March has been a very crazy month for me, and it just so happens that it is named for craziness in the States because of basketball or something, I think. Anyways, let's start at the beginning: el Día de los Reyes Magos, January 6th. I had a strange, across the room conversation with my host mother as, around us the family was having a discussion of some matter, undoubtedly thelack of food in our stomachs at that moment. Well, at the end of that yelled conversation that took place in between me and my host mother, and a few texts later, I had a plane ticket from Madrid to London and a plane ticket from London to Madrid.
As a direct result, on the 3rd of March, when it was still the 2nd of March in all 50 States (3a.m.), I woke up from a two hour nap, and in 30 minutes had left the flat, and I along with my host mother, her best friend, and my host sister, left for the train station, where we would subsequently catch a bus, to the Madrid airport. That is where I used those tickets purchased 2 months before. By afternoon I was breathing the [probably] polluted air of London, England, and I was liking it.
After telling you all that stuff about only the first day, I am not going to elaborte much on how the trip went. It went very well, it was my first time in England, and I am pleased to say that I liked it very much. It was a great experience. As for the things I saw, well, I'm sure I did not see everything but I sure we got pretty darn close with all the walking that we did. We returned the afternoon of March the 6th. I will attach photos. Overall, I give London two thumbs up and a reccomendation (if any of you are willing to take my reccomendation).
March 11: I randomly met, Vincent del Bosque, Spain's international soccer team coach at my school. Well, I guess I didn´t really meet him, but he was there all the same.
March 12: Nothing, regular day.
March 13: for some reason, we kind-of-not-really got punished or something and were supposed to run a 5km race, but we decided to work a stand next to the race instead for the host mother. And take some cool pictures on top of a hill/castle thingy.
Holy Week: Holy Week, better known as Semana Santa, is a very big deal in Spain. It is the week during the spring that all Spanish children get off. And it is always on Holy Week. So in the USA we have spring break, but in Spain they have Semana Santa. It is a very big deal, and very, very impressive. It is definetly a thing you should see if you are very into Holy Week or are in Spain at that time. It is a very complicated and long thing to explain but I'll make a short version using only English just for you guys.
Basically they have huge parades, well processions.
But like the people are wearing these habits/costumbres that look like the KKK fell in jars of different paints (you have too look it up to see what I'm talking about). And the only musical instruments played are the horn ones and the drum ones. (I don't know anything about music). And the floats are the giant statues that all the churches have, but they are taken dowen from the church and put on plantforms. Then, men and women grab hold of these platforms and lift them to their shoulders, and they process (parade) around the city, usually at night, for a few hours. Now multiply this by the number of brotherhoods (church denominatiuons that take responsibility for organizing the processions) that there are in the city, and the statues and all Holy Week long. It's a sight to see for sure. the one word I would use to describe it is: impressive.
You can check out these processions by looking up: Semana Santa, Semana Santa Spain, Semana Santa Valladolid (where I live), and Semana Santa Medina de Rioseco (a very impressive series opf processions). And you can just go to YouTube and they should come up. I do not reccomend that you watch them entirely because there are a lot of really, really long ones. But enjoy.
Hahaha I hope some people got confused about why I put March 12 on there like that. Well, the truth is I was just trying to be funny. March 12 was by birthday, I turned 17 years old, or better said: I completed my 17th revolution around the sun. Not bad, not bad at all.It was a good birthday, that for everyone who said Happy Birthday and even everyone who didn't remember, I forgive you, but you owe me a present when I get back. (; My parents said we could have another birthday party when I get home so maybe I'll invite you guys.
Anyways see ya later,
Un saludo, Miguel Sabol
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| Buckingham Palace: selfie with random strangers |
