This weekend was the annual church/school campamento with ESDES! We've been hearing about it for a few weeks now, and the church seemed really excited to have us join them for the weekend. The group who went was pretty big, a mix of ACA kids, kids from the academy, Theology students, and local church members. 

We left on Friday at 5:00 for an hour bus ride to the coast north of Sagunto. I never guessed it would be as beautiful as it was! The camp was right on the ocean, where we could walk to various nearby beaches. The waterfront was very rocky with little coves and beaches winding back and forth. 

Friday night when we arrived, there was a schedule of activities for us including dinner, moving into our cabins, and of course a few quick bonding games and worship. The food during the whole weekend was good but very randomly selected. It was often hard to tell what was the main dish and what elements were supposed to go together. Breakfast was like a huge bread-and-chocolate-bar, which of course I loved (anything with carbs paired with nutella is AOK with me!). We got to talk to a few Europeans that night (since many of the kids who go here are actually Romanian) which was a great opportunity to practice our Spanish. 

Sabbath morning we awoke for breakfast and then had free time until church, during which a few of us when down to explore the beach during daylight. Church was translated for us which was a nice treat, and then we had more free time to go swimming. Saturday night activities included a huge race (sort of like track and field day at many academies) with teams and challenges and points and such. 

The coolest part about the whole weekend was getting to actually be right there on the Mediterranean. Sagunto has a nice beach, but it isn't exactly picturesque. This location, however, was absolutely beautiful and I couldn't believe the nice weather (considering it's October and at home and in Lincoln it's starting to very cold!). Here's a few pictures from all the fun we had:

Yesterday was the trip to Valencia for groups D, E, and F. This outing was all day, from 9 to 6, and we had three segments. On the first part we toured the city in our bus while Ana pointed out various attractions. We saw Oceanografica, the largest aquarium in Europe, the Plaza del Toros where the bull fights take place, and the University of Valencia. Next, we went on a walking tour through the historic part of town. 

The first place we went was the Valencia Cathedral, where we climbed 207 steps to the top of the Miguelete, un Torre gótica de la catedral (the gothic tower of the church). The cathedral was built in different parts, mainly during the 1200-1300s, and the bell tower was constructed in 1381. Sadly, we didn't spend much time inside but we did get a glimpse into the Chapel of St. Vincent the Martyr. We also got to spend a nice amount of time at the top of the tower, overlooking the whole city.

 To learn more about the Valencia Cathedral, visit their website here. This site is very informative and has lots of information about the holy chalice, the tower, and the interior of the church. 

The next place we walked to was the Plaza de la Virgen where a ceremony (Tribunal de Agua) was taking place. I wish I could tell you what exactly went on here, but the crowd was so big that I couldn't see any of it. Still, we got to see the Santa María Cathedral and the Puerto de los Apostoles which I think was in my Arts and Ideas book last year. Next was another church whose name escapes me at the moment (and my google searches aren't getting me anywhere). We then headed to La Lonja, a gothic style civil building built in the late 1400s. Soon after that we were set free to roam the city for a few hours. 

I wish I had more information about the places we went and the things we saw, but since the tour was in spanish and the group was large, it was hard for me to catch a lot of the information. Hopefully sometime I can go back and look at some of the historic area some more. 

Today we had two classes and now we are heading off to go on a church/school campout for the weekend. After class this morning we got our passports back after the school applied for our permanent residency cards, and we got ESDES tshirts and Spanish Bibles! We get to use them (or try to) this weekend during all the church activities. 

I hope everyone has a fantastic fin de semana and a feliz Sabado!

That's good enough for me! Happy Wednesday everyone! So far this has been my favorite day of the week. ¿Por qué? you may find yourself asking. Well here's why:

Last night was very busy; I felt like I had a ton of homework but it seemed doable. One tarea (task... a.k.a. HOMEWORK) I had to complete was a 4-5 minute presentation for my conversation class. We could present about our own life or the life of someone else, like a famous person. I, like most others, decided the easiest route was to talk about myself. I made a short Keynote with photos of my family and I, and prepared my talk. Which means I wrote it out word for word. Anyway, with that done, I had to finish some workbook exercises and begin memorizing the first of my 117 word vocab list. I went to bed tired and wishing las chicas in the dorm were quieter.

This morning, groups A, B, and C headed out for a day in Valencia while we, groups D, E, and F, stayed behind and had class as normal (don't worry, tomorrow WE get to go!). Composición was first, and as always Chelo was peppy and cheerful as she finished talking about the Spanish Alphabet and moved on to review the difference between ser and estar. I got some good studying in my hour break and then finished my school day with Gramática, comida, y Conversación. I was relieved that I got to do my presentation today and that I could get it over with! I think it went pretty well. 

The highlight of my day was still to come, however. At three I had my meeting with Belén, my monitor (mentor) for the year. She's also the monitor of Group D with a Theology student named Petar. Both of them are so nice and understanding when we slaughter our Spanish. Last night we had our group meeting and played Spanish Pictionary, which was quite fun. Anyway, today we had a personal meeting for one whole our where I could practice my Spanish. The time flew by so fast! She asked if I would like to practice learning the past tense, and I said yes, so she asked me all about what I liked to do when I was a kid, what I did this summer, and what Kansas is like. When she asked if we had mountains, I sadly told her that no, we have no mountains and no beaches. She seemed a little surprised at that, so I drew her a map and showed that we are as far away from the ocean as you can get! Then we continued talking. At the end, I could hardly believe I had just conversed in Spanish for a whole hour. Granted, I had lots of sentences that included "como se dice...?" (how do you say...?) but Belén was patient and helpful and I'm feeling much better about my skills! 

All pumped up on Spanish, I decided to head back to my room to start watching Toy Story 3 (en español por supeusto) which I had left loading on youtube. I hadn't been in my room two minutes when one of my deans came knocking to deliver a package! It was for Justin and I, from our abuela (grandma) and I was SO excited. He came over to the dorm so we could open it together and to our joy the box was full of what our family refers to as "grandma cookies." They are the most delicious drops of heaven you have ever eaten. It was so excited to get a care package all the way from the US and the most amazing grandmother ever!

As we enjoyed our treats, Justin talked to me about an article he's writing for his school's paper back in the US. I love writing, and I love reading other people's articles and giving input if they want it. Talking about his plans for his article made me miss writing papers so much! I know it's strange since papers are usually the primary dread of college students, but as an English major, it's what I do.  

Looking back on the past two and a half weeks, I can't believe how different everything seems than when I first arrived. The stuffy little dorm room that greeted me my first night at 2 AM has already become home. The teachers who spoke so quickly on that first day of class are now friends. The autoconfianza I lacked just one week ago is slowly starting to grow. Can I do it? I think yes. Or as one of my favorite authors says, "And will you succeed?/Yes! You will indeed!/(98 and 3/4 precent guaranteed)." -Dr. Seuss, Oh the Places You'll go.

It's Wednesday morning here in España, and with an hour break between classes I find myself attempting to memorize vocabulary. One week from today we have a test over 117 words that start with the letter A. This morning, I attempt to learn the first 25. I know a few of you reading have mentioned that you want to learn some vocab, my words of the day. Since I have a list, I'm going to draw from it for the next few posts! I know this won't interest most people but it will help me study to type them out. Here's the first section.

Almost all of Spain uses the "lisp accent" as we usually learn in Spanish class in the US. However, the very southernmost part of the country (as well as the Canary islands off of Africa) uses Z and C as the "s" sound (like in Central and South America). Chelo herself actually speaks without the "th" accent, but here at school, since we are in Valencia, she has to change it to teach us local Spanish. Anyway, when Christopher Columbus sailed the ocean blue in 1492, he left from right below Portugal where no one had the "th" accent. That's why, in South America, the majority of cultures use the "s" sound. 

Although it may not be fascinating to you, I am loving learning about the differences in the language and the pronunciation. Listening to Chelo talk about how the little differences make us sound like we are speaking Spanglish makes me marvel at how anyone on this earth ever learned and developed languages.

Well, it's almost time for comida! The next few weeks are going to go quickly. We have camping trips, festivals, and then our large trip to Andalucia! I'll be sure to keep everyone posted and maybe add my vocab words of the day! ¡Hasta luego!