Las Aventuras: Lo siento, no habla espanol

Hi everyone! So, over the last few days, I have learned a lot about Spain! Yesterday, we received our first lecture about drinking in Spain... basically we were told that American's who are 21, are equivalent to 15 year olds in Spain (which means they just drink to get drunk). Maria Jose explained to us that in order to fit in here in Alcala, and anywhere in Spain or Europe, we must learn to drink casually and responsibly, something many of us are not used to. However, fitting in is something we are struggling to do. In America, when there are large groups of Spaniards walking around speaking only Spanish, I tend to stop and stare at them and how they stand out. Basically, I am the the Spaniards now. Everywhere we go, as a group of 21 American students or just 3 of us, we stick out like VERY sore thumbs. Between my blonde hair (La rubia, my new nickname..), our english, or lack of spanish, and shorts (spaniards aparently did not know these existed), we look like a bunch of lunatics walking around the Plaza in Alcala. At one point, a man was basically cursing us out in Spanish and another man standing by kindly translated what the jerk was saying. So while some people are mesmerized by our "foreign"-ness, others seem to wish we were not here. It is taking some getting used to, but slowly, we are learning the proper etiquette here in Alcala.
We have spent a majority of the last 2 days just walking around, getting familiar with the area, and now I can successfully get from my home to the Plaza and class! Very exciting. My spanish is slowing but surely improving and i find myself more involved in each conversation I have, picking up more words and phrases each time! It is crazy how quick we are all picking it up!