Pamplona

My sincerest apologies to my readers (all four of you) for the lack of posts. However, I’m back! Assignments, outings, more assignments, etc have kept me from blogging. So here we go: Pamplona!

Last weekend I took my last trip in Spain to the northern city of Pamplona (where the famous run of the bulls occurs every July 7th). I went to visit some family friends from Mexico that moved there in 2000. It’s a family of five who I hadn’t seen since I was six years old. Honestly, I really couldn’t remember anything about this family I hadn’t seen in 14 years. However, I felt like I was visiting family. For one thing, they’re Mexican and I have this concept in my head that Mexicans I know from Mexico=family. Secondly though, this is a couple that was super good friends with my parents when they were newly-weds. They shared so much together, including having kids around the same time (their oldest son is ten days older than me). So since last week was such a crappy week what with ridiculous assignments mixed with homesickness, I was really excited about spending time with people who loved my parents and who loved me.

So apparently I’m the same today as when I was six (just bigger). Diana (the mom) found me at the station right away telling me I looked the same. Then Daniel (the dad) tells me he remembers that the last time they saw me I was obsessed with Beauty and the Beast and sang the songs ALL THE TIME. Um…is it bad that I haven’t changed since 1992? Whatever.

They have three kids: Rodrigo (20), Bárbara (18), and Samuel (17). I sooo needed this weekend with the Jimenez family! Oh the Mexican food I ate, mmmm. We put up the Christmas tree while watching Shrek in Spanish. I walked all over the old part of the city with Bárbara. I got to get to know all three “kids” really well this weekend, and by Sunday I wasn’t ready to come back to Madrid yet! They spoiled me so much with food, generosity, and hugs! I’ve been needing family hugs for a while now. I think I set a personal record for longest church service attended on Sunday morning: three and a half hours. Whoa buddy. It was cool for a day, but I doubt I’d be as positive having a three and a half hour service every week.

Sunday night was the first presentation of the church’s Christmas Cantata. It was really cool ‘cuz they sang it in a huge Parrish Church all decorated and stuff. Everyone was chatting afterwards for such a long time that they had to kick us out of the Parrish. Man was I missing my family as well as Mexico in those moments! Maybe I should move back someday…
Monday morning I took a train from Pamplona at 7am. It was a sweet train ride. They bought my ticket and everything! I got to stretch, watch a movie, take a nap. Once you take a train you start asking yourself why you’ve been wasting your time with busses, and then you remember the price difference. I got to Madrid 10 minutes before my art class started so I raced to the Institute and showed up not too late. This was the perfect weekend to recharge me for the last two weeks (now one week) left in Spain.