Excursión a Segovia!

Hola a todos, 

This past Saturday my group traveled to Segovia for the day. We took a guided tour through the city and had an hour or so for free time. The city was beautiful and reminded me a lot of Salamanca, except without the University. Alcázar Castle was stunning, as were its views of the countryside. 

The most interesting part of the trip for me, was that during my free time, I followed a guide I picked up in the office of tourism about the Jews of Segovia. My journey took me to "The Didactic Center of the Jewry" where hoped to find information about the lives of the Jews who once lived in Segovia. The Center consisted of two rooms, both of which explained certain things that Jewish people today do (i.e. read the torah, bar mitzvahs, etc.) All of the information about Jews in Segovia was some version of the following: 

"One time there were Jews here... we don't have any artifacts though...there used to be a Synagouge, but now it's a church!" 

While I wasn't surprised, it was disheartening to find that so little history remains in a city that was known for the coexistence of Christians, Muslims and Jews. I think it speaks volumes about how Spain dealt with the history of the Jewish people (by pretty much obliterating it). Anyways, I have to cut this post short because I have to finish registering for classes. I hope you enjoy these pictures of my trip to Segovia.

Church of San Martín in Segovia with a view of the gothic Cathedral in the background

Roman Aqueduct of Segovia 

View of the side of Alcázar Castle of Segovia 

Part of my exploration of the Jews of Segovia - "Street of the Old Jewry - the main street of the old synagogue where the Hebrews lived until their expulsion in the year 1492" 

Hasta luego,
AB

My first few days in Salamanca

Hola amigos,

It seems like I've been in Salamanca for much longer than just 4 days. So much has happened!

All of Tuesday (when I arrived) and most of this week, for that matter, things seemed like they were moving in slow motion and high speed at the same time. One moment I stepped off an airplane and met my group. The next I was in Salamanca and stepped off a bus where I met my host mother, Candelas. All of a sudden I was sitting in Candelas' living room eating lunch with her and her two grandchildren, Diego and Paula who are 7 and 4, respectively. Oh, not to mention the fact that only Spanish was being spoken around me. It was a very strange feeling -- I felt as though I had been plopped down into someone else's life that was suddenly my life too.

I live with another student from my program, Nora. She is from Flagstaff, Arizona and attends Tufts University. She is a very sophisticated knitter and we are entertaining the idea of starting a knitting night for girls in the group who are interested. Candelas is a wonderful host mother. She is 63 years old and divorced with three children and three grandchildren and hosts students regularly. She extremely hardworking...and talkative. She makes breakfast, lunch and dinner for us every day and doles out loads of useful (and entertaining) life advice. Every time Nora or I come home she says "Ayyyy, hija! ¿Qué tal? (Daugther!! How's it going?) I feel very lucky to have her as my host mother.

This whole week has been full of Orientation programming through IES. We have had several daily lectures on topics ranging from class registration at the universities to home stay etiquette to a discussion of specific cultual differences between Spain and the U.S. Mind you, these lectures are also all in Spanish. Despite the fact that they have been overwhelming at times, on the whole the orientation has been very helpful.

Much of this first week can be described as overwhelming. Adjusting to an entirely different country, culture, city, timezone, lifestyle, family, and friends...all only while speaking Spanish has certainly been an emotional and somewhat draining experience. But each day that I remind myself to take it one day at a time, things seem to get better. The IES staff, my family and friends at home have been so supportive and I know they will continue to be throughout this process. I couldn't do this without them.

Getting to know the city of Salamanca has also made the frustrations of adjusting worthwhile. Here are just a few pictures that will show you why --

The main door of Universidad de Salamanca

The Cathedral of Salamanca -- view from the 6th floor of Universidad Pontificia de Salamanca

We were serenaded by this group -- called "tuna" in Spanish. These singing troupes and their traditional costumes date back to about 14th century and remain a tradition of the University to this day.

That's right...I live here!
So much has happened and this first post is already quite lengthy. I think I will leave it here for now.

Adios,
Abi

Pre-Departure Musings

In 24 hours I will be aboard a plane on an 8 hour flight across the ocean from Illinois to Madrid, Spain. This will only mark the beginning of my journey. After deplaning, I will rendezvous with the other members of my program (IES Abroad) and we will take the next step of our journey together as we bus to Salamanca, the city we will call home for the next few months.

Salamanca, located in the region of Castile and León, is often referred to as the Oxford of Spain. The University of Salamanca serves as the main hub of activity for the city -- but it is no ordinary college town as the University was founded in 1218 by King Alfonso IX. I have pictured Salamanca in my mind many times and I am looking forward to forming my own mental and emotional map of the city in just a few short days.

As some of you know, journeying away from home has never been my strong suit. In my adolescence, I often struggled to make it through the school day because I was anxious, missed my parents and wanted to come home. Many can attest to the numerous sleepovers that my parents fetched me from in the middle of the night. Needless to say, I have grown leaps and bounds in testing my ability to venture far from home. I not only attend a college in New York City, but I have also traveled to Israel on my own. Despite my past successes, there are moments in thinking about my semester abroad when I feel trapped in a web of questions and anxiety:

Will missing home and my loved ones get in the way of my experiences? What will the students on my program be like? Will I make friends? Will I get along with my host family? How long will it take me to become comfortable in my new life? Will my command of Spanish language be sufficient?

But the more I ponder my anxieties about this experience, I begin to realize how entirely normal they are. I often need to remind myself how well my past successes have prepared me for an incredible experience and success this semester abroad. Although at times it feels unnatural, I am trying to soothe my nerves by diluting my doubts with confidence. This is a pattern of thought that I intend to repeat throughout my journey until it becomes habit.

Here are some of the things I am most looking forward to this semester:
- Gaining further fluency and command of the Spanish language
- The food (no shocker there)
- Learning about soccer and watching the games in local pubs
- Getting lost on winding cobblestone streets
- My first dream in Spanish
- Proving to myself that I am capable of overcoming this and every challenge.

This is my first blog ever, and I hope you all enjoy reading it (and I promise that not all posts will be this formal and business-like :P) So far, it seems to be a good way to process and consolidate my thoughts. I hope to post at least once a week, but you can also contact me on Facebook or via email if you have any questions.

Besitos (kisses)
Abby