Spanglish Style Fiesta

Last Friday night I indulged in my first of I’m sure to be many late night fiestas in Cadiz. Now that I’ve decided to stay in the piso with the guys and everyone is situated, my roommate thought it would be an excellent idea to have a little dinner and botellon (bring your own bottle) at our place. The typical gang of Ubriqueño and Gaditano boys showed up for a delicious improvised dinner by my very own cocinero roomie. I was told to invite whoever I wanted so I threw the idea out there to a few of the other teacher assistants as I’m sure they are all aching to meet people and practice their Spanish  - not everyone can be as lucky as me to live with the coolest dudes and get to speak Spanish all day long!  Bueno, before I knew it our piso was filled with representatives from Spain, the US, England, Scotland, Ireland….. and it was excellent. (*Sidenote: I was about to say it was awesome however, as one of the only Americans, I get made fun of quite frequently for overusing that word so I’m trying to cut back.)There was a solid mix of Spanish and English and Espanglish going on and I was proud of everyone for stepping out of their comfort zones and practicing their language skills. Furthermore, it was a great kickoff to the school year and new beginnings.

Anyway, the night progressed from the botellon to the bar and then to the beach and then to the streets again and then to the discoteca until we all stumbled home around the time the sun was coming up. The boys even went for breakfast and coffee around 7am before staggering in. Needless to say I didn’t make it to breakfast. Also, my bed was my very best friend the next day. First fiesta was a success, but it’s going to take me awhile to readjust to Spanish nightlife….. la gente esta muy loca.

OTHER RECENT HAPPENINGS......

Our fridge broke 4 days ago and we had to throw out a lot of stinky comida but we just got a brand spankin’ new one today! Now to fill it up again…

My new bicycle is really sweet and I can’t wait to ride it all over Cadiz but it took a lot of time and sweat and grease and dedication from my boys to help figure out how to fit the maldita thing in the elevator. It’s enormous and heavy and I live on the 3^rd floor, which of course in Europe is actually the 4^th floor. Also, my culo hurts after just one day, but I will totally adjust.

Luca, the parrot that lives downstairs, is super intelligent and funny as hell.

I’ve thoroughly enjoyed watching a reality singing competition (La Voz), a hilarious sitcom (La que se avecina), an emotional talk show (Hay algo que te quiero decir) and a terrible, pathetic, MTV- post-music-era, totally fake reality show (Quien quiere casarse con mi hijo?). And, of course Spanish game shows and football matches are also viewed on a regular basis.

It is, in fact, still hot and sunny. Today is October 10. It’s 80 degrees Fahrenheit. Yesterday it reached 91. I have a better tan now than I did all summer.

Sunsets are incredible every night, but today I realized how beautiful the sunrise is here too. Cadiz is literally surrounded by ocean and every view is a good view.

I’ve been reminded of how many holidays there are in this country where I don’t have to go into school. Exhibit A: Monday and Friday free = 3 day work week AKA two consecutive long weekends. Score.


That's all for now! I'm having fun in the sun but missing my beautiful WNY autumn and of course my gente back home. Xx