(Paella would have been a perfect addition to this alliteration, but alas)

Another week, another blog!

Today, I am writing to you sunburnt and exhausted after a weekend on the beach in Valencia. This was my first weekend-long trip exploring new parts of Spain, and it was filled with some rosy and some thorny moments.

On the bright side, I got a nice summer tan and spent lots of time playing in the ocean. However, I left Valencia paella-less, much to my dismay. Apparently, the paella-making comes to a screeching halt on weekends and festivals as the city is flooded with tourists. Lesson learned: Paella is a call-ahead kind of meal.

Now, let’s take a brief intermission to talk about adaptability. The biggest challenge for me has not been cultural, but rather meteorological. Four weeks in, and I still have not gotten used to the unbearable midday heat combined with the lack of air conditioning and ice cubes. I am someone who loves to spend the middle of my day busy, outside, and exploring, so I have been resisting the siesta life at the expense of heat exhaustion, dehydration, and sunburn. With forecasts in the high 90s-100s this upcoming week, it might be time to embrace this part of Spanish culture.

Last weekend, my host family hosted cousins and nieces for an afternoon merienda, and I experienced a culture shock 3 weeks into my Spain experience. Each of them immediately went in for besitos, to my surprise. Throughout the night, my language skills were tested as I struggled to piece together the multiple overlapping conversations, fast-paced Spanish, and slang I had never heard. I feel like I got the authentic Spanish family experience, which was fun, but also so overwhelming and different than I am used to.

There are plenty of other little things that I have had to adapt to: having to chase the waiter down for the check, hasta luego sounding a lot more like “talego,” and everyone walking at a leisurely pace in the middle of a busy sidewalk. Additionally, flipping back and forth between Spanish and English has been an unexpected challenge. I find myself texting my friends and home “vale” or “claro” unintentionally. When an English-speaking client came to my workplace, I was faced with the challenge of translating between my coworker and the client. To my surprise, I kept defaulting to Spanish, and I had to take a second to reset my brain to start speaking English again.

Now…speed recap time. Some highlights from the week were rooftop pool time with friends, a post-work visit to the Prado museum, 1 euro tacos, and gelato.

In Valencia, the highlight of my trip was renting paddle boards and playing around in the ocean. The breeze and the water were so refreshing further offshore, a welcome reprieve from the blazing heat of the weekend. We also got to see some beautiful architecture in the city:

Also, this weekend was my first hostel experience! Living out my European travel dreams. Honestly, it was well worth the money, and now I know to splurge for the girls-only room and bring some earplugs.

¡Buenas noches chicos!

Ciao,

Rachel 💌