Wednesday, September 24, 2008

Espana de Nuevo


The Crew from Pequeno Saltemontes, our favorite local spot.. we pretty much meet there every night of the weekend--these guys are fabulous!


So that would be me--dancing at the feria.. There are little "Casetas" set up--much like rodeo tents, where you dance (not s much eat) and this is the Tomate Caseta!I think it is like 9 at night, which is "perfect Tomate time" as we were told by the veterans!


Another picture of the crew.. wonderful, beautiful, fun people.. such a blessing to share this experience with them.. of coure they have all been a part of the feria since infancy, so we had a lot to learn and had to work double hard to hang with their no-stop, keep going hours!


And this is "the hair." The bottle is slightly visible in this one to give you a better picture of what is goin on up there... also.. please focus your attention on everyone BESIDES me, whose eyes are fixated on this creation in wonder and amusement (and maybe a bit of confusion!)


Audz and I -- good times out for Tapas after a week of recovery from the feria!


Soo... this is Audz and I at the feria. It is like 3 in the morning, and I am wearing sunglasses because I had put a bottle in my hair so that it stood up like Marge Simpson or a conehead, and no one in Linares had ever seen anything like it... they were flipping out, so as part of the "costume" I wore my sunglasses to save face a little! haha... as I was walking around people would stop me and ask to take pictures with "Amy Winhouse!" haha... so funny.. Audz played security and would slap people's hands when they tried to touch my hair! good times...


Audz and I out one day in Linares... oh to have nothing to do!


I ride motos! haha...


Surfin Es-pa-na! (to the tune of "Surfin USA") haha... Hang 10, dude! SOOOOO much fun--I'm hooked!

Hey Hey Hey! Well, for those of you that do not know, I was in Colorado this past summer, when my friend Audrey called to inform me that she was applying for grad school in Granada. She followed this announcement with the brilliant news that it would be necessary for her to go there to get/turn in various documents, and invited me along for the two-week tour. I hopped on the opportunity and booked the ticket the following day. THe truth is, I have missed Spain and Spanish since the day I abruptly left, and coming back for a final and proper good-bye seemed like the perfect remedy to my fixation on Spain.

It just so happened that the week we were coming back to the small southern town of Linares, would be their town feria. I must admit, I did not know what to expect, but I could have never imagined something so grand from this little city. The entire town was transformed (and closed) and no one worked for 5 days; they just went to the feria! I guess the best way I could describe it is a Houston Rodeo with everyone you know that NEVER closes and people just gather and dance from 4 pm til 8 am and do it again the next day and the next and the next until the final curtain is drawn and people must return to the non-feria life again. But dont you worry--for about 2 days after the feria, pretty much everything was still closed because "people needed to recover and rest!" haha... I love this culture. People just close their shops for a month to go on vacation or because they are tired. It is both equally frustrating and beautiful!

Besides that, I went surfing last weekend and spent a wonderful 5 day vacation from my vacation on the beach. It is amazing how one can fill their time when there is really nothing that needs to be done! To continue the story... 2 weeks quickly turned into 6, and now after 5 weeks, with my plane scheduled back to the USA on the 8th, I am planning on returning here to work in Granada this coming year. Nothing is final yet, but Audrey and I have been looking for a flat and I have been contacting various people about work, so we shall see! Well, it has been quite an adventure, but I wouldn't want to go about life any other way. Sorry it has been so long since I have written, but I just fall out of habit with things like this and need a good kick to get back in... and this time the kick came from within Mrs. Roxanne Bradford's tummy with the announcement of a coming Little One on May 8th! Congrats, guys... please keep them in your prayers! Love you all and God Bless... *britt