Blessed

Happy Easter to all of my friends and family! I hope you could spend today with loved ones celebrating the resurrection of our Savior. Today has been one of my harder Easters with saying good-bye to John and being away from family, but that has made me even more overwhelmed by the saving grace of Christ. So on a rainy day in Spain when the tears are falling, I can still say with a smile...Hallelujah, He is Risen!


Today has been a good day to rest and reflect on what Jesus has done in my life. And, it has been a good day to look back on the past week and marvel at how truly blessed I am. Just wanted to share with you some of the high lights of the week of a lifetime.


John arrived in Sevilla Monday afternoon. Since I have been taught that you should always be early for important things, I got to the airport two hours before his flight arrived...just to be safe. :)Well needless to say, the wait was well worth. What a happy reunion. He was pretty tired from the trip, but he hung in there and went to eat lunch with my family. It was really fun to have my little sisters (especially Nati) meet him in person after they had seen him on skype a hundred times. They all thought he was soo "guapo." :)


On Tuesday morning we headed to Dublin and got to spend all afternoon and night exploring the city. I had been telling John all about the warm weather in Spain, so I felt pretty bad when we landed in Dublin and it started to snow. But despite the cold weather, we still had a ton of fun exploring the city.

 Dublin Castle. 

 St. Patrick's Cathedral.

 St. Stephen's Green. It was a huge garden with lots of ponds, old bridges, walking paths, and green grass.

Trinity College in Dublin. Very old and beautiful campus. 

On Wednesday morning we took a bus tour to the west coast of Ireland where we got to see the Cliffs of Moher. The trip took a whole day, but there were lots of fun stops along the way and lots of beautiful scenery. On the way there we stopped in the town of Limerick and on the way home we stopped in Dulin, The Burren, and Kinvara. The bus trip gave us a chance to see some of the beautiful landscape of Ireland without having to master driving on the left side of the road. :) We really enjoyed the city of Dublin, but getting to experience the small port towns and the western coast was truly amazing.

King John's Castle in Limerick. 

 

 

 

The Cliffs of Moher. Breathtaking. We were in awe of God's creation.

The Burren. It was a short ride from the cliffs but also had some incredible cliffs and amazing views.

Our guide just relaxing on the rocks. He definitely made the tour a lot of fun. He spent most of it singing us traditional Irish songs. Very entertaining.

 

After The Burren we stopped at a very old church and cemetery called Corcomroe Abbey on the way to the small port town of Kinvara. The ride was absolutely gorgeous. We got to see a very beautiful part of Ireland.

In front of the old church ruins. 

 In Kinvara. John loves fishing boats no matter what country they are in. :)

We got back to Dublin Tuesday night and had Wednesday morning to do some more exploring before catching a train to Madrid and then the AVE to Sevilla. While walking around we happened to find John's favorite place in all of Dublin and Sevilla...

After a great trip to Ireland, I was really excited to show John around the city that I have fallen in love with. Friday was a little rainy, but we still got to see some of the major sights in Sevilla.

 On the Triana Bridge overlooking the river and the Torre del Oro. 

 In front of the famous Triana Bridge. (notice the man fishing in the background.)

 In front of the Giralda (the tower that is part of the Cathedral. )

 On top of the setas overlooking the city of Sevilla. 

John's first experience with Spanish tapas...I think it was a success.

Carriage ride around the city at night.

On Saturday the sun was shining and we had a wonderful day enjoying the warm weather together.

 Plaza de España.

View from the upper level of the monument in the Plaza.

 Parque de Maria Luisa.

Plaza de Toros. The first fight of the season is today.

Sitting in the grass and enjoying the sunshine by the river.

Putting our lock on the bridge in Sevilla. 

We had an AMAZING week. I am so thankful that between winning the state tournament, teaching, and coaching golf he was able to come and visit (thanks for putting in the extra work to make it possible JT). It was definitely a trip that I will never forget. A great week together to hold us over until I come back home in 5 more weeks (crazy!).

I feel incredibly blessed that my fiance could come and visit me in Spain. The week was like a fairytale. But as much as I loved traveling Europe with John, I am most excited to get to experience everyday life with him back home...when we get to sit down and enjoy supper together every night. I am so thankful that God has blessed me with such a wonderful man of God to marry...in exactly two months from tomorrow. I can't wait.:) 

Love,
jana


P.S. Sorry for such a long post...I know I have some family members back home very curious about the trip so this is the easiest way for me to update them about it. :)

P.P.S. Whatever John says about how many pictuers we took...don't listen to him. It really wasn't that many.:)
 

Pequeños momentos

Life is made of the little moments. 

My life here probably sounds like one big fiesta where I get to travel every weekend and hangout with my friends and Spanish family during the week. And although this is true, my life here is still made of the little moments. I do get to go on amazing adventures to other cities and countries, I do get to learn a new language, I do get to live in one of the most beautiful cities in the world, but I also still do normal life here too. Here's a list of some of my favorite little moments that I get to experience daily in Sevilla...

-when I come home from a long weekend of traveling and as soon as I open the door I am greeted by "HANNA/YANNA" and a big hug from my nine year old sister Nati.

-when I learn a new word in class from my professors and that same afternoon when I get home my Señora says it and I can understand it.

-every morning when I turn the corner on my way to school and the view of the sun shining over the river takes my breath away.

-when my sister crawls up on my lap and reads the Bible to me out loud in Spanish.

-wearing shorts and a t-shirt while I run along the river and through the parks.

-every afternoon when I hear the little steps of my fifteen month old sister running to my room to blow me kisses and try on my shoes.

-getting to go and sit by the river while I read my Bible and soak in God's beautiful creation.

-when I get an e-mail, letter, facebook message, or skype call from one of you. Your support means so much to me and I love hearing about everything going on in your lives back home!

-when someone stops and asks me for directions in Sevilla (which is strange because I am usually asking directions), and I can tell them exactly where to go in Spanish.

-sitting around the supper table with my family while we talk, laugh, and cry together, make fun of each other, and share about our days.

-sitting by Manuel at the nursing home every Tuesday and watching him draw, hearing about his life, and learning from his wisdom.

-Bible study every Monday night with some great Christian girls in my program. It's so wonderful to have a support group here where we can dive into the Word and keep our semester centered on serving God.

-when I'm doing my homework before supper and numerous members of my family come to tell me that my Señora is making my favorite supper for me.

-getting to sing praises to God in Spanish and English every night at Encuentro (our praise and worship service led by people in the program).

-living with four personal tutors. It's so nice to come home from school and be able to ask everyone in my family for help on things I don't understand about the Spanish language.

-getting to practice Spanish at school, at home, in restaurants, and walking around the streets. Sometimes I can't believe how blessed I am to have this opportunity to learn Spanish. 

-going for chocolate and churros, chocolate triangles, hot chocolate, chocolate cake, or chocolate gelado with some great girls on the program and getting to share our struggles and joys about our time in Spain. (we all really appreciate the company and the food :) )

 -sitting on the couch and watching movies in Spanish with my family.

-talking to the professors and the other staff members at school every Monday night before flamenco class and getting to know them better.

-when Nati comes into my room everyday after school and takes off a clip to count down how many days until JT comes to visit.

-walking everywhere I go everyday and never having to drive.

-learning that love can speak louder than any language.


Praying you are all enjoying the little moments of your days wherever that may be.

Love,
jana



P.S. This isn't an everyday thing, but I had to mention it......CONGRATS SW EAGLES ON A STATE CHAMPIONSHIP! :)

Ronda y Malaga

Once again the SIS program planned a wonderful trip for us to Ronda. Ronda is an absolutely beautiful city with lots of old ruins and mountains. So instead of going to class on Friday, the school took us to Ronda. I love field trips in Spain! :)

Right outside of the city we got to see an old theater and some ruins on the top of a hill. The view from the top was absolutely gorgeous. Green rolling hills below us and mountains in the distance. The sun was shining and it was a perfect way to start off our trip.

 Emma, Kelly, me, Becca, and Kate climbing to the top.

.

The view from the top of the hill. Gorgeous

After touring the ruins we got some free time in town to eat our bocadillos, explore, and enjoy the sunshine. The weather was absolutely beautiful and we took full advantage of the free time to sit in the plaza and soak up the sun.

Over looking some of the beauty of Ronda. 

Kelly and I enjoying the view after lunch.

Once we finished lunch, our school took us exploring through some of the older parts of Ronda. The river and the old stone structures of the palace were beautiful.

The historic bridge in Ronda.

 Exploring with some of the great girls on the program.

I had a great time with the whole class in Ronda, but instead of heading back to Sevilla a few of us got on another bus to head to the coastal city of Malaga. We spent the night walking along the sea port and exploring the very classy city of Malaga.

On Saturday we took a tour through the house that Pablo Picasso was born in. As a psychology major, it was very interesting to hear how much his childhood in Malaga later affected his artwork. After touring his house we walked through the Alcazaba which is the palace and fortress walls of the Muslim rulers. It had a lot of gardens and gave us some great views of the city. 

 We love Picasso. :)

Kelly and I in the Alcazaba.

Kelly, Kate, me, and Emma overlooking the city from the Alcazaba.

And what would a trip to Malaga be without heading to the beach?! Sadly it was raining so we had to frolic in the sand with our umbrellas. But, it was still fun to see another beach in Spain. We were pretty chilly after the rain and the cool breeze from the beach, so we spent some time relaxing and drinking the amazing Spanish hot chocolate in a coffee shop. 

 The whole group on the beach.

Enjoying some quality conversation with some quality girls. 

It was another very successful weekend traveling around Spain. I love that the school takes us to a city on Friday and then we are already half-way to another amazing city for the rest of the weekend. Two great trips in only three days. Now one full week of classes before a whole week off for Semana Santa...which means only only 8 days until my fiance arrives in Sevilla! :)

Granada

My mom and I got to enjoy another week in Sevilla after returning from Rome. We took a tour of the Cathedral with my school, watched Flamenco dancing, went out to eat for tapas, met my intercambio, volunteered at the nursing home, and just enjoyed each others company. Then we headed off to Granda for the weekend with my roommate Emma.

We took the AVE to Granada Friday night, and then spent the morning touring the Alhambra. I had studied the Alhambra in my art class here, so it was really fun to finally get to see it in person. The architecture is incredible. It is HUGE and has tons of gardens and palace rooms to walk through.

Waiting to start our trip-my mom's first time on the AVE!

 In one of the beautiful walkways in the garden area of the Alhambra.

 Patio de los Leones. Absolutely amazing architecture.

 Sala de los Arrayanes in the Alhambra.

The ceiling in one of the rooms. Pretty incredible. 

Once our tour finished of the Alhambra we enjoyed some lunch and then went through the Capilla Real and the Cathedral. The Capilla Real has the coffins with the remains of King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella. It was very interesting to see that after I had been studying them so much in my Spanish History class here. The cathedral in Granada was very different than the ones I have seen before. It was all white on the inside and had lots of gold. It was beautiful and fun to see a different style in a cathedral.

Inside the cathedral. 

After the cathedral, we went to "La Vista de St. Nicholas." We had to walk up a large hill, but it was worth it. When we got to the top we had a gorgeous view of the Alhambra with the mountains in the background. We got to sit on an old brick wall and just enjoy the scenery right as the sun was coming out. It was amazing.

 The three of us. We had such a great trip together!

My roommate Emma. I don't know what I would do without her here!

I'm so glad that my mom could stay another week and get to travel Spain with me for the weekend. It was fun to show her how I usually spend most of my weekends here- traveling and exploring a new city. She was a trooper and kept up with our fast pace of walking and exploring. We had so much fun getting to catch up on everything.We ended the trip by eating on top of the roof of a restaurant that overlooked the river in Sevilla. I will be sad to see her leave Tuesday morning, but I'm so thankful that she was able to come visit!

Thanks for encouraging me in my dreams Mom. And thanks for always being willing to come along for the ride. I love you!

Rome

I have wanted to go to Italy for a very long time. I would always try to talk my parents into taking our family there for a huge vacation. For some reason it never worked out...I can't figure out why. :) But, after years of hoping, I actually got to visit Italy for four days. And it was even better than I could have imagined.

We left early Thursday morning and got to Rome in the afternoon. We checked into our hotel room and then spent the rest of the afternoon exploring. Our hotel was a five minute walk from the Spanish steps, and a ten minute walk from Trevi Fountain. It was AMAZING! I absolutely love the city of Rome. I have never been to a city with so many things to see in such a close distance. We could even walk to the Colosseum in a little over a half an hour. There were monuments, statues, and ruins around every corner. Everywhere we went there was something new to see. And in between all of these amazing monuments, there were a thousand different Italian restaurants. I don't eat a lot of pasta here, so it was quite the treat to eat pizza, lasagna, spaghetti, and bread at every meal.  (It was also pretty nice to travel and not have to live off of forty cent loaves of bread, granola bars, and bananas. When I travel with my friends we are extremely cheap and literally live off of a few dollars a day. So, I definitely didn't mind getting spoiled by my parents a little bit. :) )

 My dad and I on the Spanish steps at night. 

 Throwing a coin into the Trevi Fountain...looks like I'm going back to Rome. :)

 We love Italian food!

On Friday we got a tour of the Vatican where we got to see the Sistine Chapel, St. Peter's Basilica, and St. Peter's Square. It was absolutely incredible. I could have spent hours in the Sistine Chapel. Seeing the Bible laid out in an intricate painting was amazing. There really are no words to describe what it was like to look up at that ceiling. It was also really cool to be there just a few days before the conclave was going to take place to choose the new pope. After the Vatican, we got a tour of the catacombs. They are over 150,000 graves where the Christians buried people who didn't have very much money. During the persecution in Rome they also had secret meetings there. It was humbling to think about what those Christians must have gone through. How blessed we are to be able to worship our Lord in peace. There is a ton of Christian history in Rome, and it was fascinating to to get to learn more about it.

Outside St. Peter's Basilica in front of the square.

One of the ceilings in the Vatican Museum...sorry no pictures allowed in the Sistine Chapel. :(

On Saturday we walked to the Colosseum and took a tour. Wow. What a crazy feeling to stand where many Christians were ripped apart by animals. It made me think about what I would have done if I lived in Rome during this time. Would I have the bravery to face lions for my faith? Would I be willing to give up everything, including my life, to spread the Gospel? It was a good slap in the face to make me realize how blessed I am to share my faith without fear, and to remember that my walk with Christ should always be the most important thing in my life. After the Colosseum we took a tour of up Palantine Hill and walked around the Roman Forum where we got to see a lot of ruins built in 80 A.D. We spent the night walking up some very large hills on the outskirts or Rome that gave us a beautiful view of the city while the sun was setting.

 Outside the Colosseum. 

 My mom and I inside the Colosseum...you can see the platform where the people used to walk out onto, and then underneath are the remains of the quarters where the slaves worked and where they kept the animals.

Our view of the city while the sun was setting.

In between the major sights, we got to spend lots of time at the Trevi fountain, the Spanish Steps, the Pantheon, and the many different plazas in Rome. I absolutely love Rome. It was an amazing trip and I had so much fun getting to hangout with my parents for a few days. I was sad to leave one of the most incredible cities I have ever seen, but I was excited to get back to Sevilla to keep practicing my Spanish.

 My dad and I in front of the Pantheon at night.

In front of the monument to the Unknown Soldier. We got to walk up this as well and had a great view of the Colosseum from the top.

My dad made it back safely to the U.S. and my mom is here for a few more days yet.

My absolutely amazing parents. Such great Christian influences in my life. Thanks for a great trip mom and dad!

Love,

jana

We are family

"We're a family." Those are the words my Senora kept repeating to my parents when they came over for the first time. "We're all a big family."

It's pretty amazing how God brings people from all over the world together and makes them one family in His name. How blessed we are to be part of such a big family. And I am extremely blessed to be part of a big family here as well. It was so fun to get to introduce my new family here to my parents. We had a great night where they spoiled us with lots of delicious Spanish food. We sat around the big table and ate and talked and laughed for hours. It was, however, a bit difficult at times considering I was the only person in a group of ten that could speak Spanish and English. Lets just say I got lots of practice translating that night.

 My two moms meeting for the first time. I am so spoiled to have both of these amazing women in my life.

Everyone (minus me) all together and ready to eat lots of tapas.

Besides meeting my family, my parents also got to meet some of my friends from the program. We had a great time sharing stories and of course...eating more tapas.

After meeting my friends and family here, we spent the rest of the time exploring Sevilla. I wanted to show my parents some of my favorite parts of the city. I took them to the Cathedral, the "setas", the bull fighting arena,  the Alcazar, Plaza de Espana, along the river, and a few other places in between. We had a busy few days, but it was so nice to finally show my parents where I have been living the last month and a half.

 My mom and I in the Alcazar. It's a big palace in Sevilla and it has tons of beautiful gardens and historic buildings.

 In the bull fighting arena. I think it was probably best we went when there wasn't a fight going on. :)

 On top of the "setas." We went at sunset so we could see the city during the day and night. It was a beautiful view.

My dad and I enjoying some crepes and frozen yogurt. I obviously had to show them the best places in Sevilla to eat dessert. :)

Family. I am so blessed for my family, my new family here, the amazing family I get to marry into in a few short months, the many friends who have become more like family over the years, and the huge family of believers. I would not be enjoying this semester nearly as much without all of you. Thank you for your love, support, and prayers.

Love,

jana

P.S. After sharing Sevilla with my parents, we headed off to Rome for the weekend. I'll post more on that soon!