Becoming oriented in paradise

Its very easy to get distracted with so much beauty everywhere. I have to keep asking myself, "Is this real?" After having lunch and meeting each other, we received our own folders filled with information, maps, and schedules. Oddly, I smiled when I saw the Calendar of Activities for this semester. Finally, I'm back to an academic, intellectually stimulating, color coded schedule. How great it is to have a plan of action of how I will accomplish and see so much. Yes, its a nerd/ type A personality thing. No, I can't help it. Moving on.

Five minutes after we got our pertinent info, we walked, walked, and walked around the immediate central area. It is beautiful, but treacherous. First street knowledge I gained was to be aware of the cars. There are no sidewalks, some curbs here and there. The streets will trick you into believing that it is suppose to be a sidewalk for pedestrians because they are the same size or smaller than the sidewalks in the States. Falso! Cars can go anywhere that they can fit. If they can't fit, listen out for the mopeds and motorcycles as well. Here are some photos of the streets, and these are unusually large.




After all that walking, we enjoyed our first meal together. It was a form of tapas, but not exactly. Sorry, I didn't catch the name, but I will find out. We used bread and tomatoes as utensil and enjoyed several dishes. It was perfect. I was so tired from the tour that I just ate what was in front of me, sin carne por supuesto (without meat of course). Yup, I am going strong, and I really don't notice a difference between my meal and everyone else's meal. There are always so many options on the table at EVERY meal, and EVERYONE is so helpful and understanding. I feel fortunate and satisfied después de cada comida (after each meal)!

So we finished eating at about 10:30. Even though it was a Tuesday night, we HAD to go out and welcome ourselves to Palma. We toasted to the semester, and made it our own fiesta. Again, it was a Tuesday night. Palma does sleep, especially during the week. The bars and clubs were bare, but it was still a good time. We stayed at a place called Funky Buddha. It was a fun, long night, on top of the day of traveling and inevitable jet lag!

As a result of our evening/morning, we did not make our 10 o'clock meeting Wednesday morning. Sadly, the guys made us look bad, as both rooms of ladies overslept. I was shocked. Oversleeping on the first day?!? I set an alarm. I remember hearing it, but I just didn't respond. At 10:08, we awoke to the phone ringing, which was right next to my head. It was a our "Guardian Angel (GA)", like a peer mentor, Allegh. We scrambled and stumbled to get ready; nevertheless, my two roommates and I were actually able to make it down by 10:25. We were all impressed with our efficiency.

Lesson Learned: A full DAY of travel+An eventful NIGHT out=DEEP sleeping!


This is the front of our very eco-friendly, charming hotel and restaurant. It kind of reminds me of somewhere else.