Cantabria en Octubre

It’s been a while since I posted, mostly because it’s a pain in the heiney to keep up with this thing. I’m going to attempt to catch up and then post somewhat regularly. Anywho, since I’ve arrived in Spain I’ve gone on a few nature excursions; the opportunities here are plentiful and very economically feasible. You can usually stay in an “albergue” which is like a hostel but for large groups. We (Callie and I) went with a “senderismo”(hiking) organization in mid-October to Cantabria which is in the north of Spain (a.k.a. Basque country).

Let the adventure begin!

This is what I wrote at the time when I returned: “Just got back from a weekend of hiking, and I must say I'm very proud of myself - I don't think I've ever done anything so challenging in my life, both physically and mentally - I was on some ol' survivor ish! Eight hours of steep climbing, sideways climbing, rocky terrain, muddy terrain, slippery rocks, holes hidden under lush grass so every step was a potential accident waiting to happen. My legs got so weak toward the end that I was tripping constantly. The pain in my legs was excruciating. My neck was also sore from having to constantly look down because every step had to be meticulously calculated. At some points I was on the verge of tears from the thought of not being able to go on but knowing I had to. To top it off, I lost my group. As it began to get dark, I realized that I would probably be lost in a dark forest in foreign lands for a while as my phone was dying and it was my only source of light. But to be honest, I was o.k. with it because it meant I would have no choice but to stop. Finally, when it just started to get officially dark, I spotted part of my group in the distance and mustered up the energy to make a run for it before losing them again. Today, I'm completely sore, but feeling great that I was able to experience nature at it's finest and myself at my greatest! Feeling like a badass!“

Although it was rough, I took in some amazing sights and felt a wonderful connection with nature.

My favorite was seeing all kinds of animals, that although they were “farm” animals, they were roaming freely and grazing on the land/mountains.

Cows grazing and wind turbines atop the mountains as far as the the eye can see - F'ing beautiful!

Donkeys? Mules? Ponies? ¡Ni idea!




I also really enjoyed seeing this horse mounted herder in action as he tried to lure the bulls in the right direction. I have to admit, I found it kinda sexy :P

A dog decided to follow our group on the entire 8 hour hike. At one point when I was lost from my group, I slipped and fell on a rock. I stayed seated just as I had fallen because I was too upset and exhausted to move. As I was sitting wallowing in self-pity and sizing up the long narrow path that seemed like an endless stretch of nothing but trees, out of nowhere, this angel doggy appears at the end of the path from which I had come and makes his way down to me. He gave me such hope! He stayed with me for only a little while before moving on (which I pretty much pleaded with him to not leave me, he didn't oblige). Either way, I was grateful because he motivated me to keep going - a little divine nudge - Thank you universe!

That's me(my leg) still collapsed on the ground as he was looking forward and onward.

After we finally finished the hike and got back to our albergue, we had dinner and just collapsed for the night.  The next day we were supposed to do another hike to El Buciero, which is supposed to have some really beautiful views, but Callie and I were just too exhausted to do another hike, even though this one was supposed to be shorter. 

Instead we stayed behind and went into town, which is a port town, to do a little exploring before heading home. 

  

No soy de aqui . . .

So two weekends ago we decided to check out some of Valladolid’s cultural offerings. A group of us attempted to go out dancing Friday night but it turns out things don’t get crackin’ until 4:30 a.m. Basically people just socialize (eat tapas, have a few drinks) and then hit the discoteca at that time. Needless to say, I did not hold out ‘til then. It was nice though to see one of the bars full of lively socializing with people in their 40’s and over; you don’t usually see people within that age bracket out and about in the states. They’ve usually self condemned themselves to withering away in their homes in isolation from their friends – that is not the social norm here. We did however meet up with an intercambio group which is a group of locals who want to meet native English speakers for conversation. We met up with the group and chatted outside of a bar while having a beer next to the cathedral, it was pretty nice. Luego, they took us to a few spots for drinks and hanging out. The bar got pretty amped up when this song came on singing and jumping when it got to the hook, "Te casaste, lo cagaste!" The next day we checked out Casa Zorrila which is a museum of the actual home of a famous Valladolid poet and playwright in the 1800's named Jose Zorilla (originator of the Don Juan character from his play Don Juan Tenorio). He achieved great fame during his lifetime and was even honored in Madrid and crowned national laureate – he was kind of a big deal. He passed away while writing at his highly prized desk that he took with him everywhere even while traveling because he believed it’s what gave him the ability to write. That's the desk in the following picture. It was really cool to learn about his life since there are monuments/statues dedicated to him all around Valladolid including a main street here called Paseo Zorrilla.

We also checked out a photography exhibit entitled VallaPeople which featured photos of Valladolid locals shot by a local photographer, DANiMANTiS/Daniel Prieto Redondo. I thought this would be a great way to get to know Valladolid a little better. The photographs featured the names, ages, cities in which they were from and jobs of the people in the photographs – I was impressed with the amount of musicians in this city. While we were there we met the photographer and he took our picture. You can see it here on his FB page if you so desire: https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=4584884031105&set=pb.1562130600.-2207520000.1349447108&type=1&theater

I love the picture of the dressed up old lady because this city has soooo many old people who are dressed up and just out and about all day. And if they’re too old to be out on their own, there is always either a son or daughter or grandson or granddaughter taking their parent or grandparent for a stroll in their wheelchair. It doesn’t matter how old or ailing they are. The other day I could’ve sworn an old lady was being strolled around on her wheelchair that was actually dead or about to take her last breath any second.

Afterward we went to get some tapas for la comida de medio dia (lunch) and I decided to try a duck meat shishkebob - I spit it out, me no likey, but I found this interesting little guy on my plate. Settle down, it’s a mushroom . . . or was it? :o)

On Sunday me and Guillermo were fiending for sushi, so went out for dinner around 9 pm, afterward it was still pretty early (for Spaniard time anyway) and the evening was nice so wanted to grab a drink somewhere. We asked a couple that was walking by if they knew of a place nearby to do just that, and they invited us out with them! We were happy to oblige. Diego and Eva took us to a really cute and quaint bar where they got us a round of beers (they didn’t want us to pay because we were “invitados”). Guillermo and I decided we would get the next round. Diego is a professor at a local academy and Eva is a doctor who will be moving to Barcelona to work at a hospital there. We had a good time getting to know them. We found out that Eva only gets paid 950 euros/month as a doctor! She’s able to earn double that though because she does two 24 hour shifts during the week, but her base pay is 950/mo, pretty crazy huh? I guess you have to keep in mind that health care is free for everyone here, so I guess that’s why they don’t get paid much.

Anywho, Diego and Eva decided they wanted to show us another bar, so they took us to a very old traditional bar called El Penicilino (The Penicilin). They told us it was named after a customer, who many years ago, after sipping the owners’ special secret recipe wine said, “Cono, esto esta mejor que el penicilino!” (O.k., he may have not said the cono part, jejeje) Anywho, we went in and Eva ordered us a traditional sweet wine called moscatel, that is served in a glass bottle and with little glasses to be shared amongst friends and with little cookies called zapatillas (booties) because the look like baby booties. You typically eat the zapatillas by dipping them in the moscatel, in other words, this is the adult version of milk and cookies.

When we tried to pay, Diego and Eva once again refused to allow for me or Guillermo to pay. I’m just always blown away by the friendliness here. A foreigner in the states would never get this type of treatment from strangers. Eva even drew us a map of all the places that are nice to check out in Valladolid.

As for school last week I got to do an intro to me in most my classes where I did a presentation about myself. It was fun to see their reactions regarding my Two Truths and One Lie game, most students didn't think I could put my leg behind my head, and everytime I popped up the picture of me doing it, I heard surprise blurts of “Alaaa!” which is just a sound, I think, that means something like “Oh my God!” The kids were also able to ask me questions to get to know me (these were questions typed up by the teacher) One of the questions was, “What is your favorite Spanish phrase?” I said it was, “Joder!” – I think they were quite pleased ;o) One of the questions was weird though, “What were you wearing five years ago?” What the?! Jejeje

Also, this week one of the days me and Callie went on our own daily coffee break café, Bar Herga, and as we were sitting there, the bar owner gives each of us a cute little pot as a souvenir. Her husband does pottery and has a workshop in the pueblo where he sells them. What a nice gesture! Are you beginning to see why I adore Spain/Spaniards so much?

Also, this is our daily bartender/coffee server/tapa server, a.k.a. Herga’s son, Mario. He’s a muneco, in addition to being a cutie patutie. :o)

Finally, I would like to introduce you to my two favorite people in la tienda de chino which is like a big “$1 store” run by Asians, hence the colloquial term “chinese store”. I met Angel on my first trip there. He’s a lively boisterous character that likes to speak his broken English/Spanglish with me and is just all around hilarious. In this video I asked him to show me how to use the “saca corchos” I bought. And Paula es una chica muy maja (very nice girl) from Peru. I’m on a first name basis with these two because I go here so often. (I think I secretly go there so often to see Angel and Paula – I love them!)

But also, check out the cute para aguas (umbrella) I got there for 8 euros! Alaaa!

Anywho, still feeling extremely grateful and not sure of how to redeem myself to the universe to show just how grateful I am. I was thinking of volunteering here in Spain somewhere where a need is going unmet, or just being the best me (teacher, flatmate, friend, stranger) I can be everyday. I just feel like I'm indebted to life and owe so much for this wonderful experience. We'll see. Finally, I leave you with this great little guy that made me and friends' day when we came across him while walking down the sidewalk. Hasta pronto!

A mouthful . . .

O.k., so I thought I wasn’t going to jump onto the blogging-while-abroad band wagon, but it turns out it will be the easiest way to keep everyone back at home (and anyone else who’s just interested in what this experience is like) up to date with my European life. Not only that, I decided it will serve as a diary as well. Anywho . . . It has been a little over a week that I’ve been here, and I’ve accomplished quite a bit. I arrived in Valladolid at 1 a.m. on Wednesday, September 12th after 24 hours of travel. The next day I got up nice and early and hit the pavement to piso(apartment) hunt. I fell in LOVE with one and put a deposit on it the very next day. By Friday I had the keys in my hand and by Saturday I was moved in.

On Thursday I met with the family that I’ll be providing English tutoring for (dando clases particulares). My friend who was here last year hooked me up with this family, and we went together to meet with them at their house. The parents are both lawyers and they have a son (age 10) and daughter (age 12). I will be going twice a week for two hours each time - one hour with the parents and one hour with the kids. The whole family is really nice, so I’m super happy. On Friday one of the profesores(teachers) at my school took me and the other American teacher to la Comisaria de Policia to apply for our temporary resident card. It was a success, and I’m due to pick it up on Oct. 15th. In the evening I picked up the keys to my apartment and then had dinner with the people I was staying with while I apartment hunted. Saturday morning I moved in to my piso, and I couldn’t be happier! I’m in love with my piso and with my companieros de piso (flatmates, as they say here).

In the evening I went to a café that offered free wi-fi and ordered a tapa that consisted of queso de cabra (goat cheese) and some other thing that looked like soggy little cranberries and tasted sweet yet like bacon, it was good, but unfortunately, within an hour I felt sick to my stomach. I believe I got food poisoning, not sure though because I’ve never had it, but when it came on I felt a bout of nausea and my cheeks got really hot. I went up to my piso and laid down with a waste basket next to my bed because I thought I might throw up. On Sunday I decided to check out my neighborhood park Campo Grande and as I walked around I literally got tears in my eyes because it’s soooo beautiful and the weather was just perfect and just everything has been going so well (aside from the food poisoning) that I just couldn’t contain myself anymore. I literally walk around saying little prayers of thanks and asking myself, “Is this real life?” and singing a little made up tune: “I love my life, it is the bomb, just like my mom” jejeje But seriously, I just feel so so so grateful, everything has been beyond my expectations, and I already came with high expectations. Later in the day, me and Callie (the other American teacher) met up with our supervising teacher/boss for coffee and to discuss Monday, our first day of school. His name is Felix and he is the best! Super nice, helpful and full of joy – un puro corazon – couldn’t ask for a better boss.

Lunes, 17 de Septiembre de 2012 First day of school! Felix picked me and Callie up at 9:30 and we were at school by 10:00. Basically we just met all the teachers, who were all very nice, and hung out in the sala de profesores (teacher’s lounge) all day. The teachers don’t know their final schedules yet, which means my schedule hasn’t been figured out. Once they have it, we (Callie and I) will be placed with various teachers throughout the day. The school is an Instituto de la Educacion Segundaria - the grades are equivalent to 7th to 12th grade in the U.S. It’s a little confusing here though: 7th to 10th is Educacion Segundaria Obligatoria(Obligated Secondary Education) which means all students are obligated to attend school to at least 10th grade or 16 years old. After that it is Bachielatro de la Educacion Segundaria (Bachelor’s of Secondary Education) which means they also finish 11th and 12th grade. What this all means is that kids are only obligated to go to school up to age 16 or 10th grade and after that it is their choice whether they want to finish high school. They must finish in order to attend college. If they stop at 16, then their likelihood to get a good job is highly diminished. It’s like dropping out of high school at age 16 in the U.S. Anywho, aside from that we had two 20 minute recreos (breaks) and we went to the local café/bar each time, the first time we had coffee, second time I had tea but my teacher boss had wine, yes, that’s how Spain does it. The day finished up at two and I was back in my piso napping by 2:30 – it’s the best you can do since everything closes at 2 for siesta, and doesn’t open back up ‘til 5 if at all.

At around 3 I got up and did my first grocery shopping. I didn’t pick much stuff up, but it took me about two hours to complete because 1) I read food labels and I just don’t get the metric system here, and 2) EVERYTHING is so different!

Nonetheless, it was an adventure that I welcomed – I had a blast, it was like being in a food museum. This is the reason I LOVE being abroad – everything is new and a mystery to be unlocked – never a dull moment.

When I got back I decided to make myself something to eat. As I was cooking I heard chanting outside my piso. I rushed to my balcony to see what it was, and what do I see? An anarchist march! I was thrilled since I felt like I missed Occupy Wall Street’s one year anniversary activities back home. I was also thrilled that I was able to witness this from my awesome balcony in my room. :D

Tuesday This was the second day of school it was very similar to the first day, although I did get to introduce myself to one of the classes and then observe. During recreo I opened up my bank account. Later in the evening I went jogging with my roommate/landlord, Carolina, and she did a sort of jogging tour with me of Valladolid. We went jogging by a river and she showed me the outdoor gym there. Also by the river they have a makeshift “beach” an area covered with sand that you can chill at. I love Valladolid! Wednesday This day I didn’t go to school because Felix had to go to a funeral so I took advantage and got a bunch of stuff done. I went to the library and got a library card. I went to Caja Duero and got a tarjeta monedero bus which is like a debit card you put money on and use it for the bus and your rides cost half price, so each of my bus rides will cost 60 centimos, rather than a euro 20 – saaaweet! Also, went to a couple places to inquire about wi-fi de domicilio (wi-fi for my piso) and decided finally on one called Jazztel. You know you’re “not in Kansas anymore” when you’re spelling out your name for the customer service guy and he asks you to distinguish between B and V by saying “B de Barcelona o V de Valencia?”

Jueves de Tapas! The last day of the week at school for me – yes, I have Fridays off! I did a power point presentation about myself to a class and it felt good being back up there in somewhat of a teaching role again. I can’t wait to do more real teaching activities. In the evening met up with some of the other American teachers in Valladolid for Jueves de Tapas! (Tapas Thursdays) What this awesomeness is that bars have one to two tapas on special for the night – two baby euros gets you a tapa and a drink (wine, beer, or sangria). And you can bar hop trying different tapas. I wasn’t very hungry, so I did two tapas (calamari and this fried rolled up bacon, cucumber and cream cheesey type thing that was f’ing delicious), a wine, and a beer and only spent 4 euros! Our group ended up at a gay bar and we watched a drag show – it was just as vulgar and as funny as an American one. It was a good night!

Overall summary of how I’m feeling . . . Everything so far has been surreal, I can’t believe how wonderfully everything is coming along. I love my place, my roommates, my job, and my town – it can’t get any better. My roommate Carolina is an interior designer and artist and is just super interesting in addition to being VERY NICE. She’s pretty well-traveled: lived in Brazil for two years, anybody who knows me knows how much I adore that country especially the music so she made some recommendations to me. She also likes jogging, as do I, so I officially have a jogging partner too. As for Carlos, as soon as he walked in wearing a Serj Tankian shirt it was a done deal. :o) He’s an activist and works for a union. We got into talking about Occupy Wall Street and the local politics here and he said he’ll take me to the next manifestacion(protest) in Madrid! I really feel like I got the best of both worlds with my piso mates – again, couldn’t be happier!