READER DISCRETION ADVISED: I may use some only-known-by-swimmer words... Sorry friends.
Yesterday I decided to go to the pool for the first time during the weekend during my stay in Madrid because I have too many times left on my 10-time pass for the pool/gym and it's one of the only weekends I've been in Madrid. I lifted first all by myself and with lots of cramps in my legs, but decided to do basically everything I could think of because I had nothing better to do on a Saturday afternoon (everyone was working on their final papers and I was waiting to steal a computer from a friend so I could write mine, but she had to finish first). After lifting I headed down to the pool and did a 1500 warm up (that's long for those of you who don't know) full of swimming, kicking, and pulling because I decided I was going to swim for an hour and a half, something I haven't done since last winter, if I remember correctly. At some point during my warmup I realized that I wasn't in a lane with only slow people which is usually what I find in the 2 lanes that have big signs reading "PUBLIC: HIGH LEVEL"... basically no one in Spain can read or they can't swim, one or the other.
Anyway, so I was swimming and realized that there was an older-ish man (50 perhaps) that seemed pretty fast. After I finished my warmup I started doing some 200's building slow to fast by 50. After the first one I realized that this older man was waiting on the wall with me to leave again. Suddenly, in english, this man says, "you are very fast. can i follow?" so I replied, in spanish, "yes, i'm not really fast right now, but that's fine." we did some more 200s and he was on my tail the whole time... pretty impressive for someone used to swimming with really old, slow people who don't seem to have ever received a swimming lesson in their lives. After 4 200's fast, I decided to do one with the 50 in the middle fast and told him. He mentioned something to me about not understanding the language, at which point i was REALLY confused whether or not he could speak english OR spanish... still not sure... but he said he was just going to follow me. So we did another one fast and i told him i was pooped because i had lifted before and that was just SO MUCH more impressive, but he still wanted to follow me AND go fast. I convinced him to do a bit of drill and let him go before me to do breaststroke because i told him i am "really. really. slow" so he went. Afterwards, he still wanted to do things fast (SHEESH! old people these days! they just can't stop! I'm thinking i'll introduce this man to my mum) so we did 8 50s alternating who went first. when i went first, he was right on my heels and when he went first i was lagging.
so basically then i felt slow but he really wanted to do 8 and not 6 as i suggested so we did that and then swam "really soft" in his words. then he told me he had been a runner in the past but now he swims more and thinks that swimming is harder. it was a lovely experience AND my first workout where i was pushed and pushed myself in Espana! And by a middle-aged man that speaks some unknown language!
I'm tempted to bring him back to Carleton because let me tell you, the one time he touched my toes by accident when he was behind be during a 200, man did i push myself. there'll be no old spanish men beating my tushy this winter... perhaps some freshmen girls, but that's completely different.
11.11.2007
11.08.2007
Quick Updates
I don´t even know where I left off the last time I wrote, so I´m going to do the best I can.
So after the weekend of Rikka in Segovia and Madrid I think we had a pretty relaxed week and that following weekend had a group trip to Cordoba and Sevilla. In theory, I like group trips, but I don´t think I would recommend Sevilla to anyone who doesn´t love religious art and touristy food. Cordoba was pretty neat- The Mezquita and Alcazar there are wonderful and we had delicious "batidos" (smoothie/milkshakes) in a tea shop before playing in the gardens of the Alcazar one day. We found kittens and took tons of pictures in the gardens before we realized that the building was closing. The very nice guard woman let us run through everything (picture about 7 americans who also happen to be carleton students running through the towers of a building so that they can see everything... i think the woman thought we were locos) before the experience of the "men" eating "rabo de toro" which is exactly what it translates to: bull´s tail. It seems to have quite a bit of fat for a tail, but the girls I was with only ate tortilla and gazpacho. much better.
Sevilla, as I said, was full of religious art and tourist attractions along with a bit too much time as a group, but the good news is that our hotel (4 stars!) had a pool on the roof. That pretty much completed every day.
After that weekend we had another week of classes and I was going to go to Pais Vasco with some friends but by one day before our scheduled departure when we still hadn´t made plans, we decided to do a 2 day trip to Salamanca, much closer and apparently something to see. The best part was that it´s not in the desert and there are trees that change color! Almost like maine but with less color. Saw the cathedral, teh university, and a wonderful art deco museum that was the highlight for everyone. It was VERY cold though, and the bus ride home took forever, I think because us driver was too nice and agreed to let people off in random hotels along the highway..
This past weekend we had a trip with the whole group (thank goodness the last whole group trip... i almost didn´t make it) to Barcelona. WHAT AN AMAZING CITY. the temperature is always nice (around 65-70) and they have a beach. oh and the olympics were there in 92 so that was basically the only thing I needed to see there because that´s my thing. We also so a bunch of Gaudi architecture (look him up if you´re not sure who he is... it´s pretty crazy) and spent a good amount of time there, but not enough in my opinion.
I will try to write more soon. We only have 1 week from today left and I have to write our final paper before leaving for Lisbon, Paris, and Dublin and before I return to Maine the 27th. I´ll try to write more soon. Love to you all!
So after the weekend of Rikka in Segovia and Madrid I think we had a pretty relaxed week and that following weekend had a group trip to Cordoba and Sevilla. In theory, I like group trips, but I don´t think I would recommend Sevilla to anyone who doesn´t love religious art and touristy food. Cordoba was pretty neat- The Mezquita and Alcazar there are wonderful and we had delicious "batidos" (smoothie/milkshakes) in a tea shop before playing in the gardens of the Alcazar one day. We found kittens and took tons of pictures in the gardens before we realized that the building was closing. The very nice guard woman let us run through everything (picture about 7 americans who also happen to be carleton students running through the towers of a building so that they can see everything... i think the woman thought we were locos) before the experience of the "men" eating "rabo de toro" which is exactly what it translates to: bull´s tail. It seems to have quite a bit of fat for a tail, but the girls I was with only ate tortilla and gazpacho. much better.
Sevilla, as I said, was full of religious art and tourist attractions along with a bit too much time as a group, but the good news is that our hotel (4 stars!) had a pool on the roof. That pretty much completed every day.
After that weekend we had another week of classes and I was going to go to Pais Vasco with some friends but by one day before our scheduled departure when we still hadn´t made plans, we decided to do a 2 day trip to Salamanca, much closer and apparently something to see. The best part was that it´s not in the desert and there are trees that change color! Almost like maine but with less color. Saw the cathedral, teh university, and a wonderful art deco museum that was the highlight for everyone. It was VERY cold though, and the bus ride home took forever, I think because us driver was too nice and agreed to let people off in random hotels along the highway..
This past weekend we had a trip with the whole group (thank goodness the last whole group trip... i almost didn´t make it) to Barcelona. WHAT AN AMAZING CITY. the temperature is always nice (around 65-70) and they have a beach. oh and the olympics were there in 92 so that was basically the only thing I needed to see there because that´s my thing. We also so a bunch of Gaudi architecture (look him up if you´re not sure who he is... it´s pretty crazy) and spent a good amount of time there, but not enough in my opinion.
I will try to write more soon. We only have 1 week from today left and I have to write our final paper before leaving for Lisbon, Paris, and Dublin and before I return to Maine the 27th. I´ll try to write more soon. Love to you all!
11.05.2007
some pictures to keep people happy for a bit
I´ve been on the internet today for the first time in a really long time, so i don´t have time to update you all with stories of where i´ve been the past few weeks. I´ll let you all know that it continues to go well and I am AMAZED that I am nearly done with my time here in Spain. Today I worked on some plans for travel after the program (which ends next Thursday the 15th... wow.).
For now, here´s a link to the pictures I put on Facebook. I´m having soem troubles putting them all into the albums they´re supposed to be in, but it´ll do until I get them all sorted out.
http://carleton.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2016959&l=88aae&id=19102934
and
http://carleton.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2016962&l=12460&id=19102934
sorry everyone! I´ll do better someday... When I´m back in Maine I promise I will try to write about some of the things I did. I´ve been keeping a mini journal, if that counts?
For now, here´s a link to the pictures I put on Facebook. I´m having soem troubles putting them all into the albums they´re supposed to be in, but it´ll do until I get them all sorted out.
http://carleton.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2016959&l=88aae&id=19102934
and
http://carleton.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2016962&l=12460&id=19102934
sorry everyone! I´ll do better someday... When I´m back in Maine I promise I will try to write about some of the things I did. I´ve been keeping a mini journal, if that counts?
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