Class

Class is actually insanely fun. We just wrapped up a chapter in our book that ties everything into relationships. My teacher's name is Pablo and seems to be a hopeless romantic. He'll start talking about something and giggle and then crack some risqué joke, or say something that makes all the girls hearts melt a little. He's 31, but connects with us on a social level really well. The discussions are super fun because we're personally getting to know each and every student in our section. I always come out of class smiling because A. I always love Spanish class no matter where I am, B. we never seem to have a dull moment during the three hour course and C. Pablo is really good about pointing out when we do something right. I feel like I'm back in elementary school because I get really happy when he says I'm doing a good job. It's just always nice to have positive reinforcement.

We're in this BEAUTIFUL old building that used to be a hospital. The building is enormous and covered head to toe in intricate tile work and large windows. It's seriously nicer than the buildings at Auburn, and the Shelby Center is pretty amazing. I honestly have no complaints about the school. I haven't had a class that's really challenged me in a while, so it's exactly what I needed.

Cena

Cociné hoy. Today I cooked! Eating out is so incredibly expensive, and I've been living off of pasta and toast for the past few weeks. Yes, we've gone out here and there, but for the most part I just don't have the money for a full meal. Today I went to La Boqueria and bought zucchini, eggplant, tomatoes, garlic, chinese leeks and mushrooms. Then I went to the grocery store and bought chicken and rice, and made a stirfry. It feels so good to actually put something green and healthy in my body. I can't tell you the last time I had veggies. 

La Boqueria and Guell park

There's an amazing market just down the street from my hotel called the Boqueria. They have all kinds of fresh fruit, vegetables, juices, meats etc. They also have an impressive selection of candy. Jesse and I decided to explore a few days ago. We first bought a bunch of fruit here, and then started walking around the city. We passed by all kinds of shops, restaurants and buildings. We walked around for a few hours, and then ended up getting drinks at a place called "la Rosa Negra." After, even though we were hopelessly lost, we found the metro and got back in fifteen minutes. That's what I love about this city. The metro is so easy to navigate! Thank goodness for that.

Yesterday we went to Güell parc. It was designed by Gaudí, and originally was supposed to be a residential area. I wasn't listening too much to the tour guide (oops), so I really don't know much more than that. The park was spectacular, and once again my pictures just don't do the park's beauty justice.

We had a full tour of the city yesterday, but my pictures came out HORRIBLE. Most of them were taken on the bus, but it gave us a good idea though of different places to go.  Hopefully I'll be able to hit up all the different places that we saw and get good pictures. 

Our hotel has a rooftop terrace where you can go to lay out and tan. A small group of girls and I have been spending a lot of time up there. There's an INCREDIBLE view of barcelona. I'm not normally one to notice architecture, but it's impossible not to here. Not only can you see La Segrada Familia (not in pictures), but there's all kinds of amazing churches and random buildings that you can see from the roof.

 

The buildings in general are spectacular. There are a lot of buildings with balconies, churches, and narrow ally ways all around the city.

Last night was a welcome dinner for all the students. We went to a restaurant called Milk, where they served us a bunch of small appetizers and drinks. 

After, a good portion of the group decided to go to an Irish pub. I'm not sure why we're still going to pubs when we're in Spain, but it was super fun! The pub is named George Paynes (I think...) and the Poland-Russia soccer game had just ended. It was packed with Polish people and they played a lot of American music. When I went up to the bar to get a drink I noticed that one of the bartenders was a little girl. I tried to snap a picture without her noticing, but it didn't come out that great. It was late at night, and she was taking drink orders and serving people! How crazy is that?

 Today after class we stopped by a small bar to get lunch. We sat outside and ate something that I can't remember it's name. I believe they were some sort of potato product stuffed with meat. We want to try all the small restaurants by the school, or at least the cheap ones.

First few days in Barcelona

Our hotel is small and basic, but in a great location. We’re right in the center of a lot of shops, restaurants and a few steps away from the metro. The rooms have two beds, a small kitchenette and a bathroom. 

Monday was my first day of classes. I got put in the advanced group, and some of the people speak spanish fluently! It’s really intimidating, but as long as I stay in that group, it should be a good challenge. There are four or five girls who speak it regularly at home with their parents, and about ten of us who have taken it for a while but clearly still need to work on our accents and grammar. 

After class I got lunch at a pita place and then headed off for the beach. Another girl in the program and I hopped on the bus, but ended up getting on on the wrong side of the street. Little did we know, that bus goes to the complete opposite side of town and then stops. We ran around the area laughing uncontrollably at the fact that it took us a good hour away from where we’re staying, and took the metro back to our hotel. It might have been the jet lag, but I swear we laughed for a good hour while struggling to find our way back. We then got on the bus on the right side of the street and five minutes later were at the beach...oops.

The beach is BEAUTIFUL! There’s white sand, blue water and lots of palm trees. Jess and I laid out for a good hour, before heading back to the school for our AIFS orientation session. We rode the bus back to our hotel and then went onto the metro stop closest to us. We got really cocky and thought that we were told to the farther metro stop because it’s less confusing than the rather large stop by our hotel. No, that's the only stop where we can actually get on the train. We ended up lost running around the metro stop by our hotel for a good half an hour looking for the right line. We thought we completely figured out the city and metro line....umm not quite. When we finally got to the school we were half an hour late. It was such a directionally challenged day, which just proves that I am my father’s daughter.

At night we got our meal debit cards finally, and went to the grocery store to buy basic food. I’m going to be living off of pasta, bread and hot dogs for the next few weeks, as London was extremely expensive and drained a good portion of my funds. We cooked pasta and drank wine and went to bed early. It's been an exhausting couple of days.

London!

My trip started with a two day visit to London. We started out exploring Piccadilly circus and a getting a few drinks at a  british pub.

 

Along one of the main streets, Soldiers were practicing for a large celebration next week. There were hundreds of guys on horses (just like the parade after the royal wedding).

We even stopped by the National Gallery. I was really interested in the paintings by Van Goh and some the impressionist style paintings. There were some big name pieces in there, and the museum was free!


Friday night we went to the club Fabric. A bunch of people heard that Fabric is in the top ten clubs in the world, and we decided to splurge since we had so little time. The club was insane! There were speakers blasting music from the floor, fog making it impossible to see past a few feet and rooms that didn’t seem to end. We got pulled up onto stage and danced a bunch with some very drunk, very silly British boys. We were all so jet lagged, and exhausted that we only stayed for a few hours, but I thought it was worth it!

The next day we woke up early and had a tour of London. Our tour guide gave us a crash course on British history and showed us every part of the city possible. After I got lunch at a pub and then CRASHED. I slept from 2:00 pm to 3:30 am the next morning.

We met downstairs at 4:00 am and headed off to the airport to go to Barcelona. I enjoyed London a lot, but it was cold and overcast. I also have a soft spot for any country where I can speak Spanish, so I was really excited to get to Spain.