A long, overdue entry

So many things to tell you all! I have to admit, I'm a little overwhelmed by all of the adventures I want to write about.... Let's see... where to begin?

I know... chocolate. Always a good beginning.

So, as I may or may not have already mentioned, the food of Spain and I don't get along very well. The one cultural difference I did not mentally prepare myself for was the food choices of España. Let me tell you, there ain't nothin' that will make a Georgia girl homesick like having the choice of squid or rabbit for dinner. AND there ain't nothin' that'll make you want mom's homemade cookin' more than seeing a pair of beady little craw-dad eyes mixed up in a plate full of rice. Goodness. The only thing that has managed to console me in my food grief has been the dessert. Yes, it's true... the pastries of Spain are DIVINE. Chocolate is my daily companion here. Luckily I don't really have to worry about putting on weight because we walk at least 30 minutes every day. ANYWAY...

The other night (and the next) some girl friends and I went for "chocolate con churros." This is Spanish for "melted chocolate in a cup so thick you have to eat it with a spoon, served with fried funnel cake-like sticks that could clog your arteries in an instant to dip in the chocolate." Mmmmmmmmm, they are heavenly. Let me show you some pictures.

Speaking of dessert... My lovely room mate Laura and I went out for un postre (pastry) y cafe con leche yesterday. We got ourselves a "croissant con chocolate" (Spanish for "mega-sized, sugar-coated croissant filled with warm chocolate that oozes out of each side) and met some super-mega-guay girls from Japan. They were sitting at the table next to us, enjoying some brightly colored gelato, when Laura suggested we offer to take their picture so we could meet them. I agreed that this was a good idea so we asked them (in the language of japo-span-glish, of course...) if they would like a picture, and they enthusiastically responded by posing with their gelatos and throwing up peace signs with their fingers. After they said "gracias," we thought our asian adventure was over, but no... turns out they wanted pictures with US! One by one, each of the four or five girls came and posed with us (their new "spanish" friends?).... we decided it was best if we made peace signs too. Here are some pics:

Also... side note... look at these super guay eye masks that Laura and I found:

okay.... now on to the next adventure... EL OCEONIGRÁFICO!! a.k.a.... THE AQUARIUM!

Last weekend, we visited La Ciudad de las Artes y las Ciencias, a famous science and arts museum in Valencia. Connected to this museum is a wonderful little aquarium (okay, not little.. it's the biggest in Europe.) This place is so beautiful! All of the buildings are muy modern looking and are covered in ceramic tile so that they shine day and night under the sun and moon (or street lights.) Here are some fotos from the day:

This is me eating a "tortilla bocadillo".... this is spanish for "a slab of potato/cheese/egg casserole placed between two halves of a baguette to make a sandwich"... It was actually pretty good. :) I had to take a picture.

Here are some pictures of the outside of la ciudad de las artes y las ciencias:

Okay.... now for the aquarium pics (some of my favorites!) This first one I love. There was a seal that loved to interact with the people by following their hands along the glass. Laura played with him for a good bit... I got him on video (I'll post it on facebook later!)

Laura with her seal friend :)

Me in the fish tunnel

Creepy eel

Laura "eating" the creepy eel

Beautiful bird!

Albert!

This is what I like to see... flamingo-like birds and turtles co-existing. What a family.

Yes, there is a fish in this picture. Look closely and you'll see two eyes on the left. It's see-through!

Weird lobster-like animal

Laura scolding the lobster-like animal for showing its claws to her.

Cuttle fish

Me trying to "cuddle" with the cuttle fish...

Dolphin show!

Lastly, I would like to share with you a few pictures from shopping about Valencia yesterday:

These are some bowls I fell in love with... I would use them if I had my own kitchen

these plates too

in the plaza de ayutamiento

Flower shops!

We went to a bar last night called "chill out." All of the "chairs" were pillows on the floor. Each of us gals had a glass of wine (in martini glasses?) As you can see, it was very smoky. I have been feeling ill over the past few days and unfortunately I found out that mixing a smoky room with a sore throat is a good way to lose one's voice. :(

We had fun last night though. :)

Okay folks, that's all for now. :) I hope you enjoyed it! Please leave some comment love... it helps me to know if people are reading this thing or not. :)

Also, please pray for me that I would be completely well. I currently have a sore throat, stuffy nose, little energy, and a cough. If I am not better by Monday, I am going to look into going to a doctor.

Thank you! I love you all!