Adventure Awaits!

I have been in Barcelona for two whole days now! I’ll take a minute to re-cap from the very beginning.

On Monday (4/21), mom & dad took me to the Nashville airport to get on the first plane. The plane was small, but nice overall. I had to switch seats with a lady who had a baby because her seat was the emergency exit & babies couldn’t sit there. I was able to take a nap on the plane to New York. I woke up just in time to see the city skyline and take a few blurry shots of the Statue of Liberty! We landed without any issues (other than my ears painfully popping) & went straight to our next gate. We had two hours to kill until we boarded the next flight. At long last our anxious nerves got the best of us as we boarded our plane to Barcelona. It was very surreal. I tried to watch “The Family” on the plane, but the head set was messed up, so I just gave up. The dinner on the plane wasn’t too bad. Chicken in brown gravy, rice, and vegetables. Sleeping on a plane is the worst. There is literally no good way to do it, and to make it worse, my ears popped even worse. When I woke up from my “sleep,” I woke to the sun rising over the Atlantic Ocean. It was absolutely beautiful. And now for the best part: After about an hour and a half, WE LANDED IN BARCELONA, SPAIN!!

Going through security was not fun. It was really hot and there were two plans worth of people trying to get to the other side. After receiving my first stamp in my passport, I grabbed my luggage and then we met Kristen! She took us to the bus & gave us a quick run down of the day’s events. We went to the school to meet our host families first. Alberto was there waiting for me! He took me home to see the house & drop my bags off & then we went to the fresh food market. It was the coolest market I’ve ever seen. Carmen would have LOVED the variety of veggies and fruits! I was amazed with all of the colors and the selections. Alberto gave me some nuts dipped in white chocolate & then in milk chocolate… I fell in love with the food right then & there. I could spend an entire post on the food alone! After the market, we rushed home for lunch (chicken in a lemon marinade) & then back to school for orientation. The school has about 5 floors (probably more) & is huge!! They have a boy’s side & a girl’s side. I have 2nd grade boys. Orientation was nice. we took a tour of the school & had a small reception to meet our teachers. After that, I got to meet the rest of my family!! Vania is 9 and Lucas is 7. They are the sweetest kids ever. They’re full of energy & many questions, but I love every minute of it! Ana is so sweet. She definitely made me feel at home. We had a nice family dinner together (pasta!), and then it was off to bed! Day one: CHECK!

This morning for breakfast, I had dried, sweetened fruits & hand squeezed orange juice. Alberto drove Vania & I to school (Ana took Lucas to a doctor’s appointment). I met Mr. Rodd on the playground & we got started right away. Today, in Barcelona, is Saint Jordie Day. The men give women roses & the women give men books (it’s similar to Valentines day, but way more romantic). All day we did activities to celebrate Santa Jordie. It was a little on the crazy side, but very fun indeed! During lunch, some of the girls & I walked around the block near school. The weather was too nice to stay inside. The afternoon flew by really quickly. I met up with Vania & Lucas to meet the nanny. We went to the metro to buy my a ticket & then rode the bus home. On the way home, we missed a stop but luckily it wasn’t too far out. When we got home, I helped Vania with her homework, we played for awhile, & then had dinner (potato omelet!!!!) These last two days have been so busy that my head is still trying to catch up with the idea that I really am here! So far everything has been wonderful & I can’t wait to see what tomorrow holds!