Katie Mac in Europe!: Wait, yesterday was 4th of July?

Where I read the HUGE casefile on the murder during San Fermin last year.

One thing I'm looking forward to back in the states is watching a movie without subtitles. There is no option to remove subtitles over here. And it is physically impossible, to not look at the subtitles, even if the movie is in english and the subtitles are in english. You just can't help but look. I'm also looking forward to having some good Mexican food. My quest for Mexican food for the 4th of July wasn't a complete failure but it wasn't exactly a success. I wasn't able to find this mysterious Mexican Restaurant that people told me about, but I was able to find some quesadillas. I found them at an American Restaurant (called Foster's Hollywood) in the mall. They were not very good at all. They had 3 different kinds - quesadilla with artichokes, quesadilla with a picante sauce, and quesadilla with spinach. None of them were good.

I was excited to find a mall in Pamplona though! I spend a good 5 hours there - most of which was spent in the Super Walmart sized grocery store/department store called E.LeCleric. It was awesome! I bought some flan that doesn't have to be refrigerated that I'm mailing home for my family to try. I also bought some shirts b/c my 3 shirts are getting really ratty. It stinks having to wear the same thing every 3rd day too. So now I have some variety! I also bought another cute shirt at a store but I'm not exactly sure it's fashionable in the states. I have no doubt that my sister will let me know though.

Ham anyone?

I had to take the bus to get to the mall because it's right outside the city. So I hopped on the bus to get back into the city about 6pm. Ok, so this is how bored I was today, on the 4th of July. I ended up riding the bus for over an hour because I literally had nothing else to do. At the last stop, the bus driver yelled (at me) "la ultima parada, la ultima parada - the last stop. I just stared at him without moving, and he stared right back. He thought I was crazy b/c I had my 2 bags from the mall that very clearly stated E.LeCleric and I had just rode the bus from the very first stop to the very last stop and wasn't getting off. Yes, I'm weird, but whatev. Everything is a cultural experience. I did finally end up getting off when I spied a protest in process. I can't read Basque so I have no idea what the sign says. But I imagine its something about how they think they should either be their own country, or Navarra (the region) should work on better incorporating the two distinct cultures.

I packed up 2 boxes tonight to send home full of spanish law books that people have given me and my work clothes. I estimate the price to send the 2 boxes will end up being about $150. Sending packages overseas is SOOO expensive! But alas, I really don't want to carry useless weight for 2.5 weeks while I travel and I'd have to pay an arm and a leg for the excess weight for my flight to Ireland anyway. You gotta do what you gotta do.

So it's July 4th and I haven't done a single thing to celebrate. Course, neither has a single other person in this town so it's not like I'm strange. My roommate did with me a Happy 4th of July which was really nice. It would be nice to have friends to go out with but what can you do. I'll stay home, drink my amazing $1 wine, and watch Lord of the Rings (which I don't really like at all but it's the only DVDs that my roommate has...and they can be played in English). I hope that everyone else had a great 4th of July!!! Thank you to all our military folk who are fighting or have fought for our country!

In case you're curious what my fridge in Pamplona looks like :)

So today is Sunday. I literally spent about 3 hours trying to find internet. It seems the higher powers really want me to die of boredom in Pamplona. The problem is that EVERYTHING is closed for the 8 days of San Fermin. I really don't understand how a town functions for 8 days with everything closed. I guess they're all too busy drinking and partying to care. I tried to sit outside my regular community center (which is closed of course) to use their free wifi. But I was chased away by a scary dog and an even scarier security guard who seemed very mean. I next spent about 1.5 hrs trying to get a decent single at the ciudadella. I finally gave up when the signal disappeared forever. I then went to the bus station which is supposed to have free wifi. Well, every screen was asking for money so I gave up. I then walked to a bar in the Plaza Castillo where I am now. I had read online that there's a hotel in the Plaza Castillo that has free wifi and if you sit at a bar next door, you can use it. Well, thank you internet! Because here I am drinking an amazing sangria, watching the crowd, surfing the net :) I really think you can find whatever you need on the internet.