work to live or live to work?

My culture professor brought of a very interesting point in lecture today, "do you work to live or live to work?"

In Espana, just like the US the north of Spain is completely different than the south of spain. I am currently living in the south part, where it is clearly evident that most people work to live. Meaning that, they only work the bare minimum and to be able to live. I'm not saying they are lazing or anything in that nature; they just prefer to have a very lackadaisical approach to work. They don't have overbearing careers or spend the majority of their time involved in work. They might not have tons of nice processions or drive expensive cars. They instead prefer to have the time and they have a lot of it. Their time, instead of being stressed or plagued with worrying about money, is rather spent doing fun free stuff. They like to go to the plazas, the beach, kick around a soccer ball or spend time with the family. This lifestyle is great but as my teacher pointed out it, isn't as rosy as it may seem. He said that yes it's fantastic that people can life their lives in such joy but at the same time they are hurting their economy and their children's future. Children who grow up in that lifestyle will most likely find themselves stuck in this cycle and grow up to be and live exactly like their parents and their is nothing wrong with that but let's just say that kid wants to go to a university or do something different, he probably will never get to have that opportunity. In north of Spain, they apparently do not follow this carefree lifestyle or at least not as much. In north of Spain, a lot more people have careers and are focused on making sure their children have an opportunity to attend. In other words, the people living in southern Spain, live a very happy filled life but at the same time they are compromising their any dream their children might have in the future. It's a difficult side to take. Do you forget about processions, money, stress at the cost of allowing your kids to go to college?

Espana!

hey everyone!

So I am finally here in Spain and let me just say, it is absolutely amazing! For me, living in Cadiz is kind of like living in Utopia. From their eating habits to their work schedules, I am obsessed with their culture and their lifestyle. The citizens of Cadiz really know how to maximize the "living" part of their lives and I am having the time of my life getting to know them, their culture, and their city!

The city itself is absolutely magnificent! Cadiz, being the oldest city in Europe, has sooo much history and there is incredible architecture everywhere you go. The streets are all cobblestone and the buildings, especially at night, look so fake, almost something out of disneyland. And one of the biggest most incredible buildings in the city, the Cathedral, is literally like 15 feet away from my dorms. It is unbelievable that I am living here. I walk out my front door and there is this giant gorgeous cathedral and then you walk a hundred yards and theres the ocean!! It's great and then throw in the Spaniards. . . es perfecto!

I think what I envy most about the Spaniards is their daily living. They have the perfect schedule and the sun literally revolves around them. My day, along with pretty much everyone else in this city, starts around 8:30ish. I get ready, have breakfast, and then walk to class by 9:30. The food is oh so good too and it's extremely healthy! I have yet to see anything deep fried or microwavable, which probably explains the absence of people "who shop at wal-mart." They also have to die for ice cream. Their gelato and their tapas are yummmmy! Tapas are like a bread/sandwich thing and you get different fillings for inside. There just so good! The best thing ever invented is the 1.50 euro tapa+cup of wine combo! It's muy fantastico!

Okay, well anyways after getting to school, which is about a good 10 minute walk, I have my first class which is solely practicing the Spanish language. So after two hours of that, I have a half hour break and then I have a two hour class about Spanish culture. Both of my classes are entirely in Spanish and I am quite positive both of my professors know about five words in English! and so at 2 o'clock my last class ends and so we all walk back to the dorms, eat lunch and then it's ciesta time! All the shops close up and the entire town goes home to take a nap! It is wonderful! So after nappy nap time it is tiempo libre! which is free time. Which generally consists of going to the beach! and the beaches here are to die for! There is no nasty sea weed grossly touching your legs while you swim or no tar balls to ruin your favorite shoes! The water is also crystal clear and like bathwater! The weather is beyond perfect. It is never cold, even at night. It's incredible and the beach itself is also extremely fun! They are always full of people just hanging out, playing soccer, or whatever. Also, here in Spain the beaches are topless. The culture in Cadiz, I realize it may be a bit different once I get to Madrid, is to die for! and they Spaniards have universal healthcare! They all together just have a different perspective on life. It's just so carefree, kinda liberal-ish, just do whatever, stress-free kind of lifestyle and i'm just completely obsessed with it!

And so yeah after that, the stores are usually all opened again which is usually about 6ish and from then on we usually walk around, go into the shops, hang out wherever until dinner, which is at 10. I know that seems late but when I said the sun revolves around them I literally meant that. The sun here does not set til around 10:45ish!! It's so weird but it makes sense. I would rather have the sun come up later cuz all the Spaniards are sleeping in anyways and then have it set late. This is mainly due to the Spaniards intense love of partying and going out. They LOVE LOVE LOVE their fiestas! They go out nearly every night and going out for them doesn't start til way after midnight and goes into the wee hours of the morning. Their going out though is way different than then typical American going out. The last four days what we all did was go to a bar and have one glass of wine and just socialize and have fun talking to the Spaniards! There bars are a huge part of their cultural! It's a fun way to enjoy the night and it's not crazy, it's more of a relaxing thing. Then Thursday thru Saturday it's discoteca time! well tonight will be my first thursday so I shall know soon what they are like! The thing I love most about socializing and going out is the amount of Spanish I learn! I somehow already managed to test into the advanced spanish class! It's just absolutely crazy the amount of Spanish you can pick up from just being here! I have learned soooooo much Spanish in the last three days and I have gotten so good and I attribute the majority of that to everyone I meet and talk to in the bars! They are such interesting fun people and great to have conversations with!

So that is pretty much exactly what I do from Monday thru Thursday and every Friday we have a field trip somewhere. Tomorrow we have our first one and it's to a place called Jerez. We are going to a winery and an Alcazar, which is a huge palace/fortress thing. I am very excited and I have been told it is to die for, so I will be taking plenty of pictures and I will be posting my videos and my photos soon!So adios mis amigos, it's ciesta time!

Grand Canyon Road Trip!

July 2010
Grandma, Christina, Jacob, Eric, Chris and I embarked on a very memorable road trip to the Grand Canyon. We rented a mini van and to say the least, due to some intense laughter, my abs got quite the work out! The Grand Canyon was absolutely breath taking, the city of Sedona was as cute as can be, Chris was hilarious, Jacob was a minis-everything about it was absolutely great!