I made my way across the USA before I even crossed the seas.
So far it has been my 4th day here in the beautiful city of Granada, Spain! Forgive the missed first day post—this will be the longest post to catch up. The jet lag was a pain to adjust to, especially coming from Oregon. Here was the breakdown of my journey:
Oregon -> Arizona -> New York -> Madrid, ES -> GRANADA, ES
Total hours of flying: 16
Total hours of airport layovers: 6 hrs 51 minutes
Hours of sleep: 2
YES, this was very exhausting if you were wondering that. When I arrived in the JFK airport in New York, I found myself with a small group of students who were also on their way to study abroad in Spain! They were part of different programs, but the most were going to Seville! The plane ride was pretty rough, since it is difficult to fall asleep on them! Besides, the nerves and excitement kept me awake for most of the time!
Ok you probably are done hearing about the airport, I'll just skip to when I finally arrived in Granada, Spain at around 12:40pm (back at home, my family was asleep… well maybe not my mom). We took a bus to a central plaza where I was picked up by my beautiful and welcoming host mother! Right off the bat I was speaking Spanish, as she knows none, but my level was able to suffice and I already felt like I belonged here. We took a taxi to our apartment, which was a very short drive!!
I got to the apartment and was greeted by a very noisy little dog of theirs! I was immediately treated a delicious lunch by my host mother, who prepared a delicious dish of couscous and chicken! I was immediately overwhelmed with “sueño” and I took a short 2-hour nap. I woke up for dinner and met my other american roommate! We talked a bit (we talked through WhatsApp before I arrived) and then I went to sleep for the night.
My bedroom is small but cute! It has the basics and the most important— a COMFORTABLE mattress. I unpacked everything and immediately got that shut eye.
The next morning at 8:30 am we had orientation! Unfortunately I could not sleep very well, so I got only 2 hours. My mother walked me to the main area of the city where my program would meet up to go to events. From there the student director walked us to the CLM (Centro de Lenguas Modernas) of the University of Granada, where I will be taking classes for the next 4 months. I walked ahead with him and we talked in Spanish the entire time. He assured me that my Spanish was very good and that I should have no problem of the placement exam the very next day.
We learned about the school and the staff seem very nice and helpful! I talked to the girls who seem very friendly, and I look forward to building my relationships over time.
The placement exam was difficult, not going to lie. I got placed in the high-advanced level, so I get to take fun electives taught entirely taught in Spanish! It is most likely that this will be my schedule:
Spanish Music as a Phenomenon!
The Diversity of Spanish in the World
Topics in Spanish Linguistics
Oral and Written Communication
They all sound fun right?!
I’m going to wrap up things and say “so far so good.” The jetlag finally wore off after 2 days, as I tried to avoid taking long naps and walk around as much as possible. I am SO excited to write about this experience!
Rachel
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