Fifty in Fishnets, PDA, bulls, and HOT WATER!!

Ah! I have so much to tell you all! Sorrry that these keep getting lengthier...I can´t keep it concise! So the other day I found out another fashion type, and this one is for the ladies over 50--bring back out your fishnets! Any color, pattern, or design that you so desire, because I´ve seen quite a few old(er) ladies wearing them. Can´t say it was the cutest thing I´ve seen, but whatever.

Another interesting cultural fact: Spain is VERY romantic. In fact so romantic that it is totally acceptable to kiss, make out, feel up, or do whatever you please in public. I doubt I´ll ever be grossed out by PDA in the United States again, becuase I don´t think it can get worse than this!

Yesterday was a holiday-one of many in Spain. This one was strictly for Salamanca though, to celebrate San Juan, our ¨patron saint¨. They seem to have a LOT of patron saints here...I think it´s just an excuse for a party...but there was the most amazing fireworks show I have ever seen Monday night. It lasted at least 30-40 minutes with the most incredible finale-they just kept shooting stuff off! And, guess where they shot them off of? THE ROMAN BRIDGE---AKA, by far the OLDEST, MOST ANCIENT part of the city, much less, the CONTINENT! I couldn´t believe it. But it´s still standing! Lucy, from London, and I went to watch the fireworks and afterwards we went to the Plaza and watched this weird French opera/theater thingy....this man scaled the entire wall of the Plaza! We sipped sangría and talked until about 2 AM then we headed home. She´s very cool-she´s already been through Med school, and after her next job, which starts in August and lasts 3 years, she´ll be on her on to do GP-General Practice. She´s 26 and has the most charming accent. Which reminds me-when we were in the ATL airport, we saw the Durlings-they were coming back from seeing Mark at SCAD-small world! (Old church friends from home, for the MSU people...)

Yesterday I slept in and then decided to walk around Salamanca and take pictures and enjoy the day. I went to the Roman Bridge by the ¨river¨of Salamanca...more like a fast moving stream if you ask me, but whatever. Then I went and sat in a pretty little park and read Francine Rivers-the day couldn´t get better!

At 6:30, we went to a Corrida de Toros-aka, a bullfight! It was quite interesting! The arena was a smaller one, so we had good seats. Usually they fight 6 bulls, but last night it was 8 because it was a holiday. I have pictures and videos to show you all when I come home, but here´s about how it worked for all the bulls....
First, they stab this dagger thing in their back before they come out so that they´ll be mad.
Then, these guys use pretty caps to attract the bull. The bull comes charging at them and the guys run and hide behind these wooden barriers so that they won´t DIE. Then, these two men on horse back with huge spears come out. The horses (Clydesdales, I believe), have huge iron blankets covering their entire body and are blindfolded-I was most amazed at how well behave they were! Then, the guys with the caps coax the bull to come towards the horse and then the man on top ( who has leg guards on) stabs him in the back, in between his shoulder blades near his neck. The bull always pushes against the horse, but they never fell over.
THEN, these crazy guys come out and coax the bull towards them, and as the bull approaches, they stab him with these barbed prongs that stay in and flop around on its back.
After all of this, the matador comes out and ´wows´the crowd with how he handles the bull. It´s kind of like a dance with death it seems to me. It is very majestic.
After a while of this and dizzying up the bull, he waits for the right moment to plung his sword in between the bulls shoulder blades. Then the bull freaks-umm, so would I. The bull usually falls down pretty soon after this, and then they take a smaller knife and stick in somewhere right behind his head, which immediately kills him. Once dead, these two Clydesdales come out and the tie a rope around his head and drag it off.

repeat, 7 times.

It gets a little desensitizing-which is scary.

The weirdest part is though is that the matador cuts off the ear of the bull and throws it to the crowd. It´s considered a great honor to get it. Well, it came our way and it was quite disgusting.
So there´s a Spanish bull fight! It´s not as disgusting as it sounds, but I think one is enough for my life time.

And finally, probably the MOST exciting news...I HAVE HOT WATER! Now how do you have hot water Rebecca? You make ask. well, my roommate and I discovered it! Ha! What a find! Turns out Sofía NEVER SHOWED US how to turn it on...so I´ve been taking cold showers for a week and was never told that I could make it hot! And the pressure....oh, it´s great too. But, but but...Sofía UNPLUGGED the hot water heater while Crystal was IN THE SHOWER. IN THE SHOWER!! She said it was only for her son since he was young. So I guess she thinks we´re ok taking cold showers for a month?! And we caught her in her lie because she showered Monday afternoon, and she turned it on for herself. So, we keep using it. AND, we discovered how to mask the noise! HAHA! Things are getting interesting in that house!

Well, I think that´s enough for today. Thanks for staying with me to the end-I just don´t want you to miss out on anything! Ha! Love you all, and I miss you tons!
And GO Dawgs!!