Countdown to September 15th

You can get to the beach on the metro from Bilbao. (!)

As I piece together bits of information on where and how I will spend the next 9 months, certain things strike me and pique my curiosity. Bilbao's proximity to the ocean, mountains and the French border. Stories of the city's current renaissance as cultural capital of northern Spain. The fact that absolutely no one who I've talked to who has visited Spain has disliked it; On the contrary, most love it.

When I say I'm piecing together information, I'm not exaggerating. The Spanish government and now the Basque government aren't exactly, how can I put it, organized, swift or efficient when it comes to informing program participants about the details of the program or answering our questions. Thank god for the web; past and present participants have found each other on Facebook where we pool our information and collectively try to figure out what's going on.

If this were my first time abroad, I'd probably be more nervous. But it's not, so I'm not. I tell myself all the details will come together in due time. ( Though I would be a little more at ease if my visa would just show up already...!!!) It's pretty easy to distract yourself with the details of travel prep and endless Google searches, keyword: Bilbao.