How is is our last day in sevilla already?

Today was our last day at school. I tried to make the most of it and have fun in all of our classes, but it was still a pretty sad day. At lunch break we walked around and said goodbye to a lot of the older friends we had made. Then when school ended, we said goodbye to our individual classes. This part was really sad since we may never see our Sevillan friends again. At home it was a special day too. We ate all of my favorite Sevillan foods for dinner. Then I said goodbye to Alvaro's grandmother and father. This was pretty sad too since I might not get to see my family again. I think as a "family" we've become pretty close over the last month... Anyway, off to Madrid.

I'm leavin' on a jet plane, don't know when I'll be back again...

Actually it's a high speed train but the song still fits. I have been invite to come visit my family and I think it goes without saying that I will gladly take them up on that offer. Last night I went to Plaza Espana with my host mom and host brother, then we all went out for dinner at Sloppy Joes which doesn't actually serve sloppy joes the sandwhiches it is a pizza place. It is so weird to see the word sandwhiches with an 'h' I have been in Spain so long. Well, it's bittersweet as I'm sure everyone else has said. Happy to see Madrid, happy to go home, but very sad to leave. OH! And I got the cutest paper with my name surrounded by hearts and funny frases from some the local students... Awwww. See you all soon. Hasta luego Espana... voy a verte pronto.

bittersweet

:(

El Último Día en Sevilla

Today was our last day in Sevilla. It has gone by so fast. It was sad to say goodbye to our new friends in Spain, but I am so excited for them to come to Colorado. Since Ana's birthday is shortly after I leave, we decided we should celebrate her birthday a little while I'm here.... a reason to have cake. Our Merienda (snack) when we got home was this really good cake that was sort of chocolate, but made of some sort of stacked soft cookie things. I had brought a couple little birthday presents for Ana from Colorado. Tonight we are having Pizza for dinner, Yay. We are also going to eat earlier, because I am going to go to bed earlier, in order to get up earlier, etc. I think that's pretty much it. Tomorrow we meet Ms. Stamas at the train station at 9:15 a.m. to take the ave to Madrid. I'm very exciting for Madrid. May I also point out that half of my socks and underwear have gone missing.... and I don't think I'll be returning with them, they've been taken by the laundry gnomes. Oh well haha. See you all soon.

One more day...

Tomorrow is our last full day in Sevilla..... its actually mind blowing. I'm sure everyone is feeling the same way, but I just cannot believe that 4 weeks have gone by so quickly. This trip has been indescribably amazing, I have seen so much and made so many new friends, and I can't believe it's almost over. The fact that we were given the opportunity to become completely immersed in a new culture, school and family was a little scary at first, but wound up being one of the most incredible experiences I have ever had. Sevilla itself is a great city, and I have absolutely loved seeing and learning about the different culture. It has really opened my eyes to just how much there is to see in other cultures, and I hope I can come back to Spain soon. My host family also has been amazing. They have been so kind to me, and completely opened their home and lives to me, making me feel comfortable and accepted into their family from day 1. I am very sad to be leaving Sevilla, but its been a wonderful experience and I am very excited to see Madrid.

On Sunday my family took me to a beach thats an hour outside of Seville to do some sightseeing. The weather was perfect and it was so relaxing to sit in the sun near the ocean. I had to inform Julie that unfortunately there are no beaches in Colorado, and also unfortunately, if you drive for 1 hour you are still in a very similar part of the state. Ah well, its all the more reason to return to Spain! I'm looking forward to a great rest of the week in Madrid! - Leah

Plaza Espana

Today after school Cris took me to see Plaza Espana because we didn't have a chance to see it on our last day of sight seeing. Words can't describe how beautiful the architecture is. The plaza has such a wonderful calming feel to it, although still visibly rich with spanish culture and history. Every single day Sevilla surprises me with its beauty and it's unparalleled youthful atmosphere. I am already looking into my busy calendar to try and find a time to come back to this amazing place... and see all my friends again. I have never been in a place with such sincerely sweet strangers. There is a common thread of generosity and kindness throughout every native, it's awesome. I am missing parts of home though... so like Ian said, it will be a bittersweet departure.

-Annie

La Mano Arriba, Cintura Sola, Da Media Vuelta, Danza Kuduro

Soooo... I have been kicking off this last week with Sevillian food, night-life and dancing. Friday night Briannah, Ana and I met up with Annie and Cristina downtown and I got to meet a bunch of new, very funny, people and eat Spanish version of Mexican food. Then we had a sleepover consisting of chocolate bunnies and skyping with Buck as if we all haven't gotten sick of each other. Then I got home, showered, and headed off to celebrate fathers day at this amazing restaurante that I can walk to. The chocolate cake looks like some gross flan thing but it was the best desert I have ever had... no kidding. Then Sophie and I got ready to go to a discoteca which literally means a Disco but it's actually a club. It was so much fun! Everyone was dancing with super load music. After lots of sweat, tired feet, and ruined hair-dos (I don't know how to spell that word even if it is a word) Sophie and I drove over to a party at Annie and Cristina's house with the other exchange students... I cannot get Danza Kuduro out of my head I have heard it so many times... La mano arriba, cinutra sola, da media vuelta, DANZA KUDURO!!!

Weekend

I can't believe that it is already our last weekend here in Seville. I finally feel like I am comfortable here and have a ton of friends, so it is really fun to make weekend plans and go out. I went with Oscars family to Palma del Rio, which was a wildlife area with a lot of beautiful sight seeing opportunities. Today, we went first to the mercadillo, a place where vendors sell a lot of Spanish things. I bought two Real Madrid jerseys, and then we went to Italica, where there are ruins from an entire roman empire. The sight seeing was beautiful, and we got to go inside a "Colosseum" where gladiator fights and lions once took place. I have seen diverse culture here like never before, and it has been awesome to get a look into the world of other people and other places, and to see ruins from the time before Christ, like I did today. I am looking forward to my last few days in Seville, and our journey to Madrid, although leaving this amazing place will be very bitter-sweet.

-Ian

Last few days

The stress of realizing that we leave so soon has set in a bit. Everyone has been running around seeing things in Seville we haven't had an opportunity to see yet and shopping for friends back home. School here is very different from home. Not only do they have a lot more classes then we do, but they don't really have homework. Instead, they have tests on material they have gone over in class. They have a test almost everyday. It's a very odd system. The grading scale is also different. They grade from 1-10 and anything above a 5 (or passing) is considered to be a "win." Leah and I look at each other weird when one of the exchanges is celebrating a 7.5 or a 75% in our world. So back to the last few days... The one day of the week Cristina did not have an exam, thursday, we went into Sevilla to do some much needed touristy things like buying my family appropriate gifts and taking awkward pictures in front of important monuments. I had a lot of fun thursday walking around with just Cristina and seeing all the sights of spain. Later that night we met up with Leah and Julie and Briannah and Ana for some ice cream. Only in Spain does Haagen-Dazs serve ice cream ball fondue. I'm getting excited about seeing Madrid and having time with all the dawson people i've gotten to know through this experience.

That's all for now folks. See you in a week.

-Annie

Chocolate Bunnies

Yesterday was friday and Emily came home from school with Ana and me. We had a lovely cheesecake snack, before changing out of uniforms to go out. We hung out in Sevilla with people and went to a sort of weird Mexican-ish restaurant. Emily stayed over for a sleepover. We succeeded in having a midnight snack of strawberries, with barquillos, and whipped cream. Then we ate chocolate and a giant chocolate bunny. Today is father's day in Spain. Yah that was random. Tonight is the party at Cristina's house, looking forward to that.

el fin de semana

The weekend is off to a very nice start, as it's sunny and warm and not supposed to rain all weekend. Last night Julie and I went into Sevilla to see some friends and have tapas. There is a ton of nightlife in Sevilla, and especially now that the weather has improved, there is so much to do in the city. Although I have not seen anywhere close to the whole city, I have gone to certain areas enough now that I can find my way around pretty well and am starting to learn the names of some of the areas and streets..... kind of. Today we went to the gym and then are meeting Julie's parents for a nice lunch in Seville before heading to Annie and Cristina's for the evening. Hopefully tomorrow I will go with Julie's mom to a very nice farmer's market and potentially go to a Spanish horse exposition that the exchange students usually see on a school excursion. The weather is so nice, and I cannot believe this is our last weekend here. Hopefully it will continue to be a great one! more soon :)

Thank goodness its viernes

So today is friday... FINALLY. It's been a long week. There have been good parts, like meeting the real betis goalie in a restaurant. Anyway, after school we came home and hung out for a while, and then went into sevilla. I had tons of fun hanging out with all of Alvaro's friends. Also we ate delicious Turkish food. I'm really looking foreword to tomorrow. First we're eating churros for breakfast, then later we're going to my last real betis soccer game. Finally, we're going to a party at Annie and Christina's house.

sunny seville

For the past two days the rain has held off, and we've had warm, sunny days. Finally! Today Julie and I went into Seville for some shopping and sightseeing, which was so nice. We met her mom at a rooftop restaurant directly across from Giralda, the cathedral of Sevilla and had an amazing view of both the cathedral, and most of downtown. I am so grateful to my entire host family, especially Julie, for showing me so much of Sevilla, because the city is amazing and there is SO much to see. Today Julie took me across the river to the very oldest part of the city, called Triana, where we went to a very traditional marketplace and talked with the shopkeepers and other shoppers. People were incredibly friendly, and really interested in conversing with me. It was tough at times to keep up with the pace of the conversations, but I got some good practice, and everyone we talked to was very understanding if it took me a while to think of a word or phrase. I am really excited about the fact that my Spanish seems to have improved a lot since being here, and I am much more able to sustain long conversations in Spanish about all different topics. :)

Julie's uncle has been staying with her family for a few days as he is here from Holland on business. It has been really interesting to talk with him about life in Holland and his perceptions of America and American culture, because his perceptions are very different from those I have heard from Spaniards, and the culture in Holland is amazingly different. All in all, its been a very good few days, and I am really looking forward to our last weekend in Seville, which should be sunny and great. more soon!

Fun Times

On Tuesday night I had tennis for the first time in a week due to the monsoon. It was great to play again, and it is especially fun because the coach I am playing with knows almost no English at all, which allows me to practice even more Spanish, and to practice describing things in Spanish for words that I don't know. Wednesday night was also a treat because we went to our friend Pablo's house where we watched Real Madrid play in the round of 16 in the Champions League. They won 3-0, and everyone was cheering at the TV. Once again I was in a household with only Spanish speakers, so I had to figure out a way to say everything I wanted in Spanish without ever slipping in an English word. Great practice.

Time here is passing quite quickly, and the immersion group has really bonded as a whole. I know every single person (all 16) well now, and I have grown much closer to a group of Dawson students that I never talked to much in the past. Along with that, I have made a ton of new friends from many different schools, grades, and classes. It is fun to make new international mates who I can stay in touch with, especially so we can visit each other if we are ever travelling close to each other's home towns.

-Ian

The world according to cris

Awkward= Acorrect

It's funnier if you hear her say it. One week left!

Title of Blog

Today it is wednesday. It is March 16, 2011. Tomorrow is St. Patrick's Day, but we can't wear green (sad), because of our uniforms (which thankfully are not green). There was a earthquake/tsunami in Japan, which is horrible.

One can think that everyone is doing good. Today Buck played soccer, which he seems to have enjoyed, though it doesn't seem like he really likes having to go to choir with his host brother. Leah seems to be having a good time and gets along really well with Julie, though it doesn't seem like she enjoyed being freezing cold for a week when it was constantly raining. Because Annie and Briannah have host sisters who are really good friends, they've done lots of things together. That has been fun. Today Wes and Ian brought a football to school. They had fun teaching some people how to throw a football, as most people were amazed to see and American football. Ian got a new record on tetris today. Emily and Buck are each in a different class than Briannah, Annie, Leah, Ian, and Wes (who are all in the same class). We all have library together though. Wes has begun reading a children's chapter book in Spanish to pass the time in class. Emily and Briannah made a list of things to buy in Madrid for the hotel room (it includes a tissue box and nutella at the top). Emily doesn't really enjoy running on cobblestone streets.

Today was sunny with a few clouds with a high of 18 C (65 F) and a low of 8 C (47 F) . Tomorrow it is supposed to be cloudy with a high of 17 C (63 F) and a low of 10 C (50 f). We are supposed to go on a field trip sometime, but Setmani hasn't been able to plan it or tell us when/where it will be. Briannah's host sister was sick for 4 days last week, now her host dad has been sick for the past 4 days and is still sick, now today her host mom is also sick. It's a family sickness party. Hopefully since she's not technically part of that family she won't have to join the sickness party.

Anonymous.

good start to the week

Although always tough to get up early after a fun weekend, this week has started off well. It rained all day Monday, and although many of the walkways around school are covered by thin roofs, many of them leak quite unexpectedly, essentially soaking everyone at some point during the day. Today however it did not rain at all, and we actually had some sun during the morning which was great. School is still going well as we have all really gotten accustomed to the routine and classes. Over the past few days, it seems I have been in more of a Dutch immersion program than Spanish immersion, as my host family watches 2 hours of Dutch news on the crisis in Japan each afternoon, and then discuss the events in Dutch. I really want to see what has been happening in Japan each day, so while watching the news I have gotten very good at listening for vernacular words, and trying to invent my own story line for the images. I have also picked up a few good phrases in Dutch, like the word for chocolate (which I won't attempt to spell) and how to say "please pass the food." Pretty useful.........

I cannot believe that we only have one more week in Seville, the time has gone so quickly. At the risk of sounding like I'm exaggerating, I will say that I have loved every minute of this trip. Being a part of a completely new and different culture has been incredible, and I have made some amazing friends here in Spain. This is a trip I will be very sad to end, but one I know has had a huge impact on my life. Looking forward to a great last week in Sevilla!! - Leah

Week 4 already?

It must be true what they say about time flying... I cant believe we only have a week left with our host families! This has been such a fun experience, and I can't imagine it ending so soon. It seems like we just got here! This weekend will be the last real betis soccer game I'll see, so I hope they'll win. Other than that, I'm going to try to make the most of my time at school. Today I fell asleep during a test they had first thing. Apparently the whole class was laughing at the fact that I was snoring... but oh well, at least I'll be remembered for something.

Lista de Hechos (que yo justo aprendi) #3

I know I just posted but I figured that whatever audience may be reading this would like a new Lista de Hechos of things I have learned just today before I forget them all. 1) I like kiwi 2)It is considered very wierd to put mustard on french fries but perfectly acceptable to put it in gyros 3)To call someone 'chicken' as in a scared person, you actually say 'hen' or 'gallina'. If you call someone 'chicken' or 'pollo' it really means 'big fat loser' and Spanish people think it is the most hysterical thing in the world 4)When in Spain, grow your hair long. I'm pretty sure Annie has the shortest hair of any girl currently occupying Spain. All the girls' hair is about half way down their backs... 5) Bathrooms are not for bathroom-y things suchas peeing or washing one's hands. That would explain the incredibly annoying lack of soap, toilet paper, and paper towels. Instead they are used as make-up rooms and rain shelters only. Break these rules and you will be subject to funny looks from all locals. 6) Even if it isn't raining cats and dogs in Spain your feet will still feel very wet. It may be sunny and warm but your toes are still swimming in the great lakes. Thank you humidity. 7) There may not be any tissue within a 4 mile radius, but if you crumple your AP Human syllabus a bunch of times not only have you gotten rid of the feeling that you have a long list of work to do, but you have also made yourself a very soft,homemade tissue.

Weekend

All week we were looking foreword to a party this saturday. Unfortunately it got canceled. Instead my family took me to the province of Extremadura. There we saw some roman ruins, and walked around the town. We also ate some food which I thought was fine, and my family thought was terrible. This is interesting to me, as it seems that I can't really tell the difference between good and bad spanish food, just as our spanish brothers think a Mcdonalds hamburger represents all hamburgers...

Panqueques

So pancakes here are eaten a little differently than in the United States. On weekends my family makes pancakes and we eat them with butter, cream cheese, then you can top it off with either caramel or chocolate sauce... it is very, very tasty. I am going to be so fat by the end of this is it insane. I went to Tarifa today, it's a town where you can see Africa across the sea. Africa is practically reach-out-and-touch-it distance! Oh and my camera broke... depressing. This time I actually didn't do anything. However I did break my last camera in Spain several years ago. Se me rompio! (It broke itself and I just happened to be there!) No actually I kinda threw it... on accident... That's why you have the hand straps. But this time I was holding my camera with one of my fingers over the lens when it was off. When I turned it on it tried to move forward. Normally it just stops and gives me a warning that something is blocking it and to try again. But nope... this time it just broke. But in happier news... I went to a birthday party for a girl named Martha and I'm pretty sure I just met Spanish me. Her name is Laura and she is my Spanish twin! She played music from the kids' movie Hercules and she sang the spanish words while I sang the english ones. Of course we had to act out the song too. So that's about all I've got. Hasta!

Family Excitement

As everyone else has said, a monsoon has hit Seville this week along with the other natural weather disasters that have hit the world. We decided to stay home today to do homework, relax, eat, and recuperate from being out late for the last two nights. Oscar and I were playing video games when we heard his dad yell, his sister scream, and a thud on the ground. We got up and ran into the kitchen where Oscar's dad had cut his hand open while cutting jamon, which caused Oscar's little sister (who is 12) to pass out because she hates blood. Lunch was postponed while we bandaged a badly cut finger and brought his sister back to consciousness, but after the high strung energy calmed down a bit everything was fine and back to normal. We enjoyed a nice lunch as a family and now everyone is relaxing on the computer or in front of the TV.

Time here has passed incredibly quickly, especially since we depart from Seville in just over a week. I will be very sad to leave this wonderful place where I have made many friends, but I will also be excited to see Madrid and experience a different part of the Spanish culture.

-Ian

....stays mainly in the plain

Although I'm sure you're already aware it's been raining cats and dogs here, I'd like to tell you that it's been raining cats and dogs here. The rain, although beautiful, makes school even more unpleasant than it has been. This past week I was sick with a cold and stayed home friday but I'm finally feeling a lot better. I've learned the trick to success is layers... and I'm not kidding when I say layers. To school I now typically wear my light blue button down shirt, a navy sweater, a gray sweatshirt, and my north face puffy jacket with a scarf. I'm definitely getting used to the warmer weather and complaining as much as the kids here do on a rainy day of 40 or 50 degrees. That's another thing, unlike our stupid system in the US, our friends in spain take kindly to the metric system. This means temperature in C, height in meters, and weight in kilo's. Although I agree it makes more sense, it's really an odd thing to try to get used to. Also at the crosswalks in downtown Seville, not only do they have the little animated green walking guy symbol but when it is safe to cross there is a little bird-like noise that repeats for (quoted from a friend bea,) "the people who don't see well." At first thought, that makes sense. Then I looked around and saw all the bikes and cars out of the lanes and thought that this was no place for a partially blind person. Moving on. Driving here is terrifying.. I now completely understand why their parents are scared of us driving their children. The roundabouts are everywhere with lights in the middle and very strange streets. The speed limits, lights, and lanes are all really more suggestions for the drivers here. It's crazy.

Today Cristina and I are taking a day to do homework and lay around with all the food we have left over from out cancelled party. It's very needed.

Can't believe we only have a little over a week left in Seville. Sweet and sour.

-Annie

the rain in spain..........

This weekend has been a lot of fun, although a bit damp. Yesterday morning it rained a little and then warmed up and was sunny for the majority of the afternoon, which was great. Julie and I did some work in the morning, then we met her dad and brother for paella, the traditional spanish rice dish..... SO good. We then went into downtown Sevilla so that I had the chance to be the "ultimate tourist," at many of the major attractions in the city. I had not seen the Cathedral, Jardin, or Plaza de Toros, so we walked through the city and toured each one. The Cathedral or "giralda," is really the mark of Sevilla because the tower on the Cathedral is the highest monument in the city, and has some of the most unique and incredible architecture I have ever seen. It was amazing to tour Giralda and learn about it's history in the city, and of course I got some great pictures. We also went to the bull fighting arena, the Plaza de Toros and got a tour of the arena itself as well as the bullfighting museum. Although I think I could live my entire life without seeing an actual bullfight, the arena is absolutely incredible and the tour was very interesting because I got a lot of information about the customs surrounding bullfighting and its history. It was really interesting to learn about something so uniquely Spanish, and learn where all of the traditions surrounding the event come from.

It has been raining pretty much all of today, so Julie and I are staying in and having a much needed homework day. However, even homework days are enjoyable in Spain, because Julie's father has been making churros, chocolate filled crepes and tea all day. More soon! - Leah

La Vida

Not much has happened lately. Weather update: It's monsoon week. It has rained cats and dogs everyday this week. You have to be wet and cold all day at school, which is not ideal in terms of not catching a cold. Ana (my host sister) was quite sick on wednesday, thursday, and friday so she didn't go to school. I still had to go to school though.... pretty boring. I took the AP human test.... not fun. We may go on a field trip next week which would be wonderful. On thursday after school, Emily and I went shopping. It was a lot of fun. Apparently here you need your passport to pay with a credit card. We learned that. At the check-out counter, we were talking to the lady checking us out trying to figure out the passport thing. My spanish was failing abysmally.... We were all laughing, we I looked up the cash register lady was laughing so hard she was crying. My spanish was so bad I made someone cry of laughter :)

Friday night, since Ana was still sick, we just stayed home. We watched the boy in the striped pyjamas (in spanish of course). It was really quite sad. Today (saturday) I've been doing homework. There was going to be a party at Cristina's house, but it got cancelled, so now there's one at someone else's house. I decided to stay home and do homework, because I am currently having a little "oh my god I have so much to do freak out attack." My host dad was trying to convince me that I really should go to this party, because it would be bad to study too much. He was like you can study until 6, and then you can go out from 7 to 2. I was like no I'd really rather stay here. I love how here my host dad is like you need to go out, and at home my parents are a little more for encouraging studying.

Additionally, my family has not ceased to over feed me. It is hilarious. Ana usually saves me though, and is like dad if she doesn't want more don't make her eat more. He literally like tries to take my plate and put more food on it, so I have to like hold on to my plate for dear life and cover it. Haha yah... then he was laughing at me. My host sister's older brother, Pablo, is honestly one of the most hilarious people I've ever met. My host dad, I've finally figured it out, is so much like Mr. Lord! He is very kind and wonderful, but cannot stop talking philosophically about the news, Christopher Columbus, history, math, books, and asking me every 30 minutes if I need a snack.

Now that I have blabbed for 3 paragraphs, I will say farewell.

Weekend!

Weekends are the best...last night Oscar, Juan, Wes, Rossi (another friend) and I went out for bocadillos at an awesome restaurant, and then Rossi, Oscar and I went down by the river to hang out with Oscar's friends who were there. His friends do not go to the same school as us, so once again I was the incredibly interesting kid from America, so I got asked a ton of questions about the teenage life in America, like if life was really like they portray it in the Hollywood movies. I got to practice a lot of Spanish since none of them speak at all, and we had a great time laughing and dancing to the songs that we all knew. This morning I took my US History test online, and now Oscar and I are getting ready to do something tonight. Time has flown by so fast, I can't believe we have been here for three weeks already. I am looking forward to lunch tomorrow, Sunday lunch is always the biggest and best meal of the week (and I love food)!

-Ian

Sick...

So for the past two days I was sick from school. I think it was just a cold, but I'm not really sure. Although I didn't get to hang out with my new spanish friends I did get to spend a lot of time with my host family. I've learned that my host mother is pretty serious about me being sick, and enjoys giving me her ambiguous white pills for getting better. Despite being sick, I feel like it was for the better as I got to spend so much time getting to know my host parents.

Today I went to school, and enjoyed the spanish tortilla we ate for lunch. Who would have thought Spanish people actually eat the stuff we make in Sr. Lewis' class? Anyway, we got home today and promptly went to Alvoro's friend Jesus' house. There we worked out and played video games. I'm starting to feel really welcomed by everyone in spain. Jesus, and all of Alvoro's friends (its safe to say their my friends now too) have all been so welcoming. And not just because I'm an exchange student, but because we talk, and laugh, and have fun together.

All together I feel like I'm starting to fit into spain. I speak the language and have tons of fun with the family. I've even picked up the Sevillan accent!

i still have zero creative titles

Today I came home early from school because I wasn't feeling well and Julie is terrified that I am going to catch pneumonia from being in the rain...... pretty sure that theory has been proven wrong about a thousand times. It's still pretty chilly and cloudy here and its been raining all day. Hopefully we will have a little sunlight by this weekend. Yesterday Julie, her mom and I went into Seville to do a little shopping and have "merienda," or afternoon snack. Julie and I went into a few shops, and I actually managed to sustain a 15 minute long conversation with one of the shopkeepers about the U.S. and Colorado. The woman spoke very quickly, but I was able to catch most of what she was saying and understood each question she asked. She wanted to know a lot of information about American culture, politics, the economy and about Colorado in general so it was really a good test of my Spanish, because I had a lot to say to her and just had to make sure my Spanish was understandable. It was really cool to see how interested the woman was in American culture, and talking with her made me realize how different everything is in Spain. The customs and traditions are of course different, but also things like the nightlife, roads, architecture and demeanor of people are completely different. For the most part, I would say people in Spain are far warmer than people in the United States, and it is much more common in Spain to talk with a stranger and get to know them, like I did with the woman in the store. I love going into Seville, even if just for an afternoon, because there is so much culture packed into a small area, and there is so much for me to see and learn by just walking around the city.

Tonight Julie and I are going to do some shopping in the city and then her host family is taking me to their favorite tapas restaurant. Score! Since being in Spain I have eaten Japanese, Chinese, Korean and Italian food but haven't had tapas or paella, the traditional spanish rice dish yet, so I'm excited. Looking forward to a great weekend! :) - Leah

More Important Announcement

ANNIEEEE!!!!!!

Important Annoucement

Briannah would now like to be referred to as Guadalupe.

Weekend tomorrow- more exciting things soon...

Annie

Lista de Hechos 2

So after Ian's giant monologue I figured I should come in a type something even LONGER. That probably won't happen because everyone has said the basics. What else can I tell you? Briannah and I were in a make-up store and Briannahhad the most miserable attempt at conversing with her that the woman laughed so hard she had to get a napkin to wipe up her tears haha. Oh in Spanish they type haha as jaja. heehee how funny, jajaja. Also I have been teaching pronounciation classes to certain people. You know how often times we ditch the 't' when we say mountain quickly? I tried to teach a bunch of people how to pronounce it and I swear to God it is the funniest thing you have ever heard. They cannot say moun'ain. It sounds like Moww-UUH. It's incredible.
Okay lista de mas hechos:
1) Boys wear scarves just as much as girls do here 2) If boys are not wearing scarves they are most likely wearing the ski neck warmers. (I can't remember English words when I am in Spanish mode so I can't recall any name for those) 3) The teachers people like are called by first name, disliked teachers are called by their last name 4) On weekends everyone goes to sleep at 1 and then wake up and have breakfast at 11! 5) Soda is significantly more expensive then alcohol, and water bottles are TINY 6) There are no street lights except the streetlights for pedestrians. At crossroads they have roundabouts which are meant for 2 cars but turns out they can hold about 5 across in rush hour. 7) Parallel parking in Spain is different insane! They make use of bumpers. There is often literally 6 inches of space inbetween cars. I thought 'Wow! They must make amazing 16-point turns here!' No it's actually done like so: Turn wheel, back up until you hit someone's bumper. Turn whell, move forward until you hit someone's bumper. Turn wheel, move backwards until you roll onto the sidewalk. Turn wheel and gun it because you need to make your own space in traffic here.

It has been raining here for the majority of the last two days and chilly, but hopefully by the weekend it will clear up. It was definitely tough getting to school this monday, but it was actually our first monday at school because on the first week of school we speant monday touring the school and we didnt have school on the second monday. Since our schedule is different every day, we went to our first French class on Monday which I actually really enjoyed. Although my knowledge of the french language is limited to "bon jour" and "baguette," while I watched and listened in class it became clear how similar Spanish and French are. The pronounciations are drastically different, but when the teacher was writing verb conjugations on the board, there were many similarities to Spanish and I could understand some of what was being discussed in French. very cool.

I think my Spanish is really improving, especially my comprehension of what is being said and my ability to follow a complete conversation in Spanish. When I am listening to lectures or discussions in class, I can understand the vast majority of what is being said, but I do notice that it takes me quite a while to think about certain phrases or sentences if I don't immediately understand them, which in turn puts me behind in the conversation or lecture. In general however, I would say I'm understanding a lot more now than I did when we first arrived. It is still hard to have complex conversations with my host family in Spanish, mostly because I often don't exactly know the vocabulary for what I am trying to say. I am getting a lot better at conjugating verbs quickly in my head, as well as picking up a lot of useful phrases which I had never learned in school. I cannot believe that we only have two weeks left in Spain...... Its going to be really hard to leave. Julie and I have become very close friends, and its going to be very strange to return to Colorado without her. I also really feel like I have gotten into a routine with her family and their lives, and I am going to be very sad to leave them. Hopefully the rain will stop soon and we'll have another fun weekend in Seville. :)

Time Flies + Eminem

Time has flown by so quickly I guess I have forgotten to blog as much as I should have....Anyway, I have gotten used to the daily school routine and classes have started to go much quicker. I now feel very close to Oscar and his family, and we have a great time watching futbol each night on TV, yelling for whichever team they want to win, and laughing at the players when they flop (fake their injuries).

My family recently found out that I really like Eminem, and they went on to tell me that he is their favorite rapper. Not just Oscar, but the entire family. Now every time we are in the car we blast Eminem while they all look at me expecting me to rap the words perfectly, which is impossible. They pause the music every few seconds to ask me what the last phrase meant, and it is quite fun explaining all of Eminem's lyrics to them ;)

Weekends are the best time of all. We have gone into Seville every weekend night to eat dinner at different places and to hang out. Wes, Buck and I have been together most nights, although last weekend just Wes and I went with Ana, Vega, and Tal from last years immersion while Buck and our host brothers went out in Seville. It is very fun to be the foreigners here, because everyone at school wants to talk to you, is very nice to you, and wants to hang out with you any time they can, which makes me always feel very welcomed and like I fit in perfectly.

Each day, Oscar and I take the bus to and from school. The 80 minutes I spend on the bus each day is one of my favorite times, because I have made a great group of friends on the bus that I love to be with. The diversity here is unbelievable, and on the bus I sit next to a kid from Australia, and we talk to Pablo and Kate. Pablo is from Luxembourg and Kate is from Liverpool, and along with Oscar that means the five of us are from five countries and three continents. It is so fun to compare things with each other and ask each other questions, especially about things we say or what there is to do in our home towns. We can just say teenagers from all over the world seem to be pretty similar....

As if that isn't enough to keep me entertained for a few more weeks, the architecture and landscape here is quite nice. The Cathedral is the third largest in the world, and all of the cobblestone streets are lined with buildings that have ancient architecture. The river that runs through the city is also very nice, and there are many bridges that I would love to jump off if it wasn't so cold outside. Hanging out by the river is also very fun because there are a lot of people during the night there, which creates a very lively atmosphere.

A monsoon has hit the past few days, which makes school slightly less pleasant since most of the areas to hang out are outside. Hopefully it will clear up soon so I can have some new school adventures to discuss.

More Soon. -Ian

Two weeks remaining in Sevilla

I can't believe we only have two more weeks with our host families here. I have gotten so close with my host mom that she likes making fun of me for food, lack of sleep, too much sleep, boys, and anything she thinks will make me laugh. She's awesome. I am dreading the day I have to leave Cristina she has become like another (smaller) part of me. Can't believe how close you can get to people in only a few weeks.

Anyway- some random things that have happened. As immersion students we are commonly selected to be the audience for younger grades final projects. Today we had a "science fair" with a bunch of thirteen-year-olds. As boring as this sounds, even these kids found a way to connect with us and didn't stop asking questions about home. Yesterday in gym, we did these exercises inside because it was raining. They were basically kindergarden level cheerleader moves. Long story short Leah and I got the "bow and arrow" down. Cristina also taught me another thing I didn't know about her, she is a little mini body-builder. She picked me up and spun me around. Mind you she is "fun-sized" and way to cute. It was terrifying. The random questions about the US haven't stopped and I continue to meet new people everyday. The morning break reminds me of when I was much younger, I become twice as popular when Cristina and I bring cookies or these delicious heart-shaped pastries. I finished my book for English today and also came home to a Kinder Bueno bar. Good day.

-More soon. Annie

Sorry, Lista de Hechos #2 has Been Postponed

As I am sure you were all on edge for a new Lista de Hechos I am going to disappoint you and take a quick detour... so this week is bipolar. BAD THINGS: rain does not smell like rain as it does in the U.S. I almost cried when I went for a run in the rain and there was no beautiful, amazing smell to accompany me; terrible weather this week and the school is set up so that the 'hallways' are outside and the only time you can go inside is class and lunch so it's been freezing; nightmares about getting my but kicked in soccer when I return home (however I HAVE been practicing at home); my face is breaking out because of the humidity; I couldn't skype with my Chem class and it doesn't look like I will be able to skype with my spanish class :( GOOD THINGS: my mom bought me peanut butter, nutella, effecient deoderant, and these amazingly bright spanish turf shoes!!!; I just bought a mini Espana soccer ball; I am going shopping with Briannah tomorrow; I read 2 in a half Acts of King Lear today; Ryan Smith finally emailed me back; my host sister made the most amazing desert half an hour ago Mmmm. So there you have it. Stay tuned and I promise my next blog will be a new Lista de Hechos.

Nutella!

Yes. My mom bought NUTELLAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!! It was a pretty awful, boring, rainy, cold, and monotonously hungry day at school. That was all changed when I came home to a jar of Nutella. My host mom also asked me if I like peanut butter, yes yes yes.

I finally figured out that my family does have a dryer. I also asked why most people don't, and my host mom said it's because it's always really sunny so it's easier just to hang clothes outside, but when it's raining it's nice to have a dryer. (some of my clothes mysteriously disappear to the laundry gnomes). I managed to ask for a broom yesterday to broom (they kindly taught me how to say sweep). I have yet to figure out if and where my family has a printer. Setmani was laughing at me today that I hadn't asked my family where their printer was. I know where the cereal, milk, orange juice, glasses, spoons, placemats, napkins and nutella are, oh and maybe where the bowls are.

Here are some things I love about Spain: My family is pretty awesome. My host sister's older brother and sister are really funny and really nice. My life has recently had a high point with the purchase of Nutella. They have better radio than in the US (which learned from taking a 5 hour car ride to Madrid). My room is adorable and a very pleasant shade of yellow. The weather has been great, except this week it is rainy and cold.

Here are some things I miss about Colorado: Lemonade! I live on lemonade, quite literally, and I haven't found any lemonade here. They have fanta limón, Nestea, and Aquarius, which are all distant yet inferior relatives of lemonade. Doing laundry, As surprising as it may sound I miss doing my own laundry. Tissue Boxes: I've only seen one tissue box, my entire time here. If there is one element of American culture that needs to diffuse here, I would say the commonness of kleenex boxes is at the top of the list. Piano and Marimba, enough said.

Adiós,

Briannah

Madrid

This weekend I went to Madrid. We left saturday morning. Ana and I were exhausted because we went to a party the night before and slept very very little. We drove there and it took about 5 hours, but it wasn't all that boring at least for me, because it was cool to get to see the Spanish countryside (and read AP human geo for 3 hours). We stopped in a town called Mérida to see a huge Roman bridge from the time of Augustus. After continuing our driving for a while, we stopped for lunch at a restaurant that was actually not too shabby.

We arrived to Madrid and first went to the hospital. Pretty exciting.... Couldn't find the light switch to the bathroom there so I just went to the bathroom in the dark. We were there to visit my host sister's cousin, Carmen, who had just had a baby girl the day before. We sat in her hospital room for a while... a while... and I practiced some Spanish, because they were all like obsessed with wondering if I spoke Spanish. Then they made the assumption that I couldn't understand them, and I was like just listening to them talk about me, like oh just FYI I can understand you. They were all really nice though! The baby had an infection so she has to stay in the hospital for a little while, we got to go upstairs and see the baby at like "time for visiting babies with infections" hour (which happened to be 5:45, or maybe it was 7:45). After finally leaving the hospital we bought pastries and went to my host mom's parents' house. They were really nice. Her dad spoke some English so the first thing he said to me is, "What is your Christian name?" He repeated it like 3 times, and I had no idea what to say. Then my family was like, "her name is Briannah, they just say name not Christian name." After staying there for a long time, we went out to dinner at Pizza Jardín. I swear they had the fastest service on the face of the planet for an italian restaurant. We finally made our way to our hotel. It was so freaking awesome, it was called the NH La Florida, it was pretty awesome.

The next day (yesterday), we awoke and left at 11 to go see Madrid. I pretty much got a driving tour of the entire city. At one point, my host dad had to make a photo copy at some store, but we couldn't park so my host mom just drove the car in circle around the big roundabout for like 10 minutes. I was getting so annoying going in circles haha. We visited the parents of my host dad. (Yes I did a lot of visiting of grandparents in Madrid). They didn't speak any English, but were very funny and nice. Their apartment was practically next to El Palacio Real. We had snacks at their houses, even SUSHI. We then walked around and saw Plaza España and the Royal Palace. It was really beautiful. We also walked around another plaza statues of all the Spanish kings. It was Carnival, so there were lots of people in weird costumes and little kids in super adorable costumes.

We went to lunch at Vips, with my host mom's parents, and two of Ana's older cousins. I actually got to speak some Spanish and have an Oreo milkshake! We drove to where the 4 skyscrapers (cuatro rascacielos) are. They are really cool and the pathways surrounding them are really nice. I don't even remember what we did next I am so tired. We drove back into downtown and went to El Corte Inglés to look at books. Then we went shopping. I think my family is obsessed with shopping. We just got food from the grocery store to eat back at the hotel.

On the drive back to Sevilla we stopped in Trujillo, which is famous because it is where Fransisco Pizarro was born, the conquistador of Perú. It was a more traditional little town and there was a huge old church and a statue of Pizarro. We ate lunch there. My family has finally understood that I am not starving to death. I swear they feed me as if I am like two senior boys combined.

Madrid is awesome.

~Briannah (I am too unmotivated to proofread this, so.... hope it wasn't too painful to read)

Another futbol game

Today first went and hung out at Leah's host sisters house and ate barbecue chicken and ham. We also played soccer, and ate grilled bananas with melted chocolate on the inside. Then we went to another Soccer game. This time Real Betis were playing Las Palmas from the canary islands. Betis won 4-1! I guess maybe I am a good luck charm... but only for home games. Anyway, everything else is good, especially since my debit card finally works!

uhhh...

just a quick update - i now understand why the Dawson immersion students from last year put a giant jar of peanut butter in our box for spain (which of course was confiscated at DIA)......... there is NO peanut butter in this country! because my family is Dutch, they buy awesome peanut butter in Holland, but last night when I explained what peanut butter and jelly is, they freaked out and made vomiting noises at me. I was also yelled at for trying to eat apples and peanut butter because apparently its "completely repulsive." not sure i can adjust to this peanut butter free lifestyle haha :)

Lista de Hechos

So since my everday life is very everyday-like I will instead list a bunch of strange/different facts about the Sevillan lifestyle. 1) There are never any tissue boxes! I have seen one and it was in the office of the English teacer. 2) They kiss each other's face twice everytime for a greeting but never hug. They freak out when you try and huge them. 3) The houses are freezing. You need slippers and jacket at all times. 4) When drinking at a bar you can also buy a giant, delicious ham leg. 5) They eat bacon, fries, oranges, and basically eveything with forks. 6) They smear cream cheese and carmel on their pancakes. Try it, it's better than maple syrup. 7) Churros and a giant cup of chocolate is a breakfast food, never a desert. 8) People steal toilet paper out of the bathrooms... I am not kidding. There is one giant role on the wall and you go get some before entering the stall. While I was occupying a stall two people came into the bathroom then immediatly walked out. When I stepped out the whole role was gone! That explains why there's never any toilet paper by the fourth period. Stay tuned for the next list!

insert creative title here

The weather has turned cloudy and fairly cool, which makes the tiny-grey-skirt-school-uniform a real treat, but other than that, Spain is still amazing. The school days are long, but I'm able to get a lot of work for Dawson done during the day which is nice. Today I went into Seville with Julie for shopping, then met her family at an Italian restaurant along the river....... so good. Who knew the Italian food in Spain is amazing. Anyhow, Im still loving everything about the trip, and I cannot believe that we have been here for two full weeks already, the time has just flown by! tomorrow my host family is having a barbecue for all of the other immersion families which should be great. :)

Spain

Spain is really cool. I need to take more pictures so that I can show everyone how cool it is. The bridge that looks like a giant L is also very cool. Yesterday we went into Seville and ate at a turkish place and it was some of the best food I have ever had. Still doing good and very happy that I decided to do this because it is so cool.

I don't blog enough

School was school. Long and full of weird stares. You'd think that after a week people would become less interested. No such luck.

Almost weekend!!!

-Annie

Besos y Lagrimas

Its been an interesting day. All week my host family has been telling me about the Real Betis soccer game coming up. As it was not televised in Sevilla, Alvoro and I walked to a local bar to watch the game. For about 2 hours we drank cokes and took part in yelling at the TV with other Beticos (real betis fans). Unfortunately our combined uproar didn't pay off as the game resulted in a tie. We walked home, confused on my part, and angry on Alvoro's as the tie was a result of some very poor calls by the officials.

When we got home we were greeted by an equally angry and confused household, as my host parents had only monitored the score of the game. Fortunately the family's gloomy mood improved over dinner. We ate fried anchovies, calamari, peas, eggs, and sausages as we watched the news. Yesterday I told my host mother that I like mangos, so I was given a mango to eat for desert. The channel was then changed to a soap opera. This meant that my delicious mango was accompanied by an ever present background of Spaniards yelling "Aye no!" ... "Aye si!". Even though desert distracted me from most of the show, I did pick up certain bits of information. For example I now know that Maria is having an affair with her gardener, Juan, and Anna's baby actually belongs to Fernando. Towards the end the episode, my host mother asked me if I understood what was going on. As I hadn't been paying much attention besides what was previously mentioned, I replied "no, estoy con me mango" (no, I'm with my mango). At this comment, the family burst out laughing. Apparently when used in this context mango has an odd alternative meaning...

All together, everything is fun, if not a bit bizarre at times.

Hola otra vez

Hello,

Normal day of school today, pretty dull, thus why I rarely blog about school. Anyways, tomorrow is friday. Party in the evening, and then I am going to Madrid this weekend!

~Briannah

Living the Good Life

Sooo the title pretty much sums it up. Spain is awesome, I'm really understanding stuff. Sophie is so much fun and her little brother is hilarious. If he didn't keep reffering to me as 'The One With Invisible Fat' I would steal him and take him back to Colorado with me. Unfortunatly he never stops talking so I wouldn't get too far trying to smuggle him out. Only problem... not a humidity fan. I feel wet constantly. But hey, small price to pay for soccer, jamon, and awesome Spanish people.

Aspartame

This morning.

So, this morning Ana and I were eating breakfast, both in the "it's early in the morning, we are teenagers, and not functioning at this hour mode." She had some kind of tea and put some sort of sugar in it. Then the little plastic container says, "Aspartamo." I'm not really sure if that means Aspartame in Spanish, but after reading the whole bottle I'm pretty sure it does. I was trying so hard not to be like, "There is no freaking way they sell powdered Aspartame here, do these people know what they are ingesting." I calmly asked what it was, and Ana explained it as sugar but light. I was like oh okay cool. End of my really not interesting story, but I was rather concerned that they actually sell just Aspartame as a sweetener.

~Briannah