Alma de Color

A whole week has passed, and I am just now updating my journal. It was a busy, fun week. Cristina sqared, (both of my Spanish roomies are Cristinas, remember), took me to a new, gigantic shopping center...but it hadn´t opened yet, so we went instead to Carrefour. I didn´t plan on buying anything, really, but I found a green skirt made in Italy that was the last of its kind on the sale rack, and I tried it on and decided to get it. So now I have something rather comfortable and cool to wear during the day or when we go dancing. Iva, Anton, and I hung out most of the evening, and Anton and I sat out on the terrace chatting until 2:30 AM. It was his last night here. The following evening, Iva, Justin, Erin, and I went to watch Alatriste in the theater, as Wednesday nights are the cheap nights. It only cost 3.75 for ticket. It was a very violent movie indeed, and covered many years, and was at times hard to follow, but I enjoyed it. Erin and I went running after the movie and Iva

9-10-06 Again, I cleaned up the kitchen this morning and then lounged about until Erin and Laura came. We ambled down to check out what was left of the fair. Afterward, we had a homework party at my house involving homework, of course! 9-11-06 Class doesn´t start until 10 AM now, as it seems some of the students think that 9:30 is too early. I would prefer the earlier time, as we could finish earlier, but I am a minority, and therefore have no voice in the matter. We ate breakfast during our 20 minute pause at this small pastry shop called Don Croissant. They have amazing pastries with chocolate or apples as well as some with meat and cheese. Kari, (pronounced car-ee), came over after a bit and I braided her hair. It looked awesome, but she wasn´t able to leave it in very long because it gave her a headache. Tsk tsk tsk. I guess braids are not for everyone. We had an awesome chat. Later, Laura, Erin, and I...(henceforth until there are more of us who hang out regularly, I shall call us

9-6-06 Laura, the girl from Tennessee, was sick today, so Erin and I went to visit her, but she was sleeping, so we went grocery shopping with her roommate, David, instead. I didn´t do much more on this day, although a large group went out for the night and partied. 9-7-06 Not too many adventures today, although Erin and I went running at night, and explored a bit more of our "barrio". There are some very lovely residences in our neighborhood, and a few nice parks. 9-8-06 We talked about tapas today in class. These are little appetizers that one orders to eat while drinking beer or wine. Evidentally, some king made a law requiring them back in the day to minimize the effects of alcohol. I never knew this before, so it really interested me. We made a huge list of tapas in Murcia, and we defined each one. So now I actually know what I´m eating when I order "one of those..." :) Erin, Laura, and I suntanned a bit on my terrace after class, and chatted a little. Later in

8-31-06 Day 1 of my adventure has begun! Thousands of dollars and many hours have transpired since I began, and now I am boarding my plane. It feels a bit strange to be finally leaving. After all that prep work, reality swoops in and drives home the unexpected. Truly, there is no turning back. My cousin Mark got married this weekend, and the rehearsal luau was on Friday night. I spent most of my afternoon trying to contact people concerning my yet uncleared visa. I gave up for the night and went to the luau. Laura trimmed my hair on Saturday and she and Daron braided it. Sunday was a lovely time to say goodbye to the "gob", (my friends in Butte area). We went to Melaques for lunch and I bid them farewell. I had to cancel my flight and book another, which cost almost 3x what my original ticket cost. My visa actually just arrived yesterday morning. It was a good delay, however. I actually fel like I had everything ready to leave. Everything except my brain. 9-1-0