Vale Tío!

Your first impression as you walk about in Barcelona is....vas is das? Haha, just kidding, but it really is among those lines. For a native Spanish speaker, it is obvious that the language being spoken is not Spanish, but Catalán. So what is Catalán? It is best described as a mesh of French and Spanish. It is truly beautiful. I consider the aforementioned languages the best out there, so it is pretty much ideal to me! I will say that it is too different from Spanish to be understood. As Dr. Wasser wisely stated, Portuguese is an easier tongue than Catalán to decipher!

On Friday morning, Carlos, Stephanie, and I were all packed and ready to take off to the motherland-essentially! As my second to the last trip for the semester, I am filled with great pride at the accomplishment of packing my weekend necessities in NOT a weekender duffle bag BUT a simple backpack. That's right, my precious Plum (violet Northface backpack) even had room for the souvenirs that were to be bought! Expecting the weather to be sunny and warm, I also had the advantage to literally pack light.

Well, that backfired. We blindly expected the weather to accommodate our visit. That was not the case. Catalunya was both rainy and chilly-less than ideal weather for our planned endeavors. However, that was of little hindrance for our strolls about the city. Carlos, having visited during Spring Break, had high expectations of returning and guiding us about his "home." He did an amazing job at guiding us around the beautiful city. It was rich in architectural detail and color-two things I have high regards for and more festivities to which my pupils took delight in! The liveliness of the people was also so great. Everyone was very welcoming, and the endlessness of the nights reminded me a lot of my Mexican ways which can easily be attributed to Spanish influence. Barcelona is a place I can definitely live in and never fully discover-a priority of mine for the future since I easily bore by routine. (*wink, wink to endless possibilities*) There, I felt infinite. Rain, snow, hail, or whatever else could not dim the vibrance of the landscapes.

Vale Tío, hasta pronto!

Jessica.

My best friends (: