Thank you

This will be probably my last post. I have to say sorry because in my first post I said that I was going to write everything both in English and in Spanish and I haven't done that.

I would like to have written a bit everyday but I find it very difficult. For me, be constant with something is almost impossible and that has happened with this blog.

In spite of that, I have enjoyed telling you how my travels have been. They have been important events in my life. I have learned lots of things with each one of them and, what is more important for me, I have met incredible people.

I don't know if I will write more once I reach the initial goal of this blog. Maybe, in a few months I will be back telling you how I am spending my summer. Maybe not. Maybe one day I start to translate the posts. Maybe not. Frankly, I don't know what is going to happen with this blog.

I hope you have enjoyed reading it. Thank you so much!

Maria

The Pleasure of Travelling: Part 4 // El placer de viajar 4ª parte (2nd)

The day after my arrival was the one I spent to familiarize myself with the town. I have forgotten to say that in Malta, the towns are too close that you don't know where you are if you are traveling through them. It seems that you are always in the same town because there aren't limits between them.

That day I was going to meet my Egyptian friend. I had to wait for him outside my residence and he would come there. While I was waiting for him, two girls came and asked me if I knew somewhere to have lunch. As I have just arrived, like them, I couldn't tell them a place. They told me that would live in that residence so we shared our phone numbers and they went to look have lunch. After a minute, Ahmet, my Egyptian friend, arrived at the residence and we two went to look for Cortes, my other friend. We three went to eat something and then Ahmet made us a tour. It was a really hot day and we ended up very tired. We were together all the day until middle afternoon. Then, each one went to their respective houses. I went to my residence and there I met who would be my new flatmate, because the girls who were living there, were leaving Malta that day.

As I told you before, I am going to describe you how was the residence. It was a big place, with a big place outside the rooms building with tables and chairs to sit there and be relaxed. It was the nicest part.

There where also a swimming pool but it wasn't as nice as the other place. The water was really hot and dirty. I think they don't clean in the entire summer. The only good part of the pool was that there where sun lounger to lie down and tan your body.

And, what about the rooms? They were small and quite dirty. There was a kitchen and a fridge, small too. The bathroom was tiny. You couldn't move while you were having a shower because the curtain was too near that it even stuck to your body!

The cleaning ladies came only twice a week and we didn't have something with which we could clean, not even a broom. We had to buy washing-up liquid to wash up the dishes.

The room was also too hot. It seemed a sauna. No air passed through it. The best thing was that we could cook our lunch and dinner and, for me, it was funny. I like to cook so I was always preparing lunch. We loved pasta salad so we ate it almost everyday. We also cooked potato salad, macaroni and rice. The best thing I brought there was olive oil.

Little by little, I was making friends because new people came to the residence and I also started my English course.

The first day, we did a level test and then we were told in which group we have to go. In my class, we were 5 people and I was the only Spanish. That was perfect because I didn't have the temptation to speak Spanish. The teacher was quite good and we didn't waste time in the classes. We talk a lot too.

Me and my friends visited lots of places: the islands of Gozo and Comino, Valletta, the capital, Medina, the old capital, Sliema... But the one that I liked more was the island of Comino. It is a place almost uninhabited. There were a lot of people because it is a touristic place. The water that surrounds it is completely clear and having a bath there is incredible. However, I was bitten by a jellyfish. It was really painful!

But, the best of everything I could see there was the nightlife. It was incredible! Everyday, streets were plenty of young people, wanting to have fun and make friends. Discos were free and music was good so it wasn't difficult to enjoy your evenings.

In my travel, I felt hot and I felt fear when I traveled by bus, because the bus drivers drove really fast. But I met a lot of incredible people who I still keep in touch with, I practiced my English, I spent really good nights in the discos and...I have a lot of photos to remember my nice days in Malta!

The Pleasure of Travelling: Part 4 // El placer de viajar 4ª parte

- MALTA -

Last summer, I made an incredible travel (and my last one by now). My destination was a small island lost in the middle of the Mediterranean sea: Malta.

I was given a grant to go to an English speaking country and spend there at least three weeks doing an English course. I didn't know where I wanted to go because there were a lot of possibilities: England, Ireland, Scotland, Australia, United States, Canada and Malta.

Going to the States would have been unforgettable but I couldn't afford it. It was a 1,700 euros grant and with that money you can't go so far. Australia was impossible too, and so did Canada.

I had gone to Ireland the summer before so my last possible destinations were England, Scotland or Malta. I compared these three countries and I thought: the weather in England or Scotland isn't as good as in Malta (is summer, I need the hot and the sun!) that means that if I go to a place where it rains a lot I couldn't go the beach. It also implies that you have to carry an umbrella every time you go out (as I did when I was in Ireland) and, moreover, England and Scotland are more expensive so...the decision was clear: Malta will be the country.

One of the conditions of the grant was that I had to search for an English course so once I knew that I was given the money, I started to look for an agency that offered me good prices for my course and my accommodation there. I chose to live in a residence that was quite near from the school and very close to the beach and the places where young people used to go (including the discos!). I will tell you more about the residence in a while.

As I was traveling alone, I decided to ask to the travel agent if there was someone who will travel to Malta the same days I was going. She told me that it was another girl looking for an English course like me. I told her if she could provide me her email in order to contact her and start talking. And that was what she did. After that, Cortes, the other girl, and I, started to talk and surprisingly we get on well very quickly. She had booked another residence, different from mine but, Malta is small so we weren't too far from each other. She was my first friend there.

In my research for more people who traveled to Malta, I found a Facebook group of my school. There, I left a message introducing myself and saying that I wanted to contact with people who were going to Malta. A boy contacted with me. He told me that he Egyptian and that he was living in Malta because of his father job. We too started to talk a lot and, as I spoke English with him, it was good for me because I could practice my English before I went there.

In short: I had booked my course, I had found two friends and the most important thing: I was looking forward to go!

The departure day, I met Cortes at Manises airport. It was early in the afternoon, some hours before we could check-in. It was nice because we could know each other better and share our thrill for the adventure we were about to begin.

The flight was fine, we didn't have problems. When we arrived in Malta, we had to look for the driver we had contract. He would drove us to our residences. So, at that moment, each one would go to a different place but we decided to meet again the next day.

My first night at the residence was very, very strange. I arrived there and a boy took my personal information and brought me to my room. There was a mess. A lot of clothes over the bed and some alcohol bottles over the table but nobody in the room. I left my things on my bed and started to read the information I was given. I wanted to know with who I was going to live but nobody appeared. I was really tired so I decided to sleep. After a few minutes, three girls came up and introduced themselves. I did the same. They told me if I wanted to go the the swimming pool. I said I didn't, of course. It was 5 am and I was too tired.

The Pleasure of Travelling: Part 3 // El placer de viajar: 3ª parte

Some months ago, I was telling you my travel to Ireland but I didn't conclude my story. Here it is the next part.

The school facilities weren't as good as we expected but I have to admit that it isn't important if you want to enjoy your time there and you have some friends to enjoy with.

Once we had been separated into two groups, we went to the our classroom and started to talk a bit with the teacher. She, whose name was Carmel, asked our names and wanted us to explain from where we come and the places we had visited before. That first conversation was a bit cold because we didn't know each other well enough and the teacher seemed to be a bit harsh. She told us that she didn't want to hear a word in Spanish. That is a bit difficult in a group of young people who are experiencing their first contact with another culture and another language, but we tried to follow her instructions and little by little we spoke fluently.

Classes were quite amusing. We did grammar exercises, vocabulary exercises and group conversations. But we also listened to songs and watched some films, in English of course.

Two afternoons a week we had to do an activity called "Project Work". The whole group were divided into groups of 5 people and each one of the groups had to chose an aspect of Irish culture. My group chose "Food and Drink". The days when we have to do the Project Work, we searched information on the Net and made a mural with it. Well, we made two murals: one with the food and the other with the drink. In the latter we talked about Guinness, of course.

The other afternoons of the week we had free time to do what we wanted. We could watch a film, play cards, play basketball or, what we most liked, play volleyball. I remember that volleyball afternoons with a big smile because we really enjoyed it. Me and some friends also spent some afternoons singing English songs. It was really funny!

One day per week, we had a day trip. We visited some places. The one I most remember is the Cliffs of Moher. It is an enormous and beautiful precipice.

We also visited an island that was inside a huge lake that was uninhabited. It was a green and thick forest, with plenty of vegetation and wild little animals. It also had an old cemetery. It was really beautiful.

We couldn't miss a trip to the city of Galway. We lived an hour far from there so we go by bus to do some shopping and see how was the life there. Galway is a city with a lot of street artists: musicians, magicians, showmen, mime, etc. It is a pleasure to walk through its streets.

Leaving apart the school life, I would like to talk about my host family. They were a 4-children family, three boys and a girl. The father was a farmer so we live in a farm. But it really didn't seem a farm. The house looked like a fairy tale house and so did the garden. The views me and my roommate had from our room were incredible. See a big lake surrounded by vegetation we you get up is the best way to start your day!

The mother took care of the house and the family and also helped the father with the animals. They had a lot of them: donkeys, horses, cows, ducks and a dog. She was a really good cook. She made delicious meals for us.

The family treated us very very well. The talk with us and asked us things about Spain and our culture. We also ask the things about Ireland.

My memories of the time spent there are all good things. It has been an incredible experience that I thing everybody should live. Is amazing to see how you can manage in a country that it isn't yours thanks to the people that live there, because the give you all they have and make your stay much more comfortable.

It is also amazing to notice that you can make good friends in a month. Friends that still are my friends. It is true that you can't go out with them because each one lives in a city and it is a bit difficult to see each other as much as we would like. But, in spite of that you know that are your friends and will be there if you need them.

I'll never forget my month in Ireland.

Stiffness

Stiffness: the quality of being firm, hard or unable to bend.

According to the Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary, feeling stiffness on a muscle implies that you can't move it. I agree with that. It is almost an hour I have finished my aerobics class and I can't move my legs yet. The teacher has been particularly hard today. We have run ourselves into the ground!

We have been doing exercise for an hour and one can say : "It's not that bad". In fact, it's not that bad but I'm not used to do such intense exercises because the teacher we had before this one made more relaxed classes.

The truth is that I prefer this ones because when I finish the class I feel better; I feel new (Well, tired, but new). Thanks to sweat, your body eliminates substances that it doesn't need and that is why you feel revitalized. The best way to do that is doing exercise.

Doing exercise is also good for relaxing and helps to being concentrated. So, although I know that tomorrow I couldn't move myself, I feel good and happy for having done that aerobics class.

To Doubt or not to Doubt

Doubts, little blows, slumps that start as simple thoughts but become, little by little, in a small hole deep down.

Thoughts that expressed on a loud voice seem insignificant but that are hard to get over in one's mind.

The problem is that the main cause of these unnecessary thought seems not to have intention to help me to avoid them.

I think it is (and in fact it is) a matter of character. Every single person is a different world; each one of us feel in a different way and that is the problem. One can express his or her feelings by saying them or by showing them, or both. The heart of the matter, and the heart of my hurting thoughts is what happens when a person needs words and shows of affection while the other part has enough with some acts.

I don't know what to do but what I'm sure is that I don't want to crack up more.

Enough for today.

Rain

It is raining again and that makes me feel depressed. When you get up, look through the window and see that the sun isn't shining because the sky is cloudy, you only want to go to bed again.

This awful weather gets me sad and discourages me. What I need is the sun, because with it I feel full of energy and as I have a lot of things to do, that is a good point in favor. This rainy weather reminds me of winter and I want to forget the cold season.

In spite of the bad weather, I have to oblige myself and spend the whole afternoon doing homework and starting to prepare my exams. I won't go to the library, because I can't take a bike to go there so I have decided to stay indoors and do the same work here. It is a bit difficult for me, because I get distracted very quickly. I will have a break in a while and then, I will continue with my tasks.

What I only hope is that this horrible weather improves soon.