Well friends after 4 airports, 3 flights, and 1 day of traveling I have arrived safely in España. Everything was seemingly easy and of course having the university pick us up from the airport was great.
Once we drove the 30 or so minutes to Alcalá de Henares I was quickly swept off the bus and into the car of my host parents Manuel and Maria. The house I am staying in is equivalent to a town home in the US- 4 floors (basement, main, bedrooms, and then a office loft). I really like the set up and it is more comfortable then I had imagined it would be. I live in a what I would call a “town home complex” each home has a garden area either in the front or back or both- I am living a little outside of the downtown area (1 mile they say, but I have a feeling everything is 1 mile away for Spaniards).
Spain is about 7 hours ahead of US time so my first day was spent catching up on some sleep and eating then eating and sleeping again. Manuel showed us our route to school and then gave us a little tour of Alcalá’s main spots. Did I mention that Manuel and Maria speak zero English? As in nada, cero, nunca, solamente español. The immersion experience is very real folks. Although I tried to prepare myself for this, I was still a little blindsided by it. Not to worry, Manuel is extremely patient and very enthusiastic with his speaking so I understand more thanks to his nonverbals.
An interesting part of the city is the bird population- cigüeñas to be exact.
The literal transition is stork. Cigüeñas live in Alcalá year round and build huge nests on top of the large historical buildings! They are protected by the city of Alcalá so it is normal to see the tall buildings topped off with cigüeña nests.
Manuel and Maria have two grown sons and the oldest, Ruben is a very talented painter and has many murals around the city! The patio in my home has two murals by Ruben- 1 of Amsterdam and 1 of Valencia.
Maria has proven to be a wonderful cook and she has not disappointed with Spanish cuisine. It’s a little strange that the dessert course is actually fruit (at lunch-almuerzo) and yogurt (at dinner- cena). Of course, always available– PAN!
Good thing I’ve been walking at least 5 miles these past two days.
Some things that I have already found that I love:
1. The architecture of the Calle Mayor and the historical buildings that a spread throughout the city. The university buildings have been church sites and military quarters in the past so it does not have the structure or resemble a school in many ways other than the small library. The building reminds me of the missions in San Antonio.
2. The city is very good about cleanliness on the streets! I have seen workers all throughout the days picking up litter and keeping the streets looking as nice as possible.
3. The quiet plazas and garden areas. I can’t wait to spend time in these beautiful places for time to myself.
4. There are a ton of bridal shops– not that I need one, but the dresses are so beautiful to look at!
5. The walk to school. Originally, I thought I would take the bus because the thought of walking 30 minutes every day made me very unhappy, but after 4 trips of walking to town and back I’m enjoying the time. The route to school isn’t very difficult at all. “Es muy fácil, no muy difícil”- Manuel assures us at least 5 times a trip.
6. THE WEATHER! (so far) The weather is cold, but without the wind. Which actually makes the days pretty perfect and nice for walks.
I haven’t had any tapas yet or made any purchases (wow!) because Maria makes me, Kaitie, and Manuel breakfast, lunch, and dinner at the house unless we make plans before hand. Tomorrow night Andres and I are planning to go have dinner in town and explore a little bit of Alcalá at night.
One more day of orientation, classes on Thursday, and then a weekend exploring Madrid!
Hablamos Luego
Texas in España 