Arrival & Adjustment

The fact that I have only been in Spain for less than two weeks is absolutely wild–it feels like SO much longer.

I flew into Madrid last Tuesday, January 20th. We were there for four days, but unfortunately I spent almost all of that time quarantined in my hotel room. The first night, I came down with a really bad fever, which lasted until Thursday when I finally saw a doctor and got some antibiotics in my system. That was one of my first cultural experiences: The Spanish healthcare system! A doctor came to visit me at the hotel, and his English was about as good as my Spanish, which made for a very interesting encounter.

So that was just very disappointing. I ended up missing out on all of our tours and excursions, such as El Escorial and El Museo del Prado, and I missed out on the Madrid nightlife everyone in my group raved about. I also never got a chance to meet up with my cousin who lives in Madrid, which I’d been really looking forward to. The timing was just not in my favor.

Friday morning we packed up and spent an afternoon in Toledo, on the way to Granada. Toledo was absolutely gorgeous! Unfortunately I was still not feeling well enough to go on the walking tour with my group, but I did get to walk around later and have lunch and see some of the amazing sights.

The view of Toledo was incredible. Too bad I hadn’t figured out my phone’s panorama mode yet.

My first taste of Spanish paella.

Next stop: Granada.

We arrived in Granada on Friday evening where my roommate and I met our landlady, Nati, who showed us to our apartment. Our apartment is much larger and nicer than we expected; we actually have our own separate bedrooms, along with a kitchen and living room (and wifi!). I won’t lie, I do miss my giant comforter and army of pillows back at home, but I cannot complain about these accommodations.

The apartment/landlady arrangement is sort of strange. It’s not quite like a host family, because Nati does not live with us, but she does bring us two meals a day and help us with things like laundry and stocking the place with basic necessities. I’m still a little intimidated by her because I find her accent difficult to understand and my speaking skills are not great yet, especially compared to my roommate, but hopefully that will improve sooner rather than later.

Since arriving in Granada, I’ve gone on a few tours and seen so many amazing sights. Granada is the definition of scenic. We visited the Alhambra on Wednesday and it is truly one of those places that you cannot fully appreciate the beauty of until you see it in person; a picture will never do it justice. But here’s a picture or two anyway.

A view of The Alhambra from the Generalife.

The walls are all covered floor to ceiling with detailed carvings. Once again, the photo does not do it justice.

I haven’t really done anything of note since the Alhambra. Mostly I’ve been preparing for classes, which start on Monday–thankfully I tested into the level I needed to get full credit back at GVSU!–and just taking in my new city. I’ll update again sometime after classes have begun. Hasta luego!

Chocolate con churros. Delicioso.