The Beginning

I am finally in Spain! It is surreal being here. It really hasn’t hit me yet that I’m going to be spending the next few months in this beautiful place!!! To recount, yesterday Mom dropped me off at the Philadelphia airport and there was no turning back. It was definitely difficult leaving the comfort of home and my family for the unknown, but I know it’s going to be worth it.

I checked my large suitcase that thankfully weighed less than 50 lbs. A few minutes later Lucia arrived at the airport, a girl from Haverford who is going on the same program as me. We found the terminal and to our delight the flight was running on time. We were worried because it was awfully fogging and raining in Philly. The flight from Philly to Zurich, Switzerland was really empty. Every passenger could have a row of seats to him or herself, and there were still empty rows. The flight went pretty quick. I watched Crazy, Stupid Love a movie and read The Help. I finally was falling asleep when the lights came on, and the flight attendants started serving breakfast because it was 6:45 in Switzerland, and we were going to land in an hour. So much for sleep I suppose. The flight itself was pretty cool as we flew over Paris and once we got closer to Zurich the land was sprinkled with snow. The view was just breathtaking between the majestic Swiss mountains and evergreen trees and the rising sun. We had a quick a layover in Zurich. I wish I could have explored instead of staying in the airport, but at least I got my passport stamped! Then it was off to Malaga, Spain! This flight was crowded but quick. I dozed in and out throughout most of the flight. Overall, the flight ran very smoothly. Lucia and I picked up out luggage and then grabbed a taxi to the hotel where we checked in with IES and will spend the night before leaving for Granada.

Once we checked in with IES,  we purchased cheap cell phones and headed up to our room. Check in was definitely a little awkward because they all spoke Spanish to us and my Spanish was definitely very shaky. Hopefully that will get better soon. Fortunately, Lucia and I are placed in the same room in the hotel. After putting out suitcases in our room, we headed back down to the lobby for a guided walking tour of Malaga with Jeff (a former IES student who now works for IES Granada) and 5 other IES students. It was absolutely beautiful outside. It was 65 degrees and sunny; there wasn’t a cloud in the sky. We walked along the harbor, which is filled with gorgeous sailboats and yachts. The water is a sparkling aquamarine color and there are palm trees everywhere. We finally eat a lunch composed of different appetizers at a little café on the harbor. Afterwards, we returned to the hotel. At 6 everyone on the IES program met in the lobby to go for a walk and get some dinner. I definitely met a lot of different people on the walk, but we ended up just wandering and seeing the city. I am really proud that we were able to easily navigate our way back to the hotel.

I am definitely exhausted after barely sleeping on the plane, so I’m about to go to bed so I’ll be more awake for tomorrow’s orientations and for meeting my host family!