New Flat

Update:

I've officially moved into my new flat! It's absolutely lovely. We did a ton of shopping yesterday (TONS of cleaning supplies, grocery basics, and the necessities like towel racks and such!) and ate some lovely tapas afterwards as a celebration. We're (somewhat frantically) trying to get things set up in our flat before we head out to London on Tuesday. As of yet, we don't quite have internet, working hot water, or a working washing machine. And we have tons of dirty laundry. hehe. So we're going to be working on finding all of these things that we need, which is proving to be difficult for folks who aren't exactly fluent and don't have internet. What a grand adventure it's been! Ellie and I are hoping to go visit our schools today or tomorrow, too, so we can make sure we can find them. So much good Spain stuff! I hope you all have a lovely weekend.

Time for a short update!

Today I had my last immersion class. We opened a bank account, and we’re moving into our flattonight! So exciting. I already gave our host, Ana María, the gift I brought from the U.S. with me: the newest “Southern Living” magazine, some cornbread mix, a jumbo chocolate moon pie, and a thank you note complete with a Spanish note inside. She was very excited about the gift, especially the recipes in the magazine. It was fun watching her flip through it. :)

Apart from that, on Tuesday, Ellie, Sara and I are going to London! We have a whole week off before we start teaching on October 1, so we decided to make good use of the time. As long as we can manage to set up internet and our bank accounts before we leave, we’ll be in good shape! Since I won’t have internet at our new flat, don’t be dismayed if I don’t reply to you via email or facebook this weekend—I’m going to try to find wifi (pronounced wee-fee in Spain. ;) ) but we will have to see how successful that is!

We’re also hoping to get together with all of our American CIEE friends one more time before every one heads off to their real Andalucían homes Saturday morning. Earlier this week we all met at a fantastic bakery, and I couldn’t help but document the lovely experience. I will miss these folks very much, but we’re already plotting trips to visit each other. I’m praying that they all find apartments and get settled in this week without too much of a hassle. I hope you all have a lovely weekend!

Me with my favorite selection from this stellar bakery: Pes con nata. Yes, that translates to "fish with cream." Really, this delectable treat is like a very sweet o'charley's roll with the best cream I've ever tasted stuffed in the middle. Yuuuuum.

The beautiful interior of the bakery: check out that ceiling!

My friends and I being touristy outside of the bakery.

Learning to trust, again...(and again, and again) ;)

Today I am so thankful for a day of rest. I am so thankful that God knows our foolish ways so well that He gives us a full day to rest and enjoy Him. It’s been an odd (though good) week for me, just because I don’t quite understand why everything is happening as it is. But today the Lord reminded me through his Word and through teaching that 1.) He will accomplish his purpose (He MUST and WILL succeed! Hallelujah!) and that 2.) His ultimate purpose is to spread His glory, and that spreading His glory will also bring His children infinite joy. Even when His children don’t understand how His glory is, in fact, being spread in the reality of life.

This has been an odd time for me because I’m not quite started with, well, much in Spain, but I want to be. I’ve just been taking immersion classes, and I feel like I’m living a life of “well, once I start ______, I’ll start (lots of wonderful things).” And I hate living that way, because all we have is the present. So I’ve been praying that the Lord would help me to trust that he is accomplishing his purpose through each circumstance, from having a class that I’m not sure is teaching me tons (but I am learning!), to feeling like I’m a hopeless case in eventually being fluent in Spanish, to missing the bus to go to a church this morning. And I’m praying that he will help me to spread His glory, for the good of those around me, even in the midst of circumstances that I don’t quite understand. And today his Word reminded me that He is big enough to work through all of this. You and I need but trust in his power and goodness and ask for his help to live for his purpose. I’m so thankful to surrender these worries of the present and future to the Lord right now, and I hope that you will too, whatever those circumstances may be.

!Feliz lunes!

Today I just want to share a few lovely things that have happened recently. Yay!

-I finally found a cold bottle of Fanta and bought it. Yum. Ellie and I also bought some yummy chocolate snacks. We feasted in the nearby “Plaza del Museo,” which has 1.) HUGE, beautiful old magnolia trees, 2.) delightful stone tiling throughout, 3.) wrought iron benches, and 4.) today, some man that kept trying to win our attention by belching repeatedly. It was all we could do to keep ourselves from cracking up (and granting his wish for attention) for the duration of our visit. Hehehe.

-We went to the beach (la playa!) like real Españoles last weekend—there were many families enjoying the sun along with us. We saw more unclothed-ness than any of us had ever experienced before. We were also definitely the most pale people in a 20 mile radius.

-Yesterday for lunch, our host made us fresh fried sardines. Imagine the hilarity of learning to eat a mini fish—pulling out the backbone and all. Ha. To my surprise, I actually like them! I don’t know that I’d want them again any time soon, but that’s still better than I could hope for!

-Last week, we also toured the Museo de Bellas Artes, which is actually only about 8 minutes from our homestay. One of our friends’ intercambios took us, which meant 1.) free entry (hoorah!) and 2.) some helpful information about the art—he was an art major! It also meant that afterwards, when we said we wanted to go get some gelato, he led us on a new route to the BEST gelato in town. Triumph. This is a blessing and a curse: it’s so yummy that I would eat it just as often as you let me.

My favorite room in the Museo de Bellas Artes

Shannon and Ellie with the fabulous carousel in the city we visited on Saturday

And me with a beautiful fountain that I almost failed to appreciate, just because there are sooo many beautiful places and parks here!

THIS IS MY COOL WAY!

Hi there!

Believe it or not, I've already been in Spain for 2 1/2 weeks. Wooooaaaaah. It feels like a rather long time. In fact, I'm starting to forget the things that surprised me at first. But no worries: my plan is to record those hilarious differences right here, right now.

First of all, you've heard, I'm sure, about the different schedule of eating here in Spain. Spaniards generally don't eat breakfast, or only a bit (like a cup of coffee and a piece of toast), have a small snack around 11, eat their big meal, as we call it on Victoria Drive in Alabama, around 3:30, and dinner is both small and very late. We're talking 9:30-10:30 p.m. late. Though I love eating the biggest meal during the day instead of the evening, the other details are a bit, urm, difficult to get accustomed to. Ellie and I decided we needed snacks during our break at school. We took matters into our own hands at our local "Día," a piggly-wiggly esk store here. The problem: Spaniards seem to prefer one of three types of snacks: 1.) cookies 2.) something very fried, like cheetos, or 3.) fruit, which must be refrigerated. Needless to say, Ellie and I left a bit disappointed with 2 rolls of cookies, some melba toast-like crackers, and a jar of nutella. Morning break, bring it on. I'm still getting pretty hungry in between each meal. The biggest surprise, though: I've grown to genuinely enjoy our breakfast of green tea, some melon, and white bread toast with butter. A week ago, I didn't know just how many more pieces of plain white bread I could down. ;)

Secondly, I've already tried to insert random Spanish words in this post about 15 times. It's true: Spanglish is now the only language I speak fluently. "¡Qué guay!" you may think! (how cool!) but no. Think twice. Only the other crazies studying Spanish with me can actually understand my sub-fluent mode of communication right now. Ha! I'm hoping to be semi-competent in both languages by the time all is said and done. And here's the silver lining to this problem: Today at lunch, I successfully talked with our host about last summer. Yes that's right--I used the past tense. Believe me, this is an improvement! 3 cheers!

Next, the sleeping schedule of Spaniards surprised me. It is quite normal to stay out until 3 in the morning, but then go to work the next morning at 8...everyday. "HOW?" you must be thinking. Well, they really use that siesta. They store up in the afternoon to fuel the late night excursions and to power their way straight through the next morning. Wow. I'm not capable of that currently. That being said, Ellie read and article that said Spaniards get the least amount of sleep of any Europeans. I believe it entirely.

Another random surprise: there is little awareness of one's personal space here, or more specifically, of when to yield to allow another person to pass. On the street, people will walk STRAIGHT into you without batting an eye. I haven't been able to shed this part of my American-ism either, and I find myself darting around on the street to avoid what I assume will be collisions in a matter of seconds. And in stores? I'm mildly offended rather often by the brisk bumps I receive in tight spaces. The attitude seems to be, "Why wait? If I push, I'll get where I need to go! Who cares where that girl's going!" Ooh, so funny.

And one of the most fascinating things: dogs don't bark here. They really don't! In fact, this is so fascinating that I think my life might have new direction. I could study what causes this startling difference between Spanish, urban dogs and American, suburban dogs. My own sweet dog, Pepper, makes up for his small size with an inability to pass another dog without releasing at least 5 boisterous barks as we yank him past the other dog with a bit of embarrassment. Just think. If we could isolate the cause of this difference, neighborly quarrels all across the American south could be significantly diminished for good. (!) I'll try to keep you up to date with the details on this fascinating reality of life in Spain.

Next, something I'd been warned about. Waiters here will never bring you the check. Never. You must not only yell or speak up forcefully, but normally you must raise a hand as well. It's only after two weeks that this extreme people pleaser, yours truly, has become comfortable with this practice. If you think, "Oh, he/she is probably just busy, they'll be back soon," you'd better not have any plans for the next hour or two. ;)

What else? Oh yes, the title. It's very amusing to see how English phrases are used in retail here. "THIS IS MY COOL WAY!" is in fact a shoe brand I saw while shopping on the primary retail street here in Sevilla. I couldn't keep back the laughter for long. Along with this, we've also seen a dazzling t-shirt with this inspiring and hip message, "ROCK AND ROLL MUSIC." Soooo american it's not even funny! I own 2 shirts like that back home! Don't you?

Those are all of the differences I can think of for now, but I'm sure this will be continued. As a bonus, I included a picture of my friends and I at a lovely museum that was a home for retired monks in its past. We got to see it for free, and it was lovely! "El Hospital de los Venerables," it's called. I'll have to include more pictures soon. (Including pictures I took of our future apartment!) :D

Until then, think on this: what is your cool way?

The Same

Last night in America, there was a memorial service for a dear friend of mine at my church. He was an example to so many of us. I will always be thankful for the encouraging, wise words he shared with us week in and week out. It was always such a blessing for a young, inexperienced girl stuck in the college world to hear words of encouragement and teaching from a man who had lived through storms and joy in his life. He always took the time to ask how I was doing, what I was up to, and remind me that the Lord is indeed in control. It was really hard to hear of his passing via email in Spain. But I rest confident in the fact that he is now filled with joy in seeing the true sight of our glorious Lord in place of the former dim reflections of this earth. I’m praying that the Lord will surround his family and friends with the peace of His presence, and I am grateful that our God is the same yesterday, today, and forever.