Hello all! So I decided to just post some things I've sent to my parents so far since it takes so long to type everything that is going on here. Here is an excerpt from my day on Tuesday (I apologize if it is a bit detailed lol)

After breakfast, which was pretty good, (toast, bread, cereal, cheese, meat, OJ,) we got ready and met for orientation. They gave us lunch at the hostel which was delicious, we got free everything. I sat with kathleen, megan, claire, liz, and lydia. We got salads, which looked better than they tasted, and then chicken with fries that I couldn't even tell were fries because they were so delicious. They were like potatoes that weren't grilled dark at all and they were so flavorful I was amazed. We all got coke and water and everything was in glass bottles! Then we even got dessert, I had the chocolate ice cream which was very dark. After lunch we went to an orientation where we talked about things like cell phones, manners with the host family, how to reach the accent staff, the plans for the next two days. For example, today we did a tour from 3 to 5pm, tomorrow we don't have anything planned since it is a national holiday (its like their equivalent of christmas), but we have to do a scavenger hunt around the city and whichever team has the most stuff wins some prize in granada. Then on Thursday morning we meet in the hotel lobby at 745am!! and take the 905 train, which she said only stops for 3 minutes so we have to spread out and hurry on the train and then deal with storing our luggage or we won't all make it lol but she didn't seem too worried about it. Then we will get to granada after 130ish, meet our families and have a meal with them, and take a tour of the city and school around 5pm. Friday we have our placement test, and Kathleen and I are going to get our phones then since they said they should be cheaper in Granada than Madrid.

Anyhow, the tour was great. We saw all kinds of things like a big plaza that had a huge christmas tree made of lights for the christmas celebration, and then we walked past an opera house and the palacio real, which is was the royal palace for some kings and queens, and it is HUGE. We got to see it from a vantage point that allowed you to see the mountains as well, which was really neat because we learned that Spain is the 2nd most mountainous country in the european union, and the mountain range we could see was the 4th highest peak in Spain. Then we walked around and saw some churches and buildings that demonstrated the islamic influence from the 1400s, and passed some places she suggested going to, like a chocolateria, which was the oldest one in Madrid, and we did go to it later, I'll tell you about it in a sec.. Then we saw the plaza mayor which was like the original plaza in Madrid, and we just walked around a lot. There are a bunch of ham museums! I thought it was so weird. We also saw part of the celebration parade for the holiday, because tonight was the night they said the three wise king came, and they brought gifts, so children open their presents tonight or tomorrow morning.
After the tour, our group went back to the hotel to use the bathroom, and I switched from my big camera to my little one, and we wandered back to a market we had passed on the tour. It was all glass on the outside, and I thought it was some kind of flea market at first but it turned out to be a kid of area full of food stands, like fish and cold meats and cheese and wine. I think people buy food there too to take home, but we ate there. There were five of us at that point, and we split this bowl that was full of melted cheese with bread. AND THAT WAS IT!! I don't know why but I was actually okay after we ate it, because I thought I'd be starving still, but afterwards we went to the chocolateria!!! I assumed it would be a bakery or something, but they were a specialty place and we had to stand in line for quite a while to order their version of hot chocolate and churros. Basically it was a cup of extremely dark chocolate and churros, which are long breaded sugar coated sticks that are grilled and very greasy. But you DUNK THEM in the chocolate drink!!! And then you drink the rest of your chocolate!!! None of us could finish the chocolate because it was sooo rich, but Liz came pretty close because she loves chocolate lol.

Afterwards, we walked around a lot more (by this point my feet were killing me :) and looked for some kind of discotera to go to (like a club but disco). We literally walked around for like an hour and couldn't find the right kind of place, but we realized we were too early, it was only 1030pm. Apparently that is like time for dinner but we went to a bar instead and sat down to drink. I hate that everywhere you go, people are smoking!!! Inside and outside, the bars I understand, but the restaurants seem ridiculous!! Anyways, we sat around for an hour or hour and a half, each only having one drink because it is so expensive, and then we went to a different bar where they tried to give us a free shot again like last night, except there was no alcohol in it!!! Its like they lure you in with false promises and then give you a shot of a smoothie!!!

So we left that place and went to a discotera that was free to enter, and it was pretty cool. Every place is very small here, so kind of intimate, but it got busier as the night went on. We finally left at about 245am, and I was so tired my feet were killing me. We came back to the hotel and decided that since we don't have to do anything specific tomorrow, we would meet for breakfast at 10, get ready, and go to the Prado Museum here, and then do the scavenger hunt itinerary.

WEDNESDAY

So today we (me and five other girls) went to the Prado Museum, except since it was a national holiday, they closed early and we couldn't go in, which was upsetting since it is supposed to hold something like five centuries of art that kings had commissioned in the past. We walked around the area there and saw a lot of gardens and cool looking buildings. The gardens weren't in bloom, but they were still very beautiful, and I'd like to see them in warmer weather when everything is green. We continued to walk around that area for probably three hours until we ended up on the other side of town and had a spanish version of fast food. Basically everything was served on a baguette and I thought it was pretty good to try once.

Afterwards it was getting chilly and we walked closer to the hostal. Me and a few of the other girls got ice cream, which was delicious, and came back to the hostal. Then we spent about three hours trying to get pictures up on facebook. I got about 45 done, but I have a lot more to do. The internet is a bit slow here in the hostal, and it may have been hard since there were like 15 of us trying to upload pictures at the same time. I will try to post them on the blog as well as soon as I have time, probably Thursday night or Friday.

Tomorrow is Thursday and we will take an early train to Granada, which is about five hours that I will be trying to sleep and not be bored out of my mind like the plane ride. Then we will meet our host families, eat with them, and go on a tour of the city and university. Friday we have a placement test for the classes and then me and a few girls will probably try to get our cell phones for Spain. Hopefully I will get to take a lot of neat pictures of the city and put them up this weekend, especially since Granada is very mountainous and probably very beautiful. I don't have plans for the weekend yet, but I'm thinking I'd like to see the Alhambra if we don't have anything else to do. It is very close by and I believe it is visible from most areas or at least in the city center.

Hope everyone is doing well! Love, Nikki