lunes, 1 julio

Today I woke up in a panic because it was so bright outside that I thought I slept in through my alarm. Nope, it was only 6:30. So I got ready and then siesta'd until it was time to leave for class. In class today we started by reviewing our essays from last Friday. I only messed up a couple of times, forgetting to make adjectives plural, and other goofy mistakes. We also talked about how when 'y' and 'o' is followed by a vowel they change to 'e' and 'u.' We then read an essay which talked about the different appropriate ways to dress, and did a whole bunch of activities that helped use learn all of the different words, the different grammar structures, and ways to give advice. Next in class we talked about traditional sports, and then adventure sports, like rock climbing, scuba diving and parachuting, and then worked on the grammar called "Pretérito perfecto" which is basically "have eaten" or "have played" we played an equivalent of 'popcorn' where one person would ask someone else a question, the second would have to answer and then ask someone else a different question. After we all had mastered popcorn, we practiced again, but we went in a circle and you had to repeat all of the phrases that were said before your turn. I was fourth or fifth so it wasn't too hard for me to remember the previous, but the last person rocked it.

Today for lunch we had noodles with zucchini and meat sauce. I finished an entire plate and Sandra still commented on how little I always eat! I also had my first not-Coca-Cola brand coke today, which still tasted like coke to me. After lunch I worked on planning my trip during my three day weekend. I think my current plan is to take the bus to Madrid Friday morning and hang out and visit the city, and then on Saturday take a day-trip tour to Barcelona, and then return to Madrid to stay and then finish touring Madrid on Sunday. I've changed my mind several times in the last few days, so keep reading to find out what I finally booked!

The next plan was to go to the Museo de El Grecco, but since they are closed on Mondays I decided to take advantage of the Rebajas ('sales'- Black Friday over the course of a month and a half, but less crazy) that started today all over the country, instead of going to a restaurant and sitting around all night. On one of the streets an elderly couple asked me for help getting them to where they wanted to go and after reading all of the "I'm a tourist" signs they put off, I switched back to English. The man was a little taken back and asked where I learned English, and I laughed saying I was from the States and I grew up speaking it. He then asked me where I was from and why I was here. I told him I was from Nebraska and am in Spain to study. He then got really excited and asked if I was from UNL and said that he was an alumni. I walked up and down the streets I knew had clothing stores and in the very last shop I went into I found a dress that was long enough to sit in and wasn't outrageously expensive; it was pale blue with green designs and is a perfect summer dress. The lady in the tienda (store) said that there is only one of each style in the store at a time and helped me find dresses in my size. She didn't speak English very well, so I had to use my Spanish skills to communicate and I was secretly really excited. After she found out I was a student she helped me get the right España pronunciation of words to ask to try a dress on, and how to ask to buy this dress but not that dress. She was friendly without being overly friendly or making me feel stupid.

A close-up of the pattern of my new dress.
...I'll post pictures wearing it later

After I got my dress I decided to head home to start on my homework and finalize my Barcelona plans. I put my things away and then put my head on my pillow for two seconds and woke up to the sound of rain over an hour later. The rain lasted for about 5 minutes, and stopped as soon as it started. I worked a little more on my Barcelona plans and on my homework. On miércoles (Wednesday), we have to give a presentation about our idol, either famous or not. We have to talk about their likes, interests, and hobbies; as well as a short biography. I can't decide who my idol is that I'd be comfortable talking about... although J.K. Rowling is the current winner.

For cena we had chicken wings. I can honestly say that that is the first time I've eaten chicken off of a bone. It's so hot all of the time so its cooler to leave the light off and I'm okay with that because it's easier to forget that it's a bird's wing instead of a meal when you can't see it. But I can officially say that I ate a chicken wing, or three.

I'm now attempting to book my hotel and Barcelona day trip tickets. I am so thankful for the technology that allows me to ask family back in Nebraska a million questions, and now I'm planning on going to Madrid and touring Friday, Saturday, and Sunday and staying in a hotel up in Madrid. And I just booked my very first hotel! And now I'm going to finish putting photos from this weekend into the correct blog posts and then call it a night!

Love y'all!