Bienvenidos a España!

not a goodbye

2006-12-14T11:25:00.000-08:00

Every weekday coming out of the metro station to get to the Institute I pass by a large mural with a poem written by the admirable doctor Gregorio Marañón. He writes a line that I´ve adopted as my own:

"Amo tanto a España, porque la conozco."

I got to know Spain for three and a half months, and I love her.

Hasta luego.

Bittersweet

2006-12-13T01:51:00.000-08:00

I feel like my life ever since I started college has been incredibly bittersweet. I’m always experiencing new things, yet constantly leaving them behind. I have many homes, and I love and feel loved in all of them. When I’m in Miami, I enjoy the weather, the food, the dancing. In Peoria, I enjoy nature, the relaxation, my church. When I’m in Boston, it’s the pronounced seasons, the academic feel, the nightlife. In Madrid I’ve enjoyed the history, the constant activities, the aesthetic beauty of the city. And in all four places, I LOVE the people! And it’s great to be in any of these places. But by being in one of them, it means I’m not in the other three. Bittersweet.

I have two days left in Spain. I am so psyched about going back to P-town. But I am so sad to be leaving Madrid. It’s been an incredible semester. Alicia and I sat down today and decided to thank God for every big and little thing He’s blessed us with this semester. It was a long list. One of the praises mentioned was giving thanks for all the things that will happen as a result of this trip. For the things we don’t yet see. I love that. Already I feel like I’ve learned a lot, but I’m sure I’ll realize even more later on, and I know God will continue growing what was planted in the past three and a half months.

It’ll be so weird not to be able to swing by the Prado after school, or go get some tapas and sangria for dinner, or row a boat on the lake at the Parque (or at least, watch Julia row). I’ll miss Madrid. And I will definitely miss the people I met in the program. Some of them go to BU, and it’s so cool that we’ll be able to see each other again. But some of them are at USC or Northwestern or Brandeis and I will miss them like crazy! We’ve shared so much since September 6. And in two days, it’ll actually be goodbye.

La Granja

2006-12-13T01:44:00.000-08:00

As mentioned in my previous post, I went with my host family to a place outside of Segovia for the day on Saturday. La Granja is the first Bourbon palace and has beautiful grounds. It was so cold that day, but we bundled up and headed to the mountains. We saw the palace, and walked the gardens picking up pinecones and pretty twigs to decorate their Christmas tree. We tried waking up the bats to no avail. We walked into a small cave and climbed up a mini-waterfall. We almost got lost in the labyrinth and took many pictures of the fountains and of Ignacio and I getting eaten by a statue. After our nature walk we had lunch at a tavern nearby and were almost in a food coma by the time we got to the car. We stopped by a Home Depot-type store on the way back to pick up paint and got back around 5pm. All in all, ‘twas a very good day with the host family.

Lost in Translation Again

2006-12-13T01:40:00.000-08:00

There have been embarrassing moments throughout the semester when I supposedly knew Spanish, yet was completely mistaken on the meaning of certain words. In my defense however, Spanish in Mexico IS different from Spanish in Spain. Even so, there have been two recent instances that taught me some more about Spanish vocabulary:

Throughout the semester Ignacio, my “little brother”, has felt free to inform me every time he is “constipado.” In my mind, he’s informing me he’s constipated…why I would ever need to or want to know that, I have no clue. But every once in a while he makes this weird face and tells me he’s constipado. One time at the dinner table he asked his dad if he was constipado and the dad said yes, and I felt kinda awkward. One time he asked ME if I was constipada and I gave him the weirdest look and said NO. APPARENTLY “constipado” does not mean constipated. It means congested. Aha! This new meaning makes a lot more sense now. He asked me if I was constipada right after I had sniffed. It’s good to know he doesn’t refer to bowel movements all the time.

Last week Pilar, my host mom, invited me to go to the family to a place outside of Segovia because every year they pick “piñas”. It’s their tradition. Piñas is pineapples. I’m not too familiar with the customs of Spain, but I’m pretty sure pineapple-picking in the middle of December is NOT too common in these parts. At first I thought I had heard wrong, but she kept saying piñas so I knew my hearing was fine. So, partly because I wanted to spend time with them, partly because I was extremely curious as to the pineapple-picking ordeal, I went with them on Saturday. Alas, piñas can mean pineapples, but it can also mean pinecones. Once again, aha! It makes more sense! It was so cute. We went through the forest picking up pinecones and twigs with lichen to decorate the bottom of their Christmas tree.

I really like I when misunderstandings clear up in non-embarrassing ways.

Ten years later...

2006-12-13T01:38:00.000-08:00

Last Wednesday, Marina and I explored Madrid…again. =0) A lot of sight-seeing, a lot of walking, and a lot of great conversation. On my request, we headed over to the area of Príncipe Pío. Why this area? Ten years ago, little 5th grade Ximena stayed in the Hotel Príncipe Pío for two weeks with about 75 other little 5th graders for our field trip. I didn’t even know if the hotel still existed, but sure enough after much walking around randomly, eureka! I give you the crappy hotel I stayed in a decade ago (don’t mind the family in my picture).

Proud moment

2006-12-07T17:38:00.000-08:00

Tonight was a proud moment for me. A semester accomplishment if you will. I, Ximena Valdes, finished reading all 866 pages of "El ingenioso hidalgo don Quijote de la Mancha."

It's a big deal yo. I didn't slack off on the reading like I've done with countless other books in literature classes. This book has traveled to many cities throughout Spain and has accompanied me on many many metro rides throughout Madrid.

I think I'll buy myself one of those Certificate of Accomplishment they give you in kindergarten.

Small world?

2006-12-07T17:35:00.000-08:00

I saw a couple at the Cantata that was presented at church that morning. The woman was originally from Pamplona but had married an American and moved to the States. They were visiting for now but feel called to move permanently to work with college students in Pamplona. I wanted to introduce myself ‘cuz I’ve basically inherited the whole “let me talk to random strangers” attitude from my mom. So I start chatting with the couple and find out they’re from Florida. “Cool! I’m from Miami!” “We’re the leaders of Gator Christian Ministry at UF” “No way! Do you know Giorey?” “Of course we know Giorey!” As soon as I mentioned our mutual friend, everything came to me. Giorey, a friend of mine from Miami who’s now at UF had told me about this couple who was returning to Spain and she was praying about coming for a bit. This is so awesome! I’m studying abroad in Madrid, visit Pamplona for a weekend where I meet a couple living in Gainesville who know a friend of mine from Miami. Small world? Big God.=0)

Pamplona

2006-12-07T17:31:00.000-08:00

My sincerest apologies to my readers (all four of you) for the lack of posts. However, I’m back! Assignments, outings, more assignments, etc have kept me from blogging. So here we go: Pamplona!

Last weekend I took my last trip in Spain to the northern city of Pamplona (where the famous run of the bulls occurs every July 7th). I went to visit some family friends from Mexico that moved there in 2000. It’s a family of five who I hadn’t seen since I was six years old. Honestly, I really couldn’t remember anything about this family I hadn’t seen in 14 years. However, I felt like I was visiting family. For one thing, they’re Mexican and I have this concept in my head that Mexicans I know from Mexico=family. Secondly though, this is a couple that was super good friends with my parents when they were newly-weds. They shared so much together, including having kids around the same time (their oldest son is ten days older than me). So since last week was such a crappy week what with ridiculous assignments mixed with homesickness, I was really excited about spending time with people who loved my parents and who loved me.

So apparently I’m the same today as when I was six (just bigger). Diana (the mom) found me at the station right away telling me I looked the same. Then Daniel (the dad) tells me he remembers that the last time they saw me I was obsessed with Beauty and the Beast and sang the songs ALL THE TIME. Um…is it bad that I haven’t changed since 1992? Whatever.

They have three kids: Rodrigo (20), Bárbara (18), and Samuel (17). I sooo needed this weekend with the Jimenez family! Oh the Mexican food I ate, mmmm. We put up the Christmas tree while watching Shrek in Spanish. I walked all over the old part of the city with Bárbara. I got to get to know all three “kids” really well this weekend, and by Sunday I wasn’t ready to come back to Madrid yet! They spoiled me so much with food, generosity, and hugs! I’ve been needing family hugs for a while now. I think I set a personal record for longest church service attended on Sunday morning: three and a half hours. Whoa buddy. It was cool for a day, but I doubt I’d be as positive having a three and a half hour service every week.

Sunday night was the first presentation of the church’s Christmas Cantata. It was really cool ‘cuz they sang it in a huge Parrish Church all decorated and stuff. Everyone was chatting afterwards for such a long time that they had to kick us out of the Parrish. Man was I missing my family as well as Mexico in those moments! Maybe I should move back someday…
Monday morning I took a train from Pamplona at 7am. It was a sweet train ride. They bought my ticket and everything! I got to stretch, watch a movie, take a nap. Once you take a train you start asking yourself why you’ve been wasting your time with busses, and then you remember the price difference. I got to Madrid 10 minutes before my art class started so I raced to the Institute and showed up not too late. This was the perfect weekend to recharge me for the last two weeks (now one week) left in Spain.

Craziness

2006-11-26T15:57:00.000-08:00

They said it couldn’t be done, but I did it! In just one day I visited the three main museums of Madrid (the Prado, the Reina Sofia, and the Thyssen) PLUS an exhibit on Sargent and Sorolla’s artwork. CRAZY! Yesterday, Lensay and I spent from 10am to 7pm with a quick lunch break analyzing art, answering questions, choosing paintings all for one class that demands way too much. Am I done with my projects? Not even close. But they first step was taken, and in only 9 hours.

Segovia

2006-11-26T15:47:00.000-08:00

Friday: we took a “field trip” to Segovia for the day and it was pretty sweet (despite the crazy wind attacks throughout the day). We saw the cathedral (shocker), the Aqueduct (sooo cool), and the Alcazar (I’m in love with that castle). Oh, we also spent THREE HOURS eating the biggest meal of our lives! It was amazing! I guess as a “last meal together” type thing (*tear*), our program took us to this famous restaurant and rented out the bottom area. We had so much food! Menu: salad with lamb, mushrooms and apple; leeks and roasted pepper; scrambled eggs with potatoes; grilled vegetables with olive oil; roasted suckling pig (yes!); wine; an incredible chocolate/crepe/ice cream dessert; and café con leche. Mmm…I’m not gonna lie, even the girls all wanted to unbutton their pants we were so full.

Right before going into the castle I all of a sudden remembered I had been there ten years ago. It was a really cool feeling knowing that I was coming back with new knowledge, taking the same pictures I had when I was half the age I am now. I love being here. I love it so much. I only have three weeks left so I’ve been reflecting a lot. And I’m so excited about returning to friends and family, but I know I’ll miss so many things once I go back. Okay, I’ll get more emotional later, I can’t afford to right now. Hasta luego lectores.

Happy (belated) Thanksgiving

2006-11-26T15:40:00.000-08:00

This past week was a bit tough emotionally, for everyone here I think. Work is piling up on us, and we weren’t going home for Thanksgiving. Good thing is, we all realized the reasons for our grouchiness so we were pretty quick to forgive when tensions rose. Anyway, on Thanksgiving Day I got to talk to my mom on the phone, which definitely helped. But I was just weirded out that this was the first Thanksgiving since moving to the States that my family wasn’t together celebrating. In fact, everyone was pretty spread out. My dad and Rodrigo were in Germany, my mom and Alvar in P-town, and I in Spain. Alas, I wanted to do something, even if it was small, to celebrate. So a group of friends and I decided to go out to dinner to an American-style restaurant. So I call my host mom to let her know I wouldn’t be home for dinner and she was like (translated) “What are you saying?! But I’ve prepared an entire Thanksgiving meal for you! I just put the turkey in the oven and we’re using the placemats you gave us!” Yes, everything needs to be in exclamation points because everything was at a very high pitch lol. It was so nice, I got to the house and we had Thanksgiving together. And just to keep it Spanish (because God forbid we should skip eating some kind of pig meat), the turkey, that looked so beautiful on the outside, was STUFFED with pig meat. Ahh! It was really thoughtful though, and I appreciated it so much. So yeah, there are always a million reasons to give thanks, and Thursday night was an added bonus.

What's in a name?

2006-11-22T15:30:00.000-08:00

My little bro’s special I guess. He has a city AND a palace named after him. My family’s last name is on a dumpster…that can’t be a good thing can it?

Will we ever learn?

2006-11-22T15:28:00.000-08:00

I love Mexico dearly. And because I love it, because I love its people, I’m truly saddened by events like the one that occurred on Monday. I could go into a century of political history explaining the “democracy” of Mexico, past and present, but I won’t. I’ll just say that the 2000 presidential election was a turning point in Mexico’s government after 71 years of single-party domination. The past six years haven’t been peachy, but it was starting to appear like a greater sense of order was taking place. Then Monday happened.

The 2006 presidential election had declared Felipe Calderon as winner and new president of Mexico. Although it was an extremely narrow victory (very similar to US 2000 election), the democratic process declared that the people voted for Calderon. So what happened on Monday? Andres Lopez Obrador, who lost the election, decided to declare himself president and start his own government. Are you kidding me?! At a glance, it may seem like something to laugh at. But it isn’t. First of all, he actually has supporters. He’s not some crazy guy no one’s paying attention to. Second of all, guess how the Mexican Revolution started? (Not that I’m saying the 1910 Revolution was a bad thing, but another one now would bring more harm than good). Third of all, by declaring that the results of the election don’t matter, Obrador is spitting in the face of what Mexico is trying to become. Doesn’t he realize that he’s hurting the very people he claims to represent? This seems to be a cycle in Mexican history...

I don’t know what’s going to happen, but I pray things don’t escalate. Here’s an article for more info: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15820551/

PS: I hate the title of the article: “Mexico loser starts own government” um…how are we supposed to take that seriously?

Pasión Eterna: Christian Performing Arts

2006-11-19T15:58:00.000-08:00

Tonight after church, there was a performing arts night at a nearby club where different people from the church would perform “Christian pieces.” So Alicia, Juhee, and I walked over together to check it out. There was a cover charge of 6 euros (which I’m pretty sure I can get reimbursed for). Then I ordered the most expensive coke of my life, which cost 4 euros. Some interesting things happened at the club:

1) I must confess that I have a huge distrust in guys here. In the past two months I’ve had to restrain myself from yelling/slapping several individuals of the male gender. In fact, there was an episode where I chose not to restrain myself. Anyway, it kind of sucks because even if a guy has no bad intentions in approaching me, I assume he does. So at the club this guy tried to talk to me and I kind of blew him off. But then I thought, this is “Christian night,” and if he’s not a Christian and is assuming I am, what kind of impression am I giving here? Then I started thinking what I usually start thinking in these awkward guy situations: How am I being the light of Christ? I go around with a mean look about me and I’m not friendly to strangers…at least not guy strangers. I mean, it seems like the safe thing to do, but what if I’m supposed to be sharing Christ with that person? Arg, it’s frustrating. Well, if I failed the evangelism test that time, God gave me another opportunity right away. This other guy who was sitting at the table next to me started asking me about the church. So I gave him some information on it and stuff. Then we got on the topic of faith and he kept saying things like “earning you way to heaven” so I started sharing about God’s grace. It was a good conversation, and was the first time I’ve shared my faith like that in Spanish. We didn’t talk too much since there was always a piece being performed, and my friends and I decided to leave at the intermission, but I hope that what was said will stay with him. He was invited by one of the performers and told me he was a great guy. So I’m glad to know that there’s at least one person in this man’s life shining for Christ.

2) Alicia’s majoring in theater, so clearly she has a passion for the performing arts. Tonight her heart was hurting a little (and I’m going to have to agree with her) because of the quality, or lack thereof, of the pieces being performed. While some were pretty decent, others made me want to look away they were so bad. Why is it when a song has the word Jesus or a dance is a Christian “interpretive movement” we automatically accept it as good art? Why do we lower the standard for performance pieces? If we believe that God is the author of creativity, why aren’t we overflowing with it? But then again…God wants heart. And you can give all the talent you want, but if it’s not done with a praising heart, it’s not a sacrifice the Lord will accept. Scripture tells us to “Make a joyful noise to the Lord,” not necessarily a “beautiful” one, or “talented” one. Where’s the balance? As Christ followers, we should be at the forefront of the creative arts, business, inventions, social work. But is it one of those things that’s easier said than done? Could we really turn away someone who wants to serve the Lord with their talent, even though they don’t have much of it? Any thoughts?

3) While I was talking to the guy from point number 1, I looked over and saw that a friend of mine from BU was there. Weird! So I excused myself from the conversation for a sec and went to get her. She was there taking pictures of the event for her internship. She knows Alicia and I are Christians and now she knows we go to that church. I think Alicia and I were both kind of holding our breath because she would be witnessing not so great Christian performances, but also thinking, God can use absolutely anything to bring others to Him.

And the mountains rejoice

2006-11-19T15:45:00.000-08:00

I always feel so loved in nature. I feel as if God is giving me all these sights to take in, to be overwhelmed and wowed by Him. Oh God, how beautiful is Your earth! I got together with four other friends to go hiking on Saturday. Does Madrid have places to go hiking you ask? No, not at all. Which is why we took a train two hours out of Madrid to ESCAPE CITY LIFE! I really had no idea I was so in love with the outdoors until I moved to Peoria. I still love big cities, but there’s so much time that can go by before I head out to nature again.

It was a work out, and I certainly “felt the burn,” especially getting out of bed this morning. But it was such a surreal feeling to enjoy such majestic mountains and forest and lagoons in Spain. And the five of us had a blast together trying to figure out the trails, joking around the entire time, enjoying our packed lunches on top of huge rocks overlooking the lagoon, acting as a cover for one of the girls who had to “pop a squat,” and just getting to know each other even better than before. What a blessing to enjoy such a gorgeous day with such great friends!

A night of dinner and dancing

2006-11-19T15:27:00.000-08:00

I love my internship. Hate the commute, but very much like my internship. Not only did I learn of what I don’t want to do for a living (lol), I also continue receiving awesome perks. Friday night I spent absolutely no money on a formal dinner that actually costs 31 euros. I got to dress up, have a HUGE meal (three main courses), and enjoy the company of really funny Spaniards. Before dinner, some gifts were raffled off (I didn’t win) and my boss shared some “inspirational words.” Then there was a comedian who was pretty funny, but once again, Spaniards have a really different sense of humor than Americans and even Mexicans for that matter. But w/e, dinner was great and as before mentioned, gigantic. After dinner there was dancing to burn off the calories. I went to bed at 2:30am to wake up at 7:30am for the next day’s adventures. But of course it was worth it. I like these people.

Staying connected...way too much

2006-11-14T15:10:00.000-08:00

I’ve fallen into quite an unhealthy habit. I refuse to be alone. I always feel like I need to somehow be connected to the outside world. I check my e-mail (both hotmail and BU), facebook, and other blogs way too many times a day. I’m constantly surrounded by people and if I’m not, I sign onto AIM to talk to someone. The only time I’m not communicating with others is when I’m reading or sleeping. I hate that.

I’m definitely an extrovert so I recognize that I get my energy from others, but I also love being by myself and reflecting. Maybe I’m like this here in Spain because I don’t want to completely fall behind with what’s going on with people in the States. And I certainly appreciate the technology that allows me to keep in touch with friends and family. But this obsession has to stop, or at least decrease. I have a month left here, and while I don’t think I’m wasting all my time and not exploring things, I’ve been procrastinating in my schoolwork, not going to sleep on time, and falling behind on the reading I’d like to and have to do. I realize by posting this blog I’m once again choosing the cop out and “connecting” to the outside world. But meh, I’ll start working on it tomorrow. =0P

Superficial Complaints

2006-11-14T15:08:00.000-08:00

Complaint #1: I know it’s very un-Christian of me, but I really cannot stand my “little brother” here. I tend to stay away from him as much as possible, yet he seeks me out and doesn’t leave me alone. He’s 12, yet to me, he acts like a five year old. He’s incredibly disrespectful to his parents, has one of the loudest voices in the world, and is just plain aggravating. It’s sad, because I’ve gotten to a point where he doesn’t even have to do anything annoying but I still get irritated in simply having to talk to him. I know I shouldn’t be taking this attitude, but it’s so hard not to. I really have to pray about this, ‘cuz I still have a month left here to deal with this. Only a month?! Where does the time go?!?!?!?!

Complaint #2: So…I guess my face has just been informed that puberty took place a while ago and wants to catch up. I had pretty good skin in middle and high school. And now…there is never a moment I’m not breaking out. Yuck, most definitely an annoyance right now.

I realize these two issues are nowhere near real problems, hence the title “Superficial complaints.” I just needed to vent a bit…

Salamanca

2006-11-14T15:02:00.000-08:00

…was so cool! A high school friend of mine is studying in Toledo this semester and asked me last-minute if I wanted to go. Why not?! So we took a bus over for a couple of days and explored the beauty that is the “casco antiguo” (the old part) of Salamanca. It impresses me so much how every time you turn a corner you come across yet another incredibly old building that has been around since way before we were even a nation. The University there is one of the oldest in the world (1243) after Paris and Bologna and I got chills reflecting upon the fact that I was walking through halls that have been filled with countless brilliant scholars of the past. It’s kind of like walking through Harvard, but ten times better. The Cathedral was also really impressive (not as amazing as Sevilla’s, but still very awesome). My feet were totally worn out by the end of the trip from all the walking we did. I didn’t think I’d make it to Salamanca this semester, and I’m so psyched I was able to. Check out the pics: http://www.ximenainspain.shutterfly.com

Weekend Plans part II

2006-11-10T15:30:00.000-08:00

I'm not going to Portugal, that was settled on Tuesday. But I've decided to go on a shorter trip. I leave in 7 hours for a two-day trip to Salamanca. Updates next week!

Instruction

2006-11-10T15:22:00.000-08:00

On the tenth day of the first month the people went up from the Jordan and camped at Gilgal on the eastern border of Jericho. And Joshua set up at Gilgal the twelve stones they had taken out of the Jordan. He said to the Israelites, "In the future when your descendants ask their fathers, 'What do these stones mean?' tell them, 'Israel crossed the Jordan on dry ground.' For the Lord your God dried up the Jordan before you until you had crossed over. The Lord your God did to the Jordan just what he had done to the Red Sea when he dried it up before us until we had crossed over. He did this so that all the peoples of the earth might know that the hand of the Lord is powerful and so that you might always fear the Lord your God."
- Joshua 4:19-24

God doesn't have grandkids, only children. It's not my parents' faith, it's my own. But I thank them for showing me stones from the Jordan River, so I may know the power of the Lord MY God.

Today's gifts

2006-11-07T10:34:00.000-08:00

I started off the day a bit discouraged with the whole Portugal dilemma, on top of the hundred other things currently on my mind. But I’m feeling a lot more relieved now since I received four small “gifts” that encouraged me quite a bit.

Gift 1: I ran into Alicia as she was getting out of class and I wanted to talk to her really badly what with my stress and all, but decided to just say hey. She was like “you wanna get a coffee or something, I feel like I haven’t talked to you in a while.” Yes! So we went to a café, and I was able to unload, and we were able to catch up, and I decided not to go to Portugal but felt a sense of peace, and it was good.=0)

Gift 2: I got my Don Quijote midterm back and was really nervous when he started talking about all the mistakes we had made and not to do them for our final project. But when I got my test back it was an A- with an up arrow meaning it’s really close to an A…weird, but good.

Gift 3: I called my boss today to find out what location I’d be at tonight and he told me he had some planning to do for an upcoming event so I could take the evening off. Sweet! It’s so nice not to have to come home at 10pm for dinner by myself.

Gift 4: I freaked out a couple of weeks ago when I checked my balance online and realized I had much less than expected. Where did all my money go?! And sadly, it wasn’t a mistake. I could trace every cent. My first instinct was naturally, to worry. But I really decided to give it up to God. It’s hard, ‘cuz I feel like finances are something that if I worry about enough, something good will happen. But I really made an effort not to do that, to give a substantial offering even when I thought I could make “better” use of the money, and to trust that God would provide. So today I was looking for an outline among my papers, and found an envelope nearby with money I had put aside in the beginning of the semester that I had completely forgotten about. 300 dollars and 100 euros. Very nice. My first thought: Thank you God. My second: Maybe I should go to Portugal lol I’m still staying here for the weekend though, and now there’s really no need to worry about my financial situation. God’s good.

Weekend plans

2006-11-07T10:33:00.000-08:00

I had planned to go to Lisbon this weekend. Portugal would’ve been incredible! But alas, I had to decide by today…and decided not to. I know, sad. I’m a weirdo for not going. But after weighing out the pros and cons, I concluded it would be unwise of me to go. Main reasons: finances are running low (at least, much lower than expected), I have tons of work to do (much of it’s due next week), and my energies are running low on the travel thing.

So I’ll be staying in the country this entire semester, which feels kind of lame. But I don’t feel terrible about it ‘cuz I’ve been to other countries in Europe before. And I’m definitely planning on returning later on in life! Greece, Portugal, Great Britain, and Austria call to me, and it’s only polite I answer right?

The two-month mark

2006-11-07T10:32:00.000-08:00

I can’t believe I’ve been here for two months already. Time goes by so quickly. But now that I’ve hit the two-month mark, I’m starting to feel the homesickness. It’s not that I haven’t been missing people until now, and it’s also not that I’m ready to go back yet…I’m at some middle ground. I still want to stay in Spain for a while longer, but I find myself thinking about Peoria and Boston a lot more now. I’m starting to talk about things like driving a car, Thanksgiving dinner with my family, DimSum breakfast in Chinatown, movie nights in people’s houses or dorms. I know this “episode” is probably hitting me the hardest right now, and soon I’ll get a second wind to finish up the semester. But for now, I should probably stay away from looking at old pictures…

Bellísima Sevilla

2006-11-06T06:20:00.000-08:00

Don’t ask me to choose a favorite city in Spain. I can’t do it. I’ve tried to decide, but the more I see of this country, the more in awe I am of its beauty. This past weekend I spent it with my southern gal Rosie and her friends in Sevilla. We went to the Cathedral (which is humongogigantic! It’s the third largest cathedral in the world), to the Alcazar, to the shopping district, to the Plaza de España (probably my favorite place in the city), went ceramics shopping (apparently a big thing in Sevilla), and had an incredible “Arab baths” experience.

On Friday night, Rosie, her friend Caitlin, and I made an appointment for the Arab baths at midnight, which is actually a perfect time to go. These baths were incredible. There was a Jacuzzi-type bath, a sauna with aromatherapy, a scalding hot bath, a freezing cold one, and a lukewarm bath. K, these “baths” are like pools, ‘cuz everyone’s in their bathing suit…just wanted to clarify that. Anyway, when you get to the different temperature baths, you’re supposed to soak in the hot bath, then go straight to the cold (which of course is insane) and then go to the lukewarm bath. I really didn’t like the idea of having my body plunge into freezing waters after being practically sweating in a hot bath, but it was magnificent. Once I was back in the lukewarm bath, my muscles were so relaxed I almost fell asleep. Advice: if you ever go to southern Spain, EXPERIENCE THE ARAB BATHS!

While there are no pictures of the baths, there are pictures of other stuff, so check ‘em out!

www.ximenainspain.shutterfly.com

Besides the great cultural experiences in Sevilla, it was just so good to see Rosie again! She’s from Alabama but we met randomly in Miami a year and a half ago and have been keeping in touch ever since. I roomed with her sister Fran this past summer during my internship in Homestead, and I’m basically in love with their family. I was so uplifted and encouraged by Rosie this past weekend. She’s an admirable Godly woman who’s a true example of what a Christian should be. I’m not saying she’s perfect, but her humility and genuine heart before others is completely refreshing to anyone who has the privilege of meeting her.

Other huge praise: Thursday night I went to sleep and my toe was hurting a bit but I didn’t think much of it. I woke up at 5am in so much pain and could barely stand the bed sheet on my foot. I had an ingrown toenail. I’ve had one before and had to have surgery on it, and I knew I had it again. I didn’t know what to do since I would be leaving to the bus station in an hour and a half. It was terrible timing and I started praying…hard. My toe continued hurting, even in Sevilla, and when I took off my show at Rosie’s house, my toe was swollen and red and gross. I kept praying though… Then, towards nighttime the pain was less intense and the next morning when I woke up it was gone altogether. My toe hasn’t bothered me one bit since and it looks like it’s healing by itself. Of course, I know it has some help… Thanks so much God.

An Eventful Day

2006-11-02T15:30:00.000-08:00

I left the house at 8:50am to get to my women in Spain class. I got there late, but it’s cool, ‘cuz half our class didn’t show up anyway and she started late. After class I had to run some errands. I came back to the Instituto and tried to figure out a schedule for next semester. Basically, I wanted to punch the screen I was getting so upset. I need to pray about next semester’s schedule…and housing…and changing my bio major to a minor. Meh, it’ll all work out. After my rant against BU, I got together with Alicia and Juhee to read Scripture and pray. Man that was so good for me. We started reading the book of Hosea today…intense.

Then I went to my Don Quijote class and got in an argument with Paco (our professor). It wasn’t really an argument, just a debate. It was a bit frustrating for me to defend my case because a) I’m not an expert on literature and history like he is and b) I am not as proficient in Spanish as in English. I think he likes it when we fight back though. Every time we start a debate he says that we don’t have enough time to discuss it all during class but one of these days we’ll go talk about it over a couple of beers. He didn’t offer me a beer, but he did say we would keep talking about it. After class I went with three friends to the Palacio Real. I’m so glad we went because I was starting to feel like I would soon leave Spain without having visited the Palace. It’s crazy to think people lived there! I kind of reverted back to a five-year old wanting to be a princess so I could live in a palace.

After the Palacio Real we went to go buy some cookies. Not just any cookies…these cookies were made by nuns, who you’re not allowed to see. Since it’s Spain it’s not that crazy to see nuns and priests walking around the streets of Madrid. In fact, today a priest attempted to convert my Jewish friend near the Instituto. These nuns however, are special and so you have to ring the bell, tell them you want cookies, walk down a couple of hallways, ask for what cookies you want and they hand them to you through a rotating platform thingy. You can only hear the nun’s voice. Today however, something incredible happened. We saw two of the nuns! As we were walking towards the rotating platform/window a lady was coming out of a door close by and two of the nuns were waving goodbye. When they saw us they closed the door right away and turned more locks than we could count. We bought our cookies and went to a café nearby to drink some café con leche along with them.

I then had to go to work, and on the way back one of the metro lines wasn’t working so I had to re-route my way home. When I got out of the metro stop it was raining, and I had forgotten my umbrella. It was great though. By that time I was really tired, I hadn’t been home all day, and I was feeling pretty claustrophobic so some cool rain felt pretty perfect at that point. I had dinner, took a shower, and will now start packing. I’m going to Sevilla tomorrow and am staying with my lovely Rosie! I’m so excited. Photos shall be posted next week. Hasta luego!

Two and half years

2006-11-01T14:18:00.000-08:00

I got my digital camera for my birthday in July of 2004. Since then, I’ve taken a lot of pictures with it. I stayed up way too late last night looking at ALL of them. Two and a half years of pictures. It doesn’t seem like a long time, but so much has happened since July 2004. Life has dealt with every single person whose image was forever captured by my camera. Relationships have been formed, broken, restored. People have gotten married, some have moved away, others have passed away. People have started new jobs, bought a new house, seen more of the world. In the past two and a half years these people have been encouraged, they’ve felt defeated, they’ve laughed so hard their sides hurt, they’ve made others laugh as well. And in our day-to-day lives that soon became our past years, we’ve all learned. Through the good and the bad, experience teaches us, and then we live our lives based on what we’ve learned…hopefully.

TV Tales

2006-11-01T14:17:00.000-08:00

Tale #1: Tonight I was sitting on the couch watching TV with Ignacio. He was flipping through channels and one of the shows he passed was Blossom in Spanish. Blossom! I haven’t seen that show in forever! I wanted to be like “um, hey, can we leave it there?” But he wouldn’t like the show so I kept my mouth shut. Then, I see that they were also showing Felicity in Spanish. Ah! Is this “Bring back the shows from Ximena’s past” night? Sad, he didn’t stop there either. He finally chose a show on weird stories…blah.

Tale #2: Yesterday I came home after classes and the TV was on really loud. My host family leaves in the morning before I do so it wasn’t that they had left it on this morning. I figured Pilar was home for lunch so I said “Hola” in my usual loud voice. No answer. So then I figured Mariana (the maid) was in the basement or something. But no, I was home for a while and when I left for my internship no one had come home yet. Today, Pilar tells me that when she got home last night the TV was turned on but no one was home (no, I didn’t turn off the TV. It’s never on during the day so I figured there was a purpose behind this). So she turned it off, and as soon as she’s about to go to sleep she hears the TV turn on again really loud downstairs. She made Oscar go turn it off ‘cuz by that point she was scared. Dude, I’d be scared too if my TV was possessed. It was Halloween too. Ooo….

Happy Halloween

2006-11-01T14:09:00.000-08:00

Halloween's not really a big deal here so yesterday was a regular day like any other. So here's a blast from the past. Me as Cleopatra my first year at BU:

Cordoba and Granada

2006-10-30T17:29:00.000-08:00

There are few words to describe my weekend...but there are pictures (with captions). Maybe I'll blog more, but maybe I'll just keep it visual. On my trip I just have to say: I loved it! I loved it! I loved it!

http://www.ximenainspain.shutterfly.com

More cities to conquer!

2006-10-25T15:43:00.000-07:00

I’m peacing out tomorrow after my Don Quijote midterm to the beautiful cities of Cordoba and Granada. We’re going as a class, and it’ll be a nice reward after midterms. No internet until Sunday night. It’ll be good therapy for me; I’m becoming addicted...

So how 'bout that weather?

2006-10-25T15:41:00.000-07:00

You can tell by the title that this is clearly an interesting entry…You can skip it if you want.

First point: It’s been rainy for the past week. While some people complain and feel sad, the rain is a very good thing, as Madrid has been in a drought for quite some time now. As Paco, one of my professors says, “NO HAY AGUA!” (THERE’S NO WATER!) So the rain is quite the blessing (my words, not his).

Second point: Madridians are funny. The weather’s been getting chilly. I would not classify it as cold yet at all. Why then did I see three people wearing their winter coats this morning? You know, the marshmallow ones with the fur hood…

So out of it

2006-10-25T15:40:00.000-07:00

I have no idea what happened to my brain on Monday night, but it was not functioning! I had a presentation to do for my internship class, and I knew exactly what I was going to say. I had practiced it many times. I’m a pretty good public speaker. I don’t tend to get that nervous in front of a crowd. To my surprise, I got up there and BOMBED. Well, maybe not bombed. I’m pretty sure I didn’t fail. I have no idea why though, but I got so nervous, and I said “eh…” so many times it hurts me to think of it. It’s like everything that was in my brain vanished, and it was one of the worst presentations I’ve done in a really long time. It took me almost the entire presentation to finally get in my groove and remember what I needed to say. By that time I was on my second to last point.

My brain fart didn’t end there. After the presentation Lensay invited some friends over to celebrate the end of Ramadan. I was thinking of not going ‘cuz I felt so crappy, but I decided to do it, and maybe it would make me feel less crappy. So I get on the metro and call her once I was above ground again. It turns out…I had gone to the wrong stop! So I had to get my butt back on the metro and switch lines twice to finally get to the stop.

Once I finally got to Lensay’s though, we had a great time. We watched an episode of Grey’s Anatomy and Degrassi (it’s kinda weird watching TV after not having seen a show for so long). Since it was Eid we ate a lot. Pizza, brownies, cookies, Fanta limón... So the night did end up great after all, but I have no idea why during those hours my brain seemed to shut down.

Church

2006-10-25T15:39:00.000-07:00

…was amazing on Sunday. Well, it’s always great, and I’m sad that I’m not in town every weekend for it, but this past week was especially incredible. It’ll be hard to explain everything because it seems like I don’t have the right words, but I’ll attempt it. First of all, it was just GOOD being in the house of the Lord again. It seems like just by singing the praise songs in Spanish I’m lifted up. After singing, we had the message. This past week we had a guest pastor come from the States (Arkansas to be exact), and him and his wife are missionaries all over the world. They don’t speak Spanish so they announced that he would be giving the sermon in English and one of the youth of the church would translate. Obviously, I knew that would double the time spent sitting and listening, but I said kind of jokingly to Alicia, “I guess we’ll be doubly blessed.” I had no idea how dead on that comment was.

The point of the message was so simple, basically 2 Corinthians 5:21 “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” Christ’s sacrifice, and how we can’t earn it. But the way it was presented was completely eye-opening, using Scripture in a whole new way than I had heard before, and then to hear it again in Spanish was incredible. The translator (who must have been only about 17) was truly a blessing for those present. Not only was his translation very well done; he also spoke with the same emotion given originally in English. He has such an amazing ministry doing this. I thought during the sermon, “what if there weren’t people like this boy?” Even though the pastor’s message would have been the same, he would have been like “a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal.” (1 Cor. 13:1). So many of the things the pastor said really resonated in my heart, especially with the countless questions going on in my life right now. What was truly a God thing was that so many people there that day thought the same thing, that his message had been specifically spoken to them as well. God is mighty, and he can take one general message and work individually in each person’s heart.

After the service Alicia and I met another student studying here for the semester named Juhee. Originally from Korea, she’s also lived in Bangladesh, goes to Wharton School of Business at UPenn, and is now in Madrid for a while. We connected right away, and she’ll be joining Alicia, Liesse (another girl from the program), and I every week to read Scripture and pray together. She is what Anne of Green Gables would call “a kindred spirit” and I know God’s going to use us to bless each other.

My uncertainties are still present, but my God is so much greater than any of them, and He proved it beautifully on Sunday.

Madrid Weekend

2006-10-25T15:29:00.000-07:00

I love that I’m in a place where the common answers to “where are you going this weekend?” are Paris, Rome, London, Amsterdam, Morocco, Seville, Lisbon, Barcelona, etc. etc. It’s so awesome to have such easy access to all these different places. However, sometimes, it’s so nice to just stay in Madrid. (I find it a bit ironic than staying in Madrid is now one of the least cool things to do). Anyway, I did the “uncool” thing and stayed in Madrid this weekend…and it rocked.=0)

Friday I actually slept in (sweet sleep…), did some hw during the day and in the evening some friends and I went to the National Ballet. It was only 15 euros (technically I only paid 9, ‘cuz we get reimbursed 6 of them). Since it’s the Spanish ballet, there was obviously a lot of flamenco in it; and while it wasn’t as amazing as Sara Baras, it was still crazy good. Afterwards we ate a really cheap dinner and went to a churros place where we stuffed out faces with churros and chocolate, and talked until the wee hours of the morning.

Saturday, I went with my friend Lensay to the Escorial, situated north of Madrid. The Escorial is a palace/monastery built from 1563-1586 by king Felipe II in commemoration of his victory in battle (I think it was over the evil Protestants…). Anyway, we took a 50-minute train ride and had some amazing conversations along the way. Once we got there, it seemed like fall had burst open. The leaves were orange and reddish colors, and although it wasn’t as beautiful as New England’s autumn, it was still really pretty. The Escorial is HUGE! And something really cool happened while we were in the room full of the dead kings and queens of Spain. No, nobody came back to life…that would’ve been super cool! I remembered, once I was in that room, that I had been there before! Ten years ago, I was in the Escorial as a fifth grader learning about Spanish history. One of my friends back then got really freaked out in the room and had to leave with a chaperone. Ah, memories. Anyway, beautiful day in the Escorial.

In the evening we got back to Madrid and met up with some friends for a concert. If any of you watch Grey’s Anatomy, it was the band that does the theme song. Psapp, a British group came to Madrid and gave an awesome concert. Since I don’t even watch Grey’s I had never heard of these people, but since it was 3 euros I figured what the heck. Their music is definitely different, in a fun random noises kind of way, and it was a great atmosphere. After the concert we got to talk to the musicians outside, actually talk to them, when not everyone could ‘cuz they didn’t know English! ha!

We went out for pizza afterwards, and since it was so cheap we thought that when we ordered 8 pizzas, they were big slices of pizzas. WRONG! They brought out 8 full size pizzas that we couldn’t give back. Plus, since they had taken a while to bring them out they had given us two orders of fries on the house so we were even more full. We weren’t sure of what to do, so we called in backup. Great scene: 12 college students scarfing down pizza (clearly, the guys were of great help).

Sunday, I stayed home most of the day preparing for a presentation I had to do on Monday. In the evening I went to church and was sooo blessed (more on that in the next entry). I came home, had dinner with my familia while listening to the Madrid vs. Barcelona game on the radio (Madrid kicked butt), talked online with friends, and went to sleep. I won’t have another weekend in Madrid for a while, so this was one that was very much enjoyed.

Shout out to the Valdes brothers!

2006-10-19T16:04:00.000-07:00

I miss my brothers so much! So many things here remind me of them, and I can't wait to get home and give them each a huge hug. I don't know if they'll even read this, but in case they do:

You two rock! Los extraño muchísimo, pórtense bien y les hablo después... 'a receit?' '...yeah, i stole dat too'

Basically, the Valdes kids are awesome.

Peter Pan Syndrome

2006-10-19T16:02:00.000-07:00

“I don’t ever ever wanna grow up.” Peter Pan’s daughter sings that in her school play in the movie Hook. And while I’m not sharing that exact mentality (I love living life, and I would hate to get stuck at one point), I’m going through what most, if not all, college students go through as they realize they’re getting closer and closer to “the real world.” I’m trying hard not to FREAK OUT about my future! I’ve already gone through this before, but this time it feels different. Last time I went through my mini-crisis, the Lord placed peace in my heart and joy in the uncertainty. It felt wonderful to simply sit back and say, “God, I’ll do my part in my schoolwork and in seeking You more, and I trust You to do the rest.”

Proverbs 21:31 says “The horse is made ready for the day of battle, but victory rests with the Lord.”

And in a way, my mentality hasn’t shifted from last time. But in another way, I find myself wanting things that are very different than what I had wanted a while back. Many of my friends, some of whom I’ve known since middle school, are engaged or about to be. Many of them are starting jobs, paying rent or mortgages. And while I couldn’t be more excited for them, I don’t think I’m ready for most of the “adult” things in life. I still ask myself what I wanna be when I grow up. People have always told me I’m mature, but now I feel completely immature for almost everything outside of school. I don’t want to settle down for a while, and I’m not just talking about “settling down” in the marriage kind of way (because honestly, I’m no longer sure I want that at all). I mean settling down in the, “this is me living in one place, doing the responsible adult things I should do” kind of way. I love that I spent the summer in South Florida with awesome roommates. I love that I can just pick up and go study abroad in Europe for a semester. I love that I have no ties and little limitations as to what I can do. And maybe I’m on a life high right now that I’m not ready to come down from, but maybe I’m called to something completely different than what I had pictured for most of my life.

I know sometimes I take a naïve attitude to this. I can shut my eyes to the harshness of life. Now, I worry and care about other people’s real problems. I don’t shut my eyes to their reality. But outside those problems and social issues I’m passionate about, my biggest problem, my biggest personal dilemma is the huge paper I have due at the end of the semester. That is not an adult problem!

I was discussing this with some friends not too long ago and said, “It’s like I don’t know if I want to sit at the kids table or at the big people table. I want the fun and simplicity of the kids table, but the respect of the big people table. And should I even be sitting at the big people table if I still call it that?”

Emily, Jules, and I discussing this:

Emily: Yeah, life gets complicated…I just wanna be five again! I just wanna be eating candy at a playground!
Jules: Emily, we are eating candy at a playground.

El Rastro

2006-10-19T15:05:00.000-07:00

The Rastro is basically a big flea market in Madrid that’s set up on Sunday mornings. They have all kinda of crazy stuff, and all very cheap. Everybody told us to watch our bags ‘cuz there are so many pickpockets around. I am proud to say that neither my friends nor myself were robbed. I am also proud to say I got a purse for 2.50 euros. I also got some cool shades for 6 euros, and I tried negotiating, but they were already really cheap so the guy said no. *sad* My Mexican-ness failed me.

Lost in Translation

2006-10-19T08:14:00.000-07:00

There were three different swimming pools at the hotel and only one had this sign: "Prohibido el baño en esta piscina," which should be translated as "It is not permitted to swim in this pool." However, they got it a bit wrong...I guess you could take a bath in the other two pools if you wanted to.

Benidorm!: pictures

2006-10-19T07:49:00.000-07:00

Since I always get frustrated posting pictures on blogspot, I've decided to just make it another entry.
1: my boss is on the right
2: the amazing beach with the cold water
3: me being a dork taking a picture of myself in the hotel room
4: view from the elevator
5: view from my room

Benidorm!

2006-10-19T07:48:00.000-07:00

Sorry it took me a while to post this entry, I had my first midterm yesterday (eww…midterms) and I had to study (eww…studying). But anyway, as ya’ll know I was in Benidorm (a city in the province of Alicante in southeast Spain) for a conference with my internship. I work for a non-profit organization that works to prevent alcoholism as well as treat alcoholics. This conference was open to the directors of each association, to the professionals (doctors, psychologists, social workers), as well as to the alcoholics and their family members. 1,093 people attended this year’s conference, and I’m so glad I got to go.

It was amazing! Honestly, God is spoiling me so much. The association paid for everything, which was supposed to be around 230 euros (convert that to dollars, and it’s a lot more). The hotel we stayed in was the Gran Bali Hotel, the tallest building in Spain and tallest hotel in Europe. After the ubersketch hostel in Barcelona, this was a palace! I had never stayed in a hotel room by myself, but it was incredibly relaxing. And I definitely took advantage of the hot water. Here in Madrid my hot water lasts for about three minutes while taking a shower, so I took close to half-hour showers in the hotel. The views from my room as well as from two of the elevators outside the hotel were breathtaking. Benidorm is very touristy, but since it’s no longer summer, it wasn’t as crazy. My heart goes wild for places that have shore and mountains together. It just seems right.

For four days I had a buffet for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. I’m not sure you know what that can do to a person…all I can say is I have more reason to hit the gym when I get back. I was in conferences most of the day, but I did manage to escape to the beach once with some “friends” (30 and 40 year old women) I met there. The day was perfect, and I kept hearing how warm the water was. I decide to go for a swim, and to my surprise the water’s freezing. At least, very very cold. Needless to say, I got in up to my knees and got right back out to tan some more. Miami beaches = hot water…Europe beaches = these cold waters were the warmest in Spain. Same goes for the pool, shoot.

Despite what my dad thinks, I was not partying all weekend. As previously stated, I went to many conferences talking about different aspects of alcoholism. A couple of them were pretty boring, including the two that were basically reiterating what one learns in a psychology class of drugs and behavior. But there were some really interesting ones that shed a lot of light on the specific problems in Spain. What helped me tremendously was that I hung out with the professionals (mostly psychologists and social workers) and learned more about the practical aspects of psychology in these four days than the three weeks before in all the therapy sessions. It was great to just ask them anything I wanted, and go to their meetings, and learn more about the structure of the organization. This weekend helped me so much in directing myself a bit more for the future. Although I’m still very lost as to what I’ll be doing out of college, I now know I do NOT want to do clinical psychology. No therapy sessions for me! I could get into more detail, but I won’t. It’s just something I’m glad I discovered before applying to grad school for clinical psych.
This weekend was great for social networking as well. Since I only see these people in a professional setting throughout the week, I’m kind of shy and don’t really say much (I know, shocker). But a 5-hour bus ride changes everything. I don’t care how old these people are, some acted like my 8-year olds at the Homestead camp on the trip. They told jokes, sang songs, insulted each other…in a loving way of course. I practically peed in my pants from the jokes, and when they transitioned from singing Spanish flamenco songs to Mexican ranchero ones, I added my two cents and sang the only ranchero song I know. Apparently that went over real well, and they’re still talking about it. I got so comfortable around these people, and got to actually joke in Spanish, have political discussions in Spanish, and really get to practice using expressions from Spain some more.

I got back on Sunday evening exhausted! My parents woke me up from my nap by calling me at 8:30pm. With studying this week, I’ve been losing even more sleep, but it was so worth it.

Tag, I'm it

2006-10-16T15:12:00.000-07:00

The lovely Megan Crow has tagged me, and I suppose now’s a good time for a distraction from work…

Three things that scare me
1. sketch guys
2. losing my family
3. becoming apathetic

Three people who make me laugh
1. my Homestead kids
2. my mom
3. Cynthia

Three things I hate
1. the outrageous price of books
2. poverty
3. time spent at the airport

Three things I am doing right now
1. talking on AIM
2. avoiding studying
3. worrying about the consequences of my avoidance of studying

Three things I want to do before I die
1. travel to at least six of the seven continents
2. learn to speak Portuguese
3. lead someone to Christ

Three things I can do
1. be socially awkward
2. sleep in
3. love

Three ways to describe my personality
1. emotional
2. optimistic
3. confident

Three things I can’t do
1. not cry during ‘Life is Beautiful’
2. run a marathon
3. whistle

Three things I think you should listen to
1. children singing praises to Jesus
2. waves crashing on the shore at night
3. “Boston” by Augustana

Three favorite foods
1. tacos al pastor
2. ice cream
3. seafood

Three shows I watched as a kid
1. Boy Meets World! (I still do…)
2. Family Matters
3. Sabrina the Teenage Witch

Three people I tag
Julia

Courtney

Marina

P.S. - more entries to come on my trip to Alicante, but I've decided to stop avoiding work now, so I'm taking a raincheck on the blogging...hasta luego!

Perks

2006-10-10T15:37:00.000-07:00

I leave tomorrow afternoon for the “Congreso” (conference) in Alicante, Valencia. Man I love my internship! And I especially love the perks. Transportation, food, lodging (apparently I get my own room at the hotel), conferences, and beach all paid for by the federation. Did I mention they also paid for my monthly metro pass? Well, they did.

K, everyone have a beautiful rest of the week/weekend. I’m unhooking myself from the online world for four days, and those of you who have my number here (which is basically just my Spain people and my family) are the only ones who’ll be able to reach me if need be. =0) Hasta luego!

Falling more in love with You

2006-10-10T15:36:00.000-07:00

Psalm 119:97, 103 “Oh, how I love your law! I meditate on it all day long…How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth!”

Thank you Lord for Your perfect Word that renews daily. I’m falling more and more in love with You.

Peoplesick?

2006-10-10T15:10:00.000-07:00

I just noticed the title sounds really bad, but whatever. So I’m not exactly homesick per se. I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else but here right now. But I have been thinking more and more about the people I know and love in the States, and I wish they could experience the things I’m experiencing alongside of me! So I guess it’s more like peoplesickness. So know, people from Miami, Peoria, Boston, and other random cities in which I know people, that you are being thought of and missed! So maybe this entry should be given the cheesy title “Wishing you were here!”

I am such a whimp!

2006-10-10T15:07:00.000-07:00

Today at F.A.CO.MA they showed the people a video on the physiological effects of cocaine (yeah, I guess we cover other drugs apart from alcohol). It was an extremely cheesy American informational video (dubbed in Spanish) from like the early 1980’s. The music in the background was from some Count Dracula movie of the ‘50’s, and honestly, it took everything in my power not to burst out laughing. But then, they kept showing body organs that had been affected by cocaine, and then they got to physiological effects on the outer part of the body (which is actually grosser, ‘cuz people’s insides are supposed to look nasty). So I’m watching this, and I hadn’t eaten for a while so I guess the blood sugar was low…and I totally start feeling like I’m about to faint.

I’ve fainted twice in my life so I know what I feel like right before, and this was it. But thank God I was sitting, so I placed both feet on the floor, took my cool Spanish fan out, and closed my eyes. I drank some water, and once my limbs were tingly and no longer numb, I left the room to a much cooler one, and all was right with the world once more.

ARG! Honestly! I think I’m above and beyond being grossed out, but here I am almost fainting at my job! And to think, I had once wanted to become a doctor.

I'm tired

2006-10-08T16:18:00.000-07:00

K, one more picture and I'm going to bed! Arg, Sunday to Monday is always a little hard on me.

This is El Palacio de Cristal in the Parque del Retiro (seriously, my favorite place in Madrid). This city is errupting with beauty!

I hope this posts...

2006-10-08T16:10:00.000-07:00

I don't know why, but this picture wouldn't post on the last entry. This is Babe's cousin...the piglet we had for lunch. She's cut in half...pobrecita. She was loved though, even in her death.

Sooo Spanish

2006-10-08T16:00:00.000-07:00

I really like the fact that I’m having more and more moments when I don’t feel like a tourist anymore. Over a week ago I went to a bar with two friends to watch a soccer match between Barcelona and Lisboa, and as we sat there having our drinks, talking about soccer and Madrid, shouting for joy when Barcelona made a “gooooooooooooool!” I had this feeling of “Yeah, it’s not the most exciting moment, but it’s so Spanish.” I know…I’m a dork.

Today I had another VSM (very Spanish moment). For lunch my host family and I went to my señora’s parents’ house. It was outside of Madrid in this beautiful house with a view of the city, a very relaxing backyard, and what you would imagine to be a typical Spanish home. It felt a little bit like Mexico walking into the house, but with obvious differences. Paintings and sketches of bulls lined one wall, and the table was set with the most Mediterranean foods you could think of.

Today’s menu:
For appetizers there was Iberian ham, cheese and gigantic olives from Cáceres, and nuts. For the main course there was seafood soup, AN ENTIRE PIGLET cut in half, mashed potatoes, bread, wine, and water. For dessert, home-made cacao cookies, all sorts of chocolates, grapes, caramel-covered pecans, and coffee. Honestly, I ate enough to last me for the week., but it was all soooooooooo good!

Conversation was awesome too. We sat around the table for an hour and or two after lunch and just talked. I don’t know why, but I really wanted to get Pilar’s parents to talk about everything you’re not supposed to talk about at the table. So it was cool, ‘cuz we were able to discuss politics and religion, and although Pilar’s dad and I don’t really believe in the same things, I think he had a really great perspective on religion versus faith and what shapes each one. I think (and hope) that her parents liked me a lot. Her mom was eager for me to come back and even invited my entire family over if we’re ever in the country. I love Spaniards.=0)

Five points to whoever actually gets what this shirt means

2006-10-08T15:16:00.000-07:00

So I really wanted to buy this shirt, but of the people I know who would actually understand what it says, no one would ever wear it (including me).

Sara Baras

2006-10-08T14:27:00.000-07:00

I LOVE flamenco! It’s beautiful, artistic, and I would never be able to do it if my life depended on it. I am truly amazed at the talent these dancers have. Sara Baras, apparently a world-renown flamenco dancer, and her dance company came to Madrid for their final performance of the year. W-O-W. I can’t get over it. The noise coming from those shoes! Sometimes it looked like their bottom halves were barely moving, and at other times I was expecting someone’s leg to go flying into the audience. Everything was perfect: the dancing, the costumes, the music (incredibly talented musicians and singers), even the lighting gave the maximum effect. The entire audience was captivated and I felt more and more Spanish as the performance went on. After especially good pieces, someone in the audience would shout out “Olé!” or “Dile que sí!” or “Qué bonito!” I loved the freedom of the people to express themselves, to freely enjoy their experience in the theater. I didn’t get home until 1am to get up for school at 7:30 the next day, but it was totally worth it.

Toledo (not Ohio)

2006-10-08T14:07:00.000-07:00

Toledo is a beautiful, small (around 8,000 people) city about an hour away from Madrid. We actually went last weekend but it’s taken me until now to post about it. We were only there for a day, but packed quite a lot into it. Toledo’s cathedral is the most important in Europe. It’s kind of like the “headquarters.” The city is OLD and is filled with black and gold jewelry, swords, Don Quijote stuff (that makes me happy), and very narrow streets.

At one point I was with some friends and we were just shopping around eating our ice cream, when some semi-sketch guy approached us and asked us if we wanted him to take our picture. At first we said no, but finally I handed him my camera (why I did this, I have yet to figure out) and we all posed. So here’s sketch dude holding the camera, WALKING BACK, and with every step he takes we all lean forward, and one of my friends actually says out loud “He’s totally gonna run away with the camera,” and we’re all planning what to do in case he makes a run for it…but God is good, and he took the picture, and then another, and then handed the camera back. He then attempted conversation, asking us our names and whatnot, but we were like “okay, thanks, buh bye now” and peaced out. Yeah…Spanish men, crazy stuff.

On a cool note, we visited the cathedral as well as a synagogue, and on the bus ride back to Madrid, Alicia and I had this amazing conversation with one of the guys from the program about our faith. He was so interested in what we were saying, and kept asking question after question. It was probably one of the best conversations I’ve ever had on the subject, and I pray the things we said stay in his mind and heart. He’s Jewish by heritage, but doesn’t really know what he believes personally, and actually didn’t seem too turned off by the thought of going to church. Like I said, God is good, and I’m learning more and more to be expectant of great miracles.

My personal soundtrack

2006-10-05T16:10:00.000-07:00

I love it when people play music on the metro. Until today, the songs played always seemed to fit with my mood. When I was thinking about the beauty of Spain, the Spanish guitar added more richness. A fast melody seemed to be in sync with the time I was in a big rush. At a time of relaxation, romantic tunes on the violin did the trick. Sometimes I feel like a personal soundtrack’s been added to my life.

Today however, the music did not fit at all. I was coming home from work, extremely tired, and not in the best of moods. The metro was pretty quiet so it was nice to just sit in silence. Then…this man gets on the metro, with a suitcase and a trumpet. He unzips a flap on the suitcase to reveal a speaker (music for money is illegal on the metro), waits until the doors close, pushes a button on his “suitcase,” and starts playing along to the background music. My first thought was “crap, I really don’t want a trumpet blaring in my ear right now.” My second thought was “the suitcase idea is pretty ghettofab.”

The music he played was about the cheesiest stuff you could think of. One of the songs was Hello Dolly. AWESOME. So this loud trumpeter is playing cheesy American songs during my bad mood…and after a bit, it took all my will power not to burst out laughing. I got off the metro still tired as ever, but so incredibly amused at life’s little gifts.

Observations

2006-10-05T16:08:00.000-07:00

I don’t attend a Spanish university here, so the people I talk to during the day come from all over the US. In the evenings however, I go to work, where I am surrounded by Spaniards. Here are some observations (don’t take them as fact, just as something from my perspective):

- People (even women to other women) have no problem saying things like: “Rosa, has subido mucho de peso” (Rosa, you’ve gained a lot of weight)

- To be heard, you must interrupt. When a discussion takes place there’s no sitting back and listening. There’s active talking on top of whoever else is talking. People are so passionate about being heard! They’ll lean forward, raise their eyebrows a lot, and made big hand gestures.

- I guess this stems from the second point, but people here sound angry when they talk. You always feel like it’s a heated debate and they’re trying to convince you of something.

- I think in order to seem less angry to others, people try to say something funny every five seconds and most of the time they’re the only ones laughing.

- Instead of saying, “We saw him at the conference we went to five years ago” they say, “You remember the conference, the one at the beach where my brown wallet was stolen (interruption: no, it was black), it was brown, (no I remember it being black), well the black wallet, about five years ago, or well maybe it was less than that, or more…” and so on and so forth.

- When someone is asked a question they respond with “pues nada” (well nothing) and shrug their shoulders. They then go on to explain a 10-minute answer.

I know the pot is calling the kettle black here. I’m not Ms. Introvert to say the least, but it’s just amusing seeing those kind of qualities intensified and multiplied in a group of approximately 20 Spaniards.

It's a small world after all

2006-10-04T09:49:00.000-07:00

Boston University isn't the only program using the Instituto Internacional. There are other US schools using the building as well. So today I overheard this guy talking to his friends about horchata (a fabulous drink we have in Mexico, as well as here in Spain), and how "in Mexico we have..." So naturally, I ask him if he's Mexican, which he is. We start talking in Spanglish and discover that we lived in the same part of Miami! SWEET!!! We apparently have mutual friends in Miami, and he's telling me how he's moved all over (including to Brazil for a year, which is way awesome). He invited me to get some Mexican food with his friends, but I had to go to class. I just think it's so cool that I met a Mexican from Miami in Madrid!

For my darlin' Michelle

2006-10-04T09:03:00.000-07:00

So my dear friend from P-town has been like, the only faithful reader on my blog (thanks Michelle), so I’m dedicating an entire entry to HER! I went back to the Parque del Retiro to take pictures of the playgrounds. Let me just say that the only way I could have looked more sketchy taking these pictures was if I was wearing one glove and my nose was falling off. Seriously, parents looked like they were abut to pounce. So I quickly took my pictures and peaced out of there. Michelle, enjoy.=0)

P.S. I tried uploading the picture of the outdoor escalator but for some reason it wouldn't work... Blogger kinda sucks sometimes. It takes forever to upload yo...facebook is ten times better.

Working Girl

2006-10-03T07:43:00.000-07:00

I was supposed to have been working at an adoption agency for my psychology credit. Well, that’s no longer the case. The agency where I was going to be working is moving things around, blahblahblah, and they can’t take another person on staff. Alrighty! So in one weekend, I had to meet with the internship director, hold a quick interview to find out other options, and find a new place to practice psych.

I am now working for an organization called F.A.CO.MA. (Federación Alcohólicos Comunidad de Madrid). Basically, it’s like an Alcoholics Anonymous, without the anonymous part, and they really encourage the cooperation of family members. There are different aspects to the organization. There are women’s groups, family therapies, young people’s groups, seminars, conferences, outings, and so on. Different psychologists and therapists attend meetings throughout the week and people talk…a lot.

What do I do exactly? I sit and listen. I ask questions once in a while, and very rarely give a suggestion or opinion on something (don’t know if you know this, but I am NOT a licensed psychologist). This is definitely different than what I was expecting to do when I got to Madrid. The environment at an adoption agency is one of joy bringing families together. The environment at an alcoholics’ meeting can be tough. I sometimes feel like I’m in a room hearing people tell secrets I’m not supposed to know.

I am learning a lot though. About psychology, about human nature, and about how no matter what people have done or what they’ve been though, God is completely in love with them. I know it sounds weird to say, but I thought about it the first day of work. I’m not gonna lie, I felt really awkward. I’m in this building with all these people walking in, talking in their really fast and different Spanish accents, and I know they are all alcoholics. I start thinking about what they might have done in their drunkenness, how messed up their families probably are, how different this is from working with little kids… And then I remember a poem I read a long time ago talking about reaching out with Jesus’ hands, seeing people through His eyes, and loving them with His heart. Who am I to judge? I am no better than any of these people, and don’t need God’s grace any less.

I’m enjoying my job. It’s an aspect of psychology I had never tried out before, and it’s helping me filter out what I do or don’t want to do for my career. My superiors have been incredibly welcoming. I sat in on a small group with Marisol, one of the psychologists, and she introduced me to the group as her “colleague.” She said things throughout the meeting like “I’m sure I speak on behalf of Ximena as well when I say…” and was constantly asking me if I had any questions. It’s awesome to feel so involved. I’ll also be attending a national conference in Alicante (on the beach, sweet!) in a week and a half to learn even more about the federation.

At first I was feeling resentful for not being able to work at the adoption agency. But the more I think about it, I’m really glad I’m able to do something so different. I’m diving into a subject that actually affects my extended family (my grandmother died of alcoholism and it runs in my family), and I feel like I’m learning more about reality, here in Spain and in general. God is good. Even when things don’t work out the way we planned them, God is faithful and gives us more. More to learn, more to experience, and more to lift up in praise.

Random

2006-10-02T14:49:00.000-07:00

Okay, so this has nothing to do with Spain whatsoever, but I just received this picture and it's too good not to share. This is CJ, an absolutely adorable (if not-all-there) little boy from the camp I worked at this past summer...

In the words of Leah: "Bless him, bless him, bless him."

Lucky Number 7

2006-09-28T15:10:00.000-07:00

Praise the Lord that metro line #7 is finally working again! My trek to school is now less than half an hour! I felt like breaking out into song the first time I awaited the newly improved metro. And although the others around me were reading, or staring blankly, and acting all calm on the outside…I knew the joy was bursting out of their hearts as well due to the beautiful thing which is line number 7.

Barcelona: thoughts on Madrid

2006-09-28T15:07:00.000-07:00

It may seem a bit strange that my last Barcelona entry is about Madrid. But on the other hand, it makes perfect sense. Until coming back from Barcelona, I felt like a stranger to the city of Madrid. I felt like people could see right through me and my uncertainty followed me everywhere. In Barcelona, I had to try to adjust in less than three days to a new metro system, new streets, even a new language. I survived Barcelona, didn’t get robbed, and came back with all my stuff. When I got off the bus in Madrid at 11pm Sunday night, I began my trek home. I didn’t need to look at any maps. I had the metro lines and buses engraved in my mind. I passed people quickly and made it home in record time. I won’t make the mistake of letting my guard down completely, but I have to say that it felt really good to finally feel at home in Madrid.

Barcelona: worship

2006-09-28T15:01:00.000-07:00

During the weekend we went to the two largest and most important cathedrals in the city. Some people went in taking pictures and admiring the architecture. Many Catholics came in lighting candles, giving donations, and praying to Jesus and the saints.

Honestly, I’ve never really felt closer to God in big churches or cathedrals. When I enter beautiful buildings like that it makes me focus more on man’s glory than on God’s. And I understand that for some people, that is a way they feel a connection with God. But for me, feeling the cool breeze play with my hair as I stood on the dock, squeezing the sand on the beach between my toes and seeing the waves toss constantly in the ocean was all the motivation I needed to praise our God for the countless gifts He bestows on us every single day.

There was a moment when I was focused intently on Christ’s sacrifice at Calvary. In going to “Las Tres Cruces” (The Three Crosses), I felt a powerful sensation within me, the sensation one feels when you take communion and truly realize what it means. The crosses were built upon a mount of rocks, so you have to climb up to get to them. And as I was walking up, my pace slowed down considerably. I was walking towards The Cross. I was walking towards Calvary, where my own sins had crucified my Lord. As I reached the top, I felt like I identified with the thief who, although unworthy, was forgiven and promised eternal life in Paradise. I don’t deserve it, but the Lord has chosen to give me everything.

Barcelona: diet and exercise

2006-09-28T14:57:00.000-07:00

So I’m pretty sure I’ll be going back to the States with the legs of a runner (we walk sooo much!) and my stomach the size of Texas (we eat sooo much!). My leg muscles are seriouly aching from all the walking we do. To get to Park Guell we had to climb this incredibly steep hill. It’s so steep that at certain points they have outdoor escalators to continue. However, even though we were cheap and bought as little food as possible (the first night we ate nasty left over sandwiches our families had made us), Spaniards love the carbs, and I think that’s what’s killin’ me. It makes me sad to think I’ll have to return to the U.S. and head straight for the gym.

Barcelona: music

2006-09-28T14:50:00.000-07:00

As already mentioned, the Festival of the Merce took place this past weekend in Barcelona, and along with it came plenty of music. Stages were set up throughout the entire city, and the first night we were there we went to a plaza where a local band was starting their concert. This band, called Dumbala Canalla, was AMAZING! The coolest music I’ve heard in a long time. Their songs were in Catalán so I actually couldn’t understand the lyrics, but their music was so original. It was kind of like sca…but better! They had a drummer, clarinet player, trumpet player (whom I kinda fell in love with), mandolin player, upright bass player, accordion player, and lead singer who could also play the tambourine like nobody’s business. They definitely had a strong bohemian feel to their music, and everything about them screamed WEIRD, which I totally loved.

Anyway, Saturday was really a day of musical celebrations. During our breakfast in our adopted café, a band procession came marching down the cobblestone street in front of us. At every plaza there was some kind of musical group. A three guy group consisting of a guitarist, a string bassist, and a violinist played the most beautiful tango. A men’s choir sang ancient hymns. A couple played music simply using three wooden planks and two thick sticks. And every time we turned the corner, another group of percussionists marched on by, with members consisting of small children, adults, and some elderly. It was a festival celebrated by all, and music was a huge part of it.

P.S. We kind of stalked trumpet boy after the concert to take a picture with him. Persistence pays off=0)

Barcelona: more touristy stuff

2006-09-28T14:38:00.000-07:00

Barcelona: touristy stuff

2006-09-28T14:24:00.000-07:00

So much to see! We went to Guell Park (containing architecture by Gaudi…beautiful!, as well as The Three Crosses, and a mountain view of the entire city), to the Cathedral of the Sagrada Familia, to the Picasso Museum, to the beach, to the Gothic district, to the other Cathedral (don’t know it’s name…), the Pedrera, all along the Rambles, and to plaza after plaza after plaza. We were only there for two and a half days, but boy did we make them count.

Barcelona: our hostel

2006-09-28T14:19:00.000-07:00

The hostel we booked, for quite a cheap price, was incredibly ghetto…to say the least. First of all the “front door” was really on the side and in an alley (a wide enough alley, but an alley nonetheless). We were in a room with ugly bunk beds and nothing else, and the “clean sheets” they gave us had strands of hair on them. The room light took five minutes to actually turn on, the door never really closed, the lockers we used to keep our stuff in were incredibly fragile, you had to push in the light button in the bathroom every seven seconds because if not the light would go off, there never seemed to be toilet paper in the stalls so we always had to get a new roll, and there was no hot water so our showers were extremely brief. Despite all of this, we were happy. The hostel was very conveniently located and our situation actually seemed very comical to us. And as we went to sleep with our valuables in the bed alongside of us, and as we listened to the unceasing fireworks outside making it seem like the city was being blown up (remember it was a never-ending party all weekend for the Barcelonans), we all went to sleep wanting to laugh out loud at the adventures we had encountered throughout the day, and anticipated the continuation of them for tomorrow.

Barcelona: language

2006-09-28T14:18:00.000-07:00

So it was certainly an interesting feeling to be in the country of Spain and NOT be able to read any of the signs! The people of Barcelona speak Catalán, a language I can’t even begin to comprehend. It’s kind of like hearing French for me…I’d get a word in every once in a while, but ask me to respond and I’d fail. Crazy Europeans with their knowledge of a zillion languages. Everyone we met knew Catalan, Castillian (Spanish), and English. *sigh* Maybe I’ll be cooler someday and learn a new language.

Barcelona: whew!

2006-09-28T14:12:00.000-07:00

What can I say? I fell in love with the city. It seems to have everything: the coast, the mountains, the small-town feel in some parts, the big-city feel in others, and it is certainly a place that knows how to party. This past weekend was the “Festival de la Merce,” a festival of the patron saint of the city, and for three days straight it was one party after another.

Four friends and I decided to head to this great city, and to be as cheap as possible about it. So Thursday night, at 11pm, we took an eight-hour bus ride from Madrid to Barcelona, getting to Barcelona at 7 in the morning. It was still dark, we had no idea where we were, and none as to where we were going either. We put one foot in front of the other, and carried our sleepless selves around the city taking pictures, having breakfast at a cute little plaza with a cute little café in it (café con leche is my best friend btw) and eventually found our hostel.

Enjoy the pictures of our first moments in Barcelona.=0)

Peace out cubscout!

2006-09-21T07:02:00.000-07:00

So, I have more to post BUT...it'll have to wait until Monday. Por que? 'Cuz I'll be in Barcelona this weekend! It was kind of a spur of the moment decision, but I'll be chillin' on the east coast with some friends for the next three days. We leave tonight...we're doing a mini-backpack trip: taking a cheap bus, bringing one bag carrying all our stuff, staying at a hostel...good times. Be prayin' for us though!

Side note: A lot of you have told me how much ya'll like the pics and stuff. I'm so happy=0) You should post a comment! It adds flavor to the site...that, and it makes me feel kinda special. k, that's all. peace out cubscouts!

La Vuelta de España

2006-09-18T06:23:00.000-07:00

This bicycle race is one of the three “Grand Tours” of Europe and, after the Tour de France and the giro d’Italia, is the third most important road cycling race in the world…and I saw the end of it right here in Madrid.

The streets surrounding La Plaza de Cibeles were closed off and the people of Spain and other countries gathered around to await the cyclists who would loop around the area six times. We didn’t stay long, but seeing everyone so excited, we couldn’t help getting caught up in the hype. We saw the cyclists come by for about two seconds, and as I had never seen a race like this one, I was very surprised at the speed of these cyclists. After the race the streets were still closed so everything could be cleaned up, and Julia and I got a once-in-a-very-long-time opportunity…we took a picture right in front of the Cibeles, where there are usually cars going by at 50mph.

Happy Mexican Independence Day!

2006-09-18T06:21:00.000-07:00

Also a couple of days late, I would like to wish everyone a Happy Mexican Independence Day (it was really on Saturday). I find it humorous that I’m in the country from which we gained independence…

Musical Metro

2006-09-18T06:18:00.000-07:00

I spend a lot of my time on the metro, and so far I’ve experienced four great musical episodes. Usually the people singing or playing at the stations aren’t really all that good, but the ones that actually get on the metro and give their five minute concert are fantastic!

The first group of musicians I witnessed was two guys, one playing guitar, one playing flute, and both singing (the flute-player alternated obviously). Their harmonies sounded amazing. I’ve also heard an accordion player playing Italian songs, as well as a man playing classical music on a crazy cool instrument (somewhat related to a santoor), and a guy pulling a Bob Dylan playing guitar and harmonica at the same time.

I try to act tough on the metro so no one will mess with me, but it’s so hard not to completely melt at the hypnotizing melodies made by truly gifted musicians. Oh the metro…if you’re lucky you end up getting more for your euro than just transportation.

Feliz Cumpleaños Nacho!

2006-09-18T06:14:00.000-07:00

A very happy (if belated) birthday to my "little brother" Ignacio who turned 12 on Friday. =0)

Romantic Places

2006-09-18T05:57:00.000-07:00

El Parque del Retiro. I’m in love with this place. It has way cool playgrounds (much cooler than in the States). It has so many places to walk through, read in, admire. It has musicians, statue people, and a gorgeous lake. Julia and I have already had two dates there.=0) We rent a boat for a really cheap price and row about for 45 minutes. I love to people watch on the lake. There are families with small children wanting to jump in the lake. There are loners who seem to be using this rowing experience as a workout. There are friends, like us, who laugh and talk about life and can’t fully realize the beauty of the place. And there are couples, so many couples. Some couples have the guy acting all manly and rowing with man-strokes to show off in front of his woman. Some couples don’t even bother with the rowing part and cuddle, or do more than that.=0)

After spending time at the park yesterday, Julia went home, and I had some time to kill before church. So I decided to take a walk towards the Prado and read in its grassy area up front. Nearby was an older man playing the violin with his case open accepting donations for his mini-concert. I sat down and began to read, and after a while the man switched to play the saxophone. As I started to hear “Somewhere over the Rainbow” I looked up and thought of all the romantic places in Madrid.

I feel like people don’t even have to try that hard on first dates here. The scenery takes care of most of it. And then I smiled to myself because romance is not something that has to be shared with someone else. I was experiencing it at that moment, and in all the moments of great beauty during the day.

El Corte Inglés

2006-09-14T14:53:00.000-07:00

Before leaving the States, my dad told me to go to El Corte Inglés. “Ximena, tienes que ir!” So about the second day I was here, I went. To me, it was nothing spectacular. It was sort of like a Macy’s. But today…oh buddy. I found out the truth. When I had gone the first time, I walked into a very small section. When I say small, I mean it was miniscule.

I went again today after school with a friend. It’s like a small town! Julia and I walked around, and around, and around, and around. We went in circles at times and didn’t even realize it. What you can’t find at El Corte Inglés, you can’t find anywhere. I needed some abanicos (fans), so we were in the basement floor, along with clothes, electronics (where I added minutes to my cell), books, perfumes, toys, a SUPERMARKET, the pharmacy (where I bought medicine), etc. This was just the basement floor. There are six floors! There’s stuff of furniture, music, traveling, sports, gardening, movie theater…it’s like a mall all in one store. When Julia and I got hungry, we went up to the sixth floor to their restaurant.

We thought WalMart was a monopoly…this is crazy. The picture doesn’t even begin to show how ridiculously huge it is.

A happier Ximena

2006-09-14T14:41:00.000-07:00

Ok. So I wrote my previous entry/rant out of a deep anger…almost hatred at my hour long commute to school every day. I always have a harder time in the morning than in the afternoon. First of all, I’m not a morning person. Also, I have to walk uphill/up several stairways for about 10-15 minutes. Then, after waiting for usually 5-10 minutes, I ride a bus where we all squish in as sardines and I try to guard my bag as much as possible. After this beautiful time where I am much closer to certain people than I would ever want to be, I go underground to ride a metro, then switch lines, and finally come back up, simply to walk another 10 minutes down a never-ending street.

You know, if I were driving a car for an hour, I would probably still be a little frustrated. But the fact that I have to walk, job, climb, stand, sit, pass, be constantly moving during that entire time, makes me want to smack someone as soon as I get the chance.

Tuesday morning was the worst, especially ‘cuz the sardines episode lasted longer than usual due to major traffic. However, God really cheered me up in the afternoon. After going further south to buy a book for class, I no longer wanted to walk towards the closest metro station, that was not close at all. So I decided to be lazy, and wait for a bus that would take me. I’m so glad I did. I got in, sat down, and opened the book “Through Painted Deserts” for the first time. As I began to read, I got more and more excited because I felt, unrealistically if not arrogantly, that Donald Miller’s words had been written about me and to me. And as I looked up from my view of the beautifully written poetry stretched across the page to my view out the window, all I saw was absolute beauty. This random bus I had decided to take was going by museums, gardens, small cafes, beautiful cobble stone streets. I wanted to read more to be recharged, but I wanted to see more to be inspired. It was a wonderful ride to the metro station, and I vowed I would return to some of those places to study, or take pictures, or simply be.

Madrid is beautiful. I have three more months to enjoy every bit of it. I pray things like long stairways and sardine-people won’t take any of it away from me. I pray I won’t take any of it away from myself.

A quick rant

2006-09-14T14:30:00.000-07:00

I HATE THAT THE NUMBER 7 METRO LINE IS NOT WORKING!

...That is all. Thank you.

This is the day the Lord has made

2006-09-12T15:30:00.000-07:00

I was quite proud of myself this morning. I woke up at 10am (tomorrow will have to be way earlier than that). I took a shower, got ready, had breakfast (apparently something very common to eat is toasted bread with olive oil and salt), and walked, rode the bus and the metro, walked some more, and finally met up with my group at what’s one of my favorite places in Madrid. El Parque del Retiro is a huge public park with beautiful grounds, a large lake, fountains, and a crystal palace. Yeah, it’s paradise for any photographer, or anyone for that matter.

After the park, we walked around the area outside learning of the history of the Prado, the Real Academia Española, the old churches, the botanical gardens, etc. After the tour some friends and I wanted to enter the Prado, but since today it was free, the line to get in wrapped around the museum. We all decided to go back some other time (I’ll be there every two weeks!). I came home for lunch, had a very long conversation with my “little brother,” took a ten minute “nap,” and left for church.

Oh buddy! Church was incredible! Once again, I felt so blessed. First of all, I was praying hard all summer for Christian friends in Madrid, whether they be from the program or from a church I visited. I hadn’t been sitting with the program people at JFK airport for 15 minutes when I met a girl from Wellesley, and after talking to her for about four minutes, we discovered we were sisters in Christ.=0) Also, the first day we got to Madrid I started talking to another girl from BU that I didn’t know and found out that she too was a Christian! Right away God answered my prayer.

So today I went with Alicia (BU girl) to visit Amistad Cristiana, a Protestant church that meets in a relatively small space along some random street. The church was recommended to Alicia by a friend from Barcelona, and as soon as we walked in we started talking to some girls who were way nice. One of the girls is named Anaka, and is definitely the sweetest person I’ve met here. It’s a beautiful feeling to meet someone completely different from yourself yet feel connected by your faith right away.

During the service, I felt like my heart was going to burst with joy and awe at the magnitude of God. Everything was in Spanish. We sang “How Great is our God” and “Open the Eyes of my Heart” among other songs I hadn’t heard before, we prayed, took offering, a man came up to talk about a mission trip they had taken to Nepal, and then the sermon. Throughout the entire time all I could think was how huge God is. There were people at that church from Spain, the US, Mexico, and elsewhere. We were praising in Spanish when I had just been singing the same songs in English a week ago. This church had sent people out to Nepal, the Middle East, and Morocco within the past three months. I feel like Alicia and I fell in love with our God all over again, and truly rejoiced in the fact that to us, the world is huge, but to God, it’s like walking down the hallway.

Tomorrow is the first day of classes, as well as my interview for my internship. I’m nervous, but definitely excited! Please pray for me, as today I began feeling a bit under the weather. Maybe all the differences between the US and Spain are catching up to me. Anyway, as He proved Himself again today, the Lord is faithful. Buenas noches todos y hasta pronto!

More random pictures

2006-09-12T15:11:00.000-07:00

A night out with some of my favorite chicas (Edaine's taking the pictures, but she's just as special)

The coolest train station ever! My bro Alvar and I took a picture within this station four years apart...I think that's kinda cool.

The mighty bullfighting plaza
The Plaza Mayor *hotness*

The entrance to the oldest church in Madrid

(Sorry my captions are so whack, ya'll are smart though, you can figure it out)

Lists

2006-09-12T15:01:00.000-07:00

So far...

Things I love about Spain:
1- the historical importance behind so many buildings
2- the Spanish accent
3- SIESTA!
4- the great public transportation
5- tapas (especially at the super cheap restaurant we went to a couple of nights ago)
6- the hello kiss on each cheek (since moving from Miami, I've had to do the whole hand shake thing)

Things I'm not particularly fond of:
1- everybody smokes
2- the fact that the metro line that's under construction for September is the one I have to take to school (kind of takes away from #4 in the previous list)
3- euro vs. US dollar
4- the drink of preference for every meal is water (i know it's healthier, but i miss my soda!)
5- all the construction in the city
6- it's way too hot! (but that'll change...soon hopefully)

Mi Familia

2006-09-11T13:51:00.000-07:00

I met my host family, and they’re awesome! Oscar and Pilar have an eleven year old boy named Ignacio, who’s super nice, super funny, and can talk my head off (I know, I couldn’t believe it either). Their house is really big, especially considering the fact that most people here live in apartments. My room is the perfect size (although there’s no A/C, how I long for cooler weather). They feed me sooo much. I’m glad I have to walk a lot, ‘cuz I’m pretty sure I’d be gaining even more weight if I didn’t.

The first day Pilar made paella and I offered to help. I know it must have been such a small detail, but for me, it was a great experience to get to know my host mom more over a Spanish stove. As we were setting the table she told me that I was the only one who had ever helped make food on the first day, and that I was pretty special for it. Sweet!

Tonight I had dinner with them and watched part of The Godfather. Honestly, the watching of the movie had to do more with the fact that I wanted to spend time with them and not because I’m particularly fond of violent movies. But hey, it was kind of amusing hearing “Don Corleone” with a Spanish accent.

I know there will be times within the next three months that I’ll be missing my family a lot, but I pray that being in a family as nice as this one will help ease the homesickness.

Day to Day

2006-09-11T13:42:00.000-07:00

Have I mentioned that I’m way excited about studying here? I am way excited about studying here. I know I’m a total dork for saying this, but I’ve learned to accept it and you should too: I love Spanish classes. I do. No, not because it’s my first language so people think I can slack off. I’m actually not sure why, but I think it has to do with the fact that throughout my years of school I have had amazing Spanish teachers that have had such passion for Spanish literature, history, politics, and culture, that some of that passion rubbed off on me.

The first class I’m taking is on the art of Madrid. I’m not an art person, at all, but I do enjoy learning the historical context of things. And in this class, every two weeks we take a trip to the Prado to actually experience what we’ve been learning in the classroom. Sweet! My second class is studying the role women have played throughout Spanish history. For some reason, I can imagine la Sra. Molina from high school being one of the women that assisted in revolutionizing the country at some point. My third class is a literature class (yes!) on Miguel Cervantes and his famous novel Don Quixote. My fourth class…is not really a class. Along with studying for my minor in Spanish, I’ll be interning at an adoption agency four days a week as credit towards my Psychology major.

I really feel like God is spoiling me. After having been with so many kids 24/7 this past summer, I was going through major child withdrawal when I got home. How blessed am I to be working with beautiful girls being adopted from China! Although I’m not sure of the specifics right now (I find out Monday), from what I understand I’ll be working with the psychologists and families during therapy sessions, consultation meetings, etc.

El Prado, women throughout history, Cervantes, and an adoption agency. I can’t wait!

Random Pictures

2006-09-11T13:09:00.000-07:00

Our first night in town a group of us went out to the nearest plaza, and this was the beautiful building awaiting us!

Some excellent sangría to go with our first night Madrid experience. And no, no one got tipsy...

The hotel lobby

Our fearless leader Mr. Ray Green

One crazy night a bunch of us decided to check out the "discotecas" of Madrid. Kareaoke, dancing, mullets (someone really should inform these poor boys that the style has been out for quite some time now)...

The owner of this salsa club actually had my name! It was Jimena though, not as cool as with an X in my humble opinion.

Jetlag

2006-09-11T13:04:00.000-07:00

I traveled for 23 hours. By the end of that time, my eyes were red and glossy, my throat felt completely dry, and I felt like I hadn’t taken a shower since the first half of my life. I left my house on Tuesday morning central time at 4am, drove (well, my dad did) to Bloomington Airport, flew to Atlanta, then to New York, then to Paris, and finally reached my final destination of Madrid at 12pm (Madrid time) on Wednesday. The cool thing was that I got to meet a lot of the people in the program starting from NY. There are only about 60something of us, so I’m definitely getting a different feel from BU of 30,000 students. Everyone seems really laidback and is so nice to each other. It’s actually kind of surprising, yet very satisfying.

Madrid works on crazy time. I say this because they have a small breakfast in the morning, eat a huge meal for lunch around 3pm, and have dinner around 9 or 10. The night scene doesn’t even pick up until 1 or 2 in the morning. I guess the schedule has helped with the jetlag. All of us have been able to stay awake until late because technically it’s still early at home. What we could not live without however, is our siestas. God bless Spain for their naps.
I actually do have to get used to going to sleep a bit earlier. Classes start on Monday and I have t be at the Instituto a little after 9am. No more waking up at 11am for me. *sigh*

Hola chicos!

2006-09-11T06:33:00.000-07:00

I’m here! Finally HERE. As in…Madrid, SPAIN. I visited almost ten years ago and vowed to myself I would come back someday. And here I am! Me siento como en un sueño. I feel like I’m in a dream. Walking around Madrid, I think of how the people living here probably don’t realize how incredibly amazing the buildings and history behind those buildings are. People drive by the Palacio Real all the time, yet I wonder how many of them really think about all the royal families that once lived there. One word to describe my emotions: excited! If I had two more words though: sooo grateful. God is good. He’s given me this incredible opportunity to live in a foreign country for three and a half months while getting college credit. I can’t wait to see what’s in store.