¡¿Bärçêlõnà?!

Lookee meeee, I changed my keyboard layout to Spanish!! So now I can type all my languages properly. The only problem is I sometimes have to guess, hopelessly pressing several buttons before I actually arrive at the desired one, since my keyboard is UK layout, and all the punctuation, accents and stuff are in different places. I'm slowly learning though, I changed my desktop background to a picture of the Spanish keyboard to help me hahaha.

I've done quite a lot over the past two weeks, my friend from my uni in England moved here, so we've been going to see things in Lleida, and now I'm eating so much better cos we usually cook together. We had chicken and peppers and onions and fajita flavouring and nachos yesterday and it was sooooooooooo good!!! Riquísimo!

Last weekend we went to Barcelona! I never knew it was such a beautiful city. Literally everywhere you go there is something to see, some gorgeous building, a plaça, some sort of monument, it's just full of stuff! This stuff including, unfortunately, tourists... Which annoys me a bit. Everyone was speaking English too ¬_¬. Anyway we spent a lot of time in the gothic quarter and also went up to see Montjuïc Castle which was great.

Then we went to do a bit of shopping, and gosh, we nearly MISSED our train home. We really thought we weren't gonna make it and have to shell out for an AVE ticket. We were in the Plaça de Catalunya like, oh crap... we don't have much time do we¿? I was trying to be positive, but the metro seemed to stop for so long at each stop... five stops to go... four... three... two... and one... and we're at the station! Yay! We're totes gonna make it!

No.

What we didn't bargain for is a half a mile of underground walking to reach the actual train station from the metro stop. So when it says you're at Barcelona Sants, you're actually not. You're a half a mile away. Every. corner. we turned. there was more walking to do, we were paaaaanicking, like n iheoiarwhich WHICH WAY TO GO?¿?¿?¿¿?¿¿???

LUCKILY, we finally got there and made it with seconds to spare.

Whew.

If you're thinking of going to visit Barcelona the advice I would give you is DO GO. and also HOLD ONTO YOUR THINGS in the underground, not just on the metro, but when you get off and are in the underground too. Y no haría falta guardarlas mientras estás caminando por las calles también!

SÃO... my work situation is changing. I quit two classes and I have a new class where I teach four boys on Thursdays, two are 7, one is 8 and one is 5. The 5 year old is actually the best behaved and has amazing English for a 5 year old. It is a bit difficult working with four kids doing an oral class, but I'm managing it I think. My other classes are going well. My monday one is my fave, with the 10 year old twins, I can actually always have a laugh with them and they behave really well.

This week was the return to uni, finally! My classes seem reaaaally interesting this semester, I'm looking forward to carrying on. And I also only have to be in Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays, yay!

I'm trying to keep up with the working out, did one yesterday and will do another one tonight, cos I didn't do any on Monday or Tuesday, since they are my busy days, though next week I would prefer to fit one in on one of those days if I can.

Anyway, SÃO... that's it.... thanks for watching... by--

January.

I'm feeling somewhat inspired, we'll see where it goes... Maybe I'll write a text of some kind since I'm pianoless.

Anyway, so I found out yesterday that the choir I play in are doing a concert for Easter. I'm looking forward to playing some new stuff. And then I'll be able to get back to practicing too. I NEED PIANO. Seriosuly sick of living without one, I just get the urge all the time to play, only to find I can't, so I just pace aimlessly around my room, or pretend to play on my desk.

I'm feeling pretty happy at the moment. Things aren't perfect, especially not with my "work", people are messing me around. Buuuut, I'm putting my proverbial foot down and refusing to let them leave me hanging without any work, when I could be working for other people. (Basically I sent some threatening emails) Well, they weren't really that threatening... ... ...well okay they were, BUT I got some help to make them sound much nicer and less brutal. Anyway, once the semester starts and I have a timetable I'll be able to organise everything properly and start earning proper money again. This month I earned so little it's a joke, so not too happy about that. But hopefully next month I'll start earning more.

Today my friend from England arrives to come and live with us, yay! I'll be going to pick her up from the train station in a few hours. It'll be nice to have her around.

It's been a fairly interesting month. I was in England at the beginning, now I'm in Spain obvs. I haven't really done too much, but things have happened. Oh I was so ill last weekend, but I'm better now. I'm fairly certain what caused the illness was diet-related, so I've changed a couple of things that should help. I'm also exercising again. Doing pretty well, I did 3 times last week! :D I've been doing more cardio too. (I love YouTube & Just Dance).

I think Ima try and make my blog more like it was at the beginning of last year. I was reading the entries and it was so much more interesting (imo, anyway...)

Va...va... Lazy -.-

I’ve been being so lazy recently! I’ve been doing next to nothing really, cos the semester doesn’t start til mid-February so all I have on at the moment is final works for first semester’s classes and teaching.

With regards to teaching I’m hoping to take on more classes this semester cos I want more money. I already have a few offers so we’ll see how it goes when I get my new uni timetable.

My language is improving. It was a bit difficult to get my tongue used to speaking Spanish again when I got back. I was talking to a friend on Sunday and I just couldn’t get my tongue round Spanish so I gave up and spoke Catalan instead (so much easier to get my tongue around). I mean, really, I was just like acost… acost….jsafhiehaubuacbn…. It’s better now though, now that I’ve been back for a little while. I have the opportunity to practice Spanish a bit more now too, so hopefully I’ll keep improving and soon reach that magic point where it all makes sense to me!

I miss home a lot. Miss my family and friends a lot. Kinda wish I had stayed a bit longer. Maybe I’ll be able to go back in a few months’ time. We’ll see. My family’s coming to visit for a week in April, and my best friend is coming for a long weekend also in April. So that will be verrrrrrrry nice ^_________^. Also my friend from my english university is coming to live with me in just over a week, so I’m really looking forward to that.

Next week = [/being so lazy]

El sol i la lluna

In English this means "The Sun and the Moon". It's a truly magical song, I could never get sick of it. Well, I could never get sick of Maria del Mar Bonet, her voice, her words, her catalan: all utterly gorgeous.

I’m working on translating some of her songs to English. This is gonna be one of the first ones I do (along with No voldria…). The thing with translating music/poetry is it can go a couple of ways: you can either stay true to the meaning of the words, OR, you can create a translation that has a meter or fits with music. I'm going to TRY and create both, if I can. One that translates the MEANING of the words, and one that fits with the MUSIC. But we'll see... I don't think it's very likely that I'll be able to do the music-fitting one, but I'll try. What matters more to me, in any case, is conveying the meaning of the words, so somebody who doesn't understand Catalan can listen to the song, and not only appreciate the beauty of its sounds, but also the meaning of the words.

I wish I could find people who just would fight me and break through to me and hold me down and scream their life into my face.

-(atributed to Angelina Jolie, but I can't find a source for it)

England for Christmas!

I'm (finally) back in England for Christmas! I was supposed to be back yesterday BUT lots of snow in Liverpool meant my flight got cancelled, but luckily my dad managed to get me on another flight to Manchester the next day.

I was leaving Lleida on a high speed train when I received the call from my dad to tell me that my flight was cancelled, so I was a little bit upset, and kind of panicking about what I would do once I got to Barcelona. Had to hold back tears a couple of times cos I was all like "ahhh no, I'm not gonna be able to go home for Christmas" or Idon'tknowwhat, cos I was not thinking very straight I don't think. I was tired... and y'know, it's kind of distressing to be told your flight's cancelled when you're already on your way.

SAO, I got to Barcelona Estació Sants, and found somewhere to sit pathetically on my bags while I waited for contact from my parents. I had left my Spanish phone in Lleida, cos I was trying to pack light, so we had to communicate by text on my English phone. I must have looked a pretty sorry sight sat on the floor in the middle of that massive train station, I wish I could have taken a picture xD. But yeah, I was kinda worried, the next flight I could get a free transfer to was on the 24th... yeah so that wasn't happening. My dad said there was a flight to Manchester that same evening that he was booking, but then it filled up while he was booking. So I was once again waiting, but then THANKFULLY he managed to get me a flight to Manchester the next day at midday.

Entonces, there was just one problem, I'd be staying in the airport for the night. Woohoo. As I'm sure you can imagine, I was less than ecstatic about this prospect. Anyway, I went and bought a ticket to the airport (I love how cheap trains can be in Catalonia), and went to sit on the floor again on the platform (I have no idea why there are no seats in the station). Upon arrival at the airport, I found a seat to plonk myself on, and tried to get some Internet, but couldn't. So i sat there for a while resting, looking a complete mess, with what must have been the most gormless look on my face because I was too tired to walk all the way to the place where they sold sandwiches. Eventually I found the energy to drag myself and my bags over to the shop and paid over FIVE EUROS for a soggy, insubstantial tuna sandwich and a litre of lemon fanta (I thought it might help my breath smell a little fresher?).

So tot seguit I went to sit back down and eat my pathetic sandwich, which didn't really fill me. And then I thought about going to the information desk to ask pointless questions in order to have someone to talk to. And THEN I COMPLETELY RANDOMLY spotted a guy I know from my uni in England (who is from a town near Barcelona), and, blablabla, his family offered to take me home with them for the night!!! :DDD I was pretty happy, though I was probably not showing it too well in my hideous state. SAO, I got a wonderful Spanish meal, and a bed for the night. Cannot BELIEVE how lucky I was.

So, got the train back to the airport the next morning. The plane was delayed so had quite a wait in the boiling airport but that's okay, I had music, and it seems to take hours to get to the gate anyway, after each control it seems there's more and more miles of airport to trudge through, seriously seemed like I was walking forever, thankfully my bag was checked in so it was bearable. It was really strange hearing so many people talking English waiting at the gate, not used to it! The delay was longer than expected but we eventually got on. Monarch flights are a lot nicer than easyJet and RyanAir, cos they are not CONSTANTLY talking at you selling TAT that I DON'T WANT. My head felt like it would explode when we began to descend but at least it wasn't as bad as when I was coming back from Italy, when I thought my eyes were just gonna blow up and I experienced the most horrific pain. SO not a fan of descents. Anyway, then we were in Manchester and on the way to the passport controls... I saw the massive queue and my heart sank, wishing I was one of the Asian girls that had been sat behind me so I could go through the non-EU passport control. But THEN i saw a sign and realised that I had a BIOMETRIC PASSPORT and so could skip the massive queue and get straight through by looking in a mirror...(?) So was happy and thought I would soon be reunited with my father, BUT no. No. No, no, no. We had to wait a whole hour for our luggage. Was just standning there thinking... any moment it will come. But it didn't, so eventually I returned to sitting on the floor, just as I had in Barcelona Sants 24 hours before. Anyway, it eventually came, met my dad, was shocked by the freezing cold which got to me through all my t-shirts, went home and now everything's just PEACHY!

MUAH and Merry Christmas to everyone! <33333

Hem nascut en mons apart

On la llum cau dels estels, sobre un món empolsegat
s'han trobat els nostres cors, en un pont que hem aixecat.

En aquest temps que ens ha tocat
no serveix la veritat
fem un temps per el nostre amor
ple de vida, entre la mort.

Acompanyem els estels
el camí que hem inventat
el teu cor amb el meu cor
per damunt dels mons apart.

- "Mons apart"
(Traduït per Albert García,
de la cançó "Worlds Apart" per En Bruce Springsteen)