Much Ado About Spain: Weekender

This is us on the beach in Mallorca, which Si is supposed to blog about sometime...ahem.

Oh joy to the world. After four, that's right, count 'em, four months, my laptop has finally been returned to me in fully functioning form. Shocking. On my ventures to re-familiarize myself with the old chum, I re-discovered a few unpublished blog entries wasting away and figured I should post them before they become obsolete. Aqui tienes one of several squished together.

Weekends...what's not to love about them? (Besides the dreaded Monday mornings that always come afterwards.) Here are few things I've been up to these past few fines de semana:

+PLATJA. Capital letters because I basically spend as much time here as possible. I already detailed a bit about the perils of beaching it here, but otherwise, it has been wonderful soaking in the sunshine to the tune of the lapping Mediterranean waves. And finally adding some semblance of color to my translucent skin hasn't been too shabby either. Albino-ism be gone.

+Mercat del Encants. Flea market madness. This place is legit. Not exactly classy souvenir worthy as I had hoped (unless all of you want used rolls of deodorant, whole porcelain bidets, or rusted hatchets, probably none of which are even from Spain), but jammed packed with deliciously authentic hustle and bustle. All the things you wouldn't ever think to buy plus more.

+RCD Espanyol 1, Zaragoza 1. I was under the impression I was going to a real FC Barça futbol game, but alas, it was only RCD Espanyol. I should have known Barça tickets don't come free (even UNICEF can't spot me). Regardless, Ellie hooked me up with a ticket and we went with three of her German friends, who were all amazed that I managed to stay entertained for the entirety of the game without consuming any alcohol. Ellie nearly fell asleep and the guys kept complaining about how bored they were. Laaame. I thought it was fun! I would like to go to a Barça game before I leave though. Also, who's down to go to a billion Padres games this summer? Yeahhhh.

+Picnics and the Magic Fountain of Monjüic. About a 20-minute walk from our flat are a few majestic fountains where weekly spectaculars take place complete with music and lights as well as the typical street vendors hawking their wares to susceptible tourists (really, who wants to buy glow stick necklaces anywhere besides Disneyland and raves?). Scams aside, the shows are the real deal. We have taken to packing picnic dinners and stretching out on the lawn to catch the last few Friday nights rounds. The musical selection is perhaps the most breathtaking ranging the gamut of ditties such as Party Like It's 1999 and Love Shack, cheesy American love ballads from the 90's, the over-played Titanic theme song, Star Wars battle tunes, and of course, the epic Viva Barcelona anthem (not to be confused with the official national anthem, although so amazing, it should be declared as such) to seal off the night in all its operatic glory.