An international dinner party....

I had my first dinner party last night with 4 women I met in my Spanish class. We had 3 generations sitting around the table from 3 different countries. It was a pretty amazing experience. Attending were: Lucy, 22 years old from Ireland. She is in Girona teaching English and has been here since last fall. Anna who is also 22 years old, is and o'pair living just outside Girona I am not sure how long she has been here. Elizabeth, 72 from Chicago, Illinois. Her daughter lives here and so Elizabeth moved here as well. She has been here since last fall as well. The menu was fresh salmon, cous cous, and fresh sauteed veges... for dessert we sat around the table and devoured a pint of Haagen Daaz.

We spoke mostly in English with a few Spanish words thrown in for good measure. It was really neat to hear about everyones experiences in life. We talked about the time the 3 have spent living in other countries; Lucy has lived in South Africa, Anna spent a year in Australia, and Elizabeth told a great story about being an o'pair in Jamaica. We also talked about our Spanish class, traveling around in Spain and lots of other stuff. I realized how much I miss my friends and family and how grateful I am to have met some people here. It has been a while since I have entertained and I forgot how much I love it. It was a wonderful night.
Thanks Ladies for helping me make yet anothe great memory in Girona!!!

Are you a Traveler or Vacationer?

Over a glass of wine last night my friend Elizabeth and I had a discussion about this topic. She told me she thought there were 2 types of people in the world.... vacationers and travelers. She said travelers were people that go places to see the people and the culture, they study guide books, and immerse themselves in the experience. Vacationers go somewhere to relax to get away from their life.
Now I would have to say I have been a vacationer most of my life. Most of my vacations have been based around relaxation, not getting into the culture, people, or the experience of the country or place. I think that is now changing after living in Europe for a little while. I am now more likely to pick up a guide book or study a destination prior to going. It is an interesting topic to discuss.... so what are you? Traveler? Vacationer? Both? Would love to hear what you all think on the topic.....

Archaeological Garbage

Can you find me in this picture? I am that small dot on the far left, in the corner ...... yeah, look a little harder ... yeah over there, left side.


What? You can't find me? Really?


Look again ...


Still can't find me? Are you blind? Nah, you're not ..... cause I am not there.

While in Athens this week I tried desperately to see the Acropolis. The first time I went I got a little lost and ended up being about 3 blocks away from it and not knowing it. So I tried a second time. That didn't go so well either. On the way home from teaching my wallet got stolen on the subway and instead of going up to the Acropolis I spent a few hours canceling my credit cards. (do you think someone was trying to tell me to clean out my wallet?:) Well, I didn't let that get me down and planned for one more shot yesterday.

I convinced my colleague Oliver to come with me even though he had seen the monument several times. I was happy he agreed to come as I was still a little gun-shy from my last wonderful experience on the subway. So the rush was on .... we got out of class, got a taxi, changed, got on the subway, and practically ran to the front gate of monument ....... it's 6:40 by now and just as we come up to the gate we see the sign. CLOSED! It closed at 6:00. I was crushed.




After I stomped around like a 2 year old for a few minutes .... I made the best of it. Oliver took a shot of me in front of the gate to the Acropolis to show just how close I was and although these pictures are not closeups, I think they are pretty great, even from behind the fence. And look there, I am even smiling.....










Since we got denied seeing the Acropolis and such... we walked around the big hill that it sits on. Almost everywhere on the hill there are fragments of old buildings, statues, columns and more. I started clicking pictures of all this stuff and Oliver just kinda laughed at me. He asked why I was taking pictures of all the Archaeological Garbage. Garbage? What? This was great stuff! I have to admit I was as happy as a clam. I didn't really know the difference and plus I was close enough to be able to touch it. Oooh, really old stuff, and I can touch it! COOOL!
Take a peek.....




I have to admit it did kinda seem like this stuff was discarded, just littered on the hill. It was weird. I kept thinking... shouldn't this stuff be in a museum? Could I take it home with me? What is stopping someone from selling this on Ebay? Maybe it is just laying around cause they have so much of it.... who knows but I'm telling ya... the next time you are in Athens do 2 things.... find out what time the Acropolis closes and get there before that time and check out the garbage.... it's definitely worth your time!

It's Greek to me!

I went out on a hike yesterday in Girona with a friend and we were talking about Greece. She told me she had visited once here for about 6 weeks when she was about 18 (which was only like 6 years ago for her...) anyway she said she didn't learn a bit of Greek cause she spent the 6 weeks trying to figure out the letters. I have to admit I was a little skeptic, really how hard could it be? She was right.... It really doesn't make any sense. I did some research to find out who was the first person to say "It's Greek to Me!" .....turns out it is derived from a Medieval Latin proverb "Graecum est; non potest legi" (It is Greek; it cannot be read). Anyway, they were right. Greek letters don't really seem to have a rhyme or reason.

I got to Athens late this afternoon and went exploring to find the Acropolis. I found a few other places and was within spitting distance to the monument but missed it altogether. I was on a time clock so I busted back to the hotel to meet my colleague and will have to try later this week to get there. ARGH! Anyway, I found a ton of cool things along the way .... lots of old stuff! Stay tuned for more news from Greece!

Nothing is ever what it seems.....

My Spanish Teacher Elena is wonderful, I really enjoy her and when I first started going to school the one thing I told Jonathan after my first couple of classes was that I wanted to buy Elena a new pair of glasses. Why? well it seemed like she was always getting really close to words on a page or on the computer screen, like she needed bi-focals or something like that... and I thought that maybe because she was a teacher maybe she couldn't afford new glasses.

Today during an exercise we did in class, which was to have the class interview Elena, I learned that she has some type of "eye sickness". That is how Elena put it. That she will loose her sight at some point in the near future. I am sure there is something more descriptive she would have told us but with a classroom only speaking at level one in Spanish I think she was telling us what we could understand. I was devastated. It really hit me hard. You could tell she is devastated about it too. It was sad, enlightening and frustrating all at the same time. It explained her squinting and I felt ashamed that I thought she couldn't afford new glasses. I also felt confined that I wasn't able to offer any empathy about the situation due to my lack of Spanish skills. All I could do was listen.

Now that I think about it, maybe only being able to listen was a blessing, it may have pained her more to talk about it if we had been able to express our surprise and sadness. What gets me is how I fall into this trap regularly, I swear this is like the easiest "life rule" to remember..... and yet every time I think I understand a situation something shows up to tell me something different. It is humbling and a wonderful reminder that the stories we make up in our heads about the world around us are just that.... stories.

Temps de Flors

Welcome to one of the most beautiful weeks in Girona: The Temps de Flors
This is when artists decorate the city in flowers as a competition. Check out the website here: The Temps de Flors
I spent part of my Saturday wandering around and re-discovering Girona in all its' glory. I was a tourist again and it was wonderful! Guiding myself around by a map, clicking pictures and seeing the city in a whole different light. I had to stop myself a few times and just soak it all in because I found myself so focused on taking pictures that i wasn't standing around long enough to just enjoy the art of it, the beauty. This reminds me to take time out of each day to stop, breathe and take something or someone in.... it's that whole being present thing again. I noticed myself being so focused on getting the good picture, the artistic picture that I know I missed the entire meaning on a couple of the exhibits. I am planning to spend a little time each day the rest of the week just trying to soak it in rather than rushing through it. I am thinking I shouldn't even take my camera next time. I think there is a song about this concept.... by John Mayer.... it is called 3x5.

Here are the lyrics:
I'm writing you to catch you up on places I've been
And you have this letter you probably got excited, but there's nothing else inside it
didn't have a camera by my side this time
hoping I would see the world through both my eyes
maybe I will tell you all about it when I'm in the mood to lose my way with words
TODAY skies are painted colors of a cowboy cliche'
And its strange how clouds that look like mountains in the sky
are next to mountains anyway
Didn't have a camera by my side this time
Hoping I would see the world through both my eyes
Maybe I will tell you all about it when I'm
in the mood to lose my way
but let me say
You should have seen that sunrise with your own eyes
it brought me back to life
You'll be with me next time I go outside
NO more 3x5's
I Guess you had to be there
I Guess you had to be with me
Today I finally overcame
tryin' to fit the world inside a picture frame
Maybe I will tell you all about it when I'm in the mood to
lose my way but let me say
You should have seen that sunrise with your own eyes
it brought me back to life
You'll be with me next time I go outside
no more 3x5's
just no more 3x5's

So here I go... I will continue to write about our experiences over here in beautiful Spain so maybe you can imagine yourself along side of us taking it all in......

Check out more pictures of the day in the link on the right hand column titled Temps de Flors.

The Giro d'Italia

Jonathan is spending the month at the Giro and after the big Slipstream TTT win yesterady news from the front lines was that there was a big celebration last night! FANTASTIC! I was able to watch the race with a couple of riders here in Girona. Jonathan has been sending snap shots from his phone of epic moments.... ironing on the Slipstream logo to the pink jersey.... a champagne toast.... I am sure there will be many more!
Today I am glued to my computer watching as the team is now at the head of the peloton with only about 10km left of the race. It is amazing to see Christian wearing the pink jersey as the teams heads towards the end of the 2nd stage of the race in Sicily.
GO SLIPSTREAM!!!!!!

Back in the Saddle

Welcome (back) to Spain!
Wow, after a month back in the states it seems like forever since I added to the blog or spoke Spanish. I was at home for the month of April living a very different life than we do in Spain. Holy cow we have a lot of conveniences in the states.....
So a regular question I got while in CO was ..... What did I miss the most while away?

My answer:
Soy Lattes at my local coffee shop.... (I think I just heard my European friends sigh) I know... How American of me, huh? Well, it's the truth. You really can't get a soy latte in Girona, Starbucks hasn't invaded yet.... :) Friends and Family: I was so great to see everyone and be on the same time zone as most of the people in our lives. We have such amazing friends and family.

Then I asked myself.....What did I miss about Spain?
Well quite a few things....
Walking! It is amazing what a stress reliever walking is. When I am in Spain I walk everywhere. It is amazing how when I go out to the grocery store or anything in Spain I don't miss driving because I don't really have a choice. In the states? Drove my car like it was going out of style.... oh how the pardigm shifts when your options change. Quite crazy.
Fresh Bread! There are bakeries everywhere near our house and we definitely have become bread snobs..... day old bread just doesn't cut it anymore.
Speaking Spanish! It pains me to say this..... really it does, but I was really getting it down prior to going to the states. When I picked up my Spanish book when I got back it really looked foreign. I am sure just a few days back in the saddle and I will remember more.

What a great experience we are getting.... we get to miss stuff in 2 countries.
You really can't beat that.