RETURN TO SALAMANCA :)

3 words- WINTER HAS ARRIVED!! It seems that since I came back from my long weekend at home in England, the weather has changed entirely here in Sala. I left what was 25 degrees during the day as a high- and returned on Monday to around 12 degrees as a high temperature- maybe I brought the English weather with me! Yesterday it was absolutely freezing here and there was a cold icy wind to make it worse! I think it's pretty cold now, but people keep telling me this is just the start of it! Apparently Sala in December/January is extremely cold and that what we have now is just the start! Well ok, I'd best just pack away my shorts & summer sandals now- ready to take back home at Xmas as they're not exactly needed anymore! Time for tights, hats, scarves & boots! Hola invierno! (hello winter!)
On the Internet front things have finally improved- this isn't to say we have the flat wifi working, but that I've now finally bought myself a USB Internet stick from Vodaphone to use in my laptop. I had some problems getting that working as well though- is nothing to do with Internet easy in Spain? I went along on Monday to the Vodaphone shop at the train station and asked for the USB dongle- it was all simple buying it- but as I said- a nightmare to get it working! As I was buying it aswell I asked the assistant if it was easy to use, and she was like yeah yeah it's just a series of clicking ok ok ok and then it connects! So when I get home I plugged it in & expected it to instantly give me Internet (a joke right!) but it said I needed a CD for installation. I tried other methods, but it just wouldn't work! So, frustrated, I marched right back to the shop- this time with my laptop and demanded they get it working as I was having no luck! But the lady who dealt with me was just packing up to leave & I thought she was closing the shop as it was 5, but luckily another lady came from around the back and was able to help me! It was a struggle though as all of the instructions on my laptop came up in English & she couldn't understand them! so I had to translate everything! Eventually she realised it wasn't working & said that there was no CD's involved normally & that my laptop was acting differently- perhaps because it wasnt Spanish. I didn't except this excuse to not help me though, and persisted as I'd paid for this and was at the end of my tether to do with all Internet matters in Spain! So the lady then changed over the dongle to a new one, followed the activation and installed the software from it again & it worked! So my first one was a faulty dongle, or it hadn't been activated properly! Either-way, 4/5 hours later after all this hassle I finally managed to connect to the Internet at home. There was still the problem of signal though as our flat has an incredibly poor signal everywhere and the only places you can use phones is by the lounge window or in my room by the window! So on my desk the dongle was getting 1 out of 5 bars signal.... And it kept cutting out which was incredibly annoying..... And taking a very long time to open just a simple web-page! So eventually I moved the laptop over to the window and now have 3 bars- which allows a sturdy connection- it's still slow though on opening web pages.... But it's better than nothing right! At least now I can check emails. Browse the net and use msn- although Skype won't work- nor YouTube! :( but as I said, better than nothing & hopefully will tide me over until the flat wifi gets fixed- which I don't suppose will be any time soon!
It's just been a series of problems since i got back though as Tuesday I started feeling unwell and realised I was coming down with a cold. The headache was starting up, and the sore throat too- so Tuesday evening I went to bed early & yesterday when I woke up I was so much worse. My whole body ached and my throat was swollen to twice the size & my head was pounding! I had Italian culture class 9-11 then literature & cinema 12-1 followed by Italian language 5-7, But I couldn't even think of going to any of it I felt that rough. So i slept until midday and then went to Carrefour around lunchtime to buy some Heinz tomato soup as I was craving it and my throat hurt so much! But they didn't have ANY soup- let alone Heinz! :( bad times. I ended up cooking pasta, and then spent the rest of the day in bed sleeping and reading. I feel a lot better today though- the headache has gone and my voice is starting to come back! Thank god ... As being unwell when you're abroad and not in your own home sucks!
Today's been much more productive though as I finally managed to get my registration sorted with the right amount of credits.... And the right module codes! Finally! I can't believe I've been here nearly 8 weeks and I'm only just a registered student! My god it's been a hassle getting it all sorted- but at least now all I have to do is post off my learning agreement to Leicester and collect my University of Salamanca student card. I tried to collect it today after sorting out the registration , but they wouldn't give it to me as I didn't have a photocopy of my passport with me! Ugh I'll have to go back tomorrow! Why is everything in Spain so complicated? Anyway I'm just in my new favourite tapas bar at the moment on Gran Via having a ración of tortilla and a goats cheese and caramelised onion tostada :) whilst robbing the wifi and writing this blog update! I'm seeing Elizabeth at 3.30 to go for a drink and then I have my Italian language class from 4-6 and then my beginners French from 7-9 :) so a busy busy rest of the day for me! Remember I was saying above how cold the weather has become? Well today it's been RAINING!!!! I heard it start at around 4am and its continued on and off since then! It's the first time I've seen rain here, but somehow Sala still looks pretty even when the sky is grey!
 This weekend is going to be quite quiet- well from today really as  I have tomorrow completely free, and then Lorena is going down to her parents home just east of Madrid for a long weekend, and Laurie and her boyfriend Morgan are going on a trip down to Madrid as well- so I think it'll just be me in the flat alone! Maybe I can actually start doing some Uni work as I can't believe it's nearly November and I haven't done ANYTHING!! Then on Saturday I'm going to a vegetarian restaurant with Kayleigh and some of her friends who are visiting :) that should be really nice! And I think Monday there is a huge Halloween party going on! Exciting times ahead! Then next week Kat is coming to visit from Bordeaux! I really can't wait to see her and show her Sala! :) loveeee xxx

VALLADOLID, UNI HELL & FIESTA FRANCES/BELGA !!!

Sam, Ste, Kayleigh & Me :)

Well here I am halfway through week 7 of my Year Abroad! I have been meaning to write a blog for a few days now, but it’s just been so busy here I haven’t had chance!- especially as the wifi has now gone ! (yes... you heard me right, it’s broken!- will write about that in a bit!) My last weekend was really great as on Saturday I went to Valladolid with a few friends! It’s a city about an hour north of Salamanca by bus, and in the region of Castilla y Leon. It was a much smaller city than I had imagined, and seemed to be really quiet too!- but then again, we were there during the famous siesta hours! First of all we went for a walk in the main park there which was called ‘Campo Grande’, and just wandered around for a while enjoying the gardens. Kayleigh was enjoying it so much she actually stated that she felt like ‘snow-white’ among all the nature! Hahha! There were also peacocks in the park, and I was quite tempted to try and pluck a feather- but was too scared in the end! After our ‘nature experience’ we went for a wander into the city and found the Plaza Mayor. It was quite small, and definitely not as charming as the one in Salamanca- but it was nice all the same. The cathedral was also quite grand- but again, not as big or as magnificent as the one in Salamanca. It is also built with a totally different type of stone to Salamanca’s one. The buildings I most liked though was a church called ‘Nuestra Señora de la Antigua’ as it looked a bit like a fairy-tale castle! The main wall of the University was also really pretty! After wandering around the center, we found a tapas bar and we all had a coke and a ration of tortilla as well as pan de tomate which filled a hole! We then went in search of the beach!! (Yes... I know what you’re thinking..... an inland city with a beach) but it actually does have one! It’s on a riverbank and has sand as well! (check out the photo below!) I wish Sala had a beach! It’s about the only thing that I liked about Valladolid though! 

The river-beach at Valladolid!

Kayleigh, Sam and Me on the Plaza Mayor

All of us in the park!

Main street in Valladolid!

The fairy-tale looking church!

University building!

The cathedral at Valla

Sunday was also a pretty good day as I just slept and relaxed most of the day! (Trust me; it’s needed here in Spain!) Erasmus life is tiring.... it’s not a ‘Holiday’ like my Dad refers to it as! Then in the evening on Sunday Florian and I went to the cinema and we saw ‘One day’ with Anne Hathaway in it! I saw the film before coming to Sala in England, but it was really great to see it in Spanish too- and here you can actually claim that going to the cinema is educational!- It’s Spanish related! Haha! I wonder if my parents would see it that way too! 

Right, now on to the less fun aspects of week 7 of Erasmus life! Modules = the bain of my life! It’s been an absolute nightmare trying to get to the right amount of credits for Semester 1! I have tried so many new modules this week, and I think my favourite time was when Stephanie and I went to try ‘Teoría de la Literatura’ (Theory of Literature). We walked into this room packed with Spanish students about an hour after the class had started, and then just sat down and after about 2 minutes of looking at the board we understood NOTHING and just started giggling! I honestly didn’t think it would be so hard to understand the classes here as my Spanish comprehension level is quite high.... but oh my gosh did I under-estimate that! It’s near on impossible! The lecturers speak so quickly and it’s so difficult to understand what is going on and take notes! But as I said, after a few minutes Steph and I just gave up and resorted to Uni-wifi stealing for the rest of the hour as we were both too embarrassed to get up and walk out after only just getting there! Another incident like this happened yesterday when Steph and I went to try another module. This time we went to ‘Narrativa Española del siglo XX’ (Spanish narrative from the 20^th century) or at least that is what we thought we were in! But after speaking to another Erasmus girl next to me, we realised we were in totally the wrong module- complete waste of an hour!! Then at the end of the lesson (which was a load of students reading poems in Spanish- riveting ......... NOT!!!) I went to speak to the lecturer who explained that there had been a room change for the class we wanted to be in! ----> Dear University of Salamanca.... don’t you believe in altering the online list of modules, times and rooms when there is a change? ARGHHHH! Honestly, the organisation here is a nightmare! :)

Problem number two this week has to be the FRIGGING internet again! If you’re a regular reader of my blog, you’ll know that the other week Laurie and I actually left Salamanca on the hunt for the wifi box, and spent about 8 hours of our day trying to get the internet sorted! And well, after that we actually got it working and we lived happily for a week with the wifi working in the flat- I thought that never again would I have to go to a hostel/cafe for wifi stealing again in Sala! Oh was I wrong though! As here I am, once again, sat in a lovely hostel...... (Note the sarcasm here!). I was just sat in my room on Sunday using the internet to find out information on Pavia (my semester 2 Erasmus destination in Italy) when suddenly google wouldn’t work. My heart literally skipped a beat and NOOOOOOOOO was all I could think! I rebooted my laptop, rebooted the wifi box, typed in the passwords numerous times... and still it wouldn’t work. Lorena phoned Orange, and they were supposed to be sending around someone to fix it within ’72 hours’ of Sunday..... so that means in a few weeks right? – we are in Spain after all! The Spanish are so dammed slow with everything and relaxed! Are they never in a hurry? and is stress an unknown concept here? Sometimes I wish I were in England where people understand the concept of ‘URGENT’ lol. Anyway, today is day 3 of Orange’s promise to send someone around to fix the wifi.... and I bet they won’t come today. We’re meant to be waiting for a phone call stating the time they will come... but I’m not getting my hopes up! I have said to Lorena though that if it’s not done by Monday when I’m back in Sala I will actually lose the plot and put my foot down as I am paying for the wifi now.... and also I’m spending a fortune once again on drinks in cafes! It’s a joke. 

The French and the English last night!

Me & the French girlies!

 

Right, now onto a more fun topic! Last night was amaaaaazing! It was a French/Belgian party at the Irish Rover pub in town, and a big group of us went along and had such a good night! It was free bar too- which means you pay 5 euros and can drink as much beer or sangria as you want! Great eh! They even had face painting of the French/Belgian flags! And towards the end of the night they only played French/Belgian music and at one point I was surrounded by all of my French friends and Florian- our lovely Belgian guy... and they were all singing along to the music so loudly and doing the dance routines as well.... I was so lost, but I just laughed as it looked like they were all under a spell or something doing those dance routines and singing in French! :)

Kayleigh sporting a Belgian flag and Sam with a French one!

Morgan and Laurie! woooo viva Francia!

Rach, Me, Kayleigh and a random guy... I think he was Salamantino!?

Florian and Me :) FRANCIAAA flag! We didn't see any Belgian ones! :(

IRISH ROVER!!! so so so busy!

Laurie and Me :)

Right, that’s all from me for a few days as I’m off back home to the UK tomorrow for a long weekend! I can’t wait to just relax and spend time with my family! Then it’s back to ‘MI VIDA ERASMUS’ on Monday! :) so hasta luego for now! xxxx