uumm... just another update.

Day 56 – October 23rd – Thursday
Last day of school for the week, and it was a quick one. In Spanish class, we had kind of a strange class. We switched teachers for a day. I don't really know why. The topic for the day was “argot” or “slang,” as we call it in English. So I learned how to yell at someone and tell them they're a horrible driver and all that good stuff. I went home for lunch, which was delicious. It was macaroni with some kind of sauce and then pork ribs mixed in. Teresa was telling me how all meat gives more flavor if it is cooked with the bone in. I guess thats probably because of the marrow in the bones, but I have no idea how to explain that in Spanish. Today Matt was leaving to go to London for the weekend, so he came by to pack up before our art class. I took a little nap after eating but forgot to set an alarm and it was only because Matt texted me to have me bring some things he forgot that I woke up. I got to ride my bike back to school, as it had stopped raining. We had a good Art class. We've moved on from Gaudí to talk about Picasso now and its very interesting. I've never really had a class like this so I pay very good attention and try to pick up as many details as I can. Today, the teacher was trying to think of the word for “cage” in Spanish, as her first language is Catalán, and I actually knew it! I was pretty proud of myself, as its not really a common word (jaula). After class, I figured I'd just ride around for a while, as I had a few hours before dinner. I went all the way up and down the seaside, which was very beautiful. It was night and the only people in the water were the surfers. There's really not any waves here, but they still try. As Matt was gone for the weekend, I had to eat a whole Spanish tortilla to myself. It was quite a lot and I was definitely full for the rest of the night. After dinner, I went out on the town with Nick. We were going to try and check out some new places from a guide book he has picked up at the Girona airport, but it turned out to be for people a little older. The one place we did go, we were probably the only people under thirty. So we ended up going to a place called Dow Jones, just like the stock market. Its kind of a cool place because the price of the drinks is live, as if you buy a Heineken, the price goes up. And every so often, everything crashes and the drinks go down to their minimum price. Its a cool idea, but its definitely a bar in America. There's a Statue of Liberty in the corner and they were showing baseball on the TVs. I didn't realize that the World Series is starting! The Phillies and the Devil Rays? Who saw that coming? I definitely am rooting for the Devil Rays, as Kenny Lofton has found his way there and I want nothing more than for him to get a ring before he retires. After hanging out there for a bit, we headed over to El Gato Negro, where everyone knows out names. However, they have a new doorman, which is a shame because Sergio was so cool. We chilled there until they closed and actually met the owner, who was really nice and definitely liked lighting the shots on fire, which is the specialty there. We headed home when they closed and slept very well. Welcome weekend!

Day 57 – October 24th – Friday
I got a pretty good rest last night and woke up to a delicious lunch of beans and cauliflower and a nice thin steak. Afterwards, I headed out on my bike for a nice little ride. I really didn't have a destination. I wanted to go ride past some Gaudí building that I had yet to see, but I pretty much just ended up riding around. I took some pictures, of the statue of Christopher Columbus, of the palace by the port, of my bike against the sea. Then I rode up to the Fórum, as I had the night before and took a few more pictures. I rode along the beach up there and saw a bunch of stuff I'd never seen before. I saw a 150-foot yacht that also had its own helicopter. How much does that cost? Very caprichoso, if you ask me. (“Caprichoso” is one of my favorite adjectives, meaning that its completely unnecessary, but you get it anyway.) Just riding around by myself really made me miss home. Its fine to be alone, but I didn't really want to be. Its no fun hanging out by yourself when you don't want to. My bike has opened a lot of doors here, but it has also closed a few. None of my American friends here have a bike, so the only people I will ride with are Spaniards. This is good, but I don't really know any. My one friend is always working until the evening and also, I feel like him and his friends are pretty happy with the friends they have and don't really need any more. I really just wanted to ride through Columbus, where I would probably run into someone else riding that I knew and would ride with. I talked to my friend Eric today, who told me that my friend Mike may be making a trip to Europe while Ian and I are still here. Eric was very jealous, saying how he wanted to come hang out in Europe, but he can't afford it. I told him I was here, and one thing I really wanted to do was just come hang out in Columbus. Once you've made a place your home for twenty years, you can't just change it. I am in a foreign land, in every aspect. I passed halfway through on Thursday, so now it starts to end. I'm not sure how much I'll miss it, but I know I'll be glad to be home.

Day 58 – October 25th – Saturday
Another day to myself today, but a little more fruitful. After waking up from an interesting dream where I was working at Dairy Queen, I had lunch and then went on a little bike ride. There were a few Gaudí houses that I had only studied in class so far and wanted to see for myself, so i went in search of them. I got quite a few looks, riding around on my gold and orange bike, which leads me to believe that it is the most beautiful bike in Barcelona. Or at least the most unique. I went to see Casa Vicens first, which is one of my favorites. Its mostly make of brick with lots of intricate ironwork. Also, on top of the brick, there is a peculiar sort of blue and white checker pattern, which really makes the house stand out. After that, I went in search of the Pabellones Güell, which was the stables for the Güell family. It is one of the larger and more famous works of Gaudí, especially known for it front gate, which has a dragon intertwined into it. While the gate is actually accredited to Josep Jujol, one of Gaudí's apprentices, it is how well the building comes together as a whole that is most impressive. This finished my mini Modernism tour for the day and I headed back home, where I caught the end of an unimportant soccer match, took a little nap, and then headed of to school to utilize some free internet. After that, I had some Chinese food for the first time in Spain. There are Chinese restaurants all over the place here, but I had yet to make it in, mostly because I associate Chinese food with buffets and most of the places I've seen are not buffets and are kind of expensive. Ferrán, the son of my host family had requested it for dinner, so naturally, they offered it to me as well. We ordered take out and it was pretty delicious, just the same as in the States. As we were eating, the Barça soccer match began, which is the only team that matters. After twenty-five minutes, it was 4-0 Barcelona. They would go on to mark one more goal and end the match 5-0. Good job! With all of my friends outside of Barcelona, my roommate in London, a few of my friends in a group that had gone to the Pyrenees this week (I go next week), and a few others in Italy for the weekend, I stayed in and relaxed. After all, I had ridden quite a bit today and didn't really feel like going out anyway.

Day 59 – October 26th – Sunday
Today was a very relaxing day filled with sleep. I woke up around noon, but after the time change it was 11am, and then sat around and did a little homework until lunchtime. After lunch, I watched the first half of some random soccer game that was on (Sundays always have soccer) and then took a three hour nap, waking up just in time for the Atlético Madrid – Villareal game. It was pretty exciting. At half time, 2-0 Atlético. Then, after twenty-five minutes of play in the second half, it was 4-2 Villareal and it ended up 4-4. With eight goals, who wouldn't be entertained. I ate dinner and by that time Matt had returned from London. With nothing else to do and it being a nice, cool, night, we walked around for a while and he told me about his British adventure. We eventually turned around, after being amazed at how far we'd come in so little time. Its a little strange to see monuments that before you've only associated with metro stops. I went to bed and surprisingly had no trouble falling asleep.

Day 60 – October 27th – Monday
The big 6-0! Its hard to believe we've been here this long, but honestly, I'm looking forward to coming home. I'll bring plenty of good memories with me, of course, but I'll return to my home. Today I rode my bike quite a bit, running here and there. It reminded me of home, having to run errands on my bike. I didn't have class until 1pm today because we were to have a language exchange with an English class at night instead. I went to the ISA office to print of a worksheet, then had to return home because I had forgotten my bocadillo (sandwich) for lunch. God forbid I go without my bocadillo! I putzed around for my two hour break and then sat through another cinema class before our intercambio. It was a good use of class time and good Spanish practice. I think the Spanish students also enjoyed talking with us Americans. After class, I went home for dinner of spaghettis (clearly, you don't eat just one). Then I went off on my bike to find the Sala Apolo, a concert hall, which one of my favorite bands is going to be playing at on Wednesday. I had wanted to see them the last time they came to Columbus, but it was postponed for six months and I was unable to go. What luck that they come to Barcelona while I'm here! Of the remaining six weekends, I will be traveling for three of them. I think that will make my time left here go fairly quickly, but I am kind of itching to get back. I've never really liked long vacations, and this has been the longest. While I won't be glad to see the Ohio weather, I think seeing my friends, family, and girlfriend will make up for it.

Day 61 – October 28th – Tuesday
It literally rained all day today, which one of my teachers told us really is pretty rare. Usually, it will rain for a few hours, and thats it. Not today. I woke up and the ground was wet, though nothing was actually falling, so I rode my bike to class. When I walked out after class to go home for lunch, it was coming down fairly hard. I tried to wait around for a few minutes to see if it would let up, but it was evident that the clouds were here to stay, so I roughed it through the rain. Actually, by the time I got home, it had lightened up quite a bit, just barely sprinkling. I did my reading for art class, took a little nap, and ate lunch. By that point, it really had begun to pour. I reluctantly bought a new metro pass, as mine has expired, but fortunately didn't have to use it, as a friend was there to get me through. (This is common practice and though it is punishable by a 40€ fine, I've only ever seen them checking cards one time.) I sat through art class, which is actually pretty interesting since we're learning about artists who are directly influenced by the city of Barcelona and Cataluña, but we don't get a break and sitting for two hours straight gets tiresome. I again snuck onto the metro, this time with the help of my roommate, and headed home. I did a little homework before dinner. I was supposed to go on a bike ride with my friend Xavi after he got closed the bike shop, but it was still pouring rain, so I figured we could wait until another day. I called him anyway, just as not to be rude, and it turns out he's also going to the Built to Spill concert tomorrow, so I'll see him then.