Adjusting to Life in Spain
Our first week was filled with activites that let us get to know the area we are living in.
We had several presentations from Alfonso and wonderful Marie throughout the week about the food, history, and culture of Andalucia.
Because Deedee was staying with us for the week we had countless three course meals ( thank you Dr. Hudson!)
I quickly found out that siesta from 2-5 is a real thing and that it's strange to eat lunch before 2p.m. and dinner before 8p.m. I can easily say that that concept was and still is the hardest thing for me to adapt to. And also that when you do sit down to eat, it is in fact a leisurely activity that can take two or three hours and is not meant to be done while trying to get homework done or doing anything else besides talking to the people around you. What a difference from America.
I am definitely not starving for lack of food but I do have to make sure I get the water and vegetables and fruit (not in sangria) I need in for the day. When I am feeling in need of vegetables and fruit I love to get the Ensalada Tropical at the hotel, it's different everytime and oh so good. You don't even need dressing besides a little red wine vinegar and oil, on any of their salads!
There is no lack of walking though, which makes me feel a lot better about myself then back at home where I usually didn't meet my step goal of 6000 on my Health App. Here I normally meet it by noon.
I overdid it on the sangria and wine spritzers in the first week and am trying to keep it down to a glass, if that, a day. My problem is that there is so much more sugar in the wine drinks here that I can down a glass like water whereas at home it takes all I have to drink half a glass. Thankfully, Lanjarón is famous for its water fountains throughout the town and I try to keep water with me (and drink it) throughout the day.
I found myself struggling to get all the things I needed to get done, done because three meals a day would take up half of my day, stores were closed during the afternoon for siesta, planning weekends away is oh so time consuming, and class and homework took up the rest of my time. I seriously lacked sleep during the first week and have since had to make going to sleep at a decent hour a priority.
We arrived in Lanjarón on a Thursday afternoon and our packed schedule began the next day.
On Friday we visited the spa that is famous for its mineral waters. I'd compare Lanjarón to Hot Springs. We tried the different types of waters, one of which is used to dissolve kidney stones. They also told us we could drink from the fountains and see the doctors there for free and receive spa services at a discounted price ( I'll be checking that out ASAP).
We took a walking tour of the town with Alfonso leading the way and were received by the mayor who was a lot younger and cuter than a lot of us anticipated. I'm pretty sure every girl in the room straightened up when he walked in.
The town is so beautiful, the views from every angle are breath-taking and I spent a lot of time on our tour stopping to take pictures of the doors in the town. They were all different and stood out in some way. I like to keep an eye out for the little things.
^ orange trees lines the streets of Lanjarón. Oranges, avacados, and strawberries are all in season here right now. DON'T TRY TO EAT THE ORANGES THAT LINE THE STREETS THOUGH THOSE ARE ONLY FOR SHOW.
We encountered many of the people of the town on our walk and were invited to see an old toothpick factory where all the machinery was turquoise. While we were there the local radio station called Alfonso (who was born in Lanjarón and is now one of our program directors, but was only here for the week, he had to go back to Madrid where he lives) and Kaycie talked to them about her experience so far.
^Many of the doors have some type of chain or plastic strings hanging from them to block out bugs when they keep the doors open
We had lunch at the Alcadima hotel and it was hands down the best meal I've had so far. They showed us how to make a rice dish, porl and potatoes, and a special type of sangria (limonada). For tapas beforehand we had a cabbage,apple, and raisin salad with bread and olive oil, cheese, and chorizon and ham that almost filled me up before the actual meal was ready. For dessert we had a white chocolate panacotta with a berry sauce over top that I dream about. I'm sorry I didn't take more pictures before devouring it. I can't wait to go back.
Lunch there was when I finally overdid it enough on the wine so that I didn't want anymore of it. I took a longg siesta after that and still felt sick when I woke up.
On Saturday we visited the Museo de Miel (Honey Museum) and of course my favorite part was tasting the product.
We walked to the Moorish castle ruins through a beautiful park and sat there talking (and dancing) for a good hour. It's such a beautiful place to be.
^ Lanjarón
For dinner the chef in the restaurant in our hotel showed us how to prepare tortilla de patatas. We learned on the first day that tortillas in Spain are made with eggs instead of flour or corn! This particular one also has potatoes and sometimes onion throw in and it was delicious.
Saturday night we went to a local pub for a welcome party with the young people of the town. We had drinks ( some for free), learned to do a few dances from Hailie, and watched the boys play pool. After a few drinks the few of us left decided it was a good idea to walk to the castillo without jackets. That lasted a walk down one hill before we turned around and went to another bar in town and had the best amaretto sours I've ever tasted.
^ At pub #1
^ At pub #2
On Sunday we got on a bus and headed to spend the day in Granada. Our first stop was a baroque monestary where I am sad to report we weren't able to take pictures. Although beautiful, I wish I had been able to go not in a group where our religious beliefs differ so much and I could appreciate the sheer beauty of it rather then feel uncomfortable because the visit may not have meant to me what it did to someone else, if that makes sense.
Since Morocco is not a safe place for us to visit this semester, we walked up a Moroccan street in Granada and had Cous Cous for lunch, which was good but had I been in charge, I would've liked to try paella!
Then we walked through the city center. I twirled with a gypsy, listened to a man and his guitar, and got to hear a song from a group complaining about the government for Carnaval on the steps of the Cathedral of Granada. I noticed that a lot of building had painted on details and wondered why that was.
The inside of the cathedral was gorgeous and I enjoyed taking pictures but, after we talked about how the Spanish killed many people and then built their ginormous cathedral on top of a mosque, I could see why others felt a sense of unrest in the church.
We also saw the Royal Chapel and the tombs of the monarchs Isabel and Ferdinand and their daughter, crazy Juana.
We then squeezed all 25 of us into a bus and rode it up to a spot in Granada that is normally good for sunsets but because of a rare phenomenan where the sands of the Sahara blow over into the air of Spain, we mostly enjoyed the view of the Alhambra from there.
We had tapas at the equivalent of a sports bar, but passed many more appealing places on the way that the foodie in me desperately wanted to stop in!
On Monday orientation ended and class began. On monday nights we have our PR class at 6. Then on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday I have spanish from 10-1 until after spring break when it will be at a little later time becauase I'll move up to Advanced. I also have a small group breakfast chat with Myleea on Tuesday mornings and we meet again for her class on Wednesday at 7. After Spanish on Thursday we have our long weekend!
This Monday Madison (my sweet roommate) and I decided to go on a walk instead of taking a siesta which turned into climbing a small mountain and being more than a little scared for our lives but good news, we're still alive! A little bruised and a little scratched up but it was fun anyways.
In Intermediate Spanish we are in class for three hours a day, our teacher speaks enough English for us to make it through and I really enjoy her class but it definitely requires a lottt of patience and our minds are tired afterwards. Speaking a second language is something I would really like to be able to do though so for me it's more than worth it.
The rest of the week was filled with trying to make it to the market to get food for lunches in our rooms and late nights planning a trip for the weekend.
We discovered Cafe Denebola thanks to a student that had been the first year of the program (this is the third) and we spend as much time as possible doing homework and having cafe con leche (coffee with milk) there because the Wi-Fi is 1000x better than at the hotel. It is sometimes very loud though so it can be difficult to focus.