Paul in March

So... Paul went skiing halfway through March, and he ended up falling and breaking his arm. He was out of school for 2 weeks, and I helped out and got him out of the house for a few days.

His arm is in a soft cast because his humerus is broken.. the upper part. And to put it in a hard cast would mean casting it all around his back, and they just dont do that anymore. But he's pretty find in a soft cast.. I never see him complain. He didn't even cry when he broke it.. just kept skiing and occasionally pointing to his arm and "ee-ing".

Day 1: Monday 28th

I had Paul from 10am-2pm, and that was EXTRA early for me. He was in a good mood though and we took the bus down to the beach for a walk. We made a pitstop at Toni's to take Cuca for a walk... and it was so cute.

Paul's walked Heidi's dog, Maggie, before.. but Maggie is so big and she just pulls Paul around. Cuca is small so it was a lot different... Paul would stop to touch a motorbike, Cuca would stop to smell something... it made me think that Paul could have a dog!

We made our way to the beach and it was so beautiful out and we enjoyed the sun and sand and had a little rest to watch the waves.

But poor Paul can't go swimming for 2 months while his arm heals...

Day 2: Tuesday 29th

Today I had Paul from 2pm-6pm, and since Toni had a soccer game at 5 we made our way over there. Paul has practically no attension span.. so I didn't know how he would do. But he was so cute and laughed a lot and watched the game... in his own way.

Day 3: Thursday 31st

Today was hilarious. I had Paul from 10am-2pm again.. and we went down to Plaça Catalunya and I TRIED to walk down La Rambla but Paul had his own ideas... he dragged me a different way and on towards the Cathedral. We had a cheese sandwich outside at 11... and then he practically ran into the church.

I wouldn't have believed it if I didn't see it for myself... but we were in there for an hour. AN HOUR. He would find a bench... sit for a while... tap on it... and then get up and walk around and explore something else... and just when I thought it was time to go... he would find a different bench and sit down. I couldn't get him to leave. And he was so good... he had random outburts and I would tell him to be quiet or we had to leave, and he kept pointing to the bench because he wanted to stay. I tried to get him to leave by walking out to see the geese...

But after he saw them (aka paid them no attention) he went right back and found a spot on a different bench. I was so bored... I stared at every detail of the stained glass and the organ... but an hour in the Cathedral is enough for anyone. We saw so many tour groups come in and out... and he kept wanting to sit close to them. Maybe he was listening...

Finally after over 50 minutes he got the giggles and the... the "shouts". He was the opposite of quiet and I kept warning him and threatened to leave and even got up and tried to walk out... telling him that we've in a church and people are praying and we have to be quiet! But he just yelled louder and pointed to the bench. I asked him if he wanted to see Toni... and he said "TuhTuh" and pointed to the bench.... Sorry buddy, Toni wasn't coming to sit with us.

I didn't know how I was going to get him out... so I put on my really excited voice and told him Toni was waiting for us at his school (which was half true) and he finally got up and I directed him to the door so he didn't run to another bench.

Oh Paul.... some days he really surprises me.

Random March

March was full of a lot of fun little experiences....

On the 19th Toni and I went for a hike (kinda) and up to the huge tower thing by Tibidabo to see the view. So nicee....

Later that night we were in the Born district looking for a gift for his dad because it was father's day, and his dad's saint day. We stumbled upon a foc thing.... i don't really know what it's called. But it's really fun to watch...

FOC means FIRE... and it's so funny to hear people say it

This video is right at the beginning of the (for lack of a better word) performance. It's not so exciting with the fire-crackers/sparklers, but you can hear the drums really well...

Then the people, who are dressed like devils, basically run around and dance with these long sticks that have sparklers on the end... they spin around really fast and it creates really nice visuals...

The BEST part of the performance was when one of the firework things fell off the poll.... we saw it race across the street, hit the wall we were sitting at, and then get stuck right under our feet. We were sitting on a bench that was slanted funny, so when Toni picked his feet up too quick, he fell backwards into the crowd and onto his back... poor thing... but a great laugh.

On Wednesday the 23rd it was MY Saint Day :D Toni took me out to dinner at La Mamma and we had some really good pizza and an amazing sangria that was orange and made from cava instead of wine.... such a nice night out... he's such a good boyfriend :)

And on Friday the 26th I found a new BAGEL place!!!! It was soooo good! And Toni and Tiago finally got to try their first bagel.... for a long time Toni thought it was a donut... bagels are really hard to explain to people who don't know what they are. The virgins loved them.

The last exciting thing from March was that a friend of Jacqueline's from Boston came here for a long weekend with family friends and I showed them around! Jen and Justin were here to celebrate Justin's mom's birthday, and on Thursday I took them around La Rambla, BoDeB, Santa Maria, Cathedral and some more... we walked 5 miles. Dying.

They were staying in an AMAZING flat called Casa Serra. It was incredible... Toni & I were invited to the party on Friday night (25th) and we had a lot of fun with the kids and the family. Here's a little glimpse of the apartment:

And on their last night in Barcelona we went to have dinner and drinks with them and we bumbed into EL GAT!

It was to be around some Americans, and Toni & I are going to visit them in Boston this summer!

So that is the end of March.... and April is already looking so busy!

Calçotada

Finally a Calçotada!

This is the time of year for the traditional Catalan bbqs.... calçotadas.

I went with Toni's family to a nice restaurant in the mountains for my 1st calçotada experience..

The 1st round is the calçots. They're like long huge onions... andI hate onions. I was really scared to try them...

First you take off the outer charred layer of black, then you dip it into the red sauce thats a mix of red peppers, nuts, garlic and some other stuff... and then you eat. Delicious. Toni probably ate 20 while I ate about 8. And it practically filled me up.

Your hands get really dirty so you have to wash them after haha

The next round was the meat...

Steaks, pork, sausage, ribs... all kinds of mysteries meats that I had to try! But it was all really good. Joan Ignasi (Toni's brother - aka BRU) is like an animal with food... he ate so much, and never touched the fork.

After the huge meal we all walked around so we didnt explode on the ride home. Toni's mom drank like half a bottle of wine... and I don't remember what we were talking about, but he told them that I don't want to be part of their family... and in her tipsy state she got upset and kept asking me why... I had to punch Toni for that one. & later on in the walk Agnes was talking about how full she was their mom said it was because she was pregnant... and that she better be careful because twins run on both sides, and she was a twin herself. I told her that my brother and sister are twins.......... now she wants me to have tonis twins so she can take care of them hahahah

But it was a nice little walk after a really good meal.

St Patricks Day

As we all know in the states, St Patricks Day is March 17th and is one of the biggest drinking nights of the year. What they know in Spain - is nothing. This was all the Spanish people's 1st St Patties... so thank goodness it landed on a Thursday so we could actually enjoy it.

I spent all the morning shopping for green shirts for me and Toni. What I ended up with was a turqoisey-green mix that practically matched... looked good and green in the dark... and blue in all the pictures.

At least his socks were green.

We went to Ryan's Irish Pub in the gothic district to meet up with friends of Toni's brother. We had some 1€ beer and .50€ green shots... and to my happy surprise - they had green beer!!!!!! I really didnt think there would be any in Barcelona... lucky us. And Toni had his 1st Irish Car Bomb and almost threw it back up. But he got a hat for drinking Guiness and he was happy.

Thursday night was a VERY busy night for us... we left Ryan's and went to the Chinese bar/restaurant that everyone from Toni's uni goes to to get drunk. And that we did. I taught the bartenders how to make lemon drop shots, and the brain hemmorage shot, and we had a nice time with those.

After that, Toni, Emma, Andreea & I took the bus down to Port Olympic to meet up with Toni's friends from high school who were having their uni party.... In Spain the universities make parties for different things, and this party was for completing half of the degree.

It was pretty posh and a lot of fun, and everyone loved the cool hats.

Busy busy late night.... and a St Patties Day to remember!

Carnival!

So... before LENT there is Carnival... a week of crazy parties to get all your sinning out before your give things up for 40 days. It's the same thing as what happens in Brazil, and as Mardi Gras.

The biggest celebration around Barcelona is in Sitges... a 40 minute train ride south. And it was insane.

Sunday night (6th) I went with my favorite gay men, Edwin, Kym, and Andres.

They were half naked, and the life of the party haha... we hung out around the beach and watched the parade. We had like 5 liters of sangria for 15€ and it was so strong and so good... We mingled with the people around us and met some really NYPD guys... They handcuffed me and beat Edwin with their stick.. and it created a wonderful friendship haha

Since that Sunday night, we have partied with the cops... wait.. names.. Craig on the left from England, and Cedric on the right from France. We hung around them until we all got lost (and we did get lost...)

The next major night was Tuesday... and this time Toni came. So Carnival is the Halloween of Europe -- except it's meant to be funny, not scary. So we were very funny.

We hung out with the boy crew for a while before finding some Americans at a bar... and we had a nice view of the main street in Sitges

You would never think this was a Tuesday night. It was madness..... we hung out til maybe 430ish and then took the long drive back to Barcelona.

There was, of course, a police checkpoint for the highway... and Toni had to blow to prove his sobriety.... He blew JUST the right amount... and the police said if this was last year, he would have been in trouble...

INTERESTING FACT ABOUT SPAIN!

The longer you have your drivers license, the more alcohol you're allowed to have in your blood while you drive.... every few years the number changes for you, so you can drink more and drive more..... thoughts?

My 1st Carnival experience, and hopefully not my last! Next year - Canaries!