London, Granada, Etc.

As many of you have probably noticed, it has been a while since I last updated my blog. Journaling has never been my forte. The novelty of living abroad has begun to wear away, and I have settled into a routine, which I make sure to shake up with traveling. I am always in the process of planning my next trip. Since Madrid, I have been to London, Granada, and will leave in two days for Barcelona.

London was fabulous!!! I went to visit my friend Sarah who has been studying at Le Cordon Blue for the past three months. I stayed in her dorm in Kensington and was only a short walk from Hyde Park and tube stop away from Knotting Hill. It was quite a journey getting to London from Santa Maria del Aguila, which was further complicated by airline strikes in France...but I finally made it...and then Sarah got food poisoning. So I continued on with our itinerary by myself, seeing Westiminster Abbey, the changing of the guard at Buckingham Palace, Big Bend, Oxford, Windsor Castle, and going to the market on Portobello Rd...which market shopping or any kind of shopping just isn't as much fun by yourself. Thankfully though Sarah felt well enough to meet me for high tea and a movie. Overall the weather was really nice, not too cold, and not too much rain. One sunny morning, I took a fabulous walk through Hyde Park and then grabbed a muffin at this cute bakery/breakfast spot called the Muffin Man. Sarah took me to the fabulous spot in Hyde Park called The Organery, which is a renovated greenhouse made into a restaraunt with miniture orange trees on every table. Food was definitely a focal point of this trip...as I had had about all the tapas I could take and was desperate for some variety. While on Portobello Rd., I bought cupcakes at the Hummingbird Bakery and freshly made Nutella crepes at one of the market food stalls. I got to see Le Cordon Blue and the quaint surrounding area where Sarah spends most of her time. She showed me all of here favorite restaurants, which we stopped in one for a dinner of Italian, and then she showed me the one little shop that sells fabulous straw bags embroidered with bright colors...I just had to buy one! The whole trip was a fabulous balance of sightseeing and then enjoying the quaint, local spots that come with living in a big city. To top off my vacation, we went out with Sarah's friends the last night to see the Phantom of the Opera (it was FABULOUS!!) and then go out for Mexican food! London is one of my new favorite cities!

Two weekends ago I went one of the other English Language Assistants in my area to Granada for the Tango festival. We walked through the Albaycin, the old moorish neighborhood, buying teas, stopping at the lookout points for the Alhambra, eating Kababs (the Arab version of a Chipotle burrito), and stopping to have afternoon tea at a local Tetaria. We joined the other tango afficionados in one of Granada's many plazas to hear tango music and watch the locals practice their moves. We then ate ice cream at one of Granada's many Heladerias (ice cream shop). At night we say a fabulous tango production at the theater, showcasing dancing and music from Latin American performers. After the show, we made our way to a hotel where the festival was holding a huge dance for the Granada tango lovers. I had a wonderful time watching the different pairs show their moves and was inspired to lessons. Granada is a fabulous city! I look forward to going back in the spring to see the palaces and gardens at the Alhambra when they are in full bloom.