La vida española

So, what´s an average day like in Spain?

Wake up in the morning, no shower, because our señora preferes us to shower ¨por la tarde¨ or in the afternoon. And we only get one a day, so we better make it special.
For breakfast we get two slices of cold bread with butter and strawberry jam, a cup of decaf coffee with milk, cookies to dip in the coffee, and fruit. Not bad.

We have class Monday through Thursday, and so I leave an hour before class starts and walk about 10 minutes to the bus stop. From there, it´s about a 15 minute ride to the university bus stop, and then I walk the rest of the way to campus.
Interesting bit of info - while riding the bus to campus, we pass a place called ¨Tres mil viviendas¨ or 3,000 livings. It´s basically the projects of Sevilla. So our program coordinator told us never to walk to school - not that we could, because our bus takes the freeway.
Another interesting bit of info - our university used to be a jail. It reminds me of Pinnacle High School, one road in, one road out, surrounded by desert.

Depending on what day it is, I either eat bocadillas (sandwhiches) made by my señora on campus, or I return home for lunch.
Every Tuesday and Thursday, I finish by noon, so I ride the bus back home and wait until 2:15 when the family usually eats. Sometimes we´re joined by our señora´s daughter, who lives with us, and her oldest son and brother have even stopped by during lunchtime.
Lunch is huge. And delicious. Usually we have some kind of soup, a salad, and a big plate of fish. The other day our señora made fried calamari, fresh clams, and fresh tuna - all for one meal. My roommate and I were so full.

The city literally shuts down starting at 2 pm until around 5 pm. It´s incredible to see the difference walking around in the morning, and then again in the afternoon. The only places that stay open are restaurants, some grocery stores, and a big department store in Spain called El Corte Inglès. But, then restaurants shut down until dinner time, which - at the earliest - begins at 8.

At my house, we eat dinner at 9 pm - and our señora says that she eats early. But after having a big lunch, we are hardly ever hungry again for dinner.

Our ¨house¨ is what Americans would call an apartment. It has four small bedrooms and two bathrooms, and then a small kitchen and a living room. But here, it´s considered a house.

Our showers have to be quick - 5 minutes or less. Before we shower, we have to turn on the gas to get warm water. And once our señora turns on the gas, we better be running and jumping into that shower.
To save water, we rinse, water off. Shampoo. Water on, rinse, water off. Conditioner. Water on, rinse, water off. Shave, if necessary. And that´s our shower. In the afternoon, of course.

If we want to go out, it´s better to be ready before 11 so we can catch the last bus into town. Otherwise we have to pay for a taxi. But a taxi ride isn´t very expensive - only about 5 euro.
It doesn´t sound that difficult, but when dinner is at 9, and we use our one shower to shower after dinner, things can get a little tight. And, Spaniards usually don´t go out until midnight or so. The discotecas don´t get crowded until 2 or 3 in the morning on the weekends. It´s great.

Sevilla doesn´t have a metro, so you either have to walk, take a taxi, or take the bus. No problems yet with transportation - it´s refreshing not to be so dependent on cars.

My roommate is great, she´s from California and is super nice. We get along really well and have enjoyed exploring the city together and getting to know Spanish cultures. And listening to little lectures from our señora - I know she means well. =)

I am loving Sevilla, the city is beautiful, and we haven´t even scratched the surface!