El incitio de escuela!

Today was the first day of school here in Barcelona (I am here for study abroad, remember!), and it was an eventful one for sure. I woke up for my first class and enjoyed a typical Spanish breakfast (desayuno, no not coffee and cigarettes) of cured ham on a croissant, and a delicious and very strong cafe solo, essentially a shot of espresso. Food and drink can not usually be taken to go in Spain, probably due to the cultural importance of the experience of meals and the appreciation of savoring a meal; however, I discovered a very small coffee shop near my apartment that will provide a tiny cup for espresso to go and a bag for my bocadilla (sandwich).

The metro in Barcelona is very efficient and even with changing lines, it is possible to get essentially any where near the city center in under 15-20 minutes. This is incredibly helpful for the trip from my apartment to school, located in the L' Example (y' shample) district of Barcelona. Catalan, an ancient language that was spoken exclusively in the northeastern region of Spain for over 800 years, is omnipresent in Barcelona, further complicating navigation for an someone who speaks Castilian Spanish un poco (a little). Nevertheless, the Catalan is somewhat similar to Spanish, despite the ubiquitous use of x and l', and some signs are written in Catalan, Spanish and English. My class itself is an overview of Spanish culture and history, and my other class is a Spanish language class, both working (ideally) to push my towards fluency and the understanding of the multifarious Spanish culture. Grades are assigned out of 10, with a 5 as passing and 10 as "perfection". Maybe American colleges could try out this system? Later, we checked out the exceptional Mercato en la Rambla, a sprawling, extremely colorful produce and meat market full of an incredible variety of produce and delicious food.

Thanks to everyone checking out the blog, more awesome posts are to come. Here are some more pictures of the city!: