It has been a week since I have posted and so much has gone on! First news, school! I love my school :) Everyone is so nice, caring, and helpful. I couldn't have asked for a better situation! My professors, Juan, Javi, and Carola are super smart, helpful, and fun! I have two hours of Grammar/composition everyday, 2 hours of a Cinema class every week, 3 hours of Spanish Literature every week, and 1 hour of Conversation everyday! I have already learned so much my first week here that there is no doubt in my mind that my Spanish will improve! My school is only about a 4 minute walk from my house, so for all the people who know I'm horrible at being on time, don't worry here because I can leave at the very last minute and be right on time! Its wonderful :) LOL I got placed in the upper level at the school and there are 4 other students in my class with me. One girl, Lei, is from China and has been in Spain for a year studying already. She is very nice, helpful, and smart! The other three students are from Brazil and they are in high school. They came with a group to study Spanish and they are only here for a month. I have had some frustrations in class because compared to everyone else I am behind on my conversation/speaking abilities. Brazilians speak Portuguese, which is very similar to Spanish, so it is a breeze for them with the vocabulary and speaking, and Lei has been here for a year! But, I realized, being a girl from Northern Montana, I don't have much experience with Spanish speaking people, and that's why I am here, to improve and learn! I love school :)
Second news, I have made a friend from Korea, her name is Hanna. I first have to explain to you about my living/eating situation for you to understand how I came about meeting her. I live in an apartment building with my host mom, Cristina and her aunt, Maduja. But, I do not eat lunch and dinner at my house. Cristina owns a residence, like an apartment building, and a restaurant. People that rent from her at the residence also pay for included meals. The meals are eaten at the restaurant that Cristina owns, called Dominus. Being that my meals are already paid for, I go eat at this restaurant, also. It is a 10 minute walk from my apartment building, but for people at the residence it is just around the corner. The restaurant, Dominus, is where I met my friend Hanna, from Korea! -lol- She is super nice and we have a lot in common! She is studying at the University of Salamanca for a month and then goes to Madrid, I see some weekend trips to Madrid in my future! She speaks English! So we speak English and practice Spanish together also! I am very glad I met her :) We have been doing things around town together, like exploring Salamanca, trying restaurants, like a Vegetarian one we went to that was superb, trying churros con chocolate, which are the best invention ever, we tried them at one place called Valor, it is a Chocolateria, and it was to die for! We plan on sampling other Chocolateria's around town! We went out to a bar on Tuesday night with Hanna's friend Amanda from Brazil. Salamanca has a lot of foreign students that come to study, so we met a lot of people from other countries. A bar called the Irish Rover was having a welcome party so we checked that out and it was crowded, but fun! There is so much to do here! I live on Calle Zamora, which is about 5 minutes away from the Plaza Mayor, which is where everyone goes to meet, have lunch, etc. My street is always busy with people because it has a lot of shops, also. I have been placed at the heart of Salamanca!
Third news, I went on a trip on Saturday! It was with my school, it is apart of the fee I paid to come study here :) I went with another Brazilian group that is at our school, different from the group from high school, they are studying law! It was the Brazilian group, Lei, and I. We met at the bus at 7:45am and headed to Segovia! We first went to a palace called, La Granja, it is a palace near Segovia where the kings and queens and royal families would live. It is huge! We didn't go inside the Royal Palace because it was about 15Euro to enter, so instead we went and walked around the garden, which was free. Now, when I say garden you are probably thinking, oh cute a little garden by the palace...WRONG! The garden is huge! It has its own roads, its own lake, and many fountains! We probably walked around for an hour and a half and didn't even see half? It was beautiful and I wish to return in the summer when the trees have their leaves back! Walking around the palace garden made me think of how it would have been to be a princess or a part of the royal family back in history! There would definitely be a lot of room to play as a child! Many luxuries :) But, I know they had their hardships, too. Seeing places like this makes me want to learn even more about the amazing and indepth history of Spain!
In front of the fountain
With the palace in the background
road sign!
The lake :) After La Granja, we headed to Segovia! I fell in LOVE with Segovia the minute we entered the city. It is serene and precious. In Segovia they have the Roman Aqueduct, which was built more than 20 centuries ago. It is a marvelous site! I have been interested in the Aqueduct ever since I learned about it in my Spanish Civilization class at MSU-Billings with Dr. Robinson. I was amazed that people so long ago could build something that withheld time and years of conflict. When I saw it yesterday, in that very first moment, my heart stopped and I lost my breath. It was beautiful and truly something that can't be compared to anything else. It was, by far, the best part of the trip. I just wanted to stay and hang out with the Aqueduct and have it be my best friend -lol-! It is my favorite thing I have seen in Spain. Segovia is a wonderful city and I plan to take a trip there again, soon.
Yeppp, that tiny person is me!
After the Aqueduct, we headed to the Plaza of Segovia and saw the outside of the Cathedral there which was beautiful. We decided not to go inside because we wanted more time at The Alcazar, which is a castle in Segovia! Lei and I ran into a Spanish man and he gave us a local account of the castle. He told us that Walt Disney used it as his inspiration for Sleeping Beauty! How cool!!! It is very pretty and I went inside of the castle to look at the rooms and see how royal families lived. It definitely gave me an eerie feeling walking through such an old place, knowing the royal Spaniards used to walk in those same spots, eat dinner in the same room I was standing in, sit in their thrones, hold meetings, sleep, and pray. It is a wonderful feeling and made me feel like I was living, doing history! I luckily had my video camera and videoed the whole excursion I took inside of the castle. My favorite room was the throne room and the room where they must have prayed. Their were many paintings on the walls, knights armor, statues, rugs, desks, etc. I can't describe the feeling I experienced but it was like I was walking in a royal's footsteps. I saw where they used to write, even where they slept! It was an unforgettable experience! Segovia became my new love. I told Brian (my boyfriend) that I had fallen in love with someone else and he was going to have some competition. If he wants to compete he will just have to take me back, many times, to the city I have fallen in love with! :)
El Alcazar
La Plaza en Segovia
La Catedral After Segovia, we headed to Avila, which is famous for its walls! Why, you wonder, might a city have walls it's famous for??? I shall share :) The old part of the city is completely walled! These walls were built to protect the citizens from their enemies. The walls are about 40 feet tall, 10 feet thick, and they cover a perimeter of about 6 kilometers. That's pretty incredible if you ask me. We arrived to Avila right when it was about to get dark, and as we departed we were able to see the walls lit up in the night! It was magical. The city has since grown and there are people living outside the walls! Inside there are shops, apartments, and a cathedral! We didn't get to enter the cathedral but it was very beautiful! I also learned about Avila in my Civ class with Dr. Robinson and have been wanting to see them! I am so glad I did! I tried some chocolate while inside the walls that is called Chocolate de la Piedra, chocolate of the stone, it is hard when you first bite it, but when you do....it breaks apart like sand in your mouth! It tastes sweet and is full of flavor. It is very, very delicious! I love chocolate! And I had a magnificent trip!
The Cathedral
The walls!!!
Tana <3
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