I Have Arrived!

Well folks, it's official....Jordan Carlton is in Spain! Keep your fingers crossed everyone, I'm going to be the US ambassador until August. Kind of scary, right? haha

But I'm sitting here at my desk (at 2:30 am, dang jet lag), in my own room, using wireless Internet, and just generally being a very happy guy. It's really hard to make myself believe that yes, I am in fact in Spain. After all these years of wanting to come, I have finally made it.

Now, before you go and get your hopes up, no, I haven't taken any pictures yet. Life has been one huge whirlwind since the second I got here, so I just really haven't had any time at all. No worries though, if you know me well at all, you know that I'll be snapping pictures a mile a minute very soon.

So one of the things I did on an earlier post was list my top 5 things I'm worried about. I feel like it would be interesting to address those from a "first glance of Spain" viewpoint and maybe again later on.

1. First of all, I was nervous about the language. And let me tell you, it was a legit concern. Who knew that the only thing they spoke here was Spanish? haha I'm learning little by little that in some cases, my Spanish is a lot better than I thought it was. Yet in other cases, I have so much to learn. And living with a host dad that doesn't speak a word of English (except of course, for the word "Welcome," which was the ultimate tease. Dad:"Welcome Jordan!" Jordan:"Oh good, you speak English then?" Dad:"rattleoffatonofspanishgoingamileaminuteandhopefullyyouunderstand" Jordan:"Oh, guess not......") isn't the easiest thing I've ever done. But that's the reason I came here - to push myself. And hopefully when this is all said and done with I'll walk away with something amazing. And I'll have the Spanish skills to prove it.

2. The second thing was the host family. And oh man, what a host family do I have. I'm pretty sure this guy is rich, because he has every electronic luxury known to man, which is a big rarity in Spain. The fact that I have my own room AND wireless internet is amazing, and it's something that extremely few other students get. Regardless, like I said, he doesn't speak a word of English, other than "Welcome." And that word isn't exactly helpful after day 1. But he makes sure we get plenty of practice and he is extremely patient, so it makes for a good situation. I still haven't met his kids, but I'm sure that will come soon.

3. The school is absolutely beautiful! Really old and kinda small, but very beautiful. I still haven't had classes, and orientation comes bright and early tomorrow morning at 8:30, so I'll know more then.

4. Classes I still know nothing about. But if speaking in them is as difficult as speaking out in the world, things could be crazy for awhile.

5. And who could forget the pickpockets? Other than being incredibly OCD about checking my stuff over and over and over again, it hasn't been too bad. As far as I know nothing has gone up missing.

So there you have it. What used to be things to be nervous about are now just a little old part of life. No big deal, right?

Other than a little culture shock, so far nothing has been too crazy. Life here is much slower paced as siestas and a nice, long afternoon cafe or chocolate are standard. Hopefully I'll catch up to life here and learn to blend in. Until then, I'll just be content being the obvious extranjero (foreigner) and keep on chugging along.

But just know that things are going pretty great so far and you all have nothing to worry about! Spain is a beautiful, welcoming place and I know this is going to be the experience of a lifetime.

Love you all!

T Minus 24 Hours

The big day is finally here! All these months and years of planning are finally going to pay off as I make my way into the wild unknown of Spain.

I would be lying if I said I wasn't a little nervous.

But if I had to make a ratio, I would say I was about 85% excited and 15% nervous. Or maybe 70% excited and 30% nervous. Or maybe 95% nervous and 5% about to throw up.

Back off, it's tough to figure out. :)

The next time I write on this, I'll be in Spain! Wish me luck, folks. I'm on my way!

Finally.....

I'm not going to be homeless!!

You know, getting a host family for study abroad feels a lot like an adoption service. You put yourself out there, give a few pages of information about yourself and your personality, and add on a few pictures to show what you look like.

And waiting so long to hear from my host family feels like no one wants you. It's a very disheartening and nerve-wracking thing.

However, the long wait is OVER! I received a super nice email from my host dad today, and he sounds pretty darn cool. His name is Luis Antonio Delgado Señas and he is right around the age of my own dad. He has two sons, Guillermo, who is 9, and Mario, who is 7. Apparently they're this really tight-knit family that spends tons of time together. He cooks for them every night and helps them with their homework. They play soccer on the weekends and go see plays and movies every Saturday and Sunday. They help plant trees along the Río Henares. They're the picture of the perfect spanish family.

Or so it seems. :) Guess I won't know until I get there.

Regardless, I finally have a family. Someone wants me. Or maybe someone is being forced to take me. Either way, it feels good to have a home.

Two days and counting.....

One Week And Counting...

Well folks, it's official. I only have 7 days until I jet off for the land of bull fights, flamenco, and paella. España is calling my name and I'm getting anxious to finally get there. It's been nice to be home with the family and it's been great to finally tie up all of my loose ends from the school year, but I'm ready for my adventure.

Since I don't really have much information about Spain, my host family, the school, or anything else, I'm starting to get somewhat nervous. And since I don't have much else to talk about except how nervous I am, I think I'll list the top 5 things I'm nervous about. So here we go:

1. The language - Spanish is a language that I have studied for years. All throughout high school and almost every semester of college has been peppered with verb conjugations, sentence structures, and enough vocabulario to make my head spin. Yet even after all of the studying, the quizzes, the tests, etc., I still feel like I can barely ask where the bathroom is. Since I'll be living where Spanish is the absolute only thing that is spoken, I've gotta say I'm a bit scared. Will my habilidades de español live up to my expectations? Time can only tell.

2. The host family - It's funny how I'm a week away and yet I still have no clue who I'll be living with. Will it be an old cougar who smokes three packs a day? Or will it be a family of 10 with kids of all ages? Will they be catholic? Protestant? Muslim? Will they be patient with my undoubtedly non-stop mistakes with their language? Will they welcome me and treat me like a member of the family? Will they feed me? These questions are only the tip of the iceberg as I try and prepare myself to live with a set of perfect strangers for the next 3 months.

3. The school - A centuries old universidad. Classes all in spanish. A student population twice the size of OU. Strike one, two, and three. I only hope that the teachers have learned to respect the language barrier.

4. The classes - Introducción al mundo de los negocios (Introduction to the business world), Espanol avanzado (Advanced Spanish), Composicion Conversacion y Lectura: La Espana actual a traves de los medios (Composition, Conversation, and Literature: Present-day Spain through the media), La globalizacion y la economia espanola (Globalization and the spanish economy). These classes would be hard enough in English. Enough said there.

5. The pickpockets - Supposedly Madrid is home to some of the most notorious thieves in the entire world. I'm way too naive to be able to compete with these guys. I only hope I can remember to not be too unobservant of my surroundings and of my belongings.

So I would say those are definitely my top five nerve-wrackings things. Of course, there are about a hundred more things I'm unbelievable excited for, a lot of which are also on the above list. I've got a lot of hope riding on this trip and I'm pretty sure it's not going to let me down.

Solamente tiempo dirá, ¿no?

Yep, only time will tell.

The Only Thing That Is Constant Is Change

You know, I must have heard this quote about a million times. And like all things, it lost it's profound-ness over time. Yet right now, as my whole world has been rocked in every way possible, I'm beginning to see it's significance all over again.

Who would have ever thought that I would leave Calvin, come to a huge university not knowing anyone, and make some of the most amazing friends that I could have ever imagined? I definitely never saw it coming. But it's amazing how time blindsides you when you're not paying attention.

Time is a sneaky little sucker.

And now, as time is continuing on it's merry way, life as I know it has changed completely. My best friends, those who I have come to love very much, have all moved on to bigger and better things. I'm excited and happy for them. I just wish they didn't have to leave me. :(

However, I know that I'm also about to embark on some amazing adventures. Spain is in t minus 15 days and I can't even describe how excited I am for that. In fact, that is my main reason for starting this blog. To keep me in touch with everyone back home. And to keep me sane. (hopefully)

So, on any note, that is my life at the moment. Still reeling from the end of life as I know it. Yet excited beyond all belief for what life still has in store.

2008 is proving to be a very interesting year.