Algo poco raro...

Hola hola! I have returned from the marvelous city of Barcelona. Let me just tell you—it was probably the best city I have been to in Spain so far. Madrid was fun, Ronda was, well, BORING, Malaga was fine but nothing too extraordinary, Almunecar was the beach (so obviously beautiful, but not like Barcelona), Algeciras was creeptastic, and I have yet to visit Sevilla or Cordoba (that’s next weekend!) so they cannot be counted. Cataluña definitely is its own separate entity from the rest of Spain. Not only do they speak their own dialect of Spanish (Catalan), which is not even CLOSE to the Castellano Spanish that I have been learning since 8th grade, but their lifestyle is far different from the relaxed, warm lifestyle in Andalucia. No matter, the trip was wonderful, and I would’ve loved to spend more time there, but alas!

As always, I am going to remind you that I also have put up pictures from this trip, so go check them out! I know, I know, there are an obscene amount (more than usual, actually), BUT you should all be excited because there are some photos with actual PEOPLE in them (being me, Anne and Sara, mostly)!! This is a remarkable event for me, I know. But never fear, my usual scenery shots are there too. I hope you like them.

The trip itself was filled with one wonderful experience after another, all the while throwing in the usual snoring suspects (I cannot travel anywhere without them!!). We took a free walking tour of the Gothic Quarter on Friday morning with a girl named Claudia from Australia who was actually a guide in training because our real guide ditched and didn't show up. We got to see many cool places, including where Picasso's father taught, and learned that the Gothic Quarter didn't have electricity or running water until 1992 when they had to gear up for the Olympics! how crazy!

We also got to see many of Gaudi's beautiful creations, like the Sagrada Familia, Casa Batllo, Park Guell, and his own house. We even took a cooking class to learn houw to make Sangria and Paella! So if you ever want me to cook for you...let me know! :)

I really wish I had more time to spend there because the weekend just didn't seem like enough. Now that I am back, I am glad to be back, as always, but you know how it goes...Next weekend is my last weekend of travel. My program is going to Sevilla and Cordoba, and I am very excited even though I have heard mixed reviews of Cordoba. It's weird to think that tomorrow I have exactly one month left before I head back to the States. I am ready, but at the same time, I and definitely not ready!! I do not want to go through culture shock again once I get home.

Not to mention is will be ungodly cold in Illinois. It's already snowing, I'm told. Yuck. I would much rather stay here in the 60 degree weather. With warm sun.

BUT! The "algo poco raro" (something kind of weird that happened today was that the television in my host family's house isn't working. Now, that doesn't seem like the biggest of deals to most, but let me tell you...everything, everything is centered around that television. We watch it during lunch and dinner, and then my host family watches all afternoon, and all night until they go to sleep. My host father was absolutely furious, and I found it remarkable how mad it made him. He almost was to the point of pouting, and I just found it very interesting. We ate lunch in complete silence, and it was so uncomfortable.

Here's to hoping that it gets fixed. Keep your fingers crossed, otherwise tonight's dinner could be just ass bad, or worse. Eep!

I got a letter from Lexie today, too, which was amazing. Included was one for Peter as well, and it made me very happy. So thank you (in the event that you read this!!)

But yes, I should head back for dinner time. Besitos a todos!