Barthelona pt 2

So since where I left off before so much has happened, but I really want to make sure I get to say everything about my trip on here! So I will start where I left off in Barcelona…


We got to the bar (this is now Thursday night) and stayed there for a little while. It was neat, it was kind of like a stock market where the prices for all the drinks are on a tv screen and they change (not extremely different but still) depending on how many people buy them. Its very neat! After that we went to the club next door which had a hugeeee line. It was a Studio 54 theme that night which sounded pretty cool but we would see. We finally got in (thanks to Bryan putting our names on a list, woo) and went around to see the whole place. It was hugeee but the music was a little eh. I figured when they said it was a Studio 54 theme they would play some 70s music mixed in with modern stuff, but it was pretty much Bee Gees after Diana Ross after Earth Wind and Fire for at least 45 mins…. Sooooo we left there after we figure out that there was a reason disco died and no one was really dancing. But it seemed like it would have been a really cool club on a normal night! We left to try and find somewhere else to go but I was exhausted and so we just went back to the hostal and went to sleep.

The next day (Friday) consisted of waking up late and exploring the city. We saw the waterfront, the beach, some of Gaudi’s buildings and most of all ate some DELICIOUS food. We had amazing paella, the Barcelona specialty with rice and typically with seafood but I got mine with chicken and of course, churros con chocolata. Also I finally tried a Doner Kebab! They are Turkish food that’s become really popular in Europe, not a kebab like Americans know them as, but more like a pita sandwich that’s really delicious. Mmmmm. The beach was so pretty and I really liked just getting to walk around the city and see it all. That night after finding the yummy paella place we met up with Bryan’s Spanish Kodi and his roommates who were in the band from the first night. They were so nice and so cool! I could see them being friends with Zane at home. We went to their apartment and hung out for a little bit. Their one roommate was Mexican, which was fun and nice cause he spoke American English really well. Bryan’s friends David and Andy came over too and then we all went out to a bar that the Spanish guys took us to. It was really cool getting to go out with people from Spain cause I felt like I got the real Barcelona experience. The bar we went to was a reggae style type place and it was very chill and fun to just sit around and talk with everyone. I really liked all of Bryan’s friends all in all.

The next day was sightseeing day. We went to Park Guell with all the Gaudi architecture. It was soooo cool to see the city from way up on the hill. It’s freaking huge. I took lots of pictures and we ate a snack up at the top. The hike up there was definitely worth it. Then we took the metro to go to La Sagrada Familia but unfortunately it started pouring rain as soon as we got off. We bought an umbrella and braved the elements. It was just closing as we walked up but the guy finally let us in for 2 mins (he said) and didn’t charge us which was awesome, plus we stayed a lot longer than 2 mins. It was so incredible. I have no idea how Gaudi thought of all this stuff! Later that night we tried to find a place to eat that we had heard was amazing but it was closed ☹ We ended up at this big tapas bar called Qu Qu and it turned out to be very cheap and delicious! Then we hung out at BarAmsterdam near Bryan’s apartment with a bunch of Dutch folk, but I was about to fall asleep (not used to the Barcelona lifestyle apparently) and we went back and went to bed since I had to get up for my plane the next day. All in all it was a GREAT trip. I’m going back with my friend Margaret and Jessica on the 16th of march and im so excited.

Next I have to write about my crazy trip that was Nice and my daily life in Siena. Yesterday was my friend Julia’s birthday and we made her a cake that was literally pour the contents in a bag into a pan and bake it, but it was good! I made it pretty with berries and such. Mmm. More updates soon! I hope this wasn’t too long.

more pix!

Firenze, Siena, Barcelona!

I have so much to say ! It’s incredible what a few days in Europe can mean. Let’s start from where I last left off.

Bryan came to visit the beautiful city of Siena as a said before. We didn't get to do everything I wanted to do with him but that's the way trips always are. We stayed in Florence on Friday night where Jane and some of my friends from my program also were which was very fun! Bryan and I ate at this really good restaurant then met up with Jane at this bar, which was fun but was all Americans pretty much, so that was eh. We finally found this dance club we were looking for called Space Electronica which was fun but only had like 30 people, but all of us had a good time I think!

In Siena I tried to show Bryan the basics and just to see the general city area. We ate dinner in the Campo and sat out there and drank some vino rosso. The trip was quick but I hope that I showed him the best of Siena!

and thennnnnnnnnnn...

My trip to Barcelona, Espana began quite hectically, like many things in Kate’s world. However that and the fact that the trip was not long enough were the only bad things. Let me start off by saying I LOVED Barcelona. It felt like the CA or the Florida of Europe. It was more laid back than Italy, but still had that neat European flare. And it’s gorgeous. Siena is gorgeous too of course, but in a much different way than Barcelona.

Anyway, I nearly missed my bus to the airport in Florence on the afternoon of Wednesday the 14th , but luckily I did not. I made it there and after a quick layover in Rome I arrived in Spain. My plane was about a half hour late unfortunately but Bryan was really nice and still met me at the airport, despite the fact that it was about 12am. But in Barcelona that’s like 6pm. We took a bus back to the city where we dropped my stuff off at the first hostel we stayed at. Barcelona’s hostels fill up quick so it was only a temporary stay until we found something better, but it was very nice still. Then Bryan took me to his friends’ band’s concert!! It was so cool and I wish I hadn’t been so tired cause everyone was dancing like crazy. They were great and I’d love to see them again. He met the guitarist (I think?) in the band on the beach just playing guitar, which is so awesome. They are the nicest guys. Bryan’s got some cool friends. Oh and their name is Zulu 933 I think, I’m not sure if they’re online or anything, but just incase they get huge ☺

The next morning Bryan had class and I slept late. We checked out of the hostel (a little late, whoops) and I got to see his apartment for the first time. It’s in a really nice location and the apartment itself is very very nice. His host senorita I’m not so sure about since she was quite annoying in my opinion but oh well. He’s got a really nice bedroom with a really pretty view and someone to wash his clothes for him which I think is a nice plus. We found another hostAl this time (I learned the difference) thanks to mr. ricky steves called the Hostal Resedencia Neutral. It was really close to Bryan’s apartment and a block away from one of the main streets Passeig de Gracia. It was great. I couldn’t have picked a better place. And it was a really great price too. Later that day we explored the city a bit and then went out to dinner at this tapas bar which was sooo good. I love tapas. You get to try little bits of a lot of different things instead of having to settle on one big meal. I suppose if you really wanted you could order a lot of the same thing, but that’s not the point. Anyway the restuarant was a little touristy, but in a good fun way and it had really great food and not much money in a really cool place. We got to sit at the bar to see all the action too! We met this Dutch couple who reminded me of people my mom would like. The man had lived in Barcelona for 15 years thirty years ago and they were really friendly and even let us try some of their food. After dinner Bryan took me to a musical that his French friend was directing called La Revista Negra or the Black Review, which was really really cool. It was basically about the treatment of African Americans from the 1920s compared to now in New Orleans (around Hurricane Katrina). It was really interesting to see a Spanish take on it. The singing was incredible and the dancing was awesome too. It made me want to learn how to dance like them hehe. The play was in Spanish but the songs were in English so between all that I understood probably 90% of it. A lot of the cast was American so it was neat to see some US culture in Barcelona. I really love theater and I don’t know if Bryan knew that from the start but I was so glad that he took me to that since I really miss being around it since doing it when I was younger. More people my age should go to live performances like that. Oh! And the best part was that since his friend was working on the show, not only did we get in for free (50Euro tickets) but we got to sit in the front row all by ourselves!

After the show ended we heaeded over to a bar where Bryan’s friend David was at. At the bar they have this TV screen with all the drinks and the prices and it looks like the stock market numbers and the prices really change depending on how much people buy! Then we headed over to a club, whose name I also forget but it was a huge line to get in. Bryan had put us on some list which was pretty snazzy so we didnt have to pay! It was Studio 54 themed night and while I thought that meant a few 70s songs, it actually meant ALL disco which was fun for a few songs but then we left because I think there was a reason disco died in the first place :) We got back to the hotel at 430ish am (which is very early for Barcelona time!) but I was exhuasted and wanted to be able to see the city tomorrow.

Ok this is getting long so I'll write more later about the beach and the rest of the city and food that I got to saw :)

here are some pictures of the trip to barcelona that i talked about thus dar, i'll add ones from siena and florence later!

im alive!

just wanted to let you all know :)

bryan came to visit this weekend and we had a really great time. his travelling was a little difficult due to cancelled flights and stuff but he's safe and sound back in spain now, which is where i am heading tomorrow! i'll update more from there about my last week or so.

also i found out the internet works outside of my apartment so i am currently sitting on the ground listening to some foreign man talk on skype across from me on his computer. i hope no one finds out and stops the free connection!

ciao!

hi all,

today was the first day of my first full week here. i figure ill just pick up from now so that my posts aren't all a week behind.

this weekend was fun. i went out on friday night to 2 different bars with most of the people on my program (there are only 20 of us) and had fun. people just stand around outside each bar and drink in the street, talking to everyone. it's very cool. then on saturday i woke up early to register with the city of siena (new italian law) and then we all went on a hike, which was actually very neat. i have to upload pictures so i can post them all. i'll try and do that later today or tomorrow. it was neat to see more of the countryside and a little town near here. it's just all so beautiful, but no pictures can truly represent it. a bunch of us were talking about how we looked at pictures of siena before coming here and thought, eh its nice but not OMG amazing! and once we're here we all def. think that its amazing. i don't know what it is. maybe its magic ;)

on saturday night i was exhausted so 2 of my roomates and i cooked dinner together (ive definitely gone to the grocery (store) at least 3 or 4 times already haha). we made pasta with tomatoe sauce and vegetables, salad with red wine vinegrette and some toated (a little burnt) bread. cooking here makes me feel like im on mars. where i kind of know what everything is and how to work it but can't quite figure out which buttons to push or which devides to use. like, for example, to light the stove you have to hold down the burner controller (the level of the flame) and push a spark button that has a picture of a oddly-shaped star looking thing. its kind of like bunsen (sp?) burners in science class. and we dont have a toaster so we have these little contraptions to hold pieces of bread over the flame. little things like that. then we all watched Wet Hot American Summer and i kind of fell asleep during it cause i was so tired. i slept for 12 hours that night! so i guess i was still catching up.

then yesterday (sunday) we all kind of sat arond til about 6pm and then my roomate margaret and i went to dinner at a chinese restaurant (yes a chinese restaurant in italy) and walked around til about 10:30. nothing is really open on sundays in siena (or most of europe so i hear) but people were still out on the streets window shopping and talking. i like that. i really like that everyone just walks here. the city really does have a medieval feel since none of the buildings have really been modernized (on the outside at least) so you feel like youre walking around in some shakespeare movie. also without sidewalks/seperate roads it helps too.

today we had our 2nd italian class. im trying to use my italian outside of the classroom, but lots of times people just respond in english. but not always! i booked a hotel room today and asked about a few the other day completely in italian, so i was very proud of myself. the class i took + my preperation on my own definitely helped and make me feel much more comfortable having a little background. plus our 4 hrs a day of italian class make your mind have to work. i love our teacher. shes really nice and a great teacher. im sure ill learn a lot from her. our first Imagery & Public Spaces class (the required class) is this afternoon, well it was supposed to be but it got moved until 6pm, so we'll see how that goes.

bryan and jane are coming to florence this weekend! im soooo excited to see them and get to see italia with them. we're staying friday night (well janes with her program and staying all weekend i think) and then bryans going to come down to siena on saturday. i cant wait to show him the city. then the next weekend im going to barcelona and the weekend after that, nice! i cant believe this is all happening already. i really want to buy some cute italian boots and scarves and everything but im already spending so much money. people didnt lie when they said things were more expensive over here. the boots i found were 59Eu and that was half off! plus i dont know if id wear them in CA so who knows if its worth buying. aye. i just want to look like these cute italian girls since they all have so much style.

well ill leave off here for now. i love everyones comments so keep leaving them :)

a presto!
kate

Siena day 3

hi everyone!

i will try to write as much as i can right now, but it won't be too much. i have been in siena for only 3 days but it feels like much longer already. this city is increcible. everyone walks everyone not only because of the crazy windey (sp?) little streets, but because there aren't really sidewalks/streets. it's just cobblestone type stone where cars occasionally come up behind you. it's not as scary as it sounds though. my apartment is a bit crazy. there are 5 americans and one albanian who has been studying here for about 5 years. there used to be a german girl as well, but she had to move. apparently their landlord is terrible/very mean as its the fourth time shes moved since november. oh well. we have 2 bed rooms (im in a triple and the other 2 americans are in a double and the albanian girl has hwe own room). then we have 2 bathrooms, a small living area and a little kitchen. the views outside of our bedroom and kitchen are amazing! we can see the Duomo, one of the big famous churches and part of the tower from the piazza del campo.

my roomates names are margaret, tatiana, lindsay, and maryn. i really like them and i think we'll all mostly get along well. i kind of wish there were less people so we could get to know each other better and it would feel less like a dorm, but it's all good. i woke up at 6:30am this morning and couldn't fall back asleep! it was not very fun but margaret was up too so we made breakfast and sat around talking.

i will post some pictures soon. i don't have too many yet because i want to take some with my nicer camera and i haven't had time to go out with it yet.

sorry this is so random! we've just been doing orientation stuff mostly and now i'm about to go to my first italian class. im in level 1 which i dont really like, but the levels are very broad so i'd either too far ahead or too far behind. the woman suggested this one so i don't kill myself this semester over the work and i'm okay with that. we have 4 hours of italian a day, 5 days a week for the first month! i better learn a lot with all that.

anyway, talk to you all soon. i miss you guys and hopefully i can find a place with better internet/hours so that i can write a real entry about the trip before i forget it.