Wait...I'm gonna have to STUDY while I'm here?

Hey guys!
So it's been a week since my last post and I'm here once again to give an update. This will be a little hard because there isn't really one huge event to talk about because I haven't traveled anywhere in the last week and I didn't go on any excusions. The only things that are coming to mind to update you on is a variety of small things that have happened to me this last week, so I'll try my best to make this as interesting as possible.

So last week, I finished my "intensive spanish course" which was a 3 hour a day class that was supposed to be solely Spanish grammar.. To tell the truth, I didn't really like the class. It was a little discouraging because I really needed a intense review on my grammer and I feel like we spent the majority of the time in class discussion talking about estereotypes, spanish customs and spanish/american relations. But the class did require me to visit some museums and cultural sites around the city and write papers on them, which was interesting. But overall, I feel like the class didn't really strengthen my ability to speak Spanish. Yesterday, I started my regular session classes. I am in love with them and I think that they will be A LOT better than my intensive session class. I am taking 4 classes total. Two of them are at my study abroad center and two of them are AT the University of Seville. This building used to be a tabacco factory like 200 years ago. This building is older than the United States! It's beautiful though. I'm so excited that every single one of my classes, no matter the subject, is taught in Spanish. Even my economics class. Right now, I'm having a little trouble understanding EVERYTHING that they're saying, but I usually get the jist of it. My teachers are awesome and I am really excited about what I'm going to learn this semester. This semester, I am taking an economics class, a religious history in spain class, a spanish film class and a contrastive grammer class. All of my teachers are teachers from the univerisity and I love them. The really funny thing about Spain is that EVERYONE smokes. Today in my religion class, the teacher was smoking a cigarette while he was lecturing and I heard that that is very common.

So as for fun, I didn't travel anywhere this last weekend, I just spent the weekend in Seville. On Friday night, I went out with Steph, Kels, Steph's hermana, Maria (the girl she lives with), and Maria's boyfriend. It was so nice to go out with Spaniards, because it can get really easy to hang out with Americans constantly. The two natives took us to some Flamenco bars. Now, let me tell you one thing: Flamenco is HUGE in Spain. Before coming to Spain, I assumed it was more of a tourist thing and Flamenco was only something that foreigners would pay to see in a show. While you can pay to see it in a show, Spaniards go to Flamenco bars and dance Flamenco, much like Americans go to a swing club to dance swing. But while only a few Americans can swing dance, ALL Spaniards can dance Flamenco. I'm pretty sure I'm going to try to find a class here. Even though the places that we went to were a lot of fun, I didn't know how to do a thing so I felt like the tall American who was just staring at other people. I stuck out like a sore thumb because I think we were the only Americans in the bar. But at the same time, I LOVED the atmosphere of the live music and all the Spanish people dancing.

The next night (Saturday) was the Real Betis vs. Sevilla soccer game. Seville has two soccer teams and this was the night that they play each other. It's interesting because the rivalry between the two teams is VERY intense. You are either for Betis, or for Sevilla; there is no middle, you must choose. From what I've heard, this choice can tear families apart and ruin friendships. Think of it as the CU and CSU of Spain. So I went out with Steph, Kels, Maria and about 5 of Maria's guy friends (all Spanish). I cannot even tell you how much I loved hanging out with Spaniards and being able to practice Spanish. We went to a bar in the centro of Sevilla and ate tapas and watched the game. Betis won that night so I told them all that I'm for Betis. It's amazing to see how excited the people are about soccer here. Not only do they cheer, but they sing and dance. Each team has its own song (much like a fight song) that they sing when they score. After the game, mobs of people were in the streets waving their team's banner. I really really hope that I can make it to a soccer game while I'm here because they look like a state college football game on speed.

One of the biggest lessons that I've learn from being here is the importance of relaxing in life. The lifestyle here is so different than in the United States. Here, there isn't a rush to do anything. They walk slower (honestly), eat slower and do things based on what they feel and not "what is correct". For example, a LOT of people live with their parents until they're 30, even if they have a good job and a girlfriend of 4 years. When you ask them why they don't get married and move out, they say "what's the rush?" Also, it's hard to find anywhere where you can get a coffee to go. It's normal to sit and enjoy your coffee, not grab a coffee on the way to work. There really isn't a rush to "find the right job" or the "right person" or the "right lifestyle". They can go through life very carefree. While I think that there are pros and cons to this lifestyle, I really am learning the importance of enjoying where I am, no matter where that might be.

Because I've been meeting and hanging out with more Spaniards each week, my Spanish is continuing to improve. I'm so excited to see how it is when I leave because I feel like I've learned so much while I've been here. I'm beginning to feel more comfortable asking questions and using my spanish. I also joined "tuente" which is Spain's facebook and I actually have a few spanish friends on it! This weekend I'm going to Munich with Steph and Kels! It'll be our first great adventure while we're here! I'm sure you'll here about it in my next post...

Thanks for reading, guys!