Wind in the sails

So throw off the bowlines, sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.” ~ Mark Twain

at the moment, I am feeling like quite the world traveler, although I still have yet to go anywhere of great merit.  Don't get me wrong, coming to Barcelona to study so far has been more than what I imagined, but everything was planned for me, all the details taken care of, which was a great thing for me, being not so detailed-oriented.  But when I bought the plane tickets for my first real viaje while being abroad, I felt like I could conquer the world.  Yes, i know this seems a bit dramatic, i mean all i did was pick a day, time and airport from which to leave and to return, but once I clicked the button to purchase the tickets, there was no turning back.  Now I have to figure out my own details.  I have to do the planning, and i'm not going to lie, that kind of scares me.  Now most of you know that I tend to be a little bit disorganized, and at times more than a little bit, and to be able to figure out all the details for these trips that we're planning, i'm going to need to be on my A-game.  

So, for this first excursion, the wind is blowing me in the direction of France...Paris, to be exact.  I will be spending three nights and four days in Paris with Jes and her friend Francesca for Jes' birthday.  They will take the train down from Maastricht and I will fly in from BCN, all three of us foreigners making our entrance into Paris at 10 am on Friday the 25th of February.  The plan is to meet at the Eiffel Tower (cliché I know, but hey, when in Paris...) and from there go exploring through the city.  I'm hoping since my French is a liiiiittle bit rusty (I know the alphabet, how to count to three and say fish...thanks to the little mermaid) that I can count on my trusty pal to translate for me.  We will be staying at Plug-inn Hostel, upon the recommendation of Francesca, since she has stayed there before.  

Although its still three weeks away, even the idea of going on this trip is making me nervous, I feel like a little kid on their first day of kindergarten: pretty excited, and glad to be going, but ready to pee my pants or burst into tears at the hint of any obstacle I might encounter (hopefully none of which will happen...however if it did, i'd have another story to add to the collection...and let's be real, its hard to not be entertained by the unfortunate, humiliating mishaps of a novice traveler such as myself).  

But alas, it is time for me to say buenas noches and get some sleep before my final tomorrow.  Hope all is going well for everyone, and that i haven't been boring you too much.  Feel free to leave suggestions at the bottom of the page. Besos. ~Keri

Caminata y Calçotadas

Took my first exam on Friday, and I think it went pretty well  :) I have a paper, presentation and final exam this week so lots of work to do before I finish this intensive class and finally start semester classes.

Saturday was a break from schoolwork and studying for another group outing, this time up a mountain, Tibidabo.  The day started out beautiful and only got better as we hiked, uphill, for about an hour and a half, to a little restaurant on the mountain.  There we ate a typical Catalan meal, starting with calçots, charred leeks that you peel and dip in some mystery sauce before eating them above your head. needless to say it was quite the scene. The meal consisted of calçots, pa amb tomacat (bread with tomato), salads, potato tortilla, grilled potatoes, grilled veggies, some sort of meat, and a lemon custard cake for dessert.  I then realized the point of the hour and a half walk prior to the meal was to make us hungry enough to be able to eat it all!  luckily, we took the ferrocarriles back to the city center. 

Sunday was another opportunity for cultural experience.  Andrea and I got up early to go with her host mother to the CaixaForum, a social cultural center in Barcelona that, at the moment, has exhibitions of artwork by Picasso and Dali.  I really liked the exhibit called Rutas de Arabia, which included at least 300 pieces of ancient art from Saudi Arabia.  They also played some documentaries about Bolivia and Colombia, all very interesting stuff. 

Today, we took a field trip with the program to Poble Sec, a barrio just south of my apartment.  We had been talking about the Spanish civil war in class and got to watch a great movie called El Lengua de las Mariposas.  But the point of the field trip was to see what the bomb shelters, bomberos, were like in Barcelona during the 30's.  It was a really cool tour of one of the shelters that was constructed into the side of the other Barcelona mountain, Monjuic.  

However, you will be surprised to know that I think I have been cured of the 'rebajas' disease.  After shopping with Andrea and my host mother in the rain last night, and again today for a couple hours, although today in the sun, I have been frustrated with the shopping scene one too many times to actually enjoy it now.  I'm guessing this is just a phase, and might not last long, but for now, i can't even look at another price tag or sale sign. 

well that's the update for now, and since all that unsuccessful shopping made me exhausted, I think it's time for a siesta! :) love you and miss you all!

a deiu!
~Keri

Vroom, vroooooom!

I have recently decided that I must become a biker chick...no, not the kind of leather-clad, covered head to toe in tattoos kind of biker chick...a classy European biker chick.  Whilst once again perusing the racks in H&M, i noticed a girl near me, about the same age, carrying her purchases in a shiny white motorcycle helmet. she just had this look going for her, skinny jeans, leather jacket, nose pierced.  I don't know why this struck me as especially cool, nor why i decided that it must be the motorcycle that gave her such a fashionable appearance, but it did.   Thus, my new-found desire for a street bike upon return stateside (because if i tried to drive around here i'd either die or kill someone, so better to wait and do it in my own backyard...)  And now, since my car has been getting into a little bit of trouble since my departure, i'm thinking motorcycle could definitely be a possibility.... :) hopefully at least a matter up for discussion...

 I have almost finished week one of intensive classes with CIEE, and Friday will be our midterm exam.  I'm really enjoying the class, although it is 4 hours long....the break in the middle for coffee and chocolate croissants helps to make the last two hours go by pretty fast (you know what they say about a spoonful of sugar!)  Saturday is our first cultural experience outing as a group.  We will be going for a hike on a nearby mountain, and dining at some restaurant along the way.  The food is the cultural part...we will be eating "calçots", or cooked leeks drenched in some sort of special sauce.  Maria tells me to wear clothes i dont particularly like because the stains are bad and the smell is worse...sounds like a great time to me!  hope you all are enjoying the snow back home, and the sun in other parts of the country/world! hopefully the weather perks up soon here. i'm anxious to visit the beach!  hopefully talk to you soon! love and miss you all, ~Keri


PS. my address, for anyone who wants it, is:

Maria Hidalgo
Compte Borell 56
Barcelona, Spain 08015

just write my name on the envelope somewhere and it will be delivered to me! :)

Rebajas!

Here in Barcelona, January is el mes de rebajas, a whole month dedicated to discounts!  And believe me, everything can, and is, on sale.  What qualifies as "on sale" for some people however, chopping the price of a shirt from Custo Barcelona from 180€ to a much lower 135€, doesn't necessarily work for poor college students like me.  But have no fear, in the city, there are stores for everyone, and the rebajas are especially hard to avoid.  Boots for 15€, accessories for 2, dresses for 6€ (I now have two), everything is on sale and easily catches the eye.  So this is the daily schedule that I have been following for the past week or so: get up and go to class until 2, eat lunch with a few program kids til about 3, then, with intentions of running a few quick errands, spend 4 hours walking around the streets of Barcelona, unable to pass by a Mango, or Zara or H&M without taking a "quick" look around.  But I have to say, I have done pretty good for myself, keeping my purchases mostly below 10€, and only for the most essential items, of course. And with the amount of walking that shopping in this city takes, who needs the gym? after a waffle covered in melted Nutella, or a little cup of coffee gelatto, a walk around the stores is all it takes, and you're good as new...maybe even ending up with a cute scarf or something. sounds like quite the deal to me! Alas, I realize my back account isn't exactly bottomless [unless Mom and Dad are feeling generous] so I must cut down to the bare essentials, lunch and metro passes, because the 2 minute ride to school on the metro beats the 10 minute walk on the cold streets, any day (plus it gives me a little more sleeping time). 

Don't yet know what the plans for this week might be, besides doing some cultural thing with onions on Saturday...but I suppose we shall find out soon enough!

Much love to all!