First Week

I can't believe I have only been in Granada for one week, it feels like I've been here for so much longer! This past week we had an intensive grammar class from 9-12pm and then had the rest of the day free. After eating breakfast at 8am and then having to wait till 2:30pm for lunch we were always so hungry after school so we would all go together to get tapas or ice cream! Then we would walk around the city or hangout in a park until lunch time.

The foyer at school

My Señora's daughter's family comes over every weekday for lunch. At first it was really awkward and uncomfortable because none of them can speak English at all. I was very surprised that the two kids (14 and 17) don't know much English either. But now I feel comfortable asking them questions and chiming in on conversations. Every meal is accompanied with bread and the tv is always on while we eat. I have been taking advantage of the siestas here! It is so nice to have a scheduled nap after lunch everyday! Everything in the city closes during siesta so you can't really do anything but hangout at home and sleep. Sometimes I go to the park to hangout with friends during siesta if I'm getting overwhelmed by all the Spanish flying around my apartment.

Parque Federico Lorca Garcia, about a 5min walk from my apartment, also where I 'run'

This past week after siesta, I have taken walks up to the Alhambra, around the city, and gone to a beach in Salobreña. Then I have to return home for a 9:30pm dinner. We also tend to get tapas before dinner too, just because we are always soo hungry!

First sighting of the Alhambra!

View from the Alhambra

view of the beach in Salobreña

 On Thursday we had a tour with our Literature Professor Marie Carmen, and she took us to some of the historical sites in Granada. Although it was an interesting tour I was so tired that I didn't really pay attention to everything she was saying. I'm noticing that I can understand most Spanish if I'm really concentrating, but if I space out for even a minute I have no idea what is going on. It's going to be a real struggle once school starts!

The Cathedral in Granada. We even got to walk up to the second level (the exact center of the pic) that's the lookout from the second floor, so you can look at everyone in the pews. We even posed for some other tourists up there!

On Saturday, we went on a school trip to see a castle in some town, and to Nerja to explore some caves and go to the beach. The playa was the definite highlight of the trip. IT WAS AMAZING! I couldn't believe I was actually swimming in the Mediterranean!! The water wasn't as warm as I thought it would be, but I shouldn't complain!

The beach at Nerja

For all the UConn readers: Granada has a permanent X-Lot called El Botellón (translates to big bottle). It's a huge plaza where the police say that you can just go and drink. And the liquor stores near it have a package all set up that includes alcohol, mixer, ice and cups in a package for you to buy. So convenient! The nightlife here is crazy, the clubs stay open till 7am and most places don't get started till after midnight! Our first night here we stayed out till 5am and then slept the next day away. So far we have checked out a bunch of bars (we did karaoke at an Irish pub, yes I sang 'Hit Me Baby One More Time') and clubs.

So far I am having a wonderful time here, minus the food (but that's too large a complaint to get into). Tomorrow we have an orientation for our school, The Universidad de Granada - Centro de Lenguas Modernas at 10am and have the rest of the day free! We are debating between going to the beach again or going for a hike in the Sierra Nevadas. On Tuesday I am going to my first frisbee practice with the team based in Granada called Penultimanos! Should be interesting seeing as I am not shape, don't have cleats, haven't touched a frisbee for some time now, and don't know Spanish words for frisbee stuff!

Adiós!

Just some pics

Some pictures from the first day:

Upon getting off our plane in Granada and getting our luggage we saw this sign on the doors out of the airport. It says: "Attention: Point of No Return" and that's when we knew we were here for good. 

The door that leads into my apartment building. Took a picture of it in case I couldn't remember where I lived.

                     Side view of my building. I'm on the third floor and we have a little balcony.

 The day I arrived was a holiday for the virgin saint Augustine; and there was a wall of flowers outside the cathedral. It was so pretty!

                                                            The inside of the cathedral.

                       A bunch of us went out on our first night and experienced Spain's nightlife.

Granada!

I'm here!!!!!! It's hard to believe that I'm actually in a different continent, in Spain, living with a Senora. So crazy! There are 12 kids total from UConn and I met most of them on the flight to Spain. Everyone seems really nice and I think I'm going to make some great friends on this trip! I just met my Senora. She lives in a nice apartment that's about 20 minutes walking distance from school, and there are some other UConn girls who live a couple streets down from me. I think my Senora fell last year and hurt herself, so she can't really walk that well; I guess she won't be showing me around the city. She also talks quite quickly and I sometimes have absolutely no clue what she's saying, so I just nod and smile in response. That was working really well until I she asked me a question about school and I just smiled... she hopefully realizes that Spanish is just rusty. Life is really good so far, minus the time change that's really killing me. Thank heavens for siestas! I'm going to take a little nap right now! Love to all.

Less than a week

Only 6 days left before I leave for my study abroad trip in Granada, Spain! I've already started to do a bit of packing and have been listening to some 'learn Spanish' cds. Hopefully I'll be ready when it's finally time to go. I leave on Sept. 14 and should arrive in Granada around noon the next day. I'll try and keep this blog as updated as possible over the upcoming semester.