Hello all!  Things are going well here in Sevilla.  Classes are going pretty well, and we have almost completed our first 5-day week of school! ¡Olé!  On Wednesdays, our group has, what we call, Encuentro, which is basically a little chapel or youth group type of service.  We start with worship and then our Student Ministries Director will share a message.  I have been participating in the worship band for Encuentro by playing the keyboard.  And although I have much experience playing the piano, I usually read from music and do not have much experience playing from a chord progression.  So it has been cool that I have the opportunity to learn that and work on that skill.  The past two weeks after Encuentro, a couple girls who live in my area have gone to eat at a place called Cien Montaditos, or 100 little sandwiches.  They have 100 different options of mini sandwiches and on Wednesdays and Sundays, each is 1 euro! 

 

Last week, we only had four days of classes, because we had an excursion to Córdoba on Friday.  It took about 2 hours to get there by bus.  In Córdoba, we visited la mezquita, or the mosque.  Before it was a mosque, it had been a Catholic basilica.  The Arabic part of the building was originally constructed during the 8^th century, and it was later modified and expanded during the 9^th and 10^th centuries.  Since then, it was again taken over by others, and it now has a Catholic church in it.  But the mosque still exists, so we were able to see the Arabic architecture.  It was cool to be able to see the architectural designs that we’ve been learning about in my art class.  After spending some time in the mosque, we visited a Jewish synagogue.  We then had a few hours of free time, so a few of us found a sunny plaza to sit in and we ate our bocadillos (a sack lunch packed by our señora).  The sun felt really good because it was a bit chilly out in the shade, and especially inside the stone mosque.  The weather has been pretty nice here, though.  We’ve had days with highs close to 70!  But usually that seems to mean that it may get that warm for a couple hours in the afternoon.  It’s still chilly in the mornings and evenings when we’re walking around outside.  But, I’m still thankful for it, since it’s warmer than being at Taylor J

On Saturday, I went with a couple girls and we visited the Cathedral here in Sevilla.  It is incredible to see the size of that building and how big it is inside!  It’s cool to think that that building was created as a place to worship and give glory to God.  And as incredible as it is, it was created by humans.  How much more amazing it will be when we are in heaven experiencing God’s glory in paradise and living in His presence!

This week, we had our first flamenco class!  We learned las sevillanas, a five-step dance move, and we had a good time!  Toward the end of the semester we will have a fiesta to show off our flamenco moves!  On Tuesday night, we had a noche de tapas.  Tapas are basically like appetizers, and they are common to have in Spain.  We split into smaller groups and were taken to dinner by 2 Spaniards.  My group bought lots of different tapas dishes and shared them between our tables.  They were quite delicious.  We didn’t get home until about 11:30…and that was early.  One of the other groups was taken to two different tapas places, ice cream and then tea!  In typical Spanish fashion, they didn’t get home until 1:30am. 

I hope you’re all doing well.  I appreciate your thoughts and prayers!