Sagunto, Part 2

The weekend was restful and relaxing almost to the point of boredom, broken up by a sudden, unexpected seasonal rainstorm. Struck by a sudden inspiration, I grabbed an umbrella and ran out there with a camera to get the footage you'll see on my blog if you're nice enough to look at the web page. Please. . . view it. I got sopping wet to give you that oh-so-authentic location footage. The link is at the bottom of this email, as it is for all Jillian's Journeys posts.

Class really began on Monday, and for the first time, I went to breakfast. To miss breakfast here isn't a horrible thing to do, as we have this place called the Bocasteria where we can buy ourselves some fairly tasty food on our mid-morning break, but it's much cheaper (as in, already paid for) to go to the caf. My hardest class, it looks like, will easily be Translation and Interpretation. After the Greek course this summer, though, it's almost a breath of fresh air to be applying the same skills with living languages. In a fit of overachieving ambition, I decided to translate "Sabbath Prayer" from Fiddler on the Roof into Spanish because of the disturbing lack of Spanish translations of the song anywhere online.

That is HARD. I have a lot more respect for people who write voiceovers for musical films than I ever had before. To translate the words, make it fit into the music, and then hope that somehow, it will retain the same feel as the original is a mad balancing act that I find ridiculously, suicidally enjoyable.

After class, in the evening, some friends and I went to worship just because we were bored and found out that worship is required, sadly enough for those who'd skipped. Glad that we'd done this, however accidentally, we went for a walk afterwards. The night was fragrant from the freshly fallen rain on the orange groves, and the castle was beautifully lit for the night time. I needed the exercise, and the air; both were wonderfully medicinal, despite the cars trying to hit us every few minutes.

Today they canceled class to take us into Sagunto itself to see some of the local sights. We were supposed to see the castle up close and personal, but it was raining so much (something which hasn't happened at this time of year here in thirty years) that we didn't. We did, however, get to see the Roman Theater leftover from the Roman occupation and explore it thoroughly. I'd gotten to see ancient theaters in Greece, but I never got to explore any of them like this. I was amazed at how similar the passages behind the rows of renovated seats were to a modern theater. Someday, I really, want to see one of the outdoor performances they have there. It sounds like fun, like a Spanish version of the Hollywood Bowl.

Afterwards, my friend Jenny and I went down to their open-air market that they have every Wednesday in Sagunto. Although I had only intended to buy a bag and some yarn, she convinced me to buy a shirt and a pastry as well, both of which were quite good. I'm not sure how I feel about the shirt, but it only cost me 4 euros, after all. I've never been good at shopping for things I don't need. She's teaching me, and I'm a slow learner. Incidentally, if anyone wants to send me yarn, the local stuff isn't very good and only comes in white, grr. . . but I love to crochet, no matter what color I'm using.

Anyways, enough of my ranting about yarn and whatnot. Not a very exotic thing for me to talk about all the way from Spain. Perhaps my brain is too short-circuited today to think of anything more creative to write about; I just wanted an excuse to put up pictures and video. Please check it out; it takes a certain amount of loving care that takes up time and it makes my little heart happy to know when people are actually looking at it.

I hope life is treating you well, as always, with much luck and prosperity.