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Spanish Lesson

I finally found my way back from the beach. And while sprawling on the beach or floating in the Mediteranean is nice, it doens't lend itself the most exciting blog entries. For example, before my "flashback" idea came to me my blog entry looked something like this:

Title: Sun & Surf
"Today in Barcelona I went to the beach. I also swam out to the bouy and back... Um.... The End."

Now it may be a bit presumptuous to think that by this point in my journey, 3 months after I first started, there are still many people reading this blog. Actually, come to think about it, it might be presumptuous to assume there ever were many people reading. I do know there are at least a few, however, and for fear of losing those precious few, I thought better of the idea of posting the aforementioned blog. Hence the music flashback. BUT, now I will catch you up. You know I was in Paris... mmmmm Paris, a city I instantly connected with and even after 5 days (the longest stop my entire trip) it was a difficult "goodbye".

I stepped back onto that familiar night train, sleeping sporadically to the border of France and Spain. At 7:30 am switched trains and headed to Madrid. Out the window were ghostly hills, hiddend by a morning mist the sun would soon burn off. As the rays overtook the smokey landscape, the mountain silhouettes became solid and revealed hills that couldn't decide whether to be bald or forested, so they compromised.

The rolling hills were decorated with a mix of tobacco, corn and sunflowers, both young and old. The young-stood proud and yellow; the old-hung their tired heads to hide their faces from the harsh sun. Every several miles sat a steeple from an old Spanish chaple, surrounded by a small village of brick building and tiled roofs. Each town telling of a more traditional time of tapas and tango.

The two towns I visited in Spain were Madrid and Barcelona (Bartheloneh-if your local). It's true I spent a fair amount of time toning up my albinish tan, yet I was in Spain long enough to learn a few valuable lessons:

Lesson #1: Siesta!--The Spanish way of life. I have to say I have never been to a country that takes off the entire MONTH of August. You think I'm exagerating but I'm not. More ambitious Spaniards will only take off 15 days. The first night I was ready for some Tapas(see below) so I went to the Tourist Info booth who responded, "Hmmm, tomorrow is September, you might have to wait for tomorrow because restaurants will open again then." "What?" "Spain is closed on August." Also important is the 1:00 to 4:00 pm siesta, necessary for the tiresome morning to regain strength for the evening hours. Sometimes just to be safe, take the rest of the afternoon off.

Lesson #2: Tapas. Buy a drink, get tapas. Tapas are an assortment of exotic appetizers. They have become so popular now that most places charge so you really got to dig to find the tapas-included joints (Joints meaning establishments... Sheese). But if you must order make sure you are clear you want the tapas portion not the entree or you might end up with an enormous plate of chorizo sausages and a lot of people looking at you.

Traveling Tip: When asking for a Tapas Bar, make sure your English is very clear. Otherwise, you may be in for an entirely different "Tapas" experience. Comprende?

Lesson #3: Spanish Beaches. Many beaches in Spain have no tan lines. Well, some tan lines but not many. Not even if you are 98 years old... or 29 and American. It's important to blend in. So for a couple of days "Travelin D" became "Topless D" and for at least 2 days the Spanish sands were especially bright.

Lesson #4: Espanol. Living in Arizona, I have been exposed to people speaking Spanish most of my life, and I was happy to find a surpising amount of the 2 years of High School Spanish coming back to me. But even if you don't speak Spanish, you might be surprised to find how many words are similar in Spanish and English. For example "Gaudi" in Spanish mean "Gaudy" in English. You see, simple.


And that's about it for now. Fortunately, I have found a place that doesn't charge for its internet so I should have another entry very soon. But for now, Monaco-here I come!

posted by Travelin' D @ 2:22 PM