Jamies Life In Moldova: I will not be home for Christmas....

Beloved Barcelona!!

Think about the most joyful times in your life.. Then think about who those joyful times were with.. For me the best times of my life have either been traveling with my friend Amanda, Thanksgiving or Christmas with my family, and my birthday with all my closest friends...

Madrid!

Being away for the holidays was a different experience for me. Here are some details describing my trip. Christmas eve: spent the day walking around the beautiful city of Madrid, stuffing ourselves with chinese food and embracing every moment. On the way back from chinese we saw up an alley radiant blue lights. This immediately caught our attention and we had to check the place out. Well turns out it was a huka bar.... At first we weren't going to go in, then I convinced Michael it would be fun. He soon agreed.. We ordered up some apple huka, a beer and some green tea. Several hours had passed as we talked, laughed, and took in the experience of the Turkuito bar.

Trying to figure out how to do this right.. haha

December 25, 2011 is the year that I woke up in Madrid Spain on Christmas day. Waking up on with the excitement in my heart of not knowing what to expect. Back in the US I always knew a few things for sure. I would see family, get lots of hugs and kisses, and be smothered in amazingly good food.. Having to wake up in a hostel with out all of these things I can say was the weirdest feeling. In all honesty it didn't even feel like a holiday.. Rolling out of bed around 9am, heading down to the hostel kitchen for some cornflakes and toast was the start of my beloved holiday. Admitting that I sat there eating my breakfast alone I begin to have some tears in my eyes.. but also much joy in my heart knowing that I would be skyping with my family later on in the day. I was so excited because alot of my family has went out of their way to get skype and it would be the first to see many of them in seven months.

After breakfast I went and took a hot shower, and man this was a great start to the day.. I will always and forever love my hot showers. This is one thing Moldova has made me appreciate, due to not having a bathroom in my village. After the shower Michael and I headed to the market area to see what Christmas day had brought us in Madrid. We came across this Market of St. Miquel. Can I say I fell in LOVE... Surrounded me was mounds and mounds of seafood, and my mouth couldn't stop watering for all of it.

Enjoying our Christmas!! Cheers!

Crab with Fish Eggs!

Octopus and Tuna

Yummy!

The idea of this market was tapas style. Therefore almost everything in the place was 2 euro for a plate of your choice. Michael and I tried at least 10 different tapas for lunch, and we both enjoyed ourselves thoroughly, while accenting it with a glass of red wine.

After basking in amazingness, we continued our way down to Plaza Mayor which is a famous place in Madrid. Taking in each site, smell, smiles, and laughter, I began to think to myself- this Christmas day isn't so bad after all. I am a little ashamed to say that I ate a kebab for my Christmas dinner however, along with my Chinese for Christmas eve. Sometimes you have to take what you are given... :)

Merry Christmas!

Plaza Mayor

That evening we were heading back to the hotel and to my surprise all 8 computers didn't work, and I wasn't able to skype with my family. Man was this heart aching. It felt like someone had shoved a knife in my stomach and I wasn't able to breath. The excitement that I expressed in the morning was now gone, diminished and not even a trace could be found...

After dinner we decided to go back to the huka bar. That evening we sat and conversed with them and smoked a little more huka. It's always nice to get around a new culture, and see the differences in people, food, personalities and scenery. It's such a breath of fresh air to see everyone of all different statures, and even more for them to be accepted for the way that they are. Something personally it was nice to be noticed again as a woman. The men in Moldova tend to be more turned away from me because I am not a normal Moldovan 100 pound woman. However Spanish/Moroccan men complimented me quite often and it really helped bring my spirits up.

Turned out to be quite the Christmas eve/ Christmas extravaganza.

Personally I liked Barcelona better then Madrid. Due to the feeling I got when walking around. Barcelona was very comfortable to me and utterly beautiful. The people, bars, food joints, everything in between was so full of excitement, happiness and smiles. As Michael and I said it was so nice to see people happy again, and to hear someone whistle.

Paella with Seafood!! Amazing!

Gaudi's Cascada!

Not knowing how much the depression of people can way on you until you are around people who are cheerful, excited and energetic about life in general. Spain has always been a dream of mine to visit, and just having the opportunity was truly a gift. Spain is a place I was able to feel myself and smile and most of all just take in the culture as a whole. Guadi's work all across Barcelona amazed me again and again. I was able to see the following of his work: Casa Batllo, Casa Mila, Parc Guell, Torres Mapfre, Sagrada Familia, Cascada and Palau Guell. Each one of these places literally took my breath away and I kept
wanting more. I saw some of them several times and for me it was exciting each time. Gaudi not only has a talent, but he allows human nature to come into his work and really allow the human mind to connect with him. Using animals, plants and gravity to all come together. Each one of his pieces you really need to look at to understand, its easy to miss some of what he has included if your not focusing. Something that is a trade mark of Gaudi's was his snail like stair case in several of his homes.. Just a unique touch that he also included in Casa Mila and Sagrada Familia.

On top of Casa Mila piece by Gaudi!

Highest point at Parc Guell-another piece by Gaudi.

Entrance to Parc Guell.

While in Barcelona we stayed at the Itaca hostel. This was a quiet and small place, but in the perfect location. We were in the heart of Barcelona and everything was available to us within 15-20 minutes. I enjoyed my time at this hostel, the people, the atmosphere and the amenities. Also during my stay we met Ben Kanner from New York. We were staying in a 8 person dorm, which allowed us to socialize with others. Therefore with Ben's company we were able to enjoy a great night out on the town for tapas, paella and sangria. After words Michael
went to bed, and Ben and I decided to hit up the Apolo night club. The club was at least 30-40 minutes walking distance, which seemed to take us an hour since we had no idea where we were going. That evening we enjoyed the 70 degree weather, walking on the beach and buying random beer form the sellers on bikes.. Was a very entertaining and amusing night. Ben was quite interesting to talk to, he had visited around 30 countries, and was currently at the beginning of his one month tour to Spain, Morocco and South Africa.

My new friend Ben!

Enjoying our Paella night! :)

As the time ended in Barcelona it really made me sad, but Madrid was truly amazing as well. Like I said prior I enjoyed the food I ate in Madrid. To enjoy all the seafood and atmosphere was great. My favorite part of Madrid was the different Plazas all over the city. Each one of them had there own look and feel. There wasn't anything extravagant to see in Madrid, however it is popular for its museums. I did visit a couple of them: Thyssen and and Regina Sofia. The others were closed due to the holidays.

Casa Mila- Guadi-Barcelona

La Sagrada Familia- Guadi- Barcelona

One of the two houses that were developed by Gaudi for his new city. However was unable to be completed due to his death. The city then turned it into a park.

View of Parc Guell and the two houses that were completed.

Inside La Sagrada Familia

Each country I visit I grow as a person in culture, awareness and spirit. Spain is a place I would love to return to some day. It's a place to feel like yourself, feel free, and enjoy the moment of life... Just remember to have your pocket book full because it is a spendy place!