My host mom plates my first lunch. "Lentejas" (lentils) is a soupy bean dish.
We arrived in Toledo on Thursday afternoon after a short bus ride from the airport in Madrid. My host mom, Puri, greeted me with a kiss on each cheek, which is more common than a hug here.
Unfortunately, we don’t have Internet, so accessing the web for free is at least half an hour from our house. About half of the folks in our group have Internet… and about half live in the Casco, the central historical area of Toledo. I live in a neighborhood called Palomarejos. I’m probably the farthest from the school. I have to take a 10- or 15-minute bus ride to Zocodover, the central plaza, and then walk about 10 or 15 minutes to the school.
Puri is really nice… she talks in a very animated way like a lot of the Spaniards here. She’s 62. Her grandson, Jorge, is 18, but he never talks to me. Puri says he’s very shy. He’ll talk if you ask him a question, but he won’t strike up a conversation.
Puri really likes to watch TV, especially movies. We didn’t have any scheduled activities for the entire weekend, so I got to know Puri during that time. Here are some photos from my first day in Toledo…
This is my room… I have a twin-sized bed, a desk, and a chair.
Another picture of my room… a closet, plenty of drawers, and a TV that works sometimes.
My host mom Puri, her grandson Jorge, and Jorge's girlfriend.
The night we arrived, they had a big parade for “Noche de Reyes,” Night of Kings. It’s a celebration of when the Wise Men brought gifts to baby Jesus. That’s also when the kids receive gifts from the three kings and when adults exchange gifts, too.
This strange bird on a bike was part of the parade.
These ducks stayed together.
One of the Wise Men. The people on the floats threw out lots of candy, and Puri got pelted several times.