Well. What a good day. I didn´t go to school and instead went to go pick up my Official Spanish ID Card. Juan has an apartment that is right across from the Official Government Building, so after picking up what I needed and I dropped off my stuff at his place and went to go hit up the town.
Cádiz is split into two parts; the new city and the old city and a large stone bridge type thing marks the border. The new part is not very interesting, mostly just banks, official buildings, and the beach. The old part is much better, filled with cool stores and plazas. Walking from the new part to the old part, I saw a HUGE cruise boat in the harbor. I mean HUGE. Emblazoned on its blue walls, were the words "Holland American Tours. WELCOME!" and as the first smattering of fat, pasty, visor wearing people waddled by, I couldn't help but snicker.
Hit up some cool stores. Unlike San Francisco, there aren´t any used clothing stores and of course no Haight street, and I had to find the next best thing, which was a small store run by a silly pregnant woman who wore earrings that were tiny toothpaste tubes. I, being my mother´s daughter, tried hard to be successful at shopping, but was not. And just bought a shirt. But with a smile on my face. I also tried on a weird M.IA meets Fiest bodysuit that was SO FLY--but 300€. I almost, ALMOST, broke the famed Elson family sunglass buying rule, but didn´t.
After two hours of walking around, feeling nifty, my tummy was telling me it was time to COMER! My favorite Moroccan to go restaurant wasn´t open, so I had to find the next best things. And found nothing. I walked allll the way back to the new part and heard the beach calling me. I found myself ordering a sangwich and a pepsi and went to eat on the beach. Listening to music, soaking up the sun, and eating a delIIIIsh ´wich was quite nice. Being in my skinny jeans was not fun. I was so hot. And ended up rolling up my shirt and pants and basically rolling the sand. I got tiny little sand particles in every single part of my body and clothes. After a good hour or so, the only thing I wanted was a bathing suit. I put on my shoes (without socks) and tried to brush off as much sand as I could. I had no idea where I was. I hoped I was close to Juan´s apartment. Walking off of the beach, I found myself next a very familiar looking garage. OMG. Yes it was. The flat was RIGHT THERE. I can´t even describe the JOY and niftiness I felt to lug my ass up 16 flights of stairs, magically find my SPIDERMAN boxers in my backpack and hit up the beach AGAIN. For another 2 hours. So amazing.
And I discovered something that I always sort of knew. I love being alone. My own company is so nice. I can do whatever I want, whenever, without any questions being asked. And people are nicer when you are alone, well at least to me. I made quite lovely conversation with random people who were also on the beach. Let me just describe my feelings "I am so COOLLLLL" that is really what I felt. It was nice to have those feelings for once. And being in my spiderman boxers and tank top, looking a little sunburned and just chilln. So nice.
And that was my day.
And this month will also be amazing. Sunday I leave for Barcelona with my class (medium thumbs up) then it is Holy week (no thumbs up) and THENNNN I go to PARIS (two thumbs up) and then VIEENNAAA (a million thumbs up)
YEEEEE
and then it is May and then it is June and then I am BACK!
Ok. so I also recorded and really silly video of the Campo and will try to upload it soon.
YAY!
Thursday, March 26, 2009
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
This is what eating home-made yogurt has turned me into....
A few days ago, I had the pleasure of going to see Cirque de Soleil in Sevilla. What an amazing show. But really. Incredible. The costumes, make-up, routines, every little detail, perfectly planned out. It really blew my mind.
After that we walked around Sevilla. The night was perfect. It was warm and without a breeze. I have been to Sevilla in the day, and I think it is more beautiful at night. i now know that i have no real desire to go back to Marin, to high school, to any of that. i would much rather travel the world, meeting cool people, and doing cool things than going back to Tam for another year. That then raises the question...do I really want to go to University? Well, yes and no. I would love to go to a place where learning is the key factor, where people want to learn, and college is an experience that has been built up to a such a grand endeavor in my life that i will end up going. But living abroad, and going to school overseas is just so much better. meeting such amazing people. I don´t want to do an exchange in college, but i have met exchange students in college and they only thing they want to do is party. I want to live, work, and be member in a community such as Sevilla, Madrid, Paris.....Places like that. I know that I am going to take a year off before college, probably work for 6 months and then travel for 6 months. But I am just so unsure of I what I want to do.
So, yes, I am someone who is always in thinking about the future. Or at least, that is what it seems. I feel like my thoughts are always pointed towards next year, towards college, or I seem to always be waiting for something. But that was the same last year as well. Every thought of mine was focused on Spain, SPain, SPAin, SPAIn, SPAIN!
But, even though my mind is in the future, I also feel really in the present. I go on a lot of walks and I spend a lot of time alone, which when added together, is the same as a lot of time to think and be overwhelmed by everything (in a good way). The other day, I was riding the bus to San Fernando, to go to see a movie. It was just around 7 pm and the sun was setting. Let me take a minute to describe how magnificent the sun-sets are. So amazing. When there are no clouds, it blows me away to see the bright red sun setting behind a church or what not. So, anyways, there I was, listening to Beirut and sitting on a bus. We passed a salt mill/farm/factory, and at that very moment, the sun was poised perfectly on top of a huge pile of salt. It was divine. A large glittering mound of particles with a large orange sun making is seem unreal. At that moment, I felt so, so, at peace, I guess. I don´t know how to describe an emotion that I have only felt here.
Last weekend, I was walking around Cádiz alone, taking picture of the Carnival festivities and got completely lost. For those who know me well, I have the shittiest sense of direction. At 10 years of age, I thought that Paradise Drive was Stinstion Beach and at 16 years of age, I tried to get drive to a place in San Francisco and ended up on Treasure Island. Well, I did not surprise me that I turned the corner and was in the middle of no where, but I wasn´t in any hurry, so I just let my self and my camera wander. I walked for a good half hour, letting my Diana + lead the way. It was so calming and once again, I had this pleasant peace. I had no hurry, no place to be, no one waiting for me to be home. I was on my own time, in a place that was almost like a fairy-tale, seeing people who I did not know and I just felt like a pleasant humming of joy through-out my body. That is what it was. A pleasant humming of joy.
I am just so checked-out of my Marin life. I have no extra-curricular activities, have no job, no car, no one who calls or texts me frequently. It is a strange 9 month vacation. I am not at all saying that I love having so much free time, because a lot of the time, I feel so lazy. I miss having events to plan, meetings to run, and a real community that I am part of.
I have almost been here for 6 months. Every time I think about leaving, I get a strange rush of dread and joy. I am excited to return and take what I have learned here to apply to my life back home but at the same time, leaving just seems too soon. I have had dreams where it is my last day here and I always wake up with a panic.
I just bought my plane tickets to Paris and Vienna. I am so excited!!! I feel like an adult, kind of functioning (but somehow fucking up important details) and travelling across Europe. What luck I have. It seems unreal.
After that we walked around Sevilla. The night was perfect. It was warm and without a breeze. I have been to Sevilla in the day, and I think it is more beautiful at night. i now know that i have no real desire to go back to Marin, to high school, to any of that. i would much rather travel the world, meeting cool people, and doing cool things than going back to Tam for another year. That then raises the question...do I really want to go to University? Well, yes and no. I would love to go to a place where learning is the key factor, where people want to learn, and college is an experience that has been built up to a such a grand endeavor in my life that i will end up going. But living abroad, and going to school overseas is just so much better. meeting such amazing people. I don´t want to do an exchange in college, but i have met exchange students in college and they only thing they want to do is party. I want to live, work, and be member in a community such as Sevilla, Madrid, Paris.....Places like that. I know that I am going to take a year off before college, probably work for 6 months and then travel for 6 months. But I am just so unsure of I what I want to do.
So, yes, I am someone who is always in thinking about the future. Or at least, that is what it seems. I feel like my thoughts are always pointed towards next year, towards college, or I seem to always be waiting for something. But that was the same last year as well. Every thought of mine was focused on Spain, SPain, SPAin, SPAIn, SPAIN!
But, even though my mind is in the future, I also feel really in the present. I go on a lot of walks and I spend a lot of time alone, which when added together, is the same as a lot of time to think and be overwhelmed by everything (in a good way). The other day, I was riding the bus to San Fernando, to go to see a movie. It was just around 7 pm and the sun was setting. Let me take a minute to describe how magnificent the sun-sets are. So amazing. When there are no clouds, it blows me away to see the bright red sun setting behind a church or what not. So, anyways, there I was, listening to Beirut and sitting on a bus. We passed a salt mill/farm/factory, and at that very moment, the sun was poised perfectly on top of a huge pile of salt. It was divine. A large glittering mound of particles with a large orange sun making is seem unreal. At that moment, I felt so, so, at peace, I guess. I don´t know how to describe an emotion that I have only felt here.
Last weekend, I was walking around Cádiz alone, taking picture of the Carnival festivities and got completely lost. For those who know me well, I have the shittiest sense of direction. At 10 years of age, I thought that Paradise Drive was Stinstion Beach and at 16 years of age, I tried to get drive to a place in San Francisco and ended up on Treasure Island. Well, I did not surprise me that I turned the corner and was in the middle of no where, but I wasn´t in any hurry, so I just let my self and my camera wander. I walked for a good half hour, letting my Diana + lead the way. It was so calming and once again, I had this pleasant peace. I had no hurry, no place to be, no one waiting for me to be home. I was on my own time, in a place that was almost like a fairy-tale, seeing people who I did not know and I just felt like a pleasant humming of joy through-out my body. That is what it was. A pleasant humming of joy.
I am just so checked-out of my Marin life. I have no extra-curricular activities, have no job, no car, no one who calls or texts me frequently. It is a strange 9 month vacation. I am not at all saying that I love having so much free time, because a lot of the time, I feel so lazy. I miss having events to plan, meetings to run, and a real community that I am part of.
I have almost been here for 6 months. Every time I think about leaving, I get a strange rush of dread and joy. I am excited to return and take what I have learned here to apply to my life back home but at the same time, leaving just seems too soon. I have had dreams where it is my last day here and I always wake up with a panic.
I just bought my plane tickets to Paris and Vienna. I am so excited!!! I feel like an adult, kind of functioning (but somehow fucking up important details) and travelling across Europe. What luck I have. It seems unreal.
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