Cheap Sheets and Clothespins

Paul, Me, Jonny, and Rebecca at Feria de Naciones

Two nights ago, and my first night in my apartment, I actually had a night in. It is hard to believe, but it was necessary after all that partying and lack of sleep. I watched some Spanish television with my roommates. It was literally impossible to understand until we put on subtitles so I could read the words. That really helped me get what was happening in the program and hopefully improved my Spanish in general. I went to bed at a semi-decent hour in my new bed and new 9 euro sheets. As they, and my mother, say, "Cheap is cheap." They were not unbearable, but they were certainly not comfortable. I guess that's what you get for buying your sheets at a dollar store.

Yesterday morning, I woke up and did some laundry. There is a tiny washing machine in my kitchen and no dryer. For the first time in my life, I hung my laundry out to dry on clothes lines on the roof. It was very hot up there, and I'm sure my clothes dried very quickly, but it does not compare to the convenience of a dryer. I think I will miss having that, but the environment will be happy.

Inma and I walked towards town center and took the above ground metro into town. She also showed me where to get the bus to El Arahal, which looks like it will cost about 6 euros round trip. Hopefully a carpool will work out so I won't have to do that everyday. We got off the metro by the Cathedral and had Rebecca and our British boys meet up with us for some comida. Jonny led us to a place where he said he had the "best meal of his life." We had to check it out. I enjoyed octopus with onions and peppers, chicken in an almond sauce, and patatas con brava (potatoes in a somewhat spicy red sauce). It was Andreas's last meal with us before his flight back to Liverpool, and it was very sad to say goodbye. It felt like we were splitting up the little group we had formed at our hostel. Hopefully we will meet up again sometime this year, but until then, there's always Facebook.

Rebecca, Jonny, and I then went to a cafe with internet so they could research apartments. We found a potential one for Jonny and went to see it immediately. While the actual apartment was lacking, the landlord was super friendly. He took us all out for coffee at an Irish pub and talked with us for about half an hour. I am just blown away by how friendly people here are. I cannot imagine that happening in America. It was so unlike my apartment search experience in Somerville. He was a very nice guy with great English, and told us "Good luck" when we told him we were working in Arahal. He said the accent there is very strong (similar to my roommate Jesús) so that will be quite a challenge. After my delicious café con leche, Rebecca and I headed in search of bedding. We went to El Corte Ingles, and after much deliberation, I decided on a replacement set of sheets for 20 euro, reduced from about 90. No more sleeping on sand paper for me! We struggled to find our way back to the hostel (that was where I had gotten lost from before) but eventually made it there and met up with Paul (another Brit) and Jonny for our night out. Rebecca and I had many things with us, so we went to her place and dropped our stuff off before meeting up with the guys and Inma at Feria de Naciones, a festival with tents and food from many nations. We got some food from the Italian booth, found a table, and chatted the night away. Of course, our other friends showed up there and it was a big party around a small table. Despite our much too serious conversation on love, it was filled with laughs (or, as Paul would say, "a bit of a laugh"). I am afraid, however, that I have learned more British phrases then Spanish phrases since arriving. On the walk home, Inma and I decided to speak only Spanish from now on, and as difficult as that will be, I think it is una buena idea. I Skyped with my brother, Josh, when I got home and then went straight to bed. I was exhausted!

Anna, Inma, Rebecca, and Paul

This morning, I collected my laundry from the roof. I discovered that clothespins leave marks on clothes, so I will have to research the best way to hang things to avoid that. I'm not sure what today holds...hopefully some relaxation. Tonight, however, there may be some plans to go dancing, so who knows where that will lead? Until then, I need to go grocery shopping and rest my feet.