The Most Amazing Volunteer Opportunity EVER
Trip Start
Jan 07, 2010
1
32
38
Trip End
Ongoing
La Alberca, Castille and León, Spain
Friday, April 30, 2010
It´s hard to put into words how amazing the opportunity was...much more than we expected. We had hoped to meet some nice Spaniards and get some travel tips for the rest of our month in Spain but actually what happened was we built some true friendships, which we hope will be lasting.
So, what was this all about??? Basically, we had 8 days of conversations with Spaniards. Sometimes it was one-on-one taking walks or relaxing on the resort grounds; other times it was in groups of 4 with prepared topics that were based on politics, ethics, etc., other times we had planned activities like skits and games--sometimes they were a bit hokey but always hilarious like Saturday Night Live skits. Every morning we had a buffet breakfast, lunch and dinners were always 3-course meals with wine. Honestly, the first two days were a little tiring, mainly because we´ve been so used to doing nothing on this trip. But by day 3 they started incorporating cultural aspects into the program like a tour to the town (a world-heritage site), a ham, chorizo and wine-tasting event in a 300-year-old bar; an ancient ceremony brewing an alcoholic concoction; and a fantastic final night event in an ancient restaurant with the absolute best roast pork we have ever tasted! This region specializes in products and recipes with black pigs, which taste very different than normal pink pigs that we have the in U.S. Honestly, the pork was out of this world and the chorizo was SO different than the Mexican style and...SO much better. (We´ve been eating a lot of pork!)
Another highlight, particularly for Shari, was two ¨disco¨nights with songs from the 70s, 80s and Spanish dance songs. Everyone danced until the wee hours. It was easy to get on Spanish time with some much to do and having so much fun.
So who went on this program??? The Spaniards included a few teachers, a few human resources managers, a few telecom managers, an attorney, a forensic scientist with the Red Cross, marketing managers, and various other types of business people. The same was true with the volunteers except there were a few retired people. Because we got to know these people so completely during 14 hours of conversation per day, we found out quickly how interesting and diverse they were.
Honestly, by the last day, we were so sad to say good bye to the group. We aren´t that good with keeping up with people but we hope that we make a good effort.
We came back to Madrid for a quick night and then it was on to Granada about 5 hours south of Madrid.
More later...
Shari & Bob
