I celebrated the week in Javier´s pueblo again, Rodicol, in Leon . I´ve grown fond of it´s running creeks, wondering cattle and our card games around the lit chimney. This trip Rocio and Javier took us all to the beautiful city of Asturias just north of Leon. The road to the city proved the great diversity of terrian throughout Spain. We passed jagged rock mountains and green rolling hills as the family sung the theme song of Asturias. We took the day to see the cathedral which supposively holds la sabana santa (the clothe Jesus was wrapped in within the tomb). The cloth is taken out 4 times a year, the next day, Good Friday, being one of them.
The following stop was to the oldest church in Spain, Santa María del Naranco Church ! This pre-romanesque church was built in the 9th century and looks over the valley of Oviedo, Asturias. And after t
he famous seafood stew of the area we layed by the beach amongst of flower covered fields and brightly colored houses. As we made it back to the top of the hill where an old church stood, the Monday-Thursday service caught my ear and Rocio and Javier invited me to go and enjoy it. God even finds me amongst the little hills of Spain. We spent a wonderful weekend together and headed back Easter Sunday! I ended the holiday in the Prado, reliving the researection through the paintings of El Greco!
(Gabby and Rocio in the city !)
A couple weeks later my Literature class took a trip to Segobriga to see a set of plays performed in the outdoor, ancient Roman theater of the pueblo. School field trips here consist of visits to ancient ruins and world-famous museums which I sure will miss on my next field trip in Tucson... to the Desert Museum. The first play was the ancient comedy called Lisistrata. The plot was about a group of women who go on a sex strike to persuade their husbands to stop fighting. Sounds a little risky for an audience of all teenagers. Well lets just say, I would reconcider saying our generation is dirty minded after hearing this Roman-era script! Of course you can imagine that the audience loved it. :)
Kaylee and I had the wonderful excuse to visit Valencia for the next weekend. It was the closest city that had room left in a testing facility for the SAT. I took the SAT subject Spanish test figuring my language skills are at their peak! So we spent one day after to tour the city...but more 
importantly to enjoy the beach! It was a flat beach, not much to it, but perfect, calm waters for swimming! In all it was a blast, drinking horchata, tanning, and seeing sites together. (el mercado central of Valencia, one of the biggest in Europe)->
Our host family is always thinking of how they can show us just a little more culture and country even in our last few months. Rocio and Javier wanted Kaylee and I to see a little of Galicia, northeastern Spain, so they took us the following weekend during a short 
holiday break. We stayed in apartment of Rocio´s sister that looked out onto the beach in Viviero. The wooded region surrounding the sandy beach and 1940s glass-paned buildings sticks to my memory as one of the prettiest places throughout my Spanish journey. And our meals of pulpo (octopus), raya (stingray), and percebes 
(barnacles) will never be as good as in this little town! It was really nice 
to be able to see another part of my host families lives. We got the chance to visit where Rocio and Javier got married, on a beautiful cliff over looking the ocean. They go back to it on every visit to Viviero and I could tell that their love was just as strong from the first time they were up there to one visit such as this. Our next excursion was on my host grandparents boat to attempt fishing. (My adorable host brother, Javi, to the left, steering the boat). We didn´t have too much luck but the sight-seeing made it all worth it, even when I got a little sea sick. And we couldn´t leave without a trip to the beach, although Rocio was the only one who braved the cold waters! The trip came to an end and we headed back home, but with one more beautiful memory tucked away in my album.
So May came to a close with a fun night celebrating the birthday of my best friend of school, Paula. I´ve had so many wonderful trips that I so thankful for. But its the people I spent that time with who I couldn´t be more grateful for, host family and friends. And as relationships become closer with every month it makes it harder to think about leaving them. But I believe those feeling only confirm that these friendships are ones God will hold together even after I´m gone.
Love, kisses, and misses,
-One more month I´ll be giving hugs in person!!!
Shayna
