Many updates from the weekend

SATURDAY: VALENCIA, SPAIN
Valencia, Spain. A place I've only read about in books, and today I got to go and see it. Granted I wish I would've been able to spend more time there, it is so beautiful, but it's a place I'll have to come back to later in my lifetime on my own time schedule and soak it all in. The old part of town is gorgeous. The architecture is wonderful and the history is amazing. This city is what I thought all of Spain would be like: winding roads, old buildings just waiting to be explored, and a different undiscovered place around every turn. The description is impossible to write down, that's what pictures are for, but it's a magical place if that makes any sense.


I went with school and took a chartered bus with a bunch of the kids from Florida. We met up at Alicante's Plaza De Toros which was really pretty. I wish we would've had more time there but we had to get on the road since Valencia is 2 hours away from Alicante. The bus ride was wonderful though a little cramped. There wasn't much space between my legs and the seat in front of me but that's okay because window watching was wonderful.


I saw the Spanish country-side for the first time and it was just what I expected to see from the movies: rugged (lots of limestone), with green terrazas for crops and tons of trees. There were old ruins on the side of the road and we passed towns with castles and forts at the highest point in the city (I wish I would've taken pictures).

We arrived in Valencia around 11:30 and the driver let us off at a random corner and then Natalia from school led us on a very short walking tour only an hour and then we were told to go do whatever we wanted.

Our first stop was at the above picture at La Plaza de Virgen who is the patron saint of Valencia. It was a beautiful place with a fountain and a gorgeous gothic church from the 1700s. We continued walking and ran into an animal rights protest which was kind of cool because it was very peaceful but very noisy. Their catch Phrase was "Espana despierta ya derechas de animales" which means wake up Spain and give animals rights already. It was about animal abuse. We had our bocadillos and saw the train station and were sent on our own. Alexi and I wandered the streets for awhile, and a guy from Florida southern, Digit, (seriously, that's his actual real name) came with us, he's a nice guy. We listened to a guy playing the spanish guitar for awhile before we headed back to the bus at 3.

After we all got back (the professor from Florida Southern was 30 minutes late. SO FRUSTRATING! and pissed off the bus driver too) so we only got to spend a half hour in La Comunitat de artes y Ciencas which is this ultra-modern museum center in Valencia. The buildings are so ridiculously futuristic that you feel like you're on a completely different planet. I could've spent all day taking pictures there. We would've had so much fun if we had had more time.

We left Valencia around 4 and got back to Alicante at 6. we should've stayed longer but that didn't happen. just have to put it on the life list for later.

SUNDAY: FOOTBOL GAME!
After one last day at Playa San Juan with Concha and Roberto. I came home and went to my first pro-footbol (soccer) game! IT WAS PHENOMONAL! I went with some girls from my class some people from school, and Andrés came with us. We met up at school at 7:30 and walked to the stadium. Andrés jumped the line and got the last tickets for the price of 10 euro. We found 8 seats all together behind the goal and then the game started. It was amazing.

Alicante (Comunitat Valenciana) also known as the Mighty Hercules had a wonderful game. They scored the first goal of the game within the first 20 minutes and the place went nuts! The atmosphere was incredible: take all the sports crowds you've ever been in and add them together and that's what you got at the game. Everyone was yelling and screaming and everyone knew every single lyric to their teams cheers.

Andrés taught us one on the way there. "Alicante tiene tres cosas, que en España son muy famosas, sus playas y sus palmeras y el equipo que es mejor."
Translation: Alicante has three things that in Spain are very famous it's beaches and palm trees and the team that is the best.

It was such a cool experience to go to a footbol (soccer) game in EUROPE! it's definitely a way of life here. Granted, not as much as in Barcelona or Madrid but it was still amazing. Alicante scored four times on the end I was sitting on in the first half, and once on the other end. Albacete scored on a free kick which was a ‘gimme shot’, but I don't blame the ref, I was hoping they'd get something on the board since I felt bad for them.
It was the best experience ever.

TODAY: POCO TRISTE
I woke up a little sad today because I only have five more days left here. I'm definitely going to bawl like a baby when I leave because it's been such a wonderful experience but then it's on to Madrid! By the way, I highly doubt that I'll be updating as regularly in the next month as I don't think that my new host mom has internet since she's 71. But I'll try to update as much as I can. If you want to Skype me do it within the next four days I'll be on. The plan for today is study, study, study. I'm having some issues with subjunctive which is on my test. Wish me luck!
Until Next Time,
Avery

Two day update

Yesterday was a wonderful day. I had class and listened to my new professor talk the whole time which I am totally okay with because he is quite handsome so even though we're just learning grammar it is very interesting (a.k.a I zone out and just look at him and am jolted back to reality when he asks me a question) yup, I'm a total girl. It’s definitely not good because subjunctive is tough, oh well an excuse to ask for extra help. haha.

Anyway I had a good day. We went for Tapas with our professors Maya and Andrés (my new prof) The restaurant that we went to was called Lizarran's and what happens here is that the waiters bring out pinxos (pinch-chohs) which is basically just a bunch of appetizers put together by a toothpick. The toothpicks are different sizes which signify different prices: Small, Medium and Large. They don't exactly fill you up so you have to very conscious of how many things you have eaten and keep a mental tally in your head. I had fish, shrimp, chicken nugget, and beef surrounded by breading. It was all really delicious, and a really cool experience.

Carlo, Carlo's friend from Switzerland, Patrick, Lyz, Samuel, and Sullgi from my first class came with us so we hung out with them all night which was great because I've definitely missed having them in class and seeing them every day.

After tapas we went out to a bar where this kid from Florida in my class, Andrew, was playing some Jazz keyboards for one night only. He's a music major and has been playing for 12 years. He's a really annoying person to have in class because he thinks he knows more than the teacher, he totally doesn't, and that just bugs me. As obnoxious as he is though I do have to give the kid props, he can play a mean keyboard but i don't think he'll be making the big-time in this lifetime. The bar that we were in was made to look like an old speakeasy so it was a cool place to go see, sit and pass some time with friend’s in.

After awhile we went to a patio bar. We had some drinks and hung out until 2:30/3 a.m. just sitting, talking and enjoying each other's company. It was fun, and I had a good time. Today was a good day but a little difficult. I had to say my first goodbye to Lyz today. She leaves for Barcelona tomorrow. After Alexi and I were done having some coffee with our class and professor, we gave her a ring and decided to meet up for a coffee because it was too cold to go to the beach. So we met up for coffee in this beautiful outdoor cafe and had some coffee and tea and chatted for awhile. I'm glad we got to spend some time with her before she left. Then we had to say goodbye. It was weird to think that we had gotten so close to her in just two weeks and then had to say goodbye with no plans to meet again in the future.

That's going to be a common occurrence though in the next couple of weeks so I should get used to it. I have her as a friend on Facebook though so it's not like we won't have any contact again whatsoever. It was just really strange. But, as Concha told me tonight after dinner: "Life is like a train in a train station: a continuous cycle of meetings and the only way to truly appreciate them is to live in the moment." She's so smart. I love her.

On the way home Alexi and I got stuck in a thunderstorm so it was a good thing that we had packed for the beach as our towels blocked the rain from us on our walk home. We would've been soaked without them. Of course I found my umbrella that I haven't been able to find for the past week, in the bottom of my beach bag the minute I got home. Oh well, it was an adventure. Tomorrow we go to Valencia with our class! I'm so excited!

Buenas Noches,
Avery

Today was a good day for the most part. I felt like looking cute today so I broke out my new skirt and the stilettos I bought from Blanco earlier in the month. Yeah, now my feet definitely hate me I have way too many blisters. I'm wearing tennis shoes for the rest of the week I really don't care what the spanish think of my shoes right now.





For our excursion for school today we went to El Museo de Hogueras. Hogueras are huge floats that artists in Alicante spend a whole year working on. They are brought out and shown in the streets of Valencia and Alicante during the Fiesta de San Juan in late June. They are exquisite like the one pictured below:

The night after the huge parade they burn them all, except for one, which finds a permanent home in the museum that we went to today. They put a scaled-down model in the museum of course because The real ones are 2 stories tall! How crazy is that?

They are all so gorgeous. I'm working on getting more onto my flickr account since there's limited space in my facebook album and I want to try and keep all the Alicante experiences together because I'm sort of OCD about pictures.

This weekend is looking like it's going to be a lot of fun. You might not hear from me for a few days because I've got tons of cool events coming up.

Tomorrow the students at my school are getting tapas with a couple of the professors: Maya and Andrés.

Friday I'll probably go out with some friends, or if that doesn't happen I'm going on a field trip with Concha to Elche I believe.

Saturday I go to Valencia with school

Sunday I'm going to go watch my first european style pro-football game! Alicante's team is playing this weekend, and we'll be going with our new class. I guess they're not that awesome but that's okay. I'm still excited you have no idea! It's supposed to be a major event too because if Alicante wins I guess they move up a class/level/division deal from 3rd to 2nd. (I don't quite understand why but that's what I got from class)

So it looks like the weekend will be a wonderful end to a very long and difficult week. I'll try and write soon.

My credit card works again! :)

Until Next Time,

Avery

Better day

The day started out pretty horribly. My phone couldn't reach my card company to see what was wrong with it, then I didn't have anymore minutes on my phone after those calls, my drawer fell on my foot, and the shower was cold.

But after I went and bought my TRAIN TICKET to Madrid in person at the station and used all spanish it got better.

We had a wonderful lunch and then went to class.

In class we learned more subjunctive and overall I understood it.

Then on the way home I found a gift for my dad, which has been nearly impossible as he already has everything. A man was sitting on the sidewalk of Maissonnave (the shopping district), he was an older man, and looked homeless and was making these beautiful things in the middle of the sidewalk. It was amazing. I was so impressed, but I'm not going to tell you what it was because then it will spoil the surprise for my dad, because I'm sure he has spies here. lol.

Then we had a lovely dinner, and I talked with Concha for awhile about life in general. And asked her for tips about what to do in Madrid as she's lived there before and I got a whole notebook page of information.

Now I'm watching a spanish soap opera with Roberto. It's quite interesting.

Until Next Time,
Avery

not a good day...

I Started my new classes today. We're learning subjunctive in this one and it'll be a challenge because I've learned it only briefly before. Though I'd rather be in this class than bored out of my mind in the other one.

I hate my credit card, I tried buying my train ticket to Madrid online again, that's 4 times now and it won't let me do it. I don't get it and it's bugging the hell out of me. It's not like they don't know I'm here! Tomorrow I'm going to go and buy it in person. hopefully the damn thing works there. UGH!

Anyway. I'm cranky, and hungry, and I need to go to bed early tonight since my new classes don't let me take a siesta. And I sound like a spoiled brat but it's just been a long day.

I am having fun I'm just frustrated and tired.

On the plus side I caught myself thinking in spanish while I was walking to school today without even realizing I was doing it. Unfortunately after I realized I was thinking in spanish it just became difficult to keep it going. But that's a good sign! : )

Until next time,
Avery

A book for today...

THURSDAY: Flying solo

I had a pretty chill day today but I needed it. People in general seemed to be getting on my nerves today so I took a walk by myself down to the explanada. Concha was so cute, as I was leaving she said, "quieres un helado por su paseo." I think she knew people were annoying me. My walk took about an hour and I decided that I need to take one at least every other day because I definitely need a mental break, and this way I can discover the city the way I want to, on my own time.

After my walk Kadijha a.k.a Luna. The former student that Concha had stay here about three years ago and now has a job/internship at the hotel around the corner was over. We ended up watching a movie with Concha and Roberto.

We were going to go out with Carlo for a bit tonight but he did not let us know his plans until 10:30 and didn't want to head out until 11:30/12 so we just went to bed.



FRIDAY: Out and about

We went to Playa Postiguet today with a friend from class, Lyz, she's from Vancouver and she was new this week. We stayed there for a couple of hours talking, hanging out, and watching some volleyball players. The team that was really bad got their butts kicked by the team they were playing. It was quite entertaining. Lyz and Alexi took a nap later so I wrote some postcards, and got a call from my dad telling me that he had escaped the hospital.

We came back home after that and had some dinner. Then we took a two hour nap and woke up at midnight to leave the house by 12:30 a.m. to get to Las Ramblas and meet up with Carlo and Lyz. There were so many people there. I know it shouldn't have surprised me but it totally did. Everywhere you looked there were people: coming out of bars/clubs, going into them, leaving apartments and people trying to get you to their particular bar and everyone was just sitting outside at the patios it felt like the whole world was there.

Carlo had had some drinks with his roommates before he met up with us and he was so funny. He was like a 5-year-old at an amusement park. He was super excited we had come out with him. Since he's Mr. Nightlife as he lives right near the Ramblas and has been there for longer than we had he was our tour guide.

The first bar we went to was Mulligan's, an Irish pub. Sangria was free for the girls so we had a glass. The bar was small but nice and the dance floor area in the back left a lot to be desired but it was fun to people watch.

Later we grabbed a table outside of another bar and we all ordered beers. Yes Miss Kristy Bendickson no fruity drink for me, the world just stopped turning for you I know. After the sangria it wasn't that bad actually. haha.

After this Carlo took us to a bar called Carpe Diem. It's a little dive bar in a back alleyway of the ramblas. The place had been turned into a club style area which wasn't very effective as it was super super small. There was definitely not enough room for everyone, I'm pretty sure that some fire codes were broken but that's okay. When in Spain...

We decided to leave around 3:00 since we all had to get up the next morning to go to Altea with school. Some guys tried to split the girls up as we were leaving by asking to dance with us but we all wanted to go so maybe we'll see them some other night. (they were kind of shady anyway)

Alexi and I got back around 3:30 which is early in Spain. This was confirmed when Concha asked us when we got back and she said "temprano eh?" Well they know how to party.

And don't worry mom, the streets around Alicante are really well-lit so we were super safe.

I fell asleep around 4 and was up and getting ready to go to Altea by 8:30. I was so tired but it was a fun night, definitely worth it.

SATURDAY: Altea Bound

We met up with the rest of the group around 10:00 a.m. and then we went to the tranvia station and the school bought our tickets to Altea. YAY FREE STUFF! Isabel was the only professor that came with us, but I love her so it was a great time. We hung out with her and the rest of our class that went there that same day. Samuel and Sgulli from Korea, Lyz, and Carlo and a friend of his that speaks german with him all the time.

The tranvia ride took about two hours. It was super long but a local guy who definitely had the hots for Isabel talked with most of us the whole time. It was fun to see him try.

After the bus-ride I found the place that I want to live in my next life: Altea, Spain. I would in this life but I definately can't go from cosmopolitan to a little tourist town/fishing village 2 hours from the nearest large city.

There's not much to do and the life of a fisherman/restaurant owner just wouldn't fit my style but I understand why someone would choose it because if you can live in a gemstone city like that the rest of life would be worth it.

White houses, red roofs, flowers of every shape, size and color seeming to bloom out of nowhere, all against the backdrop of turquoise blue water. Now that's my version of Paradise. Beautiful. Breathtaking. Peaceful. It's a very inspiring place. I see why there's an art school there. There are so many beautiful things to take pictures of. I was super exhausted tonight, so I didn't go out but that's for next week.

TODAY: Playa San Juan all day today with Concha and Roberto. it was nice and relaxing. I switch classes tomorrow so it should be an interesting day.

Told you I'd write a book!

Until Next Time,

Avery

so much to update but I'm super tired so I'm going to leave you with a picture from the most beautiful place in the world that I've seen: Altea, Spain. I promise to write a whole book tomorrow.

Until next time,

Avery

Life is sweet in Spain again

Today was much better than yesterday. Surgeries went well on the other side of the pond and I polished up on the preterite and imperfect in class. I slept well last night, and I think I might've had a dream that was partly in Spanish which is good because it means I'm learning more and more of the language.

Classes were shortened today because we went to El Museo Arquelogico or El Marq this afternoon with school. The walk to get there was brutal but I think it was worth it.

El Marq used to be an old hospital but was then converted into a museum in 2002. In 2006 it won an award for the best museum in Europe which I definitely agree with. It was really cool. There were a ton of interactive exhibits for people to go to which was great for kids and fed my inner history geekoid. I'm a sucker for being able to interact with history.

At El Marq there are two exhibits. One exhibit is a permanent exhibit about the history of Alicante. The other changes a lot. The one that changes is about the mummies right now. It would've been cool to see but I felt that it would be more important for me to learn more about the history of the place where I'm at. If I really want to see the mummies I have 2 more weeks here. Wow, that went super fast.

I learned a lot about prehistoric times, the Iberians, the Roman takeover of Alicante, and the clash between the Christians and Moors. The professor, Beten, that taught about the clash between the Christians and Moors in one of the optional classes I've been to was our own private tour guide, and she knew a lot of stuff so I learned loads of information. It was awesome.

After the museum Alexi and I went for drinks at a bar with Carlo and Lyz. We had a fun time hanging out and chatting and then we came home and had a wonderful spanish dinner at Concha's house.

Life is sweet in Spain again.
Until next time,
Avery

The time difference has never sucked so much

Today has been a difficult day.

I didn't sleep well last night because my brain wouldn't shut up, and just as I was falling asleep buses started to drive by constantly. It was frustrating. Because of a lack of sleep I couldn't concentrate in class, and had some trouble speaking. My mind was also elsewhere because my aunt and my dad are both having surgery today and I won't know anything from my mom until probably tomorrow because she won't want to call me at 2 a.m. my time. Then one of my homework assignments was to think about a person in your family, and write about them. The first person I thought of was my Grandma Novak, and those of you that know me, or know her, know that that is always a tough subject. (she has Alzheimer's) so homework was a bummer.

But despite all the difficulties it's been a good day. Alexi and I didn't go to the beach, but we met a new person today. She's super sweet, and she used to be a boarder here at Concha's house about three years ago. She was learning spanish as well. It's horrible that I didn't catch her name but her nickname that Roberto has for her is Luna. She's super nice and we sat with Concha and Roberto and chatted with her for awhile in spanish of course. She's from France and now she works here in Alicante at a hotel around the corner.

We took a walk around the city for awhile after we chatted. Roberto helped us find the train station where we'll buy our tickets to Madrid in a few days. And then he took all three of us: Alexi, Luna and I through the streets of Las Ramblas.

This is where I really realized that I was homesick because as we were turning a corner I heard the faint strains of a familiar song being played by a street musician. I couldn't quite place it at first, and I still can't remember the title but I do know that it was a choir song I sang with one of my women's choirs. It's in latin. It took me by surprise and socked me in the gut. I literally gasped when I heard it, and had to keep myself from crying. Luna asked me what was wrong and I said "Nada, solomente me encanto este canción" We followed the music and a man was sitting on the street corner playing a cello. It was the most beautiful sound I have heard in a while. As we walked past the song followed me until I couldn't hear it anymore. I think it was a sign telling me that everything is going to be fine and tomorrow will be a better day.

I love and miss you all!
until next time.
Avery

My Host Family

Today has been a pretty chill day. No new adventures to write about. I basically went to class, came home, had lunch, took a nap and worked on my homework. We may go out later, we may not, it's all still kind of up in the air. The only new thing is that there is a new person in our class from Canada, her name is Lyz she's from Toronto, she's nice and she's here for a couple of weeks so Alexi and I got her info, and hopefully we'll get together with her soon.

So, today I'm going to write about my host family here in Alicante, since I always mention them in passing but you all don't know much about them except their names.


Concha is my señora. She is a lovely person and her house has so many beautiful things in it. Her house takes a lot of inspiration from India as she did some mission work there when she was about my age with church. She absolutely adores everything about indian culture. There are statues of Buddha in her entryway and pictures of hindu gods on the wall. She also combines her Christian, Buddhist, and Hindu beliefs into a really cool mix of religious ideology. She burns incense daily, she plays chanting music at night, and she works with her church to help people who can't help themselves by running errands for the elderly. She has done mission work with her church in Africa and India. She lived in Madrid for some time, and has travelled to New York and Canada with her family.

She loves color. Her walls are pink, blue, purple, and terra-cotta, and her house has many precious and beautiful things. She loves shoes, and she cooks well. I think I've eaten more vegetables here than I ever had in my entire life, and it sometimes gets old, but overall the food is delicious. Plus, it's 'free'. Yay not having to pay for meals here!

She is the chatterbox of her family. She can sit and talk with Alexi and I for hours, and not let us get a word in edge-wise but she speaks with a really cool lilty tone in her voice and I don't mind listening to it.

The only thing that's a little annoying about her is that she is all about the body healing itself, and how your mental state can impact your health. I respect it, and some of the stuff she's taught me is legit, but she's very mind-body-spirit concious and she diagnoses problems that I really don't have. Alexi's more of her favorite target because she knows she's an insomniac so she tries to find "soluciones naturales" to her ailments. She kind of yelled at me the other day when I took some Motrin for a headache I'd had for most of the day saying "you don't need pills, pills are bad for you. I'll fix it with this cream" and proceeded to put some stuff on my head. So, my meds have been hidden well in our room and we just won't tell her that we're taking them when we need them.

I think she's kind of psychic because when she does talk to us after dinner she seems like she's been in my head all day because she addresses stuff that I've been worried about without me saying anything. It's kind of creepy but I've learned a lot about myself from her.

Roberto is a completely different kind of person than Concha. He's pretty shy and quiet and it's hard for me to get a read off of him. He doesn't say much but when he does talk he talks a lot. He's an IT guy so he knows a lot about computers and mostly keeps himself to himself.

When I have hung out with him and talked to him it's always been fun. And he's pretty funny once he gets comfortable with you.

He's a product of Spanish chivalry. He holds doors open for you, and says you look pretty all the time, and he gives you compliments all the time. He might swell my head before I leave but I doubt it. When Alexi and I came home after the movie with his friends he walked with us though we told him that he should go and have fun since they only had room for five in their car and were going to a different city to hang out. I felt really bad but he seemed completely content to do that. It kind of blew my mind.

I think the American boys should take some lessons from the Spanish.

We have yet to meet Mario but I doubt that we will as he lives in Curacao. He's a graphic designer and he works for a magazine in Spain. He calls his mom at least once a day and from what Concha has told us about him he sounds like he would be a lot of fun. Concha said that "Cuándo Mario entra un cuarto es como un terremoto es allá" which translates to when Mario walks into a room it's like an earthquake is there. Apparently he hugs everyone and spreads the love.

He told Roberto and Concha that he wanted a picture of all of us so he could feel like he was here. I think the job in Curacao is new and he probably misses home.

So that's my host family.
They're pretty cool and I'm a pretty lucky girl.

Until next time,
Avery

A perfect day at the beach...despite the wind

We went to Playa San Juan today.

It was gorgeous and I had fun walking up and down the beach. There were lots of people which equaled lots of people watching for me. It was perfect. We had our sandwiches, the sun, the good weather and a slight breeze and then the wind kicked up.

I experienced my first windstorm today.

It was so crazy everything was great then all of a sudden Mother Nature decided that she didn't want people crowding her beaches in Alicante. The wind was probably about 40 miles an hour. Do you know when you look behind you on a really hot day on the beach and the few inches above the sand are radiating heat and making it all cloudy? Yeah it was like that but the sand was being whipped around. I had an inch on my towel and I couldn't find it when we packed up to go a little bit later. I had just stood up. It was nuts, and the whole coast was like this. Concha said that this was the weirdest thing she'd ever seen before in her life.

We took a long walk home after that and just got back an hour ago.

Other than that it was nice. I got some color and hung out with my host family today so I call it a successful day.

Back to school tomorrow.
Until next time,
Avery

A Lovely day in Alicante

We didn't go to the beach because it was too windy but hopefully the weather is better tomorrow. Cross your fingers for me the beach we're going to is supposed to be very beautiful.

So the movie last night was fun. Like I said we went out with Roberto and some of his friends. I met some new people so that was cool. The movie was in Spanish and it was dubbed over so it was really weird to see Russell Crowe on Screen but not hear his voice. But I understood the whole movie which was the coolest thing ever. I was pretty proud of myself.

Story time: Before the movie we were waiting for his friends to show up so we were just hanging out and chatting and there were two little girls, probably about 7 or 8 years-old, who were climbing on the outside ledge of the stairs there. Alexi and I were worried so we told them to get down but they needed help so Roberto helped them down. Then they asked us where we were from and we told them so they started asking us what the words in English were from Spanish it was cute. The one girl was nice but the other girl was a spoiled brat. We didn't go out after the movie because we were tired and wanted to go to bed so Roberto walked us back.

This morning we woke up around 9 a.m. and had breakfast. Then Concha took us to El Mercadillo which is the Spanish version of a farmer's market. There were so many colors and the fruit was the best that I had ever tasted. Very sweet, very juicy, and delicious to the last bite.

Concha volunteers with her church to help people run errands when they can't. She had to run some errands for some other people and Alexi and I tagged along. We met the first lady but the second lady preferred that only Concha come up to her house so Alexi and I waited in a park nearby until she got done at that house. While we waited a parade started. We didn't know that that was what it was so we missed it by a couple minutes so unfortunately I don't have any pictures. What we saw of the costumes was beautiful though. We ran some other errands and got back about 1.

I took a nap because I was super tired. We had lunch, and then Alexi and I went shopping. I got some new shoes that are super cute! I deserve them after getting three A's and a B for my 18 credits this past semester so the purchase is legit. Alexi isn't feeling all that well so we just stuck around the house tonight. Hopefully she feels better soon so we can enjoy the Spanish night-life. Anyway, I'm going to bed.

Buenas Noches
until next time! Avery

A lot to update

So we'll start with El Castillo de Santa Barbara. We went there on Wednesday. Whether you read up on it or not I don't know but basically El Castillo is an old castle on the port of Alicante. It was held by the moors at first and then the Christians took it over later. During the War that led to Franco's dictatorship it was used as a Prisoner of war camp and today it's a beautiful place rich in history that you can just go see. IT'S SO COOL! The trip definitely satisfied my inner geek. Sampere took a chartered bus to the castle because there were probably about 50 of us. There is a group here from Florida that has about 40 kids so they were half of it. The rest of us were professors or people from Switzerland, Germany, Britain, Colombia and Minnesota.

It's an absolutely gorgeous place and the view of Alicante is magnificent. You can see the tops of all the houses with the mountains in the distance. The inside is pretty as well. It was a lot of fun and I took lots of pictures.






After we went to El Castillo we went through the old part of town. It's simple and quaint and oh so beautiful. I definitely want to get lost there someday soon to take it all in.






Yesterday we went out with our professors for drinks...yeah, I thought that it was weird too but after I got over the fact that I was out with my professors chilling in a bar and drinking a mojito it was alright. The group from Florida came with us too and a couple of my European friends Carlo and Genifer joined us as well. The bars here are my kind of bars. People don't go out to get wasted, they go out to have a couple drinks and enjoy the company of their friends. I liked it. It was a new experience and I had a lot of fun.

I love my professors here. Isabel and Maya are wonderful and they really enjoy what they teach, and even if it's the most boring topic ever, grammar, they manage to make it fun. Even though I hate the subject I love going to class because the professors love what they teach.
We also have optional classes that we can choose to go to. So I'm going to culture classes about Alicante. I've learned about Different languages that are spoken here (It's not all Spanish) and La Reconquista (the re-conquering of Spain by the Christians with Fernando and Isabel) and on Monday Alexi and I are staying after our classes are done in order to go to the class on communication which teaches you how to make business calls and write business letters in Spanish and Spain in particular.

Tonight we are going out with our host brother Roberto and we're going to see the movie Robin Hood in Spanish which should also be a cool new experience. I'm kind of interested to see how weird it will be to see Russell Crowe on screen but not hear Russell Crowe talk if the movie is dubbed over.

The rest of the weekend is up for grabs but I'm sure that it will be an adventure.

I think Concha said that we're going to La Playa de San Juan tomorrow.

Until next time,
Avery

no time to update...

Hey all! no time to update substantially tonight but if you want to read up on where I went today

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Castillo_de_Santa_Barbara

buenas noches!
Avery

The rain in Spain doesn't fall mainly in the plains, and when it does, it pours.

Hello all!

It's been a busy couple of days. I started school yesterday and it was very overwhelming. This is the state my mind was in: I hadn't slept well the night before. I was trying to remember all the calles (streets) that I needed to cross in order to get to school. My señora, Concha looked at us as though she was nervous for us. We had a test thrown at us, got it back and then we were told that we had class in fifteen minutes after I got my red-inked test back from them. Then I thought I was in the wrong class because it was so simple. It was a little much. Alexi and I headed home after we were done with classes and took a siesta and then went for some retail therapy. I got a beautiful necklace with a spanish rose charm on it. We got back and it seemed like Concha knew we had had a bad day because she made us Cheeseburgers that were wonderful. We sat around the table after dinner and talked for a long time and then I skyped my parents.

Now, today was completely different. Today was a completely wonderful day.

We got to school a little before nine and headed to class the class that we were placed in because after talking to the director, and seeing what they are learning in the level above ours we know we are in the right class for us. She talked about putting us in our one class for two weeks to review and then go to the next level for the last two weeks so that we learn a lot about both levels.

We have two teachers for the same class. One part is grammar and the other part is more speaking oriented. Maya is our teacher in the morning and Isabel is our teacher at eleven. They are both really cool and have tons of energy. I love going to their classes.

After those two classes we went to an optional culture class. It was all about the different languages that are spoken in Spain. There is Castillano (normal spanish), Euskera (in Pais vasco),
Catalan (in the Barcelona area), and Gallego (in Galicia which is in northern Spain). It was very interesting and I liked the teacher for that class as well. His name was Andrés and it made me happy that he told Alexi and I that our speaking was very good. He even said we should be in his class.

After class we had lunch and went to the beach. We invited Roberto, our host brother, and "resident vampire" I don't say that in a mean way. He actually called himself a vampire while we were walking. He's pretty funny.
He asked us our ages and then said that he had two (he was joking but you couldn't tell) one was 23 and the other was some huge number that I can't remember right now. "soy un vampiro, como Edward Cullen" he said.
I didn't know whether to laugh or not because right before we left for the beach my mind had jokingly said something along the lines of here we go to the beach with the vampire, because he's always in his room, he's kind of pale, and we never see him unless it's night time, and come on his name is Roberto, it's like dracula with a punch.
It was funny because I found out he was joking after he started talking about the twilight movies. then I burst out laughing. He probably thought I was nuts.

At the beach he gave us spanish lessons. I had brought Nicole's book with me and he had me read some lines from it and talked to me about emphasizing accents. He ended up giving Alexi a vocab lesson in the sand while we were there.

Then the sun went away, and some nasty-looking clouds rolled in. We decided to pick up our stuff and head out. The rain was okay for some time but then the clouds opened up and downpoured. We sought shelter under a building and then after it let up a little bit more we continued walking home.

Tomorrow should be fun too. we're going on an excursion with school.
can't wait to tell you about it!

Until next time,
Avery

Un Dia Muy Bonita

Today was a beautiful day weather-wise and otherwise.

You'd like it here dad, it's completely acceptable to have jelly and butter on your toast in the morning. I had that, and some leche con chocolate (chocolate milk). It was delicious and I didn't think that It would last me until lunch at 2:30 but it did.

Alexi and I went for a walk with our Senora after breakfast. She pointed out trees and cool things while we walked. I saw my first olive tree which was cool.

Our Senora knew of an art exhibit that was going on and we went to see it. the Artist was a painter Emilio Valera his paintings were very beautiful. All of the paintings were of places in and around Alicante. The colors were so beautiful and it was a wonderful thing to go see.

We walked down toward the beach on el Moll de Costa and we walked past the port of Alicante which had all kinds of boats from all over parked in it. Our Senora pointed out the Castillo Santa Barbara and told us about it's history.

We got to the beach and we sat for a long time just people watching and enjoying the sound of the ocean. There was a kite festival going on so we saw that as well the kites were really cool and I liked watching them float in front of a backdrop of terra cotta buildings and palm trees.

On the way back we walked on the Explanada which is a beautiful walkway in Alicante with tiles of orange, cream and black. It's also lined by palm trees.

On our way back we walked by a Fiesta De Andalucia which is a celebration for all of those people that have moved from Andalucia to Alicante. They were dressed traditionally and the colors and energy coming from the people was something that I have yet to see in the U.S. it was so cool!

We had lunch and I had a 2 hour siesta which was fantastic! Then we went for another walk. Apparently we looked pretty awesome because we had a couple of guys whistle and blow kisses at us. Saying "Chicas guapas!" I just laughed because I definitely didn't think I was that good looking after having a greasy face all day because of my suntan lotion but it was still fun.

Most of my pictures are on Facebook. It's been difficult getting them onto here. I'm working on getting some on to flickr but when I do I'll give you a link.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/avery_c/

I start school tomorrow.

I'll let you know how it goes.

Buenas noches,

Avery

Estoy Aqui

Hey all!

I have wifi at my family's house so you can be expecting regular updates this month!

I'm safe and sound in Alicante listening to spanish radio while the smell of a delicious spanish dinner (cena) wafts into my room.

It's about 7:00p.m. my time now all you lovely science people I know can do the math.



Everything still feels like a dream.

I can't believe that I am actually here! it's all so surreal and it hasn't hit me quite yet. I'm sure it will tomorrow when I wake up in a bed that is not mine. Now, that's something I'm looking forward to sleeping in a bed tonight and not in an airplane seats. After 30 hours (or what seemed like 30 hours) living in airports I'm glad I get to sleep horizontal instead of upright tonight.



I had two perfect moments today and I'd like to share them with you:

Not only did I sleep through most of my night flight (it was the most wonderful quiet you've ever heard in your life) I woke up just as we were flying into Madrid. I was sitting near the window during the flight which was wonderful because I got to enjoy what I'm about to tell you. Alexi, the girl I'm travelling with, wasn't so lucky she missed it. We flew into Madrid around 7:00a.m. this morning and it looked as though I was travelling through blue cotton candy clouds. After a short while we went below the cloud coverage and right there before my eyes was one of the most beautiful sunrises I've ever seen. It was an explosion of golds, reds, and purples. It hit the wing of the plane just right and it was lovely. I have a picture that I'll update when I'm not about to lose my battery on my laptop.


My other perfect moment, and this is when I think I really realized that I was here was during lunch at my Senora's house. She has the most beautiful porch attached to her apartment. It's got a lovely dining set of white-painted iron with a couple chairs and it looks out over the Gran Avenida. She even has fake grass on the floor so that it feels like you're outside though you're not. Near the house are some beautiful old buildings which all had the day's wash hanging outside on the porch. A lady stuck her head out and talked to the kids playing on the street while the Spanish Radio was playing in the background, and my Senora, Concha was singing along.



That's when I kind of knew I was here. I actually turned to Alexi and said "does it still feel like a dream to you too?"



she said "yes."





Until next time,

Avery