And I'm Back in Orange!

I know that I haven't written, and it's a total shame. Since I've been back I've been so busy! I have returned to the beautiful Olympic Peninsula. In case you haven't seen how beautiful it is, prepared to be enlightened!

This, my friends, is Port Angeles. I have been here for about a month and a half now. It's been the best season; beautiful and sunny. The weather is what I imagine when it's not sunny. Because when I visit, most often times, it isn't sunny. But right now it's always at least a constant 65 degrees, the sun is shining, and I get to go on adventures. I have been out to the beautiful Lake Crescent, Lake Sutherland, Port Hadlock, and all over on the Olympic Peninsula! Although, I have been busy on adventures I have really been thinking about posting. I miss writing all of the time. I miss my readers, and publicizing my adventures! Yes, I am back in the United States, but the traveling doesn't stop here! In August I will be visiting family in Santa Monica, California. I will be visiting the iconic Venice Beach and Muscle Beach! I'll take pictures and talk of my adventures. I don't have much time to talk too much right now, but just know that if I'm not writing I am enjoying myself and the sunshine! My last over-all message, is that if you want to visit the beautiful place that I currently am situated, I highly suggest the winter seasons. Yes, it is just as beautiful. Yes, there is rain. But right now there are sooooooo many tourists. I love that this place has finally gotten some attention and publicity. However, the roads here were NOT built for the amounts of traffic that they are currently holding. Either way, you should come and visit. I guess any time. Because it really is unlike any other place in the world. And it is really beautiful. That is all!

Until next time! 

Farewell to Santander

I left yesterday to Madrid for a couple of days so I should consider this a late post but I'm not going to. Why? Because I had a migraine yesterday on the bus ride (6 hours) and I got sick because my head hurt so much. I'm not kidding you. I was wrapped around the porcelain throne like I was a noob on their twenty-first birthday. But I hadn't been drinking. And I definitely was not in a partying mood. Anyways, that's not the point. The point is I had a legit reason not to give a farewell on the appropriate day.

I also I know that I haven't written in a while. And the reason I haven't is because I was trying to enjoy my last couple days/weeks. It was great. I picked shells off the beaches and enjoyed the water and the sand. It was fantastic. And guess what? I even took a farewell picture.

But I'm not kidding. Santander, it's been real. I will miss you. I will miss my host-family, the food, the people, the streets, the beautiful shells that wash up, the way the concrete smells when it rains and it's fresh from traveling over the oceans. I know this isn't goodbye, it's only see you later. No adios, solamente hasta luego. As weird as this may sound for a male, but this place will always hold a little piece of my heart. Shit, I lived here. It wasn't for long but I lived here all the same. I absorbed bits and pieces of it into my being. I even say "Ay" when something happens or when I'm shocked I say "Ay Dios Mio." Yes I say that. And it's all my host family's fault. I say "Si, Si, Si," and "Bien, Bien, Bien" all the time. Why? Because, even though I only lived here for a little bit I let it fully overwhelm me. I was open to it. And that, my friends, is a beautiful thing.

Being able to say you went out of your comfort zone and tried something out of the ordinary in order to better yourself is beautiful. And anyone who says otherwise is ignorant. I feel there are parts of me that have completely done a 180, but you know what? I'm okay with that. I experienced something not a lot of people have. I was stretched to the limit of my patience and then some. I was stressed. I ate some weird food, then puked up that weird food (squid in it's own ink. Apparently it's a delicacy). I got too drunk and stumbled home leaning against the shoulders of new friends. I learned how to make authentic Sangria and Mojitos. I got topless at a beach. I buried my feet in the Spanish sand. I took a city taxi and spoke to the cabdriver by code switching (between English and Spanish mid-sentence). I took a nine hour flight and had swollen feet. I cried because I missed home; because I wanted to watch television in English, because I hadn't received even a hug from anyone in three months, because my bed here hurt my back, because I was missing halibut season back home, because I had a migraine... But you know what? Looking back, I still would have done it a million times over. Yeah I was homesick. But I was also 7000 (yes 7000) miles away from home. That's enough distance for anyone to long for the comfort of home. But I couldn't do that. Through that discomfort came growth.

It was beautiful. And I know this won't be the last time I put my feet in the Cantabria Sea. This won't be a real goodbye to my host-family. I will return here. Because like I said, a little piece of that place is now a part of me. And in order to make room for that new part of me, I needed to leave some of me behind. In order to visit that old me, I'll have to return. Because that part of me, will never be able to be a part of me ever again. Why? Because I like my trade. Also, I just need another excuse to come back.

Hasta Luego, Santander.

Short But Sweet

I don't have much time to write because it's becoming crunch time in my classes and I have a three essays due tomorrow, a presentation about the food of southern Spain, another essay due Wednesday and Thursday. With that being said this post is going to be short and sweet. Picos de Europa was simply beautiful. I high recommend at some point in your life, if you find your way to Spain, you have to see these beautiful mountains. When I got up to the top it was freezing and snowing. I road a cable car up, and it was just... breathtaking. Literally. I was freezing, and my breath was being taken away. The view was beautiful. Trips like this are really going to make me miss Spain when I leave in two weeks. Yes, TWO WEEKS! I;m excited to come back but I know I'll miss the food, the people, and the culture.

Below are some pictures from my mountain adventure!

Ahh, Mangos!

I'm eating a fresh mango that my host mom cut up for me. Well, cut it off the pit. She didn't really need to cut it up for me. I just re-read my title and realized that I hate technology because there is no way of conveying emotion. When I typed it I was imagining my tone resembling, "Ahh shoot!" But it came across aw a relaxed feel. Like I'm laying in a hammock underneath two palm trees eating a mango and drinking a piña colada. False. Although a bit later I might go out with some friends and get a mojito.

Currently I am sitting in the host mom's apartment and I'm working on some flashcards. I've been having issues with remember little phrases and words so I'm starting to crack down. Over the course of the past three days I have made over 250 little scraps of paper that all have Spanish phrases scrawled all over them. I also found this really cool website for practicing conjugating verbs. It tells you your percent right, will time you if you want, and it has a cute little frog that wears a hat that cheers you on. Well, he doesn't move... But I like to imagine he's cheering me on! It covers all languages (French, Spanish, etc.) so anyone learning a language might find it useful. There you are my friends.

https://conjuguemos.com/index.php

I've been practicing my 8-foot tail off!

As I had promised, I would talk about my trip to Toledo, Segovia, and Burgos. All were beautiful in their own way. Burgos was nice because it had a really pretty river cut through town and the Catedral de Burgos was... Well, is was simply amazing. I saw a painted work by da Vinci in there. It was simply breathtaking... Truly amazing. See for yourself.

I don't think I will ever be able to get over how beautiful their history and how fantastical their cathedrals are. Everything is just so... Elegant. And magical. Magical is the perfect description for Toledo too. Fun fact: That was the place where all of the weaponry and metalwork was done for The Lord of the Rings. Yeah, I went there. No big deal. Anyways, the reason their smithing is so famous is because of the river that essentially makes their city an island. It separates the old town from the new. The runoff from the rocks adds an amazing mineral to the water. Way back in the old days they discovered this magical mineral when their weaponry always cut, had amazing elasticity, and promised a good fight. All of the metal-work to this day, all the swords, knives, pocket-knifes, etc, are all made in the city. They pride themselves on it. And why not? That's pretty frickin' cool if you ask me.

While I was in Toledo, it was the annual festival celebrating El Grecco. Also amazing. I saw El entierro del Señor de Orgaz. Yes, I saw it in person. No, I was not allowed to take pictures. Yes, I got as close as I could, which was about 7 ft. away. Kinda cool. ALSO! I don't know if you know this about me but I am literally in love with marzipan. If you think it's gross you can leave, because it's amazing. They make the most amazing marzipan in Toledo. My friend suggest a shop to try, we went in.... I will forever be ruined of any other marzipan again. They had some with sweet pumpkin folded inside. SWEET PUMPKIN! They also had one covered in pine-nuts as well as the marzipan fruit (which had a chocolate filled inside that when you bit into it, the flavor of whatever fruit you had, would gush out of the chocolate like a wave of liquid happiness).

Segovia and Toledo were both very warm. My PNW blood couldn't take the dry heat. But they were beautiful. I went to a castle, yes a real life castle, in Segovia. I also stood in the center of the Roman Aqueducts. That was a wave of history. Ha-ha. Wave. Water. Get it? Daire made a funny.

Anyways, I have to get back to the grind of verb-practice.

Until next time!

Topless Beaches and U.S Entitlement

I stayed in Santander all weekend. No, I'm not a loser. Yes, I have a life. I just figure I'm here to study. I don't need to travel all over if I'm here to learn Spanish. I would rather spend time with my host family or have a fantastic understanding of the northern culture of Spain (which is very different from southern) than travel all around. Plus I don't have the time or the money. This isn't a vacation, this is an educational experience! On a side note I discovered that I love Calimocho and Mojitos. So much for studying and saving money, I knew you were going to call me on that, so I figured I would call myself out before you did. HA! GOTCHA! 

No but really. Calimocho is incredible. It's wine and Coca-Cola. I have no idea who invented this brilliantly strange combination, but they were straight genius. That's all I have to say. I've also been here in Spain for seven weeks now and realized that all they eat is fried food. Everything is fried, it's a wonder I don't look like this:

But it's delicious so I'm not complaining. Also, their olive oil is incredible. In the U.S it has a nutty flavor but it's so pure and fresh here it's sweet and fruity. It's amazing. So I don't feel too bad when my gambas (shrimp) come out drenched in sizzling oil and garlic because it's not like the oil in the U.S.

I had my first series of midterms here. They were a little stressful but after they were over I looked back and realized my teachers just want us to learn. And since everybody learns Spanish at different rates they are pretty good about grading and understanding everybody handles the lessons differently. The following is a picture of me studying at a cafe and drinking Coca-Cola sin vino.

One thing I love about Coke here in Spain is that they always put a lemon in it. I'll be so accustomed to it that when I return to the U.S if I don't have a Coke (and the place only carries Pepsi) I will be quite angry. Also I will need a lemon. But it still won't taste the same because the Coke here uses real sugar and half the preservatives that the American's use. Also, they come in (usually) 8oz. bottles. This giant I took a picture with was the first Coke I bought that was bigger than 8oz. At first it was hard to accept because they don't have free refills and also there usually is more given than 8oz. I had a bit of a fit until I realized that they tasted better here and it was worth it. No matter.

Another thing I found out today that I wish the U.S had? Topless beaches. Not because I want to check out chicks, ya perv! But because it felt very freeing to walk in the sand and not have to worry about people judging me on my spots and the fact that I wasn't wearing pants to cover them up. But in reality, I would like to see some of these people try and find shorts or pants big enough to fit me. Even Jarrod from Subway's pre-diet pants wouldn't be anywhere close to fitting this butt. Going on that beach just made me a little sad that American's are always worried about getting offended and they think they are entitled enough to say what is and isn't right for another person. Hell, if I don't want to wear a shirt or pants at the beach or girls don't want to wear their tops and you don't want them to, don't look. Here Spain women don't wear tops simply because they don't want tanlines. It's not like they are trying to show off their bodies and honestly, no one here even cares. Why can't that just be a thing in the U.S? Why are we so worried about what other people are doing? Just leave them alone, damnit. It's ridiculous in my opinion. Who care's what someone around you is doing, why don't you focus on yourself. Here if a person isn't comfortable taking their top off no one judges them, if they don't wear it people still don't judge them. 

I'm starting to realize, as much as I miss home, compared to Spain the U.S kinda sucks. Better soda, better beaches, more accepting people, better clothing, better weather, a prettier language... After getting out I'm learning that the U.S is pretentious and the people that discovered the Americas? Yeah, they had it right all along. Where did we go wrong?

 Sorry for my rant. That is all. Next weekend I'll be over in the inner cities like Toledo and Segovia. I'll take pictures, as always. Looking forward to writing soon.

Tchaikovsky en La Noche

I haven't really talked about Santander and I'm a little sad I haven't. I figured this post would be dedicated strictly to the city I'm in. After all, I am living here for the next month and a half. It's insane that my journey to Europe has already been over a month. Time has really flown by, but as they say, it tends to do that when you're having fun. Soon I'll be on the flight home wondering where in the heck my three months went.

In case you wondering, yes it is 11 pm here. And yes, I am listening to Tchaikovsky as I write. If I am sound prodigious in my language or my style is eloquent it's because my brain neurons are firing. I hear your brain thanks you when you listen to classical music. Apparently is stimulates brain function. I believe it. They have all these tests out there if you don't believe me.

So Santander. It's beautiful. Every morning I walk to class and when I look down from the top of the hill over the harbor, it takes my breath away every time. This is what I see:

And yes, if you're wondering, I take those stairs. I counted them over the weekend. There's 315. One way. Which means in a day I take 630. If you know math. And sometimes I take walks to the upper part of town. Okay, most days I do after Comida (big meal of the day at lunchtime). Which means 1,260. On a day where I'm feeling particularly spunky, like two days ago and the day before that, I take them three times and run the third. Are you following me? That's a lot of steps. But it's worth it every time I get to the top. I see the laundry hanging outside on the lines and I sigh. A piece of (I know I'm a male, but I'm sensitive) me will always belong to this town. I know that this won't be the last time I'm here. I've fallen in love. I mean, if you saw this view every day on your way to classes wouldn't you? Did you know it's the only city on the northern coast of Spain that faces south? Betcha' didn't! Well now you do. I couldn't be happier here.

Also good news (a little off the topic of Santander, but it's relevant)! I just sent my Letter on Intent to Fulbright through Oregon State and if all goes as planned I will be teaching Spanish and English in Costa Rica. It's relevant because 1.) my host mom has a daughter in Costa Rica and 2.) I am learning Spanish here and will have the opportunity to go abroad again. Which means more adventures for this traveling giraffe.

Back to Santander. It is the capitol of the autonomous community of Cantabria. Which all cities, big and small, are amazing here. There are a lot of small (VERY SMALL) little towns. But in the summer they boom with "gente de Madrid con mucho dinero, mucho mucho dinero." The words of my host mom. She cracks me up.

Tomorrow I am off to Comillas and Santillana. Which I am excited about. When I went to my host mom's other house in Comillas we drove past Santillana and I really wanted to stop. It looks like a stereotypical country town in Spain that you see in the movies. Exploring will be nice. As expected of me, I will take photos.

Hasta Luego.

Semana Santa Weekend

Well, I haven't done a whole lot since I wrote last but I think that continuing to write and talk about my experience here is important, even if I simply have a small story about my host mom. It's good to get it all out. It's therapeutic. Today, however, I did do something really interesting. This weekend is Semana Santa in Spain. Which if you don't know that that is I am happy to take a minute and explain, especially since if you just Google pictures, you're probably going to get freaked out that it's some crazy racist ritual. The reason I say that? Well Google images for yourself. I daire you.

Essentially, Semana Santa in the Holy Week in Spain. It's beautiful if you understand what's going on and why. People march in processions with giant sculptures of Jesus and other religious figures, incense is lit in thuribules (the swinging lantern of burning incense suspended from chains), and lit candles are carried and such. They do all of these traditions in commemoration of the Passion of Christ and it is always celebrated the week before Easter. The most intriguing part of all of these marches are not the music that is being played, or the pacing all around town in loops... The most interesting part is their dress. It's not weird to them but to us and our history, it's very strange. The following picture depicts their dress.

The fact that it resembles KKK members is really what's strange but these costumes have been used for years and centuries. So it's not weird, simply just a different aspect of culture, which is a good thing because learning and respecting other's ways of life (and learning Spanish) is why I'm here after all. I was looking at them weird but they must have been looking at me weird because I was a giraffe chilling in the streets of Spain. I can't even imagine how weird it must have been to see ME there!

I asked my host mom's eldest daughter (who is a grown woman) what the different colors meant. The first group was all white, the second white with light-blue silk caps, the third was the group above, the next was red and white, then red and a dark navy blue. She told me that each church has volunteers that come to represent their church. People (and children even) offer to spend their time all week to walk, play the drums or another instrument, and dress up to wear and represent the color of their church. It was really interesting. Each group had flags that held the name of their church, and most groups had those that carried (on their shoulders) the large sculptures. An example is the following.

They have big white tents all over the plazas in Santander and inside are these massively decorated and beautiful works of art. It was fantastic. In bigger cities and in the south their processions are a lot bigger. The different groups would walk through the town, and stop at their tents and pick up the different sculptures and groups would carry them. I also got to see (according to my host mom) the most beautiful and important sculpture. 

Apparently this one is always on the main street and has never been lead into the smaller streets. My host mom's daughter said that in all her life, walking right next to it was the closest she has ever been (her mom too). In all her life. Her daughter was quite excited. The sculpture had a large train behind her and the entire part that is gold is not paint. I learned that everything that is gold on her was real. Her dress was even made out of real gold. Here's what it looked like.

There was a guy that got in the way, but you get a sense of how amazing the site was. Truly amazing. Learning a lot here in Spain, it really is a beautiful and amazing place.