Today will be another day without photos, meaning my social interactions were the most interesting parts of my day.

I had my first Técnicas de Comunicación class today at the Tourism School. Maria motioned for me to come sit up front with her, thank god...I finally have a friend! We chatted for a while...but she is so awfully hard to understand. I notice myself just nodding and saying "si" a lot. I wonder if she can detect the confusion in my face...?

I did learn that she has a dolphin tattoo on her back (and she wants a butterfly on her leg), she has a fifteen-year-old sister who she absolutely adores (she whipped out her phone to show me a picture), she loves nature, she is 18 but turns 19 in a week, her boyfriend Javier is 22 (she showed me a revealing photo of him) and I would have learned a lot more had I understood her accent! Murcianos often don't pronounce the "s" sound (mas o menos= ma o meno).

The class seems interesting and potentially helpful for my future and professional career, though I think it will focus on Spanish techniques of communication. For example, my profesora mentioned how acting like you are at home (propping up your feet and getting comfortable) displays a lack of respect when done in public.
I laughed to myself; this is done all the time in the US.
I wonder if I will have the opportunity to share cultural differences from home....or might this perpetuate the Ugly American stereotype? haha

After the two-hour class ended, I had an hour break before Turismo Sostenible. I decided to walk across Puente Viejo and look for a Caja Murcia bank (I have to deposit money into the ErasmusStudentNetwork account so that I can go on the Granada trip next weekend). I walked pretty far and couldn't find one, so I ran into a coffee shop to escape the windy cold.

I ordered a cafe con leche with 2 mini bocadillos (little sandwiches with ham and cheese) for 2,5 euros. The bocadillos were made on a sweet bread/roll, were heated up, and tasted like what I imagine a bite of heaven might taste like. As I was leaving, I told the man behind the counter that the bocadillo was delicious and that the ham in Spain is just amazing. He asked if I studied here or was just visiting, so we chatted for a minute or two. I told him that I would bring my mom here when my parents come to visit because she would love to look at the huge selection of teas. He gave me a loyalty card (buy five coffees and get one free--definitely will get used) and oddly, a travel-size toothpaste for "my travels." It made me so happy that this man was so nice! I will definitely patronize "Saborea Te y Cafe" on my tourism school days!

Turismo Sostenible was much better today because I could actually understand most of it! He talked about several concepts/organizations/treaties that I had learned about in previous classes at NCSU (like the Brundtland Report, which he couldn't pronounce at all). This teacher is probably my favorite; he laughs and smiles the whole time! He's very personable and seems to really get the students interested. When he came across English words in his lecture notes, he got all shy and tried to whisper them ("World Wildlife Fund"). I thought it was so funny--I wanted to help him out so bad!

Not worth going into detail about:

• Since I had another hour break, I just headed over to the Merced Campus and ran into some of my international friends who were sitting on the steps outside the library.

• In my history class, we started learning about La Primera Guerra Mundial (WWI).

The people that I befriended in my Historia practica class last night are also in my Geografía practica class, so they helped me out again. We are supposed to do our practicas in pairs, so two of them asked the teacher if it was okay for me to join their group (so nice!). The professor said I should stop by his office tomorrow so he can judge my level of Spanish...otherwise I would work by myself and [I think] he might grade me easier. All of the practicas are due at the end of the semester at the final exam, but I wouldn't hate having someone to work with!

After class Natalia, Jenn and I finally went to Carrefour. I knew that it was supposed to be like a Walmart, but still...I was surprised! I found the things here that I couldn't find anywhere else (bagels, Ranch dressing, Cheddar cheese, a fajita kit (Mexican food)). I bought sooo much yummy food. I can't wait to try everything. Yummmmmmm. :)