June 20, 2010

After a rocky morning we finally made our way to Sitges.... Sitges is the first, and main, gay city of Spain and is one of the largest gay cities in Europe. It's a popular tourist site because of the long beaches and adorable pedestrian town.

Leila and I spent a long time in the sun and Paul spent all his time either in the water, or begging to go in a pool that didn't exist. Leila and I did get in the water... and it was FREEZING! But it was refreshing... I just hate the salt that stays on my body after I get out.

It was a beautiful day and we spent all afternoon in the sun, sand, and surf. One person in particular especially enjoyed the sand...

After Paul and I were both nice and red, we went walking to the town. It was a lot more crowded than I expected and the streets were nice and small and the town was gorgeous.

In case anyone hasn't noticed... I love doors. I get Paul to look at a lot of doors and i take his picture in front of them... well Leila decided to take a pic of Paul and I in front of a door... He was so exhausted and when he laid back and kicked his feet up... he let out the biggest fart right next to some guy... I laughed sooo hard and it smelled sooo bad but the guy was good about it and he seemed to enjoy Paul so he just laughed as well. Paul could have cared less that he caused us all to suffocate.

I made him say sorry to the man and as I was doing that we met a very nice gay German tourist named Alex who, in his drunken state, had a hilarious conversation with me about Paul and eating and farting. He said Paul doesn't have to apologize because it's natural.... he was really funny. He thought I was Paul's mom and he asked where my husband is and I said I didn't have one and he said O HE LEFT YOU? He loved Paul and gave us some aloe for his burnt skin LOL

It was a long gorgeous day and Paul was exhausted in the end. Enjoyed a nice dinner and the soccer game, and Paul went right to sleep.

June 19, 2010

TIBIDABOOOO!!!!!

Today Paul and I spent ALL DAY at Tibidabo!!! It's an amusement park and since Paul is handicapped we got in for 5€ for both of us... a STEAL!

The first ride we went on... the PLANE! Paul asks almost every day to go on a plane.. so today we did it... its a replica of the 1928 plane that made the first journey from Barcelona to Madrid. He was sooo excited to go on it... but of course while waiting in line he ripped off his bracelet that gets you on the rides.... naughty. But anyway... he loved it... he was freaked out at first but then he relaxed and really enjoyed it. It was the 1st ride we went on and the last ride. It gives you a beautiful view of the city... Well the whole park has a beautiful view but this ride makes you feel like you're flying over all of Barcelona.

Then we went on this ride where you stand in the basket and it takes you reaaallly high up... he

clung to me so tight but he actually did enjoy it. It's so cute to see him scared... it's not something I see a lot.

We had a little lunch and then waited in line for what seemed like hours for the log ride. I convinced the lady to let Paul sit in front even

though the lighter person should be in the back... he was excited but as soon as we got on he wanted to get off and he turned his body so his head was in my chest... he actually enjoyed it a lot and we found out at the end why the heavier person goes in front.... you get thrown forward when you reach the bottom. But we were happy... got all wet and he loved it.

Then... we went on the roller coaster. I wasn't sure that I wanted to do it... but he asked for it. As soon as we sat down and put the bar down he wanted to get off.... when we took the bar up... he wanted to stay on... so we stayed. As soon as we started moving... he wanted to get off again and had his arm wrapped around my neck and his head buried in my chest (again)... he kept his head down for the whole ride except for a few moments where he looked up... Afterwards I felt sick... I think he might have too because we didn't go on any rides for a while after that.

We shared an ice cream (to get over the almost-traumatic roller coaster... actually I think I was more traumatized than he was) and wandered around. The next thing we did was the bumper cars... which he thoroughly enjoyed. He laughed hysterically as I drove us around and crashed us into people. I tried to get him to steer but he would rather be the passenger... he was adorable.

Paul was basically great the whole time. He waited patiently and didn't make much noise... It started raining so we went to get in line on an inside ride. First we went to the bathroom.. then got in line. It took about 20 minutes to get to the front and he pounded on his ass saying KAKAKA... I thought "O shit"... literally... then I thought... maybe he could hold it since we are the next to get on the ride... but then... what if he shits his pants while we're going because he DOES get scared... then I smelled the worst smell in the world and I was almost convinced he had already shit his pants... KAKAKA he said again... the kids behind us were plugging their noses and I knew we had to get out of line and goto the bathroom.... my phone was dead and I didn't have a change of pants... if he shit himself we would be stuck up on the mountain for hours... so off to the bathroom we went... and when we finally got out the line was even longer. O well... killed some time.

We also killed time waiting in line for the house of mirrors.. which took 30 minutes out in the cold drizzling rain... and when we got to the front.. we had to put on gloves. Guess who didn't want to wear them and broke 2 pair? Yupp... so as hard as I tried to get him to wear them... he wouldn't and we went to do something else.

Around 5ish we explored around the church... it was beautiful. One of the most beautiful churches I've ever seen... with the best view in Barcelona. Jesus is on top of it looking down on the city and protecting her. There was actually a wedding going on today so we watched the guests arrive... I would definitly have my wedding there if I was from Barcelona... and Catholic... and rich. Which Elijah reminded me.. I'm neither.

We walked around for a while looking to see if Leila was coming to pick us up... but she hadn't received my text yet and my phone was dead so we went on more rides. The tall basket ride again, and then the ferris wheel... the highlight of the day. He LOVED it..

Then we went on the plane ride one last time. I think it satisfied his desire to go on a plane... he was very excited to tell his mom that he did it. Then we got french fries and I got a BEER! It was called Damm Lemon and it was reallllyyyyy good! Finally a beer I like!!! And then we saw Leila and Paul wasn't ready to leave but it was almost 8pm... A very long and enjoyable day. Great memories.. and we are going to do it again with Alexia!!!!

June 18, 2010

Today I took the bus to El Corte Inglés and got Alexia's and my certificates for the race!!!!! Ignacio said we did terrible.. hahahahahah but being in 31,000th something place isnt bad out of 58,000!!!!!

Leila and I picked up Paul from school, which he was pretty excited about, and spent the afternoon on the Passeig de Gracía. Leila had some beauty treatments to do so Paul and I went to La Pedrera. It's this huge building designed by Gaudi:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Casa_Milà

It had an mock apartment set up from the era when the apartment building was build... it was competed in 1912. So we walked around there and through the museum on the next floor... but the best part was the roof.

Paul behaved VERY well... until the end when he was done and wanted to leave. I bought something in the gift shop during lots of protesting and whining from the sleepy boy.... and he continued his whiney mood until we got in the car to go home. He had spent the whole day swimming at the beach with his school so he was exhausted.

O AND ALEXIA LEFT =( She went to England for an exchange program... but she'll be back on Wednesday!!! That's all for today!

June 17, 2010

After school today Paul and I waited for Alexia to come home and we took the metro to... LA RAMBLA!!!!

Everyone's probably sick of hearing about La Rambla but there is so much to do there! So much to explore!

We met up with Alexia's friend Maria and she took the metro with us... and as soon as we got to Plaça Catalunya Maria's sandal broke! The sole detached and she had to go to El Corte Inglés to buy some tape and I stuck it together for her.

We walked to the Cathedral and waited for Toni to arrive.. Maria left and as soon as Toni got there Paul wanted to go inside the church. Of course, my shorts were too short so I had to wrap Alexia's sweater around my legs and button it up... and then Alexia couldn't get in because her shoulders were showing.... so Toni and I took Paul inside while Alexia waited outside.

The inside was very beautiful... the Cathedral is maybe 500 years old. My trusty tour guide, Toni, isn't always sure... but he does assure me he knows many things. He tells me that a lot haha. There were the caskets of the most important dead kings of Catalunya and his wife from 1058.... of course I liked that. While Toni showed me around, Paul sat so nicely and didn't make any noise.. he just enjoyed the surroundings. I think it's so interesting how he enjoys churches... And another thing I found interesting was that the patron Saint of Catalunya has dark skin.. and when I asked Toni why he said that it's because they got struck by lightning... interesting.

We walked around more.. attempting to get lost. I showed Toni and Alexia the Roman acropolis and found out the graves are from 0-400 AD.... very veryyy oooold dead people. In our quest to get lost we ended up back at the church... and Paul wanted to go see the geese. He also was very thirsty and I didn't have a water bottle... so we had a nice solution

We continued our walk with Toni leading the way. Walking in areas with not so many tourists was refreshing... a lot easier to have conversation and keep track of what Paul's doing. We were making our way to the sea when I smelled an aaamaazing.... we went inside and it was a small candy shop and they had made a fresh batch of strawberry. We all got a sample and it was sooooo good. I should have bought a bag.... I'm going to make sure I find that place again!

Toni also showed us this bar called The Fairy Forest (but its in English) and the inside was just like a forest... trees and dim lights and very interesting decorations that made it seem like fairies really lived there... I'm going to make him take me back one day without Paul... it's a little difficult to eat in restaurants with Paul because he makes a lot of noise and sometimes tries to steal other people's food....

At the water I met some very interesting people................

And Toni got a call from a friend name Alejandro and Alexia and I got a good laugh out of that and forced Toni to listen to the Lady Gaga song... he said it's alright hahaha.. O and he has a friend named Fernando too!!! Alexia and I had fun singing to him while he stood in shock LOOOL

I had to be very touristy at the Christopher Columbus statue and get on the lion... and Paul followed suit and wanted to come up too... so Toni helped him up and joined us for a picture.

We walked straight down La Rambla all the way from end to beginning, and Paul got McDonalds for behaving so well. 3 cheeseburgers and fries. I still don't know how he fits it all in his stomach... and he stole a potato thing off someone's tray. Naughty.

Toni thinks he would only last 3 minutes if he had Paul alone.. and Alexia still doesn't think she could do it. It IS hard work... but it's pretty simple once you show him you're the boss and he can't do anything he wants. Both Maria and Toni commented on how well Paul listens to me... made me happy =)

June 16, 2010

Spent the morning and early afternoon at La Rambla on my own.. Walked around, got fresh juice from La Boqueria, ate at a chocolate shop that was founded in 1820, tooksome nice pictures, and then did some shopping!!!! Lots of fun... finally got some sandals so I can fit in with the Spaniards...

And I found the Roman acropolis (by accident)... but it was pretty cool... really really old dead guys.

Spent the afternoon at the pool... which was great. I swam too so I could take some underwater pictures.... and video =) We had a lot of fun... I did laps, and actually so did Paul. I think he was trying to get to the other side so he could escape the lifeguard that wouldn't let him jump off the platforms... but he was really cute doing his laps.... he even dove down a few times... such a dolphin!

In this video I'm pushing him down to the bottom of the 6 foot pool... He loved it. And it was a lot easier for me to push him down than to try and lift him up and throw up... he's not light.

He didn't like being in the lanes but there were lots of kids having swim class... so we played one of his favorite games.... I can't think of a better word for it than "fetch"....

It was a really good day =)

June 15, 2010

This morning I got woken up at 6:45 by a snuggler... I let him stay since we were getting up around 7:30 anyway. He FORCED me to cuddle with him... if I moved my arm away.. he would immediately grab it and put it back in it's proper place across him and tucked under his belly.

We left the house around 8 with Leila because Paul had to get blood drawn... and interestingly the streets were blocked off and there were tons of people muddling around... and trucks full of old clothes and old cars parked on the side of the street... they were filming part of a movie right there in front of the apartment! It was pretty cool... until later in the morning when the cars would NOT stop honking because they were so inpatient and in such a rush to get to work.

Anyway... we went to get blood drawn. Paul was pretty good while waiting... still in his "zombie" mode since it was early... but when it was time to get that needle in his arm... he was anything but zombie-like. Leila had to sit on him... literally straddle him and pin him down while I held his shoulders down and then hold his arm tightly in place. I really thought I was going to snap his arm off. He is so strong that he could LIFT Leila with his legs while she sat on him... He really was pretty good though... what kid likes shots anyway...

It was another rainy morning so I stayed in bed. When I woke up I walked around to see the filming and I stopped at the bread place

to get my favorite Croissant Crema.

When it was time to pick Paul up from the bus he was pretty sad.... he cried most of the way home but once we got home he was happy. His mood swings are pretty puzzling... I think he misses Mari - his nanny of 13 years.

We had a little snack and got ready to go to the Aquarium. I think I was more excited than he was because I love aquariums and sea life.. but he was hilarious on the bus and in the best mood and laughed the whole time.. he even made friends with a man fromBangladesh who sat next to him... Paul would not stop holding his hand and wouldn't let the man move his hands to another place... the man understood English and sang songs to Paul and seemed to really enjoy Paul's laughter and company.

We got off the bus and he immediately had to pee... So I took him down to the water and he peed right there in front of people into the sea.... the teenage boys next to me were laughing and I said "When he has to go - he has to go" and they said ooo yes they understand that!!! They thought it was hilarious... I took a picture of the 10 foot stream he produced... but I obviously can't show it here... but I got him to look at the wall he was standing next to.. Alexia translated it for me but it didn't make much sense.

We walked across the bridge over the water and made our way to the aquarium... I must say... for the 1st half of our walk through the fish Paul was great... I got him to be patient and wait to get to see things, and he payed attention... but after a while he got bored and it probably all looked the same to him. One place he liked being in was the tunnel where there's water all around you... I got him to look at the sharks and the big fish... I love this picture of the shark swimming right over him...

We had a good time at the aquarium.. and unlike his cousin Iman... Paul didn't want to buy anything in the gift shop. We walked around a little more and went to catch the bus. Of course he had to poop right before we get on the bus so we searched for a bathroom. On the way back to the bus I stopped and bought some liquor... it was clear - so Paul thought it was water and kept asking me for it on the ride home. He got upset with me because I wouldn't share any of my water and he cried a little bit... it's hard to explain that it's not water when it clearly looks like it.

We had a good day and ended it watching Brazil vs North Korea and an early bedtime.

June 14, 2010

This morning Paul slept until 8!!!!! It was a miracle!!! He wasn't very happy that I woke him up... I think he's ready for school to be over -- I don't blame him!

After Paul went to school I went to the Bonasport (a gym) and spent 45 minutes on the elliptical and finally got to the end of my book!!! I know what happened to Harriet Vagner!!!!! FINALLY!!!!!

I also did one of the classes.... Cardiotono... it was fun. So I spent a good amount of the morning working out.

When I picked up Paul at 330 Alexia was home and wanted to come to La'Illa with us. So we took the bus and hung around the playground and ate ice cream until the rides and trampoline opened.... I didn't know if Paul would like spinning around but he LOVED it...

I actually did get on right after this... spun 2 slow times... and had to get off. I don't do the whole spinning in circles thing... I get dizzy too quick.

But we hung out and he climbed the jungle gym. Got stuck twice and yelled at me until I helped him. I told Elijah how he gets up there and gets stuck and EJ was like... how could he get stuck?? Well... check out the picture...

There's easy ways to get up and hard ways to get up... he likes to get up the easy way and try to get down the hard way... freaks out cuz his feet won't reach the rope... and then I gotta scramble up there so he can put all his weight on me while we dangle 6 feet up haha.

It started getting cold and a little rainy so we came home.... Leila made an amazing dinner - pasta with mushroom sauce... and Paul would have eaten ALL of it if we had let him.

Leila also told me something I think is amazing... if you tell Paul to type his name on the computer he can do it without help... P-A-U-L.. so I tried to get him to read SWIM and ICE CREAM... but he didn't care and didn't give me the time of day. He looks at magazines and newspapers and really looks at them so it seems like he's reading... Who knows.