Waterfalls, Flamenco and Fun

This week I have had lots of fun even though it was my first proper week back at work for ages! (That was a bit of a killer, its strange how quickly you forget how tiring working in a lab is...) 

Anyway enough about work. This is a post about all the other fun things I have seen and done this week and I am going to try and make it short and sweet seeming as I have actually managed the one post a week thing. 

So on Tuesday I went to a place where all the tapas is 1€. Sounds amazing but I have to admit I won't be running back in a hurry. What it really is is different toppings, some of which were yummy, some not so much, on slices of bread. And then they bring around different hot tapas from time to time. It was fun though and great to meet up with some people on an otherwise quite dull Tuesday evening. But this kind of sums up how I feel about Spanish food at the moment, nothing is really wowing me about it - it seems most of the time to be a bit too carby which is not good for the waste line at all and the cake here is seriously lacking. (plus I still haven't got round to sorting the gym out again.. oppssss) Maybe it is just a case of having to try loads of new restaurants to find the hidden gems! I have also been thinking about what I miss from the UK and  the only food I crave is a proper tea and cake and also HP sauce. Random I know....

This is the totally crazy flamenco lady
 who I was quite convinced was
 going to slap the old guy in
 front of us who kept calling her guapa
and clapping! Something I
 have learnt you do not do in flamenco shows!! 

Thursday evening I went along to a free flamenco show in a bar. It was different to say the least, a crowded Spanish bar (obviously very noisy as everywhere in Spain is) being told of by this crazy lady making everyone be quiet for the show with varying levels of success! It was good fun though and I quite enjoyed it. I know its not really a big thing in this part of Spain so I would like to see a traditional show if I am ever in the south of Spain. 

Then yesterday we jumped on the metro with some food we had brought from the market and went to nearly the end of the line, at least further than I have been before and found this amazing park. It was the Parc del Laberint d'Horta and it was so quiet and peaceful, you wouldn't even know that you were still in the city. To set the scene I saw at lease 2 different wedding parties having their photos taken in the park so  I have however been eaten alive by some evil insects but other than that totally worth it! I have also been shown this super cute cafe which has its seats in the window, and this is somewhere I would have to take anyone who comes and visits! Too addicted to coffee.... 

Shot of a waterfall we found in the park. It was so worth the 2€ entry

Girls enjoying some drinks alfresco

Also trying to plan some weekend trips away in the next couple of months so if anyone has any suggestions of cities you have to visit in Spain (or anywhere else in Europe really) let me know! I also so put out the offer again to anyone to come and visit. I am quiet the tour guide now :) 

So what am I doing in Spain?

Okay, so I've never done anything interesting enough in my life to write about in the past but I think now is about time. I have been in Spain for nearly 2 weeks now for my 6 month placement and I thought it was about time I wrote some of it down. 

Firstly, why am I here? 

I have to admit I have asked myself that question more than a couple of times, and if I'm honest I am still trying to work out why I am here! So a few reasons I could come up with are: 

To 'become' Spanish - No! (Although I have been reminded by my friends a few times not to come back Spanish and I ensure you that I like tea and cake too much for that to happen, and otherwise cafe con leche will continue to ruin my sleeping habits) 

To learn to speak Spanish - I hope so. But it is so hard being English and working (and living) with other students who are trying to improve their English. I have been told lots of times already I 'speak such perfect English', but I then have to remind them that it is the only language I can speak so they are already well ahead of me. And also anyone who knows me will understand how untrue this is, and will appreciate I'm avoiding having to say the word microwave at all costs. It is also tricky when a lot of the people I will be working with aren't Spanish either so it is as unnatural to them to speak in Spanish as it is in English. But I am trying, and I hope just being surrounded by it on a day to day basis will at least help me learn a little more than I know now! 

To do Chemistry - I guess at the end of the day this is really why I am here. I am just starting the final year of my degree and the first 6 months require me to complete a research placement and a dissertation. So, I think I am going to have to knuckle down and do some pretty hardcore research and lots of work to have it all done before I go home for Christmas. 

But I think after some reflection what I really want to do is eat some amazing food whilst I am here so that when I go back home I can wow everyone with some dishes I have learnt to cook. The fresh produce here, such as the fruit and veg is amazing, and it’s so easily available. I barely have to walk 5 mins to end up with a number of fruit shops, bakeries and supermarkets to choose from which is great. I have also had the chance to try some food from around the world already which I had never tried before, including Chinese, Romanian and Catalan dishes. 

I am also learning to be a bit more independent whilst I am here. Basically, I knew no one when I got of that plane and this has been the hardest thing for me. I keep asking myself "How can I enjoy such an amazing opportunity when I have no friends to share it with?" I am not on a classic Erasmus scheme in which there are other students in the same situation as me who have time to travel and explore with me. I am also not living in halls with other students around so classic student activities such as nights out and drinking aren't a weekly occurrence. But I think in the long run this will be better for me. I am going to learn to say yes to things maybe I wouldn't have in England, such as seeing a film at the cinema in Spanish (at least I don't think it was in Catalan - but that is a whole new post!) and casually ending up on the edge of Barcelona's gay pride by accident. 

I will keep this blog updates - I promise. And I hope to fill it with everything I do, lots of things I eat and generally keep an online record for myself (selfish I know).

P.S. I REPEAT THAT ALL FRIENDS WHO WANT TO VISIT ARE MORE THAN WELCOME (I've got a comfy sofa you are more than welcome to kip on for a few nights and flights to Barca are pretty cheap!)