Well, I'm sorry it has been so long since I've written. I have been extremely busy with schoolwork...and a little bit of fun :)
Anyway, the weekend after Morocco I stayed in Sevilla because we had make up classes on Friday (to counteract Thanksgiving). I met up with the nephew of Monica (the lady I tutor for). His name is Joaquin and he helped me with a presentation I had about Semana Santa. He ended up taking me to a procession, which is huge here in Sevilla. Basically, it is when a brotherhood from a church carries a huge float with a sculpture of the Virgin Mary or Jesus on it. It's pretty crazy to watch because it takes about 20 men to carry it. Sorry, I don't have pictures due to having no camera.
During the next week, I had a couple of tests so I studied all week until Friday when I left for Italy. I flew into Milan and ended up meeting a girl there who was also studying in Sevilla. She was also on her way to Florence so we hung out until we got there (which was a bit of an ordeal in itself!). I met up with Chasen, a friend from Chapman who is studying in Florence, who I stayed with for the weekend. On Saturday, Chasen and I went through the open market and walked around a bit until my other friend Kelly (studying in Perugia, Italy) arrived in Florence. I wasn't feeling well for most of the weekend so we didn't do too much sightseeing. I knew I'd be going back so I didn't worry about it too much. Anyway, then on Sunday we walked over to Ponte Vecchio where I sat for a while writing. I was interrupted by an older italian man who seemed lonely and obviously wanted to talk to me. We talked for a while, mostly him telling me advice, which I took happily. He suprisingly said the right things at the right time and when Chasen picked me back up, I was teary eyed at how much it affected me. Anyway, sappiness overwith, we carried on and had dinner with another friend of ours from Chapman and one of her Italian friends. He knew the owner of the restuarant and somehow we ended up receiving a really fancy, free dinner. YUM. I got on my train and headed back to Milan where I would wait for a couple hours for my flight back to Spain.
Again, the week was boring, but on Sunday my mom flew in for Family Week. I met her at the airport and it felt CRAZY to have someone from home...HERE! We didn't really do much for the day due to the jetlag. On Monday, we visited the Cathedral which I think is a bit comical considering I've walked by it for the past 3 months and never been inside. Tuesday we went to a country club with Monica to have lunch. Afterwards, we picked up the kids at their bus stop and handed out some presents my mom brought from the US (madlibs, english books, toys, etc). They were soo excited!
On Wednesday, we had lunch at my house with my senora. She cooked my favorite meal and dressed up her table with nice china and all. The best part though, was that she spoke english the entire time! Keisha and I have never talked with her in Englih and it was so exciting (although we both decided we like her better in spanish...native languages suit people better).
THANKSGIVING DAY...well, not exactly a normal Thanksgiving, but what can you expect. We slept in because our classes were cancelled (only because we are an American school) and then made a pumpkin pie for the potluck Thanksgiving lunch. The lunch was okay...considering I had turkey, some dressing with too much oregano, deviled eggs, pasta salad and rice with brocolli. Sadness...
Friday my mom went to Cordoba. I was supposed to go, but after looking at the amount of homework I had to do before the next week, I made a wise decision and skipped it. I stayed in her hotel room for 9 hours straight working on my three 4-5 page papers. UGH!
Saturday was much better as we went to a bull ranch (finca). It was beautiful but really coooold. We got to learn about how the bulls are raised and how the bulls are picked for the actual bull fights. Afterward, we had paella which was incredible and then left to get back to Sevilla. My mom leaves in the morning which will begin my fury to finish my papers before Wednesday, the last day of school.
Thursday I leave for Italy once again where I will be until the following thursday traveling through many cities...or at least that's the plan. I officially have less than a month now and I know it will go by faster than I could ever imagine. Although I can't wait to get home, I am trying to enjoy these last days in Europe.
I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving and that you all remembered what you were thankful for! Keep the emails coming...I really do love hearing from ya'll!
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