What's that sound I hear? Oh right, it's absolute quiet and it's deafening, I must say. The last two weeks have been filled with lovely visitors, quick trips, small ailments and lice. Yes, LICE. Or as they're called in Spanish - "piojos". Not to be confused with "pijo" which means snob. Anyway, Laura and Emma were here for almost a week and we had such a great time. Brodie and Emma reunited as though only a week had passed since their last visit and for the most part played nicely. Laura had no agenda other than to experience Madrid as a local might. No rushing off to every museum and sight, but rather lots of strolling, passive sight-seeing and of course, eating and drinking! Once temperatures rise the slightest bit, it seems that every Madrileno switches their drink of choice to the tinto verano. It's a simple combination of decent red wine mixed with either Fanta Limon or fizzy water with a slice of lemon over ice. I love the ice here - everywhere you go it's shaped the same - really big cylindrical cubes so that you only need one or two in a small glass. I believe Laura is already serving those up in Austin. Weather: If it seems like all I do is blog about the weather, that's because it's the only thing any one here can talk about. On top of being the coldest winter anyone under 50 can remember, it's also been loooooong. I wore a coat and boots ALL of last week. In fact, it sleeted last Thursday. Luckily, Kyle and I escaped this because he surprised me with an overnight trip to La Granja just outside of Segovia to celebrate our 5th wedding anniversary. I admit that when he mentioned we were going to a little mountain town, my heart sank a little. The last thing I wanted was to be in even colder weather, but I'm glad I kept my absurdly ungrateful thoughts to myself because once we arrived at the hotel I was overwhelmed by the thoughtfulness (and luxury) of it all. The hotel was stunning and as soon as we walked into the room, Kyle shared with me that the only thing I had to do that day was show up to my 4:00 massage. That's when the sobbing started - in short, I just felt very grateful to be married to Kyle. The 36 hours alone were fantastic, but somehow I still couldn't let go of the fact that I had a child with a cough and head lice waiting for me at home. I'll back up a bit. The night before we left, Brodie started scratching her head incessantly. Because I'd received no less than five notes from school about a lice problem, I knew what we were facing. After lots of inspection, I discovered them. I won't go into detail because I'm already itching just thinking about it, but needless to say it was tough to leave her and Sabine. Still, I'm glad we did because they both survived just fine and Kyle and I experienced what will always be one of my favorite memories. I also think it's good for the girls to see us as a loving couple separate from being parents. Maybe? Does that sound right? Excuses, possibly. Anyway, back to the weather. At last the weather is above 65 and we're finally experiencing some of the Madrileno lifestyle we were promised! This morning Sabine and I took our breakfast and coffee outside at one of the cafes and I read my kindle. Love, love, love the kindle, by the way. Classics are free!! It's going to be a Jane Austen and Thomas Hardy summer over here.
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
More about the weather
What's that sound I hear? Oh right, it's absolute quiet and it's deafening, I must say. The last two weeks have been filled with lovely visitors, quick trips, small ailments and lice. Yes, LICE. Or as they're called in Spanish - "piojos". Not to be confused with "pijo" which means snob. Anyway, Laura and Emma were here for almost a week and we had such a great time. Brodie and Emma reunited as though only a week had passed since their last visit and for the most part played nicely. Laura had no agenda other than to experience Madrid as a local might. No rushing off to every museum and sight, but rather lots of strolling, passive sight-seeing and of course, eating and drinking! Once temperatures rise the slightest bit, it seems that every Madrileno switches their drink of choice to the tinto verano. It's a simple combination of decent red wine mixed with either Fanta Limon or fizzy water with a slice of lemon over ice. I love the ice here - everywhere you go it's shaped the same - really big cylindrical cubes so that you only need one or two in a small glass. I believe Laura is already serving those up in Austin. Weather: If it seems like all I do is blog about the weather, that's because it's the only thing any one here can talk about. On top of being the coldest winter anyone under 50 can remember, it's also been loooooong. I wore a coat and boots ALL of last week. In fact, it sleeted last Thursday. Luckily, Kyle and I escaped this because he surprised me with an overnight trip to La Granja just outside of Segovia to celebrate our 5th wedding anniversary. I admit that when he mentioned we were going to a little mountain town, my heart sank a little. The last thing I wanted was to be in even colder weather, but I'm glad I kept my absurdly ungrateful thoughts to myself because once we arrived at the hotel I was overwhelmed by the thoughtfulness (and luxury) of it all. The hotel was stunning and as soon as we walked into the room, Kyle shared with me that the only thing I had to do that day was show up to my 4:00 massage. That's when the sobbing started - in short, I just felt very grateful to be married to Kyle. The 36 hours alone were fantastic, but somehow I still couldn't let go of the fact that I had a child with a cough and head lice waiting for me at home. I'll back up a bit. The night before we left, Brodie started scratching her head incessantly. Because I'd received no less than five notes from school about a lice problem, I knew what we were facing. After lots of inspection, I discovered them. I won't go into detail because I'm already itching just thinking about it, but needless to say it was tough to leave her and Sabine. Still, I'm glad we did because they both survived just fine and Kyle and I experienced what will always be one of my favorite memories. I also think it's good for the girls to see us as a loving couple separate from being parents. Maybe? Does that sound right? Excuses, possibly. Anyway, back to the weather. At last the weather is above 65 and we're finally experiencing some of the Madrileno lifestyle we were promised! This morning Sabine and I took our breakfast and coffee outside at one of the cafes and I read my kindle. Love, love, love the kindle, by the way. Classics are free!! It's going to be a Jane Austen and Thomas Hardy summer over here.
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This is absolutely beautiful Maria. And yes, it's vital for you and your husband to connect with each other away from the girls -- it's healthy for them AND you. I'll bet you were a more energized mom the first 24 hours back with the girls too. Spain sounds fantastic - I hope to visit some day.
ReplyDeleteAy, basta los piojos.
ReplyDeleteYes, tintos veranos are about to become a staple over here. I think they are the perfect drinks at barbeques and am planning to make up a batch for one this Friday! Thanks for being such awesome hosts to us - Emma is still talking about it!