Hiking in the Sierra Nevada

So, although I have not been feeling completely settled here in Granada, I decided that I needed to go on an adventure.  I also knew that I wanted this adventure to be hiking in the Sierra Nevada Mountains before it got too cold to do so.  So, after reviewing the Lonely Planet guidebook and surfing the web, I found the trail I wanted to go on.  It was called Los Cahorros and was located outside of a tiny pueblo called Monachil.  It was described as having a suspension bridge, waterfalls, vast gorges, tunnels, ledges… need I say more? I was so excited! I got Abby, Ralph, and Annie to come with and on Saturday (the 16th) we headed to the ambiguous place in Granada where the bus was supposed to come.  Well, turns out the internet was a little outdated and not very specific, so we missed the first bus, but after asking around we found the place where we needed to take the bus.  The bus came every hour (for the first part of the day) so we went and got some bocadillos (sandwiches) and snacks for the hike. When we got on the bus, it was such a beautiful ride! We went through all these quaint and beautiful mountain pueblos before arriving in Monachil at the very last stop.  (It was only about a 15 minute ride.)   There was a café right where we got off so Ralph and Abby wanted some coffee before we headed out so we rested and enjoyed the scenery for a little while.  Abby decided she was hungry too, so she ordered the migas, but explained that she does not eat meat, so could she get it without meat, and the waitress explained that it was made without meat and then the meat was added in later, so when Abby ordered the migas without meat, she expected it to be without meat.  You would think, right?  Well, NO, that is not how many people think in Spain.  The migas, which are different from Mexican migas (they are actually more like seasoned breadcrumbs with little bits of ham in it), came with meat it in.  After asking the waitress why, because we had clearly stated that Abby did not eat meat, the waitress explained that Abby could just pick out the pieces of meat if she wanted.  This would never happen in vegetarian friendly Austin, TX.  And although I felt badly for Abby, because not she was still hungry, I also found it humorous how the Spanish think about vegetarianism.  Anyway, after this, we got directions from this very helpful woman also at the café and headed out on our adventure.  To get the trail head was up a very steep hill that walked by several houses in the mountains with great views and their own personal farms (always equipped with several horses) until finally arriving at the main trail.  We found it funny that while walking up these very sketchy roads with only a few farm houses on the side, at the top of the mountain there were not one, but THREE bars/cafes! Oh Spain, you make me laugh.  Always offering a cold beer for you mountain people, and the hikers I suppose.  After hiking up the very steep trail, we finally got to the notorious suspension bridge.  There was a giant sign explaining that it was very dangerous to have more than 4 people on the bridge, and no funny business should go down on the bridge.  Honestly, the bridge wasn't as scary as I thought it was going to be, but yes, it was over a gorge with a few little waterfalls on the side, and it did shake a LOT when walking across, but we all successfully made it.  Other fun events on the trail, the tunnel, and the ledges.  There were little metal bars on the side of the rock where you could put your hands to hold yourself from falling down below (although it was only about an 8 foot drop, but it was in to a creek with cold mountain water!) which was fun, and some of the ledges we had to squat to go under the rock protruding from the walls, crawl on our hands and knees, and also, my personal favorite, the butt slide (basically sitting with our feet dangling and sliding along our bums to a place where we could finally stand).  It was a really fun adventure.  The landscape went from beautiful trees, to creeks and tunnels, gorges, to deserty type mountains (where I picked fresh rosemary to take home!).  I had so much fun! It was actually quite hot in the sun, although cool in the shade.  We passed a lot of people rock climbing, which looked terrifying, but probably really fun if you are brave enough for that… When we headed back from our hike, we stopped in town to grab a drink and people watch.  There was SOMETHIN goin on in Monachil.  Everyone was on their horse riding around with their straight brimmed hats and their colored sashes on.  I'm not sure what the occasion, but there was a tent set up in the town center with a lot of people cheering and all of the local police were having fun "patrolling" the madness.  (Note: that was sarcasm. The town was too small to have madness, but I'm sure this may have been one of the main events of the year judging on their behavior.)  When we headed back to the bus stop around 9 p.m. for the last bus back to Granada for the day,  it was right next to the café we had gone to earlier.  It was packed and surrounding the edge of the café was everyone on their horse just having casual conversations with other horse riders or café goers. It was so funny.  I had sooo much fun and hope that I can go on other hiking adventures soon! (Although snow has been sighted on top of some of the mountains this week)  If not soon, then maybe in April or May.  I know I have been terrible about keeping up with my blog lately, but I still do not have internet, although I think I will get it this week (even though I know I have been saying that every week since I have been here).  Hope all is well with everyone! Missing you big time!

Alfacar - My School

My first day of work was October 1, which was a Friday, and was supposed to be solely a day of introductions, although I ended up working all day.  I did not have time before this day to scope out the bus situation, but I found the bus stop ok and successfully got to Alfacar.  When I got there I went in to a bar to ask where the school was and got directions.  Alfacar is a mountain pueblo so all the roads are VERY steep.  My school is actually at the top of seriously one of the steepest inclines I have ever had to walk.  Morning workout every day I suppose?  When I arrived amongst the mob of children, the first person I asked for was the person I was looking for, my director.  His name is Miguel Angel (Michael Angelo in English is what he says haha) and he is so friendly and helpful.  His English is not very good so we talk in Spanglish, or at least did that day, and now it is predominantly Spanish.  My bilingual coordinator is named Amaia, and is very nice as well, and her English is pretty good, I just need to talk slow for her.  Miguel Angel was so friendly that he said that everyone at the school is my new family and he is my "papa" and the vice principal is my "mama" and everyone else is my "hermana" (sister).  I like pretty much everyone that I work with so far, which is good.  All of the teachers are female, except the speech teacher.  The first day I did a lot of sitting around and watching everything go on, but it was a lot to take in.  I didn't end up getting my official schedule until later in the second week.  There are two school campuses.  The main campus is ages 6-12 (grades 1-6) and the infantil campus is ages 3-5 (preschool & K).  I go to infantil on Mondays which is about a 10 minute walk from the other school. I love the kids! They are so cute!  I was so overwhelmed the first day when visiting though because it was recess and all of the kids were running around screaming.  I was literally dodging rocks and sand and could not hear anything except the high pitched squeals of the children.  They were running around crazy crashing in to me and the other teachers and choking and wrestling with each other.  I could not help but think that that would NEVER fly in the US.  It was quite the battlefield.  The kids here in Spain do not have quite the same fear/respect like in the United States.  For example, if a teacher in the US said "I am going to stand here until you guys are quiet" and proceeded to do so giving the stank eye, the kids would eventually sit down and be quiet (in most cases), but here, the kids are just like "Oh really, sweet! I'm just gonna keep talking then!" and completely ignore the teacher's evil glares.   It is quite different here trying to find a way to get the kids to pay attention, but it is a work in progress to learn I guess…  Anyway, the first day, one of the teachers invited me to coffee later on in the day in Granada, so I went and met the girl that had my position last year, Elizabeth.  She is from St. Louis I believe and is really nice.  It is so funny that everyone here thinks that just because we are both from America we must know each other and they think it is weird that we don't live together.  I can't know every American! Anyway, it was good to meet her, and we went up to this amazing little café in the Albycin area where they serve teas, smoothies, fresh juices, coffee, etc.  It had an amazing view of all of Granada and the Alhambra and it was good to talk to Elizabeth to hear her experience in my school last year and get some Spanish practice in with the others.  Today, I went to lunch with my coworkers in Alfacar, as they do every Monday.  It is a set price that includes a drink, an appetizer, an entrée, and a dessert. It is one of the ONLY restaurants in Alfacar, but it is very good.  The menu is only verbal though, which is rough for me because I pretty much had no idea what I was ordering.  It was good to have Spanish practice again today, and Elizabeth came to this lunch as well.  So, I think this year in the school will be a good learning experience in dealing with children in various ways, and learning about the Spanish educational system.  So far, I have not made any lesson plans but we will see as time passes.  Oh, and also, I get rides to school on Mondays, and home on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursdays from this teacher at my school Rosario because she lives very close to me.  She is very nice and speaks slowly and tries to help me understand, which Elizabeth says was one of her main ways she learned Spanish.  It is also nice not to have to take the bus every time.  Well, all in all, that is my school experience so far in Alfacar!

Arrival in Granada + Piso Hunting

Well, it is about time that I sit down and write about this very long and exciting week that I have had.  I arrived in Granada last Saturday (26th) by train.  It was getting on to the train that I discovered just how much I had packed.  Oh lordy,  I packed way too much! It was crazy trying to get my 3 suitcases in to the overhead bins, and even worse trying to get them OFF the train! It was such a relief to get to the hotel and put everything down! On the train there were 3 boys and 3 girls (including me) going to the hotel from Sevilla.  The girl room was so small! It was just three tiny beds smushed together, and then with all of our bags it was basically a storage closet! I shared the room with Annie and Jeanette.  The boys room was gigantic and had 4 beds, and one of them was a double bed! They had so much space… and a better internet connection! The boys were Peter, Alex, and Palmer.  As soon as we arrived to the hotel, Palmer left and I haven't seen him since, but I have seen everyone else pretty frequently.  First things first, we tried to make appointments from the postings online.  Annie already had an appointment that she had made earlier and so Jeanette and I decided to go with her, especially since the man was coming to pick us up at the hotel in his car.  We did not want her to go alone.  The people here in Andalucía are so nice! It is a little nerve racking, because my immediate reaction is HELL NO I am not going anywhere with someone I don't know! And that is still a good thing to keep in mind, but it is just different here.  Well, the man picked us up and was so patient with our limited Spanish skills and took us to this apartment with an AMAZING view of the Sierra Nevada.  Annie told him what school she was going to be working at and he did not know where it was so he pulled over and asked at least 4 different groups of people before he found someone that did know where it was, and then he drove us by it.  He was so nice! He was willing to find out where all of our schools were, but Jeanette and I work outside of town, so then he wanted to help us find our bus stops.  It was a great first apartment looking experience, and good practice for asking all of the questions we would need to ask over the next few days.  After he dropped us back at the apartment, we fiddled on the internet a little bit more but then went out to find some food with Peter and Alex.  We had some yummy food and drinks and tried to orient ourselves in the city.  As we were walking back to the hotel, we hear some music and followed the sound.  We ended up in this open area near the cathedral where there was a concert going on and people we salsa dancing and having such a good time! I knew then that this was a really good place to be.  I already felt so much more at home in this city than in Sevilla.  The next day we began the difficult piso looking process. 

Fast forward a few days, and I was the last person to find a piso.  I decided on this wonderful piso that was in this beautiful area with a huge terrace with beautiful vines, a big open area with tennis courts and a pool, and a spacious and new apartment.  I lived with a guy Javi, who was a bit older, but was so friendly so I didn't think much of it.  The 23 year old pharmacy student was supposed to move in in a few days.  Anyway, I talk about this piso in the past tense because it didn't end up being what I thought it was going to be.  Turns out that Javi smokes inside, which is a big problem for me, and I felt trapped in my room.  Also, he kept putting me down every time I would have friends over and tell them, no matter how many times I had them over, that I didn't not understand or speak any Spanish.  This really got to me because I am trying so hard, and I know that all my friends are better than me at Spanish, but they have more experience! Also, Javi talks really fast and has an impossible accent!  Anyway, in addition to that, he also would make inappropriate jokes that I would not always catch on to until later because of my lack of Spanish skills, which upset me greatly when I figured out what he was saying.  He would always talk about little things that had to be a certain way, and I did not feel like it was MY home too, only his, where I was a guest.  So, I started the piso looking process again after about 2 weeks of living there, and found another one that I moved in to last Wednesday  night.  Javi will not give me back my deposit, which I did not understand until today when I had my coworker call him and figure out what he wanted because on the phone he has been super aggressive and demands that I come to his house to talk, which I will of course not do, because if he is not even willing to walk outside his front door, then something is off about that.  I'm sure he is upset that I left, but I couldn't take it anymore! My coworker got him to agree to come outside and meet me tonight, so hopefully all goes well giving back the keys, although I am nervous.  My new piso is pretty close to the old one, so I can still go to my gym, and I am literally 2 minutes from Abby's place.  The walk to my bus stop is about 5 minutes closer, and my rent is 40 euros less!  I live with a Spanish girl Mari who is doing her residency for social education… I think this might be social work? I am not sure yet.  She is more my age and very helpful and friendly so I am feeling so much more comfortable here so far, although it has only been 4 days.  Right downstairs from me is the best pizza place in Granada, and some say the world, but I'm not sure about that yet, although it is amazing and I already want to be a regular there.  The staff is so friendly and attentive, which is something that is rare here in Spain.  Anyway, although I am  stressed about now being poor and having to meet Javi tonight, I am very satisfied with my new place and think that I will stay here for the remainder of my stay here in Granada… which who knows when that will end… I LOVE IT HERE!!!