A Week`s Recap, and (another) weekend getaway!

Hola again, amigos! Here`s the said journal that will recap all I`ve done this week, and what will be going on for me this weekend! The days are counting down here in Granada, and I`m definately hustling to make sure I`ve done it all!

Now let`s see if I can remember.. oh yes!

Monday was school in the morning as usual, and for the afternoon was a good mix of some browsing around Granada, and trying to type all my blog up for all to enjoy. I definately put a lot of time in writing them, so it was nice when that night, we had a small get together of students to relax after typing so much.

But it just wasn`t a get together for all of us- but in fact, a sort of farewell party. Two of our members from Abroadco, Stephanie and Scott, both left on Tuesday to return back to the United States. (at the time, Stephanie was going to London- but as I`ll explain later on, those plans changed a bit.) We couldn`t let them just take off without saying good-bye, so we all got together that Monday night to chat about our experiences, and pretty much discussing how to keep in touch. (number 1 method=Facebook.) It was a kind of sad thought, as our group, so big with 5, was once again down to 3-but we had all had fun while they were here, so it was a nice recap to all the time we had spent together. (Insert aww here!)

Tuesday had me continuing my work on my blog (as you can see by the multitude of words, quite a lot!), as well as a continuation of general browsing around in Granada. I then received a call from Inma about having a small bon voyage for Stephanie, and I of course agreed to the promise of tapas. Yum!

But when I arrived home to grab my purse and retrieve my things, I encountered Stephanie who was looking none the happiest. I asked her what was up, and in a stressed tone she replied that her London ticket hadn`t pulled through. Apparently, there had been some confusion with the airline on the ticket, and she had booked it the day before she was supposed to leave Granada- so the plane was already gone. Ack! She had spent the afternoon trying to figure out what to do from there-it was indeed bad luck that plagued her that day.

The question came up if the bon voyage party was still to continue, considering it was a possibility she wasn`t going to leave at all. But Stephanie continued on, and we met Inma, Jaime, and Jaime`s wife all at Correos, as well as Brendan. (Eveylnn couldn`t make it) Stephanie went on to explain her situation to Inma and Jaime as we all walked down to the tapas bar, and a couple of suggestions later had Stephanie planning for the night.

We all enjoyed tasty tapas together, chatting for a while about our trips and the rest of the 2 weeks I had left, and the favorite topic was mostly suggestions for Stephanie`s excursion. Scott had already left that afternoon, (and I managed to get in a farewell to him before he left!) so he was unable to attend with us, but I`m sure him and his sister definately spent time in Granada.

Finally the night was to end, and Jaime and Inma bid farewell to Stephanie, and made her promise to contact them. (The ultimate decision was Stephanie would buy a plane ticket out of Madrid, straight to the US.) Stephanie then went to go to the local internet cafè to buy said ticket, whereas I returned home. I was still a bit tired from the weekend, so I all but collapsed on the bed.

However, I didn`t get to sleep very much, as Stephanie hadn`t fully packed herself yet, due to the day mostly being spent trying to figure out how to get back home. She ultimately bought a ticket, but spent till about 12 PM packing all of her things into two seperate bags. I dozed on and off, but it was a bit tricky admist the constant entries of our other resident, twelve-year old James. (He was very worried Stephanie would leave without him taking a picture of her- we had to reassure him that no, she wouldn`t leave without one!)

Finally she finished her packing at 12, and roused me to help her with her luggage. I definately got a midnight workout, as she had packed her largest bag to the brim, and the wheels weren`t of the best quality. I definately got some stares as I pulled and heaved that heavy bag down several streets- it`s a good thing I`ve been walking alot, or I would have never made it!

We managed to flag down a taxi, and both the driver and I heaved the heavy bag in the back, as Stephanie pulled the smaller one from behind. Then it was a quick farewell as time was short, and I saw the taxi pull off into the darkness of the night. A bit of a hectic day, but all the same, I passed out quickly as I got home.

The next day I woke up a bit tired once again, but an early morning shower helped the rousing up all the easier. As I prepared myself for school, I received another text from Stephanie- apparently, her computer had somehow either gotten lost/stolen in Madrid. Que mala suerte! It definately was painful reading it, after all she had been through the day before. But on the bright side, she was succesful in getting on the plane, and did eventually make it back home to New York. Sometimes, life just throws you lemons I suppose- but on the brighter side, you can have tasty lemonade at home!

I went to school from there, and returned home from lunch, wanting to do a bit of shopping that afternoon. My host sister, Eloisa, seemed really interested in going, so I invited her to come along. Her face lit up as she went to tell her mother of our soon to be whereabouts. I began to pack my things, as she came in, and asked if we might take James along with us. I nodded, why not?

So the three of us headed out on the town, where I had to keep a constant eye on James, who seemed determined not to be herded by a 20 year old. Eloisa stuck to my side always, and the three of us managed to make it down town to the Cathedral area, where I let Eloisa pick the different stores to browse around. The two had a lot of fun, each buying small things for themselves, as I enjoyed browsing around as well.

Sooner than later, I had to take them back home for dinner, and we all managed to group up and continue back home. I had to eat dinner a bit early at 8:30, and James had to be at his program`s activities by 8:45 as well.

Dinner for me was a delicious pizza, and then a quick change into my nicer evening wear- my dress, and my shoes. Where would I be going with those? Well, to the JeneralLife, Alhambra`s gardens and... outdoor theatre! Hurrah! This week`s activity was to go see a play by Garcia Lorca, Poeta in Nueva York.

All of us Abroadco students and family of Inma all met up at Correos in our evening wear, and a short trip on the bus later, we were at the gardens. It was the same place I had been before in the Alhambra, and I remembered seeing all the different flora and fountains from before- just in a different light, or rather, without in the cool, night air. We all filed through with the large mass of people into the outdoor theatre, and we got awesome seats maybe three rows from the stage. Awesome!

I could describe bit by bit the show, but it would consist of a book if I did that! I can merely put in words that it was a show of imagery- of dance, of interpretation, of a story of a flamenco dancer from Spain going into the strange, not-so far off land of New York City in the 30`s. Lorca`s poems influenced this play full through, and they have a way of interpreting reality which isn`t easily described- the only thing I can say is you have to go and see it for yourself. It wasn`t a musical, it wasn`t a play- it was a dance of incredibly imagery, and vivid imagination.

The play didn`t finish until about 12, and I was yawning the whole walk home. Several day`s of not sleeping much were catching up to me, and I slipped off my nice heels and fell asleep in exhaustion.

Thursday was of course school, and plans I made to finish part 2 of my Gibraltar trip. After lunch, I was so very tired, so I thought- why not an hour long siesta? I fell alseep around four, and when I finally woke, it was 7 PM! AUUGH! My entire afternoon had escaped me- but as my host mom said, after this week and last weekend, I never really had the chance to rest- and I really needed it too! I raced to the computer lab to at least get my blog finished for posting, and headed home for dinner.

Brendan then called me up, and asked me if I was interested in doing anything after dinner. I heartily agreed- after feeling a bit down of my lost afternoon, I was wide awake for a little night time excursion. The two of us called up Evelynn, but she had agreed to have dinner with a friend, so it was only us out on the town! Brendan suggested we go to the Mirador de San Nicholas, which overlooks the Alhambra, and I readily agreed- he`d seen it at sunset, but not at moonlight!

We both climbed into the Albacìn, I being a pro now after leading several groups myself up into here. The two of us reached the not so busy night area, and spent a godo while just watching the moon rise, and chatting about our respective backgrounds, and what we hoped to get out of Granada. We also did some figuring of afternoon trips next week, as it will be my last full week there, and I want to make sure I`ve seen everything I need to see! Afterwards we made a stop at a tea house for a delicious brew of the house speciality, and about 12 AM I made my way home, after an enjoyable night in the cooler air of Granada.

Today was class for the morning, and a lunch of squid soup. Mind you, these squids had tentacles, so at first I was little bit nervous to try the dish. But I of course had to eat it, being myself and all, but it definately was a new experience cutting into the little tentacles and chewing the rubbery meat. But of course, as everything that looks a bit spooky at first, it was delicious, and even better with a side of bread!

And now I can say I`ve eaten some tentacles off a squid! Trying new things everyday!

This afternoon was return trip to the CLM to type up today`s promised entry, and now I`m going to make my way over to the Estacion de Autobuses to buy my 1:30 AM ticket to Madrid. Like Càdiz, the trip will be 5 hours long, so I`ll just sleep it to save time and money on a hostel. But I`m not going to Madrid this weekend- after some reflective thought and advice, I`ve decided to hit the smaller cities around the area- the highly recommended Aranjuez on Saturday, and Toledo on Sunday, of Don Quixote and swordmaking fame. It`ll be my second trip going solo, as Eveylnn and Brendan are going for a fantastic trip to Morocco this weekend. But I`m pretty confident- after last week, I think I`ve got this trip managing thing down!

So, wish me luck, and I`ll return next week with the tales of my weekend excursion, and beyond!

Until next time!