fue a barcelona para semana santa!

Happy late Easter!
I hope you all have a blessed Easter weekend. I was very lucky to spend it with some great friends. On Wednesday night I took a night bus from Madrid to Barcelona which was a crazy experience due to the amount of people that were trying to get on. There were 10 buses leaving every half hour from 11pm to 2 am. Once I got there with my friends Michelle and Scotti, we waited for Nicole (my travel buddy) and her roommate Jamie to get in. They were flying from Florence. I cant really remember what days we did what because this was one of the longer trips I have been on so it was hard to keep tract of.
While in Barcelona we went shopping on La Rambla which is a very crazy street full of performers. It is very interesting and you cant take their picture unless you pay them. So Nicole was paying them in czech crown cause that was all she had. Ha! We also went to Guadi's Sangrada Familia and Park Guell. Since I have been to Barcelona before I have seen all these places before, but they were still so beautiful. We saw a semena santa parade which consisted of many people marching and chanting while playing music and 2 floats. One of mary and one of Jesus. It was very bizarre for me personally, but it was just part of their culture. Also the people in the KKK looking hats are just part of the ceramony. There wasnt one person in the parade that didnt have a pointy hate. I forgot what the significance was, but my senora told me. Also while we were there we spent a day on the beach, and I got a very european hair cut. It was very frightening! But I must say I like the change. I have some friends from Regis that I met up with and they took us to this famous fountain show that is by all the government buildings. I forgot the name though. Oops! Then on Easter it was very rainy, but we wondered around the city and went to a Catalan mass. I really love Barcelona but nothing is better than Madrid. And at the end of the weekend it is always nice to come back home.
I only have 23 days left and it is such a bitter sweet feeling. I am so excited to come home and see my family and move into my house with my friends, but I don't want to leave my new family here. I cant believe these past 4 months have gone by so quick.
Hasta Luego!
Kayla


( the first picture was just in the streets of Barcelona trying to look Spanish with my new hair cut and spanish dress. The next picture is Nicole, Jamie, and I at park Guell with the city of barcelona in the background. The last picture is the Jesus float that was in the parade.)

Italy is so beautiful!

Hello!
I am still behind on my blog, but wanted to fill you all in on my trip to Florence. Nicole (my amigos partner) studies there so I went to visit her. It was such a great trip. We went all over the city and I didn't even have to pay for a hostel which was super nice. The second day I was there we took a train to cinque terre which is 5 little towns off the coast which you can hike from one to another. Unfortunately it was rainy which prevented us from making the hike alone the 5 towns. In Florence, we ventured around everywhere. I don't even remember the name of all the places we went, but it was very beautiful. We went to a market with real Italian leather goods which was very exciting for me. I almost bought a leather jacket but decided against it. The food is Italy is phenomenal. I never really like italian food that much, but everything was so good. It was nice to get away for the weekend and spend time with my best friend. I love and miss you.
Love, Kayla (the first picture is Nicole, her roommate Jamie, and myself on one of the bridges in Florence. The second picture is the view from the restaurant we ate at in cinque terre.)

Courtney comes to España!

Hola!
Sorry I have been late on updating my bog. Things with school have been pretty crazy these past two weeks. So after returning from Spring Break I had an amazing week with Courtney. She came out here with her friend Olenka for the week. When she got here she was pretty tired so we just had a relaxing day. We got some picnic food and went to el parque de retiro. It is by far my favorite place in Madrid, and we even went there almost every day Courtney and Olenka were here. While I was at school Courtney and Olenka went to Toledo with 2 German girls they met at their hostel. From what I heard they had a great time. On Monday night Courtney came over for dinner and I must say it was the most entertaining dinner ever. Not only had my señora prepared a meal that was vegetarian because she remembered me telling her at the beginning of the semester but she made me and my host brother Niko a birthday cake. His birthday was when we were on Spring Break just like mine so we celebrated together. The cake was an frozen yogurt cake with strawberries. It was sorta like an ice cream cake. The best part of dinner was when my señora and host brother tried to cut the cake but it was too hard so we had to put it in the microwave. Then it was still hard to cut and while attempting to cut it Niko accidentally threw a piece of the cake on the floor. Now this wouldn't usually be that funny but he doesn't really interact with us much nor show much emotion but when that happened he busted out laughing. Then he kept cussing in english which was also very funny considering he doesn't speak english.
I didn´t have class on Thursday because it was a holy day so the three of us headed to Salamanca. We left on Wednesday night and stayed till Thursday night. Salamanca is a college town. We had a great day exploring. The rest of the trip was spent showing them the spanish night life and getting to try some great spanish food like tortilla española and pallela. Torilla española is my favorite food out here. It is eggs potato and onions. It is delicious! I think Courtney enjoyed it as well.
I know we did a lot more while they were here, but it has been a while so I have forgot some details. But it was a great birthday present to have my sister here. I am also very thank for her wanting to see what my life is like out here. I already miss you a ton sister!

I love and miss you all.
love, Kayla


(Pictures: 1) el parque de retiro. 2) Courtney at the gardens by the palace. 3) Courtney and Olenka with my roommate at a winery 4) In the metro!

Spring Break 2009!

Hello friends and family!
I have not been able to share with you my spring break trip through Europe, because I have had a busy week. I was very lucky to spend my spring break with my best friend (and partner from amigos) Nicole. We travel very well together!
Brussels, Belgium was the first stop of our trip. Nicole flew ryanair, which is a budget airline which doesn't usually fly into major cities. When she booked the ticket she was informed she was going to Brussels, but come to find out when we both arrive and are trying to find each other she is at an airport 1 hour outside of Brussels. Once we met up we went to our hostel, then set out to explore. It was afternoon and was starting to get dark. We got to see the Grand Place which is a beautiful square. I wish my pictures had come out better, but it was dark therefore making it hard to take high quality pictures. After our hostel had informed us of a bar that is a good place to go to get a waffle and a beer. It is called Delirium cafe, and hold the world record for the most amount of beers. They had over 2,000 different beers. There Nicole and I met 2 girls from our hostel and spent the rest of the night with them. The next day, which was saturday we just explored the city and went into this giant atom building. It literally is shaped like a atom. It was really need and gave us a great view of the city. Too bad it was a little cloudy. Brussels was a great place, but was very difficult to communicate with people there. More people were able to speak Spanish with me than English.
Next stop... Amsterdam. I loved Amsterdam. It is by far the most beautiful city I have been too. I think I really enjoyed the way it was set up because all of the canals. But the canals also made it very easy to get lost because they all looked the same. Ha! Our hostal was very interesting because we shared a queen size bed that was a bunk bed. I had never even heard of queen size bunk beds! While in Amsterdam we rented bikes and toured the city. We went to the Anna Frank house and to the Heiniken Brewery. We also ate at this delicious place called Panacake Bakery! The panacakes were a mix of american panacakes and creaps. I had chicken, cheese, and pineapple on mine. Also while in Amsterdam we saw the Red Light District. It was very strange to me and seemed very unreal.
Taking a night train to Berlin, Germany! We arrived in Berlin on my birthday at 4:30am and had to wait until the information desk opened so that we could purchase our tickets for our next destination. I was very releaved once we got to our hostel because it had already seemed to have been a long day. Nicole and I took a quick nap and got ready to go have a birthday breakfast/lunch. We didnt understand 1 think on the menu so literally just pointed to something that sounded funny. I ended up with a plate that had an arrangement of fruit, meat, eggs, and a lot of butter. It was pretty good! We had read in a travel book that bus 100 in Berlin takes you by most of cities main sites so we decided to hop on it and just take it in a circle. I must say it is on of the best ways to see the city. That night we went to a biergarten that was sorta creepy. Nicole and I quickly left ha ha. The next day we went on a free tour that our hostel was advertising. It was very informational and we learned a lot about the history of Berlin. We got to see check point charlie, the berlin wall, the main entrance to the city, the TV tower (which we ate dinner in at the top. it was a room that revolved around so you could see all of the city.), and many other places. It was the best free thing we had the whole trip! ha ha! Then our last day we explored into some area called Alexanderplatz. It had a shopping center and this cute area where we got brats, creaps, and beer. It was amazing!
Last destination of our trip was Prague, Czech Republic. We didnt have too much time in Prague, but everything I saw was beautiful. I really want to go back! Since we didnt have much time we just walked around and saw as much as we could, and hopped on a trolley that took us to the Prague Castle. It was so beautiful! Then once we left the castle we got on the first trolley we saw and ended up getting lost on the trolley. But the up side to that is that we got to see a lot of the cities out skirts! I was not so much of fan of the czech food, but the dumplings are very good! Also our hostel in Prague was super cheap it was only 5 euro a night! What a deal!
On saturday I took an early flight out of Prague to return to Madird. It was a very great trip that I am so blessed to have been on! Although it was very cold the whole time (I never wore less than 3 layers), Nicole and I had a great time. We took advantage of all the public transportation and loved traveling between countries by bus! That is all of now! Te amo!

Kayla!

(The first picture is Nicole and I in Brussels, followed by us at the I AMSTERDAM sign, next is us in front of this cute place were we got brats, one of the remaining areas of the Berlin wall, and lastly the Prague Castle.)

Carnival en Cadiz

Bon Dia!
This weekend was very interesting. Last minute I planned a trip to Cadiz, which is in south Spain, because Kate and Ciara were no longer coming. In Cadiz, there was a huge party which is known as carnival. Carnival is pretty much just a 10 day celebration of Mardi Gras. My friends and I, along with about 200 other Americas, stayed at a resort about an hour away from downtown Cadiz. It was a super nice hotel that was right on the beach! All of Friday morning and afternoon was spent on the bus, and lets just say it wasn't too comfortable. Friday night the tour agency we booked the trip with rented out a club so that all of us could hang out. Saturday morning we got to BEST free breakfast. fresh creeps! most of the day was spent at the beach, or lounging around the resort.Unfortunately it was rainy, but at least it wasn't cold. Saturday night after dinner we got dressed up in our costumes and loaded the bus. Once we got to downtown Cadiz we stayed in the square most of the night and just talked to a lot of people. Everyone was dressed up in interesting outfit. It was a very interesting experience because it was sort of like Halloween but MUCH bigger. There were tons of people every where. Sunday morning we hung out all day and went to the beach again. Then loaded the bus in the after noon for the long ride back.
This coming week should go by quick, because now that midterms are over there is no work. Spanish schools don't really give homework, its usually just tests and papers that make up your grade.
I hope everyone has a lovely week!

<3 Kayla Rae


(In the first picture it is my friends Michelle and Liz at the resort. Next is Manuel and I at the beach. Lastly it is Liz and I on the bus to downtown Cadiz.)

A beautiful weekend in Madrid

Happy Sunday!
This weekend has been very relaxing, which is exactly what I needed after my first week of midterms. Although today the fun has stopped because I have to prepare for my last two midterms this Tuesday. My roommate liz was on this weekend so I was kind of lonely, yet enjoyed the quiet of our room. On Friday some of my friends and I made a Mexican feast with chicken burritos and tacos. But I was a little sad due to the fact that there was no chile for me to spicy up my food, or that we couldn't find refried beans anywhere. That night me and my friend Scotti went to Kapital, which is a very popular disco. I was not too impressed by its over priced entry fee and drinks. Plus they claim to have 7 dance floors but in reality it is just 7 floors with only 2 dance floors.
Saturday day, I got to sleep in then met my friend Michelle at el parque retiro. We bought some snacks for our study session at the parks, and I was very pleased to find a fruit tart! It was amazing! El parque retiro is very famous because it used to only be open to the rich and important people so that they could go there to meet their husbands and wives. And no I am not making that up. It is very beautiful and has a lake with row boats which i cant wait to explore when it gets warmer. There are a ton of fountains and very cool sculptures. Then michelle and I walked through Gran Via, Sol, and Opera, which are all well known areas of town. I wish my camera could capture how amazingly beautiful this city is, but unfortunately it cant.
Today has been dedicated to studying. Luckily I will be done with midterms soon and will be able to actually relax, because i don't have any work till our second set of midterms. it is really weird, but my school have 2 midterms. Kate and Ciara will no longer be visiting, due to Kate's sudden illness. I am pretty bummed, but it will be nice to have another weekend of possible travel or just a quiet weekend in Madrid wandering.
Hopefully next week something more exciting will happened that I can tell you about. O and one last thing, today my señora asked me to dye her hair. She is so cute! I love her!
hasta proxima!



(the first picture is me with my amazing fruit tart. the second is the cute late and retiro. the last one is me and my roommates beth and liz.)

Valentines Day in Portugal!

Bon dia!
I am sorry that I haven't updated this in 2 weeks, but last week/weekend was very uneventful, yet still amazing. This past weekend, my friends and I went to Lisbon, Portugal. It's not actually called Lisbon, it is Lisboa. Friday night my friends Michelle, Brian, and myself headed out to catch the night bus to Lisboa. It was quite a long trip due to how packed the bus was, how uncomfortable the seats were, and the fact that there was no toilet paper in the bathroom. Once we finally arrived in Lisboa we had to wait 30 min to catch the metro to take us to the center of the city where we would then catch a trolley. By trolley I mean literally an old style trolley. It was very interesting. Some of our friends were already in Lisboa because they got a cheap flight out friday night instead of taking the bus so we went to meet them at the hostel. Once again I was very lucky to stay in such an amazing hostel. The owner johnie was very nice and accommodating to our needs.
Once we were all together our journey started off. We went to the coast and say the Tower of Belem, and went into this really tall building in which we could see the 7 hills of Lisboa. It was amazing and we got some really cool pictures. Then for lunch we went to an outside cafe because the weather was amazing. It was very surprising though as to how many people spoke english. There seemed to be more people able to understand us when we spoke english than spanish. Ha ha. The rest of the day we just explored and didn't really have a plan of what were we going to see. We went to the aquarium and got to see the longest bridge in Portugal (which to my surprise we rode on to get to Lisboa, but didn't know because I had been sleeping). For about an hour we just laid out on benches and rested and enjoyed the sun.
Getting back to the hostel some of us (just the night bus travelers) decided to take a power nap while the other played games in the living area. We all started to get ready for dinner and were lucky that Johnie gave us a box of wine for the evening. As we started out for dinner we had no idea where we were going, we just knew the direction we needed to take. So we ended up not finding the restaurant we wanted to eat at which was a bummer. Everyplace we tried to eat at was totally packed because it was Valentine's day so we had to settle for this not so great place. I enjoyed what I ordered but it was spanish not portuguese. After dinner we walked around the center of the city, and then went to this club. The club had 3 levels and the top level was a terrace that looked out over the ocean. It was so beautiful! We dance for a long time, then took a cab home to get a few hours of sleep before the long 8 hour bus ride back.
I do not have any trips planned this coming weekend, but am excited to spend another weekend in Madrid. It is so beautiful here now that it is getting warmer and everything is starting to bloom. Also I am trying to get things all prepared for Kate and Ciara (my friends from Regis)'s arrival in 2 weeks, spring break in 3, and then Courtney's here 4. I hope you all have a blessed day.
Te amo,
Kayla!




The first picture is Lisboa before the sun rose. The next is a picture of a view of the city. The tower is Belem Tower, and the group picture is all of us in front of the Belem Tower. It goes Manuel, me, Liz, Amy, Michelle, and Brian. The last picture is from the terrace at the club. Only Manuel, Brian, Michelle and my self decided to go out.

Any suggestions?

Buenas tardes!
I just got home from school and am taking a break from some homework. My friend Nicole (my amigos partner who is studying in Florence) and I are in the process of planning our spring break trip. So far we already have Brussels and Amsterdam booked, and are trying to decide if we should continue on east towards Germany or go more west to France. Since I have never been to Europe, and I know some of you have please give me your input. kharri53@slu.edu

Also, I wanted to fill you in with how school is going. Currently I am applying for nursing school at Regis, and trying to get that in as soon as possible. Classes out here in Madrid aren't much different considering that it is an American school. I am really enjoying my child developmental psychology class a lot. It is very interesting and is certainly not what I expected. Plus my teacher is amazing. Piano so far has been a challenge because I have not read music since 8th grade, nor do I understand the piano scale. With practice I will for sure get better. My physiology class is a lot easier and a lot less work that my anatomy class last semester. The teacher has a very different style than I am used to but she makes it more fun in a creative way. By this I mean we have had to draw and color things like intramembranous ossification. The only negative thing I have to say about my schedule is that my religion course is very unorganized. I believe it is the biggest class SLU offers yet they only have one copy of the book that everyone has to go to the library to read. It is very unorganized and a pain. Plus the other book which we are supposed to buy didn't make it to the bookstore till this week, but they only got in 9 copies. There are about 30 kids in the class. Only 2 more days of class till its the weekend and I can not wait. I will mostly be working on homework this weekend because the following weekend I will be going to Portugal. Hope all is well. Love and miss you.

I couldn't post a blog without a picture so this is just some random picture of me and my friend Michelle with some locals that we met.

Granada y Sevilla!

hola!
I just returned from my first weekend trip and I would say was a HUGE success! It was my first time planning my own trip, traveling with just friends, and staying in a hostel! My friends Katy, Whitney, and myself left for Granada Thursday afternoon. After almost missing our bus we were so excited to find that it was not full so we were able to take our own seats and nap. We had not planned on staying in a hostel our first night, because we were getting in late and didn't want to have to pay for just 5 hours of rest. Our plan was the sleep in the bus station, but when we arrived we found that was not the best idea. So we wondered Granada to try to find somewhere that was open and had room. Luckily by 2 a.m. we found a hostel. Our room was nice with 3 beds and reminded me of a hotel. The next morning we went to Alhambra, which is a palace in Granada. I have already been here summer 200, but it was amazing! I didn't get too many pictures because I didn't charge my camera, plus already have many pictures of it from before. Our hostel for the night was located in the Muslim area of town, which is beautiful because all the building are white. We had an amazing late lunch where we ate Schaurma which was amazing. It was a mix between a burrito and a pita, but had this yogurt sauce and fillafal(sp?). Plus the waiter was really nice and gave us free mint tea that was to die for. While eating my friends and I were sitting across from a Muslim women who is from Wisconsin. Her name is Aisha and recently moved to Granada and converted to Muslim. She was such a great person and we plan on keeping in contact with her. After our dinner we went to another tea place where we got crepes and tea. My tea was very interesting, but i enjoyed it. The crepes was HUGE. It had whipped cream and strawberries. YUM! That night everyone from the hostel was going out to a few tapas bars. It was really great to get to know so many people from all different backgrounds. We meet some people that work in Madrid that we already have plans with for this coming Friday. Also we met this guy from Tokyo who was also going to Sevilla the next day and happened to be staying at the same hostel and in the same room as us again. I met so many amazing people in Granada that I was super excited to see who else I would meet in Sevilla.

We left Granada at 6:45 in order to get a taxi, and make it to the bus on time. Once we arrived in Sevilla we didn't really have any idea of where to go. We knew the name of the hostel, but nothing more. Luckily we were meeting 4 of our other friends there. We got to the hostel (Oasis Backpackers) and went to breakfast. Breakfast in Spain doesn't really exist. It is more like chocolate croissants and coffee. We were really hungry and decided to go to this itialian/mexican restaurant that the hostel recommend. It was both crepe and amazing. Since I have already seen all the tourist stuff in Sevilla, along with a few other girls, we decided to do something different. We decided to go on a carriage ride around the city. It was so beautiful but really cold. The weather was started to get bad. We went back to the hostel, where I did all of the 6 other girls make up, and then we out with people for the hostel. We went to a tapas bar where I sat with a woman from Sweden and another woman from Arizona. They both have really great stories. I was amazed at how inspiring other peoples stories were to me. The woman Ann from Arizona is out here for a month. She is traveling around to places she has never been, while visiting and traveling with her son. He is 19 and a college student in Switzerland. I have not met him yet, but we plan on meeting up when he is in Madrid this Saturday. After tapas, we went to a FREE flamenco show. Now it was not as cool as the one I had been on my last trip to Spain, but it was free so it was awesome! It was really rainy afterwards and we all got lost going back to the hostel, so by the time we got there we all looked like wet dogs. It rained all night and was still raining the entire bus back to Madrid today. In fact, it snowed in Madrid today. brrrrrrr!

Overall this weekend was a great first travel experience. I loved staying in hostels (even though I lost my cocoon - sorry mom), my company, and the fact that I met people for 14 different countries. Next trip will be more organized and I will learn as I go. I cant wait for the next one.

<3 Kayla





(The first pictures is a view of the Muslim community of Granada which is where I stayed. The second is a picture of me looking out at the view! The next 2 pictures are from Sevilla. The guy with curly hair is Alberto from Mexico, then my friends from school Katy, Ruth, and Meredith, and last Shin from Tokyo. The last picture is my friends from school Scotti, Samantha, and Whitney, with our new friend Scott from Colorado. Also notice my new purple jacket?)

Weekend in Madrid!

Hola!
Well this weekend was a fun one! Friday started off with class, but then I spent the night in with my senora and roommates! Friday was very very windy.. I was well rested on Saturday and was very happy that I was able to talk to my mom and dad over skype. After talking to them, my friends and I met up at the Reina Sofia museum of art. It was really amazing.. and free which was even more amazing.. Saturday night consisted of the best dinner we have had yet (it was sorta like hamburger helper.. but much better) then out to a Mexican cantina for a night cab with some friends. I didn't stay out late because early on Sunday morning my roommates and friends went to the Rastro. the Rastro is a spanish market that literally has everything. I can't wait for Courtney to come visit so I can take her there! my favorite purchase at the Rastro was my purple pee coat, which makes me look very european! During the day I made travel plans for the coming weekend as well as worked on homework. Sunday night however I went to the Real Madrid Game! It was one of the coolest things I have ever experienced! Although we were at the top of the stands it was super cool. We had a perfect view and were kept warm by the HUGE heaters that were above us. I definitely will be attending another one of their games! I hope everyone had a lovely weekend. Feel free to email me at kharri53@slu.edu

(the first picture is me and some of my friends that went to the game.. notice my cool new real madrid scarf.. the second picture is of the stadium! we were really high up!)

Hello!!
I am halfway through the week and it has been GREAT! My classes are going well and so are things with my senora! We keep getting amazing food.. even things that I like. The only new thing going on is that I started my piano class today. It is an individual lesson for 30 min a week. I think the teacher was not prepared for how bad I was ha ha. I don't remember how to read music. Hopefully by the end of the semester I will be much better. Tomorrow I am going into Sol (an area that is great for walking around, shopping, going out, pretty much the most hopping place in Madrid) with my friend Manuel just to walk around because we get out of class much earlier that any of our friends! I hope all is well with everyone! Miss you! Love you!

My first week in Spain!

So far I have been here for a week and I could not be happier! My senora (host mom) Mirta is so sweet and a great cook. Her son Niko is very nice but kinda sky around the girls. The first 2 days in Spain were filled with orientation activities that the school set up. I would say that the school was pretty unorganized and orientation was sorta a waste. The first day of class was Wednesday! All my classes are going well so far, but then again I have only been in class for 2 days! I am following my nursing core requirements and taking developmental psycology, physiology, theology, and some electives. On friday my roommate Liz and some friends went down to Sol, which seems to be the heart of Madrid! There are great places to get tapas, sangeria, churros, and chocolate! Sol is busy during the day because of the great shopping, and then at night is filled with people going to clubs. I haven't really explored the night life here due to jetlag, but I do know that Spanish people do not sleep. It is normal for them to stay out till 6am! My host brother Niko is only 17 and he stays out later than I think I ever have.
Saturday I went to Segovia, which is only an hour bus ride away. It was fun to explore a place I havent been before, but was nothing to special. The main places/attractions in Segovia are the aquaducts, castle (that walt disney tried to replicate), and the cathedral. On Saturday night my other roommate Beth (who was here last semester and is a grad student) asked me if I wanted to go out with her and meet some of her local friends. I had such a great time! They all wanted to practice their english so they would speak english to me, and I would practice my spanish and speak spanish to them.

Today a group of SLU students went to Toledo. On my previous trip to Spain I went to Toledo but only for a day. (Dad this is where I got you the sword) It was frezzing, but very beautiful! We had a great lunch at a small place, then went to get churros con chocalate. They are amazing! I am about to start working on some homework before we eat dinner at 9:30! We eat so late here. It's very strange! Well I love and miss you all! Have a great end of the weekend!