The Little Differences + A Trip to Combarro

Here’s a random list of things that make Spain different than America that we have observed thus far:

1. Apparently it’s ok to make each student weigh herself in front of her peers.  I understand that students are learning to describe themselves physically, but can’t we just stick to I am short and I have brown hair?  And this is in sixth grade of all grades.  

2. They almost never use butter…only olive oil.  I wish it was cheaper to make the switch in America because I don’t taste the difference.  I suppose it makes up for all the smoking they do here. 

3. Everyone has dogs and these dogs act like people (i.e. they are almost never on a leash yet walk right by their owner.  They also stop and chat with other dogs while the owner does the same.).

4. They don’t bake chocolate chip cookies, nor are they sold in the store L I suppose it’s not the end of the world since they do have many great cookie substitutes.

5. Everyone drives a stick-shift.

6. Businesses do not open before 9am.

7. No one eats dinner before 8pm! No one!

8. They say “Buenos días” or good morning until they eat lunch which is at 3pm – 5pm.

9. When saying goodbye on the phone they literally say it at least 7 times in 7 different ways (Adiós, Ciao, Venga, Hasta Luego).  They say them all right in a row.

10. They love old American movies.  Westerns are always on here.  Also, almost all their movies are dubbed in Spanish.  Luckily Robin and I figured out how to switch the movie to its original language, so we now very much enjoy watching movies in English!

11. Halloween is not a cutsie matter.  If you’re going to dress up, you’re going to wear something scary.  No room for any creative costumes or pretty princesses. 

12. The country is 94% Catholic, yet practically no one seems to attend church.  More of a symbolic thing...

13. Bulk grocery shopping just isn’t possible.  People go grocery shopping very often.  We do enjoy how fresh everything is.

On a different note, we went with a teacher to the nearby town of Combarro.  It is very old and beautifully preserved.  In fact, I believe it’s the oldest historic quarter in Galicia, Spain.  It is full of hórreos (granaries) and restaurants that feel like they are from Spain during the 19^th century.  I just picked a random old century…but just picture super old and cool.

Since when did granaries become so picturesque?

We've got granary fever!

Beautiful restaurant patio

I spy a cat playing in the vineyard

It's a cave restaurant!

A beautiful sunset celebrating the end of the week of rain

An Octopus Tale

   RAIN AND FOOD.  FOOD AND RAIN.  AND REPEAT.

     What’s new in Galicia you ask? Well as far as weather goes….NOTHING! It has been raining for an entire week! It was practically a monsoon the other day.  Alright, maybe I’m exaggerating but if Emma and Adam were to walk outside, I’m pretty sure they would blow away.  On the bright side, I think we are starting to adjust to the rain.  We should probably invest in rain boots soon, though.   Poor Robin had to walk home from tutoring for two miles in the pouring rain a couple days ago.  His shoes are still drying.  We started a new workout routine and were determined to follow through.  On the docket for last Friday was a 30 minute run.  We waited for hours after school to see if the downpour would let up.  Nope! We both put on our running shoes and completed that run.  I felt like a true Forrest Gump.  It was exhilarating!

 Even the dogs here have raincoats!

     Rain, like cold snowy weather, really makes you want to eat warm meals and sweet desserts.  It’s been a struggle since Robin and I are both trying to follow a very strict calorie intake.  We cook almost all of our meals at home, and it has been very fun to learn how to cook traditional Spanish meals, and it has also been a little challenging to try to cook some of our comfort foods from America here in Spain.  For instance, not one store carries pre-packaged macaroni and cheese.  I told my teacher that macaroni and cheese is one of my favorite foods, and she looked at me with a puzzled expression.  

Our attempt to recreate our church paella experience!

 

 

Paella from church.  It was neat to watch them make it. This fed about 50 people!

 

LIVE crabs at the weekend market.  Picture this: an entire room filled with any kind of animal from sea all available to purchase.  The smell alone was too much for me!

 

Fresh produce from the market.  The grapes were the sweetest grapes we've ever tasted! Now if only we could make grape jam!

DAY TRIP TO CAMBADOS

 

  Last Saturday, we had a trip planned for the neighboring village of Cambados.  The forecast showed 100% chance of rain for Saturday.  That morning, we woke up to the most beautiful sight…SUNSHINE!!! Sure, there were a few darker clouds, but fortunately the rain held off all day.  Cambados is a very small town (probably more around 10,000 people).  The greater surrounding area where we live is known as Las Rías Baixas.  The means the lower rivers.  The Rías Baixas area is known for their white wine, Albariño.  Out of all the little towns and village that make up Las Rías Baixas, Cambados is said to top them all for their Albariño wine producing skills.   We saw a multitude of vineyards on the bus ride there. 

Traditional Galician granary

My goodness....is that siding made out of shells? There were many houses/businesses with this siding.

 

THE GREAT PULPO (OCTOPUS) CHALLENGE OF 2013

Our waiter was very passionate about seafood.  He was so passionate that he brought out EACH seafood menu item to our table! He set this lobster down on our rather small table while he ran inside the restaurant to dig another animal up to show us.  At least we know it is fresh I guess.

Before and After

   

Close up of the Octopus

I couldn't bring myself to help Robin out; however, I did enjoy a delicious tarta de Santiago (traditional Galician cake made from crushed almonds, lemon zest, eggs, and sugar).

     We are very excited for this weekend because we will be eating takeout pizza for the first time.  The missionary couple (Ruth and Harold) are inviting Robin and I as well as the other American married couple from Seattle over to their house for “jazzed up Spanish pizza” in the word’s of Harold.  We have a longer weekend next weekend for some Spanish holiday, so we are hoping to make the three hour journey to Porto, Portugal for a day or two so we can add a sticker to our world map tracker of all the places we've traveled to.

Blessings and happy fall! We miss the fall colors!  Maybe we'll just have to fry one of these crazy looking birds up for Thanksgiving. Just kidding....

 

-Alyssa and Robin

 

"It's a Magical World...Let's Go Exploring"

Loved ones!

It has been too long since we updated the blog.  Ahh too much to say.  Not to worry, we won’t bore you all with details. 

TOO COOL FOR SCHOOL

     Life has been pretty great on the west coast (of Spain).  Never thought I’d say that I live on the west coast.  We have been busier lately with school.  Also, Robin started teaching private English lessons to four different young lads here (all middle school boys).  I will start my lessons with an adult woman who does not know a lick of English this week.  I admire her ambition!

     Since I helped teach English in a third grade classroom when I was in Toledo, I was better prepared with what to expect in the Spanish system than Robin.  The kids watch so many American t.v. shows and movies as well as listen to American pop songs that they have a pretty solid image formed in their mind of what the typical American is like.  They think we’re very wealthy and that we know famous people.  One of my students asked if I personally knew Justin Bieber.  Yup, he lives right down the block from me! Oh kids.  Also, there is not as much of a professional relationship between the students and teacher. The students do show respect to the teacher…just in different ways.  For instance, one of my students greets me with a kiss on the cheek every day.  I observed the other teacher to note whether I should explain to her that it’s appropriate to give her mom and dad kisses on the cheek at home; however, kisses are not for school.  I found out that this student likes to greet many teachers with a kiss on the cheek.

     The students were very interested in my presentation to them about our interests and where we’re from.  They especially got a kick out of pictures I found when I did a google search of “crazy Packers fans wearing cheeseheads.”  They thought Snuggles and Indy were so “sweet.”  They thought my picture of macaroni and cheese from the annual St. Norbert Soul Food dinner looked delicious, yet they cringed at the picture I showed them of my favorite candy, Reese’s Peanut Butter cups.  Peanut butter is not really sold in stores here.

     The students’ English levels are pretty low.  Nevertheless, I am still impressed with them since they are in third, fourth, fifth, and sixth grade.  I didn’t even know that hola meant when I was that age.  So far, all I have heard them confidently say is “Hello, my name is ________,’  “How are you?”  and “I love you, Alyssa.”  Don’t worry, only the third graders say that.  Also, they learn British English.  It’s going to take some getting used to saying ‘felt tip’ instead of ‘pen.’

THE FIRST ANNUAL CALVIN AND HOBBES DAY

     Robin, being the sensible man that he is, brought many books in English to Spain.  To cure the pangs of homesickness, we read comics from Calvin and Hobbes before bed each night.  Unfortunately, we are almost finished with the second book, and he only brought two.  Anyway, for those of you who haven’t read Calvin and Hobbes, Calvin is the world’s smartest and most spirited six year old.  Together with his tiger, Hobbes, the dynamic duo are constantly searching for adventures. 

 

     In honor of the gift of life, we chose to celebrate it by spending the day at Las Islas Cíes, which is a protected natural park.  It was beautiful! Pictures just don’t do justice. I’ve always dreamed of seeing pristine blue waters, and my dreams finally came true.  We walked three out of the four trails and our calves definitely feel it today. 

the ferry we took to the island

Almost there. Just keep going!

now we can rest...what a hike, but what a view!

At the top of another viewpoint, we spotted the lighthouse that we had just hiked up to.

First Annual Calvin and Hobbes Day = success!

Robin pausing to take a break and read Stephen King's "It"

Are we in The Shire from Lord of the Ring's ?

Hooray! Crystal clear blue waters 

pretty cold, but so beautiful!

Working out in the outdoor public workout park. How motivating! 

     On a random note, Robin and I were reading out on our porch late one night and we heard galloping.  For some reason, we both must have been so engrossed in what we were reading that in our minds the sound of galloping was normal and we didn’t look up.  All of a sudden, we both looked up and were astonished to see a man riding his horse alongside the beach at midnight.  He did a loop and then came back our way, and this time the horse went in the water.  We’ve been spending a lot of time out on the deck these nights hoping to see the midnight rider once again. 

Also, cooking has been challenging and fun here in Spain.  Here’s one successful dish so far:  Chicken Sautéed in Olive oil & garlic and the famous torilla española

DAILY LIFE IN VILAGARIA

When the sun is out, it seems our clothes dry in minutes

We woke up one morning to find the ocean had receded about 100 yards

The fresh produce section of the weekend farmer's market. We bought onions and carrots :)

Love and Blessings,

Alyssa and Robin

This Just In: We have a home!

After almost one week in the Hotel, we have an apartment...and a BEA-U-TIFUL one at that.  Just what we needed...enough nature to make us feel at home :)

 

  view from our balcony looking straight out

view from balcony looking to the right                                           

I think I can be quite comfortable here.

 

We love our new apartment, although we do miss big green! We broke in our apartment with a European sunset, balcony ocean view dance to Al Green's "Let's Stay Together" in the background after eating a big pasta meal.  Sound like a familiar movie? I thought it was funny...anyways off to eat yummy chocolate cereal with milk that need not be refrigerated until opening.

 Love and Blessings from España :)

One Week.

 

     After quite a few sighs and nearly a week of prodding, I have decided to write my very first blog post.  I will share the next chapter of our story and then turn it over to THE LYSS.  After living in Spain for nearly a week, I have started to grow accustomed to my new lifestyle and surroundings.  One big lifestyle change is the food.  My American diet usually consists of such staples as hamburgers, pasta, and Mexican food.  None of these foods are commonly found in Spain so Alyssa and I have changed it up.  We eat ham and cheese sandwiches on a regular basis which one might label as much too “safe”.  However we have also developed tastes for some foods that are a bit less common in the United States…

In Spain the platters come with a great variety... I get french fries, calamari, chicken and an egg!  Lyss got tortilla Española which consists of eggs and potatoes.

      

Donuts are pretty cheap... 
I've eaten so many that they named a donut after me! ^^^

 Alyssa and I eating ham flavored pringles...with nutella!   We were given complimentary mussels at a restaurant but Alyssa rudely turned hers down.

     

     Villagarcia de Arousa is a perplexing city.  It has a population of only about 34,000 making it roughly the size of Oak Creek WI in terms of population. But when I look out my window at the Hotel Derby, it looks nothing like Oak Creek.  Every building in my sight is at least four stories tall but many are closer to twelve.  When Alyssa and I walk East down a cobblestone street, it feels like a beautiful European city and not like a small town where the only major industry is catching mussels and the unemployment rate matches that of the U.S. during the Great Depression.  The streets are crowded and the cafes and bars a filled with people relaxing on outdoor patios.  It seems like all 34,000 of Villagarcia’s citizens are out and about…  There must not be a soccer game on.  When we walk a bit further (under our umbrellas of course… it is always raining) we may begin to see blighted buildings and a few homeless people.  After maybe a thirty minute walk we would pass some houses covered in moss or ivy, the school where I teach, and probably a few goats grazing on a farm.  Before you know it, we are out of the enormous yet petite city of Villagarcia de Arousa.  If we head West instead of East when leaving our apartment we will see the Atlantic Ocean in a matter of minutes.  However we first pass Moe’s Tavern and the basketball court where Ricky Rubio and I are going to play one on one next week.  Soon we are at the ocean and I tell Alyssa that it looks as beautiful and strange as some craft project she has attempted. 

     There are numerous wooden poles and sticks rising up out of the water and a number of boats a floating out at sea with no passengers.  I recently learned from a local that the poles and boats are not there for aesthetic appeal but are used to catch mussels.  Fishermen leave the poles in the water for weeks at a time and then remove them and all of the mussels attached to them to bring to the market.  That is about the extent of my mussel knowledge to this date but I can keep you updated as we learn more…

    (Mussel Catching Poles)

     One week was about six days too many for Alyssa and I to spend in a hotel so Alyssa and I are saying adios and moving into our own apartment.  It isn’t very expensive and it isn’t really fancy but it’s got a great view.  I think I'm going to like it here.