Getting into the spirit :)

Okay, before you might ask what I'm doing with my computer at 1 am - the thing is that we found this wireless hotspot just around the corner of our house, on a little square, so now, after having had tapas for dinner, we are sitting here on a bench, enjoying the slightly cooler air of the night (during the day, the heat is getting almost unbearable, we've had up to 39 degrees in the last few days!) and getting connected with the rest of the world! ;)

So much is going on here that I don't know what to write now! Let me just give you some impressions: This picture shows the balcony of our flat (isn't it beautiful?=), with the table set for one of the moonlight dinners we've enjoyed in the last days: it is amazing, still by far warm enough to sit outside comfortably, eat a self-cooked meal, have a chat with friends and all of that underneath the full moon (la luna llena y sus secretos...)! As we live on the 6th floor, we have a look over the rooftops of Salamanca and sunshine almost until sunset!

We've been to the swimming pool again twice, on Sunday and today, which is the only and best way to cool down a bit and get tanned at the same time! ;) And who says we can't do our homework while sunbathing?! It is also one of the "group experiences" we are having here all the time, we're always at least four or five people sitting together with our towels, talking, helping each other with homework or distracting each other from it...

Oh yes, I haven't told you about one thing that really made a huge impression on me: this Monday, we went on a City Tour, organised by the school. At 5pm we met at school, and a guy (we later found out that he is a English and Spanish student at the university of Salamanca and works as a teacher at our school during his holidays) took us to the most important monuments of Salamanca. Well, what can I say? My first impression, namely that this is one of the most beautiful cities I've ever seen, was confirmed totally and, what is more important, I had a very curious experience that afternoon: after looking at one of the cathedrals and learning a lot about its architecture and history, we went to the building of the Philology Department of the USAL (University of Salamanca). It is a very old building (if I'm not mistaken from the 16th century) and the adjacent building is the former student residence which is now also used for classes. Already there, I felt very peculiar, but when we then entered the building where most classes in "letras" (literature and linguistics) take place, I really got goosebumps and felt that this was where I belong - just the way I've only felt once before in my life: when I (at the age of about 16) first entered the main building of the UniZH and stood there in the Lichthof and knew that I really wanted to be a part of that world one day! I know it might sound really stupid now, but it was as if I saw where I should go in the future - and since the USAL is one of the oldest and most prestigious universities of Europe and especially for languages the best of Spain, I think it very likely that, sooner or later, I will spend more time here! ;)

Now I think I should leave it at this for today and get some sleep - we went out yesterday and the last night was rather short... so keep checking back for news, now that the internet is so close, I'll be able to write more often! :)

P.S.: today's title comes from a remark of one of my "companeros" here today: we all arrived about 10 minutes late at the meeting point and as I didn't seemed to care too much, he was like "great, girl - you're getting into the spirit of Salamanca" - and I think I am really, feel totally comfortable with this way of living... :)