It was two weeks ago since my last update... where did all that time go? Well, on that said Thursday, face2face called me and I got the job, that's eight weeks of summer that I know what to do with. And then, on Saturday, my family came for a visit. That was an intense week (even though we didn't do much). Four pictures to recap the whole thing.

We had a lot of deliscious food. Lots and lots of tapas, but also pasta, meat, sallad, pitas and least but most important sushi! Even though I love tapas (which I do) sushi was the highlight in the food area.

We had a lot to drink aswell. A lot of cañas (and I had no idea that it means tap beer, I though it just was a small beer) I can really recomend the sangria at cheers (even though the name indicate that you should drink beer there). Me, my brother and Mr. M even manage to get out two times, on Saturday and on Wednsday and that included a lot of good drinking aswell, but I fell a little short on the pciture taking.

Of course we did some sightseeing aswell. Here's the bus we took around town.

We went all the way up to Castillo Girbralfaro, where I had never been before and it was wuite cool and puzzling (how, why and what?). We didn't really do that much more sightseeing (my parents went into the cathedral and walked along the beachwalk) and we definitly missed a lot of nice stuff. Well, next time.

This is the view from Gibralfaro (You see the cathedral, which I live closely to, almost in the middle of the picture).

We also went two time to the beach.

On Thursday the following week, I found myself all alone. My family went back home, Mr. M on a trip to London and even my roommates had deserted me for going to Barcelona. It was confusing but it gave me a chance to breathe out and I spent the entire weekend in front of the tv and computer eating candy. That starts us on this week and it is already Wednsday.

As time progress into the summer, it doesn't really slow down. On Saturday I'm attending a wedding and then (19 of may) a couple of best friends from Sweden are visiting me and then time is just gonna float by until that dreadful flight to Sweden.

There's a lot of benefits with being in a class with people from different countries. One of them is the food exchange we had on Friday and another one is when one of my classmates wants to share a tradition they have in their country. This happened in the begining of March and I was planning to blog about it then but a lot of stuff came in between. Anyway, a woman from Bulgaria gave us each a brachelet made of yarn and told us to keep it on out wrists until March 22 when we should hang it up in a tree and make a wish. I did hang it up in a tree but not on March 22. Next year, I'm gonna get it right. I don't know why they do this but I like it and she told us that in Bulgaria you can see a lot of these bracelets hanging from trees on the 22 of March.

I took some pictures

The festival goes on from 17 to 24 of April and is now over. I never went to see any movie but my participation was not crucial for the survival of the festival anyway (I grew upin  a small town, if you're not there, it will never happen again). The festival brought a lot of famous people and their fans and in the middle of it, the sun popped out and then, the tourists came too. The movie theater where they shoed all movies is right behind where I live so I went ot take som photos. The red carpet is out and the movie theater is really pretty (it is next to the roman remains, which I assume is a tourist attraction).

During the festival some paitners where painting big paintings right next to the cinema that they later hanged up around the ariea. The paintings (I assume) are scenes from movies that they showed.

There's was always fans outside of the hotel (probably the most expensive in town), sometimes more and sometimes less, but they were always there, waiting for their fans. I tried to take a picture and I don't know if you can see any people, this was a day with less fans, but imagen that the cars, red carpet and the few people standing there and not usually there.

It's a common bun and it is probably eaten all over the world (link to wikipedia) but I decided to make those anyway because they are for me, typical Swedish (fika, anyone?) and they are easy (and as it turned out, cheap) to do. But instead of making huge ones, I made tiny ones. I assumed it would be a lot of food and the idea is to try and taste, so I made like bites for tasting rather that a giant bun to fill you up. Maybe I should unwind a litte bit.

At my language school, they have this event every semester where the participants bring food, pastries or anything eatable from their couintry so that we all can take a part of all the culture that is flowing through out this Spanish language school. This is soley for the people studying Spanish so there's no spanish food or spanish people there (exept for the teachers). I brought tiny cinamon buns.

There was over sixty enries at the table today and I've eaten so much that I wish that I will not eat anymore today. Plus I stole some ot take home with me. I think people liked my buns but most of them probably recognized them. There was a lot of Marrocan food (me like) and Italian, English, American, German, Bulgarian, Chinese and so on. I tried palm tree beer (I think, it was white and bubbly) and it was interesting. I treid a lot of other stuff to and it was delicious. Afterwards, we all got prices. (Klick on the pictures to see them bigger). I really like food from other countries, not that I don't like Swedish food, it is just fun when you can vary. I love Mexican food and sushi but I can't really decide what is my favorite. If someone asks me what my favorite dish is, I say food :)

Price for books: 34€

First exam and intervews: First week of February

Final exam: Last week of May

Duration: Two hours of class Monday to Friday (9-11 or 11-13)

Bus: No. 2 (single busticket 1:10€, monthly buscard 34:30€)

I study Spanish at the oficial language school of Spain. It's a language school from the Spanish government and Spain is the only country in the European union that has this kind of school (link to wikipedia). It is a lot cheaper than a "normal" language school but as far as I know, it is not eligble for csn (Swedish board for lending money to students) The school is primary for teaching other languages to Spanish people but they have Spanish for foreigners, which is the class that I am in (link to Departamento de Español).

The people who are in my class are not "typical language school students" (I assume) but people who actually live in Spain and wants to have, or already have a life here. There are people from Marocco, Finland, Nigeria, France, China, USA, England and more and the age span from young (maybe 16) to old (maybe 60).

The first exam and interviews start in February. The exam and interview are done during twoi days, if you're not fast enough with the exam, you just have to come back the next day for the interview. They are for determine what level you are in, there are five levels (I am in the second one). After you've done the exam and the interview you have ot pay the tution fee, which you do at a bank office, and then you put the reciept from the bank, two pictures of yourself and a photocopy of your passport in an envelope and leave at the school (all of this are explained to you during the interview. During the interview, you also get to choose (depending on what level you are) if you want to attend the 9 to 11 class or 11 to 13 class. There's two books that you can buy at the bookstore located next to the busstop on Alameda principal where the bus to and from the language school goes (link to google maps).

I went out yesterday to take some pictures of the city. It is quite changed now during semana santa, exept from people being everywhere there's various stands of toys and candy and thousands of chairs. Everywhere there's chairs. The main chopping street is full of them, plaza de la constitución is full of them, the roundabout between the bus streets is full of them and many, many more. I read somewhere that even thought semana santa is supposed to be a sad holiday, most people are not really sad nowdays. I can not really say anything about this holiday, Mr. M are usually in Marocco this time of year and don't celebrate it. Which is too bad, because this seem to be the only holiday with the most difference to what I am used to. Anyway, I found this lollipop and I just had to buy it, I have no idea what they are called, these costumes but sadly, they remind me of KKK (which is not really  good thing, I know, but I can't help wonder where KKK got their designs from). I hope there's any American or Spanish person reading my blog that could give me an asnwer :)

Thank you for the nice comments, it really warmed my heart. I want to be personal in what I write but no to personal and I defenitly want to be real. I don't want to pretend that everything is great all the time, that doesn't help anyone but I feel bad when entries come out as the one yesterday, it doesn't give off a good feeling. But I am glad for all off you who reads!

I like to listen to Spanish and everyone I have met here speaks really good English, some have never studied it and still speaks really good. I know I put too much pressure on myself, I can notice it because I don't do anything (which is my response when stuff gets to hard, I just stop doing it, thinking it will go away or resovle itself) But it is gonna be changes.

I'm still in my pj´s but I'm gonna change and get out on a run (who can resist when the sun is shining) and continue listen to "Dude, where's my country" by Mickael Moore

Easter in Spain is called pascua and that is the easter that most people are used to (as far as I know) with eggs and easter bunnies. But here they don't really celebrate pascua but semana santa instead. Semana santa is holy week and each day belong to a saint (they love saints here). They have processions where huge scupluters of Jesus and Maria is carried around. There's several of them every day/ night for about a week or so.

I'm not really into religious things but this is a thing that is really different and as everything gets international and alike, this is a thing worth seeing. I guess many of you know that people going in this "parade" are dressed like what we know as KKK (no connection as I know) and that is a bit scary. They come in different colors but when they are all white and carries a cross, I get a little nervous. It is quite frightening.

I life next to the cathedral here (kind of cool) and these thing comes out of the cathedral (naturally) so yesterday when me and a friend tried to pass by the cathedral (to get home after being at a teteria), it was almost impossible, it was people everywhere. Earlier that day, it had been green dresses but now, they were dressed all in white. We decided to stay and watch the spectacle for a while. And out came this huge sculpture of Jesus, carried by a lot of people and they just kept walking forward, towards us. It was, as I mention, a lot of people, where would they go? This thing just came closer and closer and everyone started to move backwards. I have no idea how all that people managed to split apart and make room for that thing but we suceeded and for a brief moment I was staring up on a half naked Jesus. It was intense...

Here comes the pictuers from Dublin. It's a lot but I tried to choose the ones who best represent out trip. If there's any questions around them, don't hesitate to ask! More pictures will be poste under a later ocasion (I feel that it is a bit much right now, even if they are easy to "read" ;))

Okay, I'm leaving for Dublin in a few hours and there' will be no activity at all on this blog until next week (not that it has been any activity the last days anyway) but, there's gonna be a lot of picutres and updating after Dublin (I promise)

I just please want it to stop raining. It is really depressing and I feel locked in. I don't have any clothes to go out (no umbrella, no raining jacket, no galoshes). My room feels like a bunker and everything  is in a big mess, becuase I am soon gonna change room (waiting for the paint to dry and for the broken stuff to get fixed) I'm all about the complaining right now... (sorry)

Yesterday was not a complete disaster (even if some wierd stuff took place)

I went to class and then straight home. I tried to stay awake but couldn't (if there's something I always am, it's sleepy... and hungry), I woke up in time for meeting a friend for coffee. After the coffee and on the way home. I managed to take those rain pictures I've been talking about (but now, photoshop stopped working) and I spotted a rat that seemed to like the rain as much as I do. I took some pictures of it.

I skipped class today (I know, I know) but hopefully that is gonna result in me getting a lot of useful stuff done :)

Duff beer

The kissing thing goes with girls, girl - girl and boy - girl. Boys have somekind of arm clap going on, same as everywhere. If the buys are close, there can be a hug but not more than that. In the families, I guess it varies, like with all families. I am not sure about the official greeting, like with job interviews, I have to ask Mr. M about that.

I made home made french fries the other day and thought you wanted to see it (I have a thing for food pictures, I know, it has been established a long time ago)

This is my Spanish bull. It´s a keychain where I have the keys to my apartment. I got the bull from Mr. M because he wanted somthing to fight of all the other Spanish guys who would hit on me (which have not occured) but mainly because it is a symbol of Spain(unofficial national symbol). The bull is actually a 14 meter high image of a bull that is spreaded out along the Spanish highways. The bulls name is Osborne and is actually a commercial for the Osborne sherry. I´ve seen one of these bulls here, in Fuengirola. It was during one of my many trips there for my last job. I was walking more or less from one side of the town to the other and when I approached the end of the town, the bull stands on top of a hill, looking over the Spanish landscape. Personally, I think it is a cool symbol, mostly cus it is an easy clean shape and what better to represent Spain than a bull. From the beginning, it had a text of the sherry company, but it had to be removed but by then, the bull itself was already a national symbol. Now you can find the bull on anything (for example my keychain) and the only thing that beats that kind of advertising has to be crayons (When your product becomes the name of the product you sell).

Read more about Osborne on Wikipedia

Btw, my computer is up and running again..

I painted my nails

I made the phonecall

I hade lunch

I'm cold

Sorry, there's nothing interesting going on at all (and now you wont see my place until I change it) Besides, I'm having computer problems, I have to restart it every 20 min because it just stops working. Anyway, I took a picture of myself, so you can see how warm and cozy it is here...

This is how I look nowdays.