right now, it is day 2 in granada at the hostel and it is currently 7:40pm on the 30th of april. day 1 was settling in, mostly. i met rosemarie, a korean girl from LA/the OC who graduated from ucla last year. she's been traveling through europe on her own for a week now with three more weeks to go. we discovered that we had both just gotten hooked on korean soap operas because of stairway to heaven, whereas before, we had much disdain for said soaps. haha...small world. there's another girl from the states, from virginia actually, and she's been traveling through spain for quite a while now too. surprisingly enough, i've found a bunch of solo travelers. and people who randomly will decide, "hey, let's travel together." i guess there's like this unspoken hostel code or something, because people here are great. and i've met so many aussies traveling through europe. some are at the beginning of their year-long travels, and some about to end their 3.5 years of travel. it's been cool to discover new things about the different places that people are from. and a lot of them, who've already traveled through most of europe, have told me that they really love granada, that there's something about it that is just different. yay, i'm in a cool city.

anyway, day 1: i found my school, which is right down the street, like 2 minutes away, and figured out all the paperwork stuff and got listings for housing options. hung out in the common room and met some more people and then walked around the city for a little bit. in the evening, the hostel organized a "tapas tour" and that was nifty. i had tinto de verano - something fruity, red, and i think really, really light on alcohol taste, and mosto, which is pretty much white grape juice, and coke. and of course, there was tapas snacking along the way. we were out until 1:30am, which i guess is early by spain standards, but a little late by mine, since i'd been traveling for way too many hours. and then is was a hot shower and precious sleep in a comfy bed.

today, i slept in, had breakfast here, and found a homestay. it's more expensive, but the host mom is way nice. and all meals are included, which i guess balances the higher cost of a homestay rather than renting a flat. and in a flat, i'd be sharing living space with a local student who wouldn't even be around to practice speaking spanish with. in the afternoon, rosemarie and i tried our luck at getting tickets for the alhambra (usually you have to buy tickets the day before), which worked out. we walked up the fatty hill to the top and toured the insides with our audio guides and snapping photos. it was beautiful and from different points, i could see most of the city. we were so tired after 3.5 hours and starving. we found a little cafe with sandwiches. sadly, sandwiches here mean two pieces of bread, a slice of cheese, and like meat paste. but hey, lesson learned, right?

did i mention that the restaurant dude from yesterday that helped me find my way stands on this corner in the plaza nueva like all day/everyday, or something? the first time i saw him on the corner, he was like, "you were looking for the hostel? did you find it?" and as i've seen him multiple times now, it has now become polite to give a head nod/acknowledgement.

my favorite things so far: being able to walk everywhere, the people - who are so warm and friendly, the city itself - because it's not at all a big city, but like a big town. there aren't any skyscrapers, that i can see. it's great. now i need a nap. tomorrow i move in to my homestay house. i get my own room and it's cute...kinda ikea-esque in the bed linens. :)