emily and i went on a date. we went to an amazing restaurant on avinyo...with the best goat cheese salad i have ever had, and amazing fake tulips lit from the inside with christmas lights (the only time i have ever liked fake flowers). and discussed life plan over some sangria and good food, exactly how life needs to always be. (south america, summer 2008, all i need to say). and then emily introduced me to my favorite tea shop (saltero), behind plaça san jaume. we drank wine, smelled tea, ate some mystery pasteries (i think they called them arabic, but i don't really remember...maybe we got the japanese ones). basically, the night was amazing. and all i could think was, why didn't this happen earlier? why didn't i explore secret tea shops in the corners of randomness? why don't i have more time? (i miss you already)
but, really, those were all just thoughts in the back of my mind, barely a notice. and so the night was amazing and beautiful.
Sunday, 27 May 2007
who would ever buy that?
ok, so you walk down the street and there are some street performers, as usual. and maybe you stop, maybe you keep walking. but if you stop, you definetly leave before the set is done. because, no matter who they are or what they do, they will come around with a hat. or, more dreadfully, a cd/dvd/mystery product. clearly you enjoyed the performance...don't you want to remember it forever??
i am a watcher. i like to stop, and stand in the circle and smile at the performers. and eventually i learned the art of watcher timing. i don't know how to explain it, but it's easy to figure out and at the end of the last song, you leave. before the end. if you leave just slightly before everyone else, it seems more like you just had somewhere to be, than avoiding giving a few cents to the starving artists.
of course, i can understand giving some change. if they are good, or if you feel bad for them. either way, i can understand it, and have definetly done it. but when you see someone buy that cd, you think...who would ever buy that?!
well, i did. and let me say, the cd is awesome. and has made me consider buying cd's from street performers more often.
classes are over, and i have nothing to do. (obviously, studying for finals was not all that important for me). so i decide to spend some time with my camera walking randomly around barcelona. and i get lost, as always. and walk for hours, and i end up by barceloneta, and walk along the beach. and, really, its a short story. saw the band playing, and stopped. watched the entire set. someone played the spoons. and i fell in love. and bought the cd. and people looked at me like i'm crazy. but i am in love. so it doesn't matter.
i am a watcher. i like to stop, and stand in the circle and smile at the performers. and eventually i learned the art of watcher timing. i don't know how to explain it, but it's easy to figure out and at the end of the last song, you leave. before the end. if you leave just slightly before everyone else, it seems more like you just had somewhere to be, than avoiding giving a few cents to the starving artists.
of course, i can understand giving some change. if they are good, or if you feel bad for them. either way, i can understand it, and have definetly done it. but when you see someone buy that cd, you think...who would ever buy that?!

classes are over, and i have nothing to do. (obviously, studying for finals was not all that important for me). so i decide to spend some time with my camera walking randomly around barcelona. and i get lost, as always. and walk for hours, and i end up by barceloneta, and walk along the beach. and, really, its a short story. saw the band playing, and stopped. watched the entire set. someone played the spoons. and i fell in love. and bought the cd. and people looked at me like i'm crazy. but i am in love. so it doesn't matter.
Wednesday, 23 May 2007
mexico, polynesia, and scary men, all meet together in bcn
italian food continued.
ok, so we went on to eat at the italian restaurant following the magic fountains, and emily met us there for drinks. it was lovely. (and, also, i must say that i have learned that sangria goes with everything...italian, mexican, japanese, spanish, everything).
we then moved on for some dessert at the mexican place down the road. and by dessert i really mean margaritas and patatas machas. (because, clearly, this weekend i have not had enough carbohydrates in my life). let me describe this restaurant to you. there is a mural size portrait of salvador dali on one wall. a large frida kahlo head statue hanging on one wall (and by huge, i really do mean HUGE), and scary looking chickens and fighter statues hanging from the ceiling looking down on you. it is called "si, senor"...and has the best potatos in the world (as i believe i have described in an earlier post). thankfully, the waiter that tessa accidently called ugly did not remember us. however, there was no longer any more hard candy sitting by the door when we left, which was a huge disapointment. but now where do we go?
tessa had the answer...lets just randomly walk down this street. there must be something eventually. and so we walked. and there didnt seem to be much., and then inevitably came the urge to pee. and we became desperate. and finally, there was a place. this tiny, gross, dirty place. how can it be?
well i go down to the bathroom first, while tessa and emily order beers (because there is no such thing as public restrooms in spain). no toilet paper, no toilet seat, off white smudged with mystery shades of brown, ants and cockroaches, off colored water. yum. but i really had to pee an amazing amount, so at least it was better than public urination.

i come upstairs and am greeted by this face from emily as tessa runs downstairs towards the bathroom. whats going on?! she informs me that this scary scary man behind her (i wanted to get a pic, but it just wasnt possible without making the situation worse), has not only been staring at them, but also came over to them, and it got to the point that the bartender had to physically move them away. more than once. so emily is ready to leave as soon as tessa comes upstairs. but i do not think we should abandon some already paid for beer. so we finished took some moments to finish the beers (as in, i finished them for emily and tessa, as they took sips of their own as i went back and forth from one to the other).
i must pause for a moment to point out that there was a "no farting" illustration posted behind the bar. literally, there was a man, bent over with fumes coming from his ass, crossed out with a big red line. amazing.
so we stand up, and the scary man stands up and gathers his coat to leave.
"guys...run. and i'm not kidding"
and so we ran. made random turns in and out of the block. continued running until we were out of breath cause we were laughing at the same time. meanwhile, we still hadn't found a place to go for the night. and then we found it. the most amazing bar i had been to all semester. it was this little polynesian bar. you walk in, and there is a waiting/line area before you actually get inside that is decorated like a forest. and by decorated, i mean there is a pond with fish, real trees and plants, and one wall is completely made up of fish tanks. and besides the cheesy recorded animal sounds, it was pretty much perfect. we even got free shots while waiting (they were basically all juice, but good nonetheless). and when we finally got inside it was even better. more fish tanks, crazy mixed drinks. and the best part...corn nuts and pop corn! ok, i know, that sounds a bit ridiculous to get excited about. but spain doesn't seem to believe in bar snacks. no peannuts. no nothing. so the pop corn was a new and exciting sight. and the drinks were in the craziest cups. i love crazy cups. i think i need more in my life.
and then tessa and emily disappear. they don't smoke. but apparently they decided they needed a puff. they disappear to buy a pack. and i am left all alone. just me and the popcorn. and the next thing i know, they are back with a pack, flustered from arguing with the manager because the pack got stuck in the machine. huge ordeal. and then the waiter came over and apologized. cause apparently he believed them even thought hte manager didn't. oh man. good thing they fully enjoyed those puffs.
and of course emily found some ridiculous boys to flirt with. but they were very random, and we are pretty sure they were only like 16...so it was a very short flirt-ness.
taxi. and i would just like to say that the taxi man was playing the most amazing music ever (rare in spain), and it was a lovely end of a night.
ok, so we went on to eat at the italian restaurant following the magic fountains, and emily met us there for drinks. it was lovely. (and, also, i must say that i have learned that sangria goes with everything...italian, mexican, japanese, spanish, everything).

tessa had the answer...lets just randomly walk down this street. there must be something eventually. and so we walked. and there didnt seem to be much., and then inevitably came the urge to pee. and we became desperate. and finally, there was a place. this tiny, gross, dirty place. how can it be?
well i go down to the bathroom first, while tessa and emily order beers (because there is no such thing as public restrooms in spain). no toilet paper, no toilet seat, off white smudged with mystery shades of brown, ants and cockroaches, off colored water. yum. but i really had to pee an amazing amount, so at least it was better than public urination.

i come upstairs and am greeted by this face from emily as tessa runs downstairs towards the bathroom. whats going on?! she informs me that this scary scary man behind her (i wanted to get a pic, but it just wasnt possible without making the situation worse), has not only been staring at them, but also came over to them, and it got to the point that the bartender had to physically move them away. more than once. so emily is ready to leave as soon as tessa comes upstairs. but i do not think we should abandon some already paid for beer. so we finished took some moments to finish the beers (as in, i finished them for emily and tessa, as they took sips of their own as i went back and forth from one to the other).
i must pause for a moment to point out that there was a "no farting" illustration posted behind the bar. literally, there was a man, bent over with fumes coming from his ass, crossed out with a big red line. amazing.
so we stand up, and the scary man stands up and gathers his coat to leave.
"guys...run. and i'm not kidding"
and so we ran. made random turns in and out of the block. continued running until we were out of breath cause we were laughing at the same time. meanwhile, we still hadn't found a place to go for the night. and then we found it. the most amazing bar i had been to all semester. it was this little polynesian bar. you walk in, and there is a waiting/line area before you actually get inside that is decorated like a forest. and by decorated, i mean there is a pond with fish, real trees and plants, and one wall is completely made up of fish tanks. and besides the cheesy recorded animal sounds, it was pretty much perfect. we even got free shots while waiting (they were basically all juice, but good nonetheless). and when we finally got inside it was even better. more fish tanks, crazy mixed drinks. and the best part...corn nuts and pop corn! ok, i know, that sounds a bit ridiculous to get excited about. but spain doesn't seem to believe in bar snacks. no peannuts. no nothing. so the pop corn was a new and exciting sight. and the drinks were in the craziest cups. i love crazy cups. i think i need more in my life.
and then tessa and emily disappear. they don't smoke. but apparently they decided they needed a puff. they disappear to buy a pack. and i am left all alone. just me and the popcorn. and the next thing i know, they are back with a pack, flustered from arguing with the manager because the pack got stuck in the machine. huge ordeal. and then the waiter came over and apologized. cause apparently he believed them even thought hte manager didn't. oh man. good thing they fully enjoyed those puffs.
and of course emily found some ridiculous boys to flirt with. but they were very random, and we are pretty sure they were only like 16...so it was a very short flirt-ness.
taxi. and i would just like to say that the taxi man was playing the most amazing music ever (rare in spain), and it was a lovely end of a night.
sanguine orangina, amelie, and tessa are my saviors

dear tessa, i will miss my sleepovers at your apartment ultimately.
ok, so tessa and i like to have marathons it seems. and so this day, we begin with falling in love with art at MACBA. it was one of those days, you know? where you suddenly remember why you love. i dont know, i'm ridiculous. but thats what is was for me. and i think i could be happy living in these exhibits (other than the fact that i might become quite twisted after a bit). one of the exhibitions was called "the killing machine", and it was very sound oriented. sound sculptures.
it was amazing, and for more than just the fact that it was among the most inspiring exhibitions i had been to in a long time, but because i got to witness tessa slapping a punk ass, tripping (literally) spaniard teenager. he completely deserved it (after completely ruining a part of the exhibit for which you had to wait in line to see), but we still left imediately, avoiding eye contact of any security guards.
that night i joined tessa at her apartment for a night of amelie, sanguine orangina mixed with peach liquor (i know, super girly, but oh so good), and goat cheese salad. mmmmm. i managed to fall asleep in the middle of the movie (thankfully i pretty much have it memorized by now) and consequently woke up super early on tessa's couch. sitting in another person's apartment is quite awkward when that person is asleep but their roommates are not. so i decided to leave, only to be convinced to return again by a text from tessa (who could deny a promise of pancakes).

return to the apartment. take annoying pictures of tessa cooking the marvelous pancakes. make way too many pancakes, eat 7 each, follow with a carbohydrate comma. oh so good. just how a saturday morning should be.
the marathon continued later that day with some sun time at parc de la ciutadella, where we fed the pigeons and watched people juggling and tight rope walking. and then we moved on to the magic fountain and waited as long as possible for it to get dark so that the show would be amazing. but it never really got dark enough. sadly. and we decided to make ourselves feel better with some good good italian food from the place below tessa's apartment. (which shall be fully described in the following blog)
international karaoke is even better

ok, so we decided that karoke was long overdue. but, the thing is, although i could easily karaoke at any time of day, jeanna sometimes needs a little help. so i went on a mission to find drinks for her. sweet drinks. vermouth or malibu, to be exact. to make a story short, i ended up accidently buying an expensive bottle of dessert wine (which i never even got to try), finally buying the vermouth, run the bottle to jeanna, only to be late for dinner because i witnessed a car accident turned to fist fight and was questioned by the police (all in spanish keep in mind).
needless to say, the night began with a bang. and only continued as such.
jeanna, kevin, and i go to josh's apartment (wine, vermouth, and soda at hand) in order to start the night. but were immediately told to leave by frank, the usually awesome RA, and exited to the street with our drinks in hand to wait for josh (and his friend visiting from rochester). the above photo is from us sitting on a bench outside the apartment (notice the pet store sign behind us). we had quite a lovely time on the street. i felt like a real spaniard.
but then the vermouth hit us (or maybe just me...as i had about half the bottle, without even noticing) and we were hungry. so we went to this diner like place on the corner for some patatas bravas (they are a staple food now for me, i dont know what i am going to do without them. they are perfect for all situations).
and finally we made it...the karaoke bar. and i would just like to say, it did not dissapoint. jeanna and i picked out two songs. 1) don't turn around, by ace of base...and 2) every morning by sugar ray. we even convinced josh and his friend to sing a song (brown eyed girl). but they cheated, and all ready knew the song cause they sing it in their acapela group at school. i must admit though, the harmony was damn impressive. especially before i realized they were cheating.
between ace of base and sugar ray, a group of spanish began singing shania twain, and jeanna and i had impressed them so much with our stellar performance, that they invited us to join them! it was a good time had by all, and the spaniards definetly needed our help with the country lyrics. oh boy.
i would love to post some action shots. but they are very dark, and, well, pretty embarrasing. so you will just have to ask to see them if you really want to.
i am officially a rock star
Wednesday, 2 May 2007
i never knew tipsy pizza could be so awkward
my senora's birthday. she had no plans, thinks she is old and busted. and for as much as i don't particularly like her, it was sad. so when she called and asked if i wanted to go out for some celebratory pizza i couldn't exactly say no (besides, i wasn't going to miss my free meal). she comes home, and i find out that what celebratory pizza really meant was going to pizza with her and her boyrfriend.
so then we get there, order our food, and the man (who's name is raffa...which makes me think of rafi every time, and sometimes i can't help but laugh. i am so rude), raffa, decides that we should order some champagne. so we split a bottle of champagne. and then my senora makes me order a dessert. and they drink more. and she tries to hook me up with the waiter, and tells him he should sit down with us and have some champagne. needless to say, she was tipsy by the end.
she asked me if i wanted to go to balmes 314 (which is a fancy bar near our house) but it was 11 and i still had to write a 15 page paper...so i quite unfortunately had to say no. happy birthday juaq
so then we get there, order our food, and the man (who's name is raffa...which makes me think of rafi every time, and sometimes i can't help but laugh. i am so rude), raffa, decides that we should order some champagne. so we split a bottle of champagne. and then my senora makes me order a dessert. and they drink more. and she tries to hook me up with the waiter, and tells him he should sit down with us and have some champagne. needless to say, she was tipsy by the end.
she asked me if i wanted to go to balmes 314 (which is a fancy bar near our house) but it was 11 and i still had to write a 15 page paper...so i quite unfortunately had to say no. happy birthday juaq
Tuesday, 1 May 2007
gertrude, i miss you and your green rusted hood (end of spring break)

i miss driving. a lot. and in france was the first time i was in a car that was not a taxi, and it was beautiful. we did a lot of driving, and saw a lot of garden gnomes (they were all over the french country side! amelie doesn't lie). and this really random bridge decorated with bright paint and old bicycles.

and on this drive it suddenly seemed very much that i was back in southern illinois driving the wine trail. really, it probably didn't seem at all similar. but i realized that i missed home, and it was beautiful to be there for a moment.
and then we turned the corner, and there was this huge castle looking building in the middle of nowhere. you just can't beat that.
so, what exactly did we do besides drive through vineyards and past castles that end up just being expensive places to rent for the weekend?
1) i bought some shoes to replace the ones i lost in the canary islands. but apparently france doesn't believe in tennis shoes. so i ended up buying the most expensive pair of converse currently in existence. but my feet weren't cold anymore.
2) we went to les tours, which is this amazing place where there are ruins of 5 huge towers/castles that were built on the top of mountains. it was really pretty, but we didn't end up hiking up...somewhat dissapointing, but it was still gorgeous.


and then return home for a nice homemade meal with good wine. tessa, want to open the wine? what do you say? you can't get the cork out? you broke the corkscrew? in the cork?!


we had wine just in time for dinner. and it was a good dinner, with no ham or fried substances. yum. at one point tessa decided she didn't want her wine (as she sits with a completely full glass), so i ended up double fisting it for the majority of the night. monkey face in front of parents is just not appropriate (thanks tessa).
the next day we drove back to spain, spent a day in figuerres with our friend salvador dali and inside his intense mind, and then tessa and i caught the train to barcelona.
spring break over. (ah!)
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