Gibraltar - A Piece of England in the Middle of Spain

This past weekend some friends and I rented a car and drove to Gibraltar, which is only about two hours from Seville. I had been looking forward to visiting because of the history and the novelty of the place - and it didn't disappoint!

First of all, we had to go through "border control" which basically consisted of holding up our passports and a man waving us through. Then, we had to cross the runway to get into town! We found this sign quite amusing . . .

You can see the Rock of Gibraltar in the background!

Once in the town, everything was written in English. Pubs were everywhere with pints of beer and fish and chips. Needless to say, our English friends couldn't have been happier! There were tons of British tourists, identifiable by their accent and super-sunburnt skin. It kind of felt like spring break in the US!

We took a cable car up to the top of the rock, which was fantastic! From the top, you could look across the Strait of Gibraltar and see Morocco - amazing! A bit of Greek history says that the Rock of Gibraltar was split from it's other half in Morocco by Hercules during his Twelve Labors . . . More recent history tells of how the Spanish and English fought many battles over the rock, which the English eventually won.

My favorite part of the rock was the Barbary Apes - they were everywhere! It's a mystery as to how they arrived in Gibraltar, but there is evidence that they were in Morocco in prehistoric times. These little guys were quite fascinating to me!

"Hmmm . . . whose plastic bag will I steal next?"

Overall, it was a fantastic day trip. Cheerio, Gibraltar!

Ever wondered what that meant??

Since living in Spain, there are quite a few little things that have made their way into my emails and other forms of written communication. I'm not sure if you already understand what these things meant, or if you are just to polite to ask! Either way, here's the answer:

- "Jejeje/Jajaja" - since the /h/ sound is different in Spanish, this is what is written for "Hehehe/Hahaha" in emails or on things like FB chat. I LOVE the way that it sounds and it never ceases to make me laugh when I read it or type it!

- xx at the end of emails -- stands for "kisses," a very European way to end letters, emails, texts and conversations! I kind of love it! I have not adopted it into phone conversations yet ("un beso/besito!") but might attempt to soon!

Please let me know if there is anything I else I do that you have been wondering about! :)

What is it I want??

This is something I've been thinking about pretty much incessantly over the past few weeks! What do I do next year? What is it I want? At this point in time, I do not have definitive answers to these questions.

As of the past hour, I have completed my last attempt to be hired by American and International Schools in Spain. After my emails with cover letters, resumes, and now letters of recommendations, I don't think there is much else I can do without seeming stalkerish!

Every day I realize more and more how much I miss the classroom. I miss teaching kids to read and write, as well as all of the life lessons that come along with being in school. Although I get to do a little of this as an English teacher, 2-3 hours a week with a group of students just doesn't compare to what I used to do. I miss professional development, both receiving and leading ends of it. So, this helps me to answer one question - I want to be back in a school setting next year. I don't think I can handle another year of English teaching alone. (I can't do it again financially, either!)

But where?? Well, ideally I would love to stay in Spain. My desire to learn Spanish was one of my key reasons to move here. I have fallen in love with the culture and lifestyle, as expected. However, I have yet to receive a response from American or international schools here. If this continues to be the case, this decision is basically made for me - it looks like I will be leaving Spain. :(

So where else do I want to be? I could move to Central or South America if I want to continue learning Spanish and enjoying parts of Spanish culture. However, the second reason I came to Spain was because I wanted to see more of Europe. I have quickly realized that it's impossible to travel when making very little money. But there is still so much more I want to see of this continent! Which leads me to think about finding a job in an international school elsewhere in Europe where I could make a significant amount of money and be able to travel more (Hello Emily?!).

And finally, part of me feels that maybe I need to "settle down" - a phrase I don't really like the sound of! I think it's the fact that my thirtieth birthday is looming, many of my friends are married or getting married, and some are having babies. Yet, I wonder if it's actually age that makes us settle down or circumstance? I feel like relationships, families, and careers are the catalyst for this. At this point in time, I have yet to find the man of my dreams, which means I haven't started a family of my own, and I'm still sorting out what career path I want to follow. So, do I need to settle down? Is it only because I feel like I should that I'm even thinking about it? At this moment, that's what moving back to Denver means to me. Although I love it there and think it's where I would ultimately like to end up, I don't know if that's the path I want to take quite yet.

So, as you can see, I am full of questions and only starting to figure out some of the answers! Hopefully, the answers will present themselves relatively soon - I'm not sure how much longer I can go on worrying! Although I guess some part of us will always worry about the future, right?Joder!

Becoming a Sevillana?

Well, as I stated in an earlier post, I am really trying to work on incorporating as much Sevillano slang into my vocabulary as possible. Although I am nowhere close to Anna's level, I am proud of how much more I am using! I have definitely integrated vale, guapa, no pasa nada, no te preocupes, que fuerte, venga, and joder fairly successfully. I love it!