One month...almost

Originally I was waiting to write this post on the 14^th because that's the exact day I left, but I've been getting many requests to blog more so I guess I'll just pretend this is the 14^th. It's close enough considering today is Wednesday and it was on Wednesday four weeks ago that I started this journey. I think I'll construct this post with an update on the past few days and then a reflection on my first month as a whole.

So this weekend, as anyone who talked to me already knows, wasn't the most exciting. It was a long weekend just like in the US, but still not much exciting happened. This was the opposite of what I thought my weekend was going to be like because my host parents were gone for the entire weekend traveling around Spain. I was sure my host sister would use this opportunity to spend time with friends, go to parties, and stay out all night, which she did, just without me... I'm not going to lie sitting on the couch Saturday night while my host sister got ready for a fiesta that she didn't even bother inviting me too was a little depressing. It wasn't too bad though because I was able to play guitar and Skype without fear of annoying my host family. Thankfully, Sunday night, my host sister asked me to go out with her and I was able to ride on her motorcycle again. I think after riding it for a fourth time I have to say it is definitely my favorite thing to do here.

Another thing I was able to do this weekend was see some of my exchange friends at the pedestrian mall. It's always nice to be able to speak English outside of Skype and have people understand me. I loved hearing all the stories of peoples experiences so far and their reactions to Spain. The pedestrian mall or the “centro” is by far my favorite place I've been to in Jerez. It's hard to believe I've been here a month and there's still so much of this town I haven't seen. If I wanted to take someone on a tour of Yarmouth it would probably only take 1-2 hours yet I've spent entire days just touring this place and haven't even seen half of it. When CIEE told me they were placing me in an town relatively close in size to Yarmouth, they lied. I'm glad though, because I've always wanted to live in a city even if it's just for a short period of time, and now I am.

This week I have/had Monday and Wednesday off of school. I'm still not sure on why I have today off but I'm not complaining. It was interesting though, because that meant that yesterday when there was school, nobody showed up. In total, there were probably about eight kids out of 35. My English teacher explained to me that the reason kids often skip class is because it's not mandatory for them. They're encouraged to go because they can't graduate if they don't, and if they skip enough classes the principal will call home, but overall if you skip a couple of classes, nobody really cares. One thing I don't understand is that some kids missed the entire morning, came in for one class, and then skipped the entire afternoon. What was the point of coming in at all? Why would you walk or drive all that way for one class? The weird thing was, was that the class everyone came in for was French. So basically, for five out of six classes we had eight kids but during French we had 20. I still don't understand Spanish schools and I'm starting to think I never will.
Since last night wasn't a school night, I was allowed to go out with some friends for a birthday party. One thing I love about Spain is how spontaneous everything is here. I didn't even know the girl who's birthday it was but one hour before everyone was leaving I got a call asking if I wanted to go. They hadn't even figured out exactly what they were going to do yet, but they knew it would be a party so of course I said yes. I met so many people which was really nice, but over-whelming as it always is because I can never remember everyone's name.



So that's basically what happened this week and now I guess I'll reflect a little bit on how this month has gone.  Basically, this month has gone by so fast it feels like a week. I can't believe that four weeks ago I was saying goodbye to my friends and family for an entire year. Some days it feels like forever ago and others it feels like just yesterday. I miss everything that I left so much but at the same time I absolutely love it here. America and Spain are so different. There's times when all I want to do is go home and be in a place where people understand me, but other times I find that the challenges of it are what make this experience so special. This past month has definitely been the most challenging month of my entire life. Every week has its extreme ups and its extreme downs. I know now though, that whenever I'm going through a rough patch, I just need to wait because eventually it will get better. For example, on Saturday, when I was sitting alone while my host sister was out, all I wanted to do was go home and be with my friends. I was sure my entire weekend would be spent like this alone and bored, but of course the next day my host sister invited me out with her and it was one of the most fun nights I've had since I've been here. My point is, that obviously this month has had its ups and downs but in grand scheme of things there have been way more ups than downs.
Another thing that I've failed to write about in my blog posts is how I've been improving with the language. This is because up until a few days ago I hadn't really seen any improvement. Now though, I realize that month ago I wasn't able to have a full conversation, even if it's just about basic things, without thinking. It helps that one of my best friends here speaks English and Spanish because if I ever want to know how to say something she's always there to help me.



Anways,
This post has been a lot longer than intended.
For everyone who's taking PSATS today,
Good luck :)
Sorry I can't be there to join in on the fun....
-Libby


P.S. I registered to a pool yesterday!! I'm planning on swimming as much as I can because the pool is absolutely amazing.