So... After Bristol things got "real" pretty quickly. I ran out of money. I mean I had ZERO dollars. I had 50 euros to my name and that was not going to last me for the rest of my trip, so I re-assessed, made it back to Spain and bought a ticket home. But I still had a few weeks left and an awesome cruise already paid for. I took some time off writing to do said traveling and now that I'm rested, back home state-side, a little more depressed than when I left, I think I can continue with my blog. So if you're still interested in my travels and experiences... please read on!
Kisses,
Kendall
jueves, 7 de julio de 2011
martes, 26 de abril de 2011
Bristol and the "Wizard"
From Dublin I traveled to Bristol, England. I arrived just in time to meet Tom at the Train Station Temple Meads after he got off work. Tom works for the Ministry of Defense just outside of Bristol in the town where he actually lives, Filton. I haven´t seen Tom since the last time I was in England in 2008, so I was really excited to see him and catch up on what had been going on in our lives since we last met in London. There is no better place to catch up with an old friend than in the local pub / apres-work watering hole. So off we went to a fairly nice place near the docks of Bristol "Pitcher and Piano" or some combination thereof. There we ordered a few delicious pints of Cider and then nachos to preempt the giant burgers we both ordered. We chatted and drank and ate for a while, catching up on old mutual friends, stories of college and just in general, enjoying each other´s company. After dinner, we set off on a brief tour of downtown Bristol, seeing the Cathedral, the university and some famous graffiti before realizing, it was definitely time for another pub and a few more rounds of cider. (I will take a brief moment to calm the nerves of anyone reading who is worried about my BAC,or Blood Alcohol Content, but cider is typically on the lower spectrum of alcohol by volume and comes in a just under maybe 4%. So don´t worry, I still had my wits about me.) So we settled into the Bristol Ram and merrily settled into our cider and conversation.
The next day Tom had to go to work and I was meeting Joe, the guy everyone was absolutely jealous over when they heard that he was getting paid to travel around Europe eating food and writing about it, yeah that asshole. Fortunately that jerk is actually a really nice dude and was kind enough to come pick me up in an actual car and drive me around Bristol and take me on another mini tour of the City. We walked through the city, found some park, traversed this mega-hill that was kind enough to remind me how out of shape I am, and then found this lovely little sandwich shop called The Magic Roll. And then Joe blew my mind. He says to me,"Kendall, I´m going to need you to say very little when ordering...", strides up to the counter and says in his lovely little English Accent ,"We´d like two Wizards please!" A Wizard is apparently a very secret locals only deal. They don´t publish this secret word, it´s passed on my word of mouth and only works if you are from Bristol. Me sauntering up to the counter ordering a very American sounding Wizard would not work. I'm not sure what they would do to me, but I don't think it would be good. So 3 quid later I had the most delicious Wizard and a coke and we were sitting in a beautiful park, and I would say, quite happy. (Or at least I was...)
After lunch Joe drove back to his places making a pit stop at what he deems a real English Pub (defined by him as a pub with hideous carpeting). He insisted that I experience a real English Pub and not the ones that we call pubs in America that completely lack crap carpeting and awkward photos on the wall and loads of old people. So for one beer and cider I enjoyed my English Pub and the company of a real Englishman. But this experience was nothing when we pulled up at his really cute and adorable English cottage in the middle of freaking nowhere with the cutest view of Wales from his hour long driveway filled with more horses than cars and I almost died. IT WAS AMAZING. I almost hid in his house so I´d have to stay there, forever. AND WE HAD BEER IN HIS GARDEN. HIS ENGLISH GARDEN! and he gave me ICE CREAM! in his ENGLISH GARDEN! hahahahhahehehehehhehehahahehehehahha! For some reason, this gave me immense joy, which I´m not sure I´ve portrayed properly here with all the exclamation points, capitalization and laughter. But use your imagination, seek all the Hugh Grant movies you can conjure and form your own vision of what I was experiencing and maybe you´ll understand why, some weeks later, I´m still in a bit of a euphoric state.
After we left his house (I almost cried) we went to the Avon Gorge Hotel to have drinks and wait for Tom. The Avon Gorge Hotel is this really amazing hotel that sits facing the Avon Gorge which has spectacular views of no only the gorge but the worlds first Suspension Bridge. Sipping our libations of choice (him beer, me Cider!) Joe tells me that this bridge is the bridge of choice for suicides. Thanks Joe... my euphoria is over. He then explains that I also have been on an impromptu death tour of Bristol. Again... thanks! Apparently I was at a bar, the Bristol Ram, where a girl was abducted and then killed in a field next to Joe´s house and then we passed a place where a guy killed himself with a machete and then drove over and sat facing the bridge where more people kill themselves. I missed the simple happiness of just sitting in his English garden... what happened to that? Dead, apparently Tom showed up and we hung out for a while when Joe left Tom and I to eat some really delicious Indian food in the very wealthy area of Bristol called Carlton or Clifton or something equally as Anglo and pretentious sounding.
Right. you´re exhausted of my chatter and you want pictures... Fine!
The next day Tom had to go to work and I was meeting Joe, the guy everyone was absolutely jealous over when they heard that he was getting paid to travel around Europe eating food and writing about it, yeah that asshole. Fortunately that jerk is actually a really nice dude and was kind enough to come pick me up in an actual car and drive me around Bristol and take me on another mini tour of the City. We walked through the city, found some park, traversed this mega-hill that was kind enough to remind me how out of shape I am, and then found this lovely little sandwich shop called The Magic Roll. And then Joe blew my mind. He says to me,"Kendall, I´m going to need you to say very little when ordering...", strides up to the counter and says in his lovely little English Accent ,"We´d like two Wizards please!" A Wizard is apparently a very secret locals only deal. They don´t publish this secret word, it´s passed on my word of mouth and only works if you are from Bristol. Me sauntering up to the counter ordering a very American sounding Wizard would not work. I'm not sure what they would do to me, but I don't think it would be good. So 3 quid later I had the most delicious Wizard and a coke and we were sitting in a beautiful park, and I would say, quite happy. (Or at least I was...)
After lunch Joe drove back to his places making a pit stop at what he deems a real English Pub (defined by him as a pub with hideous carpeting). He insisted that I experience a real English Pub and not the ones that we call pubs in America that completely lack crap carpeting and awkward photos on the wall and loads of old people. So for one beer and cider I enjoyed my English Pub and the company of a real Englishman. But this experience was nothing when we pulled up at his really cute and adorable English cottage in the middle of freaking nowhere with the cutest view of Wales from his hour long driveway filled with more horses than cars and I almost died. IT WAS AMAZING. I almost hid in his house so I´d have to stay there, forever. AND WE HAD BEER IN HIS GARDEN. HIS ENGLISH GARDEN! and he gave me ICE CREAM! in his ENGLISH GARDEN! hahahahhahehehehehhehehahahehehehahha! For some reason, this gave me immense joy, which I´m not sure I´ve portrayed properly here with all the exclamation points, capitalization and laughter. But use your imagination, seek all the Hugh Grant movies you can conjure and form your own vision of what I was experiencing and maybe you´ll understand why, some weeks later, I´m still in a bit of a euphoric state.
After we left his house (I almost cried) we went to the Avon Gorge Hotel to have drinks and wait for Tom. The Avon Gorge Hotel is this really amazing hotel that sits facing the Avon Gorge which has spectacular views of no only the gorge but the worlds first Suspension Bridge. Sipping our libations of choice (him beer, me Cider!) Joe tells me that this bridge is the bridge of choice for suicides. Thanks Joe... my euphoria is over. He then explains that I also have been on an impromptu death tour of Bristol. Again... thanks! Apparently I was at a bar, the Bristol Ram, where a girl was abducted and then killed in a field next to Joe´s house and then we passed a place where a guy killed himself with a machete and then drove over and sat facing the bridge where more people kill themselves. I missed the simple happiness of just sitting in his English garden... what happened to that? Dead, apparently Tom showed up and we hung out for a while when Joe left Tom and I to eat some really delicious Indian food in the very wealthy area of Bristol called Carlton or Clifton or something equally as Anglo and pretentious sounding.
Right. you´re exhausted of my chatter and you want pictures... Fine!
Fish and Chips!
Sticky Toffee Pudding!
Tom!
As usual, more pictures here.
martes, 19 de abril de 2011
Dublin, Ireland
Getting to Ireland, was not enjoyable. I was flying with the European discount airline Ryanair, a notoriously terrible airline that loves to fly incredibly early. This particular flight wasnt that early, leaving at 9:30am, but what made this a huge pain, was that ryanair doesnt fly out of centrally located airports sometimes and this time, i had to travel to Beauvais, 50km outside the city. In order to get there, i had to take a 35minute metro ride at 5:30am to this park, find the bus that for 10€ would drive me to the Beauvais airport 2 hiurs before my flight inorder to get through the terrible Ryanair security and get to my gate on time to make my flight.
Fast forward to 10:30am Dublin time- I made it! Im exhausted, but I made it.
I met a few american girls at my hostel in Madrid who were on break from their semester abroad in Dublin. We hit it off and they invited me to come visit them in Ireland. Of course I was going to take them up on their offer. Ireland is suppsed to be amazing and not only that, but it is filled with redheads, making it literally the only place on earth I am not a huge freak for having redhair. After time in Spain, I welcomed the opportunity to not be stared at.
Mary met me on her campus, University College Dublin (UCD) and we set off for her on campus apartment and hung out for a little while- I got to do Laundry for the first time in weeks- I was a happy girl. :) Later, we took the bus from campus into the center of Dublin and walked around. Dublin is such a cute city. All the people are so friendly and cheerful which is so different from Spain where people on the street, if they are not staring at you for being incredibly redheaded, they dont make eye contact with you and they most certainly dont smile or strike up a conversation with you. Mary took me to this amazing store called Avoca. it was like Twigs and Teacups meets Martha Stewart meets designer clothing meets The Village Bakery meets Play It Again Sams. Needless to say, I was in love. Full on love. It was 5 stories of beautiful merchandise and food. The top and bottom floors we cafes, selling amazing deliciousnesss such as sandwiches, soups, scones, irish breakfasts and sparkling lemonade. Even their cappuccinos were beautiful made with a beautiful little design in the foam, mine was a smiling sunshine one day when I met up with an old college friend for brunch! I was in loooooove. And you know what, this is maybe the best part - THEY HAVE ONE UNITED STATES LOCATION, IN ANNAPOLIS, MARYLAND!!!!!! Yes. I think I will be visiting their American location often.
Anyways, I had an amazing time in Dublin. I was there for 5 days, enjoying every minute of my stay. I had my very first pint if a true Irish Guiness, and let me tell you, its so different than the Guiness in the states. i had a delicious irish pastie, which is delicious (and also a tad surprising because the Irish are not known for their food). We slept on St. stephens Green, went to several real irish pubs, and went to a playoff rugby match. Now this rugby match changed my life. Well, it changed my perspective of what a man is. I know i have several male readers, and I will do my best not to insult your manhood, but rugby players are MEN. They are not these wimpy american football players with incrredible amounts of padding on and stopping every play to rest and regroup, no. These MEN are without padding, without all these timeouts, hitting each other, lifting each other up and tackling each other, running full speed and bleeding. It was intense. However, now I see that perhaps there has been a blend of intense manliness and increrdible stuidity. Maybe the word for these athletes is not manly, maybe its animal- these players are animals. Yes, i think im on to something... Anyways, leinster, the irish time won by a landslide and it was an incredible game which i got to witness from the third row.
I met a lot of Mary, Alice and Adriannas friends in Dublin. And we all got along really well and did a lot of hanging out with each other. One night we got together for a family dinner and made from scratch whole wheat banana pancakes with bacon and scrambled eggs- in salute to America. It was delicious! It made me pang for home a little bit.
Dublin was such a great time and experience, im in love with the city and could see myself living there if only the westher was a little better. I had great whether while i was there, very sunny and warm, but apparently its usually very very rainy and dreary, which would put a damper on my happiness for sure.
Next stop: Bristol, England
More pictures here.
Fast forward to 10:30am Dublin time- I made it! Im exhausted, but I made it.
I met a few american girls at my hostel in Madrid who were on break from their semester abroad in Dublin. We hit it off and they invited me to come visit them in Ireland. Of course I was going to take them up on their offer. Ireland is suppsed to be amazing and not only that, but it is filled with redheads, making it literally the only place on earth I am not a huge freak for having redhair. After time in Spain, I welcomed the opportunity to not be stared at.
Mary met me on her campus, University College Dublin (UCD) and we set off for her on campus apartment and hung out for a little while- I got to do Laundry for the first time in weeks- I was a happy girl. :) Later, we took the bus from campus into the center of Dublin and walked around. Dublin is such a cute city. All the people are so friendly and cheerful which is so different from Spain where people on the street, if they are not staring at you for being incredibly redheaded, they dont make eye contact with you and they most certainly dont smile or strike up a conversation with you. Mary took me to this amazing store called Avoca. it was like Twigs and Teacups meets Martha Stewart meets designer clothing meets The Village Bakery meets Play It Again Sams. Needless to say, I was in love. Full on love. It was 5 stories of beautiful merchandise and food. The top and bottom floors we cafes, selling amazing deliciousnesss such as sandwiches, soups, scones, irish breakfasts and sparkling lemonade. Even their cappuccinos were beautiful made with a beautiful little design in the foam, mine was a smiling sunshine one day when I met up with an old college friend for brunch! I was in loooooove. And you know what, this is maybe the best part - THEY HAVE ONE UNITED STATES LOCATION, IN ANNAPOLIS, MARYLAND!!!!!! Yes. I think I will be visiting their American location often.
Anyways, I had an amazing time in Dublin. I was there for 5 days, enjoying every minute of my stay. I had my very first pint if a true Irish Guiness, and let me tell you, its so different than the Guiness in the states. i had a delicious irish pastie, which is delicious (and also a tad surprising because the Irish are not known for their food). We slept on St. stephens Green, went to several real irish pubs, and went to a playoff rugby match. Now this rugby match changed my life. Well, it changed my perspective of what a man is. I know i have several male readers, and I will do my best not to insult your manhood, but rugby players are MEN. They are not these wimpy american football players with incrredible amounts of padding on and stopping every play to rest and regroup, no. These MEN are without padding, without all these timeouts, hitting each other, lifting each other up and tackling each other, running full speed and bleeding. It was intense. However, now I see that perhaps there has been a blend of intense manliness and increrdible stuidity. Maybe the word for these athletes is not manly, maybe its animal- these players are animals. Yes, i think im on to something... Anyways, leinster, the irish time won by a landslide and it was an incredible game which i got to witness from the third row.
I met a lot of Mary, Alice and Adriannas friends in Dublin. And we all got along really well and did a lot of hanging out with each other. One night we got together for a family dinner and made from scratch whole wheat banana pancakes with bacon and scrambled eggs- in salute to America. It was delicious! It made me pang for home a little bit.
Dublin was such a great time and experience, im in love with the city and could see myself living there if only the westher was a little better. I had great whether while i was there, very sunny and warm, but apparently its usually very very rainy and dreary, which would put a damper on my happiness for sure.
Famous Bar and area of Dublin
Farmers Market on Saturdays in Temple Bar.
It´s always Guinness time!
My first Rugby Match! Leinster v Leicester!
Next stop: Bristol, England
More pictures here.
Oui, oui, Paris!
Upon my arrival to Paris, I made my waynto Le Marais, the district of Paris where my host family was staying. The family, a young arsty couple with a 2year old girl, welcomed me to their apartment right next to a wonderful bakery, a cute cafe and the metro. (this combination has become known to me as "The Trinity", the elusive perfect combination of locales that I have found extremely desirable.). Paula, Filipe and Gala took me in with own arms and throughout the next four days shared life stories, coffee, homemade chocolate cake and their own fears with me. They were fabulous and I hope to nev forget their charming little apartment that they shared with me.
The first day I set off on an exploration of the city. I had no destination in mind, i just kept walking and walking for hours, allowing myself the opportunity to get lost in the city and to just see, without expectations, and just experience the city without having to check off my list of places to see in Paris. I walked through Le Marais and found the Seine. Walking along the Seine, you find people sitting along the river bank, tourists walking, boats wandering the river and the eventually, I saw the Eiffel Tower. Now, I'm not making this up when I say I literally gasped at the sight of seeing the Eiffel for the first time. It was surprising and beautiful and overwhelming. I couldnt help but smile and look next to me in the hopes of sharing this moment with someone. But i was surrounded by busy Parisians with whom the magic of the Eiffel is lost. It was this moment that confused me. I was so moved, almost embarrassingly so, that I wasnt sure whether to be glad I was alone, to properly enjoy the moment, without having to check my feelings or to keep moving without being aboe to stare for as long as id like, or if having somone there would have made it better. This was the fight that I had with myself and I still havent figured out the answer to it. Perhaps the is the ultimate traveling partner who both there and not there, the perfect balance of being able to share experiences with but also you feel absolutely able to be who you are and feel what you feel and maybe most importantly, to be free to do what you want.
Throughout my time in Paris, that moment seeing the Eiffel was the only time, aside from meals, that I desired somene to be there with me. By this point, I loved being alone. I didnt have to wait for anyone, I could mosey, or speed walk, I could eat when I wanted where I wanted. I was entirely free to do as I pleased. Such things included, waiting 2.5 hours in line to see the Louvre, walking to the Pompidou but refusing to wait in line again to see more art, eating 6 crepes with various comninations of nutella and fruit, 4 pain au chocolats, 3 fresh baguettes, countless cafes, stoppng for only 10 minutes to see the Arc de Triomphe, walking up all the stairs to the Eiffel to save 10€ and sitting for hours in Parisian cafes writing in my journal and drinking absurd amounts of coffee, exploring the ile de cite and admiring the Notre Dame,
Did i love Paris? I dont think ai can say that. I enjoyed the city, ive always wanted to go and im so glad I went. But with the budget I had and the little French I knew, it made it really difficult to experience what I imagine to be the proper Paris. Food is expensive, and all I really wanted was an amazing Parisian meal and I just couldnt afford it. Going in to musuems and other tourist attractions cost money, money that I couldnt spend. I wouod definitely go back to Paris, later on in my life when I dont have the budget I do now, when I can spend money on 4 course French meals and buy clothes and souvenirs.
The Seine and the Eiffel Tower
Hotel Ville
Next stop: Dublin, Ireland!
You can always see more of my photos by accessing my public Facebook link here.
viernes, 8 de abril de 2011
Monaco is very very Poor....
View of Monaco and part of the Yacht Club
Monte Carlo Casino
Oh Monaco... So, surprisingly Monaco does have a lot of really ugly buildings. Which is unfortunate because of the grandeur its name implies, but honestly, there were a lot of buildings that were just outdated and ugly. But of course, there were all the enormous yachts and Aston Martin and Bentleys and other beautiful buildings that made up for it. Even the traffic jams were gorgeous. It's like, oh shoot, damn it, stuck behind another $300,000 car again. Honey, I told you to skip I-95 during rush hour!
Joe and I spent the day walking all over Nice. However, the first thing I did was fall in the only puddle in all of Monaco. Right on my ass. Soaking wet, in front of people. I was naive at first to think that the 20 of the richest men in the 20m perimeter would have sent their servants to come rescue me, wrap wads of Hundred Euro bills around my ankle to support it, and then fight over who could put me in their Rolls Royce and send me to his mansion to recuperate for the rest of my life. But, alas, there was just Joe, embarrassed for me and only wishing he had seen the entire fall and not just the sudden disappearance of yours truly from his peripherals. A gentleman, really...
So a bit wet and a lot sore we scampered off around Monaco in search of grandeur and cheap cheap food. Found both, the latter in the form of a Rotisserie Chicken, tomatoes and a baguette from the super market, eaten like tramps in a park with our hands and no napkins. Yes, this is the way to spend an afternoon in Monaco- like homeless people. But I didn't mind, I had great company, a freshly cooked bird and a view of the Mediterranean to die for.
After lunch we headed back down the mountain, utilizing the very random and somewhat mysterious elevators placed all around the city to descend to sea level and back to the casino to gawk at more luxury and riches. Went into the world famous casino, pretended we had far too much money to waste on such "gaudy interior" and "ghastly collections of cars" and the "hideous excuse for a casino" in our finest (his authentic) English accents.
And that was pretty much it for Monaco. The boats were beautiful, the deckhands gorgeous, the teak-ing flawless and the water, crystal clear blue. I could go back... (oh wait! I am going back! hahahahhahahaha in May, with my family!)
More of Nice...
Nice, France
So after the Weirdo Incident, I went back to the hostel and hid in my room. I needed a nap! As I was in my bed reading, a guy staying in my room came up to me and I'm immediately thinking, CAN I NOT GET ANY SLEEP AROUND HERE? NO PEACE AND QUIET? I'M TRAVELING ALONE AND YET SOMEHOW I AM NEVER ALONE!
Enter Joe. Joe is from Bristol, England and is in Nice on a dream assignment- he is getting paid to travel around Europe for a month blogging about food. I'm extremely jealous. (It does occur to me that I am doing basically the same thing, on a longer scale, but I am unfortunately using my own, hard earned money. Must find out how he got this job...) Joe is exactly what I need- a break from skeevy guys. He has a girlfriend that he loves and has no interest in abducting me, he just wants someone to eat with. And if you remember, I am quite a talented eater. So it could be to say, we're a match made in Food Heaven and continue to spend the next couple days wandering around Nice, sitting on the beach drinking beer and eating pizza, and eating some really great meals. Our meals ranged from the pizza and beer on the beach, to Kebab, to Sushi, to mussels and fish.
By Friday, Joe was leaving for Milan and I was headed to Monaco for the day. On my way out the door I for no reason I can think of, I go the wrong way. The complete OPPOSITE direction of the bus station to Monaco and I knew that. I continue to walk that way, knowing my mistake and run straight into Joe. The Italians, always up for a good strike, had decided that April Fools Day would be a great day for a train strike. (Literally, there is a website dedicated to the upcoming strikes in Italy. If you're interested... however it's only in Italian, but you'll get the general idea.) So Joe, not being able to make his trip to Milan that day, looked and me and said, "Monaco?" So off we went, to Monaco for the day, no big deal or anything. Just an obvious day trip for two people unfortunately stuck in Nice, France together. (Did you sense the sarcasm?)
If you would like to see Joe's food blog, which I suggest because it's really well done and has beautiful pictures, you should go HERE!
martes, 5 de abril de 2011
Oh Nice, you're very nice...
I'm sorry I'm sorry. I know, Im not very good at this updating your blog in a timely fashion sort of thing. We all have our imperfections, right?
Nice was great. In fact it was so great, that I decided to stay for two extra days, skipping Lyon. The hostel that I was in was incredible. I still can't get over how comfortable those beds were, and the bathtubs, my god!
so after dinner the other night with the men, who turned out to be the owners of several restaurants and bars all over Europpe, we went out drinking. And boy the next day did knave a hangover. Not because I drank too much, but because I was drinking this homemade prune cordial. It was so sweet that it just gave me the worst headache the next morning. But never you fear dear readers, I had the perfect cure the next day- an afternoon on the beach! So here I am, indulging in a private afternoon on the beach, with a raging alcohol induced headache when just as soon as I settled in to my very comfortable position, ALONE(as I preferred it) this man comes and asks if he can sit next to me. Hmmm... Is he a weirdo or a nice guy... There a some risks you take in life and this was one of mine, I decided that he was a nice guy. It was a combination of the very smart looking business suit he had on, and the French accent which made it hard to understand/detect any trace of "weirdo". He sat down and I once again Settled into my hangover, when he started talking, and WOULDN'T STOP. I mean dear god, about the weatherm about his job, about where I'm from, about god only knows what and I'm just like staring at him like, "listen, pal. I have no time for this, I'm hungover, can't you see that?!?!?". (I should now tell you that I hadn't yet showered and one look at me and you'd know i was hungover). But the man persisted. Well finally he asked me if I would get a drink with him after he returned from Monaco that evening, and now I finally decidied that the man is after all a complete werido(looking back, who in their right mind wears a business suit on the beach?). I would like to say that I had a clever line along the lines of, oh I would love to join you but I'm dining with the ambassadors son in Cannes tonight and I'm afraid I just can't cancel. But instead I agreed. Now listen, I had every intention of blowing him off, but this was no risk I was going to take, turning him down in person. You never know what a weirdo in a business suit will do... But I guess he detected that I had reservations about going, and this is when he said something I'll never forget:
Don't worry, I won't abduct you!
Code red. And this is about the time that I took off in a near dead sprint in the opposite direction of Philipe.
Nice was great. In fact it was so great, that I decided to stay for two extra days, skipping Lyon. The hostel that I was in was incredible. I still can't get over how comfortable those beds were, and the bathtubs, my god!
so after dinner the other night with the men, who turned out to be the owners of several restaurants and bars all over Europpe, we went out drinking. And boy the next day did knave a hangover. Not because I drank too much, but because I was drinking this homemade prune cordial. It was so sweet that it just gave me the worst headache the next morning. But never you fear dear readers, I had the perfect cure the next day- an afternoon on the beach! So here I am, indulging in a private afternoon on the beach, with a raging alcohol induced headache when just as soon as I settled in to my very comfortable position, ALONE(as I preferred it) this man comes and asks if he can sit next to me. Hmmm... Is he a weirdo or a nice guy... There a some risks you take in life and this was one of mine, I decided that he was a nice guy. It was a combination of the very smart looking business suit he had on, and the French accent which made it hard to understand/detect any trace of "weirdo". He sat down and I once again Settled into my hangover, when he started talking, and WOULDN'T STOP. I mean dear god, about the weatherm about his job, about where I'm from, about god only knows what and I'm just like staring at him like, "listen, pal. I have no time for this, I'm hungover, can't you see that?!?!?". (I should now tell you that I hadn't yet showered and one look at me and you'd know i was hungover). But the man persisted. Well finally he asked me if I would get a drink with him after he returned from Monaco that evening, and now I finally decidied that the man is after all a complete werido(looking back, who in their right mind wears a business suit on the beach?). I would like to say that I had a clever line along the lines of, oh I would love to join you but I'm dining with the ambassadors son in Cannes tonight and I'm afraid I just can't cancel. But instead I agreed. Now listen, I had every intention of blowing him off, but this was no risk I was going to take, turning him down in person. You never know what a weirdo in a business suit will do... But I guess he detected that I had reservations about going, and this is when he said something I'll never forget:
Don't worry, I won't abduct you!
Code red. And this is about the time that I took off in a near dead sprint in the opposite direction of Philipe.
domingo, 3 de abril de 2011
29 March 2011
Entry from personal journal, written a bit in the style of stream-of-conscious. Time passes without notification. Ultra swanky and literary, right?
At the train station, yet again, waiting for my train to Nice. I'm so excited. Perhaps I should stop thinking so highly of it so I won't disappoint myself. However, I hear amazing things. I have done some research and the is a great local dive bar that Princess Caroline visits for seafood- I'm definitely going there. It's supposed to rain a bit, mostly Wednesday night and I'm already contemplating staying through until the 2nd to be able to see some nicer days and maybe go to Monaco for a day, do some scouting out for the trip with the family. Its only a 15 minute train ride. However, staying in Nice means an incredibly long (6 hour) train ride on the 2nd.
There are currently military men at the gare (train station) with machine guns which is only slightly scary. It would be more terrifying if they weren't all smiling and laughing.
Random observation: Ive never seen so many... Disabled people than in Europe. I feel like every day I see someone on crutches, walking with a limp, blind, or with a foot longer than the other wearing one of those shoes with a 5" lift...
I digress...
Now I know what the military men were at the gare for: some guy was smuggling socks.
I would be laughing too.
Au revoir, Toulouse...
***
Bonjour, Nice, It's lovely to meet you...
I'm sitting at a nice restaurant called "caffe dell arte" in the plaza where the Flower Market is held everyday. M hoping tin get their formula for 17€ we will see what happens. Their. menu Is in this really beautiful gold paper.
Okay. I got the formula(fixed price menu, aka prix fixe which includes a giant Nicoise salad and a filet of salmon and and a dessert, which I obviously got the chocolate crêpe. (readers, you should know that my love for chocolate is immense and unwavering).
They should have prix fixe menus in the states. It's awesome. You just get a few choices, mix and match, and it's a set price. It may not include a drink, or dessert some vary that way, but it's wildly popular in Europe it must work...
There are these really nice men sitting next to me, asking about my food where Im from, etc. They appear to be french. The salad was amazing, it was enormous and delicious. (one of the mens name is Mimo, or something tongued effect).
Cote- Rotie 2005. Reserve
Gentleman bought me a bite of the above wine. Apparently it's a pretty good wine. I have no complaints, as it tastes better than the house wine I was drinking.
At the train station, yet again, waiting for my train to Nice. I'm so excited. Perhaps I should stop thinking so highly of it so I won't disappoint myself. However, I hear amazing things. I have done some research and the is a great local dive bar that Princess Caroline visits for seafood- I'm definitely going there. It's supposed to rain a bit, mostly Wednesday night and I'm already contemplating staying through until the 2nd to be able to see some nicer days and maybe go to Monaco for a day, do some scouting out for the trip with the family. Its only a 15 minute train ride. However, staying in Nice means an incredibly long (6 hour) train ride on the 2nd.
There are currently military men at the gare (train station) with machine guns which is only slightly scary. It would be more terrifying if they weren't all smiling and laughing.
Random observation: Ive never seen so many... Disabled people than in Europe. I feel like every day I see someone on crutches, walking with a limp, blind, or with a foot longer than the other wearing one of those shoes with a 5" lift...
I digress...
Now I know what the military men were at the gare for: some guy was smuggling socks.
I would be laughing too.
Au revoir, Toulouse...
***
Bonjour, Nice, It's lovely to meet you...
I'm sitting at a nice restaurant called "caffe dell arte" in the plaza where the Flower Market is held everyday. M hoping tin get their formula for 17€ we will see what happens. Their. menu Is in this really beautiful gold paper.
Okay. I got the formula(fixed price menu, aka prix fixe which includes a giant Nicoise salad and a filet of salmon and and a dessert, which I obviously got the chocolate crêpe. (readers, you should know that my love for chocolate is immense and unwavering).
They should have prix fixe menus in the states. It's awesome. You just get a few choices, mix and match, and it's a set price. It may not include a drink, or dessert some vary that way, but it's wildly popular in Europe it must work...
There are these really nice men sitting next to me, asking about my food where Im from, etc. They appear to be french. The salad was amazing, it was enormous and delicious. (one of the mens name is Mimo, or something tongued effect).
Cote- Rotie 2005. Reserve
Gentleman bought me a bite of the above wine. Apparently it's a pretty good wine. I have no complaints, as it tastes better than the house wine I was drinking.
lunes, 28 de marzo de 2011
Toulouse, France
My first stop in France was delightful. The people at the hostel were fabulous. We easily chatted despite the cultural differences, I'm American, John an Englishman, Dea from Berlin and Massimiliano from, you guessed it, Italy! Lovely town as well, I was sore to leave but there was more of France to explore.
The first day I just did my initial walk around the city, as you read from the excerpt from my journal day 20, I had crepes. Last night i had a meal to remember. A girl from the hostel and i went to "le mason du cassoulet" and had the cassoulet. It was INCREDIBLE. Cassoulet is the dish of south west france, so this was definitely the place to have it. For 20€ we had a delicious glass of red wine, a small salad, a giant portion of cassoulet and to finish it all off, a perfect molten chocolate lava cake (or the French version thereof). I was in heaven for every delicious and mouthwatering bite of it. I left there so happy, satisfied and full i never thought I'd eat again... Silly me. I'm in France! Of course i was going to eat again, in fact, i ate so much today in Montpellier that i had no choice but to return to my hotel and put on "stretchy pants" and lie down for a nap. Food coma. Epic food coma. I ate an entire baguette, followed by a pain au chocolat and thennnnn a crepe filled with nutella and bananas. Not even remotely healthy. But do i care? Nay. I will continue to eat this way for the rest of my trip. (I'm not living in reality right now, so why eat like it?)
Tomorrow is off to Nice, a part of my journey I'm especially excited about. I've done loads of research ( even more than for the rest of my travels, if that can be possible) and have found some restaurants that people rave about that seems to be in my price range.
I'll be sure to update soon.
À voutre santé.
Kendall
The first day I just did my initial walk around the city, as you read from the excerpt from my journal day 20, I had crepes. Last night i had a meal to remember. A girl from the hostel and i went to "le mason du cassoulet" and had the cassoulet. It was INCREDIBLE. Cassoulet is the dish of south west france, so this was definitely the place to have it. For 20€ we had a delicious glass of red wine, a small salad, a giant portion of cassoulet and to finish it all off, a perfect molten chocolate lava cake (or the French version thereof). I was in heaven for every delicious and mouthwatering bite of it. I left there so happy, satisfied and full i never thought I'd eat again... Silly me. I'm in France! Of course i was going to eat again, in fact, i ate so much today in Montpellier that i had no choice but to return to my hotel and put on "stretchy pants" and lie down for a nap. Food coma. Epic food coma. I ate an entire baguette, followed by a pain au chocolat and thennnnn a crepe filled with nutella and bananas. Not even remotely healthy. But do i care? Nay. I will continue to eat this way for the rest of my trip. (I'm not living in reality right now, so why eat like it?)
Tomorrow is off to Nice, a part of my journey I'm especially excited about. I've done loads of research ( even more than for the rest of my travels, if that can be possible) and have found some restaurants that people rave about that seems to be in my price range.
I'll be sure to update soon.
À voutre santé.
Kendall
Day 21 - Heading to France - excerpt from my personal journal
"Day 21. Train to France. 26 March 2011
It's 7:45 in the morning and I'm sitting on the train to Hendaye, France at the Eusko Train Station. Got out of bed at 6:40 to walk the 20 minutes to the station that leaves every half hour. I believe the journey will only take about an hour. I'm really excited! I wish they could stamp my passport... It's my first time in France. Hopefully I can look back at this one day and have returned many times. Okay, the train is shaky. Must stop writing for now.
8:30. Well, I made it to France! I have also booked my train to Toulouse with a stop over in Bayonne. Right now I'm at the bar across the street, Case José, enjoying my first real café au lait. The owner surprisingly (or maybe not so) speaks French, Euskera, Spanish and English. Well done, sir. I have roughly two hours to kill but walking with my bag is not an option, so I'll enjoy my café and then go read.
First meal in France is at a creperie called Le Sherpa on rue de Taur. I had two crepes- "island" with smoked salmon, creme fraiche and herbs and the other, with a name I'll never remember, had cheese, mushrooms and pesto. Yummy, but too much, plus it was 13€, too much money for me."
It's 7:45 in the morning and I'm sitting on the train to Hendaye, France at the Eusko Train Station. Got out of bed at 6:40 to walk the 20 minutes to the station that leaves every half hour. I believe the journey will only take about an hour. I'm really excited! I wish they could stamp my passport... It's my first time in France. Hopefully I can look back at this one day and have returned many times. Okay, the train is shaky. Must stop writing for now.
8:30. Well, I made it to France! I have also booked my train to Toulouse with a stop over in Bayonne. Right now I'm at the bar across the street, Case José, enjoying my first real café au lait. The owner surprisingly (or maybe not so) speaks French, Euskera, Spanish and English. Well done, sir. I have roughly two hours to kill but walking with my bag is not an option, so I'll enjoy my café and then go read.
First meal in France is at a creperie called Le Sherpa on rue de Taur. I had two crepes- "island" with smoked salmon, creme fraiche and herbs and the other, with a name I'll never remember, had cheese, mushrooms and pesto. Yummy, but too much, plus it was 13€, too much money for me."
Paint on the wall at Le Sherpa
Day 20 - San Sebastián - excerpt from personal journal
"Day 20. San Sebastian 25 March 2011
Second and last day in San Sebastian. Today it's 17 degrees outside and sunny and wonderful. I'm sitting in this café by the bridge that divides the city (well, there are actually 4 bridges and it's the inlet that divides the city). Anyways, today I plan on hiking a mountain, walking along Zurriola Surf Beach, going to the aquarium and visiting the Mercado de San Martín and maybe going to the Naval Museum, but it depends on how much money I have. I'll write later. It's time to explore.
1:15. I suppose there could be worse things than a lunch of napolitanas with chocolate and a Coke, sitting out on a terrace in 20 degree weather with a bright sun and plenty of people to gaze at. Happy girl. :)
8:00. Unparalleled beauty, the force of which was so strong it pulled me off my path and forced me to sit and stare and bathe in its beauty. I cant stop smiling. There are yellow lights glowing in the just dark city. The sky a dark blue, fading into an almost Robin's Egg blue over the ocean. The mountain is black but the lights shining up from the bottom is perfect. It's the perfect scene. There is water just before me, for maybe half a mile leading into the other side of this gorgeous city. Palace miramar perhaps has the most adequate of names. I can't decide if the quiet of being alone makes this moment perfect or if the only thing that could make it better would be if I had someone to share it with."
Hiking up a mountain
A cute little fountain in a park
Some boats a the port
Second and last day in San Sebastian. Today it's 17 degrees outside and sunny and wonderful. I'm sitting in this café by the bridge that divides the city (well, there are actually 4 bridges and it's the inlet that divides the city). Anyways, today I plan on hiking a mountain, walking along Zurriola Surf Beach, going to the aquarium and visiting the Mercado de San Martín and maybe going to the Naval Museum, but it depends on how much money I have. I'll write later. It's time to explore.
1:15. I suppose there could be worse things than a lunch of napolitanas with chocolate and a Coke, sitting out on a terrace in 20 degree weather with a bright sun and plenty of people to gaze at. Happy girl. :)
8:00. Unparalleled beauty, the force of which was so strong it pulled me off my path and forced me to sit and stare and bathe in its beauty. I cant stop smiling. There are yellow lights glowing in the just dark city. The sky a dark blue, fading into an almost Robin's Egg blue over the ocean. The mountain is black but the lights shining up from the bottom is perfect. It's the perfect scene. There is water just before me, for maybe half a mile leading into the other side of this gorgeous city. Palace miramar perhaps has the most adequate of names. I can't decide if the quiet of being alone makes this moment perfect or if the only thing that could make it better would be if I had someone to share it with."
jueves, 24 de marzo de 2011
Eurail Adventure - Day 1 - San Sebastian, Spain
Hello dear readers! I had no idea that people would read this, but it makes me very happy that you do. :)
Today was day one of my adventure on the trains of Europe. Armed with my Eurail Pass my mother gave me for my graduation present(thank you, mom) I set off for the train station at 7am. I hopped on the train and we set off at exactly 8am. 4 naps and 5 hours later I arrived in San Sebastian. It was actually nice out. A little overcast but for the most part sunny and a beautiful 16 centigrade. It took about a half our to walk from the train station to the hostel but I found it pretty easily and after checking in, set out to find some food. I hadnt eaten since 7 30am and you know how I get when I dont eat...
I found a pintxo bar in my street called Ganadarias. First, I should maybe explain what a pintxo is. A pintxo is like tapas but sort of the Basque Country version of it, spelled with their favorite letter combination, "tx". I tried two pintxos for a total of 4€. They were incredible. The first, a Solomillo, which is sirloin. It was the most tender and very rare and delicious slice of meat ive had in a while. This was followed by a brocheta with shrimp and bacon and some really fresh onions and peppers and flavors i cant describe. Yum! I was a happy happy girl.
I took a few hours and walked around the town sort of aimlessly. Walked alng the beach and saw breath taking views. I hadnt seen water nor beaches in a while so i took off my shoes and walked a mile along the beach. After my journey I went home and took a siesta until dinner where I again enjoyed pintxos, this time salmon, croquetas, and some identifiable meat called basatxerri (letter combination! Euskera would kick ass at scrabble!). I enjoyed a basque favorite, cider and then had some Ferraro Rocher gelato on the bridge looking back into the lovely city of San Sebastian.
All in all I would say I had a lovely first day in San Sebastian. The hostel is cute, with s great location and a very helpful receptionist. Tonight I will plan out my day tomorrow and start figuring out how to get to destination number two, Toulouse, France.
I'm going to put up pictures on facebook. I can't add pictures to my blog with my iPad. Sometim technology doesn't make sense...
Anyways, there will definitely more to come... Wish you were here enjoying this with me.
Today was day one of my adventure on the trains of Europe. Armed with my Eurail Pass my mother gave me for my graduation present(thank you, mom) I set off for the train station at 7am. I hopped on the train and we set off at exactly 8am. 4 naps and 5 hours later I arrived in San Sebastian. It was actually nice out. A little overcast but for the most part sunny and a beautiful 16 centigrade. It took about a half our to walk from the train station to the hostel but I found it pretty easily and after checking in, set out to find some food. I hadnt eaten since 7 30am and you know how I get when I dont eat...
I found a pintxo bar in my street called Ganadarias. First, I should maybe explain what a pintxo is. A pintxo is like tapas but sort of the Basque Country version of it, spelled with their favorite letter combination, "tx". I tried two pintxos for a total of 4€. They were incredible. The first, a Solomillo, which is sirloin. It was the most tender and very rare and delicious slice of meat ive had in a while. This was followed by a brocheta with shrimp and bacon and some really fresh onions and peppers and flavors i cant describe. Yum! I was a happy happy girl.
I took a few hours and walked around the town sort of aimlessly. Walked alng the beach and saw breath taking views. I hadnt seen water nor beaches in a while so i took off my shoes and walked a mile along the beach. After my journey I went home and took a siesta until dinner where I again enjoyed pintxos, this time salmon, croquetas, and some identifiable meat called basatxerri (letter combination! Euskera would kick ass at scrabble!). I enjoyed a basque favorite, cider and then had some Ferraro Rocher gelato on the bridge looking back into the lovely city of San Sebastian.
All in all I would say I had a lovely first day in San Sebastian. The hostel is cute, with s great location and a very helpful receptionist. Tonight I will plan out my day tomorrow and start figuring out how to get to destination number two, Toulouse, France.
I'm going to put up pictures on facebook. I can't add pictures to my blog with my iPad. Sometim technology doesn't make sense...
Anyways, there will definitely more to come... Wish you were here enjoying this with me.
sábado, 19 de marzo de 2011
Sick in Spain
So yesterday sucked. There is really no other way to put it. I woke up at 5AM in the hostel and felt incredibly ill and ill I most definitely was. If you have a sensitive stomach, skip the rest of the paragraph. For the next 4-5 hours I vomited every 15 minutes. It was terrible. I would sleep for 15 minutes in the bathroom stalls, the vomit. I tried to drink water and mint tea and immediately would expel that. I was so dehydrated I couldn´t stand and to make it all worse, I had to check out of the hostel that morning. It took me 6 attempts to get all my luggage out of my room and to pack up. I could only stand for like 10 minutes before needing to run to the bathroom or sit down because I thought I was going to pass out. At around 8:30 I decided to just go to my friends apartment, litteraly a block away. So I mustered up all my strength and walked down the flight of stairs and down the block to their apartment. I got as far as their corner before vomitting, then as far as their foyer before vomitting in a trashcan. As soon as I got into their apartment, they took one look at me and immediately got me anti-nauseau medicine (which I immediately threw up). Needless to say, I went straight to the doctor, Doctor Borras, a South American born, Texas raised, doctor in Spain who has a deal for university students NOT from Spain. (for 42€ he will see you and give you a perscription or whatever) He diagnosed me, in perfect English, with what most likely was food poisoning.
Thank god I got better, I finally could keep down some food, and today I am 100%. In fact, Ollie and Kaitlin and I went to Retiro Park for a picnic. We made out own tortilla española and bought chips and chocolate napolitanas and cokes and it was awesome! We took a nap in the park right by the Palacio de Cristal, which is beautiful. Sort of looks like a bird cage house, made of glass.
Tonight, I think we might go get a drink outside in the plaza near where we live, Plaza Dos de Mayo. However, they were not feeling so well when I left them just a little bit ago.
Tomorrow I will go to the train station and figure out my Eurail pass, I needn't activate it before my trip and since I'm leaving Thursday, I need to get on that!
Miss everyone!
Thank god I got better, I finally could keep down some food, and today I am 100%. In fact, Ollie and Kaitlin and I went to Retiro Park for a picnic. We made out own tortilla española and bought chips and chocolate napolitanas and cokes and it was awesome! We took a nap in the park right by the Palacio de Cristal, which is beautiful. Sort of looks like a bird cage house, made of glass.
Tonight, I think we might go get a drink outside in the plaza near where we live, Plaza Dos de Mayo. However, they were not feeling so well when I left them just a little bit ago.
Tomorrow I will go to the train station and figure out my Eurail pass, I needn't activate it before my trip and since I'm leaving Thursday, I need to get on that!
Miss everyone!
jueves, 17 de marzo de 2011
Segovia
I went to Segovia on the 13th of March with my friend Ollie. Ollie lives here in Madrid with Kaitlin, one of my closest friends. Kaitlin was away for the weekend for a school trip so Ollie and I took Saturday to go an hour north-west of here to Segovia. Segovia is an incredibly old town mostly know for its aqueduct, which was constructed in the 1st century and carried water to an elevated city come 15km (about 20 mi) away. It has 163 arches, some reaching 29 meters in height.
It took only an hour and 12€ by bus to get to Segovia from Madrid. When we first got there we did just a quick tour of the city and then stopped at a supermarket to get the makings of a bocadillo. A bocadillo is basically just a sandwhich. Typically, they are filled with Chorizo and cheese and sometimes a bit of olive oil. So for 4€ we had lunch and just sat right about the information place you see above, right next to the aqueduct. We walked around Segovia for basically 9 hours and saw some incredible things. Segovia is incredibly old and the city demonstrates its age with many buildings like the Cathedral and the Alcazar Fortress, all being walled in. We ended up hiking around this mountain that we stumbled upon and ended up outside the walls of the city looking across to the Alcazar Fortress. It was one of the most breathtaking views I have ever seen. Despite being a very rigorous hike, especially in my very inadequate shoes, it was very much worth the effort to be just dazzled by the city. Pictures may help, but honestly, do not do it justice.
Cathedral - 16th century, late gothic period
Stairs in the Poets Garden
The countryside of Segovia, outside the walls
Ollie and some cool steps.
Arco de Fuencisla, leaving Segovia, on our hike
Alcazar, from the mountain we hiked
Close-up of the Alcazar
City of Segovia from Mountain
One view of where we were hiking
So that was Segovia. Again, I have a zillion more pictures and if you´re interested in seeing more, you should go here, my facebook photo album.
Another blog to come soon, I promise. But it´s St. Patty´s day... :)
viernes, 11 de marzo de 2011
The Drunken Hungarian and the People I Live With
So I´ve been completely sick for the past couple days but decided to go enjoy a night out with a few people from the hostel. Afterall, it was free admission and a free drink to a local reggae club and I rumor has it that whiskey is quite good for a sore throat... :) So we arrive like typical Spaniards at 12:30(in the morning, sorry Mom...) and ít was kind of overwhelming. After grabbing a drink with this English bloke Matthew Snape (Yes, like the Harry Potter character. According to him, his family is/was the inspiration for the Snape character. But can you really trust an Englishman? The answer is "no" by the way...). We ended up talking for a while, hanging out, talking to native spaniards and enjoying the live music and DJ. After a while the drunkest Hungarian comes up to us. Now, I´ve only met one other Hungarian and he wasn´t drunk at all, but for the sake of the story, this particular Hungarian at the bar was THE DRUNKEST HUNGARIAN I EVER MET! And he was pretty drunk. He didn´t speak English and his Spanish was at the 202 level at best and made even worse by the incredible slur and thick Hungarian accent. Being as sick as I was, I could barely stand being in the bar let alone being clung to by an insanely unintelligible drunken spanish speaking hungarian. Fast forward 2 hours later...
The Drunken Hungarian (from here on out to be referred to as The DH) wanted to dance. Mierda. How do I get myself out of this one? It seems that the only thing The DH wanted more than a dance with yours truly was a cigarrette and I happened to know just the place for him to smoke- outside, without me. So I led him gently to the exit. Close one. Fast forward 6 minutes and one cigarrette later...
He´s baaaaccckkk. And so the night went. I´ll spare you the details of how amusing his dancing was but finally it was 4:00(again, sorry Mom) and this American needed sleep. So I get rid of The DH tell Matt it´s time to go and leave. But who comes running up, seemingly out of nowhere... THE DH. Fortunately, I am a ninja. And in the DH fled for his life after threatening his life. Apparently he was smart. :)
Aside from this event, Spain has been very laid back. I´ve been trying to sleep a lot and just eat delicious food. I´ve been meeting some fabulous people here in the Hostel and basically just throwing myself into hanging out with people. Lots of different cultures and backgrounds. It´s just really interesting to sit around the kitchen and chat and stuff. I suppose I´ll list the most important characters if you will of my story so far...
1: Mary, Adriana and Alice: They were here when I first got here. Americans studying abroad in Dublin. We got along famously for the time they were here and they have invited me to Dublin! Which, of course I´m taking full advantage of.
2: Rachel: Also an American, studying in Madrid though. She´s a long term-er like I. She´s been here a month before I even got here.
3: Warren: An English guy, who is a bit older than the rest of us, I´d say... late 30s? He´s fabulous and I´ve been spending tons of time with him. He lives in Madrid but is sort of transient and is waiting for his apartment to become available. I may end up renting his apt. from him. He´s fabulously gay. :)
4: Jessica: American, from Arkansas doing a Eurorail trip all around Europe. She´s incredibly loud but she is so nice and is kind of an angel- she works with kids who were like victims of rape and stuff. It´s incredible. Today was her last day.
Those are the main players. There are others but I haven´t spent much time with the rest.
Okay. Want photos?
The Drunken Hungarian (from here on out to be referred to as The DH) wanted to dance. Mierda. How do I get myself out of this one? It seems that the only thing The DH wanted more than a dance with yours truly was a cigarrette and I happened to know just the place for him to smoke- outside, without me. So I led him gently to the exit. Close one. Fast forward 6 minutes and one cigarrette later...
He´s baaaaccckkk. And so the night went. I´ll spare you the details of how amusing his dancing was but finally it was 4:00(again, sorry Mom) and this American needed sleep. So I get rid of The DH tell Matt it´s time to go and leave. But who comes running up, seemingly out of nowhere... THE DH. Fortunately, I am a ninja. And in the DH fled for his life after threatening his life. Apparently he was smart. :)
Aside from this event, Spain has been very laid back. I´ve been trying to sleep a lot and just eat delicious food. I´ve been meeting some fabulous people here in the Hostel and basically just throwing myself into hanging out with people. Lots of different cultures and backgrounds. It´s just really interesting to sit around the kitchen and chat and stuff. I suppose I´ll list the most important characters if you will of my story so far...
1: Mary, Adriana and Alice: They were here when I first got here. Americans studying abroad in Dublin. We got along famously for the time they were here and they have invited me to Dublin! Which, of course I´m taking full advantage of.
2: Rachel: Also an American, studying in Madrid though. She´s a long term-er like I. She´s been here a month before I even got here.
3: Warren: An English guy, who is a bit older than the rest of us, I´d say... late 30s? He´s fabulous and I´ve been spending tons of time with him. He lives in Madrid but is sort of transient and is waiting for his apartment to become available. I may end up renting his apt. from him. He´s fabulously gay. :)
4: Jessica: American, from Arkansas doing a Eurorail trip all around Europe. She´s incredibly loud but she is so nice and is kind of an angel- she works with kids who were like victims of rape and stuff. It´s incredible. Today was her last day.
Those are the main players. There are others but I haven´t spent much time with the rest.
Okay. Want photos?
Family Dinner Night at Kaitlin and Ollie´s
(Fajitas)
Cafe con leche and Brownie with ice cream :)
Puerta Alcalá
Warren and I in Plaza Dos de Mayo
Love and miss all of you. Sorry the entry was so long. :)
martes, 8 de marzo de 2011
Los gatos and the theory of mañana...
Weird title right? Yeah, I know. Let me explain. So un gato literally means "cat". However, it is also has become what people call Madrileños, or people from Madrid. It started quite some time ago, the exact amount I´m not sure of but that´s really not that important. But I would say, at basically the start of the city of Madrid because there was this giant wall that was built to keep people out of the city. This king wanted to get into Madrid but couldn´t because of the wall that he couldn´t get around One day there came this guy, who said to the king, "Listen, King. I can get you into the city- I´m an amazing climber." And so this guy climbed one hell of a wall and got the king into the city. They nicknamed this guy "El gato". After a while "gato" started to refer to people of exceptional bravery, and after an even longer time, it just refered to all Madrileños, not just the brave ones.
Now that you have the story of "los gatos" now I need to explain the theory of mañana. Everyone knows what stereotypes are. And mostly, they are pretty funny and accurate. Well one stereotype of Spaniards is that they are lazy- they have siestas and don´t work hard. Well the theory of mañana is this exact theory. For centuries Spaniards have had visions of grandeur only to succumb to this inevitable feeling of "mañana, we´ll start mañana." And then mañana turns into days, weeks, months, and even 150 years. There are many examples of this theory at work, but one is the city hall in Madrid, which took los gatos 150 years after the conception of the idea to even start. That´s funny right? See, stereotypes are so funny!
Okay. Enough history right? I´m assuming you want to see photos and you may even have the slightest interest in my well being and how Í´m fairing in this city since you´re following my blog! So! Here we go...
Yesterday and today have been beauuuuutiful out. Like 56 degrees, sunny (so it feels warmer) and packed with happy Spaniards walking around enjoying life, or "aprovechando la vida" as we say here in Spain. Yesterday I went to this amazing outdoor market called El Rostro. It´s basically 20 blocks or so of vendors selling things from food, to clothes to hookah tubes and naked barbie dolls. Seriously.
So after this market we did a lot more walking. We ran into this place that used to be where Franco stored all his amunition and guns and stuff and has since turned into a public library. It´s pretty haggard looking on the outside because it was bombed. hmmm...
This is the remaining part of the wall.
Okay. Enough history right? I´m assuming you want to see photos and you may even have the slightest interest in my well being and how Í´m fairing in this city since you´re following my blog! So! Here we go...
Yesterday and today have been beauuuuutiful out. Like 56 degrees, sunny (so it feels warmer) and packed with happy Spaniards walking around enjoying life, or "aprovechando la vida" as we say here in Spain. Yesterday I went to this amazing outdoor market called El Rostro. It´s basically 20 blocks or so of vendors selling things from food, to clothes to hookah tubes and naked barbie dolls. Seriously.
And then we found the most amazing market called "Mercado de San Miguel". It´s incredible. It was started a super long time ago but was just refurbished within the last decade to make it awesome. Anthony Bourdain came here.
The entrance...
Some wine....
Some fruit...
Some tarts...
If you want to see more of my photos, you should go to my Facebook and check my albums.
And then from here Kaitlin and Ollie left while Mary, Adrianna and I went to get some tapas right near Plaza Mayor. And we did that for a couple hours, had a pitcher of Sangria and enjoyed an AMAZING plate of cheese...
There was Sheep, Goat, roquefort, camenbert and idiazabal. wow...
Okay. Well. I don´t feel super well today, but I´m going to muscle through and get a coffee and go to the museums today because it´s supposed to rain.
Ciao!
domingo, 6 de marzo de 2011
The First few days
Well hello there! I can´t believe anyone would actually read my blog. I´ve always thought blogs were for yuppie hipsters or the angsty teens that need a resource to vent their frustrations and/or emotions. Apparently, blogs are also for 23 year olds who are traveling to europe and have people who actually want to know what´s going on in her life. hmmm... How do I keep you interested...
Once upon a time...
The flight went well- no delays, food service was on time and the flight attendants were cordial. I slept exactly 3 of the 7 hour flight. Despite my attempts of putting myself in a drug and wine induced coma, I only slept 3 friggin´ hours. Oh well... When I got to the airport, Kaitlin and Ollie were waiting for me! Sweeeeet! because traversing the gigantic metro system by myself with three bags would have been interesting to say the least. Thank god they were there to help me, the poor Ginger roaming around Madrid by her lonesome...
The first day was great but I almost passed out in my cafe con lech three times, into my tapas twice and walked into a car exactly one time. But I pushed through and stayed up until one am. We basically just walked around Malasaña (Google it. But basically it´s the trendy/gay district of Madrid. Pretty cheap, super cute, filled with lots of cafes, boutiques and stuff of that sort... :-) ) It was raining a lot that day so we ducked into a lot of stores, ate lots of things- new favorte: Napolitana con Choco. It´s like this amazing croissant sort of pastry thing stuffed with the most delicious chocolate you´ve ever had. It cost exactly 2€.
Yesterday was good. I slept in then went for a walk around Malasaña. Found these two amerian girls, Mary and Adriana, and we hung out the rest of the day into the night. We went on this tapas tour. 14€ and we went to 4 bars and had some delcious tapas incluuuuuding, Bulls Tail marinated in Chocolate and Red Wine. It tasted exactly like beef stew no joke. Then after that I met up with Ollie and Kaitlin for some gelato (Nutella flavored) and then for a couple beers/glass of rioja.
then i went to bed. I have a funny story for later, but right now i´m off to Rostro and getting a cup of coffee
ciao ciao ciao
Kendall
Once upon a time...
The flight went well- no delays, food service was on time and the flight attendants were cordial. I slept exactly 3 of the 7 hour flight. Despite my attempts of putting myself in a drug and wine induced coma, I only slept 3 friggin´ hours. Oh well... When I got to the airport, Kaitlin and Ollie were waiting for me! Sweeeeet! because traversing the gigantic metro system by myself with three bags would have been interesting to say the least. Thank god they were there to help me, the poor Ginger roaming around Madrid by her lonesome...
The first day was great but I almost passed out in my cafe con lech three times, into my tapas twice and walked into a car exactly one time. But I pushed through and stayed up until one am. We basically just walked around Malasaña (Google it. But basically it´s the trendy/gay district of Madrid. Pretty cheap, super cute, filled with lots of cafes, boutiques and stuff of that sort... :-) ) It was raining a lot that day so we ducked into a lot of stores, ate lots of things- new favorte: Napolitana con Choco. It´s like this amazing croissant sort of pastry thing stuffed with the most delicious chocolate you´ve ever had. It cost exactly 2€.
Yesterday was good. I slept in then went for a walk around Malasaña. Found these two amerian girls, Mary and Adriana, and we hung out the rest of the day into the night. We went on this tapas tour. 14€ and we went to 4 bars and had some delcious tapas incluuuuuding, Bulls Tail marinated in Chocolate and Red Wine. It tasted exactly like beef stew no joke. Then after that I met up with Ollie and Kaitlin for some gelato (Nutella flavored) and then for a couple beers/glass of rioja.
then i went to bed. I have a funny story for later, but right now i´m off to Rostro and getting a cup of coffee
ciao ciao ciao
Kendall
Suscribirse a:
Entradas (Atom)