A day in Girona

As most of you know I'm working for a company which hires over 200 people each year as conversation assistants. We are placed in different schools across the regions of Catalonia and Valencia in Spain. After our induction where we get to meet each other we then we were taken to our new homes with our new families. Due to the wonder that is Facebook we are able to keep in contact and arrange trips to meet each other. 

Last Saturday was the first time I met up with some other conversation assistants. Through my friend who lives near Barcelona I was introduced to Allison from Florida, who lives near Girona like me. We decided to meet each other in Girona city centre. Saturday came and at half past three I met Allison near the train station.

We spent the afternoon climbing to the top of the hill behind the cathedral. It has spectacular views from the top - on one side there is green countryside and on the other the tall buildings of the city. We descended and made our way into the city, looking around the shops and visiting an amazing ice cream place called Rocambolesc. The interior of it is based on the Roald Dahl book 'Charlie and the Chocolate Factory'. I got some chocolate ice cream with chocolate popping candy, strawberries and some sprinkles. It was absolutely delicious. 

Allison and I then met up with two other girls called Natalie and Jasmine, who are also from the United States. We went shopping and then ended up in a vintage creperie restaurant, which serves the most delicious crepes I've ever had! Below is a photo of the cookie creme crepe I had, which was divine and would definitely have it again. 

I enjoyed meeting up with the other girls, as it's good to talk to people from English speaking countries who are doing the same experience as you and also to make new friends. Hope you enjoy looking at the photos below. 

Until next time...

The Museum of Cinema. I'm hoping to go and visit this one day. The outside is really cool!

With my ice cream. The photo is blurry because there were so many people walking by and Allison had to take it quickly. 

Mmm!

Girona cathedral 

Cookie crepe!

Barcelona school trip

On the 3rd of November I was invited on a school trip with the older classes. We departed from Anglés at nine o'clock and soon were on our way to the capital of Catalonia, Barcelona. Most of the journey was spent listening to music and trying to sleep, although that was very difficult due to the kids singing and being noisy on the bus! 

Around half past ten we arrived in Barcelona and the coach driver dropped us off near the history museum. After arranging the students into lines we entered the museum and dropped our bags off in a huge locker. The museum has three different floors and to reach them you have to go up elevators. We were met by a tour guide called David and he gave a fun and informative tour to the children. Of course it was in Catalan, but I could look around the exhibits and read about them as the information was in English as well as Spanish and Catalan. 

There was an interesting exhibit within the museum. It was statues of peasants rising from the ground holding the cross of a crucified Christ. The statue represents the peasants fighting back from oppression from the royalty of Spain. In the background the Catalonian national anthem El Sagadors played. It is a very haunting tune which reflects the history of this grim statue. Like most countries there have been wars and it was interesting to see this portrayed here. The information will be in the photos below for you to see.

After leaving the museum we headed to Parc de Ciutadella, which has a marvellous fountain and a huge elephant statue. There we had our lunch after which it was time to go to the Catalonian parliament. I wasn´t allowed to take any photos inside, but the interior is spectacular. Like the parliaments of London it is much smaller. There are 135 members in the parliament and they are elected every four years. After our (quick) visit to the Parliament it was time for our coach to pick us up and return to Anglés. All in all, it was a very interesting day and I look forward to going back to Barcelona soon!

You can see some photos on this YouTube video as well: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yee88B80LUs

I apologise for not posting about this sooner, but work and family got in the way!

We're going on a hunt...

Since living in Catalonia, Spain I have become accustomed to the traditions and cultures which define the culture. In fact, it has changed my perceptions about the country, which happens of course if you experience travelling or living there. Here in Catalonia, they don't dance the flamenco and bullfighting (heavily associated with Spain) is banned, as they see it as cruel and barbaric, which is the same opinion as mine. Instead, they have other traditions which some people might not realise. 

Many people in Catalonia like to go looking for chestnuts and they also like to go looking for mushrooms, which they later eat or make into vinegar. Last weekend my host family and I went "hunting" for mushrooms (that is the direct translation from Catalan). When I think of the phrase "hunting mushrooms" it reminds me of the old Bugs Bunny/Elmer Fudd cartoons, where a mushroom sticks its (invisible) arms up in the air while a person is holding a gun! But it simply means to look for mushrooms. There are certain types which are edible, others poisonous. My host family knew which ones to look for and if they weren't sure then they would leave them. We trekked up a steep mountain, with lots of high trees and sharp branches. About an hour later we had come home with around ten mushrooms, some scratches (from the branches) and sore legs. The views I saw while in the mountains were worth it though, as you can see from the pictures they are astounding. 

We're going on a mushroom hunt..

View of San Rock

Mushroom in hiding

A special type of Catalonian fruit called a cirera. It tastes very sweet and looks fuzzy because it grows in cooler climates. Don't eat too many of them though or you'll need to go to the toilet!