Photos from my Thanksgiving

A Spanish Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving Dinner starts promptly at 10:30pm

I didn’t want to think about Thanksgiving like I did Halloween. I was all prepared to just ignore the holiday here and treat it like any other Thursday. Well, to my pleasure that didn’t happen. I found out about a week before Thanksgiving that Kate’s mom was going to be in Valverde for the holiday and was preparing to cook all of us a wonderful feast of traditional Thanksgiving foods. However, I didn’t find out until Monday afternoon that everyone attending the dinner was suppose to bring a dish AND that there was going to be like 20 people coming. Oye! Well it took me until Tuesday afternoon to come up with a good thanksgiving dish that didn’t require an oven: Mashed Potatoes. One problem didn’t have a peeler. I wasn’t about to buy one so I asked around and lucky enough on Thursday early afternoon Pocho found one for me in her house. After my 4:30pm session I set aside an hour to call my family and wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving. Unfortunately I didn’t have enough time to call Whitney so that was my only regret.

After my calls I raced home and began making my dish. I have never made mashed potatoes before (shocking I know) so I was a little apprehensive about it. I also wasn’t sure how many potatoes to peel so I thought more were better and ended up with two giant pots boiling with potatoes. The peeler that Pocho gave me wasn’t exactly the same kind of peeler I was use to so it took me a little to figure out how to work it. After 5 minutes of struggling with the peeler I realized that the peeler was meant for a left handed person and therefore the only way it was going to work is if I peeled the skin of the potato towards me. Any good chef knows that’s a dangerous thing to do so it took me double the time it would normally take to peel potatoes because I had to be extremely careful and the peeler wasn’t always cooperating with me as well. The whole ordeal was one big mess. However, the one thing Spain has that helped me make my dish faster was a puree machine. The machine is a little hand-operated device that puree’s foods very quickly. It helped me make up the time I lost with peeling the potatoes. To finish off the dish I made the potatoes garlic and cheesy. Who doesn’t like cheesy potatoes? (Kate…)

I ended up with two LARGE bowls of mashed potatoes, enough to satisfy two Thanksgiving of 20 people. The only problem was I had another tutor session to attend to before we could leave for the dinner. By the time we left the house for Kate and Corrie’s my dish wasn’t warm anymore. I thought I would warm them up in the oven but other people needed the oven for their dishes so mine went in the microwave. It didn’t do the best job so my potatoes weren’t the best they could have been, but Christina thanked me profusely for making them. What’s Thanksgiving without starches?

The final head count at the dinner came out to 16 people. Each person did there part and made a dish. This is what my Thanksgiving consisted of: appetizers of sliced meats (chorizo, salami, jamon serano), toasted bread with cream cheese and jam, bread, olives, and nuts. The main dishes consisted of roasted potatoes, my mashed potatoes, Christina’s green bean casserole (the biggest hit of all the food that night—I had three helpings hehe), deviled eggs, two CHICKEN dishes, 2 different quiches, fruit salad, and potato chips. Lots of food but none of them were very traditional, but it didn’t really matter. Unfortunately in Spain, to make a whole turkey would have cost over $95 so we nixed that idea. I was under the impression that Kate’s mom was going to bring cranberries and pumpkin pie filling but she didn’t. For dessert there was an apple pie that wasn’t too good, ice cream, a whiskey cake (???), and more wine. All in all the meal was a huge success and unlike any Thanksgiving I had ever been to. I talked with different people in Spanish and English and I was forced to pray (a new one for me). The meal started around 11pm and ended at 2am. Not exactly an ideal time to be eating heavy food but what can you do?

Miguel-Angelo, the new roommate had facebook stalked me and asked me about soccer. Finally, someone interested in soccer to talk to!! At the end of our conversation I made a play date with him on Sunday to play soccer. Wahoo! We also agreed to watch the El Clasico together because we were both Real Madrid fans. I forget what I did on Friday, but it mustn’t have been that eventful. OH just kidding I remember! Friday I attended my first Spanish Birthday party!!!! It was awesome. See previous post for details.

Saturday I had a wonderful morning. I got up at a decent hour and prepared myself for a run. When I opened my door to leave I noticed three of my students across the street. Naturally they came up to me and asked where I was going and if I lived there and so forth. I talked to them for a little but when I left I forgot to tell them that I wanted to play soccer and that they should have come back to my door at 2pm to play. Rats! I began my run down the hills of Valverde taking a different route. I couldn’t tell you what streets I ran through but somehow I ended up at the start of the green path that I wanted. The combination of my good mood, great fall-ish weather, and my excellent playlist made my run really enjoyable. I challenged myself to run farther than I did the weekend before. I ended up running a little over 6.5 kilometers in total. I felt great and although I ran it very slowly I didn’t stop to walk and I wasn’t too tired. My stamina since arriving in Valverde has disappeared and I’m ashamed to call myself an athlete. I don’t really get to the chance to exercise anymore, so I’ve lost every muscle and replaced it with a thick layer of fat that has turned into lovely rolls around my stomach. I am a disgrace to my former self and I vow to change my habits as soon as I get access to the pool. Unfortunately that is a whole other blog’s worth of details and another example of Spanish bureaucracy at its finest. Don’t even get me started…

I felt great after my run and was looking forward to my shower but the warm water never came. It took me ten minutes to get my shower at a decent enough temperature for me to enter even though I was still shivering. NOT OKAY! One of my pet peeves is being cold in a shower. I hate it. After my shower I did a full two loads of laundry, cleaned my bedroom, read my book (finished The Lost Symbol—by the way I totally saw the twist coming and if anyone had been around me when I was reading the book they would of heard me shouting out the twist throughout the book. The book was good but now I don’t have any more English books to read. I have to wait until my winter break trip, when I’m in an airport, to purchase a new English book to occupy my weekends), and wrote an email. I turned on the TV and was delighted that an EPL game was on. During the game Corrie called me and asked if I wanted to go to Seville with the usual group to see a movie. Corrie wanted to see New Moon (I really wanted to see it as well but not in Spanish…) and Ruben wanted to see a Spanish movie Celdo 211 (Cell 211). By the time everyone was ready to go we figured there wasn’t enough time to see a movie if we drove all the way to Seville, so we headed to Huelva instead. It didn’t matter to me, I was just happy to be going to a movie instead of the usual, go to a bar and talk. We ended up at a mall and ate dinner at an eatery across from the theatre. The food was really good. I noticed that there was a flashing word next to the entire New Moon movie times and figured that it meant the movie was sold out. Sure enough I was right. Are choices were now the Celdo 211 or Planet 51 in Spanish. After talking it over we all decided to see Celdo 211. It had a famous Galician actor that Ruben loves (Ruben is from Galicia so it makes sense that he would like the actor).

Well I knew that I was not going to understand most of it so when Ruben offered to sit in between us to help translate I was all for it. Unfortunately he sat between Kate and Corrie, not me. I understand the least amount of Spanish than anyone and therefore need the translator the most, yet I never got one. Figures. Kate leaned over twice during the movie to tell me a sentence of information in English that I had already figured out. Thanks. The movie was sad but very well acted. I really enjoyed the main character, Juan. I had a few questions at the end that I needed explained to me but for the most part I understood what happened. I recommend the movie (with subtitles of course) if you’re into prison dramas. After the movie, the group wanted to go get a drink in Huelva. Rocio lead the way because she had a Nav System but we ended up in circles and getting lost numerous times. After a half hour Ruben pulled aside and made the decision to just get a drink in Valverde. I wanted to go home but I couldn’t say so because I was with the group. We got to La Estacion and it was crowded and incredibly smoky. So smoky in fact, that I started to cry and anytime I tried to talk I would cough profusely. I made it clear that I was heading home after 15 minutes and Christina and Ruben followed me out the door. Ruben was nice enough to give me a lift back to my far away house.

On Sunday I was looking forward to my soccer date but when I woke up it was rainy and cold. Shucks! I didn’t really do anything that important all day but when it was time for the Clasico I put on my purple sweater and headed to the bar that Sergio told me to go to. After arriving I wasn’t quite sure why he told me to watch the game here because it was very smoky, all men (no surprise there), no tables, and not really a great environment. Oh well, I stuck it out. Miguel joined me and so did the Corrie and Kate, although they left at half time. They truly don’t understand the importance of this match to Spaniards. Whenever Madrid got close to scoring this guy in front of me would pump his fist in the air in the perfect spot to block out the TV for me. It was funny at first but then I got annoyed. After Barce scored Miguel lost hope. He had predicted earlier that the game would be a 1-0 affair and he was right. Good news, I’m still a good luck charm for Barcelona. Every time I watch them play they win. Too bad I’m normally rooting for the other team.

Valverde is now OFFICIALLY cold. Dad, you’ll be happy to hear that my room here is colder than any room in our home in Cabin John. My room is a frozen cellblock that prevents me from getting out of bed in the morning and showering. The worst feeling is getting out of (a normally steaming hot shower but that’s not the case for me) shower and then shivering the rest of the time as I towel off, put on clothes, and wait around in wet hair. Ugh it’s awful! During the weekend I stole Elisa’s heater and used it in my room, but once she returned my room went back to it’s usual cold self. After school I wrap myself in a blanket, curl up on my bed, and lay there, unable to move for hours because I’m afraid of being cold. It’s THAT bad. Today (Tuesday) I was too cold to change in the morning so I wore my pajamas to school. It’s a good thing nobody could tell that they were my Pj’s hehe. In order to get any sleep I HAVE to wear pants, socks, and a sweatshirt to bed. A t-shirt doesn’t cut it; I’ll wake up in the middle of the night freezing. I even take it to the next step and tuck my pants into my socks/slippers to prevent any chills. Desperate times call for desperate measures. Elisa told me today that she would take me to a store on Thursday and help me purchase a heater for my room. She says they are only 20 Euros. She also informed me that my shower problem is normal and that the same thing happened last year. She said a guy is suppose to come to our house to fix the pipe but in Spanish time that could be anytime from December to February so I’m not holding my breath. I’ll just put the heater in the shower with me lol.

During my tutor session with Sergio he told me that his classmate David wanted private sessions with me. At first I thought, nope, I’ll pass it off to Christina, but then I thought about the money… The greed got to me. I figured I wouldn’t have to plan another session because I would do the exact same thing with him as I do with Sergio. Sergio told me that he and David are the best students in the English class and that they are at the same level so that makes it even better. Also, technically I’m not gaining another tutor session because I now only teach Sergio once a week instead of twice a week because he has this Chemistry class that cuts into my normal tutoring hours. I’m not sure if it will work out because David might not be able to hold classes at the times I told him I’m free but if it does work out, it could be fun. I can compare the two high schoolers on my own time. Since I teach at the elementary school, Sergio is my only exposure into the life of the adolescence here in Valverde. It would be nice to get a second opinion. Also, he could be another person to potentially play pick up soccer with.

Now that Sergio is more comfortable with me he talks more. We end up spending at least half of the class talking about soccer, both EPL, La Liga, and his own games. He’s really insightful about soccer and doesn’t just watch the game; he analyzes the teams and the players. The best part is his facial expressions. Sometimes he goes off in Spanish and talks so fast that I have no idea what he is saying but I read his face and understand more. It is very obvious when he is talking about Seville F.C because disgust is written all over his face, likewise with Real Madrid but the opposite emotion. Sometimes I can’t help but laugh because based on his face I can just imagine the words he would be saying in English. I think at the beginning of our sessions he kind of dreaded the classes, but now I think he enjoys it a little more. The turning point was definitely the day I mentioned a while ago when he started off mopey and by the end of the class he was in a great mood and hugged his mom. I’ll never forget that session.

Ugh I have to go to bed now (it’s 11:55pm) but I don’t want to go into my cold room. I’m very comfortable in the living room with the heater placed between my feet. It doesn’t hurt that I’m also wearing a jacket, sweatshirt, t-shirt, sweatpants, socks, and shoes. Transitions are the worst. I wish that I could burn fat by shivering because then I would gladly take more showers and sleep in boxers but sadly that is not the case. 3 days until GRANADA!!!! :)

“I just got out of my PJ’s (8:30p)” - Kate

(i forgot to post this about two weeks ago, whoops!)

I had a phenomenal Saturday. I accomplished a lot for one day and had a wonderful relaxing time doing it. I woke up at a decent hour, had breakfast, and planned out my day. I decided that even though I didn’t know what time Sergio plays at Triana (the soccer stadium in Valverde) I would check it out anyways and watch whatever game was on. On the way to the stadium I took my time and window-shopped at all the boot stores because I was determined to buy a pair of Valverde boots. Realizing that my winter break will consist of cities that are notorious for feet of snow I figured my Chucks just wouldn’t cut it so I knew I needed to buy a pair of boots before my winter break trip. I see boots in the store windows all the time but I always pass the stores during siesta time so I never get the chance to ask the price or try them on. Well today I did. I decided to make my rounds to all the boot places before settling on a pair just to ensure I got the best price and wasn’t missing out on anything. I eventually made my way down to Triana around 11ish and got to the field about 3 minutes before half time. I remained at the entrance for a little in order to scope out the fans and determine if I would stick out too much if I sat by myself. Well I came to the conclusion that I just didn’t care at this point, I was tired of being stared at every time I walk by a bar full of men and peep in to check the TV for the soccer match. Even just walking down the street and passing the outdoor bars and restaurants warrants constant stares no matter how I dress. I don’t think my outfits scream “American” or foreigner for that matter but yet people are always blatantly starring at me. I’m over it. I’ve been here long enough to know that the starring should be over and done with. So once half time started and I saw other people walking over to the stands I made my way over. Before I got to the other side I look at the kids passing on the pitch and I spotted Sergio! Perfect timing, yeah!!!!!! Like any good stalker, I whipped out my camera and discreetly took pictures of him and his teammates lol. I then proceeded to makes notes in my journal about his soccer technique and form. Not to be overly critical, but I expected him to be better than what I saw. He never used his left foot and his passes were average at best. This cheered me up because I realized that I COULD actually play with his team. After watching the entire second half I had no doubt that I was better than most of the players on his team and could easily hold my own against them, that is once I get my endurance up and brush up on my touches.

Oh I also forgot to mention that on Friday in the afternoon (normally the time of day where I am planning tutor sessions or holding a session any other day of the week) I found a group of guys playing pickup soccer at the Menendez playground. It does exist!!! Oh man this and the game at Triana really inspired me to just go out with my mini soccer ball and just play around when I have some free time and see what happens. While I enjoy making money in order to travel, sometimes when I walk to my sessions I pass all the kids playing in the parks and streets and I just want to jump in and play soccer with them. Perhaps Friday’s I can finally get that chance. During the game I recognized a few of my students and they all said hi to me. A few of them came up to me during the game and asked why I was there. It was great. The only annoying part of the experience was the father I was sitting next to. Not only was he smoking, he had an obnoxious horn (the only person to have a horn) and he would not stop commentating throughout the whole game. He was a parent on the away team (which was awful) so most of the time he was screaming “vamos”, “venga”, or “falta” haha. I decided not to say hi to Sergio after the game; I’ll wait until our session on Monday to bring it up.

Birthday Photos!!!!

Marta's Birthday Party