Glory-Ah

I have to tell you about Gloria, because she warrants acknowledgment. Gloria is my second local host while I'm in language school. The first woman was....well....more of a chimney with a rhaspy voice. Needless to say that I was literally unable to stay in her home due to the amount of smoke it contained - so I requested a new home and that's how I met Gloria. She is (also) a widow who lives in Barrio (neighborhood) Sant Gervasi.....a really lovely part of Barcelona just near the foothills where there is 'more money'. My room in her home is spacious and has a HUGE window that opens completely to the view of Tibidabo (look it up!). She lives on the top floor so I have a little ledge outside my window that I sit on and eat sliced apples. Gloria call me "mija" (sweet daughter) and doesn't speak a lick of English - so we communicate in my broken Spanish- quite well I might add. A typical day with Gloria:
I wake up around 7AM, push my bed aside and do some asana yoga. I take a quick (30 seconds) rinse in a cool shower and get dressed. Gloria knocks on my door, "Mija, dessayuno!" Breakfast is ready. I walk out the the veranda covered in Gardenias and Geraniums to my breakfast of bacon, eggs, tea and toast. Before I'm finished she hands me a baggie with a sandwich and an apple to take to school with me. We exchange the typical kiss kiss on each cheek before I head out the door to school at 8:30. When I return from school I change into exercise clothes and head out for two hours of walking, running, hiking, stair climbing around the city - there's always somehwere new to go and ALL of it is SO beautiful. I return home and take a shower. When I come back into my room wrapped in my towel there is a plate of freshly sliced fruit on the table! Oh, Gloria.....you're an angel! Oh, she also makes my bed, sweeps the floor, empties the garbage and washes (and irons!) my clothes. All she's 'contracted' to do is feed me breakfast and dinner and provide a clean bed. Gloria rocks! Aside from the royal treatment that she bestows upon me she is also a delight to speak with and to watch. She has this way of moving around the house in her little 5'3" frame with oversized sunglasses on her face, ipod in her ears, cloth band around her head and big smile on her face. She's really fabulous.

I'll be moving out of Gloria's nest on Sunday, off to the big world of a rented flat (apartment) and foreign roommates :) The adventure continues in every way. I'll miss the area of BCN that I'm in now, mostly because it's mas tranquilo (more peaceful) than central bcn. However, I've enjoyed every part of the city so far - I"m just so happy to be here that little else matters....too much!

Beware of pickpockets! They're everywhere - seriously. I've watched it go down, stopped it from happening (with great struggle since they work in packs and you never really know who's all in on it) and have friends who have lost everything: cell phone, wallet, even the clothes from their bags and apartments. I bought a shoulder purse specifically so I could keep my things under my arm and I am ALWAYS aware....especially on the metro and in Placa Catalunya. (The main plaza) You can feel them watching you. They're like a pack of dogs - and the police care very little about it.

I spent a lot of last week with a gay couple from Germany that I met in language school, Tomek and Tholsten. They come to Barcelona often (apparently it's the Gay Capitol of Europe - why did nobody tell me before?) and know all of the fabulous places to eat. Tomek is a gregarious Aquarius who talks enough for the country and Tholsten is a quiet, observant sweet heart. Together they have an odd balance of qualities that somehow meet in the middle with an endearing affection. Our last night together was spean in their apartment drinking Polish Vodka with apple juice - apparently a specialty of Tomeks homeland. I had one drink (very tasty) and then ducked out before they poured me another - I'm not used to this lifestyle! I miss their company but appreciate the absence of their habits - TONS of Tapas and Servesas.

I found a local boy to practice Spanish with. I'll teach him ENglish and he'll teach me Spanish. We found eachother on a language exchange website. This is probably the best way to learn outside of grammar school. Conversational Spanish is what I really need to pick up on. My head is spinning with all of the rules for irregular verbs and present participle conjugations. We're meeting tomorrow for the first time - I'll let you know how it goes!

More to come :)

Traveling

Now it's true that I don't always remember to do it...but when I do, when I really and sincerely give my attention to visualizing my day (in the morning) I am rarely (if ever) disappointed.
Today is a full moon - August 16th 2008 - the day I fly to Barcelona! I woke up this morning and visualized my entire day unfolding step by step. I imagined everything the way I wanted it - with particular attention on the airports:
I'm checking 7 bags onto the plane - and that's a lot to deal with between car and ticket counter. They don't even all fit on one of those luggage carts! When my mom and I pulled up to the drop-off spot we were temporarily blocked by a van and couldn't see the sidewalk - I decided to pull in front of the van and magically a man was standing there with a HUGE baggage cart. He was all alone, no one else asking for his service and he was right next to my car! It was too perfect. It turns out he's also an angel! He grabs ALL of my bags out of the car, loads them on his cart, wheels them to the check out counter, and introduces me to Edward, another angel. While Edward was working with ways to save me from the enormous extra baggage (and extra weight) fees, the other wonderful man (sadly, I forgot his name) was already wheeling my ticketed bags over to the x-ray machine. (They don't just go behind the counter like I'm used to!) So I never had to lift, carry, move or even wonder about what to do with all my bags...it was all taken care of from the moment I arrived with personal attention. And to boot....Edward saved me $200 off of my baggage fees!! AND this is one of those wonderful little things.....this is EXACTLY what I visualized! I didn't specify the amount I would save but I did see myself getting a discount on the bags and a wonderful person helping me with all of the extra stuff I had. So cool!
So, now I'm in the stage of my visualized and magical day where I've got an hour to just sit and relax in the ariport, send some emails, eat a snack, drink water etc. I've got a great seat in front of HUGE windows overlooking the runway. It's a beautiful day, the airport is not crowded and everything is running on time :)
I'm hoping to sit next to a wonderful person on the plane - and I'm also hoping to catch a snooze! I'll be arriving in Dublin a little after midnight (East Coast time) and then catching a plane to BCN about an hour ofter that!
I don't have a cell phone anymore so save your calls! I'll get one once in Europe but it's probably best to just send emails!

More to come, much, much more!

The Final Countdown

Well, I've done everything I wanted to do when I set out from California in April. I've given my dogs plently of time to adjust to their new home, I 've spent (much needed and much wanted) time with my family, I've packed all of my stuff into mom's attic (save for the few boxes of deisgn and practical 'living' things) I've got my Visa for Spain, a plane ticket, a place to land, a school with fellow artists excitedly awaiting September 3rd and the incredible support from my friends and my mom - that means so much to me. The only other thing on the list of intentions before leaving was to win the lottery jackpot - haven' scratched that one off yet but as will all things, in good time!

I'm flying out on the 16th of August on Aer Lingus. We'll have a brief stop in Dublin before continuing on to Barcelona - arriving in the late morning on the 17th. Anna Lucia (my host family) will pick me up and bring me to her home where I'll stay for two weeks while immersed in an intensive Spanish Language course. Come September 1st I'm moving into a flat with two other female students on the outskirts of the city in L'Hospitalet de Llobregat. From the maps I have it looks like I may even be able to walk to school, which would be wonderful. If not, there is an easy metro rail to the location :)

I'm over-the-moon excited! I've been emailing with fellow students over the past week after the school gave out the official list. All of us are giddy with joy and bubbling with anticipation - really looking forward to sharing with other artists practicing in various mediums. The list of 21 all-year students covers the globe. There is a man from Kazakstan, a few people from the UK, Holland, Iceland, Poland, Israel, China, Korea, Australia, France, Virgin Islands, Sweeden, Germany, Turkey, Canada and the USA (3). The average age is 24 so I'm one of the 'older' ones but not THE oldest. I'm glad, that will hep me stay focused on building my portfolio, interacting with others outside of school - which will help with my other goal of mastering Spanish. That said, I'm also looking forward to the young, vibrant, enthusiasm and spontaneity of my classmates.

Alright, keep checking in - no doubt this thread will grow more interesting as the days go by :)
Thank you for your incredible support and continued love.