Hola! from Granada

Hello everyone! I´ve been in Spain for almost a week now and this is the first time I´ve had access to a computer! So, sorry I haven´t posted anything yet...I have so much to tell, I don´t even know where to begin!

The first few days in Spain I travelled around a lot before finally settling in with my host family yeterday. I´m here through a program called ISA (International Studies Abroad) and we all travelled together, first staying a few days in Madrid and then a few more in Toledo. While we were in these cities we went on many tours and learned so much about the history of the cities and spain as a whole. We went to El Museo del Prado (an art museum) and then El Palacio Real (the Royal Palace) in Madrid, where tour guides explained the significance of what we were looking at. (And, yes, it was all in Spanish!) Then, in Toledo we saw historical churches and sinagogues and learned so much about the history of the city and the religions it was founded upon. What a beautiful and historic city Toledo is! I loved the narrow streets and the beautiful buildings. I have lots of pictures but I can´t post them now since I´m not on my own computer. I will post them in the next few days. On Sunday we finally arrived in Granada, where we´re staying with our host families! All the touring around was fun, but I´m glad to finally be settled in a home.

I´ve hardly seen Granada so far, but I feel like I am going to fall in love with the city. My host family is so much better than I ever could have imagined and I feel completely at home with them! Angela, Andrea and I are sharing a room in the apartment, and we even have our own bathroom for the 3 of us to use! Surprisingly, we have more than enough space. We weren´t sure what to expect, moving in with a family with 4 kids! The mother, Torcua is so wonderful and she insists on treating us as if we were her own children. She constantly is kissing us and telling us how wonderful and beautiful we are. The father, Manuel is very kind and he walked us to the school today so we would know how to get there. I felt bad when he picked us up with all our luggage in Granada, because it hardly fit in his car! There is a 22-year-old daughter who is so nice and I hope she can show us all the best places to go in Granada. There is also a 17-year-old boy who we don´t really see much of. He´s probably overwhelmed by all the girls in his house. Finally, there are the two younger 11-year-old twin girls who are so great! We played lots of games with them last night and they are so fun! They love having other girls there and they call us hermanas (sisters).

There has hardly been time to relax since I´ve been here. Even this morning, after our first night in Granada, we woke up early to take placement tests at the university. I was so nervous about the test, because if I didn´t test into a certain level my classes would count for nothing! But I am so releived now that they´re over and I know that I´m at the level I need to be. Our month of intensive classes starts tomorrow! I can´t wait to start classes and get into a routine. I still can´t beleive I´m here! The reality hasn´t sunk in yet that I´m just at the beginning of my trip and I still have 4 months to go. I´m going to post pictures, and hopefully a little video of the city and my family in the next few day, so keep checking the blog!

I miss you all so much!