One down, seventeen to go.

Well, I've survived this first week without any major calamities. I'm living in an apartment with a woman named Manuela, her 36 year-old daughter Mariluz and Carolyn, a girl from my program. I have my own room. It's small but it has a window, which can be a major advantage in this heat if there's a breeze.

Carolyn and I walk to school everyday. It's at the IES building in the center of town. For us it's about a thirty minute walk. We have yet to get lost, but Granada is pretty small and I like to think I have a pretty good sense of direction. We have the option of taking classes at the University of Granada, but for the most part our classes are taught at the program center in Plaza Nueva.
The plaza looks totally different at night. Restaurants and bars put out chairs and tables. Tons of people sit for hours, eating, drinking and smoking.
There's also a church. I haven't been inside, but Carolyn went in during service yesterday and seemed to like it. It's apparently a very popular place to get married. Manuela was married there and last Saturday we saw at least three weddings from our school building.

Last Monday (Tuesday?) we went on a ten mile hike at Cabo de Gata. I was told that although ten miles sounds far, it would actually be a leisurely stroll during which we would stop and play on beaches and picnic blah blah blah. Javier failed to mention that by hike he meant climb these:
I was at first fooled by the gorgeous place they took us first. White beach, clear blue water. Enough salt to burn my legs but also to keep me buoyant. It was lovely, really amazing. If only we could have stayed there...

What I had considered to be my sensible, comfortable tennis shoes proved to be otherwise. My poor feet were covered in blisters and I eventually went barefoot, which was a blessed relief compared to the agony my shoes caused. Javier made it up to me later though. At the IES payed-for dinner, he ordered our table a pitcher of beer (which only the other Ann and I were interested in) and a bottle of limoncello.

Cabo de Gata was really pretty though. Mostly desert, it's where a lot of spaghetti westerns were filmed. Movies such as The Good, the Bad and the Ugly and Fistful of Dollars. There was even a mini Hollywood set of a little western town.

This is where I'll leave you. Something smells delicious and I'm worried they're eating without me. I don't really know what to do with a blog so feel free to make suggestions or ask questions. If anybody even reads this. I'm making no promises about this blog or my intentions to update it. But hopefully it will be something I can do fairly regularly. I miss everyone very much. Besos.