Hola! Ongi Ettori (in the title of my blog) means "Welcome" in Euskara which is a language commonly used throughout the Basque Region of Spain. I'm in the north Basque region of Spain for those of you who don't know and the area is very different from other parts of Spain.... I'm taking a course on the Culture and Language of the Basque Region so hopefully I can learn a lot more about those differences...
I have been in Bilbao, Spain for over a week now... But I figured my family and friends would want to be kept updated on what I have been up to while I've been here so I'm going to try keeping up with this blog! So far I am loving it here and I can tell this is going to be an experience of a lifetime...
Let me start with the travelling experience... I have travelled alone before, but this was going to be my first international flight flying solo. Using frequent flyer miles gave me a wierd itinerary where I flew from Newark, NJ to Miami, FL and then from Miami to Madrid, and then I had to swtich yet again,to a different airline this time (Iberia), and take an hour long flight to Bilbao. Everything went pretty smoothly in the beginning... Except for the fact that I starved on my flight to Miami (didn't think to bring plane snacks) and hardly had any time to grab food when I got to Madrid. When I finally arrived in Spain I was able to find my bag and recheck it and so I ventured to find my way to the gate. Turns out there were a bunch of other UMW students waiting there too. Well we waited and waited, and waited some more.... And eventually found out our flight would be delayed due to snow that morning. Around 3:00 (I arrived at 8 that morning) we discovered our flight was cancelled. Along with countless other flights throughout the airport. Our group of ten plus about fifteen others from the University of Illinois proceeded to joined hundreds in multiple hour long lines to get some kind of answers.
I have been in Bilbao, Spain for over a week now... But I figured my family and friends would want to be kept updated on what I have been up to while I've been here so I'm going to try keeping up with this blog! So far I am loving it here and I can tell this is going to be an experience of a lifetime...
Let me start with the travelling experience... I have travelled alone before, but this was going to be my first international flight flying solo. Using frequent flyer miles gave me a wierd itinerary where I flew from Newark, NJ to Miami, FL and then from Miami to Madrid, and then I had to swtich yet again,to a different airline this time (Iberia), and take an hour long flight to Bilbao. Everything went pretty smoothly in the beginning... Except for the fact that I starved on my flight to Miami (didn't think to bring plane snacks) and hardly had any time to grab food when I got to Madrid. When I finally arrived in Spain I was able to find my bag and recheck it and so I ventured to find my way to the gate. Turns out there were a bunch of other UMW students waiting there too. Well we waited and waited, and waited some more.... And eventually found out our flight would be delayed due to snow that morning. Around 3:00 (I arrived at 8 that morning) we discovered our flight was cancelled. Along with countless other flights throughout the airport. Our group of ten plus about fifteen others from the University of Illinois proceeded to joined hundreds in multiple hour long lines to get some kind of answers.
Later on I just so happened to glance at a departure screen while refilling my water bottle and realized all the Bilbao flights were being packed onto one jet boarding "last call" across the terminal! I broke the news and we sprinted across the terminal and took the last seats throughout the cabin. Good lord. We arrived in Bilbao around 7:00 pm (supposed to arrive at 12:30 pm) which meant we had to find our own transportation to the campus. Let's just say our arrival and experiences in baggage claim were no less stressful then any other part of the day.
(Photo of my dorm building)
No one left with their luggage that night. Thankfully mom advised me to pack a carry-on with the necessities! People's bags slowly leaked in throughout the week, mine didn't show up until Thursday! I discovered five of my airport companions were living in my dorm with me and when I was given key 611-A another girl with me was given 611-B, we're roommates! Even though I thought I was getting a Spanish speaking student as a roommate, Kate is from Mary Washington, we knew of each other before we came here, but that was it. We get along really well now... Even if she does mess up my bed when I'm gone or uses her ninja moves to steal my things... I joke. But with all my roommate drama in the past, this situation is working out great!
(Photo of my room)
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