mi vidaaaa en fotos!

Today I'm just going to post a lot of pictures of random things with small captions because I don't feel like typing a lot and I feel like pictures are more entertaining to look at anyway.

This picture is genuine happiness, it really is.

My host mother and I

Who dat gurlll

Love this city more than words can describe

My host sister, Celia

love the uniformity of these buildings

This picture is funny because for once my eyes are the widest...asian probs

Sagrada Familia

letting my personality shine through here

Sorry about how many pictures there are of me... Actually no I'm not. Why am I apologizing to a blog post?

Making cupcakes with Celia's friends!

Making some chocolate chip cookies with Lidia and Laura!

Thank you mommy for sending me a survival kit of Ramen noodles, goldfish, peanut butter and pop tarts.

Now I would like to say thank you to some friends back home. I'm not usually into the personal shootout type things in a blog but this is necessary. It means a lot to me that you haven't forgotten me, that you take time out of your busy lives to send me a message on Facebook or have a quick Skype session. I may be busy too, but I just want you to know how much you mean to me and how much it means to me that you keep in touch. It's really hard sometimes seeing life go on back home and seeing that you're not a part of it and feeling like people have forgotten you. But keeping in touch with you guys - it reminds me who my true friends are.

Andrew Nolll...my tipper...the love of my life!! Even though I know how difficult it is for you to respond with your crazy NYC Vogue life, I miss you more than you know and it makes my day whenever you send me any type of message.

6,000 miles away and we're still best friends. Colin Miller, can't wait till we can chat away in español and confuse everyone in the states because a ginger and an asian are communicating in another language. I miss you.

Tipper and Tipper- of course we stay in touch WE ARE FAMILY AND I WILL ALWAYS LOVE YOU

The most beautiful picture ever taken of Jenalli. Even though it took a while for you to remember who I was... I am so glad things are back to the way they were in 2nd grade. JAJA<333 We'll have a great time studying for algebra 1 keystones together Jennifer Manning.

AUDREY ROGERS. The person who never fails to respond to anything I say, sends the greatest snap chats, never fails to improve my day... I have to say, you are the best and keeping in touch and you are such a good friend and I love you endlessly and you mean the world to me.

SWARTZ SKOURAS PARTY IN PARIS. You two... no words. I love you guys, more than you know. When I get back we will resume Swartz Skouras sleepovers and movie nights and Sheetz runs and Mackenzie and I will make more crafts and Jordan you can yell at us or tell us how cool they are or whichever you prefer.... 

This picture is missing Lani, Shannon, and finally ABBY but to Megg, Esther, Paige, Erinn, Shannon, Lani, Abby. We're all over this wonderful country and you guys help me through everything. I couldn't ask for a better support system and can't wait to reunite in Madrid. AFS _______ SQUAD (This is a G rated blog.)

I have been horribly neglectful to one of the most important people in my life... Mikaelie, I miss you and your laugh and your spasms and your existence. Honestly, how am I even surviving without you? I don't know. But I just wanna let you know you should be expecting mail soon. ;)

Oh Annaaa Suuunn. Still sending me song lists and talking me through my life troubles whenever I need. You are the best Anna Hess. (That rhymed so it's a song so imagine me singing it while improvising on the piano with a headband around my forehead.)

Haley Magel!! I don't have a lot to say because you know how much I miss you and I can't imagine how horrible Breaking Dawn was without me... we need to Skype soon.

Olivia, Betsy, and Sarah Pell. Sorry this picture is terrible and that I couldn't find individuals with us but you all brighten my life and are some of the greatest friends in the entire world. I think about you all the time and imagine how to cry yourselves to sleep every night without me there... ;) No but really, thanks for still being there even from 4,000 miles away. Love you guys.

Meg Meg, I don't know if I'm allowed to say this but I miss you the most. It's hard surviving without weekly sweet frog trips and sleepovers and talking about life and my feelings. Both of our lives are so busy and I wish we could talk more... I wish you could come visit me. Don't forget about meeeee. Love you.

ONE MORE THING: If you have read this far, send me your address and I will send you a handwritten letter!! 

Much love, Alexandra

Siempre En Mi Corazón

I think I'll do something different today and write a blog post that's completely serious. Okay just kidding that's basically impossible... a blog post that's meant to be serious and the first sentence is a joke. Good start. Well I've been sitting here for quite some time now trying to figure out what exactly to write about, if I even should write at all. It might not exactly follow it's usual joke after joke pattern, but it will be equally as meaningful and I promise to throw in a good joke or two. Today I write in memory of my father, who died three years ago on this day.

I stayed home from school in order to recover from the weekend's sickness, a conveniently timed sickness if I do say so myself. Apparently my emotions are friends with my immune system. ("Ba-dum-TSH!" You're welcome.) Today I dedicated all of my time to my journal and my brain. Well, after watching almost an entire season of "House," that is. (Don't worry I'm watching it in Spanish so I can learn the medical terminology in two languages!) Everything you read now, I wrote from a mountaintop. To all of you who worry about me and my desire to be alone on this day, you shouldn't. I spent my afternoon in the best possible place I could possibly think of. Here is a picture...

I want to make this blog post as short as I possibly can. I can't describe the exact emotions I feel right now, but I want to view them as a sign of maturity. People say that anything can heal with time, I disagree. I think the effect of death is a wound that never leaves. Like a scar, almost. But a scar simply means, "I survived." Every day is difficult. I'll never miss my father any less. I'll always long for a last hug, a last chance to tell him that I love him. My biggest regret will always remain my resistance to say goodbye. But with every day that I grow and develop as a human being, I become stronger. And as much as I think I'm becoming more absentminded with every passing second, I'm gaining so much knowledge. I will never understand why it had to happen when it happened, how it happened. But it did happen, it's something I need to accept and it has shaped me into the girl I am today. Judging by where I currently stand in life, an independent 16 year old alone in a foreign country, I would say I've matured into something he would be proud of. Into something that I can be proud of. And I am, I am proud of myself, which is something not everyone can say.

My father in his last few months was very religious. Being a teenager, religion, in addition to everything else in life, is something I constantly question and explore in my mind. I am respectful to all opinions and religions, listening carefully to all points of views in hopes that one day I will be able to obtain an equal amount of faith that my father possessed. I admire anyone with faith, simply because it's so difficult to understand; belief in something solely based on spiritual apprehension rather than proof. I used to be disappointed in myself, that I couldn't be as faithful, as hopeful as my father was. I think now I understand that I have time to figure that out. It's frustrating, it's a constant struggle. Even though at this point in time I cannot say that I know exactly where I stand religiously, I like to believe that there is a God, some sort of higher power of all goodness. I like to believe that there is an afterlife of paradise (call if Heaven, if you wish) and that if you live your life well as a good person, you will go there for the rest of eternity. I can confidently say that I know my father is out of pain, I know he is in this heaven with his God looking down on me and smiling. I know he's happy.

I'm saying goodbye to the last ray of sunshine and darkness is beginning to emerge over the city. To conclude yet another blog post, I will leave with one final observation. I'm alone in a city which I came to knowing nothing, knowing nobody. In some ways, I'm still alone. In some ways I think will always be alone, no matter where I am in the world. But today, sitting here on this mountain, on a day that has previously qualified as the loneliest day of my life, I have never felt more loved. I have people who care about me, people in my life who would do anything for me. I have friends who I would do anything for. The distance away from my home after these two months makes me realize how much I love them, it makes me realize how much they love me. And even though I may no longer have a father physically here with me on this earth, I had a father who looked out for me, who loved me unconditionally with everything he had, who taught me how to live my life as a good person. I have a father in my heart who reminds me on a daily basis that I am something special, that I will do good things with my life. That's more than anything I could ever need.

Un Regalo Para Los Vagos

Basically I didn't have the time or energy to type out another detailed, hilarious description of my life so I decided to do it in video format...so you're welcome since you don't have to read a lot today. ;) (The title translates to "a gift for the lazy" for all of you non-Spanish speakers!)

Impactants: Marta, Judit, Espi, Cornu, Clara, Serret, Mireia, Paula, Sara, Lidia (oh my god...) t'estimooo!

¿Me has echado de menos?

A definite improvement from the last picture of myself that I posted on this blog...

Barcelona is so beautiful...

Sunrise view from my window :)

You're probably wondering what the title of this post means since you're not fluent in Spanish like I am. It means, "did you miss me?" I shouldn't have even put it in question format though because I know if you're reading this then you definitely missed me... and my blog humor. ;) Also, that first sentence was definitely sarcasm. I'm nowhere near fluent in Spanish and I just asked a friend to translate that for me... however, you will see in this blog post that I am making much improvement!

Also, I probably should just become a professional blogger since some people seem to have been contemplating whether life was really worth living without my frequent blog posts. I do not disappoint, so here goes.

I've been in Spain for (almost) a month now and I'm almost positive that it's been the best (almost) month of my life. If you read my last post, you probably know that I had a rough time with the beginning of school. I'm pretty much getting used to everything and all of the differences and whatnot so school is no longer something to dread. I actually have friends, and I'm becoming less hesitant to speak Spanish with them so communication is much easier. I even went shopping with some one of them, that's bonding right there. You guys should be proud of me.

As usual, I have quite a funny story to tell. I took a spelling test in Catalan class today. The difference between this spelling test and an English spelling test is that there was no vocabulary list. The teacher reads sentences and you write down exactly what she says. I did as I was told. I wrote down everything exactly as I heard it and here is the product of my test... (I recommend reading these out loud so that you can really experience what I think I'm learning on a daily basis...also I would have definitely passed it if it was graded phonetically!)

What the sentence actually was: Va sentir una increïble coïssor i va gratan se amb fruïssor.
What I wrote: Bras anti una increiple uni so igrabna tarsa amfruitsio.

What the sentence actually was: Aquell transeunt mirava de reüll aquella atapeïde cruïlla.

What I wrote: Aquen traenzeoon miraba de Raoul aque la ta paida proella.

What the sentence actually was: En Màrius és geniüt i egaista, però no traïdor.

What I wrote: Al madeeos es genyoot i aguista para no tara yo.

What the sentence actually was: Està amoïnat perquè aquell maleït accident li ha deixat seqüelles.

What I wrote: Hasta amoinat parkour alque maloit oxident Lea Michelle sakwellos.

What the sentence actually was: Si vénan a la casa, s'estaran en habitacions contigües, és a dir, veïnes.

What I wrote: Sippen a la casa coma sestaran anaritasions totiquas coma vienas.

(This one my class found particularly funny, because when I heard "coma" I wrote "coma" but the teacher actually meant to write a comma like the apostrophe mark...)

What the sentence actually was: Al veu soci l'ha deixat en la ruïna.

What I wrote: Al seo so see lavas scrooieet de tots al seus bens i la vichat an la riunan.

What the sentence actually was: S'havia suïcidat perquè l'havien aïllat de l'església.

What I wrote: Sevilla suisitat parque la dian aleyat da bus iglesia.

What the sentence actually was: Reduint el volum de deixalles contribuím a mantenir net el nostre planeta.

What I wrote: Radooin lagoon da vishayas contribuim a manatee ne a nostra planeta.

What the sentence actually was: Si féssiv ús d'aquesta informació, ja hauríeu resolt els dubtes sobre les darers notícies.

What I wrote: Se fesoo oons daquesta informacio, ja a oreo rajor als dook tes sobre las dedredas moo tissues.

What the sentence actually was: Digues li que seqüenciï els anuncis emesos per televisió.

What I wrote: Digas lee ka sa kwan see als anoonsees ame jews para television.

So yeah I might still be struggling with Catalan a bit. I really hope you can appreciate the hilariousness of this situation though. I have been exempted from several tests due to my lack of knowledge of any of the questions on my paper (except my name, I can usually get that one if I'm not too stressed out that day) so after the class handed in these tests, they passed mine around and got a good laugh. I have to say this was one of the funniest things I have ever experienced. The ability to laugh at yourself is truly a wonderful thing. And whether my classmates were laughing with me or at me is irrelevant. (Although I do think they were laughing with me... because I was laughing... and they were also laughing so by definition that's what went down...) It was the best period of Catalan I have ever had.

School is still extremely difficult. I sit in my classes not understanding anything that the teachers are saying and it's ridiculously difficult to keep focused (and sometimes to stay awake). I find my mind wandering constantly and uncontrollably. You'd be surprised how much time life presents you for thinking as an exchange student. I think about everything, things that normal people wouldn't ever think to think about. (This paragraph's starting to sound really poetic like Dr. Seuss and I'm totally okay with that.) This isn't necessarily a bad thing. Hopefully my attention span will gradually increase as I grasp the languages.

Interesting fact: There is a German exchange student living in my house right now! Her name is Hanna and she will be here for ten days. Her Spanish is really good, much better than mine. Luckily she inspires me to do better and speak more... This point also reminds me of how generous of a host family I have. Two exchange students in one house?! I've been hearing about other AFS's problems with their host families that luckily, I do not relate to. I met with my liaison, Iciar, at Starbucks this week. She asked me about my problems and concerns regarding my family and I couldn't think of a single one. It helps so much to have such an accepting and patient living environment. 

I think it's necessary to blog about "homeboy americano" that I posted a picture of on FaceBook recently. I MET AN AMERICAN IN SPAIN. Not that's anything really crazy, but if you were in my situation a week ago, lonely at school with everything going on around you in a language that you cannot understand, you'd be as grateful as I am. He's living here for a year, just like me. It's ridiculous how much we have in common. Miquel is the male version of myself, except maybe not as funny. We've been put in a "special class" together on Mondays where it's just the two of us and a professor named Oscar who helps us with our Catalan. The weird this about this is that Miquel speaks fluently and I barely know how to count to ten. Oh well, it's a nice relief from the rest of the classes, which get overwhelming at times. We've known each other for a week and he's already my best friend here. It seems that life will present me a small problem, and several days later comes a solution. In this case my problem was loneliness, and a friend was the solution. (Why am I so corny tonight?) Really though, it's wonderful to have a friend in a similar situation to guide you through the emotional burdens, particularly homesickness. It gets tough, really tough, and it's hard to be alone. One of the most important things I've learned here... Problem: homesickness. Solution: a Skype session with homeboy americano and life is good once again.

I think I'm going to close this post with something cheesy. Don't worry I promise not to do this often... But it seems necessary considering my mood is pretty serious right now. (When I say serious I don't really mean serious because I can't be taken seriously in my bike week t-shirt and Spongebob Squarepants boxers that I currently have on.) ANYWAY. Today is October 1st. That means I'm already about 10% finished with my exchange. I realize the remaining 90% is a lot, and I do intend to make the best of it, but it's really crazy how much time flies. In 9 days I'm turning sixteen. I'm starting to understand why adults constantly insisted that I didn't rush to grow up and I that I should enjoy my childhood. And believe me, I couldn't be happier to be turning sixteen. (For those of you who know about my number issues, you'll know that I'm ecstatic to be leaving the odd year of 15 and entering an age of an even number once again...)  Adults tend to forget how difficult the teenage years are. Teenagers are filled with emotions and unpredictable behaviors, desires and disasters beyond our control. As an exchange student, these are practically doubled with the added amount of change and stress. I've experienced every existing emotion, sometimes all within a matter of minutes. I would like to replace the term "emotional roller coaster" and start using "temperamental, bipolar squirrel." It seems more accurate to describe the feelings that can overcome me at times. Before I left, a friend asked me why I was leaving. I gave him the general answer that I would give everyone... "to learn new languages, to experience new cultures, to live a different life..." but that answer wasn't enough for him. Those reasons didn't make sense to him. He didn't know why I would want to spend a year in another country with a different family and a life away from the one I was living. It frustrated me that my answers weren't good enough for him. I was legitimately angry that he didn't accept my reasons as good enough. I thought about it every night before I left. I knew the reason I was mad was because he was right. I didn't know why I wanted to do this. I didn't have specific expectations or an explanation to why I wanted to leave home. I didn't know how it would affect my life or why it was a good option for me. However, I realize now how completely okay that is. As cheesy as it sounds, my heart, my soul, my gut, every other sensible part of my being knew that this was the right thing for me. There was never a doubt in my mind that I wanted to go. Honestly, I'm still not sure what I'm hoping to achieve here. Even if it takes me until the plane ride home to figure it out, I know I won't be disappointed in who I've become and in the the things that I've learned. My father once wrote something to me in a letter that seems applicable to my current situation.

"Learn to think for yourself. Question your mother, me, your teachers, the rules of society, not in a rebellious way, but in a constructive way. Be a free thinker but honor the time proven wisdom of what has worked well. Just know that there's room for improvement always. Remember we all make mistakes, we're only human, so learn to forgive. Forgive others and also forgive yourself if you make a mistake. Enjoy your life, be happy and prosper. Love yourself and others. Don't give up when obstacles come your way."

I'll be living by those words for the next 9 months. I've been here for a month and every day I feel myself mature in ways I didn't know were possible. Though these changes may only be visible to me, they're unbelievable. I'm learning to accept constructive criticism. I'm so open minded about everything; food, culture, academics. I'm so insistent to ask questions. I want to know everything. I want to experience everything. I still can't believe this is happening to me...

Okay just kidding I'm not ending this on a sappy note. Here's something better... Instagramed pictures of food!!!!

Thanks for reading.   :,)

First Day of School

Okay so for those of you who know me (which I'm going to assume is most of you if you're reading this), you must know that the combination of my brain and my mouth produces an infinite supply of words and conversation and that there has not been a single period of time of over 10 minutes of my life where I have been quiet. Brace yourself for what you're about to read, I think you'll be shocked. My school day today was from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and I would estimate that the total number of words that came out of my mouth was around... twenty? How is that even possible? I'll tell you how... go to school in Barcelona when the extent of your knowledge of the Spanish language are simple phrases like "where is the bathroom" and "I would like a sandwich, please."

Even though my host sister and I are the same age, she is in the grade above me so we separated at the very beginning of the day. I felt pretty comfortable though because I had met a few girls at the previous day's orientation and they welcomed me right away. I sat in the classroom and waited for something to happen. The energy level of the kids in the classroom was pretty similar to what it would have been in the states on the first day. The teacher, Mercedes, walked in at around 8:05. The first thing that shocked me was how we address teachers by their first name. That's considered to be extremely disrespectful back in the states and I would never dream of calling a teacher by their first name...well, to their face anyway. So the teacher tried to get the attention of the students and nobody listened. Kids were still running around, laughing, yelling, hugging and doing the typical teenage conversational thing. After like, 3 minutes (I'm not even exaggerating, and 3 minutes doesn't seem like a big deal but it really is), the kids finally took their seats. I'm assuming she told the class about me because at one point she asked me to introduce myself. So I stood up and said these exact words. "Um... hello. My name is Alexandra. I live in the United States and... well, I don't speak Catalan. Or Spanish." And then I sat down. Everyone laughed at me so that's a good sign. Mercedes preceded to speak in Catalan for the next hour... I only understood one word. She kept repeating "vale" at the end of her sentences, which is the equivalence of "okay" in English. I think. I hope, because if not then I understood no words and that's pretty pathetic. My next class was math. I really expected a Mean Girls moment here where "math is the same in every language" but apparently not in Catalan!! The teacher explained some things to the class and I didn't understand any of that either. (Notice the pattern here of me not understanding anything?) From 10:00 to 10:30 there is a break (called "pati" ...YAY I'M LEARNING) and everyone goes outside and talks and hangs out. So basically recess. I got to associate with a lot of the girls and kind of wormed my way into a little friend circle. Luckily, most of them are pretty good with English so I was able to kiiiiind of make friends. The bad part is that I only remember 2 of their names... (Actually this is the case for everyone. People would tell me their names and I would ask "que" (what?) about 3 or 4 times and they would repeat themselves just as fast so then I would give up and just say sí. Oh and several of them have already added me on FaceBook so we are officially friends.) The next classes were chemistry (I got a worksheet but pretended to do it), Latin, and Spanish and I won't go into more detail about how I didn't understand because it's basically the same story. I have to say, Spanish and Catalan will definitely be the most difficult classes. They're learning intense grammar things and I don't even know how to say pencil. (Just kidding it's llapis, I just looked it up.) We ate lunch from 1:30 to 3:00 and I was really glad because I was super hungry at this point. But just kidding again, the girls like to hang around and talk outside before lunch and we have to wait for the little kids to finish eating. So we sat outside and at this point of the day I was already completely exhausted and overly frustrated with myself. I watched the little toddlers play on the playground and I honestly just wanted to go play with them. I didn't understand their language, but they didn't even understand their own language. The only language they understand is see-saw and crayons. I was so tired of having people repeat things and having people explain things to me. There comes a point when people are helping you too much and you just feel so utterly helpless that you'd rather them stop. That's exactly what I felt. This is kind of strange but I noticed a tiny little Asian girl sitting by herself just people-watching and smiling at everything but not talking to anyone at all. I realized that's probably what I look like, minus the being alone part. Also she was adorable and I'm also pretty adorable. I ate lunch (chicken, salad, potatoes and beans, bread, a pear, and water- not horrible but not great, exactly my expectation from cafeteria food) and went inside earlier to meet with Mercedes. (I know I'm writing so many little side notes but this one is funny... I got lost on the way back inside the building so it took me an extra 10 minutes to find the courage, and remember the vocabulary, to ask someone to help me.) She went into the teachers lounge and told me to wait outside. I took out my sim card-less iPhone to check the time and one of the teachers started to talk angrily at me. I nodded my head for a little and then said "uhhh no hablo español o catalan..." He nodded knowingly since I'm the only American in the building and told me about how mobile phones were only allowed outside. I thanked him (I seriously thanked him because I was too shaken to remember how to say sorry) and went into the bathroom. At this point I was so overwhelmed and I guess that little incident was my breaking point. I ALMOST CRIED. I haven't cried at all since I got to Spain so this is a big deal. I finally collected myself and went back to meet with Mercedes. She was so nice and understanding, I could tell she was really trying to help me and explain things. She's also my English teacher and lived in Britain for 4 years so her English is near perfect. She kept apologizing for how bored I must be and for how sorry she is that there's nothing else she can do to help me. I realized that I'd been stubborn all day and way to much of an over-achiever. I should have expected that I wouldn't understand anything and that the day would go like this. When we finished speaking I thanked her and sat in the classroom alone for about 10 minutes. It was probably the most refreshing 10 minutes of my life. My next class was English with Mercedes and since they're only allowed to speak English I participated a lot and it was nice to understand something. My last class was history which I obviously didn't understand any of... then I got to go home. I'm keeping a positive attitude. I can't say the day was wonderful but I will keep learning and soon I'll be blabbin' away in three languages!

This is a picture of me after the long day of school.

HOLA ESPAÑA

Unnecessary Introduction

Well, here I am!! This is my very first blog post from Barcelona, Spain. Just as a warning, it will probably be pretty long seeing as how I currently do not have the ability to differentiate the important events with things that hardly matter... Another warning, I feel like my English is becoming worse and worse since I've been talking in such short fragments all the time, similarly to how the Spaniards talk to me so excuse me ahead of time.

New York City to Zurich

On Wednesday at about 2 p.m., I arrived at the hotel with my family. We lingered around for a little while because I didn't need to be checked in until 3 and after check in you are not allowed to see your family. I think I regret not spending the full last hour with my family. I was so anxious to get going that I forgot to think about how I wouldn't see them for ten months.

After check in, I met up with some friends whom I had already met over Facebook - I loved them even more in person than I did over the internet! We stayed overnight in the hotel and the next day was orientation. After the orientation, at around 5 p.m., we left for a short bus ride to JFK...and waited in the airport for hours. Okay seriously the 3 days before arriving to Barcelona were the longest 3 days of my life. We FINALLY boarded the plane and headed for Switzerland where I would have a two hour layover in Zurich. Here are just some pictures (some of which Swiss airlines should really consider using for advertising, my photography skills are pretty swell). And if you are wondering what the fifth picture is, it's the high score I got on my mini plane tv on Tetris. Pretty cool, I know.

 

Some Swiss chocolate!

Surprisingly delicious sandwich from the plane...

Zurich to Madrid

Yup, more traveling. I bet you're wondering if I will ever get to Barcelona? Don't worry, I'm wondering the same thing at this point. So we arrived in Madrid at around (American) dinnertime and it's already HOT HOT HOT. The first thing that I noticed was how room assignments were co-ed. I know that if my mom is reading this she'll probably be having a heart attack reading this. We gathered in a circle to play some ice breaker games. Typical American ice breaker games are sitting in a circle and trying to remember everyone's names or "two truths and a lie." Well not in Madrid! So everyone was assigned a number or a letter. One lucky person would sit in the center of the circle and call out two numbers or letters. Then those two people would run to the center and race to give a kiss on the cheek to the person sitting in the center, physically attacking the other person to try and win. The winner would return to his or her spot and the loser would take the place of the person sitting in the center. In America, this would be considered something along the lines of sexual harassment and no schools or groups would probably ever even consider playing this game. Me, being the ridiculously obnoxious, outgoing teenager that I am, and being assigned the popular letter Q, got really into the game and got to participate a lot. I thought it was one of the most fun games I've ever played... One hour in and I already loved Spain. We attended another orientation where I met more friends from all over the world and were given some packets of information. One of these packets had a student AFS card or something in it... well I took mine out and looked at the picture of they had me. I was confused for a little because I don't remember ever being a blonde. In other words, I got the wrong picture. It was probably one of the funniest things that has ever happened to me. Actually it's not even that funny but keep in mind how sleep-deprived I was at this point. After this we had dinner. So imagine going to a really junky camp with no air conditioning and where half of the toilets are broken. You'd expect nothing less than plastic for food, right?! Absolutely not. The food was great. The campers sang and danced until about 2 in the morning, but I went to bed a little earlier since my group left at 8 a.m. the next day.

MADRID TO BARCELONA!

I can honestly read your mind, FINALLY. I said goodbye to my friends who were headed off to several other parts of Spain and hopped on a bus. I found out that this bus would take me to another bus... We got to this bus station and I said bye to some more friends and hopped on the new bus. Shortly afterward I was told that this bus ride would be 8 hours and I quickly became miserable. It's quite possible that I'm one of the most impatient people you will ever meet so this was bad news for me. Luckily, these buses were super fancy and had tv's so I slept and watched the Pixar movie "Up" in Spanish (it still makes me cry, even when I can't understand anything). Funny story, I was sitting next to a boy from Germany and after I woke up from one of my naps he said to me, "You sleep very interesting..." I asked him how and he said, "well I looked at you and you were like this... ;O" I think that means with one eye half open and my mouth hanging wide open. Don't worry, someone took a picture of me on the plane sleeping like this so I actually do have a picture. So in addition to learning the extent of my almost nonexistent patience, I learned what an unattractive sleeper I am.

Adorable, I know.

When we finally began making stops, we realized that we didn't have an AFS volunteer with us. So on this bus were about 20 foreign exchange students with hardly any Spanish speaking ability and no direction whatsoever, trying to decide which stop to get off at. We somehow made a unanimous decision to wait until the last stop. We all got off the bus, got our luggage, and stood there for a few minutes thinking, "what now..." Nobody had a cell phone since international bills are so expensive. Luckily, we heard some yelling and looked over to see about 10 AFS volunteers coming toward us. They greeted us with the two kisses on the cheeks and directed us to ANOTHER BUS. I wanted to cry. Well not really but it was extremely frustrated. After getting off this bus the volunteers helped us carry our luggage up a large hill. I started to get nervous knowing that my house family was actually waiting for me at the top of the hill. When we reached our FINAL destination (doesn't it feel so good just to read that?) I saw my host sister, Celia, waiting for me with a lovely sign that said "Benvinguda a Barcelona Alexandra" in Catalan. I ran to her and hugged her. Let me just say that the entire meeting process was much less awkward than I thought it would be! Still slightly awkward, considering I can't participate in a single event in my life where I don't do something awkward. I actually stepped on my host sisters foot and tripped on a rock but I'd say that's a pretty big accomplishment. Then I was introduced to my host mother, Teresa, and my host father, Juan. They greeted me with big hugs and many kisses and I adored them immediately.

The first few days in Barcelona

We took a short car ride to the apartment where I'm living. I met Julia, the older sister, and got a tour of the spacious apartment. There are 4 bathrooms, outdoor rabbits and birds, and most importantly, a BEAUTIFUL piano. I have my own room with a lot of closet space and a nice desk. There's also a great view of a park below me!

View from my bedroom window

The family let me have time to unpack my things and settle in. My emotions at this point were wild. I kept finding myself thinking, "is this really happening?" I loved everything about the family, everything about Barcelona, everything about Spain. We ate dinner around 9 or 9:30 (typical Spanish time to eat, a big adjustment from my family's 4:30 meals) and it was fantastic. Every meal since has been awesome. I predict a weight gain of like.. 350 pounds? Yeah that sounds about right. The next day we went to the beach. I felt so lucky, only the second day of being here and I'm going to the beach? I got to meet Celia and Julia's cousin named Anna, and spend some quality time with all of them. They took me to a mountain where I saw the most breathtaking views of the city. The beach was perfect, the city is perfect, everything about this place is perfect.

On the third day, I spent time with Celia at the Plaça de Catalunya and I got to meet some of her friends. They told me about how much everyone will want to meet me at school since I am the first American exchange student to attend this private school. I start Thursday, and I really look forward to it. Today I went to a 25th anniversary lunch of my host father's sister and got to meet more of the (large) family. Everyone is so friendly and welcoming, they remind me of my Greek family back home. It's such a nice feeling to be so accepted into this family. I even had my own table setting! (Also, the food here was amazing...)

Everyone has been telling me how the first few days are always the hardest, I disagree. These past few days have been amazing. I have not yet felt homesick at all or disliked anything about the culture of Spain or this experience in general. It's pretty difficult, since I know hardly any Spanish or Catalan, but I think I'm beginning to pick it up. The first struggle was actually differentiating the two languages at all. Once I start school I think things will pick up. So for all of my family and friends back home, I hope this blog post will put you at ease! Everything here is wonderful, I couldn't be happier. :)