Friday morning and had to wake up at 6 to get to the bus for the airport. So the bus from Barca to Girona where we flew out of was a little more than an hour, followed by a 2 1/2 hour flight, and then another 1 1/2 hour bus ride from Shannon Airport to Galway. I knew as soon as I went through customs and the man said to me,"With a last name like Ahern, you're bound to have a good time here." that it would be an incredible trip. I didn't even care that I was tired and didn't want to sleep on the bus because I was enjoying just looking out the window so much.

After getting off the bus we immediately checked into our hostel, which was conveniently located right around the corner from the bus stop and also right next to the city's main square (thank you Hannah for that find :)). We dropped our bags off, I got changed from my traveling sweats into some actual clothes, and then we set off. The guy at the hostel was really nice and took a map and told us some great places to go for things like the best traditional Irish music, or the best Guiness in town. We wandered for a bit and ended up at a bar called The King's Head and ordered a platter of food to share. That was such a satisfying meal because we got to eat some good comfort food that we haven't had since being in Spain. It's much colder there than here in Barcelona so we were all a bit chilly and figured a nice Bailey's coffee would be good. That first one started my addiction for the weekend, they were delicious! The rest of the day and night we spent walking around and exploring Galway. I went to bed fairly early to get a jumpstart on the one full day we had there, Saturday.

I woke up around 8 and took a surprisingly very hot shower at the hostel. Then I found out from the man working at the hostel the best options for tours. Pretty much all the bus tours were full day things, but there wasn't much more to do around Galway itself so we figured why not. We chose to go on a tour of Burren County, with a walking tour and time on the Cliffs of Moher included. This turned out to be the best decision ever. The walking tour was on an old family farm; we hiked up this big hill (ruined a pair of shoes in the process because it was so muddy and wet, but soo worth it) with amazing views of the area. There were green fields everywhere in sight and the ocean in the distance. Definitely one of those moments where I had to just stop, stare, and take some time to truly recognize how lucky I am to be here right now. I'll admit that I definitely got kind of emotional at some points during the day because I just felt so blessed to have this opportunity and to see what I got to see. I wish I could say the pictures do it all justice, but for as pretty as they look, they don't come close to what it looks like in person. (I have posted pictures on Facebook, make sure to check them out!)

The walking tour and the Cliffs of Moher were my favorite. The natural beauty there is mind blowing. It's one thing to see incredible buildings from ancient times (which I still obviously find fascinating and great things to see), but it's a completely different thing to see something that is so deeply beautiful and completely natural. The Cliffs of Moher have that type of beauty, despite the stories our bus driver scared us with to keep us away from the edge-I'm sure you can imagine. Throughout the way there and back we also got to stop at different places for photo-ops. Our bus driver was a lot of fun and very informative.

After the tour, we came back and walked around Galway some more, had some dinner, and then began our up-all night adventure by going to a bar with traditional Irish music called Tig Cóilí. The place was extremely crowded, but so much fun. I loved meeting new people, and it was interesting being somewhere where they didn't know I was American until I opened my mouth and didn't have an Irish accent. Here in Spain I can be spotted from a mile away as American-or at the very least not Spanish. After that we went to a place called The Quay, which is where I was told had the best Guiness in town. I did get my fair share of Guiness this weekend, and it really is better in Ireland than it is at home. But The Quay ended up being a lot of fun and had dancing and music. We met a lot of new and fun people, including a huge stag party haha. There was a balcony that we were hanging out on for awhile and the crowd was underneath us, and one of the highlights of the night was when Like a Prayer came on. We all started singing and got the entire bar to sing along with us, it was great. I also met some kids from the Boston area, and one student from Northeastern! Talk about a small world. And it was great because one of those guys convinced the bartender to turn on the game (it was 1 there so the game had just started). It was so exciting to see my Red Sox live on TV again for the first time since I've left! haha I definitely miss Boston during playoff season this year :)

Anyway, we just stayed out till we had to catch our 3:30 bus back to Shannon. I've never slept so well on public transportation before in my life, but I was out for the bus ride, the wait at the airport, and the plane ride back, then slept another 3 hours when I got home. It was an exhausting weekend but soo worth it. I need to get back there again and spend much more time in Ireland than just 36 hours. Despite the short amount of time we had there though, it was a really great change of scenery for a bit. It was nice to get out of the city and just experience something new. Now I'm going to Madrid this weekend, and then my semester here is halfway done. I can't even believe that especially because I have a feeling the second half will go by even faster than the first. I do at least feel like I'm taking advantage of my time here though and look forward to more traveling :)

Trip Planning

So tomorrow morning I leave for Ireland! I'm unbelievably excited. It's been a good experience for me so far, the planning that goes into it. After booking flights and coordinating with other people I was able to forget about it for awhile. But as the week approached, we all (there's 7 of us traveling together) realized we needed to book a hostel as soon as possible. We were able to do that Monday night and got a room for all 7 of us together. The hostel is right in Galway, has free internet access (not that I'll have my computer with me anyway), and a bar in the bottom with cheap drinks apparently. They also offer discount tickets to Cliffs of Moher, which is my number 1 destination while there. We land in Ireland tomorrow around 12 and then wait for a bus, the ride is about an hour long and we'll be getting to Galway around 3ish. After this, I plan on taking advantage of every second I'm in the city as our trip is pretty short. Our return flight leaves at 6:45 on Sunday morning (ouch). But it was worth it to me since the plane ticket was so cheap (only 30 euro round trip), and I get to go to Ireland!!

Now I have to go pack, which is almost more difficult since I'll be there for such a short period of time. Us girls like to have options and I don't really have room for options, so I'll have to be a bit choosy with what I do decide to pack. I'll need layers as it's a bit colder in Ireland right now as opposed to here, 50s vs. upper 70s. And then the only other two most important things are my passport and of course my camera. Maybe some money would be a good idea too :)

Well I'll be back Sunday morning and I'll be sure to fill everyone in on how the trip went. And then I'll post pictures as soon as I can!

Catch-Up

I haven't written in awhile so let me catch you up with what I've been up to. I'm definitely feeling better health wise, the cough is lingering a bit, but overall I feel great. My classes eventually did get finalized. I'm still taking my Spanish course Mon-Thurs. Then I have Between Tolerance and Conflict: Muslims, Christians, and Jews in the Iberian Peninsula on Mondays and Wednesdays. The description is: This course seeks to introduce Spanish history as a space and time in which three monotheistic religions have coexisted for centuries, a unique case in the Western world, in which both tolerance and religious conflict have played defining roles. I really like my professor for this class, he's extremely knowledgeable and very interesting to listen to.

Tuesdays and Thursdays I have Barcelona Past and Present, which is a class about the history of Barcelona and what it has become since then. I really like it so far and we have 7 field trips around the city built into the class. It's great to not only have the opportunity to see different parts of the city, but we also get to learn so much about the history because we have our teacher to explain everything to us. I never knew that one of the areas I walk through quite often is an old Roman city and many of the walls and towers in this area are original from the Roman times.

Also on Tuesdays and Thursdays I have Introduction to the European Union, which discusses the history and evolution through economics, policy making procedures, etc. Sounds a bit boring I guess, but again my teacher is very knowledgeable and interesting to listen to. I've only had one of his classes so far, but I'm hoping that I'll enjoy it.

This past Tuesday we got to go to a cook and taste with Spanish food. That was a lot of fun. We learned how to make a Chupito de Sopa de Tomate al Aroma de Idiazábal. Chupito means shot, so it was basically a shot of tomato soup with a mixture of nuts, parsley, oil, garlic, vinegar added on top, some aioli and then grated cheese on top of that. Kind of hard to explain, but absolutely delicious.

The next thing we made was Pan con Tomate, which is a very traditional dish and something I eat quite often at home. It's really easy to make and really good too; all you have to do is toast a piece of bread, take a clove of garlic, unpeeled and just rub the garlic on the bread, then slice a tomato in half and rub the tomato on the bread, put a bit of olive oil and salt and that's it. It's a great side dish and you can add whatever you want to it like cheese or a bit of meat if you wanted to.

Then on to Tortilla de Patatas. Tortillas here are also very traditional, but not what we think of when we think tortilla. It's actually more of an omelette; we sautéed onions and thinly sliced potatoes in olive oil, then for the omelette we separated the yolk and the whites, whipped each separately and then combined them. I guess this helps with keeping the tortilla fluffy. Finally we combined the eggs with the potato and onion and fried that for a bit. It's a very common thing to have for dinner and you can add anything you want to this too: spinach, zucchini, etc.

The fourth thing was Paella de Marisco, or seafood paella. This is a complicated thing to make but really delicious. The end product is essentially rice in a sauce with mussels, clams, shrimp, calamari, etc. This dish can also be made with chicken, or as a vegetarian dish.

Finally we had Crema Catalana (Catalan Cream). This is more or less the same as Creme Brulée, but a bit lighter. Still has the carmalized sugar on top and it was really good. And all of it was so satisfying knowing that we had made it! ....With the help of a cooking instructor of course :) I can't wait to come home and cook these things for everyone.

Friday we went to Fundació Miró. Miró was a surrealist artist from Barcelona, and his work was really interesting and different. I enjoyed this museum a lot. One of my favorite pieces was a fountain that had not water, but mercury coming out of it. It was incredible to watch the way the mercury bounced off itself and pooled in a different way than water. Obviously this fountain was in a separate room with glass walls so I wasn't exposed to high amounts of mercury or anything I promise haha.

Then this weekend has been pretty low-key overall. Last night my señora and her husband were gone for the night at their summer home for some upkeep. It's nice to be in the apartment by myself and I just had a relaxing night, went to bed, had a good sleep and woke up feeling great. Today I'm supposed to be meeting up with the people I'm going to Ireland with to discuss hostels and stuff. I can't believe I'm leaving so soon!! This Friday I'll be there...mindblowing for me. I still can't believe that by the time I leave here I will have been in four different countries in less than four months. Life is good.

Home Sick and Homesick

First week of classes was good and bad. I enjoyed having classes to go to and the excitement of meeting a new teacher, new people, finding out what the class is going to be like. But at the same time, I knew my schedule was going to almost entirely change by this coming Monday, and worst of all really, I was sick. I had a bad cough, a fever, and stuffy nose. It's miserable enough being sick, but being sick and not having the comforts of home was kind of depressing. It made me pretty homesick.

I'm definitely missing Boston right now especially because it's my favorite time of year. I loove the fall in New England, and I'm a bit sad I'm not there for it this year. I miss my friends and family so much! The familiarity of campus and a city I know and love, independence. Living in a homestay is definitely a unique thing; my señora is not technically my mother, she doesn't give me strict rules, but at the same time I'm still living in her house and I respect and abide by the unspoken rules. Which for the most part is obviously fine, but I miss coming home to MY apartment and sitting on MY bed, cooking in my kitchen. Cooking! I miss it so much, we're not allowed to use the stove here so I don't get to prepare myself anything. Although I am enjoying the food here and can't wait to cook it when I come home!

Luckily my feelings aren't depressing me or holding me back from enjoying myself entirely here. It's more of a nostalgic feeling. I have to look at it as a good thing though because 1. Boston, my friends, my family will all be there when I get back and 2. I'm lucky that I have a home that I can't wait to get back to! Because I have to come home eventually, at least I'm looking forward to it.

It is still a little hard to believe I've been here for a month now. Part of me feels like it's flown by, and part of me feels like I've been here for soo long, I think that's because I've done so much. I know for sure that the next few months will fly by, I barely have one weekend without some trip planned until December!

I've been practicing my Spanish as much as possible and slowly improving. At the very least I'm slowly becoming more confident speaking to native Spanish speakers. They're so helpful and when I feel like I'm completely butchering it, they are actually generally impressed with how well I can get by. Which is definitely encouraging to hear. I met a couple people at a bar the other night who want to meet up for coffee and spend a half hour speaking in English and a half hour speaking in Spanish every once in awhile because they want to improve their English just as much as I want to improve my Spanish. I'm looking forward to this. I already really enjoy teaching my señora phrases and then her teaching me the Spanish equivalent. It's nice to learn commonly used phrases from her as opposed to only learning formal things in Spanish classes.

Anyway, time to go over to Hannah's to bake brownies, we're going to dinner at Jofre's apartment tonight. Send me emails, I want to hear all about what's going on at home! Les echo de menos!! Besos y abrazos.

Un Fin de Semana Muy Larga

...which means a very long weekend. It felt never ending because we had Wednesday-Friday off for Mercé, so once I felt like I'd had a lot of weekend already, we still had the real weekend left. Friday we went to Cosmo Caixa, a great science museum here. We got tickets to the planetarium and then were able to roam the museum and try out the hands on exhibits. One of my favorite parts was the forest inside a room that had real, live vegetation. The room was actually humid, they had rain and a "pond", there were birds walking around. The pond also had views from below aquarium style; it was all really beautiful. The hands on exhibits were fun too.

Saturday we got up early for another day trip and drove out to Figueres to go to the Dalí museum. It was very interesting to say the least, he's a crazy but brilliant man. The museum is set in an old theater and my favorite fact about it was that Dalí himself made it. It wasn't built or designed after he died, but rather a project that he carried out himself so that it would stay true to his vision. We did have a guide explain things to use, which I enjoyed, but Dalí actually preferred if people went and just observed for themselves and had their own interpretations. It was nice getting some background on him during the tour too though. After that we hung out in Figueres for a bit before getting back on the bus.

Besalú is a town not far from Figueres. It's a beautiful little town of about 2300 people and is very well preserved so it looks as it did in the medieval times. We had perfect weather so that made for an even better back drop for this already gorgeous city. I posted pictures on Facebook for anyone who's interested in looking, but even the pictures don't really do it justice. The one I posted here is a view of the village from the bridge before crossing it.

Sunday Hannah and I made our way to a beach with some friends. The beach we went to this time wasn't in the main part of Barcelona, so we took more or less a commuter rail out to it. The journey was worth it, the beach was beautiful. It was much smaller than the one I usually go to so there were less people around. And only a couple times did anyone come by trying to sell us anything. It was so nice to lay on the beach and not have to worry about people yelling masage! cerveza! cola! (massage! beer! soda!) etc. all afternoon. The weather was perfect, upper 70s and the water was amazing. I went in for a swim and could see clear to the bottom, the waves were perfect-fun to ride but not overwhelming, and I wasn't cold at all. I love the fact that it's the end of September and I was comfortably swimming in the ocean in the late afternoon.

So back to reality, classes started yesterday. It's interesting the way their system for add/drop works here though. The add/drop period will take place over the weekend, so this week is somewhat of a "shopping" week. We do already have classes assigned that we should go to, but we're also more than welcome to go to other classes that we're not enrolled in to see how they are. It's also not a bad thing if you don't go to a class that you're wanting to drop anyway. None of the teachers will be going much past introductory stages until next week. So as of right now I'm not sure what classes I'll be taking, I'll let you know when I find out myself :)

Other than that, I'm experiencing my first bad cold over here. I'm pretty sure it might have something to do with running at full speed for so long. But it's a little lonely being sick and not at home! Not quite as comfortable..although my señora was very sweet and made me a big thing of chicken noodle soup and gave me some medicine. However, I'm not sure what the medicine is (and she's out of town), but I've found that very frustrating, going into a drug store and not having any idea what the medicine boxes say or do. I just want some Nyquil! haha Oh well, I've just been resting and trying to sleep as much as possible since Sunday so hopefully this well pass soon.

I miss everyone at home and hope all is well! Love you all!

Mercé

So I haven't updated in awhile! I've been too busy with schoolwork...(hahah). No actually I've been busy going to festivals for Mercé, a holiday in Barcelona. We went to a few concerts, they were all over the city and all free. One on Tuesday night was enormous, there were just seas of people everywhere. When the show ended at around 6 (yes a.m.) we had trouble getting on the metro because it was so full; we had to walk for awhile before we could find a metro that we could get on. Yesterday, Hannah and I went to a parade that had a lot of bands and drum corps. It also had giants (picture posted here), there are people in the bottom that can see out the skirt of the giant and walk and dance around. Pretty incredible.

Hannah and I have recently become friends with a pretty international bunch of people from Germany, Italy, Denmark, other parts of Spain, South America. I really like getting to know people from other countries in Europe and not just Americans (although they're fun too of course). It's always fun and interesting getting through language barriers too. It's amazing how many phrases we use all the time that just don't make sense if someone is trying to translate literally. Things like if someone asks if I want to go to a party and I say "I'm down", it doesn't make much sense; it makes even less sense if I try to explain it by saying it means the same as "I'm up for it"! Then they really won't know what I'm talking about..up, down, what? We almost always find some way to understand each other though.

Today I got to hang out at the beach for awhile, it's getting a bit chillier (although "chilly" is still in the 70s during the day) but it's still so beautiful to just go and spend some time down there. And I got a package from home! (thanks mom and everyone!! :)) It's always nice to get a little taste of home. My mom sent me some decorative candles for Halloween and my senora got very excited about it. She wants to have a dinner on Halloween for us and wants Hannah and I to decorate her apartment like we would at home! She's great...hopefully Hannah and I will be able to find comparable things around here to decorate with. At the very least I have my candles!

Tomorrow my group is going to Cosmocaixa, a hands-on science museum in the city. Then Saturday we're going to Besalú and Figueres. Stay tuned for pictures!

Trips!

Well I just finished my one and only full week of classes while I'm here. And it was still only 1 class a day :) I didn't do too much sight seeing this week between having days where I was just so tired and also the weather wasn't great this week, a bit cloudy.

I did go out to a discoteca on Tuesday night for an international student party. It was fun because it was more for European students so there weren't a ton of Americans there. But you went in and they give out name tags and you put what country you're from on it. So that was a fun way to meet new people. Then last night we went to a bar called Ovella Negra with Jofre and played billar and futbolin (pool and foosball). I met some Spanish guys and it was really fun talking to them because they didn't know really any English at all. So I got to practice my Spanish a lot and I was happy with how well we were able to communicate and how much I understood them! It was really fun and a more comfortable, relaxed way to practice my Spanish because I wasn't nervous speaking it in front of them. I've started introducing myself here as Catalina to native Spanish speakers because they have trouble pronouncing Caitlin. The guys gave me a nickname last night: Cata and I love it (it's pronounced Kah-tah), I pretty much want that to be my name now haha :P

Today after class we went to the Picasso museum that's in Barcelona. It was beautiful, he gave a lot of his earlier work to this museum because he lived in Barca for awhile when he was younger. There were also pieces from when he moved to Paris, and it was just amazing to see real Picasso paintings close up. We also had the advantage of having a tour guide tell us all about his history and what each period meant; it's always funny when we have tour guides because any tourist that speaks English ends up latching onto our group and listening in. The museum does a really good job of showcasing his progression and change of style, from much more classic and traditional when he was younger due to his father's influence, to his more abstract paintings and style that he started doing when he was influenced by other artists and moved to Paris.

After that I came home and Hannah and I booked some trips!! It's addicting; I booked one the other night to go to Paris with Mark and don't want to stop. Alas, the bank account (or lack thereof) will make me stop ha. Hannah and I planned trips for Venice and Galway and we are soo so excited to go. Our ticket to Ireland only cost 30 euro round trip!! It's hard to believe that this is my life right now, I'm about to go country hopping over the next few months and in the mean time I live in the amazing city of Barca. It still hasn't hit me I don't think, it's all so much to take in.

So my schedule over the next few months is: Sept. 27th: daytrip to Figures/Besalú in Spain, Oct. 17th-19th: Galway with Hannah!, Oct. 24th-26th: Madrid with my study abroad group, Nov. 8th: daytrip to Santes Creus/Poblet in Spain, Nov. 14th-16th: Paris with Mark!!, Dec. 4th-7th: Venice with Hannaaah. Not bad, not bad.

As far as this coming week, we have class only on Monday and Tuesday then it's a holiday here again and we have Wednesday-Friday off. But it's gonna be a great week, starting tonight actually with a ton of festivities and concerts and even firework shows all over the city. I believe we're going to try and go to one of the concerts tomorrow. I'll be sure to keep taking pictures!

La Idioma

It's a bit harder than I thought it would be to understand, speak, and learn Spanish here. I guess I for some reason had the idea that once I got here and had to speak it and was surrounded by it, I'd learn quickly and easily. It definitely helps to have to speak it in most situations, especially at home with my family, but it's really difficult at the same time. Even though everyone is very understanding about my level of Spanish, I get nervous trying to speak it to native speakers because I know that I make a lot of mistakes! But I have to just keep on trying or else I'll never get it. It helps to be in class and getting to re-learn a lot of grammar and vocabulary. It's also a misconception that a lot of people know English here. Most people really don't because Spanish isn't even their first language it's Catalan! So really only the younger generation knows a decent amount. It's good though because it forces me to use my Spanish at places like the grocery store or when I need to ask for directions.

I think my biggest problem right now is the fact that it's so easy to fall into speaking English with my friends for a lot of reasons. First of all, it's just natural obviously and none of us really speak enough to get through a conversation anyway. It's definitely a comfort thing when feeling homesick or overwhelmed to speak English. And it's exhausting to listen to my family for instance and translate in my head for an extended period of time and then also have to translate what I want to say back too. And then that's the other problem, it's very frustrating to not be able to express myself how I want to. It's so much more difficult to tell a story or explain how I'm feeling or what I want to do, etc. when I don't know all the words or tenses to do it. I definitely can't tell jokes or use my usual sarcastic behavior to make friends haha, they just don't understand it. I've never appreciated the English language so much and the ability to say exactly how I feel because I know the words that I want to use!

I have been making an effort to make sure I spend at least sometime with my senora every night and talk with her. Even though it can be tiring mentally, it's important. It's fun too because she's actually trying to learn English so we're able to help each other practice and correct each other as well. Elena (my senora) is definitely a talker! Her kids are grown and don't live at home any more so I think it's nice for her to have someone to talk to. It's weird though too because usually I'm the talker (in case you weren't aware)! Let's just say I believe I'll have even better listening skills and patience once I leave here :)

So if you're still reading this, I'm glad you're enjoying it! And I'd love to hear from all of you too so definitely send me emails about what's going on on the other side of the pond!

La Vida Dura (The Hard Life)

I mean, it really is just tough living over here. Between holidays with no classes, making new friends, exploring a new city, and taking day trips...well, it's a tough life for my feet anyway :). Hannah and I have been trying to take advantage of free time by getting outside and walking around the city. I was really surprised how quickly I felt I got a feel for it; at the very least I definitely feel like I have a good sense of direction and can figure out which way I need to walk to get somewhere. The metro was also easy to figure out, they have an amazing system here that even has a clock that counts down till the next train (much better than waiting outside at the NU stop wondering if it's even gonna come at all within the next 45 minutes).

Thursday was a holiday here, it's actually the day Catalonia (Barcelona is the capital of Catalonia and it used to be an independent nation) lost their independence to Spain. They use the day to celebrate to show that just because they lost their independence does not mean they'll stop living their Catalan lives. Kind of like how we felt after September 11th (interesting coincidence in dates) that we refused to let it affect our everyday lives, we wouldn't close our schools or businesses for them. So there were Catalan flags everywhere around the city, and at night we went to a concert where all the songs were about independence for Catalonia. There were soo many people there!! I put pictures up on Facebook of the crowd. It was quite an experience.

Friday night Hannah and my host families went out for dinner to celebrate my senora's birthday. We went to a little Greek restaurant in our neighborhood and the food was delicious. My senora was saying how a lot of Mediterranean food is very similar in the ingredients they use, but the end result and tastes are much different because every country prepares things differently. After dinner we went to get a drink with all of them and they showed us this little square in our neighborhood where a lot of locals our age hang out and there's several little bars. It's a great place to go get a coffee or a beer.

Then Saturday morning I woke up early to go catch a bus for our first day trip that we had planned for us. We started out at a cava place (Spanish champagne) and it was absolutely beautiful. The place is called Codorniu (small world, Codorniu owns the vineyard Mark worked at in Napa Valley called Artesa) and it is a very old vineyard passed down for many many generations. All the buildings there were designed by Josep Puig i Cadafalch, a famous Spanish architect. And the landscape was just breathtaking. The tour was interesting and of course tasting the cava was delicious!

We then got back on the bus and moved on to a town called Sitges where we went to the beach. Sitges is famous for their gay population so it was quite the crowd of speedos everywhere. I went swimming in the water and then laid out on the beach for awhile, it was very relaxing and very beautiful.

After Sitges we went to a vineyard in Penedes, had a tour, and then tasted some wines, two whites, two reds, and two cavas. The tour was very humbling in a way because we got to actually see the workers harvesting the grapes. Seeing it up close and how back breaking the work is just made me realize that I drink the end result all the time without even thinking of that, but so so much work goes into it first. They did the tasting in a way I really liked, before telling us what we should be tasting, he asked us what we thought we tasted and smelled in the wines and then explained to us what it was. It was nice though because he let us know there's no real right or wrong, just different opinions more or less.

So yesterday was a very long day followed by going out for a bit at night. Hannah and I and our friend Max went to a bar called Chupitos, which means shots in spanish. It's fun because the shots don't actually have that much alcohol at all, but they're cheap, only about 1.50-2 euros. It's less about the alcohol and more about the show. The shots are crazy and they have literally hundreds of different types. We did a Boy Scout shot which involves lighting a strip of fluid on the bar on fire, roasting the marshmallow in the fire, dunking it in the shot to put the flame out, taking the shot, and then eating the marshmallow. Then we did a Harry Potter shot which pretty much was three shots with an orange on top and sugar on that, then she lit the shots and the bar around them on fire, threw in some pepper or something so the fire was pretty big and crackling and then put it out and we took the shot and chased with the orange and sugar. The third was weird and hard to explain typing, but it was also fun. (And don't worry mom and dad, sounds like a lot of alcohol but probably all three had about the amount of maybe 1 regular shot :P)

After Chupitos we went to a place called Elephant Club, which has the potential to be a cool place, but it was no fun. It was being promoted by this guy named Kike (pronounced Keekay!!) and he's pretty famous amongst Americans for his club promotions. You get in for free if you mention his name, we didn't have any other plans so we figured we'd try it out. First it took forever to get there, then we ran into a huge group of obnoxious Americans that we assumed were headed to the same place. I know it sounds like a bit of a double standard to judge Americans haha, but these people were just not fun to be around. Well the whole club turned out to be this type. I think they're mostly younger people who can't drink legally in the States and also don't really realize the culture here is different. I got lucky to land in a program that explained this to us so that we could be respectful of it (meaning not binge drink every night) and then on top of that, the group of people I'm with are all very mature and we have the same mentality with drinking. None of us feel the need to get drunk, we really just go out to have fun, not to drink. So anyway, it didn't even feel like we were in Barca anymore! We left there and just ended up going home because it was getting late.

Overall though, the weekend was a lot of fun. Today I have to get some homework done, tomorrow starts our one and only week of 5 days of classes...see I told you it's a tough life.

First Week of Classes

The first week of classes is already over. It was a short one due to the holiday tomorrow. The weekend should be fun because there are going to be a bunch of demonstrations and festivities going on around the city, I'll experience it firsthand tomorrow so I'll let you know how it is.

Last night we went to flamenco. It was much different than I expected but it was really an interesting thing to experience. The show was only about a half hour long and started out with an amazing Spanish guitar player and a man singing. Then three more people came on stage, a woman and two more guys. One of the guys did some drum like rhythms, and everyone was keeping the rhythm with the clapping. There was a lot of really passionate singing and the woman danced for us for a bit, followed by one of the guys. The way they move their feet is incredible!

After that a few of us went out for a bit and had a couple drinks. Our GA Jofre came out with us and bought us a plate of patatas bravas at a bar. They're a very traditional food over here and commonly served at tapas places, it's potatoes with some sort of sauce on top. They were AMAZING, Hannah and I all but licked the plate. I definitely would like to learn how to make them before I leave.

I believe we're going out again tonight to celebrate the weekend. It's tiring but so fun and I'm really really enjoying meeting so many new people. So I'm just trying to enjoy every second that I'm here (and still not spend all of my money in one week). But hey, when in Barca right? :)

Muy Contenta :)

This weekend was really fun and it made me feel so much more comfortable about being here. I think making new friends and having distractions helped a lot with the bit of homesickness I was experiencing. Saturday night we met up with the friends we had made on Friday from the U.K. and went to a little bar, had one drink, then headed to the beach. There was nothing in particular going on there, but I love hanging out on the beach at night so it was great. It was Hannah and my first times touching the Mediterranean water!

Sunday during the day I went back to the beach in the daylight with my friend Lindsay and it was absolutely beautiful. If you've been looking at my Facebook pictures, then you'll see pictures from the beach that day. The landscape here is just amazing, being right next to the beach and then having mountains right in the background.

We definitely have to be really careful here with all of our stuff, pickpocketing is a huge problem. Luckily the crime here really isn't worse than that, but we have to be really vigilant all the time. I left the beach a little before Lindsay and she told me right after I left she saw a girl who had just gotten her purse stolen. It's tough on the beach because there's a million people walking around selling things..from henna tatoos to massages to cold beer and water. On the streets we have to be really careful to make sure we keep our bags in front of us too. But as long as your careful, it's not a problem. For instance, Lindsay and I just took turns going to the water so that one stayed behind to watch our bags at all times.

Last night a couple of us went out for drinks again; it's been really fun getting to know people better and getting to know the city better too. We went to a bar that we went to a couple times over the weekend too so we actually tipped here. I'm so not used to not tipping, I feel so bad when I don't! But they really don't do it over here, they recommend only doing it at places where you know you want to go back to a lot. And even then, it's just a small thing like 50 cents or something. It's strange, it'll definitely save me money, but tipping is so ingrained in my head that it's hard not to do it!

I had my first little mishap with my homestay last night when I forgot my keys in my room. I didn't get back until about 3 from going out (not really that late over here for going out standards) and my host family was already sleeping so they didn't hear their phones. I felt awful that I had forgotten my keys, but lucky for me Hannah had come out with me and lives only a couple blocks away. Since her senora is my senora's daughter, I felt ok with going over there (after Hannah calmed me down and helped me realize it wasn't the end of the world). So I slept on Hannah's trundle bed and made my way home in the morning. My senora was so sweet about it and just felt bad that she had missed my calls..which just made me feel even more guilty of course. But luckily they were very understanding. In general, they've been great to live with and totally understand that I'm here to be meeting people, going out, taking classes, traveling, etc. and let me be very independent.

Classes started today, which I'm so happy about. I really love my spanish teacher, she's so much fun and teaches the class all in spanish so that's definitely going to help me learn faster. For now classes are only 2 and a half hours and then we have the rest of the day to ourselves. There's so many holidays this month too that this week I don't have class Thursday or Friday and in a couple weeks we get off Wednesday-Friday. Once regular classes start at the end of September, we don't have Friday classes at all! I know, I know...it's a tough life over here.

After class we walked over to a sandwich place we had heard about that sells cheap sandwiches (or bocadillos en espanol) and cheap glasses of cava (Spanish champagne). It was delicious, and the glasses of champagne were 60-95 cents each; some of the bottles were only 2.10 euro. I love the drinking culture over here, so much different than in America and I prefer it. It's something to be enjoyed, not something to do to binge drink and get drunk. They don't understand why we drink that way and generally only have a glass of wine with dinner and then maybe 1-3 drinks when they go out. It makes so much more sense to me and I like it a lot.

Tomorrow we're going to see Flamenco dancing with our Guardian Angel, Jofre, which I've been looking forward to since I heard we were going! I'll definitely take pictures, so look for them on Facebook.

Les extrano, abrazos y besos!! (I miss you all, hugs and kisses!!)

Cultura Distinta

The cultural differences here have been really interesting to experience. There's the ones most people know about, like the meal schedule and going out. Last night was our first night actually going out and we didn't get home until 6 a.m. It was so worth it and so much fun. We all got into a club VIP through someone we met and then just danced all night...literally. They're not kidding when they say Spaniards don't go out until at least midnight and then stay out until 5 or 6. The metro closes down on Friday nights from 2-5 and yet we were still able to take it home! So needless to say it's 1 p.m. here right now and I just woke up a little while ago, and I'm sure I'll still want a siesta before going back out tonight :)

They have a great pace of life here and are very serious about working to live and not living to work. It's refreshing to be around a culture that really takes so much time to just enjoy the day. Like when they have their siesta for three hours and eat lunch during it, they don't continue to work on their laptops or talk on their cell phones while they eat; they stop everything their doing and enjoy each other and a good meal. I like it. Lunch is the biggest meal of the day here, but actually my senora (my host "mom") is really understanding of the fact that I'm used to something so different and has told me that I can eat earlier if I want (they usually eat dinner somewhere around 10, give or take) and that I can also make my own dinner (they generally just eat some gazpacho and maybe some fruit for dinner).

My host family is great so far. They love to talk, which is great because I feel like it's definitely going to help improve my spanish much more quickly. They made me feel very welcome the first night and told me that I should treat their house as if I were staying with my aunt and uncle. They wanted me to know that I could feel comfortable and that I didn't have to feel like I was staying in a hotel the whole time I'm here.

So here's something that's taking some getting used to. You have to pay for water here if you're out at a restaurant, you can't just get tap with free refills. If you want more, you have to buy another bottle. And then during lunch a lot of restaurants have 3 course menus with prices that include a bottle of water OR a glass of wine! So wine costs the same as water here haha. I've learned to carry a water bottle around with me everywhere I go.

Classes start Monday and we'll be meeting other Americans from other programs. I'm looking forward to this, but at the same time I want to make sure that I don't only hang out with Americans. I really want to make friends with Spanish people, practice my spanish with them, get to know their culture better, etc. But it is a small world, we were doing a walking tour and I met someone from Beverly (for anyone not from Boston area, it's a town just outside of Boston) and he knew Mike Sydorko! I'm in Barcelona, Spain on a random walking tour and happen to run into someone that knows a friend of mine..crazy.

Haven't been to the beach yet, but the weather is gorgeous here, still very hot, and I think we're going to go there tomorrow. Today Hannah and I are going to explore our neighborhood. Her senora happens to be my senora's daughter and they live just a couple blocks from each other. So we want to get to know nuestras barrio (our neighborhood) today and find a good place to eat some lunch. Hasta pronto!

The Beginning Days

So I’ve been so tired and busy the past couple days that I haven’t gotten a chance to write anything down. I’m having a bit of a hard time adjusting to the time change and dealing with jetlag still. There’s so many things I love so far about this city and the culture in Barcelona, but at the same time, there are definitely still a lot of things that I’m adjusting to. Like the time difference, and the meal schedule here.

Through our orientation though, so far I've seen a good amount for only being here for four days. Plaza Catalunya is a beautiful square in downtown Barcelona, right near the famous street Las Ramblas. Both of those have been really fun to walk around. We got a guided tour of Parc Guell and I am in love with Gaudi! He's incredible, and seeing his work close up has been amazing. We drove by La Sagrada Familia (another Gaudi building) and didn't have time to stop, but I definitely plan on going back there and getting a tour of the church. We also got a guided walking tour of the Gothic Quarter. This was really interesting because our guide really knew so much about the history of the area and the different types of architecture, what was real, what was copied, common misconceptions about the history. It's amazing to stand in the middle of a beautiful old building that used to have markets in the courtyard or kings living in it. We saw a beautiful cathedral too, the cathedral of Santa Maria del Mar. It's an old gothic building and was finished in only 200 years, which for a cathedral I've learned is a very short amount of time to be finished in.

Last night we went out for tapas with my group's Guardian Angel who is a student in Barcelona that's our age and shows us around for the first couple weeks. His name is Jofre (pronounced Joe-fra) and he's here to help us with the transition and getting to know the city. He's a lot of fun and really helpful.

Yesterday I took a Spanish placement test and placed in the intermediate level, so those classes start on Monday and we have just intensive spanish for two and a half hours everyday for a little more than two weeks. Then there's a festivity here in Barcelona and we get a couple days off before the rest of the classes start at the end of September. I won't have any Friday classes, so this will definitely allow me more time to travel!! It's amazing too the day trips they already have planned for us that are already paid for through the program anyway. Things like a day trip to a vineyard with a wine tasting, day trips to different smaller towns around Spain, and a weekend trip to Madrid! I'm really looking forward to that. They also have a lot of museum visits that we can do on Fridays that again are already paid for.

So so far, so good. I love the city (despite the fact that I've been having a lot of trouble sleeping and am basically an insomniac right now) and I have a really good feeling about the next four months. Look on Facebook for pictures and I'll try and keep the blog updated too for anyone who's interested!