Valencia

The next weekend my travel partner, Katelyn, and I went to Valencia. Valencia is located on the Eastern coast of Spain. This was my first trip within Spain but outside of Andalucia.

It is a beautiful city with an interesting past, but most importantly it is a city charging into the future. It has innumerable cool bars and cafes, it has the architecturally stunning building of Arts and Sciences and best of all is home to the paella dish.

The Arts and Sciences building is like something right out of Minority Report. Valencia is the only city to have the vision of creating this Arts and Sciences mecca with its spectacular futuristic layouts, concepts and contents. On the inside the buildings resemble OMSI, the Portland Children’s Museum, Montaray Bay Aquarium and Florida’s Seaworld all in three buildings next to each other. These concepts are more recent in Spain and people come from all over for their family vacations to visit the new center.

The first thing we did when we arrived in Valencia was take a bus tour of the city. I think when traveling, if there is time, taking a bus tour of the city is always a good idea. You get a good feel for the layout of the city as well as an opportunity to see all the main sights and then you can go back and fully tour the one’s that interest you the most.

Katelyn and I spent a day in a half touring the most interesting places and then we spent a day on the beach. This was the first time ever dipping my toes in the Mediterranean Sea!
What we found on the nearly deserted beach was a few naked Spanish women and nearly naked us. As the day grew warmer more tourists dotted the beach, most of them topless regardless of age or shape. So this is what the Mediterranean brings, nudity. Small price to pay to view the expanse of tropical water as far as the eye can see?

The only thing I really knew about Valencia going into this trip was it is home of the Spanish rice dish, Paella. Valencia is the place where paella first simmered over a wood fire. Let me tell you, I found it to be delicious. Paella consists saffron flavored rice with chicken, pork, chorizo, seafood or vegetables. When you find a scrumptious dish you can bet its perfectly seasoned and served on a sizzling plate topped with toasted garlic and savory gravy. In fact it was so appetizing and mouthwatering we found ourselves going back again the next night. They serve the paella in one huge pan based on the amount of people it is serving.

(Small sidenote: When I met up with Shannon in Barcelona I wanted to make sure she tried some of my favorite Spanish dishes. So one of the nights we went out for Paella. Shannon ate so much paella she was sick for the rest of the night and had to sit out all of the dancing at the discoteca).
P.S. Thanks to Guadalupe's husband I have learned how to prepare Paella and I will be making it upon request after my return home.

My Mullet

Recently I have been getting many questions as to why the sudden change in hairstyle. I can understand why people would be curious as to why I went from long curly locks to short straight ones. Well it has taken me quite some time to come to terms with my new hairstyle and I am still not sure how I feel about it. Some friends have already read this note and I recieved good feedback from it so I decided to share it with anyone who keeps up with my blog.

So I originally wrote this note while sitting in one of my sisters lectures at UCD, some sports management class, surrounded by fellow red heads and beautiful accents... I was trying to find some humor in my current situation/ newest bout of bad luck.

Now I would like to share this story with you... I like to call it, My Mullet.
I went in for a haircut about a month in a half ago. All I wanted was a trim. Basically she did a horrible job and the layers were all f***ed up but then I broke my foot and wasn't capable of getting it fixed.

Then, finally able to walk on my own again, I venture back to the salon. Let me remind you I live in a small town and my choices are limited... Having said that I still don't know why I take my business back to the same place.

Anyways, I told her in the best spanish i'm capable of, that I wanted the layers fixed and one part to be blended into the rest of my hair better. I also told her I didn't want it any shorter. I'm not really sure what happened next, its all a blur, but I left the salon with a mullet. So i'm thinking "what does this say about my Spanish skills?"

To give you a visual... I look like a dyke who lives in a trailer park with her girlfriend.
Pre, My Mullet phase, When I thought of the mullet what came to mind was an American icon. The Mullet is just about as American as pick-ups with rifle racks, tractor pulls, Wal-Mart, wet T-shirt contests, slapping your girl upside the head with a frying pan, oh and living in the woods.

For awhile I was horribly unhappy with how it looked, but luckily enough the rat tail in the back was long enough to pull up into a bun. When i took my hair down to show Shannon while I was in Ireland she began rolling on the ground in laughter saying "It's SO much worse then I imagined..." Oh great, Thanks Shannon!

Needless to say there were tears shed and some epic "80s rock" photos taken.
I kept thinking it was too bad I didn't have an AC/DC or Bob Seger concert to go to because I would definitely have been the "belle of the ball." I did consider taking some friends' advice and "rocking" the mullet or at least letting it loose and taking it for a test drive. I do have to admit that the business in the front, party in the back idea is appealing. Anyways here's a taste: (thanks to Linda for Photoshop help! and yes thats my real hair.)


So now I have it cut extremely short because I told the hairdresser in Ireland to do whatever it took to get rid of the mullet.... Good thing hair grows, right?

Field Trip

Mid-week I was asked to come along as a chaperon on the field trip to visit the Roman town of Italica and then to visit a couple landmarks in Sevilla. Both 3rd grade classes and both 4th grade classes went on the trip.

I was very excited to be asked to chaperon because they were going to a few places I had not yet seen and secretly those are some of my favorite classes!

It was a good experience walking around with the Spanish teachers because they were eager to introduce me to the new places and tell me about all of them. The students were thrilled to have me along and I always had children hanging on me and wanting to be my "walking buddy".

First we went to Italica, which is a really small town full of Roman ruins.

Then we went into Sevilla where we walked up the Giralda Tower which I had done during my first 2 weeks when I stayed in Sevilla. We toured the cathedral, which is the 3rd largest cathedral in Europe. Christopher Columbus’ tomb is inside among many famous pieces of artwork by Murillo and Picasso.

We went to Plaza de Espana ate lunch and walked around taking pictures.
Then we walked through the park where a freak rainstorm sprung upon us and we all rushed into a nearby gazebo. It was kind of like that scene in the Sound of Music when Liesl Von Trapp and the Soldier sing "Sixteen going on Seventeen".

Except in this instance there were 60+ people packed into the gazebo, not 2 romantics. Everyone, teachers and students, began clapping, which was followed by the singing of a traditional Andalucian song. They would take turns dancing Sevilliano (typical dance in this region) in the middle.

Its in these moments that I feel so absolutely content living here. What could have been a miserable 30 minutes where we are all wet, tired, and trapped in a small space together, turned into the best part of the trip. I clapped along with everybody and was even dragged into the middle for a few dance steps while everyone chanted Olé !

Ireland

After five weeks of recuperating from my broken foot, I thought the cast would come off and I would hit the ground running... Well I wasn’t able to run, not in the literal sense at least. I actually couldn’t even walk and I needed the crutches still. But ever since I was given the go ahead by both my doctor and Guadalupe I have been go-go-go and trying to make up for lost time. (Me being escorted by wheelchair through the airport).

The first thing I did was hop a plane to Ireland for some sister time. I was fortunate enough to visit Ireland twice; first for St. Patrick’s Day + weekend and then again for my Spring Break. In total I spent about 12 days with Shannon in Ireland. We stayed together in her dormroom/apartment at the University College of Dublin.

She has quite the set up there and I met some of her friends. I also have to give credit to Shannon because not only was she a great hostess and made me some of my favorite meals from home that I haven’t had since August, but she was also a really good tour guide.

I have always wanted to visit Ireland and I think once you see my photos you will see why. The city is classic, and the countryside was exactly how I pictured it; lush and green. I immediately fell in love with the accent and felt like my pale-skin, red-headed self fit right in. I had never seen so many redheads before in my life.

St. Patrick’s Day consisted of a party in the streets that in comparable to Love Parade in San Francisco. We danced, drank and partied with the Irish until our little hearts content.

For a couple of the days in Ireland I was still on crutches, so we kept the walking to a minimum. Attempting to tour the city on crutches was a huge pain in the ass and my hands were blistered. But it all became worth it when we got to skip 2 hours worth of lines at the Guiness Factory and allowed inside immediately.

Other then the Guiness Factory, our Dublin tour included St. Patrick’s Cathedral, Trinity College to see the book of Kells, Live music and entertainment on Grafton Street, Temple Bar, relaxing in a coffee shop to escape the rain, Pub hopping with more live music (which was my favorite part) and most importantly... the best 7 euros Shannon ever spent in The National Leprechuan museum. (Picture of St. Patricks Cathedral).

The Leprechuan Museum was quite hilarious and I don’t think I’ve ever seen Shannon so excited. With Shannon’s experience, knowledge, and personal connection to the Leprechuan world she knew more information then our guide and would enthusiastically call out the answers to his questions. (Shannon = Leprechaun).

Personally, I think she would have given a better tour. In the museum our journey began with a look at representations of the leprechaun through the ages. We explored the relationship between landscape, folklore, story-telling and magic. We were told to expect the unexpected as we moved through the playful and fascinating world of the leprechaun. Here are pictures from Shannon’s journey: (Shannon making herself at home).

(Making her way through the rainbow)


(Trying to get to the pot of gold)

(Sad because she didn't get the pot of gold...so we got treats instead!)

Shannon and I took 2 day tours together. The first was to Dublin Bay and Malahide Castle. Then the second was a day trip to the Cliffs of Moor and made stops along the way to see castles, cemetery's, and the city of Galway. The trip to the Cliffs of Moor belongs on my top 10 list for this year. Much of the day we spent driving through the beautiful countryside, listening to Irish music, and then enjoying the spectacular view of the cliffs.
(Cliffs of Moor)

For part of my time in Dublin my friend Katelyn joined Shannon and I for some touring and then I was also able to meet up with a friend from home, Morgan, on St. Patrick’s Day. Overall, I felt like the trip was too short and Ireland is definitely a place I want to return to someday. It was also an incredible feeling to finally see my sister after so long and it still hasn’t hit me that we were both in Europe, in Ireland, TOGETHER!

Broken

As I’m sure many of you have heard by now, I have broken my left foot. The story behind the whole thing is pretty anti-climatic and uneventful because I wasn’t falling out of a bunk bed or hopping around trying to put pants on. I also wasn’t drinking, camping, and racing down to the Columbia River to go skinny dipping... With that said, I had motivated myself to sign up for another half marathon and work myself back into shape with spring and summer fast approaching. Something about the idea of running a half marathon on the beach in the South of Spain seemed very appealing. Unfortunately maybe I was over zealous and my foot couldn't handle the pressure or maybe it was those darn authentic Spanish cobble stone streets that are in my town. Either way, I’m done running for a while.
I don’t remember a specific step I took that was wrong and I didn’t roll my ankle, but 6 miles into a run I all of a sudden had a pain so badly in my foot that I literally couldn’t take another step. I hobbled home and did the usual ice and elevation ritual I have done so many times before with sprained ankles.
I went to work the next day and barely made it through the day because every step I was taking sent shooting pains throughout my foot and up to my calf. I knew something was wrong with my foot and it was unnerving not knowing exactly what happened. After limping around for 2 days and realizing that Ice and Elevation wasn’t going to cut it I went to the doctor. At this point my foot was pretty swollen and my toes looked like sausages. The doctor felt around my foot and focused on the areas I showed her were the most painful. She concluded that she though it was bruised and with some rest and relaxation it should heal right up.
After three days of no walking, the R&R just wasn’t cutting it. I was in even more pain if that was possible. I was also missing out on teaching and giving my private tutoring lessons because I needed to stay off the foot. I decided to go back to the doctor and this time Guadalupe came with me so make sure the doctor and I were understanding each other. This doctor felt around my foot and concluded that I had arthritis.... She prescribed a creme? I’m thinking “What the hell? This is not arthritis.”
The next day after my arthritis creme gives me absolutely no relief I call Guadalupe and tell her I want an x-ray. During all of these doctor visits I am trying to figure out my insurance that I have here. I knew I paid for it, I just didn’t know how it worked because Spain has universal healthcare, but I was never given an insurance card.
So we go back to the doctor for the third time. I finally get my x-ray and sure enough my foot is broken. Good lord that took forever! Now, Guadalupe drove me into the city because there is no hospital in my small town. I get another x-ray because obviously at this point one is not enough. They set my foot and put a cast on it all the way up to my knee...now this seems a little excessive. I find out I have broken my Fifth Metatarsal. This is the long bone on the outside of the foot that connects to the little toe. Such a small bone but apparently really important. I have a Jones Fracture, which after doing some research this is what I have learned: The Jones Fracture occurs in a small area of the bone that receives less blood and is therefore more difficult to heal. They are caused by overuse, repetitive stress, or trauma and are less common and difficult to treat. Oh Great! Not only did I break a bone but I broke a difficult one to get better.

The non-surgical treatment is Immobilization, where the foot is kept in a cast and absolutely no pressure or support is put on the foot or the cast. The doctor really stressed the importance of this matter to Guadalupe and myself. I went home and began my first week of immobilization. To give you an idea of how immobile I am suppose to be I get an injection in my stomach everyday for my circulation. I guess it thins my blood and prevents blood clotting.
As soon as I return home from the hospital I am still in a lot of pain. Now i’ve never been in a cast before so I didn’t know if this was normal or not. I asked some friends online and they told me that I should not be in so much pain. After 2 days of sleepless nights I finally decided I can’t take it anymore. Guadalupe takes me back to the hospital. Turns out the cast wasn’t put on properly so they took that one off and put a new one on that feels much better. After all this drama and the stress of making sure my foot heals properly, Guadalupe insists that I come and stay with her and her family during my recovery.
So now I am staying with Guadalupe and her family has been so good to me. I am propped up on their couch and served delicious spanish meals that would otherwise be PB&J or soup if I was staying in my own apartment.
Now on week two of immobilization I am getting better at maneuvering around on the crutches (from the bathroom to the couch) and I have going back to work next week to look forward to. I get the cast off in another week and a half and from there the doctors will decide how the healing is going and if I will need another cast of if I can begin rehabilitating my foot.
Trying to look at this positively I am learning a lot of new and different Spanish vocabulary that I otherwise would not have needed to learn. I have some free time on my hands to catch up on updates and talk to people online. I’ve also now experienced talking to doctors and needing medical assistance in both Costa Rica and Spain (I doubt many people can say that..). I have also been getting adorable “Get Well Soon” cards from my students at school. The English is all wrong and now I have a new lesson to think about on how to correct their phrases, but its the thought that counts!

Carnival

Carnival in Spain is highly talked about and one of the first recommendations I got from people in my community. Everyone here says you must experience Carnival in Spain and if you can, go to Cadiz. Well, fortunately for me I am living only 2 hours from Cadiz and if you remember it is the first place I visited after arriving in Spain. For the weekend I grabbed my friends, left my valuables behind, and headed to Cadiz for what quite possibly may have been the most rowdy experience of my life. Now that is saying a lot, because I did spend four years in San Francisco attending some of the most entertaining Love, Peace, and Gay Pride Parades.

Carnival in Cadiz is said to be the third largest Carnival celebration in the world (after Rio de Janeiro and Trinidad). Both European jet-setters and locals know and crave the intense energy that invades the city during the ten days leading up to Shrove Tuesday. It seems that everyone within a thousand-mile radius shows up to partake in the fun.

Many visitors like my friends and I, choose to sleep on park benches or stay up all night instead of booking hotel rooms.

From experiencing Cadiz before, it is a quiet and serene city on the Andalusian coast, except when it plays host to Spain's ultimate party. The fun began in the 17th century when the city of Cadiz tried to keep up with the decadent carnival celebrations in Venice and Genoa. Carnival was forbidden when Franco was in power and now it is back, stronger and bigger then ever.

As it often happens in Spain, preparations for Carnival seem a bit last-minute and haphazard, but everything comes together beautifully in the end. Garlands are hung across the tiny, twisting alleys, and street vendors set up their displays of toys and fruit just an hour or two before the party begins. Stages are set up in every plaza for musical acts, comedians and children's performances. And there are also rock concerts featuring some of Spain's most popular groups in the Plaza de Catedral.

Carnival may be the ultimate party all night but for those seeking more conventional pleasure, and for the families, the Carnival roster includes numerous parades, dancing children, exuberant costumes and beauty pageants during the day.

I had an amazing time dressing up with my friends, we flashed backed to 80’s Prom and found fabulous dresses. It was also a blast to see all the other creative and unique costumes that the Spanish come up with. I think a good comparison of the amount of people and the costumes is Halloween in the Castro District of San Francisco. The difference is there is a lot more entertainment and the people don’t get as drunk and out of control as they do on Halloween.

Amsterdam

The Sin City capital of the world

Flying into Amsterdam and looking out the airplane window I thought the neighborhoods from the air differed quite a bit from U.S. They are perfectly spaced out and even. But I still couldn’t quite put together what was SO different. Then I realized that everything was on water! You could see the strips of water running through like ribbons. I had forgotten that Amsterdam is below sea level.

Amsterdam is set up as canals, The houses line the streets and the street drops off into the canals, then it is repeated on the other side. These canals are situated around the entire city.
In my opinion Amsterdam in the winter time is a very dreary and colorless city. I saw many pictures on postcards however of Amsterdam in the spring and summer and everything was covered in flowers, especially tulips. I got to see and experience many of the tourist attractions that the city had to offer but i think in order to really see the beauty of the city I need to come back during the summer.

While in Amsterdam my friends and I took a canal boat tour through the entire city. It was also the mode of transportation we used to get to the different attractions. The way the houses are built right next to each other and on top of each other reminded me of San Francisco but the style and details were very unique.

From the canal boat tour we visited Anne Frank’s house. This experience was a little surreal. It was incredibly interesting to visit and walk through the annex in which her and her family lived in hiding for 2 years. Each room was very informative and displayed excerpts from her diary putting the situations and experiences into her own words. There were also video interviews being showed of childhood friends of Anne’s and one of the women that helped keep the family in hiding. Compared to the other activities in Amsterdam visiting the house was very sobering.

The next day we continued our canal boat transportation and visited the Van Gogh museum. This was by far my favorite part of the trip. Being able to see some of his most magnificent work up close was very inspiring. My favorite was the famous Sunflower painting. The Starry Night painting unfortunately was not on display in this museum.

We visited a flower market which are scarce in the winter but abundant in the spring and summer. I imagine the markets to be absolutely incredible when all the flowers are in full bloom, especially the tulips.

In the evening we went to the Red Light District. The Amsterdam Red Light District covers a large area of the oldest part of the city. The buildings are tall, thin and crowd together, overlooking the tree lined canals. The Amsterdam Red Light District is a beautiful area and the later it gets, the busier it gets. And the darker it gets, the more obvious the glow of the fluorescent red lights above the many windows in the area becomes. Dating back to the 14th Century when sailors arrived in need of some female company, the district is full of sex shops, brothels, gay bars, cinemas, hotels and different kinds of museums. While my friends and I were walking through the district and witnessing men enter rooms with women, I couldn’t believe I was in this infamous part of the city.

A bouncer to the bar Bananenbar let me take a peak into this place because I was standing there taking a picture of the sign. At first I was like “Why are you talking to me?” But then I realized he was just being friendly and was harmless. I peaked through the curtain covering the door and this is what I saw: Scarcely dressed girls acting as barmaids and sitting on a specially designed bar where they perform erotic tricks with .... bananas.

The girls pour the drinks and turn a variety of sexy tricks on request. The bouncer told me that visitors can tell what their special wishes are... The entrance is 40 euros for an hour and includes all your drinks, hence why I was only taking a peak through the door. After I felt that I had seen enough I thanked the bouncer for his ‘hospitality’ and then asked if there were any restaurants nearby that he recommended for dinner. My friends and I ended up at a quaint Thai restaurant under his advice.

I was told that although there is a lot of adult entertainment, it is much more then just a tourist attraction. This district of 300-year-old gabled buildings and expensive real estate houses doctors, lawyers and plenty of families. It is a tolerant community where freedom is highly valued.

Speaking of freedom... Not only is prostitution legal in Amsterdam but so is the buying, selling, and smoking of weed. Just walking down the streets of Amsterdam I could constantly smell marijuana. I was a little amazed I didn’t think it would be quite so public. I was talking to my friend Katelyn, probably rather loudly because I have a hard time whispering, and I was expressing how potent the smell was. A random Hollander on the street must have heard me because he grabbed my shoulder and got really close to my face. He said “Yes, it’s the smell of freedom!” Well I figured I’m only in Amsterdam once in my life why not indulge a little... All I have to say is if anyone visits Amsterdam, I recommend the Space cake.
This concludes my Amsterdam visit.