Jamie Fehr

Life in Spain has had some ups and downs but mostly I have just noticed differences and in this edition of Musings and Upcoming Events I intend to focus on some of the differences between my life here in Spain and life back home.

Musings

Life has been everything I expected it to be and then some and as I do write what will probably be my last Musings while living in Spain I would like to share a few points on what it has been like from a practical point of view.

I Like Cars

I am tired of public transit. When I left Canada I really was excited to leave behind the cost of gas and car maintenance (my car hasn’t had an easy life) but at this point I think I would welcome smog and an empty wallet with open arms. Public transit has been a good friend and has gotten me to a lot of places in a very reliable fashion but I am tired of making trips by city bus and having to plan a whole hour just to get somewhere where if I had my own car I could have made the trip picked up the groceries and been back home in that same amount of time.

An Illegal Immigrant

For the first time in my life I actually fear the customs at border crossings and immigration offices. I knew that the law in Spain said that the longest stretch anyone can spend in Spain with out the proper paper work is three months and for that reason I have embarked on an international excursion every three months. What I didn’t know is that you are only allowed to be in Spain for a total of six months out of the year and I have definitely been in Spain for more then six months. I thought that all I needed was to show a plane ticket back home and that that would be enough, let’s pray that it is, I do intend to do a lot more traveling as an illegal immigrant before returning to Canada.

Don’t Underestimate the Value of Your Dryer

I’ve said this before, but it’s worth repeating, you don’t have to move to a third world country to miss some of the luxuries of home, I haven’t worn clothes that came out of a dryer for a year now and I really do miss the fluffy-ness that the dryer adds. I can only get that feeling when I by new clothes, but that doesn’t happen often.

Food

Not having a car and not having a dryer are relatively small fish when you think about the huge change in diet that comes with moving to a different region of the globe. I don’t not like spanish food but I really do miss the cooking back home, specifically the farmer sausage from La Crete, I’ve had a craving for that since Christmas and it cannot be satiated until May. A common misconception that people have is that the food here in Spain is spicy, that couldn’t be more wrong, the eating here is very bland and most typically spanish food is only flavored with olive oil and garlic. The spiciest dish that I have found here is patatas bravas and it’s about as alarming as a kitten sharpening it’s claws on your pants, noticeable but hardly bothersome.

I really hope that those points don’t come off as complaints, I really do love it here and wouldn’t trade this last year for anything currently existing in the world, but life here is different and I don’t think that I have shared enough on those differences yet.

Upcoming Events

As always there is something on the Calendar. I normally get very sad when I have no trips on the calendar and mope around for a day until I figure out how I can afford to leave town to some new and exciting destination.

Morocco

This Friday I am leaving to spend a week in Morocco. You haven’t the slightest idea how excited I am about this trip. I have been at the Malaga Media Center for nearly a year now with a focus on the people of North Africa and I have yet to really visit the region and get to know the people and the culture. It should be a good trip with planned stops in Casablanca, Rabat, Marrakech, Fez and Meknes.

Semana Santa

Holy Week, or Easter is beckoning. I have been told numerous times that Easter in Spain is a sight to behold and so I have purposefully planned to stay here for it. I even have my own guide for the happenings of this week. I guess there’s going to be parades every day of the week with many big processions and tronos ending at the Cathedral in Malaga.

Back to Canada

As much as I am loathe to say it, my imminent return is imminent and while Canada hardly constitutes a new and exciting destination I am very excited to get back. I will be arriving at Edmonton Int’l Airport at 10:32 p.m. on Thursday May 10th. There are a lot of people in Edmonton that I need to see and go out for breakfast with and then I shall return to my hometown of La Crete to celebrate my 23rd birthday and my safe arrival on May 15th 2007, and you’re invited (I’m told the pool will be ready), you should just let me know ahead of time if your coming that I can plan enough food for everyone.

And that sums things up for today. Eventually I will sharing some more about my time in Barcelona, Segovia, Madrid, and Malta, but for the next two weeks things are going to be very quiet around here.