one month down

So far, I feel that much of my time in Barcelona has been spent just looking around me at all of the different buildings that are so different from the ones in the United States. I have really liked walking around the city seeing all of the different parts. One of the things that I have liked observing the most is how each city is different from the last one. It was amazing to see the wide streets of Madrid compared to the extremely tiny streets in Toledo. The feeling of walking by the river in Bilbao was really relaxing compared to the constant movement in Barcelona. None of the cities have been the same, even down to how the cities are laid out, either in grid or more random patterns. I have really liked not having to rely on a car to get around the city and instead taking the metro or walking wherever I need to go. One of my favorite parts of Barcelona so far is the open air markets with fresh fruit and vegetables and any type of meat or chees you can imagine. I love being able to walk and get whatever you need for the day or week knowing what you're buying is fresh. It's just a different atmosphere being able to talk to local people and act more like a local rather than a tourist. I think that's another part of the city that I like: being able to talk to local people in another language and actually understand what they're saying most of the time. I really like it here even though it is completely different than what I'm used to.