Time is flying by!

Hola a todos!! 

I realized the other day that I have not updated you all on my life here in Spain in over a month. Wow! The time here is flying by! It seems like the year just started, and yet now we're halfway through March. My last few weeks of January went really well! I ended up having 7 weeks of vacation in total! It was a really awesome to have so much free time, but it made it a bit hard to transition back into having school and a more specific routine.  

Anyway, just to get you all caught up on January... I spent the last couple of weeks mostly getting more involved in the campus ministry here, going to church on the weekends, and spending time building friendships with people. On Sunday the 17th I had a chance to visit the church of a friend of mine outside of town, and it was really neat just to see another place of worship. The church was small (like most of them here), but the people were genuine and friendly and I loved it! That same evening I also went to a different church, this time with a bunch of new American students that had just arrived and were wanting to get involved in a church. I met up with two girls that have now become good friends of mine - Sallie Anna and Carolina. Jake also brought a few other students with him, and we all walked over to church together. This has since become a regular meeting as more and more students have come from different programs, each seeking a church. It was been so amazing to see how many people are that interested in seeking God so far from home. Jake and I started up the Bible study that we had last semester again a month or two ago, and since then it has grown a ton! (We've sometimes had 20ish people come!) That's been a huge praise.  

My tutoring with Lucia is continuing to go really well! She is such a sweetheart, and her family is very kind too. The other day when it rained really hard, they invited me to hang out at their place for a bit and chat and eat a snack, at least till the rain let up. Speaking of horrible weather, I don't know if it's been raining any less back home, but if it has, it's because I brought all the Oregon rain with me!! Sevilla has received an unusually large amount of rain this year. In the end I guess it's good for the earth, but it has also caused flooding in nearby cities and makes it harder to leave the house because we have to walk everywhere. But this last week the weather has improved a lot!! The sun is back out shining brightly, and during the afternoons I don't need to wear a coat. The blossoms on the trees have come out now, and I was super excited about that because it is my favorite part of Spring!  

Other news: I have really been working on my dance skills over here! You all would be so amazed and proud!! hahaha I'm getting better and better at both the salsa and the bachata, and have even learned bits and pieces of other dances as well. I have gone out with big groups of people (Spanish, American, German...) to dance several times now, and it has been a blast! I even danced with heels on, which sounds hard, but actually makes it easier to turn! Too bad it makes me over 6 feet tall...  

Now that I have gained a fairly advanced level of Spanish here, I have actually started helping more people here with their English. As I mentioned in my previous email, I helped out for a while at English Clubs, which was a neat experience. I've met several other Spanish students, and God's been giving me opportunities to share Him with others. I also have been meeting up with a few different intercambios, doing tutoring, and even just talking in English with some of my Spanish friends from time to time. I love the fact that I can now (even though I am far from perfect) communicate really well in two different languages!! It makes me want to learn a new one!! I just have to decide which one now.  

On the 4th of February I moved back in with my host family. It was so good to be back with them! I had a good experience living in the Center, but it was cool to see my family again. My friend Martha helped me move, which was awesome because I really didn't want to take a taxi again. After that I went to the Orientation CC-CS had for all of the incoming students. I met my roommate, Emily, who is from Michigan and is really sweet. It was so nice to finally meet her! I then stood up front with some of the other "veterans" from the first semester answering questions about Sevilla and life here. It was cool, but I was a bit overwhelmed with how many new people there are in my program. There are twice as many students as there were last time!  

My intensive period Spanish class (which was only for 3 weeks) started up again on the 8th of February. It was weird to get back into that routine! But that class ended up being a lot of fun for me because I learned some cool new colloquial Spanish phrases and stuff that I can actually use in day-to-day life. The hard part was that in the middle of those three weeks I had to begin my two classes in the University of Sevilla. It was quite complicated because I was running around trying a few new classes and changing my mind on my schedule several times. But I finally picked two and stuck with it! They are going okay right now, although it is more difficult because there are more people in the class and less interaction from the students. But the good news is that I can understand what the professors say! My two classes at CC-CS started up a few weeks ago, and they are both going well so far! One of them is a Spanish literature class, and the other is a History class about the Muslims, Jews, and Christians in Spain. They are both really interesting and what I like to study.  

I have been super blessed with some great friendships here in Spain - friends from the U.S., Spain, Germany, and Morocco. I did not expect to meet so many awesome people! In the campus ministry I have been involved with we have had several fun get-togethers with groups of people, including a Japanese party (in which some of my Spanish friends made sushi and we sang Spanish karaoke, haha), a "Just Cook" night where we made taco salad (no, they do not eat tacos or burritos in Spain), a Games Night, and my friend Abraham's birthday party. They were all a ton of fun! We are having another Games Afternoon again soon, this time outside, where we can enjoy the beautiful weather!  

On the 20th of February I went with Martha, Carolina, Lea, and Abraham to Cadiz, a small town on the Atlantic Coast to see Carnaval, the yearly carnival they have there every year. People get dressed up in crazy costumes. There are groups that practice songs and perform them on floats or just standing in the streets. The tunes to the songs are really catchy, but the themes are oftentimes political jokes. I was only able to understand a few of the jokes, but it was fun to laugh along with everyone whether I got it or not. We all had crazy costumes too... I will put up pictures on my blog for those of you who don't have facebook!  

Well, I am going to have to cut this email off right now, although I have some events in February and in March to tell you all about. This email is long enough already though, so I will send one again soon! I hope you all are very blessed and are doing well!  

Abrazos! (Hugs!) 

Sierra