Spain

I haven't posted in awhile because I haven't been able to access any internet due to spending most of my time in train stations and rock climbing in the middle of nowhere. So here's a big recap:

Monday, March 9

I had the weekend to kill before I left for Barcelona, so I decided to go climbing around Ireland. On Saturday, I went back to Glendalough to go bouldering with Sean. It was very scenic and just a fun place to hang out. On Sunday, Sean took me to a place near Wicklow called, Glend-lock-ness (have no idea how it’s spelled). There were a few people there, but not many are willing to hike for 45 minutes in a wet, swampy field. Although the view was spectacular and the climbing was descent, I don’t think I would go back without some hardcore rain boots.

Today is Monday and I am stuck at the Lleida transit station because I missed my train to Balaguer by waiting in the wrong fricking line. No worries, a guy told me to use the same ticket to go somewhere else, where Balaguer is on the way. I didn’t sleep last night because I wanted to use my sleepy energy to pass out during my flight to Barcelona-it’s a pretty swell system I have going on right now. When I arrived, everything was getting drenched. Although it was raining cats and dogs, I still went in the city to kill some time before my bus left for Balaguer. As my luck would have it, every bus was canceled due to bad weather conditions, so I had to take a train. There were a lot of little annoying things about the bus to train transition, but it’s probably only worth summary:

*Met a Sweed named, Magnus

*Realized climbing gear (rope and quickdraws) is a lot easier to travel with than a fricking crash pad.

*My Spanish blows.

Tomorrow, it’s supposed to be sunny and 9 degrees (Celsius), and I’m really psyched to go out climbing.

Friday, March 12

Balaguer

Balaguer was really amazing! My hosts, Annika Muuler and her boyfriend Jordi, were very kind to welcome me into their home. Annika is a journalist from Germany and can speak, German, English, Catalan, and Spanish….very impressive. I spent half the time in Balaguer sight seeing and biking because Annika had an unexpected article she had to write, but it was worth the wait because the climbing is amazing. Jordi is a really nice guy who speaks only a little English, so we only spoke when we were climbing at the gym or eating. Annika showed me around Santa Linya, where Chris Sharma now lives, and climbed there for a day. The famous cave in Santa Linya is amazing! I have never seen so many 5.14s and 5.15s before and it really inspired me to improve in climbing so I can one day climb one of the routes there. I also climbed in Os de Balaguer, which was more technical climbing. There are some climbing lounges and hostels in Balaguer and Sanata Linya, so it is somewhat easy to find a climbing partner there if I go alone, again.

After Balaguer, I took a train to Lleida, Zaragoza, and Teruel. This should have only taken 4 hours, but due to ONE fricking train arriving 10 minutes late, my schedule was ruined and the journey took me 12 hours. Hijo de puta! Due to the lack of sleep and spending 8 hours in a train station, I caught a weird infection in my throat. Out of desperation for a warm bed, I took a taxi from Teruel to Albarracin. There were buses going from Teruel to Abarracin, but I missed the last one (damn train) and did not want to wait until tomorrow. I asked a lady at the Molino del gato, a former water mill reconverted in bar ,where I could find a cheap hostel and I ended up at the, Meson del Gallo.

Saturday, March 13

Albarracin

This morning I woke up around 11:00 and had a hot shower and breakfast. I was not in a hurry to climb because I still felt tired and sick. I walked around Albarracin and was amazed by all the ancient buildings in the middle of nothing. Very beautiful city filled will huge mountains of prehistoric rock paints. After walking around, I went to a camping site full of bungalows to find some climbers who would be willing to give me a ride and climb with me. I was in luck. Since it was late, there was only one car left and it was about to leave. I used my horrible Spanish and I found myself climbing with seven great guys. All of the guys were either finishing med school or their PhDs, so they were not only funny but also smart. Two of them spoke English, Omar and Hans. Omar is from the Canary Islands and has his masters in Interracial Relations and Hans is from Austria and is about to finish med school. After climbing, they invited me to have dinner in their bungalow. Omar is a fantastic cook, but I am not sure what I ate. After dinner, we played poker while listening to some DJ music.

Sunday, March 14

Today I went climbing with the fellows from Austria and Canary Islands and found a nice couple from Germany that needed another person to share a bungalow with. I decided to take it easy and give my tendons a break, so I took a nap and walked around the city. Albarracin is pretty famous for their homemade cheese, so I decided to eat only that today and now I feel fat and satisfied. It was pretty cool just hanging out in the city, watching Madrid beat Valencia while eating tapas and bocadillos. I also met a nice couple from Valencia who were very nice and welcomed to show me around their city anytime, so I will definitely take them up on their offer. Now I am going to eat some more cheese.

Wednesday, March 17

The weather has been amazing, but my arms and shoulders are hurting pretty badly. Sharing the bungalow with Frank and Anna has been a blast. Everyday we get up, eat breakfast, go climbing, eat dinner, watch climbing videos and go to bed. Tomorrow it is supposed to start raining and it won't stop until next Monday, so I will probably head out to by then.

Videos will be posted when I return to Dublin....