Time is flying!

I haven’t written in a while because I’ve been lazy, I guess. This Spanish lifestyle has really gotten to me. Since last time, I’ve just been going to school, of course, relaxing and trying to see as many places as possible.

Last weekend we went to Santillana del Mar, which is a medieval town about two hours from Oviedo that they call “the city of three lies” – it’s not holy, flat or near the sea, as its name suggests (“san,” “llana” and “mar”). It was really amazing – all of the ground was covered in stones:



And the landscape looked like the epitome of the phrase “rolling hills”!



First, we saw a torture museum, which was incredible and disturbing at the same time. It featured all types of torture devices from all different countries and explained what they did with them.





Then, we went to the caves of Altamira, which are famous for their cave paintings more than 1800 years ago. We had to walk 2 kilometers to get there! That is dedication! Unfortunately, we had to go to a museum with replicas of the caves because they no longer let people into the caves, so I couldn’t take any pictures. But the cave replicas looked real as anything! The guide explained what each painting was (many were of bisons, horses etc) and why the cavemen probably drew them. Then, in the museum part, there were all types of things to look at and facts about cavemen and how mankind has changed mentally and physically over the years. Very interesting stuff.

With any luck, this weekend I’ll be going to see some real caves right here in Asturias (the province where Oviedo is)! And, of course, if it’s possible I’ll take as many pictures as I can.

Also, ever hear of Carnaval, the huge party in Europe the week before Lent starts? Well, I happen to be attending Carnaval at the craziest location around: The Canary Islands! I am so excited, and that will be in about two weeks. So, many pictures from there too!

Starting to Feel Like Home...

So, I´ve been in Oviedo for a little over two weeks now and it´s really starting to feel comfortable. I love the city, I like my classes and I love my host family. Everything is finally falling into place. That said, I need to make the most of this because these next 4 months will fly by for sure!

I finally got some pictures of Oviedo! Here you are:



We call it the Space Ship mall! Apparently, the architect is very famous and has constructed some buildings in the U.S.! I´ll find out the name soon. It looks so cool though!



This is the Parque de San Francisco, which is a huge, beautiful park right in the middle of Oviedo. It´s also only a 5-minute walk from my house, which is cool. All of the streets surrounding it are huge commercial areas.



This is what most of the streets look like! Everyone walks their dogs, too (and a LOT of people have dogs!) so this picture in itself is a good representation of Oviedo.



This fountain is right next to our campus....Oviedo also has a lot of fountains. So many that at first I thought I kept walking in circles because I kept seeing them, but then I realized that I kept coming across different fountains.



This was taken from the steps of the building where I have one of my classes. The sky was beautiful that night! It´s a very pretty campus.


Other than walking around Oviedo while trying not to get lost, it´s definitely been a great experience here. My classes are good, but having 5 classes in Spanish is definitely a change. I´ll talk more about them another time, though. Right now I have to go to class.

But I start my column for the Temple News next week! It´s called Relocated Reporting and it´s about my experience in Spain. My first story will be published Tuesday, Jan. 27 so make sure to go on www.temple-news.com and check it out!

Hasta luego!
Carlene

Hello from Oviedo!

My good friend Erika did something similar to this when she got to Oviedo, and I thought it was a good way to introduce you all to my experience thus far in my new hometown:

Thoughts as I get acquainted with Oviedo:

1. It’s definitely not McDonald’s:
I realized when I got here that Americans have hamburgers all wrong. Here in Spain, hamburgers are prepared in the literal sense of the word: using ham. A Spanish hamburger looks exactly like its American counterpart, except it’s made of ham instead of beef and doesn’t have a bun. A little saltier, maybe, but still edible. And I’m sure you can imagine what their manifestation of a cheeseburger is. It just makes me miss America a little.

2. I am now prepared for the Arctic:
I’m not really sure whether Spaniards just like to be economical or whether they really love the sensation of being numb from head to toe. Since I’ve been living in my new house, I’ve slept every night wearing the following: two pairs of socks, thick tights, pajama pants, a thermal shirt and a hoodie. I tried to wear more, but it wouldn’t fit on my body. It’s pretty cold in the houses here, and all of my American colleagues would also agree. Apparently, something really popular for bedtime here is to buy these contraptions from the Chinese shop that allow you to fill them with hot water and put them in your bed when you sleep at night. They stay warm and so do you. I should look into getting some.

3. American dogs might as well be wolves:
The first night I got here, my host mother and I went walking around town with our black cocker spaniel, Tina. Within two blocks of our journey, I realized that 95% of the people we encountered also had a dog. Dogs are common here. But what I didn’t realize until I got back was that they are all so unbelievably GOOD. Every time Tina saw another dog, my mom would walk her up to it and they would hang out and sniff for a while. Never once did we hear or see a bark or attempted attack. Furthermore, when we approached a certain park, my mom bent down and simply took Tina off of her leash. Mind you, we had a park on one side and a street on the other. Tina went straight to the park, did her business and immediately came back to Mom to be tied back up. No temptations of running in the road existed.

4. Any lazy teenager would love this place:
My host mom is a nice woman. Not only does she repeat every sentence at least 4 times for me, which probably gets redundant (no pun intended), but she waits on me – hand and foot. She won’t let me help her prepare lunch, clean up or even go 5 minutes after waking up without asking me if I want my morning coffee. And I doubt it’s because I’m her guest, either – I think that’s just the way it works here. The mothers enjoy serving their kids, and the kids enjoy being served. I could live with that.

That’s it for now, I think. I’m sure I’ll come across some more oddities before the week’s over. I’ll get some pictures up soon, too! I’m sure you all want to see what Oviedo looks like. It’s almost like the cleanest, busiest part of Philadelphia that you can imagine if it was placed on a steep hill. It’s beautiful.
Other than that, I started classes yesterday! It’s great, they don’t start until 2 p.m. at the earliest every day, so I could sleep as long as I want. And on Mondays, I don’t start ‘til 6. That means that if I ever travel, I can have an extra day to arrive. So exciting!

Hasta luego,
Carlene

Tomorrow is a New Day

Today is my last day in Madrid, and what a time in Madrid it was. My first time in Europe, I saw just about every historical place in and around the city of Madrid AND I was there to witness to first snow (that stuck) in 10 years! What a crazy week. And I learned so much! Did you know that the Spanish word "catedral" that came from Latin (and what we know as "cathedral") actually means "chair"? It referred to the chair of the archbishop's chair in the cathedral, and it was the most important part. So that's how we got words like "Catholic" and "Catholicism."






Anyway, it was one of the best experiences of my life. Today we went to Avila and Segovia, which are about 50 miles outside of Madrid. Avila the first walled city and was used as fortification in medieval times. It was built in the '60s -- the '60s A.D., that is. It's the most preserved wall in all the world. It was amazing!

So wish me luck for meeting my family tomorrow -- I have no idea what they're like or whether they have Internet, but I'll update as soon as possible!

Buenos noches,
Carlene

Almost done in Madrid!

Today, we took another bus trip, this time to Toledo, which is located roughly 50 miles outside of Madrid. Toledo is also known as “La cuidad de tres culturas,” or “the city of three cultures.” The three cultures referred to are actually religions: Christianity, Islam and Judaism. This is why the phrase “Holy Toledo!” exists, also. It is a very old, beautiful and interesting city.





We visited a chapel, a castle and a synagogue. All were awesome, with beautiful architecture as usual.






When we stepped outside, we were all astonished by the incredible view. I swear, Toledo is the reason for the word "picturesque." It's so hard to capture the beauty of the old city with just a camera. You really need to see it with your own eyes. But here I will try to let you understand what I saw:

And then we came back and ate lunch and the coffee I got afterward was so tiny!


After lunch, we returned to the hotel and lots of people went to sleep (the jet lag is still going strong for some!), but I didn't. Oh, did I show you my view from the hotel yet?




Tomorrow is our last trip in Madrid, then on Sunday we head to Oviedo to meet our families! School already starts next Monday. This is flying by already! More tomorrow.

Buenos dias,
Carlene

Orientation

So, this is my blog for the 5 months that I’ll be in the country of Spain (and various other places in Europe for vacation) to study. I hope you all enjoy! Please comment on anything you have questions/comments about and I’ll do my best to tend to them.

I arrived January 6 in Madrid for my orientation. We’re here until Sunday, January 10 to sight-see and get acquainted with being in Spain. Our hotel is Hotel Asturias, which is right in the center of Madrid’s business district and much of its historical area. Most of the roads are brick, which is really beautiful, and the shops are close together and very ancient-looking.

The hotel is quaint and very “European,” in that the colors are dank and the marble floors give it a classic feel. Stepping outside is a challenge in itself because there are so many pedestrians – many more than Philadelphia, even. Madrid is becoming known for its public transportation system, which is expanding quickly these days.

For the last two days, we've been sightseeing around Madrid. Yesterday we went to the northern-most suburb of Madrid to the house of Phillip II, the Mausoleum.

Every king of Spain was buried there! It was amazing to see. The architecture was unlike anything I've ever seen -- each and every room of the house was completely different and totally unique. Then we went to the Valley of the Fallen Soldiers, which has a huge cross up in the mountain that you can see from almost anywhere in Madrid. Needless to say, it was amazing to see up close!

There's also a castle at the very top of the mountain, which we got a very good view of on our way there from the bus:

And the mountains outside were beautiful!

Today, we went to The Royal Palace, which is more or less the Spanish Embassy. It's where all of the official political receptions are held, and it's where King Charles III and Charles IV lived. It's amazing -- like The Mausloeum, every single room is different. One was made completely of porcelain! I've never seen anything like it. Unfortunately, they didn't allow any photography inside, so I couldn't get any pictures. However, I do recommend that you all check out some photos online!

More writing and more photos tomorrow -- I'm tired!

Buenos noches,
Carlene