Stereotypes 18/04

Gladys had us come into class an hour and a half early so that we could get a major chunk of our presentations done.  So we were in class watching presentations for three hours! It was a lot but most peoples are really interesting so it was ok.  When class was finally over it was a nice surprise to find out that Puri wasn't going to be home so she left lunch for us.  That means eating lunch earlier! Yumi and I actually ate for an hour together and had wonderful conversation.  I love speaking with her because we both practice our spanish without fear of messing up (we are at the same level) and we talk about interesting things.  I was asking her questions about Japan and then somehow we ended up talking about stereotypes.  She said she was surprised when she met me and found out I was an American because I didn't fit the stereotype.  She said she and others think of Americans as eating burgers, drinking/carrying around 2liter bottles of soda, wearing sloppy jeans and t-shirts, not caring about their clothes, and fat.  Pretty standard stereotypes but I was glad to share with her that not everyone is like that.  And it was nice to know that me being me helped break negative stereotypes of the US.  All of the stereotypes I listed about Japan, Yumi confirmed were indeed true which was funny! I said that Japanese girls dress very nicely, eating a lot of rice, you can always smell Japanese food, smart, good at math, etc.  She was pretty much just like "yep, that's about right". It was a great time. After that I had to head back to my LAST ART CLASS (with lecture). We learned about Picasso, Miro, and Dali which was actually really interesting. After art we stayed to practice our presentation that is tomorrow on Barcelona.  It went well and then I chatted with Tara and Katelin until it was pretty late and we decided to head home.  I had my last awkward dinner with the french girls, took a couple pictures with them (for their homework), and then got a chance to chat with Puri while she was doing dishes.  We had a nice chat and now it is time for bed!

The beginning of the end 17/04

I did not want to wake up this morning, but I dragged by butt out of bed and headed to school.  We got out of my first class 30min early which was really nice so then I was able to go catch up on things before having class with Gladys.  I got one presentation done (out of the 3 I have to do before the end of school) in class which was great to get done.  I then came home to a wonderful lunch of garbanzo beans, green peppers, and my favorite multi grain bread (which I will miss).  After lunch I met up with Katelin to do a little shopping and soak up the sunshine.  We got some more gifts for people which was good because honestly we are running out of time! The weather has been amazing here and I have been loving it.  It is actually verging on too hot these past couple days but I cannot complain.  I came back to the house after shopping and was seriously wiped out.  Those ladies from Sweden sucked up all of my energy! I took an hour and a half nap and then rested the rest of the night until dinner.  Tonight I had my first dinner with this group of french girls that we have because I've been eating out with the ladies. I think Puri was tired of eating with them because she ate with them the two nights I wasn't there so that she didn't leave Yumi eating alone with them.  However I suppose it is ok to leave me alone with them because Yumi was out to eat elsewhere and Puri had clearly had enough dinner with them, so it was just me! These girls are 14, very young but very nice.  They were so polite and stacked their dishes and offered to put them in the dishwasher.  Conversation was hard and there were lots of awkward silences but I suppose that is pretty standard for these kinds of dinner! After dinner I read some touching stories about the Boston Marathon bombings.  There was a woman who was about to finish the race but was diverted because of the bombs.  It took her a while to find out by phone if her family was safe and the second she connected with them she just sat down on the street and cried.  A couple approached her, the husband having finished the marathon 30min before the explosion, and gave her his medal and comforted her.  The woman who got the medal reached out on facebook trying to find this couple to thank them and through multiple sources of media, they found each other! Very nice story. I like that those kinds of wonderful stories make the newspapers along with the bad stories. I think it is important to publish good stories. Now, to bed!

A wonderfully and tiring Tuesday 16/04

This morning I got up and met the ladies to do a long walk.  We did a 4.5 mile walk around Alcazar which was very entertaining.  Each of the ladies have their own level of walking and it is hard to please everyone! But everyone was a good sport and we had a great time. After the walk we went to a restaurant in the Plaza Mayor and ate some salads.  Everyone was tired so we went to relax for a bit before I had to head off to my class.  After my art class the ladies met me at school and I showed mom and MJ around my school which was nice! Then we went and got some frozen yogurt which is simply wonderful.  Along the way today we ran into a lot of friends which was fun! The ladies and I and Katie DSA got a drink to kill time before Puri was free to meet them.  We only had about 30 min to visit Puri but Carmen and Puri had a great time chatting in spanish and everyone else just tried to keep up! We then went to dinner at a very odd Pakistani Jewish restaurant where everyone was really tired.  It was a very different group of ladies than then night before! I said goodbye to the ladies and Mom then walked me halfway home and I said goodbye to her. They are going to Madrid in the morning and I won't see them again. It was so nice having them here! I was thinking about how cool it is that I have all of these nice memories with visitors here during my time abroad. It is lucky and I will remember these times forever. Now I am, like the ladies, very tired! Time for bed.

Second to last Monday, WOO! 15/04

Mondays are the longest day of the week! I wake up early and get to class and then have to sit there for three classes.  Thankfully today the blow was lessened by the fact that we watched two movies in my second two classes. One I had already seen before but it was ok to watch it again.  It is called La Lengua de Las Mariposas and it is about the time during the Civil War.  During Gladys' class Tara and I worked out a plan to go to the airport together for our flights out of Madrid because our flights are close in times.  We discovered that the train doesn't run early enough for us to get to our flights so we have to go into Madrid the night before.  Tara found a great hotel, really cheap and right next to the airport (free shuttle to the airport and all), so we are going to stay there together.  Katelin is coming to Stockholm with me for a few days but her flight is even earlier than mine so she too is going to Madrid the night before but she is going later and is staying with a friend.  I'm glad Tara and I worked this out now!  I ate lunch at home before meeting up with the ladies.  We did a bit of shopping, had some coffee, and then MJ, Mom and I had fro yo while the other ladies took some beauty rest.  After that it was time for a bar and then dinner at Jose Maria's.  It was a restaurant mom dad and I went to before and it was wonderful then and now.  What a fun evening out (again) with the ladies!

Free Weekend in Segovia! And MOM COMES AGAIN! 12/04-14/04

Friday 12/04

Today was the first Friday where I had nothing to do. Our class got moved so we had no class and we had no excursion.  I woke up late and then decided to get my butt to school in an attempt to be productive.  I was there until lunch and actually got a good amount of stuff done! I then went home for lunch which was delicious as always.  Right after lunch I met up with Tara and Katelin to go for a nice walk.  We walked the really long walk around Alcazar and then we wound up at the new frozen yogurt place.  We got some yummy yogurt treats and then sat in the plaza mayor eating them and watching people.  I then headed home where I got to talk to Luke which was such a nice time, as it always is.  Then I was also able to catch up with Kristin and say hi to Dad (with him being in Colorado with her and all, very confusing when he first popped up next to Kristin!).  I then hung around until dinner and after dinner I met up with Tara and Katelin again to go to a few bars.  We went to just two casual bars: Gua Gua and El Oso Blanco for some casual drinks.  It was a nice time! After a while we decided we were tired and turned in for the night.

Saturday 13/04

Today was another day that I had no plans from the school and was free to do what I wanted.  Yesterday Tara, Katelin and I made plans to meet up and go shopping and I had a goal of getting some homework done.  Puri went out for the day with some friends so she wasn't home.  I went to La Colonial to try to be productive but my head just wasn't in it so I came home and chilled out, ate some lunch, and then went to meet up again with Tara and Katelin having gotten basically no homework done. Sometimes days like that happen.  We went shopping and I successfully bought gifts, a bracelet for myself, and a bright pink hoodie (that was in the men's section at Pull and Bear but is so girly) that I love.  We wandered around town for a while, hit a farmers market that was set up by the aqueduct and then went our separate ways.  Puri came home for dinner with Yumi and I but she didn't actually eat with us.  Yumi and I ate alone but we had some wonderful conversations and our dinner lasted a long time.  We talked about our cultures and the history of our countries. It was truly interesting! Beneficial for both of us to learn about other people and places.  After dinner it was almost 12 (!) so I decided to go to bed!

Sunday 14/04

Today was the BIG DAY! Mom and her friends arrived from Stockholm.  To begin the day I slept in and then ate a late breakfast with Yumi.  I then got ready for the day and decided to go for a walk because it was beautiful outside. It was warm and the sun was shining, what a great day! After my walk I came home to eat lunch with Maite, Virginia, Puri, and two other women.  We had snails for lunch... I tried really hard but I hated them and so I didn't really eat them. I ate a few but then had to give up! It was not my favorite meal ever but I got to experience something new.  After we all finished eating I excused myself from the table to go meet mom and the ladies at their hotel! I walked there and was standing out front of their hotel by the time they arrived, perfect timing.  They took some time to get settled and then we went around to several different bars and tried little tapas at each one and different drinks.  We hit 6 bars! Towards the end of the night we got salads from the restaurant at their hotel and then went to the oso blanco to finish off the night.  It was a lot of fun hanging out with everyone and hitting all of the bars! I am in bed by 12:30 which is perfect because I have to get up early tomorrow. How fun to have mom here again :)

We love Gladys! 11/04

Today I woke up a bit earlier than I was planning and was just laying in bed when it occurred to me that one of my classes had gotten moved and that I had class at 11:00 instead of at 12:30. Luckily it was ok because I was up early.  I headed off to my last lecture day in Cine which was terrible.  It is just him blabbering non stop about history and being very confusing and making us all very confused.  We got a bunch of packets and learned when our next test is. I am not looking forward to it! It was then time for class with Gladys and then home for lunch. Lunch was filled with interesting conversations such as Puri trying to explain female genital mutilation to Yumi who is so innocent and had no idea what she was talking about! On my walk home to lunch I was able to not wear a jacket but on my walk back to school I had to put my jacket back on. The sun went away and it got really gray AND it POURED! Luckily I had my umbrella but somehow I still got soaked on my way to class.  Arte went well, we are studying Goya who was a pretty cool painter. He is very famous too.  After class Tara, Katelin and I asked Gladys to come get drinks or coffee with us so we went to the Cafe Juan Bravo and Gladys very sweetly treated us to coffee and pastries. I got a chocolate covered 'palmera' which is like an elephant ear. So good! We were talking to Gladys about the schedule here and I was commenting how Puri and I eat so late and how hard it is for me.  And then Gladys was like well you could ask for dinner earlier but I never want to get in the way of what Puri does (also we only have two weeks left) and then also I found out that our host families are supposed to give us a snack between lunch and dinner. Normally I buy something or eat a granola bar or something but other families make real snacks for them! Katelin's family for example makes her a sandwich or a hotdog everyday between lunch and dinner. I've been getting ripped off! Gladys said she wishes I had told her earlier so we could have had Puri give me a snack (not a big deal, I've been fine) but I honestly didn't know other people were getting snacks from home! Too bad I find this out now haha.  After coffee Gladys was walking us around showing us nice bars and fancy restaurants.  She asked around everywhere for live music in bars but they don't really do that here in Segovia (sorry mom).  We walked around for a while and I saw some parts of Segovia I hadn't seen before and we saw some nice bars I would love to go back to! When it started raining again we decided it was time to part ways and to go home.  Before dinner I decided that I would do some coloring, of course.  I have this wonderful coloring book from Kristin which is always fun to do.  Dinner was the same. I mean honestly Puri shouldn't get French students if she wants nothing to do with them. She hasn't spent more than 2min total talking to them. She has yet to eat a meal with them (not breakfast, lunch, or dinner). I know she needs the money but it doesn't seem right.  I think I am ready to be done with this home stay nonsense. But it was kind of sad to say goodbye to the French students, it was a quick trip for them. I hope they had a good time!

Say no to presentations and yes to beer 20/04

This morning I had my two classes as per usual. I was supposed to give a presentation for Gladys' class but then the people before me were slow and now I don't have to present until next week! After class I went to lunch with Nicole, a woman in charge of the Office of Education Abroad at CSB/SJU, and some other students.  She treated us all to lunch and asked us questions about the program.  We ate at BBB a nice restaurant in the plaza mayor that had wonderful food. I got a delicious grilled salmon! After lunch I went back to school to meet for a presentation and then get some homework done.  Katelin and I waited for Tara to be done with class and then we went and got a beer together which was really fun.  Beer in small doses has been growing on me. It can be refreshing! Especially because it is starting to warm up here and I was able to walk outside without a jacket. Woo! After that we went to the Chinese store so that I could buy supplies for a collage I have to do for my Mitos project. I went home and was able to do my whole project while watching a movie which was both fun and relaxing. I keep crossing big projects off my list which is great but there is always more to do!  It was then time for dinner which went a lot like the past two nights.  Puri "was busy" which meant she avoided the awkwardness that is dinner by watching tv.  It was a bit easier to talk to the girls tonight, or I am getting used to the awkwardness! Who knows.  But that is all for today, time to go to bed.