My First Post- A Recap

Well, I have arrived and I have now started my life in Spain. Things here have been going surprisingly well. It seems my anxiety about arriving and living here was unnecessary. I did not arrive in Spain without problems. I did however, take the random extra security I was forced to go through much better than the lady behind me who was actually sobbing as it was going on.

After a few days of orientation, I moved in with my Señora: a woman with a thick accent, fast tongue, and about half my height. I am her first ever student so I am sure to be spoiled. This also means however, that as a typical Spanish Mother, she will be constantly hovering, nagging, and shoveling food down my throat every time I open my mouth. She is an extremely kind lady and has walked me to class through the extremely narrow and labyrinth-like streets that are incredibly easy to get lost in.  By the end of the walk we had a whole train of American students following us to the building. I live about 45-50 minutes away from school in the barrio (neighborhood) de Triana, so this means a lot of exercise. 

I have met a lot of people, and we have been doing a lot of wandering the streets just taking in the city and the people. All of it is a bit overwhelming, but it has been a good time so far. There is so much to see and do. We already took a side trip to Itálica, a town just outside of Sevilla that was the first civilization the Romans built in Spain. I was pretty impressed. This weekend I will be going to Granada and I am really looking forward to it! 

I am relatively surprised at how comfortable I feel here. I am already getting to know my way around the city, have a group of friends, and don't feel like such an outsider. I know that I stick out and am easily spotted as an American, but it doesn't bother me as much as I thought it might. My Spanish is still struggling, but even in the last couple of days I have improved (my Señora may dispute this). 

Classes here start today, and I must admit that I am a little nervous. For the first 3 weeks I have one intensive language class 3 hours a day. After that my regular classes start up. Once my regular classes start I won't have class on Fridays, so that will mean more time to travel!

Well, that's all for now!