September 15 - September 23

September 15, 3:30pm

Me, Kassie, and Aurora sitting on a wall on our way down
to the Abadía.  Granada in the background!

Today's hike was absolutely fantastic!  I don't think Aurora, Kassie, and I actually did the Sierra Nevada route we were going to do, but we took this awesome hike around the more mountainous region of Granada and all the way to the Abadía of Sacromonte before making our way back.  It was a real blessing getting to hear a lot of Kassie's testimony and to share that time with both Aurora and Kassie.  They are both such an encouragement to me and even though all three of us are so different we have our similarities and we can come together as sisters in Christ to have an adventure.  I felt really good too coming back; sure my feet hurt and sure my nose is still runny, but I love the workout a hike gives and the awesome scenery we got to take pictures by today.  Oh, and there was totally a wedding going on at the Abadía when we stopped in.  We were a little underdressed...haha!  Anyway, it was a great adventure and after many jokes about the mountain bikers and poop cookies and such, we finally had lunch, went home, showered, and now it's siesta.  Later we're planning on doing tapas with some of the LFC crew, yay!

September 16, 10:40am

I went for tapas with Aurora, Kassie, Adri, Margaret, Stephanie, Michael, and Salomon, and that was fun.  There were so many people on the streets last night because of the festival for La Vírgen de las Angustias.  It reminded me of last year when I was in Cartago for la romería and you had to link hands or bags with people in order to avoid getting lost in the crowd.  There were tons of people on motorcycles (well, more like crotch-rockets), people presenting flowers to the Virgen outside the cathedral, people dancing to a free concert in the plaza, funny little shows (especially by these guys in wigs under a box that I found particularly amusing), and, of course, people dressed up to the nines of all ages.  It was also the Real Madrid - Sevilla game last night, so all the tapas bars were filled with people wanting to watch the game.  It was exciting.

Left to right: Salomon, Kassie, Margaret, Stephanie, me,
Adri, Michael, and Aurora prior to eating tapas.

I still think my favorite part of yesterday was the hike.  I don't really like the whole party scene all that much, and even though I can be in the world I don't want to be of the world.  For that reason, I am trying to be careful about what I do and don't partake in, not because of any sort of concern about what others think of me, but rather because of a care for my testimony before Christ and how I reflect Him and how I relate with Him on a personal level.

12:00pm

This is a shout-out to some of the girls I have met here so far and how awesome I think they are and how I see God and His gifts in them:

Aurora -- You have a huge gift for evangelism and asking the best hard questions to cause others to really think.  You're a great listener and your example causes me to consider my own every day.

Carli and Eileen.

Carli -- Your ability to see the potential and the good in others totally sets you on fire for Christ and you also speak such powerful words of encouragement into my life.
Jenny -- Your ability to sympathize and empathize with others and speak Truth in love is absolutely stunning and such words and example inspire me on a daily basis.
Eileen -- God has gifted you with such a compassionate and gentle heart and I love seeing (and being the recipient of!) your huge love for people, your kindness, and your heart for the Gospel.
Jelissa -- In the short time I have had with you on a personal level I've already seen God's gift of patience and gentleness in you, and your listening ear is something I've noticed and love and admire.
Kassie -- Your generosity and willingness to give is outstanding and something I greatly admire about you, that you would give back with what God has given you.
Jessica -- You have a purity of mind and soul that blesses, enriches, and revives those around you, and your willingness to serve humbly for God is incredible.

I love you guys so much!  Thank you for being such a blessing to me!

September 17, 1:00am

Eight girls (nine with me) in an elevator after the church service.

One of my host mom's old students paid a visit to us today and she's from Germany; her name is Eva and she's super sweet.  We took siesta together, haha!  Earlier today over breakfast my host mom and I also discussed some of the particulars of Catholicism versus general Christianity and while we disagree on some things we both can understand and love the other and love God, and I felt blessed to be able to learn more about why she does what she does and why she believes what she does.  I liked how mostly low-key the day was; it was restful, and though I am still sick I think I'm getting better.

Left to right: Alison, Jenny, Tito, and Carli, all of us waiting
to eat some delicious churros con chocolate.

The church service this evening was awesome, once again.  I was hit with a huge wave of the Holy Spirit at one point and began to cry super hard because that's simply how I react when I'm emotionally touched.  I just felt myself crying out for my life to be more fully God's and for Granadinos to come to know Him as well and not be stuck with everything that happened during Franco's dictatorship.  After the service I met many new people, both American students as well as Spaniards, and then after lots of super awesome conversation Sarah and the whole lot of us all went out to get churros con chocolate for her birthday.  They were positively delicious and the community was great.  I'm sure Tito enjoyed being the only guy out of all 13 of us.  I loved talking with all those girls so much!

September 17, 11:30pm

Chilling and talking in Spanish class.  Left to right:
Mario, Tara, Analí, and Eileen.

Today was my first day of classes of my junior year and of my semester here.  I have not started my internship yet since only the primary school in the colegio starts this week, so I got to chill until 12:30pm when I had my anthropology class, and then I came back home for siesta before going back out around 5pm-ish to walk around a bit and get to my Spanish class by 6:30pm.  I have that class four days a week and it goes until 9pm...it's so longgg.  Not that it's a huge deal since I like Spanish and the professor is awesome, but it's a night class, and classes when it's dark just seem a little off and are not at all what I'm used to.  Something new is what it is! :)

I certainly am far from speaking perfect Spanish.  I also lack a Spain Spanish accent.  I also do not look or dress like a Spaniard.  Maybe this combination of forces is why I keep hearing people who live here act surprised when I speak to them?  Maybe it's a way to break down barriers through the slow building of relationships.  Maybe's it's a way to show a difference, like how in Costa Rica there were a couple of times that reaching out as a "tourist" or "foreigner" to random people and caring was abnormal and impactful and the experience, they said, changed their perceptions.  Perhaps here, too, and with my friends, too...

September 18, 3:30pm

All my work putting together stuff for the bike event!

I finally met up with Manuel of AINDESOS to talk about volunteering with the organization and I've basically hit the ground running.  I'm doing a lot of publicity work right now but then on Sunday we have an event that's basically a bike ride around Granada, and it's all to support using bikes over motorbikes or cars. One big problem here is that for such a smaller city with not a lot of extra space, tons and tons of people have a vehicle, so there's tons of traffic especially on school days in the morning.  Teaching kids the benefits of biking, along with safety while riding, will provide a new generation with the knowledge and desire to hopefully create a habit that lasts them their whole lives and makes a difference here.  Alongside sustainable mobility, Manuel and those who help with the organization also go to colegios and teach kids on environmental sustainability as well as interculturality, the latter of which I have definitely seen and heard many times as being a huge problem.  There's lots of relational segregation when it comes to native Spaniards and any sort of immigrant or person of a different culture than the "norm".  The goal is to teach kids that yes, we are all different, but we we are all human.

September 18, 11:55pm

After a short siesta and lunch, I left because I had my internship class at IES and then Spanish right after.  I'd say it was nice in a way because I like having some sort of constant in my life from back home, and to me that's anyone from LFC.  Nope, I could care less about food brands or shampoo or whatever from home, but if I have people, I'm good.  After class me, Carli, Eileen, Jenny, Claire, and Abina went for Indian food and I had the awesome opportunity of getting to listen to Carli talk about some of the hard things of culture shock and I got to share a moment or two with her as well.

I'm just mostly really tired right now.  I still have homework to do that's due tomorrow afternoon, and I'm conserned about it all piling up.  I know i can manage it because I have done and carried more before, but nevertheless we'll just see how this all turns out since I haven't even started my internship yet and I'll have to figure out that once I get the call/email.  I don't think it really dawned on me that "oh hey, I'm doing TESOL" basically until class today, which is a little scary and uncomfortable, but is also welcome.

September 19, 11:55pm

View of Plaza Nueva from the balcony of Spanish class.

After a morning that was relatively laid-back (I say "relatively" because I had to finish some reading for class) I leisurely walked to the Fotocopiadora while taping up posters to advertise for Sunday's bike event.  When I got to Fotocopiadora, however, the booklet I wanted to buy for class was not there.  I may have to just check in again tomorrow.  Anyway, I had my anthropology class, then I went home for siesta and lunch and I had quiet time where I finished Apocalipsis (Revelation) and was pretty blown away by the last two chapters once again.  I love it.  Then on my way back to IES (while putting up more posters) I stopped into the Mercadona and I had a ball looking at all the food, and oh, by the way, there's a slanted people-mover that takes you to the lower floor!  It's so cool and entertaining!  Anyway, Spanish class was pretty fun, and I got to chat with some LFC students that I don't often talk to on a daily basis.  Then after class I sped over to CFC for the bible study and had a good time getting to know the other girls more and share that time with them.  The study was a continuation of Sunday's service, but Vera pointed out pride in our study and I was reminded once again of my need for God and my desire to be more humble.

September 21, 1:55am

Left to right: Tito, Jenny, and Carli. Not pictures: Eileen and
Mario.  This is the alley.  It was awesome.

Today (er, yesterday) was completely awesome.  It started out not great as I got myself lost around the outer reaches of Zaidín while putting up posters, but then I got over to the Hospital Real to meet up with Manuel again and discuss Sunday, my role, some other stuff related to the program, etc., and to also meet some of the staff he works with.  One of the ladies, Angela, said she'd give me a bike to use on Sunday, and I picked that up around 5pm and also spent some time with her kids Gonza and Matteo watching Disney shows that teach English and playing soccer like I used to with Luis.  It was very nostalgic.  Those three and the husband Sergio are such a cute family.  I also skyped my sisters today, and I had an interesting and, again, fun Spanish class because most of it is conversational.  After class Tara, Mario, Eileen, Jenny, Tito, and I got schwarma tapas at a place called The Purple Bar and it was delicious, and I had a blast getting to listen to all of them talk and share.  Then, seeing Tito brought his guitar, after Tara left and Carli came and we all got gelato, we sat down in an alley and started worshiping!  We had to move due to it being late to in front of the cathedral, and we continued singing and sharing bible verses and talking and it was absolutely incredibly filling and blessed.  I feel so blessed.

September 22, 1:15am

Ronda!  Strategically-located city.

Today (uh...again, yesterday) was jam-packed.  We got up early to go to Ronda, where we did lots of walking around and learning about the architecture of the city, which included a huge bridge and a deep mine.  After lunch we hopped on the bus again to go to Sevilla, with Jenny and I listening to lots of music of course.  We changed and quickly walked to see if the Torre del Oro was open but it wasn't.  So then Jenny, Eileen, Carli, Mario, and I went to walk around the Museum of Bellas Artes, which I did greatly enjoy.  There were a couple of paintings that struck me, along with a video Carli showed me a little later.  Anyway, we went to KFC for dinner (such Americans) and got kids meals, and then got to go to a flamenco exhibition just for us, nice and intimate and quite amazing.  I found myself thinking more than once, "I don't think I could ever do that."  Afterward a bunch of us walked around for a bit and then we got ice cream and went back to the hotel.  So here I am now.

Torre del Oro in Sevilla.

I just want to point out how incredible Carlos and Estrella and Lorena and all the other student leaders have been through all of this, and I hope they know how significant a role they have played in shaping our experience in Spain.  I am also so grateful to God for my girls; I love laughing and joking with Eileen and Jessica and Carli and all of them!

September 22, 7:18pm

So while going to Sevilla was nice and seeing the Reales Alcazares and the Catedral was neat, it was really hard for me to really enjoy it like I wish I could have.  I'm glad I went and got to see peacocks in the garden at Reales Alcazares (definitely the best part!) and the pretty architecture.  It's just that I feel like I have so much other stuff to be doing, like homework and preparation for the bike event I'm helping with tomorrow.  I think in general I just really don't like being a tourist above all.  I like seeing new things, sure; I don't like feeling like an "outsider", especially knowing there's so much to the culture and the people that you don't get to see on a tour, the whole day-to-day life of people.  I am not complaining, because Ronda and Sevilla were cool, but being there was a little rough.  Maybe I was just tired.  Maybe it was the unfamiliarity of the place.  I did get to play piano in the hotel though, yay!

Entrance to Reales Alcazares.

I'm learning more about myself here, and I kind of didn't realize it until now.  I realized I'm not easily entertained by pretty structures and buildings, as nice as they are; rather, I'm a nature freak.  I talk too much for my own good, usually without thinking, and I don't listen enough.  I like adventures and quality time with people as well as cuddling or playing with hair to express affection, and I don't like the attention I may receive if I'm singing or playing piano or taking pictures or whatever.

Things I currently miss and long for:
-My sisters and parents for sure.  I especially wish I could be with Britt and Court at LFC sharing in random moments.
-Campus life at LFC.  Yeah, sometimes I really dislike it.  But there's just something about having good friends there and being able to say hi to half the population, and cooler weather...
-Gabriel.  I can't tell you how many times I've wished he was here to share all these moments and experiences.
-Church community at Centro Cristiano Monteverde.  I love this one here at CFC, but I really do miss everyone over in Costa Rica at CCM, and I really mean everyone!
-Green.  Need I elaborate any more on this?  Also:
-Rain.  It's so hot and hasn't yet rained once here.

Pépe the kitty.

Things I'm currently enjoying about Granada and Spain:

-My community of girls (and a few guys).  I know I enthuse too much about them, but boy when I leave I'll sure miss having them always literally by my side to talk to!

-The kitty Pepito that hangs around our apartment.
-The challenge and opportunity to speak as close to entirely in Spanish as I can all the time.  Improvement.
-Street music, because I feel like I have a theme song playing in the background as I walk around.
-The IES staff (including U of Granada students on staff).
-The fact that it's not entirely flat here and that there is some variance in the shape of the land.  Mountains.

September 23, 3:30pm

Picture taken during setup for the event.

I had written that last entry on the bus back to Granada while listening to music with Jenny, which was incredibly blessed.  After I got back I hung out for a little bit before going out dancing with her, Carrie, Claire, and Jonathan.  I'm probably not doing that again because I was plain exhausted when I woke up.  I did reading for my classes and then headed over to the Puerta Real to help with the Marcha en Bici (we did a bike ride all around Granada to promote sustainable mobility).  All in all, the event was hugely successful and we had around 3,000 people show up.  I had forgotten as well how relaxing it could be to ride a bike.  It was quite the experience and I loved every part of it except the hot weather and the sunburn I received from having not thought through the fact that I'd be outside all morning and afternoon.  It was totally worth it.

So many people on bikes!!!

Tonight me and some of the girls are getting together to vision-cast and have quality time, and then we're going to church for the service, and then probably tapas afterward.  If things work out I may be able to skype with Gaby today, too.  We'll see what happens!