Casi un mes..

Hello again.. from Spain!
Time is flying like it's never flown before. I can't believe we've already begun our 4th week here in Granada.

Last week we took a walk with our group into the old Albaycin neighborhood here in Granada. I don't think I could retrace where we walked- all of the winding, narrow streets can easily complicate things. The scenery was beautiful: ivy and flowers growing from balconies, trees blowing in the wind, families out for an evening stroll, people enjoying food and drinks, old arabic architecture, and my favorite part... the most amazing view of the Alhambra from the San Nicolas Church

This last Sunday a group of ten of us decided to go to the Sierra Nevadas to hike.  Within 15 minutes of reaching our destination, our bus decided to break down. Since it would be another hour or so before another bus came to get us, and it was way to steep to walk to where we needed to go, we decided we'd get off the bus and enjoy the scenery. We entertained ourselves by playing some silly games.  It turned out really great- we met some spanish kids about our age and they played with us. The time passed quickly and we were soon hiking our way up the mountain. A 4 hour hike it was and it included: dirt, rocks, people with sweet accents, awesome views, laughter, bocadillos, freezing cold weather near the top, our first Spanish rain.. and hail.
With our shorts, t-shirts, and light jackets, we painfully endured the cold. Everyone that was coming down from the mountain looked at us as though we were crazy. ha. We were! We kept walking, and finally, after thinking we should have reached the summit, we asked those coming down how much further to the top.  20 min. 1 hour. 30 min. We continued for awhile, the end was nowhere in sight. We called the place where we were at, "the top," and headed our way back down the ginormous hill. Imagining myself swimming in the mediterranean, somewhere warm, seemed to help a little... but it definitely didn't take away from the fact that my fingers were frozen stiff and my pearly white legs were turning beat red. I shouldn't be complaining too much though; the view on the way down was incredible, despite the overcast sky. Neat winding roads, green fields, a really neat old fence, etc. Once we reached civilization, I enjoyed a toasty and delicious cup of cafe con leche. MMM! Warmed me right up! The majority of us slept on the way home or listened to music and just relaxed. We were pooped!

(Very neat statue of Jesus and Mary)

(Before it got cold)

(Clouds rolling in...)

We spent a few hours at home, ate dinner, got cleaned up, etc, and went out for ice cream to celebrate Annie's birthday! A great way to end the day.

This Sunday, our group is going to Cordoba, a city a few hours NW of Granada. There we will be going to various museums, walking around the city, and visiting once again "Los Baños Árabes"- however, this time, we actually get to go in them. I guess there is a room with a cool bath and  one with a hot water bath.. you go from one to the other. Then, I believe I heard something about a free massage??? I like the sounds of that! Maybe that was a time when my spanish listening skills weren't working, haha.. I guess I'll find out!

More to come...