Dos Idiomas y Un Dolor en la Cabeza

Hola mis amigos!

It is a little after 5PM this Sunday in Alicante, España and we just finished eating an amazing traditional Spanish meal of seafood paella along with caviar, endives, mussels, strawberries and flan.  Buenísimo!  But today was a very special dinner because today was the day that my real parents met my host family!  I think everyone, including myself, was a little nervous!  But all went well!  My host mom and sister speak only a little English and my real parents - nada español.  Feli (my host mom) did so much to prepare a wonderful meal.  Bless her heart.  Seriously, she did so much.  The house was spotless and the table was set so beautifully and of course the food was amazing.  Feli makes the best paella - it's famous.  And Feli is an amazing cook although she will never admit to it.  

The initial meeting was comical.  It was kinda chaotic - with Spanish and English and hugs and kisses and laughter...  Oh and the first sentences of thanks and hospitality and love.  It was amazing.  At one point in the beginning, Feli told me to hush up and let her try out her English which was so cute!  It was so fun to watch my parents try all the Spanish food etc.  For me, it was wonderful to have all these wonderful people that I love so much in one place - even through the language barrier.  It was also a lot of work!  Madre mia!  My first true translation experience.  I think I survived it pretty well.  It was never quiet or silent which kinda surprised me because I thought there would be awkward pauses etc.  Pues no.  There was constant chatter and laughter and misunderstandings, of course.  Ultimately, I could not have asked for a better first meeting and dinner.  I am so blessed.

I don't think I can express how much I love my host family.  They are amazing.  It's hard to even fathom leaving them in the middle of May after this semester is over.  I don't know what I am going to do.  Ahhh just thinking about it makes me sad!  So I just won't think about it!  Haha.

Anyways I am ready for a nap after all that translating!  Hasta luego!

Un beso,

Sarah

Throwing Elbows at Las Fallas... In Spain!

Hola my faithful blog readers!
I am warning you now... this may be the longest post yet.  So many things have happened since I last updated you from Portugal.
Last weekend was Las Fallas in Valencia.  Las Fallas are these HUGE statues of characters - either animated or political figures for example - and they are made out of a type of paper mache.  They are absolutely insane!  At first I imagined them looking like something homemade - you know, when you paper mached as a kid in primary school? But these Fallas are astounding!  They look nothing like paper mache.  The colors are vibrant and the Fallas themselves can be up to 4 stories tall!  The whole week in Valencia is filled with activities like parades and fireworks.  Then on Friday night at midnight (more or less... it is Spain, where midnight means 1:30) they burn them all down.  Yes, they light these huge, magnificent ¨statues¨ (for lack of a better word) on FIRE.  It is so intense!  Although the actual burning of the Fallas is amazing, the rest of our experience was a little less than amazing.  Only because there were millions (and I am not exaggerating) of people shoved in the streets of Valencia, especially around the Fallas.  We were literally ¨throwing elbows¨ to try to move through the crowd.  Believe me, I have never seen anything like this before.  Also, throughout the day and night and the next days, every little Spanish kid was setting off these firework things that made a loud BOOM sound and continually scared the crap out of me, Carly and Melissa.  We never got used to it and Melissa even got hit with the remains of one of these little fireworks.  These little Spanish children had no parental supervision... well actually they did... but their parents encouraged them to throw them at the visitors and laughed when everyone jumped.  It would have been funny... from the other side.  Haha.  No but really... Las Fallas was an experience I was glad to have had (minus the firework bombs!)  :)
Las Fallas was the last stop on my five consecutive weekend getaways... Crazy to think that five weeks went by so fast.  Surprisingly I am still passing all my classes and only had one breakdown that had to do with computers... of course, technology.  LOL. (LOL - laugh out loud; takes the place of Haha or Hehe).  There were definitely some minor bumps along the way but you will have that.  The Lord has been teaching me to have a heart of peace (and not anxiety) and to trust in Him through all this.  Traveling can be so unknown at times and last minute so it was so comforting to know that the Lord was in control!  Last night, as I was thinking about how my parents are coming in a few days and how I will be traveling throughout Italy over spring break, I started to get a little sad.  When I return from spring break on April 18th, I will have less than a month in Alicante with my host family.  I know it may sound lame, but I have grown really fond of them and am attached.  I told Feli (my host mom) last night that I was coming back to visit - no matter what.  My host family has been such a blessing to me through this whole experience.  I could not have asked for or imagined a better host family.  
Speaking of my host mom, when I came home from Las Fallas in Valencia, her and Alba were sitting on the couch watching some TV, unwinding after a long weekend.  Alba told me that she wasn´t feeling very well and that her stomach hurt.  When I asked why, Feli replied that Alba had eaten ¨mierda¨ this weekend.  (¨Mierda¨ is the Spanish word for crap or sh*t).  Of course, I, who have never heard Feli utter a ¨cuss¨ word before, thought this was quite funny and when I started to laugh, Feli covered her face and was sooo embarassed!  It was so cute!  Later we had a conversation about how ¨sábana¨ (the Spanish word for ¨sheet¨) sounds a lot like the English word for ¨mierda.¨  Easily confused, of course.
Funny Language Barrier Story #2 - The other day in Spanish class we were talking about food and happened upon the subject of tortilla española, which is made out of eggs or huevos.  My professor, Don Juan, told us that he really didn´t like tortilla española so I asked him since he didn´t like tortilla how he liked his eggs.  Clearly, I translated it as ¨¿Cómo te gustan tus huevos?¨ - literally ¨How do you like your eggs?¨  Well, NOTE:  in Spanish NEVER put a possessive pronoun before the word huevos... if you get my drift... Kinda embarassing but all in good humor!
More on Spain - I told you this was a long post...
The other night on a popular Spanish talk show where they interview famous people etc. they had this thing on there called the ¨Idiotizador¨ - which is an invention that makes your voice sound like a mentally handicapped person.  I was absolutely shocked that this was on TV.  In the States, this never would appear on TV because it is politically incorrect.... but in Spain... most things are fair game on public TV, even porn - only after 10pm of course... Crazy, right?  I couldn´t believe it.  Speaking of things you would never see in Spain - Ranch dressing.  I have never seen even close to being similar to Ranch.  Instead, they use vinagre, olive oil and salt on their salads.  I tried to explain the idea of Ranch dressing in the States and how Americans put it on EVERYTHING but my host family didn´t understand the obsession... what a shame.
One profound change I have had since living in Spain for the past two and a half months is breaking free of my addition to pop - specifically Diet Coke.  How liberating!  However, now I really enjoy my morning ¨cup of Joe¨ as we say in the States.  Coffee seems to taste so much better here just like everything else including fruit, meat,  vegetables etc.  While in Valencia last weekend, I had the best cup of café cortado of my Spanish experience.  Café cortado is expresso with milk.  Mmmmmm delicious!!!  The other profound change has definitely been with my appearance... Since I am studying abroad with a limited range of clothing and other American comforts, I care less and less each day about my appearance.  My hair does whatever it wants whenever it wants, my legs go unshaven for days (even weeks now because on Friday I am having them waxed!  I´ll let you know how that experience goes...).  For everyone´s information, I may go ¨European¨ on my legs being shaven but I will never go ¨European¨ on my armpits... NEVER.  :)  I also don´t wear make-up much anymore... I mean, what´s the point?  I´ll admit that I kinda miss wearing some of the clothes I didn´t bring with me and grow tired of wearing the same couple outfits every week.  Also I miss painting my nails every once in awhile or straightening my hair.  Don´t get me wrong, I definitely could do those things in Spain but it takes time and effort that are better devoted to other things like .. um... learning Spanish perhaps? :)  All things in good humor, it´s liberating not shaving my legs every day or doing my hair or putting on makeup.  ¡Me gusta!
Well it is actually time for me to get to class...
If you could, please pray for safety in my travels and also support raising for summer project with Campus Crusade for Christ this summer!  I am trying to trust in the Lord every day with these things.  Even though I am in the dark, I know the Lord knows the whos, whats, whens, whys and hows of my life and my future.  What a comforting truth!  
Know that I am praying for you all as well!
Un beso
Sarah

Lisbon, Portugal

Hola from Portugal!
I am not in Spain anymore!  Crazy right?  As I am writing this I am sitting in the sweetest hostel ever and am completely exhausted.  Last night we spent the night in the Madrid airport and I only got about 3 hours of sleep on and off throughout the night.  Sleeping in airports will never be fun or warm or comfortable but now we are in Lisbon!! At this amazing hostel... It is so clean, has a nice kitchen, everyone has a locker and is very hip and trendy.  They have an amazing breakfast and offer dinner in the evenings.  This is what a hostel is supposed to be like.  Very communal and friendly.  I have met people from all over in less than 24 hours.  It kinda makes me miss my friends back in the States because there are a few different group of girls traveling together, who have known one another for a long time!
The first thing we did in Lisbon, after eating breakfast, was take this free tour of Lisbon that our hostel offered!  We went everywhere!  On the tour a met a guy that is living in Lisbon working for the hostels and was born in the same city I was!  What a small world!  For lunch we ate traditional Portuguese dishes.  One was a steak with an over-easy egg on top and the other was cod.  Very delicious!  We also tried this Portuguese liquor that is made with ginger.  It was kinda cool because the place where we tried it was right on the busy streets and only sold shots of this liquor.... That would never fly in the States!  After lunch we went on a wine tasting tour.  We tried a few different kinds of port wine, which is a dessert wine.  Very sweet but very good.
The sites we saw today were amazing!  Lisbon seems very similar to San Francisco although I have never been.  It is very colorful, hilly, has a trolley system and has a bridge that resembles the Golden Gate exactly.  Our hostel is located in the Baixa area, which has a lot of shopping and is very close to the Tagus River which leads to the Atlantic Ocean.  We saw the Castle of St. George, more stunning cathedrals, the Alfama neighborhood, Plaza de Comercio and then we went to the Belem region.  In the Belem region is a palace and the Torre de Belem.  Very cool!  It was right on the Atlantic Ocean and we got to see it at almost sunset!  Across from the huge bridge that resembles the Golden Gate is this huge Jesus Statue that is like the one in Rio de Janeiro.  That was pretty cool! 
Tomorrow I really want to go to Estrella Basilica which is supposed to be beautiful and breathtaking.  Tomorrow we are going to go to a flea market with a group of students studying in Florence that we met at the hostel.  Then we are going to travel to a nearby town called Sintra.  One of the most beautiful places in Europe, let alone Portugal.  Very excited!
As for the language, Portuguese isn't too different from Spanish.  There are many similarities.  I can read Portuguese far better than I am able to understand it!
All in all I can't believe I am in Lisbon!  Now I need to sleep because tomorrow I want to have energy for Sintra!
Un beso,
Sarah 

Part II - Sintra!
Today Drew and I got up and went with our friends from Florence to this flea market!  It was very... flea-market-ish... haha :)  Then we took a 40 minute train ride to Sintra, a nearby town.  Sintra is beautiful!  It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site... so its legit!  We walked up a mountain (in flats) to a Moorish Castle that overlooked all of Sintra and the surrounding areas.  You could see for miles.  It was breathtaking.  Nearby was a summer palace that was very colorful and picturesque.  Then on the way back down we took the winding streets lined with stores selling beautiful Portuguese tiles.  Its unbelievable that I am here.  I am so blessed.
Tomorrow we fly to Madrid in the morning and spend the day in Madrid and then back to Alicante kinda late that same evening.  This week I have quite a bit of work to do before spring break begins!  Ill post pictures of Portugal as soon as possible!

Welcome to Sevilla - I´m wearing pleated pants

 ¡Hola my faithful blog-readers!  I hope all is well wherever you are!  I am back home in Alicante after a wonderful weekend in Sevilla in Andalucía (IN SPAIN).  I went with four of my other friends - Morgen, Carly, Sara and Mike (aka Miguel).  And we had a blast and came home with a few pretty good stories...
First story:  Friday morning we woke up before the crack of dawn in order to meet our cab at 5am.  We are all there except Miguel and the cab had already arrived.  So we call Miguel and the first thing he says is ¨I´m leaving¨ which we all knew was a complete lie and that he had just woken up.  About 7 minutes later we see Miguel sprinting down the street towards us, looking completely disheveled.  Best part about it was that he was wearing pleated dress pants....  which of course coined the phrase of the weekend - ¨Welcome to Sevilla.  And I´m wearing pleated pants.¨ If you don´t think this is funny, I guess you have to know Miguel and I guess you needed to be there.
Second story (also about Miguel):  When printing off his boarding pass the only option it gave him was to be a Member of the E.U. not of the U.S.  So when we arrived at the airport we all held our breath as the lady looked over his boarding pass which said he was from the E.U. and then looked at his United States passport... luckily it was our day and nothing was said... or else Miguel would have been walking to Sevilla :)
The hostel in Sevilla was also quite interesting.  It was very bohemian and pretty but a little sketchy.  Por ejemplo, our room did not have a door... and our ¨roommates¨ took both our lockers so we had to share with Morgen and Miguel the whole weekend.  The kitchen was pretty much outside with a tarp as a roof which leaked terribly when it rained on Saturday.  But it had character... it was charming, in a way.  And for 11.50€ a night - none of us could complain.
Our first stop in Sevilla (after coffee of course) was the cathedral and La Giralda (which was the tower built by the Moors in which the cathedral was attached).  BEAUTIFUL.  Words can´t even describe and of course my pictures can´t even capture a fraction of its beauty.  When we climbed all the way up La Giralda, the view was amazing.  Sevilla is just full of quaint and colorful buildings and plazas...  There are orange trees everywhere and cafes wherever you look.  You could get lost in the winding, stone streets... (which we did quite a few times but luckily we had our faithful mapa).  Later we went to the Torre de Oro which is on the river running through Sevilla and was built in 1220 by the Moors.  It served to close off the river... as a guard tower.
A few fun facts about Sevilla - It was conquered in 205BC by the Romans and bore two great Roman emperors - Trajan and Hadrian.  Sevilla is also the birthplace of Velázquez and Murillo.  (We actually went to an exhibit by Murillo - qué guay).  Cervantes also began his famous literary piece ¨Don Quixote¨ in debtors´prison in Sevilla.  Again, qué guay!
On Saturday when it was raining we went to the Plaza de España which was built in the early 1900s as a World´s Fair exhibit.... lots of mosaics made with tiles of places in Spain.  There is a picture of the mosaic of Alicante.  Honestly even if you didn´t know any of the history of Sevilla or didn´t go into any of the buildings, you would love it!  Everything is beautiful.  Everything.  One afternoon we sat at a cafe and just people watched.  On Sundays, the streets are always full of families and other people.  I don´t know if I mentioned this before but everyone is always very fashionable in Spain - men and women, young and old.  But you should SEE the way the children dress (or the way the parents dress their children).  They are absolutely precious!  They look so put together and just adorable!
Well that´s about it for Sevilla.... as for the rest of my life, it´s hectic as usual but amazing.  I am just so blessed! I´ll update more soon but right now I should probably get some other things in order before this week happens!
Un beso,
Sarah
PS Christopher Columbus´ tomb is supposedly in Sevilla... at the cathedral... I had mixed feelings about seeing his remains.... hmm