Winter Getaway to Ourense

The province of Ourense is mostly a mystery to me (except for a bunch of its rural carnival celebrations, plus visits to Ourense city, Allariz, and Ribadavia). It's the one Galician province I've never lived in, although I think I would like Ourense city. So then why did I go back to Ourense city rather than exploring one of its nearly 100 towns? Because it was worth it! 

Ourense was also our choice to be able to enjoy a train ride, something we hadn't done in ages. The city's bustling train station boasts great connections to most of Galicia's other cities as well as an AVE (high speed railway) to Madrid. This fact led me to constantly wonder if the gaggles of passersby were on a weekend getaway from Spain's capital.

Pretty Praza Maior, on a slant

When in Ourense, do as the Romans would do: hit the hot springs. Free and pay-to-enter hot springs line the Miño River on the outskirts of the city. As I had been before, I knew that we'd have to wait in order to get into the Japanese-themed private hot springs. What I didn't know was that apparently I was out of my mind to try to go on a Saturday evening in winter. Two and a half hour wait! We could have taken the AVE to Madrid in that time! The place has a large outdoor cafeteria to pass the time. Needless to say, it was packed. We decided to take our chances on the public hot springs we had passed after crossing the river. And actually, that was all for the better! While the private hot springs have more amenities and offer two choices of circuits (each including small pools of varying temperatures for contrast), there was no wait at the public pool and the water was just as hot. We got there right in the nick of time, an hour before closing. Amazing to be outside in bathing suits in the middle of January, but the water was hot enough to keep you warm and relaxed. It was actually steaming, it was so hot!

 

Going to the public baths instead was also a plus because that way we didn't end up completely worn out afterwards. Since there were only two pools, we got back to the hotel by 8. So here we come, Ourense nightlife! That was something I hadn't gotten to do on other visits. The atmosphere in the old town was great! Tons of people out and about, filling the myriad of bars. We also really lucked out in terms of the bars we chose. One was dedicated to all things pig: pork loin, snout, ears, you name it! They also had dozens of pitchers and bowls hanging for wine, something very enxebre (authentic). At another place, the waiter came around with creative tapas constantly. We had noticed and that's why we went in. Turns out, they do it Donostia-style: you save the toothpick from what you eat, and pay for it at the end. There is no such thing as a free tapa in this city. 

Speaking of food, the other highlight of this whirlwind tour was our first ever Michelin-star experience. At modern Nova, we were seated in the ¨hallway¨ to the entrance, so it was more secluded than the full dining room. I had to wonder if they had noticed an uptick in plebeian customers like myself thanks to the show The Bear.  We opted for the 8-course tasting menu which included 2 appetizers, 2 first courses, 1 fish, 1 meat, and 2 desserts. Normally with these kind of fancy restaurant tasting menus, you leave hungry. But that was not the case here. I think my favorites were the very flavorful miso soup or the slow-cooked egg with cream of pumpkin. All in all, it was a different experience apt for a special occasion.

Despite taking advantage of our 24 hours in Ourense, we still didn't get to everything (Cathedral, Japanese-style hot springs). Guess that means that I'll be back again.

Galician Block Party

It's 3 AM on a Saturday. Do you know where your grandparents are?

Well, if they live in the Galician countryside and their parish* is having it's annual celebration, they just might be out and about. I couldn't believe my eyes. Or my watch, for that matter.

In rural Galicia, neighbors chip in for what is comparable to an annual block party or town fair. Even if there are less than 100 people living in the parish. Even if the average age is 75. These block parties are usually in spring and summer, and always honoring a saint. The party is held near the church, as each parish has its own celebration. And with over 3,5000 parishes making up Galicia, if you wanted to visit all of their little festivals, it would take years.

Full bar, awaiting the orquesta

No Galician block party is complete without a stage and a bar.  Beforehand, the planning committee goes around to the houses asking for a donation. And you better give something, or risk being labeled the village cheapskates. With the money collected they hire orquestas and bring in a bar to keep folks entertained. By the way, in Galicia an orquesta doesn't mean what you think it means. It's a band with flashy costumes, choreographed dance moves, and a truck-turned-stage with dazzling lighting. They cover a wide array of songs to get the crowd moving: cumbia, paso dobles, rumba, pop, and even rock.

The usual order of events at these block parties is: mass, sesión vermú (meaning music and dancing before lunch), and later on the verbena (more music and dancing after dinner). Some parishes have specific traditions such as processions or picnicking.

After a short but sweet trip home this summer, back in Galicia it was my first year attending our parish's late-night party. Last year we went to the pre-lunch band. But this year I arrived at midnight and was surprised to see a good amount of people, almost all sporting white locks. There were also a handful of kids in the mix, likely grandkids of neighbors. And at our block party there was not one but two different orquestas, which is incredible to me, keeping in mind that there are less than 200 people to split the costs. The celebration lasted til 4 AM. In a field in the middle of nowhere! Now that's what I call a Galician block party.

*Note: As I have explained before, parish is one of the smallest subdivisions in Galicia. Towns --concellos-- are divided into different parishes --parroquias-- surrounding the churches scattered throughout town limits. Nowadays it's not merely a religious subdivision.

Galicia's Favorite Fall Fest

If fall in Galicia is synonymous with chestnuts, then based on the 40-some pounds of chestnuts we've collected only in the past 10 days, I can ascertain with confidence: it's fall, y'all!

 

I know, I know, it's been fall for over three weeks now. But around here it sure hasn't seemed like it. Lately the weather has been so warm and sunny, you'd swear we were permanently living in the end of summer. The lovely weather was probably one of the reasons San Froilán this year was an absolute success for the masses. I'm sure it also had to do with the fact that this year marked the return to normal in a post-COVID-19 Lugo. While in 2020 and 2021, the city council tried to keep the spirit alive by programming ¨safe¨ concerts, it just wasn't the same. You had to groove to the music seated, masked, and separated from other attendees. That's why this year was a splendid return to San Froilán's glory days, with hordes circulating in the streets, gathering around concerts, greeting acquaintances passing by. 

Pulpeira behind in red

To make up for lost time, this year we went out not once, but twice. And I wasn't even impressed with the concerts, which is normally what would draw me out to the fall festival fun. The first time was accidental, really. In Spanish terms, we were merely going to ¨tomar algo,¨ to grab a drink and check out the atmosphere. That was the night before San Froilán, a holiday only in the city of Lugo, so there were only locals around and about (except for some vacationing retirees, that is). We ended up saliendo, going out until the late hours. The other occasion was on Saturday when we met up with friends for lunch. Although we didn't make it down to the casetas (temporary restaurants specializing in octopus), octopus was still on the menu. A San Froilán without octopus is hard to fathom. And since the pandemic, restaurants have been allowed to hire a polbeira/pulpeira (almost always  female octopus chef) to set up her stand outside. The one outside our restaurant had orders coming from every direction.

This year I also enjoyed checking out the rides and carnival-style games set up, even though I didn't partake. The menfolk tried their hand and darts, and do you think they came back with a prize? Of course not. But someone I know rode the Ratón Vacilón (silly name of a rollercoaster) twice. I was encouraged to go on, too. But I prefer real rollercoasters that are permanently stuck to the ground. 

Thursday was the fair's final day, a ninth day rather than eight. That concludes the San Froilán experience. Cooling temperatures, chestnuts galore, and changing leaves. Magosto is upon us! In fact, some chestnuts roasting on an open fire are in order this weekend...

Bestie Time (Uviéu)

The last Friday of February, I was talking with my best friend, who I hadn't seen in the flesh since December. That was last year! She perhaps jokingly suggested we meet up that same weekend in the middle: Asturias. I took her up on that offer, a spur-of-the-moment trip to Oviedo/Uviéu. The back story is we had been there a year and a half ago, except since it was rainy and things were closed, we didn't see much. We didn't even see the cathedral! Or go to the sidra street! Since then, I've been to Oviedo a few times with my friend as a tourguide, so this time I felt prepared to give my own tour. But for those who have had me as a tourguide, they know it's not really my calling. Whether it's oversimplifying the translation to English, or just forgetting the importance of certain buildings, tours just aren't my forte. But I tried.

Saturday morning we arrived on separate buses to Oviedo. By this time I had a good idea of how to get us to the real center. We caught up while having breakfast at a confitería were the señoras of Oviedo go, apparently. We are the future señoras of Spain! Then we headed to the center area with the old and new markets and city hall. I recognized the area from a visit with my parents last year, but could only remember two measly facts about the place. Funnily enough, we ran into my only friend from Oviedo who was able to tell Lauren some fun facts (and remind me of them, of course). Then Lauren and I strolled some more, enjoying the lovely architecture. Lunch included fabada (Asturian bean stew).

Hola, cachopo!

Feeling content with the fact that we had already seen more in a few hours than on our last visit, we went to our snazzy hotel to have a nap. It was raining, anyways. The receptionist thought I was Galician. Toma acento! Afterwards, it was getting dark, so we decided to visit the Asturian Museum before it closed. Nice, but we rushed through it. And then: sidra time. Luckily we went to have dinner before 10, so there was a table for two without reservations. Score! We knew we wanted cachopo, a big piece of meat, topped with cheese and then breaded. By big I mean for two people. I'm seeing a theme here with Asturian cooking--solitary dining is not an option. After dinner, we rolled ourselves out to another sidrería. Lots of sidra and lots of girl talk. The best part was getting to have a night out with Lauren and talk about every little thing, just like when we lived in the same city. After ingesting about 50 apples worth of sidra each, we were ready for a night on the town. And then rocked out til 5AM. Ah, España.

Lovely Avilés street

Sunday we set off on a little trip to Avilés at a surprisingly decent hour. That city is precious, I would definitely live there for a bit. It seems very calm since it's even smaller than Lugo. But the architecture in the center is charming. Maybe I would get bored, but who knows. Anyways, thanks to our handy-dandy personalized Avilés map we saw all the top sites. Trying to make up for all the money we had spent the night before, we had lunch at Burger King haha. Back in Oviedo we played the waiting game. We were exhausted, but had to wait for Lauren's ride back to Santander. So we sat for two hours in a bar like a couple of loons: drinking fresh-squeezed orange juice and practically falling asleep at 5pm. But bestie time was so worth it.

Galician Carnival: Peliqueiro and Pantalla Sighting!

Now that it's Good Friday, I think I can properly write about the funnest part of winter: Carnaval/Entroido...40 days after the fact.

On Friday I went out with the girls. This year there was no group costume, unfortunately. I went as Pipi Calzaslargas (re: Pippi Longstockings) and was quite pleased with my outfit. I reused last year's red wig and only needed to buy the long stockings. Budget- and eco-friendly! It was not at all a wild night. I guess we're getting too old for that. Or just too tired. It's ok, I needed to save my energy for more Carnaval fun.

A few days later, with my other friends we went to the towns of Ourense where Carnaval is a big deal: Xinzo de Limia, Laza, and Verín. I accepted my fate once more of not actually getting to see the traditionally-clad revelers, since the schedule didn't include it. Foiled again! But, wait, we actually DID get to see them. Both the peliqueiros of Laza and the pantallas of Xinzo de Limia. OMG! (I swear, my birthday celebrations get continually better).

We started off in Verín, a bit before noon. But it was pretty empty so we headed to Laza. It's a little village that comes to life during Carnaval. They maintain old traditions (whose origins must be intriguing) such as mudslinging, ant throwing, and whacking with bushes, in addition to their local Entroido character: os peliqueiros. We arrived to the small, deserted plaza only to find the remnants of the previous mudfight: mud all over the ground, along with some scattered rags used to sling said mud. There were really only 3 bars in town, which wisely had covered their floors with sawdust. We went into one for some sandwiches and beers to wait for the next festivities. The place was packed, with a lively atmosphere. There was even a bagpiper and singer and a few people danced, squished into the square meter of open space. We also noticed other foreigners there, having a gay old time. Not much of a hidden secret now, is it? But good for you, Galician towns!

After an hour or two, it got less congested as people went outside, so we went down to the plaza to check it out. Around us were plenty of people, but few people were wearing costumes. Most were, however, wearing jumpsuits in preparation for the ants. Some people were even smart enough to duct tape their pants to their legs to avoid getting ants in their pants haha. As we were all waiting around for the action to start, we heard the dongdong of an approaching bell. The peliqueiros!! RUN FOR YOUR LIVES! People quickly made a path for them, since they run back and forth swinging a stick. Look out! Seriously, if you get in their way they will hit you. Hard. From my side of the path I was able to dodge them every round. Not actually running off was about as dangerous as I get. They did hit my friend though and her mouth bled a bit! That was enough excitement for us, and we left before the ants made an appearance. They were taking forever, anyways. But traditionally they aggravate the ants by putting vinegar on them and then they throw them into the crowd. Then, others walk around with parts of bushes and whack people with them. Although I wish we had gotten to see it, I'm also grateful I didn't have to suffer haha. Also, on the way back to the car, there was a peliqueiro on his own so I got a picture! Aw, yeah! The creepiest part of them I think is their painted on smiles. So they are mercilessly beating someone with a smile on their faces. Maniacal.

At our final stop, Xinzo de Limia, the sun was already setting. There were plenty of people around, this time everyone was dressed up, so we fit in. The pantallas have a totally different vibe. They carry around inflated pig bladders and dance through the street, jingling (smaller bells than the peliqueiros). They don't hit you with the bladders, but smack them together to make a BOOM sound. Also, there were a few little kids dressed as pantallas--adorable! So we enjoyed the fun ambiance and then headed home. But don't think we went to bed. No, no, no! After all it was Entroido!! We had dinner and headed out for a night on the town. After seeing so many costumes in Ourense, Lugo's Carnival was a bit disappointing. I mean, a lot of people were dressed up, but perhaps just as many went without a costume. Lame! We made our own fun though.

This year I also went to Lugo's parade of costumes for the first time. See, even after 3 years there are still Carnival traditions to discover! The costumes were super impressive. I liked that a few of the individual costumes were made from recycled things. And they were all so elaborate. I'm glad we never signed up for the contest without seeing the competition because, madre mía, all of the costumes were so well-done! One group of at least 20 people went as the Lion King. Disney should hire them to go on tour because it was AMAZING! They had all the animals and the costumes were just like in the play. I can't imagine how 2017 will outdo this year's Carnival.

Samhaín and All Saints

Samhaín
Samhaín is the original Celtic holiday from which modern Halloween is derived. Since Galicia is a Celtic nation, I have no problem with them bringing back this ancient tradition while the rest of Spain hops on the Halloween train. In Lugo there were some family activities that could easily have been for Halloween--pumpkin carving, costume parade. A key difference is that here the costumes are scary only. Save the funny and clever stuff for Carnival, people! In addition to that, there was a Queimada in the center. Queimada is liquor that they light on fire (thus its name) in a cauldron, after casting a spell on it. Very appropriate for Samhaín then! I went with some English-speaking friends and we were pretty hard to miss. One of the 'sorcerers' told me "It´s better than Coke!" Well, obviously. But man is it strong! We didn't even finish the cups they gave us. Then we went out and had a gay old time, where very few people were dressed up.

All Saints Day
Since I missed the train for a day trip, I figured it was as good a day as any to visit the cemetery. Unfortunately, none of my roommates had relatives I could go "visit." Anyways, my friend and I walked an hour, mostly uphill, to get there. Spanish cemeteries are a bit different than American ones in that they don´t have much grass, it's mostly marble tombs above ground, or mausoleums, or a wall with the tombstones. Took a picture of the wall, where it looks eerie, perhaps one of the souls broke out the night before on All Hallow's Eve? The cemetery was packed, with tons of fresh flowers, probably because of the holiday. In fact they had a special bus going from the cemetery to the city center. The night was finished off with a movie filmed in a place I´ve visited in Basque Country: Las Brujas de Zugarramurdi.

Cena de Gala

For the past few years, my adopted group of Spanish friends has had a yearly dinner where just the six of them (no significant others and no other friends) get together dressed to the nines to enjoy a fancy dinner and each others' company. Precious! So obviously I felt honored when this year they invited me to come along! Sure, I threw off the 3:3 male:female ratio. But no matter; being invited to this to me signified total assimilation. I can confidently say I am part of a cuadrilla/pandilla/friend group.

Los Internacionales + the real international ;)

My first claw

At the restaurant we were led to a private room for just the seven of us. To start there was toast with some toppings, a paste supposedly made of fish, but that's not what it tasted like to me. I tried to avoid this part anyways, saving room for the seafood! Then they brought out four big trays of razor clams, prawn, and scallops. I ate enough, but again didn't want to fill up on this. I thought the entire meal was going to be seafood but nay. At that point we each ordered whatever we wanted for another course--a very small steak for me. I assumed that would be our next course, but before that we were each brought a giant lobster. My eyes must have been like saucers because I definitely did not see that one coming! Had fun using the tools they gave us though. Afterwards was the personalized course, followed by dessert. Ice cream for everyone, mostly because nobody could fit anything solid down their throats.

After a delightful meal, we hit the town. It must be the only time all of them actually go out together, and nobody went home early! I think we all went home around 4, which was actually more like 5 due to the time change. T'was a wonderful evening with quality friends and food. Only my wallet is thankful it's a once-a-year event.

Las chicas (worth noting of my outfit only the tights were mine)

Entroido 2015: Galician Carnaval

Welp, now that the sardine is supposedly buried, all the pre-Lenten wild times are officially over. Let's recap this year's festivities:

FRIDAY

Help! There's a wolf among us!

Carnaval was celebrated at school with bakery and costume contests. The teachers went as sheep. It was actually fun preparing last minute, because we sewed all the outfits the day before (I say we because I actually sewed one). I was disappointed that over half of the students didn't even dress up! Why would you not take advantage of being able to wear something crazy?! There were the typical costumes of soldiers and boys in drag. Three of my older students took it a step further with outrageous outfits: black tights, a pink thong over, and just an apron and mask on top. "OMG" personified. After all, Carnaval is about being unexpected, so I guess they were on track there. Afterwards we went out for the burning of the scarecrow, this year with the face of Pequeño Nicolás.

The bakery contest was a big hit with everyone. We sampled traditional freixós, a relative of the sweet crepe. I had thought they were called filloa in Galicia, but the difference is that freixós are sweet and made of just egg, flour, and sugar while filloas technically are made with pig's blood. I have yet to try a blood filloa, in that case. After all the students left, the teachers had their annual Cocido lunch. Cocido is a variety of foods boiled together. It's common in Galicia, especially during winter. There was garbanzo beans, potatoes, greens, butelo (meat), and chorizo. And orejas (like elephant ears) for more dessert!

SATURDAY
I started off the night with an alternative rock concert. Mola! Except that I went in my sheep costume and...nobody there was wearing a costume. What the heck! My roommate who is a dj and thus very familiar with the night scene told me for sure people would be dressed up. Oh well, at least I was able to take it off (it was hot anyways). Then as I was outside waiting for my friends, people would pass by and say "oh, a sheep" to each other, so I bleated at them haha. Then they would chuckle and I would chuckle and everyone was merrier. At night a good number of people were dressed up, at least in the places I went. It also adds to the fun when you see cashiers and bartenders in costume. Viva Carnaval!

SUNDAY

Lights shaped like Cigarrón heads

In the afternoon we headed to Verín, Ourense which is a big town in the south of Galicia, known for its Carnaval celebrations. Unfortunately, we missed the main character there called cigarróns, and the flour fight. But there was definitely ambiente. There were street bands that were lots of fun and had us dancing in the street in our costumes. Also it just so happened that on the street where our hotel was, there was a sheep theme so a ton of people were also dressed as sheep. I found a new flock! One guy came up to me and in all seriousness said, "Hey, the flock is going over that way, cmon" Hahaha I've been accepted!


MONDAY

Belle and Tink with their punky gloves

We headed back to Lugo in the afternoon. As we were passing through Xinzo de Limia, another town in Ourense known for it's Carnaval traditions, we glimpsed the pantallas parading/running through the streets with their instruments of pig's bladder on sticks. So the trip south was not completely lost as far as Carnaval traditions go! At night we went out as rocker Disney, which included Ariel, Belle, Pocahontas, Tinkerbell, and Minnie Mouse. I think our outfits were top notch. This night it seemed everyone was in costume, so it was a lot of fun. We met Snow White (a dude) and the 7 dwarves. They were all so cute!!

 

Extended Birthday Weekend

As the years go by, I think my birthday celebrations just keep getting better. This year, thanks to snow days, my birthday was smack-dab in the middle of a 6 day “weekend.” Saturday was Diego & my not-so-surprise party. For me, it was no surprise since I was actually on the planning committee for Diego’s birthday until I said “Hey, that’s my birthday weekend,” at which point they promptly kicked me out. So Saturday afternoon I didn’t put up a fight when two of my friends wanted to get a coffee. After wasting enough time, it was safe to return to my apartment, or so we thought.

This pandilla rocks.

When we arrived Diego was downstairs inside the elevator waiting. So the 4 of us went up and they made Diego and I wait outside for at least 20 minutes while they finished decorating. SURPRISE! Haha, but honestly the decorations and theme were awesome, so I didn’t mind the wait. The theme was rock, and when we walked in “We Will Rock You” was playing, and our friends were all dressed in their most rocker attire. The dudes had black wigs on and the girls had lots of black makeup. And denim everywhere! It was a lot of fun; Diego and I are into rock so we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. In addition to balloons taped to the walls, they built a sort of sparkly stage with a picture of the guests of honor, in front of which we took plenty of photos. Bien currado, amigos! There were even 3 chocolate cakes made by Lauren! We savored the leftovers for days. She said, “Sorry for making so much cake.” Can that sentence even exist?!

Sincerely, the party and having great friends was present enough, but on top of that they gave us gifts! We got Diego an amp, because his was kind of lousy. So far, no complaints from the neighbors, but give him time haha. And for me they got a cookie cookbook, a plaid shirt, and my favorite punk-rock-looking shoes. I had the same ones, but they were destroyed one night, so having them again is just wonderful. Additionally, Lauren made me coasters with pictures of us on them, how sweet! And she gave me a cup which is to be kept in my room, since my roommates joke that I steal and hoard all the cups in the place.

English speakers, don't let me down!

After rocking out at home (the benefits of being the guests of honor—you get to pick the music!), we headed out. Well, by the time we were ready, only 5 of us actually went to the center. The night was a success because we made it to my favorite place (which is because they play my favorite music), despite Diego believing I’d go home by 2 AM. Hohoho, I certainly showed him, because Lauren and I got home at 8 AM. That must be the latest I’ve ever returned because we went to 2 afterhours, those bars that open at 6 AM and are packed with people who aren't yet tired. That didn’t last long though, because the music was crappy and I was falling asleep on my feet!

What else could I possibly wish for?

On my actual birthday, I woke up late, obviously. So unfortunately, we didn’t go south to a Carnaval celebration. It is my goal to go this weekend when Carnaval is in full swing. But I digress. At night before bed, Diego brought me the cake with candles lit and then I talked to my parents on skype. To conclude, it was an amazing and rockin' birthday and I feel immensely lucky to have such swell friends to celebrate with. 

Txotx!!*

There are about to be a bunch of posts in a row because it's the holiday season, and I've been doing stuff worth writing about.

This year thanks to my anaia adoptivo (host brother), I feel that I got the authentic Santo Tomas experience. The festival is celebrated in Donostia and other Basque towns the December 21st. Its roots are the baserritarrak (Basque farmers) coming to town on this day to sell animals and goods. Now it has morphed into a day of sidra and txistorra for all citizens wanting to pay homage to those traditional Basques.

First of all, the weather was wonderful, nothing like the late December you might imagine. We went to the center around noon to check out the herri kirolak (country sports) which included a group of men dragging a giant boulder. So Basque. Unfortunately we didn't see any aizkolari, which is my favorite herri kirola where they chop wood (see this entry from 2012).Then we began the fundamental Santo Tomas activity: consuming txistorra sandwiches and a bottle of sidra. Traditionally on this day txistorra, a sausage I prefer to chorizo, is eaten on a corn tortilla called talo. However, there were much more txistorra stands than talo stands, probably since making talo is more time-consuming and requires some skill. Therefore the lines were immense and we opted for eating our txistorra on regular bread.

Then we headed  to a less central plaza to hang out with the cuadrilla of my bro.  Most of them were dressed in the typical outfits of the Basque Celebration: a loose black overshirt, a blue and white plaid handkerchief around the neck, and a black beret. (Cuadrillas are an interesting  cultural difference I often forget about until I'm on the outside. Groups of friends stay together from very young until old age.) Anyways, we spent probably 5 hours drinking sidra in the sunny part of the plaza. Nearby they were playing club music in euskera, which actually exists. Also someone was renting out little cabezudos, so every once in a while you'd see a kid running around with an old man's head. Hilarious. There was even a Galicia stand selling octopus and Galician wines. Represent!

Get behind me, Satan hahaha

After so long, part of the group broke off to play pelota vasca and we moved to the Parte Vieja which was packed. There was barely room on the streets for people to push in one direction--bars overflowed and people partied in the streets. Then my bro had to go to work, what a pity!

I would've stayed on with his amigos who were very nice to me, the quiet foreigner. But when I went back to look for them, it was like searching for someone in a where's waldo convention due to everyone wearing the Basque outfit. Madre mía!  Nevertheless, since Santo Tomas is a day festival, I didn't feel so bad returning home before Spanish dinnertime.  Besides, I had sleep debt from the night before and the night on the train.

Lastly, thumbs up to San Sebastian for promoting reusable cups. I'd say the streets were much cleaner because of it. Also I believe they were giving 1 euro for every empty bottle of sidra collected. I like the way they think.

* txotx is what Basques say when they realize cups are empty and they're about to pour more. Needless to say, with such a big group it was yelled often

San Froilán: Se acabó

The weeklong Lugo festival is now over, so things are about too seem very quiet around here. Sunday morning I arrived home later than my roommate--approximately 8:30 AM. One goal accomplished for the year. There were some good concerts this year, but I did miss Os Heredeiros, La Pegatina, and Love of Lesbian from last year. We did get to see a pretty good rock concert, but it wasn't free: Costas, Rosendo, and Los Suaves, before San Froilán technically began. This year Buena Vista Social Club performed as one of the 'big names.' In other concert news, I finally convinced someone to go to EXTREMODURO with me in two weeks. Toma!

Aside from the never-ending (until last night) festivities, school has gotten off to a great start. It's nice knowing most of the students already. In one class, they've clapped for me both times I've had class with them! And the new students seem fun. For example the new class of 1* ESO seems younger than the group last year, and they are so precious! They all say hello to me, and debate about the pronunciation of my name with "rr" which sounds different in English than it does in Spanish. Last week some even hugged me! Or the new kids in 1*BAC (sophomore/junior age) make the class huge but a good time. Here's hoping the first two weeks are a sign of things to come.

Oh and here's a random picture of us with the mayor. He stopped us as we were checking out some San Froilán food/craft tents and told us to stop by if we ever have morriña (homesickness). Kind of a big deal? But you know how politicians are. He was later ousted for corruption, so...

Ha vuelto la dueña

Back in Lugo and it feels glorious! I had a sickness-free, 24-hour journey to get here, and for that I am grateful. The 3 best friends that anyone could have were at the bus station to welcome me. The first night back was surreal. Of course I was out of it from barely sleeping, but on top of that being with darling people I hadn't seen in months made me feel like I was dreaming! I am currently staying in my friend's house, and excitingly WE'VE ALREADY FOUND A PISO! Yujuuuu! More on that another time.

Last night was our first night out again in this little city we know so well. It started with a punk rock concert--Spanish covers of which I knew a few. Sweet! I have a feeling (and the expectation) that this year will be full of live music. Well, at least through October! Afterwards we went to some of our "old haunts," and in surprising yet typical Spanish fashion, arrived home around 6:30 AM. Bien se vive!

In other news, kids have been singing and clapping (estilo andaluz) outside for HOURS. It's midnight now, and it appears they've finally decided to move along.

Entroido (Carnaval)

In Galicia and other parts of Spain/Europe/the World, Carnaval is well underway. Traditionally a time for people to act wild and out-of-character before the somber 40 days of lent, it's now just a time to dress up and have fun.

On Friday we celebrated Carnaval in school. A group of the teachers dressed up as tourists, and I was their tourguide. I've dressed as a tourist before, but this time it was impressive since I didn't have access to my parents' wardrobe. However some of the teachers really went all out to pull off the look. Aside from the teachers, I would say 1/2 or less of the students were dressed up. Disappointing. There were mimes, zombies, guerrillas, a monk, and Minnie Mouses. After the costume contest there was a dessert contest, with chaos reigning around the table filled with delectables. Then everyone went outside to witness the burning in effigy of Sr. Minister Wert, a man loathed by students of all ages for his drastic cutbacks in Spanish education. The school day ended in kids karaoke-ing to classic Galician songs. Cool.

The teachers had a traditional Entroido meal-- cocido, which includes garbanzo beans, steamed cabbage/other greens, pork shoulder, chorizo, steamed potatoes, and other types of meat I ate without knowing the body part (it was better this way, trust me). For dessert we had apple empanada, and the typical Carnaval "orejas", fried dough folded to look like pig ears, and topped with sugar and/or cinnamon. We probably could've rolled out of there, so much food!

 Saturday was a friend's birthday, and an important night for going out Entroido-style. There was an attempted surprise party, but apparently this group has yet to pull off a true surprise party. Anyways, our theme was Noah's Ark, appropriate because of the incessant rain in Lugo this year. We even made a boat out of cardboard, and walked around places in formation. Which reminds me...there was another group dressed as Amish people, and they walked around under a barn roof hahah. Our ark included: a tiger, penguin, rooster, monkey, octopus, turtle, koala, cow, Waldo, and of course the old man Noah himself. Miraculously, it barely rained at night. Tonight we return to the streets in more costumes, because tomorrow nobody works. Happy Carnaval! Bo Entroido!

Birthday Week 2014 (A really long post)

Last Saturday began what I named "Birthday Week 2014," starting with the birthday of my friend Diego. First of all, Friday was supposed to be a birthday dinner with all of his friends, but conveniently we all cancelled on him. Felt kinda bad about it, because I had to lie and say I was sick *cough cough*. But in the end it was the right thing to do, because we planned to kidnap him on Saturday after his basketball game. Aw yeah!

Five of us jogged into the gym wearing creepy white masks and toting plastic guns. At first the "leader" with the megaphone ran past our target. En fin, it wasn't perfectly executed. We tried to tie his hands and put a bag over his head, not realizing he was in a bad mood thanks to an awful referee. Some of the looks we got were priceless, although notably nobody did ANYTHING to stop us. He wasn't screaming or anything, but you would think somebody would say something. Guess we were pretty intimidating. From the game we took him to the center of town where he had to complete 6 tasks, including playing the guitar for money, drinking a disgusting vegetable smoothie, telling the story of Lugo's Roman Wall to a runner & someone in English, and dress as Sherlock Holmes, asking passersby if they'd seen his friend.

After the laughs, we split up as he was supposed to have dinner with 3 buddies. The second part of the surprise was that 10 of us came to dinner. Yay! This was followed by the usual night out.

Thursday as part of Birthday Week, we hosted an Olympic-themed game night. I told people to wear togas, but nobody listened. However we just happened to have enough sheets for everyone to wear one muahaha. Some might say it was cheesy, since I played the Olympic theme as people entered and handed them the "torch," but I enjoy themes! We did some Olympic trivia, a Jell-o eating contest, and a frozen t-shirt contest. Except the t-shirts weren't as frozen as they should've been so it was too easy. And we played our favorites--charades & the character game. Man, does charades bring out a competitive side to Lauren and I haha.

Los molones

Friday was nothing special. Saturday I woke up eager for my birthday brunch, except my friend who was going to make the chocolate chip pancakes was ill. And the only pancakes I can make are scrambled. Amazingly, Funny Fani saved the day and came with the pancake batter made, and took me to the supermarket where we got quite a selection of brunch foods. We tried to go for American things like bacon and sausage--well, instead of real sausage we had hot dogs haha, but it was a tasty spread, complete with Bellinis and Bloody Marys. Afterwards we played our classic games, and a wee bit of guitar.

After plenty of siesta time, we reconvened with more friends for a night out, to all of my favorite rock bars. First of all, Fani made me a birthday crown, and little matching bottle pins for everyone to wear. I was so excited! They also got me a framed picture of our cuadrilla (group of friends) and a Galician t-shirt. Feelin' the love! In one of the places they played "Cumpleaños Feliz" which made me even happier. And in another place that was empty they played Extremoduro just for meee, the birthday girl! Needless to say, it was a very memorable birthday. Even better than my 21st which I celebrated in Spain. And yesterday I even got to blow out the candles via videocall with my parents. Unfortunately I didn't get to eat the chocolate cupcakes.

Gallegos y Asturianos: Primos Hermanos

 I need to stop labeling things as ¨memorable¨ since pretty much every weekend here is memorable!  :D  This weekend especially, being a puente and all.

Jaloguin:
In Galicia, they have a holiday similar to Halloween— Samhaín. And by similar I mean it’s the original Celtic celebration from which Halloween is derived. At the school where I work there was a pumpkin carving contest, with some impressive results. There was also an assembly where students and I read about Samhaín and Halloween in galego, castellano, and English.  The tradition of trick-or-treating does not exist here, and dressing up isn’t as common with “adults” either. Lauren and I first celebrated at the piso of two Americans. We were all dressed up, obviously. Then we went to hang out with Lugo’s finest (aka my Galician friends and their friends). We got some funny looks for being dressed up—I had a beard (lumberjack!) and another American wore lederhosen. The gang of Lucenses was dressed normally too, except for Diego the monkey haha. En suma, we had an awesome time and stayed out until it was 7 AM and time for us to pack up and catch a bus to Asturias. I feared the no-sleeping-idea would be one of my most regretted decisions, but it turns out it was well worth it and we were able to sleep on the bus/at siesta time.

Asturias:

Our first stop was Oviedo. The architecture was noticeably prettier than in Lugo, and I was later informed that this is because Asturias is/was a principality. The prince of Spain is called El príncipe de Asturias, so duh, I should’ve made the connection.  The weather was rainy basically all Friday, so we spent our time with a little shopping, and sitting in a park. Despite the weather it was pleasant, just having a change of surroundings and enjoying the company of an amiga. For dinner we had Cabral cheese which was too strong for me, membrillo which I already knew I liked, and some seafood (obviously it didn’t blow my mind because I can’t remember it).

Whatcha thinkin, Woody?

Saturday morning we went to Gijón. It’s a coastal city that reminds me of San Sebastián. Teño morriña! Also like San Sebastián, it was beautiful even with crappy weather. We did quite a bit of walking around, without visiting any particular attraction. For lunch we had knife clams which were okay, mostly I’d call them “interesting” for their appearance. Also chipirón a la cantábrica which was delicious. Chipirón (squid) sometimes doesn’t taste great when prepared on the grill, mostly because of the texture. But this was in a sort of casserole, thus tastier. For dinner we went to a sidrería (more Basqueness!) We got there a bit after 8:30, and felt like old people because nobody was there! By the time we left closer to 10:00, the place was packed. We had a bottle of sidra, chorizo, and ham croquettes between the 2 of us. It was fun trying to pour for ourselves like the waiter did behind the bar. Cider must be poured from a distance to let it air out, but man is it hard to aim!

A Memorable Weekend

Thursday marked my 1-month since the adventure began. Lauren and I went out with the Spanish gang, and stayed out til 6 AM. For people in Spain, this is no grand feat. Most of my friends have probably stayed out even later twice a week for the past month. But I like to go to bed “early” by 2 or 3, so finally staying out late was an accomplishment. I believe it was due to the music selection, because this time with our Spanish friends’ wisdom, we were able to go to places that play rock music: songs that I actually want to sing along to.

 Friday I slept and relaxed in preparation for the pulpo (octopus) dinner with the teachers of my school.  It’s an annual tradition among groups of colleagues, friends, and families, because along with the fiestas of San Froilán come the casetas. Casetas are simple, little restaurants only put up in the month of October; next weekend they will be taken down. Restaurants from Lugo open them, and they only include long tables set for big groups to come feast on octopus. Outside of the temporary building is a a type of 3-sided shack where you can watch them cooking the pulpo to a deep-red/violet color in great big pots. It’s served on wooden plates, because they soak up the water from the freshly prepared pulpo. Because it’s Spain, dinner started around 10:30. First were plates of sliced ham and other meats, and tasty bits of pork (with bread and vino tinto, of course). Then was the main course of octopus and potatoes. It was quite salty, but overall good. This time I couldn’t feel the tentacles as much.  Everyone was really curious as to what my reaction would be, or if I would even try it. There was dessert afterwards, but I was honestly a bit full to sample everything. After the meal we walked around (at a Spanish pace, might I add), and the other teachers went out for a drink around 2 AM. Unfortunately I went home because Saturday was an early morning for me, but I had a swell time eating pulpo with some swell teachers. Here we all are laughing at something: 

Saturday morning, a group of 15 internationals (and a few Lucenses) left on a minibus to explore some Galician towns. The first stop was a mirador, with awesome views of the ocean beating against a green rocky coast. There were even wild horses! Then we went down to the little town by the coast, San Andrés de Teixido. The architecture of white with rocks was simple but interesting. From the town we walked down to a supposedly lucky fountain, and even further down closer to the coastal cliff. Past the fountain we encountered hundreds of bits of cloth or plastic tied to fences. Apparently after you drink from the fountain, you wipe your mouth with something and tie it so your wish will come true. 

The next stop was another mirador. Rather than the rocky coast, this one emphasized the limitlessness of the sea. The blues of the clouds, sky, and sea become indistinguishable at the horizon. After this we went to the small city of Cedeira. Here we all had lunch, including squid, croquettes, spicy meat, and plenty of fresh French fries. Afterwards, Lauren, Estefanía, Diego, and I went to the town’s port (pretty sad, but appropriate since it wasn’t a big city). Then we went to the beach for about 5 minutes. It was covered in dried algae which reeked like lawn clippings on a hot summer’s day. At least we can say we went to the beach in October (although it wasn’t warm enough to nap, like I did 2 years ago in Donostia :P).

After sea and mountain, the next natural feature was forest and river, at As Fragas do Eume. We walked along in the woods for a while, which reminded me of home. Except that our mini-trek ended in a centuries-old monastery built to include the very rocks of the hill it was on.  There was also an old mill. The final stop was Ponte do Eume, a big town on the same river, Eume. We all meandered up a hill to have a coffee. And so ended our excursion of northwest Galicia.