evasalamanaspring13

On Friday March 22nd, we had a Flamenco dance class! We learned a few steps--very difficult footwork and beats--and then got to watch beautiful dancing from the woman at the dance studio! That same day we had a wine tasting at night. I am not a big fan of wine but I decided to go just to see. There was one white and two reds and we learned the proper way to taste wine. Hold the wine up to the light or a white wall, swirk the wine to brings the aromas of the wine, gurggle it under your tongue. Then on Monday I took the bus to Madrid where I to a Passover service (which ended up being orthodox) and then a seder. I met youth doing the same thing as me from all over! ... read more

Today we visited El Escorial, which is where the Royal family lived and where many of its members’ tombs are located. We left before the sun had risen are were able to see the sky turn beautiful oranges and reds El Escorial is a beautiful building with over 2,000 rooms! The tomb chamber is bronze and marble (the entire place is very cold, specially in the winter) where the Charles and Phillips tombs are. It was rainy and cold day but we were still able to appreciate the incredible palace and monastery built in the Late 16th century. We were not allowed pictures inside but I was able to take some of the outside. He architects were Juan Bautista de Toledo and Juan de Herra. We even had some free time to roam around the streets ... read more

On Friday morning we has chocolate con churros, which is amazing! Since I have been sick I only indulged with one churro. Then after we had our breakfast we were given thelpful tips for traveling. I am pleased to say I have two trips planned! The first is in March and I am going to Paris with about 10 other people from my program here. I am looking forward to seeing what many people have told me is there favorite city in the world. I want to see the Eiffel Tower and the Louvre and everything else Parisian!. I want to pick up some French saying for the short time I am there. The other trip is to Morocco. The details are still being finalized but the trip is mid-April. Looking forward to seeing another continent! ... read more

My first blog post! 2/14-2/19 Wow, what an adventure this trip has been already! Today is the first day I actually have wifi (we just got it installed in our apt). I somehow got a single room, which is incredibly great. I have three other roommates: another Eva, pronounced Ava, and two Chelseas each with different spelling. Our apartment is very nice, as you can see in the pictures below. Hardwood floors and new appliances (some of which are tricky to master the use of). But to start at the beginning, I woke up around 5:30 am last Thursday and was driven to LAX by my wonderful boyfriend, TuckerJ I met the group (well part of the group) at the airport in front of our gate…we mingled about our lives—where we are from, what school we ... read more