Sunbathing Seals, SEXO, and Madness for WOMAD

I have two blog-worthy events to report on: Valencia and WOMAD, the first being a beautiful city you've most likely heard of, the second a huge music festival in Cáceres.

So, Valencia. I went there for a long weekend two weekends ago with who else but the lovely Caroline. To start off the adventure, we went to the City of Arts and Sciences, where sleek, modern buildings are reflected in huge pools that surround them, and where crowds of people swarm to see...art and science! We went to the aquarium where I jealously watched carefree seals bask, belly-up, in the sun. And we got to see lots of skilled dolphins do synchronized leaps and flips at a dolphin show...impressive critters for sure. 

Such a Cutie

Building at Ciudad de las Artes y las Ciencias

Our other days were filled with paella, horchata (delicious at the time but so rich it left me a bit woozy for the remainder of the day), art, architecture (the old part of the city has an overhwelming abundance of grand architecture), and the beach for a few quite cold and windy hours. For some reason we kept singing Sevilla's theme song the whole time we were there ("Sevilla tiene un color especial...") maybe because Valencia is a pleasant, pedestrian-friendly, and art-filled city just like Sevilla. There are just too many pretty cities in Spain. I'm going to miss this country immensely! 

Building in la Plaza del Ayuntamiento

Oh, and I can't forget to mention one other Valencian highlight: eavesdropping on the highly inappropriate conversation between middle-aged folk at a nearby table one night at dinner. Eme and her friends must have thought that since Caroline and I were speaking English to each other, we wouldn't understand their Spanish...inconspicuousness is always a highlight to being a "non-Spanish-speaking foreigner." ("Eme, no te preocupes. El sexo es el sexo.")

As for WOMAD, it's a worldwide music festival that takes place is loads of countries around the year including Russia, Sweden, Scotland, Poland, and even the U.S. Lucky for me, Cáceres is the designated WOMAD spot in Spain, so I had free music right at my doorstep. I can't say I enjoyed it much on Friday night because the quality of the music wasn't good enough to make up for the fact that I'd gotten up at 6am that morning, felt sick, and wasn't in the mood to be sardined between crowds of drunk people spilling beer left and right...not to mention the heaps of garbage strewn every two feet all over the plaza. (WOMAD is a big botellón, meaning it's a time when drinking is legal in the streets, hence all the garbage).

But Saturday was completely different. Maybe it was just that I was much more energetic, but it seemed to me that the music was infinitely better, thus distracting me from my agitation with the drunk masses. My favorite part was sitting in Plaza Mayor, the main plaza in the Old Part, and listening to Olivenza, a Spanish and Portuguese group I'd seen twice before and adore. That was early enough in the evening that it was still possible to move without elbowing people out of the way. Later, when the entire Old Part was swarming with Extremadurans and foreigners alike, another highlight was Ram Z, whose beat-boxing skills were impressive for sure. He gave me a free CD after the show, but it unfortunately reminds me of mosquitoes dying (not to be harsh or anything) and is nothing like the rhythmic and melodic energy I witnessed in real life. But no use complaining about a gift!


Anyway, I'm glad I got to squeeze in some of these final adventures before my time here comes to an end. A nine-year-old student, who's usually very quiet and serious, asked me for my address in America so he can visit me when I return. So utterly adorable...OK, I'll stop being sentimental. I still have weeks to appreciate this precious place.