Have you seen me without sleep? Not pretty.

On the plane from Madrid to Sevilla

I have lost track of how long I have been awake and travelling. It is 9:24 in the morning here, so that would put me at about 16 hours so far with around 30 minutes of sleep between Chicago and Madrid. My sister and brothers will be exasperated because the in-flight movie was one that I have already seen. In fact, Donna, you took me to it this fall: Wall Street 2. So, once I again, I failed to expand my movie knowledge base. Lo siento, hermanos.

We arrived to a night-covered Madrid about an hour and a half ago, which puzzled me because I am used to having daylight by 8:00. By the time we set off on this plane to Sevilla, the sun was finally rising, and that made for some beautiful mountain views before we rose above the clouds. Right now the clouds are clearing, and I can see uniformly white villages nestled in between the mountains below me. ¡Hola, Andalucía! I am loving this! In a few more hours, I hope to pass out in my hotel room with teeth thoroughly brushed—that whole finger-brushing thing doesn’t cut it for too long even though I have toothpaste with me.

9 hours later

The program staff advise us not to sleep. My body advises me otherwise.  The program staff win, though, as I have managed to somehow to distract myself with menial organization tasks in order to stay awake until after our info sessions and dinner tonight. I need a big sleep for the next two days. Today would have been a great opportunity to kick off a coffee addiction.

Next day

After a good night’s sleep, I finally got to enjoy the city a little! After some information sessions, I went with my small group and our guides to a tapas bar for lunch (for those who don’t know, tapas are like appetizers). Everyone ordered something different so that we could all try a bunch of different things, and every single on of them were delicious.  My favorite were hashbrown-like circles topped with ibérico (cured meat from a pig’s leg, much better than the ham I’m used to), canalones con espinacas y gambas (cannelloni filled with spinach and shrimp), and a fish lasagna. I also drank coffee this morning--yes, coffee! (okay, with lots of cream and sugar, but still)--and I liked it. And so it begins...I really do not think I will have trouble with the food here. Like I’ve said many times, “Necesito correr sobre el parque muchas veces”—I need to run around the park many times!

I found out my home stay yesterday, and I will be living with a señora along with my friend Annie who also goes to Madison but is on a slightly different program here. I also toured the building in which some of my classes will be in the equivalent of the business school at the university. I do not think the buildings are too far from where I will live. To get around in Sevilla, people often walk, use public transportation, or rent bikes, but I think I will enjoy the walks because the weather is gorgeous.

For now, I am off to an interview to determine how good (or bad) my Spanish is, and then tonight is more tapas and a flamenco show. After having a good time in the city today, I can’t wait to see Sevilla at night!