La Primera Semana

A week ago today I left the states for Sevilla. This trip so far has been an adventure in itself and I am excited and curious as to what will come in the next 100 or so days until I return! Just to give you a general information update, I am living in the district of Sevila called Triana with my host mom, Mari Carmen. My roommate is named Erica, who is from Azusa Pacific University. Also living with us are Carmen's son, Jose Antonio, his wife, Joanna, and Carmen's daughter, Julia. I started classes on Monday and have sessions every morning from 9:00 - 12:30 with only me and one other girl in the class because there are only two students at the beginning level (talk about a good teacher-student ratio). So far, the first few classes have been great and I am right with the material. Honestly, I learn the most Spanish at mealtimes with my Senora, who is awesome. In this past week, I've learned a few things about Spain:

1. The cold. It might be 45 - 55 degrees here, but that 45 - 55 degrees is FREEZING. Here's why: no heated homes. Yes, you read that correctly. In Chicago I have a massive puffy coat to my knees equipped with a fur lined hood (you Trinity people probably have seen me in it) and I warm up as soon as I come in my dorm room. I couldn't fit that thing in my suitcase to bring here. And in Sevilla, when you come inside from the cold, you never warm up. You just stay cold. So I've tried little tricks to help myself out. I wear tights under my jeans every day. Double up on socks. Adopted the Brian-Gesch-patented "cocoon" method with my blankets every night so that every iota of body heat is maintained within the covers. I'm coping. 

2. The food. Actually, (brace yourself, mom) I am loving my meals. Carmen is a great cook and for some reason I am starting to like stuff I never really liked at home. As a notorious picky-eater, I consider this development a miracle. 

3. The schedule. It is COMPLETELY different from home. Breakfast at 8:30. Lunch at 2:30. Supper at 9:30. Not only are the mealtimes different, but siesta closes the entire city down from about 2:30-5:30. How sweet is that?! A culture that blocks off 3 hours for everyone to take a solid nap. My kind of place. Also, nighttime just gets going at 10:00, so everything happens later. I've seen moms pushing strollers in the road at 1:30 a.m. Actually, it is safer for people to be out at 1 or 2 in the morning than it is to be out at 6 in the morning. 

4. The social life. This is one part I love so far. In one way, it's kind of weird because from what I can tell at this point, nobody has people over to their house. You would never call up your friends, boyfriend, or girlfriend to come over. You always go out to meet at a cafe, restaurant, park, bar, or somewhere else. The socializing all happens in the streets. I love how "out and about" everyone is. It's fun. 

So just a few wonderful things that are happening here. I still miss everyone a lot and if I think about it TOO much it's too sad, so I try to stay busy and keep my schedule going with stuff to do. I am meeting a lot of new people and am making some friends which is cool. Thanks for thinking and praying for me at home from time to time, I definitely think about you guys a lot too! One week down, and many more to go!