Arrival in Albox

So here I am in Albox. I actually got here on Saturday, but the last week of classes in Sevilla and the first week here have been a whirlwind of activity and I just haven’t had time to get my thoughts together. As I’ve been wandering around town, waiting on busses or looking through grocery stores my mind works through what could be great posts, but by the time I get to a computer and have access to the web I always seem to be out of energy. Many things have been changing rapidly, but I’m coming to a place where I can relax and breathe, and I suppose I’ll gradually write through some of the pent-up experiences.

I was reluctant to leave the familiarity of Sevilla: the family I had been living, eating and learning with, new friends with their unique backgrounds and reasons for being here, and the structured learning of the classroom, but Albox is going to be great. Of the 300 folks who are participating in the same program through CIEE, only two of us are lucky enough to be here.

On Saturday Alex and I arrived to our pueblo in the afternoon. All of the shops were closed up and the streets were empty. We thought it was the typically 3-hour lunch break, which it technically was, but in little old Albox, things wouldn’t open up again until Monday morning. Our program had provided us with 5 days of lodging at the local hotel, what would hopefully be sufficient time to find a place to live. So my excitement waned a bit as the weekend crept by without much activity or opportunities to find an apartment. I was really set on living with local Spaniards and excited to have a little more independence (and a kitchen), but certainly anxious as well.

On the map the town is built around a river, but in reality a rambla divides the city. In this dried out riverbed I saw some playing an informal, muddy game of soccer (due to the rain), more watching and cheering, and others more or less tailgating in a makeshift parking lot. This seemed like as good an opportunity as any to meet some new people, so I wandered down, waited around, and soon was speaking with what turned out to be Albox’s Ecuadorian population. They’re there every weekend playing, eating, drinking, and enjoying life. Once I passed through the threshold of awkardness, I had made my in for the night.

If I seem upbeat, it’s because the apartment search is over, I’ve seen my school and met some colleagues, and I’ve got a good idea about the government paperwork that lies ahead of me. But I leave those stories for another day. With pictures.