So where do I begin? I have now spent over 24 hours in a new country and I still can't believe I am even here. I'll be honest, my body is still 6 hours behind so adjusting to some new sleeping patterns is my biggest goal right now. Apparently, the standard here is to eat dinner around 8-10 and then hit the hay come midnight... so, switching to that will definitely be a challenge besides the jet lag I am currently attempting to conquer. Either way, I thought I would share some pictures and thoughts about my first day and a half here while it's fresh!
So because of Winter Storm Leon, my flight was delayed 2 days which is why I didn't arrive until yesterday morning. Our flight was simply stopping in Rota for the dozen of us getting off and the rest of the military personnel on board were being transported to Italy, Bahrain, and Djibouti. That's pronounced "Ja-Booty"... Try saying that without a smirk LOL.
Upon arrival, my sponsor met me at the airport and helped me with my luggage and checking in through their customs etc. I was super relieved to get off the flight- I slept about an hour of the 7 that I was on it and it was probably the most turbulent flight I have experienced besides our flight back from our honeymoon in Hawaii. Anyways, my sponsor dropped me and another navy wife off at our hotels on base to settle in for a bit. My room here is perfect! It has everything I need, including electrical outlets that fit my American power cords, a walk in closet to hang up our clothes for the next month and most importantly...a Keurig machine! Pretty stoked. It's the little things I guess!
So after arriving about 2 hours late here yesterday morning, I barely made my appointment with the housing department but I am super glad I was still able to go. Luckily every building I will need to be in for the next few weeks is within eye-shot of my room so that will be very handy as I continue the check-in process. After I found my way over there, I spoke with a counselor and browsed through their house listings off base. The great thing about working with the housing department is that all of the rentals they offer off base are privately owned but have been inspected by Navy personnel and deemed fit/safe/structurally sound with a reasonable amount of rent requested to be able to partner with the department at all. I was able to pick out 11 places to see and hopefully will be doing that next week. It's alot of paperwork but I am really hopeful about living in any of those places I chose to see- they are all beautiful with great amenities and within walking distance of the beachfront. I am hoping to narrow it down to a handful so that when Pat arrives, he can join in for the the next few stages of the process.
So after passing out at 5 am this morning (normal VA time...naturally) I got myself together this afternoon and went out into Rota to do some exploring. I was supposed to meet with my sponsor but it's fairly hard to reach other people in this neck of the woods so I decided to just go out on my own. I feel like I am becoming this super paranoid person with a checklist in my head of things I have to confirm I have with me before leaving anywhere or doing anything at all. Do I have my cell phone? Room key? Military ID? Spanish base pass? Dollars? Euros? Map? Debit card? Emergency phone numbers? Base schedule? Passport? Clothes?
But nonetheless I was able to successfully wander around the downtown area and ventured towards the boardwalk.
Now, I'll be honest... I had heard some things about how "friendly" the locals are, specifically those of the male nature. I didn't think much of this idea until after I had been off of the navy base for literally 10 minutes. During this time, I walked into a local tapas deli, Plaza del Triunfo, a few blocks down... basically a place that serves primarily appetizers. After the patient cashier got the message that I "no habla espanol"... I had my meal chosen, paid for and placed at a table for me by a local man who overheard me ordering and who speaks broken English. I insisted otherwise but apparently this does not work. After thanking this stranger for buying my lunch for no apparent reason, I then got the forewarned kiss on the hand and was on my merry way. Awkward! I really need to learn to speak Spanish because pointing to my wedding ring emphatically won't do the trick. In other news, I had something that the cashier told me was called "Chicharrones", basically Spanish bacon served in a sandwich with slices of tomato and a salt shaker on the side. I'm not gonna lie, it was delicious. It was sweeter than I was expecting and I was excited to have my first authentic Spanish meal.
After leaving there, I strolled around and found a few tourist shops, although the majority of businesses I passed during my walking tour were closed. I am not sure if this was because of an afternoon siesta or if it is because of the weekend. I found a shop with cheap swimsuits and got one for a whopping 6 euros, about $8 US dollars. I passed many people along the way to the boardwalk and they were all very friendly. I had to dip into my freshman year Spanish class to try to remember a few key words to get through my adventure but everyone was very understanding and helpful. One thing I didn't realize I would need to do is to figure out my clothing sizes in Spanish sizing charts! Luckily they have a good selection of sizes from what I have seen so far but I will have to start thinking in different numbers.
The boardwalk was beautiful even though it was a bit chilly today and there weren't very many people actually on the beach or in the water. My phone battery randomly died halfway through my adventure so I will need to figure out why. I did manage to get a pic before this happened though...
So because of Winter Storm Leon, my flight was delayed 2 days which is why I didn't arrive until yesterday morning. Our flight was simply stopping in Rota for the dozen of us getting off and the rest of the military personnel on board were being transported to Italy, Bahrain, and Djibouti. That's pronounced "Ja-Booty"... Try saying that without a smirk LOL.
Upon arrival, my sponsor met me at the airport and helped me with my luggage and checking in through their customs etc. I was super relieved to get off the flight- I slept about an hour of the 7 that I was on it and it was probably the most turbulent flight I have experienced besides our flight back from our honeymoon in Hawaii. Anyways, my sponsor dropped me and another navy wife off at our hotels on base to settle in for a bit. My room here is perfect! It has everything I need, including electrical outlets that fit my American power cords, a walk in closet to hang up our clothes for the next month and most importantly...a Keurig machine! Pretty stoked. It's the little things I guess!
So after arriving about 2 hours late here yesterday morning, I barely made my appointment with the housing department but I am super glad I was still able to go. Luckily every building I will need to be in for the next few weeks is within eye-shot of my room so that will be very handy as I continue the check-in process. After I found my way over there, I spoke with a counselor and browsed through their house listings off base. The great thing about working with the housing department is that all of the rentals they offer off base are privately owned but have been inspected by Navy personnel and deemed fit/safe/structurally sound with a reasonable amount of rent requested to be able to partner with the department at all. I was able to pick out 11 places to see and hopefully will be doing that next week. It's alot of paperwork but I am really hopeful about living in any of those places I chose to see- they are all beautiful with great amenities and within walking distance of the beachfront. I am hoping to narrow it down to a handful so that when Pat arrives, he can join in for the the next few stages of the process.
So after passing out at 5 am this morning (normal VA time...naturally) I got myself together this afternoon and went out into Rota to do some exploring. I was supposed to meet with my sponsor but it's fairly hard to reach other people in this neck of the woods so I decided to just go out on my own. I feel like I am becoming this super paranoid person with a checklist in my head of things I have to confirm I have with me before leaving anywhere or doing anything at all. Do I have my cell phone? Room key? Military ID? Spanish base pass? Dollars? Euros? Map? Debit card? Emergency phone numbers? Base schedule? Passport? Clothes?
But nonetheless I was able to successfully wander around the downtown area and ventured towards the boardwalk.
Now, I'll be honest... I had heard some things about how "friendly" the locals are, specifically those of the male nature. I didn't think much of this idea until after I had been off of the navy base for literally 10 minutes. During this time, I walked into a local tapas deli, Plaza del Triunfo, a few blocks down... basically a place that serves primarily appetizers. After the patient cashier got the message that I "no habla espanol"... I had my meal chosen, paid for and placed at a table for me by a local man who overheard me ordering and who speaks broken English. I insisted otherwise but apparently this does not work. After thanking this stranger for buying my lunch for no apparent reason, I then got the forewarned kiss on the hand and was on my merry way. Awkward! I really need to learn to speak Spanish because pointing to my wedding ring emphatically won't do the trick. In other news, I had something that the cashier told me was called "Chicharrones", basically Spanish bacon served in a sandwich with slices of tomato and a salt shaker on the side. I'm not gonna lie, it was delicious. It was sweeter than I was expecting and I was excited to have my first authentic Spanish meal.
After leaving there, I strolled around and found a few tourist shops, although the majority of businesses I passed during my walking tour were closed. I am not sure if this was because of an afternoon siesta or if it is because of the weekend. I found a shop with cheap swimsuits and got one for a whopping 6 euros, about $8 US dollars. I passed many people along the way to the boardwalk and they were all very friendly. I had to dip into my freshman year Spanish class to try to remember a few key words to get through my adventure but everyone was very understanding and helpful. One thing I didn't realize I would need to do is to figure out my clothing sizes in Spanish sizing charts! Luckily they have a good selection of sizes from what I have seen so far but I will have to start thinking in different numbers.
The boardwalk was beautiful even though it was a bit chilly today and there weren't very many people actually on the beach or in the water. My phone battery randomly died halfway through my adventure so I will need to figure out why. I did manage to get a pic before this happened though...
On my way back to base, I thought I heard the group walking ahead of me speaking in English which did not really happen outside of the base. At one point they stood to the side and then asked me in broken Spanish if I knew where a certain bar was. When I responded to them in English they were shocked! They started laughing and said they hadn't heard such "understandable spanish" since arriving LOL. Apparently it was a group of U.S. Army soldiers here temporarily before beginning their own deployment. I obviously could not help them but it was nice to meet some other Americans randomly.
I couldn't help but admire the brick and stone streets with gorgeous detail and mission-style housing. I could wander for hours! Anyways, I am super excited that Pat is headed this way and can't wait to see him and do a lot more exploring once he arrives. I still feel like I am in a daze and I have a full week of introductory community classes ahead of me so I hope to learn more about the local culture and post alot more pictures. :)
-Ems
I couldn't help but admire the brick and stone streets with gorgeous detail and mission-style housing. I could wander for hours! Anyways, I am super excited that Pat is headed this way and can't wait to see him and do a lot more exploring once he arrives. I still feel like I am in a daze and I have a full week of introductory community classes ahead of me so I hope to learn more about the local culture and post alot more pictures. :)
-Ems
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