Food, snow, and a kitty cat!

SHOW AND TELL TIME!

I think it's about time (maybe past time) that I update you on life here in Andorra. So let's have a throw-back to primary school with show and tell...I'll show pictures and tell the story behind them...

This is my first ever fresh-baked gluten-free bread loaf! Thanks to the help (and bread machine) of my lovely friend Samantha I got to enjoy warm bread for the first time in a long time!! 

I'm not sure if you can tell the scale of the bread from this photo...but, lets just say, it wasn't a perfect loaf. Very short and stout...probably weighed about a ton. Very dense...BUT EDIBLE! AND--Jaymee can attest to this--very yummy with peach jam. 
So I vote it a great success!

 

 Plus it had a cool mohawk thing :)  -->

ANOTHER great gluten-free success was this  sandwich! I am quite proud of it's creation.
Foccacia bread with a Napoletana sauce, salami, and melted emmentel cheese. Yum!


So gluten-free can be synonymous with delicious!

But enough about food...it's almost midnight!

Let's talk about one of the things I'm most dreading and excited about in Andorra...

SNOW!

First time seeing snow-capped mountains outside my window (while Tyler was here actually)

Again today, lots of snow on the mountains

Scary and exciting all at the same time :)

And last but certainly not least...

making her first-ever Aventura en Andorra blog debut...

the one...

the only...

 SHERA! 

Shera is hort for Sheherezae...name suggestion from my brilliant mother

A few of you have heard the story of how Shera was crazily thrown into my life...for those of you that haven't I will spare you the gory details and instead give you an easier version for those who are a little bit blood-queezy. 

I found Shera after hiking with some friends a few weeks ago. Actually, to be more accurate, Shera found me. Unfortunately when I took Shera home I realized that she was sick. When I tried to take her to the vet the next morning she disappeared. And for two days I was a very sad individual, feeling horribly guilty for having lost a sick kitty that was so incredibly sweet (her favorite thing to do is cuddle). But miraculously on the third day, Shera came back to find me at the aparthotel! And I was able to find a friend willing to keep her until I moved into my apartment in Ordino. Now Shera is very comfortably living and cuddling here in Ordino. I am trying to get her adopted (if any of you are interested let me know! international transport is actually relatively easy)...but there is a little white kitty at home named Cokey who would very much appreciate a friend named Shera. And I think that Shera might have stolen Tyler's heart when he came to visit, so she may have been lucky enough to find a permanent home with me :) She is the most sweet-natured cat I've ever met. She never really complains, just likes to sleep and cuddle up to keep my feet warm at night which I definitely appreciate. So that's the latest in pet adoptions for me :) 

In related news, Scout (the beautiful pup from the gossera that I worked with) found a wonderful home a few weeks ago and was adopted! His twin (who we lovingly named Scoot) is still at the gossera and doing a lot better as well.

I hope you all are doing well and keeping warm! I'm glad I've got my TCU jumpin' jammers here to keep me warm in Andorra!

Love my Jumpin' Jammers! Thanks Ty :)

This is a love story...

I am the most  blessed girl in the world. I have the most amazing partner who enriches my life in so many ways. I've realized a simple truth about being with Tyler this week: My life is more full of love and joy and depth when he's with me.

This past week Tyler came to visit. It was such a blessing and perfect God-timing that he ended up coming when he did. He was able to help me sort through the stresses of wild classes, starting in a new apartment, and celebrating my birthday abroad...all of which turned out amazing since he was here to encourage me and help me through. We also got to visit a bit of Toulouse (that's us in front of the capital building). He had to catch a flight but we had time to see the square which was beautiful even when under construction. We also walked around and noticed the architectural similarities of the streets in New Orleans. It was interesting, but somewhat  scary since we both started getting flashbacks of Mardi Gras crowds, neon lights, and claustrophobia. And, my favorite part of our quick visit, we ate some delicious banana and Nutella crepes! Yuuum!

"What?
Gluten intolerance?
No....
That doesn't exist in France when there's a warm, delicious, perfect crepe in front of you" :)

Well I'm going to leave you on that happy sidenote :) I still don't have Internet in my apartment so I'm bumming off the coffee shop and I feel pretty bad buying a €1 coffee and burning up an hour of Internet with all my class planning, emailing, and blogging.

A bientot!

Happy

I tutor a 10-year-old boy here in Andorra and I saw him today as I was walking home from school. While we passed each other I asked him, "How  are you today?" to which he answered, "Happy" as he walked by. Just one short word answer and a smile--"Happy." I have not been able to wipe the smile off my face since that comment. How owonderfully simple that answer was.

On the way to the bus this morning I was actually thinking about happiness, I was debating with my self if attitude is more something that happens to you or something you create. And then here in the afternoon my 10-year-old friend made it seem so easy and uncomplicated. This week at school has been really hard and somedays just downright horrible. I cried two days in a row and even read through the early termination section of our Fulbright packet.
But if I keep reminding myself of how bad those days were these next ones aren't going to get any better.
But if I just think about "Happy" I smile :)

Looking back (a picture story)

REFLECTING ON THIS PAST WEEK I FEEL EXHAUSTED. SO I AM GOING TO EXPLAIN THIS LAST WEEK BRIEFLY IN PICTURES. 

Sunday, September 9...

Monday, September 10...
http://www.flickr.com/photos/fulbrightspain/7976267260/in/set-72157631505810326/

Tuesday, September 11...

Wednesday, September 12...

Thursday, September 13...

Friday, September 14...

Saturday, September 15...

La Seu, Spain--where the gossera is

 Sunday, September 16...

Monday, September 17 (today)...

HOPE THAT ALL MAKES SENSE :)

So...I fell in love...

...and we're thinking about moving in together...

Exhausted, but all smiles :)

So I met this wonderful dog at la gossera in La Seu, Spain last weekend. I'm going to be volunteering there on a weekly basis and probably heading out there Monday night to go jogging with some other volunteers and the dogs.

This beautiful pup was rescued from the house of a hoarder who was hoarding 17 dogs!! So they all have some issues...he was particulary skiddish. They arrived at the gossera recently and hadn't been for a walk since it was difficult to coax them out of their cages. For example, the Spaniard who works at the gossera was trying to take the dog next to this one out of his cage, but he was so scared and skiddish that the man ended up just picking the dog up and bringing him to the path in hopes that he would want to walk. He didn't sadly :( It's hard to see that many dogs (17! Can you believe that??) with problems because of one person's bad habit.
But anyway, this doggie caught my eye right from the beginning. So after taking two other dogs out (one of which was an overactive golden retriever, hilarious!) I came back to this little guy. I knew his background so I just went in and sat in his cage with him for a bit. He was still too nervous to come near me so I left for a bit and tried to coax one of the other dogs out, but he was angry-aggressive so that was no good. Then i sat on the outside of this cutie pie's cage until he got up the courage to come check me out. And when he did he was all about the cuddles! He loved getting petted and was so incredibly sweet. I finally went back in the cage with him and was able to get him on a leash with no issues.
Going for a walk was the cutest thing, you all need to come visit just to meet him! I think this might have been one of his only walks outside becuase he was like a little kid! He was running through the tall grass and crashing through bushes, hitting his face on all sorts of stuff and loving it! He was exploring this new big world around him, it was precious. And he was a great walking partner because he would go explore but then look back to make sure I was coming and, for the most part, he kept pace with me. 
Awww. I think it's love :)

ALSO *fun interactive part* he doesn't have a name so I get to name him!! And I would love suggestions, so post and let me know what y'all think would fit him!



P.S. Sorry for all you non-dog lovers out there who probably find this particular post boring...next one will be about Madrid! And the first day of school! So get excited :) 

I love Andorra (Reason 1)

Sorry my posts are fewer lately. The four other Fulbright scholars have been arriving for the last few days, so I haven't been blogging.

But I just had a great experience that I think sums up Reason 1 on why I love Andorra:
EVERYONE KNOWS EVERYONE AND WANTS YOU TO KNOW EVERYONE TOO

Example 1: I volunteer at a charity shop called Carisma and the first day I met a wonderful Irish woman who also volunteers there. I mentioned how I was looking to rent an apartment in Ordino, but I wasn't sure because it did not have a fridge, washer, or microwave. She immediately told me about a friend of hers whose flat she was clearing. He has a fridge, washer, and microwave so she would call him to see if I could have it!

Example 2: I had coffee with a wonderful woman named Clare and told her I was interested in learning Catalan. While I was in the bathroom, Clare called one of her Andorran friends, Meritxelle, and invited me to an English-Catalan dinner with her. Now Meritxelle invited me to go on an awesome hike next weekend! And she also called her friend Anne who is a real-estate agent and is helping me finds apartments.

Example 3: At the English-Catalan dinner I went to with Meritxelle, I met a woman from Ordino named Carmen. Carmen owns a bakery in Ordino, el Fleca Font, (which is right below the apartment I'm looking to rent). I told Carmen how I bake gluten free foods and she offered to let me sell them at her bakery (there's a big gluten-free population in Andorra, who knew?)! Then today when I was at Fleca Font having coffee with Jaymee, Carmen came and asked how my apartment search was going. I told her how I was looking to rent the apartment right above the bakery, but it wasn't furnished so I wasn't sure. She said that would be a great idea and she would call Marc who owns the apartment and ask him if he could get it furnished for me. She immediately got on the phone with Marc who said he would talk to his dad about finding furniture for the apartment at a reasonable price. Carmen then continued to give Jaymee and I a list of recommendations for places to take another one of the Fulbright girls, Daniela, to for her birthday :)

I love how everyone is making connections for me! Andorra is great!
And that's just reason 1...

Breaking in those hiking boots

It seems like all of my posts are going to start with "It's a beautiful day in Andorra" because I  haven't had a bad yet {knock on wood}... So... it was a beautiful day in Andorra today :) and I went on a hike today to break in my hiking boots. During my trek I realized some things:

First I realized that I am out  of shape, haha. You didn't see that one coming :) I also began to understand why Andorrans are, consistently, among the top 3 longest live expectancies in the world. 

I also realized that hiking + horrible sense of direction = problem. So as I was hiking up (and in circles? how are those two things simultaneously possible??) I decided I have two options to avoid major dilemmas and search parties... 1. Buy chalk to mark my trail  OR  2. Get a dog.
I contemplated the decision on the way down the mountain and as soon as I got down to town I walked to the pet shop and bought a dog.

Just kidding. Haha, gotcha.
I'm not saying it's not in my future though :) It seems like everyone has a dog here in Andorra and they are acceptable in all locations--hotels, restaurants, cafes, bring 'em in! I even sat next to a bunny today at a coffee shop in La Massana. And as helpful as chalk will be, what will I do in the winter when there's snow and no clear rock to write on? Will chalk be able to keep me warm in the winter? Can chalk warn me of someone coming into my apartment? Nope. Just saying.
I hear my parents in my head and, yes, I do realize the obvious flip side-- chalk doesn't need to be given a tranquilizer and put on a plane to get back to the States, nor do I need to feed it or clean up after it. Pros and cons.

But back to my hiking epiphanies, about half way through my hike (and possibly why it was the reason it was half way and not a quarter of the way through) I realized that as much  as I want to love nature I am a city girl by birth and when I am left totally alone  with nature it scares the crap out of me. Anything that brushed me was a possible spider trying to spin me into a tangled web of beady eyes and disaster, a bush shaking was really a pack of the wolves that migrate through Andorra, let's just suffice it to say my imagination was ridiculous. But today I learned about how ignorance can lead to fear. I don't know these paths, these woods, these mountains, this country that I am in and that can either immobilize my ability to learn by stopping me in my path and forcing me to turn around, or it can entice me to climb a little farther to make the unknown known and the uncomfortable comfortable.
I saw this metaphor in action later this afternoon when I was at that coffee shop in La Massana next to the bunny. It's interesting what happens when you are an obvious foreigner in a country, I realized this more so when I was in the Dominican Republic and the only blonde for miles, but it kind of tends to make people uncomfortable because they don't exactly know what to expect from you. Tack onto that traveling alone and people are doubly uncomfortable because not only do they not know where you've come from, what languages you speak, and what you want, but they don't have a clue of why you are there because who goes on vacation to a Monte Plata or Andorra by themselves? It's that fear of the unknown and often times it's immbolizing. I have had a lot of thirty second conversations here in Andorra these last couple days becuase of this uncomfortableness...
stranger--Hola, que quiere? me--Un cafe con leche por favor. --Vale... --Gracias.Cuanto cuesta? --Dos. --Vale... --Gracias. 
Kind of boring. Did get coffee, but that's about all.
But today as I was paying for my coffee in La Massana the woman asked me, what are you (an American girl) doing here? I told her that I was going to be teaching in Ordino. And instead of a thirty second conversation with nothing but coffee we talked for 5 minutes about her kids (one of whom will probably be in one of my  classes), America (they roadtripped  from Boston to Florida last summer stopping in like 6 big cities along the way!), and the Catalan language. She told me not to worry about Catalan, that I would pick it up and be fine. And as I left she said she looked forward to seeing me again at parent-teacher conferences :)

Moral of the story of my day today is we all need to do more hiking in life. Instead of stopping at the first ridge, climb to the second. You never know, you might find the perfect picnic stop there :)

A perfect picnic spot :)

Hope you all are doing well! Thanks for reading!

Here's a little "Where's Waldo" for all y'all interested  :) But instead it's "Where's Caldea Spa" and unfortunately it's not painted in red and white stripes to make it easy. Sorry! 

Can you find this in the next two pictures? (Hint: The pictures are being taken from the mountains in the background)

Closer

Farther!