Andalucía te quiere

This week has been an intersting one. I have been alone the whole time. Monday I spent all day on the couch, internetting, looking at 100 pages of bumper stickers on Facebook, all while watching the horrible daytime television Spain has to offer till 9PM. Then I decided to it was time to move and I went for a run. Then I showered, made and ate dinner and then watched more tv and internet before I went to bed. Not a lot of movement or anything interesting but a L'Oreal day, because I'm worth it, is good for everyone now and then.

Tuesday I woke up and more or less followed the same plan as the day before. A little bit of breakfast, internet, tv, ect. But the difference was that I started working on my paper journal which I had left abandoned for a while, at least 2 months. I wanted to get it all taken care of before going on my trip so I did that before lunch. Then I made and ate lunch and watched tv for a bit. Then I took a break and packed my suitcase for Greece. When I was all done, I went for a run. I walked a little extra bit since I had the time. I was also deciding what the heck to do the next day. I felt like I needed to go somewhere and do something but I didn't feel like it or feel like spending a lot of money. I was enjoying being at home, making lunch, using up food, inventing recipies from what I had to use up. I still want to go to Murcia, Lorca and Águilas but I didn't want to go there. I decided to go to bed and decide in the morning.


Wednesday I woke up and decided not to go anywhere but to take advantage of Granda and Andalucía, since there is so much to see right in my own neighborhood. I started out with a walk/run through Fuente de la Bicha, the cool trails by the river by my house. I went for my 20 minute run and then kept walking. I saw the fuente, a spring. Then I kept going and found myself in an olive tree grove. Then I kept going and I made it to the gas station in Cenes. All of a sudden I realized I had a lot of time and a goal to make it to the next pueblo, Pinos Genil. So I crossed the freeway and kept going. (I had already been going for an hour.) Then I kept going and going and found myself on a tiny path overgrown by weeds in the middle of a forest. It was really funny because the path was consuming me. So I kept walking untill I got to a river with huge ducks in it. I knew I had gotten there and turned aroudn and walked all the way back. I was really tired and hungry and my back hurt but I finally made it back by 1. I started at 9:30. A good morning, all in all. Then I did a few things around the house before going downstairs to go with Emilio to Los Ogíjares for lunch. We stopped by the post office and then went to the pueblo. There I talked with Pepa and helped set up for lunch while we waited for Nacho. We had a really good lunch. Then I took a nap and when I woke up went and laid out by the pool. After a while Pepa came out and swam and talked with me. She told me all sorts of stories about Victor's grandparents and family. I love stories and swimming. Then Pepa walked me to the bus stop and I took the bus back to Granada where I showered, watched tv and internetted and made and ate dinner and watched tv. It was a good evening and then I went to bed.


Thursday I woke up and watched San Fermín during breakfast and got ready. Then I went to the bus station and got on a bus to Guadix. Then we had to all get off a bus and on to another one. Then about 20 minutes after we left the bus broke down and we waited on the side of the road till another bus came and got us. Then we got on the new bus and finally got to Guadix an hour late at 12. I saw this girl who looked like she had also come by herself to be a tourist and I was going to ask her if she wanted to be tourists together but she sprinted off the bus so I figured the answer was no. Then I went and walked around down to the cathedral and went in. It was small but interesting. Then I bought a magnet and went in search of the cave houses. I finally found them and this one lady who would let you go into hers, to the dismay of her children, who were trying to have a normal life inside. Then I went into the cave house museum, and got a really nice, personal tour from a man who was born and raised in the cave houses of Guadix. Then I got really lucky as I was walking back and caught the bus by 3 seconds. I got back to Granada and took a nap, woke up and watched tv till it was cool enough to go outside and went running which was difficult. Then I ate dinner, watched more tv and internet and went to bed.

Friday I woke up really early to see the whole San Fermín, or Running of the Bulls, boadcast. It is very cool and only available in Spain so I figured I should make the effort to see it. It was actaully the encierro where the least people in history were hurt so I was a little dissapointed. (For a lot of people San Fermín is similar to hockey or car races where the fun parts are the fights or the crashes.) Thankfully they had a little section called, "Tomorrow even your eyebrows will hurt" which showed people being stupid with a little bull and getting tossed around. Then I went running and did a load of laundry. Then I showered and went to Guejar Sierra, the pueblo I went to with Emily but didn't buy a magnet from. It was a fun drive because it went parallel to the path I walked Wednesday to Pinos Genil, so I rode all what I had walked before and saw how much it actually was. When we got the the pueblo, the bus dropped us off and I ran to the souvenir store, picked out a magnet and got back on the bus by the time it had turned around and was ready to go back to Granada. Then I got back and waited for the bus to take me to the cementary. I've found out that all the cementaries in different countries are different, and I had never seen a Spanish one so I decided it was time. More bus ride, then I got there and looked around. I didn't see a very large really old section, most of it seemed rather new or modern, but it was still interesting. Then I left and waited for the bus again and came home. Then I went with Emilio for lunch at Los Ogíjares where I swam, ate, swam and sunbathed again and then we went home. I also had a tearjerking conversation with Pepa because I had to tell her that I bought a ticket home. Then I gave her my 2 cds I had made and she started crying even more. I was just going to give them to her for her birthday but I guess it was a bad time. Then back at home in Granada I showered and Victor got home from Valladolid. We talked and bought tickets to go to see Kung Fu Panda, which came out that day. Then we took Pepa back to the pueblo and stopped for some tapas on the way. Then we went to a bar that Victor's friend owns and ran into all sorts of people there. Old classmates of Victor's and Charif and Soo-Soo his girlfriend. It was a pretty nice evening, and then we went to the movies. The movie was also good, but I was really tired by now since I woke up so early. But when I got home I still had to finish packing which took me untill about 3:30 and then I finally went to bed.

Today I woke up early to make sandwiches, and get ready and blog before I leave for Greece!!! I'm catching the 10 o'clock bus to Madrid and then my flight leaves at 6:30. I'm really nervous since I haven't been out of Spain of the US basically since August 2005 and I don't speak Greek. Also it has been difficult planning and communicating with my travel buddies, Tim and Jolene, since they live in the middle of Africa. Also this is a really long trip, since after Greece I go straight to Mallorca and then to the Canary Islands. Oh well I bet and hope it will be wonderful. I'll do my best to communicate but I'm not going to make any promises! I am taking a notepad to jot down all the things I do so I can come home and write 18 pages of blog wonderfullness for you all to read! Untill then... :)