La Virgen de los Llanos

My day started with the bike ride I told you all about...only I had to leave early because I needed to be back here by 12ish to help Angelines with preparations for the paella and porra. So after boiling nine eggs, chopping peppers, onions, garlic, tomato (probably at least two pounds) and chicken breast, it was off to the pub for set up. I'll cut to the chase and tell you all that the picture below is the only one I have of the FANTASTIC paella we made. It looks good, doesn't it? Well it tasted even better, but unfortunately for my taste buds, and fortunately for out checking account, I was too busy serving people to properly enjoy it myself.

Opening at midday with food was a success. Antonio and Jesus made the paella--every time they do it, it gets better--and there were nothing but compliments for my porra. In the end, there wasn't a grain of rice left and we only had to dispose of half a plate of porra. It wasn't a huge money maker since beers are cheap and we were charging 2 euros a plate; but we covered the cost of the food many times over and everyone had a good time. By 9pm we were closed and out enjoying the festivities ourselves. :)

However, I didn't stay out long at all. My legs were so sore from standing all that time at the bar and after having gone for a bike ride in the morning, it was all I could do to watch the procession for about 20min and then collapse into a chair at el Leiva and eat dinner. I was 100% worn out.

Under normal circumstances I might have made an effort and endured a bit more of the fun, but today I am going to Granada in the afternoon. There's an English teachers' conference and I'm going to be a speaker! (I'll tell you more about it when I get home on Saturday). I definitely wanted to be well rested so I was home and in bed by 12:30. Although I didn't actually get to sleep until past 1:00 because they began shooting off fireworks. :) I had a great view from my little second story piso and so this was the first time I've EVER gotten really good pictures of fireworks. Enjoy!

Midnight Pilgrimage

Tomorrow is the nativity of the Virgin. I'm sure you all knew that, but just in case... ;)

Most virgins have a day dedicated to them. The 12th of December is the day of the Virgin of Guadalupe (patrona of Mexico), for example; and Our Lady of Pain's day is Good Friday. But there are a number of virgins that are "day-less" (for lack of better words) and they celebrate their day on the 8th of September since it is the Virgin Mary's birthday.

The patrona of La Roda is the Virgin of the Plains (La Virgen de los Llanos). Legend has it that a farmer stumbled upon the carved image of this virgin one day as he was plowing his field just a few miles from the pueblo. Being a day-less virgin, our fiestas patronales are on September 8th. Today there was a small procession of people and representatives from the different brotherhoods of town to present flowers to Our Lady of the Plains. Tomorrow evening she comes out of the church in a procession and during the day there are different festive events. One of them is a bicycle race through La Roda's municipalities (tiny towns that fall under the juristiction of La Roda's city hall: Los Perez and Los Perenos); I will be participating. :)

Angelines has decided to take advantage of the day's festivities, too. She'll open at midday and we'll have paella and porra (a thick gazpacho) for 2 euros a plate--just enough to cover costs--and hope that people stay and drink for most of the afternoon. I've made a HUGE tupperware full of porra and tomorrow I'll to go to Mercadona to buy the shrimp, etc. for the paella. I hope this is a success; Angelines is more depressed by the day with the way business is going. There are a lot of factors, but the bottom line is we're breaking even (if we're lucky). It's been that way for the past 5 months and she assures me that things will get a lot worse before they improve. I hope she's wrong...

But I didn't start this post with the intention of whining about our financial situation! I wanted to tell you about the Virgen de la Fuensanta. Do you remember one of my bike trips earlier in the year when I visited a hermitage next to some caves where the famous bandito Jose Maria el Tempranillo used to hide out? That hermitage is La ermita de la Fuensanta. The Virgin Fuensanta is another virgin who's day is celebrated tomorrow. There are a lot of devotees in the surrounding area and traditionally in the week before September 8th they make a pilgrimage to her hometown, Corcoya. Corcoya is 11 kilometers from La Roda.

Last night I got a call from a few friends that they were planning to go to see the Fuensanta. Of course, I signed up! So at 9:30pm, with reflective vests and the darkness of a new moon, we headed out of town. You can see in the picture that we were well hydrated before heading out. ;) We stopped at the last bar in town for a cervecita and tapa before really hitting the road...you've got to love Spain!

And this is the little Virgin Fuensanta. The statue isn't much more than 2ft. tall--very little. Today was her flower offering (just like here in La Roda) and tomorrow is a procession that takes the Fuensanta out of the church and up to her hermitage. Apparently the little town of Corcoya doubles or triples in size for this particular fiesta. I won't be attending since it all coincides with our own festivities, but maybe some year. It sounds like something worth seeing.

After a friend drove us back to town last night, I met Angelines at the ice cream place-- side note: being called an heladeria doesn't exclude the prevalence of alcoholic beverages. So as I began sipping my gin tonic, the bar tender asked me very earnestly, "Do your holidays in the U.S. have to do with virgins and saints, too?"

I had to laugh.

Aunt Viola

Just quickly:

Yesterday we made the trip to Sierra de Yeguas (a nearby town) with my mother-in-law to visit Angelines's sister who lives there. She has two kids, a daughter Lucy's age, 17, and a son who's nine (I think). Gonzalo, her little boy, is the youngest of the nieces and nephews, and by far the least affectionate. In the past, Angelines has scolded him for not giving me two kisses upon arrival or when we leave. I have just given up. No point in chasing the kid around the house if he's not into kissing. He's usually even evasive with his Aunt Angelines (whom he adores) and his grandma, so I never take it personally.

Yesterday, however, was different. We arrived and he came running out of the kitchen to give Angelines a big hug (!) and two kisses. I didn't ask for kisses. I'm used to the routine. However, during the visit he was a lot more engaging than in the past, showing us his favorite websites (tractor toys--actually really cool!) on the new laptop and playing soccer in the patio.

The three of us had a contest in the patio with his tractor and trailer. The goal was to back the trailer into the garage (between my feet) in the least amount of time possible. He beat Angelines twice and then insisted that I try. As I was struggling with the trailer he was cackling with the stop watch in hand and when I said, "Nino, you're making me nervous!", he corrected me saying, "Nino, no, nephew." I was shocked, but let it go by. When it was time to go he willingly gave me two kisses.

My other sister-in-law refers to me as "tita Viola" when she's talking to her son (13), but he doesn't call me tita. So although I am technically their aunt, none of Angelines's (my...our) nieces or nephews call me aunt. It's probably partially an age thing: I've joined the family late to be called Auntie. I was blown away and touched when Gonzalo corrected me and several times during the visit he called me tita. :)

--Auntie, Tita, Viola.

The Secret Garden

Yesterday I stumbled across "The Secret Garden" movie on TV. I haven't thought about Mary Lennox, Dicken the animal tamer, or the Moors of England for years! What fun. I think Angelines was a little curious as to why I was so set on watching the whole thing.

I remember when the movie came out. We went to see it at the theater in the Bayshore Mall in Eureka. It was the first time I saw a movie made from a book I loved and I remember leaving the theater a little disappointed by the changes they made, but at the same time thrilled by the experience of watching the characters come to life on screen.

The Secret Garden was one of my childhood favorites; one of the first "chapter books" my mom read to Emily and me. I can remember lying in bed and listening to my mom's voice invoking the adventures of Mary Lennox skipping rope across the Moors and following the robin red-breast to the door of the secret garden. When Mary shows Dicken the garden for the first time he cuts a rose stem with his penknife to reveal the green 'wick' and assures her that the garden is alive; it was magical. My imagination went wild: I longed to have a secret place of my own.

I think that was the beginning of my obsession with gardening. ;) ... Even if my cherry potatoes and peaked tomatoes are poor proof.

Caminando en Catalunya

Our trip to Barcelona was not, perhaps, the relaxing break that Angelines was hoping for; it did, however, satisfy a little of my craving for adventure. ;) We didn't actually see Barcelona at all, unless you count the airport. Our friends live in the mountains about 50 min outside the city. They have a beautiful home on the side of a mountain with a great view and a forest in the backyard--it reminds me of Portola, some.

Usually we visit them in February to take advantage of cheap airfare, but this year we decided to go for it in August. They have a pool, which we've of course never been able to swim in on previous visits, and was particularly pleasant this week with another African heat wave hitting Spain. However, in reality we spent very little time lounging by the pool-side; instead we went on two really nice (long!) hikes.

Montserrat leading the way.

I have seen Barcelona and parts of Catalunya before, but I haven't seen much of the region's natural beauty (except from a car or bus) until this trip. It was lovely to walk through the holm oak forests that reminded me so much of California live oak forests near Chico. The trails need some serious maintenance in some places so I've discovered what I could do if I ever move to Catalunya--trail work! ;) The paths wind through woods and meadows, pass abandoned churches or farm buildings, lead to rural hostals, and cross highways. It wasn't exactly like a hike in Lakes Basin, but it was beautiful all the same.

Monica, Montse and Angelines in the beech forest.

An abandoned church we passed on our second hike: Sta. Julia.

The first hike was 12.5 km in a circle that took us around an ancient volcano: Volca de Croscat. I had no idea that Catalunya had a volcanic past. The last eruption was 11,500 years ago so there's quite a bit of vegetation that's taken over the area and years of erosion have taken their toll, but the distinct form of the crater can be seen. The soil and rocks are all volcanic in the area and in some places I was even reminded of Hawaii sand!

View of Croscot, the ancient volcano crater.

Our second hike was somewhat of an accident. We headed out the door for a "walk"... and got home six hours later. It ended up being about 20 km of walking. That's a lot, especially when you consider it was during the hottest hours of the day on routes that didn't have much shade and when we weren't expecting to be gone nearly that long. Still, it was fun and quite a little adventure. The pool felt great when we finally made it home!

The Fruit of my Labour:

The season's first tomato!

(delicious, I might add)

When it Rains...

(I'm speaking figuratively; we're back up to high nineties weather without a cloud in the sky...)

This week has brought a wave of news (I'll refrain from saying "good" or "bad").

Thursday I received notice from the Spanish Ministry of Education that my homologacion, the con-validation of my B.A. has been definitively denied. This means that as far as Spain is concerned, I don't have a University degree. However, there is the possiblity that if I were to enroll in a program here, they would waive certain requirements if I present the necessary documents. Apparently the insufficiency of my U.S. degree was greater than 25%. Theoretically, if I were within that 25th percentile, I could have taken the few classes that were missing to fill the requirements and been awarded my equivalent degree.

Whatever.

Truthfully, I'm neither surprised by Ministry's decision, nor very upset about it. I think eventually, probably sooner rather than later, I will go back to school; but I doubt very much that it will be to get a degree in Spanish language, for example. My future studies will more likely be along the lines of education, possibly environmental science, or tourism. And with some luck (because that really is what it comes down to) I'll be able to get a few of the required classes waived. That is to say, I would be starting from next to zero anyway.

Having a degree already would possibly make employment easier, and also facilitate admittance into a University program here; but by and large the denial of my request doesn't affect me. Still, it is depressing to think that four years of studying now amount to nothing.

The other bit of 'news' was served to Angelines by a local policeman this evening when she opened the bar: the city has decided to begin charging us rent for our flat. Once again, this isn't surprising, but still annoying.

For those of you who don't know the details of our current living situation, I'll give you a brief rundown. We are living in a flat that belongs to the city and is technically designated as teacher housing. This sounds strange to American ears, I know. Teachers in Spain are civil servants and therefore are often placed in jobs far enough from home that commuting isn't possible. Years ago the city governments spent money to build housing for the teachers which they have since been selling off little by little. Our flat and the one opposite ours are the only ones left in La Roda that remain as city property.

I was lucky enough to get this place because my first year here, I shared the flat with a teacher from Malaga who'd been "stationed" in La Roda for the past seven years. The following year she left, but I made an appointment with the mayor to request the flat for myself. Although I wasn't technically a teacher, I was working in the Spanish education system so I wasn't completely illegitimate. They granted me the flat.

Since that second year, I've continued living here even though I was no longer working at the school. True, this past year, I went back to work as a language assistant, but in a neighboring town. We have been to see the mayor repeatedly about our situation because we realize that we have no real title to the place since neither Angelines nor I are teachers. We have asked about renting or the possibility of buying, but with no response other than a typically Spanish, "I'll get back to you."

Well, today they finally got back to us. After four years of rent-free living, our days of "squatting" have come to an end. They're not asking much, 250 euros, but still it seems capricious at the very least--the city is practically bankrupt, making budget cuts left and right and scrambling to pay off years of debt. It's gotten to the point that only half the street lights are on at night in an attempt to save money on the electric bill. So the fact that NOW suddenly they're asking for money from us, leaves a bad flavor in my mouth; especially when I know that my neighbors pay nothing (one is, however, a legitimate teacher).

The letter we received notifying us of the new conditions as city tenants said nothing with regard to buying the flat. It's old and needs a lot of work and repair, but I do like my little home and for the time being we'll be staying here. It would be far better to buy the flat and begin fixing it up a little at a time rather than paying each month to continue living in a place that's not worth the investment to improve because it isn't ours. Next week I will make an appointment to see the mayor, yet again, to see if we can't work something out.

So there you have it: when it rains, it pours.

On a brighter note, we're leaving tomorrow for Barcelona. We'll be visiting friends of ours until Thursday. I suppose this mini vacation has come at just the right time. The week's news has us feeling a sharp need to escape.