I say "the first/second day" because they really just blended together. The mother and one daughter of the aupair family that I'll be living with in 2 weeks came and picked me up from the airport. The younger daughter was at a school retreat still so she wasn't with them. They took me to their summer flat on the beach where we'll be staying - it's small, clean, and practical. Then we went to their home in the city, Alicante, and had lunch.
The mother, Cristina, said that lunch is the big meal in Spain, and so we had 3 courses! Zucchini soup, baked salmon with potatoes, and then fresh fruit.. And I can't forget the wine.
The parents speak English rather well, however I have to think about what I say because in America some of the words or phrases we use really don't make sense here. The girls don't speak or understand much English at all. They are 5 and 7, and the older one really just knows basic English words like animals and colors. So when the parents were preparing lunch, I was in the room playing with Sofía. It's a lot of expressions and sound effects with her, but we understand each other and she laughs easily.
After lunch they took me back to my dorm room which is actually bigger than the room I'll be staying at in their flat. I share a kitchenette with the single room next to mine, and inside my room I have a desk, armoire, and a lot of shelves. Connected to my room is an individual bath oom with a shower, toilet, and sink. It feels a lot like a small hotel room, but it's very modern.
I have yet to meet my suitemate, I can tell it is male partially because of his snoring I can hear through the wall and partially because of the cans of beer in the fridge in our kitchenette.
My observations about Spain so far are pretty limited. I have noticed a lot of man-purses, and lost dogs. Man-purses seem common and practical here. Mostly leather. I have seen dogs roaming the sidewalks, usually with collars, and even one was dragging a rope/leash behind him. There was a golden retriever outside of my dorms but I knew he'd be too big to fit in my room.
I mentioned in my earlier post that the area reminds me of Arizona and that still holds true. It's very orange here, and instead of cactuses (cacti?) there are palm trees. So picture Arizona on a beach. It's not as hot as Arizona (yet), I wore pants today, but Cristina told me that it will get HOT in July and August.
I am still getting used to the sleep/food schedule here, and it is strange going to class even though it's summer (and feels like I am on vacation). I still feel like a tourist.