Who doesn't love a top 10?

As my long journey is wrapping up in papers, tests, and projects, I want to take a moment to revel in the things that make Spain so special for me and so different from the States. Here's my list of top 10 things that I will miss when I leave Europe in 16 days.

mmmhmmm

10. Alioli
              It looks like mayo or frosting, but it's something completely different. Alioli (like alley-oh-lee) is made from garlic (ajo) and olive oil (oliva) hence the name. Perfect on some patatas bravas, and absolutely delightful. I will miss you alioli!

Monopoly!

9. Euro currency

           Seriously, how fun does that look! All the pretty colors, the bills all different sizes, and the change! Never have I felt so rich with a pocket full of change as I have since I moved here. The smallest Euro bill is a five, so you could have a handful of coins worth around 7 Euro! (The amount usually in my change pocket.) I have to go back to boring green money that's worth much less. And nothing's under a dollar. Sad. Bye fun money! 

Més que un sandwich

8. Doner Kebab
          Okay, this is a tough one to explain, so bear with me. Kebabs here are what we would call gyros in the States. And they are delicious. Outside of my school, there's a restaurant called Doner Kebab, which my friends and I lovingly refer to as Kebab. For example, "Guys, I don't want to look for food, I'm going to Kebab." It's our Central Perk. We get coffee there in the morning, bikinis at break time, and lunch there all the time. It's our go-to place. Until the delightful owner, Maggie, hurt her knee and left a few weeks ago. Now there's this other guy, and he sucks. He's nice enough...but doesn't know us like Maggie. SO! I'm going to miss A. Maggie B. Our restaurant, meeting place, hangout C. The actual food, and D. The memories from so many lunches on the patio.

Little Messi

7. Barça fans
        Futbol is a big deal here. Like a huge deal. It's an enormous deal. Big. I went to a Barça game my first weekend here, and it was absolutely incredible. I've also gone out to some bars to watch various games during the semester. And there is nothing quite like a Barça fan. They are fans from birth to death, and are loyal 100%. I went to Camp Nou tour yesterday, and the little kids running around screaming "Barça! Barça! BAAAAAAAAAARÇA!"were possibly the cutest sports fans I've ever seen. And although I've been a Bears fan since birth, these kids have me beat in enthusiasm. Bye little Barça fans, it's been real.

Wanted to make it far enough so there wasn't any visible nudity

6. Barceloneta
       Although I haven't actually been down to the Barceloneta since about mid October, it's still one of my favorite places in the city. For those that don't know, it's a beach that was made in the early 90's in preparation for the '92 Olympics to make the city more integrated with the sea. It's a whole lot of beach, and can get really touristy and crowded in certain parts, especially at the height of the tourist season. However, in September and October, it chills out a bit, and you can sunbathe and swim in peace. I loved swimming in the Mediterranean because the salt content is so high. I could float out in the water for ages, and the water even glittered from the sand. Perfect.

Only missing tortilla here

5. Tortilla/Pan con Tomate/Croquettas
       These are some of my favorite things to eat here. I know I've written about them before, but here's a quick refresher course. Tortilla is an egg, potato, and sometimes onion omelette/cake thing. Pan con tomate is toasted bread rubbed with garlic, doused in olive oil with tomato guts smushed over the top. And croquettas are like ham hush puppies. If you don't know what a hush puppy is, you probably aren't from the midwest like me. These have been an integral part of my diet for the past 4 ish months. And they will not be as present in the US. I can make tortilla and pan con tomate, but the croquettas will be completely lost. And this makes me sad. Bon appetite!

4. Barcelona International College
       My super teeny-tiny school has a very big place in my heart. Laura, Rich, Elena, Elizabeth, Sarah, Graham, and all of the interns have made BIC my home for the this semester. I know I'll always have contacts in Barcelona because of this school and how tightly knit it is. Although the projector only works every other day, and the chalkboard tried to kill us the other day, I'm so glad I chose this school. The professors are absolutely fantastic, and I've learned more from Veronica & Lorena in one semester than I have the past few years in Spanish. I'll miss walking with my friends around the school, but I will not miss the people constantly blocking the way (stupid Enforex kids). Love you, BIC!

Home

3. Sants
      From Plaça d'Espanya, to las Arenas, to Montjuïc, and Creu Coberta, I love my neighborhood. I've always felt safe, comfortable, and at home in Sants. I can walk home from my friends' apartment at 4 in the morning and not have a care in the world. Whenever I come in or out of the apartment building my neighbors always say hello with a smile. The bakery next door knows me, as well as the convenience store on the other side of the bakery. I love the little park on the other side of the Hostafrancs stop to sit and read. There's no other place in the city I'd rather live. I mean, I walk past a giant fountain and the gorgeous walk up Montjuïc on my way to class everyday, and around the Bullring. I can see both hills from around the corner! And I live at a metro transfer station, so I have easy access to almost everything. I love it!

Minus Ryan, sorry!

2. "The six of us"
      In no particular order: Olivia, Elena, Gabby, Lynzee, and Ryan. These five people have been my best friends throughout this trip, and in a way like my family. We bicker and fight, but everything always turns out just fine. I seriously cannot imagine my experience in Barcelona without them. So, to my friends: Thank you. Thanks for letting me crash on your couch, for letting me drink your wine, for being there when I need to vent, and for being the fun and wonderful people that I get to spend all of my time with! I love you all so much, and can't imagine what real school is going to feel like without you.

Mamá y Papá

1. The one, the only: Carmen.
     For anyone who's been reading my blog, this comes as no surprise whatsoever. Carmen is my mamá, and I love her like crazy. She never judges me, always takes care of me, and really cares about me. She's been the most phenomenal host mom I could ever have hoped for. Carmen is the best. Whenever I come, she always asks me if I've eaten. We laugh and joke and talk about everything under the sun. She gives wonderful hugs, makes the most delicious food, and the best coffee. When I go back, I know she'll be the first person I miss. I'm going to write letters as much as I possibly can, and skype when David lets her borrow the computer. I love the whole family. Suso is hysterical, Jesús is my best friend, David is the brother I never had, Vanessa is feisty and fearless, María is super funny and always pushing the limits, and Elena is my tall twin and the most gracious girl I've ever met. I've only met Rebecca via Skype, but even she is fantastic. This is my family. We may not be blood, but the love and connection is stronger with them than some people I'm actually related to. I love and adore them, and they will always be a part of my life, and always be in my heart.


I'll miss you Barcelona. You're my home, and like the spark of life in my body. I feel more electricity in this city than anywhere else in the world. Te quiero, la rosa de fuego. 

You Got Me Begging You For Mercè

¡Hola de nuevo de Barcelona!

Again, I apologize for taking so long to put up a new blog post. I spend most of my time enjoying the city, and fewer hours on the computer. (But I do always make time for Facebook...) Anyway, last week was the festival for La Mercè, the patron saint of Barcelona. Because of that, I had an incredible five day weekend filled with Catalunyan fun! As we go along today I will give a bit of a history and culture lesson. Which is surprisingly fun! Ready set go!!

Mercè kicked off on Thursday night, and so did I. A good night out with friends is always a fun time. Especially when you can practice your Spanish. Or meet people from England. It's all fun. However, I really started to enjoy Mercè on Friday afternoon when my friend Ryan and I went to Ciutadella. There was karaoke, open mic style, that the kids were singing along to (the songs being old Johnny Cash tunes) and then older couples dancing to the music nearby. Very interesting experience, but hey, a party's a party. I also meandered accidentally into a wine festival. But don't worry, I did not have the funds to take part. But, here is a picture of me at the festival at the 3 Dragon Castle. Woohoo!

The first activity of my Friday night was to hit the town with my airplane buddy, Sarah. We went to one of my favorite places in Barcelona, called L'Ovella Negra (The Black Sheep) for the best sangria in the city. Plus, with this as the logo, how can I not love it here? After our favorite beverage, and making some new friends, we hit one of the many concerts in the area. I have no idea who the band were, but they were a bunch of old British rockers, so who am I to complain? And the concert was in the middle of the Plaça Real, which is gorgeous at anytime of the day or night.

Saturday was the biggest Mercè day for me, though. In the morning I ran down to Plaza de St. Jaume to watch the Castells (Human Towers) It's a Catalan tradition, and a big competition. I got to watch some of the teams put on their black sashes, which are actually used to support their backs, and to give a foothold for those climbing up. Here's one of my favorite pictures from the event.

Although the main focus isn't really the Castell, this is my favorite part. The kids that are too small to see will sit on their mom's or dad's shoulders, creating their own mini castell. I thought that was pretty darn cool. Oh, by the way, the people at the top of the castell are usually 5-7 years old. I would have been too petrified to even try that. 

After my watching the towers, I headed back home for some wonderful homemade paella by Carmen. Just look at this beauty...

Being completely and totally stuffed, I took a bit of a siesta before doing more of the festivities of la Mercè. The next thing on the list was the beautiful and dangerous Correfoc. This translates to Fire Run. What happens, is people dress up like devils, or they just completely cover themselves so that they don't get burnt. There are dragons and other beasts that are carried around that shoot out sparks, and other devices that are carried to throw sparks all over the streets. While it looks very pretty from afar, it gets pretty intense close up. I did not run in the street, but I was watching from the sidewalk...which is dangerous in and of itself. I had climbed up on the ledge of a window, and held onto the bars to watch the parade come in. By the time it reached me, the crowd had managed to leave no space for me to hop back down as the sparks were flying right at me. If nothing else, it was an adrenaline rush trying to get down so that I didn't catch on fire... After a while, I just went into the bar, grabbed a beer, and watched safely from the window. 

Scary, right? It was pretty darn cool. To finish off the night, we walked to the Barceloneta to watch some fireworks. After that we sat on the beach for an hour or so, just chatting on the sand and enjoying the beautiful weather. There also happened to be a carnival nearby, so some of our group rode a pretty frightening looking carnival ride, with the soundtrack of Ryan giggling like a little kid the whole time. And even after the carnival, the fun did not stop. We found a little street party with a live band. Soooo, we danced for another 45 minutes before the band started packing up for the night. The band was called Odisea, and they played Spanish stuff, and American "classics." They were amazing, and we had a great time. 

Weekends in Barcelona are so dull. 

My Ginormous Big Huge School

I apologize. It's been ten days since my last post. It's really terrible of me to be living here and not spend every moment on my computer. It's my fault. I could say I'll change, but that's just not very likely to happen.

So I realized that I still haven't told a lot of you much about my new school, that I've attended for three weeks now. I've had a whole whopping 9 days of class and haven't told you about it yet! How awful.

Here's the down low. I go to Barcelona International College or BIC. It is located on Calle Diputación just a few blocks away from the Arenas of Barcelona. Pictures!

This is the balcony at school. We try to avoid it at rush hour...as not to get trampled by other international students. 

And this is the entrance into my school. It's very Men in Black. And no, I don't know that girl. 

My school, BIC, is actually housed with a huge language school called Enforex. They are very highly regarded in the language learning community. I do not go there, but I do use their language books. (Actually, that's not even true. I have a couple of their books but I have yet to open them.)

There are 5 other students besides myself who attend BIC. Elena, Gabrieal, Lynzee, Olivia, and Ryan (In alphabetical order) The rest of them all live in the same apartment complex just a couple of blocks away from my homestay. Because of this, we all see each other more than my mother and I saw each other when I lived in her house. And we all have class together!!! Wooo family time :-) But really, they are wonderful and I can't imagine life in Barcelona without the crazy kids.

I am currently taking three classes for twelve credits. Which is the easiest term I've had...since I started college. It's a nice little breather from the chaos that is North Central College. My first class, "Great Artists of the 20th Century: Dalí, Picasso, and Miró" is really interesting. I get to go to the Picasso museum next week here in Barcelona. I get to walk around the city where he used to live! And the other day I saw a five year old kid wearing a tee shirt with Dalí's mustache on it. Epic. My Spanish class is 6 credits so I have it every day for an hour and forty minutes...or something like that. I had the best professor in the world for a very short 3 weeks, and now she is moving on to bigger and better things. I'm talking about you, Verónica. But that's okay, because now we can go out and have coffee and talk about men. And my final class is taught by a magnificently intelligent, and incredibly humble Fulbright scholar. My civilization and culture class is incredibly interesting and we talk about all different facets of the history of the nation, and the relations between Catalunya and the rest of Spain. (If you don't know about the movement for Catalunyan independence, go read BBC news online or something like that.) But in short, my classes are great, and I have some marvelous professors that I wish I could take back to the states with me. But since that isn't likely to happen, I'll just have to relish in the moments I have with them. 

To top it off, we have some of the best program directors ever. Rich, the guy in charge, is actually from the Chicago suburbs. Which is wonderful for me to be able to talk about Portillos, Emmanuel, and Lou Malnati's being better than Giordanos. Elizabeth, the intern who is ever sweet but secretly snarky. Laura, full of information and Spanish blood. Elena, coordinator of all things awesome. And Graham, skater dude/paparazzi who may or may not actually work there. 

I'm pretty much in love with my school and all of the people there. So thank you again to all of the people who got me here, whether it be a monetary donation, prayers, or encouragement. It means a lot to me to have people who love me enough to let me go across the world with the risk that I may never come back ;-) Just kidding, I'll come back when Roz has her first child.