¡Buenos dias! Well... I've been year abroading for a week now and already enough has happened that I'm not really sure when to start!
First of all, let me introduce you to a few more people and explain a few things...
So, Love Cambodia is a charity set up to support the poor and needy in Cambodia (www.welovecamodia.org). Chris and Sheryl's involvement in the charity springs from the fact that Chris decided to quit her job, totally uproot her life and move to Cambodia five years ago as a missionary. Since then she has set up a house and takes in Cambodians who would otherwise be on the streets. As a result, Sheryl has decided to open a second hand shop (a rarity in Spain) to support the cause. It's a brave project but the passion behind it is pretty immeasurable so I'm incredibly excited to see how it develops! So far my involvement has been limited to cleaning the shop window but I was somewhat stunted by the mother of all hangovers. Hopefully I can be slightly more useful in the next few weeks.
Now for the introductions, Beth and Cristina are Sheryl's gorgeous daughters. I've known Beth since we were little tiny people. She's recently moved back here to Spain after some years spent in England with her Dad. Cristina is 3 and switches between Catalan, Castilian and English at the drop of a hat. It's flippin' amazing. She's taken to calling me Siana, which I quite like. Maybe it'll stick. I'm sure there'll be MANY hilarious Cristina quotes in this blog - she's an absolute monkey (in a lovely way).
On my first full day in Llança (Tuesday) I dived in head first and went for an explore on my own. I walked right round the coast and found myself on a cliff edge with a breathtaking view. The sea was crystal clear and sparkling, the sun was shining, the wind was in my hair, and suddenly it felt very lame that I couldn't share the moment with anyone. Never mind - I suppose that's something a year abroader has to get used to!
The next couple of days were a wonderful mix of beach time, beer time and family time. The highlights include: taking Cristina for a swim then leaving her ashore and venturing out into the deeper sea myself while she wildly exclaimed to Sheryl and Chris "He perdido la chica! He perdido la chiccaaaa" (translation: I've lost the girl!)... purchasing a snorkelling mask and having a veritable panic attack at the sight of the swarms of fish of which I'd previously been blissfully ignorant... going out with Beth and a few of her friends and dancing and having a great time (the resulting hangover was not so much of a highlight, admittedly).
On Saturday morning I went to stay with Laura, the daughter of the pastor at Sheryl's church. It's been a fantastic weekend. Granted, it was stressful and exhausting at times thanks to the constant speaking of Spanish, but I suppose that's sort of why I'm here. We played card games and scrabble with her friends, watched the second Narnia film and many episodes of the Big Bang Theory (a massive hit in Spain, it seems), ate with her family, went to church on Sunday morning and cut up fish on Sunday afternoon. Yep, cut up fish. I'd forgotten how spontaneously and quickly the spaniards live their lives - they don't want to waste a second. So, one minute we were sat on the sofa watching tv and the next, without warning, I was stood with a pair of plastic gloves on, bagging up gory, bloody, fishy bits of a 2 metre long eel-type-thing to distribute to the poor people of the town. I'm still wondering whether it was some sort of surreal daydream.
This morning we wandered round Figueres - the home of the Dali museum which is a fantastic sight if ever you get the chance to see it - and then I caught a train back to Llança.
And that's where I find myself now, sitting in the same seat I was sat in this time last week (this time with a beer, not a coffee) and wondering what the next few weeks have in store!
Ciao for now
X
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