Part of me wishes that all of you understood Spanish so that I could write this blog en español, or that it would somehow magically translate into English after I wrote it in Spanish... :)

There are just so many little things that I'm learning and picking up each day. I can't imagine how much more I'll be learning because it's only been a little more than a week! There have definitely been ups and downs since my arrival, which I know are normal to any situation that requires an adjustment of habits, mindset, language. But I guess at some times, the normal stresses of the beginning of a school semester with figuring out classes and my schedule are only exacerbated by the other stresses of being in a completely new place!

I actually listed some things that I wanted to share with y'all in my notebook yesterday, so here goes my attempt at organizational writing:

>> vale (pronounced vah-leh): so one of the first things I noticed once I got here was that people always said vale, and almost never said "okay" (muy Americano) and would only occasionally say "bueno" (más de latinoamerica). From the first day that I got here, I vowed that I would be able to say it instead of my reflexive "okay" by the time that I left Spain. I didn't know that it would take such little time for me to change my reflexive responses so quickly because already I say vale all the time! Now it's when I have to say okay in English contexts that I feel a little weird. There is also an Alejandro Sanz (extremely sexy Spanish singer) song that I looove with a part in which he sings "¡VALE!" so almost every time that I say/hear vale, I think of Alejandro Sanz, which is not too shabby of an assocation, I think! I first heard his song No Es Lo Mismo in Max Cafe (which, btw, in my opinion is the best cafe in the Columbia area by far on 121st and Amsterdam that serves the most AMAZING french toast. go eat it. please. it comes with strawberries and powdered sugar. do it in remembrance of me!)

>> lengua y cultura: so there are a few things about language and culture that I have experienced since I've gotten here. One thing is that when I've gone out, people are generally confused by me. And by that, I mean that they don't know if I speak Spanish, if I speak Chinese, Japanese, if I speak English... I am only further more extraño because I also enjoy dancing like a Latina. I am just a generic foreigner with whom the locals don't really know exactly what to do. Also, I came to Spain expecting to pick up some new tunes and jams that I unfortuantely cannot create a radio station for on Pandora nor download off of Ruckus because I am using a Spanish IP address, but I've really only heard American music in English! I guess there are just as many Womanizers and people who need to be put into Rehab here in Spain as there are in good ol' American Britney-Rihanna land. Although actually, yesterday, when I was sitting in the Spanish version of a Cosi cafe, I heard Samantha Mumba (don't wanna love you if you don't love me... remember??) for the first time in probably 7 years, so that was muy interesante. Just shows how much the American music dominates the world--so typical of anything American, sigh.

>> la comida: this is probably the part you are dying to know about: WHAT IS THE FOOD LIKE?? (actually, I think that's one of the first things that Sara Del Fierro asked me on gtalk, haha =D) well I can tell you that so far, I have been very, very pleased with the food that my señora, Nury, cooks (more about her later!) Last night we had homemade fried calamari (I'm just going to assume that it was from the Meditteranean.) And before we've had tortillas de patatas that are kinda like a mix between latkes and quiche (no idea if that's how you spell it) without the cheese. Apparently we will be having paella on Sunday night, which I am very excited about because I think I only tried a bit of Janelle's when we were in Puerto Rico (if only they had some mofongo here! I will have to see haha) Anyway, I think that is one of my favorite parts about this homestay business--that I get to experience real Spanish homecooked cuisine.

>> la iglesia: What a blessing it was to go to church last Sunday. Karen had connected me with her friends, Jesús and Dianne, before I came to Barcelona, so I got in touch with them and went to their church, El Lokal, where I got to worship, pray, and hear a sermon all en español! We actually sang a few songs I knew in English, like Majesty (Delirious) and The Time Has Come (Hillsong), so that was exciting. I am excited for what else God will be showing me during my time here. This upcoming week Jesús and Dianne are giving a presentation about the arts ministry that they do here, so I think I will be going back to see that. There are a few other churches that have English-speaking congregations that I might check out just to make those contacts. But I would love to go to a Spanish-speaking church because I think that's going to be one of my main points of connection with local people in Barcelona.

>> Nury: I found out a few days ago that my host mom used to be a model! And today, when I came back home to eat some lunch, she showed me some of her pictures of when she modeled back in the 70s. It was so crazy/interesting! She used to be blond, and now her hair is a darkened, colored auburn. She told me that she used to model for Loreal Paris, Pierre Cardin... it was really cool to see all her old photos! She's also told me that after her modeling career, she owned a bunch of fashion stores in Costa Brava, and that she lived in Africa for 10 years of her childhood. Something really tragic that has happened is that recently, her daughter's boyfriend was killed in a car accident, so that's been really, really hard. I met her daughter on the first day that I was here, and she looked very depressed. It doesn't help that her father, Nury's ex-husband, had a heart attack a few years back. I've been praying for her, though, and ask you all to keep her in your prayers, too.

I shall write more next time--I am planning on being a tourist this weekend for the first time and go to a bunch of the vital sightseeing points, which I am excited about!

con paz e amor