Excursion to Toledo

Hola!

On Saturday (Sept 24) we went to Nueva Segoiva and which is a bus ride out of the older part of Segoiva to look for the mall. Needless to say we were on another fun Spain adventure. We walked around Nueva Segovia in the beautiful sunlight for 2 hours and then returned to Segovia by our houses. We never did find the mall which has a Burger King in it and Peanut Butter to buy...sad day! But I guess it was a nice walk :( On Saturday night a group of us went to TelePizza and that was so good!!! To top it off they had Ben and Jerry's Icecream Cookie Dough...I thought I was going to die of happiness!

On Sunday, we went on a group excursion to Toledo which is a city that is very similar to Segovia but is a two hour bus drive away. The city is down in a river basin and is surrounded by a river which makes for a BEAUTIFUL site to see! I was not feeling so well I probably did not enjoy it as much as I could have but I took a nap on the way there and on the way home so that helped. When we first arrived to Toledo we went around the city by bus. We then walked up to main plaza and had an hour to eat lunch. We ate lunch but then there just happened to be a McDonald's right there so I had to get a ice cream cone off the 1 euro menu! lol We then went with our tour guide to the Museum, Synagogue, and the Cathedral. The sites and the city were very beautiful. After seeing the sites we went shopping to the souvenir shops that were open. All you who know me would be proud, I love souvenirs and all I got was a postcard. I decided this week that I had to get one postcard from every city in Spain that we visit and every other city I visit during my time here to remember everything that I got to see. We got back to Segovia just as a festival was going on. They were carrying a huge box with the a virgin statue on top. We don't know what it was for but the plaza and streets by the aqueduct was FULL of people. After we got through the crowd we went and hung out at the cafe for awhile. When I got home Rosemarie, Hannah, and I ate dinner and then I went to bed early even after two naps.

There is a cold going around this week and lots of people are getting it. I got it last Friday and this week has been all about doing homework, planning travel stuff, and sleeping. I think I have taken a nap everyday and still been able to go to bed early. I am feeling a lot better today though thanks to the medicine Carmen recommended and the sleep. Today I had another day a Pitufos. My time there improves every week. They meal times there still stress me out because they are so different and I feel like I don't know what to do, but everything else is so much fun. Today I was back in the room I was in the very first day which is the older preschool room. It is now officially my favorite because the kids in that room are awesome. I never sat down or didn't know what to do today because one of them always was holding my hand and tugging me this way or that way. We sang songs, watched a skit, played outside, and had a dance party. Great day! By the time I got home I was so tired again that all I did was eat and then took an hour nap before going to start researching for Italy. We were looking at getting our schedule for which city when down, hostels/hotels, and what we want to see. It was be so much easier with a travel agent to tell us what to do but this way we will get to get "lost" probably literally in Italy and I am so excited! It will be Charlie, Bria, Tia, and I going together and we will also probably run into other people from our group too since almost all 22 of us will be in Italy at one point during the week. Crazy! After making some plans I had my second time of intercambio which is when people from the city come in and we speak spanish and the english with them so they can learn and so we can learn. I am talking with Paola who is 19 and goes to the university in Madrid for Pharmacy. She is really nice and we talked about all sorts of things!

Also yesterday I booked a ticket to London in November (17th-20th)!!!! Super excited for this! After this weekend's one day excursion to Granja my weekends are just about full of traveling, all but two I think. Tomorrow a group of us might go to the mall on a mission to find Peanut Butter here! We are desperate!!! After that I have class at 4:15 and then a bible study after that. After the bible study I hope to get some homework done before I go out tomorrow night with my host sister, Marina, and her friends. That will be so much fun and we will be practicing spanish so yes I am actually going to classes and learning things over here too! LOL On Friday I have three classes :( and then will probably do nothing but sleep before our day excursion on Saturday. Hope you all are having a good week! God bless you all!

Love,
Jennifer <3

``Porque yo sé los planes que tengo para vosotros--declara el SEÑOR-- ``planes de bienestar y no de calamidad, para daros un futuro y una esperanza. Jeremías 29:11

¹¹ For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Jeremiah 29:11

Weekend in Madrid and My Fly By Week This Week

Hola! Sorry this has taken so long this week has literally flew by I can't believe it is already Friday, which is usually the day I wish for but I struggle doing that here because my time here is going away so fast. In two weeks we have fall break already, CRAZY! Last weekend we went to Madrid for two days. It was an hour bus ride from Segovia and then we used the metro system to travel around Madrid. The city reminded me so much of New York City because there were so many people, stores, "times squares", and central parks. The first day we did a walking tour of Madrid for three hours it was cool, but exhausting. We did get to see that they have a McDonalds, Burger King, Dunkin' Donuts, Starbucks, and so on. We all were excited.We also go to see where the ball drops on New Year's Eve in Madrid and that was kind of cool. During the walk we got to see the Palacio Real or the White House of Madrid were all the formal events are held for other foreign dignitaries. We also got to go into the Cathedral that was built to go with the Palacio Real. All the cathedrals are so pretty here and they are everywhere. After visiting the Cathedral we continued to walk around the city and we saw a lot of people dressed up in costumes putting on acts on the street corners to make money, and there was one that was a baby that was so funny Ricardo (our professor) gave him so money. For lunch we went to the Parque de Retiro which is like Central Park and is the greenest area of the city and even has a pond of water where you can rent a boat and row around on it. We sat and ate our picnic lunches there and rested up before we went to the Museo del Prado, which is one of the most famous museums in the world. We got to see the Meinas painting if any of you know what that is, I learned all about it from my high school spanish teacher. The museum was cool but after an hour I was ready to leave, museums just aren't my thing especially art museums. After the museum we had free time from five on so a group of us went to McDonalds for an early dinner. Yum! Burger, fries, actual fountain soda, and a McFlurry I was in heaven! We then went shopping to the shops around the "time square" of Madrid. Our next adventure was to figure out the subway system by ourselves but it ended up being really easy. That night we went out and found a discotecca that didn't have an entrance fee and danced a little bit. On the way home we were all hungry so we got McDonalds again because when you can get it you have to :) We stayed in a 4 star hotel that was absolutely amazing. I got to room with just Bria which was perfect since we both went out dancing and I have really gotten to know her.

The next morning we had breakfast at the hotel which was like continental but with breakfast food from Spain so no biscuits and gravy :( Sad day! After breakfast we headed to the Reina Sofia Museum which is a more famous abstract museum. We were really tired for the day before so the one painting that excited me was La Guernica by Pablo Picasso because it is in every Spanish book and was really cool to see in person. After La Reina Sofia we went and had lunch at Pinocchio Pizzeria which was like a 5 course meal that was really good. American like pizza and pasta with a normal lettuce salad and ice cream for desert. After lunch we were stuffed but we had a couple more hours to shop so we went back to the shops around La Puerta de Sol (timesquare) and got our souvenirs. After that we caught the metro back to the fancy hotel got our stuff and headed to the bus station. We got back to Segovia around 8:30 exhausted. I think I though we were on vacation in Madrid because I got "home" and then realized it really wasn't my home and got really sad and tired Sunday night. I skyped with Mom and Dad and got a good night's rest and then I felt better. You would think after being here a month homesickness and the change in culture would stop surprising me but it doesn't because there are still many things we miss as much as we all are loving being here at the same time. It is such a mixture of emotions every single day...I want to go home...I want to stay here forever... you never know what you want lol That has by far been the hardest part of this experience...all the emotions and all the change. Even just a little change in my schedule throws me way off. I also went through a Spanish rut last week were it felt like I just could not improve anything and it was REALLY frustrating but this week has gone better with that. (Still can't believe it's the end of the week again we really need to get booking it on fall break plans, hostels, and in Italy transportation!)

On Monday,  I had three classes, helped Bria get stuff ready to fly home for her brother's wedding this weekend, and then did homework. I was still super tired from Madrid so I went to sleep early. On Tuesday I had two classes again and then got a letter from Grandma Burgess in the mail so that made my day. On Wednesday we went to las Marista the school I will also be doing part of my co-op at. It sounds like it is going to be fun! I will be going Monday afternoons and Thursday mornings to teach fourth through sixth graders english. I decided to go with a little bit older elementary students so that there is more of a difference between that and the daycare. After meeting with the English director at the school we stopped at a cafe were they have cupcakes that are so good. I had an apple one and it was like an applefritter cupcake! After that I just worked on homework because it was the first thunderstorm and rain since we got here. I don't usually get excited over rain but I was super excited! It smelled so  good and was perfect to doing homework to. I have my first two short papers due in my literature classes on Monday so that is what I need to work on this weekend before our excursion to Toledo on Sunday. Yesterday I went to Pitufos for six hours and some of the kids remembered me and wanted me to go into their classroom but I went into a different one where I got to meet other kids. One of the little girls speaks English and Spanish so her teacher had me speak English to her and she understood it all which was really cool. The daycare reminds me of Atonement's with all the songs and games, but their meal time is so different it still stressed me out it is just so crazy. The bus system went perfect yesterday and it was a customer appreciation day so my fare was free both ways, perfect! I had a three hour class yesterday afternoon, skyped with Bria with Suzanne and Charlie, went to a Bible Study that ended up just being a normal conversation, and then went out dancing. Last night we actually met up with my host sister Marina which was lots of fun because we got to dance together and hang out outside of the house, but it also meant it was a really late night because we went home at 5am and that was too early but seriously I don't understand how Spaniards do it! Today I have the same three hour class but afterwards we are going to watch Twilight in spanish which is really exciting. Tomorrow a group of us is going to Segovia's "mall" and then Sunday is our excursion to a city very similar to Segovia that is two hours away by bus. Hope you all have an amazing weekend! God Bless!

Love,
Jennifer

Week of September 11th-16th ...Build up to Madrid Excursion and First Day at Pitufos Daycare

This week was a pretty normal week. I had classes and homework to do all day Monday and Tuesday. On Tuesday night I went with Charlie, Bria, and Andrea to a bar with a TV to watch part of the soccer game Barcelona vs. Milan (Italy). It was the first soccer game I have ever watched on TV and was the first professional game I have watched ever. It was also the first TV I had watched since coming to Spain, which is kind of weird. What was really exciting though is that right before we had to go eat supper, Barcelona scored a goal which was very exciting! I thought there would never be a score! I still like good-old American football better then soccer but it was still fun to watch.

On Wednesday, was my first day at Pitufos (Smurfs) daycare. I was going to get up at 6am thinking that I had to catch a bus at 7:07. My alarm didn't go off until 6:40 so I rushed out of the house to sit at the bus stop until 7:47 when my bus actually left, because I had looked at the wrong schedule. Awesome Jennifer move I know. Not one cafe was open and it was freezing. I like to pretend I did it on purpose just to watch the sunrise over Segovia ;) lol My first six hours went really well at the daycare. All the Spanish was really tough, because the kids spoke fast and sometimes were hard to understand just like some little kids are hard to understand in English. The kids were absolutely adorable though and didn't know what to think of me at first. The 3 and 4 year old quickly warmed up to me though and keep asking me what my name was all day, and saying "Jennifer look or Jennifer come here". If I didn't go right away they would grab my hand and drag me with them. I had about 6 shadows all morning and every time I sat down I would have three on my lap in a heartbeat and a couple close by. If I didn't realize we were speaking Spanish I would have felt like I was at Atonement with all the kids there. I got my kid fix while practicing my Spanish and learning more words. I need to learn more commands and words to talk to the kids and to split up fights. I also REALLY NEED to learn songs and stories to entertain the kids in between activities, because when the other teacher was busy I didn't know what to do to keep them busy. So it is diffidently going to be a learning experience too. I was so exhausted after that I slept for an hour and a half siesta in the afternoon and then went to the cafe to work on my Spanish Co-op Blog. I did manage to find ice cream more like U.S. ice cream so that was really exciting! I found a normal ice cream sandwich and it was only 1 euro so even better!

Today I have gotten all my homework and stuff done, because this weekend we will be in Madrid for two full days. I am really excited to go and see a different part of Spain and to get out of Segovia for a little bit. I really hope we don't do museums the whole time and get to explore more like the shops and prehaps...McDonalds of course ;) We will probably go out dancing tonight and maybe watch another movie in Spanish at the center tomorrow night. A group of us is planning another trip to Madrid to shop and to go see Lion Kind on Broadway in November. Another group is also thinking about going a weekend in November to London which is SUPER exciting!!! I have been here almost three weeks and can't believe it only another week and it will have been a month already which is super sad, it is going by so fast. Natsuki is leaving Saturday already which is super sad because we have had many "sleepover" talks at night of course in SPANISH which has been a lot of fun! I will miss her and she is so not ready to leave!

I hope you are all having a fabulous week and I will try to post again after Madrid and tell you of all my adventures there!

Love and miss you all!
Jen XOXO

The build up to the first excursion!

Hola! Time for another blog so I don't get as far behind as last week! On Thursday, I went to the market in the Plaza Mayor with Andrea. Then we went to class and to the cafe to do homework, I know really exciting stuff. We went dancing again until like 4 in the morning but it was so much fun. I slept in of course on Friday, and got all my homework done before we left to go to lunch at Foster's American Restaurant. All but a handful of our group was there to eat good American food. It was so good again!!!! We then went and sat through a three hour class which just is not fun on a Friday afternoon. Then on Friday night the other students arrived. When my host sister, Marina, introduced me we greeted each other in Spanish but the minute she left they wanted to talk to me in English. I felt mean but I was just rattled off my answer in Spanish, because I can't get into the habit of talking to them in English. They are really nice though and we had an AWESOME conversation at supper that night with my host sister Angela, about tons of things, while eating pizza. Things have changed at the house....there are right now seven of us in the house! I am sharing my room with Natsuki who is really easy to live with and so her and I share a bathroom too. Meals are kind of crazy though in the tiny kitchen. Friday night a group of us went to the center and watched a Ratatouille in Spanish which was a lot of fun and very relaxing.

Yesterday we went on our first excursion to the Escorial and El Valle de los Caídos. At 9:15 we all got on a chartered bus to go to the Escorial first, which was about 40 minutes from Segoiva. El Valle de los Caídos is the monument that the dictator Francisco Franco built while he was in power in memory of the fallen nationalists, which makes it now a REALLY controversial because it has become a place of politics rather than religion. What was really gross was at both places there are tons of dead bodies there, especially at the valle because all the dead fallen nationalists and rebels bodies are there and people from the government are now sorting through them trying to identify them more than 10 years later.  It all gave me the CREEPS!!!! Blahhhhhhh!!!!! We even saw kings and queens coffins and there were three more king and queen's bodies decomposing in the room next to us...I get the goosebumps thinking about it! The sites were fun to visit and learn more about and I liked all the history and stories behind everything. The cross on top of the Valle de los Caidos church is really pretty and huge. That was my favorite part to see, because it is all built up into the pretty mountainside, and the view around there was spectacular! Touring all day learning every single little detail about every single little thing did get old after a while though. We rested up after being everywhere in the morning. We went out dancing Saturday night and my host sister went to go study for more tests to get into college, and she is super nervous again so if you could keep her in your prayers this week that would be great!

Today a group of us went back to the church. It is really fun! Today we sang Lord I Lift Your Name On High and another song that we always sing at Atonement...I was super excited! I am going to know that song by heart in SPANISH by the time I get back. I understood more of the sermon today too. The pastor talked about loving your enemies and related it to 9/11 and to the terrorists attacks that occurred in Madrid around the same time. It surprised me that they even recognized 9/11 as a big sad day, but they do. As for me I didn't know there were terrorist attacks in Madrid until I came here. I am finding that people here pay more attention to things going on in many countries as were us Americans tend to focus more on ourselves sometimes. Going to church is not only good for my spiritual wellness and sanity, but also for my Spanish. The service is two solid hours of Spanish to listen to and understand, especially with a little bit different vocabulary. We are going to Madrid next weekend so I won't be able to go to church but a group of us is starting a bible study to do together at the center on Wednesdays so that should be fun too.

This week should be a "normal" week and it is starting to feel like more of a life and not a vacation. Wednesday I go for the first full day at the daycare which I am excited and nervous about since it will be fun but also a challenge language wise. On Friday, during my art and civ class we are going to get to go tour the aqueduct which will diffidently be better then sitting in the classroom. Saturday and Sunday we will be in Madrid, which I am really excited for because I want to go to McDonald's solely to get a McFlurry to have my "DQ" fix. lol Hope you all have a spectacular week! God Bless!

Love,

Jennifer