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So things have deffinately picked up here and I am loving it. On Saturday after classes we went out to La Chupeteria (the shot shop) and then we went to La Selva (The Jungle) for some dancing. The night life here is so crazy...there are literally bars on every corner that are full of people having a great time dancing to music. It is also great becasue all the girls on this trip are so funny and quirky and we have tons of great jokes already. After that we went to bed and woke up on Sunday and decided to do some exploring around the city. When I say beutiful, it can´t even describe how amazing it is to see fountain, outdoor parks, ancient buildings, music, shops, people everywere. The flowers alone are enough to look at and the clenliness of the city is awesome. After getting lost (which was actually cool because we got to see the awesome cathedrals Salamanca is known for) we took a bus to the rastro, or outdoor flee market and bought some really cute souvenieers and bartered in spanish. then we decided to go to the local pool which was great because there were three different pools and one was shallow enough to sit in and catch the sun. (oh the shift on this keyboard becuase it is in spanish is really hard to use so i am abandoning capitilaztion for now). then we went shopping. lukily july is sales month for spain so everything is really cheep and next time you all see me i will probably have a very european wardrobe because i have been a shopping fool thses last couple of days (sory mom). Afterwards we went back to the house to start some homework (a 30 minute presentation on a fiesta and a region of spain, a summary of the reading and of course muchas pages to read). However, the homework is not as bad as I thought and actually the more i am learning spainsh, the eaiser it is to understand the homework. Plus i am a nerd and i kinda like homework...
anyway today we had classes again but during siesta, after lunch i went the the plaza mayor to read and an old man sat on a bench next to me and told me about his life. i didnt understand everything but i could tell that he was kind of a lonely man because his wife died but he had lived in Salamanca for 87 years and everyone in the city knows him. it makes me sad though to think that our culture prepares us to believe that every person who strikes up a conversation is a rapist or a creep because you never know how interesting someone could be, or you never know when someone just wants to talk to someone, even a girl who can barely understand what you´re saying. Sometimes a simle and a laugh really do go a long way.
thats what is so cool about being on this trip is that i am learning so much about myself in areas i never would have imagined. for example, i learned that i am surprisingly calm in emergencies and i have a really good ability to look on the bright side of things to calm people down. i guess a part of me always thought that i was a ditz who would panic if i was lost or if something wasn´t going right. also, i have been thinking alot about my traveling aprehensions and how much of a hypochondric i can be about traveling--ive really held back before, but this is showing me how its ok to step into a non comfort zone--kinda cool, huh?
well tommorow is a big night around here so i am sure i will have some stories to tell tomorrow--oh i almost forgot! two girls from Brazil moved in with us at the house. they are 15 years old and do not speak any english so my spanish is being put to use double time now. they are so sweet (not to mention absolutly stunning) and i think it is going to be fun to live with them.
màs tarde (more later)
love and miss you all
Alli ( or "ah-lee-sohn" as they pronounce it here!)
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Sarah
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jealous!
i am so gald you are having fun and i am really jealous!!!(i hope i spelled that right...haha) its kind of boring without you...dont forget me and come back!!!!