I have a little bit of time while Victor is zonked out for his siesta so I thought I´d catch up on my week...
Tuesday after blogging I went home and ate lunch and went to work with the kids. They were much better. There was this one kid Marco who when the bad girl Carmen asked him if he wanted to start running around he said no I´m going to sit here. Obviously his mom threatened him with some sort of punishment, and sent his aunt to check on how he did when she picked him up. That´s good at least. Then I went to classes with Marta and Carlos and maybe talked to my mom and then watched tv and went to bed. Nothing special.
Wednesday, work in the morning. I was in a really good mood. Then I came home, ate and in the afternoon went grocery shopping. Conchi and Valentina had cancelled on me again, so I had the whole afternoon free which was nice. After grocery shopping I practiced guitar and did something else that I don´t remember. Oh right I convinced Zore to go running with me again. Unfortunately she did much better and lasted the whole time, Then at home after showers we waited for Rosa to come home for dinner. Their friend Manolo didn´t come over and when Rosa got there she didn´t feel like eating and we were starving so we ate. Then we watched tv.
Thursday I woke up and went running. It was terrible since I had just gone the night before and I was so tired but I did it anyway. My first hour of work got cancelled so I didn´t have to go as early. Then work, the kids were pretty bad this week. I don´t know what the deal is... And of course none of them did the homework I assigned, except for the one nerd in each class. Then after work this teacher drove Michelle and I to her house. There we ate lunch on her balcony and visited. It was really nice. I was pretty exhausted and kind of in an unexlainable bad mood. But I had a really nice time talking and spending time with Michelle. I was also so happy that she invited me over! Then I took the bus back and went to guitar, which didn´t go so great, even though I had practiced, and then came home. I talked to my sister on the phone because sisters need to talk on the phone and then found Zore getting ready to go out. I kind of hinted around and she asked if I wanted to come and I said yes. We met up with their friend Raquel´s sister and then Rosa, Raquel and 2 other of their friends from school. I was still kinda in a bad mood and I didn´t really like Raquel, who I have met before, and her sister, who is a lot like her. But their other 2 friends were really nice, and I enjoyed chatting with them. Then I left early and went home.
Friday, woke up and went running, 5th morning in a row! yay for me! Then work, the first hour was also cancelled and the last. Michelle pretty much hates me because all my classes are always getting cancelled and hers don´t. I feel bad for her, but I´m so glad for me. So work was fine, then I walked home and bought a special pie thing I kept seeing in this bakery window. Turns out its called Cuajada de Carnaval, a special cakey thing that they make only right now for the carnival (the big party before lent.) I also found out when I ate the cake that it comes in a little dish of Granadian pottery, like the kind I brought home for christmas presents! So that was so cool to buy a cake and then get to keep the dish for your money! Then I stopped by Soufian´s store and Said gave me some inscence so I could contribute to our house collection. Soufian is apparently still in Morocco, so I didn´t see him. Then home, a quick lunch, Fama and then off to work. Then after work I talked to my mom, bought some stuff and ran some errands, cleaned my room and Victor came! It was soo good to see him after 2 weeks, I really missed him. We talked, he finally met my roommates who are staying here in Granada for the first time in 3 months and 3 weeks. They actually went last night to the mountains to stay with some friends and snowboard today, but should be back today. Also, I have been really bothered by them all week, as made evident by my last blog entry and even Friday, I was so upset that they didn´t buy toilet paper. I feel like I am always doing everything. But then they got back Friday afternoon, and they had bought me a wooden keychain with my name, Raquel on it. Its not as cute as the ones I gave them for Christmas but they were so sweet to get it for me. So the cycle of wanting to kill them and then loving them to death continues. Anyway, we ate dinner Friday night with Victor´s family, and then Victor fell asleep so I left and went to bed.
Today Victor and I went on a walk up to Carmen de los Martires. A beautiful garden that I have been trying to go to since June 2005. It was finally open and we walked all around it, saw a wedding, swans, ducks and searched for the peacocks. We finally found them, and they almost attacked us. Don´t worry sis I took pictures of all the birds for you! Then we walked back down, had a drink and tapa at this beautiful resturante by the river and then home for lunch with the family. Victor has been sleeping ever since and I think its time to wake him up!
Saturday, January 26, 2008
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
Monday and General Musings
So Monday I slept in and woke up and went running with Zore. If you ever feel like you are ugly, fat, out of shape and pathetic, compared to your Olympic athlete sister, I reccomend you go running with a beautiful skinny girl who never exercises. It will do wonders for your self esteem and desire to run. Zore also had a cold among other issues in her defense, but it was great to run with someone who I was better than, and watch them dying and start walking because they can´t go on anymore as I was barely working up a sweat. That may be mean, but it happens so rarely to me that I think its ok. So running, then sit ups and push ups. Then breakfast, dink around and wait for the water to heat up again after Zore´s shower, which it hadn´t really by the time I showered. Then I didn´t have much time left, so I went out to my balcony and tried to organize a huge stack of papers I had in my room and work on my paper journal. I had been saving some scraps of paper and finally put them in the journal Victor gave me for Christmas. I love my balcony. Then I ate lunch, washed dishes and went to work. It went a little better this time with the babies. I got there later, and started in right away with the activites so I had the kids attention. My favorite part was when while they were all coloring, they starting calling me niña mala and niña tonta. Thats stupid and bad girl, and saying that they only loved Nikki too. Its really true what the Bible says about kids being pure evil from the moment they are born or someting like that. My second favorite part was when a kid poked another kid in the eye with a small, pink, plastic hair dryer and then lied to his mom when I told her about it and she asked him about it. These are 2 and 3 year olds we´re talking about here.... So after work I came home and saw the police towing José´s car from in front of our house. I called his house to tell him and then watched the ensuing fiasco. It was pretty bad and I felt terrible for José, even though he had parked illegally. The police are the same in every country. Then I went to Inglés Divertido to prepare for the next classes, and then came back home. I practiced guitar for a bit and then talked to my parents on the phone and Zore when she got back. Then I went to Nacho and Alicia´s, got there really early on accident and we had dinner and class. They were really pooped so it was kind of a funny class. We mostly talked about what a ridiculous career Education is. Then Nacho took me home and I chatted with my roommates and on the phone to Victor. Then after tv, which is impossible to watch as my roommates talk about stuff from their home, I went to bed.
This morning I woke up before my alarm and decided to rush and go running before guitar. Then I went to guitar, which didn´t go terrible, (yay!) and the post office. Then I came back home, cleaned up my room and got ready for class this afternoon and came here to blog.
Now I wanted to spout out some random thoughts from the past couple of weeks.
The search for your media naranja, or orange half, basically your one true love, gets more difficult. Two twins, seperated at birth and never told of the other´s existance, grow up, meet, fall in love and get married. Only to find out later that they are twin brother and sister and to have the British government declare their marriage null. True story I heard on the news. How do explain that one...
Also I am super frustrated with my roommates, their co-dependance drives me crazy and I´ve just about had it up to here with them living in my house during the week, and going home on the weekend. We aren´t really friends because the 3 of us have nothing in common. I just know some stuff about them and their homes and they the same about me. At the same time, there are moments where they are so sweet and nice that I just love them to death. Only to be followed by moments where I just want to kill them both. I hope they never find out about my blog. That would be bad.
A 400 some odd pound woman becomes a stripper, even though her Morracan skinny boyfriend dosen´t really approve and then agrees to participate in a documentary about it on national television. I still can´t get that out of my mind.
Also I have been forming some New Year´s Resolutions:
1. As usual exercise more. The summer is quickly approaching.
2. If something can be done on my balcony, I´ll do it on my balcony.
3. Spend more time outside and in nature, if possible exercising.
4. Practice guitar more.
5. Enjoy, visit, get to know, and expeirence Granada more.
6. Wait.
7. Travel more. As much as possible.
8. Even though I hate my job, do my best and enjoy it while doing so.
9. I don´t like odd numbers so I added this one to make 10 resolutions.
10. Sleep less. You can sleep when you are dead. You can also sleep when you don´t live in Granada, Spain.
This morning I woke up before my alarm and decided to rush and go running before guitar. Then I went to guitar, which didn´t go terrible, (yay!) and the post office. Then I came back home, cleaned up my room and got ready for class this afternoon and came here to blog.
Now I wanted to spout out some random thoughts from the past couple of weeks.
The search for your media naranja, or orange half, basically your one true love, gets more difficult. Two twins, seperated at birth and never told of the other´s existance, grow up, meet, fall in love and get married. Only to find out later that they are twin brother and sister and to have the British government declare their marriage null. True story I heard on the news. How do explain that one...
Also I am super frustrated with my roommates, their co-dependance drives me crazy and I´ve just about had it up to here with them living in my house during the week, and going home on the weekend. We aren´t really friends because the 3 of us have nothing in common. I just know some stuff about them and their homes and they the same about me. At the same time, there are moments where they are so sweet and nice that I just love them to death. Only to be followed by moments where I just want to kill them both. I hope they never find out about my blog. That would be bad.
A 400 some odd pound woman becomes a stripper, even though her Morracan skinny boyfriend dosen´t really approve and then agrees to participate in a documentary about it on national television. I still can´t get that out of my mind.
Also I have been forming some New Year´s Resolutions:
1. As usual exercise more. The summer is quickly approaching.
2. If something can be done on my balcony, I´ll do it on my balcony.
3. Spend more time outside and in nature, if possible exercising.
4. Practice guitar more.
5. Enjoy, visit, get to know, and expeirence Granada more.
6. Wait.
7. Travel more. As much as possible.
8. Even though I hate my job, do my best and enjoy it while doing so.
9. I don´t like odd numbers so I added this one to make 10 resolutions.
10. Sleep less. You can sleep when you are dead. You can also sleep when you don´t live in Granada, Spain.
More Wierdest Weekend Ever
So Saturday on my way home from my long walk Pepa called me and asked if I wanted to come by and eat macaronis for lunch. Thinking to myself if I wanted to cook and eat alone or have a delicious meal prepared for me and eat it with people I stopped by the 7th floor. As I got there she ran out the door and told me to watch the babies because Raul had forgotten his cell phone and she was going to take it to him. So I started babysitting right away, playing with Nachete and Marina. Then we ate a yummy lunch and put the kids down for their naps. Then I used the computer for a bit and left to take my own nap upstairs but my dad called me and we talked instead. I also talked to Victor in Italy. Then I went downstairs to tell Pepa that Victor had called and was fine per request, played some more with the kids and then brought the computer up to my room. As I mentioned the temperature was amazing all weekend and so after a shower, I went out on my balcony and updated my blog from there. I am really blown away by the views from my appartment and need to take advantage of it more. So I was blogging till Adri came home and I decided to make dinner and get ready. That night he was going to perform in a salsa show and since I had zero plans I was going to watch him. I had sent out a bunch of text messages trying to get people to come with me, but I only got 1 no and 1 probably not back. What a waste... So after dinner and dropping the computer back by downstairs we went out. I thought the show started at 11, but the doors opened at 11 so when we got there at quarter till it was empty except for 2 girls who had also came early with the DJ. Their namew were Lucy from London and Emelie from Sweeden and they became my new best friends for the night. We hung out and talked while people started coming and till the shows. The only music they were playing was salsa music, which requires certain steps, and since it is physiologically impossible for me to dance normally, when there is somethign you are actually supposed to do I´m a lost cause. It also requires a partener, so the three of us just talked, as best we could in the loud music, watched the two shows and then I went home around 2:30. Adri´s salsa group was the opened and it was pretty good and the second group was amazing. It was hard to see though... So then at home I went to bed.
Sunday morning I woke up to go on a walk with Pepa and Emilio and their friend Paco. First we all took a bus up to the Albayzin. In the bus, Emilio bought a bus card, which makes each trip a little cheaper, and put like 15 € on it. Then he gave it to me. I explained to him that I didn´t need a card, (they cost 2€ themselves), I already had one, (The one that Pepa bought and gave me at the beginning of the year) and that he should use it because he always takes the bus. As usual, he didn´t listen, so no I have 2. Then we went to Casa Pasteles and had breakfast. I didn´t really want anything but they made me order something. The toast and orange juice I ordered came out way later than their coffees and was way huger than I expected so I was eating for a good while as they all just looked at me. Then them made some comment about what a good eater I was, when I didn´t even want breakfast in the first place. Then we all walked down and Paco had to leave and the 3 of us took the bus to La Alhambra. There is a part you can get into for free, and we went there to the Palacio de Carlos V to visit some art exhibits there. We got in free because they were from Granada and I didn´t open my mouth, per request and looked at the art. It was pretty cool and then we stopped by the parador, a fancy hotel in a lot of cities in Spain that are state run and kind of like monuments. Then we walked down and had lunch, a delicious menu of garlic soup, asparagus scramble, and a St. Jacob -- cheese and ham filled pork breaded and fried. I also tried fried chicken blood. Apparently that is a food here. Then I took the computer up to my house and blogged on my balcony untill it was time to go to church. I had invited Pepa and Emilio to go with me during lunch, but Pepa had to go visit her mom and Emilio talked to me for the rest of the meal about why he doesn´t go to church. I was actually pretty frustrated and upset with the whole situation and still am struggling with the whole church and Spain issue. But anyway I dropped the computer back by and went to church. The night service which I had never been to was pretty relaxed. It was nice because it wasn´t so crowed, there were a lot less people, but the message was pretty whack as usual. This time the pastora, or pastor´s wife preached about growing in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. The idea was definitely based on a scripture but I´m not sure where all her examples of incorrect growing came from. I also just think that lady is a little nutzo. One nice thing was that I was able to chat with my friends Courtney and Miguel for a bit afterwards. Usually they are so busy in the morning I just barely say hi before they have to run off. I know these people from the last time I was here in Spain, Miguel is from Granada and Courtney was there as a missionary when I was there. They announced their engagement last Sunday. Then after chruch I came home and cleaned the house since no one was home. The girls came home near the end, and then we ate dinner and watched tv till I went to bed.
Sunday morning I woke up to go on a walk with Pepa and Emilio and their friend Paco. First we all took a bus up to the Albayzin. In the bus, Emilio bought a bus card, which makes each trip a little cheaper, and put like 15 € on it. Then he gave it to me. I explained to him that I didn´t need a card, (they cost 2€ themselves), I already had one, (The one that Pepa bought and gave me at the beginning of the year) and that he should use it because he always takes the bus. As usual, he didn´t listen, so no I have 2. Then we went to Casa Pasteles and had breakfast. I didn´t really want anything but they made me order something. The toast and orange juice I ordered came out way later than their coffees and was way huger than I expected so I was eating for a good while as they all just looked at me. Then them made some comment about what a good eater I was, when I didn´t even want breakfast in the first place. Then we all walked down and Paco had to leave and the 3 of us took the bus to La Alhambra. There is a part you can get into for free, and we went there to the Palacio de Carlos V to visit some art exhibits there. We got in free because they were from Granada and I didn´t open my mouth, per request and looked at the art. It was pretty cool and then we stopped by the parador, a fancy hotel in a lot of cities in Spain that are state run and kind of like monuments. Then we walked down and had lunch, a delicious menu of garlic soup, asparagus scramble, and a St. Jacob -- cheese and ham filled pork breaded and fried. I also tried fried chicken blood. Apparently that is a food here. Then I took the computer up to my house and blogged on my balcony untill it was time to go to church. I had invited Pepa and Emilio to go with me during lunch, but Pepa had to go visit her mom and Emilio talked to me for the rest of the meal about why he doesn´t go to church. I was actually pretty frustrated and upset with the whole situation and still am struggling with the whole church and Spain issue. But anyway I dropped the computer back by and went to church. The night service which I had never been to was pretty relaxed. It was nice because it wasn´t so crowed, there were a lot less people, but the message was pretty whack as usual. This time the pastora, or pastor´s wife preached about growing in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. The idea was definitely based on a scripture but I´m not sure where all her examples of incorrect growing came from. I also just think that lady is a little nutzo. One nice thing was that I was able to chat with my friends Courtney and Miguel for a bit afterwards. Usually they are so busy in the morning I just barely say hi before they have to run off. I know these people from the last time I was here in Spain, Miguel is from Granada and Courtney was there as a missionary when I was there. They announced their engagement last Sunday. Then after chruch I came home and cleaned the house since no one was home. The girls came home near the end, and then we ate dinner and watched tv till I went to bed.
Sunday, January 20, 2008
Wierdest Weekend Ever
So I come up from Pepa and Emilio´s after a nice chat and a declaration from Emilio that they love me more than a daughter, and 20€ for my weekend trip to Aguilas from Pepa who wouldn´t hear of taking it back. I was going to use the money to take a taxi to meet up with Michelle and some of the other girls who were going out that night. They were meeting really far away from my house and it was too late to walk around looking for soemthing I had no idea where it was. So in a deseprate attempt to make friends I was goign to go anyway. I said hi to my roommies and then asked what was wrong, seeing the looks on their faces. They explaing that Zore´s grandpa, who was sick last weekend, and had had skin cancer was going to have his ear removed the next day in the city of Murcia. So it was scary and serious and they were going straight to Murcia and wouldn´t be in Aguilas till maybe Saturday night. They felt terrible about the ticket and had called the bus company to see if I could get my money back or what. I was a little shocked, and had no idea what to do. I thought of going anyway and staying with Mada´s mom till they got there, but then decided that might be wierd and that the last thing they needed to worry about was a touristic visit that weekend. So they were feeling pretty down and decided to eat dinner here instead of going out. So I went back down to Pepa´s and Emilio´s, cancelled my ticked and got most of my money back, cancelled with Michelle, and left the money Pepa had given me there on the table since I knew she wouldn´t take it back. Then I went back upstairs and foung my roommateds all dressed up and make up upped and going out on the town. I was a little shocked as I just cancelled all my plans to hang out with them, since Zore was so upset about her grandpa. She didnt look happy but they were out untill at least past 2 I think. So then I watched tv for a while and got hooked on another great show called Cuenta Atras, which is kinda like Backwards Story, a police story told in chunks so you don´t know what happens till the end. Then I went to bed and my sister called me around 2, which is how I know my roommates weren´t home yet, and then finally went back to sleep.
So Friday I got up earlly and went to work. Rosa and Zore left. Work was fine, my longest morning from 9:30 to 2:30 and I was pretty tired after it all. Then home, Pepa made lunch and left a plate for me which I picke up on my way to my house. She called to tell me about it durign my last period and my phone went off in class! It was embarassing but not really a big deal. So I ate lunch and rested while I watched Fama. Then I went to work. I also forgot the mention that last week i finally figured out that kid´s name. Its Pablo. Thankfully last week his mom said something like Arent´you going to say hello Pablo?! so I finally figured out his name after several weeks of giving him class. That class went fine, then I ran a few errands, cleaned my room, washed the dishes the girls had left, practiced guitar, and called Michelle. She was going to get tapas at 9:15 and I met her and her friend Kay who was visiting this week from the states. Unfortunately, she was leaving at 7 Saturday mornign so by 10:15 I was on my way home alone. It was a terrible and shocking realization that I have zero friends apart from Victor here in Granada. I went home and watched a really fascinating documentary type show of obese people in Spain, who of whom was also a stripper. It was like I mentioned fascinating. Then I watched Catch Me If You Can on tv with Adri and his girlfriend when they came home and found me there to ruin their romantic weekend alone. Then bed.
Saturday I woke up and dinked around the house for a while before going on a 2 hour walk along the river, also called Fuente de la Bicha. It was a georgeous, sunny, warm day and an amazing walk. I always go runnign there, but running I don´t go as far as I can walking. So it was good to see something new, (I had been that far before the last time I was here but not since this trip.) I also have a habit of once I find a route that I like, I always take it. I also heard that its better for your brain if you go different routes, it makes you think mroe, and so I tried to always take a different route that I hadn´t before everytime I had a choise. It was great. Now I have to go but I´ll try to finish later.
So Friday I got up earlly and went to work. Rosa and Zore left. Work was fine, my longest morning from 9:30 to 2:30 and I was pretty tired after it all. Then home, Pepa made lunch and left a plate for me which I picke up on my way to my house. She called to tell me about it durign my last period and my phone went off in class! It was embarassing but not really a big deal. So I ate lunch and rested while I watched Fama. Then I went to work. I also forgot the mention that last week i finally figured out that kid´s name. Its Pablo. Thankfully last week his mom said something like Arent´you going to say hello Pablo?! so I finally figured out his name after several weeks of giving him class. That class went fine, then I ran a few errands, cleaned my room, washed the dishes the girls had left, practiced guitar, and called Michelle. She was going to get tapas at 9:15 and I met her and her friend Kay who was visiting this week from the states. Unfortunately, she was leaving at 7 Saturday mornign so by 10:15 I was on my way home alone. It was a terrible and shocking realization that I have zero friends apart from Victor here in Granada. I went home and watched a really fascinating documentary type show of obese people in Spain, who of whom was also a stripper. It was like I mentioned fascinating. Then I watched Catch Me If You Can on tv with Adri and his girlfriend when they came home and found me there to ruin their romantic weekend alone. Then bed.
Saturday I woke up and dinked around the house for a while before going on a 2 hour walk along the river, also called Fuente de la Bicha. It was a georgeous, sunny, warm day and an amazing walk. I always go runnign there, but running I don´t go as far as I can walking. So it was good to see something new, (I had been that far before the last time I was here but not since this trip.) I also have a habit of once I find a route that I like, I always take it. I also heard that its better for your brain if you go different routes, it makes you think mroe, and so I tried to always take a different route that I hadn´t before everytime I had a choise. It was great. Now I have to go but I´ll try to finish later.
Borring Weekend and More Work
So Friday night was nothing special. Saturday wasn´t either. Just laying around watching tv, nap etc. Victor for some reason was exhausted and didn´t want to leave the house. Since I had been feeling that all week, I was bored to tears. Saturday for lunch the whole family came over, Nacho, Alicia, the kiddies, Abuela, Raul, Victor´s parents and us. We had paella, (suprise suprise) and then since Alicia´s mom was still in the hospital and Pepa was gonig with Raul to the beach for a Matanza, or pig massacre at Patricia´s mom´s house, I volunteered Victor and I to babysit the babies again. We did that for a while, and then they picked up the kids and then we went to the Corte Ingles. I exchanged the bracelet he gave me for Christmas for a different one and had it fitted to my wrist. We shopped around some more and then went to Nacho and Alicia´s, had dinner and watched a movie. The funny thing abotu watching a movie at their house is that Alicia usually goes to bed, Nacho falls alseep on the couch withing the first 20 minutes and Victor and I sit there till its over, cover Nacho with a blanket and leave. So that happened and then at home we watcher more tv at Victor´s house and then I went to bed.
Sunday Jan 13th, breakfast, shower, church and lunch. Pepa had left the night before and Emilio that morning to go to the matanza so Victor made lunch and I did the dishes. We watched tv, napped and finally in the evening went out to go for a walk. We walked to the new school I was gonig to start at the next day, Victor showed me the street, and it seems like its going to be a really nice walk and close by. Then we wandered around Campo de Principe, the Albayzin and El Mirador de San Nicolas. Then we walked home, Victor, packed and left. Then I watched tv, chatted with my roommies for a bit, ate dinner and went to bed.
Monday I may have slept in?? but not very late, then cleaned the hosue, which is difficult to do when there are people in it, now that the girls come back on Sunday nights. I showered, and got hooked on another wonderful show. Its called Sons of Thunder and is produced by Chuck and Aaron Norris. It seems to be Walker Texas Ranger Juinors, with young cowboy ninja stars fighting crime in Texas with Walked as their older and wiser mentor, so the same idea but lamer, cheesier, and all around worse which of course equals awesome. So I watched that, and then rushed to my new job at Escuela Infantil Los Angeles. I got there faster that Victor and I did on our leisurly stroll the day before, almost 45 minutes early actually. Not a big deal but it had been pouring all day and night and everything was soaked. So there was no place to sit, not enough time to go back, you know, so I just walked up and down the hill for a while, stood in this plaza and enjoyed the view. Then I went there about 15 minutes early to meet whoever I had to meet and get situated and such, which I will never do again. That is because as soon as I got there they gave me 6 -- 2 and 3 year olds and shut me in a room with them for and hour and fifteen miinutes instead of and hour. That was also complete chaos since those kids are used to Nikki, are really babies and bad. I spent the hour chasign them, getting kids in and out of the bathroom and play house and putting their shoes and socks on that they continuously took off. I left with the conclusion that I hated kids. I stopped by my house, and then went to Inglés Divertido, to prepare for the next day and next Monday. I talked with Veronica and tried to get ideas for teaching such tiny babies and copied off some stuff for the next classes. I saw Alicia with Marina as she dropped of Nachete for his class and then went home and practiced guitar a bit. Then I had class and dinner with Nacho and Alicia, came home and had a second dinner with my roommates. Then bed.
Tuesday, I went to guitar, ran some errands, talked to my dad on the phone and used the internet for a bit. Then home and lunch and back to work at the new school, Escuel Infantil Belen. Veronica was going to come with me to tell them in Spanish to behave so I wouldn´t talk to them in Spanish, but cancelled at the last minute. So the same scene as the week before was repeating itself, but worse as the 6th kid showed up. It was terrible till I couldn´t take it anymore and started scolding them all in Spanish, telling them that Nikki wasn´t coming back, I was the new teacher and how they were acting was inappropriate. Also that I was going to tell their parents how they were acting. That got their attention and the rest of the class went fairly well. I almost lost my nerve at the end of the class, to actually tell their parents, but I didn´t and told all of them! Hopefully it gets better from here on out. Then rushed to class with Carletes and Marta and home, dinner, hang out and bed.
Wednesday, work and one of my teachers quit officially on me. So now I only have around 30 mins of class with this one guy who always has meetings Wednesday mornings. So maybe I can sleep in more now, but I don´t really know. Also, our English Department is cursed. I´m pretty sure that Mari Angeles has cancer and Carmina the teacher I work with most, her mother died. So they are only 2 regular teachers left and Michelle and I. A little nervewracking. So I was going to have most of my classes by myself. It actually went pretty well, I acted like I was the regular teacher and assigned them a bunch of homework. I hope they do it but if not it might be fun to give them a lot of zeros. Then home, lunch, and class with Conchi and Valentina. Then I practiced guitar and Rosa and Zore´s friend Manolo came over again. I forgot the mention that last Wed. I also got my legs waxed and he came over too. He is an English teacher and says that his kids are great. I asked if I could observe his classes to see what good behavior was like, but his department director said no. Oh well, I guess it´s better not to know... I also talked to my uncle and Victor on the phone. So they were talking about stuff from Aguilas, I was feeling out of place and it was kinda wierd. But he left and I went to bed.
Thursday, work in the morning. I also bought a ticket to go to my roommates town with them this weekend because Victor was going to be in Italy for work. Then more classes, some good and some bad despite Carmina´s absence. Then home, lunch and guitar, which went a little better. Then I started getting ready to go, by writing a thank you note to Raul and Patricia for the Christmas present Pepa brought back from the beach for me. That´s where my weekend started to get interesting...
Sunday Jan 13th, breakfast, shower, church and lunch. Pepa had left the night before and Emilio that morning to go to the matanza so Victor made lunch and I did the dishes. We watched tv, napped and finally in the evening went out to go for a walk. We walked to the new school I was gonig to start at the next day, Victor showed me the street, and it seems like its going to be a really nice walk and close by. Then we wandered around Campo de Principe, the Albayzin and El Mirador de San Nicolas. Then we walked home, Victor, packed and left. Then I watched tv, chatted with my roommies for a bit, ate dinner and went to bed.
Monday I may have slept in?? but not very late, then cleaned the hosue, which is difficult to do when there are people in it, now that the girls come back on Sunday nights. I showered, and got hooked on another wonderful show. Its called Sons of Thunder and is produced by Chuck and Aaron Norris. It seems to be Walker Texas Ranger Juinors, with young cowboy ninja stars fighting crime in Texas with Walked as their older and wiser mentor, so the same idea but lamer, cheesier, and all around worse which of course equals awesome. So I watched that, and then rushed to my new job at Escuela Infantil Los Angeles. I got there faster that Victor and I did on our leisurly stroll the day before, almost 45 minutes early actually. Not a big deal but it had been pouring all day and night and everything was soaked. So there was no place to sit, not enough time to go back, you know, so I just walked up and down the hill for a while, stood in this plaza and enjoyed the view. Then I went there about 15 minutes early to meet whoever I had to meet and get situated and such, which I will never do again. That is because as soon as I got there they gave me 6 -- 2 and 3 year olds and shut me in a room with them for and hour and fifteen miinutes instead of and hour. That was also complete chaos since those kids are used to Nikki, are really babies and bad. I spent the hour chasign them, getting kids in and out of the bathroom and play house and putting their shoes and socks on that they continuously took off. I left with the conclusion that I hated kids. I stopped by my house, and then went to Inglés Divertido, to prepare for the next day and next Monday. I talked with Veronica and tried to get ideas for teaching such tiny babies and copied off some stuff for the next classes. I saw Alicia with Marina as she dropped of Nachete for his class and then went home and practiced guitar a bit. Then I had class and dinner with Nacho and Alicia, came home and had a second dinner with my roommates. Then bed.
Tuesday, I went to guitar, ran some errands, talked to my dad on the phone and used the internet for a bit. Then home and lunch and back to work at the new school, Escuel Infantil Belen. Veronica was going to come with me to tell them in Spanish to behave so I wouldn´t talk to them in Spanish, but cancelled at the last minute. So the same scene as the week before was repeating itself, but worse as the 6th kid showed up. It was terrible till I couldn´t take it anymore and started scolding them all in Spanish, telling them that Nikki wasn´t coming back, I was the new teacher and how they were acting was inappropriate. Also that I was going to tell their parents how they were acting. That got their attention and the rest of the class went fairly well. I almost lost my nerve at the end of the class, to actually tell their parents, but I didn´t and told all of them! Hopefully it gets better from here on out. Then rushed to class with Carletes and Marta and home, dinner, hang out and bed.
Wednesday, work and one of my teachers quit officially on me. So now I only have around 30 mins of class with this one guy who always has meetings Wednesday mornings. So maybe I can sleep in more now, but I don´t really know. Also, our English Department is cursed. I´m pretty sure that Mari Angeles has cancer and Carmina the teacher I work with most, her mother died. So they are only 2 regular teachers left and Michelle and I. A little nervewracking. So I was going to have most of my classes by myself. It actually went pretty well, I acted like I was the regular teacher and assigned them a bunch of homework. I hope they do it but if not it might be fun to give them a lot of zeros. Then home, lunch, and class with Conchi and Valentina. Then I practiced guitar and Rosa and Zore´s friend Manolo came over again. I forgot the mention that last Wed. I also got my legs waxed and he came over too. He is an English teacher and says that his kids are great. I asked if I could observe his classes to see what good behavior was like, but his department director said no. Oh well, I guess it´s better not to know... I also talked to my uncle and Victor on the phone. So they were talking about stuff from Aguilas, I was feeling out of place and it was kinda wierd. But he left and I went to bed.
Thursday, work in the morning. I also bought a ticket to go to my roommates town with them this weekend because Victor was going to be in Italy for work. Then more classes, some good and some bad despite Carmina´s absence. Then home, lunch and guitar, which went a little better. Then I started getting ready to go, by writing a thank you note to Raul and Patricia for the Christmas present Pepa brought back from the beach for me. That´s where my weekend started to get interesting...
Back to School
So Tuesday Jan 8th was my first day back at work. I was extremely tired, exhausted and jet lagged. I slept in till 11 when Rosa and Zore came home and woke me up because they are loud. Then I woke up, talked with them for a while. They always seem to get upset when they come back because Adri left something dirty, used their stuff, I burned their decorative incense, that I didn´t know was only for decoration etc. So they always come in, inspect everything and then get angry and talk about it. So then I showered, unpacked (finally) ate lunch, ran a few errands, ate lunch and tried to prepare for my first day at the new school. I didn´t really know what to expect and I was pretty rushed and nervous. I went there with Veronica who is my boss and the director/owner of Nachete´s school, and she showed me the room, intoduced me to a few people, showed me the kids and left me alone with 6 -- 4 and 5 year olds. Guess what, kids are terrible when they are that old as well. The way this class goes is the first 30 minutes the kids eat their snack and then an hour of class. I am also replacing their beloved teacher Nikki who got fired because she didn´t do a good job. So the kids decided to not pay any attention to me, run around, yell, play hide and seek, etc. I tried to gain control, but using only English it was impossible. At the end one of the worst kids explained to me that they were acting so bad because they only love Nikki and they want her to come back. My favorite part was having 5 kids screaming at me in unison their Spanish version of ¨Sit Down! Sit Down! Sit Down!¨ as they pointed their little dirty fingers at me. After that hour and a half of chaos, I ran to my other 2 classes with Carletes and Marta, which went well, but I was so tired. Then I came home because Mari Angeles cancelled on me, talked to my mom on the phone and went to bed.
Wednesday Jan. 9th, work at school. I got there for my first hour and one of the teachers called to say that she couldn´t make it, about 10 minutes before it was supposed to start and the other guy never showed up. I don´t remember much else but the kids excused their bad behavior with Post Vacation Syndrome. Then home, lunch, Conchi and Valentina cancelled on me and then probably dinner and bed. I was having terrible jet lag where I would be exhausted all day, but when I would go to bed at 10 or so I would be wide awake and lay there for quite a couple hours and repeat the process the next day.
Thursday Jan 10th. Work in the morning, more bad kids etc. Also we found out that Maria Angeles who was still sick and in Madrid for tests, and the test results came back and she wasn´t going to come back for the rest of the semester. That´s really sad because we love Mari Angeles, she must be really sick and its really hard for us to give class to the kids without the real teacher. Unfortunately Michelle has all of her classes with her so she had the hardes´t job. I went with her for my free period on Thursday to help her, which was fun, but it was to her Special Ed class, so the kids are bad and know absolutely nothing... Then home, lunch and guitar. I had barely practiced and my teacher told me so. The quote he used this time was that oil can´t hide in water because it rises to the top, so he could tell I hadn´t practiced. Great. After that I´m sure I tried to go to bed with out success.
Firday Jan 11th. Work again at 9:30, a meeting in my free period with the teacher to figure out what we are going to do without Mari Angeles till her sub came in 1 or 2 weeks, and to talk about how it was going . So this week I not only worked the full 10 hours, I worked 2 extra at school and started at the new school. I was so pooped for my first week back. Rosa and Zore said they were going to stay in Granada this weekend since they had just been at home for almost a month straight, but when I got home Adri said they left after all. I was so glad. Now I am really used to having them gone, the house basically to myself and Victor and I knew it was going to be so strange to have there after 3 straight months of them gonig home every weekend. Also a new reality tv show started calle Fama, or Fame. Its a combination of Big Brother where they all live in a house together and a dancing competition. Adri being a dance teacher likes it and Zore loves it too. I didn´t like it at the beginning since I don´t really care about dance or reality TV, but now I´m hooked since it is on every day at lunch time. So I watched that, went to work in the afternoon, came home bought a few things, and got ready for Victor to come. He came and was so tired he fell asleep by like 11 watching tv. That was just as sign of the weekend to come.
Wednesday Jan. 9th, work at school. I got there for my first hour and one of the teachers called to say that she couldn´t make it, about 10 minutes before it was supposed to start and the other guy never showed up. I don´t remember much else but the kids excused their bad behavior with Post Vacation Syndrome. Then home, lunch, Conchi and Valentina cancelled on me and then probably dinner and bed. I was having terrible jet lag where I would be exhausted all day, but when I would go to bed at 10 or so I would be wide awake and lay there for quite a couple hours and repeat the process the next day.
Thursday Jan 10th. Work in the morning, more bad kids etc. Also we found out that Maria Angeles who was still sick and in Madrid for tests, and the test results came back and she wasn´t going to come back for the rest of the semester. That´s really sad because we love Mari Angeles, she must be really sick and its really hard for us to give class to the kids without the real teacher. Unfortunately Michelle has all of her classes with her so she had the hardes´t job. I went with her for my free period on Thursday to help her, which was fun, but it was to her Special Ed class, so the kids are bad and know absolutely nothing... Then home, lunch and guitar. I had barely practiced and my teacher told me so. The quote he used this time was that oil can´t hide in water because it rises to the top, so he could tell I hadn´t practiced. Great. After that I´m sure I tried to go to bed with out success.
Firday Jan 11th. Work again at 9:30, a meeting in my free period with the teacher to figure out what we are going to do without Mari Angeles till her sub came in 1 or 2 weeks, and to talk about how it was going . So this week I not only worked the full 10 hours, I worked 2 extra at school and started at the new school. I was so pooped for my first week back. Rosa and Zore said they were going to stay in Granada this weekend since they had just been at home for almost a month straight, but when I got home Adri said they left after all. I was so glad. Now I am really used to having them gone, the house basically to myself and Victor and I knew it was going to be so strange to have there after 3 straight months of them gonig home every weekend. Also a new reality tv show started calle Fama, or Fame. Its a combination of Big Brother where they all live in a house together and a dancing competition. Adri being a dance teacher likes it and Zore loves it too. I didn´t like it at the beginning since I don´t really care about dance or reality TV, but now I´m hooked since it is on every day at lunch time. So I watched that, went to work in the afternoon, came home bought a few things, and got ready for Victor to come. He came and was so tired he fell asleep by like 11 watching tv. That was just as sign of the weekend to come.
Saturday, January 19, 2008
Los Reyes!!
I was tired, yes, but I also arrived to Spain January 5th, the eve of one of the country´s more important holidays: Los Reyes, or as I call it, 3 Kings Day. Traditionally, Santa didn´t exist in Spain, so kids got presents brought to them my the 3 magic kings, Melchor, Gaspar and Baltasar. The whole thing is strangely similar to Santa. You write them a letter, the night before you put your shoes outside of your room filled with hay for their also magic camels to eat. You can also leave some food or drink for the kings. If you´ve been good, you get presents left by your shoes, if not coal. So I missed the giant parade of the 3 kings walking around, but made it in time to eat Rosco de Reyes, or as I have translated it, 3 Kings Cake. A rosco is a big bagel shaped pastry, small ones for tapas in bars or larger ones for big sandwiches, and for reyes, a big sweet one, with fruitcake fruit and glaze on top, filled with custard or whipped cream puff stuff. They are also filled with suprises. Little toys, dolls special treats, but also some bad treats like a lima bean. If you get a good treat, you win the treat. If you get a bad one, you have to buy the rosco next year. So on my very first 3 kings day, with my first piece of kings cake, I got the bean and have to buy it next year. Regardless, I liked the rosco and the whole tradition of it and 3 kings day! Then after saying hello to Victor´s parents, I went upstairs, showered and crashed. But not before putting out my slippers, with some dried mangos for the camels (I figured they might get tired of hay) and a water bottle for the kings, (its the healthiest.)
When I woke up to go to the bathroom on the 6th, I was pleasantly suprised to find a bag of CDs by my shoes! Those kings really are magic and apparently I was very good all of 2007! Then I called Victor and he came over and he got his present from the kings, a belt and then I gave him all the presents from my family, and all the stuff I had bought for him from Ross and his favorite American places. It was so fun, I love presents a lot, and it was just like Christmas number 2! Then we went downstairs and we showed all the stuff to his mom, so that was really fun too! I had to bring back another suitcase I brought back so much stuff. Then we lazed around, till we ate lunch. We had choto, which I didn´t know what it was, and they didn´t really want to tell me. Turns out it was baby goat or kid. They loved it, I just kept thinking of all my babies. The sauce was good, but it just hurt my heart to think about eating it. Then the siesta and I think in the afternoon I think Victor and I went for a walk, or maybe to the movie to see Trip to Darjeleen, I´m not sure and I don´t remember anything else...
Monday was a day off for me and Victor as well. It was also spent being really lazy. I slept in and then for lunch we drove to a pueblo to eat cochinillo, baby, baby pig. We met Victor´s parents, aunt and uncle, cousin, Nachete and grandma. The baby pig tasted better than the baby goat, and I also requested the butt, with the leg cut off, so it didn´t look like a baby animal. Then Victor and I took Nachete home to Nacho and Alicia and ended up babysitting them for a bit. Alicia´s mom fell and broke both the bones in her lower leg, so there was a mini family emergency as she was in the hospital, awaiting surgery. So after babysitting, and talking to Deanna and Sara in Salamanca, we left and went back and Victor went to Malaga. It was a really great 3 Kings Day. I loved the holiday, even though I was exhausted, it was really fun.
When I woke up to go to the bathroom on the 6th, I was pleasantly suprised to find a bag of CDs by my shoes! Those kings really are magic and apparently I was very good all of 2007! Then I called Victor and he came over and he got his present from the kings, a belt and then I gave him all the presents from my family, and all the stuff I had bought for him from Ross and his favorite American places. It was so fun, I love presents a lot, and it was just like Christmas number 2! Then we went downstairs and we showed all the stuff to his mom, so that was really fun too! I had to bring back another suitcase I brought back so much stuff. Then we lazed around, till we ate lunch. We had choto, which I didn´t know what it was, and they didn´t really want to tell me. Turns out it was baby goat or kid. They loved it, I just kept thinking of all my babies. The sauce was good, but it just hurt my heart to think about eating it. Then the siesta and I think in the afternoon I think Victor and I went for a walk, or maybe to the movie to see Trip to Darjeleen, I´m not sure and I don´t remember anything else...
Monday was a day off for me and Victor as well. It was also spent being really lazy. I slept in and then for lunch we drove to a pueblo to eat cochinillo, baby, baby pig. We met Victor´s parents, aunt and uncle, cousin, Nachete and grandma. The baby pig tasted better than the baby goat, and I also requested the butt, with the leg cut off, so it didn´t look like a baby animal. Then Victor and I took Nachete home to Nacho and Alicia and ended up babysitting them for a bit. Alicia´s mom fell and broke both the bones in her lower leg, so there was a mini family emergency as she was in the hospital, awaiting surgery. So after babysitting, and talking to Deanna and Sara in Salamanca, we left and went back and Victor went to Malaga. It was a really great 3 Kings Day. I loved the holiday, even though I was exhausted, it was really fun.
2008 In All Its Glory
So as a few of you have mentioned, I am way behind on blogging, I never uploaded any pics and I´m even further behind on that. Also as I´m trying to remember, the details are getting fuzzier and fuzzier, but here I am trying to catch up. Enjoy!
So Sunday in Taft we went to church, and then had a big kebab meal with the whole family, including my cousin Michael and his family. It was pretty fun, and we played Disney Scene It and Catch Phrase. I think after everyone went home I watched some Law and Orders, which I miss over here. Then Monday, the last day of 2007, I went running and we left and drove back to Newcastle. At 3 o´clock, in the car, I called Victor, which was midnight in Spain to tell everyone Happy New Year´s. We got home and after unloading the car, we had a pretend family New Year´s Eve, with our Martenelli´s and then got ready and all went to our seperate parties. I first drove to Folsom to visit Matt and Laurel who were up visiting there friends. We talked, ate and then I left and drove to my friend Sarah´s house, who I have spent several New Years´ with as her family always has a huge party. This year they were roasting a whole pig, but I arrived pretty late, so I just ate some more, we talked and had a second Martenelli´s toast a few seconds after the true midnight, because they were TIVOing the ball drop till everyone got their glasses.... It was slightly anti-climatic, and not the best New Year´s Eve ever, but good nonetheless. Then I drove home and went to bed.
New Year´s Day I went to a brunch/mini family reunion at an aunt and uncle´s house. We talked, ate, and played more games. Then I went shopping at Ross for Victor with my sister, then to Target and then to my grandma´s and grandpa´s for some delicious venison with them and my uncle. Then we went home and hung out with my mom for a while and went to bed.
Jan 2nd. I went to the dentist, then went and visited people at the Antique Trove where I worked this summer, then to Old Navy with my sister, then back to the dentist, then back doing more shopping and then went home really late, ate, rushed to church, where I had to say goodbye to a lot of people which was a lot more emotional than I expected. Then I went to my cousin´s house to eat some more and play Guitar Hero. Guitar Hero is really fun, but as usual with me and video games, I suck at it and spent most of the night trying to beat ¨Slow Ride¨ and finally beat another song. Then home and bed.
Jan 3rd. Doctor, Chiropractor, a few more Rosses, the mall, Costco, Staples, etc etc etc. I was gone from 8:30 till 7:30 getting last minute things for Victor, me, his family, other requests and otherwise going shopping crazy! It was a good day though, I had fun hunting down things and accomplishing the long shopping list I had. Then at home we had a nice family dinner of my mom´s Award Winning Shrip and Mandarins Over Pasta, then I watched more TV and How I Met Your Mother DVDs with my sis till late, then she went to bed and left me to pack my suitcase till 3AM. Then of course bed.
Jan 4th. The worst storm of the season hits California, especially bad in Northern California, with the eye of the storm focused on Newcastle. Ok, maybe Auburn, but no joke. It was so bad, that they even showed it on the news here in Spain. So I woke up and started to get ready for the long trip back. I packed some sandwiches and after my sister got back from exercising, we left the house at 12 noon. Then we drove to the hospital to pick up some medicine for my mom, which took forever because the storm was making everyone crazy and then drove through the blinding rain to San Francisco. I was sick with nervousness because flights were being cancelled at airports all over the state, and with the traffic and driving conditions it seems we weren´t even going to make my 6:30 flight even if it wasn´t cancelled. But we did, my dad is a driving champion, my mom a trooper, and my sister the best. :) So waited in the long check in line with all the other crazy people, and had to say goodbye again. I was much more sad to leave this time and than I expected so that wasn´t fun. But I did leave after all and waited for my plane to take off late, 10 hours to London, chatting with a wonderful old British man straight out of sterotype world, made it to Malaga, went striaght to my gate, and was getting ready to wait the 2 hours but fell asleep. When I woke up, I should have been boarding, but there was no one around me and I figured they had changed the gate. Well, according to my ticket, the gate was closing right around when I was asking people where I was supposed to be. They told me it was really far away and already closed. So I went running through the airport which is not easy to do recently awoken, and with a giant backpack. I finally made it and thankfully that plane was late so I didn´t miss it, on the contrary I had to wait quite a bit more. So I finally got on the plane and spent 3 more hours going to London. Then it seemed like I was one of the last ones off the plane, got onto the bus that left last, and the last one in line to get my passport stamped. My suitcases were also the last to come out and the cheese I had brought took the longest to confiscate. So even though I was supposed to land at 7:30, I didn´t get out to meet Victor till after 9. So Victor met me there, picked me up, we stopped by his place to pick up some stuff I had left there and we went to Granada. I finally made it by 11PM, 3PM Saturday California time, after a mere 27 hours of travelling. I was tired.
So Sunday in Taft we went to church, and then had a big kebab meal with the whole family, including my cousin Michael and his family. It was pretty fun, and we played Disney Scene It and Catch Phrase. I think after everyone went home I watched some Law and Orders, which I miss over here. Then Monday, the last day of 2007, I went running and we left and drove back to Newcastle. At 3 o´clock, in the car, I called Victor, which was midnight in Spain to tell everyone Happy New Year´s. We got home and after unloading the car, we had a pretend family New Year´s Eve, with our Martenelli´s and then got ready and all went to our seperate parties. I first drove to Folsom to visit Matt and Laurel who were up visiting there friends. We talked, ate and then I left and drove to my friend Sarah´s house, who I have spent several New Years´ with as her family always has a huge party. This year they were roasting a whole pig, but I arrived pretty late, so I just ate some more, we talked and had a second Martenelli´s toast a few seconds after the true midnight, because they were TIVOing the ball drop till everyone got their glasses.... It was slightly anti-climatic, and not the best New Year´s Eve ever, but good nonetheless. Then I drove home and went to bed.
New Year´s Day I went to a brunch/mini family reunion at an aunt and uncle´s house. We talked, ate, and played more games. Then I went shopping at Ross for Victor with my sister, then to Target and then to my grandma´s and grandpa´s for some delicious venison with them and my uncle. Then we went home and hung out with my mom for a while and went to bed.
Jan 2nd. I went to the dentist, then went and visited people at the Antique Trove where I worked this summer, then to Old Navy with my sister, then back to the dentist, then back doing more shopping and then went home really late, ate, rushed to church, where I had to say goodbye to a lot of people which was a lot more emotional than I expected. Then I went to my cousin´s house to eat some more and play Guitar Hero. Guitar Hero is really fun, but as usual with me and video games, I suck at it and spent most of the night trying to beat ¨Slow Ride¨ and finally beat another song. Then home and bed.
Jan 3rd. Doctor, Chiropractor, a few more Rosses, the mall, Costco, Staples, etc etc etc. I was gone from 8:30 till 7:30 getting last minute things for Victor, me, his family, other requests and otherwise going shopping crazy! It was a good day though, I had fun hunting down things and accomplishing the long shopping list I had. Then at home we had a nice family dinner of my mom´s Award Winning Shrip and Mandarins Over Pasta, then I watched more TV and How I Met Your Mother DVDs with my sis till late, then she went to bed and left me to pack my suitcase till 3AM. Then of course bed.
Jan 4th. The worst storm of the season hits California, especially bad in Northern California, with the eye of the storm focused on Newcastle. Ok, maybe Auburn, but no joke. It was so bad, that they even showed it on the news here in Spain. So I woke up and started to get ready for the long trip back. I packed some sandwiches and after my sister got back from exercising, we left the house at 12 noon. Then we drove to the hospital to pick up some medicine for my mom, which took forever because the storm was making everyone crazy and then drove through the blinding rain to San Francisco. I was sick with nervousness because flights were being cancelled at airports all over the state, and with the traffic and driving conditions it seems we weren´t even going to make my 6:30 flight even if it wasn´t cancelled. But we did, my dad is a driving champion, my mom a trooper, and my sister the best. :) So waited in the long check in line with all the other crazy people, and had to say goodbye again. I was much more sad to leave this time and than I expected so that wasn´t fun. But I did leave after all and waited for my plane to take off late, 10 hours to London, chatting with a wonderful old British man straight out of sterotype world, made it to Malaga, went striaght to my gate, and was getting ready to wait the 2 hours but fell asleep. When I woke up, I should have been boarding, but there was no one around me and I figured they had changed the gate. Well, according to my ticket, the gate was closing right around when I was asking people where I was supposed to be. They told me it was really far away and already closed. So I went running through the airport which is not easy to do recently awoken, and with a giant backpack. I finally made it and thankfully that plane was late so I didn´t miss it, on the contrary I had to wait quite a bit more. So I finally got on the plane and spent 3 more hours going to London. Then it seemed like I was one of the last ones off the plane, got onto the bus that left last, and the last one in line to get my passport stamped. My suitcases were also the last to come out and the cheese I had brought took the longest to confiscate. So even though I was supposed to land at 7:30, I didn´t get out to meet Victor till after 9. So Victor met me there, picked me up, we stopped by his place to pick up some stuff I had left there and we went to Granada. I finally made it by 11PM, 3PM Saturday California time, after a mere 27 hours of travelling. I was tired.
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