Highs and Lows

It’s been an interesting past 1.5 days for me here in Valencia. On Friday, Katie and I’s 9:00AM class was cancelled, so we were able to sleep in. However, at 8:30AM Miguel (host dad) jolted us out of our sleep by loudly knocking and announcing our breakfast. Yikes.

Katie and I near the museums in Valencia.

We headed toward school for our film class and stopped to enjoy some café con leche. (Seriously, why hasn’t America caught on to the whole using milk instead of water thing for coffee? AMAZING.) At school, the only thing we did was finish the movie “Pa Negre,” about terrorists in Spain… I didn’t understand the terrorism part so much, but it was good! Easy day.

Our fancy meal.

After class, we rushed home for a big meal. Miguel was very excited about us being there because their two friends and a little 5-year-old girl were coming. I was pretty nervous about the meal purely because it is very difficult to understand a crowd of chatting Spaniards sometimes, but Katie and I kept up the whole time! I even contributed to conversation!!! It was so great and we ate a Valencian dish, paella, that was muy bien. We also got wine, the most delicious watermelon for dessert, and café con leche with chocolate. Unfortunately, I didn’t get to finish my coffee because Miguel poured his brandy into it and I nearly died… Not fun.

Our host mom and dad (both in stripes) and Katie at our meal.

Last night, after an American meal of hamburgers and fries, Katie and I went out with a CROWD of people from our program. It was fun until I wanted to come home early and has to spend all my money of the multiple taxi fees. I was alone and sobbing. My poor mom got the most dramatic phone call of all time, but sometimes you just want to go home to Iowa and not be holding pepper spray alone in a dark and massive city at 2:00AM. Rough moment.

Picture taken by Lorenza BEFORE going
out and ending up crying.

Today, I slept in incredibly late and woke up to both Miguel and Lorenza outside my door rattling off Spanish. I showed them my alarmingly large blister on my foot (I will not being wearing my wedges for walking again) and they sprung into action. Lorenza ran to the market for more supplies and Miguel became a doctor for my painful wound. For the next 20 minutes I sat in my pajamas in the kitchen crying as he put what I believe was hydrogen peroxide on my foot and trying to distract myself by eating the Oreo treats my mom sent with me. I was also given a juice box to focus on instead of the screaming pain. Good morning.

An American bar!! FULL of study abroad kids.

Instead of going to the beach (you can’t walk on sand with an open wound on the bottom of your foot), Katie and I went to a plaza to shop for the first time. Unfortunately, we live at least 20 minutes from anything in this city and to say it was a struggle to walk that far would be an extreme understatement. It was worth it, though, because I bought the most beautiful dress of all time at Zara!!!! Score!

Don’t worry, everyone, I’m still enjoying life here in Spain, but I am having a bit of a hard time without having constant access to my mom, because we have no internet at our apartment. Healing prayers for my right foot are welcome! And more adventures to come!