My Spanish Home

The main center of Granada. The building on the right is the Post Office, behind it is our AIFS office and to the left is a hotel and shops. I haven't seen my school yet. Classes start on February 7th (my brithday) so once I see it I'll post pictures. It's supposed to be an amazing campus on the edge of a cliff.

One of many fountains around the entire city. On almost every corner there is a big fountain like this one. Most have animals or people as the center piece.

The River that runs through Granada. They are having a huge drought right now (as you can see) We're actually only allowed to take 5 minute showers because the drought is so bad. I'm not exactly sure why because it rained a lot 3 days straight once I got here.

A view of the streets in the city. Now I know why they all drive tiny cars, because the streets are so narrow. They park half way on the curb and just about every car has scratches or dings all over it.

Another look of the streets. They are lined with clothing shops, fruit shops, pharmacies, and pasterie shops. They are know for their churros...nothing like the ones you buy at Disneyland, they are small and bread like with no cinnamon or sugar but you dip them into thick melted chocolate.

The entrance into our Student Residence or Dorms. There are about 18-20 rooms, 2 people in each and then there are students who don't live here but pay to get feed and have access to the wireless internet. About 50% are American and the other 50% are Spanish students. There are twice as many people as there are tables and chairs in the kitchen, so to eat we have to take turns, and everyone gets on the internet at the same time which slows it down making it impossible to do anything online. More people keep showing up becuase school is getting ready to start.

The student lounge. It gets extremely crowded during siesta hours (2-5) Siesta is what I like to call a country "time out". At 2pm everything closes and people go home to take naps or relax and then open back up at 5pm. It's a nice break during the day but can be annoying when you need something. Italy and Greece are a couple other countries that have siestas.

The stairs that lead up to my room. The whole residence is marble, no carpet anywhere, not even rugs.

This is my bedroom. The bed with the Dr. Pepper on it is mine. I live with a complete slob. I never considered myself to be messy or clean but next to her I look like a neat freak.

Another look at my bed. The small thing to the right of my bed is our heater, some days it works and others it doesn't.

These are our desks. Mine is the one that is nice and neat.

This is our bathroom and it's tiny. I'm still trying to adjust to it. The shower is a half shower (or what I call a bucket) and the part that holds the hose ontop of the shower is broken so we have to hold it ourselves. The toilet is tiny and very low to the ground. It's almost impossible to take a shower and not get the entire bathroom soaked.

This is the view from my balcony. The building is amazing. It has the most beautiful courtyard. It's used as an employment agency and you can also get your masters degree in marketing. Interesting combination.

The view to the right off my balcony. The hostal sign of my residence and one of the thousands of tiny roads.

Albaicin

The Albicin is the oldest Moorish community in Granada. It was first established in the 11th century. Very little of the surroundings remain but the city itself is beautiful.

If you look closely you can see details on the walls (brick, carvings etc...) well actually those bricks are painted on the walls and the carving is also just pictures painted on the walls. The people could not afford fancy architecture so they would paint things on their homes to give it a more rich look and feel.

The first room (out of three) in a Roman bath. This was the room used for undressing.
The main shower room...here you could get steam showers, massages, manicures, pedicures, your hair done. The whole works. The last room I didn't get a picture of.

This building is still being used today for religious ceremonies.

This is what most of the homes look like in the Albaicin now-a-days. This home was one of the more wealthier because they did not paint on details it was actually created for the home with an old type of plaster.

Another view of the different kind of architecture in the city.

The roads are very narrow and made with stones or rocks.

The oldest bell tower.

A view from one of the street. You can the Sierra Nevadas in the background. Beautiful Picture!

The main Plaza in the city.

Jesus on the cross in the center of the Plaza

On the other side of the Plaza was this view...Granada!

A few of the girls I live and hang out with...Danielle, Joni (my roommate) Me, Stephanie, Meagan, Marlise.

In the plaza is this church which is still being used. Around to the back of the church we rang a very old fashioned door bell (one you pull down on a rope to ring) and the lady's in the church gave us the scraps from communion. It was a nice treat...no wine though.

The inside of the church. This pictures doesn't do it any justice.

From the top of the Albaicin looking out at the Alhambra and the Sierra Nevadas. Every Sunday we grab a bottle of wine and have dinner up here and watch the sunset. It's completely breath taking!

Hasta Luego! "See you Later"