Finally in Sevilla!

A lot has happened since I've gotten to Sevilla, so I'll try to be a short as I can with telling you almost everything to far...

After three long and sleepless flights, I am finally in Sevilla, safe and sound! My luggage was left in madrid which was kind of annoying, but I got it back the next day...I know two people who had their luggage lost, one for 4 days and another for over 10 days and still lost, so missing it for one night wasn't all that bad.

There were 7 of us traveling together, and we got here Tuesday around 12:45 local time, and took a taxi straight to the hotel that we were staying at for orientation (Hesperia Sevilla). We all decided to share two rooms since it would be cheaper, but had to squeeze in since the rooms weren't that big. I actually ended up sleeping on the floor, but it was fine because when I wasn't sleeping, I was able to witness each of the three other people I was with talk in their sleep, one of which who actually sat up and talked about going to work. I asked her what she was talking about, but she just laid back down and went to bed. I tried to tell them the story the next day, but couldn't finish the story without bursting out laughing.

Anyway, the past few days we had orientation meetings and presentations about our housing and school stuff, and a tour of the school we are going to be studying at. There are just under 90 students in my program, 20-some who are from Indiana U. Everyone I've met so far has been really cool (accept for one guy who seems like a complete tool), and I'm really excited to spend the next 4 months with them.

Today, we also did a scavenger hunt through different places in the city. The city is unbelievable... I need to get in the habit of bringing my camera and taking pictures because I forgot it! Everyone who lives here that I've talked to has lived here all of their lives and don't plan on moving anywhere, and I'm starting to understand why. This was the first time that I was really able to see the city because the past couple of days I have been pretty sick, I think it was from something I ate. We all ate the same food in the hotel we were staying at, but I seemed to be the only one who got sick. I'm not feeling 100% yet, but I'm doing a lot better than before. I think tonight I will finally be able to go out on the town!

Also, a couple hours ago, I moved into my homestay! We were all really nervous to finally meet our "families." People can either live with a Senora (single woman with extra rooms) una familia, a young couple, or in a dorm. Most people live with either a senora or familia. For me, it's just me and my "Senora" named Francisca. She is very nice and lives very close to everything in the city and the school, so I'm happy about that. When I got to her home, I unpacked, she showed me around the apartment, and she cooked lunch for us. My stomach was still a little uneasy, but the food was really good and I ate it all. Like everyone in Sevilla, she doens't speak any English at all, but it has been a lot easier to communicate with her than I would have thought, which is good because I assume my spanish will only improve. AND she has internet!!

Alright, that's enough for now. I will try to update this more so that I don't forget anything and so my posts aren't so long. It will also be easier since my senora has internet. Hopefully once everything gets going, I'll have more stories of traveling, going out, and other fun stuff!