Athletic!

So this weekend was awesome. Our friends from San Sebastian (about an hour away) came to stay with us for a couple nights. One of the girls is a friend from Westmont and its always fun to see a familiar face. We went to a cideria on Friday night. At ciderias, you pay an up front amount for your food and drinks. You get a four course meal and all the cider you want. The first course was some chorizo with salsa and green peppers and this things made of black beans and rice. The second course was a tortilla (basically an omelet). Then for the main course you have a choice between a few options, I went with the duck. Boy did I make a brilliant choice. Let me quote my buddy Rafael after he tried a bite of the 'pato': "It's everything I've ever wanted in a woman, except in duck form." Make of that what you will, but I'll just tell you it was some of the best meat I've ever had. Then for dessert they served some kind of fruit with a jam and some cream stuff and cheese. It was a great meal. For the cider, you go to these huge barrels in the wall with a small spout that shoots the cider out into a bucket thats about 5-6 feet from the wall. You take your glass and catch the cider down close to the ground a few feet from the wall and then move your glass closer and closer. It comes out all bubbly from hitting the glass from so far away and its pretty dang good.

Then on Saturday we went to Sopelana with the girls. It was a cold, somewhat foggy day, but it was awesome. Over the last few years I've really grown to love the ocean and waves. Never mind that I'm a terrible surfer and wish I could surf more. But I just love watching waves break and seeing all the different types. The waves this day were very slow to develop and were pretty decent size. The waves at the beach back in Getxo are over seemingly an instant after they develop. So it was fun to see these long waves start pretty far out and just creep closer and closer to the shore. Then on Saturday night we went into Bilbao and walked around a pretty cool part of town and bought a few things. It was sweet to be out around that time, maybe 8 at night. The streets are pretty full on Saturday nights like that and it was fun to feel like we were out when others were out.

Then Sunday we went to the Athletic de Bilbao soccer game. They play in the Premier League with FC Barcelona, Real Madrid, and all the other top teams in Spain. They played some team I had never heard of and we got the W 2-0. We were in the first row right on the corner. I could have easily spit on the guy when he was taking a corner kick right in front of me. Unfortunately there was a security guard right there, so that spoiled my potential fun. The first goal was about ten minutes in right in our end. Our player had it near the opposite corner and sent a bending cross right towards us, over the goalkeeper's hands, over the defender's head, right at a running Athletic attacker who popped a header right in the back of the net. The place erupted, I was waving my freshly purchased Athletic red and white striped scarf in the air, high-fiving the people around me. It was a pretty awesome moment. The cool part about the team is that they field only Basque players, so there is a really cool sense of pride and a homegrown feel to the team, the stadium and the fans. It would be kinda like the Lakers only using guys who were born and raised in the LA area. I immediately thought of Jordan Farmar, who grew up in LA, played for UCLA, and is now with the Lakers. Imagine a team full of these kind of guys, and thats what you've got in Athletic. The bars around town fly the Athletic red and white flag outside, the pubs pack out with fans watching the game, and everyone has got on their team scarf. I saw my Spanish teacher walking in downtown on our way to the game wearing her red and white scarf with her boyfriend. She was all pumped up and ready to cheer.

Now I'm back to the grind of classes (not that they're that tough, but you still have to do the work). I've got a test tomorrow, which I don't really know what to expect from, so we'll see. Then on Friday I will be flying to Rome with the guys and we're meeting up with Tyler, our friend who is studying in Boston. I'm so pumped to see that guy, not to mention see the Sistine Chapel and the Colosseum and everything else in Italy. We're heading to Florence then to Venice after Rome. Then we're hopping on the train for about 24 hours along the French coast to get back to Bilbao and send Tyler off. Then we head down to Madrid for a couple days and then Sevilla for a couple more. Will I be tired by the end...yes. Will it be worth it...also yes. So that's the itinerary, I'm not sure if I'll get another post up until I am back from all of that, but I'll try to squeeze an update post in here if I get a chance.

Until next time, please wear as much UCLA gear as possible and cheer for two during the tourney, because I will sadly be missing at least the first couple rounds. For me, missing the NCAA tournament is kind of like missing Christmas morning. Tears very well may be shed at the thought of missing a 14 seed from the MVC upsetting and ACC powerhouse, or a last second game-winning heave from deep, causing the court to be flooded with fans and players and tears and screams. I just watched Tyus's 4.8 second dash to the championship last night and it sent chills up my spine. Gotta love March.

Alright, that was long. You may or may not have made it through to the end, kudos if you did. Adios!