This afternoon I took a nice hike with my host dad, Grace, Alex, Alex's host parents and the dogs, Leo and Nala. The reason why my host dad hikes so much is not just for the mountain air. He picks wild mushrooms. The first time I found this out, sometime within the first week I was here, I didn't quite trust the fried mushrooms my host mom was piling onto my plate. Up until that point I had only ever eaten store bought mushrooms. Then I figured that my host dad grew up in Sabi surrounded by mountains, and he goes to pick these things all the time. He probably knows what he's doing. All of the different kinds of mushroom I've tried here I like a lot, which is good, because we eat a lot of mushrooms.
Saturday was the annual family reunion for my host dad's side of the family. It was originally supposed to be held the week I came, but my host family agreed to push it back a month so I could adjust a little. It was all wonderful. I meet more of my host relatives and chatted a little. They all complemented me on my hair (don't get me wrong, there are curly haired blondes here but it's not typical). However, I ate so much food yesterday that I didn't really want to eat lunch today.
Let me explain how food works in Spain. When I'm just with my host parents I eat (or at least try) whatever they put on my plate. They always ask if I want more if there is any food left, but from day one they have been telling me that if I don't want to eat something I don't have to. If I don't want more I can refuse. They understand there is a culture difference. I understand there is a culture difference, but I'm grateful for their understanding because some days I'm just too full to ask for seconds. However, that's just me with my host parents. Yesterday, when I was with a whole troop of my host relatives, real Spanish Culture kicked in. In Spain, if you've never tried it, you eat it. If your plate has food on it, you eat it. If your plate is empty, that means you really liked the food and want more. If your plate has a something left on it, it means you didn't like it. If you refuse seconds, that means you didn't like it. Not to mention the fact that because I'm now of legal age here all of my relatives kept offering me alcohol. It's not like they were pressuring me to drink. That is simply the norm, honest to God.
Anyways, I came out of the family reunion probably a bit heavier that when I went in, but it all turned out alright. Tomorrow I have school, which I'm not exactly trilled about because, even here where I wake up at 7:30 for school, I still find it hard to get up in the morning. Also, I think I'm getting my History of Spain test back tomorrow. YIKES!
On the bright side, we're going to Barcelona in two weeks. There will definitely be pictures to come!
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