I cannot believe that I have been in Spain for almost a month already! The time has really flown by. This week has seriously been crazy. Since I last blogged I have: taken a test, gotten sick, gotten better, lost my jacket, gone shopping countless times, seen 3000 year old ruins, been to Santiago de Compostela, visited León, seen 3 different cathedrals, stayed my first night in a hostel, and had probably seven or more coffees. And that is just a short list.
The weekend/week before the test wasn't really that exciting. It was a test for our Calvin class so we needed to study a lot. I was under the impression that we would get a lot less homework while in Spain because everyone who had gone to Spain before said that the homework load was a lot lighter. I guess they went with a different coordinator. I think he wants to make sure we stay out of trouble. Oh well. What else would I do at night?
Anyway, after our test, people started getting sick. I had a little bit of a cold and lost my voice for a few days, but I had it great compared to other people. Some had a stomach thing and were throwing up while others are still sick with a terrible cough. I am healthy, though, so don't worry about me. Beatriz made me warm milk with lots of honey to make my throat better.
I also lost my jacket. I actually think someone took it. We went out to a bar one night and I put my coat down with everyone else's. When we went to leave, it wasn't there. I think someone took mine by mistake. Right by where mine was, there was a men's jacket that looked really similar to mine, so I am betting he took it. I was pretty optimistic because I thought that if it was a guy then he wouldn't want a girl's jacket. But then I thought a little harder. I am probably the same size as the average Spanish man. They are not that tall. Not all of them, of course, but some. And European men like to dress different than American men. So he might just want to keep my jacket. I can't blame him, it was pretty cute.
The good thing about losing my jacket is the possibility of buying a new one. I love shopping. The second rebajas are great right now. I can't remember if I explained rebajas yet, but just in case, I will again. Rebajas is a month long (or longer) sale. The stores all have sales at the same time, and only twice a year. I learned about second rebajas in class the other day and I got so excited! The deals are going to get better! But they end soon so I better keep shopping. I have actually been pretty good with saving my money for traveling, but I walk past the shops on my way to class every day. It's just so easy to shop before/after class or any time we are walking to anywhere.
This next part is going to be about our weekend excursion. We didn't have class on Monday so we traveled Saturday through Monday. On Saturday, we went to 3000 year old ruins called the Castros de Coaña. It was pretty wet, but so beautiful. My pictures can't capture how awesome the ruins looked.
The weekend/week before the test wasn't really that exciting. It was a test for our Calvin class so we needed to study a lot. I was under the impression that we would get a lot less homework while in Spain because everyone who had gone to Spain before said that the homework load was a lot lighter. I guess they went with a different coordinator. I think he wants to make sure we stay out of trouble. Oh well. What else would I do at night?
Anyway, after our test, people started getting sick. I had a little bit of a cold and lost my voice for a few days, but I had it great compared to other people. Some had a stomach thing and were throwing up while others are still sick with a terrible cough. I am healthy, though, so don't worry about me. Beatriz made me warm milk with lots of honey to make my throat better.
I also lost my jacket. I actually think someone took it. We went out to a bar one night and I put my coat down with everyone else's. When we went to leave, it wasn't there. I think someone took mine by mistake. Right by where mine was, there was a men's jacket that looked really similar to mine, so I am betting he took it. I was pretty optimistic because I thought that if it was a guy then he wouldn't want a girl's jacket. But then I thought a little harder. I am probably the same size as the average Spanish man. They are not that tall. Not all of them, of course, but some. And European men like to dress different than American men. So he might just want to keep my jacket. I can't blame him, it was pretty cute.
The good thing about losing my jacket is the possibility of buying a new one. I love shopping. The second rebajas are great right now. I can't remember if I explained rebajas yet, but just in case, I will again. Rebajas is a month long (or longer) sale. The stores all have sales at the same time, and only twice a year. I learned about second rebajas in class the other day and I got so excited! The deals are going to get better! But they end soon so I better keep shopping. I have actually been pretty good with saving my money for traveling, but I walk past the shops on my way to class every day. It's just so easy to shop before/after class or any time we are walking to anywhere.
This next part is going to be about our weekend excursion. We didn't have class on Monday so we traveled Saturday through Monday. On Saturday, we went to 3000 year old ruins called the Castros de Coaña. It was pretty wet, but so beautiful. My pictures can't capture how awesome the ruins looked.
Next, we headed on our way to Santiago de Compostela. This city is famous for being the end of the Camino del Santiago (learn more here). The cathedral there is beautiful. I guess it is the rainiest city in Spain, and we definitely experienced that. It was always wet while we were there, but we ate good food and learned a lot.
After walking around all day, we settled down in our hostel. At this point, I was so tired that I could have slept on the ground and been fine. We had disposable sheets to sleep on and only one blanket, but I was out before the lights were turned off and even stayed asleep when everyone else was talking. Sleeping might be my greatest talent. The next day we toured the cathedral. We got to walk on the roof and see the remains of Saint James, the patron saint of Spain (it might not actually be him).
After leaving Santiago, we stopped in Lugo. There we saw ancient Roman walls, and cathedral number two. The inside was really beautiful.
In order to save money, we went back to Oviedo and spent the night at our houses. The next morning, we got back on the bus and headed out to León. Can you guess what we saw there? A cathedral. Number three. This one was especially pretty, though, because it had beautiful stained glass windows. I could not get enough of them. If it wasn't so cold in there, I could have looked at them for hours. The pictures cannot even come close to how cool they looked.
While in León we also saw San Marcos. It's a famous building. I actually have no idea what it used to be (maybe a palace?) or who used to live in it, but now it's a hotel.
We then left León to go back to Oviedo. While driving through the mountains, it was snowing! I thought I escaped snow by leaving Michigan, but I guess not. At least we were in the bus and not outside.
This week hasn't been too exciting either. I guess it's only Wednesday, but everybody is busy doing homework and recovering from sicknesses. It has been crazy rainy here, as well. It is supposed to rain all week! I'll be sure to bring my umbrella with me everywhere. I mentioned before that everyone is walking around all the time. That doesn't change much with the weather. All you have to do is grab a raincoat and an umbrella and your'e fine. Even the dogs have raincoats! I guess people here love their dogs.
Anyway, I should probably finish my homework. This is our first weekend in a while without an excursion, so I am excited to catch up on sleep and enjoy the culture in Oviedo rather than other cities(although I do love to travel). If it doesn't rain, we were thinking about taking a bike ride through a nearby park. Well, that's all for now! I miss and love you all and I want everyone to come visit me in Spain (:
Beso, beso