Olite

Hola Amigos,


Hello,

Not a ton has happened in this last week. My dad had brought me some American goodies when I went to Costa Rica and I used them this week. I made all of my friends some root beer floats. This is as American as it gets, but as I knew before, most Europeans don´t like root beer. Most of the reactions were bad, and they considered it to taste like tooth paste. I enjoyed them though and so did my friend Emanuel who hasn´t had one for years.

I went to Olite with my friend Kath from New York. Olite is about 20 minutes away and it has this really cool palace. The town is tiny and we didn´t see anyone there. There wasn´t even a bus station to buy tickets, we had to buy them on the bus. We toured the palace and realized we were the only ones in it. We ran around it and decided it would be the coolest place to have a fiesta. We went home shortly after visiting it but the palace was really cool and we had to climb all these spiral stairs that had some cool views of the valley around it.

I am quite acustomed to my life here now and not much really bothers me because I am used to it. I am excited to meet all the new people who will come this semester and I have already met a few who are from Belgium. Our group decided we will go out and hang out with everyone, but we have a good group so I don´t see much change happening.

I am going to visit my friend Lode in Belgium. He lived in Cannon Falls for a year so I know him well and it will be great. He lives in Brussels which is the capital so it should intense. I won´t blog for a while now because I am gone until the 10th. I don´t know if we will go to The Netherlands or other countries but it will be fun no matter what. If you don´t know where Belgium is, look at a map because we Americans needs to study our geography more.

I hope all is well in MN. There is a superbowl party here, but I will miss it because of my flight to Belgium. I may have a job teaching English here and today I am going to see what it will be like so wish me luck. Have a great week and take care.

only two pics... I guess this week was boring

Costa Rica 2008

Buenos Tardes,

This last week my kind father paid for me to travel across the great Atlantic ocean to see my family in the lush country called in Costa Rica. I will explain my trip in Minnesota time so everyone understands... I left Pamplona at 6:30 pm Minnesota time and took a 5 hour bus to Madrid I then took the metro across town to the airport. I left at 4:00 am to fly 9 hours to Atlanta and then finally made it to Costa Rica by 8:00 PM. It was a long trip but I wasn´t tired and had some good sleep on the planes. I flew Delta and they were pretty good about feeding me.

My family, as always wasn´t puntual in picking me up so I was haggled by too many taxi drivers. I then went to the hotel and saw the whole game and my family. We hung out for a while went to the local bar and talked to the locals, they don´t speak much English and will yell out the only English they know, which would be drug terms. A lot happened over the trip but I will just name a few things.

We go to Costa with a bunch of my dad´s friends who have houses and condos there. It was my third time there so we know the area quite well. The weather was always around 90 degrees and sunny. Our skin ended up being pulvorized by the sun as usual but it is always a nice feeling.

We try to not go out to eat a lot so we get groceries. But, for some reason my dad found it necessary for us to go to the grocery store I think 3 or 4 times. David thought it was the first time we all went shopping as a family in years, so it was pretty funny. My dad likes to buy weird things such as a 5 lb bag of potato chips. My family in a grocery store is pretty funny, we could probably be on a reality show with the things we do. My dad doesn´t know how to buy fruit so he would shake and knock on random fruit to show us how he REALLY knows how to buy fruit. Aaron worries about buying the beer and Amy, David and I will wonder and randomally select junk food and place it into the cart secretly.

We ate at our friends houses a lot, but the highlight was when my dad´s Canadian friend, who makes pizzas, cooked us all pizzas. He is a character, who claims to be a millionare and always offers drugs to everyone. I think my dad invites him because he is entertaining, but we all think he is creepo. I think a lot of gringos move to Costa Rica, get rich and then do drugs. It is my theory, so our friends who now retired there may be in grave danger. Not really though.

We went on zip lines thru the jungle where some people had problems slowing themselves on the wires and would up slamming themselves into the trees. Amy couldn´t enough speed on these zip lines and ended up getting stuck on the wire. They are fun but kind of scary when you first begin. Humans weren´t designed to do these kinds of things, and the fact that our tour guides had marijuana pictures on their shoes doesn´t provide a safe feeling.

We went to a waterfall one day that had a nice man-made beach in the pool it made. It was very cool and we could climb to the top of it. My dad tried to be a sexy model in the lagoon but the pictures don´t give him the justice he may deserve. After that we went out to eat, my family to subway and the Streses went to Burger King. While waiting at the grocery store, we saw the Streses drive by all wearing the Burger King crowns. Our group is one of a kind.

The usual highlight of the trip is the Catamaran ride we go on. WE all get in a dingy and boat out to this massive sailboat. It was from 1 pm this year until sunset, which was around 6 pm I believe. It is open bar so as usual this group takes advantage of the that. We cruise around for a while and then go snorkeling. There weren´t many fish but it is nice to get in the ocean. We then are provided with some snacks, I think I ate 10 cookies and we sail off to see the sunset. Everyone starts to get a little sauced and that laughs seem to get louder. We then leave the ship but some people were a bit incapacitated. Colleen then started to moon us kids who were foolishly standing near her. Everyone gets into the little dingy to go to shore and some people were as some call it, "overserved". When we hit shore the tide is coming in Tom Otte-who loathes water- somehow did kind of a flip in the ocean. He lost his glasses and his pride in the sea. Colleen who was mooning us earlier, fell as the waves crashed into us. David saved her and we all got ashore.

We all then went to the Strese´s and swam for a while. On the walk there us kids, even though we are adults, played limbo on the street. I was the line leader so we got their safely. We swam for a long time at the Strese´s pool and just hung out. Colleen for some reason stayed in the chair for a while and wouldn´t go swimming with us. WE later were jumping on her bed and try to help her wake up. That was an epic night of the trip. We went out to eat a lot at some fancy restaurants, and just had a great time over the week.

I and Rachel Strese´s friend Megan had to leave at 9 am on saturday. Our flight didnt leave until 2:15pm. Our pilot was sick so we played cards and took photos of a man who looked like Tony Hawk (the pro skateboarder). WE got on our plane 6 hours after it was supposed to depart and headed toward Atlanta, Georgia. We all missed our connectiing flights and I got separated from Megan in the airport. Megan got home around midnight, but I was rebooked for the next day. Delta payed for my hotel and food, but I was supposed to fly out of atlanta at 7 on Saturday, but didnt leave till 7 pm on Sunday.

I was alone in Atlanta for the whole day, but it was nice being in America for another day. I love using the dollar because everything is so cheap. I took their metro to the mall and watched a movie. It was a nice boring day, but I didn´t arrive home until Monday around 3 pm. My enternal clock is a little off still. Yesterday I slept from 11 am until 5 pm. I should be ok today though.

Costa Rica was a blast as usual, and now I began classes today. I love school and this semester should be harder. I have already met tons of new exchange students so their is a good feeling. The weather is going to get warm here soon so I am ready.

These are the best memories of Costa Rica 2008:

*Colleen mooning everyone and us making a dance move name after it.

*Tom Otte falling into the sea

*Danate making us pizza

*Hearing Rachel Strese talk about her pet wild dogs from the beach

*Waiting in the airport for 6 hours and then 24 more in Atlanta

*Teaching others my line dance moves -thanks Randolph high school-

*Eating all the delicous food, sea bass, fajitas, all of it

*When my family had a dance party to Michael Jackson in our kitchen for an hour, my dad even broke a watermelon.

*Spending too much time with my family



I had a nice time and all the people we go there with make it so much fun. I can´t wait till next year and I am sure more people will come.

Visiting Emanuel in Germany for New Years

Munich was the city and New Years was the holiday. Tef and I left small Pamplona and took a very comfortable 6 hour bus ride tthrough some thick fog to Barcelona. We had a flight on the 29th and wanted to see Barcelona for at least a day. We could stay with her cousin for free and we did. Barcelona is an awesome city, but you often smell pot and smoke because the majority of the people there smoke something. We just walked around a lot and ended up waking up late that next day.

Our flight was around one o´clock and Tef and I were wanting to check-in our luggage, but we didn´t think ahead of time and her uncle ended up speeding us down the freeway to make it to the airport. We were to ignorant to realized you need to be at the airport at least 45 minutes if you want to check in your luggage. We ran into the airport and since our flight was twenty minutes from take off, we had to skip check-in and run thru security. Our bags were too big and weighed to much, also, we had liquids inside and I have never felt so much anxiety in my life. We made it thru the line and they didn´t stop us so we celebrated, but then we still had to run thru the entire airport to make it to our amazing airplane. We booked a cheap flight around 100 euros and the company was called click air. Just the name of that company made me feel safe. We got on the plane and I think we there luckiest people that day. It was a two hour flight to Munich and we flew over the Alps which were really cool. We landed and met Emanuel at the airport.

Emanuel and his friend waited for us in the airport. I told them I had never been in a country that signed the Kyoto Protocol and it became the joke of the week. I always noted things that made their country so clean or unclean.

He brought us to his house and it was really cozy. His mom and sister were there and they were really nice. I have already met his sister so we all got along really well. His mom is from Brazil so in their house, they speak Portugese, but Emanuel and his sister speak German to eachother. Of course since I was there they spoke English. Emanuel and his sister had both lived in Nebraska for a year and their mom lived in Wisconsin also so their English is perfect. That night we took the train into town and went out with his friends. I had met almost all his friends in Pamplona so we all immediately had fun.

We went home and the next day we hung out at his house, played this game called sing star and we all got to know his mom and sister better. They were very nice and I had a blast because they are a very blunt family. His mom cooked for us all the time and let us stay there for free. I had to make fun of their Green Bay Packer stuff which they had received as gifts from their American friends, but oh well.

We toured Munich and saw the churches and Emanuel told us about what events took place in Munich. Germany was very clean and hardly anyone smoked there compared to Spain. They just banned smoking so we all were happy. On new years eve we made a dinner with all of us. His mom left for her friends house so we had the house to ourselves. There were around 15 of us there and we ate pasta and drank the typical German beer. We did this really cool tradition while eating though. What you do is melt these metal items over a flame and pour the liquid into a bowl of water. You then pull out the metal piece and whatever shape it makes signifies what will happen in the new year. If you get an egg it means you will get pregnant and one of his friends got that last year and she would always yell " I am still waiting for my baby". It was a cool tradition. I got an octopus, which means I have a secret to tell, so the whole night I was nagged at to tell me secret.

We took the train into the city center for the new year with fireworks and champagne. We lit massive sparkers and got hit with fireworks often. It was like a war zone but it is what always happens in Germany during new years. We sang a lot in the street and had a big pow wow with fireworks and our champagne. We then took another train to a club which was massive. We danced the night away to good hip hop music and got home around 7 am and crashed.

We rested most of the day and walked around Emanuel´s little city for the day. Munich had the Olympics a while a go and we went to the Olympic village. There is a movie about these olympics and how terrorists killed numerous athletes from Israel. It was interesting to be at the place where it happened. We went ice skating there and then went to the BMW headquarters. Emanuel says all his friends work there and he never would because of that. We went in the building to see all the cars are merchandise. The cars were super expensive but we got to see a Hydrogen car. Hydrogen cars I think will be in our future because they are so efficient, but way to expensive for anyone now. It was cool to see this car and I really enjoyed the BMW building.

During our time there we also went out to eat at a really good Bavarian restaurant. I had some pork with gravy and dumplings. I loved the food and it is cool because in Minnesota due to our ancestors, we eat similar food. They had some cabbage which is really cole slaw and of course the typical beer. Another day we all shared one massive glass of beer and a huge pretzel. Also, during christmas time in Germany they drink hot wine. It is pronounced Glu Vine (I don´t know the spelling) and it was really weird. All the Germans drink it I guess and it tasted kind of good. I love Germany and their food is great. All in all I had a great time.

Germans never drive, because gas is insanely expensive. Emanuel told me to fill up his family´s car, which was like my family´s old Ford Escort, it costs 80 euros! Which is over 100 $. In turn, no one drives trucks or SUV´s there and everyone uses their amazing public transportation. I said they would die if Americans became that efficient because their economy would collapse due to the number of Volkswagons we drive. Many German´s hate Americans but my friend Emanuel loves the states so he says he is often defending us. I was made fun of a bit there but my sarcasim took over. I would always say that all I eat is hambugers and hot dogs. Also since most Americans don´t know where anything is on a map, I would always ask if I was in France or Italy. It was great, and it made the situation funny. My pictures are all great, and I know I will return to Munich later in my life when my money is worth more.

I wrote a lot, but my trip was so much fun and I already miss it all. I am going to Costa Rica to see my family on Saturday so I am getting quite excited. Take care and start studying geography so we can end some stereotypes.