Oh Gaud-I love Barcelona!

The trip to Barcelona began very early Easter morning. As we set off with our luggage and bags of Easter candy in tow*, we took the first bus to Avignon centre. As the gare routière (bus station) in Avignon has been under construction since September, it is kind of confusing to know where these international buses pick up from. After asking at the office beforehand, we waited in a little nook outside of the main road of Avignon, hoping that sometime within the next hour, a Eurolines bus would come to pick us up. As time passed, more and more people started gathering, making us feel much more assured, until finally the bus pulled up. The driver came down and instantly starting yelling directions in Spanish. As neither Alie nor I know any Spanish, we were left using a weird mix of English and French to get our point across. Nevertheless, we boarded the bus to Barcelona…. the nine hour bus. There was ample amount of entertainment though, all stemming from an older Spanish woman chatting up all the young men around her. There was clearly a language barrier between them, but even us outsiders looking in on the conversation couldn’t help but laugh along with them, as their tone of voice and facial expressions were hilarious. 

Finally, we arrived in Barcelona during the evening. We might have gotten a little lost in the process of finding our hostel… an hour later we arrived at the front door of Nikbor hostel, which had a sign attached saying that reception was next door at a different hostel. As we entered the beautiful Casa Gracia hostel and said we were checking in for Nikbor, we were informed that Nikbor was now closed. Inside, I felt an immediate sense of panic until the receptionist continued to say “But we have taken over all their reservations, so you have an upgraded room!” It was a blessing in disguise that this happened, we got a better room at a better hostel for a cheaper price! Casa Gracia is definitely one of the best hostels I have stayed at: spacious rooms and bathrooms, big common area, HUGE free breakfast, reliable wi-fi, friendly staff (minus one receptionist who was not always the nicest), and an amazing general atmosphere. Even the décor had its own unique style, close to a rustic charm. I would recommend this place to anyone visiting Barcelona, definitely worth every penny!

After a nice Easter feast (sangria included of course), we settled in for bed. After waking up early on Monday morning, we set off into the city to try to get to the Sagrada Familia just as it opened, hoping to beat the line for tickets. Walking through the city to Gaudi’s one of a kind cathedral, I was very thrown off. I had heard that Barcelona was a bustling city, some even said it was quite sketchy. Even driving in on the bus on Sunday, you could tell that this city is quite dirty and has some bad parts. As we were walking amongst the spitting rain Monday morning, not a soul was in sight and nearly all shops were closed. This was my first experience with Easter Monday, an extra day after Easter Sunday where many people don’t have to go to work and many businesses are closed. I was aware that France celebrated this but now, Spain is added to the list too. 

As we reached the Sagrada Familia, you could definitely tell that the cathedral was not closed for Easter Monday. With lines wrapping around all sides of the building, we found the end and began what we anticipated to be a long wait. Two minutes after, one of the workers announced that all morning tickets had already been sold out. It was 9:15am, 15 minutes after they opened. It became increasingly clear that if we wanted to go here during our stay, we were going to have to get our tickets online, which is exactly what we did for Tuesday. With a free morning, we decided to explore as much of the city as we could on foot. We walked down the street that our hostel was found on, Passieg de Gracia. This street has a great location within the city and is lined with many expensive shops, including Michael Kors, Prada, and many more. Whenever we walked down it, I couldn’t help but feel like I was walking down the Champs d’Elysées of Barcelona. Also on this street are two of Antoni Gaudi’s amazing casas. The first we came to was Casa Mìla. Unfortunately, there was scaffolding covering the entire façade of the building, and since paying 23 euro to enter was not in our budget, we just left our impression of this casa to be of the poster surrounding the building. The second casa along this street was one of my favorite things I saw in Barcelona: Casa Batllò. With the stone façade of the building almost looking melted and molded into bone like pieces, this was my first real experience seeing Gaudi’s art nouveau architecture and I was nothing short of amazed. I was also struck by the colors, the tiling showing a mixture of iridescent blue, pink, purple and green. Because this was always on our way to the hostel, I was happy that we passed by it at least twice a day during our stay.

This is all we could see of Casa Mila... boo!

As the Passieg de Gracia met up with the famous La Rambla, there was a big square connecting the two, called Placa de Catalunya. A big area, filled with fountains and flowers, and a big area for vendors or people to walk in. However today, as there were not a lot of people around, the pigeons took center stage. They are there every day, as I noticed afterwards, but since it was cold, rainy and Easter Monday that first day, I might have partaken in some pigeon running…. Then we continued down La Rambla, the biggest pedestrian street in Barcelona. Many compare it to the Champs d’Elysées in Paris, but I consider this street to not be the same level of chic that the Champs boasts. Even with the rain and cold, we walked the entire length of La Rambla until we reached the sea, and then turned around and walked it all again. With the awful weather, we were surprised to see how busy this street was – we were having to squeeze through people at times! Back at our hostel with pizza and easter candy, we took a well deserved break indoors for a few hours.

Just chasing some pigeons...

La Rambla

When we left the hostel to walk back to La Rambla, we were happily surprised to see the sun peeking through the clouds and the temperature rising. When we reached the pedestrian street, we were surprised to see it even more packed**. We walked to Placa Reial, where we were meeting for a free walking tour of the Gothic quarter. Since we got there early, we got to soak up the sun while sitting by a fountain.

Our free walking tour of the Gothic quarter was really amazing. We were able to see the Catedral de Barcelona, Santa Maria del Mar (what the locals consider the real cathedral of Barcelona) and the Jewish quarter. Our guide was SO knowledgeable and she really made the history come alive, even making some of us act out the events. Needless to say, it was a great way to see a part of the city that we probably wouldn’t have explored by ourselves.

Catedral de Barcelona

That evening, we went back to the hostel to have dinner. Casa Gracia allows you to make your own food using their kitchen or you can sign up for their dinners that they make each night. We decided to sign up for paella night, since we wanted to have some while we were here anyway. Although I had definitely had better paella before, it was a great cheap meal and we got to enjoy it while listening to live Spanish music (with an American classic here or there).

On our second full day in Barcelona, we woke up to cloudy skies and a chance of rain yet again. I was even thinking about naming this post “The rain in Spain does not stay in the plains” but I thought it might sound too negative. Either way, we set off to explore another Gaudi masterpiece: Parc Guell. When you enter Parc Guell from the metro, you have to walk up a steep hill. Several steep hills. Thankfully, they provide escalators for those who are not so physically fit. That’s right: outside escalators. Once you enter the park, you are rewarded for your hard work with a wonderful view of Barcelona. As we wandered through the park, trying to find where the entrance is to Gaudi’s portion, I couldn’t help but notice how massive the site was, and that the sun decided to come out! After paying for a ticket to enter, we were able to marvel at the mosaic tile work that covered the surrounding benches of the park. This type of mosaic work was called trencadìs and was specific to what Gaudi created. I was also amazed by the two houses at the front gates of the park, both looking like gingerbread houses with some type of marshmallow roofs. And who can forget about that impressive mosaic gecko?! I wish that we had more time to explore the park, but instead we rushed through it and got back on the metro towards the Sagrada Familia.

Learning our lesson from the day before, we bought our tickets online a day in advance. We went directly up to the gate showed our screenshot images of our tickets and were in the Cathedral in less than 10 minutes. Its that easy folks – always buy your tickets to the Sagrada Familia online! Anyways, I really don’t think I can describe in words or images how breathtaking this cathedral is. Still unfinished, it literally took my breath away when we went inside. The only thing that I did not like about it was the fact that you could still hear the loud jack-hammering and sawing from the workers still constructing. Even so, we sat for a bit and just stared around us, trying to soak in its beauty. Then we headed up one of the towers. Through the recommendation of a friend, we bought tickets for the towers to get a better view of the city. Now, those who know me know that I don’t like heights, so its not surprising that I was a little weak in the knees. Not to mention that the winding staircases from tower to tower are clearly just a one-way affair, leaving anyone to become incredibly claustrophobic in the process. I am glad I went up in them, but I don’t think I would do it again – got such a better view from Parc Guell!

Pictures don't do it justice.

After having a lunch of a churro con Nutella (couldn’t resist), we were exhausted. So, we headed back to the hostel to partake in another Spanish tradition: an afternoon siesta. One thing that this whole whirlwind travel adventure has taught me is this: traveling, no matter how grandious it may sound, is TIRING. You need to take breaks every once in a while. For dinner that evening, we decided to get some Spanish tapas. Taking a recommendation from our tour guide the day before, we went to Gasterea, a little hole in the wall L-shaped bar, which looked like it could successfully seat about 20 people. Mind you, we arrived at 7pm, VERY early for any Spainard to be eating so the place was quite empty. As we sat down and tried to decipher the menu, I think both of us wondered if this was the right place to go to. Then the friendly waiter came by and explained as much of the menu as he could, letting have some time to think. We ended up ordering MANY different types of tapas, including fried calamari, patatas romescadas and lots of pintxos, which are tapas that toothpicked on top of a piece of bread. What was my favorite? The sweet cheese and blueberry pintxos. I seriously could have had thirty of those  things. We washed our meal down with a few glasses of tinto de verano. To walk off the meal a bit, we took a nice evening stroll down Passeig de Gracia. It was beautiful to see all the stores lit up, and Casa Battlò as well.

Our last day in Barcelona,  we were hoping for good weather so that we would finally be able to spend some time on Barcelona’s famous beaches. When we woke up, we were not disappointed – sunny blue skies outside our window. As we went into the lobby for breakfast we noticed everyone around us with roses. All of a sudden, one of the workers came up to us and gave each one of us a rose and said “Feliz Sant Jordi!” Saint Jordi Day is a tradition in Catalunya, the region of Spain that Barcelona is in. Tradition says on this day, a man must give a woman he loves a rose. As this day is also National book day, tradition also states that a woman must give a man she loves a book. And so, in Catalunya on this day, anyone can sell roses or books anywhere in the city. As you can imagine, it was a busy day to be in Barcelona. Thinking back to Easter Monday, I would NEVER call that day busy anymore. Either way, it was an exciting day to be there, and amazing to see vendors on the street everywhere selling their goods.

We headed down past La Rambla to the port and the beaches of Barcelona. We decided to go to the most popular beach, Barcelonetta. Although it was sunny, the wind made it quite cool, a perfect beach day. However, I will say that this was not a relaxing beach experience. Just as you are about to close your eyes and enjoy the sea breeze and sound of the waves, you hear someone yelling “Masaje, massage!” or “Ice cold mojitos!” The amount of vendors on this beach surprised me and, honestly, really annoyed me. I am glad that we had some time to soak up the sun, but I prefer the calm beaches at home any day!

The rest of our last day was spent souvenir shopping and relaxing at the hostel. As we left our hostel and waited for our overnight bus back to Avignon, I couldn’t help but feel a bit relieved to get back to somewhere familiar. I really enjoyed all of the architecture I saw in Barcelona, everything Gaudi did was amazing to see in person. However, I don’t feel like the city was really for me – I’ll take small town Provence any day!

*Thanks Tammie and Debbie! (Our moms are the best)

**After reflection, this could have been because of two things. 1. The sun came out. Those Spaniards love sunlight! 2. It was 4:30pm. If you live in Barcelona, you basically are nocturnal, since the clubs don’t close until 8am.

To Travel is To Live

After a couple relaxing days in Apt, Ali and I are off on a 20 day European adventure starting tomorrow morning! Yesterday, I picked Ali up from Avignon TGV and we have been enjoying the past two days soaking up the laid-back atmosphere of Provence life before our whirlwind of travels. With most of my administrative stuff taken care of now, it feels like it is time to leave and see new places. What new places, you may ask? Here's our itinerary: Avignon->Barcelona, Spain->Avignon->Marseille->Zadar, Croatia->Dubrovnik, Croatia->Split, Croatia->Zadar, Croatia->Marseille->Nice->Cinque Terre, Italy->Pisa, Italy->Milan, Italy->Athens, Greece->Santorini, Greece->Athens, Greece->Geneva, Switzerland->Avignon. We won't be back in Apt until May 9, so definitely no posts on here until then. Be looking for updates on Facebook and Instagram, will be posting when I can! Until then, imagine you are with me on the beaches in Santorini....

Yup... I'm really excited!

Vale, España (aka: Spain, don’t kick me when I’m down!)

I am excited to be writing this post from the comfort of my own room in Apt. Although I love to travel and explore new places, there is something about home that is inherently relaxing and after the weekend I have had, I cannot express how grateful I am to have a steady place to come back to here in Europe.

My journey began early Friday morning, with catching the 6am bus to the Avignon TGV station. From there, I took a 3 hour TGV to Paris. Although it was cold in Provence, on the way to Paris, we passed through the northern departements of France which were covered in snow, with more big chunks being blown around as we passed. Seeing the Southerners on this train was funny, as they were so excited to see this change of season and were all continually taking pictures on their smartphones the entire ride. 

This TGV arrived 30 minutes late into Gare de Lyon, making my 1.5 hour connection to Gare Montparnasse even shorter. I hastily bought a ticket to the metro, and having already mapped out my plan to get there, arrived in the station with 30 minutes to spare. The next TGV was a 6 hour journey that was supposed to end in Irun, a small town just across the border into Spain. However, when we reached the stop before Irun, an announcement was made: we would be stopped there for an undeterminable amount of time due to a blockage on the line. In my train car, you heard just about every language represented in their disgust at this news: “Putain!” “Shiza!” “Joder!” “Shit!”

As I only had a 30 minute connection with the original time this train was getting in, I knew there was little hope for me to arrive in Irun, let alone Burgos, that night. I talked with some young German students who were next to me in the same predicament – we were all trying to find a way to make that train. After trying to find the conductor to ask about this several times, I ran into someone saying that they were setting up something special for the people who were on my train going to Portugal. Then, in an instant, the conductor appeared and said “Tu vas à Portugal?” As I was definitely not going there, I was confused but just showed him my ticket. He motioned me and a group of us to follow him. At this point, I had no idea what was going on or where I was going, but blindly following seemed better than staying on the train. 

As we were all standing there, conversing about our options in a mix of French, English and Spanish, I slowly realized that we all had some type of understanding between us. There is something to be said about the universal language of the panicked and stranded travelers. Soon after, a group of taxis pulled up – the train station had called taxis to take us across the border to Irun. Squished in a car with 3 other Portuguese men, hoping and praying that I would make this train, I watched as there was one minute until the train left and we weren’t even at the station yet. One of the men in the car asked why I was so worried, and when I explained to him that I don’t speak Spanish, he said “pourquoi tu es en Espagne?!”* After explaining a little bit about why I am in Europe and that I was visiting a friend studying in Spain, he told me not to worry, because they don’t even speak Spanish there, they speak Basque. It was interesting to hear about the different dialects that exist in Spain and the different opinions and controversy about their usage. 

When we arrived at the station at the minute the train was supposed to leave, I was grateful that the taxi driver just told us to run from the car – the taxi was on the train station. Good thing, because that was a 90 euro ride! We made it just in time… except the train waited on the platform for another half hour to ensure the passengers from the other taxis would arrive as well. As we all reunited on the train, we shared our relief with one another and wished each other continued safe travels with fewer complications. Again, the sense of camaraderie was quite comforting, as I was making this journey on my own. 

I finally arrived in Burgos at 10:15pm, only a few minutes after I was supposed to arrive originally. I was greeted by Katie and Andrea at the station and they brought me back into town to my hostel. The owner of the hostel had gratefully stayed an hour and a half past check out time for me, and since I was one of the only guests, I got a two bed room with a private bathroom instead of the single room I paid for. Score! Even after my long day of travel, I wanted to see a bit of the city and grab some food. So they showed me some of the city center that night: Burgos cathedral all lit up, the Arc Santa Maria, etc. And we went to Moritos, which became increasingly clear was the best restaurant in town. As we waited for a table, we enjoyed my first Spanish sangria, and I must say they are AMAZING!** Then we had huge chicken sandwiches, which might not sound very Spanish, but for someone that has not had a lot of meat since I have been to Europe, the sandwich was absolutely delicious and just what I needed. I slept very well on my double bed to myself and a stomach full of goodness. 

Besties with Sangria!

Saturday, we woke up and were determined to see the sights. The weather, although, didn’t agree with us. It was pretty cold and continued to spit rain at us so although I got to see the cathedral during the day, we did not get to walk to the university where Katie studies and decided to duck into stores and do some shopping. Soon after, we went for an early lunch of vino y tapas at Pecadito’s, another popular restaurant in town. This was a very traditional Spanish meal where I tried many different small plates of Spanish dishes, including tortilla, croquetas, and the Burgos specialty morcilla. And of course, had to wash it down with a glass of rosé wine. 

The second most beautiful cathedral I've ever seen. (if you're wondering, Notre Dame is always boss)

Tapas!

After lunch, we went for another glass of sangria at Morito’s. I don’t know what it is but that blend of red wine, apples, oranges and lemons was just too delicious to resist.

Seriously, SO GOOD!

After, it was still too cold and rainy to walk around very much, so we went back to Katie’s host family’s house and watched Pitch Perfect in her room. I know this sounds like an odd thing to do in Spain, but as I had been missing this movie, and spending time with a best friend, it was so nice to just relax in a warm place that afternoon while quoting and singing one of our favorite movies together. Plus, I got to meet her host mom and brother, both of whom are very nice and were very welcoming to me. 

Later on, we got ready for a night out on the town. As Katie had warned me the week before, I knew that it was going to be a long night out, as Spaniards stay out until 7am on a Saturday night/Sunday morning. And as I had one real night in Spain, I of course had to be prepared to live as the Spanish do! The night started with kebabs (which I had never had before and were tasty!), a sangria at Moritos and then calimuchos at Peregrino. Calimuchos is a drink that I have heard about from many of my friends that have studied in Spain: it is half red wine, half Coke. I thought this would be disgusting but surprisingly found it quite tasty! We spent the rest of the night meeting up with Katie’s other friends from the program and dancing the night away. Although the night ended on a sour note***, I was more than happy that Katie’s host brother said I could come back and stay at their house instead of going back to my hostel. I was thankful to be able to spend the night with my friend after such a weird end to my day, and I was happily asleep by 8am (like true Spaniards do).

Waking at noon, we set off in search of a store to buy me a new coat. We were sad to discover that Spain is like France: everything was closed. So instead, I borrowed one of Katie’s jackets and we set off to take pictures by the cathedral. After, we headed to Yaya’s house to bake a classic American apple crumble pie, as her host mom wanted to know how to make them. Though when we started making it, she said that she already knew how to make that kind of pie. Oh well, it was wonderful to meet another Spanish woman, and she spoke English very well! She said she felt so awful about my jacket that she would find me an old one that she wasn’t wearing anymore for me to have. I thought that this was just a nice sentiment but when she came through the door with a lined bomber jacket, I was nearly in tears. She mis-understood my reaction and said “Oh if you don’t like it, that is fine, you can buy another one when you get to France!” I of course thanked her profusely, for giving me something to wear in the cold winter conditions, and am still extremely grateful for this act of kindness. There are some great people in Spain!

Apple crumble deliciousness!

Some lovely ladies!

Then we went on a chilly evening walk and Katie, Andrea and Yaya showed me the university where they study at, Universidad de Burgos. After a bone chilling stroll, we ducked in to Morito’s one last time so I could try some patatas bravas, which were French fries with a type of red hot sauce and aioli topping. Yum! And finally, something every tourist must do in Burgos, we climbed to the top of the Castillo (which there is barely anything left of) and looked out over the city. It was a beautiful moment of tranquility after such a crazy weekend and we all sat there admiring the view.

Burgos at night

After, we said our goodbyes and Katie and I headed back to the hostel for quick nap. As all the 8am bus tickets to Madrid airport were sold out, it meant that I had to wake up at 3am to catch the 4am bus to the airport. After saying goodbye to Katie at the bus station, I settled in and slept until we reached the airport. I checked in and looked at the clock: it was 7am. My flight didn’t leave until 2:40pm. I spent the 7 hours of free time watching Project Free TV on my phone and reading. Finally, the plane boarded, took off and landed on time. I even slept on the plane!****

Once arriving in Marseille and transferring to the train station, I bought tickets to a train that said it was delayed 30 minutes. This was fine, as my bus back to Apt wouldn’t leave for another 1.5 hours after I arrived in Avignon. However, while sitting on the train, they came on the loud speaker and said that the train would be delayed an additional hour. Sure I was able to find a train that could get me there sooner, I waited another 30 minutes in line for them to tell me the next train was scheduled to get in later. As I walked back to my original train, they came over the loud speaker and said the train would now be delayed 3 hours. That wouldn’t do, so I went back to the line again to get the next available train. Which got into Avignon at 8:05. When did the last bus to Apt leave, you may ask? At 8:00pm.

So, as I was stuck in Avignon for the night, I texted my friend and fellow assistant Liz and she and her roommates Chase and Maria let me stay at their place. I cannot express how thankful I was that I had somewhere to stay for the night, and also got to catch up with some great people. I will be going back to their place this weekend to see a bit of Avignon, shop and make some pumpkin pie! But in any case, I checked the bus schedule when I was there and soon realized that there was no way I was going to be able to make my first class the next day. I emailed my teacher and coordinator and offered to do an extra hour at a different time, and as this situation has yet to be resolved, I still don’t know what is going to happen with it.

Tuesday morning, I took the bus back into Apt and walking back through town gave me this indescribably uplifting feeling. I never thought Apt would make me feel that way, as so many people call it a “dead city”. After such a long, eventful, complicated, and fun weekend, I could not be happier to be back in my French home, no matter how small and run-down it may be.

*Translation: Why are you in Spain?!

**So amazing that we returned two more times on Saturday for two more glasses. That’s right: 3 times within a 24 hour period. It’s just that good, guys!

***What is this sour note? WELL, my watch AND my winter jacket got stolen. To be fair, the watch might have just fallen off, but due to the below freezing temperatures outside, I was pretty upset about the jacket. And, oh yeah, a Spanish mob/mafia boss was trying to give me money for my coat. Only in Spain….

****For people who are aware of my flight anxiety, you know that this is a great triumph!

Its beginning to look a lot like Christmas...

Writing this while curled up in my blanket, with sweatshirt on and hot honey water in a mug by my side, I can officially say that it is getting COLD here in Provence. And when I say cold, I mean TROP FROID*. It doesn't help that our windows don't completely shut, letting the frigid draft in through the cracks which overcomes the heating we have tenfold.

The past few days here have been kind of miserable: the weather getting continually colder matched with drizzling rain which sometimes grew into torrential downpours. As I chose this region as my top region to assist in because I had heard that they have 300 days of sunshine a year, I was not happy when there was two days of horrible weather in a row. Maybe I am just getting spoiled living in this climate, as I know Michiganders reading this from home are merely scoffing at my description of this "awful" weather.

But the past two days have been miserable also because I have been feeling just that: miserable. I mentioned in my last post that I had a sore throat. After drinking copious amounts of tea Monday, I went to bed early so I could be well rested for my 5:30am wake-up. Waking up in the pitch black, I checked the time: it was 12:30am. And I was wide awake, with an incredibly sore throat along with a cough. So needless to say, I didn't sleep and got up at 5:30am to begin my day feeling the most awfully sick I have felt in a long while. I suffered through the second training day in Avignon almost falling asleep on myself, with a throat so sore I could barely speak. I did enjoy being able to catch up with the other secondary assistants, hearing about their experiences in and outside of the classroom. I just wish I had felt better during the day, and when I finally got home, I collapsed into bed and slept the whole night.

Instantly when I woke up Wednesday morning, I felt loads better. Amazing what a little sleep can do, right? I taught two classes in the morning, and though my voice felt strained, I was so happy that my students understood my plea at the beginning of class to listen and be quiet as I had no voice. That afternoon, I did some much needed laundry and lesson planning, as I wouldn't have any time this weekend to do any of it as I am traveling again. I also took a walk through town to go to Pizz'Burger and use some Wifi as well as see my favorite friendly French woman. When I came in though, she looked a little disappointed when I just asked for a drink. I explained I had already eaten and she nodded understandingly and asked for 1.50 euros. I thought it was 1 euro, so I was just wrestling up some change to give to her (digging to the very bottom dregs of my 2 and 5 centime coins)  when she waved her hand and said ce n'est pas grave. I now like her even more.

Today, I woke up with a sneeze and was a little colder than normal. Opening my blinds while I was looking at my phone, I could see something weird on the window out of the corner of my eye. Turning my head to get a full view, I sat straight up in my bed and audibly yelled "HELL NO!"** It was snowing! As I heard that snow happens maybe once or twice a year in Provence if it ever occurs, I was expecting it to be a little later in the winter season. Either way, after the initial shock, it kind of got me excited - it was like a little piece of home and got me in a much needed Christmas-y mood.

You would have yelled too.

 
And that is not the only thing that is looking like Christmas around here. As I was walking through town yesterday, all the store fronts are starting to add bright lights and festive decorations, some even complete with elaborate window murals of holiday scenes. It is all leading up to this Friday night, fête des lumières, when they unveil the massive christmas lights display that I have been seeing them set up for the past month. I really wish I was going to be here for this reveal, but I know that it will be on for the next month, and I can enjoy it every night of this Christmas season.

As this is a school that is in the middle of nowhere, snow meant not a lot of students coming to school, as many buses didn't run this morning. This allowed my normally hectic Thursday to be nice and calm, as there were less students to talk over. In general though, my Thursday classes are behaving a lot better lately, so it is enjoyable to teach them. Today, I taught my first Thanksgiving lesson and the students were SO interested, asking so many questions and making comments. I can't wait to continue to tell students about this holiday all next week, bringing a little piece of home to their culture here.

As I mentioned earlier, I won't be here for the Christmas lights celebration because I will be traveling. To where this time? I am going to Burgos, Spain to visit Katie (and Andrea and Yaya) and see this amazing city! I really wanted to visit Spain while I was here, especially with someone who speaks the language and really knows the area, and as Katie has spent the last 4 months studying in Burgos, she is going to show me the best of the city. I cannot be more lucky than to have seen one of my best friends here in Europe, not only once in France but twice, on back-to-back weekends. Plus, it is cool because we have in essence done a type of cultural exchange: I showed her Paris and the French culture, and she is going to show me Burgos and the Spanish culture. As I have never been to Spain before, I don't know exactly what to expect but I am so excited to visit a new country. So starting very early with a 5:30am wake up, vamos a España!***

 

*Translation: TOO COLD.
**I am not joking or exaggerating this at all - Amy even came out of her room on the other side of the apartment just to see what I was yelling about.
***Katie (or other Spanish speaking friends): did I totally butcher that? Hope not!