Yes, you read right. I went on a date. And to top it all off, it was all in Spanish. I met the guy on Friday, the night of muscle tank chulo (see previous post). Francisco (yeah, no joke!) came over and started talking to me. Now usually, my conversations with non-English speaking Spanish guys last for maybe an hour, maybe less. I just run out of things to say or I get tired of thinking in Spanish. For some reason we ended up talking all night. He was very easy to talk...we even joked around, which I always find so hard to do in Spanish (I often can't pick out their funny comments in a conversation, or the Spaniards just don't get my sarcasm). At the end of the night he asked for my digits - he said he wanted to take me to a musical by Nacho Cano the next day. I, of course, laughed when he said it and he got really confused (again, see previous post).
The next day he called me. We met later in the afternoon in Plaza Callao for a pre-show drink. Fortunately, I was able to pick him out in the crowd (I have terrible memory and couldn't quite remember his face - 12 hours later - especially since it was really dark in the bar). And fortunately, he was cuter than I remember (he had some scruff going, which I like); God, how horrid if he ended up ugly!
Anyway, Francisco (pronounced Fran-THis-co) and I went to "Un Musical de Nacho Cano" (Oh Nacho Cano...had to put his own name in the title of his musical and not give it a proper title). The show was quite interesting. I didn't understand everything because they were speaking really fast, but I think the story goes like this:
A blonde baby of dark haired parents is born. As he grows up, it is discovered he is autistic and can't speak. However, he can sing, without words, when he is around fish. His parents and their relatives exploit him and they make lots of money out of the "singing boy". The boy grows up and gets sicker. Before he dies, his family becomes heartbroken and realizes how terrible they've been for taking advantage of a sick boy and gives up their wealth. Then all of a sudden, the sick boy talks but only to his cousin who he is in love with. He tells her his real parents are these people who live under the sea and his destiny is in the sea with them. He dies but leaves "the key to save the world" in his diary/song by providing the winning results to La Quiniela, the weekly bets on football matches (to make his family rich again), and answers to all sorts of other global problems (i.e. the melting of glaciers). Then they all live happily ever after in song and dance. The end.
Oh man, it was so weird. Nonetheless, I greatly enjoyed it - I laughed, I cried, the songs were pretty good and the actors' voices were amazing. And Nacho Cano made an appearance of course and had the theater on their feet as he sang one of his famous songs with his cast. Oh Nacho Cano.
The best part of the show was Francisco got us boxed seats. I felt very Julia Roberts-esque from Pretty woman...minus the red gown, pearl earrings, and the binoculars (ha!). After the almost 3 hour show, we got some dinner and hung out some more. This afternoon, we did some more eating and went bar/tapas hopping. It was seriously the longest date I've ever had, but it was also very fun. I totally ran out of Spanish words; thankgod, he was talkative and was able to deal with my slow broken Spanish. He was very nice...quite the gentleman. He's into travelling, music (especially live music), food, and he's about to open his own winebar.
Sounds perfect, right? Oh but life never is. He's from Barcelona and went back tonight. But whatev. It is what it is. I'm just proud of myself for being able to keep up with Spanish for that long! I don't think I've ever gone that long without English or Cebuano. Oh there's hope for me yet...
Sunday, January 11, 2009
Quien es Nacho Cano?
Tess, Dana, Tess' friend who was visiting, and I were hanging out at this bar called Junco Friday night. It's this cool jazz/funk club, which I fell in love with Friday (I'm totally going there all the time especially because I want the bouncer, Luis from Mozambique, to be my friend). All of a sudden, this blond haired, 5'4" guy with a muscle tanktop (on a snowy day! - yes it freaking snowed in Madrid) walks in and pass us. We all start laughing, of course. This guy looked ridiculous!
Fast forward one hour. Dana goes to the bar to get another drink and all of a sudden some old guy asks her if she's met his friend. He points to the muscle tank guy and says, "My friend, Nacho Cano." Dana tells him no and that she has no idea who he is. Old guy/Robert says that he's a super famous singer in Spain. Dana finds this so amusing that she just has to share it with us.
She walks back over to where Tess and I are hanging out, with Robert right behind her. She comes over with a huge grin on her face and says, "Hey you guys, this is Robert. He's friends with muscle tank guy." Pause. "He's apparently famous!" We all start laughing...followed with "What??!!, or "No Way!!" This guy was such a chulo (a cocky person). Or as Chicagoans would say, he was a big chach.
The rest of the night, when someone mentioned Nacho Cano, the three of us would just kinda laugh and no one seemed to understand why it was so funny. At one point, I saw a bunch of pretty girls hanging out all over him. I wanted to vomit. Check out Nacho below....picture him with much shorter sleeves and shorter spiked up hair.
Fast forward one hour. Dana goes to the bar to get another drink and all of a sudden some old guy asks her if she's met his friend. He points to the muscle tank guy and says, "My friend, Nacho Cano." Dana tells him no and that she has no idea who he is. Old guy/Robert says that he's a super famous singer in Spain. Dana finds this so amusing that she just has to share it with us.
She walks back over to where Tess and I are hanging out, with Robert right behind her. She comes over with a huge grin on her face and says, "Hey you guys, this is Robert. He's friends with muscle tank guy." Pause. "He's apparently famous!" We all start laughing...followed with "What??!!, or "No Way!!" This guy was such a chulo (a cocky person). Or as Chicagoans would say, he was a big chach.
The rest of the night, when someone mentioned Nacho Cano, the three of us would just kinda laugh and no one seemed to understand why it was so funny. At one point, I saw a bunch of pretty girls hanging out all over him. I wanted to vomit. Check out Nacho below....picture him with much shorter sleeves and shorter spiked up hair.
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
New Year, New Prices???
So I arrived in Madrid yesterday morning, as always, a bit out of it/aphalled due to a lack of sleep and higher prices. At the airport, I needed to buy a new abono (a monthly Metro pass) before getting on the train. During my xmas vacation, I had kept the exact amount in Euros to pay for this (I wasn't planning on going anywhere between the airport and my house). I busted out my 50.80 Euros only to find out that the price is now 53.70 Euros. Joder! So I was forced to buy an individual ticket, which I really hate to do knowing that I use a monthly pass.
Later on the day, after I got some much needed sleep, I went to the supermarket. SIDENOTE: my sleep is all effed up. I totally broke my anti-jetlag rule and slept after I arrived. But I figured since I got in at 8, it's just like I was at the bar all night and just now going to bed. Bad idea. It's so not the same. I feel so disoriented still. Anyway, back to the real topic of this post...
I woke up around 6 in the afternoon and I totally didn't feel like leaving my house. But I had to go to the supermarket or else I would have nothing to eat at all for dinner and the next day. Fortunately Sara's boyfriend, Miguel, who had spent xmas with her family in Minnesota, just happened to be on my flight. He reminded me that the 6th was a holiday (Reyes Magos) and everything would be closed. Mierda! So I went to the super crowded supermarket. All prices had gone up! Tomato sauce had gone from 48 cents to 56 cents. The package of croissants had gone up at least 10 cents. And my fave 8-pack yogurt had increased by 23 cents. It's total crap. Fucking "la crisis"!!! And to top it all off, the lines were so freaking long. Everyone was shopping for their Reyes Magos meals and their Roscon de los Reyes (some cake thing with a prize inside traditionally eaten on the 6th). Ugh! If only I would get higher wages too!
Feliz Reyes Magos!!!
Later on the day, after I got some much needed sleep, I went to the supermarket. SIDENOTE: my sleep is all effed up. I totally broke my anti-jetlag rule and slept after I arrived. But I figured since I got in at 8, it's just like I was at the bar all night and just now going to bed. Bad idea. It's so not the same. I feel so disoriented still. Anyway, back to the real topic of this post...
I woke up around 6 in the afternoon and I totally didn't feel like leaving my house. But I had to go to the supermarket or else I would have nothing to eat at all for dinner and the next day. Fortunately Sara's boyfriend, Miguel, who had spent xmas with her family in Minnesota, just happened to be on my flight. He reminded me that the 6th was a holiday (Reyes Magos) and everything would be closed. Mierda! So I went to the super crowded supermarket. All prices had gone up! Tomato sauce had gone from 48 cents to 56 cents. The package of croissants had gone up at least 10 cents. And my fave 8-pack yogurt had increased by 23 cents. It's total crap. Fucking "la crisis"!!! And to top it all off, the lines were so freaking long. Everyone was shopping for their Reyes Magos meals and their Roscon de los Reyes (some cake thing with a prize inside traditionally eaten on the 6th). Ugh! If only I would get higher wages too!
Feliz Reyes Magos!!!
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