Moving On and Moving In.

Sam, Rachel, Paul, Me, and Rebecca at the Erasmus Party

Can you guess how last night turned out? Do you think I just had some tapas and went to bed? Of course not, silly! It’s Sevilla, after all. Rebecca and I did go out for tapas, joined by our beautifully accented British friends from the hostel, Jonny and Andreas. I enjoyed a tapa that basically consists of hot chunky tomato sauce with an egg cracked over it. So delicious! After dinner, if that is what meal it was, we met up with another Brit and headed to a free flamenco show. It was in a very hot, crowded, grungy bar, with the performers seated in the front of the room. It was certainly interesting. The first part of the show consisted of one guy playing the guitar while two women clapped and another guy sang his heart out. I don’t think I’ve ever seen someone sing with so much emotion in my life. It was a bit overdramatic and comical, but it was fun to experience, since it’s such a big part of the culture here. Then one of the women started to dance to the music. She was quite a woman…you would not want to mess with her in any way. Ever. She was large and in charge…actually shushing people in the crowd who were talking. She was also a very good dancer. It was unfortunate that I could not see her feet because that is so much of the dancing. The group had a second performance later with more dramatic singing and both of the women dancing together (the other one was much less intimidating). I would definitely go see a show again, hopefully with better seats next time.

After the flamenco, we met up with two other American girls doing our program to go out. We did not really know where to go, but we had heard of a party for the Erasmus (European study abroad) students near the university. Luckily, we found it. It was a huge fiesta outdoors with several bars and places to mingle. They were playing very good music, so I danced around the entire time, even though most others weren’t dancing until later in the night. It was a bit of an awkward party because the students were getting to know each other, but I had a great time with my friends and met guys from Dublin and from Spain. I had a wonderful time dancing with the Spaniard and talking to him a ton in Spanish. Having a real conversation in Spanish is such a huge high! Around 4:30 am, we walked home, with the help of directions from nice construction workers. I found Rebecca and Andreas in the lobby and we decided to go next door for a snack. It is crazy that food venues are still open at 5 am and it was filled with only locals, but they were very nice to us and we got some French fries covered in a spicy sauce. Perfecto! Then we finally went to sleep for not too many hours.

We got up at 11 am to pack up our bags and get ready to move into our new and sadly separate apartments. After enjoying a last breakfast on the terrace, we bid adieu to the people at the hostel and I grabbed a cab to my new apartment. It only cost me 4 euros, which I was happy about because that means that rides home at 6 am should not empty my bank account. I was greeted by my two new roommates, Inma and Jesús. They both are extremely nice, although I have a bit of trouble understanding Jesús so far. Apparently, he has a distinct Sevillan accent. They speak very quickly to each other and it can be hard to comprehend everything, but with Inma’s English explanations, I am getting the gist of it. And Jesús seems very funny and friendly. Plus, girls, he is extremely good looking. So you all better come visit, whether it is to see me, him or Sevilla! I unpacked my stuff and then passed out for a siesta. I’m usually not a big napper, but after a night out and the fact that everything closes from 2-6 pm, I was out cold. When in Spain…sleep in the afternoon. I woke up around 7:00 and headed out to buy some sheets and towels and a set of plastic drawers. Inma had told me about a store similar to our “dollar stores” so I went there and it was quite overwhelming! But it had everything you could ever want. I bought some cheap goods and now my room is organized and my bed is made. I think I will actually stay in tonight. I know, that sounds totally unheard of. I have heard that once you leave the hostel, you realize how tired you actually are and sleep forever. I foresee that happening. I am hoping to Skype with my family and anyone else who is up for that later, so get online!

My Room