Hi! A couple of days ago I got back from a fabulous six day Mallorcan relaxation vacation. Mallorca is one of the Baleric Islands in the Mediterranean that belong to Spain. We actually got really lucky because we were staying in Spain (and Spain is Southern Europe, of course) and our flight was not affected by the ash cloud from the Icelandic volcano! We did see a ton of people waiting in line for refunds and flight changes. A lot of my friends' plans were adversely affected by the ash cloud seeing as they were going to places like Bulgaria and Germany and such. But we got to Mallorca A-ok and traveled from the airport in Palma to Port de Pollença on the other side of the island, checked into our modest hostel, and hit the beach. It was incredibly beautiful. The sand was so soft and white, and the water was SO clear. There were no waves either. Completely bizarre to me, but so awesome. Mary, Arianna, and I literally did nothing for six days but lay on the beach, swim in the water, and chill in our room. It was bliss. Just what the doctor ordered. Its funny, because at school you can tell that everyone is getting worn out from travel and work, its like we are running out of batteries...all at the same time. As unfortunate as it is, we all still have final papers and presentations to do before its over, and let me tell you 5-10 page papers in spanish is no walk in the park.
But Mallorca was really great and we got to come back to Feria in full swing. Feria is incredible! Imagine every color flamenco dress imaginable, and multiply it by styles, prints, colors, flowers, and ruffles, and increase exponentially by a million, and you have a teeny understanding of all the colors and fabulous dresses of the women, the men dressed in riding gear and suits, casetas (tents) lining the streets, and if you are lucky enough to know people you can get into one, drinking and dancing. THEN on top of all these festivities, there is an amusement park attached. Imagine State Fair rides and multiply your mental image by about 100. Not kidding. It is amazing. And the people are there 24 hours a day for seven days. It doesnt matter what time you get there, its the same, 12 noon, 7 pm, 1 am, 4 am, 9 am... the same. and little kids! everywhere, at all hours. it is incredible. It is also really fun to dress up in our flamenco dresses and feel a part of the crowd.
Sunday is my 21st birthday and we plan to go to feria for part of the day and stay and see the closing ceremony which includes fireworks! other than that, who knows? :-)
12 days of class left
23 days till Abby gets here
25 days until my last exam is over
26 days until Dane gets here
less than a month left....where did these past three months go???
besos
