This is not real life

WE MADE IT TO PALMA! There are 8 Holy Cross students here each with their own spanish "madre" to take care of cooking, cleaning, and being adorable guides to the city. I am the 18th student my madre has invited into her home, so she has this down to a science- laundry bag on the back of my door, towels in the closet, food cooked freshly daily, water filtered in the fridge, and with my own keys I can be independent or hang out with her whenever I want. Yesterday, I met her family just outside the city at her daughter's house and we had some food and hung out on the back patio with their dogs. Today, I took a trip to the "country" part of the island with my friend and our two madres. We ate typical Mallorquin appetizers and then a huge dish of paella (yellow rice, peas, calamari, chicken) topped off with a Mallorquin pastry. I couldn't have asked for a better living situation with a sweet and very wise older woman who enjoys company and understands what it's like to have twenty somethings live in her house.

Yesterday was our first day and we hit the beach, Cala Mayor. Although small and crowded, it's faults were outweighed by the short bus ride and the nice sand and warm water. Many more beaches to come!
Last night we all went out along the marina where young people drink and socialize from midnight to dawn. The HC entourage shared cartons of wine, cups, and straws and walked along the water with the hundreds of other youngsters and started off the year with a bang. Meaning it was a success, because I arrived home safely to my madre's apartment at 7:30 a.m. after speaking spanish and walking around for 7 hours.

Bienvenidos a la vida Mallorquin! For more info about visiting the island