It´s already been over a week in Spain!

My first week in Spain flew by! It's been a great first week. Yesterday I went to Toledo in the afternoon with my whole KIIS group. I visited Toledo last time I was in Spain, but I was really excited to visit again because it is such an old and beautiful city. We left at 1 pm and came back at 9 pm.


The bus ride to Toledo was two hours from Segovia. It wasn't a bad ride at all because I saw beautiful mountains in the background. It was a sight! Once we arrived the first thing we did was drive to the top of the hill to take pictures. I went picture crazy up there because I can't believe how gorgeous it is! You can see the whole city and it was sunny, so great for picture taking :) Below I have a picture of me in Toledo in 2008 and then when a went yesterday (a now and then!). After we walked through the cobblestone streets and made our way the Cathedral of Toledo. Let me just say it is HUGE and GORGEOUS. I was disappointed though because we couldn't take any pictures on the inside. But I will always remember what it will look like because it is unforgettable. I took plenty of pictures on the outside. In the sacristy there were over 20 paintings by Greco. There was also a beautiful monstrance on display and I just wanted to stare at it forever. There was also a gift on display from Toledo, Ohio. How cool! I was also disappointed that I couldn't stay longer because I would have liked to kneel and pray for awhile but we were in a hurry and had more to see! 


I also saw one of the most famous paintings! Called "El entierro del señor de Orgaz" It is a painting on a canvas and is really big! It was painted in the late 1500's so it is really old. It is located in the lobby of a church. Here is some more information on it (on wikipedia ;) ): http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Burial_of_the_Count_of_Orgaz 


My classes are going okay. Once again they are a lot more work than I thought. I had a presentation about a business article for the Business Spanish class, it could have gone better. But today in class we went to a crystal shop in Segovia. We learned about this only and unique shop and asked questions about the business. We were able to carve crystal ourselves! It was really cool. We all got to make a star on a scrap piece of crystal. The owner was really nice and only him and his brother are the only ones that carve. They are very talented. You can buy wine glasses, vases, and other gifts.


Today our whole group had a tertulia (gathering) to discuss our poems we have been reading in Literature class or just talk if you are a student in Conversation class. It was a lot of fun because we sat and talked in a bar for a complete hour, IN ONLY SPANISH! Our professors were basically showing us that we could talk for that long in only Spanish. Si se puede! (Yes we can!). I feel my Spanish is getting better, but I still need lots of work! 


That's all I can think of for now, but I'm so glad tomorrow is Friday because it is the weekend! I'm staying here this weekend in Segovia to relax and explore the city that I live in.


New words/phrases I've learned:
tiquismiquis: finicky
cola cao: Tattle-tail
Qué guay!: cool
Qué chulo/a: how cute!
You know where the saying "Holy Toledo!" come from? Yep, Toledo, Spain!


P.S.- I booked my trip to Barcelona for next week. My hostel is on the beach! I can't wait :)

 TOLEDO

CATHEDRAL DE TOLEDO

NOW: TOLEDO 2011

THEN: TOLEDO 2008