That said, it's going to be a little strange to leave Alicante because I've really been getting attached to it over the last few weeks. I've had moments where it hits me how long I've been living here and how accustomed I've become to my Spanish lifestyle. Sure, there have been days of missing home, but for the most part, I've been feeling very connected to the people I've met and to the life I've made in Alicante. Here are a few of my most recent joys:
Playing board games with my host brothers. The weather has been threatening to bring rain, so this brought the perfect opportunity for us to play Monopoly. What a great time! Even if I was the first to lose in Monopoly-- I had the worst luck ever!-- it was still a lot of fun. My host mom made us popcorn as we battled it out to buy streets of Madrid, and there was never a dull moment. After eating dinner, I taught them how to play Farkle, and since then, we've started a new tradition of playing it after dinner almost every night. Unlike Monopoly, I've been the Farkle champion of Spain. (Hopefully I didn't just jinx myself!) Regardless, I really feel like part of the family now, and I cherish these times when I get to joke around and to play games with my new little brothers. We are going to move to a new apartment at the end of April, so my family here isn't that much different from my family in the states-- always on the move! Ha. But I'm sure the move will be another great family bonding experience, and it's rumored that our new place has a nice terraza for dinners outside.
Tapas. So it's taken me almost three months, but I've finally got this whole tapas thing under control. Last Friday night I went out for tapas with friends, and we had a great time. Not only did we eat some delicious food and drink some great wine, but we also got some of it for free. Night well spent.
Semana Santa a.k.a. Holy Week. Semana Santa is an important time in Spain because of the Catholic traditions of the country. Every day this week there are extravagant processions with images of Jesus being carried by masses of people. On Palm Sunday, I went to a nearby town called Elche with my friend Katie to witness a popular procession there. Everyone (literally everyone) was carrying palms and marching through the streets. The community really comes out for the celebrations, and they come prepared: dressed to a tee with strollers/carts/babies in tow. The day passed very nicely, despite the fact that I mixed up the train schedule so I had a moment of panic followed by a call to my host mom telling her that I was going go miss lunch. Her reassuring "no te preocupes" (don't worry) was just what I needed to calm down.
Local Adventures. Of late, I've also been exploring different parts of Alicante and of the surrounding areas, and this has led to days of great fun. Katie and I took a veryyyy long impromptu walk from San Juan probably halfway back to Alicante (take my word for it-- it's a long way). We then had to search desperately for a tram, and this involved asking for directions. But it's a small world. Sometimes too small. Of course, there's only one creeper in all of Alicante that we've been somewhat trying to avoid, so where else would he be except in this random street miles and miles outside of the city at the same exact time as us. Luckily, he does have a sense of direction, and we were able to make it to the tram stop safely. No harm, no foul.Well, the sun is shining, and it's time for me to head to one of my final rowing classes. I love mi vida española.
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