It's time for another update!!

On Sunday, after our second meal at Manolo's (this time, I ordered pan-fried pork instead of whole fish- much better!), Peñi and Antonio showed Kristen and I Itaroa, which is one of the two malls in town. It's ridiculous! It has most of the popular stores plus others (H&M, Zara, Mango, Bershka, Ulanka...  y mucho más), but that's only the beginning... upon entering, we saw a big movie theater and upstairs there's a food court (which includes Burger King and KFC), a huge bowling alley, an arcade, some kids' rides, a kids' playland, and a small kids' indoor amusement park (parents often take their kids there on Sundays for entertainment). Then, just outside, you can see over to an ice skating rink, an indoor pool, and an exercise center. We also went down a stairwell from the main level and saw an indoor go-kart track! The mall wasn't even overly huge, but it had everything imaginable. We even saw a "Salon de Juego," which Kristen and I have seen various times throughout Pamplona... they all have giant fruits on the front, so we just assumed they were a smoothie or juice shop (juice is "jugo" in Spanish). Well, we mentioned this to Peñi, who laughed a lot, because juego means "game" ... so a "Salon de Juego" is actually a casino ... hahaha

It's interesting how SO much of the popular music here is American... I guess about half of the top songs are from the United States, and half are Spanish. I've heard music by Vampire Weekend, MGMT, Mika, All-American Rejects, Lady Gaga, and other pop artists in stores, markets, restaurants... places I wouldn't have really expected that kind of music to be played. It's amazing how much the United States' culture influences other countries...

Classes are still pretty easy. Conversation and grammar are my favorite because my professor for them, Miguel, is wonderful. He might be one of my favorite teachers of all time ... he always has so much energy, uses sound affects to try to explain what a word means to us (like for horse, he galloped and neighed! hehehe), explains things really clearly, and is just a lot of fun to be around. Yesterday in conversation we played sharades! I had to act out "... estaba en el zoo, haciendo fotos a los elefantes y las jirafas." (I was in the zoo, taking pictures of elephants and giraffes) Such an awesome way to spend a class period. :)

Everyone here is so skinny and in shape, but I'm starting to understand why... they eat a lot, but the food is really healthy, they rarely use butter and use lots of oil, don't eat many sweets or desserts, and walk EVERYWHERE. After class today Kristen and I walked towards Casco Viejo to register for a Chachacha, Bichata, and Salsa dance class at La Casa de Juventud and then went to the bus station to buy bus tickets (explanation to come) ... by the time we got back home, we had walked about three hours and hardly even noticed. I've noticed that my jeans seem looser, and it's not just me who's noticed...

So Kristen and I decided yesterday that we want to go to Paris and booked tickets last night for the train!!! We're leaving after class on Wednesday, February 10th and are taking the overnight train back on Saturday night (February 13th). We'll take the bus to San Sebastian on the way, then the Topo train to Hendaya, then another train to Paris. On the way back we'll do something similar... we're going to book hostels soon for three nights. I can't believe I'm going to France! Paris, "the city of lights," will be breathtaking. Especially around Valentine's Day... I can't wait :) AND, we booked all of our transportation for about $75 and hostels will be about the same. When else could you go to Paris for a long weekend for about $200??

Here are some random photos!

(where Kristen and I sleep)

(this was at an "American party" that took place on Friday...)

(Maria folds and irons all of my clothes... it's ridiculous. She even wanted to iron my t-shirts... here's how I found my pajamas and socks yesterday when I got home from school. I have NO idea how she folded my socks that way... )

(Peñi gave Kristen and I each a handmade pin to put on our jackets as a "welcoming gift!" Mine consists of a red and blue flower each made of cloth, y ambos con lunares! She knows I love "lunares" (polka dots) so thought of me and gave me a flower pin full of them :) The red one even matches my red polka dot umbrella that I bought for the weather here...)

I can't believe I left familiar Minnesota 3 weeks ago. It's gone so fast... and yet being home seems like a lifetime ago. Like, how could I not have known about this lifestyle that I'm so immersed in now? It's quite amazing.