I’m definitely feeling better this week! In fact, I’ve had an awesome day today! I have much to tell you about my trip to Milan and my first week back in Barcelona. Once again, it feels good to be home! So let’s start with the rest of last Thursday…..
My second class drug on and on Thursday. My Spanish friend Isabella was really worried about me being sick. She offered to let me come home with her to have her dad take a look at me since he’s a doctor or to go to a doctor with me to translate. She is so sweet and I sincerely appreciate her trying to help me. I was feeling pretty bad. After school was over I came home and took a nap to try to regain some of my energy and rest before my long weekend ahead. I woke up late around 10 and started packing. After I was packed we tried out best to get some sleep before having to get up early to catch our flight.
So Friday morning came early and we got up, got ready and decided that we would try to take the train to the airport since it’s free because we all have a pass. Well, next time we need to look up a train schedule because we missed the train by 1 minute and had to wait nearly 30 minutes for the next train. Our flight was at 8:55 and we were still waiting for a train from the center of Barca at 8:10. We finally got on a train and then it took forever to get to the airport. My roommates were freaking out that we weren’t going to make it on the plane. I was surprisingly very calm. I’ve been later than this before for a flight and still made it on and this was in the US! European airports seem to flow much smoother so I wasn’t panicking. We got off the train at 8:30ish. We took a brisk jog to the gate and went seamlessly through security and got right on the plane. I was also pretty calm on the flight surprisingly. We had a great take off, flight, and landing. I had a pastry and an orange juice on the plane. I flew with EasyJet, a European budget airline, so they offer cheap fairs but you have to pay for things like checked baggage, snacks on the plane, etc. So basically, I guess its like flying on the airlines in America!! WHO KNEW! Except, you board the plane in groups and can choose your seats like Southwest flights. After we landed in Milan we proceeded to get tickets for the bus to take us into the center. We bought 3 roundtrip tickets and ended up saving like 30 Euros! We went out to catch the bus and this short little Italian man let a group of 34 people get on this one bus that we had stood and waited for. We were really mad because we had to wait another 20 minutes on another bus. Another bus came, no room, so then again, we had to wait another 20 minutes. It was crazy. We ended up standing there for about an hour before we could actually get on a bus! By the time that we made it to the central station I was pretty frustrated to say the least. Then, my roommates wanted to walk to find the hostel instead of taking the metro. I was pretty tired and I didin’t really want to wander around lost. We eventually made it to the hostel. Thank goodness. It was run by an Asian family and they’re English was not great. I was just happy that we were finally there. After we filled out some paperwork she showed us to our room. There was a double bed and a single bed. Alex and I shared the bigger bed since she sleeps in my bed at home most of the time! Lol We have girl time in our room and she usually just sleeps in there. The fact that we had to pay separately for a bed though and then had to share one didn’t go over well but when your in a foreign place where no one really speaks English is hard to argue with someone about it. Lol Other than that, the hostel was really nice. After we got settled in we made our way to the metro and went to the center of Milan to see the Duomo Cathedral, the main attraction. We first grabbed a bite to eat at a little café. I had Milan style risotto, it was so good! After lunch we also had some Gelato at the same place and the owner kept telling me that he loved me and he kept starting at me. It was a little weird but it was cute so I got a picture with him. Lol After lunch we headed to the cathedral. We could have paid 8 Euro to take the elevator to the top but instead we decided to pay 5 Euro to take the stairs! So, we climbed 300 stairs to the top! The views were amazing. We could see all of Milan from the top and the architecture on the cathedral was so intricate. The pictures that I took were amazing. After we descended from the top we went in and checked out the inside. It was nice too. While we were trying to take pictures of the front of the Cathedral from the outside these crazy men, who always want you to give them money, were putting pigeons on Stephanie! Haha, I looked over and she had like literally 10 pigeons on her arms, her head, everywhere!! Lol It was really disgusting but at the same time Alex and I thought it was hilarious!! She was pretty upset but she was letting this guy put the pigeons on her arm so she must not have been too disgusted! After all that excitement we went and checked out the “Mall” where all the expensive stores are like Louis, Prada, Burberry. You know, the good stuff. This is also where the “Bull with no balls” is located. It’s tradition to spin on the bull for good luck. After this we did some shopping on Via Torino where the more affordable shops are located! After shopping we took the metro back and ate some Italian pizza at a restaurant across the street from our hotel. Mine had ricotta and mozzarella. Mmmmmm, very yummy. We went to bed pretty early because we were exhausted.
Saturday we woke up early, got ready, and headed out to do some more sight seeing. We started at the Sant Ambrogio (not sure of the spelling) It is the oldest and most important medieval building in Milan. It was a beautiful church. The mosaics were amazing and in the back there were two dead bodies, which you can see in my album on facebook, it was a little creepy to say the least but kinda interesting to see something that old. I read that while they were digging around the crypt they uncovered the bodies and they are really old or something along those lines. After 80 pictures and an hour we headed over to see if we could get into the Last Supper. One of the reasons that I wanted to go to Milan was to see the Last Supper but when I tried to make reservations they were completely booked through November. They of course told us the same thing at the ticket office. We had run into a couple from America the night before while eating pizza and they said that if we didn’t have a reservation that we should at least try to go because sometimes people will sell their tickets, especially Asian groups. However, we were unsuccessful and decided to move onto the Castello Sforzeso. It was built in the 14th Century and was first used as a defense against Venice, later as Leonardo’s studio, and nowadays as a historical monument that houses many different museums and collections. Leonardo has many famous pieces and ceilings located here such as Madonna and Child and Michealangelo’s famous Pieta Rondanini, his last uncompleted sculpture, is also located here. He was working on it when he died. After visiting all of the museums we went over to a market and got a pastry…none of them were very good. After that we made to Buenos Aires to do some more shopping. We shopped pretty much the whole evening, and then we sat down at a restaurant to grab a bite to eat. The food was really good, very authentic. After that we started walking back to our hotel. We got in around 9ish and we met the guys staying next to us. I think there were three guys one of them was from Texas originally but now lives in Amsterdam with his girlfriend. They offered to grab some drinks with us or something but I was tired so just Alex and Stephanie went. The thing about staying in hostels, is that you always meet other students that are traveling too, so it’s nice!
Sunday morning we woke up and headed downtown to see the famous theatre. We could have taken a tour but it would have been in the dark because they were setting up for a performance. So, we skipped that and took some pictures and did some souvenir shopping instead. We tried to see the Arc of Peace but after we had walked a mile to see it, it ended up being under construction like everything else in Europe…lol Soo…we did some more shopping, took an afternoon nap, woke up, ate dinner, and did some more sleeping because we were tired and it was Sunday.
Monday - I knew two weeks ago that this was going to be a very busy day for me. We got up at 4 am to catch the bus that takes you to the airport from Milan. We arrived on time for our flight and grabbed a quick croissant and OJ at the airport. Our flight back was pretty good, I got to see the sun rising over the Alps, it was beautiful! The descent into Barcelona was not ideal, I got a little panicky but I made it through and pretty soon we were on the ground. After landing we tried to hurry to the train so that we could get home and get ready for the day ahead. We missed the train by literally 1 minute and had to wait nearly 30 minutes for the next one. It was cold, and I was tired. After we finally made it back home, I got ready for school and went early to meet with my group members to discuss our presenation for class. My first class went well. In the second class we gave the monument tour and it wasn’t very warm outside so I wasn’t really enjoying it. Plus, the Spanish students tend to be a little rude when measured by American classroom standards. They are always talking and whispering and laughing during class when the teacher is talking and stuff, I find it to be rude and annoying especially when I can’t hear. I guess it’s normal though. The teachers don’t really seem to have very much control over their classrooms here in that sense. After school I met with one of my many groups to discuss the workload and then I went home and did some laundry, grocery shopping, etc. I was passed out by 11 o’clock, which is rare for me over here! Usually I’m up until at least 2! I was really exhausted.
Tuesday started out good. Spanish class was good, and we were having a tour for our second class so we didn’t have to stay at school. I came home, made lunch and then got ready for the tour. Alex and I left a little early in order to allow time to get lost and such. We found it easily though. We went to La Pedreda which is a house that was designed by Gaudi. It was pretty cool, nothing extremely special. The roof was the best part and even then I wasn’t extremely impressed. We also walked to the Sagrada Familia and we saw another important house. Our tour guide was a senior from school so it was a little dis-organized. I decided that I’m going to go back to all these sites later on to get good pictures. From this point on I can’t really remember the rest of the night.
Wednesday we only had our morning class, which just so happens to be the class that I despise the most. It was really boring and I was so happy when it was over. After school we had the rest of the day off to do research for our other class that we usually have on Wednesdays. That evening I hung out with some friends and I also booked a ticket to go to Rome next weekend!! I’m really excited!! My flight was a little higher than what I initially wanted to pay but it’s Rome, and I don’t have many weekends left to go and I would like to see Rome when it’s not freezing outside.
Thursday – In Spanish class we finally got our class schedule. Lol We are having our Spanish exam on November 5th and then we will start learning Catalan until the end of the term. So, that’s exciting. Our second class was entertaining. I really enjoy Spanish Culture and Tourism. It was raining cats and dogs outside so we didn’t really do anything this night. When we got home from school though we had a sticker on our mailbox saying that I had gotten a package so I immediately took the bus down to the post office. I got in the wrong line the first time, took a number, and then stood around for like 20 more minutes before I figured out how to get my package! Lol Turns out, my church sent me a package all the way over here in Spain! I couldn’t believe it! I was very excited to get something in the mail from them. It was basically a bunch of small snacks and Halloween candy so I shared the majority of it with the European kids that came over that night to hang out. They enjoyed most of it. Lol
Friday – I slept in because I was tired and when I woke up Alex and I went shopping. We shopped pretty much all day and I finally bought a pair of boots!! I think I’ve seriously tried on every single pair in this city!! Lol They are nice and I really like them although I haven’t worn them yet. When we got home Kevin was here so we worked on booking a hostel for Amsterdam. We were successful and I have hostels and flights for everywhere that I am going so far except for Madrid. Friday night must not have been too exciting because I can’t remember if we did anything.
Saturday –We slept in again and went to the beach around 1 or 2. It was a nice day for the beach. It wasn’t too cold or windy and the sun was out. The temperature was 76 degrees Fahrenheit. That will probably be one of the last times that we are able to go to the beach because it’s definitely starting to cool down and we’ve only had a few nice days like this recently. While we were at the beach my purse almost got stolen because I wasn’t paying attention. (I was distracted) BUT, Alex was looking out for our bags so they stayed safely in our possession. I also finally went swimming in the Mediterranean here in Barcelona! I figured that it might be one of the last times that would be at the beach and I wanted to get fully in the water at least one time. It was ice cold, like Titanic water ice cold, but it was refreshing and I’m glad that I did it! After the beach we went to get my hair cut! Friday when we were shopping we ran across this really cool looking salon and we went in to check the prices. It wasn’t too expensive actually only 30 Euros for a shampoo, cut, and style. This is about average here so I made an appointment because my hair has been in desperate need of being evened up. My stylist was actually a guy from Holland. He was really nice and his English was really good so I felt comfortable having him cut my hair! We talked about all sorts of different things like the languages spoken here in Barcelona, the culture of this area, and other cities in Europe. He gave me some good advice on Madrid and I think that I’m really going to like it there. My hair turned out really great. I’m trying to grow it back out so he didn’t really take off any length instead he evened it up and angled it a little bit by making it shorter in the back. It actually looks pretty good. I’m really happy with it and I rarely say that about haircuts. Lol After my haircut I did some grocery shopping and we went out to the other Black Sheep across town to check it out. We have one literally on our door step, it’s the original one but they also have a mega taverna across town so we decided to check it out. Turns out that Saturday was also daylights savings time here so we got an extra hour at the bar!! How lucky are we?!? Haha. So currently I am only 5 hours ahead of East Coast time until you have daylights savings time there this weekend.
Sunday was a lazy day as usual. Alex and I worked on some homework, tested out the Laundromat, and were lazy. That night we went out for Sushi at this cool Japanese restaurant. They had a conveyer belt with a variety of small dishes or tapas and it was really good. I tried some new things and the majority of it was good. After eating out we went to Hogan’s, an Irish Pub, to watch the FC Barcelona game. They won of course and while we were all hanging out some really drunk Danish guys came up and started chatting us up. They were a little weird but it made for an interesting night nonetheless.
Monday – Back into school mode again. We got homework in both of our classes Monday. It’s nothing to hard though. In one class we have to research the meaning of the name of a street and in the other we have to research a traditional Catalan dish and explain it’s ingredients, how its made, etc. For lunch we went to my favorite place for Patatas Braves, which btw is my favorite Catalan dish. We went to Bar Tomas again and it was soooooo good. I’m seriously in love with this place and would eat there everyday if I could. After school we decided that we would have people over for an “American” dinner. My roommates did the majority of the cooking and I of course did the majority of the dishes before, during, and after. We had fried chicken, mashed potatoes, and a spinach salad with raspberry vinegarette. It was ok, it wasn’t KFC and to my standards if the food isn’t better than fast food then I might as well just eat the cheaper, tastier fast food! Lol After dinner we drank a bottle of Moscatel, a Portuguese sweet after dinner wine. It was really good and it’s my new favorite drink. We were up pretty late and didn’t get to bed until about 2. We had a good time though.
Tuesday – Today we got up early, got ready, went to school and then class was cancelled. BOTH of our classes were cancelled today because both of our professors have the same flu bug that we all had last week! Kathrine, our coordinator had informed me that my package had come from my dad and that it was as big as me! I went up to her office to get it and she wasn’t lying! Lol My roommate offered to help me carry it home. I was pretty excited to open it when I got home. It had all sorts of goodies inside one of them being some velveta shells and cheddar which I immediately consumed. After I opened that up I decided that since we had the whole day off from school that I was going to go out exploring in Barcelona. I have realized recently that we don’t have much time left here in Barcleona and since I’m traveling almost every weekend I had to try to visit as many sites, museums, and parks that I can during the week. So, I decided to start by exploring the rest of the Gothic area today. I walked around lost for a while and saw the church of La Merce, the patron saint of Barcelona, the church of Sant Just, Plaza George Orwell, and did some shopping. I bought a really cool scarf, had some churros with hot melted chocolate for dipping, and then met up with my roommate Sam to go to the Picasso Museum. We had to wait in a pretty long line to get our tickets but it was well worth it. Picasso was an amazing artist in many aspects and this is the largest collection of his art in his home country. It was outstanding. It was packed but I still enjoyed it and afterwards I bought a bookmark and postcard of my favorite painting since you aren’t allowed to take any pictures inside. I also got a cool new pencil for my collection. Which, BTW, my roommates made fun of me for having a pencil collection but, if you ask me, I think it’s pretty cool. It’s very unique, inexpensive, and within the past year it has become an International pencil collection, not just any pencil collection! After the museum we went over and visited the Santa Maria del Mar, another famous Gothic cathedral here in Barcelona. It was beautiful. Fisherman and sailors built it back in the 13th or 14th century. After the church we had some tapas at a little café and headed home. It’s been a very busy day today so I’m pretty tired but we might be going out tonight, I’m not sure yet, you’ll have to wait till the next blog post to find out!
As for other things, I’m sorry it took so long to get this post out, I’ve tried to sit down and finish it a couple of times this week but it’s been hard to find the time and motivation with so many other things going on. However, now that I’ve gotten this long post out of the way I plan to post more or less everyday that way they are shorter and easier to read! Lol Also, there has been some tension recently between my roommates and I to say the least but that’s a whole other story for another day. Oh and by the way I’M GOING TO ROME THIS WEEKEND!!! AHHHHHH!!! I’m so excited. Rome is the one place I have always wanted to go!!! I’ll let you know all about it!! :D I’ll be traveling by myself this weekend also, I’m excited about this but also keep me in your prayers!!!
