Hello All-

I finally got around to setting up my blog, sorry for the delay.

Granada is absolutely beautiful, I am really happy that I picked this city to study in, it’s wonderful mix of people, great history and the perfect size to navigate.

I’m living with a Venezuelan woman, Lília, and her 11 year old daughter, Valéntina. Lília is an architect who received her masters in the University of Granada. She is really sweet, very creative and has been very welcoming. Lília affectionately calls her daughter “gordita,” little fat one, but she is anything but that. She’s really cute, very sweet, likes to draw and thought was a bit timid around me, we’ve started to talk more and she showed me her books and some of her pictures. They have a very loving relationship, and I’m already starting to feel like the older sister. Her school doesn’t start until the 17^th so she’s been home a lot and had a friend over for a play-date.

The apartment is small, but very cute. There’s art all over the walls, and Lília and I have already talked about some of our favorite artists, and she has great prints of Gustav Klimt and Andy Warhol. They both loved my gifts, and put my photo that I took of Long Valley on the walls. They also loved the Maple Syrup and blueberry Jam, and Lília made pancakes this morning to try them out. I’ve been getting to know them better during our meals, or while watching the news, etc.

It’s interesting to have two Spanish influences, a South American homestay while in a Spanish city. Lília told me that she really appreciates the Spanish way of life, and that the Spaniards really know how to relax and enjoy life. It’s true, everyone stops for their siesta, return home and eat with their families.

Yesterday we traveled to Cabo de Gato, right on the coast about two hours from Granada, right at the tip of the Iberian peninsula. We took a beautiful (and long!) hike through the rocks and beeches. The tour guide was really great and told us all about the unusual plants, and how the rocks formed, the issues with immigration from Northern Africa etc. We hiked 16 km and my legs are killing this morning. We also stopped at a few beaches along the way, many of them were very isolated and private. It’s a bit embarrassing to travel around with 71 Americans, we are stampede, and I felt bad that we were interrupting so many people’s quiet day at the beach. We walked to a small coastal town, San Jose, that looked like Greece with white walls and flowers, and right on the coast of the Mediterranean. We ate at a pizzeria and didn’t get back to Granada until 12:30 am. However, for here that’s nothing- when I was walking to where the bus was meeting at 7 am in the morning, there were a lot of people just getting back from their nights of partying. Life is definitely later here, it’s not uncommon to walk through La Plaza nueva or through Gran Via and see families with small children at the bars well past 11 pm.

My program has been very organized and has definitely helped in making a smooth transition. Javier, the program director is great, and actually lived in Hungary for a few months. There are also two students from the University of have been helping out, who are both really sweet and friendly. One of them, Rocío, and I share a lot of similar interests and I hope that we can develop a friendship. I know that it’s going to be difficult to develop friendships with Spaniards, but I’m starting to get more comfortable w/ my language skills. Rocío’s sister, who is also sweet and studying Medicine in the university, told me that I speak well and with a good accent, and my Señora has said the same. I really hope that I can become near fluent, but I know a lot of that depends on getting over my hesitancy to speak and not be afraid to make mistakes. It was very nice of them to say so, but it’s still really frustrating to not be able to communicate my exact thoughts- Humor and wit is a lot harder in Spanish!

I’ve been trying to explore the city, and it’s beautiful. Each part has its own flavor and character. In the Albacín, the old Arabic part of the city, there are great small streets with white walls, small churches and boast great views of the Alhambra. As you walk down the central part of the city, there are certain streets with Moroccan and Turkish stores and restaurants, and others with great Tapas Bars and small shops. The center, Gran Via and plaza nueva is definitely more touristy, but has beautiful fountains and some of the best ice cream shops in the city.

As I start to write, I could talk for hours, but I have to go for now. I’m sitting in the family/dinning room watching “Step Mom” in Spanish while my hermanita is playing Nintendo. I’ve been also meeting more of the IES students, and have found some people who I think will be good friends, and are also interested in exploring the city. I went this morning on a paseo (walk) with a friend and will meet some people later to most likely go to a Tapas bar or café. I hope all is well with everyone, I will try to update often. I’ll add some earlier entries that I wrote in a notebook on my time in Málaga and first impressions. All my love!