Things that still make me crazy

Even though I get more and more used to the crazy things about Spain, there's a lot I'm still not used to.  Here are some things that still make me crazy.

• Cooking - I still have tons of frustration when it comes to my kitchen, and to eating more broadly.  I should say this is not because there isn't great food to be had here.  It's just that to eat good food when you go out, you need to pay a lot of money.  I've actually only had two sit-down, going-out meals since I got here.  Both of which were mediocre at best.  The pintxos are typically good, but one cannot live on pintxos alone (well, one probably could, but I can't).  There are also very few places that do take-out and even fewer (none?) that do delivery.  So, on crazy long work days (like yesterday where I was at work for 11 hours + commuting time), I need to cook when I get home.  This wouldn't be so bad if I had the proper equipment or ingredients to cook food that is tasty.  Part of the problem is that things go bad very, very quickly here (which probably means they aren't pumped with antibiotics and preservatives).  It doesn't make it any less frustrating though, when you open chicken from two days ago that looks a little yucky, you cook it anyhow, and it tastes, literally, like garbage.  Cooking itself is also frustrating.  It's really hard to control the temperature on the induction stovetop, and I still haven't bought any pots or pans that are safe for the oven.  I really need to spend some time in a grocery store really looking at ingredients and deciding what I can use to make things here, since a lot of my typical staples aren't available ... but this brings me to point #2.

• "Business" Hours - I honestly do not understand how anyone ever gets anything done here.  A typical store (including grocery store) is open:  9-2 and then 4-8.  That's if it's a store that's open a lot.  It isn't uncommon for stores to just be open 9-2.  Or whenever they feel like being open.  I tried to go to a store the other day that was supposed to re-open at 4 for the afternoon.  At 6, they were not open.  Weekends are even worse when almost nothing is open on Sunday and Saturday hours are nothing short of crazy (10-2?  10-12?  11-3?).  The only time you can really count on stores being open is 9-2 Monday through Friday.  Which is when I'm, you know, working.  Grocery shopping consists of running to the store as often as I can - it's not rare for me to go three to four times a week so I can have fresh food, but also because when you only have 30 minutes 'til the store closes, it's tough to do a week's worth of shopping.  It's hard to get anything done really.  This does mean that you have to spend your evenings and weekends doing things that aren't running errands and are more fun.  However, it's hard to have fun when you're worried about food in your fridge or when you have to do laundry since a lot of your clothing is wrinkled and you haven't been able to buy an iron since the electronics store is only open when you're working.  (Sub-point - I would solve this problem by buying things on Amazon UK which does free shipping to Spain, but the plugs are different ... so a vacuum and iron will have to wait for now).

• Language - This point is the biggest and most frustrating of all.  I am still stymied on a daily basis by not being able to say what I want to say.  I love language, it's what I do for my job, and anyone who knows me knows I love to talk.  But Spanish is hard and frustrating.  Let me clarify - Spanish in a classroom is fine.  I can conjugate verbs and do exercises.  I can read and write in the classroom.  But classroom language is not the language of the real world.  Carefully produced speech on recordings is no substitute for real world speech.  So, it's hard to understand what's being said.  Even harder is saying what you mean.  Even if I'm willing to make tons of mistakes (which I have to if I want to communicate the simplest things), even if I am willing to forego using the subjunctive for the sake of saying anything at all, I don't have the words to say what I want to say.  Vocabulary is far and away the hardest part for me.  I don't know how to get more vocabulary without studying a dictionary or vocabulary book.  And honestly, lists of nouns and verbs aren't going to do it.  Even if I know how to say the basic words around things, I don't know how to convey the specifics that make any good story worth telling.  When talking about my trip yesterday in class, I was trying to explain how frustrated I was by the fact that they announced to me that my ticket was canceled.  But I couldn't remember the word for frustrated ... and angry or sad don't really get the job done in the same way.  I need to figure out some way to improve at the language more quickly.  Because I've been here almost two months now, and I'm running out of patience for myself.

One bright note to end for now - the blanket I'm making is gorgeous.  I'm about 2/3 of the way through it  (not counting the border that will go on at the end).  It's big enough now that I can wrap up in when I'm cold and watching TV and it covers a whole person when sleeping.  I can't wait for it to be done, but I also need to have another (big) project lined up for when I finish it.  I love to have a big home project I can work on in the evenings or on weekends.  Then I have my commuting project (a knit cowl that is taking forever because I work on it in 5 minute bursts) and my travel project (a shawl that I only knit on the plane or in airports).  Then I might start a project that the knitting group around here is working on ... but I need to be able to get to the yarn shop when they're open.  But the blanket?  Fantastic.  I've made tons of mistakes and fixed them in stupid ways, but I love this blanket so, so, so much.

Elections

Yesterday, they held elections for local and provincial government.  What, you ask?  Elections on a Sunday?  When no one has to work?  So people can actually go vote?  Yes!  The elections were preceded by pretty mild protests here (and some not-so-mild protests in Barcelona and Madrid).

As far as I can tell, Spain has a constitutional monarchy, and the elected government functions in a similar way to that of the United Kingdom.  There's a governing party made up of the party with the "majority" (not a numerical majority in the sense that they have more than 50% of the seats, but in the sense that they have more seats than any other party).  The prime minister is usually from this party after the big national elections.  Then, there's an opposition party, which is usually the party with the second most seats ... unless that party decides to make a coalition with the ruling party.  Anyhow, people have been pretty disenchanted with the current governing party - the socialist party - since unemployment is through the roof (around 21% nation-wide and over 40% for young people) after the financial collapse that was caused by a housing bubble (sound familiar?).

Nation-wide the opposition party won by a "landslide" (the more conservative Popular Party - which is the best name for a political party after The Rent Is Too Damn High Party in New York).  Of course, the Basques have to do everything differently and we only had municipal elections here, not elections for the provincial government.  [I should say here that a lot of my information is from Spanish newspapers and guess work form what I've heard, I could be totally wrong.  About everything.]  And of course, the Popular Party wasn't so popular here.  The newly formed Bildu party won.  Bildu means something like "gathering" in Basque and is a coalition party itself in some ways of the many nationalist groups around here.  Nationalist, in this neck of the woods, does not mean pro-Spain, but rather pro-Basque.  Not everyone who is "nationalist" is pro-separation, but a lot are.  And they're definitely pro-autonomy.  That is, they want to function without much interference from the Spanish.  This results in a sort of weird language thing in which people around here will answer a question like "Are you Spanish?" by saying "No, I'm Basque."  Some locals aren't very nationalist, but it's not something that's discussed in public at all.  In fact, on Saturday, we were talking about this with my friend who is from here and someone asked her if she was offended if people said she was Spanish.  Her answer?  "No, I'm not really nationalist."  But she said it very quietly so as to not incite the ire of a group of Basque speakers nearby who probably would have been unhappy to hear that.

Anyhow, back to the Bildu.  There was a big issue last month before I got here about whether or not they could even participate in the elections.  Apparently some of the candidates on the ticket have ties to ETA (Euskadi Ta Askatasuna - or Basque Homeland and Freedom) - a nationalist, separatist, and terrorist organization.  ETA has called a permanent cease-fire recently (and they're honestly not super active in the Basque country - more in Madrid), but people tend to be pretty wary of them.

It's a pretty fascinating situation, not least because I don't totally understand what's going on or how the government works, so I get to sort of fill in the blanks with my imagination.  :)  It's also really interesting to see how people react to these sorts of situations, which is quietly so far.  I'll be interested to see if there are more protests now that the elections have happened.  The big election happens next March, so I'm sure that will be more of a show-stopper in terms of reaction.

--------------------
In other news, in my Monday tradition here, I was eaten alive by mosquitos this morning - a huge bug bite on my temple and one on my arm.  Two is the fewest I've had so far though.  Last Monday, it was 4 and the week before that it was something absurd like 12.

I am really, really liking my friends here.  There are two girls in particular who I feel like I would be friends with in any situation, not just the sort of weird situation I'm in here.  I feel myself genuinely enjoying myself, relaxing, and laughing.  It is a huge, huge relief.

I'm probably about a third of the way done with my stripy blanket and I love everything about it.  I love making it.  I love the crazy color combinations.  I love the yarn (which is a huge shock because it's 100% acrylic which is usually a bit of a pain to work with and doesn't feel this great when it's done).  I want it to be done now, so I can hunker down under it, wear it as a cape, etc ... and I also never want to finish it because it's so fun.  I can't bring it to work because it's too big ... and I'd only want to work on it all the time, which would be unproductive.

Speaking of work, I know a lot of you are curious, but I'm not talking about it here - other than to say that it's great.  I'd be happy to e-mail or talk on the phone in more detail.  You know it's good when I happily work 12 hour days (with a blog break once in a while).  :)

Finally, my little plants are doing well.  The cilantro is thriving, the rosemary is great, and the basil is huge.  I've been really enjoying fresh basil and rosemary.  Unfortunately, my chives were attacked by bugs.  I think I got most of the bugs, so I'm trying to re-grow, but I might have to sadly scrap the chives.  They are making cooking easier, as is the fact that I'm getting more adventurous about what I'm trying to cook (and I've accrued more staples now, making life much easier).  I have yet to brave the real meat and fish counters, but stay tuned for a post soon about the food that I love here.  It will probably be titled something like I (Heart) Anchovies.  If you've only ever had canned anchovies that are super salty, you can't judge me ... Wait 'til you hear about the deliciousness that are white anchovies!

Good and bad

I'll start with the bad.  I woke up in the middle of the night with a terrible stomach ache.  I'm pretty sure my stomach was not happy with something I ate last night.  My guess for the culprit is the arugula I had since it was sort of iffy in terms of freshness, but who knows.  I'm still not feeling 100%, but I wasn't going to let a little stomach problem stop me from enjoying my day!

I had plans with the friend of my former Basque teacher (who took me out for dinner my first week here).  We had met for a drink on Thursday night, and met again today for a Basque style brunch, so I suppose she's my friend now too.  The Basque do not really do brunch like Americans do, but we had plans to have a big mid-day meal of pintxos.

I think I previously described pintxos as like tapas - but that doesn't quite do it justice.  Basically, the way pintxos work is you walk into a bar and they have some pintxos out on the bar on plates.  These are usually pre-made and typically are eaten cold (sometimes they'll take them into the kitchen to eat them).  You can take what you want off the platters and when you're done, you tell the bartender what you want - completely done on the honor system.  Then, there's usually a menu on the wall of hot pintxos that you order at the bar and are made to order.  These are usually more delicious and a little more exotic than the pintxos at the bar.  Because all the pintxos are relatively small and made for one person to eat (or for two people to have a little bite of), there are also "raciones" which are slightly larger plates made for sharing.  I should also clear up the meaning of "bar" before I move on.  So, bars here are not really like bars in the US whose sole purpose is for drinking.  Typically you have a drink, but it is as often grape juice (inexplicably served with an olive in it) as it is beer, wine or cider.  Mostly it's the primary place most people go out to eat.  You often order at the bar and they bring it to your table, or you eat at the bar.  Bars are also where you go to have coffee most often, so it's slightly less like a bar and more like a catch-all for place to grab some food, drink and company.  Okay, definitions out of the way (for now) - back to the story.

I met up with my friend on the Boulevard at 12:30.  She was with her two friends and their incredibly, incredibly adorable son who is "a year old" (my guess is he's about 15-16 months, but it was a little hard to tell), named Oier.  He was incredibly chatty, smart, and charming with huge brown eyes and eyelashes a mile long.  And he's totally mischevious running everywhere and wanting to do everything himself.  Parenting here is a lot more relaxed generally than parenting in the US.  Kids of all ages run off and play together with parents keeping an eye on them generally speaking, but not keeping them on a leash of any sort.  They also don't typically bring toys or snacks to keep the kids entertained while they're out with their parents.  The kids eat what their parents eat (today I saw Oier try pig cheek with olive tapanade, various other meats in sauces, grilled veggies, plantain chips, and his favorite - patatas - actually french fries in this case).  I've seen this happen a lot, but I was still surprised when I saw him eating (with help from his parents) with a knife and fork.  They were careful about the knife, but let him help cut up his meat and try things on his own.  It was actually really inspiring to see how independent he was - he would try things and if they didn't work, he'd either ask for help, or try again.

Most of the conversation today was in Spanish (fortunately for me, since normally they all speak Basque to each other and to Oier - who is very, very competent in both languages).  I said most of what I needed to say in English, but was talked to entirely in Spanish.  I did manage to ask if Carla Bruni (the French first lady) was pregnant in Spanish and talked about work in Spanish as well.  Afterward I promptly came home and took a nap - processing Spanish is infinitely more exhausting than processing English - more on that later.

Anyhow, we went to the first bar and each ordered our pintxos.  I had a bottle of water, since I was still feeling a little off from my adventures with stomach pains last night, but I tried some risotto (not the best upset stomach food, but I go with whatever sounds good to me).  I'm glad I did because it was DELICIOUS.  We also put together our "bank" - everyone puts in a set amount (usually 20 euro) and then the bills at each place get paid out of the bank.  At the end of the event everyone splits the change.  This is a very common way to do things here - and really nice because you don't have to pay for each thing you order separately and no one is very nit-picky about who ordered what.  After the first place, we went to a second which is sort of a "chain" (I think there are two - one here and one in Madrid) which has more inventive pintxos - olives stuffed with vermouth jelly, for example.  We got miniature burgers, slightly smaller than sliders, with "ketchup" buns.  I'm not a huge ketchup fan, but these burgers were delicious and came with plantain chips.  We moved on to the third bar which I'd been to before.  They have a large terrace on a shared plaza that used to be a bullfighting ring and is now home to several shops and bars who divvy up parts of the terrace.  Kids run and play in the rest of it, often playing pick-up games of fútbol.  We got their famous pistachio croquetas (sort of fried balls of stuff, if you've been to a tapas restaurant you've probably had them).  Basically these had pistachio cream inside and were covered with chopped pistachios and then fried.  Really delicious.  We also got two raciones - calamari and "hongos" which are basically wild mushrooms.  Both were really delicious.  We then tried to get coffee at the bar next to the bar we had gotten food from (which was busy and didn't have phenomenal service, which is saying something for Spain, since the service typically ranges from non-existant to terrible).  They refused since we were on the wrong terrace.  So we decided to move to another bar that was a favorite for coffee.

We walked a ways to get there and Oier almost fell asleep, but once he saw we would be sitting on a couch, he perked up and decided to plop himself between my friend and I.  His mom asked him if we were his new girlfriend and he replied "si, novias" (yes, girlfriends).  We all had some coffee (coffee here comes with a million options, so you have to be prepared for the questions when you're ordering.  I got a small decaf with milk.  When they say small, they are not kidding - coffee typically comes in very small glasses (like espresso glasses in the US).  But the coffee is rich and delicious.  I really liked the atmosphere of this particular bar, which my friend compared to Uncommon Ground in Chicago.  We hung out there for quite a while, watching Oier play.  We ended up having a very animated conversation with the women behind us about parenting - it seems that the debate regarding breastfeeding, working moms, and private vs public schooling rages no matter what country you're in.  It was interesting to hear the variety of opinions (in our group people were:  indifferent about breastfeeding - try it, if it works for you great, if not, you and your kid will survive; very pro working moms; and split on the schooling issue with one mom being a huge fan of Montessori schools and the others thinking that public schools were fine when the kids are really little).  Anyhow, throughout this time Oier had been running between the restaurant and the park across the street with his dad.  He came in and announced it was time for all of us to go see the "qua qua" or "los patos".  Have you guessed what we were going to see?  The ducks that live in the pond in the park across the street.  Before we left the place, he came up to my friend and I to ask us to go see the qua qua with him.  When we agreed he gave us both "besos" (the kisses on each cheek).  The kid was too cute.  After about 20 minutes in the park we decided to go our separate ways - over 4.5 hours after we started our culinary adventure.  I got more "besos" as well as an English "BYE!" from Oier.

I headed to the nearby Chinese shop to buy some plastic tubs to store things in my bathroom and took the bus home, since I was exhausted and still feeling a little yucky.  Overall, I'm glad I went - we'll see how glad my stomach is tonight, but I feel pretty safe since I've passed the last 12 hours without incident!  I really enjoyed being with real Spaniards - I learned a lot and got to practice a lot of Spanish.  It really motivated me to practice more!

I promised a bit more on the issue of processing Spanish.  When I first got here, I could understand a fair bit of Spanish if it was being spoken directly too me, but I found most conversations between Spaniards on the bus or on the street to be far to fast for me.  Now, though, I understand a lot more which is both good and bad.  Obviously, it's great that my Spanish is improving, but it's hard because I CAN understand things now, but not without some effort.  Paying attention to Spanish when it's being spoken to me is exhausting, but so is hearing Spanish conversations around me, which my brain tries to process automatically now on the bus or in restaurants.  It's strange because working hard to understand the language around you isn't something we think about a lot, but it takes a lot of mental energy!

No pictures yet

I've been in a little bit of a mood today because of a sinus headache caused by the awesome weather we're having today (rain, rain, and more rain).  I'll put up pictures soon, but I'm trying to photoshop them a bit (adding an arrow to my building in a picture I took from across the bay, etc.).

Things have been mostly really, really good.  I just returned from a trip to the Scary Supermarket, which is getting less scary now that I know where things are (and I've found the perfect time to go - during siesta!).  I still have yet to brave the fish counter or the meat counters - I've bought pre-packaged stuff, or stuff from my friendly market - but overall I find the trips much less stressful.

There's been a funny shift over the past few days.  I actually LIVE here.  We were out last night in a huge group, everyone speaking a mishmash of Spanish and English (with some French, Italian, etc. thrown in as well).  The conversation moved between languages without people really thinking about it.  All of a sudden this table of guys were asking me something, and I was really confused.  Then I realized it's because they were American.  American tourists are pretty rare here, and though I spend my time mostly with extranjeros (foreigners) I spend relatively little time with other Americans.  Once I realized what was going on, I figured out they were asking me for directions "because I spoke English and obviously lived around here."  It was so weird because I was tempted to say "Oh, I'm new here I don't know where you're going" but then I realized I could tell them and show them on their map.

I've been thinking a lot about my trip to Puerto Rico (17 days!) and wondering what it will be like to go. And what it will be like to come back.  More on that later I'm sure.  I'm off to meet some friends for coffee and try to make plans for EuroVision tonight!

Fashion, coffee, and rambling

Sorry for the boring weekend, folks.

I haven't done much besides relax, watch movies/tv, read, and work on the blanket I'm making.  I'm officially 80 years old, I guess.

That's not totally true because I did go for a really nice long walk both today and yesterday to El Centro.  Yesterday's trip was for grocery shopping, but today's was for fun (and some ice cream, if we're being totally honest).  I strolled down the hill and stopped in my favorite gelato shop (where they speak English and are usually less busy than the more popular one down the Boulevard).   I was so glad I waited 'til later in the day because I got a beautiful sunset going down the hill and coming back up, which made the walk very worthwhile.

While I walked, I was thinking about fashion here.  I was expecting the fashion to be pretty great, but honestly, I've been pretty disappointed. So far as I can tell, the kids have the best fashion.  Kids here are adorable and dress adorably.  Little girls (under 12 years old) are always in dresses and siblings usually match.  The kids clothing stores are also super adorable.

Older men and women fall into two camps.  The first is very, very stylish and chic.  The other is (usually for women only) really, desperately not age appropriate AT ALL.  Imagine rhinestone studded jeans, mini-skirts, strappy halter tops all on women who are clearly over 70 years old.  Yes, usually they are in great shape.  But no, thank you, I do not need to see you in a white 1 piece romper with rhinestones and a low cut in the front.

People my age are a total mixed bag.  I've known the 80s have been coming back for a while, but the level of neon here is disconcerting.  The biggest "trend" I can point to is sliver sneakers.  Which I do not understand.  I also am not sure where these people are shopping, since the stores I walk by tend to be pretty chic and understated.  I have yet to go into a shop to try on clothes because sizing is so looney here.  I think I'll order some stuff online to figure out what size I really am before going in to try stuff on. Plus, in El Centro, the boutiques are really expensive.  Typically the prices are similar to fancy boutiques in Chicago, except instead of dollars, it's euros.  I do realize I'm getting paid in euros, but I can't stop converting prices in my head and thinking "there is no way I will pay that much for something!"  I'm still waiting to see people who are incredibly chic and have fashion I'd like to copy - I may have to head to Barcelona or Madrid for that, I guess.

Now, for what will probably be a semi-regular feature is Something I Miss About America (not people I miss - but specific things about American culture).  To kick this off - two things:

- Ethnic Food
- Coffee

The first is ethnic food ... it doesn't really exist here, so far as I can tell.  I have spied a pizza shop while walking up the hill, but it never seems to be open.  Other than that, your choices for food when going out are Spanish and Basque.  This is a huge change from my old neighborhood where we could get basically any kind of food we wanted at any time of day.  A very, very weird transition to make, and something I'm sure I'll talk about later.

As many of you know, I quit caffeine over two years ago, now.  That does not mean that I quit coffee.  There is something really comforting about strolling around with a cup of coffee or tea while you're enjoying whatever city you're in.  Except this culture does not exist in the part of Spain I'm in.  So far, I have yet to find a single place where I can get coffee "para llevar"  (take out).  People enjoy their coffee at cafes (which become bars at night), sitting on the terrace, usually while having a pintxo or two.  People do not stroll with coffee.  There are over 180,000 people in San Sebastián and there is not a single Starbucks, or other Starbucks-esque establishment.  As far as I can tell, there are actually no Starbucks in Bilbao either (the population of greater Bilbao is right around 1 million people).  I am not sad to discover there is a part of the world that Starbucks has yet to conquer, but I do miss strolling with a cup of coffee in hand.  The Spanish "solo" (teeny, tiny cup of super strong coffee - which they will often make decaf for you) just doesn't do it for me.

Finally, even though the Spanish don't really celebrate it, I'd like to wish a very, very happy Mother's Day to my mom, my grandmas, and all the other moms reading here.

Miracle

Guys.  I grew a plant.  From a seed (or a lot of seeds, rather).  Remember after my weekend with a real Spanish family, I came home with four terra cotta pots, some potting soil, three starters (basil, rosemary and chives) and some coriander seeds?  Well, I moved the starters into pots that day.  I soaked the coriander over night and the next day threw them in a pot with soil.  I've been watering every day for a couple of weeks now.  Tonight, I went outside to check if they needed water and I thought "huh, that basil looks a little bigger.  So do the chives!  And the rosemary."  And then I peaked into the pot with my coriander - it's dark outside and the light on my terrace is on the other side, so I couldn't see so well, but I thought I saw something in the pot.  At first, I thought maybe it was just some of the chives that I'd trimmed earlier that managed to fall into the pot.  But then I realized, they were little green sprouts!  All over the pot!  I literally laughed out loud as I ran inside to get my "watering can" (empty wine bottle).  I am so, so excited because coriander grows into cilantro which is one of my favorite things to eat!  I am also so, so excited because not only have I never grown anything from a seed before (besides maybe marigolds when I was in 1st grade as a class project), but I typically kill everything I try to grow in general.  Even if (maybe especially if) it's healthy to begin with.  But now I have these beautiful herbs!  And I'm going to cook with them!  And with all my new recipes I got today.

I forgot to mention that, huh?  I got my cookbook!  It's a little daunting since it wants me to use earthenware casseroles and mortar and pestle for things.  Which I don't have here.  But, I am getting a better idea about what I can cook with the ingredients I can find here.  Hopefully, I'll be able to find some of the things I want  at the store tomorrow.  I also got my drying rack today, which will be put to as soon as I get another 50 cent coin.  I also got a package from my lovely friend Jordana - containing two mix cds (great, since I'm going crazy with my current music selection - or lack thereof), some delicious tea, and ... jelly beans!  I have been craving jelly beans since before Easter - and as far as I can tell, they do not exist here.

I also stayed home tonight.  I got home from work and took a luxurious nap.  I watched a movie on my iPad.  I cooked dinner.  I worked on the blanket I'm making.  And I was okay.  Not sad.  Not homesick.

Today feels a little bit like a miracle - a little bit like the seeds I'm planting are growing, and something green is starting to poke up from the dirt.

I wish ...

I wish that I worked every day.  The days are so much easier when I'm able to go to work, see people, get things done, and then come home.  Then I only have 4-5 hours to fill instead of 16-18 on the weekends.  It just feels much more manageable.  As you might imagine, this meant a much better day for me (although I did bang the crap out of my arm on a door handle at work - sure to be a nasty bruise).

I was worried this morning because I really had to drag myself out of bed.  Then when I got downstairs, I realized I'd forgotten my sunglasses upstairs, so I had to turn around and let myself back in.  I got upstairs to realize I had also forgotten to grab my lunch - so it's a good thing I remembered the sunglasses!  After that, the day was pretty much smooth sailing.  I even took a little walk at work in the afternoon as a reward for being productive.  Plus, we can't open our windows, so I thought I'd enjoy a little of the fresh air, since it was a beautiful day today!

I figured out a lot of things over the past couple of days, including how to change the language on my ATM card and bus card to English.  I was tempted to leave it in Spanish, but I figured if I made a language mistake, I would rather not lose money over it!  I also got paid for the first time and will hopefully figure out how to pay my rent (via bank transfer) tomorrow.  I still need to sort out utilities, but hopefully that won't be too hard.

I had Spanish again today and I'm feeling ahead of the class, which is good.  I think I need to feel like I'm ahead while I get used to all of the rest of my new life.  Especially since mostly I associate Spanish with feeling behind and like I don't know enough.  Once in a while it's good to feel like I'm doing okay. :)

It's been very interesting watching the reactions to the Osama bin Laden business here.  Obviously, people are very interested in the news, but also interested in the American reaction to the news.  This is my first chance to observe America from outside, so I read a bit of the coverage in El Pais (the biggest(?) newspaper in Spain - or at least around here) and El Diario Vasco (the local paper).  It's really interesting because it covers the same factual information that most of the American news I've read, but is really disconnected.  Very interesting.

In other news, I am at my wits end with this stupid kitchen and cooking.  I NEED to start figuring out other things to cook - things that don't require ingredients I can't find here or equipment I don't have (which right now includes a functioning oven), because I can only do so much improvisation.  [Did I forget to talk about my oven quitting on me?  I think I mentioned that the power went out briefly a couple of days ago.  I used that as an opportunity to reset the clock on the oven.  Then about an hour later, the power went out to that clock.  The ceramic cooktop, dishwasher, and all the lights work. I asked the doorman yesterday to come up and look at it.  He poked at it for a few minutes and announced, "It doesn't work."  He said they'd try to get someone to repair it Monday or some other time. I'm not holding my breath.]  Back to the cooking.  I really need to figure this out because I am going totally and completely crazy eating like I am.  Fortunately, I'm eating tons of fruit and salads. But unfortunately, I am also eating lots of pasta because that is easy to cook in this kitchen.  Hopefully someday I'll figure it out.  I'm going to start searching for Spanish recipes in hopes of finding something that's really tasty!  I'm going to also try my hand at a tortilla this weekend.  In Spain, tortilla is sort of like an omelette.  Or a cross between an omelette and a quiche.  It usually has potatoes in it, and is SUPER tasty and cheap when you get it as pintxos.  I've been too lazy to haul home a bag of potatoes so far, but if I ever get my hands on a little shopping cart, I will definitely try to cook it here!  Once again - soliciting recipes that require few ingredients and are tasty!

Cooking (again)

I had a really lovely relaxing day (aside from having to pull out a whole bunch of the knitting I did on a project because I dropped a stitch somewhere and couldn't find it).

I tried to cook a recipe tonight - I was missing a couple of ingredients and the whole thing was made harder without measuring devices.  The overall result - edible, but not delicious.  I need to figure out cooking here pronto because I am super tired of lemon-caper or lemon-olive sauce on everything I cook.  I'm actually tempted to go to a bookstore and buy a Spanish or Basque cook book. At least then I should (in theory) be able to find all of the ingredients I need.

Any advice or recipes for cooking tasty food with very limited ingredients would be greatly appreciated.

Like Magic

Today was magically much, much better than yesterday.  I had a great day at work and started to figure things out more in terms of logistics.  One of my new friends taught me how to load my bus card with tickets - I chose the monthly ticket since you only have to ride the bus 44 times to pay for it - and if I go to work and back every day for a month, I will ride it 40 times, so I think it's definitely going to be worth it.

I'm also planning to go to the bank tomorrow to pick up my replacement ATM card and hopefully get "unlocked" from my online bank account.  I have been practicing the things to say, though I'm pretty nervous about the whole ordeal.  I know I'll survive either way, and if I need to I can always drag a Spanish speaker with me on Monday.  It will be really good for me to at least try, I think.

Tomorrow's going to be a short work day:  a late morning due to the bank (they're only open 9-1:30), and an early afternoon since another postdoc is leaving and we're all going out for pintxos/drinks at around 6 downtown (and I want to go home and drop my things off before we run around town for who knows how many hours).

I don't have plans for this weekend after tomorrow night, but hopefully, I can make some!  Otherwise, I might just try to get lots of work done.  I'm submitting to two conferences, and would like to have some new data to present!  I do need to go to the big grocery store as well as go to the "home" store to try to buy some sheets and something not beige for my place.

Update

As if this day weren't already enough, I ran out to the grocery store to get some flour and maybe some fresh bread so I could cook a recipe and they're closed.  They're not supposed to close 'til 9, but they're closed.  I'm getting tired of not being able to find the ingredients I want and not really being able to cook.  There are only so many variations on "lemon chicken" and "fish with lemon sauce" that I can make.  Boo to Spanish grocery stores today!

In the Land of Expats

Today was great.  After messing around most of the morning in my pajamas, I met up with my two new post-doc friends at ~3:30 at the Aquarium and started climbing to the statue of Jesus.  We climbed up part way and I was pretty sneezy, due to allergies.  We got up where we thought the cafeteria/bar was, and unfortunately it was closed for the weekend.  We took in the beautiful view by the cafeteria and continued our climb.  We got almost all the way to the top and decided to stop in the little museum that is in the castle underneath the statue.  We poked around there for a while and then continued our trek.  We got up to the top and took in the statue and the gorgeous views of not only La Concha bay (the more famous part of San Sebastián, but also the beach in Gros.  This is the part of the beach that surfers love.  The view is completely astounding - I don't know if any words can do it justice.  You all should just come here and see it for yourselves. :)

After the climb we went back down the "mountain" into Parte Vieja.  We met up with another expat friend of my new friends who is from England.  We went to a cafe for some coffee and tortilla española (a very famous dish around here with eggs, potatoes, and onions.  Sort of like a quiche with mostly potatoes instead of eggs).  Then we strolled around Parte Vieja and ended up at a cute park that has a lot of ducks with kids feeding them.  After the park, we went to a French bakery for a small pastry which we took out by the harbor to eat and people watch for a bit.  The people watching ended up being great, because we ran into one of the girls' former roommates, who is from Italy, and her Spanish friend.  We ended up going into Gros (a neighborhood on the east side of town across the river), and decided to meet up with the former roommate later.  We went to a bar and sat on a terrace by the sea watching the sunset.  We ended up running into the English guy's fellow English teacher from South Africa and her Spanish boyfriend.  So we all had a drink together.  Then the Italian girl, her Spanish friend, and 4 of her other Italian friends came to meet us at the bar.  All of us had another drink and pintxos and then went our separate ways.  The two other postdocs had family plans tomorrow, so they went home, but it was only 9:30 (early, even by Chicago standards), so I went out with the British guy to meet some of his Spanish friends.

We met his friend Tomas at a bar back in Parte Vieja.  He was with some of his "cuadrilla" friends.  So far as I understand it, the concept of "cuadrilla" is very particular to the Basque country.  Basically, this is the group of friends you grew up with.  It's the people you've known you're whole life who you remain close with your whole life (regardless of where you move).  Typically, it's very hard to become friends with these sorts of groups of friends, but everyone was very nice tonight.  Unfortunately for me, very few of them spoke much English.  So, I listened a lot in Spanish (I understood most of what was going on).  I spoke a little bit of Spanish, and then spoke English which Tomas translated for me.  :)  We had some really great Basque cuisine - including tomatoes (which I normally hate, but were actually very tasty), some small mild peppers (also usually not my favorite, but very good) and then the chuleta.  Chuleta is an extremely tasty steak - and these guys, from this area, say this bar has the best chuleta in the area.  It was really some of the more delicious steak I've ever had.  After we finished there, they went on to another bar, but I ended up coming home.  The climb really made me sleepy - plus, I didn't want to be coming back here by myself too late tonight.

I'm still hoping to go to the sideria on Sunday.  I was also invited out for drinks tomorrow night.  The conflict is that now I have too many plans. :)  I was actually invited to stay with my friend from Michigan at her house out of San Sebastián.  I may take her up on that, since it'd be nice to get out of my apartment for a night.  That said, I'll be happy either way, since I can spend some time with my new friends if I don't spend the night there.

I also must talk about "besos."  When you meet anyone in Spain, especially if you are female, you get besos - one kiss on each cheek.  Usually the person you are meeting says their name during the besos, which means, I rarely learn anyone's names.  I'm trying to concentrate so much on not bonking my head into their head that I can't really pay attention.  This especially problematic for Basque names, which tend to be long and phonetically difficult for me.  Fortunately, I can use the excuse that I am not a native speaker (and that I am American and not used to besos yet) to ask their name again.  Plus, they all have trouble with my name, so they have to ask me too.

Everyone I've met so far is incredibly, incredibly nice.  It's strange here because even people you think you'd have nothing in common with, you do - especially expats.  It's really incredible to see this community of people that form just because they're all from places other than here.  The cool thing to see is that everyone who has lived here for a long time loves it.  It's almost not fair to say "loves it" -  they are incredibly infatuated with the place.  I met a guy tonight who has lived here for 7 years and used to live on the Mediterranean in Italy.  He insists that this is the most beautiful place on Earth.  He said he's lived here for 7 years and still thanks God every day for the beauty of the place and the kindness of the people.

In spite of the difficulty of transitioning here, in spite of how much I miss Peter, Sophie, my friends, and family ... in spite of all of that, I am really, truly lucky to be in such an incredible place with amazing people.  I'm not sure I could imagine doing this anywhere else.  So tonight, I'm just letting myself be grateful to be exactly where I am ...

So, maybe I was a tad bit dramatic last night before I got an invitation to go out. I sort of feel like a teenager because my mood can change in a blink of an eye, mostly revolving around if anyone calls me. So,apologies for my drama last night.

I ended up going out with a couple of people from work, and a couple of their friends. We went out for pintxos (like tapas) and drinks. For pintxos, you go to one bar for one pintxo and a drink, and then move on to the next place. We went out in Parte Vieja, which is the old part of town. It's mostly pedestrian only, and full of bars and rstaurants. There's also a square in the middle of town with a lot of outdoor seating. You can go into any of the bars around the square, order food, and then sit outside. It was beautiful out last night, so that was nice. After we had enough pintxos, we got ice cram (of course). Everything closed down a little early last night due to La Semana Santa, but I had a lot of fun. I liked all of the people I met a lot, so hopefully I can hang out with them again. Everyone is from other countries in Europe besides me, and they've all been here for a little while (between 4 months and a year and a half).

I even made more plans for the weekend! Today we're going to "hike" up one of the two little mountains over San Sebastian, Monte Urgull. At the top, there is a giant statue of Jesus, which gets lit up at night. It's supposed to rain, but maybe it will stop before we go.

Then, Sunday, we're going to a sideria. I don't know if I can describe it that well, but I've been told it's a Basque thing you have to experience. And this weekend is the end of their season! I've had a lazy morning, though I wasn't able to sleep in as much as I want. I have been trying to watch a little Spanish tv in an attempt to improve my Spanish. The shows I've seen are all pretty ridiculous, but I'm hoping to be able to find some dubbed American shows, so at least I know the situations people are in. I'm able to understand some of what they say, but I've found that turning on the closed captioning in Spanish is really, really helpful.

I'm going to exercise a little this morning before I go out for the afternoon, and I might even try to get some work done.

1 week

Today was my first true full day since I got here.  First I had the conference, then it was running around like a crazy person yesterday for all my papers.  Today I got up and headed into work.  I left my house at ~8:40 and got to work just before 9.  After years of hour long commutes to Evanston, that was pretty great!  The one problem is that I do not have a key to my office (which is locked) or to the main office (which is not usually locked on days the building is open).  The problem is that the machine that programs the keys (they are combination electric smart keys and keys that turn in the lock) ran out of batteries.  And it's a special battery the center doesn't have.  So, like many things in my life, I was told "after Easter."

I put in a pretty solid work day - I had a lot of setting up to do getting the IT guys to install things on my computer (Praat, R, etc.).  About halfway through the day, I realized that I have a real grown up job.  People dress pretty casually, but in general, they dress like grown ups.  Also, the office is super quiet.  Because people work when they're there.  There's very little messing around (though I did get an e-mail in the middle of the day asking if I wanted to place a small "purro" [bet] on the Madrid-Barcelona game tomorrow night).  At first, I thought it was just because I share my office with two faculty-types and another post-doc.  So I stealthily walked past the pool where the grad students sit (they don't get offices but rather cube sort of things) and the pool where the research assistants/interns sit. And they were ALL doing work!  No Facebook.  No e-mail.  No PhD comics.  Just Praat, EEG analysis tools, fMRI scans.  It was sort of spooky, but no wonder this place is productive!  I think I'll like it there - I got a ton done today, which made me really happy.

Then I came home and ran to the market for some more food.  I feel like there's no way I can make it through this weekend with the amount of food currently in my kitchen.  So, tomorrow, I'm venturing out to the big grocery store.  This store is pretty scary to me because you can't just go up and pick out your meat.  And often not your fruits and veggies either.  Someone is there who you have to talk to in Spanish and explain what you want.  I might try to get some fish tomorrow ... but I'm not sure if I'm brave enough for that yet.  Regardless, I need to stock up.  I'm sure the place will be mobbed tomorrow (imagine pre-snowpacolypse this past winter in Chicago) because no one's going to be able to get much after tomorrow night!

I also think I'm going to try out a church that's right up the road from my house - it looks like it's about 10 minute walk and that it's a pretty small church.  I'm a little scared to go, since I'm sure it will be intense ... and in very fast Spanish.  So I'm planning a walk by on Holy Thursday ... if I'm too chicken to go in, I'll probably go back for Good Friday, etc.

I'm starting to get used to the city, which is great.  I walked downtown today to get a hairdryer (finally I can stop looking so disheveled!).  I knew where I was walking and what order the streets went in, which surprised me a lot.  It was really warm today so the beach was packed as was the boulevard.  It was really nice to walk around and people watch for a while.  I got a little cup of gelato to reward myself for making it a whole week here.

I sort of can't believe I've been here for a week.  It simultaneously feels like I just got here yesterday and that I've been here for months.  I hope that I continue to become more and more acclimated to my life here.  I keep checking things off my "things I need to be comfortable in this place" list.  I still feel really wildly emotional - swinging from being really happy to really sad almost every day.  I find that going outside helps.  Unfortunately, it's supposed to rain tomorrow starting at around 12 and continuing  through the evening.  It's also supposed to rain on Friday, and showers are possible on Saturday and Sunday.  So, I'll either be exploring in the rain, or enjoying my apartment this weekend.  I'm hoping I can get out to do some exploring as long as the rain isn't too drenching!  I know I've been lucky to have no rain for a whole week, but I'm a big baby about walking in the rain (especially up Old Giant Hill [it needs a better name]).

So Much Bureaucracy

Today was the day that the administrative assistant at work was going to take me around to get all the various cards and things I need to be legal here (and to get paid, get healthcare, etc.).

I was supposed to meet her at 9:30.  So, at 9:30 I headed downstairs.  The woman who is sort of in charge here came out to tell me that my contact from work (E.) was running late and would be there in 15 minutes.  I asked the woman if she had my contract (lease) signed for me to take with me.  She said, "yes", which apparently meant "not really."  So about 15 minutes later E pulled up on her scooter.  And I realized I was going to be riding around on the back of the scooter all day.  She came in and asked the woman for the contract.  The woman's "si" to me turns into 5 minutes of a rapid fire Spanish conversation.  I understood things like "on it's way" and "the guy has to follow a path."   I turns out that of course they did NOT have the signed contract, but were messengering it over - from the building we were about to go to (ugh).  So we waited.  And waited.  It's 10:30, 10:45.  We got coffee from the vending machine in the communal living room here [side note:  the coffee from this little machine is dirt cheap and they have plenty of decaf options.  You also get to choose how sweet your coffee is on the machine.  Unfortunately, the least sweet coffee tastes like you're drinking super sweet coffee flavored milk - you get what you pay for, I guess). Finally, the woman came in with a FAXED copy of contract - not the original.  The original wouldn't be there 'til the afternoon.  Keep in mind, I asked them for this copy 5 days ago.  I thought E was going to kill the woman.  But she didn't and we headed out to the scooter.  She said on the way that she was pretty worried they wouldn't accept the copy of the lease, but it was worth a try.  So, she laid out what we were going to do today:  register with the census, register for my resident card, open a bank account, register at my health center, get my bus card, and get a cell phone. She said "we might be lucky and finish everything today."

So, we got on the scooter (I have known this woman for all of 5 days and we've talked for maybe 5 minutes before this - but modesty isn't a thing in Spain I guess - on the scooter we went).  We zipped down the hill to the area where all the offices were.  I needed 6 passport photos (taken in a photo booth) and some photocopies before I could fill out all my paper work.  So, we got the photos and the copies.  Then we went to the comisario (police station, basically), where we grabbed a number from a machine.  We saw there were about 14 people ahead of us, so we ran over to the padron's office (essentially the social security office) to register.  This was where we needed the lease we didn't have - and one copy of it was on the 4th floor of the building we were going into.  So ... we took a number again (2 people ahead of us) and E got on the phone with the people upstairs.  They were completely unhelpful and we our number was called.  We sat down with the guy behind the desk, who was not to happy we had a copy.  E explained to him the situation and he finally agreed to fill out the paper work.  She said after that she knew him from doing this with other researchers, or he might not have been so helpful.  I was registered with the census, and we sprinted back to the comisario.

We got there, and there were only 3 people ahead of us.  As we were waiting they cut off the line for people taking numbers - it was 12 and everyone who didn't already have a number had to come back tomorrow.  We got in, and filed the paper work for my resident card.  E explained to me that after 40 days, I'd come back to get my card ... this is sort of cutting it close since I can't leave the country and get back in without it - and I'm going to puerto rico in ~ 44 days.  Fortunately, she said that it is often ready earlier since they get shipped in batches.  So, then we had to run to a local branch of the bank to make a transfer from my employer's bank account to the comisario to pay for my resident card.  We took a number (again) at the bank, got the paper work for our transfer, and went back to the comasario, where we took another number (they make exceptions on the whole "no new number" thing for people making the bank transfer).  It took FOREVER to get in this time.  We got yelled at once for being impatient and trying to sneak in early.  We finally got in and gave them the transfer paperwork.  They took fingerprints (because obviously the set I sent the FBI and the Spanish government earlier are not sufficient).  Then we decided to go get my bank account before the bank closed (even though my health center is in the same neighborhood as the comisario, etc.).

So, we sprinted back to the bike, and went into El Centro and went to the main branch of the bank.  We ran into the bank and ... took a number!  Fortunately, no one was ahead of us in line this time.  We sat down with the woman and she determined that I would get a "young person's account" since I'm under 30.  I also had to open a foreigner's account since I don't have my resident card yet. Once I get it, I get to go to the bank and they will not charge me any more fees (it's 14 € every six months for the foreigner account).   With the youth account account I get discounts on group tours and other "young person's events", apparently.  The bank is also where you apply for a bus card, so I got a bus card application to fill out as well.  After more than an hour there, we left with all my bank account information, and the promise that my bus card would come "after Easter."  Then we went to a computer to change my PIN and password to sign into my account online.  A guy also showed us that I have a "virtual credit card" I can use online.  I have no idea when I'd ever use it, but it's nice to know it's there, I guess.  Then E decided it was time for lunch - we'd already been at this for over 4 hours and we were both starved.  So we went to a little pintxos bar and had a couple of sandwiches and she had coffee.  Everyone around us was enjoying some wine, which made me want some, but we still had a lot to do.

After lunch, it was back to the scooter, and back to Amara where the health center is located.  The health center looks really new and convenient.  After taking yet another number, we talked to a lady who got my account set up.  She assigned me a doctor who "speaks more or less the English," who is in every afternoon.  If I need an appointment, I call or go online, show up and go to the office number I'm given online.  The health center is completely free and covers everything except for dentistry, chiropractic and a few other miscellaneous things.  Hopefully, I won't have to visit them often (if at all), but it's good to know they're there.  I get my permanent health care card in 2.5-3 months.

After the health center, we went back downtown to get my phone.  E decided I should get a phone with a contract, because they give you the phone free (or cheap), whereas a pre-paid phone you have to pay for the phone and the plans are more expensive.  So, we asked the woman at the store who insisted that I need my official residence card to open this kind of account.  I decided to just wait on the phone until I get my resident card - it's not like I'm calling tons of people in Spain and I have a phone I can use for emergencies here.

So then it was almost 4 o'clock (6.5 hours after we started all of this), so rather than going into work, we headed home.  We decided we WERE really lucky because we didn't have to wait too long for anyone or anything.  Now I have to wait 40(ish) days for my resident card to arrive to the comisario.  We'll call in a month or so and see if it's there.  When I get it, E and I go back to the comisario to retrieve it, then we'll get my phone and change my bank account to a non-foreigner's account.  Now, I just have to wait for my ATM card, my bus pass, and my permanent health card to show up in the mail!

I'm pretty relieved all of this is done - though I wish the resident card would come sooner!  I'm ready to finish these other things now!  I also have to say I am SO lucky to have an employer who helped me take care of all of this.  Bureaucracy is hard enough in your own language and country, let alone a new country with a new language.  I would have been totally lost today and it would have been way, way more stressful than it was.

I managed to get some grocery shopping done this afternoon.  I know I still have at least one more big trip to make before this weekend to make sure I have enough food - my local market is totally closed from Wednesday at 9 until Tuesday at 9.

I'm struggling a little with cooking here (especially with coming up with stuff to take to work for lunch ... I'm hopeful I'll have decent leftovers tonight, but we'll see).  It's hard to cook for one person, especially with limited ingredients since I have yet to go to the real supermarket!  Hopefully, I'll be brave enough to go this weekend. I'm also hoping I can get ahold of one of those great carts that everyone here has, so I don't have to haul my stuff by myself.  My supervisor and I are both working on Thursday - apparently we can get into the building.  So I'm feeling pretty good about that - I'll only have 4 days to fill instead of the dreaded 5. I'm trying to look at these days as an opportunity to relax a little and be really refreshed to start work in earnest next week.

Saving the best news for last, I managed to go a whole day yesterday with NO tears.  I knew it would happen eventually, but looking back to last Tuesday (it's hard to believe I've been here almost a week), I thought it wouldn't.  I remember saying to someone "I wish I could just see a week or a month from now and know I'm okay."  And I am.  Okay, that is.  It's not easy.  And it's still not particularly fun (especially at night, and especially being away from Pete).  But it's okay - and that's all I'm asking for right now.

Congratulations if you made it through this novel.  I'm happy to have this as a chronicle of my time here, and I'm sure I'll be glad I have it to look back on in the future.  Hopefully, it's not too tedious to read!

Sleep ...

I just slept for 7.5 hours straight which is awesome.  That's actually more hours straight than I typically sleep at home, when I usually get woken up by the cat or by Pete or by myself.  The conference today is a bit shorter (only 'til 5:30 instead of 7 + social time) and I'm not going to the conference dinner since I didn't know about it until Tuesday.  Instead I'll have dinner with a new friend and hopefully relax a little bit.  Then I get to sleep in a little tomorrow since I don't have to be at the conference until 10.  And Sunday, I'm free to sleep as long as I want.

I don't have curtains on my three floor to ceiling windows yet, but we are apparently having them installed sometime between Friday and Wednesday.  It sort of sucks because street lights just shine in the room all night.  The one nice thing about not having curtains is that I wake up gradually as the sun comes out because then it's light in my room.  Once I get curtains I'll have to balance the "no streetlight" thing with the "it's nice to not wake up to a blaring alarm clock" thing.

I'm feeling less crabby and homesick today, so that's good news.  I also managed to order a couple of pairs of shoes last night, since I realized I forgot to bring shoes that you can wear socks with aside from my sneakers and my gym shoes.  I managed to get free shipping to Spain through Amazon UK, which I was pretty proud of.  And I feel like I deserve a little present, so two pairs of shoes it is!

Day 1 (Take 2)

I took a 45 minute nap today after writing the last post, which was pretty much the best thing ever.  I woke up refreshed and took off for a walk to meet my new Michigander friend.  Amazingly, she's from Alma (which Michigan people will know is very "It's a Small World"), and has an MA in linguistics.  In spite of a large age difference, we got along quite well, plus we both knit and crochet, so even more to talk about. She is going to try to get together with me again next weekend, which is known as "Easter Week" here.  Basically, the whole city (include my workplace) shut down from Thursday through Monday.  5 whole days!  The Spanish love their holidays, apparently.  I'm a little worried that I might go crazy with 5 days of nothing, so I might try to plan something with other friends.  If not, I'll plan some adventures to get me out of the house and plan to get some work done anyhow!

And now for some random bullets:

I met a bunch of people at the BCBL today, including a guy who introduced himself to me and then announced that he is the captain of the soccer team.  He implied that I should join, which resulted in a hysterical discussion about how the rest of the team is also not great.  I pointed out that most of them are European which means they are inherently better at soccer than me.  Apparently they are one of the more popular teams among other teams - which, they hypothesized, is because they are easy to beat.

The walk to my bus stop is literally uphill both ways. See, I live at the top of a really, really big hill. A "we don't have hills like this in the Midwest" hill. Actually, it's sort of like the hill I lived on when I was at a music festival in Vermont. Which they called a mountain. So anyway - big hill down to the ocean. Past my house, the hill goes up some more and then starts going down to the street where my bus stop is.

I had to sign a bunch of paperwork today, including a form that said I read the center's emergency plan which states prominently "IN CASE OF FIRE OR OTHER EMERGENCY DO NOT RUN OR SCREAM!!" I laughed for about 10 minutes reading that.

The cafeteria is sort of like a dive bar with pintxos. The women working whipped out their very fast Spanish with me, and when I asked them to slow down because I don't speak Spanish well, they told me that I didn't look like an American. Apparently, my trench coat purchased at the Gap for 10 dollars this winter is the best purchase I've made. I saw several Spaniards in nearly identical coats today, so at least I'm not betrayed as being clueless 'til I open my mouth.

Everyone warned me how expensive it was to live her. Apparently, no one has lived in Chicago. Or Boston, or New York, or anywhere else with expensive things. Wine and food in particular are dirt cheap. I stopped by a slightly larger market today to pick up food for the next couple of days. I bought granola bars, some pasta, some cheese, an apple, enough salt to get me through my whole time at BCBL, garlic, and paper towels for 5€ - a little over $7. REALLY. I was so happy I almost danced up the giant mountain to my apartment (until I got tired and took a break to watch some tiny Spanish children playing). I bought a bottle of rioja wine yesterday for 5€, which was by far not the cheapest bottle in the store, and it is actually really tasty. My apartment is much bigger than the studio I had in Evanston my first few years at Northwestern. And it's cheaper than my apartment was then (4 years ago - I'm sure it's way more expensive now). The bus costs 1,40€ for the full fare, and once I get my bus card next week, it'll be 0,75€. Which is significantly cheaper than the CTA buses, is super clean, and runs fairly reliably. I know hotels are expensive, and fancy restaurants are too. Sure we're taxed a lot, but I also get free health care and a number of other free benefits for that. So, yay to that!

My work keyboard is a Spanish keyboard.  Which has most of the stuff in the right place, but lots of stuff in totally confusing places, and I still don't know how to make the @ symbol.  Today I resorted to copying and pasting it.  The left shift key is also in a weird place, as is the dash, the forward and back slash, and the question mark.  The parentheses are on 8 and 9 rather than 9 and 0, which means every time I tried to hit the left parenthesis key, I'd get the right.  As a fast typer, this makes me crazy pants.  One of the guys I share an office with was totally amused as I was hunting for something on the keyboard, muttering to myself.  I doubt he'll be that amused when I have a day when I write for 8 hours.  On those days, I'm going to have to bring in my laptop.

And now I'm off to bed since I have to get up crazy early for 11 hours of conference-ing tomorrow!

Day 1

I woke up this morning feeling awesome, so I headed into work for a few hours. Part of this involved figuring out the bus system, which is (a) not transparent and (b) in Spanish/Basque which compounds the not-transparency.  But I managed it.  The walk from my house to the bus stop is <5 minutes, and the bus ride itself is <10.  Then I have about a 10 minute walk from the bus stop to my office.  In theory, I could make it to work in <30 minutes.  Unfortunately, there are two bus options one runs once an hour and one runs twice an hour.  The good news is that those twice an hour buses actually run every 30 minutes, unlike if they were, say, the CTA where they would run twice an hour two minutes apart.  Basically, I need to budget around an hour to get to work if I have a meeting.  The good news is that I only have a meeting one day a week, and it's at 10.  People seem to be pretty flexible with time as well arriving at the office between 9 (when I got there today) and 11.  The bus ride to work is actually quite beautiful, through some rolling hills, and the walks are also very easy.  Here's hoping I stay so rosy about the transportation in a few weeks (or on a rainy day)!

The place where I work is incredible.  I'm not going to go into a lot of details (e-mail me if you're interested in hearing more), but the people are all very friendly.  I share an office with three others, who all seem very friendly.  Our lab space is gorgeous.  One thing I'm pretty excited about is our great lunch room, which, I know seems stupid.  But people all go there and eat lunch together, have snacks, etc.  There are also dishes to use if you bring food - and a dishwasher.  I didn't bring food today (as I don't have much in my house and have no way of transporting it to the office yet - I've added tupperware of some sort to my list of stuff to buy), but there's a little "cafeteria" (aka - bar) just about a block away from the office, which has decent, inexpensive food to eat in or take out.  Plus drinks in the middle of the day should that become necessary.  There's also a very fancy restaurant in the same building - which is weird because we're in a "technological park" which basically means that it's all companies, so having a Michelin starred restaurant there is a little odd.  After lunch, I tried to do some more work, but was getting exhausted, so I'm home now preparing for a nap.

Tonight I'm meeting a woman who lives nearby who is from Michigan (and around my mom's age).  It'll be nice to get to know some people who don't work at the center, though they all seem really nice.

Overall, I'm feeling much better about everything today.   I came here to do good, interesting work and that's why I made the sacrifice to leave Chicago and a lot of things and people I really care about.  I was really glad to see that I'm going to have a great place to go where people are excited, and I get to do work I'm excited about.  It makes this whole thing seem more worthwhile.