My blog is sporadic and very limited with information, and for that I apologize.
Last weekend i went to Sevilla to spend time with my exchange friend Annamarie. I already had been to Sevilla once before with my host family, but because we were there for Christmas, I wasn't able to see that much. Sevilla is the 4th largest city in Spain, and there are many wonderful things to see. It is a really beautiful city, and probably one of my favorite in Spain! I will be uploading photos soon! I have planned out my last few weeks until the Trip around southern Spain and Portugal. I will be going to the Feria de Cabellos this friday, then on Sunday I will be going to Malaga v. Sevilla soccer game in Malaga. The following weekend (18th) i will be heading to Granada to spend time with my host sister and some other exchange students. Then the next weekend they are coming to visit here! Exchange students are for sure the most fun kids in the world! We just like to have fun, and we do crazy things that normal kids just wouldn't do.
School is still school, but at least it isn't quite so bad anymore. I should be able to pass all of the classes that I need to, and am even able to do better than spanish students on some of the tests!
Monday, May 6, 2013
Monday, April 8, 2013
March, Semana Santa, Cordoba
It has been far too long since I have posted a blog. I apologize for those of you who read this, cause I should be keeping up to date with it a bit better. I have been pretty busy for the last couple of weeks, and have been blowing it off far too long. When things are good, then there is no time to write ;).
This has been an incredible experience. That is all i can really say about it. There are lots of hard times and it is far from easy, but every hardship i have gone through, is well worth it. For Semana Santa (which is the holy week before Easter) I went to Malaga to see the procession. We went on Thursday because it is the biggest procession, and there were tons of people there. It was a lot of fun, and we were able to stay with the exchange girl in Malaga. I have tons of pictures of it on Facebook, and if you want to see even more, just look up "Shona"' from my friends list (she will have even more I am sure). It was also pretty cool to see my host sister again. She came to visit for the holidays, and we had a nice time. Also she got her drivers license now, which is also pretty cool.
Then it was rough, cause I had to go back to two days of school at the very beginning of April. After a short week, I went to Cordoba with all of the Exchange Students in Andalusia. We went to the district conference for Rotary, and spent a lot of time helping set things up for the meeting. It was 4 nights and for days, but i didn't get a full nights sleep any of the nights. It was cool to meet new exchange students that live relatively nearby, and for the most part, we all got along really well.
Now I am back in school again. It is unfortunate because school is so boring and i wish I could be doing other things; but at the same time it isn't that bad because I understand more and I can participate without it being too exhausting. I reached the 7 month mark yesterday, and have a little less than three months left. This of course brings up mixed emotions all over again, but I feel for the most part that i am running a bit short on time and need to start doing some of the things I always said "oh i can do that later".
This has been an incredible experience. That is all i can really say about it. There are lots of hard times and it is far from easy, but every hardship i have gone through, is well worth it. For Semana Santa (which is the holy week before Easter) I went to Malaga to see the procession. We went on Thursday because it is the biggest procession, and there were tons of people there. It was a lot of fun, and we were able to stay with the exchange girl in Malaga. I have tons of pictures of it on Facebook, and if you want to see even more, just look up "Shona"' from my friends list (she will have even more I am sure). It was also pretty cool to see my host sister again. She came to visit for the holidays, and we had a nice time. Also she got her drivers license now, which is also pretty cool.
Then it was rough, cause I had to go back to two days of school at the very beginning of April. After a short week, I went to Cordoba with all of the Exchange Students in Andalusia. We went to the district conference for Rotary, and spent a lot of time helping set things up for the meeting. It was 4 nights and for days, but i didn't get a full nights sleep any of the nights. It was cool to meet new exchange students that live relatively nearby, and for the most part, we all got along really well.
Now I am back in school again. It is unfortunate because school is so boring and i wish I could be doing other things; but at the same time it isn't that bad because I understand more and I can participate without it being too exhausting. I reached the 7 month mark yesterday, and have a little less than three months left. This of course brings up mixed emotions all over again, but I feel for the most part that i am running a bit short on time and need to start doing some of the things I always said "oh i can do that later".
Monday, March 4, 2013
Granada, Madrid, Toledo (Semana Blanca)
Alright so I got back last night from my 9 night trip for Semana Blanca. I made the most of this week off, and was gone from the time I got out of school, to the night before I was supposed to go back. It turns out that I didn't go back today though. My host family let me sleep, and I am extremely happy that they did.
First, I took a 3 hour bus from Malaga to Granada. I met up with my host sister and an exchange student Fabien (he is French Canadian, and this trip was only possible because we both went). I stayed with my host sister for three nights and we had a lot of fun seeing the city! Then I stayed Monday and Tuesday night with Fabien at his host house. We went to a bunch of important buildings and sights, and saw almost every important landmark in Granada. Some of the particularly cool ones were the Alhambra and the Cathedral. I always seem to love the cathedrals here.
Then on Wednesday, Fabien and I took a 5 hour bus from Granada to Madrid. We arrived without too much difficulty and were staying with a family in a nearby suburb. I spent a lot of money on buses and metro this week, but it was all worth it.
We went into Toledo on Thursday. We had been told by nearly everyone that it was extremely beautiful and we would have to agree. They are really well known for their metal making, and it was cool to see them making some of it! I may or may not have bought a small sword... We also visited some of the various religious buildings located in Toledo. I think there are two mosques, a monastery, a cathedral, and a temple. It was raining by the time we left, but the city was still incredible!
The rest of the trip we spent in Madrid. I didn't take as many pictures as I would have likes, because my phone was all filled up! We visited tons of buildings and landmarks throughout Madrid, but there are a few we missed (such as the Real Madrid stadium!).
It was cool to hang out with other exchange students this week and just to see how their experiences differ from ours. I am going to try to visit more places and other exchange students, just to have fun and to make the most of this incredible experience. I spent a ton of money this trip on various things, but I wouldn't change a single thing about it. I think the only thing that could be considered a waste was the sword, but let's all be honest, its sweeeeet. It was an incredible trip and definitly something I will remember for the rest of my life. It's good to be back though..... just not in school...
There will be pictures on facebook soon,
CJ
First, I took a 3 hour bus from Malaga to Granada. I met up with my host sister and an exchange student Fabien (he is French Canadian, and this trip was only possible because we both went). I stayed with my host sister for three nights and we had a lot of fun seeing the city! Then I stayed Monday and Tuesday night with Fabien at his host house. We went to a bunch of important buildings and sights, and saw almost every important landmark in Granada. Some of the particularly cool ones were the Alhambra and the Cathedral. I always seem to love the cathedrals here.
Then on Wednesday, Fabien and I took a 5 hour bus from Granada to Madrid. We arrived without too much difficulty and were staying with a family in a nearby suburb. I spent a lot of money on buses and metro this week, but it was all worth it.
We went into Toledo on Thursday. We had been told by nearly everyone that it was extremely beautiful and we would have to agree. They are really well known for their metal making, and it was cool to see them making some of it! I may or may not have bought a small sword... We also visited some of the various religious buildings located in Toledo. I think there are two mosques, a monastery, a cathedral, and a temple. It was raining by the time we left, but the city was still incredible!
The rest of the trip we spent in Madrid. I didn't take as many pictures as I would have likes, because my phone was all filled up! We visited tons of buildings and landmarks throughout Madrid, but there are a few we missed (such as the Real Madrid stadium!).
It was cool to hang out with other exchange students this week and just to see how their experiences differ from ours. I am going to try to visit more places and other exchange students, just to have fun and to make the most of this incredible experience. I spent a ton of money this trip on various things, but I wouldn't change a single thing about it. I think the only thing that could be considered a waste was the sword, but let's all be honest, its sweeeeet. It was an incredible trip and definitly something I will remember for the rest of my life. It's good to be back though..... just not in school...
There will be pictures on facebook soon,
CJ
Tuesday, February 19, 2013
Ceuta, Africa
Alright, so my Saturday began like every other day. I woke up at about noon, and went downstairs for breakfast. I then decided to go meet up with some Spanish friends in Estepona. Now that I live further away, this takes either a 15 minute car ride, or a 30 minute bus ride. Just about as soon as I made it and was hanging out with friends, my phone rings; "Hey Cj, Do you want to go to Africa tomorrow?"
The next day, we were on our way to Africa!
We traveled by boat, and it took about an hour to get to Ceuta from Algericas. It also took about an hour to get to Algericas from San Pedro. All in all, I would say that two hours for a nice day trip to Africa isn't so bad. Although a lot of the stores were closed, we ate some typical Moroccan food (kebabs) and had a nice walk. It was cool to see all the history that my host dad had explained to me on the trip to the bus station. It is always cool to live things that you learn and hear about. We walked around a lot, and wet from one side to the other. We got to see all sorts of buildings and sculptures. It was also cool because there was a parade to celebrate (more of a mourning) the end of Carnival. It was a funeral procession with a big fish sculpture, and was cool to see as well,
I am hoping to go to Granada to ski next weekend, and then the following weekend I hope to go to Madrid to visit those sites. We have Semana Blanca (white week) and I should be able to travel a little. I asked about why we have this week off (cause it's only around here) and it is because all of the other schools have time off for another holiday, and they need to make the time fair for paying teachers.
All is well, and i am living my life as well as I can. I love and miss you!
Photos soon!
The next day, we were on our way to Africa!
We traveled by boat, and it took about an hour to get to Ceuta from Algericas. It also took about an hour to get to Algericas from San Pedro. All in all, I would say that two hours for a nice day trip to Africa isn't so bad. Although a lot of the stores were closed, we ate some typical Moroccan food (kebabs) and had a nice walk. It was cool to see all the history that my host dad had explained to me on the trip to the bus station. It is always cool to live things that you learn and hear about. We walked around a lot, and wet from one side to the other. We got to see all sorts of buildings and sculptures. It was also cool because there was a parade to celebrate (more of a mourning) the end of Carnival. It was a funeral procession with a big fish sculpture, and was cool to see as well,
I am hoping to go to Granada to ski next weekend, and then the following weekend I hope to go to Madrid to visit those sites. We have Semana Blanca (white week) and I should be able to travel a little. I asked about why we have this week off (cause it's only around here) and it is because all of the other schools have time off for another holiday, and they need to make the time fair for paying teachers.
All is well, and i am living my life as well as I can. I love and miss you!
Photos soon!
Sunday, February 10, 2013
This is from a fellow exchang student that lives in Marbella (20 min away)
love from marbella: Change: Looking over to see Cj on my right, Vanessa on my left, and Christine fidgeting with her blankets on the couch al lado, I can't help but smi...
Tuesday, February 5, 2013
Quick update
So this week is going to be a pretty good week. I had a fun weekend, we celebrated Carnival a little bit, but it isn't that big here. Now we have the next three days off for "huelgas" which are protests in which kids go walking around town with signs. I went to see what this was like the last time we had them, but this time my host brother and I are using them for extra sleep days. I am also still working on the trip to Barcelona, our first host is now unable to host us, so we are trying to find another in order to make that trip possible. I would love to see all the great things Barcelona is famous for. That is all, I hope all is well back in the homeland.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)