March Madness

Two plus months into Spain and still going strong. My, where has the time gone? Before you know it, we'll be heading home to old America and...no, we're not going to think about that anymore! We still have plenty of time to enjoy Spain and all it offers us!

It's a mere nine days into March and it's already been cray-cray (you can kill me later for typing that.). What was supposed to be a trip with a friend to Germany ended up being a surprise last-minute trip to Carnaval in Cadiz, which, I have to say, was probably the most fun I've had in Spain yet.

How do I explain Carnaval to those who have not yet been able to experience it? Well, take American Halloween, put it in the oldest city in Europe, change the month to March, subtract the scandalous costumes (not literally) and put in some legit costumes that took time and preparation, and severely loosen the open container laws, and you have Carnaval!

Very creative. I'm sure the lady is proud. Photo credit to Laura Peltonen.

We boarded the buses in Granada around 10 AM on Saturday the first and embarked on the five hour bus ride to Cadiz. On the bus, many new friends were made, this time around a majority seem to be from Finland. I can't speak Finnish, so, I guess now is a better time than ever to learn. We arrived a little later than planned, at about four, and then the festivities began. After a good meal and some sight seeing, we spent time with all our friends, met knew ones (I felt so popular; apparently I knew a lot more people from school than I remember), and made memories with every encounter. All in all, twelve tired hours later we stumbled back to the buses and passed out on the ride back to Granada. I'd like to say we all did walk of shames back in our costumes, but so was the rest of the town, so it was okay.

Arrive week two and school is in full swing again. I'll admit, it's actually pretty nice to get back into the normal cycle of things, even if the normality won't last past this semester. The week was also the best Spanish I've ever spoken. Between having to try/buy new clothes, buy a used smartphone, and navigate streets and directions at night, it was the first time I legitimately felt Spanish.

Do I look European yet??

Spanish comes and goes depending on the day, I really have no idea why. The off days suck, but the days where it clicks makes every year, every prueba y examen, and every night spent crying over a test worth it. I can only imagine what I will be able to do toward the end of the trip when I have more experience.

The weather is also getting really nice, at least to snowpacalypse-Minnesota standards. It's been consistently around 22 degrees Celsius all week, which at home would equal shorts weather, but apparently shorts don't exist as a fashion object here. So, skinny jeans it is.

Imma get your heart racin' in my skin-tight jeans...

So ultimately, here I am, laying in bed typing this. We spent a good three and a half hours sunbathing in the park after a fun night out, and I gotta say, Sundays are pretty chill in Europe. I used to get very flustered when literally nothing was open, but after spending a day lounging around sipping on pop and eating sandwiches, sometimes the slower-paced lifestyle ain't so bad. We'll see how it is when it gets really hot in the next few months.

#groundselfie

Oh, I forgot. We had class on a Friday. It was terrible. I realize now that we're all in for a rough school year next year if we can't handle Friday morning classes. Ah, pues, asi es la vida...

Jacob