Gijon and other adventures

I must apologise for the lack of information on my exciting Spanish life... but that's because it hasn't really been that exciting over the past week. Unless anyone would like to know about my lesson plans or lack there of?

But wait! This weekend we took a trip en masse to Gijon which is the biggest city in Asturias (I think, at least that's what Google Maps says). Luckily the appalling weather which had plagued us for a week disappeared and we had a beautiful sunny day! And even more luckily, the lovely Frankie has sent me some of her pictures from our day trip to make this post a little less boring!

Just in case we forgot where we were, the Spanairds put a massive sign up to remind us!

And the Brits being Brits - we take a picture inside it!

I think the world is aware that Spanish food is amazing. What the world may not know is that the best Spanish food ever comes in tiny baguettes. Pinchos is their name and being tasty is their game! On arrival in Gijon we were all a little peckish but pinchos to the rescue!!

Can't explain how good they are!! That and a cafe con leche and we were good to go.... to the beach!

Basically we spent most of our day in Gijon either eating, drinking, or lying on the grass at the top of a hill and talking about how sunny it was. It's cause we're hardcore party animals like that! The city was absolutely beautiful and just walking around it was enough for our first visit. 

I look really tiny in this picture... I promise they aren't really that tall! It's probably just Alwyn's sunglasses making her look bigger!

My favourite picture of the day has to be this! Which was taken outside a tourist shop - everyone had to get a picture and so a poor six year old Spanish boy was forced to wait while 6 twenty-somethings posed inside a Knight's Head. 

(For Jacqueline - TO CAMELOT!)

So that was our day out to Gijon, can't wait to go again! Hopefully should have some more adventures to recount soon, although the biggest plan I have right now is to wait for the Dairy Milk package that's on it's way from Falkirk!

No aqui, alli.

Aqui means "here" and Alli means "there." They are my two favourite Spanish words as its possible to create an entire conversation only using the two of them!! I'm obviously getting really good at this language...

So, my classes at school are going really well. The kids seem lovely. My favourite class so far though, I only met yesterday (due to last weeks holiday) and I LOVE THEM! Mostly because their questions began, "Do you like football?" From that point on I knew we were going to get along well.
"What team do you support?"
"Roma, because Scottish teams aren't very good...."
*They all giggle* "But what Spanish team?"
"Barca"
Half of the class "Yay!" the other half "Boo!"
"Who is your favourite player?" asks a boy at the back who I'm convinced was asleep until football was mentioned!
"Well," I said - suspense - "It used to be Fernando Torres, but now he plays for Chelsea... so I can't like him anymore" he and all the other boys in the class nod enthusiastically, "So probably Messi." Big grins all round.
"Did you watch the match between Scotland and Spain?"
"Yes I did. But we're not talking about that otherwise we won't be friends okay?"

So yeah. I love that class.

I've had to buy a blazer. Because I liked the colour? Yes. Because it was cheap? Yes. But mostly, because I was feeling really weird being in a school and not wearing a blazer!! Although I keep going to get things out of my pockets... my blazer doesn't have pockets...

One major thing I've noticed about Spain is that you cannot, and I mean CANNOT reply with a simple "yes" to any question.
The answer must be, "Si, si, vale, vale, vale, bueno bueno."
Which roughly translates as "Yes, yes, okay, okay, good, good."
Otherwise they don't believe that you really mean it!

Podemos surf?

Having just been shouted at by my Dad for not blogging I thought I better write something!
Unfortunately I think I got sand in my camera at the weekend and its broken so these blogs might be picture-less for a little while!

At the weekend I went to Las Salinas, near Aviles with a big group of British Council people - we're really not doing a very good job at the whole speaking Spanish thing...
It was ridiculously hot! We all got a little bit burnt as we were all doing that classic British "I never see the sun, I'm not covering up!!"
Some people frollicked in the water, I did not. Although the paddling conditions were superb!
Surfing had been the idea of the day, but as we went on a Sunday, Spain was closed. Its annoying like that!
Speaking of Sundays, I went to Mass at the Cathedral on Sunday and couldn't find the congregation. Ten o'clock Mass was not the social event that it is back home and Mass was being celebrated in a side chapel. A side chapel that was bigger than St. Francis and completely filled with marble and stone statues, stained glass windows and tapestries. They do religion rather well here!

I started work at my school on Monday. The classes all seem nice. As nice as a bunch of teenagers being forced to speak in another language can be!
They seemed interested in haggis because its like morcilla and the bagpipes because they play the pipes in Asturias. They did not understand how a drink could be bright orange. Irn bru fail. Although once I know them better I might make them watch the Fizzy, Ginger, Phenomenal, advert.

Tonight I'm watching Scotland play Spain with a bunch of English people and two Americans... something tells me I may have to go watch it by myself at some point.
Its a holiday in Spain tomorrow (when is it not?!) so we're off to the beach again and to speak Spanish to a French girl. Sounds like a good day!

No yo quiero agua, yo quiero bebida

Orientation took place in Madrid this weekend, basically that involved three free days in Madrid and not a lot of work!
Madrid is really different from Oviedo, obviously they are totally different places, but its a lot busier and stressful. It was really nice to come back home to Oviedo yesterday and have a lovely chilled out Sunday, sitting drinking cider (not through a straw Guides) and eating another massive Menu del Dia!

So after arriving on Thursday and getting our first free meal - hint to vegetarians, don't apply to be language assistants in Spain! - we had thought about sitting in and drinking 56 cent wine from cartons, but instead we decided to brave Madrid's nightlife! I'm glad we did. After a very lovely cocktail in a bar we found a little pub in a side street. The owner, after discovering he had two Scots in his pub, offered us Beefeater Gin with a special tonic.

Oh was I glad that he did! He poured the tonic in with a special spoon and it made it all flat. It was literally the best G+T I have ever had!!

On the Friday, which was out intended night out, we went a little more traditional. Moondance Club near the Plaza del Sol - free entry and a free shot. Epic.
And the characters we saw! Apparently boys in Madrid like to wear really tight white trousers - who knew?
The bottles of Don Simon Sangria and the 56 cent white wine that we chugged on the metro really added to the class of the whole evening!

We also managed to get some masks from somewhere.... there were no questions asked.

So, I'm off to school tomorrow for the first time! Wish me luck!!