Traduce Aqui:

Thursday, April 26, 2012

Progress Report:

Tomorrow starts the brick-laying!



Monday, April 23, 2012

A Cultural Weekend

This weekend's been a blur!

Aside from still being behind on my studies after Semana Santa this was a particularly busy weekend.  Saturday evening I went with three friends to see the Malaga philharmonic.  And Sunday I went with Nuria and her group of catechism students to visit the ermita of Our Lady of Rocio.  So I've spent all day today playing catch up and really I shouldn't be posting at all at the moment, but I think I deserve a break and anyway, I can work tomorrow. ;)


For my musical education class one of our assignments is to attend a concert of "cultured music" (the term "clasical" technically only refers to music between 1750-1830 roughly).  We have the option to watch a concert on TV or listen on the radio, but the point value goes down by half.  I not only wanted a chance to get full credit, but I also really like these kinds of cultural events and have attended very few (or none!) in the six years I've been living in La Roda.  We've got lots of culture in the surrounding capitals, Granada, Sevilla, Cordoba, Malaga...but I just never seem to find out about anything or never remember to look for it.

So thanks to this assignment I've been searching the web for concerts in the last month and finally settled on the Malaga philharmonic performing Saturday evening in a free event sponsored by the city.  It was a great concert and perfect for the assignment because it was meant to give a small picture of the evolution of Western music from Baroque to the beginning of the twentieth century.  They played a piece by Telemann, a contemporary of Bach and actually much more famous at the time, Beethoven's 5th Symphony and a piece by a Spanish composer, Enrique Granados.

Live music is fabulous and I enjoyed the concert even more than I would have normally since I have a better idea now, from my classes, of what I'm listening to.



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Sunday's visit was entirely different: a group of ten teenagers and three adults attending mass at one of Spain's most popular pilgrimage sites after Santiago de Compostella.  I have never been to El Rocio before, but I've wanted to go for a long time now since the lyrics to all my favorite sevillanas sing about the pilgrimage to visit the Virgen del Rocio.

It was a long drive, and kind of a trip to be in the company of so many cell phones all connected to Tuenti (Spain's own version of facebook) ;)  but also a good time.  I haven't been in the company of so many teenagers in I don't know how long.  It was fun (and a little exasperating) to listen to their banter and boasting.





The Virgen de Rocio was discovered by a hunter in the woods near the town of Almonte in Huelva.  They celebrate her romeria on the day of Pentecost.  Pentecost is fifty days after Easter Sunday when, according to scripture, the Holy Spirit presented itself to the apostles and declared that they should preach Cristianity to the world.  The Holy Spirit is symbolized by a white dove and the Rocio's nickname is "White Dove" since her celebration falls on Pentecost.

During the 12 o'clock mass, I noticed something strange fluttering in my peripheral vision: a white dove had found its way into the sanctuary.  It flew from the altar to the back of the church where the choir was singing and finally came back to rest in the highest part of the cupola.  It was a beautiful sign.

El Rocio is on the edge of Doñana, one of Andalucia's most famous and most beautiful natural parks.  Unfortunately we didn't explore.  That wasn't on the itenerary, but we did get a peek at the marisma, the wetlands of Doñana and had a picnic lunch in a beautiful pine grove prepared with picnic tables.

Friday, April 20, 2012

Dobby Dog


Can you see a resemblance here?  Isn't my dog adorable?  Who doesn't love Dobby??!



(Fairy) Godmother

Thanks to Disney's Cinderella, and the fact that I'm not catholic, the only thing I can think of when I hear the word "godmother" is "Bibbity, Bobbity, Boo"! But Angelines doesn't have white hair (yet!) or a magic wand, though she is a bit impish and she is also now a godmother. :)

Last weekend was little Rodgrigo's baptisim and Angelines' cousin asked her to be his godmother--quite an honor. Dressing for the occasion, however, proved to be a little problematic since neither Angelines or I are frequent shoppers. In the end our good friend Nuria came to the rescue. She loaned me a beautiful pearl-grey dress with a long-sleeved, matching jacket that fit me perfectly... unfortunately I have no pictures of myself since I was the photographer! And she loaned Angelines a dress jacket to complete her ensemble. I think we owe her more than a few cervezas for the loan. ;)

There were three baptisms at the same time and the other babies cried through most of it, but Rodgrigo didn't make a peep. He sat wide-eyed on Angelines' lap throughout just observing everything. After the ceremony we all got together to celebrate family-style. There were plates of shrimp, jamón, cheese and salami, carne en salsa and then cake. It was a great day, especially since I was able to convince A not to open the bar in the evening. We got to just enjoy ourselves with the family.

Here are a few more pictures:


...And I couldn't leave you all without this lovely little video clip from YouTube:

Laying the Foundation:

A little photo update on the construction work:



Today they're pumping the concrete for the foundation.

Wednesday, April 18, 2012

Birthday Surprise :)

Last night Angelines and my friends surprised me for my birthday at a fancy, new tapas bar in Estepa. :)

It was a normal day doing things around the house, walking the dog, giving classes, etc. In the morning, however, Angelines suggested that when my classes finished at 8 we could go to Estepa for drinks and tapas to check out a swanky, new bar in town and get some decorating ideas for her own place. I thought that sounded like fun, but I was also a little disappointed because I wanted to have a cervecita with my friends here in town. I decided I'd have to wait for the weekend to celebrate with my friends.

We pulled up to the bar in Estepa and I walked in. As I approached the bar I recognized Jesuli and the first thing that went through my mind was, "what's he doing here?!" (¡Qué casualidad!). When I saw the rest of the group, it dawned on me that this was a planned surprise. :)

I honestly couldn't think of a better way to spend my birthday evening. The tapas were WONDERFUL and, of course, so was the company. ;) I think my favorite tapa was the last one I ordered: carillada de cerdo con manzana y rulo de cabra (that's pork, the cheek I think, with apple sauce and goat cheese). It was fabulous! All the other tapas were along those same lines--sweet/savoury and really delicious. This was like a bar straight out of Portland. :) I was thrilled, as was my palate. :p

Those of you who know me and food, know that this kind of surprise party is just up my alley. And to top off my celebration my friends gave me four potted aromatic herbs for my patio: basil, lemon balm, sage and I can't remember the name of the last one.

It was a perfect night.

Love to all!!

Thursday, April 12, 2012

Progress

It looks like a real construction site now. :) I must say, though, I'm a bit self conscious taking pictures!

Stay tuned for the foundation.

Tuesday, April 10, 2012

Puppy Pals :)

I remembered to take pictures the second time around! Here are Bela and Mila, BPPs (Best Puppy Pals):


I swear they're just playing...




Water break!


Bela cools off in a nice mud puddle...Mila's not convinced this is a very good idea.

Breaking Ground!

So my plans to document the building of our new bar are off to an inauspicious start as I forgot to take a picture of the place before the demolition! Oh well, the rubble's most fun. Here's the last wall to fall and Angelines overseeing the progress. ;)



Thursday, April 5, 2012

Knee Follow-up

Many of you were worried about my knee situation. Here's the full report:

I was not
insistent at my doctor's appt. and therefore did not get an appointment for x-rays to be taken. She assured me that there was no damage to the ligaments, although she did say that I have super flexible ligaments which she claimed to be the source of the pain: things are too lose in my knee and so my kneecap moves more than it should. She suggested cycling to strengthen my quads and thus tighten my knee ligaments. Sound advice. Cross-training is always good...
But I just really wanted to be sure about all this. After my mom torn her ACL I have learned a lot about knee mechanics and it seemed to me that I had some damage to the meniscus or lose cartilage (I think a patient's auto-diagnosis can be a dangerous thing).

Anyway, we coughed up the money and got a second opinion from a doctor outside the social security system. I had an x-ray, and I have no apparent problem. The only difference in his diagnosis was that he prescribed condroitin to rebuild the cartilage and protect my knee. (Any of you who read the comments on my posts will notice that my dad recommended the same thing...) So really, I'm out 100+ euros for nothing, but you know, I feel much better about things.

The real trouble with the health care system here is that you get the feeling that you are your symptoms. Does that make sense?

When I went to the doctor here, she wiggled my leg around and then gave me her diagnosis and sent me away. She was right--I have no serious problem--and the second doctor told me the same thing: strengthen my quads. Still, the fact that my total visit was less than 10 min. with the first doctor didn't inspire much faith in what she had to tell me. On the other hand, the second doctor asked a lot of questions prior to examining my knee, did a the same wiggling on my leg, took an x-ray (just to rule out the possibility of meniscus, etc.) and then gave me the same advice after reviewing the x-ray. The x-ray was the only difference, yet I felt as though this doctor cared. I felt he was really taking the time to think and reflect on my particular situation. I am sure that he was 99% positive that everything was as it should be after he wiggled my leg around... but because I wanted an x-ray, and because it means more money for him, and because he wasn't operating under time constraints with too many patients and too little pay, he ordered one. And I was immediately comforted looking at my bones back lit by the fluorescent screen.

I think most doctors, especially after years practicing, can diagnose a person after only about five min. with 80-90% accuracy, but we patient's like to feel as though they're doting on us. We are sure that our symptoms are unique to us only and we like to feel as though the doctor's really taking the time to rule out that 1% chance (if it's even that high!) that our sore throat is due to some freakish cancer. So I think that even had I not gotten an x-ray from the second doctor, I would have left feeling much more confident about his diagnosis only because he was slow, asked a lot of questions and then used a lot of words to explain his diagnosis.

Interesting.

The Thing About Holidays...

I clearly recall my literature professor at the Centro de Lenguas Modernas in Granada explaining to all of us guiris that the tears shed during Semana Santa weren't necessarily for Jesus; but rather because each year, as usually happens with big holidays, people look back to the year before and the one before that, and remember those who are no longer here, relationships that are no more, or simply pause to think about all that's happened in the time that's passed.

I haven't cried yet this Easter, but this year is certainly different from past years. I remember my first Semana Santa in Granada--I did my best to suppress a visceral aversion to the penitents who look for all the world like KKK members. All the same, I was enchanted by the music; I remember the chills and my hair standing on end when I first heard the drums and trumpets sounds through the streets. My second Semana Santa I shared with a good friend from Portland. I experienced La Roda's processions for the first time with her. Miércoles santo we were swept up into the procession of faithful following Jesus on his silent sojourn around town. My third Semana Santa, my parents visited. We went to Sevilla on Tuesday and Thursday my mom practically filled the memory card of our camera with pictures of me playing in the municipal band! The years after that, are a blur, but all are speckled with tapas, wine, copas, laughter, and even occasionally tears.

This year, is different for many reasons, I suppose, though I couldn't name them for you. Yesterday night was one of the coldest nights we've had all year and unlike other years when I've stuck out the cold to watch Jesus make his way slowly back into the church, his shadow shrinking back through the iron doors of the church, this year I just went home after the first hour of the procession.

Today, I went with Angelines to watch the Cristo and the Mediación make their appearances in the street. Once they were out, we headed to the bar. I helped her set things up, then headed home to walk the dog. I caught the procession as it went through my neighborhood and then I came home, made dinner, washed the dishes, and watched a documentary my sister had recommended to me. Usually I've spent the entire day out of the house and haven't come home until well past end of the procession.

Tomorrow and Saturday the weather forecast is against us: rain. Of course, if there's a good chance of showers, the processions won't go out at all--in fact, this afternoon's ended in a flourish because it began to rain.

So this year, it seems is turning out to be a split from the pattern of past years. We tend to be so reluctant to change that these moments of realization can be sad, nostalgic, melancholy. I can't say I haven't felt a tinge of that nostalgia, but at the same time a break from the past is liberating. Whether or not I'll look back on this year with melancholy or relief or indifference I don't know, but I will certainly remember this eighth Semana Santa.