Dicembre!

One thing about being far away from home this time of year is that it is easy to miss traditions with family and friends.  So we’re doing our best to create some new ones starting with our trip to Portugal for Thanksgiving.  We spent Thanksgiving soaking up sun on the golden beaches in southern Portugal with Rudy.  Highlights of the trip include the breath-taking walk along the cliffs where you can hear waves crashing, our Chinese feast on the beach as our Thanksgiving meal, almond crusted fish (Portugal special) and walking Rudy at sunrise on the beach.  Lowlights include our cheap hotel room that did not include a bed (really, just cushions on cement).  We are working on Christmas traditions.  We were very fortunate to get a REAL tree shipped from the US as part of the “Trees for Troops” program.  With our real tree we received hand-made ornaments from children in the US thanking us for our service and for being away from families.  The ornaments look great on our tree with our NM red chili lights.  We’ll be doing Christmas Eve service on base and share a NM dinner with the other pharmacist and his family on Christmas day.  We are truly blessed to have good friends and neighbors, especially this time of the year. 

Carl continues to enjoy work, especially the people he works with.  He shares a lot of responsibility with the other pharmacist, but has a great team to support him.  Between him and the other pharmacist someone is always on-call for the hospital.  He makes big decisions daily and shows great character doing so.  I am very proud of him.  And he is now qualified in shooting a rifle and 9-mm.  As for me, I find myself dabbling with various opportunities in areas that I can be helpful to the base community.  I will start volunteering with the OT on base in January.  I will also be working as a personal trainer for the gym on base, which currently has no trainers (part-time).  I will be coaching gymnastics classes on base, being very creative with the little gymnastics equipment and space available to me.  And I will continue to work with the varsity cheer team as their tumbling coach (they are really pretty good, ranked 1^st in their division). 

We wish you a joyous holiday season with loved-ones near you!

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Our Casa Blanca

It's been about a month now that since we moved into our Spanish casa out in the community of Puerto de Santa Maria.  With an adventurous spirit we are learning to love our Spanish house for all that it is and all that it is not.  We are feeling more settled with each day.  It's more space than we need, with plenty of room for guests to stay with us.  Every room is white from wall to ceiling and the floors are a white-grey marble.  The highlights include a grassed yard for Rudy and large patio, a balcony from which you can catch a glimpse of the water, a six minute walk to the beach and nearby beach restaurants, as well as a bike and running path along the boardwalk.  Lowlights include too many small rooms and bathrooms with wasted space, European appliances, the entire kitchen, and I come up with more each day…We have great American neighbors that are always looking to have a good time and really good landlords who get things done (even though they speak little English).  Being out in the community is a great way to embrace the Spanish culture.  There are tons of cafes and shops in our community that we continue to learn about.  Rudy joins us for eating out at restaurants by the beach where many of the servers know him.  Rudy is a big hit around here and not just because of he is loud and bursting with energy, but because chocolate labs are very rare in Spain.  Most people in Spain have small dogs, and the labs that are here are only white or black.  Rudy thinks the beach is one big park for him to enjoy and chase birds.  And he will swim when the water is calm.  We have plans to visit Portugal for Thanksgiving and will post pictures. 
Our love, Aubrie and Carl (and Rudy boy)

 

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Monkeys in Gibraltar

This weekend we took a day trip to Gibraltar, which is actually a territory of the United Kingdom.  It was a short hour and a half drive from our house to get there and a beautifully sunny day.  We road in what they call a "cable car" up to the top of the Rock of Gibraltar, where the monkeys live.  The cable car is similar to the tram in Albuquerque, only a shorter and less stable ride.  The monkeys were awesome!  Never have either of us seen anything like them.  They are easy to spot and more friendly than you'd like them to be.  Apparently they have become addicted to the sugar and salt in human snacks (could make for a great study) and this is why they attempt to steal bags from you hoping to find some yummy snacks.  They are playful and incredibly acrobatic to watch.

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A happy ending...

Rudy has safely arrived to Spain, after a very long journey.  We are happy to say that he is in good spirits and resting up from his travels.  Later today he’ll get to play at the beach for the first time.  We met up with a vet in Madrid to pick him up from the airport cargo area.  After a very long and stressful wait, he was brought to us in his crate on a fork lift.  He freaked out with excitement the moment he saw us, and in that moment we knew he was right where he should be.  I call it resilience, while Carl calls it amnesia; but either way he is a trooper!

The Navy Ball

The Navy celebrates its birthday each year with an annual ball.  This year it was held at local "bodega" which means winery.  We met up with the other pharmacist and his wife for this fun event.  The evening included several speeches from highly ranked Spanish and US Navy officials, dancing, and of course wine! 

A trip to Granada and la Alhambra Castle

We took our first road trip in our Spanish car to visit the the city of Granada, Spain.  Granada is an old, beautiful city featuring an extensive Moorish castle known as Alhambra, which perches on a hilltop.  Granada is also the launching point for skiing the Spanish Sierra Nevadas.  And although we didn't check it out this trip, on a clear day you are suppose to be able to see Morocco from the mountain's summit, which is pretty cool.  Our highlights of Granada include tappa hopping and observing the free-spirited Gypsy population. 

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Life in Spain

Hola Family and Friends!

On our flight to Spain I told Carl that never in my life did I think I would get to see Spain, yet alone live here for 3 years…

It’s been a little over week since we arrived.  We continue to learn about the naval base and the nearby communities.  The people we meet, both US and Spanish natives, are friendly and helpful.  We practice what little Spanish we know daily, but are still a long ways from having conversations.  Southern Spain is known for speaking Spanish with the most slang and at the fastest pace, making it very difficult to keep up with.   We’re still in temporary housing on base for now.  And we are the proud owners of a “Rota beater” car. 

A Spanish day looks a lot different than a typical day for us.  They start their days later and end much later than we’re use to.  Spanish eat their main meal of the day in the late afternoon, which usually consists of tapas (delicious small portions of foods).  Dinner is usually around 9 pm or so.  And if they go out it doesn’t happen before midnight and it is common to stay up until sunrise, which seems wild to us.  The Spanish foods we’ve tried were delicious.  They take pride in their ham and fish, tapas and Sangria.  Baguette bread is served with most meals and olive oil is used for everything.  The foods are not spicy and many seasoned with garlic.

This past weekend we went hiking near a town called El Bosque with a group of people who work at the hospital with Carl.  On the hike we saw some ancient ruins and a lot of animals both domesticated and wild- goats, wild pigs, donkeys and wild cows.  It was awesome! 

We have tons of places we hope to visit in Spain and other countries to see while we are in Europe.  I hope 3 years will be enough!

With Love,

Aubrie

El Bosque Hike

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Welcome to Rota, Spain

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Carl ODS Graduation and N.Y.

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Hola!

We are in Rota, Spain at the U.S. Naval Base.  We had a great time with the Powell's at ODS graduation and then hanging out in Newport, RI for the following weekend.  We went on a sailboat tour, ate really good food, and saw the largest sailboat in the world.  Our flight to Spain was pushed back by 3 days, so we decided it would be a good idea to have some fun in New York City, since that's where our flight was leaving from.  We saw all the sights, including a Yankee game.  Been to Las Vegas and New York this year, and New York is crazier. 

Our flight from NY to Spain was uneventful, except that we left at 6pm and arrived in Madrid at 6am.  However, our flight was only 6 hours.  Therefore, we completely missed the 6 most crucial hours of sleeping time.  Today, 5 days later, we are still trying to adjust.  When we landed in Rota, our Sponsor, LCDR Sperner picked us up and took us to the Navy Lodge, where we are staying until we find a house.  He has been a great help.

We have basically been taking WELCOME classes and meeting new people and friends.  Our 2nd and 3rd nights here we were invited to 2 parties, both Navy functions, one for the pharmacy and one for the hospital officers.  Been to Las Vegas, New York, and now Spain this year, and Spain is crazier.  Nothing starts at night until 9pm, and ends well past midnight, usually when the sun comes up.  Now we understand why Spain has mandatory siestas for its residents.

Miss everyone and can't wait for you to visit!  Rest up before you get here :)