"¿Dónde está ....?": A shadow on the streets

So, per the advice of one of my friends back home, I have approximately one week to walk around with my camera (and meander with my fanny pack, buy "I <3 Spain" shirts, etc), and then I should try to blend in with the locals (which is turning out to be a rather difficult task - everybody here thinks I'm Swedish...). So in any case, I've spent a couple of days just wandering aimlessly around the city, camera in hand.

But let's talk for a moment about the University.  And then we can talk about the aneurysm that I suffered because of it.  I had to travel up the hill a few times my first weekend here.  One nice thing though, the bus ride up to the Uni is really nice.  Vigo's a really green, really scenic place.  So I was that gringo pressing his face against the window, drooling over the sights of the neighborhoods as we climbed the hill rolling down to the ría. (Side note: apparently, there are wild horses that just wander around campus sometimes!)  So the first time I'm supposed to go there, I was supposed to meet my Spanish amiga Andrea and another American student Chelsea.  This was my second day in Vigo, so I still hadn't acquired my sea legs at that point (not that I have them now...).  I was asking everyone on the streets: Hey, do you know where the bus for the Uni comes? Several very helpful, nice natives later, I finally make it.  So I'm waiting at the bus stop, not knowing if I'm late or my friend's late, or what day it is, or if this is real life.... and I end up asking a dozen or so (not exaggerating) of the students there "Do you know where the ORI (International Office) is?" and everybody (again, not exaggerating) told me some place different... but, being the savvy, super-sleuth that I am, I happen upon the ORI at last!  Andrea finds me there - my little Spanish angel, sent from God to help this American navigate the madness that is Vigo University.  So we work some things out with the ORI, they give me a small list of appointments to look at some flats, and I'm on my way (we'll talk more about apartment searching next time).  The best thing - I got to meet a few other internationals there too! These are the best people ever!! And I met another lovely Spanish lady there, Ana, and as it turns out, she's really good friends with my flatmates - a couple of the most fun people I know.

View from ORI building on campus.  At least it has a view.

I had to return to that labyrinthine place for our orientation meeting.  This is when my suspicions had been absolutely confirmed: NO ONE HAS A CLUE WHAT'S GOING ON!!!! But it's fine - our academic counselor Javier enters the scene a couple days after that and herds us all in the right direction.  Anyway, the meeting consists of two Spanish ladies trying to explain the registration and matriculation process (which is, if you can believe it, even more byzantine than Truman).

So I spend most of the rest of the time those first few days either wandering aimlessly through the city or sleeping through the jet lag.  I've eaten almost exclusively at little cafés around the city, and the food here is incredible!  And what's even better is the coffee. When I get back to the States (if in fact I decide to go back), I'm going to have one hell of time either reacclimating myself to American coffee, or dealing with a huge caffeine withdrawal.

I also had a few random encounters with the locals those days.  The best people to talk to are the servers at the café - I really like the combination of the patronizing look on their faces that say "Awww - look at this foreigner" when they realize this blond kid isn't from here and the feeling of achievement when you realize you're successfully communicating with a Spaniard!
 I also came across a homeless woman who wanted to sell me a plastic rose... she was a little upset that I only had like one euro in my pocket.  And then this guy on the street came up to me to shake my hand...and he didn't let go... He wanted to know if I had a cigarette, and he wasn't letting go of my hand until I assured him that I did not in fact smoke.  But as he walked away, he yelled to me that my Spanish is really good, so that made me feel nice!

In any case, I leave you with a few of the photos I took on my little journeys:

Just a church...

Spaniards playing on an octopus. Per usual.

Peguins!!! (Mom'll get it)

This guy was blowing bubbles in one of the little plazas.

Everybody here has a dog.  EVERYBODY

Who's that handsome shadow?

Just me being creepy. Two things to note: 1) the Spanish youth have all forgotten how to walk and can only get around by skateboard, and 2) All Spanish people have nice butts.  All of them.  Seriously, there are no Kyle Modde butts here.

At the entrance to the Parque do Castro- a park in the middle of the city that sits on a hill.  I'm just preparing myself to start huffing it up this trail.

On top of the Parque do Castro looking onto the ría.

One of the many many malls here.  Can you see it? No? It's because it's underground - this is the best place!!!

"It's this animal that goes 'Bahahah- bahaha": Welcome to Vigo

View from on top of the Parque do Castro, looking out onto the Ría

¡Bienvenidos!

For all of you who want to know just how great my life has been/ is going to be while I'm in Spain, I've decided to gift you with my eloquent, descriptive narrative about my travels and my edgy, awe-inspiring photos.  Enjoy.

So hopefully, this will help appease those of you who are freaking out because I'm not calling (bahaha), entertain those of you who are genuinely interested, and not annoy the hell out of those of you who hate be subjected to the minutiae of their friends' study abroad experiences.

So from the beginning: The Plane Ride

After being thoroughly convinced that it was absolutely necessary to get to the airport four hours before my flight left, I flew through security and ended up waiting at my terminal for a few hours.... great fun. I had my last American meal at the McDonald's in O'Hare and payed six doll hairs for a few minutes of Wi-Fi (to be pronounced "wee-fee" from now on and forever).  And then a seven flight over the Atlantic (I had two airline meals, watched "Acero Puro," and slept not even two seconds) and landed in Barajas airport, Madrid.  They make us go through Security again entering the country and DEAR LORD!! First, it simply takes forever. Second, there are people that are just bolting through the metal detectors when the guards aren't looking (and who so frequently ignored when the detectors went off).  No bueno.  So I make it into the main terminal (which is really like a decent size mall), and I take a seat just in time to watch the sun come up over the mountains of Madrid.... And on the little flight to Vigo, I'm seated next to a group of Russians who know not a word of English, and barely any Spanish.  Given that my Russian vocabulary has atrophied over the years, there was a lot of pantomiming (amazingly enough, I couldn't find a way to fit "Vot eta da, von utka!" into the conversation......). And then we finally land in Vigo. I grab my bag and check with Customs (it was a super-tired looking guy who asked "Do you have any food in your bag?") before being let out into the Spanish world.  Also, I ended reading a book on my flights that was so good! (Amazon thinks it knows me so well and tries to recommend me these really awful books, but this one was really incredible- check it out: The Vast Fields of Ordinary.) In any case, I found out two things:  1) that I would rather stop reading a book about three-quarters of the way through; you know, that point when everything's going just right and you feel good about life, because you know that somehow, things are going to get all effed up, and 2) I fall in love with fictional characters.  Seriously, any Alex Kincaids out there, lemme know. So I finish the book sitting in Barajas and I get so upset- I start crying in the middle of the terminal (the last time I cried reading a book was when Hedwig died...).

Vigo at last

So waiting for me at the airport are two lovely Spanish women- Andrea and Elena.

So all of a sudden, I kind of realize, "hey, I'm in Spain!" So I start getting really nervous/excited. We start rolling through the streets of Vigo - and let me tell one thing: HOLY CRAP - these people are OUT OF THEIR MINDS!!! I've been in the car with a few Spaniards and some taxis - it's no good.  Even the buses here are insane.  My personal sentiments on the bus system here: The knight bus.  One more note: I've already spent a small fortune on bus fares here... I'll get my student pass by Thursday though!  But I digress... Andrea and I were talking and she was already teaching me some Galician!! But I found out, when I get really nervous, my mouth gets super dry, and then I can't roll my rr's ... she was making fun of me :(  But then she was trying to describe to me what a cabra was ("It's this animal that makes the sound 'bahah-bahah'). (Side note: it's so weird, the words they think you don't know, but then they start using these either really obscure, idiomatic terms or they start telling a story and think you'll understand every word...) But I love them all the same, and Andrea's been really great helping me get around and teaching me Spanish things!

So we make it to my hotel finally (it's been 36 hours or something stoopid since I'd slept...) and check in at the Hotel Náutico, which is right off of the Ría.

So I drop my stuff off at the room (which was just big enough for the bed) and go wandering around the streets, looking for something to eat.  I stumbled into a café just down the street.  Still kind of freaking out from being in Spain, I go up to the camarera and say "hey, I just got here like an hour ago. I don't know what's going on, but can you get me something to eat?" And the look on this lady's face was so great- I'm not sure if it was pity or she just didn't want to outright laugh in my face...And she asks me how hungry I am and I say "starving." So she brings me the best coffee I've ever had, and then she brings me these tostadas with a cream cheese and salmon on them - let me tell you: You have never really eaten if you haven't eaten here.  SO GOOD! And then she brings me a dish of rice and chicken and beef in this sauce...I don't know what it was, but holy hell... And what's better, she was talking to me a little bit and said she thought my Spanish was really good :D  (Really, I was just overjoyed that I was able to communicate.) But it was a lot easier than I thought it would've been - and already, I feel like my Spanish is getting a lot better.  In any case, I make my way back to my little room and finally get to sleep.  At 4 in the afternoon.  Jet lag blows.

So that's my first day in Spain.  I've had so many adventures since then, so more to come very soon.

Besos

One of the many strange statues of the city... and also how jet lag feels.