Hallelujah! The sun has FINALLY arrived to Granada, and I’m
pretty sure it’s here to stay. Knock on wood. It’s been in the mid to upper
70’s lately and the forecast for the next week is about 75-80 and sunny every
day. Jealous yet?
The sun came at just the perfect time...I was starting to
feel a little hopeless with over a month of rain nearly every day. My hat goes
off to anyone who studies abroad in Ireland or the UK and comes back without
some form of depression-it’s so crazy how much the weather affects us!
The sun definitely makes my 30-minute walk to school a lot
more enjoyable. On an average morning you’ll find me strolling along the
sidewalk, sunglasses-clad, listening to some country music on my iPod, and
getting some hardcore Toms tan lines from my shoes. My host mom Carmen has
warned me countless times of how pale I am and how much I need to make sure to
wear sunscreen every day now that it’s warm and sunny (so you can rest easy
Mom, I’ve been wearing my SPF every day for fear that Carmen will yell at me).
I find it funny how adamant Carmen is about this advice,
considering the fact that all Spaniards seem to think it’s about 40 degrees
still. I’m not kidding-I get the strangest looks every day when I wear a
sundress or even short sleeves when it’s in the 70’s but all Spaniards are
still dressed in parkas, scarves, sweaters and boots. This is one cultural
thing I don’t think I’ll ever fully understand. I get so hot just looking at
them! How on earth do they not have heat stroke by now? The other day, Carmen
asked me how the weather was outside and when I told her it was great and
really warm (about 72 degrees) she responded, “muy bien,” while simultaneously
putting on her knee-length parka and scarf. I just don’t get it. Her poor
grandson Juan Antonio is still dressed in his winter coat every day as well,
and always gets scolded when he takes off his scarf!
In honor of the warm weather, about 20 students from my
program and I visited the Mediterranean Spanish island of Ibiza this past weekend!
It was the perfect, warm beach weekend that I really needed. Ibiza was
absolutely stunning; the water was amazing and we had the most perfect beach
close to our hostel. The best part? Our flight cost a whopping $34 roundtrip.
Thank you, Ryanair!
We arrived in Ibiza on Friday afternoon to perfect sun and
warm temperatures. Our cab driver on our way to the hostel informed us that the
tourist season doesn’t start until June there, and for that reason all of the
clubs except for one were closed. I didn’t mind too much, as paying upwards of
60 euros for an entrance fee
didn’t sound quite like my thing anyway. We couldn’t get into our swimsuits
fast enough, and after a quick pit stop for some snacks and beverages, we hit
the beach for the rest of the night. I had a lot of fun with the other people
from my program and we even started a little jellyfish fight! There were lots
of dead jellyfish just kind of floating in the water by the beach and they
weren’t stinging ones anyway, so we collected handfuls of the little guys and
just went crazy throwing them at one another. Sometimes you just have to
indulge in a little immature fun. The sunset there was breathtaking, but
unfortunately I had to pull myself away from all the fun so I could walk back
to the hostel to register for my fall classes at Bradley.
*Side note. We are not talking about the fact that I just
registered for my senior year. It’s not happening. I refuse to admit that I
only have one more year left.
In case you care, I did get all the classes I wanted except
for 4 hours that I’m waitlisted for, but I’ll be able to get into them.
Anyway...Saturday morning we got up for another day at the
beach and some girls decided they wanted to try a different beach on the other
side of the island because it was supposed to be one of the prettiest ones. My
friends and I hopped on the bandwagon (bus) to the Eivissa area of the island,
where it turned out we weren’t actually very close to the beach we wanted.
Instead, we walked about 30 minutes or so to a closer beach. It was really
pretty, but by the time we got there it was almost entirely covered in clouds
and really, really cold. We toughed it out for a couple hours and then decided
to head back to the beach by our hostel. Just as we had packed up our stuff and
set out to walk back, the sun started to come out. We ended up spending the
rest of the afternoon and evening on “our beach” watching the sunset again and
went out for dinner together.
Dove Love sign!
Our last morning was spent enjoying our last couple of hours
in the sun on the dock before we had to leave for the airport. It was really
relaxing, and I’m SO looking forward to the other beach trips I have planned
for the rest of the semester. I just got to thinking today that it seems like
it wasn’t that long ago that I wrote the post called “Six Weeks Already??”
Now, I only have less than six weeks LEFT here! I just can’t believe where time
has gone! I just know the next month and a half will fly by, and I can’t wait
to see you all when I get home. For now, I’ll be working on my tan, getting
weird looks from Spaniards as always, finishing up my classes, hoping I don’t
go bankrupt, worrying about how I will get everything home in a suitcase under
50 pounds, eating gelato, and missing everyone like crazy.
Hasta Luego!
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