#mividaengalicia - San Juan 2014

Aloha everyone,

Last night was San Juan here in A Coruña, Spain.

Imagine a beach full of people with bon fires drinking until the early morning.

The warmth of the bon fires, the fun outgoing people of Spain, the fireworks that light up the sky, the laughter, the energy of the crowd and being surrounded with friends (both new and old), made me realize how lucky I am.

I spent a good 10 minutes staring at the sky with everything going all around me.

Thanks for hanging out +Ivan Velazquez and +Elizabeth M 

Before the party - 1900

Before the sunset... around 10pm

Want to read more about San Juan?

CLICK HERE

CHECK OUT MY YOUTUBE VIDEOS HERE: http://www.youtube.com/user/hawaiiinsomniac/videos 

Mahalo for reading. Until next time.

Playa de las Catedrales, Ribadeo, Mondeñedo #miVIDAenGalicia

English Dinner Club - May 2014

This was the first dinner club, that was a day trip! 

This past Friday, the weather was so bad, I thought that we may have a little bit of problems on Saturday, but nope, the weather was perfect.

There were only 6 of us... but this was great - it allowed the group to be more flexible and go to many different places!

First group #selfie!

We met at 0930 and had some breakfast and off we went to Playas de las Catedrales.  We actually didn't leave A Coruña until around 1030 because some minor issues... haha...

One of the surprising things is that it was the first time there for one of our group members - and it wasn't me!

We arrived around noon.  While it didn't give us that much time to explore because the tide was rising quickly... we were still able to check it out form the ground and take lots of pictures...

Did I mention it was a sunny day?

After walking around, to a couple more sights along Playas de las catedrales... we ended up at Restaurante Yenka - which was completely surprising because we only ordered 1 round of drinks and we had about 4 rounds of tapas!

Restaurante Yenka

Then after chatting, talking - back to the car and off to Ribadeo...  On the way back... you'll see below that the path we were walking on has now been submerged in ocean water... high tide - make sure you check the tides before heading out - especially if you want to walk along the beach!

Semi-high tide

Ribadeo - the town itself is a pretty cool place to go to.  This is my 2nd time here and everything seemed familiar, we ended up eating pizzas for lunch and had coffee at the same exact place I did last year... 

Deja vu - last year I took a nap at this exact spot!

However, unlike last year, our adventure wasn't over... we stopped by a couple more places...

Next stop: Faro de Isla Pancha - which was so amazingly beautiful... The entrance to the island was closed, but it was still beautiful from afar...

Our final stop was Mondeñedo... Right in the middle of the town was this amazing cathedral.

Traditional cake from Mondeñedo YUM!

For more pictures - add me to google+

CHECK OUT MY YOUTUBE VIDEOS HERE: http://www.youtube.com/user/hawaiiinsomniac/videos 

 Mahalo for reading. Until next time.

Rant & Rave - Three things I hate about Galicia....

Yesterday, I was walking with a friend and he asked me this question... which kinda inspired this blog... 

This rant and rave is my personal opinion.

Funny thing is there aren't many things that I hate about Galicia... hate is kinda a strong word, but if I had to choose three things I don't like...

DISCLAIMER... I've only lived in A Coruña and Ferrol.... 

#1 - Dating

If you're single and you agree with this, you probably agree with me that the dating scene in Galicia isn't really all that.  While I understand your pain... there is no way you'll ever understand mine.  If you're reading this you're probably NOT GAY, so your dating pool is way bigger than mine.  To make things worse, I'm not Spanish nor white, and while I'd like to say that race doesn't matter, being here for almost 2 years and not going out on a date is proof that I'm an oddity out here (which really doesn't surprise me), but oh well... it is what it is...

#2 - Weather

The weird thing is the weather doesn't really bother me too much, I'm probably one of two people who doesn't own an umbrella here in A Coruña.  What does bother me is the frequent changes in weather - which is the main reason I get sick.  I could care less if it rained until April 15th, as long as there is sun after.  Unfortunately, that really isn't the case here....  Funny thing is, I get acclimated quite quickly... within 2-3 days, I can adjust to temperature... Even here in Galicia, while most people are wearing jackets, sweaters, scarfs, I can rock a long sleeve shirt and call it a day... Crazy part is you can have sun, rain, hail, windstorm all in 1 day... 

#3 - Variety of Food

Yes, I like Galician food and I can actually taste difference in the quality of the bread, potatoes, seafood and meat in comparison to the United States... BUT OMG... Can I get some f***ing rice?! Galician people will tell you, but we have Chinese food and sushi... Well, Spanish people who have visited the United States and tasted the plethora of Chinese food, Japanese food and tons of different options - can agree that the different options in the United States taste way better... 

Runners up:

#4 - Kids

OMG... parents just let their damn kids do as they please... 

(My parents pretty much whipped my ass into discipline)

#5 - Dog Shit

Please pick up your dog shit.

#6 - Space and Lines

Apparently the people standing behind one another doesn't mean much to some Spaniards... and what's up with hogging the sidewalk?!  

CHECK OUT MY YOUTUBE VIDEOS HERE: 

http://www.youtube.com/user/hawaiiinsomniac/videos 

Mahalo for reading. Until next time.

Weekend... 09.mar.2014 #mividaengalicia

On Saturday, I went to the Opera.  It was great, I was pleasantly surprised by the string section and the female vocal.  It was my first time seeing an opera in German with Spanish subtitles.

Sun?!  Yes, there was sun this weekend.  Oh how awesome.  Still not as hot as Hawaii, but hey I'll take it.  Somewhat missing some crazy desert heat right about now and just tanning like bacon on a hot frying pan - yes, i'd probably sizzle as well.

Yes, its official - I am going on a diet.  Time to get back into shape.  I've been sick the past couple of weeks and time to focus on health!  I bought a blender and a ton of different fruits along with protein so I'll be having some form of fruits and vegetables every day - which isn't normal for me - hooray for carbs and meat.  I'm surprised how tasty everything is - then again I put peanut butter with everything. #yum.

CHECK OUT MY YOUTUBE VIDEOS HERE: http://www.youtube.com/user/hawaiiinsomniac/videos 

Mahalo for reading. Until next time.

Mi Vida in Galicia - Dos Días en Ferrol.

How do I spend my week off?!

Apparently, not going on my flight to Germany - where it is currently colder than Spain (by 5-10 degrees, which isn't much - but hey, I still refuse to go anywhere colder right now).

Heading to Ferrol to spend a quick 2 days (less than 48 hours) was great.

While I didn't get to say hi to everyone and catch up (another excuse to head back!), it was pretty cool to go back, talk story, and walk the halls which was my 2nd home last year.  

Yes, its raining.

Yes, its cold and raining, but weird thing is it doesn't bother me (I'm probably 1 of 2 people who doesn't own an umbrella in A Coruña). 

Yes, chocolate milk for breakfast!  COLA CAO

 Breakfast here in Spain still takes some adjusting.  While sometimes I crave rice and fried eggs, for breakfast, I normally just have oatmeal (with soy milk and honey), and Greek yogurt.

Gin and Tonics - the best in Spain!

 I wouldn't classify myself as a connoisseur, but one of my two favorite drinks (the third requires antacid before drinking), well you know that I LOVE cosmos and my other favorite drink is gin and tonics (though I try to limit myself to just 14 - kidding, 12 - still kidding.  O_O).  Here in Spain, gin and tonics are an art form.  Depending on the gin, your drink may have different types of fruits (mine is shown with cinnamon and there is also orange peel).

Chipirones - OMG

If you ever come to Galicia, (make sure you're not allergic to seafood or a vegetarian) you have to try so many delicious things to eat.  This is one of my favorites.  #yum #nomnomnom #delish 

#stopprocrastinating

#workonthesis

#maybetomorrow

#byefornow

CHECK OUT MY YOUTUBE VIDEOS HERE: 

http://www.youtube.com/user/hawaiiinsomniac/videos 

 Mahalo for reading. Until next time.

Mi Vida en Galicia - O Lar de Toxos, Ferrol

Hi everyone,

My first time back to Ferrol this year was more than I could ask for, in 24 hours, I got to hang out with friends, eat until I could not eat anymore, dance until I was exhausted, and laugh until my cheeks hurt, chat over café con leche, sing karaoke (in English and Spanish - joder!), 

My first Karaoke song in Spanish

Hopefully, I will be recording more videos of my life here in Galicia.  Here are some pictures of a video of O Lar de Toxos!

Did I mention food?!  Of course after eating and partying (I didn't go to sleep until 6am), the next day, a deliciously prepared lunch!

CHECK OUT MY YOUTUBE VIDEOS HERE: 

http://www.youtube.com/user/hawaiiinsomniac/videos 

 Mahalo for reading. Until next time.