Pictures! (updated!)

The website finally decided to let me upload some pictures!! I will try and put up as many as I can until it stops working again! But anyways, this is from the second night, CIEE took us to see a little flamenco show. The man and woman on the left were the dancers, the guy to the right of them was the singer, and the one on the right is the guitar player, obviously. I was exhausted/freezing the whole time but it was still really cool!


Here is my room!!!! As you can see, it is very...decorated. It is small, but nice. I like it!

OKKK so looks like only two worked for now! Two pretty not exciting pictures too! Haha but at least now you can all see where I sleep!

More later!
Ok so I finally can upload some more pics....here is one of the orange trees!!! They line the streets here, its so cool! Apparently you can eat them and they won't make you sick but they're just not good.



This is La Giralda and part of the Cathedral. As I said, we went to the cathedral last week and it was soooo cool. It is the third largest in the world! And La Giralda is the tallest structure in Sevilla. You can take this set of 34 ramps up to the top and you get the most beautiful aerial view of Sevilla. I loved it.

Here's an example of one of the aerial views of Sevilla from La Giralda. So cool!


This is in la Plaza de España. My friend Adam who is studying in Barcelona came to visit this past weekend, and Jillian is on my right. This plaza is SO pretty!!

La Primera Semana (the first week)

Well, it has officially been a week since I've been here in Sevilla. I can't believe it has only been a week!!! It seems like so much time has passed since I was last home. Anyways, as you all have read, it has definitely been a week of ups and downs, but fortunately after a week I can say that the ups are happening a lot more frequently than the downs. I have been a lot happier here since I became friends with 3 girls in my program (Franny, Chrisy, and Jillian). Before, when I had a problem or question, I felt very alone and discouraged, but having friends that I can call up, walk to school with, hang out in between classes with, etc has DEFINITELY made everything a lot easier.

I also started classes today, which I like because it gives me something to do. These first two weeks are what they called the intensive session, where you only have one class and its a Spanish grammar review basically, and there are all different levels depending on your placement test and oral exam. Saturday was when we had to go to the CIEE center to find out our levels and I was excited because I felt like a grammar review would have been good for me; I feel like my Spanish is so bad right now! Well, I get there and read my sheet, and it informs me that SOMEHOW I have been placed in the highest level for this intensive session, and that my class and I will NOT be having Spanish grammar review, because we "don't need it". Instead, we are taking Cultural History of Spain! So I was not thrilled about that, but then I got some even greater news....OH, MY CLASS IS AT 9 AM!! There are only 2 classes at 9 am (some people don't start till 5 pm!!!), and I am lucky enough to be in one of them!!! And not only do I not have Spanish class and have to get up at 7:30, but I have the class AGAIN, at 5-6:30 pm!!! Most people have it once a day for 3 hours, but my class is 1.5 hours in the classroom, and then another 1.5 hours learning in the streets, because so much culture/history of Spain is right here on the streets of Sevilla. Although this is a really cool opportunity, I could not help but laugh at my luck. Of course that would happen, class at 9 am and twice a day. But anyways, today I had my first day of classes and it wasn't bad. It was basically dark when I woke up, but Franny also has class at 9 so we at least have each other to walk with.

So far, I think the homestay has been the hardest part for me. And as much as I would like to blame it on the situation, I know that the problems are coming from myself. I really have a hard time feeling comfortable in other people's homes I think, so it has been very difficult to adjust to living in one permanently, especially one in a different country. Tita Charo has been extremely helpful and welcoming; she basically serves me every meal, asks me all the time what I like and don't like, makes sure I'm eating, drinking enough water, does my laundry, cleans my room, etc. However she is also very hard to understand. Even when I know the words she says, sometimes I don't understand them because of how they speak here. And I really hate feeling dumb haha, so that has been hard too. Fortunately the food has been a lot better lately (today I had rice and meat for lunch, and like an omelette and empanadas for dinner), but it's still a little uncomfortable because I know she thinks I'm really weird when it comes to eating (today she made a point of telling her nephew about how I don't eat tomatoes, milk, mayo, and coffee, and how at home I eat raw broccoli). But anyway, I have been trying to make the best of the situation and I keep reminding myself that it has only been a week!

I am also starting to get to know the city a little better. I know my area (Triana) fairly well, I know a few places in el centro pretty well, a few plazas...I'm getting there, poquito a poco as my Sra says! I also am starting to enjoy the city more as a result. I love all the little restaurants, coffee shops, and especially bakeries! I love the plazas and the shops. I love how people gather outside in the streets in the afternoon to socialize. And I really love the river.

There are also some things I've noticed that are very different and strange, but interesting to note. For example, dogs. Dogs here are either stray, very little and wearing a sweater, or big and SUPER hairy. And although its not legal, people let their dogs pee and poop anywhere they want and don't clean it up. You can literally be walking and have to stop and do a little sidestep because a dog just decided to stop in front of you and lift a leg. Also, people do NOT know how to walk. No one walks on any particular side of the sidewalk, they usually just take up the whole thing, and they walk so slow! It does not go well with my American pace haha. Smoking is definitely the one thing I have had the hardest time adjusting to though custom-wise. Everyone smokes everywhere, and I hate smelling like smoke! And my clothes and hair just permanently smell like it. Oh well.

Well I think that is all for now, I have homework to do! After week 1 I can officially say I am pretty happy here. I definitely have a lot more adjusting to do before I can say that I absolutely love it, but I think that is expected. Thanks to everyone for all the nice comments! I have been trying to upload pictures here, but thus far it hasn't worked. There are pictures on facebook. For those who don't have it, see if you can see them using this link:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2508303&l=285a1&id=8642788


I'll write again soon, hasta luego!!

Jess

P.S. HAPPY BIRTHDAY JENNA! Love you!

Un Día Mejor!

Hola! Just wanted to write a quick update telling everyone that I have been doing a lot better since my last post. Last night I went out with my friend and her roommate and it was fun! I am still having some stomach issues so I struggled for part of the time but I was able to stay out. We met some Spanish boys who we talked to for a while (in Spanish!) and it was fun...they corrected a lot of our awful mistakes and told us that our Spanish sounded like how they would speak in a job interview hahaha...I guess it just goes to show that I really do know only traditional Spanish, and need to learn more colloquial Spanish! But last night helped, so I'm working on it!

Today I slept in, and just as I was waking up I heard my Señora leaving, which I'm not gonna lie was a little relieving because I knew she would ask me what time I came home and not like it! Haha, I think she has never had a student before so she doesn't really understand...last night when I was leaving she was shocked that I was leaving the house so late! But she was also just worried about me I think, so I should not complain!

Anyways, around noon I met up with my friend Jillian and we walked into the main area (el centro). We had a really great day! We did some shopping, lots of sightseeing (I took some pictures which I will upload soon), ate freshly-made pizza for lunch, explored, and got to know the centro a little better! I am finally starting to learn my way around a little bit. Then we had to go to the CIEE center to find out when we register for classes tomorrow, and there was also tons of information on interest groups we can sign up for, excursions we can go on, and extracurricular type things. I think I want to sign up for this interest group called 4 Cultures- Christians, Jews, Muslims, and Gypsies. It sounds really cool, and you get to take a free trip to Morroco! I also signed up for a trip to the Cathedral and la Giralda here in Sevilla just to leanr more about them, a hiking day trip (I know, me hiking is funny) and a trip to Granada in 2 weeks. All for free! I am very excited.

I then came back, caught up with a few people online (yay!) and now I am going to shower. Tita Charo isn't home yet but I'm assuming she will be soon for dinner (which is usually at 9:30- so late!). Then I am going out with my friends after dinner even though my legs are SO tired from walking so much. I need to stop being such a wuss!!

Hasta luego, Jess

HI!!!

Hi everyone!!! I am so sorry for not posting on here for such a long time and keeping you in suspense!! I really have not had a chance to use the internet until now! Ok, let me start from the very beginning!

So I left for the airport on Sunday at 1:45 for my 4:00 flight to Philly...well lucky me it was delayed until 4:45...which ended up being 5. But it was ok because I had a 2 hour layover in Philly. However, when we got to Philly, the pilot announced that he had never seen the airport so backed up in his 20 some years of flying and that he couldn't imagine us getting to our gate for 35 minutes at the least. LOVELY! So I had to literally walk as fast as my little legs could take me to my next flight to Madrid, and what do you know, that plane is delayed too. So we finally took off en route to Madrid about 2 hours late after waiting at the gate and on the runway...which caused me to miss my connecting flight from Madrid to Sevilla, of course. So then I had to navigate through the Madrid airport (which is SO CONFUSING), figure out how to get on the next flight to Sevilla (no one spoke English), which was several hours later. There ended up being about 40 people on my flight to Sevilla that were also in my program, so I met a bunch of people at the airport which was good. After an hour flight to Sevilla which I had my own row and slept the whole way (the only break I caught the whole day), I then had to wait another hour or so because there was so many of us that the program's rented bus could only fit half...and I of course was in the second group to be taken back to the hotel. So I effectively missed the first day of orientation, and made it just in time for dinner.

The first night was fun- I met a lot of people and we went out to a couple bars for a little while. The next day was full of walking around Sevilla (I have never walked so much in my life)...we had some presentations at la Universidad de Sevilla about classes, homestays, etc. I did not feel well (either because I was dehydrated or because I'm not used to the water here) so that was a big bummer, especially considering I had to keep on walking everywhere. Then we had a scavenger hunt which was sort of ridiculous but I got to see a little of Sevilla. That night we went out with our orientation groups (the whole program is like over 200 kids, but they split us up into groups of 15 or so) for tapas, which were interesting. I think that was when I realized I am going to have a very difficult time with the food here haha. A lot of jam, lots of weird sauces and consistencies...all my favorite things (not)! That night I went back to the hotel and talked online (only my ichat was working so I couldn't even update then!). And before I knew it, Wednesday morning came and it was time to meet our homestays!!

My homestay consists of me and my Señora, who's name is Charo (but she told me to call her Tita Charo). She is an older woman, a widow, who has two daughters around 28-32ish, and two grandsons. She lives in a small apartment in a part of Sevilla called Triana, which is where a lot of people in my program's homestays are. She is very, very nice, but so far I have had a pretty difficult time understanding her. She tries to speak slowly, but in Sevilla they drop so many sounds off their words that it is very hard to understand! I also have found that everyday conversational Spanish is VERY different than what I've learned in school my whole life, so I have to learn a whole new vocabulary basically. My room is nice, pretty small but not bad. There is no central heat in apartments here, so my only source of heat is a little space heater. It is very different than home! Showering tonight was not the most fun thing I've ever done...only a little water comes out and it is SO cold in the bathroom (no heat!). Also, there is no place in the bathroom for me to put my toothpaste, pills, anything like that so I'm not quite sure what to do about that yet...hmmm.

Not surprisingly, I have been having some major stomach issues. The food and water here are so different that my stomach has been going crazy, which even caused me to not eat dinner last night (first time ever in my life!) and to go home early even though my entire program was going out to a club! I was very sad about it, but I came home and got a lot of sleep. Today, I feel much better. My stomach is still not very happy but I am trying to be more optimistic (even though it also rained the whole day!). This morning we had some more presentations about safety, health, etc at the CIEE center, which is about a 30 min walk from where I live- I told you I do a lot of walking! Then I came home, we had lunch which was salad and soup, because she knew my tummy was hurting! She is also making sure I drink lots of water, she has been very worried about me and continues to tell me she will worry about me like my mother haha. If only she knew how much my mother actually worries...But anyways! After lunch we watched tv for a little while then I took a little siesta. After that, I met a friend and we did a little shopping (I got some shampoo and stuff, and then my INTERNET CARD!). I came back, finally connected myself to the internet (Tita Charo does not have it, so I had to buy it), ate dinner, showered, and now I am waiting for another friend (named Jillian!) to text me and tell me she is ready to go out.

Overall, the beginning has been a little rough for me, but I really did not expect anything different. I have a hard time dealing with lots of change, and being away from my family, friends and Aaron has been very difficult. But I know that once I get settled in, start a routine, and start doing more things with friends, that will all go away and I will start to have more fun! So for those of you that are still reading (sorry this was so long), no need to worry about me, I am doing much better and hopefully within the next few weeks will be able to tell you that I am loving Sevilla and am never coming back (joke)!

Love and miss you all...more updates soon!

Hola!!!

Hi everyone!! I only have a minute because I have to go back downstairs to the lobby- my orientation group is meeting at 4 to go walk around Sevilla- but I just wanted to write a quick post saying I am here and I'm ok! Getting here was a huge pain but I am here now and doing well. Very tired...sorta hungry (weird food) but having fun so far. I will try and write more later!!!! Miss everyone!

¡Sevilla Mañana!

So it is officially Saturday, January 17th...meaning I leave TOMORROW. I have been running around this past week doing last minute errands, and I finally decided it was time to take on the task of packing, which I have pretty much finished by now. I have two decently large suitcases that I'm checking, and of course a carry on. So far it looks like everything is going to fit!! Thank god...

Tonight I am going out to dinner with my family and Aaron, and then I am off to Europe come tomorrow! My flight leaves at 4 pm tomorrow to Philly, and then I have a 9 pm flight to Madrid from there. I get to Madrid at 10:15 am on Monday (the 19th), and have an 11:30 am flight to Sevilla! From there, I will get on a shuttle provided by my program (CIEE), and will be taken to the hotel that our orientation is at. I think we stay at the hotel for 2 nights or so before we move in with our homestays. I think I will probably start classes the following Monday.

That's about all for now...the next time I will be posting will be from Sevilla! I promise to be careful and safe for all of you worriers out there, and I will definitely be sure to let you all know when I get there!! ¡Adios a los EEUU por ahora...nos vemos en Mayo!

Con todo mi cariño,
Jess

Welcome!

Hi everyone! Welcome to my blog! I'm not really sure how great of a blogger I'm going to be, but I'll try my best to keep everyone updated with stories and pictures while I am abroad!

As most of you know, I will be studying in Sevilla (or Seville for all you Americans), Spain this coming semester. I am VERY excited, but also a little bit nervous considering I am not going with any friends, and I have forgotten nearly all of my Spanish. So it should be interesting when I first get there, but I'm sure I'll catch on eventually!

I'm going through UW-Madison and CIEE, and I will be taking classes at the the Universidad de Sevilla and the CIEE Study Center. I will be living in a homestay, most likely with a Señora, but I don't find out until I get there.

I think that's about all for now...I leave in 13 days (Jan 18th), so until then I'm just getting some last minute things I need, and starting to pack! Yikes...