Wednesday, March 2, 2011

Pura Vida

I feel so alive right now! Sitting here on the bus ride back to Sevilla listening to my iPod and reflecting back upon my day I realize that all of my senses have been completely stimulated in the past 6 hours. Some friends and I decided to take a day trip to Ronda, a town in the Andalucía region. Ronda is about an hour and half from Sevilla and perfect for visiting on our day off of classes for Día de Andalucía. Two of my close friends from Ferrum (visiting me for Spring break) and two of my friends from my program (plus another random American student we met on the bus) spent our day in Ronda after hearing many other people recommend it; and I definitely understand why now.

I don't cease to be amazed by this visual beauty of this region. I walk the city streets in Sevilla in awe everyday as I try to take in all the history that still lives on wherever you look. But also just 10 minutes outside the city you'll find yourself winding through the foothills of the beautiful Sierra Mountains. Ronda is located in the Sierras. Famous for the bridge "Puente Nuevo," Ronda is gorge-ously divided into two sections (sorry I had to). Sitting on the edge of the town looking out at the miles of beauty, I was completely captivated.

I had plenty opportunity today to both hear and speak Spanish. There are so many different accents present in this area; I literally get to enjoy every sound of this beautiful language daily. It's great! I both love and hate the Sevillano "S" sound. It's terribly difficult to understand at a rapid-fire pace but it's also very fun to imitate in my opinion. I still don't speak as much as I could, but I think my speaking is good when I do use it. While ordering lunch today (which turned out to be delicious) I was told by our waiter that I was a "beautiful Spanish speaker"… I'm not sure whether he meant my Spanish was beautiful or that I was beautiful but either way I enjoyed the compliment. I really feel like my Spanish is improving more and more each day. I made a new goal to learn to roll my rr's and I think I've already gotten a little bit better at it (my intercambio said to vrrrrrroom like a motorcycle to make the sound). Well anyways, I hope to update you again soon on my travels! Chau! xx

Puente Nueve

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