I've lost count of all the subtle differences in university life in Ireland, but the concept of a "revisions week" is certainly strange. A whole week to study for finals? In January it was immediately pegged as a week to get away at the end of the semester. Spring break part 2 if you like. I think I can safely say I made good on the idea. Next time you have a week off and some euro to burn, hop on a plane to Barcelona and make your way south to the seaside town of Sitges. Thanks in part to the brilliance of homeaway.com, Lauren, Catherine, Conor, and myself rented a castle tower looking apartment overlooking the Mediterranean for a week of some much needed relaxation. In all my travels thus far there has always been a sense of urgency to see all of these amazing things, and honestly I just wanted to get away and chill. Good food, cheap wine, and sitting on the beach all day... tough life right? My typical daily routine: wake up way to early, as I always do, feeling a bit raw from the night before. Pull on my boardshorts and have a cup of tea on the patio outside, soaking in some early morning sunshine. If I was feeling ambitious, a good walk to the supermercado to pick up some fresh ingredients for the day's meals, followed by a quick swim in the pool. Enjoy a breakfast of scrambled eggs with cheese and avocado, poured all over a fresh baguette. Grab some beers and head to the beach. Sit on the beach for hours, chill out in the water, and hope the Spanish nudists aren't up to anything weird. Another swim perhaps, and defiantly some wine, and its back to the kitchen to work on dinner. Enjoy a leisurely meal with a few more glasses of wine, have a few good chats, and watch the sun go down. Continue consuming wine, and at some point fall asleep to the sounds of the ocean. The best part about it: push repeat. I cannot remember the last time I've had so much time to straight up enjoy the simple things without having to worry about much of anything. Seriously I know its lame, but I'm obsessed with cooking... I don't think the others minded one bit. I grew rather fond of the wide array of fresh but cheap produce and foodstuffs at the market, and not enough can ever be said for the beauty that is a 0.95euro litre of Don Simon vino. I could have stayed for a month easily.
From what I understand, Sitges was at one time an important fishing village, but is now mostly a resort town. There are many hotel looking structures along the water, but the actual town retains much of it's charm. Simply beautiful. Sitges is only a 30 minute/3euro train ride from Barcelona, so we did spend a day taking in the city. I know it is all hyped up, but the Sagrada Familia is truely impressive. The week went by all to quickly, but it was brilliant to step back and take a breather. Thank you to the mysterious apartment owner Ramon for the accommodations, and to Mr. Don Simon himself for providing the heavenly vino which was the catalyst of many a good conversation. I would also like to personally thank Mr. Kenrick for his excellent Spanish speaking skills, which proved both useful and rather hilarious. It all seems rather simple, but it was designed that way. Now its back to real life. In a week I will have all four finals under my belt, and I'm free to wreck havoc on Dublin for another seven days. Until then I'm committed to the books, but there is still more to come in this time that is running shorter than I'd like to admit. See you on the other side. Cheers.
From what I understand, Sitges was at one time an important fishing village, but is now mostly a resort town. There are many hotel looking structures along the water, but the actual town retains much of it's charm. Simply beautiful. Sitges is only a 30 minute/3euro train ride from Barcelona, so we did spend a day taking in the city. I know it is all hyped up, but the Sagrada Familia is truely impressive. The week went by all to quickly, but it was brilliant to step back and take a breather. Thank you to the mysterious apartment owner Ramon for the accommodations, and to Mr. Don Simon himself for providing the heavenly vino which was the catalyst of many a good conversation. I would also like to personally thank Mr. Kenrick for his excellent Spanish speaking skills, which proved both useful and rather hilarious. It all seems rather simple, but it was designed that way. Now its back to real life. In a week I will have all four finals under my belt, and I'm free to wreck havoc on Dublin for another seven days. Until then I'm committed to the books, but there is still more to come in this time that is running shorter than I'd like to admit. See you on the other side. Cheers.
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