The Other Football Club and Birthday

So for my sports class we go on a fair amount of field trips to check out some of the local sports culture (i.e. Olympic Museum). Last week we went to see the other football club in Barcelona, RCD Espanyol (Real Club Deportes--Royal Sports Club Espanyol). Our teacher (Dawn Hiscock, and yes that is her real name) explained that this club is the smaller club that gets forgotten about in Barcelona. From a tourist's point of view, I kind of picture them as the White Sox to the Cubs (sorry Sox fans that read this) or the Mets to the Yankees in that every tourist will come to Chicago or New York and want to see a game at Wrigley Field or Yankee Stadium. Here, everyone wants to see a Barca game, and most don't even know that Espanyol exists. Anyhoo, the stadium was brand new and very nice. They designed it so that it could be used all year round for concerts (the Black Eyed Peas are playing there next weekend), corporate events or any other need that people have for a large stadium.

Other than that news, I have been kinda just hanging out since I got back from France last weekend. Classes are still going ok and I have been trying to see more of the city. I will try to get to Sagrada Familia this week (maybe tomorrow), but I also have to go check out the Sant Antoni neighborhood and find a grocery store and wine store I have been told for Mom, Liz and Jake. I love this city and all of my new friends I have made here, but it will be nice to see some familiar faces this coming week. I think that's all for now, and I promise to stay alive whilst celebrating my birthday this evening.

Observation of the day: Spanish students in the dorm
The Spanish students in the dorm are all super nice and seem very eager to talk to us. We learned a couple weeks ago that American students in years past have stayed to themselves and not even approached the locals in the dorm, whereas we have been eating with them, going out with them and talking at every opportunity with them. I find it fascinating to talk to them about their feelings toward the US (I have heard one person say they don't know anything about it, one who hated our policies and another thanking us for being the only nation with the cajones to do anything internationally controversial). I also learn interesting stuff about Spain--such as most of my discussion on the reasons Catalonia hates the rest of Spain and that the 1 Euro bottles of wine we buy to pre-game are usually reserved for homeless people. All-in-all, they are students. They study, they party, they are as curious about us as we are of them and I'm glad we are here with them. Pictures below--and the last picture is of the two girls that live next door, Rachel and Marisa. . . they are in my class as well.