Today I ventured out of Alicante to visit Valencia, a city two hours north of Alicante. I didn't go by plane, train, or bus, I went by Blablacar. This online company (introduced to me by my French friend) uses people that are already driving to the same destination as you, all you need to do is pay for your seat in their car, which is extremely cheap. The ride on the way there was interesting. The driver was a violinist who was going to Valencia for an interview. Another guy and girl came too, so there was four of us in the car. They spoke some English, but the girl mostly talked to the driver - the whole ride two hours. Because they were speaking Spanish, I was able to tune them out and snooze for a little bit until she woke me up to give me tips and places to hit in the city.
Everyone here thinks I'm Dutch. Two Swiss men asked me which beach was the best to go here, pointing at a map, and I said I have no clue. They said they would've never guess I was from the United States, and that I was Dutch. Before I left, the man still persisted, "what is your parents' nationalities? It can't be English." He seemed satisfied when I told him Norwegian and German.
I saved a euro today because I flashed my Alicante student card when paying to enter "the botanical gardens". I'm glad, because I didn't stay long. Trees and plants don't do much, so it doesn't keep me entertained very long (it didn't help that it was 95 degrees also).
Apparently oranges are the big thing here. They grow a lot in Valencia, so they're very proud of them. They have "agua de Valencia" which consists of rum, orange juice, another liquor, and a few other things. I unfortunately did not get to taste it, but I heard it is quite famous.
I have made the correlation that Europe is very similar to the United States; the countries are just like our states. Belgium is probably the size of Ohio, and it's very common for people to vacation to other countries in Europe, just like how we vacation to other states. It's also similar because of how the climates differ. Yes, Italy is very different from Germany, but is Florida anything like Minnesota? Point proven.