Carlota was the Spanish language assistant in the high school where I worked last year. We ended up living in the same building and hanging out a lot (see last year’s site). Kristin, the other American assistant, and I showed her Thanksgiving and she brought Spanish holiday specialties for us to taste. When it came time to go home I wasn’t sure if I’d be coming back but we preferred to say “see you soon”
rather than “goodbye.” As it turns out, we both ended up getting jobs in Pau again.

With a serious boyfriend and family a train ride away, Carlota likes to go back to Spain every chance she gets. She has invited me a number of times but I’ve never been able to go. But since the university is STILL on strike over here, this time I couldn’t say no.

We got on the train on Friday afternoon and watched the scenery transform as it rolled by. The houses changed styles from the light beige colored ones here to the Basque white with green or red trim, to Spanish apartment buildings. Then it got too dark to see anything. When we changed trains at the border, Carlota made a mad dash for the nearest convenience store to stock up on all the Spanish snacks you can’t get in France. We settled in for the last leg of the journey and tried to get some sleep through the man who wanted to talk, the Portuguese partying in the hallway, the passengers opening our door to see if there was any room, and the man next to me who kept getting up to go to the bar, drinking, and then coming back to snore and drool on my shoulder. Great.

Crappy train ride aside, my visit turned out to be a great one. Salamanca is a small, golden city that echoes Rome with it’s dry, sun-colored stone and tall, pointy trees.

I tried to use my Spanish on Carlota’s boyfriend and family and resolved to practice more once I got back. Still need to get around to that…

Here was our typical day in Spain:

4am - go to bed.
11:30am - wake up, eat breakfast, get ready.
1:00pm - walk out on the town to find some lunch.
1:30pm - eat an appetizer, a main dish, a dessert, drink a quick alcohol, and have a little coffee.
2:00pm - walk around and digest.
2:30pm - meet friends at a café and have a beer.
4:00pm - tapas!
5:00pm - shopping and digesting.
8:00pm - go home and sit and chat a while. Digest.
10:00pm - eat dinner (again, appetizer, main dish, dessert, bread, wine)
11:00pm - digest in front of the TV.
1:00am - go out to a bar, drink, dance.
4:00am - go to bed.

I have never eaten so much in my life. Spain left be satiated beyond my expectations. Not only was the food good and plentiful, but the people I met were extremely welcoming and open. All of the shopkeepers, ticket sellers, and people we encountered in the street were smiling and quick to offer help with a little joke on the side. It’s no wonder every Spanish song I heard on the radio
has the word “corazon” in it. Spanish people do seem to be full of heart. And food.