Finally Here!

I am currently in Spain and have survived my first three days! I made it to Sevilla this past Sunday, January 7th. I arrived around noon with lots of students who are in the same CIEE program as me that were on the same flight from Frankfurt, Germany to Seville, Spain. The assistant program director was waiting in for all of us at the airport and drove us to our home stays. My family picked me up at the stop and drove me to my new home for the semester!

My family is amazing! They are so nice and welcoming. The family consists of two parents, one son (15 years old), and one daughter (11 years old). The son speaks English well which is nice because the rest of the family does not. Maybe I'm crazy, but I think I my Spanish has improved a lot in the first couple of days. When you have to use the language, I guess it just comes back quicker. Their apartment is beautiful too and food in Sevilla is amazing!

It's been a crazy three days. While I was on the plane from JFK to Frankfurt I accidently broke my iPhone. Not only was I stressed about moving to a new country, not knowing anyone, and having to live in a stranger's house that same night but then I had to deal with my phone breaking. Luckily everything worked out and I was able to purchase a Spanish phone yesterday. The only downside is that the phone is cheaper and does not have a good camera so I haven't been able to take any pictures so far. I'm hoping to get my iPhone fixed early this week so I can use it to take pictures and upload them for you all to see!

Sevilla is absolutely beautiful. It reminds me of a mix between what I expected Europe to look like and Israel. The weather is similar to Spring in California and it's been sunny every day so far. The city is huge, but it's very walkable. My home stay is located in between the city center and the commercial district, so it's close to many things.

I started my first round of classes today. I have two weeks of intensive Spanish and then I will start my classes for the semester in three weeks towards the end of January. I really like my teacher and the class has been a very useful refresher.

I feel like my life is always an adventure, I never know what's coming. It's been a crazy three days, but I can really see myself enjoying my semester and Sevilla. There is so much to look forward to over the next four months. I can't wait to see what this semester has in store.

My host mom and I