I'm officially on my weekend and to my knowledge, I have no responsibilities. Well, perhaps this weekend I will plan my classes (lol okay, games) in my free time instead of doing it at 11pm/12am the night before. Vamos a ver (we shall see). At any rate, I have a ton of updating to do, so we shall see how much I get done. I will probably make a few separate posts to organize them all. Also, I will add pictures later, though I don't recall having taken many pictures. I should start carrying my camera around more often given that my iPhone from home works like an iPod (aka only on WiFi) and the camera on the iPhone 3s is less than stellar. I digress. Currently, I'm sitting at my new favorite cafe/bar. It's called Amargo: place to be (I'm not really sure if that last part is part of their name or a slogan or what...). This is my third time and counting having been here this week and I love it. Yes, I know, you may be thinking "How can you say that you're broke when you're constantly spending money all the time??". To that I reply, first and foremost, thank goodness for credit cards. Without a credit card, there is no way I would have been able to buy groceries, sheets, towels, my hostels/AirBnB stay, a gym membership, or running shoes (all necessities in my opinion). I'm all about smart credit card use (shockingly so considering how absolutely horrible I am at money management), but that's another post for another time. Anyhow, one of the reasons I am able to go out frequently is because certain things are quite cheap here. Namely, coffee and alcohol.
What else have I done? Oh! I officially joined a gym. Granted yesterday was my first day, but so far, so good. It's called Urban Fitness and it's maybe a 5 minute (at most) walk from my apt. For 6 months, my membership was €209, including the typical gym equipment/machines (obvi), all of the classes the gym offers (kickboxing, yoga, pilates, TRX, among many others), and personal training. Heaven! Especially considering the amount of weight I've gained and how steadily my health levels have declined since my arrival in this country. Last night I ran a 5k (though was slightly more with warm up and cool down) and it was shockingly easy considering I haven't run since the 10k in Chicago over the summer (side note: I totally meant to write a post about how awesome Chicago was and I forgot until just now). Quizás (maybe) I will run in the Rock & Roll 10k like I did last year. I'm thinking of checking out a yoga class later on tonight, so I will let ya know how that goes!
What else? Teaching is going to be a separate post. Apartment updates and legal things will be separate as well. Also, Barcelona things and some weekend things. Sooooooooooooo I believe that is all for now! Ta! xxxx
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Alright, so it's no secret that I am insanely, incredibly bored. I mean, that will probably change once the school year starts and I have little Spanish children to pretend to not understand unless they're speaking my language on a daily basis, but as for now, I have nada que tengo que hacer. Also, I'm mad broke and while wandering around Barcelona is fantastic, I can't do that because I have no self control and I don't have near enough money to even begin to think about making it rain. Sooooo, I came up with this great idea: I review things!! Why not combine a few things I'm good at (specifically, giving my unsolicited opinion, pretending I know what I'm talking about, and drinking alcohol) and share my gift with the world?! LET US COMMENCE. What we (hah!, okay, I) have here today is lovely bottle of red wine. It's name is obvi in the title, but I will repeat that here for all of you lovelies. The company (brand? maker? vineyard? bottler?) is Marqués de Taute. The wine is a crianza, a deep red wine bottled in 2011. It's from La Rioja, known worldwide as the wine country in northern Spain. Learn more about wines from La Rioja here and check this graphic about them taken from the same website (Wine Folly). THE BOTTLE SAYS: "Wine made from selected grapes of the indigenous varieties of the area: Tempranillo, Red Grenache and Mazuelo. Once the malolactic fermentation is completed, the wine ages for 12 months in French and American oak barrels, then rests in bottles for at least 6 months to complete its maturing process and roundness. Wine with an intense, brilliant ruby red color with slight purplish hues." I SAY: First things first, the smell. You know how some wines smell super vinegary as soon as you open the bottle? Ugh, I hate that. Not this one! It was really smooth with the faintest hint of fruit. Oddly enough, it also smelled faintly like caramel. Now, guess how much I paid?? €5,85 (that's $7.83 US dolla dolla bills and change). I decided to class it up more than my €1,85 bottle from yesterday because that was beyond awful. I mean, I drank it, of course, but blegggh. Also another reason to write reviews: now I can go back and see what I like/don't/want to try again because I know for sure all of this stuff is going to blur together. Staying at a hostel, probably (yet to be determined) overpacked my luggage, and living on a super budget leads me to drink out of only the most respectable receptacles (how clever am I for coming up with that?!!?!) aka today's cup is fun-sized, party polka-dot plastic cup. Where there are polka dots, there's a party. Kudos to me for not just drinking straight out of the bottle as per usual, but the night is still plenty young. Taste: Deliciosa. Not sweet, and not too sour/vinegar tasting. I don't taste anything resembling the caramel I smelled, so I was probably on crack earlier (JK mom and everyone else, I don't do crack, promise). It's pretty mellow and feels like it would pair well with a lot things on the Thanksgiving table.
Mouth feel: It didn't make my mouth super dry after taking a sip. Also, it's not exactly light, not exactly medium. I would say on the lighter side of medium. I should probably taste something medium and heavy though to be more sure.. Drinkable: Super. Another round or five and I'm fine with that. Hangover factor: TBD. I've paced myself during the writing of this article and haven't even finished the glass, though don't praise me for my restraint just yet, it's mostly due to my inability to multitask. My grade: B. Solid and middle of the road. Not supremely memorable and OMG fantastic, but something I would drink again and buy if I'm feeling kinda classy on a date (side note: take me on a date and provide me with better wine than this and I will definitely call you again). |