En Barcelona. Finalmente.

I have decided to start blogging about my time in Spain, since I haven’t had much access to the internet... For those of you reading, you can email me a reply at anusheshoro@gmail.com.

I am living the high life right now. There is no doubt about that! J I am finally settled in Barcelona (in a neighborhood called La Sagrada Familia), and after being here for barely a day, I am already sure that I am in love. The people in Spain are so relaxed, amazingly diverse, very good looking, friendly and they have great sense of fashion. They have siestas – they nap in the middle of the day, and the stores are closed during that time. The entire city sleeps. Gotta love it. My host mom is Alicia. She is beyond adorable!! She was in tears when she met me at the hotel yesterday. She’s a small old lady with short curly reddish brown hair, but she looks younger than she is, and she smiles with her eyes. Her laugh is incredibly contagious and her Spanish accent isn’t too strong, so I can understand pretty much everything she is saying. Fortunately, my Spanish is better than I had expected, and I’m learning so much – it’s incredible. She also has four kids, but they all live separately with their own families. I’m pretty excited to meet them.

I arrived on Monday, and until yesterday (Friday), I was staying at Hotel Luna, which is located in the suburbs of Barcelona, a place called Castelldefels. The thirty BCA (the program that I am doing here in Spain) students including myself flew together from JFK airport to Barcelona. Most of the students are from the East coast, but I have 6 friends of mine here from Soka as well, so it’s nice having people I know so close to me. Nick, Edwin, Ruchi, Jenna, Cruz, and Naoto. Over the past few days I have also become friendly with some of the other BCA students, so I am pretty comfortable here already. We had pre-orientation at the hotel, and I am not going to lie – I was completely overwhelmed. I am having a difficult time learning the Spanish grammar. Sure, I understand the language pretty well when it comes to communicating with people in Spanish, but I need to practice my reading and writing, because I need to do well in my classes. Although, I guess that’s the reason I’m here – to learn. I am learning so much day by day, hour by hour, minute by minute. There is so much to write.

While at the hotel, I went to the beach at least twice a day. We were literally a block away from the ocean! How amazing is that?! On the last morning, I decided to run down the beach. The sky was pink as the sun was slowly rising. And I felt like I was flying – I ran three miles without even realizing it. I was smiling the entire time. It felt great.

I have been here for only 5 days and I cannot begin to describe what all I have felt here. Alicia and I went to a few stores this morning. We walked around the city a bit, and I saw the “Temple de la Sagrada Familia.” Let me tell you – it was after seeing the unreal structure that I had realized I was here, in Barcelona. I finally woke up from my dream and reality hit me. Yes, today after 5 days of actually being here it finally sunk in. I was overwhelmed – although it was a good feeling. I felt like dancing right there in the middle of the street, where people were drinking their coffees and meandering, some with their dogs and children. But I stopped myself and instead did a little dance inside. I didn’t know what to think and feel at that moment. I cannot even describe how happy I am to be here. I had my first café con leche here with Alicia, and it was delicious. I never drink coffee… I never eat shrimp either, but I did try it at the hotel. It was in the paella – a dish with rice and a mixture of other vegetables. The food here is excellent. And I am very lucky - I’m not going to lie – Alicia’s cooking is way better than the hotel’s. And I have noticed that I am a lot like Alicia. She is well organized and has great taste in furniture, clothes, and music! She was singing to “Don’t worry, be happy” today. I love her! She’s like my third grandmother.

My time here is already better than I had even imagined. Today I also went to see the famous Cathedral, built by Gaudi. I was almost in tears. It literally took my breath away. I was standing in awe amongst others on the streets. There are SO many people here - it’s crazy. I love it. We also walked Las Ramblas, where most of the tourists spend their time. There were hundreds of people, stores, and entertainers. I learned how to take the bus and the metro too… I know I will get lost some time soon haha… I’m excited. By the time I got back home today with Alicia, I was exhausted. And then we had another delicious meal. Dinner was awesome. Where in the world do you get hot dogs con queso? Yes, inside the hot dogs they have cheese. Strange, but tasty. I bet I’m going to gain some weight by the end of this trip. Walking daily isn’t going to help much… Anyway, that’s my first blog! Hasta luego!!! J