pov: El Lunes Gratis??

Monday, March 2 // Lunes, 2 de marzo

My first two exams went well! I am proud of my grades and now I have a better idea of what to expect for the next round.

Although it is amazing that I am only taking 12 credits here, I do not enjoy two hour classes. I have two classes each day but I am finding it difficult to focus for such a long period of time, especially when most of the classes are all lecture. While we get a small break to use the bathroom, my brain sometimes overflows in reaction to so much Spanish language and new information all at once.

Today I had to leave during one of my classes because I was suddenly overwhelmed and proceeded to have a little panic session in the bathroom. In times like these when I feel off it is important that I do things to make myself feel better. Since Mondays are "free days" for some monuments, Talia and I tried going to the Real Alcázar (for the second Monday!) since she missed the day we went in our architecture class. Of course we were turned away - apparently even the free tickets must be reserved online with one euro. Then what is the meaning of free??

Instead of turning around and going home, we decided to grab a café con leche at a bar close to the University. It was just what both of us needed! We realized neither of us had cash and it wasn't enough money to use a card, so we explained our situation to our waiter and prepared to buy something else to get the total up to the minimum amount for card use. To our surprise, the waiter told us that we should come back tomorrow to pay when we stop by the University. We didn't deny that we were students at the University, but we were both shocked that he trusted us to come back to pay the next day.

This made us realize how different southern Spain is from the United States. This kind of thing would rarely happen - maybe in the Midwest, but that's about it. We decided that café is our new favorite, which is probably exactly why the guy did it. Whatever, it made my day!

Then, since we were so close to the Plaza de España, we walked over and explored. We found the Cádiz booth since we had just visited the city (it was built for the Iberian-American Exposition and there is a booth for each Spanish province) and walked up one of the staircases to see the full view of the Plaza.

Once we got to exploring, apparently we couldn't stop because next we walked around in the University. This was the first time either of us had been inside its main building. We found a little hallway that was a bit of a museum for Roman sculpture and a little library. The building was beautiful.

One afternoon walk around the city and my whole mood was changed for the better. I am so grateful to live in a city with such an inviting atmosphere - there is always something to do and kind people ready to make your day.

Of course, we had to take a walk after our dinner too, just to round out the day. I love taking new routes and finding new areas of the city. Once we get lost, we try to figure out our way back, and usually it works out and I end up connecting places that I did not know were close to each other. I am getting to know the city pretty well - or at least my "territory", as I call it.

Plaza de España (1,3,4,6), view of the city from the top of the Corte Inglés Department store by our apartment (2), and Roman sculptures in the University (5).