Just an ordinary day...

Today in class Maria the Awe-Prof (Awesome Profesora) decided to teach us the many colloquial phrases that rely upon stereotypes of different nationalities. It seemed odd... I wouldn't think to teach someone learning English phrases like "to jip" or "jew it down," but I guess they are more common in Spanish. Some of the phrases such as "to be the Indian" and "to drink like a Russian" were downright offensive for a room full of international students, and were we were forced to write them down in the worksheets! One funny thing was that Jill (an English student) walked into class ten minutes late right when we were discussing la punctualidad Britanica or British punctuality. Maria said she as all for breaking stereotypes.

I managed to humiliate myself horribly when asking Maria what enganar like a Chinese man meant. She said "enganar es...you know...to chit" and without really thinking about it I blurted out "to SHIT?!?" ... Everyone burst out laughing. What would that even entail? No, she assured me, it meant to cheat like a Chinese man... Ohhh, that's MUCH better! lol It only took two weeks, but I managed to let my true colors show.

Later this afternoon, I decided to go for a run down this 6-mile trail that starts from a park close to our dorm. I set out for a nice run, and ended up finding a diamond in the rough. The trail wound through the green countryside on an old train-track, meaning it went through tunnels under the mountains! It ended at this little village, and the only word I can think to describe it is quaint. It had small colorful houses with laundry drying on clotheslines, and all the weathered buildings were exposing brick. I stood out like a sore thumb with my running shorts and ipod... and being under 50. You could tell this place didn't receive a lot of foot traffic with the viciously barking dogs and the squinting eyes that followed me as I passed. (Hun, picture Gandalf entering Hobbiton) Old men would sit outside their stoop puffing on pipes (Pipes!).

Sensing I was not a welcome guest, I continued on the road just to see where it led before I turned around, and lo and behold I found a CASTLE! Albeit a small one, but still... a castle! Well, I am not really sure exactly what it was, and the walls and ominous gate prevented me from finding out, but it had two towers that stood about 50 ft high. There was a picture of the cross of the old Asturian King on the gate, so I don't know how that factors in but I intend to find out. The whole thing was positively COVERED in ivy, hence why it took me so long to see it in the first place.

That is one of the things I love about this place. You can set out for a completely normal day, and stumble across something amazing. Ordinary doesn't exist here. The minute I get into a routine, something wild happens to turn it all on its head. But that's what makes it exciting, and that's what makes it go by so fast!