February 2013 – Restless Spirit Syndrome

Oh hey!

So, if you’re reading this then you probably already know me. And, if you do already know me, you’ve probably picked up by now that I’m a bit of an idealist… and more than a bit of a perfectionist (oh, and don’t forget procrastinator!).

Which explains why, nearly six months into my nine months of studying abroad, I am just now sharing this blog. It’s still behind (a fact that I’m trying not to dwell on), but a new friend – who’s wisdom I’m appreciating more and more – convinced me that it was just time to go for it.

So here she is, all unfinished and ‘work-in-progress’y. Let me know what you think and, please, don’t be shy about harassing me to bring everything up to date already!

October was a month of beautiful weather and beautiful destinations. The first stop was in

RONDA, SPAIN Oct 6

Ronda is a small city in the mountains of the South of Spain. The city itself was pretty, but the real jaw-dropper was the landscape. This was a guided day trip and it featured, among other things, a lecture on bull fighting and Ronda’s history in the famous Plaza de Toros, one of Spain’s oldest still-operating bull rings.

LAGOS, PORTUGAL Oct 12-14

This was the ultimate vacation destination; beautiful beaches, balmy weather, and phenomenal seafood. Although it was October, we all galavanted in the crystal-clear turquoise waves, snorkeled, and soaked up some rays. Despite my near-crippling phobia of sharks, even I went cliff jumping and ocean kayaking …. like, really.

TOLEDO AND MADRID, SPAIN Oct 19-21

My program whisked us off on a weekend excursion of Toledo and Madrid, two entirely opposite cities with equal but opposing charms.

Toledo is a tiny, ancient city composed of narrow near-vertical streets twisting haphazzardly throughout a city that practically oozes history. Toledo is famous for it’s visual evidence of the Jewish, Christian, and Muslim influences on Spain…. and thus looking very ‘Andalusian Fairytale.’

Madrid, oh Madrid. Besides being the almost perfect opposite of Toledo (adjectives like ‘big’ ‘modern’ and ‘metropolitan’ come to mind), it is Spain’s capital city. I ended up spending a lot of time in Madrid while I was in Spain, so keep reading for more posts about this oh-so-Spanish city.