El Yelmo

I was planning on doing a blog posting about school yesterday, but seeing as I had only had four days of it by then, it is probably better that I didn't have time to. The reason I didn't have time to was because I spent much of my day climbing El Yelmo, which is one of the taller peaks in the mountain range next to Soto. We left the house around 11:00 and reached the start of the trail by 11:30. Unfortunately, we weren't able to start hiking up the trail at a normal pace due to an unexpected event:

Surprisingly enough, there was a trail-running race coming down the trail that we were intending to hike up. Luckily, it was nearing the end by time we got there, so we only had to spend the first kilometer or so hiking in short bursts up the path and then jumping off to the side so that the racers could stumble by. Other than that, the hike was quite nice and fun, although it was quite hot and their wasn't a lot of shade. For the first part of the hike I was walking at roughly the same pace as my host family because I had my camera out and was snapping pictures, but once the hike got more difficult and rockier and I put away my camera, I ended up having to wait for them to catch up a few times. This was partially due to the fact that I walk at a slightly faster pace than them, partially due to the fact Esperanza struggled a little and had to slow down while going over some of the rocks, and partially due to the fact that Dani and Lorenzo took a wrong turn at one point. It took us roughly three and a half hours to reach the top, which was longer than I expected it to take. Obviously, the race slowed us down some, but the climb itself was a lot harder, but also more fun, than I expected. The last part was easily the hardest though.

The last part consisted of climbing roughly 200 feet up a crevice in which I usually couldn't square my shoulders with my hips due to lack of room (the third picture shows what is the widest part by far). These 200 feet took us just under 10 minutes to climb, partially due to the fact that we were having to pass packs to the person in front of us because we could not fit between the rocks with them on and partially due to the fact that I got stuck between the rock walls and couldn't move or maneuver for a minute or so. But, once we got to the top it was easily worth the trouble because of the views.

The first picture (the one with the huge bridge) features Soto del Real (the town I'm staying in) in the middle. As you can probably tell, it is a little dry here, but I've been told that it is much prettier after the rains during the spring, so I'm hoping that we can do this climb again then so that I can see the difference. If we do I'll make sure to post photos from these same angles to show you guys the difference. Overall, I really enjoyed this hike. I usually don't like doing anything other than sitting on the couch and watching American football on Sundays, but I enjoyed this hike a lot. Anyway, due to the time difference between here and the USA, the hike didn't cause me to miss any games. Unfortunately though, the games aren't televised here so I have to follow the Jets game from my ipod on espn, which gives my live play-by-play coverage.
Anyway, to finish off here are a couple more pictures. I'm hoping to do a posting about school this weekend, so you'll probably here from me then.

Week One

Supposedly, the first week is supposed to be one of the most difficult, so I decided to keep track of what I did throughout the week:

Day one
1:15
I am now here. Honestly, I'm not sure how I am feeling right now. I think I am in a state of shock. It has really only just hit me that I am doing this.
1:50
Just finished unpacking, getting ready to have lunch. I think I have figured out how I am feeling - scared. I was thinking on trying to elaborate a little bit more regarding how I'm feeling, but I really can't.
3:20
Just had lunch. It was quite good. We had paella - it wasn't a very complicated one ( just rice and chicken) but it was very good.
8:50
Napped for the past five and a half hours. Feel like I should of tried to stay up and get to know my host family but I was exhausted and am still a little tired.
10:45
Just finished dinner. Again the food was very good. We had soup and fried eggs. I am quite happy with the host family i got. They are helpful, kind, and understanding of the way I am feeling right now. I'm going to bed again now - a plane ride in economy seating with a large lady in front leaning her seat all the way back does not allow one much rest, so it is catch-up time.
Day Two
1:15
Slept in a little bit (was woken up at 12:15) but was up in time for breakfast. During and after breakfast Dani (my host brother) and I watched motorcycle racing.   It was more exciting than NASCAR but not nearly as exciting as a real sport. My host dad's family is coming over this afternoon. I'm expecting it to be loud and chaotic, and I'm not really looking forward to meeting them (having a bunch of Spanish people asking me question after question is not my ideal second day), but I'll see how it goes.
2:22
Met the family that was coming over. They are very nice and are talking slow enough for me to understand.
8:00
All of the family just left. While they were over it was quite fun. Lunch was a multi-course meal that was, as expected, very loud.  Whenever they weren't eating they were talking. So, it was quite lively, and I found it very enjoyable. After lunch, we (meaning me, Dani, Julia (my host sister), three of the cousins, and my host dad's brother) played...
10:15
Sorry, I had to walk and then have dinner. Anyway, we played a board game called "Party & Co." It is somewhat similar to Cranium (for those of you that have played it) but with a slightly different way of winning. It was fun, but also rather difficult because it was all in Spanish. A little bit after we finished playing everyone left. My host family then took me on a walk around town to show me different parts of it. After that we had a small dinner and now I'm getting ready to go to bed. Overall, today was better (and easier) than I expected. Hopefully tomorrow will be the same.
Day 3
11:55
Somehow ended up sleeping 12.5 hours last night, which is somewhat strange seeing as I didn't feel all that tired when I went to bed. Anyway, everyone is gone right now except me, the maid, and Dani, whose asleep. So, I'm practicing my Spanish by reading Don Quijote. It isn't the most exciting or entertaining book, but the Spanish is simple and straightforward.
7:55
Didn't really do anything exciting so far today. I swam for a little while in the pool in the backyard and then went out for a little with Dani and his friends. The latter wasn't all that fun seeing as they didn't do much other than talk in fairly rapid spanish, which was a little difficult for me to understand. I think I have basketball practice at 8:30, but I'm not positive. Anyway, I'm not looking forward to it at all. I'm guessing that it is going to be difficult for me to understand what the coach is saying, so it isn't going to be very fun.
1:05
Going to bed now. Basketball was better than I expected. The practice consisted of an hour of conditioning, a half hour of dribbling drills, and a half hour of shooting and passing drills. It wasn't as hard as practices in the States, which was nice. After dinner, Dani and I watched a German movie on tv. I was extremely surprised by how well they dubbed it. It was much better than I expected, which is could because I hate watching things where the lip movements and the words don't appear to match at all. I had a very busy day today, so I'm expecting to sleep for awhile, but we'll see.
Day 4
12:55
Just got woken up. That was probably the shortest sleep I've had so far (only 11.5 hours). I'm not sure what we're doing today but hopefully it isn't much because I'm still kind of tired.
7:45
Haven't done a lot today. Around one thirty we went to a exhibit of photos of one of the concentration camps. Later this afternoon I went out with Dani and some of his friends. Other than that we've just been laying around relaxing.
Day 5
9:50
Having to get up much earlier today in order to go into Madrid. I don't really like getting up earlier, but I think going into Madrid will be quite fun and worth it.
10:10
Just finished dinner. Earlier today we went into Madrid. We picked up Lorenzo's brother Jose and went to a temporary museum exhibit called "Bodies". It is very similar to the Body World exhibits we have in the states, except the content was less specific and instead of meandering through and talking and seeing whatever they gave you one of those guided tour devices with headphones that took the user through eight different rooms all containing different systems of the body. Overall, it wasn't as good as the one in the States, but I still enjoyed it. After that, we went back to Jose's apartment and watched the Spain-Germany basketball game while eating lunch. We made a couple of brief stops (to get Dani shoes and to get me a prepaid phone card) on the way home. Once home, I left again in order to go to basketball practice, which wasn't good but also wasn't bad. I think I'm probably going to go to bed now because I think I have to be up somewhat early tomorrow.
Day 6
8:45
This is the earliest I've woken up so far. It is very quite. Looking outside my window, there are almost no cars out on the street. I'm thinking that this is similar to the time just before the sun rises at home - the earlier risers are up but none of them have really gone out yet.
3:15
Now in La Adrada, a town in Castilla y Leon. We are staying at the house of Esperanza's parents. A couple of Dani's cousins are also here. We just finished a large lunch. Earlier we went to the pool for a while, which was fun. We played a volleyball-like game in the pool and then a mini game of soccer on the lawn.
1:00
Went to the pool again before dinner. Part of dinner was a Spanish tortilla made Madrid style. It was amazingly tasty. After dinner we hung out with some neighborhood kids and played soccer under the streetlights. I also learned how to play a Spanish card game called "mus" (I'm pretty sure that is not the correct spelling) which I won at.
Day 7
2:15
This morning we went to a marcadillo, which was kind of a mix between a farmers market and a flea market - there was lots of fruit but there was also clothes and shoes and other little trinkets. From there we walked up to the castle and walked around it's walls for a little. After that we walked up into the mountains. We walked to a river and the rock-hopped down the bank. It was very fun and the river was beautiful. About two minutes into our walk back down, two guys in a jeep stopped and gave all six of us a ride down to the cars, which was really fun (it was like in the movies where there are a bunch of people all hanging off the sides of a jeep).
11:05
Heading back to Madrid in order to be able to go to our basketball game in the morning. After lunch we went up to a pool made by a small dam across a river. It was fairly crowded, but, because the water was so cold, there were barely any people in the water. There was an opening in the railing of the stone stairs along the side of the pool. It was about 12 feet up and we all had a good time jumping off of it. After we dried off, we took a walk up to a hotel/restaurant with a beautiful view of the valley. And now we are heading home.
Day 8
10:05
Just got up. I have a basketball game in 45 minutes that I'm not that excited for for two reasons. First, it is too early for my liking. Second, I don't think I can play because some form is having to be sent to the US in order for me to be fully registered, and that form was only sent two days ago. So, it will probably be fun and good to watch (so that I can see what type of plays and techniques the team uses), but I'd rather be sleeping.
1:35
Basketball was more fun than I thought it would be. We built a big lead early, so the rest of the game was quite fun. I probably got about 15 minutes of playing time, which wasn't too much but also wasn't too little. I didn't play great (4 points, 1 rebound, 1 steal), but I didn't play horribly either. I'm going to go for a swim now because I am extremely hot.
11:30
Rest of the day was relaxing - I watched The Social Network in Spanish and then took a nap. Tonight, I went out with Dani and some of his friends. We hung out for a bit and then went to a pizzeria. Now I am going to bed because, despite my nap, I am still a little tired.

Overall, my first week was much easier and much more fun (as well as much longer) than I expected, which, in my opinion, is good.

Getting my Visa

As you will probably be able to tell, I started writing this and intended to publish it about two weeks ago, but I never got around to finishing it, so here it is now:


First off, I am supposed to be flying into New York City today, but as you have probably guessed that is not happening due to a slight disturbance there (Hurricane Irene for those of you who didn't guess). This kind of screwed up my day.
Anyway, yesterday (8/28) was supposed to be my last day in Colorado for the next year and I had it beautifully planned out. I went up to Breckenridge with my family to watch Stage 5 of the inaugural USA Pro Cycling Challenge. I'm a big cycling fan so this was set up to be a perfect ending to my summer. I just got a new camera so I was going to test it out on the cyclers speeding by at 50 kilometers per hour. I got set up right on the course and right next to the staging area. I had to wait about fifteen minutes for the riders to start coming by, but it was easily worth the wait. My parents left me after the peloton went by to go watch the podium ceremonies, but I stayed for a couple more groups before taking a short walk over to the staging area. This was probably the best part of the day because it allowed me to get so close to the riders. By the end of the time I spent here, I had taken over 450 photos, and, as you might expect, I got a couple of good ones, including shots of Colombian Rafael Infantino, Canadian Francois Parisien, and Americans Dave Zabriskie and Tom Danielson. Unfortunately, I also missed a couple of good shots, including close-up shots of American George Hincapie and Italian rider (and stage winner) Elia Viviani.

Anyway, the main purpose I'm writing this post is to tell you about the visa process. For me, it was very difficult. For others, it wasn't. I was unlucky in that  Colorado is in the jurisdiction of the Spanish consulate in Los Angeles. This happens to be probably the strictest and busiest of the Spanish consulates in the United States. My Dad and I had to fly out to LA in order to have a 10-minute in person "interview". My dad had the brilliant idea that we should get there early to show my "eagerness to get my visa and go to Spain", so we got there at 9:45 for my 10:10 appointment. Of course, the little fact dad overlooked was that they are Spanish. In other words, we waited over an hour for my ten-minute appointment (which, by the way, was me giving the guy behind the counter all of my forms). Then we had to wait roughly another hour so that he could hand them back to us and give us our confirmation slip. Then we went straight to the airport and headed home.
Now, the turnaround time on the visa was supposed to be 60 days, which would have been about a month too late for me. Amazingly, I got mine back in ten days, which was great, except there was a slight problem - they misspelled my name. It then took a couple of days for my Dad to get ahold of the consulate, who then said it wouldn't be a problem (and in hindsight they were probably correct) but we sent it to them anyway to correct. Luckily, they had it back before I had to leave (only just though).
Anyway, the point of the story is that the L.A. consulate sucks. I talked to some of the other AFS kids who went to different consulates and they had no problems. Whereas I had my twelve distinct things to turn in, including an FBI background check (which required me to get fingerprinted) that required an apostille from the State Department, some of them only had a couple of forms to turn in and didn't need a background check. So, don't go to the Spanish Consulate in Los Angeles if you can avoid it.