A Vacation from Vacation... Lagos, Portugal!

With an apartment found and no commitments so far, I decided to spend a few days at the beach before the Fall chill starts to permeate the air. After some brief research I decided to venture down the coast all the way to Lagos, Portugal. Lagos is only actually a three hour drive from Seville, however, with the many stops the bus makes in between the trip actually takes about six hours! Yet I would say that it is definitely worth your while to check out this fun and beautiful beach town.

I knew that I was in for an interesting experience when I decided to stay at a hostel called "The Rising Cock." Yet despite its off-putting name, the hostel had rave reviews and helped make my stay in Lagos fun and relaxing.

After arriving in Lagos I made my way up the windy cobblestone roads toward my hostel. I was greeted at the door by "Mama," a 55ish Portuguese woman who takes care of the hostel and its guests. Ironically, Mama had lived 35 years in Chicopee, Massachusetts before her two sons (both Northeastern graduates) decided to revisit their roots and build this hostel. After chatting about what a small world it is (I'm from Massachusetts and went to school right near Chicopee) Mama showed me to my all girls dorm room "The Princess Room" which was immaculately clean and had a private bathroom. She then told me that each morning her famous homemade lemon tea and crepes are served between 9:00-11:00 and then proceeded to send me off to the beach with some of her staff. What a welcome! Definitely not your typical hostel!

The beaches in Lagos are gorgeous, although the water was a bit cold (it is the Atlantic after all...) Lagos has multiple beaches along its coast and is famous for the small grottos and caves that separate them. Taking the "cliff walk" through the first few beaches was absolutely stunning!

Doors To Paradise

Being a huge "foodie" I was eager to try some of the delicious Portuguese food that I'd seen advertised all over town. On my first night I decided, haphazardly, on the restaurant O Cantinho do Mar. For about €14 ($21) I received lamb chops, two prawns, vegetables, fries, and a half bottle of Portuguese wine. It was delicious! Why can't Spanish food be like this!?

The next night I opted for a less expensive option and went to a recommended "Churrasqueira" (BBQ Restaurant) that served take-out only. For €5 you receive half a roasted chicken with "spicy" (not really) piri-piri sauce, a montrous portion of fries, and either a beer or a soda. Simple--but delicious!

On my last night in Lagos it was difficult to decide where to go. The town is literally filled with restaurants, both Portuguese and International. Yet as amazing as one of the Italian restaurants looked, I decided to stick with traditional Portuguese food. Following a recommendation from the website http://www.simplylagos.com/ I triedthe restaurant Casa de Pasto do Zé. Perplexed by some of the menu's translations (what are cockles or purple half-wedge shells!) I figured I couldn't go wrong with fried shrimp and a salad. The "fried," however, seemed to have gotten lost in translation (I said "frito"!) and I received a plate of sauteed prawns, eyes, feet, brain, and all! Yet besides being very messy to eat, they were delicious. I ate them with the spicy piri-piri sauce (my new favorite thing ever) and loved every bite. The only part of the meal I didn't like was waiting about 45 minutes for my check after asking for it... somewhat understandable when a chef is also the only waitress for about 15 tables... but overall a Spanish/Portuguese norm that I can NOT get used to!

Although I'd prefer not to admit it, I did eat one other "meal" before leaving Portugal. Later that night (or should I say early the next morning...) I hit up the "Cachorro Quente" (Hotdog) Stand with the Canadian girls I'd gone out with. Initially, I was not going to get one-- as I absolutely despise hotdogs! But, I was starving, it was the only thing open, and it had a lot of cool toppings-- onions, mushrooms, shredded carrots, corn, potato sticks, ketchup, mayo... very Brazilian style I thought! So, against my better instincts, I gave it a try. Bad idea. I'm pretty sure that was the last hotdog of my life!

Overall, Lagos is a really fun place, worth checking out. It is very very touristy, (and I wasn't even there during the high season), but the beaches are lovely and there is plenty of excellent food to be found (but do your research to avoid tourist traps!)

I left Lagos with some new friends, a bottle of great Portuguese wine for $5.00, and I glowing tan... what more could I ask for from my vacation from vacation?

The Beach I Went to Each Day

Lagos Town

The Marina

Boats in a Row!

Cutest Dog Ever... Fetched a Water Bottle From the Marina (Coco's Size)!

Shellfish anyone?

Or Crabs?

Seagulls Attack a Fishing Boat

Portuguese Architecture

Bye Lagos!

The Google Maps Incident

Spanish people are very disorganized by American standards. They put things off, leave things until the last minute, and rarely give information until its absolutely necessary. Amazingly, however, things still get done and things run fairly smoothly! When I received my official acceptance letter at the end of July the only information it contained was my school's address, email address, and the day I needed to be there. After emailing my school with quite a few questions (including asking if it would be possible for me to live in Seville Capital and commute) I received something along the lines of:

"Greetings from Spain Lauren. The truth is that this year, in July, we are starting a new program with many hopes of success, however, unfortunately, we must learn many things, one of them being that in this school we have never had a language assistant, so all of this is new for us, and I can't give you much information. Regardless, we are waiting for you with open arms at our school, and above all in the English Department, where they will be able to give you more information and finalize what your job and obligations will be. Thank you. Bye."

Well, I wasn't too surprised when I received the email and saw that not one of my questions were answered and I did research on my own. The school's address was in a small town about 27 miles outside of Seville called Carmona. The town itself has a lot of history and is actually a fairly popular tourist destination. The town is accessible from Seville only by bus, which takes about 45 minutes from the city and runs hourly. With that information I decided I would commute.

Fast forward to a few days ago. I'd already paid a deposit on my new apartment in Seville, made some friends, and was enjoying exploring this beautiful city when suddenly technology stopped my honeymoon period short. I had picked up a map of Carmona from the tourist office here in Seville and tried to find my school's address. It wasn't there. So, I used google maps to try to locate it...and I did. Google maps showed my school as being very far from Carmona and suddenly, I was frantic. I googled away trying and trying to research the location. All I was getting was that it was 30 minutes away from Carmona by car and on the side of a barren highway surrounded by farmland. I wanted to die! Would it still be possible to commute? Would it now take two hours? Would I have to wake up at 5:00 am?

View Larger Map

Click on the RIGHT arrow once and you will see Carmona. Point A was supposed to be my school. A 30 minute drive from Carmona!

Well...as it turns out technology still has its kinks. After barely sleeping that night I made my way to Carmona the next morning. The day started out as rough as the night before; as I got on the bus and paid the driver my €2 fare (which is how much everyone had told me it cost) I made my way to the back to sit down...suddenly, everyone was calling at me..."¡come back, come back...the driver is calling you!" ¿Pero, que ha pasado? Well, it turns out that the fare was actually €2.30, so I thoroughly embarrassed myself and held up everyone else getting on the bus!

After a long ride and many stops in the middle of nowhere, where people actually got off (see below) we made it to Carmona.

A Legitimate Bus Stop Where People Got Off

I immediately made my way to the tourist office and said: "You have to help me! I'm supposed to be working at the Maese Rodrigo School, but I don't know how to get there... the map says its a 30 minute drive from here! Is there a bus?" The woman laughed..."the school is 10 minutes walking down the road," she explained. I doubted her assuredness but I started the walk. On the way, I asked another woman if the knew where the school was. She pointed me in the same direction. Could it be, I thought? I hoped and hoped...suddenly I saw a school...was it the one? I read the name and let go of my breath. IES Maese Rodrigo. Home!

My School!

He Regresado/I've Returned!

Spain. Once you've been here for a few days its easy to forget that life hasn't always been sunshine, socializing, and siesta. Who wouldn't fall in love with a lifestyle that endorses leisurely afternoons spent with friends in small cafés and restaurants or that heartily advocates taking the famed Spanish siesta, which is a glorified afternoon power nap? Indeed, the Spanish are an interesting variety, especially here in the South where they are famous for their siestas, tapas, and flamenco. The way foreigners often describe the Spaniard is that "he works to live and never lives to work." Pros and cons of this motto aside, one must admit that the Spanish lifestyle is quite alluring.

I've been in Seville, Spain for five days now. After finishing up a challenging and tiring Senior year at Umass Amherst, I decided that the opportunity to live in Spain while working as a teacher's assistant and receiving grant money from the Spanish government was just too good to pass up. Having already fallen head over heels for one Spanish city (Granada) I hope that Seville will be equally enticing.

The program I am doing is called the North American Language and Culture Assistant/Auxiliares de Lengua y Cultura Norteamericanos grant program. The Spanish government will be paying me a monthly grant of €700 (as of today's exchange rate $1,026). So, basically, about $250 a week. Its not much, but it is enough to live comfortably in Spain...even in a big city like Seville! However, to be able to travel etc. most people in my position give private lessons for which they charge between €12-€15 per hour. I definitely plan to do this, not only for the money but also for the experience and the fact that our "real" jobs are only 12 hours a week!

For the first two weeks I am here I am staying in a "residence" which is basically a shared apartment. There are four bedrooms but right now only one other is occupied. I decided to pay a little extra for the residence versus a hostel because I didn't know how long it might take me to find an apartment, and knew how nice it would be to have my own room (and not 6-15 other roommates)!

The View of an Old Church from my Window

Luckily, I did find an apartment right away. It was actually the first (and only) apartment I looked at. Its not perfect...the bedroom is very small and the rent is high according to the locals (€300/month)...but I like the location near the city center yet on a calmer street as well as the landlady who is doing this program too for her third year! I'll be living with a French and a German girl and I'll probably move in this coming weekend.

Well, thats an introduction about me and the program...more on Spain to follow!