As previously mentioned, I've had the chance to do a lot and see a lot of places in Europe since arriving in June. In an effort to remember all the many things I've done and to address the "hey, what've you been up to?" question, I'm going to try to try to chronicle some of the highlights.
- I moved out of my apartment in New Haven and arrived in Madrid on the 6th. I decided that even though I didn't yet have a job, I might as well search from Europe.
- On one of my first weekends in Spain, I went to Bilbao and barbecued with some friends in the tiny village of Lekeitio. The subtle differences in barbecue etiquette and culture were interesting.
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- My first weekend in the country also coincided with a massive bailout for the country's banks.
- I attended a wedding in Barcelona which was fantastic. The ceremony was in a gorgeous cathedral. This was totally new to me, though I recognize big, Catholic cathedrals aren't nearly as rare here as they are in the US. The wedding party was at a small castle outside the city and the hours of hors d'oeuvres preceding the meal were a bigger deal than in any wedding I'd been to before. The dancing continued until the sun came up.
- I took a brief trip to London to see about job stuff. The country was in the final stages of preparing for the Olympics.
- The Euro Cup took place. It was fantastic to watch the many matches during group play and of course watch the Spanish team work its way through the elimination games all the way to the championship. There was a clear feeling of euphoria in Madrid when they won, from celebrations the night of the final match to the victory parade a few days later. People were incredibly proud of the team given that it's won a couple of the biggest championships consecutively: Euro Cup 2008; World Cup 2010; Euro Cup 2012. I think some people also appreciated the sports win as a counterweight to the banking bailout.