Tuesday, December 22, 2009

Best Tortilla. It's official.

I am pretty sure I already mentioned this, but in case I didn't: In my cooking class abroad, my group won best tortilla (egg omelette) in our competition. All three of us won aprons.

Well, I just came across this today (googling myself). It was published on the Gastronomic society's website!

http://www.gastronomica.com/index.php?id=81&tx_ttnews[tt_news]=393&tx_ttnews[backPid;_ylc=X3oDMTVndHBoZHUxBF9TAzIwMjMxNTI3MDIEYXBwaWQDc1k3Wlo2clYzNEhSZm5ZdGVmcmkzRUx4VG5makpERG5QOWVKV1NGSkJHcTJ1V1dFa0xVdm5IYnNBeUNyVkd5Y2REVElUX2tlBGNsaWVudANib3NzBHNlcnZpY2UDQk9TUwRzbGsDdGl0bGUEc3JjcHZpZAN1MEREbzJLSWNycWtmaUt6WGk2NkdhaWVXODV4ZzBzeEpoTUFCbVdp]=82&cHash=566c683e28;_ylc=X3oDMTVndHBoZHUxBF9TAzIwMjMxNTI3MDIEYXBwaWQDc1k3Wlo2clYzNEhSZm5ZdGVmcmkzRUx4VG5makpERG5QOWVKV1NGSkJHcTJ1V1dFa0xVdm5IYnNBeUNyVkd5Y2REVElUX2tlBGNsaWVudANib3NzBHNlcnZpY2UDQk9TUwRzbGsDdGl0bGUEc3JjcHZpZAN1MEREbzJLSWNycWtmaUt6WGk2NkdhaWVXODV4ZzBzeEpoTUFCbVdp


Sorry, that link is enormously long.

Anywho, it's in Spanish, and a little basque. And now that I am reading it, it is a bit insulting to the losers!

El Jurado encargado de valorar las tortillas de patatas del concurso de cocina, fue este año muy exigente e hizo remarcar que la tonica general ha sido en la presente edición algo más floja que la del año pasado. Algunos se olvidaron de la sal, sin duda preocupados por la hipertensión y algún otro, pensando que se le quedaba la ración un poco corta, añadió mas patatas a media cocción dandose la curiosidad que dependiendo de que lado probaras la tortilla, las patatas estaban más o menos hechas.

Empate a puntos entre la 2ª y 3ª clasificada y la ganadora fué la preparada por Cassi Gabiola, Alex Irelan y Melissa Weinmann. Zorionak.

Rough Translation:

Basically they say that some omelettes were too small, some lacked salt, some were undercooked (the potatoes were hard) and the jury had to bend the rules as to what makes the omelette perfect, since not everyone did the traditional recipe.

Then they say that Alex, Cassi and I won for first place (we were in one group). What it doesn't say is that ours was a chorizo, onion, garlic, and potato omelette and it was AWESOME.


Zoroniak means congratulations.


There are also pictures in the gallery to see.

I would like to know where our picture went of us and our aprons standing by the cooking class people. That would be awesome.

EDIT, Nov. 2011:
I found the photos from a study abroad friend on Facebook, Rosanne.
The above photo is Me, Cassi and Alex (in the blue aprons) surrounded by the gastronomic society (green ribbons) and our program director, Patricia (all black).

The above photo is myself and two other students (I am in the lighter jeans) with our certificates of completion for the course.

Thursday, November 12, 2009

But I DID find what I was looking for!

When I was in Spain, I heard several times the song "I still haven't found what I'm looking for" by the band U2...only it was in Spanish.

I looked online a hundred times for this version of Bono singing Spanish to no avail.

Then I searched today, and found the exact translation of the title (TODAVIA NO ENCONTRE LO QUE ESTOY BUSCANDO) and alas! I found it on Youtube.

I first heard it on the busride to Barcelona, and I was humming along until I realized the lyrics were in Spanish. I really wanted that version.

Well, I thought it was U2 performing it on the bus radio, but it was actually a band called "Airbag" that covered it. But, it was a noisy bus and the instrumental aspect of the song sounded the same, so SUE me if I thought the following was performed by U2.





Ahh. I am SO glad I FINALLY FOUND THISSSS!

Tuesday, October 20, 2009

More International Music

When we were in the streets of Burgos, we came across this insane accordian and xylophone player.

I wish I had a longer clip, but my friends were embarrassed that I was taking video.

Random trivia: After I stopped the camera, there was an unrelated gunshot sound in the plaza that scared us all to death. It ended up being a firework.

Another random trivia tidbit: The same thing happened on our Madrid tour, with the whole fireworks/gunshot thing. Apparently Spaniards like setting them off in public places.



Sunday, September 20, 2009

A few select pictures

Our school recently had a Study Abroad picture contest. There were four categories, which I cannot remember, and you could submit pictures to each one. There'd be a winner in each category and the prize was $50. You could only win one category at most.

So I compiled a ton of pictures from my study abroad experience, but I didn't enter the contest. Why? Because this semester is so unbelievably busy that it's ridiculous.

Here are some pictures I just love, some are repeats, but it's really the creme de la creme of the photos I have from my whole semester, which is a LOT.


A boy (or girl?) whistling to the tunes played during the parade on San Sebastian Day.


A child dressed as a leprechaun for the parade.


A group of girls in costume for the parade, banging barrels to the beat.


A young boy in a chef hat, blue and white (San Sebastian's colors) carrying a drum to play along with the La Tamborrada.


Overlooking the water in Lisboa, Portugal, from the castle entrance.


Raquel, Natalia and Ana sitting by the water in Barcelona.


Me and the lizard fountain in Parc Guell in Barcelona.


Cool rock archways in Parc Guell, Barcelona.


Weird Samurai man in Parc Guell, Barcelona. I watch him with a smile as he does some sword moves.


More kids from the parade from San Sebastian Day.


Entraince of Parc Guell, this man poses for pictures dressed as the famous lizard fountain.


Palm trees in a park in Barcelona


Obama's face...in a window of a sushi restaurant...in Barcelona...


Sleeping/laughing in the sun on the dock in Barcelona.


Raquel, Me and Ana in front of the water in Barcelona.


A view of Toledo, Spain as we drive towards it during the Madrid Tour.


The creek/river in Toledo as we drive over a bridge.


I just love how European I look right here, don't you? This is at Palacio Royal in Madrid.


View of Madrid as we drive from the airport to our hotel.


Raquel, Ana, Natalia and I scream as we are eaten by a shark in Barcelona


Fishies in the Aquarium in Lisboa, Portugal.


Interesting graffiti in Porto, Portugal.


Giant cider barrels in San Sebastian


View from the 2nd bridge with Ana, walking home one night from the bars.


Toledo? Ohio?! In Toledo, Spain.


Natalie, Me, May and Cassi in a garden in Sevilla.


The beautiful beach in Lagos (and the first time we saw great weather during spring break)


In the same garden as the previous group shot, in Sevilla, with May, Natalie, Mary Kate and myself.


View of Lisboa, Portugal from the castle rooftop.


Alex (or Mary Kate?), Natalie and Cassi in awe at Lisboa's aquarium.


Cassi, Becky, Megan and Annette walking in the fog on our 3 hour hike in Burgos.

I just love these pictures.

The pics from Toledo and Madrid are from the Madrid tour, the Barcelona pics are obviously from when we went to Barcelona over Valentine's day weekend, San Sebastian day was January 20th (some USAC students wore aprons for the celebration, but wrote "Obama" in big letters, too, as it was his inauguration that day), the Lagos, Sevilla, Porto and Lisboa pics are from Spring Break (Holy week) and Burgos pics are from the week after that, for our overnight trip with USAC.

Tuesday, September 15, 2009

EVEN MORE Videos!

Here are the rest of 'em!

Again, all are also viewable on youtube at youtube.com/missy8888

And may I remind you that sometimes the best part is at the end...so be sure to watch them all the way through.


Music at the Plaza de Espana in Sevilla:



Alex laughs for a LOOONG time. I don't even know why this happened, or how. Cameras capture the best moments.


May and Natalie comment on a fried, dead lizard they find on the streets of Sevilla.


Foodism: May explains her new religion: food. In Real Alcazar de Sevilla.


Labyrinth in Real Alcazar de Sevilla. Alex has the camera this time...


"Authentic" Flamenco in a Granada restaurant. There are quotes there b/c it's pretty touristy.


Go Johnny Go in Granada. El Mirador de San Nicolas in Granada, near our hostel, hosts some interesting people. Like hippies who play Chuck Berry.


Steel Drum in Barcelona. One of the many unique musicians encountered in Parc Guell in Barcelona.


In Parc Guell, these guys seemed to be playing all the hits of the 90s, including Champagne Supernova


At Parc Guell again, this time Fastball's Outta My Head


Lute Player in Parc Guell More music we came across in Barcelona


Si Fuera un chico in a durum restaurant in Barcelona: AKA Beyonce's "If I were a boy" but sang by her in SPANISH.


When life gives you lemons, make lemonade. Especially if those lemons are crazy street dancers in Barcelona, and making lemonade means taping them. On Las Ramblas in Barcelona, we encounter this man, performing for no audience but himself.



Universong (name of the band) on the streets of Barcelona. We are walking around this maze of old streets when we turn a corner and find this. SO COOL.


On the plane back to Santander from Barcelona, there was a leaky ceiling. Natalia tries to tell the story, but when they re-enact it (hence Ana's weak "achoo" at the beginning), they can't handle themselves


Natalia asks the question that she knows everyone will ask her when she gets back from Barcelona...and she's prepared to know why.


Santander airport needs better decor.


Teleporter AND Hand Dryer! Ana being weird in the bus station in Santander.


Megan shows us around the Sagardo Eguna, or cider fest, in Irun.



New, Not necessarily Bad... Alex comments on art in the Catedral de Burgos.

Monday, September 14, 2009

More Videos!

Here's some more from my youtube!

In Sevilla, the hooded people walk the streets in a somber procession to begin Semana Santa (Holy Week: The week of Easter)


A bit of info: They apparently won't let you purchase alcohol after a certain time during Semana Santa (or maybe just every day), but Alex did a little Spanish convincing and paid the guy in cash and he let her have a 40 of beer. I don't know whether or not that money he took went into the register...we were hiding from the security camera of the store so his boss wouldn't know. Oh well!


More to come!

VIDEOS!

So I uploaded a bunch of miscellaneous footage from my travels on youtube. These are unedited tidbits that I captured from everywhere I went. This includes Burgos, Barcelona, Sevilla, Granada, Porto, Lisboa, Lagos, and Irun.

Some of the footage you may recognize from the Spring Break and Barcelona videos. Some of it is new, though! And I am still making videos with all the footage I have, trust me.

They are all pretty short, under 2 min each. Check them all out either here or on my youtube page, which is http://www.youtube.com/missy8888.



A man, dressed as the Sandeman Wine logo guy, gives us an explaination of what Porto wine exactly is. From my Spring Break footage.



We went walking around Lisboa, Portugal, and took a tour of this castle. A man inside played music. Alex approaches to find a CD for a friend.



A sign warns against falling! In Lisboa, Portugal, in an outdoor castle



In our hostel in Lisboa, Portugal. Cassi has the camera. When she says "take two" she is referring to the previous botched attempt when she ran out of tape.


When in Lagos... But really, when in Lagos, Portugal, the girls (Alex, May, Cassi) decided to hop in a random dude's boat. Jordan later joined. The commenting in the background is Natalie, Tyler, Mike and Chris (who we met in the hostel, who are from Texas and studying abroad in Sevilla for the semester). We later caught up with those three boys when we moved on to Sevilla after Lagos.


At midnight on Easter morning, the bells rang out at the Catedral de Sevilla!







Wednesday, May 27, 2009

It ain't over till it's over...

As you may already know, I am home in the states.

But don't worry, I have more to post here. I have footage from my day trip to France, I have footage from my walk up the Jesus Mountain, and more pictures.

I also have stories about my trip home.

So, more to come.

Wednesday, May 13, 2009

Mission Accomplished.

I have a list of things that I needed to get done here in San Sebastian before I went home.

I accomplished a ton yesterday.

Weather.com failed me yet again, yet this time in a good way. When I checked on Monday, it said the weather for Monday would be sunny and nice, Tuesday would be rain rain rain, and Wednesday would be super sunny and warm.

Instead, it was SUPER nice on Monday, then later (luckily I was in for the day at this point) it was a HAIL STORM. Yes, it was bright and sunny, kids were eating ice cream, dogs playing in the park, then (while it was STILL SUNNY AND NICE), golf ball sized hail started raining down from the sky along with heavy rain, then there was lightening and thunder. It did this until early evening.

Tuesday was supposed to be terrible, then it ended up being 73 and sunny and cloudless. What!??! Everyone on facebook posted their statuses as "at the beach" "hanging at the playa" "sitting in the sand and soaking up the sun!" It was completely unexpected. To think San Sebastian has NICE weather? I dunno, it sure did surprise me.

And as of now, Wednesday is looking pretty nice too. There are clouds in the sky, but they are wispy and light. Other than that, it is sunny, and it is about 70 degrees.


Anywho, what I am trying to get at is that I got a ton of stuff done yesterday because of the unexpectedly nice weather.
I got to rollerblade around Jesus Mountain, which isn't really called that, but there IS a giant Jesus statue on top. I think it's actually called Mount Urgull or something.
I got to HIKE UP Jesus Mountain. It used to be some kind of fortress back in the 1800's and there are ruins all over the mountain of different stations. There are old cannons, withering stone walls, and lots and lots of greenery. It's also pretty touristy, which isn't what I was expecting. What I mean is not that it was crowded, but that there were signs pointing out what was in which direction, plaques describing what stuff was, and...
When I got to the top where Jesus was, I thought it would just be the statue and stuff. Instead it was a large lookout point with cannons, then some security guide summoned me into this building under the statue and it was a tourist center for the site! You could buy postcards, there was a mini museum of artifacts from San Sebastian, movies playing about the history of the area, posters, maps, etc etc. Up the stairs you could get to the top and see a panoramic lookout of the whole town. It was gorgeous.

After that I went to lunch at this restaurant I've been dying to go to (it was on THE LIST), called La Perla. It is right on the ocean, and there is a fancy restaurant part as well as a cheaper outdoor grill. I got a DELICIOUS cheeseburger with grilled onions and plopped down at a table right on the balcony overlooking the beach. From there I got a wonderful view of the ocean as well as a 65 year old woman tanning topless.

Then I went to La Parte Vieja where I did my last minute souvenir shopping for friends and family. I also got myself a scarf, one of the things here that EVERYONE has.

Finally, I got a "Cookie"-flavored ice cream on the boulevard. That wasn't on the list...but I couldn't resist.

I tried calling up people to do all this with, but as always that failed. Instead I accomplished everything on my own, which was a lot better because I found it more peaceful and fun that way.



Now, all I have left is to get Chocolate y Churros today (wednesday) or tomorrow before I leave for Madrid. It's a super common snack here of rich hot chocolate (basically a liquified chocolate bar served warm) and churros (you know, those fried pastries with cinnamon and sugar...YUM). My host mom recommended a good place to go in Parte Vieja for that, so I am excited.


PS: Sun down here since daylight savings has been around 9:30pm. Like, straight up brightness until 9:30. My parents told me that sundown is like 7pm in the states. That will be weird to come home to.

Monday, May 11, 2009

Regalos Video!

My parents wanted to know how my host parents reacted to their gift.

In their own words...

(well, translated)

iYa esta!

Nik nire klaseak bukatu ditut. Nik nire etsaminak bukatu ditut. Osteguna ni etxera joango naiz. Hala ere, asteaztea nik maletak prestatuko ditut...


I'm done with classes, I'm done with exams. Thursday I go home. However, I'll pack on Wednesday.



Whew, time flew! Especially finals! Well, it helps that they were all ON THE SAME DAY.


But I think I did well. On all the art tests I have been getting A's, and in Euskara our teacher graded the exams so we could know what we got before we left.

I got a 99 on the midterm, a 98 on the final project, a 96 on the exam, and my final grade was a 97. As Natalia (my teacher) said, "ZORIONAK!" I am not sure what that means, but I think it's congrats or something.

And she was so sweet today, telling us that she cannot say "agur" (goodbye) because she'll get too sad. Instead, she says "gero arte" which is "see you soon."
"Agurrik ez, gero arte baizik!"= No goodbyes, but instead a see you soon!

After she told me my grade, she insisted that I continue with the language because I am so good at it. I would love to, but being in Chicago with 3 people who know basque (the three Loyola students in this program), that won't be very likely. I am sure I will say "Kaixo"(hello) and "ongi"(good) a few times, as well as "neska"(girl) here and there.

I am definitely going to miss Natalia, but I plan to keep in touch by email.


And finally I had my Track/grammar exam, which wasn't too bad. I was actually surprised by how easy it seemed, but we shall see how my grade turns out. Looks like I'll be getting a B in that class, but a high B, which isn't too bad.

Aihnoa (my Track teacher) had chocolates and cookies for us at the test, which was a nice treat. We gave her a card wishing her a good summer and an early congratulations for her baby (she is pregnant, and BIG TIME showing...I think august 3rd is when she will "dar la luz" aka give birth). It's gonna be a boy, and she has a name picked out already, but I can't remember what it is.

But wow. The semester is over. Now I have two full days of nothing until Wednesday evening when I catch a bus to Madrid at 7pm. THEN I am waiting there for 5 hours until my 7am flight, then I am off on my long journey home. I wish the travelling times weren't so cruel.

Mother's Day

In Spain, Mother's Day is May 3rd or something like that.

Yesterday I would have wished you all a Happy Mother's Day, but it isn't Mother's Day yet.

My mom changed it officially until I come back home.

Sunday, May 10, 2009

Weird French Commercials

Being so close to the French border, we get French TV stations here in SS.

When I was at Peter, Angela and Megan's place the other day, we were watching the French channel because there was a soccer game on.

This Nicole Kidman commercial came on.

And now it is circulating the web as a "what the hell?" moment. I guess French commercials don't have to make any sense at all.

Friday, May 8, 2009

The gifts have been received...

I gave my host family the gifts and caught it on camera, but i have to put up subtitles so you can understand.

Pues, it'll take a bit.

But, patience is a virtue.

Another blog?

After keeping up with this blog, and after having a video camera for four months, I kind of want to copy this guy:

http://daveydanceblog.com/
"Davey Dance-BLOG. A project started while traveling Europe during Spring 2007. Armed only with an ipod and a Canon PowerShot, Davey picks a location and a pop song. Then Davey records an improvised dance."

It's weird because I have already started thinking of places and songs. I was gonna do "A million ways" by OK GO at Peter, Megan and Angela's apartment b/c the entrance of their place is EPIC. I also thought about doing the song "homecoming" by kanye west in front of the bean in chicago.

Looks like Davey already combined my ideas a while ago:

Davey Dance Blog -44- CHICAGO - OKgo "A Million Ways" from Pheasant Plucker on Vimeo.

Farewell from USAC

Today I got this in the mail from the USAC office here:

Estimados estudiantes,


¡Qué rápido ha pasado el tiempo!

Esperamos que lo hayáis pasado muy bien este semestre en San Sebastián, que hayáis aprendido mucho y que hayáis hecho buenas amistades aquí.

¡Suerte en los exámenes! ¡Os echaremos de menos!

Esperamos que lo paséis muy bien este verano y que algún día nos volváis a visitar aquí en Donostia.

Un abrazo,

Patricia, Tito, Aizpea, Cecilia , Asun


Translation:
Look how fast the time passed!
We hope that you have had a good time this semester in San Sebastian, and that you have learned a lot and have made good friends here.
Good luck on exams! We'll miss you!
We hope that you have a good time this summer and that some day you'll come to visit us here in Donostia (the Basque word for San Sebastian).
Hugs,
Patricia, Tito, Aizpea, Cecelia, Asun

Thursday, May 7, 2009

The Final Weekend

So this being the last weekend, the USAC kids are gonna be ragin'.


Normally, the USAC kids go to bars on weekends. The people who stay out REALLY late (like 4 or 5am) go to a club at 3 or so. But, imagine it like this metaphor: The bars are like dinner, and the club is like dessert. People only get the dessert if they are in the mood, and it is only a once in a while thing, not every night like dinner is.

It's Alex I's bday this weekend, so she plans to hit up La Rotunda, Bataplan and Espala (the three big clubs that they go to occasionally) on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday night, respectively.

Um, three nights of clubs? Her and her group that go with her are gonna have a sugar coma after eating dessert three nights straight.



Also, I wanted to go to Biarritz this weekend since I didn't have a chance last weekend. Unfortunately (but what could I expect) the weather is RAINY. Oh wow, San Sebastian, thank you for gracing us with a Tuesday and Wednesday with sun, and Wednesday being a two-fer with sun AND a high temperature of 72! THANK YOU. But of course, I know how much it strained you and you now have to revert back to clouds again for another two week period, which includes my final days here. But THANK YOU. Seriously. For those ENTIRE 3 days this entire four month semester that were above 70 degrees? Thanks. I know it was SO HARD.

But anyways. Today's weather was fog and clouds. And tomorrow is rain! And the next day is rain! And the next, and the next. But then Tuesday it changes it up with RAIN. Oh, and all these days are an awesome 50 or so degrees, and probably windy, too! So just fantastic weather for the final list of stuff I have to do:

-Take a day trip to Biarritz, France (Right over the border)
-Go to Irun's (neighboring city) Cider festival Saturday night
-Go to Herri Urrats festival Sunday
-hike to Jesus (statue, that is. If you need a visual...

(it's the lit up thing way up high)

-hike to the mountain with ruins of something

(that's Megan H up there, and her and a few other people went here, I saw pics, and now I wanna go!)

-eat Chocolate con churros (hot chocolate with CHURROS.)
-eat at the beach restaurant "La Perla" and grab a burger there
-rollerblade around Jesus Mountain
-I was gonna surf, because I know I can (remember that time I was in the Hawaii surf magazine? I have copies if you want me to send you one), but with two surfable days this entire semester, looks like that's a negative.
-finish editing spring break vid. Also...BEGIN to edit spring break vid.
-buy last minute souvenirs.

Oh, and study for all my finals, since they are all on the same day, MONDAY.
But at least that gives me tuesday and wednesday to finish my "list."


Some updates about today:

--since I am getting to the end here, I wanted to wear the clothes I haven't worn yet. That includes a shirt-dress I bought this past week. I wore it with tights b/c it was slightly chilly today, and it's a good thing, because I just took them off and remembered that I put like a dozen bandaids on my feet so I could protect them from my shoes giving me blisters. Seriously, I am glad I had tights to cover up my bandaged toes or people would ask me if I fed my feet to the sharks or something.

--My host parents were telling me that if I were ever out with friends, and they were to get drunk to the point that they couldn't stand and stuff, that there is a 24 hour emergency place near the boulevard that administers shots of B12 to people who are super drunk and it wakes them up or alerts them or something. I have never heard of this! The way my host dad described it, he made it sound like it just magically made you better after one injection! Which makes me wonder if it is real.

--Tomorrow I plan to give my host parents and host sister my parents' present for them. I also hope to video tape it, if it isn't too awkward. That way you can see how they react to a gift of Loyola apparel, Frango mints, Hershey's, and BBQ sauce.

--I took note of this today: since I began this trip I was on page 295 of Harry Potter book five, and now I am on...PAGE 295 of Harry Potter five. Isn't that amazing, how time sure flew.

Tuesday, May 5, 2009

50 things to do before I die

According to the list at
http://thetravelersnotebook.com/activity-guide/50-things-to-do-before-you-die/

I have accomplished quite a few!
The bolded/italicized are those I have completed.

50 Things to do Before you Die
1. Set foot on each of the seven continents. Antarctica might be a tough one, but once you’ve reached all seven you can truly call yourself a world traveler.

2. Cross a country on a bicycle. A bicycle tour takes some planning, but it beats being separated from a country though a passenger-side window.

3. Ride something bigger than a horse. Trekking through the jungle on the back of a two story tall elephant will surely be something you remember forever.

4. Live like a local for a month. The experience of visiting native peoples will give you way more insight into another way of life than two years hopping from one backpacker ghetto to the next. (obviously, a semester is much better)

5. Visit a “real” blues bar in Chicago. What better way to leave music’s commercialism behind and find the soul of the blues? (This is not the first time I have seen Chicago praised in a list of things having to do with the ENTIRE WORLD. I can now fully appreciate living in such a great city)

6. Learn another language. This is definitely a weighty and time-consuming proposition, but there are plenty of resources out there to ease the process. (English, Spanish...Basque?)

7. Go heli-skiing. The access to snow and terrain via heli is different (read: better) that anything else you’ll ever experience.

8. Travel India by train. With its extensive rail network, this mode of transport is the best way to see one of the world’s most colorful and diverse countries.

9. Climb one of the world’s Seven Summits. Climbing mountains is not for the faint-hearted, but everyone has had a dream of standing atop one.

10. Dive with a whale shark. Swimming with these gentle giants is among the most powerful wilderness experiences in the world.

11. Participate in a Carnival parade in Brazil. You haven’t had a good night out until you’ve been to the biggest party in a nation of big parties.

12. Dance Tango in Argentina.

13. Surf. It’s not about being a ripper but just catching waves. (If the weather actually gets nice here in Spain, maybe I can try it here, but if not, I've already completed the task in Hawaii)

14. SCUBA in the Great Barrier Reef. The largest coral reef in the world is a must for dive enthusiasts. It is the world’s most unique aquatic environment. (Well, I put on some scuba goggles and went fishing around in Hawaii, does that count?)

15. Publish an article about your travels. Part of traveling is sharing your experiences with others. Plus, getting published might be easier than you think.

16. Volunteer abroad for a month.

17. Follow in the footsteps of your favorite travel book. What better guide than a book that inspired you to travel in the first place?

18. Take a bush plane ride into Africa’s interior. These lightly visited regions are filled with unique cultures and diverse wildlife.

19. Cross a glacier on foot. Traversing these fast-disappearing natural wonders is an adventure that future generations might not be able to experience.

20. Visit the source of one of the world’s great rivers. Great rivers, like the Nile, have humble beginnings.

21. Climb an active volcano. (okay, it wasn't active, but I walked across dormant ones in Hawaii)

22. Buy a boat and learn to sail. Before the Brothers Wright, everyone traveled by wind power. It’s still the most sustainable way to travel there is.

23. Follow your food from field to table. Most people in the world still eat what they have picked with their own hands. Why not get back to these basics? (like the time we picked potatoes in southern illinois and brought them home to eat)

24. Bathe in the Ganges. What better way to experience the spiritual heart of India?

25. Travel around the world. Sure, you could do this without ever setting foot outside of planes and airports, but few people ever truly traverse the entire globe. Round the world tickets are great for budget-minded wanderers.

26. Photograph an endangered species. Aside from an image you can keep for a lifetime, it will remind you, and others, how fragile life can be.

27. Participate in Burning Man . As they say: “Trying to explain Burning Man to someone who has never been is like trying to explain color to a blind person.”

28. Spend 24 hours alone in the jungle.

29. Learn how to make a national dish. What is the one and only thing that everyone has in common? Eating. (I will bring home to Chicago my wisdom of travelling along with my skills of making a tortilla de patatas. Hey, if the gastronomic society said I was good, then I am GOOD.)

30. Teach English in a foreign country. Sure, it’s a way to fund your travels, but also the experience of a lifetime. (I taught classes that one day at the Toki Alai school near SS a couple weeks ago)

31. Attend a music festival in another country.

32. Cross a country using only public transportation. See a country the way most of its people do: from the window of a bus, train, or ferry. (I think nine buses in two weeks across Portugal and Spain counts under this category...plus the trips to Burgos, Barcelona, and Toledo also count)

33. Spend the night in a storied/historic hotel. You might not even have to leave town to experience a night of classic atmosphere. (of all the places I have gone with my family, I know some are storied. Like the one in Silverton where I almost died by falling in the bathtub...that place was like the hotel from the Shining)

34. Attend the Olympics. Whatever you say about the commercialism of the Olympic Games, they are one of the biggest events on the planet. (Maybe in 2016 in Chicago...?)

35. Meet your favorite (living) travel writer. They’ve inspired you; now thank them for it.

36. Travel to Germany to experience Love Parade. It’s one of the biggest festivals, attendance-wise, on the planet.

37. Partake in a Japanese Tea Ceremony. This timeless tradition is at the heart of Japanese culture.

38. Join a caravan in the Sahara. See how people can thrive in one of the world’s harshest environments.

39. Go to Oktoberfest. The meeting of over 6 million beer afficionados and drinking song singers is one of the biggest parties in Europe.

40. Stand at the North or South Pole.

41. Be in the stands when two rival South American club teams play each other in soccer. Soccer (sorry, football) is a passion for most of the world’s population.

42. Visit the birthplace or gravesite of a cultural icon. Could be Che Guevara or Picasso or Levi Strauss or the guy who invented widgets; anyone you think is important. (I've been to JFK's grave)

43. Find your version of “The Beach.” One of the best travel books ever inspired a generation of backpackers. Why not find your own version of untouched paradise?

44. Enjoy a freshly rolled cigar in Cuba. Taste a hand rolled specialty close to its source.

45. Visit every capital city in Europe. The crowded continent is full of beautiful architecture and diverse cultures.

46. Watch an orchestral performance in Vienna.

47. Skydive. It is the ultimate thrill, unless you add a wingsuit, and actually fly.

48. Bike the Pacific Coast Highway. (maybe not, but I have ridden a bike over the Golden Gate Bridge)

49. Shake hands with someone who has truly changed a country.

50. Participate in the world’s biggest water fight during Thailand’s New Year’s festivities (Songkran).

PARTY ANIMALLLL

Stumbleupon.com takes you to random websites that users have marked as interesting, funny, or just intriguing.

I stumbled upon (literally) this website today.
http://matadornights.com/20-craziest-party-hostels-around-the-world/

It ranks the top 20 party hostels IN THE WORLD.

In this semester alone, I have stayed in 10% of those listed: The Rising Cock (Lagos, during spring break) and Hostel Kabul (Barcelona, for a weekend trip).


Funny enough, the reasons we chose the hostels had nothing to do with the fact they were ranked party hostels. We had no idea they were party hostels before we booked them.

Hostel Kabul we booked just because it got a great rating on hostelworld.com and it was cheap.

Cassi booked us the Rising Cock (it was a couple dollars more than other hostels we could have stayed at) just because she wanted to be able to say that she stayed at a hostel named the Rising Cock.

And neither was that bad. Except for the showers. But you can read about that in the previous post.


PS. I just read about the hostel in Louisiana. I really want to go to New Orleans and this just made me want to go home just to be closer to the option of going there. This hostel seems pretty cool, especially with the beer vending machine. Not that I'd use it (I don't drink) but the idea of it just BEING there is interesting.

Monday, May 4, 2009

Las Duchas Horribles

While many people may rank their favorite restaurants or hotels while travelling, the thing that comes to mind that can make or break a place is the SHOWER.

Here I will rank the showers at the places I've travelled to in order from best to worst.

Enjoy.


BEST SHOWER THUS FAR: Hotel Abril, in Sevilla.
Pros: It was a private shower, in other words, I didn't need to wear flip flops in fear of catching some viral disease. But it was super nice. Hot water, great water pressure, and the stream spanned the distance of most of the shower's length.
Cons: NONE.

Close second: Hotel Regina, in Madrid.
Pros: This hotel that we stayed in during the Madrid tour was really cold. The benefit was HOT SHOWERS. The only place to be warm the entire trip. The cold really sucked. I mean, we'd go on cold walking tours of the city and large cathedrals that are just as cold as it is outside, then we come back to our hotel hoping for warmth, and the hotel is about 50 degrees inside. It sucked especially since the heater only works when the keycard is in the light switch, which means you have to be IN the room to heat it. So, yeah, it never got warm. But I digress...the shower was hot, nice pressure, and just nice overall.
Cons: It wasn't my own PERSONAL shower, like the one in Sevilla (in Madrid I had a roomie)


Next: Black and White Hostel in Lisbon
Pros: The showerhead was an overhead rain showerhead. RAIN. It was glorious gallons after glorious gallons of water. Even though right next to it the placard said it was energy efficient, it sure didn't feel like it.
Cons: A shower CURTAIN. Ugh, when this was paired with a small square shower space, I had great fear in touching the possibly moldy curtain. Also, the bathroom was co-ed. Luckily I didn't have issues. And, since it was public, it warranted flip flop usage.

Next: Hotel Codina in San Sebastian
Pros: This hotel we stayed in during orientation was REALLY nice. Read: heated towel rack. The water was super hot.
Cons: No shelves for the soap and shampoo. And the shower was a tiny tiny square. Smaller than the one in Lisbon. Like, this was 1.5 feet by 1.5 feet.

Next: My host family's shower in San Sebastian.
Pros: It's in a home, so obviously no flip flops required. And the water is nice and hot.
Cons: The door is this weird accordian thing that never stays closed...it always slowly opens, and it opens inward, toward the tub, so when I am standing there it seems to slowly close me in. PLUS, the water pressure is like that of a garden hose with holes in it. It doesn't SHOWER you, it's more of a dribbling. And because of this, the hot water isn't as effective since there is a HUGE space in front of you for cold air to circulate while your body tries to adapt to the temperature of the water.

Next: Porto Downtown Hostel in Porto, Portugal
Pros: This was a ONE-MAN BATHROOM. It was great. I could lock the door and not have to worry about walking through the hostel with a towel wrapped around me when I returned to the room to change. The water was hot, the pressure was great.
Cons: The drain wasn't very effective. The rubber foot grip thing was also covering the drain, which made it even MORE ineffective. Plus, it was public, which meant flippy floppys. While the water was hot, the temperature couldn't be adjusted..it was just on or off. Oh, and to conserve water, the water button turned off every 15seconds or so. Which meant you had to press it a LOT.


Second to worst shower this semester: Hostel Kabul, Barcelona
Pros: Erm, the one stall I was in had a door?
Cons: The rest of the stalls didn't have doors. The pressure was not very concentrated, which meant the water seemed to be in a HUGE circle, but not anywhere in particular, so it was a light rinse as opposed to a stream of water. The water button was also like Porto's...it turned off every 10 seconds, so it had to be pushed like 3 times when I was just washing my face. The water was also pretty cold, but it did warm up to a reasonably warmish temperature that was bearable. But, the water was NOTHING compared to...

THE WORST SHOWER EVER (not just in my lifetime, but probably in history): The Rising Cock Hostel in Lagos
Pros: It was a one man bathroom, which meant I could change in the bathroom.
Cons: The drain did not drain water. The water came out of a hand-held showering spout thing, but there was no holder for it, so you couldn't hang it up...you had to hold it. The stream was pretty bad, too. Oh, and the TEMPERATURE, or lack thereof, was the most memorable thing. Seriously, if you gave the people who froze in the ocean after the Titanic sank an option between that and this shower, they would choose the former. Okay, maybe not, but this water was COLD. I thought Barcelona was cold, until I felt this. I think icicles were forming on the showerhead as I bathed. Seriously, it was unbearable. SO unbearable that my showers were approximately 30 seconds long. I would do a swoop with the showerhead, shiver, put on body wash, swoop the water over me, shiver, get my hair wet, shiver, think about shampooing, then decide not to, then turn off the water. Seriously, if I had to shampoo I think I'd lose like 20 degrees of body heat by rinsing my head under that stream. The two days we spent in Lagos, all of us had dirty hair. Shampooing just could NOT be done. I actually filled my water bottle up (a 1.5 liter bottle), then let it warm up, then rinsed my hair over the sink. At least then I could get my hair completely wet without shivering as though I was having an epileptic seizure.


And there you have it.

Sunday, May 3, 2009

Three pictures are worth about...20 words.

Since I mostly took video on the Burgos/Atapuerca trip, I only have a few pictures from the daytrip. And of the 10 I took, three are uninteresting, two are picture versions of what I already had on video of the super foggy hike, one is the unlit cathedral at night (but it might as well be a picture of a room with the lights off, since it's just black), and one is an out of focus picture of flowers.
PS: Click any picture to see a larger version

Therefore, that leaves me with this picture of the sign on our hike:



Along with this picture of a cool looking shrub.

It's swirly!



Oh, and the picture of the stonehenge-like thing behind an "i-was-just-sleeping-on-the-bus-for-two-hours-can't-you-tell?" Melissa.




My friends took some good pictures too, but as of right now, I only have this wonderful picture, depicting us as a cross between construction workers and lunch ladies with our lice-shield caps and hardhats.


(From left to right: Angela C., Me, Cassi, May, Ana, Natalia)

Friday, May 1, 2009

Three Point Turn FAIL.

On our way home from Burgos/Atapuerca, our bus driver attempted a three point turn on a narrow street. The result was a 206 point turn, with each one getting us more and more perpendicular with the road until the windshield was a foot away from a tree, the back end was hanging over a ditch, and the back tires were dug deep into mud.


FUN!

Visual Proof:

Thursday, April 30, 2009

They just keep getting better...

My skills, that is.

I learned how to use a bow and arrow on our recent trip to Burgos/Atapuerca.

At the end, it looks like the arrow I shot was the one in the fake animal's eye. As much as I'd like to say it WAS my arrow, that was the demonstrator's arrow. Mine is very close to the animal, on the right, in the ground, which I think is just as impressive.

Check out this awesomeness:

Allow me to translate.

Okay, so a short time ago I posted a little thing in Euskara, or Basque. Now I have time to translate.

The assignment was to write a jounral of monday and tuesday, as well as a future journal of what we were doing that weekend. I will translate line by line.

Astelehena= Monday
Gaur goizean ni jaiki naiz eta ni jantzi naiz. =This morning I woke up and got dressed.
Nik sukaldeon kafesnea edan dut.= In the kitchen, I had some coffee with milk.
Ni klasera joan naiz eta nik klasean aditzak ikasi ditut. =I then went to class, where we learned new verbs.
Ni etxera joan naiz eta nik pelikula ikusi dut. =I went home and watched a movie.
Nik gurasoak deitu ditut. = I called my parents at home.
Nik nire argazkik organizatu ditut. =I organized my photo album.
Guk sendi baterakin afaldu dugu. = As a family, we ate dinner together.
Nik ataza egin dut.=I did my homework.
Ni nekatu naiz eta nik lo egin dut. = I became tired and then went to sleep.

Asteartea= tuesday
Gaur goizean ni jaiki naiz. = This morning I woke up.
Ni dutxatu naiz eta ni jantzi naiz. = I took a shower and I got dressed.
Nik olo prestatu dut eta nik gosaldu dut. = I made oatmeal and ate breakfast.
Nik posta elektronikoa irakurri dut. = I checked my email
Ni klasera autobusean igo naiz. = I went to school on the bus
Nik aldizkaria irakurri dut. = I read a maagazine.
Nik klasean olerkia irakurri dut eta nik klasean kanta entzun dut. = We read poems in class and we listened to a song.
Nik balzkaldu dut eta nik patata frijituak jan ditut. = I ate lunch and had some french fries.
Ni parte zaharrara joan naiz eta nik ikurriña erosi dut.= I went to Parte Vieja and I bought an ikurriña (basque flag).
Ni etxera joan naiz eta nik klaseak matrikulatu ditut. = I went home and signed up for classes.
Nik ataza egin dut.= I did my homework.
Guk sendi baterakin afaldu dugu. = My family and I together ate dinner.
Nik lo egin dut. = I went to bed.

Asteburua= Weekend
Gu Burgosera joango gara. = We're going to Burgos.
Ostiral goizean gu aterako gara eta gu autobusera igoko gare.= Friday morning we leave and we get on a bus to go to Burgos.
Guk Katedral ikusiko dugu eta guk arkeologia-aztarnategia ikusiko dugu, ere bai.= We will see a Cathedral and an archeological digs site, too.
Gu bidean ibiliko gara.= Together we'll go on a hike.
Igandean guk “Skins” ikusiko dugu eta nik gailetak prestatuko ditut.= My friends and I are going to watch the show "SKINS" and make cookies.



See, not so hard to understand, now was it?

Burgos Video




By embedding the video directly onto Blogger, all problems were avoided. YAY!


You may recognize some familiar faces from my Barcelona video, like Ana and Natalia.

In order of appearance:
Ana (always creepin)
Maria (Girl next to Ana in opening scene, and one who speaks Norwegian at the end)
Sonia (girl asking how to do the handprint to the guide)
Jenny (leather jacket handprint girl)
Natalie (Trying to smell Maria's hand?)
Mary Kate (sneaking into the shot with Maria and Natalie)
May (making prehistoric tools out of rock)
Mary Kate, Dixon, May and Luke (throwing Javelins, one after another)
Cassi (playing Orlando Bloom with the bow and arrow, as well as 'translating' Maria at the end of the video)
Carter (making fire with the guide)
Natalia (The one who is 'not cool' according to Ana)
Jenny (appearing once again, fetching a ball that rolled under an SUV)
Alex Ireland (The girl who's just trying to figure out who this Jesus guy is. Have you heard of him? He's pretty famous, I guess.)
Megan (warning Dixon of moldy candy)
Annette (the Becky blamer)
Becky (The Annette blamer)
Angela (the one dancing on the bus, and who has to 'piss like a racehorse')
Peter (the one slowly creeping up to the camera with a suspicious look)
Lindsey (The one in the pink scarf, who claims she needed to sit in the back row of the bus b/c then she could have BRAIDED)
Lindsey (in the leather coat and hood, who mocks the fact that they could have braided.)


So here's what went down on the trip:
We got on a bus at 8:30am and drove off to Burgos. On the way we stopped in Atapuerca, where archeologists have found the oldest human fossils in Europe, belonging to the homo antecessor species. When they found them, they were able to identify this species, since they had not discovered it prior to finding the fossils. This chart explains a lot.


We went to a site where a friendly guide showed us the typical evolution poster, of a monkey converting into a human. Then, we went on a "tour" of history, as he introduced us to evolving inventions and ideas along the way. It felt a bit like a caveman version of Donley's Wild West Town, where I go with campers every summer.

Along the way, he told us about early tools made of rock, and that three "entry points" or breaks in the rock, show that it was intentionally broken to be used as something, as opposed to a regular broken rock, which would have one or two "entry points."
He told us about cave paintings, about early homes, burial rituals, making fire, hunting tools like javelins and bows and arrows, and other things.

Then we hopped on a bus to the Atapuerca dig site, which was about 8 minutes away, which is seen in the video as us wearing hard hats. We wore them and looked at some high stone walls with lots of cards with numbers and letters on them where we are told fossils were found. It wasn't as exciting as I thought it would be. But I DID get to hold a real human skull, not just a reproduction of one. But it's not on my camera, so when Peter posts it, I will be able to show it to you.

We then ate at a restaurant (USAC paid for it), which had good lentil soup and flavorless, tepid fish. I didn't try the fish b/c it got to the other side of the table first and my friends described it as...well, flavorless and cold, so I wasn't really sold on the idea. But the prepackaged ice cream cups we got were good!

We went to Burgos and went to the Cathedral. It was just like the other bajillion cathedrals I've been to since being here in Europe, but still there were some interesting parts. Apparently whenever there was any sort of damage in the church, Spaniards like to blame it on Napolean. Usually, they are right. But sometimes it's just old and crumbly. One thing he told us was that there is a stained glass window from the 1200's, and the rest are from much later, since Napolean and his gang tried to blow the place up and consequently broke all the original windows, except for the one. And then they replaced the broken ones.
Also, in the chapel part of the church, there was a Jesus statue, where the head was "articulated" (as you can see in the video by the guide bobbling his head around at the beginning). It had real human hair and other human things which I can't remember. It sounds a bit gross.
Also in this Cathedral there was an original DaVinci, which is seen behind the guide in one clip of the video as well.

After that, we got to the hotel and settled in. Of course, being college students, all of my friends went straight back out to the grocery store to buy vodka, boxed wine, and coca cola (Kalimotxos, which are wine and coke mixed together, are super popular in the Basque country).
I didn't want to be left out of this pre-party bonanza, so I bought myself some pineapple juice and oreos.
We went back to the hotel and "raged." And by raged, I mean "tryed tossing gummi candy into peoples' mouths," "got ready to go out," as well as "drank my juice and ate cookies."
Many hours passed, then I went out with the Lindseys, Jenny, and Tara to eat tapas as dinner. I just ordered a platter of Croquetas for myself. They taste like a mozzarella sticks, but instead of cheese inside, they taste like mashed potatoes and cheese and there's ham in the very center. I am not even sure if that's what they are made of. They just taste that way. And I like to keep thinking that, or it may ruin one of my only favorite foods here in Spain.

We ran into people like Dixon, Megan, Angela, Luke, Dave, and Cassi along the way to the bar area when we left, as well as friends I made on the Madrid tour from Bilbao (the overnight trip was for the SS program and the Bilbao program...we stayed in the same hotel and went to everything together), like Adam and Brett. It was great to see Adam and Brett (who you might recognize from my trip to Barcelona...they are in that video!). I haven't seen them since my trip to Barcelona at the beginning of the semester!

After a long night out, we went back to the hotel. My roommate was drunk and puking, and our hall neighbor (a USAC student) was trying to get into her room without a key by banging on the door hoping her sleeping roomie would awaken. (Note: We later found out no one was in the room, hence why no one answered.) My other friend was "sexiled" momentarily (exiled from their room b/c the roommate was having sex), until he was let back in about 20 minutes later.

So yeah, they partied PRETTY hard.

Oh, did I mention that there was an 8am 3hour hike the next morning? Yeah, well it was fortunately optional...only about 30 or 40% of the entire SS/Bilbao group went on the hike. 99% of those people were extremely hungover. Especially since people came home around 3am.

After the hike on the path to Santiago de Compostela (a famous pilgrim hike that allowed a free ticket to heaven if you did it from the start, literally. There are many entrances to the hike, since it can start from as far as Germany or France. I am not sure what the whole rules for that heaven deal was, but I do know that back then, no matter where you started from, you could get to the church and get a free meal and shelter for the night), which was a foggy, cold, wet experience, we got to a bar where we warmed up a bit before heading back to the hotel. Then we had a bit of time before our 3pm lunch at the hotel (a grand feast of spaghetti with red sauce, roast chicken and french fries, salad, and natillas[a delicious pudding type dessert]). I used the time before lunch to go shopping for souvenirs and then playing spoons in the hotel lobby with Luke, Dave, Natalia, Ana, Angela, and Katie.
After lunch, we hopped out, saying goodbyes to our Bilbao friends (probably for...forever, sadly).

And you might wonder how nice the hotel was. It was very nice. How nice, you ask? Well, when I asked for the oh-so necessary match box for our family collection at the front desk, they instead handed me a LIGHTER with the hotel name, number and address on it. CLASSY!

Oh, and on the way home we stopped at Dolmen de Aizkomendi (Egilaz) which is basically very similar to Stonehenge. It is a rock formation that dates back to way back when, when there wasn't the machinery to construct such a heavy, large thing. It was pretty small, but still cool.

Oh, and on the way out of the narrow path that lead us here, our bus had some MAJOR issues doing a three point turn. It turned into about a 213-point turn, most of which just wedged us more and more into a perpendicular position to the road, with a tree in front of the windshield and a deep ditch behind the back tires. We had to evacuate the bus so the driver could get us out of the rut. Literally.
He also may have wanted us to leave so he could get his bearings since everyone was fearing that we would fall into the ditch and then have no way back home.
And I know what you are thinking: YES, there is video footage of all of this going down. I will post the "failed 3 point turn" video as soon as I am done editing it, which should be soon.

Work for nothing

So I just spent about two hours editing a video last night about my trip to Burgos and finished it sucessfully. I uploaded it to YouTube so I could easily embed it here. The video was only about 4 minutes long, edited to the song "Love is Free" by Sheryl Crow.

I went online this morning to get the link to post on here, and received a message that says I have committed copyright infringement by using that song in my video without written permission from the artist. Therefore, YouTube muted the entire video.

Without audio, it's completely pointless, so I took it down. And it sucks because I edited the whole thing to that song, and some of the visuals match the audio, so I can't really replace the song.

So as for now, just know that I DID make a video, but conditions not under my control are preventing me from showing it to you.

Thanks, EMG Music Group, for making those two hours completely wasted.

Tuesday, April 28, 2009

Try THIS, all you non-Euskaldunak!

Here is some homework I had for my basque class last week. We had to write a journal of what we did on Monday and Tuesday, then what we planned to do on the weekend.

Here it is:

Astelehena
Gaur goizean ni jaiki naiz eta ni jantzi naiz. Nik sukaldeon kafesnea edan dut. Ni klasera joan naiz eta nik klasean aditzak ikasi ditut. Ni etxera joan naiz eta nik pelikula ikusi dut. Nik gurasoak deitu ditut. Nik nire argazkik organizatu ditut. Guk sendi baterakin afaldu dugu. Nik ataza egin dut. Ni nekatu naiz eta nik lo egin dut.

Asteartea
Gaur goizean ni jaiki naiz. Ni dutxatu naiz eta ni jantzi naiz. Nik olo prestatu dut eta nik gosaldu dut. Nik posta elektronikoa irakurri dut. Ni klasera autobusean igo naiz. Nik aldizkaria irakurri dut. Nik klasean olerkia irakurri dut eta nik klasean kanta entzun dut. Nik balzkaldu dut eta nik patata frijituak jan ditut. Ni parte zaharrara joan naiz eta nik ikurriña erosi dut. Ni etxera joan naiz eta nik klaseak matrikulatu ditut. Nik ataza egin dut. Guk isendi baterakin afaldu dugu. Nik lo egin dut.

Asteburua
Gu Burgosera joango gara. Ostiral goizean gu aterako gara eta gu autobusera igoko gare. Guk Katedral ikusiko dugu eta guk arkeologia-aztarnategia ikusiko dugu, ere bai. Gu bidean ibiliko gara. Igandean guk “Skins” ikusiko dugu eta nik gailetak prestatuko ditut.



Oh, wait, you don't speak basque, do you? I shall translate next time. At least you know I'm learning something!