Address!

Here is my address for all the packages I know that everyone is just DYING to send me! :)

I would sure appreciate them!!!


Lauren Staley
c/o Joan y Ursula Capdeville
c/ Osca 4
17003 Girona
Spain

I have no idea if that is the way to write my name and theirs, but I am sure it would be fine.

Love to you all--devotional time and off to work.

lauren

FINALLY!!!

These are all backwards--you should look at them from top to bottom for the full effect! Next ones will be in order! I am learning!

And the marina and town again from another view!

The view looking out. This is an uninhabited island that if you look closely there is one building on top. It used to be a prison before WWII! It was pretty cool..

The view from the boat! That is the marina in the town we had come out of, looking behind us. It was beautiful.

Albert in the pizzeria making pizza! The nice men picked him up and let him play with the dough. It was so sweet.

This is for you, Bo. HA! Muy delicioso!

Chef Joan making his incredible paella!

Another pic off the baclony of the condo. Nice pool, huh?

Above is the view from the deck of the condo in Calella--you can't see really well, but that is ALL ocean. Gorgeous views!!!

Albert the crazed Rockstar!!

From left to right, Fine, Joan's cousin who is so funny, Maria my first friend, me, and Ursula, mi Espanol madre.

Okay--I literally was looking for the cord to my computer for about 20 minutes then couldn't figure out how to upload them for a good 2 hours--then read online that I needed a cd that was in the packaging..which OF COURSE I didn't bring to Spain. I was about to burst into tears when all of a sudden they started uploading!!!!! MUCHAS GRACIAS JESUS!!!

So, I am going to be better about putting them with the corresponding post obviously, but as for now, here ya go! It is getting late and I wanna watch The Bachelor on ABC.com--I know, I am so lame. But, my American "fix"!!!

And some special sidenotes that came to me while I was working today that I thought everyone would enjoy. SO FUNNY

• First off, just so you understand what I hear all day long and to add to lack of communication, picture this in your head: in the region where I am, everyone speaks Catalan. They also speak Spanish, but primarily, Catalan. (they will switch to Spanish for foreigners, you just have to be gracious.) SO, Joan and Ursula speak Spanish to each other in front of me so I can learn. Joan speaks Catalan to Albert, and Ursula, because she is Polish, only speaks Polish to Albert. Does your head hurt yet? Because mine sure as hell does.
• Albert screams at the top of his lungs all the time, like at the dinner table, walking around the house, etc. No one tells him to be quiet. SO WEIRD. And did I mention he bites? He can definitely be sweet, but WOW. He has some lungs.
• The other woman that works for Gourmand Breaks with me, is named Ellie. She only works a few days a week, and thankfully speaks some english. Today, was our first day that we worked together. She is very nice but has very masculine tendencies and looks like a lesbian...all of a sudden her cell phone rings in the office SO loud and guess what her ring tone is? HAHAHAHHAHA--"I kissed a girl and I liked it!" It took every ounce of my being to not burst into laughter. I just kept thinking CAROLINE if you had been there we would have died laughing. (AKA Montgomery/Waller's christening and the lord of the rings dancers in tights)
• Also, Joan used to own a restaurant in the nearby town of Vic, but he sold it. Ursula had a chocolate and coffee shop in downtown Girona that she sold. So, when they closed they got some things from the restaurants. They have the biggest juicer I have ever seen in my life. I am going to take a pic of it. It is so phenomenal and makes the best OJ ever. Dad, maybe one day I will get you one. Also, they have one of those slicers that slices big hunks of meat and huge things of salami or cheese--just out on the kitchen counter!!! And they have a huge thing of cheese--like at Jersey Mike's-- (don't you love my comparison)--in the fridge that you just pull out and slice however much you want! YUM
• Gloria the cook/housekeeper and I had lunch together today. Ursula went to the gym and then met her friends for lunch downtown and so Gloria made lunch for me. It was rice, salad, and these huge sausages, and lamb. They eat the craziest shit. But it was delicious! And before leaving, Ursula asked if I had a pocket dictionary of some kind so that Gloria and I could try and communicate. I said yes so I ran upstairs and got it. And we ACTUALLY communicated a bit! She was hysterical. She asked me if I had cried anymore and asked me about the weekend and I could NOT for the life of me remember ocean or boat--but finally after many hand gestures she got it. I wish ya'll could see me at times. WOW.
  

This is such an experience and I just love Gloria. It is almost easier for me to talk to her instead of Ursula, for one because I know Ursula knows English, and because I don't feel as dumb. She doesn't know a lick of English, ya know? We need a Gloria pic for sure...stay tuned..

Also, Maria and I are going out either tomorrow night or Wednesday night! YAY!!! She is going to pick me up from the house so I am very excited! We are going to go to some bar downtown. Oh, and she is the on across from me in the pictures of the four of us at dinner and Ursula is the blonde next to me.

I am thinking Maria and I will do tomorrow night because Ursula just told me tonight at dinner that on Thursday Joan has a meeting in Barcelona and a lunch that he wants her to go with him to. So, they thought that if it works out Ursula and I could drop Albert off to school and then drive to Barcelona and she could drop me off and I could walk around exploring Barcelona while they did their thing!!! I am SO excited. I hope it works out. Would be so fun to be able to get out!!! And very nice that they even thought about me! She did say though, maybe you could work longer Wednesday and Friday and we will just make up for it?? haha--still worth it though.


That uploading just took forever--it is late and I gotta get some shut eye!!! Off to read my book and I can't wait to read everyone's emails in the morning!!! YAY!!!

love

The First Weekend!

Well, I am actually in decent spirits at this moment (which let me tell you is a moment by moment feeling...) I can be fine one second and then the next have tears welling up in my eyes. This is such a roller coaster of emotions and overall feelings about the entire situation.

At one moment I will be thinking..GOD, I am so lucky to be able to see these places and live in this environment. What an experience! Then I will think about friends, and the Corner Pub, and dinners with friends, and my SWEET mom, and I will get so depressed feeling. I have been reading my devotional my friend Dana gave me every morning and it has been such a saving grace. And Laura has been emailing encouraging scriptures too that at first make me cry but after the second or third time, I think.......I think I can.....I think I can.....If only God could zap me and I could be funny in Spanish. I know I am in English, ya know?

First off, Maria, the 29 year old that I met the other night emailed me...PRAISE GOD. She wants to meet up at a bar this week sometime to do a language exchange because she wants to know English better. So great news!!!! My first Spanish friend!!! :)

So we went to Calella where they have a condo, for Saturday night. Ursula woke me up on Saturday and we all drove an hour to the condo. It was a beautiful drive and so....foreign. No other way to describe it---rice fields, and desolate and then a teeny little town, more rice fields, another little town, and so on and so forth. We unloaded the car and then Joan the dad, made a wonderful meal of paella. This is a very traditional dish of rice, vegetables, and chicken, or sometimes shrimp. We had chicken.

Anyway, he is a great cook and it was fabulous. It is called paella because of the dish it is made in--one pan, and absolutely delicious. We ate and cleaned up and then Ursula and I went on a walk through the town along the shore. It was really cool and reminded me a lot of Cinque Terra for those that have been there--which was my fave place in all of Europe. She knows a lot about the history and it was cool to hear about everything. And nice to be out of the house with such amazing scenery. My camera battery died on the walk so I didn't get to take any pics of it though...next time..


We went back to the condo and headed to a town about 20 minutes away where there is good shopping and Ursula and I walked around and shopped while the boys did their thing. We met back up and then went to get pizza at a really neat pizzeria. SO fresh. It was amazing. Oh, and they drink all the time. At all meals there is a bottle of wine, except at lunch during the week. It is funny..and always GREAT wine.

Sidenote: at the pizza place we were all laughing and having a good time, and Ursula translated from Joan to ask me, "delicate subject, but are you doing better?" I said...yes, currently...haha

So we came home about 12:30--not even kidding...with a 2 year old. It is insane how late they stay up. I don't know how they do it. The day is just so different. Albert goes to school between 9 and 9:30, and I have to be in the office at 9:30. Then we break for lunch (when Gloria says it is ready) around 2 or 2:30. That is the large meal of the day, and then dinner can be anywhere from 9 to 11. Later if you are going out to eat. If you eat at home, then it is around 9.

back to the weekend...so we came home and went to sleep and then Ursula woke me up this morning and said it was beautiful out and we were going to go sailing. They had asked me Saturday if I enjoyed sailing and I said of course, that I had been a few times and I would love to..So I think they wanted to do soemthing that they knew I would enjoy, which was nice and thoughtful.

So we drove to a town about 30 minutes away where they keep their boat, and another couple joined us. They have a 25 year old daughter that JUST left to go back to University...so unfortunately didn't get to meet her, but they were VERY nice. They spoke small sentences to me and slowly---sometimes I could understand, sometimes not, but they were sweet to even try.

So we went sailing all bundled up--it was blue skies, but freezing. We didn't put the sails up because it was so windy, but it was very fun and nice to finally see the sun and envision what it would be like in 2 months...tan, sun, fun. And maybe even be able to communicate at that point. ha!

We went out for a couple hours and then we all headed back to the condo and Joan made mussels, clams, and squid for lunch all sauteed in olive oil and parsley. It was actually pretty good. (however I did have to chew on a few pieces 427 times and then chug wine to get it down..)

There is something SERIOUSLY wrong with my metabolism and thyroid if I don't come back a good size 6. I have eaten more vegetables and good fats in the past 4 days than I have in months. Everything is fresh and so much healthier than American's eating habits. Oh, another interesting thing--they only use olive oil and vinegar on salads. There are no pre-made dressings.

We ate and drank 2 more bottles of wine, and then cleaned up (which is my job) and then drove back to Girona. There is no internet in the condo, which was a bit difficult, but I will say that it made coming back not as depressing, when I knew that my wonderful friends would have emailed me, and I could look forward to them!!!! And I was right!!! :)

So, work tomorrow, which is kind of a drag, but another day, another experience, right? At this point, that is how I HAVE to look at it. Once again, none of this year mentality...one day at a time. Joan and I have a race to see if he can learn English first, or me Spanish..haha...he is so funny. He asked me in the car today---via Ursula--one, two, three, four! Like the rockstars! HAHA---hysterical.

Can't find the cord to my camera....of course, so I will post pics as soon as I can. Please continue with the emails. I enjoy reading each and every one of them. It really does MAKE my day. And one week without me may not seem like long (not even..), but I feel like I have been in Spain and away from EVERYTHING that is normal and near to me, for a very long time. Emails mean the world. It is tough.

love to you all and I hope people are actually reading this...haha

Night Out!

Okay, so things are getting a little better...I think I will be able to tell a lot within the next week or so about where I stand (aka--whether I am on the next flight out or not..). We went to this restaurant in Girona for dinner..Maria, a 29 year old who speaks a little English but can understand most, and Fine, Joan (the dad's) cousin.

The four of us got tapas and a bottle of red wine and just sat there and talked. Most of it was in Spanish, but then Ursula would stop and say..Oh, sorry! And start translating as I sat there like a bump on a log. You know if you have ever been on a date with someone and not known what to say--and that uncomfortable feeling comes over you..(me, I start getting splotchy) Well, that is what it feels like ALL THE TIME. haha

We ate and then went to a REALLY cool bar in the Jewish quarter, but I can tell you right now...the guys did NOT look Jewish. haha--It was actually set inside this like cave of stone, so the floor, walls, and ceiling were all stone. It was REALLy neat. The bartender was asking us what we wanted to drink, and Ursula asked me if I wanted a mojito..I said sure, and he looked at me and said--sweet, or bitter? I got a BIG smile on my face and said--ENGLISH!!!! He laughed. It was funny.

Then we went to another bar and had another drink, and then came home. It was VERY nice to be out of the house and actually see some of the things I came here to see--people, nightlife, architecture, quaint shops, etc. Maria is trying to learn English and is very sweet, so we are going to meet up next week so that we can do a language exchange. I PRAY that it gets me somewhere. Otherwise, I can't even go into town by myself...I am not even kidding...Rosetta Stone is full of shit. haha

So, Ursula just woke me up because I have no alarm clock and it is already noon! We are leaving in 1 hour for Calella even though the weather is still shit. At least it will be nice to see the water. I took a picture last night at dinner of all of us, and will post later. I don't have time to do it now! And I will take pics of the family tonight at dinner. Joan is teaching me how to make paella today...did I mention he speaks no English??? yeah, should be interesting.

Oh, and I broke down to Ursula last night before we went out. I couldn't help it. We were going into the office to go over something for work, and the tears just started flowing. I said, "I don't know if I can do this.." I just wanted her to know so she would be sensitive in a way to me, and so if I do decide to leave, that it would not be so abrupt. Joan came in accidentally and she explained to him why I was sad, etc. and he said he totally understood (in Spanish) and that he was sent to a family when he was young and it was a very traumatic time in his life...which I thought was a very nice thing to say.

Homesickness is just the WORST feeling. Especially when you can't even talk to anyone.

One day at a time. One day at a time. None of this year B. S., but I can assure everyone that I am doing my VERY best.

love to you all and keep the responses coming....Congrats to Anne and Woodson on lil' Woodson, Jr. (which of course made me start bawling..) haha

Day Two

I cannot even believe it has only been two days. Why is it that when you are home and doing everyday things, time goes by so quickly, but when you are completely out of your comfort zone, time creeps by.

I already feel like I have lived in this house for a good two weeks. I am very depressed and constantly feel ignorant. I know that they are not doing that on purpose by any means. It is just extremely difficult and MUCH lonelier than I anticipated. Emails are great and all, but not having a phone, and not having any way to leave a house in 2 days, will drive anyone a little crazy. I kind of feel like it is Ground Hog's Day EVERYDAY.

I started work this morning about 9:30 and basically just researched our company and the competitors, and wrote up a document about what I liked and didn't like, etc. Then worked until about 2, and Gloria served lunch. Lunch today was a salad and then a casserole with meat (like hamburger) and mashed potatoes, with hard boiled eggs in it, and olives. Weird, but actually pretty tasty.

I was wrong about having friends over for dinner tonight. We are going out for dinner with some friends of Ursula's. She arranged it for me to meet some more people and for me to see more of Girona (thank GOD). The restaurant is in the middle of the city, so that should be fun. I am excited about getting out of the house at least.

Tomorrow our plans are up in the air because of the weather. We were going to go to another town a little south of here where they have a condo at the beach. But, it has been raining so much that if it continues we will not...GREAT. She said there would be no point because we would be walking around so much there and can't walk in the rain.

I am not sure I can do this..I feel incredibly homesick and KNOW this is not going to be for a year as originally planned. It may not even be for a week! Who wants to pick me up from the airport??!!!

I haven't looked at flights yet, but I am considering...Jessica, are you ready for a roommate again??? Sure do miss my Lily too...sad.

love

Day One

Well, to be perfectly honest, I am completely and utterly overwhelmed!!!! I arrived last night bout 8 PM and Ursula picked me up at the Barcelona airport. She had a sign with my name on it, but we didn't need it at all! We completely recognized each other immediately. We got my luggage and loaded the car and drove the hour back to their home in Girona. Loaded the elevator with my stuff, my mom called, which was soo tough. I almost started crying immediately. I have the weirdest feeling--so out of place and not understood, if that makes sense.

I took a quick shower and then came downstairs and they had some soup for dinner and some red wine, and I met Joan, the father. He is a lot nicer and friendlier than I was anticipating, but does not speak a word of English. So Ursula translated the entire dinner for us both. Then I went to bed and did not wake up until 1:30 today when Ursula was knocking on my door!!!! Lunch was ready and she was letting me know!

The room that I am in is definitely comfortable. very modern and clean, straight lines. Everything is orange, which is a little funny..GO vols! haha--Nice shower and bathtub, all new fixtures, toilets, etc. But the house is a little cold, if you know what I mean...

Oh, and also there are remote controlled blinds through out the house I have a sliding glass door in my room and also a window, and then a smaller window in my bathroom. They all have the blinds on them, which shut out ALL the light. It is so crazy...so of course I had no idea that it was so late in the day today!! I guess the jetlag caught up with me!

Then I jumped up and had lunch with she and Gloria (who also speaks no English). We had a large salad, fried fish, and mashed potatoes. They obviously eat a larger lunch and smaller dinner here. Over lunch she and Gloria would say things to me and then look at me to see if I understood, which of course I didn't, and then they would start giggling. I literally almost started bawling at the table.

It is SO overwhleming and such an uneasy feeling. Like an uphill battle with no legs. I have cried on and off today and am just trying to stay positive. It is really very hard though...but it is only Day one.

I came up to my room after lunch to unpack and organize and email everyone etc. and the tears just started flowing! I feel like I am being such a baby!!! haha--In time this too shall pass, right???

Dear Lord I hope so. I am not even kidding.

I just met Albert for the first time and gave him the Corduroy doll and book, and he loved it. He mumbles and I can't really understand what he is saying, or trying to say...I am not sure I could even if I could speak Spanish!!! haha--he kissed me on the cheek for it, which was so cute. The he grabbed my hand and led me to his room and got ALL of his toys out and then got excited and grabbed my hand again and gnawed into it...I was like, NO NO NO!!!! Then he grabbed the little race car I gave him as a gift also, and slammed it into my head.

Lovely to meet you, Albert.

Will of course write more tomorrow. They are having some friends over for dinner in honor of me tomorrow night. Should be fun. Can someone come visit this weekend? DEAR LORD.

love

Holy Shit

Well, I am at the gate about to board! I am so grateful for this opportunity and what lies ahead. Saying goodbye to my mom was terrible. It was very very sad and lots of tears and hugging. I think she is going to have to come before June. Don't know if I can wait that long...

Please stay in touch and the fun stories will begin tomorrow! Had so much fun last night with the girls--Laura, Lorri, and Tay..THANK YOU.

I was feeling it this morning...in fact, my head is still pounding--despite the bloody mary my mom and I had in the airport.

Love you all and come visit!!! Say prayers for me friends!

love