La noche con las personas espanolas

Here in Alcala, at the University, I signed up to this Intercambios program where I will be able to interact with native Spanish speakers where we would be able to exchange speaking English to help out their English skill and Spanish to improve our Spanish. My buddy Noah in the group and I are in a group with two people, Nacho (Ignacio) and Marisol. The first meeting went very well, and I loved being in a relaxed setting speaking Spanish with native speakers and helping each other out in our language growth. They are both a few years older than us, but that is perfectly fine. Also, Marisol is a horse rider, she invited us to come riding horses one day whenever we wanted with her horses.
The second meeting went great even though Marisol could not attend. Nacho brought his friend Mariam, who is actually the cousin of one of my profesors...small world. Again, the conversation went great just sitting, enjoying a few drinks, and conversing about various topics. It is exhilarating to be able to communicate with others in another language. I love it. As the conversation was coming to a close, Nacho y Maria invited us to go out with them with a couple of their friends. It was a great feeling to be invited out with local Spanish speakers even though the feeling might not have been as big for them. We met them at an Irish pub of all places; however, I enjoyed every minute we were together talking and having a good time. We had to cut the night short due to an early rise the next day, but it was definitely a great night out with the people and observing the sights and sounds of the Spanish nightly festivities. Viva Espana

A Glimpse of Alcala and Plaza de Cervantes

Well Going on 3 Weeks en Espana

Hola amigos!I am sorry it has taken me so long to get this up. I have had some issues getting my internet set up in my host family home. Also, I had some issues first getting into Spain...The airport of course lost one of my bags, and thus, I was without my toiletries for about a week...Yea not too excited about that. But I managed not to stress myself over the fact I did not have one of my bags. I mean I am in Espana!!!! Pero, I have internet and my bag with all of my stuff and I am up and running.

Anyways, I am currently residing in Alcala de Henares, Spain. The town is about 40 minutes north of Madrid. The town is beautiful. There are countless antique buildings and the university where I attend my classes rests on La Plaza de Cervantes. The plaza is lined with trees, and I am sure it just spectacular in the spring when the trees are full and green. The town has such a dynamic environment with a balanced mixture of old and young. I love seeing the sights everyday of people out on the cobble stone streets taking walks before they are to eat dinner. Their lifestyle is so much more tranquil and fluid. I love it. I love my host family. The mom is this cute older woman who comes up to my shoulders, she cooks some amazing dishes. One interesting dish I had the other day was rabbit, and I thought it was pretty good actually. I am going to be spoiled with eating such great meals. I have seen some of Madrid and gone to El Museo Reinas Sofia which is a museum there. I have not seen too many sights in Madrid yet or other cities but I am hoping to do some travelling in the upcoming weeks. I am so grateful for this opportunity to be here and there are so many things I want to do. I want to be a Spaniard while I am here. I am also planning on taking some dance lessons for el flamenco. It is just a blessing to be here and it feels amazing to interact with others and communicate in another language. It is something very special. I am going to put up some pictures and of course more posts to keep updates on how I am doing. I just wanted to get this blog going and get rolling while I am here...Until next time, hasta luego