Dear Emilia Elizabet La Mantequilla es Fria y Guapa Kroman,

I should be writing a paper right now.  I just want to make that clear.  Because I should have written this paper when I was in Spain.  But guess what I found out recently... three years out of school actually makes you a better procrastinator.  And the truth is...Spain didn't help my cause too much.

Excuse me for using the word Spain.  I should, of course, be writing Espana.  But I know if I do that, I'm going to start typing Ethpana, and then we will have to have that conversation again.  So Spain it is.  But not without reservation.

This post is turning into a list of excuses, which probably goes hand in hand with the whole procrastination thing, but while I'm at it:  You will note that there has not been a posting about London yet on my blog.  Fact is - I live here now and it's a lot harder to turn your everyday experiences into a gripping exotic travel blog entry.  I'm not saying that my life hasn't been eventful, or that there will never be a blog entry about London....I'm just really enjoying the whole excuse thing right now.

Spain

As you may recall, in the UK, fall break is called: reading week.  Ha.  That's a euphemism if I've ever heard one.  I decided to "read" in Marbella, Spain, where I hoped to catch a few final rays of mediterranean sunshine before the onset of what I have a feeling will be a long grey winter.  Lucky for me, I wasn't the only one hoping to get out of London for the first time since arriving in September, and I was joined by three (relatively) new friends: Dale, Puya and Chloe. 

Not gonna lie: the vacation began in the airport, where Dale attempted to bring a 15 kg bag on a 10 kg limit plane.  Fantastic.  After about 20 minutes of awkward laughing and a whole slew of unamused looks from the lady behind the desk, Dale managed to get her 11.7 kg bag through the bag check as she waddled off toward the gate wearing 3 jackets, 2 sweatshirts, 3 books, all her toiletries, a computer charger, a pair of shoes down her back, and god knows what else.  I pretty much peed myself.  

In Spain, the laughing didn't stop.  Sometimes it even erupted for no particular reason.  And without further ado...I give you: Dale.

Marbella is on the southern coast of Spain and if you own a yacht and like to wear skinned animals and loop sweaters over your shoulders, you'll fit right in.  We, on the other hand, rented a car and made our way around Andalucia from Cadiz and Sevilla to Granada and the hills around Ronda.  And if anyone asks from the rental car company....Yes, I have driven stickshift before, just like I read during reading week.  If, however, someone from the line of cars piled up behind me on the ridiculously steep hill that I have stalled half way up asks...the answer is: everyone has to learn at some point....so please stop honking because I'm about to have a panic attack/slash break the clutch/slash roll the car directly into your impatient face.  (but you have to translate it into Spanish first...and pronounce it with a saucy lisp).

I found that the best way to calm down from experiences like this was to focus on the natural beauty of Spain and in particular: the small things. 

3 cheers for macro setting!  Really, though, the entire week was just a big excuse to relax and drink wine and eat paella and do a whole lot of nothing.  And that's exactly what we did.