2nd Visitor to Galicia

As part of my adventure-packed Semana Santa, my French friend came to Galicia for 48 hours. And according to the Clash, 48 hours needs 48 thrills! Given the short amount of time, I'd say we saw a good amount of Galicia.

Day 1 we went to the beach in Arteixo, a small city near A Coruña, because he's never seen the ocean. Then we headed further south along the Costa da Morte ("Coast of Death" thanks to many a-shipwreck taking place in the region) until Fisterra. It's the most western land in continental Europe, dubbed "the end of the world" by Romans. At night we (my English speaking amiguiños and I) showed him the "wild" Lugo nightlife. Not really wild, but he did get to try some specific Galician and Spanish drinks and tapas.

Day 2 found us travelling to the North coast, specifically the beach of As Catedrais. I've been there before, but it's magnificent rock formations were certainly worth another trip. We also stopped in the town of Viveiro (I think...) to walk around.

Day 3 was a brief tour of A Coruña, although we didn't even make it up to the Tower of Hercules due to time constraints. That's alright though; it leaves plenty to do for the next visit.

Semana Santa

Throughout Spain during Semana Santa and especially on Good Friday, religious fraternities have processions with giant floats featuring Jesus, Mary, and other holy folks. I was suprised to see about as many people lined up to see the procession as there were to see the cabalgata of the 3 Kings-- because those guys bring presents and throw candy, but Good Friday is solemn. Lugo capital isn't well-known for their processions. Maybe it's because there was only one float that was actually carried by people; the rest were rolled. Nonetheless, it was impressive to someone who's never seen such a thing. The participants can be slightly scary at first since they look like a cult-- more specifically, the KKK, except with colored robes and hoods. But if you don't think of them as such, it's nice. Some carried crosses, but most just walked in 2 files. There was also a group which looked to be traditionally-dressed women in mourning.

I'd like to add that on the Spanish schedule fasting isn't really so bad. Because they usually have lunch later in the day to hold them off until dinner which is soon before bed.

West Coast, best coast

I declare that this week I'm seeing more of Northern Spain (well, Galicia, Asturias, and Cantabria) than I've seen all year. Especially the delightful natural attractions. The day after returning from our Girls Roadtrip, I took a day trip with my friend to Galicia's west coast.

First stop: The ruins of Catoira. Centuries ago, Vikings entered the area via a river leading to the ocean, and being Vikings, pillaged and desecrated the place. Now the town has a famous Viking festival each summer where citizens dress up as Vikings and come in on big boats to burn down the makeshift village (already been added to my festivals to attend list, fret not). When we went there were two Viking ships in the port that you could board in addition to three ruined buildings. Nifty.

Next stop: As piscinas do Río Pedra. Another natural beauty, with yellow flower- and tree-lined hills on either side of the river. The giant rocks create miniature waterfalls which flow into swimming-worthy pools. It's understandably a big hit during the summertime. Despite the heat when we went, the water was too cold for my taste. We did traverse upstream which required walking barefoot in the water. I only fell once, and not into the water, so overall it was a good experience.

Third Stop: Castro de Baroña. Approaching it from the woods, the small, walled peninsula with remains of circular rock houses looks mythical.  I can certainly understand why the Celts chose this place for their village. It's got charming beaches on either side, is on a cliff that meets the ocean, and has a good view of the mainland where enemies would come from. Perhaps my favorite place we visited that day.

Is it Atlantis? Nay, it's Castro de Baroña!

The remains are only a few feet high because people
would take the rocks for their own walls

Next Stop: A beekeeper's workshop. This part was like visiting a honey museum, except personal and with free samples. I (more or less) learned the steps to making honey and tried about 10 varieties--to get different 'flavors' he leaves the bees by different types of flowers. My favorite kind was chocolate honey, and he even gave me a jar of it. Stellar! Not really a honey fan, but can't resist chocolate goodness.

Final Stop: As dunas de Corrubedo. I was actually not too impressed by this park. Although now it is better guarded and there are signs that warn a 60-600 euro fine for walking onto the dunes, before people apparently used to drive their cars right up into the dunes and thus would have to push them back out. The dunes used to be bigger and more impressive, but it seems that because of their misuse they've shrunk. So by now it just looks like a sandy hill leading towards a beach.

Picos de Europa: Or the 7 Natural Wonders of Northern Spain

Oh the wonders I have seen! This weekend on our Girl's Trip to Picos de Europa in Asturias and Cantabria, I honestly believe I've seen what should be considered the Seven Natural Wonders of Spain...or something like it. Incredible views both in the mountains and on the beach-- and on beaches surrounded by mountains. At times I felt like I was on another planet with the interesting rock formations. On the drive home we stopped at about four beaches, which might have been excessive but every time we got out to explore, I was left more impressed and intrigued than by the last. Obviously we're not talking about just sandy beaches, but ones with sick rock formations and little grottos. Since between the four of us we probably took 500 pictures, instead of writing I'm just going to include a plethora of photos. So if your computer is slow, you might just wanna skip this post. :) However I will say that after passing through many a-town, we would all say "If I had a country house it would be here" I've decided on the ideal: Cangas de Onís for during the week, and then San Sebastián or another coastal city for the weekends.

Tales from Galicia's Greatest Instituto

Haven't written in a while, basically because nothing extraordinary has happened. Daily life in Galicia now seems pretty normal. This week in almost all of my classes I played vocabulary baseball with the kids. People often ask me what I miss about the USA, and now I have my answer. It made my day when one of the older students seemingly researched my baseball team, even if he said he preferred the Yankees. I guess I'm making it my mission 1. explain baseball to every Galician/Spaniard I come across and 2. convert them into fans of my team. Similarly I will do the same with Os Heredeiros when I am back in the USA.

Anyways, I'm still convinced my school is the best in Galicia. Today a teacher used his free block to help me plan some routes along the Galician coast, and noteworthy places in the interior. Perfect timing, because at the end of Semana Santa (next week) my friend is coming and we're renting a car to explore Galicia! Aside from this kindness, the director lent me a movie without me even asking, and my coordinator is always willing to hear my silly weekend stories. Or there's my favorite non-English teacher who always tries to converse with me about something interesting.

Some funny EFL moments:
In a game the students had to negate the word, ie perfect-->imperfect, happy-->unhappy. At one point I asked "Whose turn is it?" and the kid said "Inhuseturn..." Good effort! We all spent the next few minutes laughing with him.

They had to translate morir (to die). One student (at least 12-years-old) was convinced it was rip, because he'd seen it on tombstones before. But as far as I know, on Spanish tombstones if they put DEP (descanse en paz) it doesn't mean die.

Me: What's the name of a place you sleep at on vacation/holiday?
Students: Hospital
Umm...I hope not!