Bring on Academia

We went to Badel's piso (that means floor, as in flat) last night for sangria (sweet Spanish wine, so barato--cheap) and tortilla and company, then to Molly Malone's once more...which was fun, except that I wanted to meet new people and no one new was there...then to Be Bop Bar on the edge of Parte Vieja (means Old Part, the neighborhood in Donostia where we live). This would have been great if the majority of us hadn't had class this morning...at 8:30, 9, or 10. It's becoming clearer to me that Spanish don't "sleep" ever. They nap all the time. Or, rather, nap between 1 and 5, work between 5 and 11, party between 11 and 5, nap between 5 and 8, and work again between 8 and 1. This does not work for Heather, who has grizzly bear genes. When I'm out, I'm out, and don't you dare ask me to put on a nice dress and go to a bar where everyone else fills my lungs with smoke. Except it's SO MUCH FUN and I do it anyway :). Gotta live some time.
This schedule worked perfectly for me until this morning, when I went to what will be the hardest class of my semester (I think). It's called Taller de Escritura Multimedia: Multimedia Writing Workshop. 2 hours a day 2 days a week, and 75% of our grade depends on a multimedia guion (script) that we construct and create presentations on during the semester, in groups of 3. Group work BLAH. Catherine from Quebec and I, and Alejandra from Mexico, had a Spanish classmate ask the class if anyone wanted to work with us. All the groups were full. RIGHT. Bascially, they know we don't speak their language and don't want to work with us.
I am trying to be prepared. I brought a tape recorder and aimed the built-in microphone right at JA Marin's face the whole time. Just played it back. Can't understand NI UNA PALABRA (a single word). So yeah...I don't think he said anything terribly important. Let's hope not.
So here's a run-down of the "study" part of "study abroad."
Taller de Escritura Multimedia: Tuesday 10-12 and Wednesday 9-11
Medio Ambiente y Desarollo Sostenible (Environment and Sustainable Development): Tuesday (starting next week) 3-5
Conceptos de Etica del Desarrollo (I'll let you figure that out): Wednesday 3-5
Industrial Organization Theory (in English! Yes!): Thursday 10-1:15
The last one will be seven intensive weeks instead of eleven stretched weeks, meaning that toward the end of the semester I will have no class Thursday, Friday, or Monday. Bring on the travel!
Which brings me to the point of this post...I worked my butt off in high school and college and I'm ready for some fun, some worldliness, some risk. Yes, I will do my homework and fulfill my scholarly obligations, but if you'll notice, I'm only taking 4 classes, and the rest of the time is mine. What a great word. I've already been enjoying it profusely...starting in March i will be surfing again once a week for an hour through a class the university offers. I'm also going to visit Cadiz in March and I'm planning my Easter vacation right now...Sevilla, Barcelona, Madrid, ahora vengo! I say the same to discotecas, bars, and conversations with fabulous Europeans who are sharing this semester with me. That's what this semester is all about.
Plans for tonight: birthday party for a Norwegian girl, then Zibibo bar, which is right below our flat, actually. Then "early" bed (1 am, perhaps) to go to 9 o'clock class again.