tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-81296056711616523372024-03-13T00:40:33.617+01:00Madrid In Living ColorA Carolina girl in the Spanish capitalJessica Alcornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05499144635421446465noreply@blogger.comBlogger143125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8129605671161652337.post-1216849081198325482012-06-18T22:11:00.000+02:002012-06-18T22:11:05.516+02:00No blog love<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Ok I'm going to be straight with you. I've kind of totally ignored this blog. I'm sorry, I have been finishing up the school year, winning frisbee tournaments, and getting ready to lead a summer camp in 2 weeks (yikes!). And Spain is playing the Eurocup sooooooo yeah it might be a while before my next post. But it will come, I promise! Stay tuned.</span></div>Jessica Alcornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05499144635421446465noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8129605671161652337.post-87226576809473172572012-05-28T21:40:00.000+02:002012-05-28T21:40:14.521+02:00Castillo hunting in Castilla y Leon<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">When the <i>novio </i>suggested driving through Valladolid to drink wine and see castles before we went to a communion, I jumped at the offer. A weekend away from Madrid (that doesn't involve a frisbee) was just what the doctor ordered. I knew I would need some relaxation and wine drinking to prepare me for the massive quantity of <i>familia</i> I was about to meet on Sunday. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The novio and I picked up our rental Minicooper (haha) on Friday and drove northward to Valladolid. Our first stop was Coca a small town between Madrid and Valladolid with surprise, surprise a castle. We stopped to take pictures, <i>dar una vuelta </i>(take a walk), and have a drink.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">We stopped for the night in Pe</span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 20px; text-align: -webkit-auto;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">ñafiel a small town in the heart of the famous wine region Ribera del Duero. As we drove in, the impressive castle stood at the top a hill looking ominously over the city. </span></span>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 20px; text-align: -webkit-auto;">In the morning we awoke to a rainy and cloudy day. The castle looked gloomy as we walked up to take the tour and check out the wine museum. I was excited to try some of the wines that Ribera del Duero offered and do a wine tasting with a sommelier. I will admit that I love drinking wine but I know nothing about it. </span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wine Museum</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">After a quick tour of the castle we headed down to try four regional wines. As the sommelier explained how to evaluate a wine through sight, smell, and taste, Alberto and I did our best to not look too <i>tonto</i> when she asked us what aromas we detected. </span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Penafiel</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The oldest Plaza Mayor in Spain!!!</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Next we moved onto <i>Medina del Campo </i>which had another castle (are you sensing a trend here?) We passed on the 2 hour tour and walked around to take some pictures. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">We moved on to our penultimate town of the day <i>Simancas</i> that had a wait for it....a castle! But my favorite part was the historic bridge crossing over the rio <i>Duero</i>. </span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Simancas</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">To finish up our trip through Vallodolid, we stopped for the night in</span> <i>Tordesillas</i> <span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">to check out their claim to fame, the Treaty of Tordesillas. The treaty established a line dividing Spain and Portugal for colonization purposes. </span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Isabel la Catolica overlooking the city</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="line-height: 20px;">Although its not the most well know region in Spain, Valladolid is an amazing province to spend a relaxing weekend drinking wine and seeing castles. What could be better?</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="line-height: 20px;">Have you every been to Valladolid? What were your thoughts? Any recommended sites?</span></span></div>
</div>Jessica Alcornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05499144635421446465noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8129605671161652337.post-34058027434555244752012-05-11T17:38:00.002+02:002012-05-11T17:38:49.968+02:00San Isidro: Madrid's Holiday<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Although I won't have a holiday this year (thanks to not working in the city), Madrid will be celebrating its annual <i>fiestas, </i>San Isidro on May 15. Its not the most well known celebrations in Spain in comparison to <i>San Fermines </i>in Pamplona and <i>Las Fallas</i> in Valencia, but if you live in Madrid it's definitely worth checking out! Here are some ideas for ways to celebrate:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">1. Eat the traditional pastry <i>rosquillas: </i>This pastry, similar to a doughnut, comes in 2 forms <i>tontas (</i>silly) and <i>listas</i> (smart). The tontas are plain while the listas are covered in a sugary glaze. Yum!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">2. Go see a bullfight: Although people ask me about them all the time, I've actually never seen a bullfight. They just don't really appeal to me, but maybe this year I'll change that. The bullfighting season officially starts during the fiestas. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">3. Peruse Spanish goodies at the <i>Pradera</i>:<i> </i>In the main grounds of the San Isidro celebrations roam around women and men dressed as <i>chulapos </i>and <i>chulapas</i>. There are lots of stalls to buy food as well as live music. Many people go to spend the day, see the Santo Hermitage, and eat rosquillas!</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Chulapos y chulapas</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">La Pradera: Madrid's party grounds</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; text-align: left;">4. Protest in Puerta del Sol: Madrid's holiday also coincides with the one year anniversary of 15 M, a massive protest over the lack of jobs and general frustration about the economy here in Spain. Thousands of people took over Puerta de Sol (Madrid's center) and camped there for months. 15 M inspired many similar protests and camp outs all over Spain. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Felices Fiestas!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></div>Jessica Alcornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05499144635421446465noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8129605671161652337.post-52005289050152387712012-05-06T14:19:00.002+02:002012-05-06T23:28:24.030+02:00Pobre Spain<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: left;">When I saw my blogger friend </span><a href="http://www.ymuchomas.com/" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: left;">Kaley's</a><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: left;"> facebook post on the announcement of Spain's Olympic attire, I excitedly clicked to see what </span><i style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: left;">traje</i><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: left;"> the athletes would be wearing in the opening ceremonies. My mouth dropped in shock and slight horror when I saw the picture. </span>
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<a href="http://www.abc.es/Media/201205/04/uniforme-espana-jjoo--644x362.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="179" src="http://www.abc.es/Media/201205/04/uniforme-espana-jjoo--644x362.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Whaaaaaaaaat? Ok lets address the first glaring problem...these are pretty much hideous. In my opinion, Spanish people dress quite well and (also in my opinion) these uniforms are tacky and look cheap. I mean you are presenting your country's best athletes to the entire world, shouldn't they look good? These just don't make cut and the material looks kind of like something you would see at the Sunday market <i>El Rastro</i> in Madrid. Yikes. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As I was reading the <a href="http://www.abc.es/20120504/estilo-moda/abci-uniforme-juegos-olimpicos-espana-201205041551.html">article</a> I found out that the company contracted to make these uniforms is an italian-russian company called Bosco. Hmmm that's strange. The article commented that most countries try to pick a designer from their country, you know for like national pride. What's the deal-io Spain? The article did not state a reason for why Spain did not choose a Spanish designer but the fashion community is not happy about it. And I have to say I agree with them. The Olympics is about having pride in your country and choosing a designer that isn't from there for the Olympics doesn't seem to show a whole lot of it. In this time of crisis, Spain should show that Spanish products and designers are valuable and that they take pride in them. Get in the spirit of the games Spain!</span></div>Jessica Alcornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05499144635421446465noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8129605671161652337.post-86984977930488879282012-04-24T19:12:00.002+02:002012-04-24T19:12:45.989+02:00Solo-traveling: It's all Greek to me<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I boarded the plane taking a deep breath. The group of four friends behind me were chattering excitedly about all the Greek food they wanted to try and their ferry schedule. I secretly envied them...what the hell was I thinking going on a week long trip alone??? Sure I had gone for a weekend in Belgium by myself but that was 3 days. This was a 6 day long vacation with a loooooot of me time. And you know how getting lost on the way to your hostel or not being able to find the metro is funny when your with friends well when you're alone it just seems stressful. But as I stepped off the plane in Athens I tried to view the whole thing as an adventure. I can do this I told myself, faking confidence I didn't feel as I strode toward the metro. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I showed up to my hostel and the helpful receptionist told me I had a free drink at the hostel bar. While I was hesitant about going to a bar alone I decided to dive right in and see what happened. At 3 AM I was dancing like a <i>loca</i> at a club with my new found friends from the bar. This traveling alone thing might not be so bad after all. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The next day I was up bright and early (with somewhat of a headache) to do a walking tour offered by our hostel. I made a conscious effort to talk to almost everyone who was on the tour and ended up meeting 2 girls to spend the rest of the day with. As I talked to more and more people the less weird it became, sometimes I forgot I was even traveling alone. As soon as I had met some people in Athens...it was off to Santorini!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I was a little worried when I got to my hostel in Santorini, there seemed to be no one around. I talked to the owners and they said this was the low season with less travelers and places open. Great...I thought, 4 days alone in one of the most romantic/beautiful places on earth. However, I tried to keep positive and tell myself that I would meet people. The first day I spent wandering around the capital of the islands, Fira. As I got back to my hostel I notice a group of students in the lounge. Cue my opening travel line "Sooooo where are y'all from?" Works like charm. I ended up going out for dinner and drinks with the group of Americans who went to college in Canada but were studying in Barcelona. So far so good in Santorini.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The next I woke up and decided I wanted to rent an ATV to see the island. That was the best part of traveling alone, I got to do whatever I wanted to do whenever I wanted to do it. No consulting everyone in the group's opinion and being angry at the one person that doesn't want to eat at the restaurant you found or museum you want to see. It was great. I picked up my ATV and started driving to see the black beaches. Driving the ATV was probably oneof the most fun things I did on the trip. While driving along the island, I pulled over to take some pictures. Just as I had stopped 2 guys came roaring into the same area and rolled up to take pictures as well. As I asked them to take my picture, I struck up a conversation about where they were from (Canada) and found out they were headed to the Red Beach just like me. And so a travel friendship/ATV gang began. We missed the turn to go to the beach and headed to the light house instead, celebrating another beautiful sunset with a beer. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The next 3 days I met up with my new friends Blake and Matt to go the Red Beach, try some of the local brew Yellow Donkey, visit the volcano and have some laughs. While I didn't even get their email or last names, they made my trip to Santorini really memorable in an unexpected way. I proved to myself that I could travel byself and have a great time, pushing myself to meet new people. In the end I realized how many people I had met by being alone, something I would have never done in a group of friends. Maybe I won't have a trip to look back on and laugh about with my friends, but I made my own memories and stories. Just for me. </span></div>Jessica Alcornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05499144635421446465noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8129605671161652337.post-44639802385730351522012-04-09T23:35:00.000+02:002012-04-10T18:22:10.496+02:00Greece<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Yassas y'all! (that's hello in Greek) Although CNN might tell you differently I had a great and relaxing trip to Athens and Santorini last week! I don't have time to write about it right now (school starts tomorrow eek!) but I'll put up some of my favorite pictures for now!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>Jessica Alcornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05499144635421446465noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8129605671161652337.post-57425801389940483002012-03-28T18:06:00.001+02:002012-03-28T18:06:19.682+02:00Spain goes on strike and I'm going...<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">On vacation! Tomorrow Spain will go from its usual slowness to a full stop with a general strike to protest the newly proposed budget. Spain's President, Mariano Rajoy, has proposed to cut the budget 40 billion euros this year. No wonder people aren't happy. However I am pretty excited because we finally have some vacation! Semana Santa starts Friday and I'm going to a place that's been on the top of my travel list for a while now. I'll give you some hints and maybe you can guess where I'm going!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I'll be eating the </span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Mediterranean diet but it will look a little different.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I'll be surrounded by ancient history.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And I'll be viewing sunsets like this:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Can't wait!!!</span></div>
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />Jessica Alcornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05499144635421446465noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8129605671161652337.post-55485759999499769562012-03-22T23:58:00.000+01:002012-03-22T23:58:06.284+01:00City on Fire: Las Fallas<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This past weekend I was lucky to check off another item of my Spain bucket list: going to Las Fallas. The <i>valeciano </i>celebration was the first major Spanish <i>fiesta</i> I have been to and I was really nervous. I feel like I can tough it out under most traveling circumstances but lots of drunk people, firecrackers, and fire sounded like a potential recipe for disaster. But I loved it! On Friday I loaded my bag into my co-worker Eva's car and headed down to Valencia. As we headed out of the metro into the center of the city 5 hours later, the wafting scent of pumpkin bu</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 1.2em;">ñuelos and sound of firecrackers greeted me. I couldn't wait to see the massive statue-like <i>fallas </i>hidden around every corner of the city. </span><div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The first falla I saw!</td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 1.2em;">Las Fallas is a </span><span style="line-height: 20px;">Valencian</span><span style="line-height: 1.2em;"> celebration that commemorates St. Joseph (as in Mary and Joseph). Neighborhood clubs or <i>casal fallers</i> all around Valencia hold fundraisers all throughout the year to raise money and create the <i>fallas</i> that are placed all over the city. The fallas are generally satirical, poking fun at everything from celebrities to political figures to Spanish expressions to Cristiano Ronaldo. I was shocked and delighted at the amount of detail and money (the winner cost 400,000 euros) that goes into each and every one. </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 1.2em;">For me the most interesting thing was the contrast between a Christian ceremonies like the women <i>falleras</i> and men <i>falleros</i> bringing thousands upon thousands of flower bouquets to <i>la virgin</i> for her opulant cape and decorations and almost pagan parades/fire obsession. The Valencian virgen's cape took 3 days to complete and was absolutely astounding. </span></span></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Las falleras bringing their flowers to the virgen</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">In all her glory on the last day</td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 1.2em;">And yet after seeing that awesome cape of flowers, we went to another parade that had people dancing around in devil costumes and trying as hard as they could to light the crowd on fire. WTF Spain? </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 1.2em;">But I digress. What is the point of this entire ceremony with its beauty, intrigue, and murky Christian origins? To burn it all to the ground of course! Every falla is thrown up into flames except for the winner and boy is it fun/terrifying to watch. </span></span></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Here we go!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Viva las Fallas!</td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 1.2em;"><br /></span></span></span></div>Jessica Alcornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05499144635421446465noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8129605671161652337.post-77618635620003563892012-03-13T19:11:00.002+01:002012-03-13T19:11:59.648+01:00I'm still here!<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I know you may think have fallen off the plains in Spain but no I'm still chugging along in Madrid! The truth is I haven't felt like writing to much lately so I haven't. Instead I've been enjoying the nice weather in Madrid right now and doing things I haven't done in ages like going to the Rastro or the neighborhood <i>La Latina</i> on Sundays. But I haven't forgotten about you readers! And this weekend I'm going to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Falles">Las Fallas</a> in Valencia so I'll have lots to post about when I get back on Tuesday. Get excited!</span>Jessica Alcornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05499144635421446465noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8129605671161652337.post-18235088482268981242012-02-20T21:02:00.001+01:002012-02-20T21:02:16.874+01:00Why Spain makes me more environmentally conscious<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">There are a lot of reasons as to why I enjoy living in Spain and one of them is that I feel like a more environmentally conscious person (sorry to sound pretentious). Here is why:</span><div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">1. I use my reusable grocery bag</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Here in Spain almost all grocery stores charge you a small fee for bags (usually between 3-5 cents). It seems like an inane expense but it annoys me so much that I have to pay for bags that I started to use my reusable shopping bag every time I go to the grocery store. Just by charging a some pennies for bags, Spain made me more environmentally friendly. Those Spaniards are so sneaky!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">2. I walk or use public transportation everywhere</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Since I have no car here and am terrified to drive in Madrid even if I did have one, I use public transportation or walk everywhere. Thankfully, Madrid has an excellent metro and bus system making it easy to get everywhere without much hassle. Also the amount of walking I do helps to keep off the kilos!</span></div>
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<a href="http://www.madrid.com/var/madrid/storage/images/madrid_guide/madrid_metro/madrid_metro_station/55813-1-eng-GB/madrid_metro_station.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.madrid.com/var/madrid/storage/images/madrid_guide/madrid_metro/madrid_metro_station/55813-1-eng-GB/madrid_metro_station.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">3. My piso is never fully heated</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">The apartments in Spain are made for combating the miserable summer heat, not warding off the cold. My apartment for example has no central heating making energy saving much easier. And my apartment the north pole. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">4. Bills, bills, bills</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Energy and water bills in Spain are much higher than they are in the US so I am much more conscious about leaving lights on when I'm not in a room and taking shorter showers. Thinking a little more about the lights, heat, and water saves me more at the end of the month. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Although they seem like little things, I never thought about making these changes while living in US. Have you become more environmentally friendly because of living in another country? Are you environmentally friendly even though living in the US?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>Jessica Alcornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05499144635421446465noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8129605671161652337.post-31265883423062262012-02-08T23:30:00.001+01:002012-02-08T23:30:37.506+01:00Snowy SpainThanks to a Siberian cold wave my weekend of Basque pinchos hopping in Vitoria was turned into a winter wonderland. Although I was sad not to see even the Plaza Mayor in Vitoria, seeing the snow was a treat!<br />
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<br />Jessica Alcornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05499144635421446465noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8129605671161652337.post-30912106399227650902012-01-31T19:25:00.001+01:002012-01-31T19:25:23.692+01:00Ratoncito Perez<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Last week I saw a play with all the infantil kids at school about the Spanish tooth fairy...who is a rat. Which got me to thinking: in the US when you lose a tooth a nice little princess fairy comes to leave you a quarter (or nowadays 5 bucks wtf? kids are so lucky). </span><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.hummusmama.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/tooth-fairy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://www.hummusmama.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/tooth-fairy.jpg" width="304" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Awww what a nice little fairy<br /><br /><div style="text-align: left;">
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Well in Spain when you lose a tooth...a rat crawls into your bed to leave you some euros. His name is Ratoncito Perez and he looks something like this:</span></span></div>
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<a href="http://sobreleyendas.com/wp-content/uploads/ratoncito-perez.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="238" src="http://sobreleyendas.com/wp-content/uploads/ratoncito-perez.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I think I'll stick with the Tooth Fairy. </span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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</div>Jessica Alcornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05499144635421446465noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8129605671161652337.post-20890361741815346602012-01-23T17:06:00.002+01:002012-01-23T17:06:56.811+01:00Milk was a bad choice<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Grocery stores are a great way to see cultural differences. Often when I go traveling, I love to wander through a local grocery store for a while just to see what products they have and the weird things that pop up in the aisles. </span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Typical American grocery aisle</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">American grocery stores are generally really big. Even the "smaller" stores are huge by most European standards. There are lot of aisles, lots of options, and lots of products. Having so many options is one of the things I believe the American consumer has come to expect. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">In Europe and in Spain, neighborhood grocery stores are generally smaller with fewer options (minus their olive oil selection which has an entire aisle). And one of the most shocking things I remember from my first few visits to a <i>supermercado</i> was the milk. It was just sitting there on a normal air...at room temperature! I remember standing there for a couple minutes totally dumbfounded. Milk not refrigerated...was I in a third world country or something?</span><br />
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<a href="http://www.aporrea.org/imagenes/2007/11/leche_uht.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://www.aporrea.org/imagenes/2007/11/leche_uht.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I quickly learned that most of Europe and 95% of Spain drinks UHT milk (for ultra high temperature milk). The milk is heated at a very high temperature for a short period of time allowing it to be stored at room temperature for long periods of time. Since Spain is a hot country and refrigerated transport is expensive, it makes since why it is normal to be able to keep milk at room temp.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">But after drinking a glass a day of fresh pasteurized milk as a child and adult in the US, I'm still wary of the UHT. I usually only drink it mixed with something (like Cola Cao) or in cereal because the taste is a little off-putting. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Expats or people who have tried UHT milk, do you notice a difference in the taste? Do you like UHT milk?</span>Jessica Alcornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05499144635421446465noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8129605671161652337.post-52908324010297320202012-01-16T20:23:00.001+01:002012-01-16T20:23:57.278+01:00When Spanish gets complicated<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Remember how I said having a Spanish <i>novio</i> helps you learn Spanish? Well check out what he got me for Christmas:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">He tells me that my questions about the subjuctive, por vs. para and other Spanish grammar specifics have gotten to difficult. S</span><i style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Porque es asi </i><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">he says, "Because that's the way it is". Well I need better answers! So he got me book. And now I have homework. Be careful what you wish for...</span>Jessica Alcornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05499144635421446465noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8129605671161652337.post-29093059474089830272012-01-10T20:34:00.002+01:002012-01-10T20:34:38.833+01:00And a star was born<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; text-align: -webkit-auto;">Yeah right. But after 2 months of funky dance class, I decided to show off my sweet moves to the public. For your amusement and my moment of </span><i style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; text-align: -webkit-auto;">Fama</i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; text-align: -webkit-auto;"> here's the video (look for the tall guiri in the back left corner):</span>
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<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/XQ9-sdNEDEo?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Attention Beyonce: I'll be expecting a call when you're looking for back up dancers in your next video!</span>Jessica Alcornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05499144635421446465noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8129605671161652337.post-84099066698470698882012-01-07T21:31:00.001+01:002012-01-07T21:31:15.728+01:00Airports<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I have a love hate relationship with airports. On one hand I loved coming home this Christmas to have my family waiting for me with open arms. I think airport hugs are about the best hugs on the planet. I have spent an amazing break spending time with my friends and family, trying to catch up with all the people whose lives I've missed out on in the last year. On the other, airport goodbyes are about the worst in the world. I hate goodbyes anyway, but getting on plane makes them so much harder. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">As I spoke and visited many of my friends, I found myself thinking how much everyone has changed. Well, they haven't changed but they have. All my friends are in school or working, building their life after college. And after being away for almost an entire year, it struck me just how much of their lives I've missed. When talking to my friends I felt like I knew almost nothing about their current lives: what they were doing, who they were dating, the mundane stuff that happens in their lives. Although its hard for many people to believe, its one of the part of living abroad that sucks. Everyone at home moves on without you. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I know I can't stop everyone else from continuing on with their lives, but I can be better about keeping in touch with them about it. When it comes to living between 2 countries I feel you have to take the Tim Gunn approach to it, you have to make it work. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>Jessica Alcornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05499144635421446465noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8129605671161652337.post-28915778719769166142011-12-31T19:40:00.001+01:002011-12-31T19:40:53.568+01:002011 in review<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">It's been another good year filled with good memories,good friends and trips to new places. It was also the first time I was in Spain for an entire year without taking a trip back to the US. I'm having a hard time believing that I am heading into another year of living in Madrid. 2011 has brought changes to my life in the form of a new job and a new <i>piso.</i> Let's take a look at some of the highlights. </span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">January</span></b></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> The new year came with new
resolutions from being fit to using groupon. I also ate a delicious (but
gassy) dish alubias with some of Alberto's closest friends. </span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">February</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">A trip to both Bernabeu and the Basque country to visit my good friend Kit!</span><b><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> </span></b></div>
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<b style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">March</b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">March was a fabulous month which took me to 2 new places: Morocco with Alberto and Edinburgh to</span> <span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">visit my brother Jack! Both beautiful and very different places, I loved them both!</span></div>
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<b style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">April</b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">April was another month filled with trips thanks to Easter break called <i>Semana Santa </i>in Spanish. This time my travels took me to Berlin and Prague, two of the most memorable cities I've visited. </span></div>
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<span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">May</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">As I decided</span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> to</span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> stay in Spain</span><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">another year, Spanish youth decided to exercise their right to protest by taking over <i>Sol </i>in
the 15-M movement. Although their encampment proved to be exciting but
ultimately futile, they caused a lot of controversy and debate in the
country. </span><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">June</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">In June I finished my job at Andres Segovia and exchanged tearful goodbyes with my co-workers and students. </span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">I took a trip to Asturias, my brother Sam came to visit and I went to my first Spanish wedding!</span><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">July</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">In July I started my summer job teaching english at Forenex. I worked hard, made friends and even met the couple from <a href="http://www.loveandpaella.com/">Love & Paella</a>. </span><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><b>August</b></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">I tried to not die of heat exhaustion in Madrid, worked on a farm, and took a trip to London! </span></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">September</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">I started my new job at Colegio Vegasur and celebrated my 2 year expat-anniversary in Spain! </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> </span><b style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">October</b></div>
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<b style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> </b><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">I didn't celebrate Halloween for the first time ever but I did get to celebrate my 2 year anniversary with Alberto!</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">November</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> </span></b><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">I traveled to Galicia and Santander and my 6 year old UNC laptop officially died. Oh and another Spanish wedding. </span></div>
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<b style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">December</b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">I went to the craziest Christmas dinner with my co-workers and finally stepped back on to US soil for the holidays. I'm so happy to be home and am looking forward to another great year!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Bring it on 2012! </span></div>Jessica Alcornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05499144635421446465noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8129605671161652337.post-56271468881620692382011-12-23T15:21:00.000+01:002011-12-23T15:21:19.286+01:00Felices Fiestas!<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Merry Christmas to all my lovely readers! Sorry to not be posting very often but I am without a laptop and have limited internet connection. So New Year's resolution...more posting! I promise to keep up more with this blog! Until then have a very merry Christmas and a happy new year!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>Jessica Alcornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05499144635421446465noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8129605671161652337.post-71525631671492833482011-12-01T18:24:00.001+01:002011-12-01T19:45:25.851+01:00I've got my eye on you America<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Today is December 1st, throwing my days at school into a whirlwind of Christmas carols, crafts, and craziness. As I sing ¨Jingle Bells¨for the upteenth time to 3 year olds in hopes that they will be able to sing it to their parents, I am counting down the days to go back home. It has been almost a year since I set foot in <i>mi tierra</i> and I am really excited. What am I looking forward to? Its probably obvious but I'm going to write about it anyway. </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><b>1. My family:</b> To tell the truth, I think one of the things I'm looking forward to is getting the welcome back hug from my mom and dad at the airport. I haven't seen my brothers in 6 months and I can't wait to hang out with them. Thanksgiving is a holiday that I have learned to celebrate abroad but Christmas I have a hard time imagining outside of the US.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><b>2. Food:</b> Mexican, Sushi, decent Chinese, mom's cooking, Vietnamese, pancake breakfasts, BAGELS. The list goes on and on... I'm expecting to put on some kilos this Christmas. </span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mmmmmmmmmmm, drooling right now<br /><br /><div style="text-align: left;">
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><b>3. North Cackalacky: </b>It's my home state and I miss it like crazy. One of the PE teachers at school wore his Michael Jordan UNC jersey and it almost brought tears to my eyes. The leaves changing in the fall, the mountains and the beach, the Tarheels! It will be great to be back in my hometown. </span><div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Coming up... a Spanish Christmas. Lottery, bad pastries, and jamon oh my!</span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></div>Jessica Alcornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05499144635421446465noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8129605671161652337.post-55386681996108820392011-11-14T21:08:00.001+01:002011-11-14T21:22:23.310+01:00Spanish wedding: parte dos<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">I promised more photos of Spanish wedding fashion and here they are! </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Lovely ladies at the wedding!</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The beautiful bride, Amaya. It's a little blurry because it was raining and dark at 6pm haha. </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">My Spanish wedding guest fashion. Did it make the cut? I think so... all of Alberto's girlfriends really liked it! (and I did too)</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The survivors of the night, shutting down the bars in Burgos at 7 am. Que vivan los novios!</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Diosssssss I love Spanish weddings. </span>Jessica Alcornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05499144635421446465noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8129605671161652337.post-62522375112340578742011-11-14T20:48:00.001+01:002011-11-20T17:41:34.299+01:00Travel Spotlight: Northern Spain<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Over the recent long weekend or <i>puente</i> I had the opportunity to see a little part of Galicia and Cantabria, two provinces in the north of Spain. The north of Spain never ceases to amaze me because it is so different from the center and south of Spain. Like something out of Ireland, its full of a lush green landscape and georgeous beaches. I don't feel much like writing today so I'll let the pictures do the talking. </span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiy7tlG8D8wHDGCKYHy5XlR0nz-QyUs9u18tVU64SFdzHpfyOyEon7DsplikVJMHKtxflvBSA7YCb532z-J3v4UHmWhAw3x_77RW5spSXvqNUaX110lveB14iHu0cpQb8DdhUk-JkIrpJeJ/s1600/IMG_8016.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" hda="true" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiy7tlG8D8wHDGCKYHy5XlR0nz-QyUs9u18tVU64SFdzHpfyOyEon7DsplikVJMHKtxflvBSA7YCb532z-J3v4UHmWhAw3x_77RW5spSXvqNUaX110lveB14iHu0cpQb8DdhUk-JkIrpJeJ/s320/IMG_8016.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Playa de las Catedrales, Galicia</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br />
Playa de las Catedrales, Galicia</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Vegadeo, Asturias</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Playa de las Catedrales, Galicia</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Playa de las Catedrales, Galicia</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Playa de las Catedrales, Galicia</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDt53wnyjAMUIUZ541xyAmIO3OdewSm1EmRh2a2YF4UXDiFUlr_226DKuuse0xW1mbW6d-ve3XGgHR2EIbcmjjxh1_GThu0QJE79TTo2Py4pCxruWU9Ze_WBbwICkuUP5ysSnmZraK-1dw/s1600/IMG_8093.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" hda="true" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDt53wnyjAMUIUZ541xyAmIO3OdewSm1EmRh2a2YF4UXDiFUlr_226DKuuse0xW1mbW6d-ve3XGgHR2EIbcmjjxh1_GThu0QJE79TTo2Py4pCxruWU9Ze_WBbwICkuUP5ysSnmZraK-1dw/s320/IMG_8093.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mussels, Galicia</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhp05P6H202ISzhDFND6ZOpOGe99ew0KIqdfAifXNeU4PWoAzSHP9gpb7zHAkHqJPm4EVVCOaX4fnGp1SSzpnZoJIbcq4QAn5nbIUCvyQS6RymASDZ8p5ZIDW1k46cMzS5D_XsczIWjswrE/s1600/IMG_8135.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" hda="true" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhp05P6H202ISzhDFND6ZOpOGe99ew0KIqdfAifXNeU4PWoAzSHP9gpb7zHAkHqJPm4EVVCOaX4fnGp1SSzpnZoJIbcq4QAn5nbIUCvyQS6RymASDZ8p5ZIDW1k46cMzS5D_XsczIWjswrE/s320/IMG_8135.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Santander, Cantabria</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRSxYI7UE5ts8KB2uSmFvjEEzuWZKCkdJYcXEtUHH7dOZ5oUBVuXcTB-t8pxHf8bPRlb8qaVK3iEKQFcYJALGYfkWG_EaeGnql5e4BpEVbgWbRjB4nmBeghJf3ajS59We3y_p9puuRSdhV/s1600/IMG_8154.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" hda="true" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRSxYI7UE5ts8KB2uSmFvjEEzuWZKCkdJYcXEtUHH7dOZ5oUBVuXcTB-t8pxHf8bPRlb8qaVK3iEKQFcYJALGYfkWG_EaeGnql5e4BpEVbgWbRjB4nmBeghJf3ajS59We3y_p9puuRSdhV/s320/IMG_8154.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Santillana del Mar, Cantabria</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBaenKa0ojqzyrzdT3tul99Ez4qIGrY_op_-9YP7ziTThwRewKCzmaFcKRDt-UaPCZ_yfx2-MJkJ2SI99iePftoXp-_K64hnROUa1uKVh2U9qjkwBa_5gnZdXblDzt4fzCEN75YrsOZ8Sf/s1600/IMG_8201.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" hda="true" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBaenKa0ojqzyrzdT3tul99Ez4qIGrY_op_-9YP7ziTThwRewKCzmaFcKRDt-UaPCZ_yfx2-MJkJ2SI99iePftoXp-_K64hnROUa1uKVh2U9qjkwBa_5gnZdXblDzt4fzCEN75YrsOZ8Sf/s320/IMG_8201.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Comillas, Cantabria</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaXIoASx3z4pHphkhyphenhyphenuIPjEodhB_WNeYc3hsQUPBPlQCGhAcVR5TBu5WfDU2Up2sZ1XCiL8XvNfL9oaJ0baXwW2CRGUUsD2bMnoDrIPJEbyS5-rohK4hBkbgfEy3UaTg_48B1fXVReldtq/s1600/IMG_8206.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" hda="true" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaXIoASx3z4pHphkhyphenhyphenuIPjEodhB_WNeYc3hsQUPBPlQCGhAcVR5TBu5WfDU2Up2sZ1XCiL8XvNfL9oaJ0baXwW2CRGUUsD2bMnoDrIPJEbyS5-rohK4hBkbgfEy3UaTg_48B1fXVReldtq/s320/IMG_8206.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">San Vicente de la Barquera, Cantabria</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Jessica Alcornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05499144635421446465noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8129605671161652337.post-82081080275586907722011-11-09T22:42:00.000+01:002011-11-11T20:29:03.612+01:00Politics baby<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Right now, its election time in Spain. Although elections generally get a lot of public attention no matter what country you're in (and even more in the US). However, with 5 million people unemployed and one of the worst economies in the EU, elections are kind of a big deal this year. </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Here in Spain the parties are not allowed to campaign until 2 weeks before the elections which is actually pretty refreshing. Elections will be November 20th and last Monday the ONLY debate in the entire campaign took place. It was between the 2 candidates for the 2 major Spanish parties. First up there is the incumbent party, PSOE(otherwise known as the socialist party). Things aren't looking so good for PSOE seeing as they have been in power for the entirety of <i>la crisis</i> and many people blame them for how bad the situation has gotten. The man that's stepping up to the plate is Alfredo Perez Rubalcaba. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRUh3Kv00Kf7enVHOjuKObarVV_Ob3VfCDAGbZ52vwvvCPgM_UVl5SBCCc6YPIKbrUj-KtUEDZI0rTmI4wRAlXXsm8BaG4CT4PmEasvcP_0PIviKsHT3H66-yzTuGtozxaB_2MoGCO1958/s1600/40.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRUh3Kv00Kf7enVHOjuKObarVV_Ob3VfCDAGbZ52vwvvCPgM_UVl5SBCCc6YPIKbrUj-KtUEDZI0rTmI4wRAlXXsm8BaG4CT4PmEasvcP_0PIviKsHT3H66-yzTuGtozxaB_2MoGCO1958/s1600/40.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">He's got quite a job trying to win the election and most people (myself included) think that PSOE is on its way out. While I can't blame Spaniards for wanting a change in party, I think the economic crisis runs much deeper. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The other major party is the more conservative <i>Partido Popular</i> or PP. Their candidate is Mariano Rajoy and they are almost certain to win by a landslide. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> </span><a href="http://top-people.starmedia.com/tmp/swotti/cacheBWFYAWFUBYBYYWPVEQ==UGVVCGXLLVBLB3BSZQ==/imgmariano%20rajoy4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://top-people.starmedia.com/tmp/swotti/cacheBWFYAWFUBYBYYWPVEQ==UGVVCGXLLVBLB3BSZQ==/imgmariano%20rajoy4.jpg" width="210" /></a></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">On Monday, both candidates met for a simple debate about the economy, public healthcare and education, and the state of the country. While it was a little on the boring side and Rajoy hardly looked up from his notes, (many times I got lost/zoned out for one minute and had no idea what they were talking about), it was nice to have a debate without all the hype and glitz. Only one week until elections and people are very excited to vote this year. I guess that's one good part about being in an economic crisis.</span>Jessica Alcornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05499144635421446465noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8129605671161652337.post-53631043222924692052011-11-02T22:11:00.004+01:002011-11-02T22:11:43.795+01:00How to dress for a Spanish wedding<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">I know you are dying to know right? I have the priveledge to be invited to a second Spanish wedding so I can give you the 411 on how to look your best. For first wedding I went to back in June I was very nervous to see what people would wear and if my <i>guiri</i>-ness would be on full display. It was a summer wedding so I was expecting sun dresses with some people who would be more dressy than others. But Spanish fashion is a fickle friend and I felt like I was at the prom rather than a summer wedding. This is what I wore:</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIRiMZ5k8sXmlfCE7i6idUvIgvoVoPoxDGUKK_zsqmS8TAZ2sdxd-dAJTSEv-BtSso5eGDxBjARP8eTq03Obp6LNa5e_NmoaGeGLj34oDHGFJt8YJCRjwqth7oGW3KeOdmzZtTbkGCSJ9B/s1600/IMG_7510.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIRiMZ5k8sXmlfCE7i6idUvIgvoVoPoxDGUKK_zsqmS8TAZ2sdxd-dAJTSEv-BtSso5eGDxBjARP8eTq03Obp6LNa5e_NmoaGeGLj34oDHGFJt8YJCRjwqth7oGW3KeOdmzZtTbkGCSJ9B/s320/IMG_7510.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">A dress that I thought was pretty normal and appropriate for a summer wedding. However, I felt almost underdressed. Let's check out what else to wear to a Spanish wedding:</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><b>Exhibit A: The sevillana look. </b></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">This young lady was dressed to the nines complete with a fascinator and a skirt that was completely made of fringe (unfortunately you can't see it). Yes you read that right...fringe. I guess its advantages are that it moves well on the dance floor?</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhH_0G3rkLFLcgrtTSKKoImXLRu53vmJgQL5b8YYs_XBBK-YHZFTOsQgBE2mVxYKrC_aT0MaPCGpCI77bl635QgWiBQseJ68-CiXX5iaSNMzk88Cp7RIXqkUt62rFFdScWAJXNBQHyLlsYq/s1600/IMG_7473.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhH_0G3rkLFLcgrtTSKKoImXLRu53vmJgQL5b8YYs_XBBK-YHZFTOsQgBE2mVxYKrC_aT0MaPCGpCI77bl635QgWiBQseJ68-CiXX5iaSNMzk88Cp7RIXqkUt62rFFdScWAJXNBQHyLlsYq/s320/IMG_7473.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><b>Exhibit B: The flapper look.</b></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Check out those ruffles...and that lace. Nuff' said. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-_KJigaQA_FCf4nc61OkIMTGdnABwFS5lLLvAuoZ0HM6u_AzkK4P487RYjlblEGf5PMlf3gDrW8DRy1iscTYYG_pHcXkOtSW_7LVb1y6xZIYdeAcdRTanEqNXRmdsBsq-wdZ82blrzDOG/s1600/IMG_7488.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-_KJigaQA_FCf4nc61OkIMTGdnABwFS5lLLvAuoZ0HM6u_AzkK4P487RYjlblEGf5PMlf3gDrW8DRy1iscTYYG_pHcXkOtSW_7LVb1y6xZIYdeAcdRTanEqNXRmdsBsq-wdZ82blrzDOG/s320/IMG_7488.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><b>Exhibit C: Casino showgirl look. </b></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">My personal favorite, she caught my eye with a dress made entirely of sequins. Oooohhh shiiiiiiiiiiiny. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhy-VaxG8TZA0Zewt5pF7XKmQAQqmlTkwti_297iDfUc_MuBFlQUiAssLriQiipXiMfmpxSxmoeRRnicv0ntQJqut0AlDkGi2GhMdAeLrSfHnnk_Z7ecdhr0lw1Yiw9TaCn6n2gJmknuAyS/s1600/IMG_7460.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhy-VaxG8TZA0Zewt5pF7XKmQAQqmlTkwti_297iDfUc_MuBFlQUiAssLriQiipXiMfmpxSxmoeRRnicv0ntQJqut0AlDkGi2GhMdAeLrSfHnnk_Z7ecdhr0lw1Yiw9TaCn6n2gJmknuAyS/s320/IMG_7460.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><b>Exhibit D: The Geisha look.</b> </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">You can't see the full glory of this one but it's exotic and shiny...woo!</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-o4qkTUORSLZ8BeRl5TjQuyrFHHfayRKUU-2tfvMNeaZ4I8Odh-PwE3d2zzgSnuLf-nHO3Yk1OMAH7bVhtpkpRAD2BfiXei65wmOzKsF9I_zCR_HPT62a0_sKQpe8IaADhIgr5Z-WgwlN/s1600/IMG_7567.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-o4qkTUORSLZ8BeRl5TjQuyrFHHfayRKUU-2tfvMNeaZ4I8Odh-PwE3d2zzgSnuLf-nHO3Yk1OMAH7bVhtpkpRAD2BfiXei65wmOzKsF9I_zCR_HPT62a0_sKQpe8IaADhIgr5Z-WgwlN/s320/IMG_7567.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><b>Exhibit E: Middle-school dance look. </b></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">When I saw this all I could think about was the what I wore to the Spring Fling in the 8th grade. And what you see at JC Penny's on clearance after prom. A classic look really. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF9GaGPN0N2GxbMd9zWEBfKdJR3ocIJa_cuSJ2awXuzhzWEs5W_zaJg7AX3glvQTfUMLikl6JzMTW8gE7Ag62eT6Fbi9bDBr7dLuaeCtc02B3zEBc7pT3MYWtWiJnOHhaLbFc885FFOccJ/s1600/IMG_7564.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF9GaGPN0N2GxbMd9zWEBfKdJR3ocIJa_cuSJ2awXuzhzWEs5W_zaJg7AX3glvQTfUMLikl6JzMTW8gE7Ag62eT6Fbi9bDBr7dLuaeCtc02B3zEBc7pT3MYWtWiJnOHhaLbFc885FFOccJ/s320/IMG_7564.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><b>And finally Exhibit F: The Jungle Fever look.</b> </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">A floor length dress that doubles for a wedding and for camoflauge in the Amazon. Awesome!</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP38NuX_V7EtlvbUyaWXAiTu1_NdUawA50ouhGkFD-nmQROE6jML9AxlfJzWU0AZVieVzmYwHD20a5HnoErHM0pVEt5lBwY0_A7JZu9fT5qDpYPGfxtn7nOtlS7y3KboKteQNFTa4h0hvr/s1600/IMG_7565.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP38NuX_V7EtlvbUyaWXAiTu1_NdUawA50ouhGkFD-nmQROE6jML9AxlfJzWU0AZVieVzmYwHD20a5HnoErHM0pVEt5lBwY0_A7JZu9fT5qDpYPGfxtn7nOtlS7y3KboKteQNFTa4h0hvr/s320/IMG_7565.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Ok, ok I might be poking a little too much fun at the Espanish but seriously it was all I could do to not laugh at some of the fashion at the wedding. I can't wait to see what people wear to this one although you'll have to wait to see what I wear! </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span>Jessica Alcornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05499144635421446465noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8129605671161652337.post-38574216437585826202011-10-27T18:55:00.001+02:002011-10-27T18:55:53.957+02:00My other anniversary<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Last month I celebrated my 2 year expat-versary with Spain but this weekend I celebrate another anniversary...this one with the novio. Finding a boyfriend was about the last thing I wanted when I first moved to Spain, but it has made my 2 years here so much richer. </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">I don't write about him all the time but he has definitely had a huge impact on my experience and my life in Madrid. Yes, sometimes being in a relationship where you speak to the other person in not your native language sucks but today I'm going to celebrate all the really amazing things about it too. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><b>Cutting the crap</b>: Although communicating with Alberto can sometimes be frustrating a lot of times it makes the relationship a lot more simple. Magazines like <i>Cosmopolitan</i> are always writing articles about how to "win" or avoid the mind games couples tend to play. Well let me tell you, in Spanish this is not possible for me. My goal is to try to get my point across in a intelligible and simple way and not <i>complicarme la vida</i> by figuring out some hidden meaning in what Alberto says to me. </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><b>Seeing a different side of Spain: </b>I have mentioned this before in my post about <a href="http://jessicaalcorn.blogspot.com/2011/06/enchufes.html">enchufes</a> but Alberto has really shown me a different side of Spain. Yes you can see a lot of Spain and learn about its culture through travel, but getting to do things like go to weddings or eat Alubias with him and his friends have shown me so much about Spain and Spaniards. It makes me love Spain even more! </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><b>A bilingual and bicultural relationship: </b>Many of my fellow ex-pats dating Spaniards will agree that the best way to learn a language is date someone who is a native. This couldn't be more true, I have learned and improved SO much more on my Spanish than I ever thought possible because of Alberto. I can talk to him and ask him questions without ever feeling ashamed or embarassed of my accent or the bazillon mistakes I make a day. Its given me a confidence that I would have never thought to have speaking a foreign langauge. </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">But the coolest thing has been to be able to exchange stories and weird things about growing up in different cultures. I learn so much about Spain (and hopefully Alberto about the US) just by listening to him talk about what he did as a kid or in college. And I love being able to share my culture with him through stories, pictures and of course...food! (gotta show off that southern cookin'!) </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Its been 2 amazing years and here's to lots more! </span></div>Jessica Alcornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05499144635421446465noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8129605671161652337.post-73389588873927867652011-10-17T23:26:00.001+02:002011-10-17T23:26:40.090+02:00Making Madrid new and funky<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Inspired by fellow blogger and advice-giver Cat from <a href="http://www.sunshineandsiestas.com/">Sunshine and Siestas</a>, I have been trying to make Madrid a new city. This is my third year in the city and while I'm glad I'm not in the study abroad state mind, I also don't want fall into a rut. Living here is an amazing opportunity and since I don't know when I'll go back to the USA I feel I should <i>aprovechar</i> every day. So in trying to make Madrid a "new city" I decided to do something different. Duh duh duhhhhhhh...sign up for a funky class!</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">What is funky you ask? It's a style of dance that is best described as what you see in music videos. It helps me become one step closer to being Beyonce (ie my idol) and is something different to do. I love to dance so what the heck. I showed up to class in workout gear thinking I'm going to break a sweat but once again looked like a <i>guiri</i> (foreigner) by wearing excercise clothes to a dance class. Siiiiiiiigh. Of course, in a Spanish dance class you wear anything but. That includes: jeans, shoes that aren't sneakers, unsupportive bras, and a variety of other things. Anyway, I was nervous that in a dance class I would be a little lost or not understand but surprisingly its gone really well. All though I think I have more rhythm than the average white girl, class is harrrrrrrrrrrrrrrd. The moves are always changing and they go by really fast. But I love it because it challenges me and is a different excercise from ultimate frisbee. And our instructor puts on Boyz II Men for our cool down stretches everytime. YESSSSSSSSS! </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Although its something small, it makes my Mondays much better and I feel like I'm taking advantage of a different part of the city. And the fact that I do something I haven't ever thought to do in a different country and different language sometimes really amazes me. I don't want to sound pretentious, but it surprises me when I think about my daily life and realize that I find it normal to do things in a different language. It's truely amazing. And I was chatting to some of the girls in class so who knows, maybe I'll make a friend! </span>Jessica Alcornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05499144635421446465noreply@blogger.com0