Typical Day: Pamplona Edition

I honestly cannot believe that I’ve been in Spain for nearly two weeks; it’s incredible how fast time flies!  Now that I’m acclimated and have somewhat developed a daily routine, I figured I’d give you a brief description of a day in my Spanish life: Pamplona edition.

Weekday Schedule

8:45-> wake-up and get ready for the day

9:15-> breakfast (chocolate croissant and cafe con leche, best combination ever)

9:30-> grammar/conversation/culture class at the University of Navarra

1:30-> lunch, also known as “la comida” at the university’s cafeteria

2:30-> afternoon siesta (did I mention how much I love Spain)

4:00-> daily excursion: activities thus far have included attending a rumba class, touring the old part of the city (Casco Viejo), running with the bulls etc... 

6:00-> random Pamplona explorations, almost always involving some tapas

9:00-> dinner at the cafeteria next to our apartments

11:00-> going out in the city or just simply hanging around in the hotel

Weekend Schedule

Saturdays-> Each of the three Saturdays during our orientation, the coordinators (Julian, Rafa, Nakene, Iranzu, and Miguel) have planned excursions to nearby touristy destinations.  Last Saturday, we took a day-trip to San Sebastian, one of the most beautiful beach cities that I’ve ever been to.  This upcoming Saturday, we’re taking a bus to a small city in France and the following Saturday we’re heading north to Bilboa.  Can’t wait!

Sundays-> siesta, siesta, siesta

Although I’m beyond excited to relocate to La Coruña and meet my host family, I’ve truly loved every moment of my time in Pamplona.  Not only is it an awesome city, but I have some great company.  As I mentioned earlier, Pamplona (and the University of Navarra) is the host site for all the Holy Cross students who are studying abroad in Spain.  It’s been such a blast spending time with everyone, because even though Holy Cross can seem as small as a high school, it can be difficult to branch out and meet some new kids.

To end the post, I’d like to share some rather stressful news that I learned during my culture class at the University.  As we were going through some cultural differences, my teacher casually mentioned that it’s rude to ask to go to the bathroom during class.  For those of you who do not know, I arguably have the smallest bladder, so I foresee some future struggles.  Guess I won’t be drinking anytime before 2pm!

Quick shout-out to everyone moving in at HC (or if you’re abroad/away, safe travels/hope you settle in smoothly).  Last but certainly not least, prayers to my family and friends in Rhode Island as Irene approaches.

Running with the bulls, nbd.

The Ayuntamiento, or city hall, of Pamplona.

Our rumba/salsa dance instructors. 

Pamplona's infamous Plaza de Toros.

Spain study abroad group in San Sebastian.

Playa de la Concha, San Sebastian.

San Juan de Pie de Puerto, France!

¡¡Estamos Aquí!!

After a full 24 hour day of traveling, I finally arrived in Pamplona, Spain on Sunday afternoon.  I honestly cannot believe that I’m here and that my year abroad has actually started.  I’m so happy and thankful to be here, and I’m so excited to start exploring Pamplona and all that it has to offer.  As a quick reminder, Holy Cross has a special program at La Universidad de Navarra (Pamplona) for all the students studying abroad in Spain.  The program is basically designed to acclimate us to the Spanish language and culture.  After the three week program, we will be living and studying in our respective host universities for the rest of the academic year.   

I know that I haven’t updated the blog in a while, so I’ll give you a brief run down of my last week in the States.  On August 6th, my family threw me a farewell party which included my favorite American food (and people) as well as a midnight impromptu dance-off to house, latin, and disco music.  Typical Tasca family fun.  It was great spending some time with my entire family, as well as some close friends from home and Holy Cross for one last hoorah.  The rest of the week included jam-packed days of running last minute errands and saying my final goodbyes.  At the end the week, my family ate out on DePasquale Square, an Italian-reminiscent street corner of Federal Hill, Providence.  It was a picture perfect night with delicious food and the best company: there’s nothing more I could ask for!  The next afternoon, we finally finished packing, just one hour before I left for the airport.  To be honest, I didn’t realize that saying goodbye to my family was going to be one of the toughest things of my life.  As my mother blessed me with her Holy Water, we all started crying as it finally hit home that I’d be gone for a year.  My mom later described the scene as “you would have thought we all took a vacation to Niagara Falls.”  After one final group hug, I left for Logan to start my year in Spain.

Although traveling to Pamplona took a full 24 hours and included: 3 planes, 3 Continents, 1 bus ride and a taxi to our hotel, for the most part it went pretty smoothly, aside from the fact that they lost my luggage (but it was found and actually delivered to my room!). Traveling with Claire, Ali, Maggie and Eva was a lot of fun and it was great to get to know them even better since after Pamplona they (as well as Steve, Briana, Katherine and Kendra) will be studying with me in La Coruña.

Even though I’ve been in Spain for merely three days, I already love it and I’m so glad that I decided to study abroad.  I’m certainly no expert on the Spanish language nor can I rattle off a bunch of facts about the culture, however in my short time here I’ve recognized that the Spanish live well and truly enjoy every moment.  Waking up to a chocolate croissant complemented with cafe con leche and ending the night with tapas and a San Miguel beer in La Plaza Mayor de Lo Viejo (“old Pamplona”) is not too shabby; I’m really looking forward to making that a regular! 

Not even half of what I brought...

Ernest Hemingway's hang out spot in Pamplona.

“You’re Studying WHERE!?”

Seeing that I’m leaving in 10 days (where did the summer go?), my trip to Spain has been the forefront in just about every conversation that I’ve had in the past couple days.  Naturally, I’ll get the normal pre-departure questions: “Are you excited!?” “Have you started packing??” and last, but certainly not least, “Where are you going, Madrid or Barcelona!?”  Typical responses are the following: “Yes, I’m really excited!” “No, I haven’t started packing” and finally, “Uhhh, I’m studying in a city called La Coruña, you probably don’t know anything about it so yeahh... it’s near Portugal and it’s on the water though!”  Since the city is not that well known, the last question is extremely awkward to answer, but that’s kind of a good thing and partly why I’m really looking forward to this experience.  The philosophy of Holy Cross’ Study Abroad Office is to send students (in particular, those that are learning a language) to small, non-touristy cities; the office believes that students learn best in small environments, and after talking to numerous study abroad alumni, it’s 100 percent true.

Back to La Coruña.  Although I’ve actually never been there, I’ve seen tons of pictures and it looks awesome, so I can’t wait to call it home.  In brief, La Coruña is one of the major urban/port cities in Galicia, a north-western region in Spain that is very well known for its green landscapes (sort of like Ireland from what I hear) and its local pride.  The city is completely surrounded by water, hence why it’s the home of two popular beaches and the busiest receiving port in the area.  I couldn’t be happier with my host site and I can’t wait to keep you posted on what it’s like when I’m actually living there and can see it for myself.

As far as personal updates, I’ve been doing really well!  Summer is certainly starting to wind down since I’ve finished my internship (OCG, I’ll miss you guys!), the cousin soccer team has sadly been eliminated from the indoor league, and I’ve started to make plans for my final 10 days in the United States.  Most exciting news is that I’ve checked something off my bucket-list: running in the blessing of the fleet, a 10 mile scenic road race in Narragansett, RI.  Below are some pictures from last Friday night’s event!

My mom and I after I crossed the finish line!

My dad, me, and my sister Eliana shortly after the race was over.  Special shout-outs to my cousins Veronica and Gabriela, and my Auntie Jakie for coming to cheer me on, as well as my sister Jacklyne, her fiance Mike, and my brother Chris for supporting me through everything!

Andy (my running buddy and Study Abroad Spain alum) and myself.