There's really nothing to report as far as travel goes. Didn't get to see Mike at Heathrow, but otherwise everything went smoothly. Though as a warning to anyone travelling through a London airport- they don't post your gate until 15-30 minutes before you board. Almost, almost I wanted to stay in England, but I knew Spain was waiting, and my plane to Málaga was about half full with IES students, so we all huddled together to await our fates.
For those interested, here's Granada, way in the south. Home of the Alhambra, called the most "sensual" building in Spain in several of my guide books. Take that how you will.
When we got to Málaga, it was a mad rush to recreate freshman orientation. There are 81 people and I remember about 20 names and 20 faces, but the two don't necessarily go together. Yesterday, after an uneventful night at the hotel, we drove to Granada and met our host families. I'm living in an apartment with a women, her two 20ish year old sons, and her mother, along with another student who is fluent in Spanish since she grew up speaking it. So, lots of Spanish all the time, but that's what I came here for, and I'll get used to it quickly enough.
María José is an incredibly nice woman, who loves to cook. She immediately told my roommate and I that we were to make the apartment and her family our own. And she knows all the cheap places to shop, and how to get around, and is willing to talk to us in detail about this for hours. She also, along with everyone in the area, thinks that 40-50 degree weather is terrible, and unbearably cold. Granted, there isn't much heat in the apartments here, so it feels cold most of the time, but I'm appreciating the heat wave compared with home.
Tonight I get to explore the area a little more, since we've really only been doing orientation stuff. Perhaps I'll use all the money I'm saving on buying dinner for 2 or 3 euros (free tapas with a drink!) and spend it on making myself look less American.
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