Amanda's Blog for Spain!: Horseback riding!

Today, Amanda, Lindsay, Jamie, Em, Kat, Lauren, Cari and I went horseback riding. Most of us have ridden a horse before but Em and Lauren haven't and were starting to get worried. However, we informed them that it would be a slow pace and there would be trainers walking with us. We went to the country and saw a gorgeous view of the Sierra Nevada. The man from the University (who helped arrange this excursion) told us about skiing in the Sierra Nevada. He then drove us to the farm where the horses were. We get out of the car and see huge, massive horses. I have ridden a horse before but I am certain that it was not the height of the horse standing in front of me. Once everyone got on their horse, we began our travels on the horses.

The ride was smooth for the most part. I was a little startled a few times when my horse would jump and bring its front legs up. I would hold on the handle tightly and hope I didn't fall off. Thank goodness I had an trainer with me the whole time. She told me she would control my horse, who was named Lilia. The instructor told me the reasoning for her jumping. Apparently, my horse gets scared easily and with the other horses around and dogs following us, she jumps a lot. It was really scary at first but it was good that my instructor was there to calm the horse (and me!) down.

When we were on the trail, we had a blast just chit chatting and enjoying the scenery. It was gorgeous to see the Sierra Nevada in front of us the whole time. We had great weather and enjoyed every second of it! While on the trip, we talked with the trainers. My one trainer told me that she was due with her second child in March! I couldn't believe she was walking around the trail for over an hour being 7 months pregnant. She was great though. She asked us about our visit to Spain and what we liked to do. She asked us about the United States as well. At times, there was some confusion due to the language barrier. However, we were able to understand each other for the most part which is great. It's progress on communication! :)