Eastern Europe.

Three of my friends and I went to Prague for the weekend! I was so excited to see Eastern Europe until my Hungarian friend told me there is still a Russian mob in the Czech Republic. Whatever the language is called makes me very thankful to be studying Spanish. Thursday night we want to a see a Jazz Band play. We met some Americans as they were taking shots of Absinthe. Always great to see an American. We stayed at a hostel which was slightly comparable to a fraternity house. When times are tough we all have to make sacrafices.

Overall I would say that Prague is so beautiful, the architecture is stunning, and it looks like a fairytale. The Czech people are not the nicest I will have to admit. Maybe because I was cheering for Spain while the were playing the Czech Republic in soccer. Or because they were communist not too long ago and tourism didn't exist until 1989? Kind of strange, eh. I learned some interesting facts at the Communist Museum that we visited. The Charles Bridge was beautiful! And the Prague castle! If anyone has ever seen the movie Chasing Liberty with Mandy Moore then you know what I am talking about. The food was tasty, too. Goulash is a typical Czech meal. They sold sausages everywhere. We kept seeing advertisements for  "Thai Massages" and it cost about $17 bucks. Naturally, Sara and I decided to get one and it was one of the best decisions I've made in a while. Three out of the four of us got sick while we were in Prague.

I finally got back to old Alcalá sick as a dog. Don't worry, my Spanish sister assured me that if I ate some ham I would feel better. 

Jazz Band

Amy & I

Other study abroaders drinking Absinthe

Pretty Prague

Charles Bridge

view of the bridge

Lennon Wall

Writing a Haiku on the Lennon Wall?

Absinthe was everywhere

Europe & it's beggars.

The Communist Museum

Thai Massage = money well spent

The North

Wednesday night we decided to go North for the weekend. The region of Cantabria and Asturias. I thought it would be a good idea to see the North of Spain because they say that it is like a totally different country. Friday morning we flew to Santander and then took a bus to our hostel which was more like a Bed and Breakfast. The owners were the nicest. Friday we just wandered around the town where we were staying. Beach + Mountains = beautiful! There were cows, goat, and sheep everywhere. We bought some delicious cheese from an old priest for our afternoon snack. The owners of the place we stayed were going to the Picos de Europa (Mountains) and invited us to come with them. Talk about lucky since we did not have any mode of transportation. We rode with them about an hour and a half into Asturias and to the mountains. We rode a cable car up the mountains and it was so cool!

North Coast in Cantabria, Spain

The Picos de Europa!

Asturias

Favorite hotel owners

Welcome to Africa

   Sara's parents arrived in Spain last Sunday! It was so great to see them!! They were invited over to our host family's home for dinner. I am so glad they could finally meet the people that we are with daily. Turn's out Pilar understands a little bit of English after all. I guess that doesn't matter to me because we aren't allowed to speak English around her.

   On Wednesday the four of us flew to Marrakesh, Morocco. Unforgettable trip to say the least! Wednesday night we may have gotten sucked into a tourist trap restaurant but I loved it. In the restaurant there were belly dancers, Moroccan musicians, and all sorts of craziness. Tagine is a common dish in North Africa and  is what I ate a few times while there. Thursday we went into the heart of Marrakesh to explore the markets called the "souks." The markets are so insane. Everyone wants you to buy whatever they are selling and will be really annoying about it. They would ask "Are you English?" One of my favorite quotes was "I give you a very democratic price." Thanks, but no thanks. I ended up buying a painting of a camel, some jewelry, some Moroccan oil and scarves. It was fun haggling for the stuff I bought!

    The Weir's know missionaries that live in Morocco so we were actually able to go to their house on Thursday. The indigenous people of Morocco are called Berbers. The missionaries live an hour outside of the city with these Berber people. We actually went to a Berber's home (I won't say house). Although I don't speak their language they were so kind and hospitable. The women were invited in the kitchen which had a hole in the roof for light. They made us bread in their stove. So delicious. Have I mentioned yet the tea in Morocco- they brew green tea, add a ton of mint and sugar. The missionaries are friends with a Moroccan that converted to Christianity. We were able to hear his testimony and how he has been persecuted. It was so amazing to hear of this former Muslim seeing the grace of Jesus although most everyone around him considered him crazy. What an inspiration.

    Saturday we met up with Amy and Kristina and took a van to a beach town called Essaouira. We went to the markets there and I haggled a ton! One man dressed me up with a turban and outfit like a Moroccan. If only my eyes weren't blue I'd have people fooled.

    Lastly, we rode camels on the beach! Sara and I rode one named Jimmy. Our camel trek guide could barely speak English but was hysterical. We taught him "Sweet Home Alabama," sounds pretty interesting with an Arabic twist.

 Berber rugs

In the markets

 He charged me for taking a picture of him 

The heart of Marrakesh

restaurant on the first night

just the beginning of our moroccan meal

crazy lady dancing at the restaurant

don't let the Dirham deceive you... this isn't worth much

Alcalálala

Well well well. My love for this place gets bigger and bigger as the days go by. I only have about two months left here?! That makes me want to cry. I want to move to Madrid in 2013, just a heads up family.This week was mid-terms and they were harder than I thought. Once we finished on Thursday we went out and hopped around places in Alcalá. Spanish nightlife is a breed of it's own and that is a fact. I will not elaborate on the fact that we saw our teacher. So I got a solid two hours of sleep before my school field trip to Soria (or so I thought). My host brother described Soria as the South Dakota of Spain and asked why we were going there. Well I still am not sure because once I woke up this morning it was SNOWING, in Spain! Siesta.

arroz con leche

Arroz con Leche
1/2 cup of water
1 tsp salt
Cinnamon
1/2 cup rice
Lemon peel
4 cups of milk
Sugar