Spring is here! I'm so happy to shed my winter coat and soak up the sun in Southern Spain! Soon the orange trees will be in full bloom here... I can't wait!
Two weekends ago I went on a trip to Toledo in Castilla-La Mancha, which is in the middle of the country. It is a fascinating city, in which you feel like you have stepped back in time about 700 years or so. We also stopped and saw really cool windmills before going into the city. There are so many buildings from the Middle Ages and tons of shops selling swords, which is what Toledo is famous. Random tidbit for any Lord of the Rings fans: The city of Toledo is where all the swords were made that are used in Lord of the Rings, as well as some other movies. This trip was through the school, so they took care of our transportation and lodging, which was nice. The trip included touring famous sites like the cathedral and a monesterio with interesting explanations from my art teacher, Carmen. We also saw a few of el Greco's famous paintings. We also had some time to explore the city on our own, which was interesting.
Last Saturday, I took a little day trip to the coast of Spain with some friends. We went to Cadiz, which I learned is the oldest continously populated city in Europe. It was founded in 1100 B.C. Crazy! We went to an art musuem, walked around the city, which is pretty small and surrounded on three sides with water, and spent some time just relaxing on the beach. It was a nice getaway weekend.
Also, last Sunday afternoon I went to a Betis futbol game here in Sevilla. Although I don't usually go to soccer games in the States, it is such a part of the culture here that it was really interested to experience a game firsthand. Unfortunately the game ended in a tie, 0-0, so I didn't get to see the crowd's reaction to a goal. But we still had fun!
I also feel that God has been teaching me a lot this semester. Living in a different country often puts me out of my comfort zone of what is familiar and comfortable. But this is good because I think there is some danger in being too comfortable. Regardless of where I am, I want to be challenged to trust God more fully and let him to direct my steps.
Living abroad has been amazing and I feel like I'm getting to live out a dream that I have had for such a long time. I'm so thankful to have this opportunity. Even though things can be stressful sometimes (after all, I am taking 18 hours here all in Spanish), there are so many little and wonderful things that are part of my life here. Here are a few of the things I've been enjoying about being in Spain:
1. Walking across the Guadalquivir River every day and seeing La Torre de Oro and La Giralda as part of the landscape.
2. Dinner conversations with my senora, Esperanza, and hearing her talk about how guapo George Clooney is (as well as a whole list of other actors)
3. Going to church in Spain. I love worshiping with the body of Christ and seeing God at work in another culture.
4. Cafe con leche. Coffee here is great (but comes in very tiny cups!).
5. Getting to learn about history and art and then actually getting to see so much of it firsthand. It's so cool how things are so well preserved in Europe.
6. Learning new Spanish vocabulary or new grammatical rules that I hope are improving my understanding of the language.
7. Walking around the city. Although there are sometimes I wish I could just hop in a car and drive where I want to go, usually it is quite enjoyable to walk around the city.
8. Traveling, of course. I love it! (Although trying to figure out the logistics of everything, I am discovering, can be quite complicated and at times frustrating.)
9. The kids at my Service Learning site. I go to a convent in Sevilla to help kids with their homework. Although challenging at times, I feel like I'm better able to help the kids now and like I'm getting to know them better.
10. Hanging out with friends, laughing, going out for coffee or churros, etc. It's been a lot of fun.
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