Ultimate (not that I am obsessed or anything)

 

So…it’s our second day in Madrid and we’re walking slowly home from Ikea, on past the municipal sports complex that is a block from our apartment. These sports complexes, called polideportivos, are massive – the one nearest our house has four full-size soccer fields, a track, a large pool, weight room, outdoor squash courts, padel courts, and tennis courts, multiple playgrounds, and several other unidentified buildings (?). The polideportivo that’s a bus ride from our house is even larger and includes a velodrome – I’ll take pictures when we get over there. 

In any case, we’re walking along and hear excited shouting from the soccer fields, as we often do when going by. Jon peers through the fencing/bushes to see what’s going on and announces it’s a game of ultimate. I was struck dumb; as far as I could tell from a web search, ultimate in Spain is mostly played in downtown Madrid at an incredibly bad time (5 PM Saturdays, which to the Spanish is like 2 PM Saturday, or even like noon Saturday, but to Americans living in Madrid is still like 5 PM Saturday). Having thus given up ultimate for the remainder of at least ’15, I was curious whether I was going to be compelled to un-give-it-up because of the presence of a local league.*

A trip to the fields revealed not a city league, but instead the co-ed Southern European regionals  - three teams from Spain (Madrid, Santander, Girona) plus Portugal, France and Switzerland. Some quick observations (skip if you don’t play ultimate):

1. Much bigger teams – one had about 30 players.

 

2. More women, and more excellent women. I never saw fewer than three women on the field at a time, and saw a few points with 4W/3M. There was always at least one woman handler, sometimes two.

 

3. Lots more yelling.

 

4. But also a lot fewer on-field disputes. And no observers.

5. Major delay of game problems – after each point the entire team runs on the field, cheers, and then kneels down and calls a line. CBS Sports would never figure out how to package this for the TV audience. 

6.  The level of play looked comparable to a typical U.S. Midwestern regionals – generally solid though some throw-aways and drops. However, it was very windy both days, which may have caused some issues.

Madrid won the tournament, beating Girona 15-9.

* My feet and lower back had a lot to say on the un-giving-up-ultimate idea.

Visiting Al Campo

One of my (Heather’s) favorite things to do in Madrid (or anywhere, actually) is to grocery shop. Last time we lived in Spain, I became very attached to our local grocery store, Al Campo; Seth and I would go two or three times a week while Jon took the big kids to their after-school swim lessons. So I was particularly excited to go back.

My first stop at Al Campo was the wall of ham:

A leg of ham is a staple in many Spanish kitchens; prices run from about $60 on upwards (just passed a ham in a store window sporting a $500 price tag). 

Next stop was the aisle of Manchego:

The picture doesn’t do this justice – it’s really almost a whole grocery aisle filled with Manchego. Except none of it is labeled as Manchego; in Spain most cheese seems to be Manchego, and thus labeling it Manchego would be like calling cheese cheese in the U.S. Non-Manchego is clearly marked (mostly as goat cheese).  

Next I said hello to real Spanish chorizo:

No more traveling to Las Ventas in South Boston to restock twice a year. 

Next stop, the cereal aisle, where you can buy candy for breakfast:

And Al Campo-brand cereals marketed as a sugar drug:

 

And where the proportion of suitable options for health-conscious American children (well, to their sugar-averse parents) has shrunk owing to what looks like a chocolate cereal craze:

There is no apparent irony in the chocolate-flavored fitness cereal. I should note that this aisle is separate from the “breakfast cookie” aisle, which is elsewhere in the store. 

Next I walked by the table wine:

Note the prices – yes, that’s about $2 for what is a pretty decent bottle of Rioja. We sampled a lot of these last time we were here (though I remember the prices being a bit higher, more like $5 a bottle). 

A short distance away is the eco-wine aisle:

A two to four times the price of chemically-wrought wine, still a bargain.

Last stop was check-out. No picture here, but remarkably, I didn’t get yelled at by the clerk for some grocery-store-etiquette infraction. Progress.

How to move to Spain in 14 easy steps

1. Start by giving up ultimate and caffeine on the same day, making you all the more charming to your children during steps #2 - #14.

2. Leave the U.S. on an overnight flight. Incent your children to sleep at least 2 hours.*

3. Arrive to warm welcome from best Spanish friends in the world.

4. Who also happen to have cake.  On them. And the keys to your apartment.

5. Where 3/5ths of your family sleeps off the flight.

6. While Jon, Nora, Miguel, Nuria and their incredibly patient daughter Ireny…

     A. Officially register for residency in Alcobendas (the part of Madrid where we live)

     B. Sign paperwork at the rental agency downtown

7. Next, wake up your boys and have them “help”….

     C. Spend 400 Euros at the local grocery store

     D. Get the internet hooked up

     E. Acquire cell phones.**

8. Bid your Spanish friends adieu. Wonder how you will ever repay them.

9. Feed your children. Spanish food optional.

10. Watch a spectacular thunderstorm that rolls in around 9 PM.

12. And lasts for 6 hours.

13. While Starhills alternately weep and sleep.***

14. Wake up at 11:30 the next morning, slightly stunned and wondering what day it is.

* If your child happens to wake you on the flight over at 2 AM EST for no reason, there’s an excellent PBS documentary on USAIR right now-Last Days of Vietnam

** Nora’s dream come true: her cell is nicer than Mommie’s (Nora texts > Mommie texts in Spain)

*** Heather awake for the 10-2 shift, caught and tried to comfort many of the weepers. Jon was awake for the 2 AM-4 AM shift and managed to catch the Red Sox game. All slept soundly from 4 AM on.

It smells like Alcobendas!

Hi! It's Nora! 

This post covers the first two or tree days of our 2015-16 our adventure...

     The day we left, I woke up at 7, got dressed and promptly learned that we were not leaving until 12, and instead of being hidey-holed up in my room until we left (as I would have proffered), i would be put to work cleaning and preparing for us to leave. "The house had to be perfect", Apparently.

     During the 7 hour plane ride, I watched TV for 3 hours, slept for 2, watched the lady in front of me's television (she was watching the abyss) for a half an hour, and stared into space for the rest of the flight. 

     When we got off the plane, Seth had a minor meltdown about not feeling well, so we made our way to the bathroom and proceed to sit in front of it for 15 minutes. I guess sitting in front of a bathroom cures airplane sickness.

     We got to the apartment, and made plans for the rest of the day. They included, shopping, shopping, and shopping. Daddy and I got in our good friends Nuria and Miguel's car, and shopped until 4 at which time we decided to return to the apartment.

     Our first trip to the famed Al Campo cost us 398 euros. Not bad considering the amount of stuff we bought. I realized that the only english i will encounter outside of 'the mouse hole' is on an oreo box that says 'family size'. How sad.

      When we got home, it was close to 7, and finally, the cable guy came. I was simply ecstatic. Like a true teenager. Haha, mom. He left around eight, when I promptly brushed my teeth and fell asleep. I woke up at 11:45. 15 hours of sleep and still tired. Sounds like a book.

      I always feel like a tourist here. I really don't like like it. 

      We are headed to cyprus on Monday!!! Golden beaches, turquoise sand, a monstrous amount of touring, here we come! 

THINGS WE WILL BE LIVING W/O THIS YEAR

• Car
• TV
• English
• Maple Syrup
• Dryer
• My own room
• And more that don't matter as much...

We are back!!! Starhills in Spain returns. We just landed in Madrid for another fun year in Spain - stay tuned for the 2015-2016 version of this blog.