Ganadores!!!

So yesterday, me, Caitlin, Jairo, and Amanda went out to David's house to watch the Barcelona vs Real Madrid soccer game. We went to this bar that is right beneath where he lives and it was full to capacity because this is always a huuuge game with two big rivals. We were all rooting for Barcelona, as was most of the bar. I guess in Valencia there's a bigger following for barca than Madrid.


Barcelonaaa

David brought face crayons and everything so we painted out cheeks and hands and looked pretty ridiculous. Barcelona won 5-0! I've seriously never seen a soccer score that high and no one expected it, so it was awesome. It's much more fun to watch futbol with Spaniards than Americans because they get so into it haha.


Caitlin y yo :)

Afterwards we went home, I did homework, and then went to bed.

This morning I had my second to last Spanish Business class and then Caitlin and I went for a run in the rio. We went to the City of Arts and Sciences and back, which turns out is 4.6 miles, soo I was quite tired by the end. It felt amazing though.

Then I had class from 2:30-5. Dr. Anderson decided to have it at his house since it was extra long because he can't make it on Thursday. He ordered us pizza and everything so it was good.

When I got back a little after 5, I literally spent 2 and a half solid hours working on my film project. Most amount of time I've spent on anything yet hahaha. My roommate is astounded because for once I didn't procrastinate! Now I have the rest of the night free!

T-GIVES

OK so weekend re-cap. Wednesday night the wine tasting was really fun and the food was so good too. That night, since Maddi's brother was visiting, me, Caitlin, Erin, and Jairo went out with them. We even got David to come out with us! Haha there are some realllly ridiculous pictures from that night. Basically we were breaking out all the classic dance moves all over the place... the shopping cart, the bull, the telephone. It was awesome.

David and I went to another bar after Aguacate and according to Maddi I wasn't home at 4 am when she got home to pick up her bag to take to her parent's hotel. Bahaha.

The next day was Thanksgiving! It was fun and I gathered leaves with Jairo for decorations (haha) and then helped Maria with the gravy. Mother would be very proud to know I can now make a contribution to next year's Thanksgiving dinner. We didn't eat till around 7:45, but at 7 I went with Maria and 2 other students to pick the turkeys up from the bakery behind our study center. Our ovens aren't big enough to cook them, so the bakery baked 4 for us.


Turkeeeey

A lot of the faculty's kids and spouses came to dinner and there were more than 40 people there. The food was seriously SO GOOD. Everyone did a fantastic job at cooking.

Plate




That night after dinner I was so tired and literally just napped from 9-11:30. I got up long enough to do some laundry and talk to Juan Carlos, who gave me 1000 ebooks in Spanish for my nook! I'm literally so excited. I had to read Harry Potter for one of my classes, so I read it in Spanish. There's so many other good ones too and it's awesome because they don't sell ebooks for the Nook in Spanish.

I went back to bed around 1:30 and then didn't get up Friday until practically noon. It was pretty glorious. I had a productive day though and went for a run, did a little shopping, and read my book while drinking tea in Starbucks. That night was a pretty big night because 2 of the guys in my program are on an American football team, and their team was holding a private party in a club, which we all got in on. It was an open bar from 12-3 and then at 3 the actual club opened. We were all probably really obnoxious and loud as we danced and sang to all the songs they played, but who cares, it was so much fun. We stayed out pretty late and then the next day I slept in again.


Ryann and I showing off our Rs

It was literally the most fun morning after going out because we all just talked about all the stuff that happened the night before and we were laughing at all the pictures. Saturday was really relaxed and I just read, did homework, and went for a long run in the rio. That night FSU was playing UF in football (big rivalry, I've come to learn.) FSU won for the first time in 6 years, so everyone was in a good mood. Erin and I went to go say hi to Sandra at her restaurants and we were just sitting at the little bar when this table of a soccer team invited us to sit with them. They were all pretty drunk and talking really fast Spanish, but they were funny. I kind of wished we hung out with them that night, but then again, we told them we were lesbians so that made things awkward hahaha. We got a free entrance into Las Animas, a big discoteca from some lady at Sandra's restaurant, so we decided to go. Unforch, we got there at 2:50 and free entrance ended at 2:30. So we wandered around into like 5 different clubs. It was so cool because we were in an area totally different than the touristy district we live in, so it was all Spaniards in these places.

Sunday we got up to catch the bus at noon to go to Wes and Diego's American football game. It was like a 20 minute bus ride and it was fun getting to see them play. Their team won and Wes even scored a touchdown. Seeing Spaniards play American football is hilarious. Erin and I got kebabs afterwards and then I just did homework for most of the night. I haven't really had all that much homework while being here, but this week I've got a lot because all my final projects and papers are do.


Football game

I slept really badly last night though and the WEIRDEST thing happened to me. I woke up in the middle of the night, STANDING by our fridge upstairs in my bathrobe, drinking orange juice (I don't even have any in the study center) from one of my water bottles. Apparently I sleep walked downstairs, poured it from a large bottle into my own and then walked back upstairs where I woke up. Gillian said I was talking to her and everything because she was working on paper downstairs. WHY AM I SO WEIRD?? I've seriously never done strange things in my sleep before Spain, but now I talk, mumble, and walk.

Today I had my second to last women in lit class and then I went to the market with Maddi. It looks really ominous outside though and is going to rain. It's definitely the coldest I've felt in Valencia yet. Tonight is the Barcelona vs. Real Madrid game, which is supposed to be one of the biggest games of the century, so should be good!

Lunes, Martes

So Monday I got up for my 9 am class. We had to read the Bell jar for my women in lit class and personally I hated it. It was just too depressing for me. Honestly the movie we watched on it in class was probably worse though. Afterwards I went to the market to stock up on all my favorites (aka tomatoes, apples, and dried strawberries). When I got back I went for a run with Caitlin. We were going to go in the Rio, but then she needed to buy a train ticket, so we took some random back roads to the Renfe station. Then we ran back, showered, and headed to Zume together. We spent literally like 2 hours there. It's one of my favorite places in Valencia.

When we got back I ended up having a fail of a night and I was reading in bed at like 8 and then fell asleep until 11:30. Bahaha. But days after long travels, I'm still just so exhausted. So I woke up, finished laundry, and then went back to bed at like 1 haha.

Tuesday I had class at 9 and 3 and then Dom went with me on a walk through the rio. I haven't actually been on a walk through there, since I always run, but it was super nice. We climbed on some huge rope thing that would totally be illegal in the US. Then we went to my favorite place, El Palau de la Musica, to creep on the Spanish children's roller blading lessons. We stayed until it was getting dark and chillier and walked back.

Erin and I went to La Maruja after that for a coffee and some dinner. David, the guy that works our front desk at night, invited a few people over to his apartment to watch the Real Madrid/AJAX soccer game. So Dom, Jairo, Marie, and I walked over. His apartment was really cute and not far away at all. It was really fun getting to hang out with them. We went back around 11 I think and I honestly think I just went to bed around 12.

This morning I walked to Pio XII, the school where I practice English with the kids. My 15 year olds were good. I was nervous because I'd already met with all of them before, so I wasn't sure what we would talk about, but it went fine. Then the 10 year olds are always just too cute.

Now I'm trying to get motivated to write some papers before my next class at 3. Our whole group is going to a wine tasting tonight where we get to learn about pairing wines with food, etc. I'm clueless when it comes to wine, so it should be a good time! Ciao!

Switzerland!

Thursday was kind of a long day getting into Switzerland. We took the metro to the bus train station in Madrid and then took a bus to the airport. The flight to Geneva was probably only like an hour and a half, but then we had to take a 3 hour train ride to Interlaken. By the time we rolled up to our hostel at like midnight, we were all pretty much ready for bed. It was our first hostel where we had the room to ourselves though, so that was awesome.

The next morning, Caitlin and I woke up early to explore the town on a run. It's so beautiful and the mountains were just astounding. We ran for like a half hour, came back, showered, and then set off on our trip up the mountain to Grundlewald. All the Florida girls were so excited to see snow so we all played in it, ate it, made snowballs, and found this little playground to run around on. I got a lunch and hot chocolate on top of the mountain and then we went back to Interlaken.


Caitlin and I on one of the contraptions in the playground

Our hostel just so happens to have the biggest (and only) club in the whole town. So we went at 9 and I ended up staying until like 1. We made friends with a Canadian and another guy from Oklahoma.


Friends

The next morning we got up and just hung around the hostel until our adventures. Monica, Caitlin, and I all did a canyon jump, which is like bungee jumping, except you jump feet first and it's more like a giant swing. Erin, Emily, and Kelly all did paragliding. So at 1 we met everyone for our canyon jump group in the hostel and we rode in a van to the canyon. There were 11 of us, and we all were talking and bonding quickly because of our shared experience. They put us in harnesses and then asked who wanted to go first. Of course I volunteered and he strapped me to the rope. You just stand there on this little platform, staring down at the canyon, and it's literally the weirdest feeling in the world making yourself take that jump. But I didn't really wait around and just went for it. Free falling for 120 feet was just straight crazy and I loved it.


The three canyon jumpers before our big fall


Getting strapped in


Me falling through the air

I watched the other 10 people come down and cheered for Caitlin and Monica, who were perhaps a tad more nervous than me. One guy that night thanked me like a thousand times for going first and said "if that little girl could make the jump, then I figured I had to do it too." Haha, he was really nice though. When we got back from our adventure I took a nap and missed fondu dinner. My punishment: Erin iced me (aka gave me a smirnoff ice and i had to chug it) in my bed. I was angry haha. But then we all went downstairs to our hostel club and got to party with everyone celebrating all the exciting stuff they did.




All in all, I absolutely loved Switzerland and had a blast. I definitely want to go back and visit another time in my life. Sunday morning we had to leave the hostel at 9:30 and it was another full day of traveling. We had the train to Geneva, the flight to Barcelona, the 3 hour lay over in Barcelona, and then the flight to Valencia. We landed at 9:30 pm and I came home, unpacked, did some homework, and fell asleep pretty early.

Only 2 weeks of classes left until I go home! I can't even believe how fast it's gone!

No Tinto Left Behind

Day 1: On Monday morning we left for Madrid and we arrived around 2:30. The city is absolutely beautiful and very different from Valencia in that it’s much larger and more like a typical big city. Our hotel was super nice and right in the middle of the city center. The first thing we did was go on a bus tour of the city and then a walking tour to get a feel for it. We had that night on our own and we asked Alicia, one of our professors, to go get a cerveza and some tapas with us. She is the coolest lady ever. Then Maddie, Caitlin, and I got dinner and went back to the hotel.

That night I ended up going out with a bunch of people because Josh’s friend lives here and showed us around. Madrid is so crazy in that anywhere you walk promoters for bars and clubs just attack you and offer you free stuff to enter. We went to one bar and then to a place where Josh’s friend likes to dance. We stayed there until like 3 I think and then got chocolate and churros before bed.

Day 2: The next day we had to be on the bus at 9:30 to go to La Escorial and Segovia. La Escorial is a big monastery and some kings used to live there back in the day. Segovia is famous for the huge aqueduct and we also got to go into a beautiful castle there. Jordan, Maddie, Caitlin, and I were all a little silly at that point, so it was a good time.


Famous aqueduct in Segovia




The castle we entered


When we got back I napped for 3 hours. Classic. Then that night I went out with Marie and Murt. We stayed out till freaking 4:30 am and went to another place where we danced forever. It was kind of creeper city so we forced Murt to stay at our sides all night haha.

Day 3: Very tired the next morning. This should stop coming as a surprise to me. It was raining but we walked to the Prado museum which has a bunch of famous paintings like Las Meninas and works by Grecco, Goya, and Velasquez. Then we walked to the Reina Sofia museum and saw a bunch of Picasso, the most famous being his Guernica painting.

When we got back from the museums and I took another 3 hour nap.Then a bunch of us went to 100 Montaditos and then we all went to the flamenco show. The dinner was delcious and the flamenco was seriously SO cool. I’ve never seen anything like it before. I was in awe and smiling the whole time. Afterwards we made Alicia go out with us and we danced with her for a while. She’s my fave person on the planet. The theme of the night was: no tinto left behind. And it was indeed a fun night.

Today I got up at 9 and we’re just chilling in Madrid for a few hours until our plane leaves for Madrid. Photos to come once I'm back home!!


Us all hanging out in Starbucks before our flight

I live for bocadillos

Ok so the rest of the weekend was super fun. Friday night when I got pack from Pan, we all started getting ready to go out. Maddie curled my hair with her straightener and it looked so good! Everyone was so surprised by it too since my hair is never curly. Felt pretty special, not going to lie haha. Six of us walked down to New Orleans to get a drink and it was packed. I mean on a Friday night, everything is packed, so it was the usual. We were going to go to Sandra's restaurant after that, but it was closed when we got there at like 1. We all went back to the study center since we weren't going out until at least 3. Caitlin, Jairo, and I sat talking to the guy who walks the front desk, David, until everyone else was ready to go.


In New Orleans

We were going to go to this club called Pacha because Erin's friend at Fox Congo said that we'd all get in for free. But the lines were so long when we got there and Tony said since she didn't send a facebook message warning him we were coming, he couldn't get us in. Like 6 people ended up going in, but then me, Caitlin, Erin, Emily, and Murt just didn't really care that much about going in so we decided to come back. I'd just been having such a fun night being with everyone anyway, that it didn't even really matter where we were. When we got back, Erin, David, Jairo, and I sat in a circle on the floor of the lobby, listening as Caitlin played guitar and sang us songs. Haha it was magical. I was just so happy that night and really had fun spending time with everyone.


I went to bed around 6 am and then Saturday we got up at noon and Maddie, Caitlin, and I decided to go to the beach. The weather here has been absolutely perfect. It just astounds me that on November 13th it was bathing suit and swimming weather. We got bocadillos and ate them at the beach. We stayed from about 1:30 until 6:30, so it was a whole day of relaxing. The water felt good and we tried to get like 1000 jumping pictures and we just sucked hahaha. The camera on my phone is pretty delayed though so we have an excuse.


Only slight success


The beautiful Mediterranean Sea

We got back, showered, and then Caitlin and I went out to meet my Spanish friend, Seve. We sat in Sherlock Holmes and talked for 3 hours, it was awesome. Then at 11 Caitlin and I went to dinner at this place called La Diabla that her friend had recommended. I got curry chicken and it was for sure the bomb.

That night everyone was just chilling and watching a movie because of the long weekend. I wandered around the streets with Jairo for like 30 minutes, but it was 2 am, and most everything in our neighborhood, Carmen, closes around then. So we went back and hung out with David at the desk again. I ended up staying down there until 8 am when his shift ended. Hahaha. But I just like talking to people and hearing about their lives. It was a good night.

I slept in until 2:30 today and then Maddie, jacob, Murt, Caitlin, and I went to the Botanical Gardens. We'd always heard good things about then and it's only like a 15 minute walk from us. They were huge and beautiful. I wish I had brought my book so I could've stayed and read.


Coolest freaking tree ever


Valencia is gorgeous

I hate sleeping in super late like today because the day just goes by way too fast. I need to pack for Madrid and Switzerland! AHH. Crazy. I'm so excited, but then again the weather here has been so perfect that I'm not looking forward to rain and freezing cold. But it should be an awesome week!

Solo Español, por favor!

The past couple of days have been really fun, so I want to go ahead and share these adventures. Wednesday during the day was very usual, went to tutoring, had class where we went to museums, and then had a conversation exchange. I met some cool people at mine and enjoyed talking to them a lot. We’re determined to hook Alicia up with one of the guys I was talking to hahaha. That night a few people went to 100 Montaditos, but Erin and I wanted to do something a little different. We started the night at New Orleans and our fav bartender, Jorge, was there. We chatted it up with him for a while and then decided to look into this place that we walked by earlier that takes cheques. At first they didn’t want to let us use them on drinks, but then we made friends with the bartender, Sanda, and she was SO COOL. She’s this 40 year old Colombian woman and is the nicest lady ever. Their restaurant just opened like 20 days ago and we sat for so long talking to the chefs and Sandra. She ended up giving us a bunch of free stuff too.

We also went to Fox Congo that night and visited good old Tony. Haahaaaa. He’s essentially in love with Erin. We were walking home and then we saw that this restaurant that’s nearby and has been under construction since we got here was open. Turns out it was their first night open, so we got some Estrella Galicia and attempted to make friends with the people working there, but they weren’t quite as friendly as Sandra haha. We ended our night talking to Juan Carlos, one of the security guys that does the night shift, for a while. It was a fun, Spanish practice filled night.

The next morning was not quiiiiteee as fun haha. I was just not feeling that 8 am wake up. But I really enjoyed my film class and then Erin and I decided to visit Sandra’s restaurant to actually eat since they were so nice the night before. The food was so good and I was absolutely stuffed afterwards. Sandra tried to give us a free shot, but neither of us were feeling that haha.

At 3:30 we had a speaker that came and talked to us a little about Catalonia and its relations with Spain, etc. After that it was WEEKEND! I definitely napped until like 8 pm and then got ready to go out to Max Max with everyone. We promised Sandra at lunch we’d come visit her before we went out, so we went there for a little while and then took the bus to Max Max.. I didn’t stay too long, but I’m friends with the bartenders there too, Mario and Ester. Are you noticing a trend in my life? Haha. But Mario didn’t make me pay for a drink, so it seems to be a solid life decision to make friends with them.

Caitlin had been to this one bar that was really cool before and it’s in the university district so we walked over there. It was so fun and everything there is way cheaper. I ended up deciding to walk back to Max Max to see if anyone was still there, but on the way I made friends with 3 Spanish guys and they walked me all the way back home, which was a good half hour walk. It was one kid’s birthday, so he was really drunk and it was funny. While we were walking we saw 2 of their girlfriends and we sat and talked for a while. They all were so intrigued by the “Americana” and kept trying to ask me questions and practice their English. I told them I wanted to practice Spanish so our deal was that I would say something in Spanish and they responded in English. It was cute.



Us at aguacate


I’m not sure what time I got back, but I want to say like 3:30. And then Juan Carlos let me sit behind the desk with him and we chatted until 5:30 am. We talked about so much stuff and we googled popular Spanish expressions and he was teaching me all sorts of things. So that was night #2 of intense Spanish practicing. I’m literally going to miss it so much when I go home. After nights like these my mind is thinking in Spanish and everything.

This morning I couldn’t sleep past 9:30 so I got up and Maddie and went to the rio and sat on a bench and read our books. It was the most gorgeous day and I’m now on page 100 of my Spanish book. Score.

I got back, hung out with friends for a while, and now I’m at Pan de Queso, enjoying some pan and a cerveza while the sun sets. Ah it’s so gorgeous here. Right now I can’t even imagine leaving.

I don’t know what I’m doing tonight, but hopefully it’s another night to blog about. I might be meeting up with the Spaniards from last night, so we’ll see!!

Saturday

So yesterday was a pretty perfect Saturday. I woke up and went for a run in the park. It's literally just the most therapeutic experience ever. I run down to the city of arts and sciences and then creep on cute Spanish families. The weather is absolutely perfect. It's sunny everyday and 70 degrees. When I got back I showered and then Maddie and I went to Bocatta to get lunch and we sat there for a few hours. I'm working on reading my Spanish book and I'm loving it.

We got back but then Maddie, Jordan, Marie, and I left pretty soon after to go to Corte. We got Cupcake Valencia on the way and it was magical. I didn't end up getting anything at Corte, but just went along for the company. On my way home I stopped and picked up a bottle of Don Simon, aka really cheap bottled sangria. I had so much fun for a few hours in the study center, just getting ready for the night with my friends, listening to music, watching funny youtube videos. It was the best.

Then I met up with a Spanish friend named Javier who lives here in Valencia and we ended up just talking until 5 am. It was so much fun, with the radio on, alternating between singing American songs and Spanish songs. He speaks good English because he lived in California for a year, but he let most of the conversation go in Spanish, so I loved it. I'm really glad that I have Spanish friends and since I only have 4 weeks left here, I definitely want to make the most of spending time with them.

I got up at about 11:30 and was slightly productive. Cleaned my room and did laundry. Then I went on the same run as yesterday. It's another absolutely gorgeous day today so I think when I'm done with my shower, Maddie, Erin, and I are going to Llao llao, which is a frozen yogurt place kind of like Berry Body. SO GOOD.


I have no pictures from yesterday, but here's a nicture of Plaza de la Reina with a rainbow :)

Is it really November already???

So it has been a nice week in Valencia. Wednesday wasn’t anything particularly exciting. I woke up and went to the school where I help kids with English. I really really enjoyed it. This time there were only 3 kids in my group of 15 year olds and it was a lot better than bigger groups because each person really got a chance to talk. In the beginning this one boy was so shy and quiet but by the end he was explaining parts of Spanish history to me. It’s awesome to see them improve, even when it’s just over an hour. My 10 year olds were on a fieldtrip so I went home after that.

I didn’t have class until 3, but my professor was sick so he assigned us to go to a couple museums. We went to one, which was a little strange, but it had some cool stuff in it. Of course that night we went to Montaditos and ate sandwiches and drank tinto.


Creepy dude in the museum

Thursday we watched Mar Adentro in my film class. It was a great movie, but just really emotionally draining to watch. It was about euthanasia, so it kind of makes sense. In my history class Ignacio’s father came to talk to us about life during the Civil War in Spain. It was so cool getting to hear him talk, but our class was supposed to end at 4:30 and he talked until 5. The only reason that was a problem is because Belen had organized a trip to the Spanish movie theatre to see Los Ojos de Julia at 4:50 and we missed it. I just felt really guilty because it was my suggestion and she came all the way here and nobody went. Ahh I felt so bad. Oh well, not like I could have done anything.

I actually ended up going for a run and then going to bed really early Thursday night. Probably for the best because Friday at 9 we left to go to Xativa. It’s this town like 45 minutes away from Valencia and has this ancient castle. We went into the museum and then climbed up. It was actually more of a hike than I anticipated haha. Erin and I got to the top and then were really hungry so broke away from the group and went to a café. We thought we’d see everyone walk by on the way back.. but umm we didn’t. Hahaha so I got a call from Alicia saying they were already at the bottom of the mountain and if we missed the bus it was our responsibility to get home. Luckily, we made friends with some Ukrainians (who we told we were twins) in the café that worked there and gave us a ride down to the cathedral. Then we met up with some people and got pizza and some good old Cruzcampos for lunch.


A view of Xativa from the top of the castle




We got back and I think literally every single person in our study center passed out for a solid nap. I definitely slept from like 5:30-8. I actually woke up to a text from my Spanish friends saying they were in a bar nearby and that I should come have a drink with them. So I met up with Alejandro and Seve and it was so fun. I love hanging out with them because they don’t speak any English whatsoever. And it was really nice because they told me they could tell I’ve improved since I went on the Camino and that I’ve been practicing a lot. They’re awesome and invited me to dinner, but Caitlin and Maddie and I had other plans already.

I ended up having such a good ladies night with them and it was so awesome just to go explore all sorts of new places with them. It was a really relaxed Friday night and I think we got home around 2:30 when the last bar kicked us out because they were closing. I hung out with some people in the study center until maybe 4 and then went to sleep.

It’s a beautiful sunny morning in Valencia so I better go take advantage of it!

DON'T EVEN GET ME STARTED! Aka Italy at it's finest

So I am home from my long weekend in Italy now! We didn't have classes Monday because of a holiday in Spain, so it was the perfect opportunity to travel. On Thursday I flew into Pisa with Amanda, Erin, Kelly, and Emily. The flight was delayed a while apparently due to the strike in France, but we made it around 10 pm. Then we took a bus to Florence from there and after waiting around a little we got to our hostel around 1. It was a really nice hostel with a bar and organized tours and stuff.

We got up the next morning to do the taste of Tuscany tour. The bus took us outside of Florence into the beautiful Italian country side that made me feel like I was in a movie. We had a traditional Tuscan brunch and went to a winery. We got to learn about how they make wine and then had a tasting. I definitely have a new appreciation for red wine after this trip. After the winery we went to this old medieval town and got gelato. Nothing beats Italian gelato... definitely had it three times in 4 days haha.


The countryside and the grape vines at the winery


You can't see it that well, but it's just an example of some Italian gelato!

That night we also went on the organized pub crawl with our hostel. We got to go to fun bars and one was even right outside of the Duomo, so we got a sneak peak of that. At the third bar I ended up going somewhere else with Italian friends I made. It was really cool because it had live music and everything and was something I probably wouldn't have found if it weren't for them.

I got back really late that night so we slept in a bit on Saturday. We got pizza for lunch and then did the tourist double decker bus tour of Florence. It was really worth it because you really get to see so much and learn a lot more about the city than you would on your own. It also took us to this nearby old Italian town, which was super cute and I enjoyed a coffee there.


A view of Florence at one of the lookout points the bus took us to.


A cute bridge in Florence that we ended up exploring the next day.

That night we ate dinner at this place called Zaza. Of course all the food we got there was very good. Pasta galore. Haha but when in Italy it's kind of a requirement. We met people at our hostel that night and went out to a couple different places in Florence with them.

The next day (aka Halloween!) it was unfortunately pouring rain. Europeans don't really celebrate Halloween the way we do, but there were decorations and at night some people dressed up. We wandered around the city a lot and saw different attractions, like David and the Duomo when it was wasn't nighttime at a pub crawl.


Part of the Duomo

Despite the rain we still enjoyed our day. I got my costume! I ended up being an inmate with a black and white striped shirt and handcuffs. Funny side story, at the airport on the way home my suitcase had to be inspected because they saw something in it. This sir is like digging through all of my dirty laundry, throwing things around, and finally he reaches the furry handcuffs at the bottom. I tried to explain it was for my costume but he just gave me the craziest look ever and then threw them away. Hahaha, what a loss.

For Halloween we met up with these people from New Zealand that we had met the night before. We went to a karaoke bar and Erin and I were freaking next in line when it closed! Annoying. But we also went to this cool Irish pub that Kelly and I found while looking for a bakery. Ok let me go ahead and tell the story about this secret bakery. The 3 of them went the first night while I was out with the Italians. It has no sign on the door, doesn't open until2 am, and is super sketchy, but is supposed to be like the most amazing thing ever. So around 4 that day Kelly and I wanted to find it and we walked all up and down the street it was on and couldn't find the door. That's when we walked into the Irish pub and we felt so dumb, but I asked the guy "So... we're looking for a bakery... and it's kind of a secret." Surprisingly he knew what we were talking about and that's when we found out it wasn't open yet. Anyway, that Irish Pub ended up being a lot of fun.


Inmate

We hung out the New Zealanders until like 4 am and had to get up at 8 am. We got breakfast in Florence before leaving and caught our bus to Pisa. It was still POURING this day, so it was kind of a downer. But we still got to see the leaning tower and get a good lunch there. Caprese salad and tiramisu are definitely two of my favs.


Amanda and I at the tower

Our flight left at 5 for Valencia and while we were waiting I finished the book in Spanish I'd been reading! La llave de Sarah, which is a really popular book in the US called Sarah's Key. I absolutely loved it and understood everything. Plus it was 394 pages, so it was quite an accomplishment. I actually just bought a new book today and it seems a little more difficult. I'm excited though because I've got to keep challenging myself in order to improve!

Last night we got back to Valencia around 7:00 and it was fun seeing everyone again and getting to talk about our weekend. This morning I had my Spanish business class and we actually got to walk around and see different Spanish businesses and franchises, which was awesome. I got lunch with Byron at Bocatta and then went to the central market with Dom. Italy has solidified my obsession with tomatoes, so definitely scored like 8 of those.

I had history class at 3 and then immediately after we went to this Museum of Enlightenment. I wasn't too pumped about it, but it was actually a cool interactive experience. I wanted to go for a run after we got back but I forgot that daylight savings time happened this weekend (a week before the US, so I'm actually only 5 hours ahead of home for the time being) and it was already dark by the time I got home.

Looking forward to two full weeks in Valencia before we head to Madrid!