24 Mayo 2010

Hey! Today is the first day since I've been in Spain that I've been in contact with the outside world. Up until now I haven't been able to make phone calls or get on the internet, but it's been nice to have a break from technology. However, it's good to be back, and there's a lot to catch up on here. So, here goes...

My journey started 5 days ago, when I left Salida to head to Chi-town. There, I spent the afternoon and evening with my friend Kathleen (who sings in Ellement with me at school). We walked around the University of Chicago campus (which is gorgeous and has more trees than I know what to do with), got some food at a cool bakery called Medici, and went to a Sox-Angels game. I spent the night at Kath's house, and before I knew it, it was off to the airport!

On fly-to-Spain day, I was in charge of making sure the entire group (31 of us, total) made it to O'Hare, got all checked in with Iberia, and boarded the plane on time. It could have been a huge headache, but as it is, we CC kids are pretty responsible and travel-savvy and no one had any problems being where they needed to be. Needless to say, we were one big excited mass of twenty-somethings waiting at the gate and boarding the plane. Our plane was monstrous...one of those that has rows of four seats in the middle, two aisles, and then sets of two seats on each side by the windows. It even had a camera on the tail that projected a live feed of our takeoff and landing. I'd never been on a plane of that size, so it was kinda fun. For maybe the first hour or so. And then it was just another plane with small seats that are impossible to sleep in. And unfortunately, we traveled overnight...so it would have been nice to sleep for more than two very choppy hours. But as it was, I slept until they served us dinner, stayed awake through the two in-flight movies (The Toothfairy and Amores Locos), and caught a couple z's again before breakfast. We landed in Madrid at 8:15 am, local time, and made our way through the airport with ease. Once we made it through customs, we found our bus, reunited with our professors, and were on our way to Salamanca!

Our bus ride took us through the suburbs of Madrid and then into the country between the capital and Salamanca. Along the way, we passed through the Sierra Nevada, which lived up to its name and was still covered by specks of snow in the higher elevations. At first glance, the terrain seemed similar to that of Colorado...dry, hilly, with mostly scrubs for vegetation. One big beautiful difference, however, were all the wildflower growing in abundance. Purple, red, and yellow blots of color whizzed by our windows, and served as a little reminder that we were in fact in a different place.

After a three hour bus ride, we arrived at the Fundación Tormes, a nature reserve in the country outside of the city of Salamanca. The Fundación was surrounded by farmland and wildflowers, and served as a wonderful retreat for our first couple days in Spain. From Friday afternoon to Sunday morning, we had no agenda other than to relax, recover, exercise, enjoy the sunshine, and get to know each other. Being able to do so in a quiet place, with no risk of sensory overload, was magic, and served as a good basis for developing group relationships. It was interesting to note how some students, those that were already acquainted prior to the trip, began to separate from the rest of the group. The rest of us, however, have formed one big group of friends, and I hope we'll continue to do so as time passes.

Our final night at the Fundación, we played soccer in the street against a couple of local 11-year-olds until 1 in the morning...as to be expected of a soccer-worshiping nation, they beat us. Whipped us. Schooled us. We had to double team them to have a fair chance. Humbling, but super fun all the same.

Yesterday, we finally made it to the city of Salamanca! The bus was abuzz with excitement as we crested a hill and the city spread out below us. The cathedral was immediately recognizable, towering over the surrounding stone buildings (it is, by tradition, the tallest structure in the city). We met with our families and spent most of the afternoons with them, before reuniting later that evening in the Plaza Mayor to explore a bit of the city. I felt much more comfortable meeting my host family this time around (in Oaxaca I was nervous and consequently not very talkative), and easily held my own in conversing and getting to know them. Toñi, my host mom, is soft-spoken and caring, and a great cook. She's totally fine with my being a vegetarian, and always asks me how I prefer to eat my food so that she can cook it the way I like. Agustín is my host father (although I'm not sure if he and Toñi are married because she didn't introduce him as her husband), and I like him a lot. He's a quiet and calm man, and I also get the sense that he's very intellectual (we watched a TV program about science last night). During the week he drives big trucks all over the area, and is only at home from Friday evening to Sunday evening. I also have two host sisters, Ana, 28, and Fatima, 22, who both seem like nice girls. I've had little interaction with them thus far, but I've only been in the house for a day. Finally, a German girl named Tina is also staying in our little apartment, although I have yet to meet her, as she's been in Madrid with her boyfriend. She's been here for four weeks, and will be here for another four. She's older than me, in her mid twenties I think, and I'm hoping we can become friends and hang out together.

Everyone in Europe lives in apartments, so as to save more land for farming use, and most apartment buildings are eight stories high. We live on the fourth floor, in a small apartment about 15 minutes walking from the Plaza Central and a block away from the train station (Calle Elcano, No. 2, 4o A). There's not much extra space, but enough to feel comfortable. All the door frames, furniture, and accents are of a beautiful dark wood, and the entire place in general is clean and well lit. I have my own little room right by the front door. I have two mattresses, one of which now serves as a sort of desk (Toñi meant to put one underneath the other, but couldn't remove the legs from its frame). This means that I don't have much floor space, but I don't mind. I have a huge window which takes up more than half of the wall and lets in a great amount of daylight. My view isn't great (I see the back of another apartment building), but it's pretty quiet.

Yesterday evening Toñi and Agustín walked with me to the Plaza Central, and we got caught in a downpour along the way. The strength of the rain waxed and waned, so we were able to make it the cover of the Plaza before the skies truly opened up. There we ran into a few of my classmates and waited out the storm. Toñi and Agustín headed back homeward while I went with the group for some tapas. I got a simple tosta de queso (toast with cheese), which was simple but delicious. It came with goat cheese, which was especially good.

The food here is pretty good. Although the majority of the culture is based around meats, especially ham and seafood, I can find vegetarian options in restaurants, and Toñi is great at cooking veggie-friendly meals. Thus far I've eaten a lot of grains (bread with every meal), potatoes, salads, fruits (the basics like oranges and apples), and vegetables (peppers, tomatoes, green beans, and white asparagus). Last night, I tried a local cheese, a mix between cow and sheep milk, which was super delicious...think somewhere between parmesan and sharp white cheddar.

There's more to tell, but for now I'll leave it at this...I've already written a novella. Take care, be great!
Kendall