4 Girls. 13 Bags. 1 Taxi

Well today started off quite early for me because I wouldn't sleep worth a dime. I was awake at 3, after going to bed at 12 or so. Because of the time difference, I was able to keep myself occupied by talking to people from back home and scrolling through Facebook. Soon it was 5, when the alarm was set, and time to wake up. Rachael was still groggy but I was wide awake after being awake for 2 hours already. We got ready and said our goodbyes. It was actually a lot smoother and no tears were shed. I was shocked because I figured Mila would at least cry, but she didn’t. This is just another rotation for her so it probably doesn't affect her that much anymore.

Now things got interesting and a bit ugly. When we were all standing outside with our bags, a taxi pulled right up to the door of Mila’s apartment building. We figured that this was the taxi that was coming to pick us up and I asked him if he was for German but he didn't recognize the name. We didn't think much of it and he said that he was called here by the center to pick people up for Isabel and that they were going to the airport. We got our things all packed up in the taxi and then we kept talking to the driver because we were confused. When Rachael asked if the taxi was prepaid he said that it wasn't (our taxis are supposed to be prepaid and included in our program fee) and then he said that the address he was supposed to go to was Manuel de Falla 18, when we are 17. That’s when we started to have big question marks above our heads go off. Rachael called German to see what was going on while the taxi driver was driving around by Neptuno. Turns out that this wasn't the taxi that we were supposed to take and that it was for someone else. When we returned to our address, without paying for the taxi because he was a really nice and understandable driver, the girl who was supposed to have the taxi was coming out of her building. She got in the taxi and Rachael and I waited outside for our taxi.

So that was the interesting part. Now for the ugly part. A black car pulled up to our address and he got out and was acting like he was going to be taking us to airport but since he wasn't a marked taxi I was confused. We asked him if he was with SOL, and all of a sudden I heard Maggie say “Yeah, we're in here”. Next question on my mind, how the hell are we going to fit all of our stuff and our persons in one taxi!?! I’d like to say that it was easy and there was plenty of room in the trunk, but was not the case. In the backseat we had Leah with her carry on sitting on her lap, Rachael with her checked (or soon to be checked) bag sitting on her lap, I had my backpack at my feet, my carry on on my knees, Maggie’s carry on on my lap and one more stacked on top of my carry on. In the front seat was Maggie with my checked bag on her lap, upside down, so she couldn't see anything. In the trunk were both of Maggie’s checked bags and Leah’s checked bag. The driver promised that he would make it there in 15 minutes, record time, because he knew how uncomfortable we were!

When we got to the airport, we had to wait for the driver to unpile us from all the baggage, but we successfully made it and we didn’t have to pay then. We then went inside and met up with a majority of our group and we weighed our luggage while we were waiting in line. I was at 24.5 kilograms, 1.5 over the limit. I took out my face wash and my bag of a pair of pants and my colored V-necks, which I had planned to take out if I was over. I went to the bathroom and threw them away and when I reweighed I was at 23 kilograms exactly! Perfect! Then I saw Helen and she said that she was over and didn't get charged so I was a little upset but oh well, what am I going to do about it. It was for the better to get rid of that stuff anyways.

The line took forever to get our tickets printed out and our luggage checked in because I swear everyone who studied abroad was there for the same flight! Eventually I got to the counter and everything went smoothly. We then went through security and boarded the plane right away.

On the plane I was sitting in an emergency exit way and then Leah was assigned right next to me! In front of me were Katie and Michael and to our left were Ruth and Maggie. We were all together by chance, not even planned to be that way. The flight was simple and easy, no complaints.

When we landed in Madrid we had to walk for a while to get to our terminal and we even took a metro, but before all of that we said our goodbyes because we were all going our separate ways. Ruth, Michael, Rachael, and I are all on the same flight to Chicago from Madrid. When we got off of the metro we had to go through customs, why, I have no idea, but we did. I think it is because we landed in a different terminal than we were supposed to because our flight from Granada left 45 minutes late because of how backed up the ticket counter was. Everything is piecing together now.

We found our gate and Rachael and I ate our bocadillos, our final bocadillos that Mila will ever pack for us. Thank goodness! They were all ham and cheese and half of it also had salami on it. A nice treat J! We then went to spend our euro coins because they cannot be transferred back to dollars. I had 7 to spend but I only spent 3 because I didn't know what the buy. I bought 2 packs of Kinder Buenos and I thought that was plenty of chocolate.

It was then time to check in our gate area (it was blocked off and you had to show your ticket and passport to gain access to the area. When I was checking it, they pulled me aside for a random security check. Ugh. I went and waited in the security room for my turn then I was pat down and had my stuff run through the scanner again. Then everything was searched through and taken apart. And then it was left there for me to put it all back together. I was quite upset because I had JUST repacked it for the plane and now it was a disaster. Of course it would happen to. But the good thing is that I passed with no problems!

Then I went and met back up with my small group and it was time for boarding. I was in seat H in row 41, and aisle. My neighbor never showed up, if there ever was someone assigned there, so I had 2 seats to myself again. The only other guy in the middle with me was on the other side and his neighbor never showed up either so the middle seats were open and available for us to use.

We left about 35 minutes later than expected but I think we are still supposed to land about 20 minutes early. For lunch we were given the option of lasagna or meat balls and I picked meat balls cautiously. Good thing because it was vegetable lasagna and I heard a lot of people complaining about it. It didn't look too appetizing.. But my meatballs were good and they came with a salad and a dessert and a roll. I’d say it was a good meal for an airplane, not too bad.

After lunch I went to the bathroom and then visited Rachael. Soon after she came back by me and we hung out for a bit. It is now 5pm Spain time and 10 am Midwest time. We are expected to land at about 1:50 so there is still a while to go.. sadly :(

We have still not figured out if we need to pick up our luggage in Chicago because they are labeled to go all the way to our final destination, for me Green Bay, but we are just going to go and just make sure. We will just go through security again if we have to. We just don't want our luggage to be left in Chicago’s airport.

** Well I am finishing this blog post (above was written when I was on the plane) 2 weeks after being home so my memories of what exactly happened isn't as clear as when I was writing this originally. **

I finished the plane ride just hanging out listening to music and watching the TV, talking with Michael and Rachael to waste some time. Rachael came back and visited me for a bit and we hung out for about 2 hours watching the movies on the screen as we were both falling asleep. She returned to her seat and I didn't see her again until when we got off the plane.

Part of the requirements for entering the USA was to fill out a customs card. Originally they only handed out Spanish cards and said that there weren't any English ones available. There were 2 girls next to me who didn't speak a lick of Spanish and I was helping them out. They were visiting their friend who was studying abroad in Sevilla, from the University of Kentucky. Eventually they handed out English cards and we all switched to that to make things easier. I ended up talking with those 2 girls for a bit and soon enough we were landing!

When we landed in Chicago, on time and 9 and a half hours later, we all had to go through customs and got welcomed back to the states. It was nice to see English everywhere and understand what everyone was saying. When I was going through customs, I had to get rid of my apple because it was fresh produce and you cannot bring that into the states because of the pesticides. 

We waited at the luggage train for our suitcases and they never showed up, like I was expecting. I had overheard Amy talking with her boyfriend, who was from Granada, and he had heard the people behind the desk mention that there was going to be 45 suitcases left behind in Granada because too many people had checked double bags. Since we were at the end of the line for checking in, I knew that ours would be left behind in Granada. 

Some people were quite upset that they were left behind but I just brushed it off and carried on with my travels. We went through the security customs and I handed over my apple and then we caught the train to the terminal that we needed to be at. From there Michael and Ruth went one way and Rachael and I went the other. Rachael and I eventually separated too and we were all solo travelers. 

I sat around and waited for about an hour or so until it was boarding time and then boarded the plane. It was a small plane and my bag went under the plane while my backpack sat at my feet because it wouldn't fit in the overhead compartments or under the seat in front of me. It was pretty packed full! The flight was only an hour long and we left pretty much on time. I talked to the girl behind me who was also coming from Granada after studying abroad at the CLM. What a coincidence. I had never seen her around and she was from Wautoma (I think). 

When we landed, I had to wait for them to take my luggage off the bottom of the plane and then I got to go and see my family! I was exciting to walk down and go see them and I had no idea what to think. I saw Connor, Karyn's boyfriend peeking around the corner so I knew that they were there to greet me!

We went to the ticket area to talk to the guy that my baggage never arrived (my checked bag) and then we headed home. He said it would probably be a day or so and we set it up so that we could pick it up ourselves at the airport. 

When I got home, I was tired but unable to sleep so instead my dad made me fresh hamburgers on the grill and lots of other goodies! It was delicious and the perfect welcome home meal!!

We gave my mom her Mother's Day present, the puzzle pieces for necklaces or keychains, and I gave her the scarf that I went all over Granada for, because my dad snagged her original one. 

I stayed up until about 11 or so, so that means that I was awake for 22 hours straight (after time change calculations) of travelling and at least 11 and half of that time was flying! What a day of traveling home!!

Ultimo Dia

Final day!

Woke up this morning when Rachael did for class, briefly, and then went back to bed and slept it. What a wonderful feeling that is. Like no other.

I ate breakfast and took my LAST shower here in Spain in Mila's house, forever. All these last things are just so strange to me because it feels like it is going to happen again sometime soon, but in reality, it's not.

I then got ready for the day and walked to the CLM for the last time to check how I did on my exam for Variedades. I met up with Michael and Jenny, a girl in our class, and we looked at our exams together. I did pretty good and even made a stupid mistake and got partial credit for it. Win!

We then walked around town for a bit and went to Shana, a clothing store that I just discovered today! It is a good thing that I didn't know about it until today because they had really cheap and cute clothes and that is just dangerous for me. I didn't even look at anything in the store because I didn't want to tempt myself on buying anything. The reason that we were there was because Michael was looking to buy his intercambio a shirt from there, but it turns out that they were out of stock.

From there I went home and went on Facebook and then watched a bit of a movie before taking a small cat nap. When I woke up, it was time for lunch... TORTELLINI! That is what we requested for our final lunch and it was so good. I wish that there was a recipe but I think it is just a box mix.

After lunch I got caught up on my blog and then had my final intercambio with Asun! It went really well. We went to a cafe that is famous in Granada, called Isla, and we each had a Leche Rizado drink, and a cheesecake to share. Asun is such a sweetheart and she paid for all of it, on top of giving me a Spanish fan to take home. She said that whenever I use it, I will think of her, and she is right by that :) I will miss seeing her every week or so because we got along so well and were always making jokes at the same time that we were teaching each other new things and practicing our second languages.

After my sad see you later with Asun, I returned home and spent some time on the computer between then and when we eat a little munchie before heading over the Liz's for the evening.

It is hard to believe that the final hours in Spain are wrapping up! These past 

5 months have taught me so much about myself, the world, and of course, 

Spanish, and I wouldn't trade this experience for anything. I am SO grateful to 

have this opportunity and the support of my family and friends; it truly means 

the world to me! I have made numerous new friends and millions of memories 

along this journey that I will remember forever. Cannot wait to come back to 

Granada one day and relive it all again! Spain today, America tomorrow! :)

Liz's party was really fun! There was a ton ton ton of food to eat and munch on and practically everyone was there. It was a nice way to end things and wrap things up. Liz definitely had the apartments of all apartments in Granada, almost spoiled! It was a luxurious place and very very nice. Rachael and I went there with Chelsea and we stayed for a few hours and then headed home for our last night sleeping in Mila's house.

FInally Completed my Final Finals

I knew that today was going to be a good day if I could get through my two finals. 

I woke up and went to class a little early to look over my notes before my Grammar exam and then took the exam. I cruised through it and I thought it was a little difficult and confusing, but it is done and over with now, so there is nothing that I can do about. I tried my best and used my best judgement, but I am not strong in grammar so that makes it a little more difficult.

After my grammar exam, I went with Leah to the SOL office to turn in my phone that I had rented for the semester. Everything went smoothly and I had no extra charges. 

We then walked home and I began to study for my Spanish Civilization and Culture exam, which I decided that I was going to take at 4 pm today instead of at 6:30 pm, the normal class time. I studied what Sam had told me was on the test and a little bit more. It was exhausting and it was my final one so I was not as motivated as I could've been. 

I also packed up almost everything that I brought to Spain and it was a lot, let me tell you. I am worried about making weight but right now I am underweight  I still have more stuff to add though...

We ate lunch and then I was off to school for the final time (for a class at least). I took the test and I thought that it was a little harder than it should've been and not as general and she  explained it to be. Overall, I think I did passing on it but not an A by any means because there were parts that I had no idea so I just made it up. When we were leaving the exam, our professor was in another room, she stopped us and had us fill out evaluations of ourselves and of the class. We even had to grade ourselves!

After class Adam and I walked home and he was going to stop and get shawarma one last time. I was jealous but I need to save up my money because I only have 6 euros left to last me the rest of the time here. 

When I got home I just plopped on the bed and relaxed! I had no more responsibility and I was free! I relaxed for a bit and then met up with Chelsea and Amy so they could borrow my luggage weighing tool. I then Skyped Brynn and celebrated being done with her!

I packed up a few more things and then it was more relaxing time for me. What a relief that I am done! 

Eventually it was time for dinner and we had eggs with cheese. We asked Mila for tortillas tomorrow for dinner but she said that she used up all of the eggs today so we could have hamburger patties instead. We are only going to eat a small meal because we are invited to Liz's house for a party with the rest of the crew.

After dinner we went to Cafe Varagua to meet up with Michael and celebrate his intercambio's birthday! She turned 37 but didn't look a day past 25. Finding her was an adventure. First off, Michael was running behind so Rachael and I were just sitting outside enjoying the weather. When he got there, we couldn't get a hold of Maria because his phone wasn't working and we didn't know where the bar was so we just decided to walk and try to recognize the name. All that Michael knew was that it sounded like Granada. When we were walking past a bar, Michael saw Pablo, someone he knows through Maria. We hung out at that bar for a while and then we all went together to go find Maria. Luckily Pablo knew where she was so we followed him and we found her successfully :)

They were all at a bar that was more like a wine bar. We stayed for about an hour and half and when we were about to leave they brought out desserts to eat and a shot of a sweet wine. It was really good and probably the only wine that I actually like. For the dessert, I had something similar to a knee cap and it was delicious and a friendly reminder of home.

We then left and Rachael went home because she has an exam in the morning, so she needed sleep. Michael and I went to Granada 10 and spent the rest of the night there. It was fun and chill and there weren't a lot of people, but it was our last night out so we made the best of it!

PICTURES of the night.

When we left G10, we walked to Aphrodesia to go to that bar but they were closing right when we got there so we just decided to walk home from there. When I got home it was about 3:45 or 4 so I was tip toeing around the room trying to not wake up Rachael. I then crawled into bed and called it a night :)

I already have my camera cord packed up, so I cannot upload pictures now. I will when I am back home in the USA!

Goodbye Party & Sparky's Birthday

Today I woke up 15 minutes early so I could go to school early to study for my exam. It was a good thing that I did because a lot of what I studied was on my final and it was fresh in my head, so I remembered it. 

The Variedades final was fair and what I expected it to be, except for a one question. I think that question was from the first half of class, so it threw me for a loop, but I just made something up and went with it. The rest of the test I knew for the most part and I am feeling pretty confident about it.

I came home from my exam and took a lovely and well deserved nap! When I woke up I had an email from my Civ and Culture professor asking the class if they wanted to take the test early today, they could. I didn't take her up on the offer because I haven't started to study for the exam yet, but other people I know did, so they can give me the inside scoop! Just hope she doesn't change the exam too much then!

I started to study for my Grammar exam that is tomorrow morning but I couldn't because I have a headache and my tummy has been growling non stop. I am hungry!

I was on Facebook and talked with Samu and he had to change the intercambio date to Thursday, when I have my other intercambio, so I won't be seeing him anymore, until we meet again! He said he will see me in this life or in the other and I'm not 100% sure that he knows what it means, but it is quite funny!

It is also Sparky's 13 birthday today! We think that it is somewhere in this week so we just always pick a random day and celebrate it then! So happy birthday bud :)

After lunch I studied for a little bit and then watched Rachael pack up most of her things into her suitcase. I haven't started packing yet because I am waiting for the laundry to be done so I can have a visual of everything that I need to put away.

Eventually it was time to meet up with Katie for our final taller workshop. We went to the school and took our projects and then left because we didn't want to stay and there was no point because anything we made today would have to dry, and we didn't have time to pick it up later. We then went to a cafe/restaurant right down the street and had some hummus and pita! It was delicious and I'm pretty sure it was all homemade. We sat there for an hour and 15 minutes just talking about things and laughing at everything. I really wish that I would've gotten to know Katie earlier because she is a really cool girl and we get along great!

It started to rain a little bit so we paid and got out of there as soon as we could. We walked to the CLM, where we were meeting for our goodbye dinner, and we went into the computer lab to hang out and waste time until it was 8pm. 

When we were all downstairs in the patio of the CLM, German gave us our taxi times for Friday to get to the airport. Rachael and I are getting picked up at 6 am, so we will be waking up at 5am, just like I expected.

The group then walked to the tapas restaurant for the evening. It was right across the street from where I went to get bocadillos with my parents and on the same street as Hannigans and Sons (I). We got a round of drinks and tapa for the night was montaditos (baby sandwiches). They had pork, jamon serrano and ali oli sauce with some other red sauce. They were really good and quite filling. 

When we finished eating our montaditos, German gave a goodbye and thank you for picking us for your studying abroad experience speech.  We ordered a second round of drinks and had the same thing.

It wasn't a sad night because most of us are leaving on Friday so we have a few more days left in Granada still. Adrian is leaving tomorrow night so it was sad to say goodbye to him, but I didn't become that close of friends with him, so that made it easier. He had a really cool idea of everyone signing a Spanish flag. I thought that was a good memento and something to remember this experience by. 

Rachael and I returned home and we studied for a bit and went on the computer (more computer than studying) and then hit the sack!

Last Day with Lourdes

Well this is the week of finals, what I have been looking "forward" to for a while. Just because at the end of this week, I get to go home! 

I woke up at early to go to the CLM to study with Michael before my Islamic Culture exams. We studied for a good hour and a half and other students joined us as well because we were sitting in the classroom. Then the time came when it was time to take the final.

I thought that the final was hard but pretty fair, for the most part. I knew a good chunk of the questions and made the rest up because it is 45% of my final grade and any partial credit helps. Then it was time for the midterm retake. What a joke that was! Impossibly hard, so hard that I even left some questions blank.

After class when I was talking to other students, they also said that the midterm was hard and they left questions unanswered, so it was comforting to know that I wasn't alone. 

I sat in the hallway and hung out with Megan and one of her friends for the next 2.5 hours because we had our POE final together. I had Mila pack me a bocadillo because I didn't know how much time I would have between my exams and I didn't want to rush myself. We tried to study but we both thought that the POE final was going to be easy and we didn't study that much for it.

The test time came around and we were given the exam with a listening section. It was a little difficult because they talked so fast and they were at an outdoor party, so there was a lot of noise. On top of that, they were using the Andalusian accent, which is very difficult to understand because they cut their words short. Then we were given the written test which probably killed about 10 trees in the process of printing it. The test was a grammar test with a few things that we learned about in POE class, totally ridiculously unfair. I did my best but my hopes are not too high for that class anymore. Hopefully I pulled out a good grade.

After I finished up my POE final, I headed home to get ready for my intercambio with Lourdes today. I had to do my hair because we were going to take our pictures together today, so I had to look good for our memories! Claro. 

Rachael and I then met up at Fuente de Batallas and sat on a bench and waited for Lourdes and Almudena. Lourdes had told me that they were going to be a little late. While we were waiting and talking, Lourdes came up behind me and scared the living daylight out of me! It was a good start to the intercambio ha.

We went to Smooy and got frozen yogurt with toppings and then sat there and hung out and talked about everything. Funniest part of the whole thing was when Lourdes and Asun were asking how you say "to go pee" in English and then "the other one". Too hilarious.

When we finished up our ice cream we walked to the walking bridge and took our pictures together there! They told us that you could see the Alhambra from the bridge, but the trees were in the way so we couldn't see them.

We then went to a park that was along the river, Parque de Salon, and walked for a bit. We then took some pictures together by setting up the camera on a ledge and self timering it.

After this, Almudena left because she lived near there so we said our see ya laters and went our own ways. When we walked away, I was telling Lourdes that it was weird to say goodbye to someone because it feels like we are going to see them again very soon, but it really could be a while.

Almudena and Lourdes are trying to find jobs so they can come to America one day and visit us :) But patience is key.

We then walked home and said goodbye to Lourdes. I am really going to miss her because we got along so well and have so much in common. Today I also learned that her family owns a huge butchering business and she helps out in the summer, which is funny because I work in the meat department in Green Bay and in Winona! I wish that I could've met up with Lourdes more times but duty calls, and that duty is studying for her exam.

When we got home, we studied for a bit and then ate dinner and studied some more. We tried to study the whole night but it was impossible because we were both really tired and exhausted from the day.

Cinco Dias!

5 days until I go home! 5 days until I go home! 

5 finals stand between me and going home :/

Woke up this morning after a nice long night's sleep and I soon realized that today was going to be a hell day. Study all day long. Breaks in between, but the majority of the day would be dedicated to studying. 

I am slowly but surely catching on to Islamic Culture material, but I feel like it might be a little too late to understand the whole semester of information. Oh well, I will just keep on trying until I am done with the exam tomorrow!

Break time in the day!
Studying has drained all of my sleep and energy out of me. My neck hurts from looking down at my paper and my eyes are very heavy and hard to keep open. I am pooped and its only 2:30! Still have the whole rest of the day to go to study.

Lunchtime today was lonely because I ate by myself because Lineth is now gone and Rachael was eating lunch at Burger King with her study group. At least I had pasta though, so that made up for being lonely :) Mila also had a surprise for me today in my salad, tuna! I am not sure if it was a surprise I necessarily wanted, but it was nice to mix things up.

After lunch Michael and I met up to study for Islamic Culture at a cafe. We spent an 2 hours going over stuff for the class and reviewing and highlighting practically everything. Our professor insists that everything is important! It doesn't make sense in my head how everything is important. Michael and I finished up and decided to meet up tomorrow morning right before the exam to go over things some more. Hopefully I will have everything down by then.

After studying I returned home and took a lovely study break! My brain was fried and I was exhausted. While resting, Rachael was browsing the web and wanted to learn how to fishtail braid hair. She started on hers and was pretty successful but she wanted to try on my hair as well. It turned out pretty darn good!

After that wonderful break, we started to browse more on the computer, finding other things to do besides study! I will study some more tonight, I just have to give my brain a break from all this work.

Studying at night was difficult because Mila had her TV blaring and then she was on the phone. I got a little bit in but instead just decided to go to bed and rest up for tomorrow. Hopefully it will turn out to be a good decision.