Saturday, October 13, 2007

Move-in, fiestas, and birthdays

Today I´m moving into my apartment. Finally. Sigh of relief.


It´s been a three day weekend, Friday being a holiday in honor of Chris Columbus, who discovered the Americas. I didn´t even consider the possibility that Spaniards would celebrate the Columbus day we know and love (a day off school) in the U.S. But it all makes sense now. My adult student reminded me that good old Chris was exiled here in Valladolid for the mistreatment of Native Americans. There is also a museum that I have yet to find and see documenting his life.

Aran´s birthday was yesterday, so we decided to take a break from the hectic pace of adjusting and take a leisurely stroll around Campo Grande, the park here that´s famous for its free roaming peacocks and peahens, not to mention forest ducks. I did get a few shots on my camera, but I´m still in the process of loading them onto my computer. There is a cafe in the center of the park where we both ordered cafe con leches, unwound, and watched kids and adults alike juggling, tossing, and kicking chestnuts around like the latest toy on the market.
We had dinner around nine and ordered a plate of food for four people seeing as we´d only eaten a bocadillo and tiny calamari sandwich for breakfast. The two of us polished off the platter without skipping a beat, proving once again that Spanish people don´t eat the size of dinner that we Americans do.

I´m off to grocery shop, do laundry, and unpack after living out of hotels and hostels for three weeks. I never thought I´d look forward to it so much.

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