Sorry for the Long Wait!

          So i just realized I haven't posted in almost a week sorry! I have just done what the normal Spaniard does on a daily basis. Wake up and catch bus number 24 to the University and then I go to my classes. My first class everyday is my advanced Spanish class. We have done work with grammar and some different tenses. So far it hasn't been that bad and the homework can be done and done well in like 30 minutes to an hour. On Tuesday and Thursday that's it I am done with school at 1020. However on Mondays and Wednesdays I have class again at 110 which is a history of Spain class which is also taught completely in spanish and is very interesting as well. We started just learning the geography of spain but yesterday we got into the beginning of Spain as it is known today with the marriage of Ferdinand and Isabel. I'm really excited to see where this class takes me because it should be a lot of fun to learn about Spain because we learn so much US history that learning someone elses is really interesting. Then my last class is at 3 on Mondays and Wednesdays and it is a class taught in english all about gender roles in Spain and their comparison to gender roles in the United States. I love this class it is so interesting and there are actual Spaniards taking the class so the differences are really obvious to see when we begin group discussions. But enough about school!
            One of the Strangest things about Spain on the weekends is that while in the US it is completely common to just hang out at someones house or apartment it is actually not allowed by (some) apartment contracts to have people over at your house past midnight as a get together. So it feels like every night we are going to the Barrio so that we can just see friends. It's gonna be something to get used too because its really strange that even to just have a small group of people get together you have to go out to a bar. The nice thing is that there is no cover so it's not that expensive to do so I can still see my friends and not just sit on my computer all day! I've met a lot of really cool people from all over the country and we all have hit it off so well that its making this adventure just that much better!
              A quick note about my family and living in a homestay. I am pretty sure that this is the best decision I made about Spain other than what city I wanted to study in. My family is awesome and they challenge me because there is a language gap with my vocabulary and the fact that they really don't speak very much english. The main concern when I first got here was that I wasn't going to eat anything but the food has been amazing and its all so fresh and it just I don't know tastes better than general food in the US. (Sorry mom I miss your cooking)!!!! The other thing is that adjusting to when they eat was definitely a struggle but now it almost seems normal, breakfast at 8am, lunch at 3pm and dinner at 830 or 9pm. It seems crazy but now it just seems well...like a normal eating schedule.
               Spain is an adventure so far its only been a few weeks and it feel like i've been here months i'm starting to figure out where to go in the city and the places to avoid, i'm learning the bus schedule and the eating habits i'm even learning to conserve water when I shower and to take military style showers. I'm excited to see what the next few months are going to do to change me even more as a person because I am slowly starting to see and feel a new me emerge from this amazing opportunity!

                        Here is a video of the view from the top of the Castle in Alicante

First Weekend in Alicante

Well i made through my first week of classes which was only two days so I wasn't too worried. On Friday I hung out at a friends apartment and then we went to check out a discotecha and danced for a couple hours and then I was tired and went home. Sorry I know its not an exciting story but that's what happened! Saturday I did the same thing but we decided to embrace being in Spain and went out according to their times. In Spain nothing opens or gets busy until about midnight...its crazy. So we went to a bar called Goa and met up with some other kids from USAC. We then went to a small discotecha named Carpe Diem and met up with more USAC kids, there were Americans everywhere! Finally we ended the night at a club where my friend Alec's roommate works so we got in for free and like normal Spaniards we left at like 4 in the morning. I know that sounds crazy but that's the normal schedule here when people go out, i still haven't quite wrapped my head around it. On Sunday my whole family here slept until about 1 and then my mom made us oven baked chicken and roasted vegetables with corn on the cob it was so good! Then Sunday night at like nine o'clock a bunch of kids from USAC went to a bar called Havana and watched the Packers beat the Bears to move on to the Super Bowl! I was very happy with this outcome and with the fact that I could watch Football in general! Today I just had a normal day of class but I did begin to plan my trip to Bilbao, Spain in a few weeks to visit some friends we have studying there so that will be exciting!

I've almost been here a week

I can't believe it's already friday! Today we hiked up to the top of the mountain in Alicante where the Castillo de Santa Barbara is located. When Alicante was a territory this castle was used to keep the Barbarians from invading the city and the harbor. The castle still stands above the harbor and is absolutely breath taking!

We had to hike all the way up to the top! It was long and really steep but once we reached the top we had a view of the ENTIRE city of Alicante and the Mediterranean lucky for us the sun was out and it was a comfortable 56 degrees during this hike. When we were half-way up the mountain our view was ridiculous, the picture that i'm putting here doesn't even come close to doing it justice:

As we continued to the top the wind started to pick up off the Sea and it cooled off a bit but again we were so close to the top that it didn't matter. (It's also nice to think about the snow that is back at home so it makes this seem really warm!) We finally got to the top and the view again was magnificent and I wish that I could do it justice, the crystal blue water the sun shining off the buildings, it was amazing!

Tonight I went out with some kids to a discotecha which is in the barrio which is the area with all the clubs in Alicante. I think i'm just going to finish this post with some more pictures from the hike because it was amazing!

Universidad de Alicante

Today was my first day of school I had 3 classes. Two were in spanish and one was in English. They were interesting and the campus is so pretty on a day when the sun is out I will get pictures for everyone. Again there are orange trees EVERYWHERE it's absolutely beautiful. Tomorrow I only have on class and then it's the weekend. I wish I had more to say but again all i did today was go to class.

A rare cloudy Day

Today we just did a walking tour of alicante it was about 50 degrees and that was really cold here so i can't really complain. We just saw a lot of buildings and walked by the harbor. i start school tomorrow and have 3 classes and then thursday i have 2 and none on friday so it should be a pretty okay rest of the week. i don't have much to say about today so i think i'm just going to post some pictures of the city!

 Valencian Oranges growing on trees all around the city

The castle of Alicante from the Beach at night

paella: one of the dishes that Spain is most known for. This one was rice, chicken, lima beans, saffron, pea pods and red peppers.

Right i have to go to school here :)

Today visited the campus for the first time to figure out my class schedule and who was going to be in my class. To get there we have a bus ride that is about 30 minutes but it's not that bad because we just go all through Alicante. My mom here makes me all three meals and makes sure that i eat them, if i don't make it home she leaves whatever she made in the microwave for me it's really cute. The whole family is nice and it's been a pretty easy transition so far. Tomorrow we are doing a walking tour of Alicante and after that is when i will post pictures so you guys can see where i'm living. I talked to mom and dad today for a little over a half hour it was nice they told me that it snowed at home today and i proceeded to tell them that I walked on the beach under the sun and surrounded by palm trees. it's really hard to miss snow when this is the alternative. I got side tracked sorry back to classes i am in the highest level of spanish they have and it meets every day monday through thursday. I don't have any classes on Friday which is fine with me! haha :) I have 3 classes on mondays and wednesday and 2 on Tuesdays and Thursdays. It's going to give me lots of time to study and go to the beach and do other things in Alicante. During the tour that we are going on tomorrow we are going to visit the castle that is in the middle of the city and used to guard the harbor from Barbarian attacks when it was controlled by the Moors, the Arabs and the Christians. So far the city is more than i could have imagined and i've only been here one day, i can't wait to see what else is in store for me!

Alicante Finally

Double post today!

Moved into my home in Alicante it's a great location and the family seems really really nice. It's a mom her son and a student from Switzerland. Once I got here i moved all my stuff in so i don't have to live in a suitcase anymore. I have spoken more spanish today than on the rest of the trip combined and i kept getting complimented that i spoke good spanish which is positive. When I got all moved in the other student who is named Gina and her and her other friend who is also from Switzerland showed me around the city and it is absolutely gorgeous. I'm excited I think tomorrow we are going to get phones and we are doing orientation so I will know more about school. I'm dead tired because I didn't sleep last night for very long because we were saying good bye to Madrid but I slept the entire bus ride to Alicante which is 5 hours. It was weird because in Spain there is a law that you can't drive a bus over 4 hours without a mandatory 30 minute stop so that was an abrupt wake up from my nap that was so wonderful but oh well. Tomorrow i can finally answer questions about classes!

Toledo

Yesterday we went to Toledo which is an hour outside of Madrid. It is home to many ruined churches with new churches of different religions there in it's lace. One of the most amazing cathedrals I've ever seen is located in this city.

When we arrived we drove through an old castle that was built when the Muslims invaded Iberia and took control. Following this we went to the catholic cathedral which is open every day to the public except for Sunday because they still practice the masses in Toledo in this church. It was also built with a ton of different styles from the different time periods in which it was built. After walking around the cathedral we went to the only synagogue in Toledo which isn't practicing because there is not a large amount of practicing Jewish Spaniards in this area. Finally the sun came out because it had actually been a cold day for the most part. Once the sun came up we were able to see why this had been called the most beautiful city in Spain for a reason. It was absolutely mind blowing.

       After we left Toledo the group of us that had been together for the whole trip went to a dance club called Kapital and just had a blast because it was the last night all in one place. I am currently in my house in Alicante and will be making this my home for the next 4 months.

Segovia

The second day during the Madrid tour was another really fun day starting with the trip to Segovia, which is an hour away from Madrid. The city is gorgeous and home to a two thousand year old aqueduct that was built by the Romans when they conquered the Iberian Peninsula. The aqueduct was beautiful and the city itself was absolutely amazing, it was up in the mountains and the it was a very touristy but classic looking city. In Segovia was not only the aqueduct beautiful but the castle that is located there is the inspiration for Sleeping Beauty’s castle in Disneyland. It was really cool to see the castle and all the old architecture from the times of Ferdinand and Isabella.

             

                 After that we went back to Madrid and visited the museum of modern art, which was home to a lot of Picasso and Dali paintings. The most impressive Picasso that was there is Guernica. It was not allowed to be in Spain until there was a dictator so that when Franco was no longer in charge of Spain this painting was allowed to return to Madrid where it has found a home.

Also in the museum were a lot of Dali’s, they are so different and the paintings are the epitome of the surreal movement. The paintings were all very interesting because these are two of the biggest artists and well-known Spanish modern painters. To be able to see this is very exciting and a once in a life time opportunity.

Real Madrid

So i know I already posted for today but i need to express how crazy and awesome my night was. At 9 pm we arrived at the stadium for the Real Madrid game vs Atletico (which is also a Madrid team). It was 45 Euro to go to the game and being someone who was so excited to see the culture this just threw me right into it. On the Real Madrid team was Ronaldo, and KaKa from Brazil.Then on the other team was Diego Forlan from Uruguay and Ramos from Spain. All of these people were on their respective World Cup teams. This was absolutely amazing, after that it is so obvious that futbol is the most popular sport. The game was amazing and totally worth the Euros.

Madrid Day 2

Today we went on a walking tour starting at 9 am all around madrid. We visited the Museo del Prado which is the art museum in Madrid. It has over 5000 paintings and has a lot of the works of famous spanish artists Goya and Valazquez. It was really cool to see the artwork,and learn a little about the history. Then we continued and walked to the Plaza Mayor in Spain which is the very middle of Madrid. All the distance markers in Madrid start at this Plaza. It is really pretty and we all stopped to have some tapas before lunch. Our final excursion that was planned today was to the Royal Palace in Madrid. It was absolutely amazing, every room got prettier and prettier. I can't tell you how many times i was in a room of jaw dropping beauty. The only word that i can think of to describe it was overwhelming, but in a good way. Tonight I have a meeting with the Alicante group to talk about my homestay and then a lot of the people on the tour are going to try and to to a Real Madrid soccer game, because they are playing the other Madrid team. For anyone who doesn't know Real Madrid is a really good team where players like Ronaldo and KaKa from Brazil play. Both were in the World Cup this past year for their respective countries. So that should be fun if we can't get tickets we are going to go to a bar and watch the game and then probably have a drink and head home for the night. Tomorrow we are going to Segovia to see the Roman Acqueduct and the rest of the city! 

Buenas Noches

sorry bout format

idk why the last post did that sorry...

Hola Madrid!

First part of the journey was not that bad. At least the flight part wasn't that bad. I left O'Hare at 9:00 pm on Tuesday January 11th and Arrived In London at 11:00 London Time which is roughly 5:00 am Chicago time. The flight went smoothly I had a window seat and was seated next to a man who was traveling to Venice and then Paris. We chatted for a little while before take off and then we were served dinner which was your quality airline food product. Although mom would be proud I ate PART of the salad (haha). The other plus to this flight was that there were other students on board headed for Madrid to do the same exact tour that I am doing. Once we got to Heathrow (which is the MOST confusing airport EVER!) we boarded our flight to Madrid and the last leg of this trip was coming to an end. On board this flight was about 30-35 of the 80 kids participating on the Madrid Tour. As the plane began to fly lower to the ground you began to see mountains pop up through the clouds it was breathtaking! When we land in Madrid everyone is excited to explore the city and see how amazing it is. This is where the only hiccup of the trip occured and it's a pretty big one. At Heathrow they for got to load my bags onto the connecting flight. However I was not alone because this happened to about 75% of the tour I am currently on. After dealing with that frustration we all headed to the hotel to see our rooms and begin checking out Madrid. We had dinner at about 8 and then at 9 a bunch of us went out for Tapas which is Spains version of happy hour,  it was a lot of fun and I got to meet the people on my tour! Tomorrow we are going to go on a walking tour of Madrid and hopefully I will have my luggage so I can upload some amazing pictures!

Preparation

Hey Guys so this is going to be my blog about my travel to Alicante Spain for the Spring 2011 semester. I leave on January 11th from O'Hare and come back on May 20th. Hopefully this will keep you guys in touch with some of my adventure because i'm sure that's what it's going to be. The first bit of news I got today was my Host Family: This is what i recieved,

Address: Calle Pérez Galdós 54, 1º Izquierda

Details: Your host mom, Amparo, is a very nice woman who lives really close to Plaza de Luceros. You will be living with her; her son, who is 14 years old; and a German student. You will have your own individual room and will enjoy Amparo’s Spanish meals. This is a great opportunity for you to learn and practice your Spanish. We hope you like your family and have a really nice experience in Alicante!

So it appears i'm living with a family of 2 and i'm really excited to meet them and my German roommate as well. I have to go back to packing but I thought I would try to start this blog before I left.

Adios!

Julia