day one

Spanish salutations from Sevilla, friends and family! My love and I are weary from a long trip overseas and a full day of more traveling/immersing into our new home, yet we settle in for the night with all the aliveness of heart that comes with reaching the long-awaited destination we've dreamed about together for so many months. We are here, we are safe, we were warmly welcomed and well-fed, and most importantly our heads are already spinning because of how fast the Spanish language is spoken here. Zach amazes me with how well he keeps up; he contributes so much to conversation while I maybe get a few jumbled strings of words in here and there. I am so thankful to have him right next to me to clarify when I am literally lost in translation... Woooo! It's incredible how much you can learn in a day though! We are so so so excited to be here and surrounded by Spanish speakers, and very grateful for this opportunity.

Our flight was very smooth; by the far the least stressful trip by plane we've ever experienced. It was fun to meet up with a few friends from Northwestern and chit chat with some new people at the airport, all of whom are also participating in the Spain Semester, but once Zach and I sat down on the plane we meant business-- whippin out the English-Spanish dictionary, reviewing phrases and vocab with each other, and watching a movie in Spanish. :)

Sevilla greeted us around 1:30 pm with many palm trees, bright sun, and humidity. We were shuttled right away to the neighborhoods where we will live for the next 3.5 months. We live in an area called Triana. Zach's and my first impression of our host couple?? Pure awesomeness. How do you translate that? Alejandra (Sandra) and Juan Luis (Juan-Lu) are the cutest young married couple with a just-as-cute little apartment on the 5th floor of a tall building. Oh, and just when you think things can't get cuter, you trip over their teeny tiny size-of-Zach's-foot teacup Yorkie pup called Nano.

We experienced such a wonderful afternoon with these two, discussing all sorts of topics (of course I'm mainly trying super hard to understand and am just nodding my head the whole time), indulging in Sandra's delicious Spanish wonders for lunch and dinner (she cooks only with oil, not butter! I love it!) and watching the Madrid vs. Barcelona soccer game on television. Was good for Zach and I to spend some time alone together as well, as we explored the neighborhood a bit and had a chance to sit out on the balcony together before dinner.

This is just the beginning, and we have been blessed in every way already! Thank you to all who've encouraged us and prayed for our travels. Pictures and videos and more written sentiments from us both are on the way. All praise be to our God who stirs in every human heart beauty and adventure in some shape or form. "I have come that they may have life and have it abundantly." John 10:10

just took 3 photos today. sorry, they're really boring! airport, first view of sevilla, and view from our bedroom window.