New Beginnings

Hi guys,
  It's been a while since I've updated... only because once I got to Philly it has been insane... looking for an apartment and getting all settled in. There's so much to say and I'm sure all my words are going to be jumbled rambling... hopefully it will make some sense.

   Let's start off with the apartment... I got a little studio near the Art Museum area (that's museum with the steps that Rocky runs up in the Rocky movie). My apartment is on the 15th floor with an amazing view of the sunset and north philly. It is a little small, but I guess I'm small so it fits. At first I didn't like it as much, but it has grown on me. After all the furniture was moved in and stuff, and I've started a little decorating it's starting to feel like home. This is a great place in that it has everything I need, a gym, tennis courts, salon, ATM, Rite aid and a restuarant... oh yeah and a bell boy!!!! It's a like a mini hotel.. I can't believe I live here. If you guys want to come visit, you are more than welcome.... just know that there's a limit of one person at a time, or else there might not be enough room... jajaja... or we could all try to squeeze in! I don't have any photos right now... cuz' I want it to be a surprise when the place is finally finished... I'll post photos and a video when it all comes together.
  I thought traveling with my mom for 3 days was going to be a an awkward situation, but it turned out to be great. We got along great... did I ever mention that my mother is the greatest haggler in the world? She managed to get the landlord to lower my rent and get him to furnish the place also... she's great. I'm soooo glad she came with me. Unfortunately she wasn't able to see much of Philly because we spent most of the time getting settled in, but hopefully the next time she's here, I'll be able to show her a little more of the city (hopefully I'll be more familiar with it by then).

   My impressions of Philly.... it's not Seattle. Philly is not as beautiful as Seattle is... but the people here are nice... on my 2nd day here, I took the subway to my class... and didn't know that the machine required exact change... I only had 2 dollars, and it required 3... i thought 2 would be sufficient because that is the price of 1 pass... but no... here they do it differently you have to buy 2 passes at the same time... and the guy wouldn't give me change for a bigger bill i had... and the machine wouldn't give me back my money... i couldn't even use my card.. nothing... I was freaking out cuz' I was going to be late... and didn't know what to do... then out of a nowhere this nice guy handed me a dollar, and "saved" me... It was great!!!! I think that's one of the nicest things that any stranger has done for me.. it made my day!!!! It also didn't hur that he was super attractive... if only I was quick enough to chase after him before he left... he could have been the one!?!??!?! My impression of Philly changed and I'm going to give it a try... so check back in a bit to see how i feel about the city.

   School wise, i had my first class today... and not to sound like a nerd but it was great to be back in school... and when I was buying my notebooks and books it just felt great. Although I have a ton of reading and work... I'm in the "it's nice to be back stage"... we'll see how it goes at the end of the quarter. As for the people I've met... my classmates have been really friendly, but I guess that's how it always happens when you are thrown into this type of situation... but only time will tell if the friendship sustains.

   Living on my own so far has been great, I feel very mature and independent, but I do miss having someone to talk to all the time. I always want to turn around and say something, expecting Ally to be there but she's not. I miss her and her companionship dearly, but I guess eventually we must separate. But I do have to say that there seems to be many more people my age here in Philly than there were in Huelva... Atleast when I go out and meet people, they usually are in college, have gone to college or something like that... so I know my future husband is waiting somewhere in the city. Now I just have to narrow down the search between the 5 zillion universities in this city
   But as my first week in Philly draws to an end... I am happy, healthy and excited for the possibilities that lie ahead. I'm open to meeting new people, trying new things and living the "college" life I never had. As an undergrad my whole life was consumed with school and work, I didn't have much time for anything else, and I've seen that has definitely hurt my relationships not just romantically, but also with my family and friends. So this time around, although I'm dedicated to school... I'm not going to dedicate every single moment of my life to school, and working to start my career. It will still be important to me, however, I've realized that there's more to life and I need to focus on building relationships. I guess my books won't talk back to me when I'm whining, or they won't take me out on a date, but they do take up a lot of space in my bed though.

    Either way... this is a fresh start for me, to take risks and put myself out there and be free to have fun (and not constantly be thinking of all the homework I need to be doing). I guess it sounds crazy to say but I've always been afraid to think about anything but school and work.. because that's all I've really known my whole life. It never let me down and it could never hurt my feelings. But having had the chance to meet new people and spend time with them outside of an academic setting makes me really wish that i would have done it more with those in Seattle. But I guess there will be time for that in the future.... wait for me!
   So as this post comes to an end, I'm gonna head off to bed with my book on tubercolosis... don't be jealous of me ok??? I hope everyone is safe, happy and healthy. I miss you guys more than you know. I hope to see everyone soon. Tons of hugs and kisses (as the spaniards would say it)

 With lots of love,
 Ngoc :)

P.D. I miss the spanish way of greeting... shaking hands is soooo... "frio" I want to give besitos!!!!! Would that be awkward if I started that here????