Oops

Being the clean freak that I am, I did two loads of laundry this morning as I cleaned the apartment. The first load had two large blankets in it, and since the rain hadn't started yet, I figured I'd put them up on the terrace for a bit. When my second load finished and it still hadn't started raining, I decided to test my luck and put them upstairs for awhile too. When I unlocked the big door to the shared terrace, however, I only saw one blanket. The big, fat red one was no longer there. Nor was it on the terrace. I climbed up the ledge to peer over the street but couldn't see it below. I'm guessing the strong winds took it from the clothes line and it must have ended up on the street or another roof. Hopefully the new owner will enjoy it. Luckily my new place came with plenty of blankets. Guess I don't have to worry about it drying now....

I did hang my clothes up, with lots and lots of clothes pins though, and will go check sporadically, because I really don't want to lose my clothes!

Exploring the world of alternative medicine while speaking a foreign language

During the last part of my Spanish class on Thursday I started to lose my vision, which thoroughly unnerved me. So I walked home, despite my teacher's offer to walk me to a doctor or hospital. I made it home, laid down and closed my eyes. For the next hour or so my vision kept coming and going and I was scared so I called Mom. Ah my wonderful mother! While I was clueless, she, naturally, knew what was going on. She calmly told me to chill out, I was having a migraine, and to find a chiropractor. Now, I've not had a migraine in around 10-15 years, so I didn't think of that.

I checked online and pulled out my Spanish Yellow Pages. In all of the metro that is Seville, I found THREE chiros. Seriously? I found the nearest one, called, and lo and behold the Spanish just came pouring out of me! It was amazing! I had no idea I could speak like that, but I guess that whole necessity thing came into play.

What a fabulous visit! I felt soooo much better after seeing her. This woman who worked on me for quite a long time and just kept speaking Spanish to me. It was like my very own intensive class while visiting the dr! lol.

In other news, it's STILL raining. Sheesh. Really makes drying my laundry a pain. :)

Hello Sunshine!

In these crazy weeks of rain, we had a break today and for a few hours there was sun, in between big clouds that brought some small sprinkles. I escaped my apartment and sat at Las Columnas, our standard hangout on the Alameda, and slowly drank a cafe con leche and studied Spanish. I must have sat outside for at least two hours, thoroughly enjoying this lovely, warm yellow thing in the sky! Lol. It was a really lovely day, plus very productive because I made it through four chapters in the Spanish textbook I'm doing on my own to catch up to my new class. So now I'm halfway through it! Yay!

This past weekend the girls and I went to the most wonderful and affordable Italian restaurant in barrio Santa Cruz near the Cathedral. It used to be an old Arabic bathhouse, but has been converted to a beautiful restaurant. As we walked in we saw a picture of the owner with Cameron Diaz and Tom Cruise when they were in town. Lol. The food was delicious and surprisingly cheap, and I will definitely be taking Dad there when he visits!

Speaking of Dad, he leaves for Cancun tomorrow and I admit I'm a bit jealous. He'll be hanging on the beach and I'll be trodding around in the rain. But at least I'm not home in the snow! hee hee.

Not much else to update. Just working, learning Spanish with a passion, and counting down til Dad's visit in five weeks!

:)

Triumph!

My Spanish class ended today. I passed the exam! We went out for coffee and chatting to end the course, quite nice. I've been seriously debating whether or not to take the next course. Today I spoke with a lady at the school and asked her if it would be possible to skip the next course and do the one above that. I think it would be more challenging. She said I could try it tomorrow morning if I wanted because it started yesterday. So I went out and got the book for the last class and have been skimming it today in between my own classes. I think within a week I can be caught up and hopefully the teacher will let me stay!

After my last class tonight, as I was leaving, my boys' father asked me if I knew the forecast for the weekend. I sighed, then in Spanish said it was supposed to rain all weekend, but it didn't matter because I have a new Spanish class and I need to study anyway and I will be in my house most of the time. He just stared at me wide-eyed. Then he goes, "your Spanish has really improved! And your accent is really good!" At this point I was grinning wildly. So then he says, "but of course, it's not perfect". LOL. Of course. I just laughed. It was great because he was obviously stunned. I wished him a good weekend (in Spanish) and left smiling.

I'm excited about my class tomorrow! :)

So I'm pretty sure it was food poisoning. Only two of the five of us who went for sushi got ill. But Christina and I had it pretty badly. Yesterday wasn't great, and today I'm up and moving, but only what I have to. I went to Spanish and took my test, went to the pharmacy (I think I've visited the Spanish pharmacy more than the American doctors in the past few years!), and headed home to made soup and rest. I'm going to work tonight, I only have 3 hours and don't start til 5, so I can rest until then.

And it's pouring again. Lovely. The streets in this town are hell on shoes, and I've literally tried to repair two pairs of shoes myself. I've tried sewing and supergluing, and so far they seem to be holding up ok, but I will definitely be trashing some shoes I adore before leaving this town. Make the rain stop! I love how all the Sevillanos tell me, but it almost never rains here, this is most unusual! Well, glad I could be here for it. I guess it's better than being home at the moment with tons of snow and having to drive in it. When I think about that, wet feet aren't so bad!

Ok, I'm going back to lay down.

ouch

I think I may have food poisoning. We'll suffice it to say we had sushi last night and I spent most of the night in the wc. Very unpleasant. This morning Mark brought over some rehydrating salts (very sweet!) and that's the only thing I've been able to consume. I don't like being sick so far from home. Lol. I just want to curl up under my covers and watch a movie. Sadly my dvd drive won't work. Aw oh well. I'm sure tomorrow will be better. Can I fast forward?

The rain in Spain falls mainly on the plain...

Como lluvia en al agua fria.....

It's been an unusual winter for southern Spain. We've had much more rain than is normal, and it's been really chilly! It seemed to be warming up the past few days, but today came with pouring rain and wind and a strong chill. It feels like winter again, and my China store umbrella is not up to the challenge! Luckily I only had one class. I've been holed up in mi casa most of the day, working on things and reading. And studying for my big Spanish test on Monday.

It is Carneval time, but the only place they really celebrate it in Spain is in the very south, in Cadiz. Which seems like a combination of Halloween and Carneval to me, since everyone dresses up in random costumes. But the celebration there is also well-known for its singing competitions during Carneval. Sadly I missed them, but it's quite a big deal.

I think this will be a quiet weekend spent with books, maybe a few trips to cafes, and some studying. I'm enjoying it already.

My address

I've had some requests, so here is my address:

Kate Austin
Calle Divina Enfermera 4, 1 C
41003, Seville
Spain

You can check it out on Google Maps!

Cordoba

Sonia and I finally got out of Seville this weekend and made a day trip to Cordoba, just about an hour away on the train. It was so nice to see countryside and greenery and get away from the madness that is Seville!

We wandered around the lovely city that is a mix of Arabic and Spanish architecture. The Jewish neighborhood is the center where the famous mosque (la Mezquita) is located. Inside the mosque the Christians (naturally!) built a church. Very interesting. There is also a palace (Alcazar) like in Seville, with beautiful gardens, but much more water/fountains. And my favorite kind of trees. Also, there are lemon and orange trees, lilies, and Roman ruins. The old town center has tons of tiny, winding streets with potted plants and flowers hanging on walls and from windows.

We also had the most amazing chickpea stew and fried eggplant with honey! Mmmmmm!

The river is one big slab of mud, but there's a lovely bridge you can cross and get a magnificent view of the old town.

Holly and Megan went to Ronda while Sonia and I did Cordoba, and from their pics, I will definitely have to go there as well! It's a few hours on the bus (I prefer trains, except for the death train Sonia and I took back last night! Yikes!), but absolutely stunning. A village built on a massive cliff with white buildings and stunning scenery. It's on the list.

Andalucia and traffic

This morning Holly and I met for a cafe con leche and then biked the other way down the river towards Triana. We crossed over and cycled down Betis, which has lovely buildings that I must photograph someday, and where at night it is packed as the going out spot in Triana. We cycled through town, where as I observed traffic I saw cars zooming in and out at dangerous speeds and very small spaces, nearly crashing into each other constantly, motorcycles and mopeds attempting even more dangerous feats, buses and taxis (they're the scariest! I can't watch when I ride in one!) and bikes. And right in the middle of this loud madness are the African men selling tissue and I think juice boxes. Standing right there in there in the middle of the street! I don't know how they survive. Holly and I stayed on the bike path and only had to dodge pedestrians and construction, but I watched the insanity and was glad I don't drive here. Interesting to watch, however.

As always, I never bring guidebooks with me when I go abroad. But I should. I just never think of it. So I'm borrowing Holly's to do some research about where I want to take Dad while he's here. I would love to head to the far north, just because I've never been there, but I think he'd prefer not to. As I was reading about Andalucia, the autonomous region where I live, the book states: "Spain's most southerly region is the true home of typically Spanish experiences. Bullfighting, tapas, flamenco, the guitar itself, all began in Andalucia and remain deeply embedded here. Other aspects of Spanish life take on their most extreme forms here: Andalucian fiestas are the noisiest and most colorful, Easter processions have more pageantry, the summer heat is more broiling, the people are at their most vivacious, fun-loving and family-oriented. But beyond the cliche images, Andalucia is a land of surprises and contradictions....Deeply traditional yet ready to seize the modern world, Andalucians always live life to the full. Few visitors to their land fail to get caught up in the fun."

So true.

"Vegetables"...Spanish style

I'll translate for those of you who don't habla the espanol. It says "vegetable sandwiches" then goes on to list the types: tuna, chicken and some type of meat and cheese. Clearly, since there is no pork (cerdo) it's not really meat. Oh Spain, how I love you and your funny ways!

No hay mas un olor malo en mi bano! Yay!

The repairman for my building came today and fixed my drain. There was a ton of gross stuff in it, hence the smell. Ew. I'm very glad he fixed it! He cannot fix my hot water problem because, he told me (entirely in Spanish) that I have a very, very small hot water tank/heater thing and it will never have much hot water. Well, good to know. Five more months of luke warm/chilly showers. At least he looked at it, I do appreciate that.

I am surprised sometimes by how much I am able to communicate despite my obvious lack of Spanish. I'm starting to doubt that five more months will improve my Spanish enough. I feel like I'd need another year here to really get it, maybe in the middle of nowhere where there aren't English-speakers. Hmmmmm.

Tapas

As sad as it is to admit this tragic fact, I think tapas will be my downfall. They are delicious and amazing and mouth-watering and usually not on the side of healthy. Usually they are heavily fried in lots of olive oil and crunchy and salty and the minute you take a bite you just want to eat more.

I've noticed my jeans are more snug than I would like, and I'm starting to dread swimsuit season. The obvious solution is unbearable - give up tapas! Eat my healthy, home cooked meals of vegies and whole wheat pasta. And for heaven's sake, start working out more! This last bit I can do. Today Holly and I biked for an hour. We also bought lots of fruit and veg at the Chinese store. In an attempt to be healthy. And no, no tapas today.

But you walk by those cafes and the smell drifts over to you and you're hooked! Because you know how tasty those treats are, and you see other people enjoying and indulging and not having issues with their pants fitting and you think, what the heck, just one more?

Oh, tapas! Thank goodness we don't have them at home. :)

On another note, last night was quite eventful! Holly, Meghan and I were out getting dinner and a crazy man was there and they the security guys were roughly shoving him into a room and then the police arrived on little mopeds! You'd think it was the only problem in the whole city, so many cops arrived! We pulled up better chairs and watched the scene unfold. The hippie, dread-locked haired man with clown pants yelled and waved him arms, then laid on the ground and prayed. Then he was up again yelling and arguing with the cops. Half an hour later nothing had changed and it was getting chilly so we left. Later that night we went to the new Moroccan hookah bar and smoked hookah. Then a real live belly dancer came out and it was quite a show. What a night!

I'm in love

My students seem to be giving me advice on life and their observations about my life as of late. I find it amusing but not overly intrusive. They are always telling me I will learn Spanish and not to worry.

Today my painter looked at me and said, "I think you are a person that does not have patience." I thought he had misspoken, and I asked him. No, he meant exactly what he said. "I think you need to be in control always," he added. Wow. Ouch. Then he smiled and made that Spanish gesture of raised hands signifying that he didn't mean to offend, and not to take it too personally. So my student thinks I'm a control freak with no patience? How did that happen?

At this point I was slightly indignant, as I work with small children everyday and think I have enough patience. But I took a moment to consider, and I think there may be some truth in his accusation/observation.

As I left my next class, the father of my students was asking if I was working this weekend. I said yes, I had a few classes. He looked at me disapprovingly and in broken English stated that, "in Spain we works for live, but I think you lives for work". You get the picture. I argued that I was working much less here than I had been at home and I take time everyday to enjoy. I go for coffee or sit in the sun or meet my friends for tapas. He just smiled at me like I was a little kid making excuses. Inwardly I sighed, wished him a good weekend, and started walking home.

On the way home I decided to take the advice of two of my students and stopped by Nueva Florida (a bakery) and asked for a "napolitana de chocolate", which Cristina told me I had to try sometime. The lady showed me what it was (a sort of chocolate croissant thing with chocolate inside that tastes like Nutella). I promptly went home, made tea, and sat down and devoured the treat with great indulgence. By the time I was finished (yes, I ate it all in one sitting, don't judge) my hands were sticky with icing and chocolate and there might have been just a tad on my chin. And nose. Talk about enjoying!

This morning I woke up way too early to meet Holly on the Alameda so we could bike across town. I had to drop off rent and she was off to an English teacher conference of sorts. The guys at my apartment office are so sweet, and they have two dogs in the office! Afterwards I took the other way around town, cycling down by the river. It was chilly (high 30s) but beautiful. There were people out rowing in the river, people jogging and walking on the paths, and I will have to do that again soon! Sadly I missed the ramp up to the main road and carried the heavy Servici bike up waaaaaaaaaaaay too many stairs.

I also ran into my Italian neighbor today. She's so nice! She spoke to me in Spanish and I understood most of it. Right now I can hear her boyfriend practicing his guitar (flamenco).

My favorite street names in Seville

I have to smile every time I see certain street names. Secretly I wished I lived on them, just so I could say that was my address. For example, Amor de Dios (the love of God) which I walk on daily. Or, "Madre de Dios" (mother of God), which I tend to say when I'm exasperated. Or "banos" (with line over n, which means bathroom/toilet). I also walked down "Jesus del Gran Poder" today (Jesus of the great power). And there are a million Saint So and So streets, of course.

Today I went to the Chinese store to get some construction paper to make animal flash cards for my kids, and I had an actual conversation with the man at the register! I asked him some questions, understood his answers, he asked where I was from, he told me he has relatives in the U.S., etc. I was practically beaming when I left the shop! A real conversation in the old espanol! Granted, it was a very, very basic conversation, but that is sooooo not the point. We have progress!

Mi sumidero no funciona y hay un olor malo

Translation: My drain isn't working properly and there's a funny smell coming from it. Unfortunately I didn't look this up until AFTER I made a fool of myself in the Chinese store. Naturally.

My new apartment, while a blessing and lovely, has an odor problem in the bathroom. At first I thought the previous tenant was just smelly and it would go away after I cleaned the bathroom thoroughly. Um, no. I tried incense, oils, (can't find decent candles). But it still smells bad.

So tonight, after my last class (at which point I had been caught in the rain twice and my feet had been soaking wet for hours) I stopped by the closest Chinese shop and had a look around. I found bleach for clothes (or what I thought was bleach for clothes) then made the mistake of trying to ask the owner of the shop if he had something for drains. He beckoned his daughter (who is always working in the shop and can't be more than 14, hmmm) and between us it got quite comical. I had to act out having a shower and then noticing the drain wasn't working well. Then I made funny sounds and also indicated that the drain smelled weird. I think she thought I was crazy. It wasn't until I was finished that I remembered my small dictionary was in my backpack. Well, of course it was.

So I dug it out and looked up "drain" and "bleach". They didn't have bleach, but she pulled some funny powder off the shelf and told me to put it in the drain and add hot water. I was highly skeptical, but for 60 cents I decided to give it a shot. So I came home and did as she said. I am not expecting a difference, but we'll see. Where are the real American cleaning products when you need them? I need something that will kill things, dang it!

Another slightly embarrassing moment of the day (what a great day it was, too!) was the first instance of getting caught in the rain. I rented a bike this week from the Servici (look it up, it will take too long to explain) and I couldn't return it before my second class because the station near my class was full. So I hauled a bit across town and returned it somewhere else, then was quite late to my class. At which point I was a bit tired of Servici. But to get to my next lesson quickly I needed to use it again. So after class I grabbed a bike and realized it was not working well. At the next station I went to change it, and it wouldn't lock in. I started arguing with the machine, something like a four year old might do, for example "I did TOO push it all the way in!" Then I proceeded to say some, sorry to admit, profanities at the machine. At this point, a nice young man approached me and with his heavily accented English, smiled and offered to help. In the pouring rain. Yes, he managed to win the battle with the machine. He grinned again, then told me I could take another one now. Quite nice of him. After that I rode home in the rain.

I would say the city has beaten me today, but all in all it wasn't a bad day. I even remembered to take my drying in before the rain came! Ok, that's not exactly true, but let's just pretend like it is. My drying is no longer out in the rain, at any point. Where the heck can I buy cheap rain boots here? Arghhhhhhhhhhhhh.

Hasta luego! :)

Happy Lunes!

La semana empieza tambien. Hoy hace sol y no hace mucho frio. He tenido mi clase de espanol, lo me gusta. He tenido tambien cafe con mis amigos.

Yeah, that's about it for the espanol. It was a lovely start to the week, bright and sunny and hopefully my washing will dry on the roof this time! People have told me that in about a month it should be warm enough to go to the beach. By bus or train it's about 1 or 1.5 hours to Huelva, and 2 hours to Cadiz. I'm excited!

It was a fun weekend - Mark's birthday and a lot of people came out and we were out late (by Anglo standards, early by Spanish).

I have some editing work this week (just a one-time thing unfortunately, but it will help).

Just studying the espanol, trying to think of new games to play with my kids so they can learn English without dreading it, and enjoying the sun and cafe con leche here!

Laundry in the rain...

I woke up and heard the lovely sound of rain, not a usual sound in Seville (other than that freakishly prolonged period of rain we had for a few weeks!). It reminded me of being home. I was warm and cozy in my new bed and smiled. Then I realized I'd hung my laundry up on the roof to dry last night. Shit.

I contemplated getting out of my warm bed and taking my laundry down in the pouring rain. But where would I put it? For about five minutes I mentally weighed the pros and cons and retrieving my laundry. Eventually I just rolled over and snuggled further into my blankets.

It's still raining now and my laundry's still up there and I've resolved to leave it. I have, however, decided against doing more laundry at the moment, as I had originally planned. Sounds like a reasonable compromise to me. And I still lack water proof shoes. Most unfortunate.

I had no idea how much Sonia loves Lucky Charms! They don't have them in the UK and Holly brought her back a box. There was a very sad moment when the box tumbled off the table and spilt some on the floor! Sadly, you would not want to eat off their floor, so Sonia stared disheartened at the floor, sighed, and fetched the dust pan.

Mi Piso Nuevo

I just christened my kitchen with the first meal I've cooked at my new place! It's on Divina Enferema, "divine/holy nurse" and next to an old church. Lovely! It's all to myself and I have shared access to a terrace.

Yesterday my friends helped me carry all my stuff from one place to the next. We literally carried furniture and smaller items in IKEA bags across the Alameda and to my new place. My neighbors are quite nice and multi-cultural. A very friendly couple from France and Italy have already invited me over for tea! The Frenchman is a flamenco guitarist. And the guy opposite my flat is a Japanese flamenco guitarist. We also have a British couple upstairs that teach English as well, and Dutch couple. Quite interesting! And Clem is my neighbor (building next door)!

I got things put away today and cleaned up a bit so that if anyone wants to come over they won't have to trip over piles of miscellaneous crap.

I even have luxuries like a microwave! No oven, sadly, but that's normal. Ah how I miss baking!

I'm still close to my work and near the Alameda, which is perfect.

I'll try to get some pics from my terrace up soon. Right now my laundry is up there drying. Lol.