So... just where am I now?

Hello, everyone! Sorry that I've been a horrible blogger lately- I know that it appears as if I've fallen off the face of the earth! Well, I'm happy to inform you all that I haven't! I'm very much alive and well over here in Granada, very busy and going about 100 miles a minute. In this post, I'll just update you all very quickly as to what I've been up to these past four weeks (since Dad and Joe flew back to the States on May 19th) and I promise that I'll write a few more posts this upcoming week to fill in the gaps (complete with photos, of course!) as to what I've been up to.

I'll start off by saying that finally summer and all its sun and heat have arrived to Granada! Since the start of June we've had mid-90 degree temperatures everyday, with lots of sunshine and -the best part- no humidity! I've definitely been enjoying the warm, sunny weather by spending as much time as possible outside. I've taken up hiking as one of my favorite pastimes here in Granada and find myself exploring the parks and mountains in and around Granada quite frequently with my friends. Another plus to all this time spent outdoors? I actually have a bit of color! Who knows, maybe by the time I arrive home in three weeks I'll actually have a tan!

Technically, my last week of work at Alba Longa was the week of Monday, June 6th. I went into school for normal days on Monday and Wednesday. Wednesday afternoon, my students (in both 1 ESO and 2 ESO) threw me a small surprise "going-away" celebration to thank me for my year with them. It was so sweet! Some of the students had prepared small speeches and they all chipped in to get me some really thoughtful gifts to take back to the States with me. All of my 1 ESO students wrote me little notes and they gave me a photo album that on the first page contains a photo of all of us one day after a math lesson. My 2 ESO students all wrote me a card and bought me a lovely silver bracelet. It was a wonderful little party with them! The following day, Thursday the 9th, I spent at Armilla's "Ciudad Deportiva" (public sport center) with my 1 ESO students and students from two other schools in Granada. There we held an all-day bilingual field trip during which the students had to complete a workbook filled with various activities related to nature, springtime and math in English and Spanish. After the students all left to go home, I stuck around the park's outdoor café with my coworkers for a few afternoon beers and plates of jamón serano and cheese. It was a lovely afternoon. Since then, I've seen my coworkers one other time, at a retirement dinner for my coworker Ramón. We had a lovely dinner in Sacromonte, a one of Granada's oldest neighborhoods that overlooks the Alhambra, and afterward we went to one of Sacromonte's many cave-bars in which you can hear and see live flamenco performances. I will go back to Alba Longa tomorrow one last time to say goodbye to my students during their English lessons (their summer vacation starts this Wednesday) and next Monday I will say goodbye to all my coworkers at the school's annual end-of-the-academic-year luncheon. It's been a wonderful year with both my coworkers and my students... it's hard to believe that come September, I won't be returning with them to work everyday. I'll post pictures from all my recent events at Alba Longa soon!

And now, where am I living and what's my general plan for my last three and a half weeks here in Spain? Well, since May 25th, I've been technically "homeless" here in Granada. I lived with Ana until that date because she had three other American students coming in for the summer. Originally, I had only planned on staying in Granada until the beginning of June to finish up my teaching and then return home. However, back in February, a good friend of mine named Miguel invited me to visit him at his home in Ferrol, a city located in the community Galacia in Northern Spain. In addition to visiting his home city, Miguel proposed that we take a two week road-trip along Spain's northern coast, with the main aims of our trip being to see as many northern Spanish cities as possible as well as experience the world-famous Spanish festival, los Sanfermines, otherwise known as the running of the bulls in Pamplona. I must say, I was very tempted when Miguel asked me to do this trip with him and after speaking with Dad, I happily told Miguel, "Yes, count me in!" The only downside to this plan was that Miguel will not be back in Spain until the 1st of July, as he was studying and working at the University of Delaware for the academic year and currently spending the month of June traveling around the States and Canada. So, my stay in Spain now extended by seven weeks, I needed to look for a place to stay for the month of June because, as Ana always hosts study abroad students during the summer, we agreed last summer that I would stay in her apartment through the end of May. This was perfect at the time, as I was only planning on staying in Spain until I finished teaching at the beginning of June. But, things change and plans come up, and when Miguel asked me to wait for him to do the road-trip, I wanted to take advantage of the opportunity because I realized that I probably wouldn't get another one like it again! I was worried about my June housing situation at first, but seing as I have wonderful, wonderful friends here in Granada, since the 25th of May I have been staying with three different friends in their apartments. For the first week and a half, I stayed in my Finnish friend Hanna's apartment. After her apartment, I moved in with my French friend Pauline for another week and a half. Currently, I'm in my third and final flat with my Finnish friends Sussu and Joni and their Scottish flatmate Clarissa, a very nice girl studying abroad here this semester whom I've gotten to know over the past month. Then, next Friday it's off to Madrid where I'll meet Miguel at the bus station. We'll spend two days in the capital before heading north to Ferrol and beginning what will be my biggest and last adventure in Spain (well, for this year anyways. I know that I'll be back some day!) before heading back to the States on July 13th. During my road-trip I most likely won't have much access to the Internet but I will attempt to write a couple of posts about our whereabouts and experiences!

That's it for now, a quick update on the past month here in Granada. Most posts with details and photos to come soon! All my love, and to all my friends and family back in the USA, see you very, very soon!