Happy February!

Hey, exactly four months ago, I was leaving Iowa for this crazy adventure. I'm not gonna lie -- the first two months here were extremely hard. I was terribly homesick at times, I didn't have many friends, and then there's always that language-barrier lingering about. December was better, and January was really awesome, with the exception of being separated from the lovely Molly. At this rate, it seems like everything can only continue to get better, which I'm totally cool with. Things are going pretty great right now.

I changed host families last Friday, and the transition has been pretty smooth. My host dad, Juan, is a lawyer, as well as my Rotary counselor. He is very nice and loves cooking, so I've already learned how to cook a few Spanish dishes, including paella! My host mom, Ana, is a family doctor, and is always chatting with me about life: school, work, my life back in Iowa, everything really. It's really nice sometimes to just chat for a while. Juan and Ana both speak English, but they only speak to my in Spanish, which is fantastic!! In just this past week, my Spanish has improved SO MUCH, by only speaking Spanish in the house. (Remember that before, my host dad was English, and there was inevitably much more English than Spanish in the house.)

Juan and Ana have helped me find a running club, so I'll be starting that tomorrow! I'll let you know how it goes. Also, I'm in the process of finding Spanish lessons to help better my Spanish more quickly. Here's a mini-update on my Spanish: I can understand almost everything that people say when they talk slow and simple. When people talk fast, I can usually get the idea of what they're saying if the subject-matter is simple. I can speak in the present tense okay. When speaking in the past tense, I can usually get the point across. I don't know any future tense, so I use "Voy + a + infinitive verb", which is like, "I'm going to _____". I know the conditional past tense a bit, and I've almost got down past participles using the verb "haber" ("to have"). I don't know what this means to you guys, but to me, it means that my Spanish is better and I'm content for the moment. I'm on my fourth Spanish book right now -- it's 70-something pages, so I'm feeling like a boss. Chapter books baby (we're in third grade again)! Sometimes, I really beat myself up about how poor my Spanish is, compared to what I'd like it to be. However, the truth is that I know I'm improving daily and that I've got to just keep trying.

On Thursday, Juan, Ana, and I went to a city called Ronda that is up in the mountains, 750 meters (about half a mile) above sea level. May I just say that I was swept away by the beauty of this city. Although it was quite chilly up there, about 35 degrees Fahrenheit, I could've just stayed there all evening looking out to the mountains and ancient ruins that remain. It was incredible.

A bit of Ronda

Views from Ronda

Ana and me!

Ana has some family in Ronda, so I look forward to going back sometime soon! I didn't get any good pictures of the ruins, so I'll have to make sure to get some next time. Speaking of pictures, I'm 99% sure that my camera is broken for good :'( This means that I need to buy a new camera very soon, but I have no idea which to buy. If you have any suggestions, please let me know!! I'm going to Melilla in a few weeks, as well as possibly Ireland next month and Switzerland in a month or two, so I will NEED a camera!

I think I had more to tell you guys, but I can't think of much else at the moment... I'm loving life here -- I don't want to think about leaving. The thought of having to leave all the amazing people I've met here and Spain's unique culture makes me want to cry. Leaving Iowa was extremely hard, but leaving here will be so much more difficult because I have no idea when I'll be able to return. Can't all you guys in Iowa just come live here in Spain? It'd be much easier.

Mi Casita!

Instead of packing, I'm doing this blog post for y'all, so I hope you like it. Tomorrow I'm changing host families, but I know some of you have been wanting to see where I've been living for the past (almost) four months. Here is a video tour of my house -- enjoy!

 

Well, I just handed over my house keys to Paola. It was kind of deja vu of when I handed my mom my house keys the day before my departure from Iowa. Something about handing over the keys makes it so real for me: Hey, you really are going. It's strange, thinking about leaving here. I know I'm going to miss it! Thank you so much Paola, Abuelo, and David for taking me into your home! I'm definitely going to be visiting over the coming months. :)

No matter where you are, Mondays are always hard.

Hello everyone.

I don't really know what to tell you guys as far as an update on my life in Spain. I mean, yeah, I'm in Spain, but still -- I have a routine. Life is still life. A typical weekday goes like this: Wake up, get ready for school, catch the schoolbus, do school from 8:30 to 3:00, go home, eat lunch, homework/chill/write/run/etc., have a light dinner and go to bed (not too different than my routine in Iowa). On the weekends, I usually hang out with friends on Friday and Saturday night, then Sunday is basically a day to relax/prepare to do it all over again. What I'm trying to get across is that just because I'm living in a foreign county, it doesn't mean that my life is always bursting with excitement. It really bothers me when people refer to my exchange as a vacation, because I'm NOT on some holiday in Spain. I have a life here. Don't get me wrong -- I love Spain to death, but I truly began to fall in love with Spain when things felt normal. Those moments when I don't feel like that complete foreigner; those moments when I know that Spain is truly another home -- those are the moments that I love. 

This Friday I'm actually changing host families, so that will be interesting. I'll be living with my Rotary counselor, Juan, and his wife. They don't have any kids, but they have a lovely German Shepherd! I'm a little nervous about switching houses because I'm already used to how things are here in my current house -- I know my expectations and such, but I know I'll survive. I made it the first time around in October, I can do it again. I'll try to post a video or a photo tour of my current house sometime in the coming week. 

I'm not sure what else to tell you, so here are some differences between life here and life in the US that I've been brainstorming lately.

1. Spanish people are small.

I don't know how, but everyone here seems to be so tiny, both height and weight wise, guys and girls. I'm thinking it just has to be something in their genes. In the US, I'm considered to be a bit short. Here, I am actually a bit taller than average. I have small feet compared to my friends in the US -- about a size 8 -- but here, I've actually been turned away from stores because they don't carry a big enough shoe size. I find this sad, especially when stores have super cute shoes.

2. It's normal to have someone come to clean your house here.

Having a cleaning lady or someone come to your house a few times a week here isn't considered a luxury, it's normal. At my house now, someone comes two times a week and she does laundry, dishes, vacuuming, mopping/sweeping, etc. It seems like a lot of my friends actually have someone come to their house everyday! This is something I'm probably going to miss when I go back to Iowa. 

3. There is such a stinking ton of English here.

Okay, so in the US, yeah, my friends and I say random Spanish things to each other. It's fun and a little silly, but whatever, we do it. Here it's like that, but so much more. My friends here will say random things to each other in English (like we do in the US with Spanish), but their English is actually pretty good. They listen to English music, absorb American media . . . English is easily part of their daily lives. Dang, if I had as much Spanish influence as the kids here have English influence, my Spanish would be so much better! Grr.

I'm pretty sure I had some more differences to tell you, but I can't think of them at the moment. I'll try to brainstorm some more soon. In the mean time, I would highly recommend checking out my friend Hannah's blog! She is currently living in Malaga City (an hour east of me), and is from Oregon. So many times I read her blog and think, "This is exactly what I'm feeling... Ohmygoodness, we're like the same person." So yeah, it's at http://www.englishtospanishdictionary.blogspot.com/. It's really good stuff. 

That's it. Check out my Spain Playlist on Spotify if you haven't yet. Woop woop.

Byebyebyebyebyebye

Catching Up

So I told you guys about Christmas break and Molly's departure from Spain, but for the sake of time I left out the past week so I could get to bed last night! So, here it is.

School was a bit difficult on Monday. My internal clock was still on vacation time, so I was very tired all day. I wasn't alone though - it seemed that everyone was fighting to stay awake that first day back to school! It was nice seeing all of my classmates again though. I didn't go back to school for long though because on Thursday, Molly and I went to Granada! If you're gonna skip school, do it for a good city. ;D Molly and I had planned on going to Sierra Nevada to play in the snow. In the end however, we ended up exploring Granada together because the buses for Sierra Nevada left at times impossible to coordinate with. So, after the 3-hour bus ride from Marbella to Granada, we browsed the rebajas (awesome sales that last for a month or so at all the clothing stores), ate kebabs, saw The Lion King at the theater, bought matching sweatshirts, and walked the incredible streets. How I love that city.

I had to take a picture with this magical street. Doesn't it look like something from a storybook?

Seeing The Lion King and eating kebabs almost made up for not being able to see the snow, but Molly and I definitely want to go to Sierra Nevada in the future -- and Iowa as well! -- for some snow!! Molly has only seen snow one time before! We had a great day in Granada, nevertheless.

On Wednesday it was back to school. That evening I went out to eat with Molly and her family since it was her last night in Spain. Saying goodbye was so strange, so unreal. :( Yesterday, I finally met my host dad, David!! He's in the Navy, so he has been at sea the whole time I've been here. David is actually English, and only speaks a bit of Spanish. As a result, he just talks in English. David is really nice, but it's so strange speaking so much English. I don't want to hinder my learning Spanish anymore than I need to with English, but at the same time, I need to talk with my host dad. Also, the other day, I got an email about choosing a return date to the US. How is that possible?? I don't even want to think about having to leave yet.

This past week at school has been a bit exhausting. It makes me realize why I love vacation so much. School wears me out; it often frustrates me. Not for the reasons it usually would such as exams and homework, but because it is so mentally challenging to process everything for 6 1/2 hours. I can't wait for summer vacation -- everyone says that it's the best time of the year and that you just hang out with friends everyday. I like the sound of that. If it's as good as Christmas break, I'll be pleased.

Where am I going to live?! (Clue: It's muy bella.)

Hello all! I have many a things to tell you! First of all, I officially have my passport! It came in the mail on March 14, and although I am all swollen in my picture (from surgery), I am very happy to finally have it. Secondly, I had Pella Outbound Training last weekend. It was a very long day of speakers, but I learned useful skills and had training that made it worth while (in addition, it was mandatory for all outbounds :)).


District 6000 Rotary Youth Exchange Class of 2011-2012

 Also, I had my J.E.T.S. yard sale fundraiser during spring break last week, on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. It was a HUGE success; over $900 was raised!! THANK YOU so much to everyone who helped make this possible. I couldn't have done it without you. So now I am that much closer to Spain, and my plane ticket there. :)

Speaking of Spain . . . MY HOST MOM CALLED YESTERDAY!! Her name is Maria, but everyone calls her Paola. I will be living in Marbella, Spain! It's a city in Andalusia, Spain, by the Mediterranean Sea, situated in the province of Málaga, beneath the La Concha mountain (Thank you, Wikipedia). It has a population of about 124,332. Here's a map: (look in South Spain, I'm super close to Africa!)

I am so excited! Paola sent me an email today; here's some info from it :)

Marbella is on the Mediterranean sea but only a few miles to the Atlantic. Paola's husband is David, and their daughter is Carol. Carol has an older brother, David. Paola's house is 50 meters from the beach!!!!! I am already planning to run there every day :D Paola has a dog; it's a small Yorkshire Terrier and very friendly. They also have a cat. "His character is very much like a dog. Most of the time he follows us on our walks on the beach."

Talking to Paola made the experience of living in Spain next year seem so much more real! However, now I am trying to take in all that she said! 

Now if only departure time would come. It seems like most Spain kids leave in early September. I don't know the exact date I'll be boarding my plane, but I know I can't wait for it!