Friday, October 9, 2009

I have internet!
I have internet!
I have internet!

Internet withdrawal symptoms may include restlessness, loneliness, feelings of depression or isolation.

It's sad how much the internet has become a necessity in my life. That month and a half that I didn't have it was rough. Towards the end, I was starting to get used to not having internet, but only begrudgingly so. Now my favorite drug is back in my life, and I'm already high. This means I can blog post when the urge strikes and I can pay my credit card bills without having to go to the internet cafe to do so (not to mention check email, register for classes, look up directions, book airline tickets, skype, facebook, do research, use the online spanish and catalán translators, google, etc.). I'm so glad that I'm through with the internet cafe phase of my life. I don't have to listen to stupid 12 year old boys yelling "mierda" every time they make a wrong move when they play their videogames.

Even if the internet isn't as good as WIFI and it disconnects whenever it feels like it (remember, it's Spanish internet, so typically it shuts off whenever it wants), it's better than nothing. Plus, who knows if I'll live with Montse all year? She can be a bit bossy and, at times, her restlessness makes me nervous.


In other news, I booked a ticket to Madrid for the end of this month! I'm going for 2 days. HELLO PRADO museum!! I'm so excited! More on that later (or after I get back, perhaps).

I miss fall weather in Illinois. The leaves are so beautiful when they coat the ground in all their brilliant colors. They don't change here like they do in Illinois. Thus, a few weekends ago I trekked all the way back to the Sarrià neighborhood where Colegi San Jordi is located (we lived there for three weeks upon arrival in Barcelona) to visit this park that I liked to run through. It's the only place that I have so far discovered in Barcelona where it feels like autumn.



Though I hear the weather has been a bit wretched lately in Illinois, I miss running on the trails, breathing in the scent of the woods, and listening to crispy leaves crunching beneath my feet. When I run in Barcelona I run on smaller roads around Gracia which swirl up the mountain. Thus, I can only run about 5 miles at a time because they are five miles of running straight up the mountain. Running a 70% incline for 10 minutes or so is no easy task, not to mention the fact that you're inevitably inhaling loads of smoke, car exhaust, and body odor with each breath you take.


Needless to say, it's still pretty warm here in Barcelona. I guess fall is supposed to be the rainy season here, but it hasn't really rained that much. Maybe November is more fall than October is? Anywho, regardless of what season it is, I'm sweating my ass off. I didn't realize how winter-ized my wardrobe was until I came to a place that is warm for more than 3 months out of the year. Not wanting to spend money on clothes that will inevitably clutter my free existence in Catalunya, I made a scarf into a dress and cuffed tall boots to make them shorter.... It was much cooler than wearing jeans (but the boots were still warm).


Yeah, that picture is not the best quality. Sorry about that. It was the only decent one that came out of a series of many, sadly enough. Thanks Mom, for sending the scarf.

1 comment:

Unknown said...

you should not miss the weather. it has been cold and rainy and generally nasty every day for the last week. i either need to take a hint and stop riding my bike around, or get one of these:

http://www.bikeumbrella.com/

"The bike umbrella is made in a range of fashionable colours and graphic designs with an optional UV protective inner lining.".

Awesome.