amanda en espana

I hope you all had a very Merry Christmas, and a happy New Year! I just got back from an amazing adventure; I went with 5 girls who are also in the program, on a European Vacation. We started in Paris on Christmas Eve, and were there for 5 nights. It really is as amazing as everyone talks about. We were able to visit most of the famous sites: the Eiffel tower, arc de triumphe, the louvre, the sacre-ceur. We also took a day trip to Versailles...wow! We ate lots of crepes, got used to riding the metro, went to a christmas market, and spoke a little french! By far, my favorite city visited on this trip. After Paris, we took a train to Amsterdam, which is a really cool place. The houses are so unique, ... read more

Well, most of you probably know that cooking is not one of my strong suits...however, Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays, so I took it upon myself to host it this year for my roommates and auxiliar friends. Thanks to www.food.com (awesome!) I found recipes to make the turkey, gravy, pumpkin pie, and whipped cream! We had a wonderful feast, and it was truly a great experience being abroad, but celebrating an important holiday together, especially with my Spanish roommates, who were amazed! We all gave thanks, and it made me very happy to be able to host such a special event. Although I missed being at home in Seattle, I am thankful to have met great people here who are making this year a great experience!... read more

Funny thing about time, sometimes it seems to move so slow, but before you know it a month has past by already! So far this month, I have been trying to acclamate, to the culture, food, weather, people, etc. I am finally used to my school schedule and am really enjoying my time there. This week I taught lessons about Halloween, which was so much fun. I made a bulletin board display at the entrance of the school, to get everyone in the Holiday spirit, and I even dressed up today as a witch! I finally got a little pumpkin, he's hanging out in our living room. I'm gonna put up some decorations too! My house is finally starting to feel like home, we don't have much, but its comfortable. The weather was great up until ... read more

Time seems to be flying by, which is weird since I am definitely less busy than I am used to. I am learning the art of having free time (and taking naps...I'm just following the example of Spaniards!) and am slowly getting used to it. This was my first week at the school, and can already tell that it will keep my busy! I updated my profile explaining in more detail what I will be doing (now that I know!). The school is about 20 minutes from the city, by car. I usually get home around 2:30 so I have the rest of the afternoon free. I have been using it to explore, spend time with my roommates, read, etc. which has been really nice. This weekend I will definitely do some more exploring-even though everyone ... read more

Well, I can't believe it hasn't even been a week yet, it feels like its been ages!! I found an apartment (yay!) and moved in on Thursday. I'm sharing a flat with 3 Spanish girls, all close in age. We are slowly settling in, and will be much more situated after our trip to IKEA later on today! So far, I've only been able to explore the city a little, time has been consumed by logistics-resident card, bank account, etc. however I've found essentials-grocery store, movie rental, and... a studio to teach ZUMBA!!! I'm sure you all can understand my excitement. I have my first class on the 10th, a free promotional invite to spread the word, as NO ONE knows about Zumba here :( that will be remedied very shortly!! School starts on Monday, which ... read more

Well, I finally am here!! I got in late Sunday night, and with some confusion, made it to my hostel around 10:30pm. The next day, I started bright and early, first stop: foreigners office-hopefully, I have my resident i.d. by the end of the week. Next thing on the agenda, finding a 'piso', aka apartment. After a couple of hours, I managed to find one! It is in plaza roja, which is conveniently located steps away from my hostel (yay!) and in 'new town' which is a great area to be. I'll be with 3 Spanish girls, all around my age, in a 4bd, 2bth, spacious apartment on the first floor. Big sigh of relief, the hunt is over!! Now I have the rest of the week to explore, look for a spot to introduce Zumba ... read more

Wow, time flies!! My friend Veronica has toured me all over the city, which gave me the chance to see amazing buildings, statues, museums, parks, and of course, restaurants! This may end up sounding like a post all about food, but I have to share the amazing food I've tried! (PS I've never ate this well in ANY other country before!) Bocadillos (aka small sandwich)- we went to '100 montaditos', which had one hundred different combinations! Spanish tortilla, Russian salad, salmon & cream cheese, lomo (dried pork loin), jamon iberico (special kind of ham), even a dessert montadito with chocolate and jam...yum! Tapas- croquetas (OMG amazing), gulas (a fish that is processed and looks like spaghetti, lol), chipirones fritos (like calamari). Sopas- gaspacho (cold tomato soup), calabazin con papas (zucchini and potatoes), remolacha (beets), all homemade!! ... read more