Tinker's Travels

Semana Santa and More

2008-03-31T06:04:00.002-05:00

I don't know where all the time is going. Only a few weeks left in the city and then a few more in Florence with Meghan. For so long it felt like such a long semester and now it's nearly over!

Anyway, lots of vacationing and fun times in March. At the beginning of Spring Break/ Semana Santa I met my family in Milan to surprise Meghan for her birthday. It was nice to get out of town and spend some more time with my parents. (They came here first, I don't remember if I mentioned that in the last entry.) Milan itself wasn't terribly exciting though. There were a few cool things to see, but it's very industrial and dirty. It wouldn't recommend it... there are many more beautiful and exciting places to go in Europe. We did find some great homemade pasta and pizza and good gelato... which is probably the most important thing anyway. I only spent about a day and a half there since the transport took so much time.

Sunday (the 16th) I flew back to Barcelona and met Andrew at the airport. He stayed about 5 days and I got to give him a little taste of what life is like around here. The weather was decent... I was hoping it would have been nice enough to go to the beach, but it was a little chilly. Mostly we just walked all through town everyday. I took him to a couple touristy places and some with historical significance... Parc Guell, Roman and Medieval areas and more. We also went up to a part of the mountain I hadn't seen before to check out the castle/fortress. We took the gondola things that I've been eying since my first week here. And at night we mostly watched futbol (soccer) and drank beer in pubs. It was a very relaxing week and it was so exciting to spend some time together here. Seeing him did make me a little homesick though, especially when I had to readjust to not being around him all over again.

After Andrew left I still had a few days of break that I tried to fill despite my exhaustion. I was not very excited about coming back to my dark little hole and my terrible mattress. Luckily Megan and Gavin were around that weekend too and we found cheap entertainment like the botanical gardens and the chocolate museum. The weather was pretty awful though so we wasted a lot of time downloading episodes of Friends and Sex in the City. Then school started back and remains as boring as ever... guess some things are the same in all cultures.

This past weekend we went with our program to Vall de Boi in the Pyrenees Mountains, very close to where I went skiing. We got to tour Romanesque Churches from the 12th century, wander around tiny mountain towns, and trudge through the snow in the national park. The weather was fabulous... sunny, warm, dry air, and very few clouds. You could almost taste the oxygen. My lungs have been deprived lately. The landscape was fabulous... I could definitely have handled a little more time there. And the good news is, I actually understood nearly everything the tour guides said!! Although speaking is still quite difficult, I am catching on to a few things.

That's all for now I guess. Just another week of thrilling classes. Then off to Munich for a couple days of lovely German beer and trying to decipher that silly language. Miss you all. Hope things are going well back in the states.

Un Abrazo,
Erin

A Full Month!

2008-03-04T05:06:00.002-06:00

Sorry I haven't been keeping up lately. I will try to catch everyone up, or at least hit some of the high points. So in Febuary:

Meghan and friends visited
I skied in Andorra!
Went to the Dali museum in Figueres
Had a lazy weekend in Barcelona, but went to a few cool parks and the fountain show
Met Donna in Lisbon with a couple other friends... it was fabulous!

My weekdays are never very exciting. I just have class all day and by the time I get done I'm usually too tired to do much else. I joined a gym though, so that gives me something to do after dinner or between classes some days. Its a pretty nice gym and working out makes me feel much better... the steam room and long showers alone are worth it!

As far as Meghan visiting goes, she probably summed it up best on her blog. All in all, I think I make a pretty good tour guide. I kept them pretty busy, but it turns out I have great navigational skills... so that has been helpful. It was really nice having someone familiar in town though. Meghan and I always have fun together... or at least for the first couple of days!

I went skiing for the first time since I was a little girl. We went with a group from the university so we were able to meet people from here and all over Europe. I think there were more Germans than anything else. Andorra was very nice and small, but all I really saw of it was the slopes. Megan (my roommate) was a pretty great ski instructor. It took me a while to learn to stop - I even ripped my jeans to shreds trying one time, but I eventually got it and was a pretty decent skier for a beginner. Hopefully it won't be another 13 years til i get to try again!

While all the other kids in my program spent the next couple weekends all around Europe, I mostly just stuck nearby and got to know Catalonia a little better. The Dali museum was pretty wild, as would be expected. It is in a tiny town a little North of here. I also ventured to the parks and mountains in Barcelona everyday one weekend. It was a really cheep fun way to spend the pretty days. I really enjoyed the Larbernit park... it has a maze made of hedges and actually doesn't feel like it is part of city life.

Lisbon was definitely my favorite though!! Cobblestones, tiled buildings, pastries, fresh fish, and lots and lots of Sun!! It was gorgeous and the perfect getaway. I would have loved to spend a little more time there, or the rest of the semester. Seeing Donna was certainly icing on the cake. I think not having a list of to dos and just wandering and exploring really made it feel like vacation... which was exactly what we all needed! I recommend Portugal to everyone!! It is fabulous.

Well I better head to class. Sorry the summary was so brief. I'll try to add details and pictures soon. Hope all is well back in the states. I miss you all. Luckily I get to see my parents in two days!! I can't wait... finally some good food I hope.

-Erin

Fotos

2008-02-04T17:35:00.000-06:00

I finally posted a few pictures on facebook. I will put the link on here, but I'm assuming only those of you with facebook accounts can view them. Feel free to try out the link either way. I will try to pick a site to use so everyone else can see them as well... if you have any suggestions I'd love to hear them.

http://arkansas.facebook.com/photos.php?id=20608026&ref=pb

Anyway, it's late here and my stories about Meghan's visit would take too long to describe. I will be back with more soon though.

Love and Peace!

El Cine

2008-01-25T16:59:00.000-06:00

Gavin (my buddy/roommate in Madrid), Megan (my roommate here) and I went to the movies tonight to see a film in English. We saw Atonement, and although it was quite sad, I would recommend it. It was really refreshing to be the one who really understood what was going on. However, getting into the movie was rather confusing (like everything else!) You get to choose where your seats are: front, middle, or back, and the usher leads you to the seat printed on the ticket. It was strange. Aside from not dubbing over a lot of the movies, they also had very American-sized and priced snack items. Huge drinks... only no ice.

So we're having an early Friday night... absolutely unheard of here! We're getting up early tomorrow to tour a Cava-making factory. Cava is to Spain as Champagne is to France, so it should be interesting. The photos I saw of the museum/distillery were gorgeous. Besides if we don't make plans to do something on the weekends, we'll just waste them away in bed or do a little walking about the city. I've decided that the infamous Barcelona party scene, although sometimes fun, isn't really for me. The discotecas are an experience, but not one I hope to have again any time soon. I'd much rather sip sangria at a quiet local bar and get to bed early so I can enjoy how beautiful the city is during the day.

Class has been going well. It's been pretty boring and it's hard to get excited about when there is so much to see and do rather than be locked up in a classroom. Monday we start culture classes, so hopefully they will be more interesting. Unfortunately my schedule has me starting class at 9:30 and ending at 7 every day! While I'll have breaks, I don't have any free afternoons to take off somewhere and not worry about returning. Luckily school is just blocks from the beach and my home and warmer weather is just around the corner. I'm sure I'll be spending plenty of my time between classes basking in the sun on the sandy shore.

I believe we are going to watch an episode or two of Weeds on the sketchy site that lets you watch TV for free. ABC.com doesn't work here, so we suffer through the obnoxious Asian sub-titles... hey it's in English, and it's a chance for mindless entertainment.

I'll try to update more frequently... and hopefully I'll figure out how to add pictures soon.

Salud, Erin

2008-01-14T06:35:00.000-06:00

Hola Chicos,

Barcelona has been keeping me busy. It´s such an interesting city. There is a little bit of everything: the beach, lots of parks, museums for all my favorite artists, beautiful markets, nightlife, shopping, and much more. It´s hard to get used to the crowds and the language barrier, but it´s all very exciting. There is so much I want to do!

My family is also quite interesting. They are from Africa, Guini (?) I think. The mom is extremely nice, but we still don´t understand each other well at all. The children are nice, they enjoy American rap and hip hop... very loud rap and hip hop. The father is still a mystery. We haven´t met him yet, but I have some theories about why that is. Yesterday a lot of extended family came over for the entire day. My roommate and I had lunch with them, but neither of us were feeling great and the food was very different (possibly African cuisine) and we could barely choke it down. We felt so rude, but we had to leave and just lay down in our room. All the rest of our meals at home have been great, really healthy and flavorful.

I´m getting pretty good at navigating... except when it comes to metro stops. We´ve gotten turned around nearly every time we get off. I´ve still yet to find a decent sized supermarket or similar store that would have more options of packaged food and shampoo and such. That is my mission for today. I also hope to meet up with Donna before she leaves town, but communication has been limited.

I think this computer is about to kick me off though, so I will write more later. I´m off to explore and spend more money I´m sure. Classes started today and I´ve got to buy books later.

Miss you all mucho! Let me know what´s up in the states!
-Erin

Barcelona

2008-01-09T16:37:00.000-06:00

This will probably be short. I've not been able to connect to the internet since my last post, so I have lots to say... but it will have to wait. The good news is, my family has internet in their home... their tiny home!

We made it to our final destination today though, after a long day on the bus. I'm really excited to get out and see the city tomorrow. My family seems nice. However, they speak very little English. These first few weeks will be interesting to say the least.

More to come

Hasta luego - Erin

Estoy en Madrid

2008-01-04T19:25:00.000-06:00

Hola!

I made it to Madrid. After years of anticipation, a missed flight, and lost luggage I´m finally a temporary Spanish resident! I´ve discovered that my Spanish skills are not really up to par... I´m pretty much just speaking in English to make sure the people I talk to know I don´t know what´s going on! Hopefully I will get more comfortable with it though.

I´m currently hanging out in an internet cafe inside a Subway/Dunkin´Donuts... so this is very new and different for me! I also haven´t gotten to shower yet, and don´t have many clean clothes, so I kinda feel like I fit in!

Anyway, I´m excited to be here. If anyone has suggestions of things I ought to do before I leave Madrid in a few days, let me know.

Miss you all already!

-Erin

One Week

2007-12-27T13:13:00.000-06:00

In just one week from this moment I will be sitting on a plane waiting to take off on my grand adventure. I'm very excited and nervous. Four months is a long time to be away. I'm sure it will seem like a very short time to be in Europe though.

I will begin my journey in Madrid next Friday and then move on to Barcelona where I will settle in with my host family.

I'm open to any last minute travel and packing tips. I'd hate to forget anything very important.

Adios