A Day in My Life in Oviedo

8 AM: Alarm goes off, wake up, turn on bedside table lamp, roll up room-darkening shades, get back
in bed and slowly come alive for the next 15-30 minutes, checking texts from when friends and family back home were still awake at 3 AM my time. Make bed (involves putting pillow and blanket back in closet and fitting a couch cover over my twin bed to turn it into a day bed, and then lining with throw pillows).

8:30-9:00 AM: Fumble my way down pitch-black hallway to bathroom, get ready for the day. If it's shower day, this involves me taking a spit bath with the hand-held shower head that will not stay in the upright showerhead position.

9:00-10:00 AM: Make breakfast. Cup of coffee, plain cornflakes with a sprinkling of sugar, and either a cup of plain yogurt or a clementine if I'm still hungry. Wash dishes, head back to room to pack up stuff for the day, put on coat and shoes and walk to school.

10:00 AM- 2:00 or 3:00 PM: Class.

2 (or 3:00) to 3:00 (or 4:00) PM: Lunch with host mom and host brother if I get out of class at 2; lunch alone if I get out at 3.

3:30-5:00 PM (ish): Siesta (take a nap if I feel like it, text friends that are finally awake, etc.)

5:00-7:00 PM: Depending on the day, either a run, walk around town, running errands, or meeting with my conversation partner.

7:00-9:00 PM: Watch something on Netflix (currently watching/recently finished/would recommend: La Niña, Good Girls, Black Earth Rising, The Edge of Seventeen, What If), possibly stretch/do some pathetic attempts at exercising in my room, maybe read a book.

9:00-9:30 PM: Dinner.

9:30 PM-12:00 AM: Journaling, possibly talking to friends from home. If it's a weekend I might go get tapas or ice cream, or see a movie in Spanish with a friend at the movie theater next to my apartment complex.

     I've never been less stressed or had more free time than these last few weeks. It's unsettling and at

times can actually make me fairly moody and lethargic, since there seems to be little point to my life. I'm used to having packed days, long to-do lists, around 15 hours of church/church-related activities each week, Dream, dozens to a hundred pages of readings each week, papers, assignments, and the daily upkeep of taking care of my apartment, feeding myself, grocery shopping, etc. To go from a fairly busy, fast-paced life to a life where I rarely have homework, can miss 20% of my classes and still pass, and have no chores, obligations, work, or volunteer activities, is a little jarring. Obviously I've adjusted quite well (who wouldn't?) but I do often miss the feeling of fulfillment I normally have after a long, busy day back home. Here, everything about my life centers around me and what I want to do when I want to do it. That's all grand and fun for a few weeks, but not for five months. Hence, I'm trying to add in more things to my routine to keep me busy and give me a reason to not sleep my life away, like trying to run around 3-5 times a week, making sure I get outside and walk around every day, trying to take advantage of as many opportunities to practice speaking Spanish as possible (two tandem exchanges and a conversation group, which covers Tuesday to Thursday, church youth group on Saturday nights and church on Sunday), and trying to re-fall in love with hobbies I used to love like reading and creative writing.
     Overall, I'm doing quite well, and I'm just dreading the shocking change of next semester, when I'll be taking two grad classes, an English class, education class, and sociology class, which will certainly involve more effort than any class I'm taking here. I hope that this "semester off" will give me the energy and strength to get through next semester and that I can power through any senioritis I will surely be feeling, knowing that it's just four months and that in a few years I won't even remember it. Luckily I'll only be taking 12 credits my spring semester next year, so I'll get a few months to enjoy just being a senior. But anyway, all that is to come. For now, I am fully enjoying and appreciating just how carefree and simple my life is right now....

-SE Wagner