Friends and motorcycles

Last weekend I went, by motorcycle, to some of the pueblos blancos along the Atlantic coast. This picture of the sunset is from one of these pueblos, Puerto Sherry, outside of a crepería (where I enjoyed a crepe filled with nutella, banana, kiwi, walnut, and whipped cream) about 20 minutes from Jerez. We also went to the Spanish National Championship Moto Race on moto to see the action, which was pretty interesting and entertaining for a few hours.



In addition to horses, flamenco, and sherry wine, Jerez is known for motorcycles and their circuíto where very important races are held. All of our friends have motorcycles, crotch rockets, and like to take them out at least once a weekend for a ride either to the beach or the mountains. Emily and I have been fortunate enough to be invited to these excursions a few times, and seeing the coast of southern Spain by motorcycle is incredible. They are all very good ‘pilots’, and they provide us will all the moto gear…which includes helmets, gloves, and motorcycle jackets. When we go next time I will try to get a photo.

Yesterday we again enjoyed the sunset and wonderful weather at a little beach town after eating lunch at the restaurant of our friends’ Italian friend. Spending time with Spanish people and observing how they interact with their friends says a lot about their culture and makes obvious the differences between Spanish and US cultures. On Saturday, we enjoyed lunch with friends from 1-4pm, which was then followed by 4 hours at another bar where we drank coffee and relaxed until the sun went down. It seems like every moment is enjoyed, rather than hurried, and life isn’t about doing or getting more, but about loving and taking pleasure in the current moment.
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This week I was also invited by my school’s biology teachers to Parque Nacional de Doñana. To get to Doñana you must cross the Guadalquivir river by boat right where it meets the Atlantic ocean. Doñana is interesting because it is a main stopping point for migratory birds moving between Africa and Europe. It also has 3 different ecosystems due to the salt water/fresh water meeting point and the sand dunes that are found in the interior of the park. The trip was super fun because we toured the park in bus/trucks through the sandy ground, holding onto our seats the whole time. This picture is of one of my students and me in a well at on of the old homesteads in the park.



In other news, the week that brother was here we had a cat. To make a long story short, we cared for the cat for a week and then found it a new home after discovering it had bugs (we are pretty sure they were not fleas…in any case, our home was/is not infested). The kitty was so adorable and looked like a little bat, so we named her Murciélago. She how lives on a farm in the country and we miss her lots, but we are happy to no longer be cleaning up kitty poop from the shower.



I miss you all! Especially now that I am thinking about Thanksgiving and the upcoming holidays, it makes me think of home and friends and family. I hope that you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend and please eat an extra plate for me! Emily and I have plans for cooking a Thanksgiving dinner which will include turkey, stuffing, sweet and mashed potatoes, pumpkin pie, and super pumpkin bars, so that our friends can experience it. We are even going to go around the table and make them say something they are thankful for. Haha, I can’t wait. Wish us luck, neither of us have done this before!