Bologna..."love it"

This past weekend, I went to Italy to visit Mari, my roommate from Wellesley. I left Barcelona early Friday morning and after a bus, plane, bus, train, another train, and one more bus, I met Mari in Siena. Mari’s class was on a field trip in Siena, so I tagged along on their tours of various museums and cultural sites in Siena. Mari is in an Italian program, so my understanding of the tour itself was virtually nonexistent, however, many of the students would translate a bit for me.

After the tour, we piled into a bus and returned to Bologna where Mari is studying. We got dressed then went to dinner at a restaurant where Mari’s friend is the head chef (score.). We ate 5 courses (no joke) of some of the most delicious food I’ve ever had then headed out to meet up with some of Mari’s friends at a nearby bar. Bologna is an incredibly authentic city; it’s beautiful and old, but doesn’t feel artificial or touristy like many of the other Italian cities I’ve visited. What was the biggest shock for me was that of the many Italians I met, only a handful spoke English. I was able to use Spanish and have Mari translate for me, so I wasn’t completely lost. After a night of exploring Bologna and meeting Mari’s friends, we headed home.

Between the early wake up and the late night, I had been awake for over 24 hours on Friday, so Mari and I decided to sleep in. We made breakfast then headed out to explore Bologna a bit. There’s a really cool market in Bologna on Fridays and Saturdays, so we decided to check that out. After a bit of shopping, we wandered around a little more, saw the sights, then met up with Mari’s friend, Clare, for dinner at Mari’s apartment. The girls took a cooking class as a part of their program so we (I use “we” loosely. More like “they”) made an ensalata mista and pasta with HOMEMADE tomato sauce for dinner. Yum.

After dinner, we decided to head into downtown to get our night started. Mari has two bikes and Clare has her own, so we all rode bikes into town. It only took me a few minutes to realize why Mari had to purchase a second bike. The one I rode had two flat tires, only one of the brakes worked (sometimes), and the handlebars were slanted, so when the front wheel was straight, your right hand was further forward than your left, making left turns very hard(“I’m not an ambi-turner”). After an evening of dancing, talking to the most international group of people you could imagine, and a late night kebab, we headed home to go to sleep.

We decided that Sunday was going to be our “cultural” day, so we woke up, made breakfast, then set out to see Bologna. As we were walking to the main plaza, we came across a parade and celebration. Good work guys. We had totally forgotten that is was Carnival. We bought some confetti and silly string and joined the festivities. I don’t really know a ton about the traditions of Carnivale, but all the little kids who were there were dressed in Halloween costumes and everyone was throwing confetti in the air and at each other. It was quite the time to be in Italy!

We continued to wander around Bologna, seeing the churches, plazas, government buildings, sculptures, and beautiful old buildings. After a gelato and a little more wandering, we decided to head home. Mari and I changed for dinner then had aperitivos, where you buy a drink and then get to go to town on the Italian buffet. Best 6€ ever. After dinner, we went to a bar where some of Mari’s friends work and we chatted with them for a bit while we waited for Clare. After she joined us, we headed to the Irish pub and hung out with some of Mari’s Italian and study abroad friends. One of the girls had studied abroad in Morocco the previous semester, so she and I talked about the recent political events there and I got to brag about how I was able to see it all first hand. Shortly after, we called it a night because I had an early flight to catch the following morning.

After the most frustrating day of travel (delayed trains, missed flights, crying baby next to me on the plane), I finally made it back to Barcelona. I LOVED Bologna and think that Mari chose an incredible place to study abroad, however I was so glad to be “home”. After a weekend of not understanding most of the conversations, not being able to ask for directions, and constantly being turned around, it was so nice to be back in Barca.

Nene and Juan Antonio are out of town for a few days, so I had the house to myself all afternoon. I made some lunch (I’m teaching myself to make Tortilla Espanola), did some work, Skyped with Sooz and Yiayia, then relaxed in my room for a bit. The doorbell rang at around 8:30 and two teenage girls were standing outside. They explained that they were Nene’s nieces and I was going to have dinner at their aunt’s house. On our walk over to the other house, the girls asked me where I was from. When I replied, “California” the girls gasped and started asking me if I knew any movie stars, if I knew how to surf, and kept exclaiming “¡Qué chulo!” (“How cool!”). I had dinner with three girls (two cousins and a friend) and their Aunt, which turned into a two and a half hour affair talking about everything from the role of Catalán in the area to all the American music artists the teenage girls listen to.

Mari’s coming to Barcelona this week for a few days. I had such a wonderful time in Bologna, so I want to make sure her visit to Barcelona is equally fun (it will be…).

Pues…that’s all for now. ¡Hasta!

New obsessions: talking about the political situation in Morocco (there was a surprisingly large number of Moroccans in Bologna who I spoke with about the current political atmosphere), aperitivos, my adorable shoes I bought at the Bologna market (for 3€!!!), Harp, and Bologna (I’ll say it. I loveddd that city!)

Morocco!

I know, I know. I’ve gotten really bad at updating the blog. Friends, family, teammates…I’m sorry.

Here it goes.

Two weekends ago, I went to Marrakech. I have a friend, Moni, who spent some time during his childhood there and is now currently living in the city, so I figured I’d take a trip and get shown around by a local. I left Barcelona EARLY on Friday morning to catch a bus with about 15 or so other CIEE students who were also traveling to Marrakech for the weekend. After a short flight, we were greeted by warm weather and sun, a much needed treat after a cold and rainy week in Barcelona. I met up with Moni outside baggage claim then he delivered me to my hostel on his motorcycle (I know…right?!). After dropping my backpack and chatting with the two staffers for a few minutes, Moni and I set out for the day. We started out wandering through the Souq, the market close to the central plaza, Djemma Fna. It was still fairly early and things were just starting to open up, so I decided to leave the shopping to another day and enjoy the sun and have a cup of coffee. After people watching, catching up, and a cup of STRONG coffee, we headed to the Bahi Palace, an old royal building with beautifully tiled walls and courtyards full of fragrant orange trees. After wandering through the palace, we decided to go across town to the Majorelle Gardens, a beautiful house and gardens previously owned by Yves Sant Laurent. The gardens were a nice quiet haven from the bustle of Barcelona and Marrakech. After the gardens, I had lunch on my own in a restaurant near my hostel. I chatted a bit with my waiter, enjoyed chicken couscous (the food so nice they named it twice), and got a Susan Freeman sunburn (read: just on the nose). After lunch, I met up with Moni again and we did more sightseeing. We went to the new part of the city and had a cup of coffee, then went over to his house where we had tea with his parents. Moni’s parents don’t speak English or Spanish, however we were able to find ways to communicate. They asked about my family, my school, my study abroad experience, and took this opportunity to break out the family photo albums (they were both especially proud of their daughter’s recent wedding).

After tea, we returned to Djemma Fna to stroll around the night market full of performers, stands selling dinner, and families out enjoying the evening together. It was at this point that I realized that Morocco is truly different than any other place I had visited before. This exotic and bustling scene full of Berber dancers, foreign food, snake charmers, and crowds of people in traditional dress was unlike anything I had ever seen before and moreover, it was an image of everyday life for people in Marrakech. After more of Marrakech´s mint tea, I returned to my hostel and went to bed.

Saturday morning, I woke up EARLY to catch a bus to Essaouira, a small beach town a few hours from Marrakech that Jimmi Hendrix used to frequent. We arrived around lunch time so we decided to go to the port to buy fresh fish and then pay someone in the market to cook it for us. After lunch and shopping (LINEN PANTS!), we strolled around the Souq some more then walked on the beach, took pictures of camels (no joke), then enjoyed a leisurely dinner and cup of tea before heading back to Marrakech.

After two early mornings back to back, I enjoyed a relaxing morning on Sunday. I had planned to meet Moni around 1ish in Djemma Fna, so I took this opportunity to wander around a bit on my own.

As I wandered around the plaza, I noticed a crowd of a couple hundred young people holding signs in what was at the time, a very peaceful protest. I asked a few people what was going on and it was explained to me that a country-wide protest had been called by a group of students and recent graduates who were calling for governmental reform. Background: Morocco has a constitutional monarchy with an elected parliament. The king is wildly popular, however the parliament is incredibly corrupt, inefficient, and ineffective. The cost of living has been rising over the past 10 years and unemployment has been rapidly increasing. The protest called for more transparency, a halt to corruption, and a more functional democracy. After about a half hour or so, the crowds dispersed and I continued on my stroll. The protest had been, for the most part, peaceful. There was no violence, only a small and very removed police presence, and from what I saw, no damage to stores, restaurants, buildings, etc.

Though the protest had been peaceful, almost all the shops and restaurants had closed. I walked around for a bit then met up with Moni to do some hardcore shopping and haggling in the market. Each time I purchased something, I had Moni haggle for me and then was told by the shop owner that I was lucky and "was getting the Moroccan price". Thanks for telling me that had I been on my own, you would have screwed me. Vale.

After shopping, we decided we wanted to go get dinner and watch the FC Barcelona game on TV. As we were walking to the restaurant, a crowd came RUNNING towards us and Moni grabbed my arm and dragged me through the small alleys and streets of the Medina. As we dodged groups running and motorcycles shooting down the passage ways, I realized something was really wrong. Somehow Moni got me back to my hostel and firmly told me that the riots had started and I was to stay in my hostel and not leave until he told me it was safe. Obviously I ignored that advice and went out to take pictures and experience the riots first hand. As I was walking through Djemma Fna, things seemed pretty tame, so I decided to try to go find dinner. As I was walking down one of the streets off the plaza a crowd of people came running from behind me. I froze, not knowing what to do. Then a crowd came running from the opposite direction. It was clear something was wrong again, so I decided to run in the direction of my hostel (behind me). As I pushed through the crowd, it became evident I chose the wrong direction. I saw some people getting up against the walls trying to let the crowds pass, so I did the same. At that point, I saw a group of about 50 riot gear-ed police officers with shields and using their batons. A young Moroccan kid, probably around 16 or 17, saw that I had no idea what to do, so he grabbed my arm and signaled for me to follow him. He led me right into the crowd of police officers who started to run towards us but realized we weren't rioters (once I started screaming "I'M A TOURIST!"). One police officer and the Moroccan kid helped me navigate my way through the crowd and back to safety in the plaza.
A smart person would have decided to go back to their hostel at that point. However, I decided that I hadn't gotten enough pictures and I wanted to know what was going on. I kept my distance from the crowds and approached groups of young boys and men who were watching from a distance. I asked what was going on, if they were involved, what the goal of the riots were; everything. Many of the people I spoke with explained that they had been involved in the protest earlier in the day and were deeply distressed that it had turned to chaotic, violent, and destructive. People explained that the rioters had been damaging property and had been throwing stones, bottles, and pieces of pottery at the police officers. A rush of "activity" came through where I had been observing, and the young Moroccan who had helped me earlier led me into a hotel on the plaza. The old man who worked at the hotel pulled me up and chair, disappeared into the back room, and returned with a glass of tea for me. I spoke with him, the young Moroccan, and a few other people who had gone inside to get away from the violence for a bit. When I asked if the recent events in Tunis and Egypt contributed to the protests, one young man explained that the recent revolutions had shown that positive change was potential, however, the people involved in the political movement learned that they wanted to use different and less violent means.
After more picture taking, ducking into the hotel, and talking with young people, I decided that it was time to head back to the hostel and get some sleep.
My trip to Morocco made me uncomfortably aware of my gender. While I was walking around with Moni, men would rarely look at or speak to me. However when I was walking around alone during the day, I had people grab my arms and try to lead me into their shops, whistle, hiss, yell things in various languages, and most disturbingly, stroke my long hair. However, my experience during the riots were completely different. It was fairly clear I was out of place. There were NO white women out (most tourists had sought refuge in their hotels and hostels) and the few tourists who were out alone. While I was walking around I had people offering to help me find my hotel and ask if I was lost or okay. Aside from the stampedes, if I was near a crowd of rowdy protesters, they would calm down until I was at a safe distance. The hotel owner bringing me a chair and tea and constantly making sure I was alright (I kept explaining that I was interested in what was happening and didn't feel unsafe). However, the best example was the young Moroccan. After he helped the dumb tourist get out of the crowd of riot gear clad police officers, he kept an eye on me until I went back to my hostel. If things were starting to pick up he would say "Elizabeth, sígueme" (oh ps our common language was Spanish, not English. This was the case with most people I spoke with) and lead me to the hotel. I felt more unsafe and uncomfortable during the day while I was walking around than I did at night.

Since Morocco: Life has been pretty routine. We had midterms this week, which are always fun times. Not much has been going on other than the usual routine (class, work, run, exploring with friends).

Tomorrow (as in in 4 hours) I'm leaving to visit Mari Padilla, my Wellesley roommate, in Bologna, Italy. And you know what that means...lots of hugging and referring to each other as "my roommate". Can't wait.

That's enough for now. Hasta.

New obsessions: finally not having to run alone, the coffee machines at UPF, having it be ON, RACHEL HERVATIN WHO LOVES READING MY BLOG (I see you girl...)

p.s.
Running community (Dad, John, Crosby, Susan H, Brooke, Wolks, teammates in general)- My right foot has been bothering me (not a new annoyance; xc 2009). It's particularly tender in towards the front of the arch. It's particularly painful when I run up or down hill, fast running that puts me up more on my toes, and when I wear my Frees (I've stopped wearing them for now). I've been icing and rolling it on a tennis ball. Any suggestions? Taping? Inserts? Yes I know taking it easy and time off.

If you're interested in news coverage on the protests in Morocco from the weekend I was there, here are some good articles courtesy of my clipping service (aka Dad):

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/20/weekinreview/20logan.html?_r=1&emc=eta1
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/21/world/middleeast/21morocco.html?emc=eta1
http://www.metro.co.uk/news/856068-protests-spread-to-streets-of-morocco

Hanging out with my new friends Antoni (Gaudí) and Earnest (Hemingway)

In my entire time at Wellesley, I've only had class canceled once. This past week alone, I had two classes canceled. Study abroad is awesome. Since my only Friday class was canceled, on Thursday night Nikki, Grace, and I decided to go to La Oveja Negra, an old Barcelona tavern that Nene, my host mom, used to frequent when she was in college. It was really laid back, had a great ambiance, and was fully of a mix of foreigners and locals. One CIEE girl was celebrating her birthday and a friend of Nikki's from Boston joined us, so we had a good size group with us. After being in Barcelona for about a month, it's now starting to feel like less of a vacation (with homework?) and more like our current reality. And really, what could be better right now?
Since my Friday class was canceled, I took advantage of my three day weekend to do some exploring. I got up early, ran, did some errands, then met up w/ Grace to wander around Barri Gottica and explore a bit. Later, we met up with Nikki and her friend from high school for drinks in a funky cafe between Las Rambla and the water. After we had enough of wandering around and chatting, we all parted ways for dinner with our host families. The plan for the evening was a low key night that would have us in bed fairly early. This didn't end up happening. For the past few weeks, we've been searching for a bar in El Raval, one of Barcelona's barrios, called Bar Marsella. We were particularly motivated to spend an evening at Marsella because it's probably one of Barcelona's most historic and authentic bars. When Hemingway would visit Barcelona, he would frequent Marsella to enjoy their famous house beverage: absinthe. When we arrived at Marsella, we were blown away by the interior of the bar. In its hay day, Marsella was probably a very fashionable and posh place to go. However, the bar clearly hasn't been renovated (or probably even cleaned) long before Hemingway's time. Despite the peeling paint, cobwebs on the ceiling, and limited menu (absinthe and beer), we loved it. It felt authentic and like old Barcelona. As it got later, more and more locals began trickling in, giving the bar a lively and warm feel. Our waiter and one patron helped us prepare our absinthe properly; using the sugar, fork, and water. It was quite the scene watching three American girls have multiple Spaniards help them figure out how to drink absinthe, then struggle through the ROUGH taste. Good work team.
After Marsella, we decided that our ultimate plan to make it an early night wasn't going to happen, so we went back to La Oveja Negra, the tavern from the night before, to mingle with the locals and enjoy some Sangria.
The next morning, Nikki, Grace, Nikki's friend Paige, and I met up to wander through Gracia, another one of Barcelona's barrios. Gracia is quieter and a little more upscale than Barri Gottica, so we enjoyed a leisurely afternoon of wandering, window shopping, normal shopping (remind me to show you my adorable black booties!), and eating lunch in Plaza del Sol. It was a nice day, so we sat outside in the Plaza and watched some young kids play soccer and listen to guitar music. I love this city.
On Sunday morning, I got up and decided to go for a loooong walk around Barcelona while I waited for Nikki and Caroline, a CIEE student from Vanderbilt, to meet up w/ me in Old Town. It was a beautiful day, so I decided to stroll around and take pictures around El Born, another old barrio in the city I hadn't explored much yet. As I was walking through Plaza Sant Jaume, where the Parliament of Catalunya and Barcelona City Hall buildings are, I came across a celebration of some kind. There was a stage set up, a huge crowd, and a human pyramid in the middle of the Plaza. When I say "human pyramid" I don't mean a bunch of cheerleaders kneeling on each other's backs. I mean this: (http://www.typicallyspanish.com/news/publish/article_14725.shtml). What a surprise to come across on my leisurely Sunday morning walk! After meeting up with Nikki and Caroline, we sat in a nearby plaza and had some tea and watched the festivities of the day. As we were leaving we ran into a parade of drummers, ranging in ages between around 4 to 65 or so, that lasted about 20 or 30 minutes. I asked my homestay family tonight what the celebration was about and they said they didn't know. The research continues.
After we grabbed a bite to eat, Nikki, Caroline, and I met up with Nikki's friend Juan and his friend at a nearby bar to listen to live music. It ended up being an open mike night so locals got up on stage and performed a mix of Spanish and American rock songs. We were CLEARLY the only non-natives there, but everyone was nice and welcoming. Rumor has it that Wednesday night is Flamenco night. You can bet to see me there!
Today was a usual Monday: class, nap, class, Skype with Sooz, dinner, work.
This weekend made me appreciate Barcelona so much. Between wandering around and finding Gaudí buildings and sculptures, like the light posts in Plaza Reail, his first commission in the city, to coming across beautiful and exciting cultural events, like the parade and the human pyramids, I've gained such an appreciation for the life, color, and vibrance of this city.
Up next: My first paper, getting back into running after being sick for the past few days, and MOROCCO.

Current obsessions: napping, mint tea, hanging out with my boy Antoni (Gaudí), counting the days until MARI'S VISIT TO BARCELONAAAA!!!

Hasta.

Te Quiero, Barcelona

So clearly I’ve gotten in a bad pattern of not updating my blog for about a week at a time and then writing one looooong entry. Oops!

It’s been quite the week here. Last week was mostly finalizing classes, doing more at work, and being incredibly sore from the half. Here’s my final class list:

1. Human Rights (really really interesting but TOUGH)

2. Terrorism or terrorisms? (stupid title, but AWESOME class)

3. Contemporary Spanish Literature (for you Harry Potter fans out there, my professor is essentially a Spanish version of Madam Trelawney)

4. Linguistics (I just added this class this morning, but it seems like it’ll be awesome)

In addition to classes, I’m also doing my internship which is panning out to be really cool. Right now, I’m working on translating documents from Spanish to English so they can be used in presentations to other countries’ governments who are considering adopting a similar sustainable model to the one Barcelona has. I’m excited that the duties I’m performing are not only important, but also that what I create will actually be used and valued by other people.

The BCN half was a lot of fun and I have no regrets about running it, however throughout most of last week, I was pretty sore. As any runner can tell you, after a particularly long and hard run, stairs are torture (particularly going down). I have to walk down a set of stairs to get to the metro and the day after the race I STRUGGLED to get down the stairs. Once I finally made it to the track, someone asked me “did you run the marathon yesterday?” Considering how I was walking, that seemed like a pretty stupid question, so I decided to answer, “No. I always walk like this.”

The rest of the week was relatively uneventful (aside from a visit to the doctor’s office for an ear infection). However, last weekend CIEE took the whole liberal arts program to Madrid and Toledo. We woke up pretty early on Friday morning and met at Estacio Sants to take the AVE, Spain’s high speed train, to Madrid. After arriving in Madrid, we checked into our hotel then went for a walking tour of the city. We saw the Plaza Ocidental, the Royal Palace, the Cathedral, the Plaza Mayor, Plaza del Sol, Plaza Espana and finally ended our tour at Museo del Prado, Spain’s most famous museum that is full of works by El Greco and Goya (among other important artists). The museum was amazing and full of pieces of art I had learned about since middle school. After we had had enough of El Prado, our group headed back to the hotel to rest up a bit before dinner. The rest of the night was uneventful; dinner and then most of us went back to the hotel to go to bed.

The following day, we took a trip to Toledo, a beautiful, old city about an hour outside of Madrid. Toledo is famous for its religious history. The city acted as a center for the three major religious groups in Spain at one point or another and the history is evident in the culture and architecture of the city. We took a walking tour of the city to see the Synagogue (heavily influenced by the Arab architects and builders) and the Cathedral. After our tour, we had lunch, wandered around, then headed back to Madrid.

After a little nap and shopping, Grace, Nikki, and I decided to head to a vegetarian restaurant for dinner where we ran into Shun and Katie. After our delicious dinner, we stopped in a candy shop to get a little dessert then wandered over to the Plaza Mayor, one of the major plazas in Madrid. The five of us were standing in the Plaza, people watching and chatting when we were approached by two guys who asked us in broken English to take a picture with them. After taking an awkward picture, Nikki handed one of the guys back his camera and said something to him in Spanish. He looked at her in shock and said “¿HABLAIS ESPANOL!?” We continued to speak to them for about a half hour or so. The content of the conversation wasn’t terribly interesting, however we had a strange experience. Typically whenever I’m speaking with foreigners, I’m always the one who speaks the fewest number of languages and the foreigners can speak to each other in their own language in front of me and I’ll have no idea what they’re saying (even sometimes with Spanish). However, this was the first time I had been on the other side of it. When we were talking to the Spanish guys, occasionally we’d switch over to English (often unintentionally) and they’d have to ask us “en español por favor”. Often times when we’d lapse into English they would think we were making fun of them (which was sometimes true). It was interesting being on the side with the upper hand.

The following day in Madrid, we got up early to go to the Museo Reina Sofia, Madrid’s modern art museum. I’m not a huge fan of modern art, but I wanted to be sure to make it to Reina Sofia to see Picasso’s famous “Guernica”, which has arguably been one of the most important and controversial (remember when UN officials covered its reproduction when Colin Powell presented the US’s case for the war in Iraq to the UN Security Council?) pieces of art in the last 100 years (maybe even longer). The painting is absolutely enormous and is in a room with no other pieces of art. It’s only in black and white, which for me, made it more powerful.

After Reina Sofia, a big group of us went to El Rastro, Madrid’s open air market. It was incredibly crowded and hectic, but still a lot of fun. After a little shopping, Nikki, Grace, and I headed back to the hotel where we had lunch, then shortly after went back to Barcelona.

After spending time in Madrid, I felt so pleased with my choice to study in Barcelona. True, Madrid is BEAUTIFUL and certainly more “Spanish” than Barcelona (you’ll only see and hear Spanish as opposed to Barcelona’s Catalan), however Barcelona is truly vibrant. Madrid felt bustle-y and cold (figuratively) like New York , whereas Barcelona is much more relaxed, while still having the excitement and vibrance of a big city. Many people have described Barcelona as a “bohemian” city, probably because it’s hard to describe it in any other way. The city is very liberal and very forward-thinking. Moreover, Barcelona puts a major emphasis on public space including public works of art tucked into residential neighborhoods (I came across a Joan Miró sculpture on my run yesterday through my neighborhood!!). I love love love it here.

Since being back from Madrid, I’ve spent a lot of time with Nene, my host mom. Juan Antonio is in Switzerland visiting friends, so it’s just been “nosostras solitas” (“us alone”). Nene is so fantastic and caring. I feel so fortunate to have been placed with such wonderful people.

Well…that’s all for now. Judee Utoh and Nirali Shah (two Wellesley ladies) will be in Barcelona the next few days with their study abroad program. Andale as they say.

Hasta!

New obsessions: Nene´s croquetas, Sooz’s phenomenal emails, looking at flights on Ryan Air

Rome, Work, and Half Marathon

It's been a busy week. We were in Rome last weekend (which I'll get to in detail later) and when we came back we immediately had a big presentation for class and then a final exam for our 3-week intensive class. Busy busy busy! On top of that, I started work at Barcelona Ecología. So. This is going to be a long post. Thought I'd let you know in advance.

Rome
We left Barcelona eaaaarly Friday morning (I left my apartment at 4am) and caught one of the night buses to the airport. It was the luckiest morning we could have asked for. I clearly don't know how to read maps (and/or my brain wasn't firing at total capacity at 4am) so I almost got on the bus going the wrong way, but I ultimately figured it out. When I met up with Katie and Grace, the two girls I was traveling with, on the bus, we realized that the terminal we were supposed to get off at wasn't printed on our ticket. AND Ryan Air flies out of pretty much every terminal at El Pratt Airport. Nice. We just kind of guessed and luckily got off at the right terminal. So. Lucky.
After a short flight, we arrived in Rome. Katie had booked her room at the hostel on a different reservation and they ended up having to move her to their sister hostel. The inner pushy Greek woman in my was NOT having Katie stay in a different hostel than Grace and me, so I made a little bit of a scene and got us all moved to the other hostel AND got our room upgraded. The Greeks are the greatest people in the history of the world (ignore the current economic crisis).
We got settled in to our room and ventured to a neighborhood near Plaza Trilussa where we were told we could get a good lunch for a reasonable price. We were told correctly. We chose one of the first restaurants we saw and it was INCREDIBLE. As we walked in, an older woman started talking to us in rapid Italian. It was clear we had no idea was she was saying, but she kept plowing through. After a few minutes of her telling us about the restaurant, the menu, cracking various jokes, and probably explaining the current political atmosphere in Italy or telling us about her favorite vacation destination (she talked for a LONG time), we ordered. We decided to get a bottle of red wine (when in Rome...right?), but when we ordered a liter of the house wine (we had no idea how much a liter was), the old Italian woman, or Mama as we came to call her said, "Liter? No. Medio." and would only give us a half liter. Good to know we have mothers all over the world keeping an eye on us.
After lunch, we wandered around for a while, weaving through the streets of Rome and trying to find our way back toward our hostel. Our navigation tools could have been improved upon: a Rome guidebook in Spanish I borrowed from Nikki's homestay family and a VERY incomplete map. After a long walk (with a stop for gelato) and lots of picture taking, we finally made it back to the hostel. We took a quick nap, got dinner in the bar of our hostel where they served free pizza, and then went out exploring again. We made our way to a bar near some famous plaza (I know...I hate myself too for not remember the name) and chatted up some locals and tourists.
The next day, we got up early and set out to see the sights (with a plan and a better map!). We started at Villa Borghese, a museum housing Bernini and Caravaggio works. It was beautiful and a little overwhelming, but definitely one of the highlights of Rome. After spending a few hours in the museum, we tried to make our way over to the Pantheon and Trevi Fountain. Here's a riddle for you: How many college girls does it take to read a map?

Answer: 3. And an old Italian woman.

Obviously we had a little trouble navigating our way over to the sights, but once we did it was incredible. Trevi Fountain is iconic and seeing it in person leaves you awestruck. It's beautiful, huge, and entrancing. If the weather had been nicer (it was rainy) I feel like we could have sat and looked at it for hours.
After Trevi, we made our way to the Pantheon. Again, like most things in Rome, it was old, beautiful, and almost a little overwhelming. We read about the history in our Spanish guidebook and then decided to meander home.
One of the coolest things about traveling at this age is that there are so many other people our age traveling around. In our room in the hostel were two other girls. The first is a young Brazilian girl named Lana. Because Brazil is in the southern hemisphere, she's currently on her summer vacation spending two months traveling around Europe alone. She's only 19, but seems much older. She speaks four languages (including PERFECT English), is incredibly sharp, and obviously, very adventurous. The other is Brie, a college grad from New Zealand who is currently working as a stewardess on a Russian billionaire's yacht. No joke. She's on a vacation from work right now, so she's meeting up with friends around Europe. Again, another incredibly bright, adventurous girl. After our day of sightseeing, we had dinner with Brie and Lana and then the five of us all went out together. It was a wonderful night and we made close friends with Brie and Lana (both of whom are spending time in Barcelona during their travels!).
Katie left Sunday morning, so Grace and I went sightseeing with Lana. Even though she's younger than us, she planned the whole day and acted as our tour guide (even though it was her first time in Rome as well). We went all over: famous plazas including Plaza Venezia, the Forum, the Coliseum, Campo Fiori, the Spanish Steps, and I'm sure more places. We returned to the hostel for a little rest then went back to the restaurant we visited on the first day to get more delicious food and visit Mama.
Rome was wonderful. It was great to get to know Grace and Katie better and getting to meet two new friends in the hostel was a treat. Lana visited Barcelona last week and Brie is spending a couple weeks here during February when the yacht is getting some work done. How great!

The Week
As I mentioned, we had a busy week with school. We had a presentation for class and then our final. However, that didn't keep us from having a little fun. Lana was in Barcelona starting Tuesday, so Wednesday and Thursday night we met up with her and introduced her to two of our other friends on the program, Nikki from Wellesley and Shaun, a girl from Tufts. The first night we went to a famous bar in Barcelona called Bosc de les Fades, a fairy tale themed bar. As you walk in, magical (there's no other way to describe it) music is playing and there are trees and waterfalls everywhere. Lots of fun. The next night we had dinner in Plaza Real, a famous and beautiful plaza off of Las Rambla. Saying goodbye was hard. We'll probably never see her again, but she left such an impression on us. Smart, adventurous, and fun.
I started work on Wednesday which was...interesting. No one really speaks English and a lot of people in the office speak Catalan to each other so it was a little overwhelming. I spent my first day doing a small translation project and learning about the organization. I still don't exactly know what I'll be doing for them, but I believe in the agency's mission and what they do. From my understanding, here's what they're all about: BCN Ecología is a government agency that effectively acts as a think tank that focuses on sustainable development and the "greening" (in both senses) of the city. There are various initiatives and programs in Barcelona, ranging from public transportation to recycling programs, that this agency conceptualized and designed. Other cities throughout the world are starting to turn their sights to the BCN Ecología and asking for aid in implementing similar programs. That's where I come in. I'll be handling translation and correspondence in English to countries that don't use Spanish. Exciting stuff!

The Half Marathon
This morning was the Barcelona Half Marathon. I didn't register, so I was an unofficial runner. When I made my way to the start this morning, they were checking numbers and timing chips and since I didn't have one, I decided to hop in the race about 1K from the start. I jogged down to the 1K mark and waited for my pace group to come by. Fun fact about Libby: sporting events make me very emotional. The past two years in the Boston marathon, opening ceremonies of the World Cup, and sports movies...tears. TEARS. Today was no exception. As the lead pack went by, I felt that all too familiar wave of emotion hit me. It was a pack of Africans and then a few Spaniards trying to hang with. Unfortunately according to the results, they didn't last long. Once I got it back together, I saw my group and hopped in a little past the 1K mark. It felt fast, but I figured it's just because I'm a little out of shape. However I checked my watch as I went through the 6K (so my 5K). Shut the front door. 21:03?! I settled into a rhythm and started to feel pretty good. Then came the rain. At first it was just a little sprinkle that felt nice... then the downpour started. I was wearing a cotton t-shirt so I was SOAKED the rest of the race. I continued on through the 7, 8, 9, 10K feeling fine, but a little cold. I stuck w/ two guys in their 30's for most of it, and they started chatting with me (obviously not working hard enough, guys). They were pretty excited to be running the race. They had been running for most of their life and had never run a road race without the other. Cute right? The half today was their 75th race together. I managed to keep the tears down this time, mostly because it would have made breathing tough. However as we went through the 12ishK the lead pack was on their way to the finish and running the opposite direction as us. Everyone, runners included, cheered and clapped for the 4 Kenyans FLYING through their last few kilometers. Incredible.
The final part of the race was uneventful. I felt pretty awful the last 5K or so (3 miles...which feels really long when you don't feel great), but I managed to pull out a small kick for the last 200 or so. My finishing time was right around 1:40ish (give or take a bit) but remember I started 1K in. Still...that's a huge half PR for me. Pretty pleased. That said, the course was virtually totally flat and when the course turned, bottle necks occurred (especially during the beginning) so I cut a lot of tangents. Next on my running agenda: finding the running store in Barcelona that I've been searching for during the past few weeks and seeing if I can join a club or find some other races.

Well. I guess that's all for now. Siesta for me.

New obsessions: hostels, banditing road races (not new...but still obsessed), discovering cool spots around Barcelona, and my homestay mom's cooking.

Hasta!

Hasta pronto, Barcelona. Ciao Roma!

The past few days have been wonderful. I've been spending a lot of time exploring Barcelona and continuing to get oriented. I love this city. Yesterday I sat in a cafe for a few hours and did homework and wrote in my journal. It was a great afternoon.

One of the highlights of the past few days was last night. I decided to stay in and relax with Juan Antonio and Nene, my host parents. We had dinner together and then sat in the living room and talked. They are such wonderful people with good hearts. Additionally, they remind me so much of my parents which has kept me from feeling homesick. Nene is full of energy and incredibly caring. She's hilarious and constantly moving. Juan Antonio is pensive and calm, but also has a quick wit and is constantly cracking jokes. Their interactions are just like my parents. I feel SO lucky to have been placed with them. AND they offered to let me continue to live with them this summer. Could things be any better? Probably not.

Tomorrow I'm going to Rome with two girls from CIEE. I'll be sure to take lots of pictures and write down lots in my journal. If anyone has suggestions for sites to see, EMAIL ME.

Not much to say. Hasta for now!

New obsessions: getting lost in the city, hanging out with my host parents, and not being able to read Catalan.

It's real

So the fun is over (ha. just kidding!). We have our first exam today, and great news kids! The subjunctive WILL be on it. If anyone needs a rundown on the uses and conjugations, I'm a pro now. Andale!

Two funny things happened yesterday. First, while I was walking to class, I saw two of my parents friends. I couldn't remember names, but I'm POSITIVE I know them. So I went up to them with a big smile and said "hi!" hoping they'd remember me and I'd be able to piece it together. Instead, the woman hugged her purse tight to her body and RAN away. I then realized she probably thought I was a pick pocket. Good defense, mom and dad's friend.

Second: I went for another run yesterday and per usual, I got lost. Not quite as bad as last time, but I was still a little disoriented. I asked a cab driver for directions and he said, "ay dios. Estas muy lejos. Casi 20 kilometros" ("Oh god. You're really far. Probably 20 kilometers"). Then he gave me directions and sent me on my way. Turns out I was only about 10 blocks from my apartment and he sent me in the complete opposite direction. Thanks buddy.

Alright. Off to the exam.

Hasta.

New obsessions: teaching Spaniards "hella", coffee strong enough to fuel a car, and my boots of Spanish leather.