Mi Ciudad

I FREAKING LOVE IT HERE!!

I have met so many great people here which has eased the transition from America and all of my friends back home. So far Toledo has been like one big I-House set in the back drop of an ancient city and in Spanish. I live in an apartment with Michal and Jan from Slovakia, Anna from UNCG, and Edgar from Mexico who is moving in sometime this week...I hope. My neighbors are also international students from South Korea and from the States. My Piso is also kind of like the party house where everyone comes to hang out before going out so I meet a lot of people that way. Here are some of the adventures that I have been on.

• I have a gym here in the city and it is a twenty minute walk from my piso. In the states I would NEVER walk twenty minutes up and down hill to go to the gym but there is something about walking there and feeling like a part of the city that is just cool.
• The one thing that I really miss from America is grass...not just grass but clean, green, thick grass that you can lay in and walk barefoot in. On our tour of the Fabrica de Armas where the majority of the Spanish students study I saw the first patch of GRASS!!
• Yesterday we ( the Americans) decided that it would be a good idea to get out of our Pisos (Apartments) and go for a walk (get lost) in the city. On our adventure we ended up outside of the walls of Casco Historico and across the Rio Tajo where there were so many breathtaking views of Casco.
• I LOVE TOLEDO!

Night out!

I have been in Toledo, Spain for about a week and a half now and I still feel like I am in a dream and could wake up at any moment. Every morning I get up and look out of the balcony in my piso (Spanish word for apartment or flat) to this view...the fact that I am living in a piso in Spain still blows my mind.

I do want to say that I miss my UNCG family (current, post-grad, international, and all)and I cant wait to get back and give you all a big hug. Having conversations with you on skype o just seeing that you left a comment asking how I am doing really means more than you will ever know.

Here are some updates for those who I havent spoken to yet and I really like to make lists so just deal with it:

• I am living in a piso with two Slovakian guys...we are supposed to have two girls from Chile move in with us but...we will see...
• Classes dont start until next Monday.
• Things have been really slow around here yet so i have just been learning my way around the city which means frequently getting lost.
• I have surprised myself with how easily I have been able to communicate with people.
• I found a gym!!!:)
• Spanish kids are freaking adorable.
• MacDonald's tastes better here.
• umm...I think thats it for now.

Hasta Luego!!

Ghangstas Paradise

Today we sat in a coffee shop that was very....European. In the middle of it all Ghangstas Paradise started to play...

The last night

So I am sitting in my house trying to take in my last evening here in my house with everything that is familiar to me. In a few hours I will be leaving the familiarity of home and trading it in for something new and exciting. I am actually in a unique state of excitement, fear, and sadness. Here are the things that I am excited about:

· Finding an apartment and making decisions completely on my own.

· Experiencing a culture that I have heard about for about fifteen years.

· Sangria ;)

· The friends that I am going to make.

Finally being an international student myself.

· Travel.

Some of the things that scare me are:

· N Not finding the apartment

· What if after the time in Spain I leave not having improved my knowledge of the language?

And some of the things that make me sad:

Missing out on an entire semester of the I-House.

· Missing out on this time to deepen relationships with the new friends I made this past semester and the friendships that I already have.

· Not being able to return to Lake J this summer (This one makes me especially sad)

· Missing my family.

2009 was one of the best years of my life. I have met some of the best people in the world and I have worked at one of the best places in the world. …well here is to a good year and to an even better one to come!!!

I go to Espain!!!

I leave in a couple of days to begin my journey to Toledo, Spain. I am not the greatest blogger so all I can do is promise to try.