Making Sea Salt

The first time I heard of making your own sea salt was from a wonderful blog called Not Without Salt. Her post had beautiful photos of gathering sea water in glass jugs. I pinned it, thinking that it might be something to try when we moved closer to the ocean.

Then after I came across an article from Simple Organic posting about the benefits of natural sea salt versus highly refined table salt, you really didn’t have to convince me any further to give this a try. Natural sea salt has so many more nutrients and is much more flavorful than table salt, which sounds like a win-win to me!

Now that I live right down the road from a few beaches, making my own salt is suddenly very possible, very easy, and free! We didn’t have beautiful glass jugs, but we did have empty milk liters.

(Stay tuned for a post about Wrigley & Zoe’s day at the beach)

When we first made salt, we brought three liters of water home with us and it yielded about 3/4 cup of salt.

What I wasn’t anticipating was how absolutely fascinated my husband would be with the process. The same day that we finished our first pot of salt, we went back to the ocean for EIGHT more liters of water.

Mike stood in the kitchen most of the day literally watching the water boil.

Late last night, the salt finally dried up enough and this morning, we have…a lot more salt!

Also, I guess Mike was in the 3rd grade science mood because he put an egg in a cup of vinegar just to watch it strip the shell from the egg. I think he was meant to be a mad scientist, not an engineer.

Mike was absolutely giddy over the whole process, so if you have kids, hopefully they will be too. It might be a cool thing to do the next time you’re on vacation (if you’re renting a condo with a stove).

I definitely don’t think we’ll be buying salt while we live in Spain!

Have you made sea salt before? Do you ever like to do elementary school science projects in your kitchen too, or is it just my husband?

101 in 1001: Eating Sea Urchin from the Sea

Mike and I have watched a LOT of Anthony Bourdain’s No Reservations. We love Bourdain’s snarky yet insightful commentary on all of the incredible places he visits. Since moving to Spain, we’ve tried to adopt his do-anything attitude, which includes trying everything we can and going on adventures to find the best, the freshest, and the most notable foods of this area.

One thing that really caught our attention was Bourdain’s Naples episode where he ate sea urchin STRAIGHT from the ocean and raved about it. Well…we wanted to do that too, so I put it on my 101 in 1001 list.

Yesterday, we went to one of the beaches within walking distance from our home and went hunting for some sea urchin!

We went during low tide so we would have a better chance of finding the creatures in one of the many tide pools, and we were successful! I was the first to spot a pool with many sea urchins who looked ripe for the picking.

Of course, when I hunt for sea urchin, I must look stylish.

Victory!! I was so proud of myself for plucking my first one out of the water! The glove definitely helped so I could get a better grip without puncturing myself. I only plucked 5 out of the tide pool so I wouldn’t decimate the population in that particular neighborhood.

While we didn’t eat the sea urchin right then and there, we brought them back home and dove right into preparing them so they would be as fresh as possible. If you find yourself in possession of a sea urchin, follow these steps. I used help from this video on youtube so I kinda knew what I was doing.

As for the taste, it was creamier than other roes that I’ve had. It definitely tasted fresh from the sea–a little briny, but not overwhelmingly fishy. Was it as awesome as I was expecting? Not really, because my expectations were probably unattainably high. But the satisfaction of capturing, cutting open and preparing something completely foreign to me was amazing.

Would we eat uni again? Absolutely! I think I’d try making it into a sauce next time, since I once had something similar at a local restaurant and it was delicious.

Besides our scavenge for sea urchin, we also picked up quite a few mussels.

While they were smaller than we’re used to getting at the market here, they were just as delicious.

Overall, we were really slap-happy over how fun and simple (and free) our meal was. It is always exhilarating to try new things, and we got some seriously good, seriously fresh food out of it. It’ll definitely be experiences like this that we’ll remember the most from living here, and it’ll be opportunities like this this that we’ll miss the most when we’re back home.

Have you ever scavenged and prepared your own seafood? Would you give sea urchin a try straight from the ocean?

Expat Depression

I’ll admit: one of the reasons I’ve been spotty with my posting at times is because I was feeling too depressed to write a happy post, and writing a depressing post scared me. I know there are those out there who would call me a snotty, ungrateful brat for not shooting rainbows out my ass about how awesome this is and how lucky I am and how wonderful and amazing everything is for me.

I have no interest in being bashed for my personal experiences, so I stayed quiet and read some books instead because reading has always been able to transport me away from my thoughts.

But now that I have some perspective on the situation, I thought I’d write about my experience because I’m in a better place now.

1. I gave up my independence.

Giving up my independence was very hard for me. I’m used to being able to do everything for myself. If I needed something, I’d get it myself. If I wanted to go somewhere, I would go. Moving here eliminated that option for me because I don’t have a car. I depend entirely on Mike to take me places, and staying in the house all day was making me stir-crazy. I felt worthless and anxious all of the time.

To combat the feeling of worthlessness, I started actively trying to think of ideas for personal projects. I fleshed out ideas for possible business ventures. I created an awesome version of my resume on Photoshop. I’ve learned more html and css. Instead of giving in to my feelings of being trapped in the house, I tried to turn it into a time for me to focus on myself and focus on my goals. It’s worked. It has given me something to focus on and I’m building my skill set up for when I reenter the workforce after this experience.

I still have my days of feeling locked up in the house without anywhere to go, but having more goals has definitely helped.

2. It’s not as romantic as I pictured.

I pictured Under the Tuscan Sun meets Eat, Pray, Love. I pictured running into town to chat with the locals who made fun of me for my horrible Spanish, taking bike rides and perhaps rediscovering a love to paint. I pictured sowing a garden in a little patch of rustic earth. I pictured eating great food every day at new and fun restaurants. I pictured the movie-star version of myself (Ms. Anne Hathaway, if you were wondering) living here. It’s not like that.

But living here does have its quirks and movie moments, so I try to remember that most people’s lives are not film-ready and I’m no exception. I can’t run into town, and I can’t carry on a long enough conversation in Spanish for anyone to make fun of me in the first place. The hills where I live are nearly impossible to bike without some serious training, and the art supplies I brought with me are sitting in the guest closet untouched. The rustic patch of earth that I plan to sow? Well, it’ll take quite a lot of manual labor to get that ready. And the restaurants here all serve exactly the same thing, which is great, but I don’t want it every single day.

So things aren’t quite as romantic as I pictured. It’s okay though…I’m readjusting my vision to a more realistic outlook.

3. Loneliness.

I love Mike. I can talk to him for hours and hours. We’re perfect companions. But he can’t be the only human being that I interact with. I had a hard time accepting that Mike could go off to work and get social interaction from his English-speaking coworkers while I was in the house, trying to learn Spanish on my own without anyone to talk with. And yes, we tried to go to our local bar so I would get more language skills, but I’m not exactly going to be BFF’s with the much (much) older crowd that frequents the place.

I’m still working on my loneliness. Some days are hard. I have met a woman recently who has been nice enough to take me into town to go to the market and go for coffee. She lives right down the road from me, so I can walk over if I need some human interaction. She’s been absolutely wonderful and I’m so grateful to her for being so kind to me. I’ve also grown much much closer to Wrigley and Zoe since I’ve been here. My relationship with my dogs has changed completely. They are absolutely everything to me–I love them so much more today than I ever have. They’re wonderful companions and I never could have moved here without them.

4. Things are just different.

Of course things are different. I knew that things would be different. I thought I would LOVE that things were different. No chain restaurants, no big box retailers, fresh markets daily, a smaller, simpler life was what I wanted. But when adjusting to a new place, sometimes just those little familiar comforts from home are sorely missed. A recognizable brand or store is very welcome to me as I’ve been battling homesickness. Sometimes, you just like the option to go to Target if you need something instead of simply not knowing where to go to get what you need.

But that has been getting easier as we get more used to our surroundings. We’ve found suitable substitutes for many of the things we miss, and have been appreciating all of the things here that we will miss terribly when we go back home. It’s still hard sometimes because I do miss home and many things about it, but I’m loving this lifestyle more and more for what it is. No, I don’t want to live here for the rest of my life, but while I’m here, I’m appreciating it more and more.

5. The Language Barrier.

I don’t know as if I’ll ever be fluent in Spanish. Learning a language is harder than I thought it would be. I can understand much more now and can usually follow a conversation if it is slow enough, but I don’t yet have the vocabulary to be able to string any sentence I want together. It can be isolating and frustrating to not be able to say what I want to say, or understand someone else. Going to the market with my new friend is helping, but I have a very long road ahead of me.

So it hasn’t been easy. The holidays were especially full of tears and sadness because I missed my family. Video chatting is always helpful and I’m so happy that we have technology to keep us connected. Things are finally getting easier, which I’m very grateful for. I do really love the fact that this experience is teaching me so much about myself and the world. It’s valuable experience that I’m sure will help me in life.

They aren’t always easy lessons though, and I will have days where all I want to do is go home. I will still have days where I’m frustrated and overwhelmed and lonely. I’ll probably NEVER understand why some Spanish customs are what they are, and I’ll probably always be a little confused by a lot of things. I’ll probably be very glad to get back to some aspects of my life in the States and mourn some aspects of life here. This experience is probably not movie material like I thought it would be, but it’ll be an essential part of who I become.

Spanish Road Trippin’

I have another trip surprise…

Right now we are in the car for a very long day of driving. About 9 hours of driving. And from where we live, we could get to any number of places in 9 hours, but this time, we’re on official business: put an end to our illegal immigration status.

In order to do this, we have to go to a US Naval Base in the south of Spain. They’ll take our passports from us for the week, process us, and give us the wonderful little stamp that allows us to be here. We have been laying low over the holidays since the police are very quick to pull over anyone at night to breathalyze them/check their papers. So with our newly attained SOFA (Service Of Forces Agreement) status, we will be able to once again leave the house without fear of being pulled over and being locked up abroad.

But just because we’re on official business doesn’t mean we won’t be making the most of this trip! We get two days of travel down to Rota, where the Naval Base is. Tonight, we’re stopping in Sevilla for the night. Tomorrow, we’ll head into Gibraltar and check it out before going on to our hotel.

Our hotel in Sevilla–hopefully it really does look this cool in real life!

Our hotel in Rota, where we’ll be staying for the week.

The week won’t be too busy for us, but we do have to take Spanish driving tests! It’s a written test, thank goodness, and it’ll be in English since many of the men and women at the Navy Base need their license. We get a little review session before the test…I hope I pass! It’s certainly been awhile since I’ve taken a driving test.

Other than that, we’re going to explore the Cadiz area and relax! We’re excited to explore yet another area of Spain, and I get to add another country to the places I’ve been–we’re spending all day driving through Portugal!

Oh, and I almost forgot–one of the parts I’m the most excited for!! On the Naval Base, there is an American grocery store where we can get some of our favorites from home that we’ve been missing. I’m looking forward to marshmallows and reese’s cups!

Wish us luck on our Spanish driving tests!

My Big Important Dreams in 2012

As I lay in bed last night thinking about the new year, I realized that I want to look back on 2012 as a time of growth & achievement.

I’m 25 years old and I’m starting to realize that all of the Big Important Dreams I’ve had will only come true if I work really, really hard at them. And honestly? I haven’t been doing such a great job at that. I always assumed that “things would work out” in my favor, but unless I work at it, that may not be the case.

My Big Important Dreams have been changing dramatically over the last few years. Instead of a luxurious home with fame, fortune, designer labels and summer homes, my Big Important Dreams have actually become Modest Important Dreams. I’ve grown up and realized what’s really, truly important to me.

My Big Important Dreams:

1. Be my own boss
2. If I can’t be my own boss, work for a company with ideals and philosophies that match my own
3. Do something creative and inspire others
4. Have the ability to stay/work at home with my children in their early years, work around their schedule as they grow
5. Despite working around my children’s schedule, have a satisfying and personally fulfilling career
6. Live near a city I love
7. Bring extra money into the household that will allow us more comfort and stability
8. Travel and appreciate the world around me

Now that I’m in Spain and have no career, I have a lot of self-reflection time. I know that the perfect career for me won’t just drop into my lap, and if I ever want to be my own boss, I will have to make that happen for myself. If I want the freedom and flexibility to raise a family the way I want, then I have to start working toward that now, before I even have children. If I want to have it all, I have to work at it myself. I have to act.

I don’t want to be one of those people with Big Important Dreams but don’t have the Big Important Work Ethic to achieve them. I don’t want to blame circumstances or other people or anything for not going for what I want in life. Here I am with all of the time in the world to pursue my Big Important Dreams, and so 2012 will be the year that I lay the groundwork.

I have some projects that I’m working on that have excited me and made me happy. I have both long and short-term goals. I have a plan A and a plan B, both of which I think are realistic to achieve if I work hard. I have a supportive husband, I have the time, and I (think) I have the money to try.

So here’s to 2012. I hope that it is an inspiring year. I hope that it’s a year that I try a lot harder than I did in 2011. I hope that it’s a year that I can look back on and be proud of myself.

How are you adjusting your dreams as you get older?

Santiago de Compostela

On Monday, Mike and I ventured about an hour away to Santiago de Compostela, which is the capitol city of our region, Galicia. It is also, according to Wikipedia, a Holy city where pilgrims flock from around the world. There’s even a series of trails called The Way of St. James (or El Camino de Santiago) that travels hundreds of miles for pilgrims to walk their way to Santiago.

We drove there and didn’t do the whole pilgrim thing.

{Disclaimer: I am not Catholic or religious, so I’m looking at this church from a purely tourist-attraction standpoint, not a religious one}

The day was pretty bleak and rainy, and I wore just about the worst outfit ever for walking around a wet city: a maxi dress that I had to hold up constantly so it wouldn’t drag the ground. I thought wearing a dress was pretty much a requirement for these things out of respect, but of course people were in jeans and such when we got there. Oh well.

I still looked awesome.

The outside of the church was pretty grimy, I must admit. I thought that a church that was considered such an attraction would be better cared for/cleaned. It was still very impressive though, as was the square surrounding it.

Every once in awhile, we could hear great shouts from Pilgrims who had made it into the square after their long journey (they must travel 100 km on foot or 200km on bike in order for them to earn the Compostela certificate, which means that they’re super awesome pilgrims, I think). It was so interesting to see the joy on these peoples’ faces as they completed their long journey–group hugs, kissing the ground, taking photos, bending down, winded because I’m sure they had to have sped up in the home stretch.

I might look like I’m pouting about the rain, but I’m really just observing the square. And maybe pouting about the rain a little bit. But isn’t my umbrella cute? It has sheep all in a line, and then the blue guy is a wolf in sheeps’ skin. hehe, it’s kinda evil.

Inside, the long aisle to the pulpit shows a shiny gold room of wonderment. It was an incredible contrast to the rest of the church, which was very gothic and grey.

There were little alcoves all around the church with different stories depicted.

The ceiling was very cool–this picture doesn’t do it justice.

After we walked around the perimeter of the church, we noticed that there was a long, long line forming for something. It looked like everyone got to go into the golden pulpit, so Mike and I stood in this long, long line:

It wound all the way around the center of the church. When we got to the doorway where we were supposed to enter this mystery attraction (well, it was a mystery to us, but other people probably knew what they’d be seeing) there was a sign saying no photographs. There was even a priest stationed inside this area to enforce the rule, so I couldn’t sneak any in.

I’ll let you in on what it was though: It was about a 3′x3′ space that was elaborately decorated in gold, and in the middle of the space there was a Jesus statue, his face pointed out toward the pulpit. It seemed like the thing to do when you got up to him was to kiss the back of his head. We didn’t do that though, probably to the extreme disapproval of the priest sitting there, and walked out of the 3 foot space. Mike said “I’ll bet you’re disappointed.” Haha, I was. I totally thought that we’d get access to the golden pulpit. Notsomuch.

After the Jesus statue, we went into a little room with a silver casket that is supposed to represent Saint James and two of his disciples: Saint Theodorus and Saint Athanasius.

Okay, so…I guess I’m just not one of those people who’s super impressed by churches. The Duomo was interesting when we went there, and Barcelona’s Sagrada Familia was ridiculous, though we didn’t want to pay the 30 Euro each to get in. We admired from the outside.

I think that I appreciate the buildings as something beautiful and architecturally interesting, but it pretty much stops there. Mike, who has seen many churches during his travels, has said that this church didn’t make his top five, so I suppose I’d only recommend going to check it out if it means something to you and your religion.

Do you like to see old churches when you travel? What’s the most impressive church you’ve seen?

“Let us step out into the night and pursue that flighty temptress, adventure.”

Somehow, after 11 months of waiting for this day, it’s here. As romantic and wonderful as moving to Spain sounded to me eleven months ago, we now face the adventure we signed up for knowing that it’s not all rainbows and butterflies. We went through hell and back to get what we wanted with this move, and we’re still fighting on a daily basis to get all of the moving parts that are involved in this kind of adventure working together. It hasn’t been easy. It hasn’t even been fun, most of the time. The only thing that pushed us forward was the ever-present thoughts of “when we get there…” and “it’ll be worth it.”

Mike and I are entering this new chapter of our lives hoping with all hopes that the risks we took to make this move will work out. We hope that the sacrifices we’ve made in our everyday lives will lead to greater opportunities for us down the road. We hope that the challenges we face will make us stronger individuals and a stronger couple.

We will arrive at our new home tomorrow afternoon, which will be the beginning of a very different year for us. We might not be able to speak with the locals and I might not be able to have the independence of a car to get myself around, but we’ll also have incredible opportunities to meet new people, immerse ourselves in a new culture, learn a new language, travel to many, many new places. This year will definitely be whatever we make of it, and knowing me and Mike, you can be sure that we’ll make an adventure out of everything.

I’m excited to garden with space I’ve never had before. I’m anxious to see if the dogs can swim or if they’ll just drink the pool’s saltwater until they puke. I can’t wait to see Mike’s face when we bring home our first cured ham leg to carve up in the kitchen. I’m looking forward to the day where I can go to the local market and ask for what I need without thinking twice about the language barrier. I’m nearly shaking with anticipation for all of the possibilities laying out before us that I haven’t even fathomed yet.

I’m also scared to leave what I have behind. Over the past three years, Mike and I have grown incredibly close to my parents, since they moved to New Jersey. They’ve been our best friends, the two people we could count on more than anyone else in our lives. They’ve been there for us when we ask advice, whether it’s financial advice, personal advice, health advice, clothing advice or what the hell to do with the groundhog we found trapped in our yard. The bond that I’ve shared as an adult with my parents has been invaluable, and I will so miss their physical presence in our lives. I am so grateful for their unconditional support as we take this huge step, though I know it’ll be hard for them too. We love you, Mom and Dad.

So, folks: here we go. I hope you’re ready to read about my adventures, mishaps, highs and lows when it comes to uprooting our lives and living in a foreign land. No matter what happens in the next year or so, Mike and I have the dogs, who will love us no matter where they are on this Earth; and we have each other, which…we feel pretty much the same as the dogs.

Title quote by the wonderful and prolific Albus Dumbledore.

Two Days to Vacay

This Friday, we’re setting off! We have a three week trip planned to Spain and France, where we’ll take in sights, smells, food, wine and…oh yeah, find a HOUSE to live in.

I’d like to say that I’m really, really, super excited. And I am…but only really at the idea of it. It still feels far too surreal to me, therefore it’s difficult to get excited about something that still doesn’t quite feel like it’s happening. The paperwork still isn’t all in place, though it seems like we’re very nearly there. The dogs got their vaccinations today and had to be re-microchipped since apparently their old ones aren’t recognized by the EU. Their paperwork doesn’t all get filled out until 10 days before we leave, so we still have that to do.

The to-do list keeps going, and going, and going.

But, instead of stay at home and deal with that boring stuff, we’re running away from it all for three weeks!!

Mike is very nearly done with our vacation powerpoint, but to give you an idea of the places we’ll be hitting up:

Yeah, that’s a lot of driving!! It’s definitely not the “sit back & relax” kind of vacation…it’s a “get off your butt and explore” kind of vacation, which is definitely what we prefer. And since we’ll be spending a week in Coruña/Ferrol, we’re hitting everything else up in a two-week period of time. It’ll be a great way to figure out some of our favorite areas, that way if we want to return for a long weekend, we can certainly do that while we’re living there.

Three weeks is a long time to be away from home and from our dogs. I’m very nervous about leaving them for so long, but I’m so glad that our good friends are staying here with them. I don’t think I could bear to leave them at a kennel for so long. But, since we’re covered on the dog front, there is really no excuse to not take a vacation like this and see everything we can possibly see within the three weeks we’ll be gone. There’s just too much of this world to see!

We have some very cool adventures set up for each stop, so I can’t wait to share those with you as we go. During my absence, I’ll try to write as much as possible, but I have some wonderful guest posters lined up as well to keep you entertained while we’re gone.

What’s the longest you’ve been away from home?

Twenty-Five

Today, I am officially twenty-five. Smack dab in my mid-twenties. Honestly, I never thought it would happen to me. Allow me to be dramatic for a sec.

When I was in high school, 25 seemed lightyears away. I imagined that I would be a rockstar moviestar big Hollywood writer by now with millions and mansions to spare. Ha! In my lesser fantasies, I was at least as glamorous as the Friends cast, with a nice NYC apartment that apparently paid for itself and a gaggle of friends who could pop by at any second to make life interesting. Um…no.

Instead, I’m married and I have a very, very good life. It’s not super glamorous like I pictured it would be, but I’m happy, and completely head-over-heels in love with my husband. We are embarking on a crazy-awesome journey together this year and I couldn’t be more excited to grow and challenge myself in a new country with Mike by my side.

I’ve gone through quite a lot of changes over the last couple of years, but especially within the last year. Marriage has made me stop and really focus on what I want my future to look like. I have a more realistic grasp on how this real-world thing works by now, so I put together a 101 in 1001 list. For those of you who may not be familiar with it, it is a list of 101 little and big goals that you would like to achieve in 1001 days.

Hopefully this list will make me a stronger & more knowledgable person. Hopefully the adventures will bring me closer to my husband. Hopefully you guys will get a kick out of the posts that result from my experiences, trials, failures and successes.

101 in 1001

The list is also in my top navigation bar, now! Link to your own 101 in 1001 list in the comments if you have one!

Follow the Spiders

Okay. So.

EVERY MORNING I would run into a GIANT strand of spider web between the tomatoes and the peppers. It was like fishing line it was so strong and every morning as I went out to check on our tomatoes and peppers, I’d get a face-full of web. So I finally just accepted that the spider would keep rebuilding that one strand between the two garden boxes every day, and I learned to swipe at it before I walked between them.

And then last night, we let the dogs out and there was a HUGE web with a giant spider in the middle. We’re talking 2 feet across the main part of the web.

And a quarter-sized spider.

So I’m like…oh my god, this thing is going to kill me one of these days when I reach my hand into the peppers and it’s going to bite me and I’ll die and then what??

Mike got a broom, he gently swiped at the web to make sure he had control of where the spider went.

He put it on the ground.

WHAM. He smashed it with his foot.

I didn’t run into the web this morning.