We left last Thursday night at midnight from Madrid and drove 9 hours to Lisbon, Portugal. I spent the first day exploring churches and castles and eating the most amazing pizza I've ever tasted - banana and ham. That's right, I said banana. Try it, it's amazing. The next day we went on a bus tour to 2 other cities around Lisbon. I have to say, even though Lisbon is supposed to be one of the prettiest places in Europe, I have to object. I loved the little beach town we went to, but the part of the city where we actually stayed I wasn't too impressed by. As a side note, I had my first hostal experience - not sure how I feel. Overall it went well. It was pretty and clean (clean being the most important thing to me). However, the shower I used was probably the worst shower I've ever had in my life (think only 3 of the holes in the shower head just barely dripping water) and after 11pm the whole place turned into a party. (Thank god I can sleep through just about everything). Sunday I found this cute little market and bought some gifts for my family before getting back on the bus to drive back to Madrid.
We got back around midnight Sunday, so it was about 1am when I got home. I had to unpack and repack and shower, and it was 3am before I finally got to bed. Woke up at 6, threw some clothes on and was at school by 7 to get on the bus for Galicia. It's about a 9 hour drive, but we stopped about 5 hours in and went to the little pueblo of O Cebreiro to eat and explore. I'm sure I've mentioned it before, but I have this new obsession with the Camino de Santiago. Basically it's a religious pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela in Galicia. Anyways, the Camino passes through O Cebreiro so that was really cool to see all of the pilgrims walking through. What makes it even cooler is the movie "The Way" (if you haven't seen it, you have to watch it. I'm kinda in love) was filmed in this pueblo. I (of course) bought some souvenirs and in the process completely embarrassed myself imitating the sound of a bagpipe because I couldn't remember the Spanish word for it. Found out later the store clerk spoke a bit of English and probably knew everything we were saying...oops.Eventually got to the hotel around 6 Monday night and got to have some group bonding time. Basically this was like a retreat and they put us in the middle of nowhere without wifi and made us play games and have bonding experiences with each other. It was actually pretty fun, except for the part where I couldn't let my family know what was up. Thankfully one of mis amigas, Yvette, let me use her phone so I could actually call home. (way to go international calling plans)
We spent the week exploring Galicia and learning more about the traditions and culture of the area. We went to Santiago de Compostela and I got to see the cathedral that marks the end of the Camino de Santiago and the tomb of Saint James. It was amazing, but I was sad because I couldn't actually touch the pillar of St. James (believe me, I tried but I was too short to reach over the fence). We had a dance and song thing we went to and dressed up in traditional Galician clothing. I had a shirt that was over 200 years old and a scarf as a shirt.Finally headed home this morning around 9am and walked in my door at 7-ish.
Tomorrow I need to do some shopping - I need a carryon bag that is Ryanair approved. My book bag tends to get too round when I stuff it full of stuff and I'd rather not get charged an extra 70 euro for a bag that doesn't fit inside their stupid box next weekend. Also need a winter coat for going to Poland and Ireland and England and Moscow and all of the other cold places I'm planning on visiting in the next 8 months.
Sunday is my birthday. Don't know what I'll be doing, but it will be different, that's for sure. Probably homework...sigh. Or exploring some of the "interesting" shops in Madrid I found. Who knows.
Oh well, that's my life in a nutshell. Love you all!
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