Llegué a Sevilla, por fin!

I'm finally here!!!

To make two (three?) very long days short, here it is:

Left Chicago Sunday afternoon, and met a friend from my high school Spanish in check-in. We were both shocked and relieved to know someone. It was a smooth flight and I got to sit next to a very sweet man. His bio--from Brazil, lives in Toronto, works in China, US, Brazil, Spain, Toronto, more?, has six kids and four grandchildren, a summer home in Slovenia, and speaks six languages fluently: Portuguese, Spanish, Italian, French, English, and Slovenian. To say wehad plenty to talk about was an understatement. Unfortunately left us very little time to sleep.

(Note: called it. We broke every small talk rule and talked about politics, religion, world events and personal relationships. Told you I sit next to that guy every time haha!)

Arrived in Madrid, Spain airport a little before 7am their time. After a three hour layover turned to four hours, we discovered the Madrid airport doesn't post that a flight is cancelled until much later. After fifteen more hours spent waiting in line for new tickets and fighting off Spaniards, I learned many new words. (ie. Niebla=fog; also means no flights can land, so there are no planes to take off). I discovered that if I talked slowly and focused, I could communicate fairly well with people here. Yay!

Aeropuerto de Madrid:

Arrived in Sevilla. Fortunately our waiting paid off and we all could get on a flight that took off around 1115/1130pm the same day. We got to Sevilla, thankfully had all our luggage, and paid way too much for a taxi but were just too relieved to get to the hotel. Cue shower and SLEEP.

Woke up early next day for orientation at the hotel. Talked about lots of things. Don't remember much. Split into groups and toured the city. It is stunning, just like a postcard. The architecture is cooler than you could imagine, and orange trees line the streets. Loved my guide, Icia ("ee-thee-ah"), and my group was sweet. Tried my first tappas-honestly just okay. Came back to hotel for un descanso, or siesta, but I didn't sleep.

View from the hotel:

The same day we had interviews with professors. My professor told me to strongly consider taking a course with the university, but I'm a little hesitant. I'm at a frustrating point with my Spanish. Almost none of the students from the US will even try Spanish, which kills me. I came here to learn, and to that we need to practice. I met two or three girls who want to try too. But at the other end, it's hard for me to understand the Spanish people my age. Those that are older are easy to understand, but I want friends! But anyways, that's why I'm hesitant to take a course in the University. I feel like I'm in between, too advanced for most of the Americans, but not good enough for the Spaniards...

That night we went and saw a live Flamenco performance. It was absolutely incredible!!!! There was a guitarist, a singer, and then a male and female dancer. All performed with such passion. The dancing is kind of like very sexual tap dancing. For example, when the man danced, they sang about his beautiful hair, but when the woman danced, the song begged her to open her door, "abre la puerta", which is a phrase that originates from the time when the Moors ruled Spain. I'm sure I don't have to explain the double meaning.

After that our little group went to eat tappas again; better this time. No idea what I ate but the meat was fantastic. Didn't get back to the hotel until after midnight. Decided I'd rather sleep than go out at that point.

TODAY, finally haha

Woke up early and got to enjoy breakfast, unlike yesterday when I slept too late. Lots of meat, cheese, and fruit. The juice was good too! They don't drink much water here, which kills me. Fortunately I can now becauseeee...

I moved in with my Senora today!! Her name is Manoli and she's very sweet. My roommate also goes to Indiana and lives in Glenview--small world. The apartment is very cute and I love my room. I brought way too many clothes. haha but that's okay

I unpacked and soon it'll be time for lunch. For now it's a mess!

Well, it doesn't seem like a short summary, but it is. I've been in Sevilla less than 48 hours but it feels like weeks. Pictures soon, I promise. Love you all, Michelle