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09.12.15:Montanejos & Vila Real

Went on a trip to Montanejos with UJI today. It wasa beautiful drive in the mountains to the hot spring. Unfortunately the weather wasn’t in the mood to cooperate with our plans and it soon started raining. The hot spring was actually kind of chilly and combined with the rain, I decided to stick to just wading knee deep in the water rather than going for an all out swim. We weren’t at the pool very long and walked to restaurant for lunch. The food was great. Started with a deconstructed salad and bocadillos (with ham. why does everything have ham). The entree was a plate of paella! it was my first time eating paella in spain it was nothing like the paella I ate in san diego a few years ago. It tasted like maggie noodles lol not that I was complaining.

I don’t know why but I was absolutely exhausted after Montanejos (even though all I did was sit around) but Jen made me agree to go to Vila Real with her that night. Going to Vila Real was a great decision. There were bars in front of the doors and cage looking things along the street; the bulls were running tonight. Even though I knew I’d be safe behind the bars, I could feel the adrenaline in the air as people lined in the streets preparing themselves to run with/from the bulls. A couple guys I had met that night planned on running too. We heard two shots in the sky signaling that the bull was being released. It wasn’t long before I saw the fire coming from the bull’s horns coming down the street and people began to literally run for their lives.

Fun story, after about half an hour, a second bull was released and I waited on my tipetoes to see the fire in the distance. Once the bull had run past me, my friends and I come out of the cage thingy we were standing and starting walking in the wake of the bull. I don’t know why I didn’t think about this but suddenly the bull turned around and started to charge in our direction. I have never run so fast in my life. It was terrifying and I almost peed and I totally understand why people do this for fun.

I left soon after this petrifying experience and as I was leaving I realized the party was just starting. There were thousands of people up and down the streets, music blaring and lights flashing from every house. But I left cause I was pooped.

best day in Spain so far

#lateupdate #torrosenlacalle #wheninspain #dolikethespaniardsdo #shefalitakesspain

Day 3: FroYo Makes Everything Better

I had class registration this morning and I have a new appreciation for the American class registration system. It was so much more complicated than it needed to be in Spain. 3 hours later I left UJI with none of the classes I had originally planned to take. Fortunately, I have another month to finalize my classes.

After lunch we took a guided tour of Castellon, provided by ORI (international relations office). I feel even more in love with the city when I learned about the history and meaning behind every sculpture and statue. There’s art everywhere! Castellon is a tiny city but the streets have so many twists and turns it’s easy to get lost. I’m finally learning my way around and have finally figured out where I live.

Later that night, a couple of my friends invited me to go out for drinks and tapas before dinner. I was really excited to experience this common Spanish custom and quickly agreed. However, I didn’t expect it to be the down turn of my night. I’ve always been really sheltered, first at Whitney and now at UTD. I’ve never been to a raging college party, gotten drunk, or even really tried alcohol (besides chapagne which nasty stuff). My inexpereince made me an outcast among my friends and even the city. While they ordered cervezas and cocktails, I decided to stick with a coke, which was fine. But the problem began when they started to talk about drinking and partying and drunk stories. I literally said nothing for an hour and a half and missed all my friends back home like crazy. Would I ever be able to find a group of friends who like to have fun and explore (perferably while being sober) in a city that loves to party and drink? I’ve never felt so out of place in my life and started wondering if despite my love for the city of Castellon, if Spain was the right place for me. After their drinks finally finished, we separated for dinner and I was glad for the chance to go back home.

After dinner, my friends texted me and asked if I wanted to go out again later that night. I was hesitant but decided to meet up with them at 11pm. We ended up finding a froyo place with the best froyo I’ve ever had. I expected this interaction to be similar to what had happened earlier that night. What I didn’t expect was to stay out till 2am talking and laughing with a group of people I actually began to think of as my friends. My worries began to fade away and with time, I’m sure I’ll be able to create a solid group of friends even on the other side of the world.

some of the art in Castellon!

#froyo #day3 #shefalitakesspain

Day 2: Call me Sheffey

Spaniards can’t say Shefali to save their life. I can always expect blank confused stares or a loud ¿Qué? after I introduce myself. My host mom calls me Sheffey, which I actually think is really cute, and some of my friends from Korea call me Shep (unable to say Shef). I’ve become a new person in Spain.

I had orientation this morning! It was amazing and a little overwhelming walking into a room of people and not being able to understand a thing. There were so many different languages spoken in the little room. From the Spanish, to German, French, and Italian, I didn’t really know what language to use when trying to make conversation. There are over 200 exchange students this semester, most of them from primarily around Europe. There are only a few students from the States and we tend to stick together. I also met a girl from Australia at orientation and we soon became friends, initially brought together by the fact that we could actaully communicate. The language barriers definitely makes making friends much more difficult.

Later in the evening, I went out with my roommate, Jin, (a girl from Korea), her friends, and some locals. It was a little awkward at first. Noone knew what to say or what language to say it in. Carla, a Castellon local, was one of the few who spoke both spanish and english and she made an effort to speak to everyone. I liked her immediately. She showed us around Castellon, pointing out her favorite restaurants, shops, and cafes. We’ve already made plans to meet again and I really hope that we can become good friends this semester!