Livin' la vida loca

Last weekend I visited the most beautiful place I have ever been to…Portugal. We left at 7 in the morning on Friday and 6 hours later we arrived in Albufeira, Portugal. Me and some of my friends signed up for the trip through a program called We  Love Spain which was awesome because they booked our hotels and planned all of our activities for us. All of our hotel rooms were mini apartments with full kitchens and living rooms. It was so nice. The first day there we went on a speed boat tour along the coast. The views were absolutely breathtaking. I did not feel like real life. The speed boat then brought us to a pirate ship in the water which we got to jump off of into the ocean. Because it is October the water is starting to get cold, but not cold enough to prevent me from going in!

That night instead of going out to eat we all took a trip to the supermarket and contributed to a big family meal. We had so much food and it was so nice hanging out all together. We met a lot of people who was on the trip, mostly students from America, France and the Netherlands who are studying in Sevilla, Spain. We became good friends with Gonzalo who was one of the trip advisors for We Love Spain and a couple from the United States who are on a month long vacation to Spain. That night we went on a bar crawl through the town. One of the bars had bartenders who would stand on top of the bar and do crazy awesome tricks throwing and juggling bottles. Another had a mechanical bull which I couldn’t resist. Fortunately along with Portuguese people also speak English in Portugal. You would think this was a nice break but being in a Spanish mindset we often still tried to speak Spanish to people and not realize our mistake until people looked at us confused because they don't speak Spanish.

The next day we had to wake up early to take a bus to Cabo Sao Vicente also referred to as “the end of the world” because before Christopher Columbus discovered America, Europeans thought this was where the world ended. This was pretty cool especially since the day we were there was the anniversary of when Columbus found the new world.

After we spent the rest of the day in Lagos and then another night out on the town.

Sunday we spent the morning at yet another beach before heading back to Granada. We didn’t get back until 1 in the morning on Monday and then I had to be up for an 8:30 class. I was beyond exhausted but it was completely worth it because the weekend I spent in Portugal was probably the most fun weekend I have ever had.

Wednesday and Thursday afternoons I volunteer at El Colegio Caja Granada. Last week when I went it was kind of just an introduction so this week was when I really got to start working with the students. I’m there as a native English speaker to help them learn the language, specifically with pronunciation. On Wednesdays I’m in a 5^th grade science class. The teacher asked me to read the notes on the board (written in English) out loud to the class so they can hear how it is suppose to sound. After I finished reading the board all the students clapped like it was the coolest thing they have ever heard. It is funny and I can relate to them learning English because I’m doing the same thing working on Spanish. On Thursdays I am in a 2^nd grade class. These little kids are the cutest things I have ever seen! I would say different colors and shapes out loud and it was so adorable listening to them try to pronounce them. Even though I’m helping with English, volunteering I am still improving my Spanish talking to the teachers and students.

On Friday night my friends and I trekked up the Albaicín to go to a discoteca called Camborio. This wasn’t an authentic Spanish club where the locals go but is a popular place for international students. It was awesome because the club is built into the caves of the mountain side like all of the houses in the Albaicín. From the outside patio of the club you get the most breathtaking view of the Alhambra lit up at night.

Saturday night there was a festival called Noche en Blanco. This is a festival which began in Paris in 2002 as a cultural initiative. This was the first year that Granada participated. It was so cool to experience. Starting at 9 at night there were musical performances, dances and other forms of art taking place all over the city until 4 in the morning. Restaurants, bars and stores were open all night and entrance into monuments and museums were either free or reduced. We even discovered a man with a typewriter set up at the end of one of the bridges who was giving away free poems. This night made me fall in love with Granada all over again!

"Life is dodging the steps to death."

After being out for the festival last night I had low expectations for my my first 5K. The race was a Carrera Contra el Hambre, a race against hunger. I half expected to walk the 3.1 miles but completely surprised myself when I ran the entire thing in 33 minutes and 20 seconds! I would have been happy finishing in 40 minutes! I did so much better than I expected considering I probably only ran 2 times here and it was my first race ever. Now when I get back home I can start running again and signing up for more 5Ks to improve my time!

I’m so happy that I’m getting to travel to so many places while I am here but it is bittersweet because that means the less time I get to spend in Granada. I wish I could stay here forever but skyping my family and my Westfield friends today reminded me how much I miss home. I officially have passed the one month mark which means I only have about 2 months left. It is crazy how quickly time is passing—I hate it!

Abrazos y besos,

Kylie

Siestas y tapas

Some of my favorite things about Granada, Spain are siestas and tapas! Siestas are a must here. Between 2 and 5 in the afternoon practically the whole city shuts down except for cafes. All the stores are closed and it is really too hot to be outside at this time….which leaves the perfect opportunity for a siesta (my favorite thing to do)! It will be a hard to transition when I go back to the states. But another major reason for the siesta are because in Spain everyone goes out so late! Bars and clubs don’t start to get busy until after 2am and if you are home before 3 it is an early night. For example, some of the students who live in my residencia will stay out all night and go to class the next morning without ever going to bed! Then they sleep during siesta…and this is completely normal and common! It again is all related to the weather. This tradition was started because Spain is such a dry and hot country that you wouldn’t leave the house until it was cooler at dusk. It’s probably going to take me the entire semester to get use to this (the staying out late part, not the napping part)!

And tapas! Granada is the only place in Spain where you still get free tapas! Tapas are like little appetizers that you receive when you order a drink at a café. My friends and I will go out and each order a glass of wine for about 2 euros and receive enough food between all of us to get full! And if you order a second drink the next tapa is even better than the first! This is such a great idea and I think that the US should implement it immediately! Tapas are the best thing especially for a student on a budget just trying to get something to eat. I surprisingly love all the food here which is a huge relief. I will definitely miss the Mediterranean cuisine when I go home.

I finally met up with Jenna, one of my best friends from home who is also studying abroad in Granada. We hadn’t been able to see each other because I was in Madrid for awhile and then she was traveling to Paris, but last Monday night we went out to get tapas together. While eating our tapas and discussing our experiences so far in Granada we began talking about the differences between American and Spanish culture. Our waiter ended up joining our conversation which turned into an impromptu intercambio.  It is a nice taste of home seeing Jenna in between classes and we are both going to Portugal this weekend and Barcelona the first weekend of November!

Last Tuesday was my first day of school in the Centro de Lenguas Modernas at the Universidad de Granada. The one thing I do not like about school are that classes are 2 hours long…I originally had three classes back to back on Monday/Wednesdays which is longer than having 6 Monday/Wednesday/Friday classes back to back except they are all in Spanish! I changed my schedule around though so that I now I only have 2 classes in a row a day and I get them all done with in the morning. When I went to my one class in English my professor scolded me and 2 other students in the class who placed high enough to take the class in Spanish but chose to take it in English. She recommended we switched to take the class in Spanish which was a huge confident boost on my Spanish abilities. After much deliberation the other students and I decided to stay in the English class (2 hour classes in Spanish is exhausting and we figured we could use the break for English). But I love the school and all of my professors. One of my classes is in the Kenia building which is a 10 minute walk from the main building where the rest of my classes are. The main building is about a 10 minute walk from my residencia. Classes here are very different so far than classes at home. There is not much homework but when there is it’s not checked or graded but is just to prepare us for the next class. Most of my grade is based on my midterm and final, and when I say most I mean 80%! Very intimidating. Also none of my professors speak English, besides my one class taught in English (and it is English with an extremely thick Spanish accent). Most of the students in my classes are from the United States but there are also a lot of students from China, Japan, Germany and other countries. Because of these reasons we have to rely on our Spanish to communicate and I have to ask a LOT of clarifying questions! But my Spanish is improving so much and I’m learning a lot and its only been two weeks.

Main building

Kenia building

On Saturday Sabrina and I took the initiative to plan a trip to the beach. I usually hate planning things because I never want to be responsible if anything goes wrong but I have to admit that I was extremely impressed with myself figuring out bus tickets and times and the entire thing went smoothly! We went to Salobreña which was about 45 minutes away. The beach was beautiful as expected. In my last post I said that the Monochil water falls was my new greatest life experience….now I’m changing it to cliff jumping into the Mediteranean in Salobreña! Ah it was so awesome! From the shore we climbed up the cliff and before I knew it everyone was counting down from 10 for me to jump. It took two countdowns because the first time I chickened out. I have never felt more butterflies in my stomach but I had to just not think about it and jump. Once in the water I couldn’t stop saying “Oh my god I cant believe I just did that!” probably for the next 10 minutes. It was incredible and I was so proud that I actually did it. Fortunately my friend Emily who did not want to jump accompanied us to the cliff to document all of us leaping into the sea.

I signed up to run a 5K in Granada on October 20th. And now that it is published on the internet I can’t back out! So I have started running after class to prepare. Sabrina and I went on a run together the other day ended with a spontaneous hike up another mountain! I love that we can just on the spot decide to climb a mountain here because we are surrounded by Sierra Nevada mountains. It makes all of the landscapes look like paintings, and once it becomes colder and it starts to snow in the mountains they will be even more beautiful!

Sabrina and I also now have a map of Granada in our room and we are marking off every street we’ve walked on so that by the end of the semester the entire map will be marked up! Good luck mom and Daniel because I don’t think you realize how much walking you guys are going to be doing when you come to visit!

Tuesday night me and some friends got ice cream and walked up to the Albaicin to watch the sunset. It was gorgeous and is supposedly the second best sunset after the Grand Canyon. We have to do some more exploring to find a spot where we can see it set over the Alhambra which I won’t mind because I could watch the sun set over Granada every night and never get sick of it.

Yesterday was my first day volunteering at El Colegio de Caja Granada. I was in a class of 10 year olds and I’m going to be helping them with their English. I’m so happy that API offers this volunteer option because I miss being in the classroom and with kids. The students were so cute and I loved hearing them try to speak English. They were also surprised that I could speak Spanish which I found funny. I look forward to getting to know all the kids in the class and working with them.

I’m getting ready to go to an intercambio tonight which is pretty much when a group of people learning different languages get together to hang out. So there I can practice my Spanish talking to Spaniards who are going to be practicing their English talking to me. It’s also a nice way to meet new people.

Even though I’m having a great time here I still miss everyone from home and send my love! Xoxo

Abrazos y besos,

Kylie

The adventure of a lifetime!

I ended my last entry saying I was getting ready to go on another hike, and believe it or not this hike was even harder and the views were even more amazing than my last one! We walked along the river in Granada until we found a path we wanted to explore, and a couple of hours later we were at the top! And what better to do at the top of a mountain is a headstand? Sonja and Becca have been doing headstands all over Spain which I think is such an awesome thing. They have pictures of them everywhere. So with some more practice I’ll be able to do it without Sonja’s help and then I can join the bandwagon.

On Wednesday Curra brought me and another student who is interested in working with children to Colegio Caja Granada which is a primary school here in Granada. Once classes begin at the university I’m going to volunteer and be a teacher’s assistant in a classroom here. I cannot wait! I hope that I will be able to visit several days a week but even if it is just a couple of hours a week I will be happy!

Later that afternoon we meet up with other API students from the early start program for a tour of the Alhambra. Although I toured the Alhambra when I visited Granada in high school, it was still incredible. The Ahlambra was a huge Muslim palace until it was overtaken by Christians in 1492. As you can tell from the pictures the architecture and gardens are absolutely beautiful. La Alhambra is the landmark of Granada.

Thursday Sabrina and I told Antonio, the cook of our residencia, that we would not be home for lunch so he packed us each a bocadillo and a manzana. We met our friends at the bus stop and took a 15 minute bus ride to Monachil. There we began hiking, in search for a waterfall which we saw online. Almost everyone in our program came. I love that we all get along and enjoy each other’s company. We found the waterfall while crossing a very scary bridge (only 3 people were allowed to cross at a time), but we were determined to find a way to get to the bottom of the waterfall. Eventually half the group headed back because they were either tired or had plans later. I am forever grateful that I stayed because we eventually made our way to the base of the waterfall! Before this trip my greatest life experience was hiking up the Masaya volcano in Nicaragua, but swimming in the Monachil waterfall has won the spot for number one experience. It was amazing. The water was freezing cold because it is melted snow from the Sierra Nevada mountains. It was literally the coldest water I have ever been in but I did not let that prevent me from going under. The water was so clear and fresh that it was even safe for us to drink and we all filled up our water bottles—the most delicious and refreshing water I have ever had.

Friday morning Carmen took us on a tour of the Albaicin and Sacromonte neighborhoods. These are gypsy neighborhoods that are all white. We explored this area a little during our first hike but it was nice to go with someone who knew where they were going. These neighborhoods are like a maze and its very easy to get lost in. Anytime I go somewhere new or eat somewhere new I write it down so that I can bring Mom and Daniel when they come to visit. I want them to be in awe when they come like I am now! That night I also booked a trip to Portugal in October and planned a trip to Morocco in November. There are so many places I want to go but not enough time!

Saturday morning we left to go to Cabo de Gata in San José for the weekend. When we got there we hiked to the beach which was beautiful. The Atlantic Ocean is nothing compared to the Mediterranean. The water was so warm and nice—I loved it! Plus Stephani had an underwater camera which was so much fun. Unfortunately it was extremely windy to a point where we decided to leave the beach and head back into town because we kept getting absolutely covered in sand. It’s the end of the beach season so the town was kind of dead but we still had a blast. After dinner we bought some wine and drank it on the beach. That night has been my favorite night so far. None of us could believe that we were hanging out on a Mediterranean beach in Spain with such great friends.

Before leaving San José on Sunday we visited a lighthouse. The drive there was scary and I kept imagining our huge bus rolling off the tiny road and down the steep cliff into the water. At one point we had to get out and walk because the road was too narrow for the bus, but the view was worth it. Then we passed by a marsh which had flamingos! I thought it was so cool. I’ve only seen flamingos in a zoo so we had to stop to take pictures. After, we headed back to Granada. Me and Sabrina are planning to go to the beach again this weekend to make up for the poor beach weather we had in San José.

Today however is my lazy day since classes start tomorrow. I think this is the first day I’ve slept in since being here! I’m loving it in Spain so much! I’m curious to see how everything will change once school starts tomorrow. Hopefully I still feel the same. I also hope that I will still be just as busy. I love everyone in my program and how willing everyone is to try anything new. I’ve done so much hiking here and I absolutely love it! Each hike is even better than the one before and the sights even more breathtaking. So hopefully I continue doing things like that. All my classes are in the morning/early afternoon so I have all afternoon and night to go on adventures. The best part is no classes on Friday!!! I placed well on my exam…high enough that I can take all of my classes in Spanish. If I placed higher I would be required to take them all in Spanish but with my score I get to chose. I decided to take 3 of my 4 classes in Spanish and 1 in English. I’m pretty sure everyone else I know who placed in the same level as me chose to take all Spanish classes so that they will be completely emerged.  I was scared that I would become too overwhelmed so I hope that I don’t regret taking a class in English.

Tonight we are meeting up with the students from the early start program again for a surprise event put on by API. Carmen and Curra won’t tell us what it is but that we will be required to take off our shoes? So I don’t really know what to expect. Until next time…hasta luego!

Abrazos y besos,

Kylie

La Semana Pasada

So I keep putting off writing this because I have done so many things since I’ve been here!!! I landed in Madrid on Tuesday morning and quickly found other API students waiting at the airport which was very comforting. We were greeted by Curra, our program director who brought us to our hotel. Hotel Moderno was right in Puerta del Sol which is like the Time Square of Madrid. I love my roommate Sabrina, we get a long great. In Madrid we went to two art museums: The Prado and the Thyssen Bornemisza. Me and other students walked around the city a lot visiting different plazas, markets and  restaurants. Also in Madrid we took a tour of the Palacio Real (Royal Palace). This was a huge palace where the kings and queens of Madrid lived until Franco died and it became a museum. There are over 2,000 rooms and every single one extravagantly decorated.

On Thursday we took a bus to El Escorial and saw the Royal Monastery of San Lorenzo. This place was literally everything. It was built by King Philip II and was his summer palace. It is also a library and is the most important religious library only second to the Vatican. It’s a monastery and school too.  And finally it also houses the tombs of all of the kings and queens of Spain (other than 2) and the royal families. It was incredible to see.

On Friday we traveled to Toledo which is significant because it was a place in Spain where Christians, Muslims and Jews lived together peacefully. The cool thing about Toledo is that part of the city is within a wall which encompasses “old Toledo”. There we saw a cathedral, church, and synagogue and toured different neighborhoods.

From Toledo we began our 5 hour bus ride to Granada. While in Madrid we had a lot of meetings about safety, academics, culture, and housing. Most of the students in my program chose to live in a home stay. On the bus ride everyone was freaking out about meeting their host family so me and Sabrina were so relieved that we picked a residencia (a Spanish dorm)…until we got there. When we moved in there were a few American students but most of the students who live here are Spanish. Me and Sabrina sat down for dinner at a table of Spanish kids who were talking so incredibly fast and we were so overwhelmed and couldn’t help thinking: What did we get ourselves into?! When we heard about how much everyone else loved their host families we kind of wished we had chosen a home stay. But not anymore!! Now I love my residencia. Maria Gracia owns the residencia and then Carmen, Francis, and Maria Angela work here. Antonio cooks all of our food (which tastes AMAZING!!!). And now that Sabrina and I are more comfortable we are becoming friends with the other students who live here. We have to speak Spanish constantly which is really hard but I can tell I’ve improved so much already because of it. Two nights ago the returning students had an initiation for the new students in the residencia. It was so much fun. The made us do ridiculous things like parade through Granada singing songs in our pajamas. It was embarrassing and 100% hazing but so funny and brought everyone together.

The second day in Granada we all got a walking tour of the city so we knew how to walk to the API office and our school buildings. There are so many beautiful cathedrals and an area of Moroccan influenced markets which are so cool. On Sunday me and a few other students decided to go on a hike. We had no set plan and started up Sacromonte, a gypsy neighborhood.  Once we reached the top we had a view of all of Granada. It was breath taking. I’ve been taking pictures but honestly the pictures do no justice. Spain in absolutely beautiful!

Yesterday I took my placement exam. It was pretty intense and had sections on writing, grammar, listening, reading and included an oral interview…it took me 3 hours! It was hard but I feel pretty confident. Scores are going to be posted this afternoon and will determine which program I’ll be in and what courses I can take.

Sorry that this post was so long, but I’ll try to update more often!!! Now I’m getting ready to go hiking yet again! I love Spain!!!

Abrazos y besos,
Kylie