I’m sorry for the delay of postings but I’ve been crazy busy this past week and it’s not letting up this coming week because next week is my last week of school. Did you follow that? I have so many dinner dates that I don’t need to go grocery shopping. Tonight I have my farewell dinner with all of my Valverdian friends that I’ve made. This is the same clique of people that came to Thanksgiving, Elisa’s birthday, Elisa and Pablo’s paella cookout, and every Wednesday night out to Tablajero. This is big night out because almost everyone who is attending would normally be in their houses studying for the opposion or in the case of my roommate, be in Seville. It’s a sweet way of saying that they are coming out this one night on our behalf (Christen, Corrie, Kate and I). Before that dinner I have to finish making croquetta’s with Pocho. Yesterday after my tutor session with her kids I got to help her made ensaladilla and her famous croquetta’s. Today we have to roll the croquetta’s and put the finishing touches on them. After that Pocho’s going to tell me her recipe for Gazpacho.
On Sunday I’m spending the afternoon at Christen’s because she’s going to cook yucca with me and help me make homemade chocolate chip cookies. She also wants to swap photos of Morocco and other adventures. I wanted to give the children I tutor something American to remember me with so I thought cookies was a good option and Christen has found all the ingredients to make cookies from scratch. It wasn’t easy but she found them. On Monday (24th of May) I have my last family dinner with Ana. I’m really going to miss that when I’m back home. Then on Tuesday (May 25th) I have a final dinner with Pocho and Loli’s family (Loli is the mother of the boy who I give classes to with Pocho’s daughter’s). Then the following Friday (May 28th) night I have a farewell night out with Jose Domingo, the big man on campus at Menendez. Lastly I’m planning on spending that final Saturday (May 29th) with Christen, Corrie, and Kate because this will be my last chance to hang out with them. They leave for there final trip on May 31st, like me but they are not returning to Valverde once it’s over.
As well as it being my last week at school it’s also my class week of tutor classes, so I’ve been preparing for them as well. I wrote up mini surveys for each of my pupils to fill out so that I have something to remember them by as well as their individual address and email addresses. I also printed out and individually signed mini farewell cards for all of my students and teachers. I know it’s inevitable but I don’t want my students to forget me. I know it’s also more likely that they will forget me since I deal mostly with the youngest students. For this past month I’ve brought a camera to school every day and whenever I find it appropriate I snap away. I’m trying to capture all the joy they bring me as best I can. It’s quite difficult actually.
While I’m trying to take advantage of all the time I have my students, I’m also trying to take advantage of the one thing I don’t have at home, stars. This past week I’ve stayed up past 2am outside in the park behind my house just starring at the stars. It’s quite incredible how clearly I can see them here. I know if I drive a few hours into the countryside in Maryland I can see them as well but there’s something special about the stars here in Valverde. Maybe it’s just a feeling I get when I’m out at night but there is a calmness that consumes me. I’ve never felt this calmness anywhere else in the world. I guess one of the drawbacks of living in a city is the constant noise. Here I can hear the individual buzzing of a fly, the chomping of my neighbor’s donkey eating grass, and the sound of the wind. I’ve found a comfort in the silence that is Valverde and I think I’ll miss that a lot once I come home. You really do hear your thoughts more clearly when there is absolute silence.
So far I’ve made all of the necessary preparations for my departure. I have a ride to the airport at 5:45am, I’ve worked out my rent and utilities with Elisa, and I’ve almost figured out my budget for my final trip and the exact amount of money in which I will return home with. It’s so unfair that the dollar is getting stronger because I did the math today and the difference between leaving now with the money I have and leaving back in September is about $1000. That is not chump change. I’m planning on spending a boatload in Greece so that better help the Euro. Do you hear me Dollar, you have exactly 21 days to weaken, WEAKEN I SAY! Sigh… The only thing I have left to deal with is closing my bank account when I return from my trip and making sure everything of importance fits into my suitcases. I feel more confident that everything will fit since I gave my parents a lot of the bulky and heavy things back in April but you never know.
For the most part I’m done with souvenirs so I get to focus on myself during my stay in Istanbul and Athens. I also just found out that I might have a potential tour guide for my stay in Istanbul so that will be helpful. Hopefully he’ll be able to help save me money on places to eat and time on how to get to all the touristic places I want to see. I’m most worried about taking a boat across the Bosporus because the boats leave at specific times, they embark and disembark in less than a minute, and I’m not exactly sure which islands are worth visiting over other islands. This is where a local’s advice comes in handy verses some guy on the internet. At first I was a little upset that I was spending my final trip alone but now I realize that this might be exactly what I need. One last travel experience at the pace I want. I won’t have to compromise what I want to do or see and I can be as productive or lazy as I wish. This will be my last chance at alone time for a while. I should savor it and get the absolute most out of it.
It might be a while before I get the chance to post blogs for a while so don’t be alarmed when you don’t see anything new up for over a week (yes I’m talking to you Kate). At best I’ll get a mini paragraph done while I’m at my hostel but that’s wishful thinking. I don’t want to use the internet while I’m gone unless I have too. To those of you who’ve stayed faithful to the blog and continued to read it throughout my time here I thank you. Knowing that people enjoyed reading what I wrote made me continue with it this whole time. A special thanks to anyone who’s posted a comment, I really appreciated it. Keep them coming….
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