Dinner time

I've got 25 minutes until dinner, let's see what I can crank out.

If you don't remember anything else I've said, remember this.

If you get a chance to go to Spain, go to Spain. Period.

We stepped off the plane into warmth, something that I had not felt since last September. I saw the sun, something that I had not seen since last September, and I don't know if it was the Vitamin D replinishment, or if it was the ability to wear shorts outside and let my stunningly pale legs be seen again, but it put me in a good mood.

See, Spain came at a perfect time. Here in England I'm in a whole mess of papers, exams, speeches, etc... The culture in Spain contradicts this worry. The slow-moving, laid-back, friendly people and environment simply made you relax.

I felt like I could finally rest. As the semester quickly bursts to the finish line, the work and stress has piled up. And thought the work was still watiting when I returned 7AM Monday morning, Spain had done a number on the "freak-out" meter.

Some highlights:
I've posted some pictures below, but if you have a chance, you should check out the Plaza De Espana, or "Spanish Plaza."

I got to see a real life bull fighting ring

I picked an orange off a tree and ate it. (I don't recommend it, it tasted purely like the sour part of a sour patch kid)

Cruzcampo, it's a good beer, but you didn't hear it from me

Playing on playgrounds

This huge wooden structure (pictured below) that is the largest wooden structure in the world

The sun

The people

This riot that was happening in the Seville airport in favor of better rights for cafeteria workers (make sure your volume is turned on, but not too loud)

La Semana Santa, or their religious week before Easter. This was rather interesting. I'm rather concerned to post pictures publicly for certain reasons. Plus if I ever decided to run for political office, these pictures on my blog would keep me from winning, no doubt. If you google search "La Semana Santa costumes," you'll realize why. Heck, you should watch a youtube video of it as well while you're at it.



But even though Spain was incredible and relaxed me, no trip can ultimately give you, me, or anyone else "rest." They were a calm couple days, but the business was still here at Harlaxton when I returned.

Spain, I thank you for showing me that I need real, authentic "rest" and "peace", (both super broad, difficult terms to comprehend), in my life, and I thank you for reminding me that these do not come from exterior happenings or situations or locations, but they come from something much greater in my relationship with Christ.

Want another word search, here ya go.

D E G S V S A Y A Y R J G I S 
V D F W E E O O X F Y W J D D 
V G W A B V I R T E O J O D N 
R E G L D I U S A M B N L V U 
D I Z M S L C N M N K Z S R O 
B A R C E L O N A E G M Z P R 
S Y M N R E R B Y P D E M M G 
G O O S O G I M A X R A S O Y 
G K I S H Z X N C Z C P K T A 
N X N D Z V X Z M Z H V R H L 
O E U L A R M T U Y S D O G P 
T E S B A V E R Y J I G V F G 
I R A E X Y C I B X I F T E P 
F F M X G S P X E G B P D L N 
F Q N Z E F O S S K Y C J O G 

ADIOS
AMIGOS
BARCELONA
CRUZCAMPO
DONKEY
ORANGES
PLAYGROUNDS
SEVILLE
SUN

Thanks for reading once again!

It's time for me to go eat some really subpar food!

Kyle

Questions

Hello again,

I am literally the worst blogger of all time, so if you're still reading at this point, you have gained my utmost respect. I promise (take that for what you want) that I will try to keep this site more frequently updated as we head down the home-stretch with my time over here.

Last Thursday I left little 'ole Grantham (Yes, Downton fans, the same "Grantham") and headed to Paris. I literally could rave about all the cool stuff I got to see for days. Getting the chance to see the Louvre, Arch of Triumph, Eiffel Tower, Versailles Palace, Notre Dame, and a lot of other things that are in a lot of movies but never seem real, is a once-in-a-lucky-lifetime oppurtunity. I am blessed over and over again with the ability to see these incredible places weekend after weekend. I've gotten to see some very cool things, but I've also learned a lot.

Maybe "learned a lot" is a bad way to put it. More accurately stated, "I've asked a lot of questions". Sure, I've gotten the answers to a few, but in actuality I've gotten exponentially more confused in my time here, and this is a good thing.

I realize I'm probably already losing you, let me clarify.

I came over here thinking I had a pretty good grasp on a lot of things. Other cultures, history, why some sites are popular, other people, politics; I had it all figured out.

And then I showed up here and all hell broke loose in my head.

By being exposed to other cultures, types of people, thought processes, ideas, traditions, I've realized how little I actually know.

Above all, in my time here I've come to the realization that a lot of things are a lot bigger than I had initially thought. History, the world, culture groups, interconnected economies, different types of personalities, stereotypes, God himself, heck, even the Eiffel Tower are all a lot larger and complex than I could have ever thought while living in the States.

So I've reached this cool point where the more I learn, the more I realize I don't know. (if that makes any sense at all)

I might now know more dates, facts, English kings, Roman architecture styles, Victorian political shifts, and other not-so-interesting stuff like that after my time here, but what I will cherish most is how my eyes have been opened to how much bigger God, this world, and the things inside of it actually are.

I know this is incredibly confusing and poorly-written, and if you skip right over it, I won't blame you, but it's something I've learned and wish to verbalize (which is ironic b/c I'm not speaking).

To help remedy for my confusing exchange, here's a word search of the things that I think typify England most appropriately.

E R O Z D Q J Q N D Y C W X I 
L A H M I U Q M V L A V R P W 
B I Q K S T U O B A D N U O R 
I N C K F U R A M M L U Y K F 
D A U Y U N A G Q W K R W I G 
E Y V D N M C C T T O S S W A 
R U J R C Q S E C T H H C G A 
C D V G T M A I S E A L G G U 
N W C U I P Q I L N N L X Y O 
I T X J O J H S D A G T T E P 
T Y O S N B K C J E R J W F Y 
G U A D A B H M V K G E W W X 
E J Y B L I P O T A T O B V C 
X C I C P O I F C U A D L I U 
M W B S P F N B C K X F A V L

ACCENT
DISFUNCTIONAL
FISHANDCHIPS
HISTORY
INCREDIBLE
LIBERALISM
POTATO
RAIN
ROUNDABOUT
TEA

If you do it, best of luck, if you don't do it, then don't blame me when everybody else is having fun and you're "too cool"...

Thanks again for reading!

Kyle