Important stuff first before you lose interest. OK, if you want to call me on my cell phone, the string of numbers you dial is [phone number]. Remember that we are 7 hours ahead here, so when itīs noon in Dallas, itīs time for Spainīs The Weakest Link here (7 PM). And if you think itīll be funny to call me during dinner while itīs 4 AM here, know that I turn my phone off at night because Spanish people donīt know how to make phone batteries that last more than 3 days straight. My address, if you want to send me Skittles or Gummi Bears or cold hard cash, is [address]

So we went to Segovia on the 24th. We had to meet at the school so early to leave, and it was about an hour and a half by bus to get there. We went through a tunnel that goes through the Sierra Madrid or something like that (mountain range nearby, which is why itīs windy here all the time). It was bitterly cold in Segovia; apparently itīs always cold there. We saw a church outside the city first. It was built by knights Templar of the Malta Order. It had a unique structure: octagonal, and with the main altar not facing the entrace but around the corner. The Knights built it after returning from the Crusades and it resembles the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem (where Jesus is buried?) Up the crooked rough stairs was a small room with what looked like a sacrificial stone table. Chuck told me to make myself comfortable while he got the knife. :P The funny thing was that, like everything weīve seen, the architecture had Arabic influences (spade-shaped windows, floral wall motifs) even though they had returned from crusading. The church is a private one and is not used for Masses or anything. It was blessed by the Pope in 1252. Segovia also has a great specimen of Roman aqueducts, right in the middle of the cityīs plaza. The were built to carry water down from the mountains to the city. No glue or cement holds the bricks together and engineers havenīt had to make any repairs or restorations to them. In fact, they could still function today if they needed to. We also saw the Alcázar, a castle used by the Castillian kings before Spain was a country. Inside there was a row of very short suits of armor, reflecting the height of people of the age. We all took pictures with them. It was weird to see Chuck and Eric towering over these knights. There was a painting of Isabel of Castilla in another room. She was crowned in that castle and later married Ferdinand of Aragon to unite the country of Spain and drive the Muslims out of Spain (the Reconquest). 1492 was the discovery of America and the reconquest of the last Muslim-held city in Spain. In another painting we saw, there was definitely a girl in the corner of the painting with no eyes. It was creepy and we took pictures of it. We also saw the armory and that was cool. Plus there was a tower that they said we could climb to before leaving if we wanted. So there I go. The sign at the bottom said 140 steps. No problem, right? Wow, these were tall stone steps in a one-and-a-half-person-wide, winding, dark staircase. Pretty creepy and cramped and tiring. I was about to just head back when I encountered friends coming down who said it wasnīt much further. Well, the stairs come out on the roof, rather than some tower chamber. There was a great view of the rest of the city, so I rested with Lauren and we took pictures of each other. Before we went to the castle, we had a lunch break. I decided to get lost in the city again, but it wasnīt really as much fun as in Toledo. I ended up making a rather large arc and was heading back towards the main plaza when I encountered Jeromiah, Lauren V., Mary, and Joanna. They had stopped at one place and some old man asked them if they wanted some good, cheap food. Well, weīre all college students here, so they said yeah, and were following him who knows where. So I went with them. We ended up at this small restaurant on a side street. One thing they have here in Spain is the menu del día. Basically itīs a cheap alternative to buying things a la carte. For a low price, you choose from a small selection of starters, entrees, and desserts and you get low-quality wine. So we all got that. For 7 euros, I had my first paella, filets of grilled ham or something with potatoes, and a slice of flan-ish cake with strawberry topping. It was all very good and not a bad deal at all. (Tried the wine, didnīt like it, got a Coke). Apparently the thing to eat in Segovia is lamb or roasted piglet...but oh well, missed out on that, so sad.

My seņoraīs grandkids Daniel and Lucas (5 and 3) were visiting all weekend, and I donīt like little children, so I shut myself in my small little room and napped or read or listened to the Spanish techno channel on the radio or watched the light move along the wall as the day passed. They were loud and running and fought and blah blah blah. Lucas has coppery red hair and no one seems to know where that came from. Later on I met her other grandkids, one of which has startingly blue eyes. But at least one good thing came of all of it: I got to see Monsters, Inc. in Spanish.

We all went out to eat at a really good Mexican place near the soccer stadium, called Sí, Seņor. I sat with Kristin and Chuck and an already tipsy Jeromiah. Well it was a pretty interesting night. Shelly bought a shot of something and was rewarded with a kiss and a lap dance by one of our waiters. Needless to say, at least three other girls in the group bought shots. One girl took off her bra and another was swinging it around before a different waiter took it and put it on and walked around the restaurant. I just sipped my Coke and watched all this. (The group ordered pitchers of margaritas. I tried it...probably would be good without alcohol, lol). The group got drunker and drunker and louder and you know. Melissa made me get up and dance with her in the aisle. Chuck feels responsible for the girls in situations like these (always makes sure they get home safely and stuff, very chivalrous). He was not enjoying the display so he slipped me money under the table and announced that he was going to the bathroom...and took his jacket with him. Later the girls were upset with him for leaving. I eventually left too because I wanted to get home before the Metro closed. Turns out I missed the real drama. When the check came, it was much much more than people expected and there was a lot of arguing and shouting. Interesting night.

The next night, Paulencia, Lauren, and I planned to go see the stage version of My Fair Lady. Kristin and Chuck came with us. We bought the cheapest tickets. It was a lot of fun. I had to explain to Chuck what was going on. I had seen the movie a few times (love Audrey Hepburn) but Iīd never seen it done live. It was all in Spanish, of course. The funny thing is that things donīt rhyme in Spanish the way they do in English, so they had to change stuff. Like instead of "wouldnīt it be loverly?" it was something like "to have such happiness". And instead of "Show Me" it was "Do it". And since they donīt pronounce the h in Spanish, instead of the sentence about Hartford, Hereford and Hampshire, it became one about a Japanese garden (un jardín japonés). And instead of "How kind of you to let me come" it was "Itīs a pleasure to be here". Good times. Enjoyed it.

The next day (for yīall) was the Super Bowl. Over here it started at midnight. We all went to the Hard Rock Café. (Hmm...big gathering of Americans...safe?) The place was packed. It was fun talking to everyone and hearing the National Anthem again. (When I registered at the Embassy, it was so weird seeing the US flag flying here in Spain) I only stayed for the first half of the game. Everyone was rooting for the Raiders but oh well.

Iīve had to count my trips on the metro and buses here because we buy 10-ride passes for 5.20 euros. Well we can get monthly passes too but they said to wait till February because we got here in mid-Jan and it wouldnīt be worth it. Since Iīm under 21, I actually get to pay like 10 bucks less. Good, huh? Yeah, well, hereīs why not. Paulencia and I go to a tobacco shop to buy one. Sheīs over 21 and gets hers right away. But I find out that I have to wait 10 or 12 days for mine to come back in the mail to the tobacco shop! So here I am two days into February still having to conserve my rides.

Paulencia and I went to The Phantom of the Opera in Spanish too. It was good times. Cheap seats again with a good view. Not as good as when I saw it in London and Dallas, but I had fun. She had never seen it, so I was explaining what I remembered. She liked it a lot; said that hearing the theme song made her want to run across the stage screaming. :) Paulencia is fun.

The next day I decided to walk around the city gathering info on traveling to other parts of Spain and Europe. Well, that was pretty much a waste of time since all of the places I went to had booklets on travel packages rather than info on the particular destinations. Plus I didnīt know it would be freaking cold outside when I left. Seriously...snow and ice on the ground. But I bought a new jacket (Courtney will be happy to hear that...she counseled me to burn the purple one). The whole month of January here is time for rebajas (i.e., big sales) and this was the last day. Well this one is much heavier than the purple one, so I think Iīll still be using that. But this one is black and very European-looking (I am seriously the only person out of the 30 of us who does not own a black peacoat. Whatever...I tried one on at Old Navy and it wasnīt comfortable at all). Plus it goes with my new black Burberry of London gloves. lol The only thing is it smells funny, so I put it outside for a day.

The day after that was when Paulencia and I went to a HUGE tourism fair in Madrid. The pavilions were packed with people and stands. I got so many booklets from all the places I want to see: Belgium, Luxembourg, The Netherlands, Scotland, Ireland, Austria, Germany, even the Scandinavian countries. My shoulders ached from carrying it all around. We took a break and ate little mini-waffles from the Belgium stand and drank some lemon-lime whiskey mixed drink that Scotland was giving out. We also got some info on Spanish areas, but we were tired by then, so we finally left. Later on I did some homework with Chuck at the Internet cafe. Arg. We had to research this author, condense the information, and write one page...and all of this takes computer time, which we are paying for. Of course since he has a laptop here, he just saved all the info straight from the web on a disk and took it home. Papers are going to suck...I might have to go back to *gasp* writing them by hand. Geez, I havenīt done that since middle school.

I feel bad about not talking with my senora much, but I donīt know what to say to her. (Hey, we watch game shows together...thatīs quality time) Well, at dinner we talked about doctors and I said that my mom would love for me to become one...or an engineer. Because Iīm Indian. So then I said that my dad was an engineer. And then I tried to explain that he was in Rotary too. Well, unfortunately, itīs hard to back out of a story once youīve started it (how do you say "never mind" in Spanish?) so Iīm like, "itīs like a community fraternity...and they have the worldwide goal of..." Ok, Rotary International is committed to stamping out polio all over the world (itīs coming back in India apparently). Well, could I think of the words for eliminate or destroy? No, so instead I said matar, which is to kill. AND, I guess I didnīt pronounce polio clearly. Basically, I said my dad was a member of an international group of chicken-killers. We laughed. (Which led to the story about clubbing baby seals, which Iīll explain some other time. That didnīt turn out well either...I surely donīt know the word for "seal" and my impression of one did not ring any bells with Inés).

Last thing: yesterday we all went to Don Juan Tenorio, an old Spanish play about something. The school paid for our tickets. The great thing about seeing My Fair Lady and Phantom was that I already knew the story. Here, Iīm like, whatever. Few of us knew what all was going on. I guess two guys were rivals and had a bet going. And Don Juan killed two people and then kissed a ghost. I kinda want to read it, because Iīm sure itīs good on paper. Afterwards 7 of us went out to celebrate Chuckīs birthday at TGI Fridayīs. Good times.

Other weird things about here. Cars in my neighborhood do not drive in the middle of their lanes. The Metroīs trains do not open all their doors automatically at every stop; instead, you have to open them manually. Until about a week ago, I hadnīt seen any bugs here: no ants, no flies, no mosquitoes, no spiders, no cockroaches, not even moths around lights. Maybe itīs too cold. Nobody that actually lives here wears jeans. And there are no water fountains. Anywhere.

Thatīs about all with that. Let me know what kinds of things are going on with yīall. ttyl!

Anand (or "Enrique"?)