Dia 17 y Dia 18

HOLAAAA!

On Wednesday, June 6, after class the girls and I decided to go have a little shopping day since we are headed to Rome this weekend. We were all needing to get some last minute things for the trip :) But unfortunately my card decided to stop working so I didn't do as much damange to my bank account. In all honestly is probably best for it since this trip is giving me a beating ahaha! I didn't have to buy a couple things with what money I did have left, I just cant resist just a little something when I go to the mall.. :) Sorry pops!

That night Shah had planned to take us all out to dinner since the majority of us are going to Rome this weekend (WE ARE SOO EXCITED!). His son booked us reservations at a mexican restaurant right near our apartment which was absolutely perfect (we didn't want to have to walk far). The food was mediocre, it definitely wasn't like home, but it would suffice my enchiladas craving for sure!

After dinner we decided to go out and hang out with everyone since one of my roommates here in espana turns 21 this weekend. We all had a fun time dancing and celebrating a birthday!

The next day, today-June 7, was more exciting! Lately we have just been so tired from everything we have been doing that our afternoons are spent not doing too much lol. I think I'm finally going to catch up on sleep just as I'm coming back to the states!

Today though, the girls and I decided to visit La Sagrada Familia located just 5 minutes away from our apartment! If you don't know what that is, it is a famous church that Gaudi has designed. He is actually buried there in the church! Fun fact about this church is that it was built starting in 1882 and STILL ISNT FINISHED! It is planned to be finished on 2026! HOW INSANE! This church is SO beautiful, I cannot even describe to you the intricate detail of this church!

I could literally stare at that church forever and still catch some detail that I hadn't seen the time before. I was so taking aback by how beautiful it was.

Now, all of us girls are just hanging out, watching our own movies on our laptops, and resting for ROME TOMORROW! We are so pumped to eat eat eat and EAT! Italian food.... BUENO! I won't be blogging for a couple of days but on Sunday or Monday be ready for my ROME blog :)

ADIOS!



Tot El Meu Amor,
Audrey

Dia 15 y Dia 16

Buenos Dias! Hello!

I hope so far everyone has had wonderful summers! This summer is seriously one for the books, I just cant even describe how much I love it in Espana! I so would not mind coming to live here.

Monday, June 4, was not one of the most exciting days. We were all still so tired from Paris that we had ZERO energy for anything! So of course where do we go when we are tired? The BEACH of course! We played us some fun volleyball with some people from Germany and with some locals. It's awesome that we meet so many people by just playing a simple sport! I just LOVE hearing where these people are from and why they are in Barca.

After the beach, we just came home and chilled trying to decide what to do the rest of the day and night. Like I said, Monday was not a very exciting day.

DIA 16

Lucky for you Tuesday was a more exciting day than Monday! Haha. Papa Shah had planned another excursion for all of us. We were going to visit the Stock Exchange in the morning and Parliament later in the day. 

We had to wake up and be ready by 10:00 so we didn't have class :) YAY! 

When we got to the stock exchange we had to be super quiet since they really just sit there and stare at the computer screen ha. It was so different from the U.S. since they just don't sit there all day. It was kinda funny though because everywhere you turned there was an old man! I totally think they have a age requirement to work there- only over the age 65. HA!

Afterwards, we had some time to hang out and see some parts of Spain on our way to lunch. We stopped at this market that was full of fresh fruits, veggies, meat, and pretty much everything else! I found some juices there which I was SOOOO excited for! I miss drinking some juices and smoothies for sure! I never appreciated them so much til now ha.

For lunch, we went to a quaint authentic Spain restaurant (I believe) and were able to choose from three options on the menu, I of course, want something somewhat healthy so i order the fish on the menu. BUT to my American brain, I'm thinking of like tilapia or maui maui. What was brought out wasn't really what I had expected...

At least I can say I ventured out and tried some new stuff! Surprisingly it wasn't that bad-all it really needed was some lemon pepper seasoning, some lemon, and that little sucker would've been tasty. After lunch we were scheduled to attend Catalunya Parliament. It was about an hour long and we had a tour guide who told us about the history and some background information about how it all works. Unfortunately he did not speak a lick of english so a lady who has planned all of our excursions and arranged some of this trip was our translator. It was really hard to follow since he would speak at 100 mph and she would have to stop and ask questions on what he said HA! Needless to say, it wasn't all that exciting...well seeing the inside of it was but the information was definitely hard to follow. But Papa Shah found it so exciting! This picture just proves how excited he was :) HAHAHA!

Later that night, some of the girls thought it was a good idea to plan a potluck dinner for everyone in the group! I couldn't even describe to you how much food there was! Im pretty sure that night was the fullest i had ever been since I've been here! We had the best time singing to some 90's old school music, talking, and eating. Couldn't have asked for a better time with this group of people!



Tot El Meu Amor,
Audrey

Weekend in PARIS

BONJOUR everyone!

This post is going to be strictly about the weekend we had in Paris which was so much fun with the girls!

It was an early start for us on Friday, our flight left at 10:00 so we had to be at the airport at 8:00 in the morning... too early! We took a train the airport, thank goodness for public transportation because cabs can get supaaa expensive here! Plus I totally think since we are tourists, they drive in circles to get some euros out of us! I mean I have NO IDEA where are and everything somewhat looks the same haha. I definitely need to work on this traveling aspect.

The flight took about 2 hours but it went by super fast since we ALL passed out on the plane. We were just so tired from all the FUNTIVITES we have been doing in Espana!
We got arrived in Paris about 1-ish which was perfect because check in was at 2:00 so we could grab a quick bite of a French dish before getting to out hostel. We actually ventured out and tried this casserole looking plate that had beef, potatoes, broccoli and cheese in it. It was pretty tasty.. go France for having some good food! We then checked in the hostel got ready and headed to the EIFFEL TOWER for our sunset tour we booked at 8:00 p.m.

We had a couple of hours to kill so we decided to get some crepes, chocolate of course, and we chilled by the Seine river and the Eiffel tower. The crepes were DELICIOUS!

Since we still had some time to kill..like 3 HOURS... we decided just to jump on this boat tour that lasted about an hour and showed us some of the main attractions in Paris. It was pretty cool just seeing what Paris is all about! We even passed under the famous bridge in Paris where you go with your significant other and put your names/initials/whatever you want on the lock bridge and it will be there FOREVER! It was so awesome seeing all the locks on the bridge.
We still had some time to kill so we got a bottle of champagne and Katie popped it under the eiffel tower! It was so fun just hanging out, talking, and sipping on some champagne while we waited til 8:00.
The tour was so awesome, out guide was from Ireland and was studying here in Barcelona as well. We learned SOO much information about the Eiffel tower, all the main buildings, and their history as well. Seeing the sunset while on the Eiffel tower was one of the best experiences I've had, it was just so beautiful. But the best part was at night when the tower sparkled, it was just so magical!

 After the tour we were just so hungry so we decided to try a restaurant that the guide recommend. It was a little hole in the wall fondu place, Le Refuge Des Fondus. It was way cool, all the tables were pushed together so you couldn't help but talk to the people around you. They served us immediately with some appetizers, then the cheese, then the meat (which you cook yourself), then some dessert! AND not to mention that they served us wine out of BABY BOTTLES! It was such a good experience to see where all the locals come and hang out on a Friday night! We then called it a night and went home to get some rest for the next day!

SATURDAY

This day was SUCH a big day! We had to see EVERYTHING, so we purchased a hop on and hop off bus tour so we can just see all the main attractions! It takes you to 50 stops! Our first stop was to the Louvre which was so awesome to see! We just had to go in and get a glimpse of the most famous painting, the Mona Lisa, and of course Aphrodite! When we got into the room that had the Mona Lisa, I just got instant goose bumps! It was just so crazy seeing the painting that everyone is so crazy about. 

We then traveled to go see Aphrodite, the one thing I just HAD to see! It was just simply amazing to see all of these famous sculptures and paintings that so many people from around the world to see. 

We then hopped on the bus to our next stop, Notre Dame! I couldn't wait to see it because as a little kid I LOVED the movie the Hunchback of Notre Dame! It was so fun to see the gargoyles on the top, I totally imagined the ones that came to life in the movie :D We had lunch right by the Notre Dame which was pretty tasty, but I found it sooo ridcilous that we paid 5.40 Euros for WATER!!! UM WHAT??!!! Lets go back to America where it is free, please and thank you!

The last stop on the our list was the Arc De Triomphe. It blows my mind that some daring pilots will actually fly UNDER the arc! I do not know how and why they do it!? It is like playing chicken..scarryyy. 

My cousin had told my about a bakery that has the best macaroons in Paris called Laduree! So of course we just HAD to go :) Thank you Baby Lucy, it was one of the cutest places in Paris! 

We shopped for a little bit and then went back to the hostel to get ready for Moulin Rouge!! We were sooo excited to see this famous show! It was sooo cool, at one point the floor that they danced on raised and was full of water and snakes!!! THEN a dancer jumped in the water with them! WHAT?! it was soo cool!

Afterwards we then headed back to the hostel and passed out for the night, we were just soo exhausted from the day and had to get to the airport at 9:00 in the morning for out 11:00 flight back home! Sad Day...

Sunday we then headed back to Espana and slept! We were sooo tired after our short but BUSY weekend trip. 

Au revoir, (Goodbye in French)

Audrey

Dia Ocho, Dia Nueve, Dia Diez, y Dia Once!

DIA OCHO!

HIIIIII EVERYONE! I hope this blog has been interesting to read! I know it is a lot of information at one time, sorry for that! But hopefully you are surviving reading this novel! :)

So day eight is what I am on right now! As usual, I attended school in the morning and normally I order a cafe con leche for breakfast and for lunch a bikini (which is just a ham and cheese grilled sandwich)! Not going to lie, it is really nice to have some sort of American food that I can rely on. Afterwards, the girls and I decided to hang out at the beach for memorial day! Afterwards, one of Brooke's friends told us about a little mexican restaurant that we HAD to go to since the food here is somewhat interesting, so we decided to give it a try! I know we should really be trying authentic Spain food, but it is really hard when they eat a lot of appetizer meals. Especially a type of ham that is not fully cooked (I believe), is not really my cup of tea. I'm all for trying new things, but my stomach just did not like that meat! HAHA. On the upside, the mexican restaurant was pretty tasty and so were the margaritas! 

Later that night, we all decided to go to George & Dragon which is a just a bar that serves beer. We all were wanting to try different Spanish Beer! I tried that organic honey dew beer that was definitely pretty tasty!

Shortly after, the girls and I decided to call it a night and hit up Mcdonald's for a small midnight snack! BUT get this.... they sell BEER AT MCDONALDS!!! How crazy!! So just for that reason, I just had to buy it! Beer and fries bahah!

DIA NUEVE!

Within the study abroad program we are required to attend three excursions with the school. Our first one was to attend the Danone (Danon yogurt) factory in Barcelona. We took a bus to get there and then watched a movie in Spanish. It was pretty hard to sit through since we can't understand a word of it! After we got to dress up in some awesome suits and went to watch them package the yogurt... woooo....

Papa Shah then took us to another more American restaurant where we got some BURGERS! Yummmmmm!!! After a bellies were full the girls and I decided to do some more damage at the mall :) We went to a mall that is like an arena but the coolest this about it is that you can go to the top and see some awesome views! We were there pretty late at night so all the lights of the city were starting to come on and it was just SOO pretty! 

This picture has parliament in the very back which I thought was so neat to see! This city is just zoo truly AMAZING! 

DIA DIEZ! 

Sadly, on day ten we had a management test... boo hoo :'(

In all honesty today was pretty boring! I had another test the next day so I decided that there was no way I could go and do anything since I actually had to study.. this life is just so hard here hahah! 

So we decided to go shopping again and then come home and study... fun day right??! NO WAY! 

DIA ONCE!

Today wasn't all that exciting as well since I had a test today again, LAMESAUCE!! But afterwards we decided to hit up the beach again to relax away our stress from our two tests. The boys brought the volleyball, so what did we do? Played beach volleyball the rest of the day! IT WAS A BLAST! There was a group of 4 of us that just couldnt get enough of the fun! While playing we met some guys from Scotland who where here to see the Bruce Springsteen concert, how neat right?! We didn't stop playing til sundown!!!

Then we came home, showered, and got ready to go see this water fountain show that the city puts on Thursday-Friday on the hour from 10-1! It was SO AWESOME! We had so much fun chilling, watching the lights, and listening to some awesome music. Which the craziest part of this trip; everyone here listens to American music! They cant even understand it and it plays EVERYWHERE!!! That just blows my mind! 

And SHOUT OUT to Tiaras, the cutest boutique EVER, for this awesome romper that I just couldn't wait to wear in ESPANA!! :) 

Tot El Meu Amor, 

Audrey

Dia Cuatro, Dia Cinco, y Dia Seis!

Bueno Dias! HELLO!!!

So again, time has gotten away from me! We are constantly on the move so I rarely find some down time to talk to you guys!

On day four (Thursday) as usual we had class in the morning woo hoo! But right after school Shah (our head honcho for this trip) booked a walking tour so that we could learn a little more of the history of ESPANA! We walked on the street that is supposedly the newer part of Barcelona, my memory fails in remembering the name of it, so I will have to look it up! The tour was pretty nice! We got to see and listen to some history of Barcelona but more importantly we got to see this.

Some of Gaudi's work in Barcelona! YES!! This is so stunning! I just cannot wait to see more! There is a park full of his work and I am just sooo stinking excited to see it!

After the walking tour the girls and I of course did a little damage shopping. The shops and the clothes here are so cool and cute! We cannot resist spending a little something on ourselves. :)

In Barcelona there is a bar that is called Dow Jones, which is a bar that works like the stock market! When people buy a certain drink the price will go up and others will fluctuate as well. After a certain amount of time, the stock market will crash and all the drink prices drop to either regular or half off! We all decided that this was something that we HAD to do! So we got all ready to go and play the market!
This picture is kinda blurry because with the flash you can see anything on the screen haha! I must say this bar was one of the coolest things ever! It was pretty fun hang out and watch to see what drinks to get! We all decided that this was one of our go-to places in Espana!

And of course the night didn't stop there! Everyone wanted to go to a club to see what it was like! So we all took a cab and headed to the beach where the nightlife is! We went to this place called Opium which was supposedly so hard to get into. The line to get was ridiculously long! Somehow we got in with what little spanish I know and we had a fun time dancing the night away! It is so weird here in Spain because things open extra late and night and close at 5 AM!!! What??!! That is sooo past my bedtime! haha Of course we didn't stay out that late because we are so not used to this type of dancing; my feet were a little tired! haha

DAY FIVE:

Even though we went out the night before, we all got our sleepy butts out of bed and headed to school! We were all sooo sleepy and our professors could totally tell! haha I guess sleeping in class is a sure sign that we didn't go to bed at 10 p.m!

Yet, we had a big day planned! Shah planned another fun outing for the group, we were going to hike to the Castell de Montjuic! It was about a 30 minute walk or less to get to the top but when we did it was so BEAUTIFUL up there! We all couldn't resist but snapping tons of shots of all the views!

I just couldn't believe how the beautiful everything was!!! Even on the other side where we could see just the ocean was BEAUTIFUL!!!

After this we all got reservations to go to an ice bar that is made completely out of ICE! You are required to wear a special jacket and gloves to protect you from the -10 degree inside bar! How utterly insane is that?! It was such an experience that didn't last too long since it was sooo cold! Afterwards we went to another club to just dance the night away!!

DAY SIX! 

After a fun night out with all of us, we had to wake up extra early to go visit Monesterreat! It is where the monastery is and where the monks live- how cool! We got to ride a train, which we were all pumped about, that was about an hour long to a higher elevation since it is in the mountains!

We had to take that little yellow gondola that you see picture to the top where if you look closely you can see the little town at the top in the rock! WOOOOOAAAAA! Once we got to the top we were able to see whatever we wanted to. There were little gift shops, a museum, and of course the monastery. We also had the option of hiking to different places in the mountain like the monastery itself or little viewpoints around the mountain. There was a group of us that decided to take a two hour hike to what we thought was going to be the monastery but ended being the highest point on the mountain! IT WAS SOOO BEAUTIFUL!!! Even though we hiked 1.237 with more than 500 steps! No lie- I was tired but it was such an awesome experience!

Hiking all the way to the top making it in an hour and fifteen minutes (I believe) instead of the two hours the information desk told us was very rewarding! We sat there for a while just taking in all of the views and talking getting to know one another. It was such an awesome experience! Yet, on the way back we took the wrong trail and went the longggggg way around. There was a point in time that we started to get worried since we had ran out of water and have to be back at a certain time. HAHAH oopsies!!! 

The good news that we made it back safely and on time!!! On the way back on the train we were all so DEAD! Shah took us to dinner and I tried paella which is a rice dish in ESPANA that is mixed either with meats, vegetables, seafood, or something even has noodles. I can honestly say that it did not taste too bad, the veggie one that is! There were crawfish in it that had the weirdest eyes and it kinda was freaking me out! haha! After this, we decided to call it a night, relax, and rest up from WEEK TWO in ESPANA! :)

Tot El Meu Amor,

Audrey

Hello to ALL!

Well I am a little behind on all this blog! Between trying to catch planes, restlessness on the plane, meeting awesome people, and getting settled in, this amazing new city has worn me OUT. I have found little time in this craziness to sit and write it all for you!

I guess I shall start from the VERY beginning to document my travels thus far. I started early, leaving for the airport in San Antonio at 6:15 Sunday morning (getting only 3 hours of sleep due to my constant worry if everything was packed), I was then off to the DFW airport to catch my next flight to Miami at 10:55. From there I had a four hour delay until my flight to BARCELONA at 6:05 that night. It was exhausting but wonderful since I wasn't alone, one of the girls that I had original booked the plane tickets with had her flights moved up, so we got to experience four hours of the Miami airport together.

The flight to Barcelona, Spain was absolutely exhausting! The long haul across the big pond took us about eight hours to get there and with being unable to get comfortable, I found myself quite tired when I arrived. Our flight landed early so we waited for roughly two hours for a bus to haul us kiddos to our new living accommodation! While there everyone was able to get to know each other before we started this adventure together! There is literally no dull moment with this group, even at the airport we have Becca's 70 pound bag with a broken handle and Katie's trouble of getting on a moving sidewalk to laugh about. 

So about the living arrangements, there are six rooms to each of the apartments (which are really called flats), three girls have a single room and six girls share! I am currently sharing with the lovely Katie Herrick! YAY!

So the first day we basically just did the basics; get settled in, eat some Espana pizza, take a tour of the university we attend our classes at, unpack, eat, have some wine, and of course talk about how excited we are and what is on our agenda for that night! I mean HELLOOO we are BARCELONA we must go see the town! We decide to get a group together and be little tourists trying to find the hotspots of the town and our go-to restaurants. Sadly, this is short-lived since we are all so jet-lagged and just want a siesta pronto!

DAY TWO:

The second day started a bit early, I woke up at six in the morning our time which is eleven p.m. your time! Why did I wake up so early?? I have NO idea, but the best part was that Katie was also awake too! How perfect :) So we decide to be adventurous and go find us a go-to cafe to get our morning coffee. We found one that is on our way to school with the best coffee EVER!

But then sadly, time for school came and we had to go to class. :( We are attending a Spain university called UPF. This is the inside of the university, the glass in the right side of the picture is one of their cafeterias in the college! So crazy! But they have the absolute best chocolate croissants in the world!

Class is of course class, I am taking International Marketing and Productions and Operations Management which will be hopefully super easy. The teachers are really great and they really understand that we have the opportunity to see the world and instead of studying for class all day long! AWESOME!
After class we decided to go see the street La Ramblas (also known as pickpocket city) and shop around the town. On the way we decided to get some Gelato, which is good. If you ever have to chance to taste it I highly recommend strawberry.

On the strip of La Rambla there are tons of stores, restaurants, and of course tons of people! It was so nice to see McDonalds, Burger King, and Starbucks. Finally somewhere to eat in case we get tired of tapas and jamon! It was hard keeping track of everyone when there is so many people out shopping or eating. There were many times that we were separated haha! The street was so pretty with all the spanish architecture and historic buildings. We also walked down to the pier and saw all the boats docked, what a sight to see. This city is just so simply beautiful! After hours of walking around trying to find H&M for some warmer clothes, we finally found the FOUR story store!

After a long day of walking and shopping, the girls and I were DEAD! We decided to chill for a little bit in our flat and then visit a delicious italian pizzeria just around the block. The white wine was to die for, we never caught the name but we will for sure go back for more. Again, still being jet lagged, we walked back and crashed out for the night to get ready for the next day!

DAY THREE: 

To all who are reading this blog, I am so sorry for the length! I have been so busy that I have found no time the first couple of days to truly sit down and type it all! Today I wasn't as tired as yesterday, thank the Lord. Of course we had class in the morning and right after all of us hit the beach! We spent most of the day here, just hanging out, tanning, and getting to know everyone. The weather was beautiful, in the mid 70's with a light breeze. Yet, the beach was TOPLESS?!?!?! That was quite interesting to see how other cultures decide to express themselves. After hours laying and chatting, it was time for food. We ate at Shoko, a restaurant right on the beach. Brooke, Katie, Mackenzie, Stephanie, and I all shared a pitcher of mango, kiwi, and pineapple sangria and tapas that consisted of calamari, nachos with queso, and potatoes with a spicy sauce. We are so American! 

Now, we are just talking like girls do and deciding whether or not we should start on this marketing homework.. woo hoo...

This city so far has been unbelievable. We have such big things planned for us here and of course in other cities we are touring. This group of people are absolutely wonderful. We have all such different personalities but they all mesh well together. The memories that will be created here will be truly unforgettable, but more importantly we are creating lasting friendships. 

I hope this hasn't been too boring to read. So much as gone on that I don't know if I can fit it all in! I will be blogging everyday and hitting the highlights with pictures! I hope you enjoy!

For all that are reading, I miss you! I deeply wish we could spend this adventure together but if you want to travel at some point, I WILL COME!

Love you all very much!

Tot El Meu Amor, (all my love in catalan)

Audrey