30 Enero: Una Anda Muy Bella

Hola! We went to our University this morning, La Universidad de Extremadura. Extremadura is the region in which Cáceres is located. We all went together and got a quick tour and then were given some vague instructions and met two of our professors. It seemed fairly disorganized and unhelpful, but it was still cool to be there. The UEx students are in the middle of finals, so that's kind of weird. Things that stuck out to me: there were designated smoking areas, which is gross, but that's all the rage here. Also when we went into the libraries, everyone stared at us, haha! The athletics area was super nice, but the classes were expensive. And, our professors were really easy to understand! Yay!

We (3 de mis amigas aquí y yo) decided it would be fun to walk home, which took a little over an hour including stops for pictures, snacks, and taking off layers as it got really warm in the sun. It was another beautiful sunny day, and walking back from the University was a fun way to take in the city.

When we got home, there was a visitor! Leondro and Teresa's daughter, María, and her dog were here! She's de media edad, probably a little younger than my parents, and is very Spanish and beautiful, kind and easy to talk to. She showed us videos of her musical children and her sweet grandbaby about whom we have heard so much from Teresa! Her visit made Teresa very, very happy and it was fun to finally meet another family member :)

After la siesta (which is seriously the most ingenious thing ever), some of us met at the mall which is really close to our house! Spain is in the middle of Rebajas, country-wide sales, so we shopped for a few hours there, getting boots, scarves, ice cream and pastries, and other necessities. The Centro was like a tiny mall (think, a little bigger than the Ames mall) connected to a weird smelling Wal-mart like place. Maybe, three times the size of the Ames mall, a third of the size of the Burnsville mall. If you don't know either of those, you probably aren't reading this blog! :)

The big news for today is: We're going to Lisbon, Portugal for this upcoming weekend! I'm very excited.

Praises to God for:
-another beautiful day
-good health for walking
-that we've eaten so much lately that not eating much today (weird food) was okay and I'm not hungry
-modern technology of cameras to document things
-good new friends
-a wonderful Spanish family
-that every day I understand more of what my abuelitos (Leondro y Teresa) are saying to us at dinner
-the ability to plan a cross-country trip for the upcoming weekend
-the opportunity to study in such a magical place as Cáceres!

 The view of the city on the walk home

Hablamos pronto!