Tren Sin Servicio Y "Heroes"

I don't know about you all but I will have nightmares because of "Heroes", the critically acclaimed t.v. show on NBC. If you haven't seen it yet I don't recommend. Cor and I are scared to go bed right now so we decided to update the blog. Happy for you! Internet TV is pretty amazing though.

Unfortunately, our camera accessories are in some distant land with our missing baggage so there are no local picture updates. There are, however, some pictures of our dog Chauce and his new friend Baxter (jk jon)! Baker and Chauce are having a blast in Greeley, Colorado at our friends the Hoppins. We are so grateful, Jonny and Heather! It makes us really happy.

So in Spanish news I have picked up a few more teaching gigs. My favorite is a 12 year old boy named Alvaro who loves the Denver Nuggets. He knows more about the team and schedule then I do which makes our hour class go by pretty fast when he brings up the latest news on Mellow and A.I. And Speaking of sports...How bout' those Rockies! Go on you Rockies, win a World Series! I'm honestly not a baseball fan but I got super excited following their streak. I also teach a 35 year old women, a 13 year old boy, a 19 year old boy, and two business men from a company based in Madrid. Teaching English has been pretty enjoyable and compared to my teaching job back in the States, it's like a quarter of the work. Cor says like an eighth! No grading, no classroom management, and not a ton of planning.

Last week I finished my TEFL classes and after completing 40 hours of "internship" I'll receive my certificate. It's kind of funny though that most of my jobs haven't even asked to see the certificate. English teachers are in great demand here! On Friday we met up with Mr. Jim of Young Life Madrid and learned of the happenings Young Life style in Spain. Very cool. We also made three new friends through Jim and later on sucked down some Beamish Stout and Newcastle with them at a Pub in the city (I can only drink so much Mahou). I became a fan of Rugby that night, as well, watching Argentina upset France in the World cup Runner-Up match. Later that night we found out the train returning to our hometown of Alcala had shut down. Around midnight they are "sin servicio" so we were forced to put our Spanish to the test and find a bus. We got back here at like 3:30 am and were so tired. We're obviously not accustomed to the lifestyle yet seeing that most of the town was still up. Crazy Spaniards stay up all night! I don't know how they do it.

This weekend we're off to Toledo. More blogging to come and greetings to all...

T*C

Pics of the boss, here

Vino, La Finca, & Segovia

Hard to believe we have been here almost three weeks! We have had a busy week with work and school, however, on either end of our work weeks we have our three day weekends! We are loving these long weekends because it gives us time to explore and travel. Last weekend we went to a vineyard with Tim's classmates from his TEFL course. The vineyard was delightful - picturesque! We helped harvest garancha grapes (depleting their supply as we sampled some from every vine!), attended a wine tasting, and then went to "La Finca", the farm. This farm was located in beautiful rolling hills, seemingly in the middle of no where. We dined on Sangria (chilled red wine mixed with fruit juice and chopped fruit), local Spanish dishes (such as blood sausage and many other "sausage mysteries", garbanzo beans, and figs), and were serenaded by fabulous flamenco musicians and a drum circle. We had a great time!!

This weekend we took a day trip to Segovia, a charming city with tight streets, plenty of history and boasts of their delicious cochinillo (roasted suckling pig...sad). The city is also home to the Alcazar, an enormous cathedral and Roman Aqueducts. The Alcazar is a ancient Muslim castle dating back to the 1200s. The castle reminded me of my favorite Disney movie...taking me back in time:) Turns out it was the castle that inspired the Walt Disney movie Sleeping Beauty!

The hunt continues for a place to stay for the year. Meanwhile, we fully enjoy our current spot right in the middle of town with our friend Karin. There are some pics from a Medieval Festival that took place this last week in Alcala de Henares (the long-named town we are living in) celebrating Cervantes, their local hero/author.
Hasta Luego!
Timmy and Cor

Segovia Pics, click here
Medieval Festival Pics, click here

This is the enormous cathedral in the center of Segovia.

Roman Aqueducts...we were told that they were originally constructed without the use of any mortar.

Huge moat. Scared Tim. Where's Cor?

Ancient Barrel Racing Attire, apparently very rare in Spain. This one's for you, Mama.

We made it to Espana!

Que tal?! We are lovin' this place already! It is good to finally be in Spain after much prep, plannin' and dreamin'. Our plane got in on Tuesday morning, the 25th, and we have been going since we landed. We had a flew glitches along the way - lost luggage (still M.I.A) and a little scare with Tim's visa...but here we are!
We are living in Alcala de Henares, which is an old and charming Spanish university town. It is FULL of life and energy! We have dined on wine and tapas every night since we got here. If you can believe it, there are some places where a glass of wine is cheaper than a bottled water!
We have been staying in the center of town in a building that is over 500 years old! This is just our temporary home as we look for a permanent and barato(cheap...a key word for us) place to live for the year.
Our transition has been made VERY easy thanks to some new friends. Karin (aunt of our friend Katie Robinson), whom has been our hostess and has so graciously put us up; and Matt (hubbs of my oldest friend, Emily Shoup), whom has been our translator and Spain tour guide. They have made our lives nearly carefree. However, Matt flew back to the States today, so the true test comes this week as we hop into the language by ourselves!
As most of you know, I am here at an international language school for Spanish, and Tim is getting his TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language)license and will be teaching and earnin' a livin'. Much to our surprise, however, we both landed jobs the third day we were here. We didn't have to go searching for them; these jobs actually came to us! The country is desperate for English teachers, so we will be teaching children (ages 4 - 13...Tim is the one with the 4 year old!) English. So, that part is done!
Day trips to Madrid and El Escorial (beautiful and huge palace/monastery/cemetery) are pictured on the blog. Both places are loaded with history, culture and art. We can't wait to dive into this country even more! Just so you know, our posts won't normally be this long. Thanks for reading!
Wine, tapas, y amor...
T & C