A Weekend to Myself

I feel like when I post on Sundays you guys get my spiritual side. Probably because I've just been to church and it's all still lingering in my mind. You lucky ducks. The spiritual epiphany of the day is that we as Latter Day Saints that live in the Americas take the temple for granted. Many of us have it located less than two or hours away. Practically every week here the temple is brought up in a talk or a lesson and you can tell that the members have the strongest testimony of the blessings of the temple. It makes me feel a little guilty for not doing family history work and going to the temple more often. Maybe that's something I'll work on when I get back to the states. That'll be the goal anyway. 

Anyway on the other hand here is moi in my full Au Pair glory. Carrying 3 back packs plus my bags walking the half mile home from the park. It's a party to say the least. It definitely makes me miss my siblings because then I can just force all the heavy lifting onto them. Mwhahahahaha!

 One morning I kind of forgot to have breakfast so to make up for it I had a very traditional "coffee" minus the coffee. I had tortilla, bread, orange juice, and Huesos de Santos. Huesos de Santos I don't think taste very good but I felt obligated to try them since they are a traditional treat made only around All Saints Day. They're apparently symbolic of saints bones and my resident La Coruna friend says that the filling inside is supposed to be the marrow of the bones. Pretty much it's all just very symbolic. Kind of gross symbolism in my opinion but I'm sure if I researched it more it would make more sense.

 At the park. Teo always asks if we're going to the park after school.. Like everyday but then we get there and he just looks so bored. I don't get it. Kids.

 This week I was told that the family was going to Southern Spain to visit Soledad's family and that there wasn't enough room in the car for me. So that kind of sucks but at the same time I've been feeling like I need a break. So Woo! They left Friday night and I've pretty much been chilling since then.

 I visited the Soccer Stadium.

 Ate lunch in a tree filled park.

 Went to church.

 Saw the empty streets of Sunday

And I saw this really cool historic photo. Apparently this statue is really old so there's a little stand talking about it in Spanish in one of the main squares. Yet I have no idea where the actual statue is located. This is one of the pictures featured and I just think it's fabulous. You can think I'm crazy.

Anyway that's what I have photo documented but this week I also got Thai food with Lauren, I got Tapas with her as well, and then got milkshakes with her, her Italian lover, and Linda. This all happened on different days but I thought you'd like to know that I've been being social.

I feel like I have a lot of surreal experiences out here. Today for instance I thought about how I never would I have guessed in all my life that I would sit having milkshakes with people from three different countries and asking which versions of English are harder to understand. And I think I've already said this but now I have friends from Spain, Italy, Australia, South Africa, Morocco, Germany, Slovenia, Dominican Republic, and so many more countries! Like I never would have guessed it! It's just so insane!

For all you who want to travel I definitely recommend it. I feel like too often people are like "I want to travel but I don't have money." But really do I have money? No I'm poor but I think we all find a way to make things work. If you want to travel? Just do it. If you want to become a butcher? Just do it. If you want to become a rapper? Just do it. Make things work. That may sound naive of me, you can think what you want, but in my experience so far I think that's the way to do anything in life. ( How do you like all of my random examples?)

Tomorrow I plan on going to Torres de Hercules again but this time with Lauren and then in the afternoon Linda is going to apparently take me to some cool old castle or something. I'm not really sure. Just something cool and old. There's a lot of things like that out here. It's also Halloween as you know and apparently the drinking partying is intense even more so than usual so I'll probably go hang out with some people and laugh at them while they all get drunk and I sip my Coca Cola. It'll be awesome. Anyway that's pretty much what's been going on. Sorry if it's getting kind of repetitive. I think that now I'm fairly used to the culture and have a pretty set schedule every week is fairly similar. Sorry about that. Well till next week!

Torres de Hercules

You know when you're all fine and dandy and you have fun plans for the next day? But then disaster strikes and then out of nowhere you have a killer fever and feel like you're going to die? Yeah that happened to me last night. It's really weird being sick and not having my mom around to baby me. Or tell me to suck it up. Love you mom! Sole has been very nice though. She keeps asking me if there's anything she can do for me and she bought me some creamy vegetable soup. I just hope it's some 24hr thing and I feel better by tomorrow. 

 On another note though I had a very busy and fun week. Monday I had my hour chat with Eduardo and then decided to walk to Torres de Hercules. It turns out it's a lot farther than I was expecting. I ended up walking 10 miles total Monday. At the end I felt like my legs were going to give out.

 The walk was beautiful though. I walked along the ocean and got to see that gorgeous view.

 There was a lot of cool sculptures on the trail up to the tower. I feel like they were kind of random but I dug it. Like here you have two duck faced Easter Island heads? Why? Who knows!

 The tower was huge! It was cool though because inside you got to see the Roman foundation and all the things they changed. The outside though isn't even the original tower. They renovated in the 1800's and put like a cast on the outside. So the old tower is technically still there you just can't see it unless you go inside. I found it quite interesting.

 There was a crap load of steps. I tried counting but I forgot to count in the beginning. I do know that there is over 200 steps though.

 When I reached the top I had one of those surreal moments where it's like, "Hey I'm in Spain, in a tower that's 2,000 years old, while someone down below is playing the bagpipes."

 It's just so beautiful. I love it. This is the view from the top of the tower btw.

 And if you look closely you can see a stair case carved into the side of that hill. Monday I think was my favorite day of the week.

 Wednesday I had to take Diego to the dentist. May I just say that it's really weird to look out the window of a dentist office and see clothes hanging to dry? I also felt like a mom taking a kid to the dentist. That's me! Momma Marley.

Thursday I had Churros con Chocolate with my German Au Pair friends. It's so interesting to hear about what they miss from Germany. German pancakes came up along as other pastas and food with a lot of flavor. I think one of my favorite things about being here is that I get to experience so many different cultures by making friends from so many different countries.

Friday I had Spanish class. Then I went home instead of having "coffee" with my classmates. I was tired and took a nap. Anyone who knows me knows that I love my sleep.

Saturday I wandered around the city and I got some gifts for the fam. Looking at you Townsend! I went out with Lauren for dinner. We went to La Burgueria and had dessert at some place by where I live. They have some of the best meat here. It's simply delicious. I feel like they do need to season it a bit more but that could just be my American taste buds kicking in. We had Brownies con Helado for dessert. It was pretty good. And as you can see Lauren was SUPER excited for it. The ice cream was orange sherbet and that kind of threw me off but still it was good.  When I came home I started feeling like crap and that's where I am now. I was going to walk in the opposite direction of Torres de Hercules and see what I could find today but getting sick kind of threw a wrench into those plans. Anyway that's what's been up with me! If you guys have any questions about Spain or want to know something about how I'm doing specifically feel free to ask! I want to keep you guys entertained! Till next week!

Late Nights

This week has been pretty busy. But I would like to first address the fact that if anyone ever moves here you better be ready to get fit! This week I walked about 18 miles. Last week it was about 24. The amount of walking you do here is ridiculous. You also eat healthier since there's not as much processed food and it's all like farm fresh fruits and veggies. When I get back to America I'm going to get so fat. Dang it. 

Anyway back to my busy week. Monday I had lunch with the old retired guy. His name is Eduardo and he goes to Iceland every year to fish for Salmon. I also met with him Thursday and we talked about UFO's. It was a little weird getting paid for talking about such random topics. But whatever it's a little extra cash. 

Tuesday I went to this huge mall in Marineda City with my friend Lauren (the American). It was so large that they had an Ikea connected to it. 

 We went to Ikea becuase Lauren had never been to one before. Who's never been to Ikea? And why wouldn't you go to Ikea when the opportunity presents itself? It's one of my favorite stores to go to, along with Target, Wegman's, and Trader Joe's.

Wednesday I didn't do anything noteworthy. The kids had the day off school because of Columbus day. They celebrate it on the 12th of October here. So we watched movies (Star Wars! Woo!), went to the park, and pretty much just played together. I'm really getting to like these kids. Sure they can be annoying sometimes but what kids aren't? The kids are beginning to include me in the things they play, Teo wants me to hold his hand when I put him down for a nap, and they like my made up stories that I tell to them. They think I'm flipping hilarious. It's pretty awesome to be thought as hilarious. They also dig my Ukulele skills. So that's something.

I already mentioned what I did Thursday, and Friday I spent most of the day with the kids. They have a different school schedule Friday that makes me have to pick them up earlier. I had Spanish class Tuesday and Friday. Not Wednesday because again the holiday. Now you people are probably like, "Marley I'm sure just doing one thing a day with people is not keeping you fully occupied. What else are you doing?!" Well I've been studying for the SAT and ACT. I've been entertaining the idea of going to college next fall but I'm not satisfied with my test scores. We'll see if it goes any better. Maybe this time I'll actually get into the school I want. However this time it's my goal to not get my hopes up about it. February when I found out I didn't get into the school I wanted it left me a little depressed and disappointed. My tests are set for the first and second week of December so wish me luck. Pretty much as soon as I get back I'm taking tests.

Anyway Friday I did spend most of it with the youngins as earlier stated, but I did have "coffee" (a.k.a zumos naranja) with one of my classmates from Spanish class. She's from Poland and followed her Spanish boyfriend here. She teaches English and is taking Spanish so she can know how to form sentences properly. So grammar I guess. She has a pretty extensive vocab of the Spanish language. I'm jealous of it. Fo Sho. She's really nice and super helpful to the other students in the class who are struggling. I love her and I'm excited to get to know her better. They apparently have these "after class coffees" all the time so I have more opportunities to get to know her.

Now to the fun part. Saturday.

 Saturday I spent the morning with the fam. Had breakfast which varies for everyone. I had toast with nutella, Sole always has toast with tomatoes and olive oil, cereal for the kids, etc. Then after clean up I was a free bird to do whatever I wanted. So I went and got a waffle with Linda (the Australian) and Chantell (the South African) It was pretty dang delicious and made me happy. But pretty much any good food will make me happy.

We chilled at Plaza de Maria Pita and chatted. Being an American kind of sucks out here. With the elections looming everyone expects me to have an opinion on the matter. They're like "Who do you want for president?" And I'm like, "No one?" Oh well. But we also talked about our different cultures and homes. One of my favorite things here is learning about all the different cultures. Yes I'm learning and adjusting to the Spanish culture but hearing about how the German, South African, Polish, Australian, etc. people live their lives is so interesting. It makes me want to travel, live, and experience all these different countries all the more.

 Anyway on my way home I saw a pulpo shop. Like their display? It kind of grosses me out to think that I've eaten this stuff. It doesn't taste gross or anything it's just a creepy looking thing that I've eaten. I'll probably never look at an octopus the same again.

Afterwards I came home and read a book for a couple hours. I'm reading the Scarlet Pimpernel. That book is hilariously dramatic. I just want to laugh at it. I was about to get ready for bed at 11:30 when my dear friend Lauren messaged me and was like, "Hey there's something going on outside my house and I won't be able to sleep. Want to get tapas!?" Which I replied, "HECK YES!"

 This is what was going on outside her house. A drag queen band was playing. It was a very um.... interesting thing to be keeping these people out so late.

We stayed for like 5 minutes then proceeded to one of the many bar streets of A Coruna. Seriously though there are dozens of streets just filled with Cafes and Bars and late at night they're all open and full. We settled for one at random. I think it was called La Luga or something. Not that it really matters. I got myself a coke and some tapas. I think I've found my favorite food here. It was hand cut freshly fried french fries with a really delicious seasoned chicken and some creamy sauce on top. Soooooo freaking good. I really love how fresh everything is here. Like I don't feel like I'm going to die of cancer when I eat anything. No offense America. Instead I feel weirdly healthy. The orange Juice is to die for and pretty much my favorite thing to drink. And now my favorite dessert is tied between the Galician Crepe and Tarta tres chocolate. I had it last night and dang it was good. It was more of a pie than a cake but it was creamy chocolatey goodness that filled me with joy.

 After our tapas adventure we just strolled around the old part of the city. We found a cool marble plaza with carvings of random cartoon characters carved into it. So in case you ever wondered Charlie Brown is called Carlinos in Spanish.

 There also was some old man.

 Hello old man. I like your broken nose.

I ended up getting home around 2 in the morning. I felt like such a rebel. The funny thing however is that that is considered an early time to go home here. People often stay out till 5 or 6 in the morning at the bars drinking and partying to their hearts content. I think they're crazy. Partially because I like to sleep but if they want to party let them party! In a way I think it's cool they like to party like this. I feel the party attitude shows that they're a chill people. That could just be me though.

 Anyway that was yesterday. Today I had church. I got myself all prettied up and took the bus to the church building. It's really convenient that the bus stop is only half a block away from the building. Today I was actually really proud of myself. My few English speaking friends offered to translate for me but I said it was okay. And guess what?! I understood a good chunk of what people were saying in class! I was so happy and surprised! As much as it's really nice to have things translated for me I feel it disrupts from the spirit. Not a ton but enough so that I can't feel it to it's full potential. So it was really nice to know that I'm at the point where I can get through church on my own. Of course there was some things that I didn't understand what they were saying and I had to ask but I got most of it. So not only is it amazing that I got to feel the spirit more today I also got to know that my Spanish is really coming along. Now can I have a conversation? Not really. I can reply to basic questions and such. I just struggle at asking questions back. It's coming along though and that's what matters.

I also had my first dream in Spanish this week. It was like as long as I asked for things correctly in Spanish I could have whatever I wanted. Or something like that. I do know that I kept asking for pastries though. My dream self really likes to eat apparently. I mean so does my awake self it's just kind of sad that it's prevalent in my dream self as well. Anyway that's what's been happening. Till next week!

It's been a Month!

Well I've officially been here in Spain for a month and two days. It's really weird how fast time has gone by. I'm already 1/3 done with my time here. So weird. Anyway I feel bad for you reader. I feel that the longer I'm here for the less pictures I take and the less new things I do. Oh well. I'll try to make it interesting for you. 

This week Matilda was gone until Thursday night at some farm as part of a school field trip. I missed her. She's my translator and her being gone made it a lot harder to communicate with the other children. I managed though. Of course. 

 I've said it many times but I really do love the architecture here. It's just so detailed, intricate, and colorful. Why can't we have more buildings like that?

This week I had a small tinge of homesickness. It was really weird because I've never really experienced homesickness before. I was studying in my room when I realized it was really quiet. Then I thought about how my life is never quiet and how lonely it is to be alone in a quiet place. Then I thought about how I miss my loud and obnoxious family. Thank goodness for phones though! I was able to call mom and talk to all the kids and it was fine. I'm really grateful for the level of communication I'm able to have with my family. Imagine if I lived in the time where I only could write letters and it would take months to receive them. That would really suck. Man would it!

This coming Monday I'm going to start having conversations with an old guy twice a week so he can practice his English. Plus I'm getting paid for it so that's awesome! I met him for the first time Wednesday. He seemed nice enough so we'll see how it goes. Linda, my Australian friend, was the one who got me the job.

 Thursday night there was some kind of parade going on at like 11 o'clock. I have no idea what it was for but boy they were loud.

 Friday was some kind of holiday. I asked people what they were celebrating but no one really knew. That or they just didn't know how to explain it to me in English. So yeah a holiday celebrating nothing. I had half the day off though. Woo for freedom!

 With my half day I decided to go to the beach with my American Au Pair friend and her Italian boyfriend.

 It was really warm and beautiful. The weather was anyway. I tried to go in the water but it was too freaking cold. Like no.

 I also got a letter from my dear friend Paige this week. My family is slacking in the letter sending. Looking at you Ephraim! (and I guess everyone else too) Maybe when I write Paige back I'll write to my family as well. I better set aside a good couple hours to do that. Dang it. Sometimes it's hard having a big family. In case you were wondering. It takes a long time to do anything for them. :)

 Saturday the parents left for pretty much a whole week for their anniversary. I think they're going to Italy while I am left with all the children. So far it's been pretty good. I mean it has only been two days but hopefully it just stays as it has. Yesterday we went to the park.......

 and to the movies! We watched Ciguenas. I'm pretty sure that's Storks in Spanish. I could be wrong. It's been very interesting watching all these T.V. shows and movies in Spanish. Today I even watched Star Wars in French. Nice thing about television is that it's very exaggerated and I know what's going on without them speaking my language. Especially the cartoons.

 Anyway today we also went to the park. A different park but still to the park. I swear I go to the park practically everyday. But at the same time it's amazing how many parks they have. I think it's because they don't have any yards so they have to have a place for the kids to go outside and play.

And now as I write this Teo is taking a nap and the two older children are playing with Legos. So chill time! Woo! What I'm going to do with them for the rest of the day is a little uncertain but I'm sure I'll figure it out. Well that's all I've got for you this week. Till next week!

Conference Among Other Things

I think this week I've finally found my place. Meaning I now feel comfortable here. I know for the most part what is expected of me, I have a fairly set schedule, and I feel like the kids have learned to respect me if not even maybe love me. Who knows. 

This week is General Conference for my church. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. In case you were wondering. But anyway I've been looking forward to conference for the past couple weeks. I feel like it'd be nice to have a little extra guidance while I'm out here on my own. We've only had the Saturday sessions as of yet and so far I feel like they're all about being a missionary with those around you. Strangely enough before I left for Spain I had a blessing from dad saying something very similar. I feel like conference is confirming my belief that the reason I'm out here is to share my beliefs. Already I've had so many opportunities to share what I believe in with my host family, other au pairs, and many other people I've met. More opportunities than I've ever had in the states. It's really amazing and I think it's cool that I get to bare my testimony to these people. 

For instance just this past week I was watching Women's Conference and crying because I felt the spirit. That's how the Judd's roll. Anyway Soledad came in to ask a question and saw I was crying. I got to explain to her in slight how the holy ghost works and how it sometimes makes me as a lucky individual cry buckets of tears. Well not exactly but I did tell her about the holy ghost and how I believed it worked. Then I shared President Uchtdorf's talk with her. She watched it and said she liked the message it taught. So that's awesome! I love that it came about naturally! I've always felt that missionary work is something I've had to force and I feel like I've always come across as awkward. That's not the case apparently! Woo!

Anyway I'm really excited for the next sessions coming up. I have to stay up till midnight to watch them live but I think it's worth it. 

And now to what I did this week. I told you people last week I was going to make cookies. I did! I had to cream the butter and sugar by hand, which flipping sucked. I also had to cut a candy bar into pieces for the chocolate chips and bake them in a metal pie tin because they didn't have a cookie sheet. I'm under the impression that since there are so many bakeries around here no one feels the need to bake for themselves. It's sad. But anyway the cookies were good and made me happy!

 Oh it's so pathetic looking. Man.

 I also went to the beach last Sunday and just read a book. It was pretty beautiful. I might have also taken a nap but I'm not really sure.

 Someday this week I went to the market and bought fish. My weekdays really just blur together. They eat a lot of fish here. Going and buying fresh fish and seeing what it looks like before its been flayed and all that other crap makes me wonder who thought fish would be edible. Fish are freaking scary looking! Sorry for that random thought.

 This is a part of my daily walk to and from school with the kids. Speaking of school this next week they're in till five and I'm so excited since that means more free time for me! Woo!

 This is someones courtyard. I think it's beautiful and wish I could live there.

I also started my Spanish course this week. It's pretty fun. I like most of fellow peers. I especially like this girl name Susi from Germany who is also being an Au Pair. Maybe because I can relate with her. The teacher is super nice and makes sure we understand before moving on. Which can be difficult sometimes considering that the whole class is in Spanish. I didn't realize it was a immersion class when I signed up. But I guess it's a better and quicker way to learn the language. It was just a little surprising at first.

This is a statue that I thought was interesting. Partially since I'm coming to hate seagulls. When in Virginia I'd love seeing seagulls. They reminded me of living in down town Tacoma. Now I find seagulls irritating and bothersome. They are so loud and decide to make their stupid noises every morning at about 6. They wake me up and just..... ugh. Simply put, I now I hate them.

 Yesterday we went to Playa de Oza. At least I think that's what it was called. It was this cute little beach that had wind surfing and kayaking.

 The water was muy frio and there was no way I was getting in. I opted for just chilling on the beach and reading. I'm getting a lot of reading in I guess. You must all think I'm such a book worm.

 I liked this weather vane.

 Then after this beach we went to a restaurant in what felt like the countryside. It overlooked an inlet with these beautifully colored houses of blue, yellow, and orange with orange tiled roofs across the way. It made me feel like I was in a movie. (pictures below)  At this said restaurant I ate Pulpo, whole fish excluding the head, and fried baby calamari. The calamari wasn't to bad. I think because it was fried.

 After we ate we went down to this beach and chilled for an hour. I liked it. It gave me time to really appreciate the beauty of the area.

 Anyway that was yesterday. Today I decided to go explore the old city. I didn't get to explore as much as I would have liked because I was starving and I didn't have any food with me. Alas I will have to go back at another time. I found this really cool door knocker. It's just so random but so vintage. I love it.

 I discovered this cute street of colorful houses. Why don't we have more colorful houses in America? I feel like we used to but now houses are all boring colored. My family's house included. Is it because we want to be "modern"? Note to self: When I have a house paint it blue with red steps.

 This is the other end of the steps only with a really cool side view of Plaza de Maria Pita.

 I really love all the courtyards here. They're all so cute! I also love that people take the time to put flowers everywhere. It makes the city great.

I think I'm now going to go for a walk and maybe go to the beach and read for a bit. I still have a couple hours till conference and I don't feel like missing out on the nice sunshine. So till next week!