Waking up at 10 in the morning, my neighbor was outside singing while doing laundry as if it were a movie. A pigeon in my window as the alarm, and the smell of fresh food in the morning. This was the beginning of my amazing trip to Spain.
My trip to Spain felt like I was watching a movie. The days felt short, the food was amazing and it was overall an incredible trip. I was able to wake up whenever I wanted, and anytime I woke up, someone would always be cooking food.
I stayed in a small town called Carinena. It was so small that it would only take around 30 minutes to walk around the whole area.
There were only a few shops, bars, and little restaurants around. Everyday when walking outside, the same people would be doing the same thing in the same spot everyday. At night, locals as well as visitors would stay up until three in the morning, and they would be in the plaza the whole time.
The habitants of Carinena would go to bed, and wake up at about ten, then they would take a nap, or as they call it, a “siesta”. After, they would repeat the day all over again. Everyone in this small town lived an easy and simple life.
People in Carinena knew each other, and if you didn’t, it was only a matter of days until you did. There was a bull arena in town, and every time there was an event, everyone in town would show.
The events in Spain were huge. They had amazing fireworks, music, food and more.
Natí Véléz said, “I have lived here since I was born, and rarely leave… I am an english tutor here in Carinena. I teach British english.”
Natí Véléz has lived in Spain all of her life with her two kids, who are also my cousins.
The purpose of going to Spain was to meet family members and to learn about our origin; my family has numerous relatives and friends in Spain.
Juan Véléz said, “I have always wanted to visit America, because I want to know what the complicated life is like. It’s very quiet in town and nothing exciting ever happens.”
The streets in Carinena close for a short amount of time in the afternoon during siesta time. No one is allowed to have cars in the main area of town. It is very common to the people in Spain to see someone ride through town on a horse.
In every town there is a church in the center, the church bells ringing at the same time every day. The bell is not only for telling time, the bright ring also lets you know the general time for a siesta.
After a siesta, everyone is out and about in town doing their daily routine. Nothing changed for the people in this small town. The most popular bar in town was La Mazuela. It was by far my favorite place to eat. My favorite dish was called “Dos huevos rotos,” or “Two Cracked Eggs.”
I spent 3 weeks in Spain, and then we went to Portugal for a week to meet a professional fingerboarder and fingerboard maker. We didn’t do much in Portugal, but the experience was fun.
My trip to Spain was wonderful and I highly recommend anyone to travel there. It was a fun trip with no problems or complaints; I would go back anytime, anyday.
