Some Fun Fotos:

El jamon: ham, the ever popular Spanish food, that is literally sold everywhere-the whole leg, hoof and all. It sits on a little stand in our kitchen...

<--El Parque de los Principes

it doesn't get more Spanish than this!

a park, soccer, and pigeon feeding!

I've been taking a class to learn how to dance Sevillanas-a type of flamenco dance. This is my dress (the mass of ruffles).

Inside the catedral in Sevilla. It was constructed in the 15th century. This is what I mean when I say that these are unbelievable large! This a pilar cruciforme con baquetones-I can't translate that to English...or really most of the vocabulary I learn in my art history class.

Time Flies

So sorry that it's been so long since I've posted something, here's some highlights from the last month, and only a few of the many pictures I've taken (see facebook for more!)
Wow, I can’t believe its march already! So much has happened in a month. And it doesn’t feel like that much time has passed, and it also feels like there’s not much left. My friend Emily likes to remind us frequently that we’re in Spain-and it’s funny, because sometimes I actually do need reminding.

I’ve travelled a little since our last school trip to Cordoba. Andy, Daniel, Emily and I went to Lagos, Portugal for a weekend! What a trip-it's crazy to be able to just get on a bus and be in another country in a few hours! Our ride was a little longer that I anticipated because we stopped in a lot of other cities along the way, but we left Sevilla after lunch on Friday (2/26) and finally arrived in Lagos around 8:30 or 9pm, so it was dark when we got there and then we had to find our apartment and we didn’t have a map. A good combination. We started on our way and asked people on the street for help and finally found the right street. We walked up and could not find it-I saw this door that had this little “sign” (a piece of paper with some typing on it) but I couldn’t read it from where we were so we kept searching. There were no people out on the streets-quite a change from the constant night life in Sevilla. And we finally found someone and again asked for help-he directed us to a little restaurant to ask there. So we went and Daniel and I went inside and a met a super nice, young waiter who told us where to go (he spoke English-practically everyone does because all of their TV shows are in English with Portuguese subtitles and they learn it in school. And for the record, Portuguese is not the same as Spanish.) So where do we end up with these directions? That building with the tiny-not sign (I had seen earlier) that has the name of the hotel/apartments and a phone number for us to call to have someone let us in. So we tried calling, but my cell phone didn’t work since we were in Portugal and couldn’t figure out the country code. So back to the restaurant Daniel and I went to ask if we could use a phone. The waiter called for us-he told us this wasn’t the first time this had happened. Then we finally were let into our apartment-and what a surprise! The four of us had a three-story apartment (granted each floor was about the equivalent of one room, but still!!). The first floor was the kitchen, and had a half bathroom, a couch, and a table and chairs and two pull-out beds; the second floor had a bedroom and full bath; and the third floor was a roof top patio! We had a view of the ocean!!! It was so much fun to be able to hang out in a “house”—the Spaniards don’t do that, they always go out and never invite friends over, and I find that I’ve really missed just going to someone’s house. But we did spend a lot of time outside! We hiked a trail along the “golden coast”—we were at the southern tip of Portugal. This is really indescribable. Even the pictures cannot capture it. We were walking along the edges of these enormous cliffs that dropped down into the ocean and there were huge rocks out a little ways from shore. It was stunning. I think it might be the most beautiful place I’ve ever seen/been. We hiked for hours—although we didn’t get very far. But it was a wonderful day! It is still winter in Portugal (and most of the world I guess…) so we might have been some of the only tourists, which was so amazing. We pretty much had the ocean and the city to ourselves! It was such a nice change to be surrounded with nature instead of buildings and tons of people. I sometimes forget how disconnected from nature I am here—and how noisy and crowded it is all the time—what a difference from Houghton! We also went out to dinner one night to try pollo piri piri—a Portuguese specialty that Mercedes (one of our school’s receptionists) recommended us. It was delicious! She told us it was really spicy, but what she really meant is that it had flavor! I think that Spaniards think salt is the only form of seasoning. We really enjoyed the live music in the restaurant too—there was this man playing really electronic, polka sounding songs on a keyboard and each song somehow seemed to get more upbeat! We explored the city a little—it’s a lot smaller than Sevilla, but so pretty-lots of white buildings and the ocean. We found a playground! And enjoyed joking about all the things we could do in Portugal that started with “P”—it was a fun scattergories game! It was a great weekend and I’m still kind of in disbelief that it really is that easy to travel to a different country-we didn’t even have our passports stamped, which we’re a little disappointed about.

Then we had two days of class and then went to Toledo as a “field trip” (3/4/10). The art classes were required to go, but all the students came. Toledo is about an hour from Madrid and is basically right in the center of the country. We had to meet at school at 6:20am!! But we had about a 6 hour bus ride, so I tried to sleep unsuccessfully. On our way to Toledo we stopped to see the famous molinos (the windmills) that don Quijote attacked in his first adventure! WE really only stopped long enough to take pictures, then we continued on to Toledo. We checked into our hotel and then were free to go eat our bocadillos and then met at this little museum/church to see “El entierro Del Conde de Orgaz,” a really famous painting by El Greco. It was so big, and it’s crazy to think that it’s really the original! I feel that I didn’t really appreciate it as much as I should have, because we studied it in class, and well, it looks the same as it does in the pictures…it's not quite the same feeling as going inside the churches, cathedrals and mezquita after studying the architecture in class, but it still really cool to have my art professor Carmen explain everything to us—she studied that painting for an entire year! So she’s an expert. Then we went to a monastery—which we’ve also been studying in class. It was pretty cool—especially the claustro (the main/central outdoor patio). Also, some of the doors inside were really little because people back then weren’t as tall. We took a fun picture of three different sized doors with an appropriately sized student for each (Andy, Evelyn, and Rebecca). Then we were free to explore and hang out for the evening! Kat, Emily, Andy and I went out to dinner and got pizza-it was the first time I had any since we’ve been here! It was actually really good—the service in the restaurant however, was typical Spain and was really bad, but it’s because the tip is already included in the bill so the waiters aren’t trying to really serve you because there’s nothing for them to gain from it…And we went to McDonald’s after and go McFlurries—McDonald’s truly is everywhere! And it’s really popular here-children have their birthday parties there, and it’s always packed on Friday and Saturday nights. It’s pretty ridiculous. The menu is basically the same, but there are a few things such as the Cono Kit-Kat (our favorite because it’s on the 1 euro menu-it’s just a vanilla ice cream cone with one bar of a Kit-Kat stuck in it) and café con leche (half coffee-half milk, which isn’t anything new to me since Zach Adams always got his café ole from the java cart before Secondary Education and American Culture J ). We went back to the hotel and got a big group of us together in one room and played Fishbowl (a catchphrase, charades mix). It was so much fun and reminded me of Kat, Houghton, and 3rd Old. The next day we had breakfast at the hotel—that was the first time I’ve had more than just toast for breakfast. Then we went to the catedral de Toledo-a huge gothic cathedral from the 13th century. Now, these cathedrals look ridiculously enormous from the outside, but you kind of just think to yourself, “wow, that’s a big building.” Then you go inside and realize that the people who constructed this monstrous building must have been practically insane, which the builders of the cathedral in Sevilla actually said about themselves (we’re going to build a cathedral so big they’ll think we’re crazy-something to that effect). It’s true! You walk in and suddenly you feel that you’ve walked into a giant’s house (really lame and cheesy, but the best I can do). The columns are just enormous (both tall and in diameter) and the ceilings-and the decoration is just mind-boggling, I have no idea how you do any of this-and it’s all made from stone! Plus, the stained glass windows and the other artwork that is inside are just incredible. It’s so cool to tour the cathedrals after we’ve studied them; I still just love the opportunity to go out and SEE what I’m studying. After our tour of the cathedral we headed back to Sevilla. It was a nice relaxing weekend—which was so need to rest after so much travelling. I love seeing these new places and am constantly reminded of how big this world is—and how much is out there!

He goes on ahead of us...

He goes on ahead of us…

It seems unbelievable that just a few weeks ago I was home/visiting Houghton and struggling with saying goodbyes and wondering what would follow leaving everything familiar and comfortable behind. And while those goodbyes were extremely difficult, it has been so clear to me that the Lord goes on ahead of us—Psalm 23. “It is difficult for us to go, but equally difficult for Him to cause us pain. Yet it must be done. It would not be in our best interest to always remain in one happy and comfortable location. Therefore He moves us forward.” He moves us forward—and it has been into a whirlwind of new experiences, culture, people, foods, places…everything, ever since “cruce el charco” (a Spanish phrase for going to America: “I crossed the puddle”).

As I described in my first entry, I didn’t know very much about what to expect in Spain. I was so torn about leaving Houghton, missing track season, being gone for such a long time…and all of this sacrifice for what? Well, as I should have expected, God “is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine.” So, while leaving everyone wasn’t easy—and I do miss you all!—I have been delighted by the ease of the beginning of my transition. I am so blessed to be here, and am so thankful for a smooth and fun-filled first two weeks. But I need to remind myself that I will actually be here for 4 months. I am trying to find balance—between all the goals, expectations and pressures I have been putting on myself. Obviously, my greatest goal is to improve my fluency en español while I’m here, and I have been getting to practice a lot with all of my classes in Spanish and the experience of living with a host family, but English easily finds its way into my days. I don’t feel any drastic improvements yet, but I don’t think this experience will necessarily be one of instant gratification—I have however, been feeling much more confident in my speaking, and at least am getting over my nerves/fears of talking to Spaniards, but I need to be realistic that it will take time and I most likely will not be fluent in only 4 months. I also have made some really good (American) friends already, and I really like spending time with them—which has made me a little less motivated to go out seeking Spanish friends (which I really want too). And, while, I am also here for academics, I want to experience the culture and see all that Sevilla and España have to offer! We took a little field trip to Córdoba—a small city about 2 hours away from Sevilla and visited la Mezquita, which is a Mosque/Cathedral built between the 8th-10th centuries, that we had been studying in my art history class. It’s quite the combination of incredible Muslim and Christian architecture (the Cathedral was built inside part of the Mosque). It’s so cool to be able to go out and literally walk through and see what you’ve been studying—everything is so applicable. I study grammar and go home and speak with my host family, and I finally am able to experience all of the foods and culture I’ve learned about for so long. I’m trying to be content with the present, but I keep wondering about what’s to come—this adventure has only just begun!

A few pictures from La Mezquita in Cordoba

One week! I can't believe the first week has already gone by! After our 2 hour walking tour Saturday we had a little competitive scavenger hunt. We were given a list of 20 things to find and take pictures of around Sevilla. It was super fun-my group (including my new friends Kat, Emily, Daniel, Andy, and Elizabeth) took a bus to church first-which was an interesting experience since I don't know how to use a bus in the US...we eventually got to the church about half an hour late and realized when we got there that the door entered into the very front of the sanctuary next to the stage and all the chairs of the congregation faced it-hola! haha. The person speaking kind of just stopped in the middle of what he was saying and asked if we spoke Spanish and where we were from and then afterwards the pastor and some other members of the congregation came and talked to us. And then they started helping us find places on our map for our scavenger hunt! So we set off to find our first location-and we walked and walked and walked all over for the whole day finding places (and some that weren't on the list too!). My feet have never been so sore...

I have almost finished my first week of classes here-I'm really hoping that I'm not signed up for too many, but we'll see how it goes. I am taking to literature classes (one is Don Quijote, and the other is Hispanic-American lit) and a grammar class, and art history. The school also offers a class called Accion Solidaria-which is a volunteer/service kind of class, so I'm going to be working with some other Spaniards and people from the program with homeless people (or gente sin hogar).

Here's some pictures from the scavenger hunt:

Trying to figure out how to take the bus to get to church.

Getting help and directions from our amigos nuevos.

The whole team in La Plaza de Espana.

We've also found a couple playgrounds in some of the parks, and the play equipment is different! We're not quite sure how to use it all, so we've been trying to observe Spanish children at play. After watching a boy on this spinning thing, we figured out how to use it:

The first picture is the awesome ceiling inside the Madrid airport.

The rest are some highlights from my walking tour in Sevilla. We had a lot of orientation this morning-the highlight being a little placement test. Then my roommate and I went home for lunch and siesta and then met back at the school at 6pm for the tours by some of the people working with our program. The city is so beautiful-and the buildings are incredible! And there are so many people out walking everywhere! The main form of transportation is de pie! The parking is crazy! People really use their bumpers when they squeeze in and out of the spots on the streets.

So far so good-I'm communicating pretty well with my Senora so far-I can't understand everything she says, but I figure it out. And the director and student life coordinator are pretty cool, and the professors (who came to introduce themselves this morning) all seem like they'll be really good. I schedule my classes tomorrow-and then start on Monday, guess I'll have to get back into school mode soon...

he llegado

Well, after an entire day of travelling, I have arrived in Seville, Spain! I left my house on Januray 20th at 7:30am and arrived in Sevilla on January 21st around 12pm (local time). It was a lot of time sitting-on planes, in airports, and I'm glad to be done with travelling for a little while...

I really like my host family-they're actually the one that I requested! And everyone I've met so far on the program is super nice and outgoing-I've already been trying to figure out who they remind me of from back home...it's been fun meeting new people again, it's like I'm a freshmen all over!

Well, plenty of adjustment to jetlag and orientation ahead :)

Lord, I don't know where all this is going...

Lord, I don’t know where all this is going…

In exactly one week, almost to the hour, I’ll be on a plane to Spain (well, actually to Chicago, then Madrid, and finally to my destination for the next four months: Seville). I’ve wanted to study abroad for so long, and I knew I would—especially since a semester abroad is required for my Spanish major, but it never seemed like it would actually be happening-and certainly not so soon.

I was not planning on studying abroad this spring semester. Yet, while the plan was slowly unfolding and becoming clearer to me, I’ve been able to look back on how God has been working everything out for me—long before these recent details. I applied last year to be an RA-and I could have never guessed last spring how happy I’d be that I did not receive the position, because that “no” now allows me to be able to have the freedom to go this semester. Even for most of this past fall semester I had no idea that I was going to Spain until I actually decided to be a little bit responsible and talk to my advisors about scheduling, and found out junior year is definitely not the year to go abroad as an education major. So that complicated things for a short while—until the suggestion was made by Karen in off-campus programs that it wasn’t too late to apply for programs next semester-but actually it technically was. I thought, this is absolutely crazy, and then I applied late to Trinity Christian College’s Semester in Spain program after some consultation with my parents.

Needless to say, I was accepted, and that brings me almost to my present time of preparing to depart. So, the beginning of November, I knew I was going—but that was all I knew. I didn’t know anything about my classes, the other students going with the program, and my host family…the minor details…but this didn’t really bother me, at least not nearly as much as I’d expect it to. While my roommate Kat—who will be in Tanzania, Africa for the semester—had pretty much the exact opposite; she’s known that she’s going to Tanzania since last spring, knows practically everyone going with her-including the profs, since they’re almost all from Houghton, and was able to have fun meetings with the group and talk about all the details-which was slightly beneficial to her, since Kat isn’t too detail oriented and definitely doesn’t plan too far in advance (NOT). But despite the large difference in the amount of knowledge each of us had about our upcoming semesters, it was an immeasurable blessing to be rooming with her (another one of those subtle details God surely had in mind long before I could imagine what would come of it). We were able to share in our preparations to leave Houghton, and everything else behind as the close of the semester drew nearer—and for that, Kat, I am inexpressibly grateful.

So, one week. I do now know my roommate, and the name and address of my host mother, otherwise, it’s all still a mystery. I don’t know what to expect for what lies ahead for the next four months, but I have such peace. And I trust in knowing that He has it all planned, and “is able to do immeasurably more than we can ask or imagine.”

Lord, I don’t know where all this is going, or how it all works out. Lead me to peace that is past understanding, a peace beyond all doubt.
(the Newsboys must have a song to fit any and all circumstances haha).