Repita, por favor?

It's hard to believe I've already been living in Spain for a week! My time here is flying by already...

Round about on the way to school

As much as it surprises me to say it, my Spanish Grammar class is by far my favorite! Though it is very difficult and I have to pay close attention, and we have homework every night, I know that I will benefit so much from challenging myself like this. Spanish Culture class on the other hand, is a slight disaster. Our professor speaks so quickly that I literally do not understand more than 3 or 4 words every couple of minutes!! We've tried telling her that we don't understand, but she can't seem to break the habit. This means that so far I have absolutely no idea what's going on in culture class (mind you, neither does anyone else). After speaking with the ISA directors, we learned that we are not the first class to complain about this issue with this professor. She is clearly knowledgeable and friendly, but she is on a mission to run through the information as quickly as possible. Hopefully things get better soon!

I did not realize how busy I'd be while here in Valencia! Though I'm taking two classes, I expected to have a little more free time to explore, but that is not the case!

my crazy schedule!

Thankfully, my roommate and I make a point to take little picture detours all the time :) On Tuesday night we went to a local bar called Portland for "intercambios". These are language exchange programs to help anyone improve their speaking skills! Tuesday was English night, so I had a chance to speak with two older, retired Italians, and a local Valencian woman for a couple of hours! Not necessarily great practice for me, but it was so rewarding to help others learn a little bit (clearly the future-teacher in me)! After intercambios, my roommate Heather and I explored Valencia for a little bit on our walk home. (Don't worry mom, Valencia is super safe, even at night!)

We walked across the Turia riverbed (actually no longer a river since the actual river was re-routed many years ago). Valencia frequently has musicians, markets, and other activities all along the riverbed. Even though we had taken the metro bus to intercambios, we decided to walk back to our apartment. Though we did pull out our map a few times, Heather and I made it back to the apartment safely without getting lost at all! :)