post perfect.

For vacation (no, a year long vacation in Spain is not enough vacationing) we hopped over to Mallorca, one of the Balearic Islands off the east coast of Spain. Landed in the capital of Palma, we were disappointed to find out not only was it raining, we had also entered the unofficial vacation land of Germans (alright the singing Germans playing crazy drinking games on the beach was a bit amusing... but still not the serenity we had planned.)

For the majority of the trip though we stayed in Cala D'or and had two beautiful days of sun. Southeast on the island, this one of the most remote and quiet stretches of beach. We stayed at Hostal de Calavera - which was more like a quaint hotel than a hostal - for 12 euro a night. Legit! Know what's more legit? The scenery!

(PS these pictures are not edited. This is what it really looked like! Not that I can edit that great anyway...you get the point.)




Wandering past this...


... leads to


a completely isolated cove!



The rare times you escape the touristy surroundings of traveling are the most uniquely elating moments.


Oh hey, Mediterranean Sea.



Wow, who gets to live here?



Climbed a rock cliff to scream off the ledge into the clear blue water that didn't end... total relaxation except for excited tingles... coolest feeling ever.




I have never been anywhere that looked exactly like the post cards from there, let alone better.

inside art.

There are two reasons I could never be an architect: I don't like math, and I can't draw a straight line (seriously, not even with a ruler). But a couple weeks ago we went to an exhibit that changed my view on architecture.


Richard Rodgers is a British architect who is behind buildings such as the Madrid Airport and the Millennium Dome. He works with a set of 7 principles including: greenness (eco-friendly), transparent (layering of materials to allow in light and give a more complete view of the structure), and legibility (meaning the function of the building can be read in its construction).

These concepts are still a bit confusing to me. But legibility was the one I found most interesting. The exhibit explained it best via a look at the Madrid airport - the undulating, wave shape of the terminal implies movement and flexibility, symbolizing travel, and the rainbow panels outside are meant to induce feelings of welcoming.


Pink version of one of his structural support pieces.


You couldn't take pictures inside, but the models were incredibly intricate and paired with their original sketches, which looked like paintings not architectural plans. Lots of the group's hypothetical buildings were modeled as well, including the "Zipper House" - a house made fully of recycled materials (including sides of buses) with no permanent walls. You could rearrange the walls inside at will, adjusting to an expanding family or different needs.

I still don't like math but I realized the spaces we live our lives in are more than straight lines. They are someone's art.

yum.

Before coming to Spain everyone told me I was going to eat the best food of my life. Sorry to disappoint, but for my first month here I have been in dorms with horrible food and have basically eaten only fruit and bread. Now that I am in my homestay things are bound to change. But in the meantime, here are the few very yummy foods I have come across here in tapas land.

My all time favorite place is Cerveceria 100 Montaditos. The 100 stands for 100 sandwiches. Montaditos has mini sandwiches (bocadillos) for 1.20 euro. Its seriously fantastic! Not to mention super cheap. They come with chips and a cute outdoor alley to eat in.

I got the tomato and cheese and fruit and cheese. SOOO BUENO.


Normal people eat two or three bocadillos. Not mis amigos. Contest to see who can eat 6 fastest, anyone?


As far as tapas, so far I haven't had much I have loved. Sorry bout it. They eat a ton of ham here. Seriously, they’re obsessed. This though, queso a la plancha, was more or less a great salad with melted cheese. The cherry tomatoes were the perfect touch but the best part was the sweet balsamic vinegarette.


And for dessert? Even though nothing can ever take the place of my dear midnight yoland, the Spanish version is pretty sweet. Churros and chocolate is open till 5 am at Chocolateria San Gines.


It's different than you would expect, the churros don't have cinnamon sugar like Mexican style and the chocolate is super dark. It's pretty delicious.



The place is packed. But what else do you have to do after a night out when you are waiting for the metro to open at 6 am so you can go home and sleep? Exactly.

¡TORO TORO!

I went to a bullfight on Sunday.

This is the part where you say "Dude, that's awesome!"


Bullfighting (una corrida de toros) is a historic and national symbol and we decided we had to see one while here in España. It was surreal to show up to the stadium - which was like being at a baseball game looking at a chalked, round arena and watching people buy beer and sell snacks - and know we were about to witness a completely foreign sport executed by matadors who are pretty much the Spanish equivalent of Brad Pitt. The event opened with a band and procession of all the participants and their elaborate costumes.


This is the part where you take back the "Dude, that's so awesome!"

A bullfight is the most horrifying thing I have ever witnessed live. They torture a magnificent animal which is eventually killed right in front of you.

In the first round the matador's helpers, who have pink capes, anger the bull, always running for safety behind walls on the edge of the area. The second round: 2 picadores on horseback come out and try to stab the bull in the neck. The horses are blindfloded so they can't run away from the bull that charges at their iron siding. One horse was knocked over and had to be dragged off the field. Next, three banderilleros come out each holding two colorful sticks that look like fourth of July decorations with knives at the end. They run at the bull and stab the sticks into its neck by the first wound. Eventually the bull has six knives bouncing from his neck and is bleeding profusely.



The final round is the matador. He does a calculated, surprsingly sensual dance with the bull and finally drives a giant sword into its neck.



His helpers return and stand in a circle around the animal, teasing him until he is dizzy enough and has lost enough blood. He falls to the ground and looks up at the four men around him. One comes over and drives a knife into his brain. He is instantly killed and dragged off the field to the sound of trumpets.

Rinse the blood and repeat 7 more times. Yep, 8 bulls.

So now I can say I went to a bullfight....definitely another lesson in culture shock.

picture this.

Spain knows who our president is. Do you know theirs? 

park it.

Today I saw kids skateboarding on the benches outside of Palacio Real. People travel 6000 miles from California to take a picture of this building and for some preteens it is an after school hang out!? Still can't quite wrap my head around that one... Anyway, another spot where locals just kick it while tourists like me stand in awe is the famous Parque del Retiro. This sight is definitely not overhyped. In fact, no magazine, travel channel, or guide book, could even do it justice in words. So come see!


Best friends make parks even better!



Remember when everything in your world was awe inspiring because everything was new? Being in a foreign country brings you back to that...


The U.S. - or at least CA for sure - could use some lessons from Madrid. This city puts big-time effort into its public parks. And the result is a great Saturday!

confession.

Okay. Here goes.

I held out on this post originally as to not give you the wrong idea of my intentions on this blog but the truth cannot be concealed any longer.

The following is the true story of my very first day in España.

I was walking down the street by our dorms with a girl from my floor headed to the center to get some necessities at approximately 11:20 a.m. We passed a middle aged male biker wearing a gray shirt and gray spandex about the size of my own volleyball spankies. He turned around and started to ride slowly next to us. We ignored him. He finally sped ahead. Then he stopped in front of us, whipped out his entire penis, and starting touching himself. Yes, that actually happened. Needless to say, after looking straight ahead and passing the horrifying scene, none of the Spanish boys' harassment of whistles has seemed quite so bad.

no shame.

WARNING: this post may contain graphic information not suitable for all viewers.

Considering this is a blog about an adventure living in Spain not just traveling here, I thought I would inform you of some of the things we encounter on a day to day basis.

Finding a boyfriend in Madrid is definitely not on my list, but for those of you who have dreams of finding a Spanish lover you'll have to be prepared for some no limits PDA.

The park next to our dorm - which we have fondly named "Third Base Park" - seems to be a popular location for the Spanish culture of gettin' some in public.

If you come abroad with hopes of showing off a romance, that's exactly what you'll be doing.

(Photo for full effect courtesy of creepiness and the help of Aleks.)