Final Week

After a weekend of traveling for some and a weekend of relaxing in Alicante for others we all got ready for the final week of classes on Monday morning. I think the Spanish lifestyle was starting to get to everyone as one of our professors commented that everyone was really struggling to stay alert in class. Still though, everyone was still pushing through and trying to get the most of out the trip.

Monday and Tuesday were beach days for most of the students. With excursions on Wednesday and Thursday everyone was trying to soak up as much sun as possible. (Don't worry, most used sunscreen.)

Wednesday was our excursion to Guadalest and Altea, two small towns near Alicante. In Guadalest we climbed a castle and got yet another great view. In Altea we all got to explore the area. The main square had several little stands for shopping and there were beautiful views all over the place. After that it was back to the dorms to study for finals! Our dedicated students hit the books hard.

The student took finals on Thursday morning and that was it. Time to celebrate! We held our final dinner at a place called Marchosa. They have a dining room and served us a traditional Spanish dinner of tapas, sangria, and paella. The facility has a bull ring in which they allow guests to enter and attempt to fight some baby bulls. Don't let the "baby" part fool you though. These bulls are about four hundred pounds and they get pretty angry when you tease them. But our students pulled out some matador skills that they didn't know they had and showed the bulls what was up....well, most of them did anyway. Our brave students got an experience like none other and everyone escaped with just a couple scrapes and bruises.

And that was it! The official end to our program here in Spain! One month and a million memories that the students will never forget.

Week 3

After one full week of classes, everyone is pretty much in the routine of things. Of course no one could wait to get back to class after traveling over the three day weekend.

Tuesday was our excursion to Novelda to see the fiesta of the Christians and Moors. Before visiting the town we stopped at a church built by one of Gaudi's students. The church is a replica of Gaudi's La Sagrada Familia, the most famous church in Barcelona.

In the town of Novelda each year, the people all dress up in costumes as Christians or Moors. They parade through the town until 3 a.m. and then have a fiesta. It was a really interesting site to see and the costumes were really cool. They said that some of them cost up to 1000 Euros.

Thursday was our formal dinner with the Rafael program. They set up the tables outside on campus. The campus is covered with palm trees and flowers so the scenery was good. All the students looked sharp in the nicest clothes they could come up with. We all got to act like we were really important, so that was fun. Afterwards, there was a concert by a local band called EXIT.

Week 2

Monday was the official start of classes. Everyone is taking one class from an MU professor and one from a Spanish professor. It´s really interesting to see how professors teach over here. The first day was pretty hectic with some introductions and a little welcome reception. After that we had to get right into it since there are only twelve actual class days and an entire semester´s worth of learning to be done.

The best thing about our classes is the amount of International students. We have over 30 French students, several Spanish students, and a few others from many other countries such as Belgium and Portugal. The students are really getting a chance to interact with students from all different cultures.

Monday night the program organized a sports competition on campus. We played basketball and soccer (or fútbol we should say) with some of the International students. It was a great icebreaker for the students to get to know everyone and have a little fun. Not too much fun though, the competition was pretty fierce. Not really.

On Wednesday afternoon we took a trip to Jumilla in Murcia. Jumilla is known for its wine and we visited two wineries. They gave us tours of the facilities and let us taste some of their wines (and buy them after that). We even learned a little bit about their business practices and exports so we can call this one educational. The wineries themselves were beautiful and to top off a great excursion we all received a free bottle of wine. You always win with free stuff.

This week was pretty busy. Classes, homework, excursions, beach time, and fiestas really keep the students occupied. Sleeping seems to be pretty low on the list of priorities, but everyone is having a great time. The program is already half over!!!

Weekend in Granada

On Friday we left Alicante for a weekend in Granada. Friday night was our Flamenco show where we got to see authentic Flamenco dancers perform in a gypsy cave. It was so much fun and a few of us got to show off our Flamenco moves at the end. We weren't near as good as they were though. After that we took a short tour through El Albaycin, the moorish quarter of Granada.

Saturday was a day of sightseeing. We visited the site where Queen Isabella signed the contract allowing Christopher Columbus to search for a Western route to India. We also visited a 16th century monastery and La Catedral, both built after the Christians took over. The rest of the day was a free day and the students enjoyed shopping and tapas in Granada.

Sunday was our visit to the Alambra. This giant complex is the citadel of the last Moorish kingdom in Spain. The entire place was beatiful, but took a few hours to get through. The Moorish architecture was amazing and the views were impressive.

The End of Week 1

Thursday was a free day for the students. Many went to the beach or caught up on some sleep, but we did manage to get a group together to climb the castle of Santa Barbara. The castle sits atop a huge hill on the coast of Alicante overlooking the ocean. It was hot and a pretty decent workout. Once again though, it was worth it; the view from the top is gorgeous!

MORE WEEK 1

Wednesday was another day of company visits. We visited two shoe companies in Elche, a town close to Alicante. First was Panama Jack....pretty interesting. They make all types of shoes but specialize in work/hiking boots. The second company, Picolino's, was a really successful visit. We heard a great presentation from a manager who was in charge of all exports to the U.S. and Canada. He was interesting to listen to and gave us some valuable information about the business world. Then we visited their shoe store across the street and a few students got some shoes. Most of them were out of a traveling student's price range, but still cool to see.

After lunch and a break we headed to Biar, a small town 45 minutes away from Alicante. The town was filled with medieval architechture and beautiful churches. We then climbed the castle that overlooked the town. A little bit of a hike, but completely worth it. After our trek, we stopped for some tapas. The visit was beautiful and the students really enjoyed seeing some of the history.

Week 1

Everyone spent the weekend relaxing and exploring in Alicante. Between the beach and busy downtown, all the students found something to do or see. And then of course, there is the nightlife. The students had a great time experiencing how the Spanish party. The Spanish don't mess around with their fiestas and the students figured that out quick! A few even made it long enough to see the sunrise at the beach!

Monday was our first day of program of activities. We heard a presentation from Dr. Javier Garcia Martinez, the co-founder and Chief Technology Officer of Rive Technology. He is currently a group leader of the Molecular Nanotechnology Lab and the University of Alicante. It was really interesting and gave some insight about technology and its role in Europe. After the presentation the students met with some International students to exchange contact information and meet some friends here in Spain.

Tuesday was a busy day. We started with a company visit to Helados Alacant, a local ice cream manufacturer that exports all over Europe. We got to see the production facilites and even visit and ice cream museam. The free ice cream at the end wasn't too bad either! After that we visited the Office for Harmonization in the Internal Market or OHIM. This office of the European Union is responsible for all registration of trademarks and designs in the European Union. Their presentation was very informative and the students really enjoyed learning about how they do things in the EU. After a quick lunch we headed to the port and took a boat to Tabarca Island where we went snorkeling. It was a lot of fun even though there weren't that many different fish to see.