More Food =)

Loving the shopping here!
I discovered a store called Hakei: they have these amazing soft leather boots and bags
This pair of full leather boots was 80€ - you'd get synthetic boots for that price back home!
But they didn't have my size =(

They have these cute things at crossings:
I call it a dog, my friend prefers calling it a carnivorous dinosaur
But dogs have sharp teeth too, right?

Just a residential street in Pamplona Calle Abejeras

 I take back what I said about having an amazing hot chocolate the other day. I found an even better hot chocolate which is literally melted dark chocolate at only 2.10€ mmmmm 

Menu del Dia: Risotto y Frutos del Mar

My Rabbit!
I seriously think it tastes like chicken

Church in Pamplona, 2nd time round

I just went to church again, and a third of the way through the service, I'm wondering what I'm doing.

The point where I wanted to run, was right after the singing. The pastor walked around the room, and put his hand on the forehead of those who were praying (especially those who were crying) and shouted again and again ¡Ahora! (Now!) until the person cried even more and collapsed onto their seat/ground.
When he made his way back on stage to pray, prayer consisted of music in the background, people praying out loud all around, and the pastor saying things like Ahora es tu tiempo Dios, (It is your time now Lord) Si Si Dios, (Yes Yes Lord). I think prayer should just be talking intelligibly to God. But all the noise made it really difficult for me to pray - I couldn't even hear myself think.

As to the sermon, I couldn't figure out if I agreed with what he said or not; since I guessed half of what he said.

I'll try and make it to their bible studies instead, which are on Friday nights. There really is no other (protestant) church that I know of here, and the main thing I really miss, is the teaching and the church fellowship with people. It would be easier to understand what they believe in a discussion context, and work something out from there.
I really really miss my church and the people now =(

Days of Rest (and shopping)

Not much happening lately. After Wednesday night out at the bars/clubs (Thursday's pintxos at the bars don't count), I haven't gone back since ^^ Some of the other Erasmus people are truly dedicated - they've been out every night from Wednesday night to Saturday night. =_= I'm going to be known as an anti-social stay-at-home...

Oh well, Friday has been productive - shopping-wise, haha. Went to enrol in Spanish at uni, then made lunch. It's made from the disastrous rice from the other day, which I have now made into congee + ingredients from my steak dish. hehee The bastard child of "meat and two veg" with "congee". Seriously, this was what I had in the fridge! Veal fillets marinated with rice wine and soy sauce (did I mention I found my local asian grocers? Ginger and soy sauce and rice wine - I've lived too long without them!) and broccoli... haha

My little bastard child
Meat-and-2veg meet congee

Then post office, and shopping at Zara! I heard from my friends that some serious bargains were going on, and it's true! T-shirts at 3.99€ = AUD$5.30 and jeans at 10€. I went a bit nuts... haha I've decided I need to cut down on shopping - I've spent more on shopping in the last two weeks than rent. But on the other hand, they have some really good sales on now. Ok, I only need dancing clothes and shoes, and boots now, and I'm not buying anything else. (Because I'm enrolling in hip hop dancing at uni! wohoo)

My new additions to the wardrobe

My birthday gift from the Aussie girls! I was so surprised ^^
The socks are the cutest though

My 2nd loaf: bought like a true spaniard
I braved the cold, lined up, got it, and went home
I'm sorry I didn't get a picture of the whole thing, I finished a third before I thought of taking a picture

Ok, it doesn't look amazing, but it tastes amazing

Saturday was the epic day of discovery of fresh baguette. I've noticed this phenomenon every time I'm in a bakery (panaderia) - I see people braving the cold down to the store, queue up for ages, and buy a single stick of bread. Then yesterday I head over to the supermarket for groceries. I've run out of bread, smell the fragrance of baking bread, and see someone putting out some fresh baguettes. So I grab one, it's still crusty and warm in my hands and head home. I cut it up, put some olive oil and salt on it and eat it, and it is seriously the most amazing thing ever. Next thing I know half of it is gone. I thought resorting to bocadillos for meals was embarrassing, but not anymore. 

Some girls came over at night for movie night; and we finish off the amazing bread. Then we opened up the popcorn and chips and watched Despicable Me. =)

A Thick Hot Chocolate on a Rainy Day deserves a post all to itself.

It was so good I forgot to take a picture to share until halfway through, haha
 I'm not sure if you understand my excitement back home in 40 degree heat,
but a thick hot chocolate on a cold rainy day of 4 degrees just hit the spot

Australia Day in Spain & Birthday

For the last day of Spanish Intensive Class and also Australia Day, the other Aussie girls organised a lunch and party. Lunch was at the flat of an old high school friend with steak sandwich and lamingtons. Funny thing was less than half of those who turned up were actually Aussie, but still really cool. An interesting question raised by non-Australians was why? What do you celebrate on Australia Day? An Italian and Argentinean told me that their countries celebrated their liberation from conquerors; whereas Australia Day actually celebrates the day of conquest... It is true that history is written by the victors.

Night was dinner, drinks and a big night out. So we had a big Menu del Dia for dinner (basically two dishes and a dessert) The most interesting part of the food was the sheep's milk dessert at the end. It looked like white jelly, which you pour sugar over, and mix all together. It reminded me of the Hong Kong dessert of steamed milk - but with the milk much stronger. 

A cool graffiti wall
I really like non-tag graffiti 

Foreign vegetables

Dinner before a big night out

What do you want to drink?
What do you have? Red wine or water. -expectant silence-

Best choice ever!
They love their seafood here

Everyone met up at the Irish Pub. Ironically the only Australian Pub in Pamplona was closed for Australia Day =_= Basically the whole bar was full of erasmus from both universities. The locals seemed a bit puzzled by the big mob of conspicuous foreigners: especially with the australian flag spread across the tables

Irish Pub

After the Irish Pub, went to several bars/clubs Los Portales, Singular... which were a bit sparse with pounding music.... >< On the way home, we found the famous Chupiterria: they only sell shots, and they had boards and boards of selections. A friend bought me this amazing shot but I forgot to take pictures =( Half an orange was scooped out, and filled with a shot. You drink that, then the bartender squeezes the rest into the glass: and it had a bright sunset colour with bits of darker grains from the orange that contrast with the rest of the shot. It tasted really nice.

Each shot was really novel and crazy. These ones didn't taste as nice as my first birthday shot - a bit like Dr Pepper... 

And you drink it after the fire goes out (if you were wondering)
The actual pouring out of each shot was a bit like a show

So we all head home in the morning, after being awake for twenty one hours and I don't wake up until 2pm, and I missed the massive strike in the morning! They were protesting against the government freezing pensions and various other things. I only heard about it afterwards, and it was a biiig thing. I'm so disappointed that I didn't get to see it at all!
But when I woke up and walked into the kitchen, my flatmate (whose birthday was on the same day!) had left me a big box of biscuits and food with a lovely note wishing me happy birthday! Thank God for providing me great people to live with, and people to celebrate my birthday halfway across the world!

But I made myself a massive birthday brunch-dinner!
Salad, boiled broccoli, pepper/garlic veal
Yum!

There were heaps of graffiti and papers in the street
This was written over the bank CAN
They chose to graffiti over banks

Tags even across the famous Encierro monument

Then to celebrate my birthday, went on a pintxos/tapas bar crawl in the centre of the city: we had hamburgers, ham and cheese croquettes, potato cubes with spicy tomato and mayonnaise sauce, before finishing with dessert in our last bar. 

Highlight of the night! Dessert!

This was amazing, It doesn't look like much, but its fruit sorbet and cava
Its thick and sweet at first, then the sobering cava wine hits

My birthday this year was great! I had the best 21st party at home in Sydney - it was the best party of my life seriously - then 34 hour celebrations on facebook from Australia to Spain, then a great (birthday) night out after Australia Day drinks. I really miss celebrating with friends and family at home, but thank God for internet and facebook! I really enjoyed all the facebook birthday wishes and emails from family. And thank God for providing people around me to celebrate with, so I never felt alone.

Cold Morning!

Nothing much to report, aside from a disaster at trying to cook rice in a saucepan last night. It's at a consistency between rice and porridge....
Anyway, just some photos today on the way to our last day of intensive spanish at university. We watched a really nice film called Próximo Oriente. It was great ^^

Seriously can't even brush the ice off the windshield

The roof of a car

On the way to uni with mis amigos

Frost on the grass!

This is just uni, but it still looks really nice

Dinner on Tuesday Night

I'm so proud of my salad: Chicken, Lettuce, Tomato, Cucumber

Church in Pamplona!

So on Sunday night, all the other Australian girls and I went to visit this church that I've been looking at online. I really don't know what to think about it - except that it's a pentecostal, protestant church. It says that it starts at 6.30pm, but when we arrived, it was almost completely full. I can't really approximate how many people were there, but I'd say as much as my church service at home when full- around 90.

It started with a lot of songs: about dedicating our lives to Jesus, and how marvellous He is. It was a really animated song, with people clapping and almost dancing where they stood; then a more pensive song about longing to be in God's presence, etc. When the songs finished, there was a sermon. It was pretty solid and bible based from what I understood; even though the bible passage was not read out by itself, the sermon quoted events and short passages from the bible. He was even talking about how faith was the basis of salvation, rather than the action of going to church. I kind of started tuning out halfway through, because it was in spanish and my concentration in spanish is pretty short, hehe. He had about four or five main points, and the way he delivered it, was that at the revelation of each main point, he would speak faster and energetically; whilst the people cried amen!

At the end of the sermon he asked people who wanted him to pray for them, to stand at the front. The music team sang two songs (roughly 10 mins) whilst he walked around and prayed individually. At this part, I saw many people crying, hugging; and according to my friend, a woman had a fit and fell to the ground, etc. Others that hadn't gone up to the front were praying around us out loud. Finally, the speaker gave a public prayer and concluded the service with testimonies of God's healing: ie a woman said that her pain in the head had disappeared, praise be to God.

The church is as different from my home church as possible! It's very emotional, very passionate; whilst my home church is more logical, and calmly approaches the bible. I'm very critical of it, but I don't know if it's because the way they worship is so alien to me, or something that I should be careful of.

I don't agree that the public church prayer should focus so much on physical healing: I know that it is possible with God, but the focus should be on spiritual growth. Jesus suffered so much physically, as did the apostles; its not necessarily something to avoid, but something that is sometimes part of God's good plan. By placing the focus on physical healing, it makes the church more like a mystical place for healing, rather than a place for knowing and worshiping the true God on His terms.
But the emotion and passion in music is nice. Each person had their own way of singing - some were swaying, or clapping or raising their arms: and just not caring about looking weird; but focused on worshiping in their own way.


In the end, I still don't know what to think. I didn't come to Pamplona expecting that I'd find a church that I completely agreed with, nothing is completely perfect. Maybe I'll go home wanting to make changes to my own church! Now that it has come to it though; I'm not sure if the reason why I feel so critical of it is because of the different way they worship, or in something that doesn't focus properly on God.

I'll leave you with some photos I've taken today one the way to uni:

I lie, this was not today, it was actually yesterday
But this is interesting, because its a protest in Basque:
I haven't found anyone who can read it yet
 (the local language here is Basque - 
not castellano, which is what people know as spanish)

On my way to uni

They have cool pedestrian lights here:
There are no buttons to press, but they have a countdown:
so here there's 49 seconds until I can walk.
When it's green, they have a little figure running, it's really funny
Ready, set, GO!

It's getting colder: this is frost on cars parked outside

Sunrise at my uni: this is seriously at 9am

Sunset outside my flat: I live in the building on the right

Shopping and Partying and Sleeping^^

I made bad decision to go out yesterday. It was -1°C with wind chill of -8°C, except of course I didn't know that until after I got frozen. The sun was streaming into my room and it made everything feel so warm. So I thought, who needs thermals or gloves =_=

Prea and I popped down to the local bakery for coffee and pastry - the people working there are so friendly - and it was great. Then we walk to the shopping mall equivalent of DJ's/Myer El Corte Ingles and it was really really cold. People were covering their faces, wearing goose-feather jackets, gloves, everything...while us foreigners tossed on some jeans, sneakers and a little jacket. To top it all, when we headed back, we missed our bus stop, and ended up walking for ages in the cold. I couldn't feel my exposed fingers after a few minutes. But thank God for electric heaters at home!

I want these boots! But they didn't have my size =(

I got these instead, but I still want the other ones!!
I need to start budgeting now...

Then went to a farewell/birthday/erasmus party at night with my new shoes ^^ Met lots of interesting people, and I feel like I know how to speak in spanish already =D  People from Germany, the States, Poland, Salvador, Honduras, Estonia... etc It was really fun. A group of the Erasmus are leaving this week, and I could see how sad leaving will be. I'll definitely miss the cheap food here!

This morning, woke up late, and made the yummiest brunch ever ^^ Now this picture will stop anyone from laughing at my cooking skills again. 

hmmmmm yum 

Tonight I will be checking out the local protestant church around the corner ^^ Hopefully I can understand them!

2 Days Catch Up

Since Orientation yesterday, I haven't taken any photos. So this is a boring post: just an update on what has happened in my Oh So Amazing life that everyone needs to know (no really, you can skip it)

wednesday
Orientation was the first time I have had to listen to Spanish straight for two and half, almost three hours. I could understand about 90%, but halfway through, I was wondering how to put on English subtitles... They introduced the main faculties of interest: sport and cultural activities, hehe. Lunch with fellow Australians. Took my first siesta nap. It was the weirdest feeling trying to sleep with sunlight streaming through the windows, not sure if I can ever get used to it. Then joined Prea and her flat mates on a trip to Spanish equivalent of DJ/Myer, but cheap, El Corte Inglés, for random stuff and dinner. Amazing how they pack everything into such a (relatively) small space! I need to go back, it seriously sells everything. Then headed out together to an Erasmus (European Exchange) party with many interesting people from many different places. Finally headed home early a little dizzy, wondering how to do laundry.

thursday
Today was being domestic: just intensive Spanish class: then shopping in the local supermarket, and making my first meal at home. I can see myself eating a lot of sandwiches bocadillos, especially with their jamón straight out of the pack. My flat mate was laughing at my attempt at dinner.... =_= oh well. Will post photos up when my cooking does not make people laugh.

That's it for my last two days. As everyone says all the time here in Pamplona, ¡Hasta luego!

-Extra Photo of Dinner-

Pizzas from the supermarket are yum!
(this is my kitchen)

Last Day before Orientation!

Had a nice coffee and pastry with Prea again at the Pasteleria across the corner; the people working there are lovely, and finally bought a bus card tarjeta de autobus. A bus fare is now less than half the price, and I no longer scream "foreigner" when catching a bus. Did bank stuff and explored the centre of the city again, especially the old town Casco Viejo. Then went to the large shopping centre just out of town La Morea: it has groceries, homewares, clothes, shoes, bags, phones.... everything. Bought an amazing Zara jacket for wet weather and a warm basic jacket. I'm going to need a shopping list or might go broke. But it's all really cheap ^^ Had dinner with my fellow UTS'er and her flatmates, before going out for a drink. 

Old Town
Casco Viejo

Much beloved map of the city

Dedicated to Yuan: to his love of the poem of The Road Not Taken

The old people here are deceptively strong: since arriving
I've seen old people on motorbikes and I've been out-walked by a man who must be over 60

This is the Parque de la Taconera

For some reason, this park in the middle of the city harbours deer,
roosters, some cross between piglet and lamb, geese and black swans

In one of the shops in the shopping centre La Morea.
It demonstrates the Spanish obsession with ham.
Theres entire legs of pork on the right, if you don't realise

My fellow UTS'er who does not eat ham. Teehehee!

The Chorizos here look a bit mouldy.... must be like cheese