So I found a few sweet things to do in Lisbon while I'm there. I thought it was going to be lame for a bit, but it's on the ocean, and it's really nice. Not just a few monuments and museums. On friday, our flight is at 7:40 am. Gets into Portugal at 8 (hour time difference). Rented a car from budget, and I'm going to drive ~50 mins to Lake Albufeira. They rent wetsuits etc. The lake is right next to the ocean...the sand breaks the waves, but not the wind, so you get dope wind without swells.
This is what I'm hoping for:
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2382/2531332699_3c1e361a61.jpg
Windfinder says that it's going to be ~10 knots with ~20 knot gusts. This is good. Praying to the wind gods that it doesn't change.
http://www.windfinder.com/forecast/lagoa_de_albufeira
Everyone else is staying at the Alface Hostel. I'm either going to stay there, or at the Rossio (another nice hostel). On Saturday, we're (we being anyone else who also thinks it's a good idea and myself) going to take a train to Sintra, to a Moorish Castle:
http://www.google.com/images?q=castelo+de+mouros+sintra&um=1&ie=UTF-8&source=og&sa=N&hl=en&tab=wi&biw=1189&bih=729">http://www.google.com/images?q=castelo+de+mouros+sintra&um=1&ie=UTF-8&source=og&sa=N&hl=en&tab=wi&biw=1189&bih=729
I'm pumped for that. I much prefer castles to art museums. Other time will be spent around Belem, to see the monument of the discoveries,
http://www.google.com/images?um=1&hl=en&safe=off&biw=1189&bih=729&tbs=isch:1&&sa=X&ei=_L9FTcXzB42xhQfXrYi3AQ&ved=0CDMQvwUoAQ&q=monument+of+the+discoveries&spell=1
the Belem Tower, and other places in Portugal.
It would also be cool to see the Christo Rei Statue:
http://www.google.com/images?hl=en&safe=off&q=cristo+rei&um=1&ie=UTF-8&source=univ&ei=AsFFTZuiJ4mLhQfF8938AQ&sa=X&oi=image_result_group&ct=title&resnum=3&ved=0CDUQsAQwAg&biw=1189&bih=729
Yesterday, I ran on the treadmill, and did front and back squats, lunges, and calf raises, and nothing hurt significantly. Today I went 4 miles in a reasonably muddy Casa de Campo (trails). I was surprised at how well the Newtons did in mud (shoes). Right when I finished my run, it started hailing. It's hailed three times in the past week. After my run, I did my upper body row/back/pull lift...gotta get ready for friday. I'm really hoping that I don't spend all of this time, money, and effort for average windsurfing. If so, I'll make it up in Tenerife. Check Windfinder for Tenerife (Canary Islands): ~20 knots and the gusts are "n/a," which means it's consistently dope, and you don't have to spend the whole time looking over your shoulder, waiting for gusts to come.
Tonight there was some sort of scrod for dinner. I ate a ton of it. No one else wanted their fish. I became the garbage disposal as usual...INBD. There are guitar's in the auditorium that anyone can use. I never thought Wonderwall, the Fray, the INdigo Girls, and Old Crow Medicine Show would be so appreciated. Classes start tomorrow. Language class every day, and:
MW: Spanish Language Usage for Business
W: Contemporary Spanish Film
TTh: Contemporary Latin American Novel, Spain and the International Economic Organization
Every day, there are chocolate croissants, toast, cereal, and chocolate milk for breakfast. I'm not complaining. The bread is pretty high GI...wonderbread but not fake, just very white. I can't say how happy I am that they have chocolate milk. The fruit is very good here.
On friday night, Carlos and I went to a Japanese Buffet...15€ for all I could eat. I think I ate my money's worth. Met a girl named Marjorie from Michigan...walked around Madrid on saturday night.
Sunday, January 30, 2011
Friday, January 28, 2011
Lisbon
Next weekend I'm headed to Lisbon. I've found two places to windsurf. I'm hoping they rent gear and neoprene in February. Lisbon is decently interesting otherwise, but I'm really hoping for: http://www.escolaruimeira.com/
3/25-3/27 Paris/Normandy/Versailles
I have ~3 days. Normandy is a definite. Louvre, Musée de l'Armée, Eiffel Tower, Arc de Triomphe, Pantheon, Notre Dame, Versailles? (it would take ~a day). Substitutes/additions anyone? FB or Email me.
London, haven't decided when yet. I have to figure out when my midterms and finals are.
Parlament
Tower of London
London Bridge
Buckingham Palace
Windsor Castle
Platform 9 3/4?
Imperial War Museum
Stonehendge (definitely)
Big Ben
Beafeaters
London Eye
Westminster Abbey
I want to go hiking in Scotland too, but I don't want to freeze (I didn't bring great spring hiking gear with me: rainpants etc.)
Loch Ness might be cool. I'd have to swim in it though.
I have ~3 days. Normandy is a definite. Louvre, Musée de l'Armée, Eiffel Tower, Arc de Triomphe, Pantheon, Notre Dame, Versailles? (it would take ~a day). Substitutes/additions anyone? FB or Email me.
London, haven't decided when yet. I have to figure out when my midterms and finals are.
Parlament
Tower of London
London Bridge
Buckingham Palace
Windsor Castle
Platform 9 3/4?
Imperial War Museum
Stonehendge (definitely)
Big Ben
Beafeaters
London Eye
Westminster Abbey
I want to go hiking in Scotland too, but I don't want to freeze (I didn't bring great spring hiking gear with me: rainpants etc.)
Loch Ness might be cool. I'd have to swim in it though.
Thursday, January 27, 2011
It's 6:50 am. Left Kapital at ~5:20, and had homefries and a chicken bocadillo at a tapas bar that was still open. Waited until 6 for the Metro to open, instead of paying 12 Euros for a cab. Breakfast is at 7:15. I'll be there. Food is wonderful. After breakfast, I'll sleep until ~3, eat lunch, then probably swim. I'll give running another day. Lifting will occur tomorrow. I might get a haircut as well.
Ran for ~5 mins on the tredmill to see if my soleus is still being a jerk. I think it's getting over itself, but isn't quite back to normal, so I just hit up the pool today. I always get through my warmup, and half of my main sets fine, but there always seems to be an influx of old people that I have to swim around. It's like Beede, but ten times worse because 2/6 lanes are being used for lessons. Turns out I am allowed to use the swim snorkel though...I think I can get over the fins thing. Maybe If I'm the ONLY one in the pool, they'll let me use them.
I'm going fencing at Sala de Armas tonight. Lugging my 50lb bag to the metro should be fun. Hopefully they let me on with it.
Even if the food here is super cheap (quality), and even if you eat a lot of it, it doesn't make you feel sick like American food does. I'm essentially eating at the Spanish Grundle (UVM dining hall that I really don't like), and even if the food is decently fatty, it doesn't make you want to kill yourself. Probs because it doesn't have 10,000 ingredients in it. I could never be a vegetarian in Spain. They put meat in everything. Salads, Soups, Sauces...I don't mind too much though.
I'm going fencing at Sala de Armas tonight. Lugging my 50lb bag to the metro should be fun. Hopefully they let me on with it.
Even if the food here is super cheap (quality), and even if you eat a lot of it, it doesn't make you feel sick like American food does. I'm essentially eating at the Spanish Grundle (UVM dining hall that I really don't like), and even if the food is decently fatty, it doesn't make you want to kill yourself. Probs because it doesn't have 10,000 ingredients in it. I could never be a vegetarian in Spain. They put meat in everything. Salads, Soups, Sauces...I don't mind too much though.
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
Spanish people are oblivious to bicycles.
When I'm biking on the sidewalk, I bike on one side of the sidewalk: the right. When someone is walking the other way, in the middle of the sidewalk, they DON'T MOVE. I have to stop, and stay in one place until they walk around me, and it's ridiculous. When I'm coming up behind them, and they're walking in triple file, it's incredibly frustrating. It's the same deal with cars. I'll be crossing the street (in the crosswalk), and when I look at the eyes of the drivers to see if they see me, they're not even looking.
Today I biked to the fencing club, and after about a half hour of looking in a 100m radius of where I was, I finally found it. It's in a school gym kind of thing. I was going to go tonight, but my soleus is yelling at me. At least I got a Swim/Run in. I don't have class Th/Fr, so I have a four day weekend. Normandy is really frigging cold, but it's something I have to see.
Places I'm going to go while I'm here as of now: Normandy, Tenerife (Canary Islands), Tarifa, Hiking in Andalusia, and to pretty much all of the sweet landscapes I can find/hear of.
Carlos and I took the metro to the Real Madrid stadium, and had dinner at a TGIF-like place called Hollywood. I thought it was going to suck, but it turns out that the American food in Spain is better than the American food in the United States. It's probably because we value a cheeseburger that's a dollar cheaper, but full of chemicals and preservatives that make it taste like mud.
My run yesterday was great. 5.3 miles in Casa de Campo on mostly little foot trails. Great scenery...I can't imagine what it's like in the spring if it's this nice in January. My run today wasn't great. At the very end of yesterday, my right inside soleus twinged a bit, but I didn't think anything of it. 15 minutes into my run today, it was a "you shouldn't run on this" pain, but I had to get back because it was getting dark, so I ran another 7. Walked the rest of the way back. Not a fan.
At the Complutense pool, you're not allowed to use fins, a swim snorkel, or paddles if there's someone else in your lane because "it bothers the other people." It's absolutely absurd. I've also noticed that head lifeguards, or the bosses of pools either have a huge chip on their shoulder, or just have a superiority complex. Basically a lot of them (not all, I know several head lifeguards that are wonderful) think that they're god's gift to the pool/club, and have the right to be extremely rude to whomever they please.
I've feel like I've eaten a ton of Nutella in the past week. It tastes wonderful, and isn't incredibly bad for you, but it's not incredibly good for you either. It's also tastes so good to an extent that you can continuously want/eat more of it, but healthy enough to not make you sick after a few sandwiches. It's not like eating straight chocolate.
Today I biked to the fencing club, and after about a half hour of looking in a 100m radius of where I was, I finally found it. It's in a school gym kind of thing. I was going to go tonight, but my soleus is yelling at me. At least I got a Swim/Run in. I don't have class Th/Fr, so I have a four day weekend. Normandy is really frigging cold, but it's something I have to see.
Places I'm going to go while I'm here as of now: Normandy, Tenerife (Canary Islands), Tarifa, Hiking in Andalusia, and to pretty much all of the sweet landscapes I can find/hear of.
Carlos and I took the metro to the Real Madrid stadium, and had dinner at a TGIF-like place called Hollywood. I thought it was going to suck, but it turns out that the American food in Spain is better than the American food in the United States. It's probably because we value a cheeseburger that's a dollar cheaper, but full of chemicals and preservatives that make it taste like mud.
My run yesterday was great. 5.3 miles in Casa de Campo on mostly little foot trails. Great scenery...I can't imagine what it's like in the spring if it's this nice in January. My run today wasn't great. At the very end of yesterday, my right inside soleus twinged a bit, but I didn't think anything of it. 15 minutes into my run today, it was a "you shouldn't run on this" pain, but I had to get back because it was getting dark, so I ran another 7. Walked the rest of the way back. Not a fan.
At the Complutense pool, you're not allowed to use fins, a swim snorkel, or paddles if there's someone else in your lane because "it bothers the other people." It's absolutely absurd. I've also noticed that head lifeguards, or the bosses of pools either have a huge chip on their shoulder, or just have a superiority complex. Basically a lot of them (not all, I know several head lifeguards that are wonderful) think that they're god's gift to the pool/club, and have the right to be extremely rude to whomever they please.
I've feel like I've eaten a ton of Nutella in the past week. It tastes wonderful, and isn't incredibly bad for you, but it's not incredibly good for you either. It's also tastes so good to an extent that you can continuously want/eat more of it, but healthy enough to not make you sick after a few sandwiches. It's not like eating straight chocolate.
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