Sorry for the delay... I have had this blog in draft form for over a week now... so now I have to catch everyone up on two weeks of stuff...

Thursday, the 16th of November, I went to the movie El Laberinto del Fauno (Pan's Labyrinth) with Jessica Potter. That was the first time I had seen her in a month! We get to the theater, and we end up being the only two watching the movie. Still, the movie was good and I would recommend it to anyone who doesn't mind some scenes of torture and violence. Pretty gruesome violence.

The following Sunday, I went to a museum with Jessica and Tiina (from Finland). The museum was all about the History of Valencia. It was a fairly new museum, and it was interesting to see how how Valencia developed into what it is today, and also to see timelines highlighting events in Valencia alongside major events in the world. Valencia can be traced back to 138 B.C., and the USA didn't even appear on the timetables until 1776... kind of strange to think about how young our Country really is.

No English classes last weeks or next week... but I am planning on giving a presentation on Montana the last week before Christmas.

Monday I went to the police station. Again, not in trouble, just to get my ID card process going. I went there the previous Friday as well, and the guy told me I had to come back Monday from 9-2. I was worried that I would face a similar snag when I came back Monday, especially after seeing a line of 100 people. Luckily, I just went up to the guard and he let me in right away. Even though parts of the process were frustrating, it appears it is still better than for foreigners visiting the USA, which was just voted "most unfriendly country to visitors."

Saturday, yesterday, I was able to do something very American, thanks to Jessica. She held a Thanksgiving Dinner around 3 o'clock, and it was fantastic! Turkey, green beans with almonds, garlic mashed potatoes, some creamy onion thing, sweet potatoes and-- amazingly--- pumpkin pie! There ended up being between between 10 and 15 people there, and there was definitely enough to go around. I helped a little bit the day of, by pressing garlic, screwing up carving the turkey (which luckily Jessica's roommate Carol was surprisingly adept at), and just helping with what I could. However, Jessica, I salute you! It truly felt like Thanksgiving... although I never did get to take a post-dinner nap :)

Well, today my plans are to get caught up in homework, and possibly go to Nils' house to watch a movie tonight. That's all for now. And you stay classy... planet earth!

Oh, and by the way, I got a haircut! And made myself a (lackluster) sandwich!

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Before and after.

Another week, another post

I'm actually remembering to do this blog thing. Yay for me. I am currently patting my back. And typing. Wow am I talented.

Monday the 6th- No classes mondays (ever, woohoo!). I went all the way across the city (it took an hour, at he least) to the police station. Why? I'm not in trouble, so don't worry... at least not yet :) Anyway, I had to go there to get my national ID card. However, when I got there, there was a line of between 100 and 200 people. I promptly turned around and headed home... I decided I would try again som other time, maybe even try to get an appointment if possible.

Tuesday- First day of teaching English! So, I started heading to the school. Slight rain, not too bad. However, it soon started pouring... and I was apparently the only person in Valencia without an umbrella. Anyway, I got to the school (after walking down the wrong side of the street for a bit looking for it) and wandered around until I found a teacher to show me where I was supposed to go. So here is how things work. Tuesdays I have 2 classes, Wednesday only 1. In each class, there are 30 students and two regular teachers. Half the class goes with each teacher. I alternate teachers each week, and work with two students at a time. The first class was alright, but I had no clue what to do or what level the kid's English was at. I had them practice past tense... they weren't too enthused. Next class was better... I only spent a few minutes with a lesson, and the rest of the time I let the kids ask me questions. Some of the kids thought I was really "chulo" or cool... but they told me I was "Very good" with thumbs up. After classes, I had to go the the university for my own classes.

Wednesday- Second day of English classes, although I only had one class. This class got a little uot of hand. The first two classes, I was in an empty room or the hallway alone with the two students. This time, I was stil working in pairs... except in the classroom, where all of the students were. They were supposed to come in pairs, but they started arguing about who got to talk to me next... and then some students didn't want to leave and wanted to keep asking me questions. Although the class was rowdy, I think I am going to enjoy this class the most... because they seem to enjoy me the most.

Thursday- Classes. I really don't think anything interesting occured (at least nothing memorable enough for me to remember today).

Friday- During the morning I had my first exam all year here. It was in Artificial Intelligence. Not too difficult, except it was in Spanish. I had an hour to do the test and, lo and behold, it took an hour to complete. Friday night was a bit more fun. Two German girls (Kristina and Mädchen, or at least I think that is how she spells her name) came over and cooked dinner in our apartment for about 10 people. Most were French, but there was also a Brazilian girl (Manuela). She was happy that I was there... another person from the Americas. She actually knew where Montana is, too! She lived in CA with her family for awhile when her dad got a job or something there. She had to learn about the States in school, so she remembers where Montana is. The dinner was sauerkraut, sausages, and potatoes. I was a little hungry at the end... it is hard to feed so many people and ensure everyone gets enough. Afterwards, after some people left, we played the game where you put a name of a person on your head and try to guess who's name you have on your head. I was King Kong! I needed a lot of help to figure it out though... I kept thinking I was Lassie!

Saturday- Umm... sorry, but I was a lazy bum. I was supposed to call Jessica Potter to hang out, but I got caught up in literally doing nothing and it was suddenly 11 o'clock at night. I decided to go to bed instead of call Jessica. Sorry Jessica... I will try to be a better friend this week.

Sunday (Today)- Went to church. Talked to my parents. Called my Aunt Kathy (yay). My church is called La Parroquia de la Preciosima Sangre, or the Parish of the Precious Blood (if I wasn't Catholic, I would be scared of such a name). It is a small parish, and I went to the 8 pm mass... there were maybe 20 people there max. But what I like is that during the "Peace giving" the priest is able to go around and shake the hand of every parishoner. And the mass still only lasts 45 minutes. I think my grandpa Doc would like the speed of the service... but not that everything is in Spanish :)

That's all for now (and quite too much for now, if you ask me). Stay tuned next week, for more on the increasingly interesting (albeit currently a bit boring) life of me!

Boy, oh boy, do I have a lot of things to talk about this time. But I will still try to keep this short.

We'll start with the bad news: No Halloween for me. That's right, they don't really celebrate Halloween in Spain. I think I may have seen some kids dressed up, but other than that, nothing. Luckily, my parents sent me a package recently, and they included candy for my eating enjoyment.

More bad news: I had a stomach ache one day, and I didn't know why... I found out quickly however. I had been drinking expired milk. Mmmm... milk certainly gets better with age, just like a fine wine.

Badder news: As stated, my parents sent candy to me in my recent (and first) care-package. One of the items they sent was a box of Peeps! So what is so bad about that? I'll tell you: it is very humid here in Spain. As such, even if you leave Peeps out, they don't get hard. I like dehydrated, crunchy Peeps, and here I cannot enjoy them. What problems I have!

True bad news: Tuesday night, my Irish roommate Ruth told me that she bought a plane ticket to go home. Not really a surprise... she has gone home before to visit her mom and boyfriend. However, this time (she told me) was different. She wasn't sure if she would come back. She was really homesick, and as such was not liking it here. I will found out tonight or tomorrow if she is staying in Ireland or not.

Good news: RAIN!!! It finally has cooled down a bit here, and has been raining. I have really enjoyed the weather this week. Today, actually, it is a little warm, but it will return soon to cool showers. Now all I have to do is pray that snow will somehow find its way to Valencia... not very likely, but it could happen!

More good news: I start teaching children English this coming week! Three hours a week, I will go to a school and help with English lessons (of which I do not know much about yet). I even get paid 8 euro an hour, which corresponds to about $10. Not bad, eh?

Other news: I have been helping a friend today (Anca, see Cast of Characters in a previous post) with her Architecture project. She had to take photos and write down observations of an area near me called Cabañal. I didn't know at first why she needed my help, but I soon found out: she was scared to walk the area alone. Now, during the day the place is pretty safe, but she was walking around with her camera, and it made sense not to go it alone. What is beneficial to me is that I am able to see more of the area near where I live. We have been walking down streets I normally wouldn't have a reason to visit, and as such I am getting to see some interesting sights (small parks, interesting buildings, young children smoking, etc).

Well, that is about it for now. Sorry, it wasn't as brief as I had intended :D. Luckily, I cannot think of anything else to add. Stay tuned next week for the thrilling Post That Follows This One!!! Ooh, it should be exciting.