Feliz Navidad!

Merry Christmas, Friends and Family!

I apologize that I have taken a small break from blogging. It wasn't intentional. I just didn't have access to the internet as much as I wanted to. The library and other places were closed a lot of last week due to the holiday. So, that's my excuse, haha!

This will be my last December entry from España! In fact, this will probably be my last entry for the year! I am leaving on Thursday for Madrid to catch my flight on Friday morning! I'm really excited! I can hardly wait for this last week of school to get started and over with already. This holiday season seems a little bittersweet. I am very excited to see a new country and visit friends I haven't seen in ages. It will be a lot of fun and my first real tale of adventure for you. :) I may seem strong and certain about things right now and I am definitely very excited, but I also am fairly certain that being absent from the familial celebrations won't be as easy as I have imagined in my head. Obviously, I am very aware that I will miss my family, but I do have Skype dates planned for the Christmas gatherings at the ranch, so I can see everyone. :) It'l be tough, but will only make me stronger, I think. :) And we can survive anything for awhile, right, Dad? :)

So, I went to Jaén yesterday with Stef and Nicola. We went to a few shops and I got a cute outfit for New Year's that I am excited to wear. :) It's different from a lot of things I wear, but I think it's fun! We'll see!! HaHa! :) I do have kind of a funny story. It's also a bit gross, so consider yourself warned... Skip the next paragraph if you don't want to read it, haha...

So, we went to Carrefour. This is the place that has a mall-like shopping center on the outside and toward one end and, in the center, there is a Wal-Mart-like place. :) We decided to grab a bite to eat. They don't have a 'food court,' but they had a little restaurant in the center with tables spread out everywhere. It looked like a food court, but we had a waiter and ordered at the table. Anyway, the three of us ordered an appetizer each planning on sharing. We also got a tapa. This tapa was a nut mix. There were corn-nuts, cashews, almonds, etc... you get the idea. I wanted to munch on the corn-nuts, so I did. In fact, I probably ate the majority of them. Anyway, the corn-nuts were gone, so I was getting started on the peanuts. I had a couple and then went to grab another one and Nicola slapped my hand away. I looked at her like, "What the hell?" She just shook her head and smiled. I wasn't sure what was going on and I'm quite sure my facial expression said the same thing. The waiter was at our table taking our coffee order, so Nicola just pointed to the plate that the nuts were on. On it, was a freakin' maggot!! It was alive and just crawling freely among the nuts and cashews. I am quite sure my face turned white and I was ready to throw up my lunch. We pointed it out to the water who made a "Ew, gross" face and then took the plate off our table and finished taking our order for coffee. ???? Stef and Nicola then told me about how maggots are used in making some cheeses... Um, what?! I had no idea and the idea completely disgusts me! I love cheese... but may love it less now. Just a side note: Nothing was done as far as discounting or whatever in regards to finding a maggot in my food. I think that's normal. HaHa! I'm just really hopeful that I didn't eat a couple before I found that guy... Ugh... makes me wanna throw up a little bit, haha!

Ok, so that's my gross story. Sorry... I just had to share. HaHa!

Well, I got my hair done. As always, when I move to a different location, it takes me a long time to find someone I trust to do my hair. I get very nervous, haha! Stef is crazy good at what she does, though, and while I may have made her nervous with my nerves, she did a fantastic job. It's different and I thought I would freak out when I saw it, but I actually really like it. I'm still getting adjusted to walking past the mirror and seeing it, haha... but it's one of my favorites, by far. I will be sticking with Stef for as long as I am here and I feel no nerves anymore, haha! Thanks, Stef!! Whenever I get a good picture taken, I will post it so you all can see the result. :) Dad & Janet were able to see it and they didn't really have the best reactions, so I hope it's cute. I guess it doesn't matter as long as I like it, right? HaHa!

One frustrating part about the village is the bus system. On holiday's, the buses do not run. I could have joined Joanne this past weekend/week or went on an excursion of my own, but buses don't run on Sunday's or holiday's. It makes it really hard to get out of town sometimes. If I wanted to leave on a Thursday after class, then I'd have to be sure to catch a bus back to the village on a Saturday. It doesn't make for a whole lot of time to really enjoy an excursion. I am thinking about seeing if I can switch my schedule when I get back from England to have Monday's off instead of Friday. We'll see how that works out. That way, I can be gone from Friday to Monday. Perfect. HaHa!

Nicola taught me how to make traditional Spanish tortillas! They are more like omelettes than tortillas by our definition of the word. They are really simple to make and quite tasty. The main ingredients in many dishes here are potatoes and eggs, which is what the tortillas are made of. Most dishes also contain garlic, onion, and olive oil in some way, shape or form, as well.

I received my Christmas package from my family on Friday. It had ranch dressing and lemon pepper in it! YUM! I used them both directly, haha! I had to! :) I can't believe it'd been over two months since I had any ranch dressing. That, in itself, is pretty amazing, haha! The package also had a great pair of K-State slippers that have been a godsend! They are so warm! They definitely make having to run to the bathroom in the middle of the night much more bearable, haha! :) Big thanks to Dad and Janet for the package. Made me feel all warm and fuzzy inside, haha. :) Also, thanks to Grandma Teresa for sending a Chiefs shirt with it! I'm never disappointed with Chiefs stuff! (I'm not talking about actual games... 'cuz Heaven knows I'm disappointed on a regular basis when it comes to actual game results!)

You may not hear from me again until next year. :) I am taking my computer on holiday, but don't plan on sitting next to it the whole time, haha! I will keep a journal throughout and have an earful for you in 2012 and let you know how the break went. So, in closing, I want to wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!! I hope this finds you all well and in good health and happiness!

Much love!