Tenerife: Cambio de Sentido

Literal Translation: Change of Mind
Figurative Translation: To make a u-turn (You’ll see cambio de sentido signs on highway exits which basically tells you that you can go back around)

As strange as it sounds, this trip got a bit emotional/philosophical at times. The past few months, I've become really good friends with Tess and we pretty much tell each other everything. Every once in a while, we get to talking about really serious things...and really dumb things. She has become my confidant and she always provides me with good insight or some new perspective. So, during this trip I've had a few cambio de sentidos - the literal translation. Maybe not necessarily a change of mind, but many things got me thinking for sure. Here are some of those:

LATINOS v SPANIARDS: Tess and I have noticed how it's really difficult to to meet Spanish men. We've realized that most of them won't just come and talked to you if they saw you, say, in a bar or whatever. I know it's a rare thing to meet the man of your dreams at a bar, but what I'm saying is the Spaniards can be way too shy. I did a little bit of a survey on my students and every single one of them who are in a relationship met their significant others through someone else. None of them just randomly started talking to their bf/gf at a party, a convention, an AA session, or whatever. The Latinos ,on the other hand, are way too forward (see previous post)! It got us wondering: which is better - the timid one or the aggressive one? Then this led me to another question: why is it that the conquerors (the Spaniards) are less aggressive than the conquered (the Latinos)? Shouldn't it be the other way around?

HIDDEN Xs: If you are a Spaniard from the Basque Country or Catalonia, most likely your name will have an X on it. Like Xalba: it's Salvador in Castellano; it's Xalbador in Basque. Javier in Castellano becomes Xavier in Catalan. Where are all these Xs coming from???

KITE SURFERS: Having lived in Miami for the past few years, Tess is all about water activities. She wanted to go kite surfing while in Tenerife so we did. Hahaha...kidding. Not we, I meant she. While she did that, I got to lay on the beach and enjoy a little bit of relaxation, a nice siesta, and good weather. And as always, I loved people-watching, especially the kite surfers. They all look so cool and healthy and strong. And their kites were so pretty. One day, I would like to try it...whenever I actually learn how to properly swim .

COOKIES v CRACKERS: These two things are clearly very different. One is sweet, the other is salty. But did you know both are called the same in Spanish? Galletas is the word. There is no distinction! Tess and I discussed this extensively and were very annoyed by it. I mean seriously! For a language that has two words for "to be" and two words for "to know", they couldn't come up with two words for two very different things??!! WTF!!!

TEIDE: I’m not exactly who you call a “nature, outdoorsy” person. Anytime anyone ever mentions going on a camping trip, I’m usually the first to say no - I need a clean bathroom with indoor plumbing. Maybe I could do it for a day/night, but no more. But every once in a while when I see things like the Teide, the Alps, etc., I can’t help but feel ridiculously happy. Seeing something so amazingly beautiful really just puts everything in perspective. I don't know why it is but I feel completely at peace when I'm among natural beauty. Unfortunately, we didn't have time to hike up the Teide, although we really wanted to. So, we've decided we would go back someday with our future husbands/boyfriends and hike all the way to the top. Maybe then, I wouldn't mind camping out.

VINO: On our way up to the Teide, we drove past a couple of vineyards. One looked really cute so we decided to stop by on our way back. The man was wonderful and let us taste three different kinds of wine. Now, I'm not usually a wine drinker, but I have to say these were pretty damn good. And he won me over when he said it's organic and it doesn't give you a terrible hangover the next day. It was great! I felt so Euro at that moment: driving - or riding - around in a manual car and wine tasting in some random vineyard. Every once in a while, it hits me that I live in another country and this was one of those moments.

AN EMOTIONAL END: On our plane ride home, Tess and I got to talking about love, relationships and family. It got pretty intense because all of a sudden we found ourselves crying...then laughing because we were crying. This emotional moment really made me realize how fortunate I am. It's so easy to forget how lucky we are and we take so many people for granted. Sadly, I need one of these moments to remind me of this fact every once in a while.

Alright, so not all were exactly extremely philosophical but whatever. You get my point. I love you everyone!!!

Tenerife: No Es Moco de Pavo

Literal translation: It’s no turkey booger
Figurative translation: It’s no small thing/It’s no easy feat

My trip to Tenerife has been quite the adventure. Tess and I arrived to one of the seven Canary Islands very early Friday morning and left late Sunday night. We went to Tenerife for a couple of reasons: to celebrate Tess’ 23rd birthday (my god, she’s young!), to take advantage of our 4 day weekend, to take a break from chilly Madrid, and of course, to visit the Canary Islands.

Lots of shit (good and bad) happened that got us saying “No es moco de pavo” a lot. Here’s a summary:

STICK SHIFT CAR: As you all know, I don’t drive. So that left the driving to Tess. She has driven a stick shift car before (like a long time ago) so she didn’t mind if we saved some money and renting a manual car – like all the other islands here, renting a car is the best way to get around. Tess did awesomely! She was a bit nervous at first and the car stalled a number of times. But by the end of Friday, she was getting used to it. I was very proud of her. Me on the other hand felt really bad because I couldn’t help her at all. When do you let go of the clutch? I have no idea! So I concentrated on my navigating, which I have to say I’m pretty fucking good at. Yes we had to do some cambio de sentidos (see next post), but it was mostly because of the stupid confusing rotundas, bad road signs, construction work, and lack of street names on the map and on the streets. Yup, I got lots of excuses.

ALAN? ALAN WHO?: Tess and I had rented an apartment we had found on the internet. The man, Alan, who we were in contact with, sent Tess an email with a map that led us to their “sales office” in Costa de Silencio, the area where we were staying. After some time of looking for the office (these islands really need to get their act together and draw a proper map), Tess and I walked into the office, told the lady about Alan, and got the response of WHO??? The lady had no idea who he was and no one in that office has any contact with this guy Alan. Somehow, we found the apartment and we had a place to stay…whew! But it’s still a mystery as to who this Alan guy is and why he directed us to that office.

TEIDE: The highest point in Spain…and it’s ridiculously beautiful. This one was no easy feat either. It took us about two hours just to get up, over and around mountains to finally reach the Teide (again, poor Tess). Yes we stopped a few times to enjoy the view, but it was quite a drive up there. We had to go through lots of winding narrow roads. During one of our stops, we couldn’t get the emergency brake down and thought we were never gonna get out of there…thankfully a random man just happen to walk by (in a very deserted area) and helped us out. As we were halfway up some mountain, we found ourselves in the middle of the clouds. We could barely see what was in front of us. But once we got above the clouds, it was totally worth it.

PEANUT DISCO PUB: The name, Costa de Silencio, is quite fitting for this part of Tenerife. This area is super calm – compared to Playa de las Americas and Cristianos, where most tourists stay – especially at night. Tenerife is full of Germans and Brits. It’s also full of Latin Americans. I rarely heard Spanish there…at least the Spanish I could understand. In Silencio, the only tourists that were there were old retired foreigners. So Tess and I found only one place to go to – that didn’t involve driving - on Friday: Peanut Disco Pub. Oh si!...not only is it a disco, but it’s also a pub. We were there for less than two hours and we got, against our will, about 5 different guys’ digits and offers to give us “tours” of Tenerife. One even wrote under his number, “Para ligar, trabajar NO!” (In order to flirt, not to work!). It was ridiculous. This place was basically a pub with about twenty Latin Americans (mostly men) hanging out and dancing to sexy Latin music. If only they were sexy! Gradually, they all came up asking us to dance, which eventually led to a lot of “me encantas”! Me encantas my ass! There was a Columbian guy who would not stop telling me this, and I just looked at him half laughing, half “get the hell out of here”. He was 45 years old with two daughters, 14 and 18. Sick!!! Needless to say, Tess and I found ourselves running out of there, escaping as they were all distracted.

P.S. Me encantas means I like you, but it’s more than just like. It’s between like and love.

AIRPORT CRISIS: Oh the airport crisis. For being an island, Tenerife is pretty fancy and has two airports. We flew into the Northern one so we just assumed we would fly out of the same airport. But of course not. We arrived at the Northern Airport, dropped off the rental car, checked in just to hear the lady say Air Europa ONLY flies to Madrid via the Southern Airport. Ooops! With a little less than two hours before our flight, we hurriedly got into a cab and agreed to pay a ridiculous amount of money to catch our flight. We just made it on time for our flight and do some window shopping, which was quite necessary after a nerve-wracking cab ride.

Que frio!

Ok, it has been freezing in Madrid the past week. Maybe not as cold as Chicago - the low is about lower 30s - but I have apparently become accustomed to Madrid weather. I was so annoyed with myself for being cold. I was like, I'm from Chicago!!! WTF!! And I remember when I arrived here around this time last year, I was still wearing a thin coat. Oh global warming!

This weekend is another puente. A puente (bridge) is what they call a long weekend here. Saturday is some holiday I don't remember and Monday is a religious holiday. So Tess and I are taking advantage and going to Tenerife, one of the islands in the Canary. I'm super excited. I need to get away from this cold and I just want to wear flip flops. It will also be nice since I'll be returning to Chicago soon...ahhh snow!!!!

Speaking of Chicago, I am super excited to go home. I've been listening to Christmas music and I'm just imagining all the food that I'm gonna eat...as always, it all goes back to food for me. It's going to be a tight two weeks (again, I'm just so popular!) but I'm going to try to do the most I can. Yay, I can't wait. See you all in a few weeks!!!

I'm going to be Shakira soon...NOT!

Today, I went to my first belly dance (danza del vientre) class. It was a challenge, but great. I've always wanted to take a belly dance class but never had time or money. This summer I decided that I would take classes here in Madrid since I can't afford the gym here. I have to get some exercise somehow. And I thought it would be a good way to meet people and improve my Spanish.

My friend, Tess, wanted to do it with me and finally today we decided to go. Thankgod she was with me because we were the only ones in the class. Our teacher is a young woman from Russia. Poor girl was probably so frustrated with us. It's so difficult. So many things to think about: your breathing, your posture, your "core", etc. I mean, I can't think this much all at once. Also, what kind of dance only requires you to move your knees and shoulders??!! My god, Shakira make it look so easy.

Well, next week, we'll try again. I really enjoyed it and I think it will be a good diversion/exercise for me. Although a student of mine said that most people (excluding Shakira, of course) get a little pouch from belly dancing. Apparently that's more common and better for the dance. I guess this must be true because even my teacher didn't have flat abs, but man, her hips don't lie either...maybe this will help me get a boyfriend...ha!

So there goes my I-want-to-be-Shakira dreams. But it's cool. I still had fun...and it'll be a good alternative to my freestyle "booty dance".

Me? A lucky charm?

Yeah, I'm not sure about this one. Xalba has said a couple times that I've brought good luck to Spain.

Why? Well, it's been Spain's year in terms of sports. First, they won the Eurocup after decades of never getting pass the quarterfinals. Then Rafa Nadal beats Federer in Wimbledon for the first time. A Spaniard, whose name escapes me at the moment, won Tour de France. And this weekend, Spain took home the championship trophy for Tennis' Davis Cup. Spain's sports fans have definitely had a great year.

Hmmm so maybe I am good luck. If only I could bring good luck to myself! Damn it!

Why I would never survive a fire, a shipwreck, etc….

Because I panic! In times of chaos/emergency, I am like a mad woman. Last night, I was getting ready for bed and was changing into my pajamas. I had literally just taken off my shirt and was searching for my sleeping shirt (which was in the midst of my very messy room) when I all of a sudden heard Xalba dying. At first I though he was just choking but after a few seconds it got worst and it sounded like he was having a hard time breathing.

I, of course, panicked and didn’t know what to do. I knew I had to get out there and maybe do the Heimlich maneuver or CPR, neither of which I know how to do. But I also knew I couldn’t go out there topless. Because I was panicking so much, it took me a few seconds to get my shirt back on. I was like a two year old who didn’t know how to freaking dress herself!

When my arms finally started working, got my shirt on, and I finally got out of my room, poor Xalba was sitting up on his bed trying to breathe. I asked him if he was okay and he could barely talk. Slowly he caught up with his breath. He wasn’t sure what happened and it was the first time its ever happened to him. He said he had been sleeping for about thirty minutes when he all of a sudden woke up and couldn’t breathe. Scary!

It totally freaked me out. This is when I wish I wasn’t in the dumb biology in high school and I was a doctor or a nurse or someone knowledgeable of emergency situations. But then, all my patients would probably die…

El Escorial

…was the home of King Philip II and is situated just outside of Madrid. I visited it this past Saturday with Maggie (the girl who rented my room this summer) and her friends. It’s huge. It’s grand. It’s ridiculous – much like the other castles/palaces in Europe. This one however was a bit creepy. Don’t get me wrong, some parts were cool but it wasn’t my favorite palace.

El Escorial was built from 1563 to 1584. King Philip - great-grandson of the Catholic Monarchs, Ferdinand and Isabel, son of two first cousins (sick!) and the namesake of the Philippines - brought Spain to the height of its power. He was all about keeping Catholicism alive and making sure Spain remains the world power (Trivia: he married the very Catholic “Bloody” Mary of England, a good political strategy to prevent Protestantism from further spreading…but then she died). Spanish rule didn't end with him, but I don't think it got any better after.

What did I not like about the palace? It was dark. I'm real persnickety about darkness...I just prefer light and lots of color. I feel like the Spaniards must have such a dark history because everything historical I see here is dark. Spanish paintings in the Prado Museum: deprived of color. Churches: creepy. Palaces: gloomy. It’s probably because of it’s Catholic background…ha! Ok, all this isn’t completely true but it’s just a theory that I have. I obviously have to study more Spanish history.

Anyway, El Escorial just didn’t have enough light and as one guide book said, “looks like a prison”. I have to agree. I wouldn’t be able to sleep if I lived there. Especially when most members of the royal family since Philip II have been buried in the castle. We walked through the pantheon with all the tombs and although it was interesting, it gave me the hibby jibbies at the same time. They had one room with this huge round tomb in the middle. Inside that tomb were like 60 members of the royal family who died when they were children. Yeah, creepy.

But of course, there’s good in everything. I loved the palace library. It was massive and it was cool to see all the books that have been there for forever. The library ceiling was painted with lots of colors with the Seven Liberal Arts as its theme. Also, I found it pretty cool to walk through King Philip’s bedroom. You can actually see the room with the bed where he died (at least, they say that it’s the original bed). And last but not the least, I loved the carved doors they had in one section of the palace. These doors were so intricately carved and just so beautiful…too bad I couldn’t take a picture.

As far as the outside, like most palaces, it is beautiful. It has a very nice garden and a ginormous pond. It’s also surrounded by amazingly grand mountains. I definitely preferred the outside of the palace more than the inside. But again, it’s no competition to the Neuchweisntein, which is surrounded by the Alps. God, I just love Neuchweinstein! And Ludwig just sounds more interesting than Philip.

By the way, what is up with the Hapsburgs?! That family seriously married and procreated with everyone in Europe. Greedy, conquering bastards! I had no idea they also existed in Spain! Oh, and is it Hapsburg or Habsburg? I swear I thought it was Hapsburg with a P (that’s what I remember from Vienna, at least), but in El Escorial, it was spelled with a B.

So in conclusion, I give El Escorial one thumbs up. However, I would like to go back again and go further down the street/mountain/whatever and see the Valley of the Fallen, Franco's memorial to soldiers who died in the civil war...another part of Spain's dark past...

El Escorial

A mini pilgrimage

I'm for sure going to heaven - I visited Avila, home of St. Teresa. Ok, so I really have no clue who she is or what she did. Twelve years of Catholic education and I have no idea (sorry mom and dad). But whoever she is or whatever she did, she must have been good to have become a saint. And she's brought fame to her little beautiful town of Avila.

Saturday, Tess, Sara and I decided to take a mini-trip to Avila. It's only about an hour and a half by train from Madrid and it's small enough for a day trip. Rosa, Tess' friend, met us at the train station. She's studying in Madrid but grew up in Avila - she was visiting her grandmother for the weekend. She showed us around town and told us about its history. The town dates all the way back from medieval times, hence the famous wall that surrounds it. And of course, Sta. Teresa de Avila was born and lived there.

We really weren't able to do much since we arrived just when everything was closing for siesta hours. We wanted to go up the wall and walk on it, but we just didn't have enough time. So we just walked around a lot, enjoyed the sights from the outside, and savored the silence in the streets - it's just nice to get out of loud, busy Madrid every once in a while.

We also spent a long time eating lunch. Since we couldn't go in any sights, we had a nice long lunch with typical food from Avila. One was patatas ravolcones (sp?). It was like peppery flavored mashed potatoes with a little bit of bacon as garnish. We also ordered churrasco, which is like a steak or something, but the restaurant ran out of it, so we had to settle for a giant pollo asado.

After we finally finished our hearty lunch, we only had an hour left. So we went to St. Teresa's church, which was very small and cozy inside. We then bought some yemas (a typical food of Avila made of egg yolk and sugar), and some corazones (marzapan like cookies) from a store who sold baked goods made by secluded nuns from a nearby convent. I've always wanted to go to one of those convents where the nuns make wonderful baked goods and sold it through a little hole in the door so people don't see them. This wasn't quite what I've seen on travel shows, but it was good enough for now. Someday, I will find one of those convents. As for the yemas and the corazones, we had mixed reviews. The yemas were a bit strange...very eggy...not as good as the Filipino yemas. As for the corazones, they are amazing. I have a box of them in my house and I really, really need to stop eating them. I wanted to take some home for Christmas but unfortunately, they have an expiration date.

Avila was beautiful and very serene. I wouldn't say it was my favorite city in Spain, but it's nice nonetheless...probably more for the religious crowd than a heathen like me.

Avila

Japi Jalogüin

I know this is a super late post but I can't not report on Halloween. My roommates and I had our biggest party to date. I was nervous at first because many had rsvp'd and asked to bring others. I wasn't quite sure how to accommodate all in my tiny little apartment. But in the end, I said screw it! The more the merrier.

I dressed up as a leprechaun. Nothing too special. I didn't want to spend too much money so I my friend Tess gave me the idea for my costume. All I had to buy was a vest from H&M for 15 Euros. I already had the green shirt and black pants and Sara provided me with a Guinness leprechaun hat. It was great! You all know how I secretly wish to be Irish.

As for my roommates, I was very proud of them. I told them it was mandatory for them to dress up. I could tell they were nervous at first since Halloween is not really that popular in Spain. This great American tradition is slowly becoming a Spanish one, but not quite. My roommates have never dressed up before. They didn't want to do too much. I think they just didn't want to have to go in public in some ridiculous costume. They wanted to be dressed up but also look semi-normal. So I tried to give them ideas for quick simple costumes but in the end, they surprised the hell out of me. They went to the Chino stores and got themselves geisha costumes. It was pretty sweet...and totally unexpected. I didn't expect them to go all out in the end. They asked me to put make up on them and I couldn't stop laughing. They make such ugly women that I couldn't look at them. My favorite was when a Chinese man stopped Iñaki on our way to the bar and gave him a two thumbs up for his costume.

There were all sorts of characters that night: nurse, rock star, witch, sailor, etc. But the best one was Tess'. We were costume shopping a few weeks before the party and we just couldn't find anything. In a moment of ridiculousness, I thought she should dress up as a Control condom dispenser and make money on Halloween. When you walk around the streets of Spain, you'll randomly see a condom dispenser outside of stores, pharmacies, etc. So she got a box, decorated it, and made two slots - one for the money and one for the condoms. It was great although we were disappointed she only sold two...3 Euros may have been way too much...ha!

So Halloween, Español style, was a blast. Everyone - Americans and Spaniards...and French - had a great time. This was proven the morning after when I saw the remnants/evidence of the night before all over the house. If only I had a picture of that...

Halloween in Spain

Election '08: A View from Across the Pond (PART VI: Oh yeah!!!)

Do you remember where you were and what you were doing on November 4, 2008? That's a question future generations will ask me someday. My answer? Well, I was in Madrid, totally nervous/antsy and going nuts because the time difference was killing me. With Spain being six hours ahead of America's eastern coast, the west coast was only half way through its voting period by the time I was ready to go to sleep. So, I decided to sleep early so I could wake up early and watch the results and the Chicago rally in Grant Park. My alarm went off at 4:30 A.M. and I quickly turned on CNN International. By 5:15, they had called it. Then I started crying, alone, with dimmed lights...so dramatic! Soon after, Juan calls from Chicago to ask me if I was watching the news and added, "Are you crying??!!" I have no idea how he knew I'd be awake. At about 5:30-ish, I watch Obama's victory speech and cried some more. I then continued to watch the news until I had to teach at 8.

All day, my students said congratulations to me - one even gave me congratulatory kisses on the cheeks. I wasn't quite sure how to react to that. I mean, I didn't win the race. I didn't become president. I was merely a supporter of the winner. But then, as my brother pointed out, America won simply by voting despite long waits and all the other crap they had to deal with. It was like they just wanted their effing voices heard! It didn't matter who you were going to vote for, people just voted. Although I'm clearly for Obama, I really just wanted people to vote (see previous post).

Anyway, I think all that I want to say about this historic election has been said. For me, it's not only historic because he is black - although we have to recognize that of course. It's historic because I have not seen Americans this united in eight years. Well, maybe right after 9/11...but that didn't last too long. Freaking Virginia, Indiana...all those "red" states turned blue! Even though, there are still about 55.5 million out there who didn't support Obama, it was still refreshing to see the joy on people's faces. I mean, I don't know how anyone cannot be emotionally affected by the rallies, the random celebrations on the streets, the tears of joy, everything that was happening late Tuesday night. The whole event was really emotional for me. I was crying on the train yesterday as I read Time Magazine's article on Obama's win. I'm so lame!

So, way to go America! I've never felt as proud of my country, my fellow Americans and to be American as I was on Wednesday night. It made me wish I could go home and join the celebrations. But since I couldn't, I resigned to singing the Star Spangled Banner in my head all day.

P.S. On other election news: I'm very disappointed in Californians for passing Prop 8! WTF! Did they not see Ellen Degeneres and Portia de Rossi's beautiful wedding??? Seriously though. What a-holes!!

Election '08: A View from Across the Pond (PART V: The Absentee Voter)

Tomorrow is the big day! Yikes! I hope everyone exercises their right and votes. It doesn't even matter who you vote for...I think it's just good to go out and vote. I believe it's a privilege people take for granted. As some of you know, this is my first presidential election where I can actually vote. I didn't become a US citizen until 2006 so the first time I ever got to do it was during the midterm elections. I was really excited about that one so you can imagine how I feel about this one.

I know it sounds really lame but I really think voting is empowering. Think about all those other countries where they don't even get to vote. As much as we bitch about our politicians and their dirty politics, at least we have a choice - even if it's to choose the lesser of two evils. Shit, if I had the money (or had a sugardaddy) and could afford to go home to cast my vote, I would!...that's how excited I am to vote.

But alas, I'm not that lucky. Thank god for things like absentee ballot. I received mine via mail two and a half weeks ago. I was so excited about it. My roommate handed it to me and I noticed an "Obama please!!!" written on it. At first I thought the mailman had decided to write on my mail...turns out Xalba had done it. I decided to bring it to my classes (before I cast my vote, of course) and everyone was so interested in it. The fact that we get to choose almost all government officials was so interesting to them (See post on Spanish Presidential Election). I mailed it in early last week (via regular mail because it would've cost 35 euros by DHL), so hopefully it's in Chicago already.

The past two weeks, I've been wearing my Obama pin on my coat. My awesome friend, Ebs, sent me one in the mail and I've been representin' since I got it. Most people have approved of it, which goes to show that if the Spaniards could vote, most of them would vote for Obama. They all seem so sure that Obama would win, but I'm a bit pessimistic - I can't help it considering we've had Bush for eight years - and I'm not calling it until the results are all in Tuesday night. My eyes will be glued to the TV/Internet tomorrow. I hope I get to celebrate on Wednesday...aaaahhhhh!!!!

Another perspective

Check out this blog by one of the teachers I work with. Hilarious!!! Way better than mine...and way shorter posts.

Cory's Travel Blog

Eff you Sarah Palin!

I found this blog post on Expatica.com and this lady pretty much says what I want to say about Sarah Palin's asinine comment about "real" america.


Go home to Wasilla, Sarah!

Citychase

For sure, I will not survive the Amazing Race. If I ever do it, I would have to train a whole year for it, like training for the marathon or something. And if I do get in, I'd probably get kicked out after the first round. I realized this this past weekend when I did Citychase, an International cheaper version of the Amazing Race. Winners of the national Citychase goes on to the final in Marrakesh and compete with other countries.

How did I get into this? Well, Iñaki was harrassing me about a couple weeks ago. He originally signed up - and paid - for it with Xalba as his partner. Xalba couldn't do it, so for some reason Iñaki asked me. I kept refusing, even when he said I didn't have to pay him. I didn't want to do it for a few reasons: 1. I'm so unathletic. You all know me. The only sports I like to do are long walks and booty dancing. 2. I'm just not that competitive. If I do something like this, I would do it for fun. I like to win, but I just prefer having fun over frustrating/stressing out/killing myself and others. And 3. I hate the anticipation. Not knowing what I had to do for it makes me anxious. I kept thinking that they were going to make us repel off a skyscraper or eat something nasty like bull's balls. Nevertheless, after a few days of "pleeeasssee", I said yes to shut him up. But, I said, with one condition: I am not running. I told him about my messed up knees and he said that that was fine.

So off we went early in the AM on Saturday. I was nervous, but pretty excited about it. I knew it would be fun - I mean, how many people get to do do something like this - but still had my reservations...mostly about not knowing what we would have to do. After I agreed to doing Citychase, the final in Rome last year just happen to be on TV. One of the things they had to do was pose naked for a sketch artist. Iñaki and I looked at each other and said, "ummm not doing that!!" Now do you see why I was nervous about it??

We arrived in Palacio de Deportes around 9 and saw a long line of competitors. We couldn't help but laugh when we saw a bunch of people wearing running pants and had their Camelback gear filled with water. These guys were totally gung-ho. Here we are, half asleep and wearing normal work out clothes (all I had were Adidas wannabe pants from Target, and a Loyola t-shirt). They passed out waivers for us to sign that said I'm in good health, or that we don't mind that there are no medical stations in the Citychase route. Then they gave us our team numbers, a t-shirt, a map and bags full of goodies (granola bars, gatorade, Playstation magazines).

So here are the rules: there were 15 clues but we only had to do 10 proofs (OMG what is the word for this?! I know it's not proofs but it's the direct translation of pruebas. That's how the Spanish translate it and I've gotten so used to calling it this that I can't remember the real word for this in a race. Tests just sounds funny). Anyway, we could use our cellphones, or go to an internet cafe to figure out the clues. Also, we could only use public transportation (Metro or bus), or walk, or run. The race began at 10:15 and we had 5 hours to finish it.

The first proof was to find a one cent coin, a breakfast item, and underwear. Iñaki and I, like many other teams, ran to the nearest cafe and asked for a churro and 1 cent. Then we had the underwear problem. Who was going to give us underwear??? We realized we had to do give them one of ours. He was going to just take his off but I thought what if they don't give it back? I can imagine any man running around the city without one would be so uncomfortable. So I offered to take off my sports bra...I thought it would be better. Fortunately when we gave it to the Citychase people, the woman was nice enough to tell me to take my bra back. She obviously knew I needed it...ha! After this easy task, they gave us the list of 15 clues.

Iñaki and I first tried to figure out the clues before we started going. Since it was still early, we didn't want to wake anyone to help us out (10 AM on a saturday is still early in Madrid). So we just figured some of it out ourselves and tried to plan our route in the most efficient way we can. Here are the proofs we did in the order that we did them:

1. Go to Calle Montalban close to Retiro Park. There we had to draw the Madrid 2016 Olympic logo. That one was quick and easy!
2. Find one of the RoomMate Hotel chains that is related to cinema. Answer: Roommate Oscar in Chueca. Once there, we had to go up 8 flights of stairs to get to the rooftop deck (it was beautiful!). From the rooftop, we had to find Circulo de Bellas Artes building, look at the giant greek god statue above it and write down the god's name. Answer: Minerva - thankgod for Xalba!
3. Find Loteria Booth #59. We found it in Sol. There we had to line up boxes of granola bars and tip them over like dominoes.
4. Go find Wally (aka Where's Waldo) in Opera. We had to find a man wearing a backpack (not wearing red and white striped t-shirt) and say to him "perea, perea". If he was the right man, he would answer and tell us a secret phrase. We never found him. The area he was at was too big and had too many people.
5. A place named after shoes. Plaza Descalzas. This was my least favorite of all. They made us jump out of a second floor window. Now this doesn't sound so bad but for someone afraid of heights, I wanted to vomit. On the ground was some inflatable thing that I think firefighters use, except there were no firefighters. I stood on that ledge holding on to dear life freaking out and telling Iñaki I would kill him. Somehow, I just did it. I stopped looking down, stopped thinking, closed my eyes and jumped. I'm pretty sure I landed wrong because my neck and back really hurt right after and all the next day. Later on we found out they had to shut this proof down because someone got injured. Just glad it wasn't me...
6. Find a place of panaderia and carniceria. Answer: Plaza Mayor. There we had to do a quiz and answer 11 out of 20 questions using books Citychase provided.
7. Go to Parque de Oeste. We got there and they said "take off your clothes...you have to do the slip n' slide". I refused to take off my pants (for female reasons and I was totally wearing nasty granny panties!). They said it wouldn't work so Iñaki offered his shorts...we thought it would be better than pants. So I changed behind a tree and ran and slid...only to the halfway point. They said do it again. Same thing. So the Citychase guy and Iñaki grabbed my arms and pulled me to the end. It was pretty awesome...and hilarious!!!
8. Find the school for toreros. This is where we lost a lot of time. No one seemed to know where this is and Xalba had a hard time finding it on the internet. So we went to the area where we thought it may be. We get there and asked the locals and most of them didn't know. Finally one waiter told us where to go. It was so freaking far! I've never been to this metro stop before. We get there and an old man taught us how to be matadors. He gave us the capote (the yellow/pink sheet they use to attract the bull) and showed us how to move like a torero. It was pretty awesome! Did you know those things are heavy??? The matadors look so elegant and smooth when they carry that thing but it is heavy! Even Iñaki was surprised. This was my favorite proof for sure.
9. Go to last year's Citychase finish line. We went to Plaza Colon and there we had to do Karaoke. Normally, I would rock this, but we had to do a Spanish song I've never heard of. And to make it worse, it was Flamenco-ish! I sounded like a retard!
10. Go to Calle Francisco Silvela, 42. There we had to answer some quesions about technology. Thankgod Iñaki knows about this crap.

...And that was it. After that we only had ten minutes left and we decided to go back to the finish line and enjoy the after-race party of pizza and coke. Sadly, we only finished 8 proofs. We technically did 9 but the domino one didn't count (because of rules I'm too lazy to explain). But we were happy enough and satisfied with what we've done. My knees were killing me (I couldn't help but run a little every time I'd see everyone around me run), and we were just so tired. We stayed to watch the award ceremony. The winners did it in 2 hours and 15 minutes (jerks!!). They said they basically ran all of Madrid and took the Metro maybe once. I hope they do well in Marrakesh.

As for Iñaki and I, we were simply glad to have participated in it. I was also just glad Iñaki and I didn't hate each other by the end of it. Back in my school days, I've had people get annoyed/angry with me because of my lack of competitiveness...I didn't get too into a game. I thought he would do this, but he was very patient with me and never asked me to run even when it seemed like he wanted to (he only ran when I did). He never got short with me even when he had to re-explain some things to me because I was too slow to translate in my head. In the end, we worked pretty well together as a team. We had a ton of fun and now I can say I've ran around Madrid like a maniac doing silly things.

Citychase '08

Election '08: A View from Across the Pond (PART IV: Third Debate)

I've lost interest in the debates. I watched the final one last week - this is a very delayed post - and I swear they both sound like a broken record. I HATE talking points. They sound like robots after a while. However, I give them props for being a bit more entertaining. At times, the debate was a bit intense, which made it a little more interesting. Like the part when they talked about the negative ads both have been releasing. Man, McCain sounded like he was really hurt by what that John Lewis said. I thought it was funny that what that guy said is somehow equal to what his campaign has been saying. Ok, yes it kinda is but at least it wasn't Obama's campaign saying shit about him. It's just some guy who has no direct connection to the campaign. And yes that's nice that McCain "repudiate" his supporters - and it's only right - when they say Obama's a "terrorist" or "an arab" (like that equals to terrorist), but maybe his campaign shouldn't have started that nasty rumor in the first place. I'm so sick of people (i.e. Hasselback of the View) equating Obama's association with a former terrorist to McCain's direct involvement in the Keating Five. When they say that Obama's association is worst gets me even more. Come on! Obama only worked with this guy to do non-profit work, which is a good cause, right? It's like when they made fun of him for being a community organizer. He has no direct connection with this guy's terrorist acts, unlike McCain and Keating. As Whoopi said on the View, if everyone is a terrorist by association, then all of Ayer's students and colleagues are terrorists!! God, why did I start following the View's political discussions??!!

Now back to the debates, Joe the plumber (or Joe the fontanero here in Spain) sucks! I was so sick of hearing about him. I understand he represents the successful hard working small business owners, but he just seems like an ass. "We shouldn't apologize for who we are," he said. What??!! It's one thing to be proud of your country but it's another to never apologize. We ain't perfect. We've done lots of shit to our own people and around the world. I think it's okay to say sorry when we eff up.

On another note, I would like to say that Sarah Palin moved a little bit lower - like a quarter of a point - on my "people I dislike/think is stupid" list. I love it when people are able to laugh at themselves, so I give her props for showing up on SNL. But I still thinks she's stupid. Seriously, if she says, "we need to put America on the side of the people" one more time!!! I swear she just talks for the sake of talking. I don't think she actually knows what's she's saying...I don't think she thinks at all!!!

Lastly, did you know that the Spaniards are really into this presidential campaign? Apparently, hundreds of thousands of Spaniards watched the debates even though it was on at 3 AM here. I found this so interesting. Spaniards I meet always ask me about it and my students, especially, always want to talk about it, but I never expected that many people to actually stay up for stupid debates. I wouldn't even let myself stay up for that...my sleep is way more important. If you want to read about this, check out: http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/europe/10/13/spain/index.html

8 more days!!!

Hablo Español...an update

Before I came back to Chicago this summer, I felt that my Spanish was starting to pick up pace. But then I totally regressed after six weeks in the US. I felt that I had to start all over again when I got back here, but I was able to remember things much faster.

Today, I noticed a bit of an improvement with my Spanish. First, I took the elevator with a neighbor - a very sweet old lady who I've encountered before - and we ended up talking a little. She first commented on my footwear. She was shocked I was wearing flip flops, so I had to explain to her that where I am from, the weather is much colder than here. Then she decided to chat with me about the ridiculous tormenta, or storm, we had a month ago that left huge water stains on our ceilings. The storm was so strong (well, strong for Madrid) that water leaked through the ceiling. We realized that neither of our apartments have been fixed.

Then tonight, I was watching this show called Password. It's a game show that involves connecting words...perfect for vocabulary building. I noticed I recognized more words than usual. After Password, I watched Estas No Son Las Noticias, a Daily Show type of show. I actually understood a joke about Colin Powell's endorsement on Obama...because he's black (pa rum pum). Ok, it wasn't so funny, but I laughed because I actually understood it. Then I watched a show on amazing athletes and almost cried when they told the story of Rafael. He's paraplegic and trained for the Ironman. I've never seen anyone swim with just his arms before. I can barely do the doggy paddle and this guy was swimming a couple miles with just his arms!!! WTF!!!

The last time I blogged about my Spanish learning (in January), I could barely speak a word. I mentioned how my roommates and I planned on alternating weeks speaking English and Spanish. For the most part, we never really enforced it. We would try, but in the end spoke English to make things go faster. Since I've been back, we've been speaking more and more in Spanish. Well, I speak Spanglish, but they've been speaking English minimally to me.

I also mentioned intercambios which hasn't quite worked out for me yet but I'm going to try more. Guille is forcing me to speak more Spanish with him, and I'm trying to participate more in organized intercambios. I went to one last week that was pretty fun. The only problem with intercambios is that most of the Spanish people want to speak English only. I'm still trying to figure out how to make it fair for both parties.

Ademas, I've been trying to watch more TV or more movies in Spanish, even though I hate watching dubbed movies. Luckily we have cable and it allows us to put subtitles. So if they are speaking too fast, I can at least follow the Spanish subtitles. This summer, I tried to read my first Spanish book (a book of poetry) but I think I aimed too high...it was way too difficult for a beginner. With the suggestion of a co-teacher, I am reading a children's book. It is called Sopaboba. There is an expression that goes, comer sopaboba, which means to be a moocher/freeloader. I'm enjoying it so far.

Pues, estoy muy contenta ahora. Tengo que mejorar mas, pero...bueno, poco a poco, no?

Juicin' some zumo de naranja

For the first time in my life, I made fresh squeezed orange juice with my own hands...well, with the help of a machine. I started feeling gross a week or so ago and decided I needed some natural vitamin c in me. So I got myself a big fat bag of oranges and started squeezing. We have an orange squeezer so I thought it was about time I learned how to use it. These handy machines seem essential in Spanish households. Go to any bar and you'll see an electric orange squeezer (ours is not that fancy). I've never been a fan of orange juice (neither fresh nor that Tropicana stuff...so gross!), but I've come to really enjoy them here in Madrid. Someone once told me Spain is one of the biggest producers of oranges...or something like that...don't take my word for it. But they're really good! It kinda sucks that it takes like four oranges to make a whole glass, but it's totally worth it.

So I'm really proud to say I've finally juiced an orange...a good one too! As for my sickness, I think the oranges helped. Now if I can only get rid of this cough!

P.S. Ma, please don't worry about me. I'm okay...it's just the change-in-the-weather kind of cold that everyone else has. I'll survive, I promise.

Election '08: A View from Across the Pond (PART III: Second Debate)

The second round of debates: BORING!!! I had stopped paying attention half way through because I kept hearing the same thing over and over again, the same crap they said in the first debate, and Tom Brokaw reprimanding them for the time limit. And yet, I kept the video going to the very end. It was like I had this tiny bit of hope that they would bust out some fisticuffs. Oh well, maybe the next debate.

But I did enjoy SNL's version of the debate. You should all watch it if you haven't. It's hilarious. Also, I really dig Michelle Obama. She was on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart and she seems really cool. I probably wouldn't want her to be my boss, but I'd probably want her to be my friend. She'd be one of those friends that would tell you if you had food stuck in your teeth, or if you bought some nasty outfit, or if you were dating an asshole/creepster/idiot/etc. She seems to keep Barack grounded. You go, gurl!

You know you're in Madrid when...

• You constantly smell like cigarette smoke: outside, inside...it doesn't matter.
  

• You get up close and personal with complete strangers: If there's one thing that still gets to me every once in a while here, it's the lack of personal space. A couple weeks ago, the Metro was so packed that this guy had no choice but to stand right in front of me with his face about six inches away from mine. I did everything I could to put my face down, up, sideways, whatever just to avoid looking like we were going to make out...aaawwkkward.

• Hot scruffy men are all around: no need to elaborate on that one

• People are inappropriately dressed for the weather: or maybe it's me. Everyone is wearing boots and coats and I'm still wearing flip-flops and short sleeve shirts. Ok, so the past few days I've broken down and wore a coat, but only at night or very early morning when it IS COLD. It's still freaking hot during the day!

• It's a surprise to see toilet paper in public bathrooms: I guess the Spanish are just not as anal as we are (or at least don't have as many regulations) because it's not rare to find a toilet paper-less bathroom in a restaurant or bar. So note to self: always have some kleenex with you.

• Everyone around you is making out: yup, still happening...

• You watch TV and see someone's penis: oh the lack of censorship! I love it! I've always been impressed by Spanish TV and the fact that I never hear bleeps on shows. Swearing is obviously allowed. The other day I was flipping through the channels and ran into a documentary on nudists. At first it was quite interesting - not because I liked watching naked people, but because I couldn't believe they had this on a respected news channel on regular time - but then they started showing the nudists partake in a nudist race. There were just too many things bouncing around. All different kinds: hairy, shaved, young, old, fat, skinny, wrinkly. Oh man...I definitely respect them for their openness and no censorship but that race really killed it.

P.S. Speaking of TV, Viggo Mortensen speaks Spanish!!! I watched a really messed up movie the other day ("La pistola de mi hermano") and he shows up for like 10 minutes. As if he's not sexy enough speaking plain ol' English, but a foreign language! HOT! Oh and he speaks it with an Argentinian accent (it's like Spanish with an Italian intonation). Real nice!

So back to switching commas for decimal points (or vice-versa); back to reading military time; back to reminding myself that the week on a calendar starts on a Monday not Sunday; back to putting days before the month. All so silly but can easily mess with your mind sometimes. But as always, despite all these things, I love this city.

Also, you'd all be proud of me. I finally found the U.S. Embassy! Just thought I'd make a random turn one day while walking and there it was - a white rough-looking building that looks like it was built in colonial times. Good to know in case I ever need to pull a Miss-Saigon-helicopter-on-rooftop escape.

A Very Delayed Homecoming Post

I've come up with a theory: culture shock will never go away regardless of how long or how many times you've been in that place. I remember during orientation at the Rome Center when we were warned that we will most likely experience culture shock when we return to the U.S. - much like the culture shock we were experiencing at that moment. I just thought, no way! I've lived in the US long enough to not be surprised by anything.

Oh was I wrong! That feeling I got home after four months in Rome was the same feeling I had when I got home for the first time from Madrid this summer. I felt so disoriented, to the point of feeling a bit like a retard. How do I buy a train ticket? Is Damen east or west of Ashland? Are drunk American boys always this obnoxious? Why do chaches still exist? Why do I have so much personal space? Why is everyone moving so fast like time is going to run out? After a week or so, I fell back into the groove and got used to things again. So of course, once I got back to Madrid, I had that same feeling again. It's really a strange thing to go from one world to another within several hours. Thus, my theory also is that if you stay somewhere for more than a month, culture shock will always get you even if you've been where you are now before. Does that make sense? Whatever.

Anyway, I would have to say my first trip back home was a success. It was great seeing everyone and being able to do most of what I wanted to do; although, I'm still pretty sad about not being able to go to Huey's Hot Dogs or Burrito House (sigh). I would like to take this moment to thank everyone who helped me check things off my list, let me crash at their place, invited me to their wonderful bbqs, and bought me a meal and/or a beer or two. I had a great time in Chicago, Vegas, and Tampa. I really enjoyed my vacation because of you wonderful people. Now if only all of you guys could move here with me...

Well, I'll be back for Christmas - I'll be there from the 20th 'til the 3rd - so hope to see you all again.

Oh and speaking of home, what the hell happened to the Sox and the Cubs?!! So much for representin'!

Election '08: A View from Across the Pond (PART II: VP Debate)

In last week's first presidential debate, I was pretty impressed with McCain. He did a lot better than I expected, especially considering he almost didn't do it. Overall I didn't think the debate was that exciting. I felt that both sides pretty much agreed on most things. Of course both are going to do their best in correcting the economy and our foreign relations - no one wants to see the country get worse in both aspects. Although I do disagree with McCain on diplomacy. And I'm kinda tired of Obama and the democrats referring to past events and blaming everyone and their mother about it but themselves. Unfortunately, shit's happened already, so stop wasting your time bitching and start telling us what you're gonna do about it. The past is the past; you can't change what happened, you can only change what's going to happen. In the end, I didn't hear anything I didn't hear before from them or other politicians. I do have to say they need to stop talking about how one is a war hero and the other one is half black/half white. Really, we get it!

But last night was what I've been waiting for: the Palin-Biden debate. Based on her past interviews, I expected Palin to get stumped. Okay, she didn't completely bomb but she still totally sucks. Again, half of the things she says are empty and pointless, and she constantly veered off the question. How many times did she start her rebuttal with, "let me just get back to (name an issue: energy/afghanistan/iraq) for a moment. I feel that we really need to get back (name an issue: energy/afghanistan/iraq) because it's very important"? If I had a euro for every time she did that, I'd have a good chunk of change...in dollars. But seriously, she did that...a lot.

She also said a few things I just want to comment on:

1) PALIN (on diplomacy): ...with some of these dictators who hate America and hate what we stand for, with our freedoms, our democracy, our tolerance, our respect for women's rights, those who would try to destroy what we stand for...

ummm she doesn't respect women's rights either! If a girl got raped, not only by a stranger but by someone in her family, she definitely should be able to choose to keep it or not. And, victims of rape should not have to pay for the investigation of the crime against them! WTF!

2) PALIN (on taxes/healthcare): That doesn't cost the government anything as opposed to Barack Obama's plan to mandate health care coverage and have universal government run program and unless you're pleased with the way the federal government has been running anything lately, I don't think that it's going to be real pleasing for Americans to consider health care being taken over by the feds. But a $5,000 health care credit through our income tax that's budget neutral.

I would rather pay taxes so children and retired people can have guaranteed health benefits. Taxes are no fun, but they are necessary. And if you are going to tax me, at least use it for good, not for a war or for rich companies like Halliburton. Universal healthcare has worked for other countries, why can't it work in ours? I may not be an expert on budgets or whatever, but I would hope the government would use my money wisely.

3) PALIN (on intervention in Darfur, etc.): John McCain who knows how to win a war. Who's been there and he's faced challenges and he knows what evil is and knows what it takes to overcome the challenges here with our military.

Maybe I'm just misinformed, but when did McCain win a war? We for sure did not win Vietnam, and we for sure haven't won either Iraq or Afghanistan.

4) PALIN (on Biden's equating patriotism to paying higher taxes): Now you said recently that higher taxes or asking for higher taxes or paying higher taxes is patriotic. In the middle class of America which is where Todd and I have been all of our lives, that's not patriotic.

Is she really middle-class? I would assume anyone in an "executive" position in the government would stop being middle class after the first couple of paychecks. At some point she also said, "Todd and our marriage in our past where we didn't have health insurance and we know what other Americans are going through...." If she can relate to and is so concerned with our health care and the struggling middle class, why not provide them with easy access to health benefits?

5) PALIN (on current administration): There have been huge blunders in the war. There have been huge blunders throughout this administration, as there are with every administration.

Yeah, I don't think the war is simply a "blunder". I don't think the death of over 4,000 soldiers in an unjustified war is a blunder. And they say us anti-war liberals don't support the troops! Jerks!

As for my overall reaction, Palin still has not won my vote (and she never will). A friend sent me a link to Palin Bingo, a bingo game based on how often she would say certain words/phrases. I didnt' have the means to print the bingo cards or have the time to re-create them, but she definitely had some good ones in there: "Maverick", "greed from Wall St.", "bring America back to the side of the people". Again, if I had a euro...well you know how it goes. I also just can't stand how she talks. I understand that her whole image is supposed to be like the average American, but seriously??? Like Jon Stewart said, if all average Joe Schmoe could be president, then we're screwed. I hate how she does the wink thing and says things like doggone it, or Joe Six pack (what is that supposed to mean? Like a man with a six pack abs or a six pack of beer? What??), or at ya, or with ya. Aargh!!! There is a way to be down-to-earth in a presidential campaign without having to sound like you're just having a casual conversation at a bar.

As for an American living in Spain, I do appreciate that Spain keeps getting represented in these debates. I can't believe McCain made a stupid comment about not talking to Zapatero. Apparently, he's met all world leaders except Zapatero. That was one name he couldn't drop in his debate. I also have to say that I'm pretty proud to be able to see a woman and a black man in a debate. It just hit me today as I watched the VP debate that it's kinda weird, yet refreshing, to not see two white men on the podium.

Lastly, I just want to comment on how much I hate how politicians refuse to admit to mistakes. If they voted on one thing and later went against it, they can never admit it. Just say you changed your mind. What's so wrong with changing your mind?! We're human! We're fickle and change our views on many things as we learn more about it. Isn't flexibity a good thing? Nothing good ever comes out with being from one end or another. They totally freak out when accused of flip-flopping...and simultaneously forever ruining the reputation of my favorite footwear!

Alright I'm done! I can't wait for how this all turns out in the next month. I would really like them to physically start punching each other in the debates...that would make things more interesting. But I guess that will never happen. In Sarah Palin's words, "oh darn it!"

Election '08: A View from Across the Pond

First of all, I really wish I could be in the States during this election year. Yeah it sounds kinda exaggerated when people say this is the election of our lifetime, but I'm really hoping it is. I really don't feel like having to go through another 8 years of Bush-like policies and having to put all my hopes and expectations on one guy, like he's god or something. Definitely sucks to be Obama if he becomes President...he's got nowhere to go but down. But in the end, I'm an ocean and thousands of miles away, which might be good considering the economic crisis at the moment. My only complaint is that I have to wait for hours or until I get up the next day before I can see important interviews, debates, speeches, etc. I think we all need to pull a China and just have one time zone...ha!

Today I'm going to talk about Sarah Palin - and how much she makes me want to vomit. I have to admit I'm ridiculously biased against her. The first time she ever came on the spotlight, I immediately thought she was being used by the McCain peeps. It's like a one night stand times 100. I would love to see a woman up there but in the end, it's not about whether the candidate's got a vajayjay or a peepee. Neither is it about that person having a particular shade on their skin, or their age. In the end, it's about their policies.

Sarah Palin has annoyed the crap out of me and we've only met her about a month ago. When she made her first speech, I wanted to gouge my eyes out. I mean half of it was her introducing her family. And she felt the need to use Hillary's glass ceiling line and I just wanted to be like, gurl, you ain't even close to being like Hillary.

Secondly, I thought she was the biggest bitch on her Convention speech. Since when do community organizers not have real responsibility? They're the ones that actually go out there and help those who really need it. Reforms by elected officials may get the spotlight, but community organizers (and there are way more of them than mayors I'm sure) do a lot more changing and make more of a difference in people's lives.

Thirdly, I seriously get nervous every time she speaks. I watched the few interviews she's given and it's like when I watch a horror film. My body starts curling up in a fetus position and I constantly put my hands over my eyes. I just get so scared of what she's going to say, or her making a big mistake. I get the impression that she's been crammed with so many talking points that she gets them all confused and can't express her opinions meaningfully and substantially on interviews. Everything she says sound so empty and just plain retarded. And for god's sake, having a maritime border with Russia does not make you an expert on foreign policy. I would've believed her more if she said Canada instead. At least Canada is literally next door - why does everyone alway ignore Canada??!!!

Uggh! I've got so many things to say (and I will in the next post or two...I don't want to bore you with all of this in one) and so few people to discuss it with. The U.S. elections are covered here (as well as the financial crisis), but obviously not extensively. People talk about it sometimes - and most are pro-Obama - but of course, not as much as I would like to. I'm pretty sure they've got other things to worry about than our elections. So this leaves me to bitch about it in my head, or with my sister on our almost daily Skype sessions, and now, on my blog.

I may be far away but I'm still very interested in this. As sucky as politics can be, it very much affects everyone's lives. The outcome of this election can have a huge impact on the US, the world, and my own decisions. I would really like to go home someday...

The Croqueta Thief

I can't believe I haven't blogged about this, considering it happened a while ago. That's how lazy I've been. Anyway, this has got to be one of the funniest, most interesting things that's ever happened to me in Madrid. A week after I got back, Sara returned to Madrid and we decided to meet for dinner. We didn't really have a place in mind and so finally, we settled for a tiny restaurant in the center where they had outdoor seating. We were placed right on a corner table so there was a lot of pedestrian traffic around us. It wasn't a surprise to see people check out our big fat croquetas (they were giant! I've never seen them this big) and albondigas as they walk pass us.

As we were sitting there enjoying the food and conversation, we noticed a homeless man walk by, eye our food, pass our table, casually walk back to our table, and then nonchalantly grab one of our croquetas!!! We were in so much shock that we just sat there in silence for a few seconds staring at our plate of croquetas (minus one). It was the strangest thing ever. People around us looked horrified. Another pedestrian came to us and asked, "Estais bien?". Si, si, we're okay. We just started cracking up. All eyewitnesses were shocked by the whole thing and even more shocked that we kept laughing about it. I mean, wouldn't you?!?! How often does something like that happen? I couldn't even be angry at him for stealing my food. I'm sure he was just really hungry. If he had asked us properly, we would've given it to him. But in a way, I'm glad he just stole it from us. It amused us greatly and now I can tell people about my encounter with the croqueta thief.

I'm an asshole!

Do you ever have those moments when you think to yourself: Damn, I'm one lucky bitch! I had one of those today. I was bored so I went for a walk this evening, just wandering around in the center, when I decided to treat myself to some ice cream on the way home. I stopped at an ice cream shop I usually don't go to and met a Filipino girl working there. I was ordering my scoop of turron flavored ice cream, when she suddenly asked me, in Tagalog, where I was from. I had planned to eat and walk, but she seemed really nice and seemed eager to talk so I stayed and chatted (I think she got frustrated with my very broken Tagalog because she told me to just speak English).

We were asking each other the usual questions for foreigners: what are you doing here; when did you arrive; how long will you be staying; why did you come; etc. At some point in our convo, she tells me how difficult it is for her to be here. She doesn't like it at all because she misses the Philippines a ton and she would like to go home. She also can't go back and visit a lot because it costs too much - better to send that money home to her family than to spend it on airfare. Then she proceeds to say she has a husband and a 7 year old.

This poor girl! She's here all alone, working in a coffee/ice cream shop (she used to be in marketing in the Philippines) just to make a better life for her family back home. Ahhh so sad! And here I am whining about not being able to go to Oktoberfest, even though I've already been! Or bitching about being bored because I don't have a ton of work. Or getting all upset about feeling lonely because I don't have many friends here. Well, at least I don't have a husband and kids back at home that depend on my paycheck (I got corporate bastards waiting for my check but I don't care as much about them). And at least I can go home at least twice a year to see my family and friends. I felt like such an asshole when I answered the why are you here question with, "I needed to get away and do something different." I mean, really!!! But I wasn't going to lie to her and make up some sad story. That would just be worse.

How lucky am I to be able to come here just because I can! Passport control barely looks at my passport just because it's blue and has an eagle on it. People give me a job just because I speak pretty much native English. I live close to the center just because I can afford it. I'm able to enjoy this wonderful city just because I'm young, unattached and have no real responsibilities.

I swear, every once in a while, someone's gotta slap me around and give me some perspective!!!

Sobreviviré

Who knew Gloria Gaynor of I Will Survive fame is still singing, let alone singing in Spanish??!! I mean I've seen her on those Motown reunion shows or whatever on PBS, but I had no idea she had new stuff. I've seen her a lot lately - and right at this moment - in this music video called Hacer por Hacer, a duet with Miguel Bosé. This guy is huge here!!! Apparently, he's this legendary pop singer and he's existed for decades. I love him just because he always seems so ridiculously fun and he reminds me all the time of my friend, Unai, who loves this guy.

But anyway, back to Gloria Gaynor. WTF! I guess she really did survive...ha!...yeah, I know, lame joke. Here's their music video. You be the judge!

P.S. This video is totally awesome for karaoke/learning Spanish, no?

Fran has self-control??

Now I know why it sucks when you think sensibly. The past week or so, I have been all over the internet looking for airfare for Oktoberfest in Munich this weekend. I wanted to go for many reasons: visit my relatives, hang out some more with Megan and Tess, beer and sausages, AND I just have so much freaking time in my hands. As of now, I'm only teaching 2 classes (8 hours total) from Monday to Wednesday. That's it!!! And of course, when I have the time, I don't have the money.

I was so close to getting a ticket this morning, seven hours before I intended to fly out. The price has been going up and down for the past week - I've checked everyday the past week, every hour the past three days - and I realized it was not gonna get any cheaper than $450. When I saw that price yesterday morning, I decided I would make my final decision and buy the ticket at night after work. To and from class, I made a list of reasons why I should stay and why I should go. There was ONLY ONE good reason on the "stay" column: save money. And yet that ONE had so much weight. In the end, I decided to just go for it. It was worth it considering I'd be there for almost 5 days (compared to paying $250 for a normal weekend), and I would never have this much time again. So I get home and...the prices went up again.

This morning, I decided to check one last time and the prices surprisingly decreased. But for some reason, something inside of me couldn't do it. I kept hearing that practical voice in my head and I really, really wanted it to go away but it wouldn't. It eventually won and I'm stuck in Madrid this weekend.

I am so ridiculously sad. I've been sitting here all day thinking I could be there by now having a nice hot meal with a big chunk of meat, not peanut butter and banana on packaged toasted bread. Then my aunt calls me and tells me her Oktoberfest plans for the weekend and I even got more sad. We talked for almost two hours and I just thought we could be talking to each other face to face right now...I love the long late night conversations I have with my aunt and I miss it.

And there goes. The one time I am practical, it totally sucks. I already hate the fact that I'm so damn indecisive, but it's even worse when the sensible side takes over. I mean, I was clearly stressed out about this when I got a huge ass zit last night. I cannot remember the last time I've gotten one since I moved here.

So two lessons learned: 1) I must have it real good if the only time I stress is when it comes to planning trips - thankgod, it's much appreciated, and 2) I need to just stick to my spontaneous, retarded, no self-control self! Life is just much more fun that way.

Out of Control

Megan, my wonderful friend from high school, came to visit me this weekend. As some of you may know, Megan is one of my craziest friends. Hanging out with her is always a good time. And as I expected, this weekend was "out of control", as Megan likes to say. Here are some highlights:

• Oh, Kapital: As always, bringing my visitors (Megan brought her friend, Tess, along with her) to the 7-story discoteca was a success. Let's just say when we got home, someone wouldn't shut up about how her neck smelled like man.
  

• Atletico Madrid v. Recreativo: The girls really wanted to see a futbol match. Real Madrid didn't play here this weekend so that means we had to see the other, not so famous team, Atletico. It was great because I finally got to see the team play and I finally got to go inside Estadio Vicente Calderon. It was fun. Ok, so I still prefer the Real Madrid matches but this one wasn't so bad. The team won 4-0...woohoo!

• Vuelta de España: Spain's version of Tour de France ended in Madrid on Sunday. We just happen to be walking along the route and decided to hang around and watch the spectacle. It was awesome! I have never seen a cycling tournament before and it was surprisingly exciting. Those cyclists are freaking fast!
  

• Tickling gypsies: As we were walking past the make shift homes of the gypsies living behind my building, Megan started joking around about what if a gypsy suddenly jumped out of the bushes and started tickling Tess to get her money...hahahaha. We found this ridiculously funny and it became a running joke all weekend long...you just had to be there.

• Sweet: Saturday, we went to a discoteca called Sweet. Since we had already gone to Kapital, which has a mix of foreigners and English speaking Spaniards, I wanted to take them to a club with only Spaniards. Of course, talking to men there was a tad bit more difficult for the girls. Finally, Megan made me her translator. A man, who according to Megan was hot but smelled like pickles (she's got some major scent issue), would not leave me alone because he really wanted "hacer amor" with her. I was cracking up. I was trying to get him away but he was so persistent. We discussed it for about ten minutes when I finally told him I was done and he was giving me a headache.
  

• Southside Irish accent: Ok, so Megan is not exactly the best at speaking Spanish. She's never studied it and her Chicago accent is just too hard to get rid of. So listening to her try is hilarious. For example, we were at the park and saw a stray cat. She asked me how to say cat in Spanish. I told her gato. She proceeded to look at the cat and say, hey cato. I just about died laughing. She thought I just added an o to cat! In another instance, a guy held the door for her and she accidentally said agua instead of gracias...hahahaha. God, I love her!

Alright, that's all I am going to disclose. Really, most of what happened just cannot be posted...ha! What happens in Madrid stays in Madrid.

Pictures and videos coming soon.

La Noche en Blanco

Ok, so I know I haven't blogged since I arrived in Madrid and some people (or one...ha!) are starting to wonder if I'm okay. I've just been so lazy. Not that I have much to do - work is a bit slow right now - I'm just super lazy. It probably doesn't help that I'm still a bit jet lag. I spend too much time tossing and turning at night just to find myself not being able to sleep until 3 AM (at the earliest), and then I take a long ass siesta when I have a chance during the day. Siestas are definitely not the best cure to jet lags. I thought I had cured it after sleeping for 12 hours on my first night back. But then I decided to go out until 7 AM the next night, which is about bed time for me in Chicago.

So here I am blogging because once again, I'm not sleepy. Tonight was or is - it's still going on as we speak - La Noche en Blanco. I'm not exactly quite sure when or how this started, but it's basically a night where everything is open super late and art exhibitions, performances, etc. are all free. There's just a ton going on all over the city. We started out the night in the north side where we expected some cool acrobatics. On the guide, they made it sound like people were going to walk/dance on walls like Beijing's Opening Ceremony. That was a total bust and it was nothing spectacular. After we headed west to see an art exhibit of one of Guille's friend. It was quite interesting. I didn't really get it but whatever...there was free alcohol.

Then we went to the most anticipated performance of the night: a tightrope walker over Plaza de Cibeles. By the time we got there, the place was packed. We couldn't even get all the way up the stairs of the Metro exit. But the stair well was enough to see him go over us. It was 30 minutes past the performance time and he still hadn't started. We were afraid we'd get in the middle of a stampede when people start heading back to the Metro. And anyway, it was so windy that we thought he was never gonna be able to start walking. I really didn't want to see anyone fall to their death, so we left.

We ended the night by meeting back up with Guille and his friends at Conde Duque, a neighborhood full of chill bars. I've always wanted to hang out there so I'm really glad I finally did. It was a cool area and I definitely want to go back there.

And there you go. Another long night of crazy Madrileños roaming the entire city. And as I finish this post, I'm finally starting to yawn. Perfect timing! Goodnight y'all...or should I say good morning.

Airport Musings

written on September 4 during a layover:

I have this thing with airports: I get highly amused by anything and everything when I’m in them. My senses somehow are in alert mode. I just love to observe everything around me and to make up stories about people in my head. Here are some random thoughts that have come to mind since I started my journey back to Madrid:

• I heart Atlanta! Ok, so I’ve actually never been outside of its airport but whatev. I love it! Men are hot! When my friend, Greg, used to live in Atlanta, I used to joke – not really – with him about finding me a hot black man. They are everywhere in the airport…just imagine the outside!
• Seeing a bunch of young men and women in desert war uniforms is a hard reality check. It’s so easy to forget that we’re at war when we don’t see dead bodies or hear bombs and gunshots on a daily basis. It was sad seeing them in huge masses as they are all in transit at the ATL airport, especially when 75% of the guys/girls I saw were no more than 25 years old.
• Another reason why I love Atlanta: people are nice! All airport personnel say hello and say a few more words like “how are you”. I have never been greeted by a U.S. passport controller as well as I was greeted in Atlanta.
• A guy in his 20s at the magazine store pointed out, in disbelief, the magazine, Black Hair, to his girlfriend. He comments that he doesn’t know how they could talk about such a subject 12 times a year. Thank god for his girlfriend who was smart enough to remind him that they make magazines about other types of hair also.
• Being on a plane full of Italians is like being on a plane full of Filipinos. It’s loud, people are constantly moving around even when the plane is about to take off, and flight attendants feel the need to constantly remind people of rules. Oh you gotta love the Italians!
• A young Italian man – who just came from Cancun because that’s what his wrist band said – got on the plane wearing a buttoned-down shirt that was unbuttoned almost all the way down to his belly button showing his chest hair. Classic!
• While halls of American airports are lined with one food chain after another, European airports are filled with shops (clothing, shoes, purses, etc.). You know you’re in an Italian airport when you see a Dolce & Gabbana (WTF!)…that and all the freaking beautiful women who are skinny with big boobs (damn it!).
• About six years and ten days ago, I arrived in Europe for the first time right here in Rome. Being here totally brings me back :(. If only I could get out of this ugly airport and see the Colosseum or the Trevi, and eat some pizza and gelato.

Well that’s all for now. I have about another two hours here at Fiumicino airport in Rome. I’m bored, tired, and sleepy. I can’t wait to crash on my tiny little twin bed. I’m gonna walk around see if I could practice the few Italian words I remember. Maybe I can go to Spizzico (the Italian fast food chain), or get a new outfit from D&G…hahahaha. Arrivederci!

T minus 6 hours

It is now 5 AM and I still haven't slept. Yesterday I received an email from a girl who wanted to rent my room for a month. It has been impossible to find someone willing to rent for only one month. So I gave up on this idea a long time ago and didn't really care. It meant not needing to clean my nasty room and pack things up so it's livable for someone else. But then this girl emailed me and she's really interested. So instead of just packing tonight, I had to clean and organize everything (I am a mess!). But it's all good b/c now I will just stay up and easily pass out on the plane. This is my anti-jetlag strategy.

So I'm just sitting here waiting, slowly getting very tired, and thinking about this upcoming trip. I have to be honest and say I have been a bit anxious about this trip. Not only because of the whole visa thing, but just in general. If you had asked me three months ago if I wanted to go home, I would've said yes in a heartbeat. But then things changed. I slowly started meeting new people, making friends, I was hanging out more, and just having a lot of fun! I didn't want to slow my momentum down. It's not that I don't want to see people at home, I'm just going home at a bad time.

I think I also just don't know what to expect when I arrive home. Will I seem different, like bad retarded different? Will I have enough money? Will I have enough time to spend good quality time with everyone? Will everyone/everything at home be weird for me? And the big one, will I have so much fun and realize I need to stay in Chicago and not return to Madrid? I knew I was a bit stressed out about it because for a few days last week, I was having some strange ass vivid bad dreams, a rare occurrence for me. It ranged from not having a valid passport to people being angry at me for not hanging out with them.

I was also sad because I was slowly saying goodbye to people. Most of them I will see again, but you know me and goodbyes. But I was definitely sad to say goodbye to Andrew. He's not coming back to Madrid so I will not see him when I return. Madrid without Andrew will just not be the same. This kid and I have been together pretty much since we set foot in this city. He was my soundboard, my restaurant partner, my co-dancer, my friend. Oh Andrew! How I will miss him...

But on a happier note, now that I'm hours away from home, I'm definitely getting more excited. I CANNOT wait to see everyone. I CANNOT wait to be able to hold my nephew for the first time. I CANNOT wait to hug my nieces. I CANNOT wait to catch up with my older siblings who were not able to visit me. I CANNOT wait to play tour guide and show beautiful Chicago to Juan and Begoña (they are moving to Chicago to teach Spanish). I CANNOT wait to hang out with my friends and enjoy a good 'ol BBQ. I CANNOT wait to see my bright orange room and sleep on my comfy big bed. I CANNOT wait to walk in my house, see my entire family, eat Portillo's (as I've requested, and lately have been pronouncing it /Por-ti-yos/). It's going to be wonderful!

So I guess I'll have to sit here in my very clean room for the next 2 hours until I have to leave for the airport. I guess it's about time I take a shower and get my flight info and stuff...that would probably good.

Well, that's about it from me. I should go move around before I fall asleep in my nicely made up bed. See you all soon!!! Hasta pronto!

I'll have the guillotine, extra blood, no garotte

I was watching a super sad (so sad that I couldn't stop crying) movie the other day about the last anti-Franco man to be executed. His name was Salvador and he was this idealistic kid who just wanted to help Spain and end the dictator's rule. So he got involved in a small rebellion group of young guys. Unfortunately, the police was able to track him down and he fatally shot a cop in the process of his capture. In the end, the court decided to sentence him to death by garrote. It was terrible! For those of you who don't know what a garrote is, it's this iron metal collar they put around the person's neck. Then they turn this thing so the collar gets tighter and tighter. It's an execution device that originated in Spain and was very well used in the Spanish colonies. It's sick! It just made me think I would take the guillotine any day before the garrote!

Speaking of torture, teaching my morning class is one big torture. I have two teenage students in it and I want to punch the 14 year old boy's face every time. He is a terrible, awkward, pubescent brat!!! He doesn't listen, blatantly shows you that he is bored/not interested, and just has no manners. I'm pretty sure he talks about me in Spanish to the other student during class. I may not understand him completely but I've lived here long enough to know when someone is talking about me. The other day was just the tip of the iceberg (is that how the expression goes?). He told me I speak bad English!!! I was like, "WTF???" Just because I can distinguish the words bad and bed doesn't mean I speak bad English. I'm sorry that I don't say the English long a and e the same way as the Spanish e. I'm sorry that I don't say, badth or bedth. I'm sorry that you failed English in school and your rich parents made you take English classes. Uggh!! I was so angry!!! This is coming from a kid who is also in summer school because he failed Castellano. He can't even get his own language down and he has the audacity to tell me I speak badly?! And to think I have two more days with this pain in the ass. I would rather teach my 4 hour guy than sit with this brat for one hour. Once again, another teenager to reinforce my hatred.

On a better note, I almost had a brush with Aladdin...hahahaha...not really. I teach across the Hotel Intercontinental and the other day, I noticed lines of Mercedes Benz parked on the street as I passed it. There were also a ton of cops in the area. I knew it had to be someone important. There are usually important people there, but I've never seen it to this extent. My student told me that apparently some prince from Saudi Arabia was staying there. In the morning, all her colleagues that drive to work and pay a monthly fee to park in the hotel were refused parking. They were told that the entire parking lot was reserved only for the prince and his posse, and the Benzes outside the hotel were part of the Royal Protocol (as it said on the sticker on their windshields). Also in the morning, before the prince arrived, my student had a meeting/conference with Spain's Industrial Minister. She walked into the hotel and noticed she was walking on red carpet...covered in plastic (ha!). Not even the Minister could walk on the red carpet. It was ridiculous! Those Arabian princes are seriously loaded! Where does our gas money go? To men who can easily demand that a hotel be emptied out and have his people only drive Benzes, then leave the working class people parkless and angry.

I wonder what Salvador would do???

Please help

So my good friend, Kevin, is in the Dominican Republic right now as a Peace Corp volunteer (see Kevin's blog under my links). He's been there for almost a year now but hasn't been able to start his project due to a lack of funding. He's been basically getting the run around from various foundations...boo. Thus, Kevin has to raise part of the funding on his own and find family and friends to donate.

Basically the project is to build a better, more efficient water system in a village in the DR. As you all know, clean water is very necessary to have a better, healthy life that's free of diseases. But it's not only to have clean water, but also so that people won't have to walk for miles just to get water. I mean, kids have to haul all that water back and forth when they could be doing something better - study, play, things kids should be doing. I would talk about it more but I think you get the idea. And I'm probably not the best at explaining these things. So again, read his blog to get a clearer picture of the actual project. The great thing about this is that the project is so specific that you will actually see the result; so you get to see exactly where your money goes.

So please help...even the smallest amount will do. Once the project gets underway, Kevin will have updates and pictures on his blog (again see my links) so you can track the progress. If you would like to donate, please click on the link below:

https://www.peacecorps.gov/index.cfm?shell=resources.donors.contribute.projDetail&projdesc=517-263

Muchas gracias por tu ayuda!!!

Shakira's hips??? Yeah, they definitely don't lie

I'm a convert. The Spaniards have officially converted me to a Shakira fan. This will probably come as a shock to most of you, but I seriously like her now. The music festival, Rock in Rio, has made its way to Madrid this year. My friends had been wanting to go and had tried to persuade me to go, but I just couldn't justify paying the price for the ticket. It cost 69 Euros a day and I just didn't think it was worth paying that much for people I didn't really know. I've paid more than that for music festivals, but those festivals were for three days, with a ton of bands, and a ton of musicians I actually like.

The lineup consisted of Orishas, Stereophonics, Amy Winehouse, Jamiroquai, and Shakira. I have no idea who Stereophonics is. I only know one Orisha song from the awesome - yes, awesome - Dirty Dancing Havana Nights movie. I didn't even know Jamiroquai still existed. Amy Winehouse would probably be too drunk/high to perform. And Shakira?? I don't really care much for her. The Spaniards love her and yes I've heard some of her music in discotecas that I actually enjoy. Other than that, I will always associate her with that Forever and Ever song...I think that's what it's called. I hated that song and that music video. Even though I don't know any of her music before that song, I knew she used to be some rock singer in Colombia and I just thought she was just some sell-out with a half top, shaking her ass.

So, I resisted and didn't get a ticket. But by this week, it seemed like everyone I know was going to this thing. I started to change my mind but in true Fran fashion, I didn't exactly decide until the day of. In the end, I didn't want to spend Friday night just sitting alone in the house, stuffing my already fat face (because that's what I do when I'm alone and bored). Plus, when was the last time I went to a concert?? And I haven't been to one show here in Spain.

And so I went and I'm glad I did...for the most part. The concert venue was in some bufu location east of the city. The concert provided free coach buses to transport people from Bernabeu Stadium to Arganda del Rey, the venue. About ten of us met up at 5:30. So we got in the super long line for the bus armed with cervezas and sangrias. By the time we actually got to the concert, it was already around 8. We got in at the perfect time...Orisha just started playing Represent Cuba, the one song I know! I loved it! Then we saw Amy Winehouse, who was as usual drunk. But I thought she was awesome. She was still able to sing pretty well, although she kept chugging - not sipping - wine and readjusting her boobs. It was quite entertaining. And her backup singers were hot!!! I really enjoyed her songs. I just like how her songs are bluesy and jazzy. She even had some reggae in there and at one point one sounded like hawaiian. I wanted to start hula dancing. She would have such a good future if she isn't so messed up. That girl's got talent!

As for Shakira, I judge too quickly. That woman actually has great songs. And that forever and ever song is way better in Spanish! I thoroughly enjoyed her performance. She has this wonderful stage presence and she just gets you so into it. I never thought she was that pretty, but my god she is beautiful and has a rockin' body. At one point I turned to Andrew and said, "That woman could make me a lesbian" and Andrew says, "Me too". HAHAHAHAHA. The guys had an argument whether she was an 8 or 9 or a 10...apparently this rating system by men for women is universal. I personally think she's a 9...no one could ever be a 10! I'm still wondering how she manages to sing while shaking her hips so fast. I of course tried it and it was difficult. I'm definitely taking belly dancing classes.

So that was my first concert experience in Madrid. It was great! I only have two complaints: the sets were way too short (an hour and a half for each band), and coming home was a bitch! Shakira finished at about 2 AM, but the festival wasn't closing until 6 AM. But it was all electronic music after that and there's no way I could listen to that crap for that long. So half of us decided to leave at 3 and pay for a taxi home (Metro doesn't open until 6). However, we had to wait in line for about an hour to get on a bus. By the time we got back to Bernabeu, it was impossible to find a free taxi. We had no idea how to get home! Bernabeu is so far north that there's really no easy way to take a night bus to our homes. So we started walking. Slowly we parted our ways as each person passed their neighborhood. In the end, I was walking alone since I lived farthest south. By the time I was halfway home, the Metro finally opened and I hopped on. I was soo annoyed. My roommates who left after me got home before me! Go figure!!

By the way this is totally off topic, but is anyone watching the Wimbledon match between the Williams sisters. My god, their mom has some huge knockers!!! Also, is that a birth control patch on Serena's back??? It can't be a nicotene patch. You know she don't smoke. If it is a bc patch, then that's just tacky. Way to be safe, but tacky.

I gotta get back to sleep...