Today it rained for the first time in about 5 months. I was also doing a ton of laundry today because we are getting ready to go out of town. I was feeling frustrated because although my laundry room is attached to my house I have to walk outside to get to it and it was pouring. This got me thinking about some things I miss about home that made my life a little easier and that I probably took for granted. Don't get me wrong I love living in Spain. The opportunity we have to travel is amazing and we are taking advantage of it. The girls are in Spanish school...loving it and becoming bilingual! We live in a beautiful house with a pool that is a five minute walk from the beach. I can shop at the local stores for fresh locally grown fruits and vegetables but can also go to the commissary and get my "American" groceries. With that being said there are things I really miss about home...
I miss drive thru coffee...or even coffee to go. There is no such thing here. The Spanish like to sit down and slowly drink their coffee in the morning. They have to drink it slow, it's only the size of a shot! They also don't eat breakfast...so if you're looking to have bacon, eggs and pancakes you better be willing to make it yourself!
I miss restaurants being open for dinner during American dinner hours. The Spanish don't eat until 9 or 10pm. Most restaurants don't open for dinner until 8:00...my kids are already in bed by then. The same is true for lunch...I want lunch at 12:00 not 3:00.
I miss central air conditioning in the summer and central heat in the winter. Marble floors get cold when it's 45 degrees outside and you don't have heat!
I miss DVR. I know I must sound shallow but we get 11 channels on AFN and we have to take what we can get. How am I suppose to watch my favorite show at 7pm...that's bath/bedtime?!?!
I miss fast, reliable Internet!
I miss things being easy. When you need to get something done like run an errand here it is never easy. Either you can't find where you're going or if you do your car doesn't fit down the street. You get to the errand to find out they are closed just because they didn't feel like opening that day or they are closed for siesta. The person you would like help from has no idea what you're talking about because Spanish is not your first language. Aaahhh!
I miss talking to my family and friends whenever I want and not having to worry about the 6 hour time change!
Spring time is finally here! This past weekend the weather was 75 degrees and sunny! On Sunday we decided to drive to downtown Puerto for lunch and ice cream. There are so many restaurants downtown that we could probably go to a different one every weekend and still not eat at them all.
We parked in a lot along the river and walked into the downtown area. All of the restaurants were opened and busy. We decided to try El Sitio de Velez. We found a table under an umbrella outside. This turned out to be an excellent choice. The food was delicious and reasonably priced. The girls ordered juice and ravioli's and Eric and I ordered a beer and shared some tapas…a salad, couscous dish and empanada type dish. The girls even made a Spanish friend while we were there. The three girls ended up playing for most of the time, allowing Eric and I to enjoy some adult conversation. We even got to hear Rebecca and Lily use their spanish while playing…they know a lot more than they let on!
