Today wasn't particularly extraordinary, but I have a few things to say about it, and better to write a few shorter posts when I'm in the mood than feel like I have to accumulate a lot and then get up the energy to sit down and write something way too long...
Today was my first full day in Granada, and first time seeing the city by the light of day (and pretty much first time seeing it, period). I opened my window shades in the morning to discover that my window faces an inner courtyard of the building: a small square they only use for drying laundry.
Breakfast, unlike lunch and dinner in the dining room, is serve-yourself: hard chunks of white bread (with nearby toaster oven) with tomato paste, olive oil, butter, pâté, or jam options; three kinds of milk, varying by fat content (in boxes); and hot chocolate powder. I spread some butter and jam on my bread, but I found out later the basic Spanish breakfast that most everyone eats is bread with tomato spread, olive oil, and salt, or else just olive oil, if they're feeling particularly minimalist. I'll have to give it a try tomorrow.
After breakfast the girl who's been here for a semester already and is just living in the residence hall for the week walked the two other IES girls and me to the IES building with the understanding that we would have to get ourselves back later. I kept trying to look for and memorize any landmarks I could (there are actually a billion things that are landmark-worthy, like big churches and statues, but none of them have really stuck for me), but yeah, my mental map was a blank page--I was pretty much lost from the get-go. We did end up getting back fine later, and it was only on the way back that I realized something that's pretty embarrassing, but that's how it is: we had walked in a straight line, except for one turn. Sigh. The good news is I have an excellent map of the city, and I feel so equipped with it that unless I decide to explore the labyrinth of the old Moorish quarter, the Albayzín (alternately spelled the Albaicín--maybe the Arabic vs. Spanish spellings?), "by feel," I probably can't get lost.
The IES building is smack in the middle of the central/historic district, in a beautiful ancient building in Moorish style. It's absolutely gorgeous: a huge, stone inner courtyard with a fountain; narrow, geometrically-tiled marble staircases; arched ceilings and even a roof terrace with a spectacular view. (The floor of the classroom I was in was green marble. Not my usual classroom.) The walk to IES was only about ten minutes (the convenience is nice) along one of the city's main arteries, Los Reyes Católicos. The sun was reflecting brightly off of the polished black cobblestones and worn-smooth white tiles that line the sidewalks. I'm not just saying this: Granada is without a doubt one of the prettiest cities I've ever been to. I've only seen a few blocks of it so far, and I'm already so taken with it. The view from IES' roof terrace was especially impressive, even though it was of nothing in particular: just old villas up in the hills, rich with character, surrounded by cypresses.
We had class all morning. A few months ago I had to take an online language placement test (which was really hard!); they used our scores to sort us into class levels. We're going to be in these classes of about 15-20 people for the week, and meanwhile we'll have written and oral language placement tests to determine where we'll be placed for the semester grammar class. These initial orientation-week classes all have the same curriculum, I think, focusing on practical vocabulary and customs--things like various ways to greet people, the names of items in houses, etc. A lot of the material was review, but I gleaned a lot of vocabulary just from listening to the teacher talk, and from some reading selections (I went back and copied out everything that was new, and there are something like eighty words and phrases on my page). Mid-morning we took a coffee break as a class, had a few more hours of classroom time, and then by two we were done and went back to our homestays/residence halls for "la comida" (the word literally means "food," but in Spain, at least--and I can't speak for Latin America, though I think there, too, it has a deeper meaning--it also refers to the main meal of the day, lunch).
For those not accustomed to the Spanish eating schedule, breakfast is at a "normal" hour, maybe like 7-9ish, and fairly light; there's sometimes a light mid-morning snack at around 11, and then lunch is at 2 or 3 PM and is the biggest meal. Everyone goes home for lunch, and many stores close down. After lunch is the siesta, and although some people are prevented from partaking due to their work schedules, everyone who possibly can, does. Dinner here at the residence hall is served from 8-10, but actually many Spaniards don't start dinner until 10, and nobody goes out on the town for socializing (especially for dancing/ hanging out in the bars) before midnight, and they don't get back in until 5-7 in the morning. It's very, very different. It sounds pretty exhausting, but I guess in general people tend to party, just like in the U.S., Thursday, Friday, and Saturday (sleeping in the whole morning the next day)--I don't know how you could keep it up otherwise, though even with restricting one's partying to the weekends it sounds tough to me.
After lunch I was very sleepy, so I took my own siesta--that is, it was nice to have a cultural excuse to take a really long nap that probably had its roots in jet lag. I set my alarm for four hours later, and woke up then. I had dinner at 9:30, though I wasn't particularly hungry. So far lunch and dinner in the dining room (can I just tell you that that word in Spanish is comedor, so I can use it instead here?) have been the same size, with dinner even being a bit larger, which isn't exactly in keeping with everyone's descriptions of the giant afternoon meal, but it doesn't matter. I'm not describing the food because there isn't anything to describe: tonight's dinner, for example, was a hot dog in a bun with fries. When I start slurping mussels on the Spanish coast I'll let you know. The smells that waft on the street are out of this world, though. I was nearly floored by one smell in particular coming out of a restaurant. It was some kind of food. I don't know what it was, but I wanted it.
After dinner I decided to go out exploring a little. It was 10:30 and it may as well have been a busy morning at the farmer's market for all the people that were out. All of the tapas restaurants were full and bustling with people having dinner. The clubs were still closed and empty, but a few bouncers were out. There was a generally lively feel, with street musicians and lots of young people. Wow, this would be such a fun city to be a college student in... Oh wait, I am a college student!
I wanted to hike up to the Alhambra, part of which came into view, lit up by spotlights; but it became apparent the route would require me going down some small alleys, and I realized I was in the Albayzín (though I don't know the exact boundaries of all the districts and neighborhoods yet), and remembered in Rick Steves' notes on safety he advised against walking in the Albayzín after 11 or so. Plus I was alone, and the further I went the less people there were. Granada in general is a pretty safe city, but it's good to be cautious, and I turned around before I went in too deep to the increasingly-narrow streets. I had a really nice jaunt, and although I didn't learn that much more about the city geography, I must have learned a little. I went out walking because of course it's fun, but also for the important reason that walking by myself is pretty much the only way I ever commit an area to spatial memory. If I'm walking with even one other person I won't remember the place at all, unless I've already really developed my sense of the grid.
And now I'm back at the residence hall, trying to get tired enough to sleep sometime soon. Somewhere, just beyond my window, people are just starting to go out for the night...
Much love.
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