This'll be random.....

So, I know that I haven't written in a while and frankly, it's because I really don't want to bore you all with the complete and utter nothingness (I think I just invented a word) that has been going on in my life. One thing that I have noticed as more time passes and the more Spanish that I am speaking....my English is progressively getting worse. Or, not necessarily worse but I have started speaking and writing in English the way that I think about the sentences in Spanish (if that makes a bit of sense at all). I guess that's a good thing, though, as it means I am becoming more of a Spanish thinker.

One very important thing that I need to inform all of you if is that I am feeling much better!!!! I am supposed to go back for a follow-up chest x-ray after a month has passed but other than that, I am good to go. Thank you all for the numerous thoughts and prayers. It was so difficult to be away from home but knowing that so many people care about me and were thinking about me definitely made getting through it much easier. I am back to happy Emily!

Other than me being healthy, we also had a visitor. Tad's brother Jay arrived the second week of January. He is going to be studying in Sevilla this semester. He spent a couple of days with us.
Here I am surrounded by VandenBrink's

We took Jay to Salobrena one day - it's the next town over and has a cool castle to see (we didn't end up going up there) but it also is on the beach and so we spent some time on a huge rock formation that has amazing views of the coastline. Then, we hung out on the beach and watched the beautiful sunset.
View of the Costa Tropical

Sunset


One other thing that has happened to me in my couple of weeks since I have been back to school is that I was bullied. Yes, I was bullied. So, the girls that worked at Antonio Garvayo Dinelli last year were named Alisha and Heidi. Yes, there have been numerous times (especially in the beginning) that I was called Alisha or Heidi simply because they were not used to me. However, in my defense, I have over 200 different students of which I see one time per week. These 200 students have to remember ONE name. Emily. Is that so difficult?!! I know it's not a Spanish name...my name is not Maria, Marta, Alba, etc but really, how hard can it be to say "Emily." Anyway, I have a class that is always unruly and out of hand. The teacher does not control them very well. It's very frustrating. Well, the other day, I went to this particular class. The teacher lets them work at their own pace and so there are some students that are still working on the Thanksgiving turkey project I gave them and some are already done with all their work and sitting there bored. It's not the greatest system because it makes it hard for me to plan anything and I usually just end up being a glorified babysitter. One of the girls is a little bossy/controlling of her teacher and other friends in the class - yes, I said she is controlling of her teacher. Anywho, she started calling me Alisha. She did it three or four times and then another student followed suit. Well, jokingly, I went to the board and wrote my name in block letters "EMILY." This did not help. Said student went to the board and wrote ALISHA underneath my name. To make matters worse, as I was wandering around the room and trying to instill interest in the students to speak English...someone had gone to the board and written VS. between our names.
The board looked like this.....

I couldn't believe it. I had walked away from the groups of students that were writing things on the board and was trying to ignore them when all of a sudden I hear people chanting, "Alisha, Alisha, Alisha!" It was such a frustrating moment for me. I wanted to walk out of the room. I could not believe how rude they were being and how bullied I felt.
Now, looking back on the situation, I realize that I never should have acknowledged them and next time I will simply ignore it. They know that if they get a reaction out of me, they have been successful. It was still just flabbergasting to me that this could happen. There is just some amount of respect lacking with the students in Spain.
Well, that's about all I have to say - oh wait, there is one more piece of exciting news. Tad came home the other day and told me that someone had contacted the English academy where he teaches classes in Motril and wants to learn English. None of the teachers at the academy are available to give classes and Tad teaches every afternoon so he passed the opportunity on to me. I have an email out to him and let's all pray he responds and that my afternoons are filled with something exciting to do!
I am sorry for not providing you with more exciting things but it's all I have for now!
Hugs to everyone from Motril!

My weekend in pictures (ok and some words, obvioiusly!)

Well, as I am sure many of you know from my mother's Facebook updates, this weekend has not been the most pleasant of weekends.
On Friday, I was happy and looking like this (the bubbly person that most of you know me as)......

and today, still - I look more like Tad does in this picture (sorry for posting this pic, Tad but I didn't have any of me looking sad!)

Somehow, throughout the weekend I caught a nasty bug of some kind. It began to get worse on Saturday afternoon. I took a bubble bath (complements of the gift that Connor's parents gave me) and attempted to rest. I was feeling feverish but don't have a thermometer. This was the last Saturday of break and me being the one to never miss a party, I decided to try going out to hang out with my friends for a bit - it is some of our friends' last weekend in town as they are all headed back to school. I actually felt ok - I had taken an ibuprofen and think it was helping with the fever. Well......once the ibuprofen wore off, that's when the fun begins. I split from the group and walked home (did I mention it had started pouring outside and I had no umbrella?!), I was shivering, my body was aching including my stomach. Like I said, I didn't have a thermometer but I am pretty sure that by the time I got home, you could do this with an egg but on my stomach.....

Long story short....Saturday night was miserable. Fast forward to Sunday.
I wake up still burning up. I ended up talking to my roommate Tad who was still at his uncle's house and he tells me that he has a thermometer in his room and I can use it.
This particular thermometer reads 37 degrees...that's normal body temperature in celcius. Mine read 40! That's a fever of 104.1

Really having no appetite, I have been trying to stay hydrated as best I can and this is why my nightstand looks like this....

However, there is a problem staying hydrated when you 1. have a high fever and 2. are making frequent trips to the bathroom (and I'll leave the rest to your imaginations). So as Sunday passed I was getting weaker and weaker. Standing up was difficult, my calf muscles started to cramp from lack of water. I just didn't know how much more I could handle. So my amazing mother called around to the insurance company to figure out what the options were and the best solution we came up with was to go to the emergency room - we took this measure simply because it was Sunday and EVERYTHING else in Spain is closed.
Yep, I went to the emergency room in Spain....

No, I could not have gotten there without my driver and translator...

My amazing friends Pablo (on the left) and Bern (on the right) went with me and sacrificed most of their night to stay with me (I could only have one visitor and so unfortunately Pablo ended up waiting outside...what a trooper - though he is very outgoing and made friends with a dog...haha and his owner, of course).
After some heckling about my insurance, the woman finally took my info and got the ball rolling. I was asked preliminary questions and got my temp taken and blood pressure as well. Then we were sent to another waiting area.
Here's my awesome sticker to prove I was there

Finally, I was seen by a doc and she poked and prodded, listened to me breathe, nearly gagged me with a wooden stick. Then another nurse came in and drew blood and made me do a urine sample. Now, think about this - I have been sick, I am severely dehydrated, I didn't have to go to the bathroom at the time and what?! you want me to produce urine on the spot?!?! Well, sparing details, I managed just enough. :-)
Then we waited some more.....and we waited....and we waited. It was forever long. Finally the woman came to Bern and said that she didn't see anything too abnormal in the tests but she wanted to do a chest x-ray. I looked at Bern and said "a chest x-ray?! there is nothing about me that is making my chest hurt or anything near it?" Well, anyways, here is my pretty hospital souvenir...in addition to the sticker, of course. That big white patch on the right is supposedly mucous.

After taking the x-ray, we waited again. Finally we were called into the consulting room and I was given the diagnosis of broncopneumonia.

I went in there with symptoms of a high fever, abdominal cramping, dizziness, inability to keep anything in my body etc....and I come out with pneumonia and some prescriptions for some antibiotics. I just don't get it.
Well, Sunday night was horrible as well. I think my fever broke at some point in the night as I woke up sweating more than if I had just run a marathon. I changed my clothes only to wake up an hour and a half later to the same situation. I finally gave in and just showered at 2am because I felt so gross. And beyond that point and into today, the bathroom and I have become one (once again, I'll spare details and encourage you to imagine what you like). Today (Monday) was supposed to have been my first day back to work but instead of spending my day with little kiddies...I spent my day with these guys instead...

Yes, that is my collection of medicines for my "pneumonia" which I am hoping will miraculously cure these other ailments from which I am suffering.
Tomorrow is a new day - I am not going to school tomorrow either but I hope to be feeling a little better. Thanks for all of the love and prayers that you have shared with me. It has been hard to be really sick and be away from home but knowing all of the support I have makes it that much more bearable.

Happy New Year!

Happy 2011 to everyone!! I can't believe another year is upon us already. Time is just flying.
Anywho, I know that it has been a while since I have posted and I am sure you are all anxiously sitting in front of your computers, constantly refreshing your screens in anticipation of my next blog post...so here goes.
I have to try to remember the dates of when things occurred....the days have just been all mixed up in my mind.
Connor and I went to Granada on Monday (Dec. 27th). I was so excited to show him around the town where I spent 6 months living previously. We were very lucky and my co-worker (Catherine) and her boyfriend live in Granada but they went home to the US for the holidays and so she left me the keys to her apartment so that Connor and I could stay there instead of getting a hostel/hotel in Granada. It was so nice of them. We first paid a visit to the Cathedral. I think Connor was very impressed.

Then we hiked up to the "mirador de san nicolas" which is a lookout point with amazing views. it's all uphill to get there but it's worth the effort.
Here is a view of the Alhambra (which we unfortunately didn't get to visit) and the beautiful Sierra Nevada mountains...oh, and us too!! :-)


After, we had tapas at one of the very first places where I had tapas with some friends after we had all moved into our homestays. We definitely deserved it after our climb to the lookout point. The place is called "La Bella y la Bestia." For all those blog readers out there who don't speak Spanish...that's "Beauty and the Beast." It's a fitting place for Connor and I to go because (without getting too mushy), Connor calls me "Belle" like the princess from Beauty and the Beast...here's where you all sigh and say "awwwwwwwwwww."

Connor also had the pleasure of meeting my host family - Paco and Pilar. I was so happy that we were able to stop by their house and visit them. Two of their grandchildren were there (Julia and Pablo). It was so adorable when Pablo first saw Connor because he ended up hiding by Connor's leg like he was his dad or something.

After this picture, though...Connor didn't have so much luck with Pablo (he wouldn't even look at him! haha) Here is a picture of Pilar with her adorable grandchildren.

Oh, I almost forgot. Before our visit to see Paco and Pilar, Connor had the pleasure of having his first "cola cao." Now, it is part of daily life in Spain to have a coffee around 5pm whether it be in your house or if you go out and meet a friend at a cafe. There is one problem, however. Connor doesn't like coffee. What is the solution? Spanish version of hot chocolate or "cola cao." I think he liked it :-)

Later that night (sheesh, we did a lot that day), Connor and I met up with some of my friends in Granada for a drink.

Connor and Abelardo

The next day, I made sure Connor had his first "chocolate con churros" experience. We only asked for one order even though we were two people eating them (that's my way of justifying us eating churros!)

We met up with my friend Juan Carlos later to have tapas but I forgot to get a picture. We went to a great tapas place by the plaza de toros and there Connor experienced his first paella! It had chicken and some shrimp but he swiftly avoided the shrimp (as did I).
After a relatively busy time in Granada, it was off to Barcelona on the 29th!
First thing on the agenda for Connor???? FC Barcelona stadium!!

We paid to go inside and see the museum and also the stadium. It was so cool and there are so many photos that I could put on here but I do want to finish writing this blog post before I start sprouting gray hairs!!
My roommate Tad and his girlfriend Rachel were also in Barcelona at the same time and so we met up that afternoon and went to Parc Guell (one of my favorite spots in Barcelona). We took sandwiches up there and planned to picnic but the weather was pretty crummy. We sat and ate with a constant drizzle. We walked around the park for a while and took in the views.
Connor and I sitting on the famous Gaudi benches in Parc Guell

Here I am by the famous lizard at the entrance of the park. We had to literally fight to get by it to take a picture. There are soooooo many tourists around (and I say that like I am not a tourist haha).

Later that night, we went to Sagrada Familia (Gaudi's still unfinished masterpiece). We did not go inside but Tad and Rachel had earlier in the day. I guess it's another reason for me to go back to Barcelona one day (in three visits there I have still not been inside).

We made it back to the center of the city and walked down Las Ramblas - the famous street in Barcelona with street performers and crazy people like this guy that dress up and get people to give them money by doing silly things or taking pictures with people. It's a fun place and our hotel was right on a side street off Las Ramblas.

I am trying to make this a cohesive blog post but we did so many things and on so many different days that everything is a big blur and I apologize for any confusion this blog post may cause to the readers :-)
So, now I think we are to New Year's Eve day. The first item on the agenda was to get Connor a scarf. After having been in Spain for almost a week, he caught on that a LOT of Spanish men wear scarves and he wanted to join the club. We paid a visit to H&M and had some retail therapy and here's the result.
Handsome Connor

Complete with new scarf and for me a new jacket, we were ready to face the day. We met up with Rachel and Tad to go to the Olympic Park. I had never visited it before and it was giant! When you enter from where we did, it seems like nothing special but there was a lot more to discover when you walk around to the side of the complex. It is so insane that they build these huge complexes for the Olympics and then they sit empty.
Inside the stadium

The view from the side - so beautiful.

After our Olympic park visit, we went to see the arc de triomf (modeled after the one in Paris).

We also passed by the National Museum of Art of Cataluyna and it is so beautiful.

We also managed to snap a pic of the four of us.

Now, onto one of my favorite parts of the trip. It's pretty pathetic but when you have been away from American food for three months and all of a sudden you find of of these.....

It is your obligation to stop and have a sandwich. Oh pure BLISS!!

After an amazing meal at Subway, it was time to prepare for NYE in Barcelona! Here are Connor and I waiting in the hotel for Tad and Rachel to arrive.

Now, the tradition in Spain is to eat 12 grapes at midnight. If you want to learn more, see this link
Anyways, Tad and Rachel bought grapes for the group and we took them out to Placa Cataluyna (where we thought it was going to be like Times Square with a big screen or something but that ended up being far from the truth) and waited for Midnight.

We were highly disappointed that this was our only way of knowing when the clock was going to strike midnight and we had to take clues from other people of when to start eating our grapes. Obviously there are no photos of this spectacle because we were all too busy shoving our faces with grapes (and they had seeds too....so gross). NYE in Barcelona ended up being a bit anticlimactic but it was still awesome to be in such a cool place and with good friends.
HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

On New Year's Day, we paid a visit to both of the houses that Gaudi designed -
Casa Batilo

La Pedrera.

After, we went down to the water to see the port and to stick our feet in the freezing cold water (which, all along I thought was the Mediterranean but I have just done some geographical research and see that indeed we were sticking our feet in the Balearic Sea and not the Mediterranean....oops).

We had lunch at an Italian restaurant (delicious food) and we could look out on the water.

Here is the statue of Christopher Columbus

Another one of Gaudi's creations that is near the water....it's a statue with 7 faces but I have not been able to find all of them....so I don't believe it!


And what's life if you don't enjoy some Ben and Jerry's? Although I was very angry because I got Cookie Dough ice cream and I'll be darned if there was not a single piece of cookie dough in my dish!!

We caught a flight back to Granada the night of the 1st and I will spare you all the details of the rest of the trip because it involves a lot of traveling and not too much time for enjoying the end of the trip. Needless to say, I think Connor had to endure more then 48 straight hours of traveling to make it back to Michigan and then had to go to work. He is a trooper. I really appreciate him taking the time to come and see me and to let me show him Spain!
I have this whole week off to and do not go back to work until Monday the 10th. I have been pretty bored and can't wait to get back to some kind of routine (even if it is just working 3 hours per day).