portugal

crazy to think that i can just hop on a train and go to another COUNTRY. some chickies and i decided to go to porto, portugal this weekend (about 6hrs away by train). SO FUN! we got there late friday night and we were all pooped after a busy day in santiago plus travelling at night so we just stayed in at our hostel. we got up saturday morning and took off to explore the city. we decided to buy tickets to the double decker bus so we could see more of the city in a short amount of time. SO glad we did because it was B-E-A-UTIFUL. the pictures really don't do it justice. our tickets also came with a boat tour of the six bridges on the river by porto. we spent the afternoon down by the river and went to a wine tour/tasting. then we headed back for naps and then out again for dinner. we left porto on the train early this morning to get back in time to do homework and recuperate from the weekend.

its hard to believe that this was our 4th weekend in spain. time is FLYING by and i'm loving it here more and more each day! miss you all! xoxo

our little tour boat 

the god of wine in the park

takin' the double decker over the bridge!

pictures really don't do it justice - it was beautiful

vigo!

hola! this week was a busy one in santiago. i started my internship at the fancy pants hotel. it looks like i'll be doing a little bit of everything because there aren't many events happening at the hotel for awhile. so far, i have read the website, sorted two months of receipts, shredded resumes, and looked at the prices of vegetables. neat.

yesterday, we went to vigo - the second largest city in galicia. we took the train there and it was only about 90min away. it was a little chilly out but it was SO beautiful. we spent a lot of time just sitting down at a boat dock...annnnnd of course we found some shopping there :)

we are planning on going to porto, portugal this weekend. so excited! we also bought our flight to madrid for the soccer game! so many exciting things! that all makes up for it being flipping freezing here - sometimes colder in my house than outside. neat. thats all for now! have a good week! xoxo


some pics from vigo...they really don't do it justice because it was B-E-A-UTIFUL!

p.s. - spain needs to like american football more. i'm currently streaming the game on my computer with my headphones in and cannot scream like i would be if i was at home. NOT OKAAAAAAAY.

what a week

spent our first full weekend in santiago! it was fun to see what the nightlife is actually like. my "sisters" in my house came out with our group which was really fun.

sunday, i went to mass at the cathedral with my mama. we sat in the FRONT row because she wanted to make sure i could see. we went for lunch after and we inhaled what may be the BEST pizza i've ever eaten.

the week is going well so far. we stay busy which is nice. classes are going well but the homework is starting to come :( we have to read a book for my class about galicia (which means that i will be reading the book AND the dictionary). we thought we were starting volunteering (with the little ones in the hospital) this week but we were told today that they don't know when we're starting. i start my internship tomorrow and i'm a little nervous! eeks!

yesterday for lunch, we had paella (pronounced pay-ay-yuh) which is a traditional spanish dish. it has seafood, rice, and veggies in it. so...my mom brings it into the dining room and on top of it are GIANT pieces of chicken, mussels/oysters (idk which) and shrimps with legs, whiskers, and eyeballs!! AHHHHHH! needless to say, i did not eat much for lunch and i was quick to say that i did not want it for dinner :)

the weather is getting better here, which is making it much easier to be here. tonight, we have a tour through my school of the places to go for tapas, wine, etc. this weekend we are taking the train to vigo (a city nearby) to explore, do some shopping (theres an H&M!), and just get away for the day. my mom and the girls in my house are going to paris - but fear not, tia lola will be here with me. thats all for now. miss you all! xoxo

 a fountain in the park (la almedia) that separates the old town from the new part

the cathedral where i went to mass with my mama espanola

ps - forgot to mention that i had my laundry done this week. nothin like looking outside to see your undies flappin in the breeze for ALL to see. greaaaaaaaaaaaat.

here comes the sun...

THE SUN IS SHINING HEREEEEEEEEE!! its about time! there was a literal monsoon yesterday but mother nature brought her A game today. we're going to eat then hang out in the park to celebrate the sun!

 el sol!

seeing our shadows was REALLY exciting

i'll blog more later...but now its off to the park to enjoy the sunshine :)

la universidad

The first weekend in spain was an interesting one...to say the least. the city is fairly easy to navigate (which is nice) but we learned the hard way that young people really don't go out on saturday nights.

We started orientation at la universidad de santiago de compostela on monday. the school is only like a 10min walk from my house which is really nice.

<-- my new school crest!

we go to school for about 4 hours a day monday - thursday and have 5 classes (composition and portfolio, varieties of spanish, spanish grammar, spanish culture, galician culture and history, and a class for my internship). we stay in one classroom for the whole time we are at school so its a little elementary school-ish.

i have an internship at a 5 star hotel in santiago de compostela in the public relations department on thursday nights and friday mornings and i really have no idea what i'll be doing. we have to do 85 hours in the internship and 15 in class. (look up hotel melia araguaney in santiago de compostela if you want to see pics)

i will also be doing community service one or two days a week at either the alzheimers association or teaching english and playing games with kids at the hospital in santiago.

the fam is still crazy as ever...as i write this i'm listening to them talk to the brazillians fam and trying not to bust up laughing. my eating habits are becoming more satisfactory for la mama and she literally cried at lunch today when i finished my salad and my spaghetti. great day. the sun still has not been out since sunday - not sure how long it takes to get used to rain ALL THE TIME! its so humid here that my hair is a frizz ball all the time. i think thats it for now...pics are posted on facebook for you to see (refer back to the part about humidity and frizzy hair and keep this in mind with all pics :))!

miss you all! xoxo

hola from españa!

uyyy! after a long day of travelling we FINALLY made it to santiago. we were picked up at the airport by a person from the school and went to meet our families at the school. naturally...it starts to torentially downpour as we step off the bus. no biggie. my maid (yes...maid) picked me up at school and took me back to my house. my mom is super nice and theres a crazy aunt lola who lives here too. my room is nice and there are two other students here too - one from Brasil and one from Korea.  i swear on my life i've walked literally a zillion miles since we got here. and its rained every day since we've been here except for today! went on an adventure to the school to find our building, to the old zone to see the cathedral, and to mass at the cathedral.

things:
1. i'm using my moms crazy spanish computer that has more buttons than normal. this post took far too long. we have internet but she hasn't given me the p-word so i can hook it up on my lappy toppy with the normal number of buttons
2. she thinks i'm anorexic because i don't eat the zillion things she puts in front of me. also, i sleep with my door locked because i'm afraid crazy aunt lola will try and feed me while i'm sleeping.
3. the madrid airport was almost the death of me
4.  i got great new boots (sorry mom). but its sale time in espana.
5. i only understand about every 5 words that the crazy aunt says. but i'm really good at saying si, smiling, nodding, etc.
6. its cold EVERYWHERE. inside. outside. everywhere.
7. no one young goes out on saturday nights. so much old people PDA last night i almost lost it.

we have orientation tomorrow and tuesday. i haven't taken many pics yet but i will post some soon when i have my own computer. annnnnd...thats all for now! i miss y'all in the states like madddd! xoxo

my new city...

hola friends!  i am still in the united states...for now. i leave thursday night and of course, i'm not packed yet.  so much to do in so little time.  for those of you who don't know, i'm headed to santiago de compostela, spain for the semester.  here's a little bit about my new city...

santiago is in the northwest part of spain, not far from portugal.  it is the rainiest city in spain (so my first purchase will be a good umbrella :))  the population is about 100,000 people.  the city itself is full of historic buildings (like the cathedral) but also has a new zone (where i'll be living).  i am SO excited (and nervous) to get there but i know that there are many adventures awaiting me :) stay tuned...