Mi Ducha

I have amazing news! I finally have a door for my shower! The shower in my apartment was probably the only complaint I had about Granada and life here so far. Before the shower was just in one corner of the bathroom with no curtain or door or tub to keep the water from going everywhere. I had to stand in the corner and turn the water on and off every 3 seconds so I did not flood the entire bathroom. There is just the one bathroom in the apartment we all share. Then out of no where - after having been here for 3-4 weeks - a door appeared in the bathroom! It was the best surprise I have ever gotten. Now, maybe my host family told me about this when I first moved in and I didn't understand Spanish yet, but I could have swear they never mentioned it. The other day at dinner my señora asked if I liked the door and then explained to me the people that redid the bathroom did a poor job and they had to get everything redone a second time.

Before...

After! yay :)

Mi Diario

I have so much to blog about but I actually have a lot of homework this week. I can´t be too disappointed because I really have not had much yet. I am supposed to be keeping a journal for my Spanish writing class - 4 pages front and back each week. I´ve been here for about 4 weeks now... so I have 16 pages due Thursday. You can probably guess that I have not gotten a lot done between traveling, exploring Granada, going out and hanging with my family. Lots of work to do but I think I am staying in Granada this weekend so I will have a chance to catch up on blogging. So after I write my journal in Spanish I can just translate everything into English and post them as blogs. :) Good thing I am bilingual now! :)

Nerja - La Playa

Two weekends ago a bunch of us went to the beaches in Nerja. The city is about an hour south of Granada - although it was two hours by bus ride - and is considered a vacation spot for many Europeans. We left midday Friday from the bus station and arrived in Nerja by 3pm. Our friend Emily was great in planning the trip and booking hostels for everyone. Our hostel was really clean and comfortable and only about a 10 minute walk down to the beach. We had a couple rooms and a few people backed out last minute but the owner still gave us a five person room for the price of three people. We spent most of the day laying on the beach and surprisingly I did get a little tan. :) At night our whole group of about 11 went out for for a nice dinner. Most people were brave and tried all the different types of fish they have in Nerja but I haven't been able to bring myself to order fish yet.  Especially since they always bring the whole fish to the table. Our director says this is a good thing because then you know that the fish is served fresh. 

One of the coolest parts of Nerja was the nightlife. There was dozens of bars in the same square and the weather was really nice so hundreds of people were sitting outside drinking and having a great time. I tried to get a picture but the flash wasn't working and the same waitress walked in front of the picture I was talking at least three times so I decided to stop taking awkward photos. 

Lots of people and LOTS of bars.

My friend Alex made friends with our English bartender and he got to DJ and bar tend all night!

The second day was more laying on the beach and jumping off these really large rocks into the Mediterranean Sea. It was probably only a 20 foot jump and the water was certainly deep enough, but it still took a few of my friends and about 10 minutes to convince me to jump for the first time. A few of us were planning on returning to Gtranda on Saturday but we were having so much fun that we decided to stay Saturday night too! It was a great decision because we were able to go shopping and explore the town of Nerja a little moreSaturday evening. We also found this super cheap and super delicious little italian restaurant appropriatley named Little Italy. It was a great find after a long day of swimming, rocking climbing/jumping, and drinking sangria in the sun. I don't have any photos of the beach because I did not trust myself to bring my camera anywhere near the sand or water. Although we did find out that beaches in Nerja do not necessarily have sand but little pebbles that will make your feet sore after two long days of running around. 

Since we weren't planning on staying a second night we had to check into a different room at the hostel. Funny though because there were no rooms left so we got an entire house for the same price!

We had a nice little party on the patio outside before we went out Saturday night!

No tengo buena suerte hoy...

Not having a very lucky day today! This morning, I typed up two whole blogs today and neither of them saved. Later, I wanted to book flights with my friends at a Internet Cafe but I forget my passport in my apartment. I was about to walk home to get it (20-25 minute walk depending on my pace) when I saw Bus #9. Now I know this is the bus to my apartment because my Señora told me but I just have never taken it before. So I started sprinting after the bus only to miss it by a few steps! When the next bus came about 20 minutes later (I probably should have given up and walked) I politely asked the bus driver for a bus card. Either I wasn´t saying the right words in Spanish or possibly wasn´t speaking loud enough but the driver started yelling at me! And little did I know that I was taking the bus during the Spanish rush-hour. This is the time all the shops close and everyone returns to their homes for lunch and siestas (still a big fan). By the time I got home and grabbed my passport I had to turn around and run back to school. On my way back I stepped in a mud puddle! Now, with the day I had been having it was not hard to imagine this could have happened. However, for some reason instead of getting angry and discouraged, I literally started laughing out loud.

Yes, I lost two blogs using the old school computers but I also booked flights to Venice, Rome and Athens.
Yes, I forgot my passport but when I ran home my Señora made me a delicious sandwich I could take to go.
Yes, I missed one bus and waited ages for another but now I know how the bus system works here.
Yes, I stepped in a puddle of mud but now I truly understand the phrase "no pasa nada en Granada."

This is a phrase I have heard countless times since I have been here. Translated, "no pasa nada" means "everything´s good." So a few things went wrong today and I might have been frustrated at times, but when I can step in a pile of mud and laugh about it I know life is pretty great. :) And - maybe I am starting to figure out the Spanish way of thinking!

My lost posts on the beaches in Nerja and the Alpujarras mountains are coming shortly!

Mi Casa

I couldn't be happier with my living situation. Although my location is a little far from school and the center of town, I have a great host family. In my house there is a woman named Rosa, her husband Pedro, Rosa's daughter also named Rosa and at times the daughter Rosa's boyfriend Enrique, also known as Riki. Riki is the only one that knows a little English. With the rest it is all Spanish, all the time.

Señora Rosa is a fabulous cook. I feel like I am trying something new everyday, which honestly is a big step for me. Just to paint a picture... yesterday I ate crab meat mixed in about 8 pounds of mayonnaise! I can hardly believe it. This week I started being honest with Rosa and telling her things I like and things I don't like instead of just saying "me gusta" after each bite. And on days when I don't come home for lunch between classes, Rosa makes me a sandwich. A few friends and I found a great spot to picnic...

Fountain depicting Columbus asking Queen Isabella for money.

Pedro is great because he talks slowly with me and uses grand gestures to go along with what he says. We usually watch the news together during lunch and he'll explain words I don't know. Rosa 2 and Riki are not around all the time because they were on vacation and now have exams they need to study for and pass in order to start their next and final year of school.
 
I have a perfect, cute, little room. It has everything I need. A comfortable bed, a closet, a table for homework, and space to store all my travel stuff. The best part of the apartment is the balcony! We usually eat dinner out there and my room is the only room with its own door to the balcony besides the living room.

View from my door, closet is behind me.

View from my bed!

Mis Clases

Last week was my first week of class. My schedule is a little odd this semester. I have 1 class Monday and Wednesday and 4 classes Tuesday and Thursday. Luckily, no classes Friday so that means easy traveling on the weekends. All the classes at CEGRI (Centro Granadí de Español) are 1.5 hours and only taught in Spanish. There are 24 students from both U of I and UW with about 8 or 9 options for classes to take. Therefore, the number of students in each class ranges from 3-9. Most of mine have 6 or 7. We only take classes with other Americans because the Spanish semester has not even started yet. Their fall semester is October to February and spring is March to July. It takes me about a half hour to walk to school each morning. The morning is not bad because it is not too hot yet. My walk back for lunch around 2pm is pretty rough though. I am usually sweating by the time I get home! I don't mind though because I have a nice view of the river on my walk.

CEGRI Courtyard

The school is actually really beautiful. The building is a restored noble house from the 17th century. There is a sign on the door when we walk in that says "any teacher reserves the right to reduce a students' grade if the student speaks English within CEGRI." Pretty harsh but I guess this will help us improve!