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.