This week I neglected regular updates because I did not take any trips and I had two midterms. I had Spanish on Tuesday and Art History on Wednesday, and my Spanish oral evaluation on Thursday. So I can say I am doing a little of the 'study' in study abroad. I have not gotten back any grades but I have a good feeling about all the tests.
While finding time to study, I also found time to go out! I finally tried out a bar called Chupitos in the Barceloneta area. It is small and hot inside, but they have what seems like 100 different shots, all for 2 euro. I tried three with my group of friends. The Boy Scout involves pouring liquor over the bar, setting it on fire, and toasting a marshmallow over the flames. You take the shot and chase it with the toasted marshmallow. Yum. The Harry Potter has an orange slice covered in brown sugar set alight. Also very good. The Bob Marley was a red, yellow and green (Rastafarian) mix that tasted fruity and minty. The bar is most famous (or infamous) for the Monica Lewinsky, and shot you drink out of a dildo covered with whip cream.
I also attended the regular Wednesday trivia night, but we had our worst score yet and there were hardly any people at the bar. It might have had something to do with the weather, which this week has been miserably cold, gray and rainy.
The exciting thing I did over the weekend was go to a wine tasting at the Torres family vineyards in the Penedès region, specifically Vilafranca. It was actually a strange series of activities. We started out in a safari-like train that drove us around the shriveled wintery grape vines with audio commentary in English running. We then drove into a pitch black warehouse that projected images on the walls of monks making wine, complete with monk chanting on the speakers. After the train tour we went and watched a video about where the living members of the Torres family reside and the history of the family. Lastly we went into a large room where they projected giant images of grapes throughout the seasons of the year and emitted an odor to go with each season, i.e. burning wood in winter, flowers in spring, etc.
At the actual tasting, we tried a white, a rosé, and two reds. It was fun learning about wine and trying to discern the different elements of the bouquet and flavor profile. After the wine tasting we took the bus to Sitges, which I got to see by daylight. It was totally cleaned up and you would never know that it was home to such a wild party. To continue what has apparently become a crêpe series, I had a chocolate one with whip cream. It just couldn't compare with Paris.
This is a meat shop with one of the most common sights in Spain--giant disembodied cured pigs legs. People keep these in their kitchens and just slice off a piece whenever they want some ham.
One more food adventure. I satisfied my Asian food desire by eating at a place called Udon and serving--you guessed it--udon noodles. I got a big bowl of the tempura udon. The noodles were toothy but soft and delicious and I had my first carrots in ages. (Carrots not being a big staple at my homestay. On a side note, today's simple but really good meal was butifarra sausage and white beans. Very traditional Catalán.)
Next stop: Dublin. Cheers!
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