La Orientacion

Hey there! It's about 9pm and my mama is cooking dinner, so I thought I'd post.

Today was our first day inside the university. It was like kindergarten all over again--my madre fixed me a merienda (snack) and walked me to school!

We began our orientation around 9am by taking a placement exam (easy!) and learning about how insurance covers death but not stolen items. We also got a tour of the university. Even though we are a part of Instituto Franklin, we have access to everything on campus--including excursions to castles, museums, events...all for free! I'm really looking forward to taking advantage of some of those opportunities :)

After the tour of Alcala and the University, orientation was over and we were on our own! As adultos, we have the freedom to explore the city without a chaperone. And as 8 of us broke off from the group and decided where to go, there was one place on everyone's mind: CELL PHONES.

I can't even begin to explain how confusing, frustrating, fun, and rewarding it was to walk in to a store and figure out which phones/plans to buy. After writing this it seems SO easy, but trust me--it was a MESS. First of all, the dependiente that was helping us spoke zero english. Secondly, the plans aren't like American plans. The promotional minutes are different, you pay by Euros and not by Minutes (even with a pay-as-you-go), and on top of it, their definition of pay-as-you-go is DIFFERENT than ours! It took eight minds, one dependiente, and one stranger (who has a daughter in Kentucky and knows how we feel) to get everyone on the same page. Needless to say, we passed our first test! Here's a photo of the result (note how we are sitting...speaking is tiring!):

Afterward, we met up with ALL the Butler guys and gals (with our handy-dandy cell phones) to try our first tapas bar. The tapas were free-as long as we paid for the drinks! So we all had cervezas or sangria (que sabrosa!) and tried different tapas. Everone was brave and tried new foods, except for las gulas. When the waiter brought it to us, I asked what it was. His answer? Like meat, but the part of a fish. In other words, stringy, worm-looking, fishy-tasting, grossness. I chickened out. I could smell it from the other side of the table and couldn't even do it. My madre said later that when it's good and authentic, it can be really expensive. And it's not as strong as it smells!

Here's a photo so you get the idea:

                                                                      

Tonight a group of us are checking out Alcala nightlife and tomorrow we have a day trip to Madrid to learn the public transit. More later!

M