Running.

I decided that my running needed some sort of focus, so I entered myself in a 10k race here in Jaen. It was part of the annual half-marathon, only this year they decided to open up a 10k as well to enable more people to participate. This suited me as I haven't been training for a half-marathon and didn't think I was really fit enough to do one (I now know I'm not!)

Anyway, I decided I'd push myself to see how fast I could go (despite the fact that it was the hilliest 10k I've ever run) and I did OK, coming in 3rd in the womens' race. It was a small field, but there were definitely more than 3 women running in the 10k!!!

I am now the proud owner of a (quite large) trophy and I had to stand on a podium to collect it. Very, very random, but fun.

Picture may follow.

Pottering along

I’ve felt lately, and I was feeling a little like this towards the end in China, that being home, i.e. in Britain, for a while would be nice. I miss things, such as being able to communicate freely with everyone (though this is less of a problem here in Spain than it was in China), things I am used to, things being easy.

However, last night I was also reminded of one of the pleasures of travel and living in the different places – meeting new people.

One of the other teachers at the school where I work, an American, invited the other teachers round to his house for dinner. He lives with his Spanish boyfriend in a house they have lived in together for six years. Their house is beautiful – decorated in a really interesting way and really cosy and homely. We had the open fire lit (the weather here has suddenly got cold) and it was nice being in a proper ‘home’ rather than rented accommodation. The meal was also really nice. We had salad with ranch dressing to start, followed by pork tenderloin with vegetables and then orange cake for dessert. I have to admit to eating quite a lot, but it was so tasty and it was really good to have someone else doing the cooking for a change.

It was a very good evening, the only downside being that I got home at about 1 am. Still, no chance to sleep in this morning as some builders were making a lot of noise somewhere nearby.

Still no internet, two weeks after having ordered it…

Something I was puzzling over the other day was the pecking order for bin scavenging. I was watching two people going through one of the big bins on the pavement here. (As many people live in apartments, they bring their rubbish down to the street and leave it in big bins). As I watched them, another person arrived to scavenge through the bin with them, and I wondered, as you do when you’re by yourself and possibly a little bit bored, how it works. Is there some kind of first come first served basis? Do they have to fight it out? Or is it all amicable and friendly. One to ponder… maybe…

On a different note, I had a great long weekend last weekend, cheaply exploring a few places in the immediate area. The next long weekend I plan to travel a bit further afield. This weekend I am taking part in a 10k race to get a time so that I have something to work towards for the next one I’m doing in December. Sadly the course here goes downhill on the way and uphill on the way back. That’s my excuse prepared anyway!

Red tape and randomness.

As is generally the way, and as I knew they would, things are starting to settle into some sort of pattern.

It is currently the 'Feria' in Jaen, though I have yet to make it inside the gates. Last Saturday night it was 3 or 3.30am when we got there and I had just had enough, so went home! I can't get used to the time people go out here and I've decided that I don't particularly want to. That night my flatmates got in at about 9 in the morning. As far as I'm concerned that's getting up late, not a time for getting in... hey ho.

Yesterday was a good day as I finally got my N.I.E. (Numero de Identidad de Extranjero), which should make things generally easier and ensure that I don't get taxed at 25% any more. Getting it was less than easy, however. To start with I needed to fill in a form (of course!) With that form I had to have a certificate of registration in the city. To get that certificate I needed a rental contract with my name on it. First hurdle. I had to wait until we had found a third flatmate for the landlord to come round and sort that out. That done finally, I returned to the Town Hall for the certificate, which of course involved two trips. Then I had to call the Foreigners Office and make an appointment. That involved dialling many many times and the number seemed to be constantly engaged. And then, even when I turned up for my appointment I had to queue to get a number to go through to the inner sanctum where my documents were processed.

That done, amid much queuing with mostly North African men, I had to go to a bank to pay some money to the National Treasury or something. Then back to the Foreigners Office (but only at 12pm), more queuing and finally I was sent away clutching a certificate with my number on it. Yippee!!!

And it's supposed to be easy for EU residents to work in other EU countries.

Apart from that, I had an interesting conversation with an old Spanish man yesterday. He sat down on a park bench next to me and asked me if I had a boyfriend. He then proceeded to tell me (I think!) about some cousin of his in Madrid who had some woman on the side and to warn me about the dangers of living in a different place from your boyfriend / girlfriend. I think he just wanted to talk to someone and seemed content with my brief nods and the occasional 'si'. The only slightly worrying thing was that he seemed to be leaning closer and closer as he spoke to me. Probably a bit hard of hearing or something...

So today I'm going for a day out with one of the other teachers at my school. She and her boyfriend have a car, so we're going to make good use of it and actually do something during our four day weekend. Saturday I'm going walking with a local walking group and at some point I'm going to try and sign up for the 10k that's going on here in Jaen next weekend.

More soon...

Exercising in a foreign language and all things Chinese...

Yes, I am still in Spain, but China seems to be following me. More of that later.

Exercise is a constant theme in my life. I like to exercise and I don't like the feeling of being unfit. Wherever I am, I always have my running shoes. It's free, you can do it almost anywhere and apart from the wear on the old knees, it's an excellent form of exercise. I've run in Australia, in the French Alps, through the fields in China and now here Spain. I've also recently joined a gym and have started going to the exercise classes there. So far I've done 'Body Pump' (EVERYTHING ached the next day, so it must've done my muscles some good), 'Pilates' (brilliant for a Monday morning) and 'Step' (confusing). My Spanish is still a bit ropey, so I'm kind of slow at everything, having mostly to wait for a physical demonstration rather than being able to use the oral commands to help me... Never mind. The women in the classes tend to be a little bit more vocal than those back home, shouting out 'Es muy facil!' [It's very easy!] or complaining when an exercise is a bit more difficult. One woman sat massaging her chest after a set of exercises meant to strengthen the pectoral muscles...!

I've also found a walking club and will be going on my first outing with them a week on Saturday. I'm very excited about that. It should be good for improving my Spanish and will get me out in the hills - yippee!

And so, China. I've already written that I miss the place. More than I thought I would. I'm particularly missing the food, so need to go shopping to try and find some of the necessary ingredients and try to cook my own.

I went for a Chinese meal when a friend came to stay with me, but of course it was Chinese food for Westerners and not a chopstick in sight... There are quite a few Chinese restaurants in the town. There are also lots of Chinese shops, one quite close to where I live. I went there on Monday and it was a dazzling Aladdin's cave of, well, tat, basically. But very cheap tat. I'll definitely be going there again! Here in Jaen (and maybe in the rest of Spain?) the name 'Chinese Shop' seems to be synonymous with very cheap and selling everything...

And finally, I went out last Friday evening with the new Erasmus students. My flatmate works at Jaen University and so gets to gatecrash such things. It was all quite noisy, with the Italians in particular making lots of noise. However, I ended up sitting next to four Chinese students, three from Nanjing and the other one from Changsha, of all places.

It's a big country and it casts its net wide...

Tomorrow is the start of the 'Feria' in Jaen, so there will be lots of eating, drinking, making merry and a three-day working week for me next week.

Hast luego.

Sunshine, bullfighting and singing 'Head Shoulders Knees & Toes' .

So, finally, I get the chance to write my blog again. A lot of time has passed since I last wrote, or it feels like it at least. I'm now in Jaen, in Southern Spain, with China seeming a million miles away in some ways, but definitely missed.

Term started at the private English school where I teach on 13th September. Things are gradually settling into some sort of pattern, though I've yet to stop feeling nervous and to fully gain control of one particular class of 7 year olds, but I'm working on it. I've also yet to get my special 'Foreigner's Number' (an ID number which means I'll no longer get taxed at 25%!) In order to get that I have to go to various places with various bits of paper, none of which can be done until I have my rental agreement. Happy days...

A friend visited last week and at the weekend we visited the Cazorla National Park area, which was beautiful. We only saw a small part of it, so I'll definitely be back to see some more.

The weather has been pretty warm, though is just starting to get a bit chilly. I'm struggling a bit with working afternoons and evenings - you basically spend all day waiting to go to work. It's also difficult to go to bed early and therefore difficult also to get up in the morning. However, I've joined a gym (yet another test of my poor Spanish!) and will be trying to get to the 9.30am classes at least (the 8.30am ones might be a step too far...)

Next week and the week after are short weeks - 4 days and 3 days respectively. Yippee! The second of those long weekends is also the Feria here in Jaen, so I'll definitely be reporting back on that. Which brings me nicely to bullfighting. Very much still part of the culture here. I've watched it a little bit on TV and no doubt I'll go to one just for the experience, but I can't say it's something I really understand.

And finally... 'Head Shoulders Knees & Toes'? The old favourite. I've sung it in England, France, China and now Spain. Can't go wrong...

Adios and hasta luego with some more photos hopefully.