After breakfast, it was about a 2 hour bus ride to Salamanca. Most of us just slept. When we got there, the families were waiting for us. One by one we were called to meet the families for the first time and honestly, the waiting for your name to be called was one of the most nerve-wrecking experiences I've had...who knows why. You just want to make a good first impression and you're also meeting the family you will live with for the next 5 months and you've never seen or spoken to them before. It's scary.

My family is fantastic. It has only been a few days, but they are so kind. That day, the first thing I noticed was the tennis rackets and tennis balls in the back of their car. We drove to their apartment and the mother gave me time alone to unpack and organize. The house here consists of me, the mother, father, and the mother's mother (abuela).

The abuela made me lunch consisting of arroz con pollo which was amazing but I had a stomach ache after so I napped. I think it was from the travel and dehydration and exhaustion accompanied with a change of food.

That evening, the Emory students had a meeting so Rosa, my host mom here, walked me to the Plaza (seen below) because after the meeting, we would have to know how to get home ourselves. Now, everyday, on my way to class, I walk through this amazing plaza and it's absolutely breathtaking each time.

After the meeting, most of us walked over to Cortés Ingles which is like a giant supermarket plus Macy's plus every other store ever in one giant store. It was about a 25 minute walk from the Emory Center but we all needed necessities like shampoo and soap and basics.

Somehow, despite it being dark and me being alone for most of the way, I found my way back to the apartment without any major issues while relying on only my map my host mom gave me (no international data = no google maps....my biggest fear).

Around 9 pm, we ate dinner. This is normal--breakfast before work/school, lunch and a break between 2 and 3 pm, and dinner around 9 or 10 pm. Rosa made me noodle soup with hot dogs and bread and an omelette. It was a lot of food but I was starving because my stomach is used to eating around 6 pm.

I gave Rosa the small gifts I had brought them from home--two Cubs baseballs. I think she liked them but I'm not sure if she understood what I was trying to tell her in Spanish--my Spanish around the family is not great. But I have lots of time to improve--5 months.

It has only been a week since that day I moved in, but it feels like ages. We've done so much and every day includes new adventures--some of which I will try to write about here in the coming articles.

It's a whole new world here and I absolutely love it. There's so much good to come this semester. So many adventures.