La Tierra de la Paella

To those who have been eagerly awaiting my blog and wondering why it didn’t appear on Friday as usual (and there are tons of you out there, aren’t there? Come on, humour me), I apologise – but better late than never, as they say!

In my defence, I was up at the crack of dawn on Friday morning to catch the first coach to Valencia, so my designated blog-writing slot – i.e. sometime on a Friday afternoon when I’ve been festering in my pyjamas for the best part of the day – was otherwise occupied.

A lovely weekend was had by all in the city famed for its paella and oranges (both of which we sampled, naturally, albeit that the latter was in the form of juice and mixed with alcohol – but more about that later).

An example of Valencia's futuristic architecture

Valencia was everything I’d hoped for and more. Sunshine, palm trees, stunning architecture, delicious food and of course, the beach were just what the doctor ordered. Any remnants of the stress and downheartedness I’d felt the previous week were swept away on the brisk sea air – it may have been sunny but it certainly wasn’t warm!

Dubbed ‘La Ciudad de las Artes y Ciencias’, Valencia is known for its impressive complex of innovative, futuristic-looking buildings and sculptures, one of which houses the world’s largest aquarium. At 20 Euros each (including young person’s discount), the entrance fee seemed fairly substantial, but luckily it was worth every cent.

One of my more impressive attempts
at photographing a shark in the aquarium

Not having been to an aquarium for what was probably over a decade, I was transported back to that feeling of childlike awe and excitement at being surrounded by seemingly magical underwater creatures that are so close you could almost touch them. Regardless of age, I don’t think the novelty of having a shark or stingray swim inches above your head while you’re standing in a glass tunnel can ever wear off. As well as literally thousands of species of fish, there were sharks, Beluga whales, seals, sea-lions, walruses, penguins and dolphins.

The dolphin show

Indeed, a personal highlight was the dolphin show, which delighted me beyond words. As the eight lithe, sun-kissed dolphin trainers in wetsuits frolicked around with their fishy friends, surfing on their fins and being tossed playfully into the air, looking as happy and carefree as I think a person ever could, I had an epiphany: if being a journalist doesn’t work out, surely this is what I’m destined to do!

On Saturday evening, we sought out a restaurant recommended to us by our hostel which specialised in paella, only to find it was fully booked for the rest of the evening. Unwilling to take no for an answer, I suggested we sit at one of the tables outside on the restaurant’s patio, which was of course deserted on account of the chilly January night air. The waiter’s simultaneously amused and appalled expression was a sure sign that he thought we were mad foreigners, but nevertheless he decided to humour us. In fact, he dragged over four patio heaters, leaving one at each corner of our table and putting them all on full blast, so we were surrounded  a pleasant (if slightly overwhelming) wall of heat.

The delicious Paella Valenciana

He obviously secretly found our wacky foreign ways charming, as he was soon engaging in friendly banter and laughing along shyly with our raucous cackles as he served us exquisite Paella Valenciana (with chicken and rabbit, as is traditional) and some of the best wine I’ve ever tasted. He even knocked a few Euros off our bill and gave us free shots at the end of the meal. It’s certainly good to have friends in high places...

As well as paella, we felt obliged to try the famous Agua de Valencia (referred to briefly earlier on), which contrary to what its name insinuates is most definitely NOT water. A potent mixture of orange juice, champagne, gin, vodka and sugar, it looks as harmless as straight-up orange juice and slips down just as easily too. But appearances can be deceptive – you have been warned!

Agua de Valencia: not as innocent as it looks!

On Friday night, we went to a bar that Corinna (who’d been to Valencia before) said she’d enjoyed. It soon dawned on us it was a gay bar when we found ourselves among the only women in the place, surrounded by suspiciously well-dressed, well-groomed men shaking their hips enthusiastically to the likes of Rihanna and Katy Perry. A hilarious night of flamboyant onstage dancing with a gaggle of gays ensued, and we had so much fun that we went back there the next night. Krista was particularly popular with our new friends, and found herself surrounded by her adoring fans – each waiting for their turn to gyrate theatrically with her to delighted applause from their peers – for most of the night.

So, that was our weekend. A roaring success as ever! Apart from that, here’s a brief round-up of the week’s news:

Last Monday, Jaclyn and I went to our first Spanish yoga class, which was an interesting experience to say the least. As if following instructions in another language to do things like stick your bum in the air or waggle your tongue about (I kid you not) isn’t surreal enough, everybody else there seemed to think it was the most normal thing in the world, which only gave us the urge to giggle more. Stifling our laughter was a gargantuan task in itself, not least when somebody broke the meditative silence by letting off a rather loud fart.

Luckily at this point we were lying face down and could therefore bury our faces into the yoga mats to stop ourselves from howling with laughter. Despite the trials and tribulations of keeping our childish senses of humour suppressed, we both enjoyed it and plan to continue going on a weekly basis.

On Thursday, I met with Marta, a Spanish woman who lived in Liverpool for a year (and still visits regularly, as her boyfriend lives there) for the first time. A teacher at my school had put us in contact so we decided to meet for a drink. As well as the Liverpool connection, we discovered other common ground such as our shared love of curry and Yorkshire tea and, perhaps more remarkably, the fact that she is a journalist and has been to Paraguay (neither of us had ever met anybody else who’s been to Paraguay). It really is a small world...

In terms of school, I’m starting to feel more comfortable and am getting back into the swing of things. Although I still feel there’s a lack of guidance as to what’s expected of me, I’m starting to feel more confident about probing the teachers for more information so that I can plan ahead and be more prepared for my lessons.

It was good to see all my private class students again, and I was particularly touched when it transpired that the two sisters I have on a Wednesday (aged 11 and 12, the daughters of a teacher at my school) had enjoyed the ‘Who Am I?’ game that I’d played with them so much that they’d played it again on their own. Best of all, they’d played it in English! Well hallelujah, perhaps I’m actually getting somewhere...

¡Hasta luego! 

¡Bienvenidos a 2011!

Long time no see, my dear readers! It feels strange to be sitting in front of my computer in Cuenca again typing my blog. Christmas and New Year went by, as usual, in a dizzying whirl of family gatherings, soirees with friends, big meals, too much alcohol, not enough sleep and general merriment. Being back in England after three months of la vida española was like slipping into a particularly comfortable and worn-in pair of old shoes: familiar, reassuring and very satisfying.

Predictably, it was all over just as quickly as it had begun, and I found myself on the Stansted Express at 5 o’clock in the morning, sleep-deprived and emotional, wondering if I’d accidentally been leaning on the fast forward button for the past two and a half weeks.

After a frustratingly delay-free – albeit long and tedious – journey (why is it that whenever I’m desperate for a smooth run something goes wrong, yet when I wouldn’t mind an impromptu strike to buy myself a few more days in England, everything runs like clockwork?!) I arrived in Cuenca dazed and disorientated, wanting nothing more than a good night’s sleep. And so, of course, insomnia ensued.

My body seems to have no problem with letting me sleep during daylight hours, but at night? Forget it. I knew my first week back after the festive period would be no mean feat, what with the inevitable January blues and withdrawal symptoms from all things English, but I must admit nothing could’ve prepared me for just how bleak it would be.

A big fat dollop of exhaustion combined with the tail-end of a nasty cold and a dash of homesickness resulted in full on Back to Reality Syndrome. It hit me like a ton of bricks, culminating in an excruciatingly embarrassing mini breakdown in the staffroom on Wednesday morning. Luckily, I don’t think many people saw, but nonetheless I couldn’t wait to get home, close my blinds and curl up in bed where I could humiliate myself no further. I took the rest of the week off school and cancelled all but one of my private classes. There was only one thing for it: I needed some ‘me time’.

And, touch wood, it seems to have worked. I’ve made it through the week and not only that, but the proverbial fog has lifted and I’m starting to feel more like my usual happy self. Of course seeing my lovely friends last night for vino and tapas in our favourite bar, Quinto Pecado (just for a change), followed by generous amounts of homemade mojitos courtesy of Jaclyn’s flatmates definitely helped. In fact, this week has made me realise just how many people care about me here in Cuenca, and for that I’m overwhelmed with gratitude.

Anyhow, enough about my fleeting brush with depression. On a cheerier note – and because I’m aware I haven’t got much to talk about what with having spent most of my week in bed – I spontaneously booked flights to Australia on Monday! Yes, to celebrate the end of my placement in Spain and maximise my free time before having to go back to the stresses of final year university life, I’m jetting off to Oz on June 17^th with Becky, a friend of mine with whom some of you may recall I hitch-hiked to Budapest in March last year. And that’s not all: after cruising down the east coast (which I’m aware is currently almost entirely under water, but let’s not talk about that right now) for one month  we’re then going to New Zealand where we’ll spend another month before returning to UK soils. I’m incredibly excited to say the least!

In a similar fit of spontaneity (it must be my new ‘thing’ for 2011...) the girls and I have organised a trip to Valencia next weekend. Sun, sea and world-famous paella would surely be enough to banish even the worst case of January blues. Rumour has it that today in Valencia it was 28 degrees and people were sunbathing on the beach (although, as Elena put it, ‘obviously just foreigners’!).

In fact, it is uncharacteristically warm for this time of year and today in Cuenca was no exception: nearly 20 degrees, brilliant sunshine and not a cloud in sight. I met Elena, one of my teachers, for a stroll along the river to blow away the cobwebs and pump myself full of endorphins (something which my dear mother will no doubt be delighted about). A spot of shopping in the rebajas (sales) and the Chinese pig-out that followed were the icing on the cake.

Well, my New Year’s resolution is to keep these posts short and sweet, so here is where I shall leave you.

¡Hasta luego!