My parents, grandparents, and family friends have all told me at one time or another that time flies. This semester was the first time that I really feel like I understand what they meant.
About four months ago I was packing my suitcases for my Semester in Spain, and I remember thinking how far away December felt, I mean, it was only the middle of August! Once I got here to Sevilla, I had the same feeling......it felt like the semester was never going to end.
This time that I have had here has been challenging, exciting, adventurous, and so incredibly fun. I have travelled to amazing new places, and I was so fortunate to be able to spend time with my Uncle Pat and cousins in London.
As I was walking to the coffee shop (where Christina and I have become regulars :)!!) I was reflecting on how beautiful the walk from my house is in the morning, and how I am so thankful for the beautiful sunrise that God creates every morning. I don´t think that I will fully appreciate the time I have had here until I am at home and I can´t just walk to Las Palomas and get a triangulo, or go to the chucheria for a 1 euro bag of chuches.
The goodbyes have already started, first with 2 students, Daniel and Kara, that left on wednesday, and today Christina and I said goodbye to our baristas at our morning coffee shop. Luckily, most of us students are on the group flight back to Chicago tomorrow so we will be stuck on a plane together for a while tomorrow and we won´t have to say goodbye right away :).
I´ll never forget this experience, or the people that I got to experience it with.
12.14.2012
11.23.2012
God Is My Constant
It has been a while since writing last! Things have been crazy here, as usual, and super busy!
We had fall break October 28th to November 2nd, and I was able to go on a wonderful trip with Seth, Elyse, Kris, and Dani to Tenerife, one of the Canary Islands off the coast of Morocco!
We were so blessed by getting to stay in an all-inclusive hotel in Puerto de la Cruz, on the north side of the island. The food was amazing and so were the people. We realized the island was the "Hawaii" for European people. We were the only Americans there! Everyone was pretty fascinated when they found out we were American :) This island trip was the perfect getaway for us for the week. We had a relaxing 5 days in the warm sun not having to care about much. It was awesome!
We had fall break October 28th to November 2nd, and I was able to go on a wonderful trip with Seth, Elyse, Kris, and Dani to Tenerife, one of the Canary Islands off the coast of Morocco!
This is the only picture we got of the 5 of us! We took it after swimming in the natural pools in Garachico!
Being tourists in a gift shop looking for sandals for Seth!
Seeking refuge from the STRONG wind!
I think we were testing to see if the sound echoed under the tree? haha (it was my idea)
The black sand at the beach by our hotel!
The gorgeous moonrise on the first night!
Seth trying to dry his socks in the wind after we got drenched by a huge wave!
The natural pools :)
Los Gigantes! Huge cliffs next to the beach...so cool!
This trip to the island was the spark to what has been a really amazing second half of the semester in terms of my relationship with the Lord: My heart has been softened so much and I wanna share a little about what I have been learning.
God is so Big. I don't think that I think about that enough. Everything on earth He made. Isn't that crazy? In Tenerife I saw some BIG things, like the cliffs in the last picture. Those were huge! I was in awe of the blue water, the big cliffs, the big trees, the birds, the amazing food, everything. I was in awe of God's beauty through all of these things. It has been such a blessing to see the way He has been working through my heart and really showing me how to lean on Him in my times of loneliness and struggle. He is the only constant here and I am so thankful to have a God who provides and loves so unconditionally. I am learning to seek Him in everything I do, especially in my relationships with others. It is not easy, but I am learning and He is my strength. Whenever I am down and I seek Him, He provides a reminder of how faithful and gracious He is.
And in the spirit of Thanksgiving, I am so thankful for the friends and family that I have in my life. I have such a supportive community around me and I couldn't be more thankful for them :) Especially for Angie, Sam, and Sarah who have been a continuous encouragement, Hollis for being so understanding and loving even from so far away and a 7 hour time difference, and my family :) I love you guys.
I only have 3 weeks left here in Spain and I am thankful for every day that I have had here. This has been such a crazy cool experience!
10.16.2012
Big Cities!
The past few weeks have been CRAZY! Filled with exams and travelling, I have been VERY busy.
School, of course, is really important, and thats why the tests are so stressful. I have gotten so sucked into having fun here that I have, at times, forgotten to study :) and that just causes me to have to cram (a habit I must get rid of soon!)
The best part about studying in Europe is that there are so many opportunities to travel! The last two weeks have been filled with travel. I got the opportunity to go to Toledo with the school, Madrid with Christina and Jamie, and to London to visit Uncle Pat and the boys with Elyse.
TOLEDO:
A beautiful old city filled with history and gorgeous buildings!
We met at the bus at 6:30am on Thursday, so early, and we drove many hours to arrive there around 2pm. The bus ride consisted of sleeping and listening to Mark Driscolls podcasts. The best part of the drive, by far, was our very quick stop in Consuegra! For those of you who dont know, that is the place where los molinos are that Don Quixote fought. I LOVE Don Quixote, so that was the best thing ever.
Machego sheep cheese also comes from this region of La Mancha.
Las Molinas!!
In Toledo we had some tours in different churches. We got to see some original paintings by El Greco, which was really cool.
This is me, Christina, and Jamie exploring a monastery in Toledo!
MADRID:
We were very fortunate and got to stay with a family that Samia knew there, and they made the experience completely unforgettable!
Not only did we go to Pacha (a nightclub)
and get to see the Reina Sofia museum,
but I also got together with Sofia!!
It was so awesome seeing her there! She brought us to the coolest tapas market, where they had a ton of different kinds of tapas to buy, and she took us to an awesome bar that specialized in stuffed mushrooms and sangria.
And to end it right, we came back to Sevilla super fast on the Ave :)
LONDON:
Getting to London, that was the fun part :)
I dont know if any of you know what RyanAir is, but for those of you who dont know, it is a low cost airline that flies around Europe for SUPER cheap. The thing is, they have LOTS of fine print. Like the size of a carry on bag has to be much smaller than a normal size, also, you must get your boarding pass stamped at the ticket counter before going to the gate to avoid a 66 Euro charge for not getting it checked. Luckily, Elyse and I were warned about this before we went so we didnt have any problems. But let me tell you, even though I knew my carry on would fit, when I saw that we all had to put our bags in the measuring thing to check the size as we walked on the jetway, my heart was pounding out of my chest cause I was so nervous! I laughed really hard after to get rid of all the adrenaline that had built up inside me!
Ah, London!! Such a great place :) Sightseeing galore! And great family! It was so awesome getting to spend time with my Uncle Pat, my cousins Felix and Hugo, seeing my Auntie Charlotte, and getting to know Mollie.
We saw the Tower Bridge, shopped at Primark (the best store ever), and best of all, got to go to the Google offices!!
Being in Europe allows so much opportunity to travel for little money, and I love that I am able to take advantage of that. I had so much fun on this first round of travel and I can't wait for more!
Next stop.......TENERIFE in the Canary Islands!!! (10/29/12)
School, of course, is really important, and thats why the tests are so stressful. I have gotten so sucked into having fun here that I have, at times, forgotten to study :) and that just causes me to have to cram (a habit I must get rid of soon!)
The best part about studying in Europe is that there are so many opportunities to travel! The last two weeks have been filled with travel. I got the opportunity to go to Toledo with the school, Madrid with Christina and Jamie, and to London to visit Uncle Pat and the boys with Elyse.
TOLEDO:
A beautiful old city filled with history and gorgeous buildings!
We met at the bus at 6:30am on Thursday, so early, and we drove many hours to arrive there around 2pm. The bus ride consisted of sleeping and listening to Mark Driscolls podcasts. The best part of the drive, by far, was our very quick stop in Consuegra! For those of you who dont know, that is the place where los molinos are that Don Quixote fought. I LOVE Don Quixote, so that was the best thing ever.
Machego sheep cheese also comes from this region of La Mancha.
Las Molinas!!
In Toledo we had some tours in different churches. We got to see some original paintings by El Greco, which was really cool.
To the right is a statue of Don Quixote that was in a lot of the stores around Toledo!
This is me, Christina, and Jamie exploring a monastery in Toledo!
MADRID:
After Toledo, we hopped on a train an headed to Madrid!
We were very fortunate and got to stay with a family that Samia knew there, and they made the experience completely unforgettable!
Not only did we go to Pacha (a nightclub)
and get to see the Reina Sofia museum,
but I also got together with Sofia!!
It was so awesome seeing her there! She brought us to the coolest tapas market, where they had a ton of different kinds of tapas to buy, and she took us to an awesome bar that specialized in stuffed mushrooms and sangria. And to end it right, we came back to Sevilla super fast on the Ave :)
LONDON:
Getting to London, that was the fun part :)
I dont know if any of you know what RyanAir is, but for those of you who dont know, it is a low cost airline that flies around Europe for SUPER cheap. The thing is, they have LOTS of fine print. Like the size of a carry on bag has to be much smaller than a normal size, also, you must get your boarding pass stamped at the ticket counter before going to the gate to avoid a 66 Euro charge for not getting it checked. Luckily, Elyse and I were warned about this before we went so we didnt have any problems. But let me tell you, even though I knew my carry on would fit, when I saw that we all had to put our bags in the measuring thing to check the size as we walked on the jetway, my heart was pounding out of my chest cause I was so nervous! I laughed really hard after to get rid of all the adrenaline that had built up inside me!
Ah, London!! Such a great place :) Sightseeing galore! And great family! It was so awesome getting to spend time with my Uncle Pat, my cousins Felix and Hugo, seeing my Auntie Charlotte, and getting to know Mollie.
We saw the Tower Bridge, shopped at Primark (the best store ever), and best of all, got to go to the Google offices!!
Being in Europe allows so much opportunity to travel for little money, and I love that I am able to take advantage of that. I had so much fun on this first round of travel and I can't wait for more!
Next stop.......TENERIFE in the Canary Islands!!! (10/29/12)
9.23.2012
The Hard Stuff
There are always challenges when going to a new place and being out of your comfort zone. Moving to a new country with a new language to go to school brings a whole lot of other challenges.
My first major challenge has to do with school. In March I got my acceptance letter to the Fall 2012 Semester in Spain program and I was super excited!! I started thinking about all of the Spanish I was going to learn, the culture I was going to get to experience first hand, and travelling!!! Little did I know, it was going to be a lot harder than I thought.
I have never been the type to study (productively) for hours on end and dedicate my whole time at school to my actual school work. Now, you can only imagine how much of a challenge studying has been for me while being here in Sevilla. It is SO HARD to get myself to sit down and focus on my homework. For example, right now I really should be studying for my tests that I have starting on Tuesday, but I decided to procrastinate by writing a blog about how I have a hard time getting myself to study instead of actually studying :) I am a pro at finding ways to distract myself from studying, I should probably get paid for it.
My next challenge has to do with the public facilities here. And I must dedicate this part to my friend Christina, because we relate very well on this topic.
Public Restrooms.
If you know me at all, you know that I am always paranoid about where I am going to find a bathroom when I go out. And not only am I worried about where I am going to find a bathroom, but I worry about the cleanliness of that bathroom. That is why Disneyland is my favorite place to go. There are bathrooms everywhere and they are most always clean and have toilet seat covers. Basically bathroom heaven. Well, let me tell you, Spain bathrooms are no Disneyland bathrooms..they don't even compare. We went out for Tapas last week and not only were there no toilet seat covers, but there was no toilet paper. Toilet paper is a luxury here, so is an actual toilet seat! I can't tell you how many public bathrooms I have been in that dont have toilet seats. Luckily, last night we went out to a Flamenco bar to watch some performances and we found the nicest bathroom in a public place that we have seen so far!! It was wonderful :)
The last funny challenging thing (for this post) is the Sevici system.
For those of you who don't know, this is a public bike system. You can buy a year long pass and use the bikes in the city whenever you want, whenever you want, and ride for 30 minutes for free. It is the best way to go to and from places because it is so fast and efficient! Now, here come the challenges...finding an open station, sliding the bike back into place, and the actual bikes themselves. You remove the bike form the slot when you check it out and you have to slide the bike back into a slot to check it back in. There are only so many slots at each station, so many times there are no open spaces. In turn, sometimes riding the bike actually ends up making the trip twice as long and causes you to walk more because you have to go back to the station you first picked the bike up from to check it back in and then walk to your destination. That always makes for a good laugh and an overheated body when its 100 degrees outside. Now, when you actually slide your bike into place the slot will do one of two things. It will either be silent, which means you have correctly put your bike into place, and then beep 3 times 10 seconds later to let you know that the bike is checked in, or it will beep very loud and uncontrollably at you letting you know that you are terrible at putting the bike into place and you should be embarrassed because everyone in the vicinity is now looking at you and know that you clearly aren't from here. The other very unique thing about these bikes is that they sometimes aren't very good bikes, but you can't test it before you check it out so you don't find out what is wrong with it until you are riding along and your seat slowly starts creeping down or you find that the bike is permanently in third gear. With all that being said, I have never laughed more than in these situations with the bikes. They bring a smile to my face every day that I use the system and I am so thankful that it exists!!
Here in Spain I find myself being challenged by new things every day and I find joy in laughing about the funny and crazy experiences that I am faced with. All of this stuff that I am going through makes my time here so much more enjoyable and funny. Laughing is, by far, the best coping mechanism :)
My first major challenge has to do with school. In March I got my acceptance letter to the Fall 2012 Semester in Spain program and I was super excited!! I started thinking about all of the Spanish I was going to learn, the culture I was going to get to experience first hand, and travelling!!! Little did I know, it was going to be a lot harder than I thought.
Study Abroad: When students travel to another country for a period of time to pursue an educational degree.SURPRISE. When you study abroad you actually have to study!! I think I forgot that little detail when I was planning out my semester :)
I have never been the type to study (productively) for hours on end and dedicate my whole time at school to my actual school work. Now, you can only imagine how much of a challenge studying has been for me while being here in Sevilla. It is SO HARD to get myself to sit down and focus on my homework. For example, right now I really should be studying for my tests that I have starting on Tuesday, but I decided to procrastinate by writing a blog about how I have a hard time getting myself to study instead of actually studying :) I am a pro at finding ways to distract myself from studying, I should probably get paid for it.
My next challenge has to do with the public facilities here. And I must dedicate this part to my friend Christina, because we relate very well on this topic.
Public Restrooms.
If you know me at all, you know that I am always paranoid about where I am going to find a bathroom when I go out. And not only am I worried about where I am going to find a bathroom, but I worry about the cleanliness of that bathroom. That is why Disneyland is my favorite place to go. There are bathrooms everywhere and they are most always clean and have toilet seat covers. Basically bathroom heaven. Well, let me tell you, Spain bathrooms are no Disneyland bathrooms..they don't even compare. We went out for Tapas last week and not only were there no toilet seat covers, but there was no toilet paper. Toilet paper is a luxury here, so is an actual toilet seat! I can't tell you how many public bathrooms I have been in that dont have toilet seats. Luckily, last night we went out to a Flamenco bar to watch some performances and we found the nicest bathroom in a public place that we have seen so far!! It was wonderful :)
The last funny challenging thing (for this post) is the Sevici system.
For those of you who don't know, this is a public bike system. You can buy a year long pass and use the bikes in the city whenever you want, whenever you want, and ride for 30 minutes for free. It is the best way to go to and from places because it is so fast and efficient! Now, here come the challenges...finding an open station, sliding the bike back into place, and the actual bikes themselves. You remove the bike form the slot when you check it out and you have to slide the bike back into a slot to check it back in. There are only so many slots at each station, so many times there are no open spaces. In turn, sometimes riding the bike actually ends up making the trip twice as long and causes you to walk more because you have to go back to the station you first picked the bike up from to check it back in and then walk to your destination. That always makes for a good laugh and an overheated body when its 100 degrees outside. Now, when you actually slide your bike into place the slot will do one of two things. It will either be silent, which means you have correctly put your bike into place, and then beep 3 times 10 seconds later to let you know that the bike is checked in, or it will beep very loud and uncontrollably at you letting you know that you are terrible at putting the bike into place and you should be embarrassed because everyone in the vicinity is now looking at you and know that you clearly aren't from here. The other very unique thing about these bikes is that they sometimes aren't very good bikes, but you can't test it before you check it out so you don't find out what is wrong with it until you are riding along and your seat slowly starts creeping down or you find that the bike is permanently in third gear. With all that being said, I have never laughed more than in these situations with the bikes. They bring a smile to my face every day that I use the system and I am so thankful that it exists!!
Here in Spain I find myself being challenged by new things every day and I find joy in laughing about the funny and crazy experiences that I am faced with. All of this stuff that I am going through makes my time here so much more enjoyable and funny. Laughing is, by far, the best coping mechanism :)
9.16.2012
Football in Bars and Religious Processionals
Very late friday night I heard the loudest BOOM I have ever heard in my life. I had no idea what it was. When I woke up the next morning more BOOMs happened, scaring us half to death cause we thought they were gun shots. Our familia here told us that it was cannons that were marking the start of the day of the processional. Of course, we had absolutely no idea what that meant, but we went with it anyway haha. We thought the loud noises were over...we were very wrong cause at 7:30pm they happened again, marking the beginning of the processional.
As some of you may know, Sevilla played Real Madrid last night in Sevilla and, as much as we wanted to attend, we couldn't afford a ticket, so we decided to watch the game in a bar. The only thing was, we weren't allowed to cheer for Madrid because we were in Sevilla! On our way to find a bar with a TV (a rare find here in Sevilla) we ran into the processional!
The Processional: 2 Marching bands, one in the front, one in the back, kids carrying giant candles, men from the church, a big extravagantly decorated float carried by about 30 men with the Virgin Mary sitting on top, and hundred of other people carrying silver poles leading the Virgin into every church in Triana, with the entire city gathering to watch it. It was beautiful!
The game started at 10. At the bar there were many old men and 2 cops, watching the game and then there were about 8 college kids. It was crammed!! The atmosphere was great, and we had a really good time :) And much to our surprise, SEVILLA WON! Everyone was extremely surprised! It was my first european soccer experience, and it was a great one!
We walked home a little after midnight, and the processional was still going! They were still carrying Mary through the city and the bands were still playing...loud. Dani and I went home to go to bed and just as we were about to fall asleep at 1, BOOM. The cannons went off again. All I could do was laugh because I got so scared!! Finally the processional was over and there was quiet :)
I thought the processional was very beautiful, and I am so glad I got to see it, but I couldn't believe how loud the cannons were!!! Everything here that has to do with the Catholic church is so beautiful! The cathedrals, the decorations, even the floats they put the Virgin Mary on.
That was the most eventful saturday I have had here yet. It was so cool to see the culture in terms of the religion here and also through their love for football!! We even made friends with the people at the bar so they told us to come back for the Betis and Barcelona games :)
9.08.2012
Corrida de Toros
Bullfighting has been around for hundreds of years, and in Sevilla it is a huge part of the culture and history. I didn't know much about Sevilla before I came here to study, but one thing that I knew was that "la corrida de toros" was something that I wanted to see.
Elyse and I decided to go to the Plaza De Toros De Sevilla to watch a corrida this past Thursday, the 6th, along with some other people from the Semester in Spain program.
(This Plaza de Toros de Sevilla is a very very well known arena and the men that get to fight bulls here work very hard to be able to have the opportunity to fight here!)
We bought the cheapest tickets and walked into the Plaza to find our seats. The Plaza de Toros was beautiful! The building was completed in 1765 and knowing that it has been around that long was amazing to us. Our seats had a perfect view of the entire arena so we could see everything very clearly.
The stands were filled with people of all ages, from young kids to grandparents and every age in between. It truly is a family event for some people, and it is just something that they have been going to forever. It is so normal for them to come watch these corridas.
Going into the corrida I had no idea what to expect at all. I know this seems kind of silly, but I didn't know that they actually killed the bull until the matador killed in in the end. I went through a huge variety of emotions throughout the night. First I was scared out of my mind because I was expecting the worst, bloodiest fight ever. Then I was really sad for the horses that were getting charged at, then I was getting sad for the bull because he was getting so tired and helpless. I wanted to cry a little bit at the end because I was so overwhelmed with emotions, and I was oddly relieved at the end of the fight. It wasn't as bad as I had expected and there was barely any blood at all! Elyse and I made it through the first fight! As the fights continued on we got more and more relaxed and involved in the event. We even started rooting for the matadores and getting really into it!
The entire event lasts about three hours. In that three hours there are six different fights and each fight is divided into three sections that are called tercios.
The first part is with all of the toreros in the arena with pink capes making him charge and get angry. And then they bring out picadores on horses to pic at the bull on the back of its neck to tire the bull and cause it to lower its head.
Elyse and I decided to go to the Plaza De Toros De Sevilla to watch a corrida this past Thursday, the 6th, along with some other people from the Semester in Spain program.
(This Plaza de Toros de Sevilla is a very very well known arena and the men that get to fight bulls here work very hard to be able to have the opportunity to fight here!)
We bought the cheapest tickets and walked into the Plaza to find our seats. The Plaza de Toros was beautiful! The building was completed in 1765 and knowing that it has been around that long was amazing to us. Our seats had a perfect view of the entire arena so we could see everything very clearly.
The stands were filled with people of all ages, from young kids to grandparents and every age in between. It truly is a family event for some people, and it is just something that they have been going to forever. It is so normal for them to come watch these corridas.
This is the very beginning of the whole corrida, the toreros are standing on the left, the you see the picadores on the horses, and on the far right are the horses that take the bull out of the arena in the end.
Going into the corrida I had no idea what to expect at all. I know this seems kind of silly, but I didn't know that they actually killed the bull until the matador killed in in the end. I went through a huge variety of emotions throughout the night. First I was scared out of my mind because I was expecting the worst, bloodiest fight ever. Then I was really sad for the horses that were getting charged at, then I was getting sad for the bull because he was getting so tired and helpless. I wanted to cry a little bit at the end because I was so overwhelmed with emotions, and I was oddly relieved at the end of the fight. It wasn't as bad as I had expected and there was barely any blood at all! Elyse and I made it through the first fight! As the fights continued on we got more and more relaxed and involved in the event. We even started rooting for the matadores and getting really into it!
The entire event lasts about three hours. In that three hours there are six different fights and each fight is divided into three sections that are called tercios.
The first part is with all of the toreros in the arena with pink capes making him charge and get angry. And then they bring out picadores on horses to pic at the bull on the back of its neck to tire the bull and cause it to lower its head.
Below is an image of the bull in the arena when the picador on his horse in in the arena along with the toreros.
The second part begins after the horses and the picadores have left the arena. This is when the toreros have these colored stick-like things that they stick into the shoulder blades of the bull. This causes the bull to get even more tired.
The red and white poles hanging from the bull are the things that they stick into the bull.
The third and final part of the fight is where the matador kills the bull by putting a sword between the bulls shoulder blades and into the heart. After this, a torero cuts off an ear and horses come in to take the bull out of the arena.
The picture below was taken right before the matador killed the bull. This was the best fight of the night; the bull died instantly.
I have never experienced anything so cultural in my life. The entire time I kept having to remind myself that this was actually happening in front of me, it wasn't a movie. When the Plaza was first built, no one had tv or computers or movies, this was their form of entertainment. I realized that this was, and still is, a way for men to prove themselves as strong and powerful. The most amazing part of the entire thing for me was the posture and the stance of the matadores and toreros. They were standing face to face with a huge bull and the men showed absolutely no weakness or fear of the bull. It was amazing. The way they use the capes to make the bulls charge, and the outfits they wear are beautiful. It is like watching a dance. They have incredible control of the bull. I think the history behind the corridas is really important to understand because it is so historical and such a key part of Sevilla.
I am so thankful that I got to see a corrida, especially with Elyse. We talked through the whole thing as it was happening which was really helpful for us to be able to process everything that was happening throughout the event. It was an experience I will never ever forget.
9.05.2012
First Impressions
September 5th, 2012
Here I am in Sevilla, and it is more than I could have ever imagined it to be! So much has happened so far, so I'll start at the beginning..
I left Sea-Tac at 5:45am on Tuesday, August 28th and arrived in Chicago where I met the group for the flight to Madrid. I was really fortunate and actually got to meet my two roommates, Dani and Elyse, at the airport and got to spend some time getting to know them there. After a long, sleepless flight we finally made it to Madrid early in the morning on the 29th! Then we hopped on a smaller plane to get to our final destination, Sevilla!
The Sevilla airport was quickly filled with many, many suitcases and students that were looking forward to meeting the host families! We loaded all of our luggage on the bus and started the drive to the host homes. Once we got a couple blocks from the street, we hopped off the bus and quickly grabbed our luggage before meeting our Señora.
Our Señora is Maria Luisa and her husband is Miguel. They are the most hospitable people I have ever met!! The food Maria Luisa makes is delicious and they are always checking in with us to make sure we are having a good stay and making sure we have everything we need. On top of that, Maria Luisa has been making me special meals that are easy for me to eat since my mouth is still sore from getting my wisdom teeth removed! The house is small, which is expected in Europe, but there is plenty of space. I have my own room and Elyse and Dani share the other one. We are getting along really well which has been really awesome because that was something that I was stressing about a lot before I came here. I dont think I could have asked for better "compies"!!!
On top of my living situation being great, we also had a wonderful first adventure out of the city together! We decided to go to a beach called Matalascañas. It is about an hour bus ride away from Sevilla! It was beautiful! It is on the Atlantic Ocean, and Im proud to say that it was my first time swimming in the Atlantic! A huge group of us from the school went so we were able to walk around and swim without having to worry about who would watch our stuff because there was always someone from the group that wanted to just hang out on the sand. That was a day that I will not forget!
Classes have been really good so far, too! Its only the third day and I've already changed my classes 3 times....haha but I think I am finally settled in the ones that I need!! I have to remember that I am here to study not just to have fun :)
This semester I am going to be co-leading a small group with a girl here named Kris! It will be a time for us girls to get together and talk about where we are spiritually while we are away from home and our churches and everything. We would love prayer for the group throughout the whole semester.
Every day there is a new adventure of some sort...new friends, not understanding the natives, weird looking food, getting lost, strange smells, beautiful people, ordering coffee, and many other things. It is so different here.. but I am thankful for each situation that comes my way and I am so excited for the weeks to come!
My friends Señora said the greatest thing the other day. She said "Si puedo, lo hago. Si no puedo, no lo hago" which means "If I can, I will. If I can't, I won't" and I think that is the best attitude to have in this city! I can't tell you how many times the "Americana" in me gets in the way and stresses me out! Everything here is relaxed and stress free. People are more important than time. We even take 3 hour "siestas" every day! I am learning that I need to slow down and enjoy where I am and who I am with. It is no secret that I miss home like crazy, but home will always be there and I won't always be in Sevilla :)
Here I am in Sevilla, and it is more than I could have ever imagined it to be! So much has happened so far, so I'll start at the beginning..
I left Sea-Tac at 5:45am on Tuesday, August 28th and arrived in Chicago where I met the group for the flight to Madrid. I was really fortunate and actually got to meet my two roommates, Dani and Elyse, at the airport and got to spend some time getting to know them there. After a long, sleepless flight we finally made it to Madrid early in the morning on the 29th! Then we hopped on a smaller plane to get to our final destination, Sevilla!
The Sevilla airport was quickly filled with many, many suitcases and students that were looking forward to meeting the host families! We loaded all of our luggage on the bus and started the drive to the host homes. Once we got a couple blocks from the street, we hopped off the bus and quickly grabbed our luggage before meeting our Señora.
Our Señora is Maria Luisa and her husband is Miguel. They are the most hospitable people I have ever met!! The food Maria Luisa makes is delicious and they are always checking in with us to make sure we are having a good stay and making sure we have everything we need. On top of that, Maria Luisa has been making me special meals that are easy for me to eat since my mouth is still sore from getting my wisdom teeth removed! The house is small, which is expected in Europe, but there is plenty of space. I have my own room and Elyse and Dani share the other one. We are getting along really well which has been really awesome because that was something that I was stressing about a lot before I came here. I dont think I could have asked for better "compies"!!!
This is the view of the river Guadalquivir and the neighborhood that I live in called Triana. I took this while I was walking home from the school on the second night that I was here.
On top of my living situation being great, we also had a wonderful first adventure out of the city together! We decided to go to a beach called Matalascañas. It is about an hour bus ride away from Sevilla! It was beautiful! It is on the Atlantic Ocean, and Im proud to say that it was my first time swimming in the Atlantic! A huge group of us from the school went so we were able to walk around and swim without having to worry about who would watch our stuff because there was always someone from the group that wanted to just hang out on the sand. That was a day that I will not forget!
Classes have been really good so far, too! Its only the third day and I've already changed my classes 3 times....haha but I think I am finally settled in the ones that I need!! I have to remember that I am here to study not just to have fun :)
This semester I am going to be co-leading a small group with a girl here named Kris! It will be a time for us girls to get together and talk about where we are spiritually while we are away from home and our churches and everything. We would love prayer for the group throughout the whole semester.
Every day there is a new adventure of some sort...new friends, not understanding the natives, weird looking food, getting lost, strange smells, beautiful people, ordering coffee, and many other things. It is so different here.. but I am thankful for each situation that comes my way and I am so excited for the weeks to come!
My friends Señora said the greatest thing the other day. She said "Si puedo, lo hago. Si no puedo, no lo hago" which means "If I can, I will. If I can't, I won't" and I think that is the best attitude to have in this city! I can't tell you how many times the "Americana" in me gets in the way and stresses me out! Everything here is relaxed and stress free. People are more important than time. We even take 3 hour "siestas" every day! I am learning that I need to slow down and enjoy where I am and who I am with. It is no secret that I miss home like crazy, but home will always be there and I won't always be in Sevilla :)
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