It´s been a long time...

It´s been a long time since I posted...
I am a bit afraid to try it again...for some reason...I am intimidated...

Anyways...this is my last day in Tenerife. One week in Valencia, 4 weeks in Barcelona, and 2 weeks in Tenerife have passed since I wrote last. Sorry.

Details aren´t so important anymore...this is true in life too. What counts is the overall feeling. Did I enjoy each day? What did I learn? Who am I now? Most importantly...¿WHAT IS NEXT? (By the way...I am using a Spanish keyboard--which I LOVE...hence all of the upside-down question marks and the like.)

The answers: Yes. I have finally learned to enjoy. This was perhaps the hardest task of all. ¿How does one learn to enjoy? ¿How would one begin to search for the answer? ¿Wouldn´t searching be counter productive?

Enjoyment (based on my LITTLE expertise) is the moment you quit your mind, let your heart loose, and allow yourself to become overwhelmed with all the sensual inputs of your surroundings. I think.

¿What did I learn? Life is good. Everything is going to ok. People are the best things in life...always. Döner Kebap´s are the best food in the world. Most of you could have told me that.

¿Who am I now? Kayla is different than I imagined. She is a bit lazier and more relaxed than previously thought. I have found her to be more adventurous--almost donning the appearance of a "Yes Man" at times. You should meet her.

¿What´s next? Italy, Austria, France, and Englad. Beyond that...I am not going to worry about it...

As every good Spanish person...I will end this with the proper ending...Besos!

Back Home

I am back in Barcelona! And thanks to my amazing friends, I feel at home thousands of miles away from Abilene. Love yall!

Today, I joined a gym!!! After an hour on the eliptical, I finally feel like myself. The world seems much brighter now...haha... Also, I think this will be the perfect place to meet Spanish people and practice the language. Yes!!

Today

Today has been a normal but wonderful day. I woke up late and got ready to hit the city. My first stop was Estacio Norte (North Station)--the train station. (I love the city of Valencia, but I am having a harder time making friends. Since my friends are so amazing in Barcelona, I will go back on Saturday.) While at the ticket counter, the cashier flirted with me relentlessly! Before I received my ticket, I had to give him my phone number. haha... He wants to take me out for coffee--what a great opportunity to practice my Spanish!! After that wonderful experience, I bought a trashy romance novel just so I could practice reading Spanish in my alone time...this should be hilarious...I can´t understand a third of the words. Next...lunch...class...and who knows what else...

Overall, my state of mind is good. My friend and I are on a mission to get fit and eat well. So far so good. Also, I am really excited about returning to Barcelona--I plan on joining a gym for a month and learning salsa at a nearby club. In addition, I am going to become a regular at one of the cafes so that I can practice Spanish with the locals. It is time to step up and learn this language.

Sorry that my posts are so infrequent and that I have been bad at communicating with everyone...I rarely have access to the internet...

By the way...I am always trying to think in Spanish..as a result...my English is terrible!!!

Vitamin D

I must say...the beach here is beautiful!! Several mornings I have had the luxury of passing time on the shores of the Mediterranean! Gorgeous! Thanks to the warm breeze, I feel at peace with everything. Thanks to the sun, I am receiving my daily dose of vitamin D. Thanks to the grandeur of the ocean, I understand the power of my God.

War Zone

So...
I am now in Valencia!! It is always kinda hard to switch cities...new friends...new home...new metro system! Fortunately, I have a good feeling about this city...

Right now, I am living with a precious woman, Carmen! She lives in a beautiful, spacious apartment near the city center! Muy bien! The school is 20 minutes (by metro) from my house...that is kinda far...oh well...

I have classes from 3-7pm. No me gusta. Hopefully I can switch to morning classes next week.

So far I have made some new friends and have plans to go out tonight! Yeah! By the way...this week is Las Fallas here in Valencia. You should google it... So far, my understanding is that this is a week long celebration where different clubs within the city build massive floats, parade them around the city, and burn them to the ground on Friday. This is such a BIG deal...the city has over 2 million visitors...and, as you can imagine, the city is swarming with activity 24hrs a day. Also...Valencia is well known for their fireworks...these fireworks are appreciated for their sound...not necessarily their looks....so they go off three times a day...6am, 2pm, and 1am!! I feel like I am in a war zone. haha...

Montserrat

So I visited Montserrat on Saturday with my friends from Barcelona. It is one of my favorite places so far. I found this info on the web:

"Montserrat is a spectacularly beautiful Benedictine monk mountain retreat about one hour North West from Barcelona by train.

Not only is Montserrat Monastery of significant religious importance but the natural beauty surrounding the monastery is simply breathtaking.

The history of Montserrat is fascinating and started in 880 when a small group of shepherd children saw a bright light descending from the sky in the Montserrat mountains. In the same moment the children heard angels singing and the music filled their hearts with a radiant joy.

Overwhelmed by the experience the children ran home to frantically recall the experience to their parents. The parents were sceptical but knew their children were trustworthy and honest and so they went to where the children had experienced the visions to see if they could see what all the fuss was about.

For the whole month following the first visitation the parents were also witness to the same heavenly experiences and were left with only one conclusion. The visions were a sign from God.

A local vicar was brought to the scene and witnessed the same experiences as the children and parents. The visions occurred in the same location in a cave on Montserrat mountain. When this cave was explored by the religious elders of the community they found an image of the Virgin Mary. And from that moment on the cave became a holy sanctuary for religious pilgrims.":

7 March 2010--Cute Italian Waiter

Last Friday night, my friend Eubee and I went to The Attic, my favorite restaurant here in BCN. Our waiter was a cute Italian boy who waited on us hand and foot. Later he presented us with the bill...and his number. No big deal right?

After the marathon this morning, we went to The Attic once again to celebrate...Our waiter was there! This time, he surprised each of us with a glass of champagne. So Sweet!! Before we left, he dropped a note off at my place...he wanted to get a drink with us after work. Good deal!

We met up with him later this eveing and had a lovely time talking about life, Italy, BCN, and everythign else in between...

P.S. His name was Fabio...