What is this Carnaval thingy?

Welcome to Carnaval 2010. If you're unfamiliar with how this works, I'll try to explain. Similar to Mardi Gras in New Orleans, the people of Spain celebrate with a weekend long festival. Students have Monday and Tuesday off of this week due to the importance of the holiday. Although Extremadura is one of the least populated regions, Badajoz's Carnaval is considered the 3rd best celebration in Spain. Friday night begins with a parade in the early evening with little kids dressed up in costumes and walking through the streets. Saturday night is one of the party nights among young people--think Halloween, but you dress up to be ridiculous, not scary. Sunday evening is when the comparsas(groups with dancers and instruments) make up a parade in the streets, singing murgasand wearing very decorative costumes and masks. And Monday is another party night--the best way for me to describe it is to quote my room mates: you go out Monday night and come back sometime Tuesday morning. Yowza...

Cont...

After landing, I went in search of my bags. This typically isn't a difficult task, but per usual, I have a way of turning the simple into impossible. I watched every person from my flight pick up their luggage, then sat and stared at an empty carousel. Seeing as my bags have always made it to my destination, I figured now was as good a time as any for the airlines to forget about me. I joined 2 Canadian couples in line for the missing/damaged bags office. (The Portuguese really know what they're doing in this department: you're required to take a ticket and wait outside the office. Once your number is called, then and only then are you allowed to enter. The people in the office are actually pleasant and smile when you sit down! US airports, take note!!) It took the lady only 30 seconds to look up my information; I had been at the wrong carousel the whole time! Portugal-1, Jen-0.
I used the complimentary luggage cart, collected my luggage, and was on my way. I walked outside, snagged a cab right away, and practiced the only Portuguese I knew: "Fala inglesh?" --Nope. Okk.... "Fala espanol?" --Poquito. Perfect! I was at my hotel in about 5 minutes.

English is used here more so than Spanish, so checking in was a breeze. I was able to set up my laptop and connect to Skype, so I spent a few minutes chatting with family to let them know I landed in Lisboa, and not Russia or Australia. I was sweating my culo off carrying around my travel-unfriendly luggage, dressed for the Arctic Tundra known as Northern Virginia. I opened my window to beautiful 65 degree weather and a great view of the city.

Hunger kicked in around 5:30, so I asked the front desk for a good Portuguese restaurant to try. They suggested on down the street but warned me it didn't open for dinner until at least 7:30 (Duh, Jen. Welcome to Europe.) So to kill time, I took a lap around area. The city was bustling with young people everywhere, walking and riding bikes. I was very close to a University and passed numerous book stores, coffee shops, and patios filled with students chatting. Made a new friend, who was just hanging out:


Also saw this dude:Around 8 PM, I made my way to the restaurant. Only one person spoke English, and showed me to a nearly empty dining room. He showed me a menu, and asked if I know what I want. I took a brief glance, but decided to close it and make an order based solely on what he says is good. So I started with a small bottle of red wine, sopa verde, and complimentary fried Cod, a specialty of the area. Not even 10 minutes after I sat down, I received my lamb dish. It was cooked to a perfect medium and the meat was so tender, it made me want to cry! For a second, I wondered what they would do if I just picked up the entire plate and smeared it all over my face because it was that tasty. Decided against it, finished up, and paid.
Took a quick walk around the area again, returned to my hotel room to prepare for my bus ride, and slept like a baby. The next day, maneuvering my luggage proved to be somewhat tricky. I attempted to strap my smaller suitcase to the larger suitcase, and as it turns out, this is not the small strap's intended use. In the process, I bent the extend-able handle on the larger suitcase. Guess I'll worry about that on the return trip in a few months... Made it to the bus station in perfect time, grabbed a quick bite to eat, and loaded a near empty bus headed to my final destination of Badajoz.Seats were extremely comfy and I slept most of the ride. It was supposed to take about four hours, but we made it in under three. My teacher, Belen, met me at the bus station around 2:30 and drove me to my piso.
Here, I met my 3 room mates: Sandra, Sandra, and Sara. (No joke) I dropped off my luggage, and Belen took me to lunch. When I came back, my bed was completely made (since I didn't bring bed sheets, Sandra R. set me up with some of hers) and my room mates welcomed me. I'm so lucky to have had a ride from the bus station, my apartment ready, and such accommodating room mates. I was finally in Badajoz!

Dia 2: Parte 2

Part II: So I have a thought about travelers. Think of someone you know who's traveled to a foreign country; chances are, you've heard them tell you about some random, kind stranger who helped them, traveled with them, told them a good story, or all of the above. I've heard these stories from friends, but never quite experienced myself. I'm convinced that if you're going/coming, in between, or lost on your journey, your body begins to exude "happy traveler fumes" that attract others to you--I know it sounds silly, but stay with me here...
Going through security on my way to the gate, I came across a young guy working with the x-ray machine. First, he told me to keep it gangsta, so I said "aiiite." Then he asked to see my liquids, and if I had anything in them I shouldn't; I said no, those are packed away in the other bags I checked. Maybe not the best choice of words, but how did I happen to get the ONLY security worker with a personality? On my way to the gate, he asked me throw up a West side sign and I told him "Silly, we're in Virginia," and I walked away. Before I turned a corner, I heard a faint voice asking, "How about East side????"
After I got to my gate, I tried to buy my bus ticket from Lisboa to Badajoz. I tried earlier at home, and came to a dead end on the website I was using. I was connected to the internet but for some strange reason, the one website I needed wouldn't load up. I gave up for the day, and loaded the plane. After I sat down, an older gentleman next to me put out his hand and introduced himself. His name is Hubert and he was flying back home to the Netherlands. Over the course of the next few hours, he told me how during his visit, he met his new grandson for the first time and attended a tuba conference held by the Army. Here's a thought to ponder: he expressed his awe over the pride Americans have to be part of the Army, whether they are supporting or serving. Apparently, it's not the same in the Netherlands. It made me smile to receive an outsiders perspective on this particular subject. Chatting about government vs. private ownership of transit, America's energy ("If you initiate it, it will happen"), American's tolerance of diversity (more so than in the Netherlands), and so on made the time pass quickly. After Hubert started snoring (he says "I never sleep on planes"), I moved to a few open seats behind me and attempted sleep myself. I drifted in and out, but didn't have much luck, so I passed the rest of the flight reading about my new temporary home and writing in my new journal.
After landing in Amsterdam, Hubert wished me good luck, and I was on my way to my next gate. I landed around 7:15 AM local time, which was 1:15 AM for me, so this part of the trip is a bit hazy. At home I checked my two large suitcases, so all I had to carry was my camping-like backpack, laptop case, and drawstring bag with my essentials (passport, travelers cheques, wallet, lip gloss--haha, dad). With the distance I had to walk to get to my next gate, that backpack got REAL heavy and I probably sweated out everything I ate and drank the previous night. The Amsterdam airport is enormous and very nice. Mostly everything is in English, so it was easy to find my gate and to grab a cup of coffee and food. I settled down on a comfortable chair for my 5 hour layover, purchased unlimited internet, and continued to book my bus ticket to Badajoz. There are so many different accommodations at that airport, and I'm thank for it because I was not only able to buy my bus ticket, but I printed my ticket, my hotel reservations, as well as e-mailed my teachers, and even Skyped Mom--she seemed pretty psyched :)
Here, I met another guy--this one was stuck in layover purgatory. He was on his way back from his hometown in Nigeria after visiting his mom, but flights were changed and canceled and he had to wait 3 more hours for his flight back home to Germany. He must have had the urge to chat, because he immediately engaged me in conversation over the laptop bar. He labeled himself a "sci fi guy" and enjoyed talking about American TV shows, his favorite being (and I quote) "Doctor House." As he says, "Oh that Doctor House is just so funny, soo sarcastic...." and with that jumped to CSI: Miami, CSI: Vegas, NCIS, Smallville.... After hearing about difficulties he has about getting a Visa to visit family in Nigeria, my experience doesn't even compare. I'm glad I live in America.I passed these lovely things on my way to my gate. Must be something in the water.... On my way to my gate, I must have passed a soccer team, or something of this sort heading for Madrid. All I can say is, after I'm done in Badajoz, I'm going straight to Madrid to watch a match; I might be in love! I boarded a much smaller plane for my two and a half hour flight to Lisbon. Everybody spoke Portuguese on the flight, and flight attendants repeated information in English afterward. Again, the flight was fairly empty, so I raised the armrests of the two seats next to me, lay flat on my face, and passed out until the crew began preparations for landing. Portugal is a beautiful country! Watching it from above in a plane is such a treat--everything is so green, you can see all the towns and villages, and the cities and beaches on the water. Here's the obligatory photo from the plane:

On the flight, there was a family that was talking in a way that was so animated, it gave me an idea to how the people of Portugal might be. I sure hoped so, and with that I hopped off the plan and on to the tarmac in Lisboa :)

Day 2

Part I: Whew. The past few days have been not so much busy, but very tiring. So to update, let's jump back to last week.

Friday: My last day at work. Received a few kind words from coworkers and managers and grabbed a few beers with everyone afterward. I'm pretty sure Masa covered my whole tab, although he was only there a few minutes to say goodbye, so a public thank you to him :)

Saturday: Met up with Jorge for coffee. As a going away present, he gave me a Moleskine journal, personalized with some pretty amazing quotes inside. Continued to chat with him and take copious notes on anything/everything about Spain. He's such a wealth of information and it meant a lot that I got to catch up with him. That night, my awesome big brother Robbie threw a going away party. The snow tried to foil our plans, but my closest friends were still able to come <3 It was a great weekend :)
Sunday: Mom and Dad took me out to dinner to Carrabba's. Just like a million other nights, we sat at the bar and had an awesome time. As much as my dad and I like to make fun of Mom for being "typical, worrisome Mom," she was for the most part, cool and calm. I'm not a mom, so I don't know how it feels to watch your youngest child fly half way across the globe for the first time by herself.....but I can't imagine it being an easy ordeal. And as for my parents, it was never about allowing me to go to Spain--I think as soon as I told them, they KNEW I would. I'm wonderfully amazed at how gracefully they let me go, and I hold on to this very dearly.
Still not completely packed, Bianca and Courtney came over. We sat around the kitchen table over bowls of Cookies'n Cream ice cream chatting. Later, the three of us fell asleep each leaning on the other--I wish there was someone there to take a picture. What an ideal last night at home!

Monday: Ran last minute errands and raced to finish packing. Hymie and Giancarlo visited me for a few minutes before it was time to leave. My boys <3

Ya llegue!

Buenas noches!

I finally made it to Badajoz, Spain this afternoon. The bus ride was much quicker than I thought it would be and only four other people were on the bus (I guess it's not the tourist hot spot I thought it'd be, ha...) Anyways, I met Belen (one of my teachers I'll be working with) who took me out to lunch, and also my three roommates: Sandra, Sarah, and Sandra. Try saying that in Spanish three times fast ;) I have an introductory CD-ROM to look over, lots of maps and tourist guides to study (thanks to Belen), and some more unpacking to do, so an update will come later.

Oh yeah--thanks for following and commenting, mom!!

(By the way Dad....I'M THE FIRST IN SPAIN! *reaches my hands out towards the front of the bus* =P)

First Post!

Hello all! I'm sitting in the middle of a disaster area, aka my bedroom, trying to pack for Spain. I figured keeping an updated blog would be an easier way to communicate to friends and family back home while I'm away, so here it is!
I'm set to leave Monday at 6 PM to fly into Amsterdam, and from there to Lisbon. I'll spend one night in a hostel, then ride a bus to my final destination on Wednesday morning. I'm excited and a little nervous, but the people I've been in contact with in Spain have said the same thing: it will all work out. And so it shall.

Badajoz, here I come :)