Madrid Birthday to London Birthday

The second week in Madrid went smoothly at work, and we ended up going out to dinner with the client on Wednesday night.  Our reservation was for 9:00pm at a Buey y Champagna place in a very nice area of Madrid.  It was an all you can eat meal with salad, onion rings, tomato bread with chorizo, champagne and Ox.  Yes, Buey = Ox!  It was so incredibly delicious, but somewhat strange since they had pictures of ox on the walls that happened to be staring toward the table.  It was a very delicious and ended up being my favourite meal in Spain. 

On Friday, my manager and I really wanted to try to get on an earlier flight than 6:40pm, so we went to the airport at 11:30am.  Once again, the US wins on customer service; because there was no way they were going to let us on an earlier flight for less than €380.  So, we ended up having a little bit of time before our flight…  We had started to get through security and get to the correct terminal, when we decided that we should stay in the main terminal and do some shopping.  Unfortunately, this decision happened after we went down an escalator that had no up escalator in site.  Because we were very motivated after standing in line for an hour to find out we couldn’t change our ticket, we decided it would be worth running up the wrong way on the elevator…  After eating it twice on the escalator and stubbing my toes multiple times since I was in flip flops, we made it to the top.  We decided to have a few glasses of wine after we had finished our shopping, and ended up watching the X-men dvd that my manager had brought.  Six hours later we saw that our flight was going to be delayed another hour…  At this point we had another couple of glasses of wine, and ended up having to run to the gate because we lost track of time… Good times…  We finally made it back to London and were relieved.  Unfortunately, the day was not over, because a Spanish woman was in a great hurry and ran over my toe with her wheely bag.  The lady didn’t stop and just kept going after looking over her shoulder at me.  Half of my toe nail was pulled off, but I guess it didn’t warrant an apology.  I was determined to make it through customs, so I kept walking.  I had to stop when my manager noticed that my toe was gushing really bad.  I then proceeded to get home and find a letter on the counter saying that the landlord was raising the rent by 15%...  What an incredibly annoying day!

Saturday was much better and included a great workout followed by Chipotle (the only one in Europe)!  My friends also took me out to some fantastic bars near my house.  Even my flatmate, Gary, who had had a pretty rough night the night before, made it out to the bars with us.  It was so fantastic to celebrate the big 2-7 with friends.  The party ended up back at my flat where my flatmate brought out his new toy, a huge table size cd deck turntable.  At 2am, we thought it would be a great idea to watch The X-Factor, which is a show similar to American Idol.  We all proceed to argue about who we thought was the best and the worst.  It was hilarious.  The night was super fun, filled with good people and fun places.  Altogether, I think it is a going to be a great 27^th year of life =)

La Vida Fortunada!

First of all, let me apologize for not writing last week.  Things were a little busy involving another tube strike… my buddy’s cousin’s birthday… a crazy b-day party for my friend / co-worker… and preparing for a trip to Espana.

I woke up last Sunday morning due to my Flatmate reminding me that I needed to pack and get on a plane.  The night before had been a party for one of my co-workers and upon returning home, ended up chatting with my flatmate until 8am…  Luckily, I made my flight (with an incredibly hecticly overpacked suitcase.  In Madrid, we were staying at a beautiful modern hotel that was about a 10 minute walk from the client.  Work has been very interesting speaking a mix of Spanish and English…  One woman was explaining one of the processes and ended up switching from English to Spanish.  Instead of interrupting her, I let her continue until one of her co-workers turned around and asked, “Sabes que estas hablando en Espanol?”  I immediately switched into Spanish too, and let her know that I understood everything that she had been saying.  During lunch, we developed the habit of visiting the fruit man at the near by Centro de Comerciales.  The fruit is amazingly delicious, and I have become very addicted to the plums and pears.  There was also a holiday on Tuesday, so we worked early and then around siesta time, we wondered to the Plaza del Sol.  We were in the search of food, when we stumbled upon a Cuban Restaurant.  It has been two months without Cuban food, so I was SOOO EXCITED.  After ropa vieja, arroz con frijoles negros, platanos maduros, and a pitcher of Sangria, I thought I would cry with happiness.

On Friday, my manager and I proceeded to walk to the nearest subway to get to our train to Valencia…  We did not know at the time that we would be lugging (in my case) huge suitcases uphill for 20 minutes…  We had been reassured that the subway was “muy cerca”  but I am inclined to say “MENTIROSO!”  After 3.5 hours a “documentario” that was called El Trabajo Embarazado with Lindsey Lohan… (yay… documentary??), we arrived in Valencia.   We went directly to our hotel, the Hotel Neptuno, which was located on the beach.  We wondered along the boardwalk to a bar, where the waiter couldn’t quite what language to speak with us.  In the end, the only thing I wanted him to know was that a Cuba Libre came with a lime and NOT a lemon.  The third time he FINALLY brought a lime and rum shots, and we all cheersed saying, “Salud a las limas!”

Saturday started out a little rough, mostly due to the “ron con coka light… Y LIMA!”  We purchased a day pass for a jump-on-jump-off bus tour which took us around Valencia.  We went to the Catedral en La Plaza de Reina first, searching for a place to have lunch.  The thing to remember about Spain, is that food is not served ANYWHERE between 11am and 1pm… because that is when they set up for lunch at 1pm.  We ended up in a Starbucks, because we were starving... I know… Americans…  Our day progressed at some of the most awe –inspiring sights.  We went to the Mercado, where people could get fresh fruits, vegetable, meat, and fish.  I literally had to run from the pungent fish booths, because rum and fish smell do not mix well. 

My manager (Katie) had told me earlier in the day that the last time she was in Spain, her friend had been pooped on by a pigeon and freaked out.  The Spanish woman that had also been with them had tried to make Katie’s friend feel better by saying, “ES FORTUNADA!” (It’s Good Fortune!)  All I have to say, is that God has a sense of humor.  While we are deciding our next plan I felt something hit my shoulder (bare shoulder), and we both had thought it was a bug or lizard… nope… apparently, I was FORTUNADA… to have a very healthy pigeon bless me while I was standing under his tree.  Needless to say, I will be laughing about that with my manager for years to come.

For my birthday dinner, we went to a great small Spanish restaurant where we had a bottle of wine, cheese, pimientos de padron, and paella.  We went out later to the party street and had a few drinks.  We made it back to the hotel “early” at 2am and fell asleep. 

Today (Yesterday) I had one of the most amazing birthdays!  I woke up and went to the beach and laid out.  I felt much like a solar panel, because I was storing up the sun for the next few months in London.  We had “brunch” on the beach including café con leche and a Tortilla Espaniola.  We then packed up everything to check out of the hotel before going to the Ciudad de Las Artes y Las Sciencias.  The area was very much like a city with beautiful modern architecture that housed the Natural History Museums and the aquarium… Oceanográfico!  I hadn’t been to a Zoo or Aquarium in years, so I felt like a kid who couldn’t take in enough sights of these amazing animals.  I saw pelicans, flamingos, sea lions, dolphins, beluga whales, sharks, sting rays, jelly fish, swordfish, and many other types of creatures.  The tanks were created with a hallway below so that one could look up and see the fish and mammals.  The shark exhibit was the best.  I mentioned to my manager that I really wanted one of the bigger ones to come over closer to the window, and the next thing I saw was two BIG sharks swimming towards me, which totally gave me the creeps.

My birthday ended with a train ride back to Madrid where my manager and I continued to celebrate with a few glasses of wine.  It has definitely been one of my most memorable birthdays, but I must say that I am looking forward to spending my 28^th with family and friends… that is… if life doesn’t surprise me and take me on another traveling adventure!

Sightseeing and Enjoying Freedom

The past week went be very quickly but happened to be the first week that I was able to do some site seeing…

On Tuesday evening, Belton and I went to the last of four musicals that we had signed up to see… Jersey Boys!  While our colleagues could not stop raving about the show, we found it a little boring.  The music was spectacular with songs that we knew like Big Girls Don’t Cry, Walk Like a Man, Let’s Hang On, and Can’t Take My Eyes Off You.  However, the story was one that has been told many times before about the rise and fall of a musical sensation.  We walked out and immediately agreed that Legally Blonde was by far the best musical so far.

Thursday evening we tried out a wine bar in the back alley of a street near our work.  At first, I thought it was a little dodgy, but it soon filled up with soooo many people!  The wine was quite delicious and the bar itself was packed with people all ordering bottles and bottles of wine.  However, I was good, because one of my coworkers was planning on taking me to the Supper Club on Friday night.  On Friday, we stopped by at a neighborhood pub before going to Supper Club, and ordered some fantastic cocktails.  In the States we refer to cocktails as anything that isn’t beer or wine… However, cocktails are very fruity and are more of a work of art here.  The bartenders were making complicated drinks using at least 5 ingredients in each.  They would even take a straw and dip it in the drink to make sure that it was made right or start all over.  No wonder the price is astronomical!  Supper Club was fun and posh, but what I wouldn’t have given to hear some good ‘ole fashion bar songs instead of the constant thumping of House / Techno.

Saturday was very laid back, but Sunday I was determined to be productive and do a little London siteseeing.  I first went to church at St. Paul’s Cathedral, which was absolutely beautiful!  There was even a choir made up of young boys from 6-10 years old, and then older men from 30 years old and above.  The young boys had voices of little angels that echoed in the glorious archways of the cathedral.  I then went to Buckingham Palace to do some sightseeing with Belton and his cousin.  At this point, Belton informed me that there was a US newsflash, warning all Americans traveling in Europe to avoid all tourist sites.  So as I am standing in front of Buckingham Palace, I am reading about the terrorist threat against Americans traveling in Europe… interesting… 

Sunday was the first day that I think I really understood the idea of ‘Terror’.   It is an interesting feeling when trying to decide whether to stay away from potential danger or to continue living your life as planned.  Even if you aren’t directly affected by some horrid attack, you still are affected just because it can cause you to live in fear and not enjoy your freedom.  Either way, terrorists win because your life is negatively affected by their actions or inactions.   For this reason, we continued our journey.  We kept ourselves on “orange” alert, and continued our sightseeing across London.  “As Canadians,” we then walked to Big Ben and Parliament, the London Eye, Trafalgar Square, and the British National Gallery.  Needless to say, we returned home safely after enjoying a beautiful rainy day of sightseeing in London.