I passed the test, whatever it was. After three hours of staying by my bags, not going to the bathroom, trying to conserve computer power, and literally holding my eyes open with my fingers a hotel man asked me if I was ready to go to my room. "THANK YOU! I'm so excited! Thank you! I'm so tired! Thank you! You are my best friend! Thank you! Oviedo is beautiful! Thank you!" The wait did help me get on track with my sleeping though. I took my meds, got into my nice queen size bed, watched some tv (college students dressed like flinstones in a kitchen?) and fell asleep at 8. My room was my first Christmas present
I lay in my bed half-listening for my friends, like a the kid I wasn't, listening for Santa. I woke up at 12:30 to my friend Erica's voice! I opened my door and three of the friends I left at Chili's were there! They weren't so lucky with their delays. Their delay in Barcelona caused them to arrive past 11, so the buses had stopped working. They took a taxi here, we talked and decided to have breakfast today (with computers). I went back to bed. I needed to read first because I had woken up a bit while talking to them, yes I am reading Eat, Pray, Love, don't mock. I read and just as I was about to fall asleep I heard more English and the last of the Chili's eaters +1 were here!
We are all up and eating now (after starting the fire alarm with an adapter... oops) and are planning on walking around Oviedo soon! I need to find a Chinos store (cheap chinese product store... the cashiers will soon know me by name) and I'd like to stalk my apartment and main university building also today. I just learned that I missed Spanish Office on tv! And on a happier note- that a student who returned this semester is going to give us a tour at 11 tonight!
I cheated yesterday with getting on facebook on speaking English, it was my first day and I was tired. I am not going to anymore I swear! I get e-mailed when someone leaves me a message or tags me in a photo, but I'll only be checking the e-mail and not the book itself. Today has become Spanglish with my friends- we usually start in Spanish and once one person responds in English it switches over. Soon it will be all Spanish I swear.
Adios por ahora!
P.S. Everyone needs to stop wasting gas driving so we can keep flying! Am I right? Am I right? Yes, yes I am.
Saturday, January 8, 2011
Friday, January 7, 2011
I was born a traveling woooman...
What a day!/ days!
After a wonderful send off I started my journey from CR. Right away I got my apple butter taken from me :(. It is a liquid and in my hasty packing I put it in my carry-on by mistake. I was able to fly with 5 friends from UNI to ohare and we had a sit down meal together- very nice! I had to leave them for my second flight so we said goodbyes that were not nearly as emotional as my previous ones. Per usual, I was the second to last person to board the plane. I was so excited to find out it had an upstairs! I was so excited and the flight attendants laughed at me, but honestly COOL. I got the best coach seat on the plane, the aisle seat directly behind 1st class. *Collinsworth- I watched the Social Network, slept through Wall Street, tried to sleep through Anthony Bourdain and watched Psych and Friends.
Once I arrived to Frankfurt I slept walked to my next gate, only to have to go through security again! And apparently my jeans have one too many metal buttons so I was thoroughly pat down (It was like having Terry in Germany with me). Needless to say, I will NOT be wearing these jeans when I come back. *Dad and Keri- I DO have the memory of an elephant! I remembered the Frankfurt airport vividly after being there for an hour 2 years ago, which I am pretty proud of. Starving, I got a small breakfast with a wonderful desert- my meds! Hey everyone- I took my meds! Cool? Cool. Period. No one can make fun now.
Frankfurt to Barcelona. The plane could fit 90 passengers, I counted and we had 21, yes 21. So I was able to lay across 3 seats and sleep nicely for a couple hours. I had a mini freak out in Barcelona because I had to get my boarding pass, and I didn't know if that meant i had to re-check my bags. I had my first conversation with a non-English speaker, and it didn't go that well, I'm hoping it was just because I was just deliriously tired... Everything worked out and my flight was delayed so I decided to check out the airport mall. Right now in Spain it is like the sales month. Students who went previously told us that they don't really have sales here, but the government makes all businesses have sales this time of the year. So... I had fun trying on dresses at Zara and ended up buying one! Vair vair cute, and I will wear it often. My flight kept getting delayed and I was getting very tired. I was lucky to have decided to check the boards (I thought my friends might have caught up with me it was getting so delayed) when I saw that they took off my delay and my plane was leaving in a half hour! I hustled to my gate and met two other study abroad students who I might have some classes with! We talked a lot (one plays ultimate frisbee!) and it was satisfying to find out that Spaniards had been speaking Spanish to me (not realizing how little I really know) while many people immediately spoke English to the other students.
Again, the plane could hold 90, and it was about a third full. I took up my three seats and slept nicely. As soon as we landed in Oviedo, I felt wonderful, this place already feels like home. I can't really describe it. *Gabi- there is an IKEA!!! After a bus and a taxi, I am at my hotel, only to find out that my friend who made the reservations needs to be here before I can go to my room. Never fret, it has a cool cafe/ bar on the main floor and I have been sitting here with my crousant (sp?) and hot chocolate typing this up. I also met a coordinator of another study abroad program here. She wanted to know who my mom was, but she didn't know her. She told me that I should try to call my host-mom, because the holiday was actually yesterday and many people will be home and back to normal living. I learned more about the city from her and she told me I HAVE to go to the central park and just work my way out from there... tomorrow's adventure. Tell me what you want to read- I don't want to bore you with just a list of what I did each day! Later gators!
After a wonderful send off I started my journey from CR. Right away I got my apple butter taken from me :(. It is a liquid and in my hasty packing I put it in my carry-on by mistake. I was able to fly with 5 friends from UNI to ohare and we had a sit down meal together- very nice! I had to leave them for my second flight so we said goodbyes that were not nearly as emotional as my previous ones. Per usual, I was the second to last person to board the plane. I was so excited to find out it had an upstairs! I was so excited and the flight attendants laughed at me, but honestly COOL. I got the best coach seat on the plane, the aisle seat directly behind 1st class. *Collinsworth- I watched the Social Network, slept through Wall Street, tried to sleep through Anthony Bourdain and watched Psych and Friends.
Once I arrived to Frankfurt I slept walked to my next gate, only to have to go through security again! And apparently my jeans have one too many metal buttons so I was thoroughly pat down (It was like having Terry in Germany with me). Needless to say, I will NOT be wearing these jeans when I come back. *Dad and Keri- I DO have the memory of an elephant! I remembered the Frankfurt airport vividly after being there for an hour 2 years ago, which I am pretty proud of. Starving, I got a small breakfast with a wonderful desert- my meds! Hey everyone- I took my meds! Cool? Cool. Period. No one can make fun now.
Frankfurt to Barcelona. The plane could fit 90 passengers, I counted and we had 21, yes 21. So I was able to lay across 3 seats and sleep nicely for a couple hours. I had a mini freak out in Barcelona because I had to get my boarding pass, and I didn't know if that meant i had to re-check my bags. I had my first conversation with a non-English speaker, and it didn't go that well, I'm hoping it was just because I was just deliriously tired... Everything worked out and my flight was delayed so I decided to check out the airport mall. Right now in Spain it is like the sales month. Students who went previously told us that they don't really have sales here, but the government makes all businesses have sales this time of the year. So... I had fun trying on dresses at Zara and ended up buying one! Vair vair cute, and I will wear it often. My flight kept getting delayed and I was getting very tired. I was lucky to have decided to check the boards (I thought my friends might have caught up with me it was getting so delayed) when I saw that they took off my delay and my plane was leaving in a half hour! I hustled to my gate and met two other study abroad students who I might have some classes with! We talked a lot (one plays ultimate frisbee!) and it was satisfying to find out that Spaniards had been speaking Spanish to me (not realizing how little I really know) while many people immediately spoke English to the other students.
Again, the plane could hold 90, and it was about a third full. I took up my three seats and slept nicely. As soon as we landed in Oviedo, I felt wonderful, this place already feels like home. I can't really describe it. *Gabi- there is an IKEA!!! After a bus and a taxi, I am at my hotel, only to find out that my friend who made the reservations needs to be here before I can go to my room. Never fret, it has a cool cafe/ bar on the main floor and I have been sitting here with my crousant (sp?) and hot chocolate typing this up. I also met a coordinator of another study abroad program here. She wanted to know who my mom was, but she didn't know her. She told me that I should try to call my host-mom, because the holiday was actually yesterday and many people will be home and back to normal living. I learned more about the city from her and she told me I HAVE to go to the central park and just work my way out from there... tomorrow's adventure. Tell me what you want to read- I don't want to bore you with just a list of what I did each day! Later gators!
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