Week one, you ready? Jet lag is so real it's almost unreal. I took off on Tuesday, January 6, from Newark Airport in New Jersey. From there, I was Frankfurt, Germany-bound on a six hour flight which is not that bad considering I originally thought the flight was eight hours. In Frankfurt, I found the gate to Barcelona by the grace of God and there I met a bunch of kids on my program from all sorts of schools including Wisconsin, Indiana, and Penn State.
On the other end of the flight from Frankfurt, we students banded together, found our luggage and located IES staff in bright blue shirts. They gave us a safety talk, checked us in, handed over apartment keys, and said “that way for the taxi stand.” Luckily, one of my roommates, also named Elizabeth, was on my second flight and so together, with a hefty amount of luggage, we made our way to the neighborhood called Entenca. Cue the jet lag. That night ended with patatas bravas, two pitchers of sangria, and getting a little turned around by the metro, but what a relief it was to have made it.
Since that first day, I have begun to explore the city that I now get to call home (someone pinch me). Tori and I spent one day riding around town on the open-air tourism buses with free tickets, thanks to our program. We saw la Plaza de España, the site of the 1992 Olympic Games, and lots of waterfront. The next day, we slept in, grabbed coffee and mapped out a safe route for jogging while waiting for our laundry. Productive, eh? I’d say so.
While covering lots of ground in our first week by day, we also started to check out the nightlife. Shout out to our fifth roommate and new Spanish/Catalan best friend, Claudia, for making us look a little less American in the clubs. We love you and would be so lost without you telling our cab drivers where to take us. Literally, so lost.
Highlights from this week:
-Figuring out the metro (a considerably large accomplishment)
-Happening upon some cool panoramic views at Las Arenas
-Exploring Mercat St. Joseph on Las Ramblas
-Simply getting settled in
Check back for Week 2 where apparently our program makes us build a human pyramid? Rumors with a language barrier make for an interesting mix. 'Til next time!
Quick selfie at Las Arenas ft. Plaza de España behind us.
Mango/strawberry juice from Mercat St. Joseph.
Mercat St. Joseph buzzing around lunch time.
No Comments Yet, Leave Yours!