Friends in High Places

Yes, I do have friends in high places. Yes, literally as well as figuratively speaking.

Situation #1: I made friends. And thus we went (together) to the highest place there is to go in Cádiz. Torre Tavira. Thus, friends + a tower = friends in

high places.

Ok, it is completely necessary that I share just a little history lesson with you all: Torre Tavira is the tallest watchtower in all of Cádiz which was (in the past - clearly) used to monitor all ship trade that came into the harbor.

Okay, moving on...

Naturally, I was

completely enamored over Spain's first and largest camera obscura, which was installed in the tower. The 1st of its kind in all of Europe I'd say. The camera obscura was the créme de la créme of the visit and was mostly the boast of the brochure. But let me say, it's legit. I'd totally be up for taking it back home as my souvenir and installing in my bedroom.

The camera obscura is rather impressive because it gives you an entire panoramic view and moving picture of the city outside. It's a real piece of work any stalker could appreciate. So, how does it work you ask? Well, basically there's a dark room with a white screen and a hole through which outside light enters hitting a mirror and magnifying glass. Something along those lines...

Unfortunately, filming was not allowed, but fortunately, I being the rebel that I am, filmed a little something anyways, until I got in trouble with the nice tour guide. Enjoy, what you can from this:

Situation #2: The other way in which I have friends in

high places, is that my friends and I totally befriended this nice priest from the Parroquia de San Francisco.

So, yet again, breaking the rules, my friends and I walked into a private courtyard of the church, while clearly it was not open to the public. And we went in anyways, taking the side door rather than going through the front gates. It was pretty impossible to go through the front, there was a giant lock on the gate. And I haven't learned how to pick locks yet (that's Life-Goal #46, I'm still working on Life-Goal #13: Tying shoelaces without making bunny ears).

Siesta Time

Just woke up from a 2 hr-siesta. Well-needed and well-wanted. It's the part of the day from 2-7 where I just eat, sleep and do pretty much nothing. It's pretty amazing. I usually never take taps or do nothing, but I have been taking full advantage of this aspect of Spanish life. It's been rough, but I think I've been well acclimated to this lifestyle of just relaxing like 24/7.

So, even though I've been here for only a week or so, it feels like a month. As usual the time seems so fast, but at the same time really slow. It's so different here. Spaniards live in a totally different way than Americans and most of the time I feel they real understand how to enjoy life. The pace of life is slow here - you can really see that man-made possessions don't matter nearly as much compared to good food, family, and an amazing horizon to enjoy. I've realized just how intense people in America really are. Work, work, work. Because of this, life is so much easier and simple. My apartment isn't gaudy at all, in fact very modest, and hold very few personal belongings or space for such things. Just the necessities. It's pretty refreshing here in that way.

The food is pretty intense, I will be sure to post some pics soon. I've come to realize that American food pales in comparison to Spanish food. We eat bread and drink Coca-Cola and fresh fruit for dessert at every single meal. And every dish is fatty, fried and has meat. All of it has been pretty delish, but it's all very intense. I'm used to like fresh salad, with no dressing and like peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. But don't get me wrong, I miss my kitchen at home sometimes cause their eating schedule is pretty rigid here. I mean, I kind of miss the freedom of eating whatever you want whenever you want. My family thinks I'm slightly crazy for the fact that it's normal to just yogurt and fruit for dinner or that I sometimes eat pizza for breakfast. Or that I can from day to day eat every single hour.

Here's just a little idea of what the eating schedule is like here or my schedule in general:

8:00 Wake-Up + Eat breakfast [My staple meal: coffee, french bread with peach marmalade]

9:00 Catch bus to school

9:30-1:00 School

1:00-2:00 Shopping downtown (I usually window shop on a daily basis)

2:00-3:00 Walk home

3:00 Lunch [My favorite so far: Squash and Carrot cream soup, french bread, Tortilla con patatas, and melon]

4:00-6:00 Sleep

6:00-10:00 Free time (Beach, reading, sleeping some more, TV, friends, etc...)

10:00-11:00 TV time with mom

11:00 Dinner [Usually a sandwich or sorts, bread and fruit]

11:30 Free time

1:00 AM Bed-time

4:00 AM Bed-time on Weekend

Anyways, that's just a little glimpse of how my days look. But I start college classes next week, so I'm sure I'll more homework to occupy my time with, but then again past students told me they don't get homework in class. So then again, maybe not.

¡Hola!

¡Hola Amigos y Familia¡

This'll be a short post, but I just wanted to let everyone en los Estados Unidos que I am alive y bien. And perhaps you shall learn a little Spanish yourself while I am here. ¡Sí!

So after a wonderful surprise visit from mis amigas en Seattle y Walla Walla, I did not get any sleep going on my flights and on the plane - no sleep. I believe I was much to nervous for sleep. Traveling alone to a foreign country is no easy task. After a day and a half of travel I am finally in Cadiz and am very pleased with my family. They are a very beautiful family and very friendly. Every time I see one of them it's besitos y abrazos (kisses and hugs). Slowly I'm getting used to all the kissing from random strangers. Ok, not totally random.

Well, as I am a very random I will share 5 random things I have learned in Spain thus far. ¡Disfruta! Enjoy!

1. Married couples wear their wedding ring on the right hand. ¡Este es mucho mejor! La mano del Dios. Sí. (This is much better! The right hand of God.)

2. They have to pay about $1.25 to use a shopping cart at a grocery store. I am thankful it is free en los EEUU (USA).

3. They drink Coca-Cola more than water. In the refrigerator there is always a liter of CC ready a beber (to drink).

4. They eat dinner at 11 PM and stay up all night.

5. They're public buses are nicer than ours. They are like private coaches. ¡Qué guay! (How cool!)

Until next week....

I have decided I shall post each week by Sunday night. So stay tuned. I will definitely try to post some photos of my family soon. Adios.

The Latest NEW Trend

It's rufus for one thing.

And I invented it myself. What you ask? A Leviticus Party.

I predict that within the next year it will explode into a Generation Church pop-culture phenomena. Let me explain.

I'm positive that most Christians have Bible reading plans (those of you nodding your heads "no" - I'll save that one for another day). And oh boy, have I heard the dreaded sighs and dissatisfaction when the empty boxes of Leviticus must be filled and checked off to complete your year's plan. I've been there many a times (or not). But now I think the time has come for a change. A change of heart. A change of pace. And a change of perspective. 

I think we need to embrace Leviticus. 

How do we do this? Answer. See below.

Leviticus Parties: A group of 3 or more individuals (the more the merrier) who gather together and read the entire book of Leviticus together in 1 day (or less). The party can take place in any setting in any environment and include any of the following: coffee, food, music, highlighters, laughter, awkward silence, your Bible (hopefully) and basically whatever you want. There are no limits and you make it what you want. The only requirement is that you offer emotional/mental/social support to each of your friends during the whole process. The agenda is simple: finish the book of Leviticus and do whatever you have to do to have fun. 

Now, I know what you're thinking. Leviticus and party don't belong in the same sentence together. And you might think this idea is rather drastic and unconventional, but ironically I'm not one for rules (and maybe that's why I should read Leviticus) and being limited to the norms. So I say we throw it all out the window and spice things up. When was the last time you've done that? 

So while we all know Leviticus has been one of the more challenging books of the Bible to read through and from various Christian sources I have heard that it is one saved last by many. 

I ask of you - why the down faces and putting away of the highlighters? I say you drag those bad-boys out and get partying it up in Leviticus. 

I say we change the stereotype and start loving Leviticus! So it's up to you, get started and plan your own Leviticus Party - let me know how it goes.

How I died and lived to tell about it...

Okay, maybe I haven't died. That was merely for dramatic effect. But then again maybe I have?

Today in the Subway line at the HUB, I had a conversation with a close friend about I how had endured through the hardest Spanish test of my college career. Throughout this entire vent, I had noticed a nearby onlooker of my conversation. Little did I know that this girl was a middle-schooler visiting the UW - who would later go on to ask my friend which was harder, college or middle school. 

Over a delicious subway sandwich my friend and I mulled over this question. The verdict.

MIDDLE SCHOOL...

5 Reasons Why Middle School is Death:

1. Boys. Inappropriate. Annoying. Immature. Perverted. Mean. Yeah, you heard me. I don't know if I can ever recover from that one guy who made fun of me for wearing mismatched socks. Or the other guy who liked to cheat off me or try to get me to do his homework for him. 

2. Hooking up. Whatever that means. So what if Jimmy Blunderhead and Susie Blabbermouth hooked for like 5 minutes by their locker let me eat my lunch. Haha, 8 years later... and?

3. Girl's locker rooms. This includes all of the following. The latest gossip - it's cruel. Bras - yeah sorry guys it was awkward for me too. Tampons - scary. Copious amounts of Victoria Secret's Love Spell Potion - can you say suffocation? Boy talk - lost me there. Changing in front of other people - whatever you do, don't stare. 

4. It was uncool to like school. Me. I liked school. Me = uncool. Yeah, not gonna lie I was the librarian's favorite and all the other teacher's too. But admit it,  you weren't and you're still jealous. It's okay, I'm cool now (maybe?). 

5. Puberty. The real killer. Let's not even go there. It was too traumatic. I'm slowly recovery. 

Okay so I'm still alive. Somehow I managed to survive. Somehow...(probably grace). 

So little middle-schooler, there is hope! Life does get better! College is amazing. And girl from the Subway line, you should become a Husky because we are awesome (except not at football). 

The not-so secret life of bees...

The movie was sub-par, but the Haagen-Dazs ice cream, supporting the life of bees, was scrumptious. Today in honor of Haagen-Dazs' "Free Cone Day" (which spread awareness about the dying population of bees) I have decided to honor them with a blog and kudos to making a mean Rocky Road. 

I have plotted out 5 essential points as to why bees are CRUCIAL to my existence and why I am ever so thankful for their creation.

#1: Thank you for pollinating all the plants. 

I do not have the time nor the patience to collect, transport and disseminate all of the pollen that needs to be spread around the world. You guys are the best. Thanks for carrying the weight of the world on your shoulders.

#2: Thank you for your God-ordained color ensemble. 

Where would I bee (no pun intended) without the amazing color schema of black and yellow? Truly, the bees are real fashionistas. My wardrobe will never be the same without this sort of inspiration. 

#3: Thank you for sparing my life.

Oh gracious bee, thank you for having mercy on me, this poor fragile human. I am entirely indebted to the bee race for sparing your stingers on me. I've never been stung and for that I am truly grateful. Let's keep it that way.

#4: Thank you for Honey-Nut Cheerios. 

What more needs to be said? You have forever changed the course breakfast cereal history.

#5: Thank you for making Haagen-Dazs even sweeter than before. 

I wouldn't even be in this position if it weren't for your decreasing population. Thank you for the lives lost, the pollen un-spread, and for putting up with our negligence of the planet. Without your oncoming extinction, Haagen-Dazs would have never put on this event and I therefore would never have realized the importance of the bees. Besides, honey has always been better than refined white sugar. You guys are legit. 

While of course these points merely scrape the surface of the importance of bee existence, my gratitude is greater than ever before. So to protect my fellows bees, have a scoop of Haagen-Dazs, educate yourself (by not watching The Secret Life of Bees, but rather by actually researching), and try to leave a smaller footprint on the planet (even if it means wearing stilettos, okay I'm kidding). 

Dillas de Queso

In celebration of Cinco de Mayo and my Español heritage (even though the two are totally unrelated) I thought I would post about the importance of this epic event.

The topic of the day and the one thing we can thank Mexico for (aside from their generous gifting of the swine flu) are quesadillas. Or in my words and literal spanish breakdown: dillas de queso (dillas de cheese).

So in my 7 years or so of studying Spanish, I have found one thing to be true. There is NO translation for "dilla" in the Spanish language. So what is a "dilla" you might ask? I've found myself (many a nights) tossing and turning in a cold sweat over this phenomena. And in my professional opinion...I have found that...I have no opinion. But in fact, I have discovered that the translation for "quesadilla" is not as literal a translation as my high school spanish teacher once taught me. 

In fact, quesadillas are more than just a mexican blend of shredded cheese grilled between two steaming hot Mission flour tortillas. No, it is much much more. It is a euphemism for the independence we celebrate and rejoice about together in our human existence.

I have found that "quesadillas" (in actuality) translates to "good times."

Profound, I know. Right about now you might be questioning the validity of the US Dept. of Public Education. But I'll have you know that this one is straight from the Mexican Urban Dictionary and many years of my own personal research.

But how is this meaning valid?, you may ask. Well, reminisce back to every occasion in which quesadillas took part in. Think back to the sights, the smells, the taste, ladedadeeda. Do you have any bad memory involving quesadillas? I think not! The two are entirely synonymous and what more joy can be brought from delectable chips and salsa to go hand in hand. Good times, good times. That is the true meaning of quesadillas. Where would the joy of celebration be without them? They are inseparable to the happiness of any sane human being. That goes without saying that we can truly thank the Mexican community for knowing how to truly share good times of celebration especially during this time of celebration for Cinco de Mayo. 

So in a nutshell.

"Quesadillas" translates to "Good Times."

When the world comes caving in...

... start a blog.

I felt the pressure.

I felt the tension. The migraines. The anxiety. What was I supposed to do? Just sit on the sidewalk and watch my life pass me by. No way Jose! I don't know a Jose, but if I did, he would know what I'm talking about. And I say "No way." 

So yes, that rampage of emotions is what it is and is completely irrelevant to this blog. I just felt that a cathartic moment was necessary.

I started this blog as you can see. It serves no purpose. I have no specific goal. Like I said, I caved. So here I am. I'm ready to be discursive. I'm ready to spread myself thin like crunchy peanut butter on stale bread, yet I'm positive I'll be more tasteful than that. So we'll see what happens. It'll be great. I'll do what I do best: just wing it.