BABY I LIKE IT!!

It´s a slow day in the colegio today and even tho we are having fun in class watching the grinch and reading a spanglish version of "Twas the night before christmas" I really don´t have that much to report on.  However, don´t fret my pets!!  When have you EVER known me to be at a loss for words?  There is plenty that I can talk about.  The one thing that I´ve been thinking about lately: tall, guapo spanish men with dark hair and their cute little accents when they speak english.  They all remind me of Enrique Inglesias and to quote the very man himself "Baby, I like it!!"  I´m just saying that if there is anything hotter than an attractive, REALLY tall, dark haired man talking to me, it´s an attractive, REALLY tall, dark haired man talking to me with a spanish accent.  Now where Oh where can I find myself one of those???  I feel really bad, but I have a confession to make:  When attractive, REALLY tall, dark haired men speak to me here in spanish I pretend like I don´t understand anything they are saying just so they have to speak to me in english.  I know, it sounds bad and really i feel horrible.  BUT not horrible enough to stop pretending :)  I´ve been here for about 4 months now and although I sound like a 4 year old when I speak in Spanish I really do understand most of everything that people say to me as long as they are speaking clearly and not at NASCAR speed.  There is even a man that I work with that is just the cutest thing ever.  And although I don´t feel the need for anything other than a friendship from him, he still thinks I have no idea what is going on when he speaks in spanish and then he switches over to english so I understand. hahaha sshhhhh, it´ll be our secret.  I feel like it´s gone too far anyway.  He automatically assumes that I don´t speak spanish and speaks to me in the cutest freakin spanish accent I have ever heard.  Even the other day I slipped up and answered him when he said something to me in spanish and he looked excited and said "you understand?!?"  my response: "no, I just guessed, sorry".  I can´t help it, you should hear the way they speak english over here.  Not everyone sounds cute when they speak english tho.  Some of them sounds like they have an orange in their mouth.  It´s just aweful.  But the good ones?  wheeeww.  There is only one thing I can say about them...

"BABY I LIKE IT!!"

it´s beginning to look a lot like Navidad en mi colegio!!

paz en la tierra= peace on earth

hola a todos!!  I arrived back from the long puente we had a couple of weeks ago to visions of beautiful replicas of nativity sets all around our school and it is AWESOME!!  There is one big one (pictured above) that is right in the main entrance of my colegio and it´s just amazing.  And then all through the lobby area there are about 20 replicas made by students from all sorts of material including yarn, lights, and FOOD!  don´t worry, there was a sign next to the food ones that said "Do not eat! Do not touch! TOXIC!!"  and even though it was written in spanish the words look similar enough that I got the idea and kept my mitts to myself.   I have got to say that this semester is flying by sooo fast that it´s a bit hard to hang on.  I feel like I just got to this muy bonita place and I´m already flying home in just a few days.  Time sure goes by quick when you´re having a good time.  My students have all been a bunch of little locos in the classroom for the last week of school before christmas and I can´t help but remember back to when I was their age and in school.  Needless to say I can´t complain about their behavior when my own at that time was at least twice as bad.  I really lucked out and got a solid group of kids this year in the classroom.  And by solid group of kids I really mean the ENTIRE school is filled with good kids.  I teach the entire secondary school and the high school kids and a class in the 6th grade.  Even the kids that act up and are sometimes down right buttheads are even pretty cool once you figure out what they like.  I heard once that a good teacher doesn´t smile until Christmas.  That way the kids know that you are the teacher and are straight down to business from the moment you walk into the classroom until the moment you walk out.  I remember those teachers.  And there are a few of the none smilers over here in Madrid as well.  And if I remember correctly: Those were my least favorite.  Sure I didn´t try any funny stuff in front of them but I can assure you when their backs were turned there was plenty of monkeying around going on.  I slipped up and made the mistake of smiling on the first day.  I feel like it was the right decision tho.  A.)  Seriously, when do you see me not smiling (except for when I don´t get my way)? I´ll never be able to wipe this silly grin off my face. and B.)  The kids like me.  I LIKE BEING LIKED!!  Can´t help it, I´m a smiler.  So far it has been proven as a success.  Doesn´t mean it will work out all year but I think I can ride it out for the last 2 days of the semester.    :)

No thanks, LSAT this one out

LOVE

Yep, that wasn't the most responsible thing I've done.  Instead of studying for my LSAT, for the past 4 months I've been traveling around Europe and exploring my new home of Madrid.  Whoops.  I just finished writing my LSAT yesterday and after 5 hours of reading material as fast as I could and picking the "best" answers, I'm ready for a break.  A long break.  A long winter break at home.  OO wait, I'll be home in about 11 days, but who's counting, right??  Perfect.  Don't get me wrong, all you crazy people out there that know me are well aware that I handle being away from home very well.  I moved out when I was 17 and haven't lived there since.  BUT, that doesn't mean that I don't miss it.  I do.  A lot.  My parents, my amazing siblings, the absolute locos that I claim proudly as my extended family, and of course: My two beautiful dogs and fantastically perfect cat, Belle.  I haven't been thinking about going back but now that I'm on the home stretch (pun intended) I can't wait!!  You know how people say "I've got the best dad in the whole world" or "my family is the greatest family of all time"??  Yeah, they're all liars.  You wanna know how I know this?  Simple.  Because I have the best dad in the whole world and my family IS the greatest family of all time.  Therefore, all the other people that say it are wrong.  With that being said, there is no place in this whole world that I would rather be on December 25 than with those goofy Flynns that I love so much.  It will be nice to have a bit of a break from my crazy schedule that I've got over here but that doesn't mean it will be all play when I get home.  Mostly play, but not completely :)  I have to REALLY get focused and put a nice dent into my thesis for my masters program so I'm not left at the end of the semester with a massive paper to write.  I also have to talk with the fam about my future plans.  I know what you are thinking "But Brenna, you're 23, you should be able to make decisions about your life on your own".  Well, that's where you are wrong, amigos.  Unfortunately I was cursed with an amazing family that is closer than most families I have met before and while the world is my oyster, I still care a great deal about what they think.  On the up side I have quite a few options as to where my life could head over the next few years.  On the down side, all those options are VERY different from each other and it's hard to pick just one!  For example I could stay in Spain for a bit longer, work on my spanish and teach (which i looooooove here).  I could apply to law school and go where ever they accept me for the next few years and get my degree (assuming I do at least average on the LSAT the first time I take it).  I could take a year off and write a book about the crazy tails of my life over the past year and how spontaneously crazy it is (don't even act like you wouldn't read it and rave about it to your friends).  I could teach at a private school in the states with my masters and credentials that I am earning here (it would be waaayy weird to teach American kids who actually speak the same language as me...kinda boring).  Or I could just pull something crazy and move to yet another country on a complete whim (sounds vaguely familiar, no?).  Either way I am happy with all of my options and completely stressed at the same time!! I'm going to take the time for this break to evaluate my options and figure my shit out.  Let's be honest, it NEEDS to be done!!  Either way, it's wicked sweet to have absolutely no idea where I'll be living 7 months from now and what I'll be doing at that point in my life.  The possibilites are endless.  For now I'm going to lesson plan for the LAST full week of classes at school before I go home and probably re-read "Oh! the places you'll go" by the one and only Dr. Suess to muster up a little more optimism in my world :)  Good night for now, I'll be in touch  <3

Made it the whole time in Brussels without seeing a single sprout

pretty as a christmas card :)

We got into Brussels on a fridged evening and set off to find our hostel.  The hostel was surprisingly nice and after a long few days of walking around in the freezing cold weather, we decided to get some food from the local grocery store, have a picnic in our hostel and map out our stay.  Me of course being a total party pooper all the time, decided that our puente would be the perfect time to get sick with a sinus infection and made the executive decision to stay in the first night and catch up on some reading and some much needed sleep!!  Rio and Stanek went out for a few drinks which I am sure they enjoyed the time away from the third wheel for just a bit anyway!! The next day we got up, took cold showers, got dressed, grabbed the complimentary hot drinks from the hostel and set out to see the sights.  We had a whole tour mapped out on our nice little guide of the city and started out in the cold.  We first stopped at a flea market which looked more like a collection of things they have stolen from the tourists after they take them from their hostels and kill them.  As harsh as that sounds, you weren't there to see the locals sort thru used shoes and clothes and all things not wanted by anybody else.  Needless to say we stuck out like sore thumbs and blew that popsicle stand while were still alive.  We then walked past the police station that had about 20 bullet holes pumped into it and were on our way to the next stop on our map.  We saw all the beautiful buildings and cathedrals the city had to offer and of course stopped in a chocolate shop or two...including godiva, obviously!! We walked through a beautiful christmas market and found our way to a cute little place for dinner.  I had a great sandwich and for dessert we clearly got the waffles.  Well, as it turns out, it took me a trip to Belgium to figure out that I in fact am not a fan of waffles.  At all.  Rio and Stanek happily disagreed and enjoyed their waffles and we set out for the Delerium bars that were talked so highly of.  Well, they were magical.  The first one we went to we each got a special Belgium beer with an alcohol content of around 15% and made our merry way upstairs to see what they were packin.  We ordered and met two American men up there.  As it turns out, not only were they from the same area of New York as Rio, they had mutual friends.  Can I get a "small world"??  Well we had quite a few beverages and laughs with them over absolutely everything there was to talk about and it was decided that we needed to pay a trip to the Absynthe bar across the street.  Things got a bit loco after that and we somehow made our way back to the upstairs part of the Delerium bar for more beers.  After a night full of great laughs and great new friends, we parted ways and headed back to our upscale hostel.  I set my alarm for exactly 4 hours after we went to bed and fell fast asleep into a drunken slumber.  My alarm went off about 15 hours before I would have liked and I made my way slowly through the metro, a 1 hour bus ride, and into the airport for my flight back home.  Rio and Stanek were on a later flight and fortunately were able to sleep in.  Over all i would say that I had both a great puente and a kick ass birthday.  I do feel on the old side of things but it was nice to get back and snuggle up in my own (small, uncomfortable, spanish) bed and read some of my book for the rest of the night.

Feliz Compleanos a BRENNA!!!!

gingerbread buildings in Brugges!!

So after a wonderful stay in Amsterdam, we left on my birthday and took a bus ride to Brugges.  Well, it was supposed to be a short bus ride, however due to the blizzard that was raging during our travel, it took quite a bit longer.   We arrived in Brugges just in time to check into our hostel, grab an adult beverage, and get some dinner before the whole city shut down.  So, that is exactly what we did!  We got to this adorable town around 6 in the evening and took the shuttle into the downtown area.  Now, ladies and gentleman, if you have never had the fortunate opportunity to walk around inside of a snow globe, I suggest you try it.  It turns out it's my favorite thing to do during the holidays!!  We got to our hostel and checked in, put our stuff down, and grabbed a drink in the hostel bar while we planned our stay out.  After that we walked around in the snow for a bit and set our sights on grabbing some dinner.  We stumbled in to a wonderfully adorable local place where the food was great and the Belgian beer was even better.  After that we took about a million pictures of the buildings that had an uncanny resemblance to gingerbread houses and made our way to the only bar that was still open after the ripe time of 10PM.  Everyone was staring at us and it didn't take long before a nice man approached us and quickly informed us that hats were not allowed in their fine establishment.  whoops. we took our hats off and stayed a while.  We pounded a few more beers, grabbed a shot or two and went on to yet another bar that surprisingly was hiding from us during our search for a warm place to go for a beer.  We walked inside and sat down in the only seats that were free.  They also just happened to be right next to the only man in Brugges wearing a skirt.  He was dressed in traditional Scottish garb and had a matching accent to boot.  He asked us where from the states we were from and we told him.  I said I was from the great state of Ohio and he promptly informed me that he had family living in Sandusky, OH.  Crazy small world, no?  We talked for a while on why Ohio was the greatest state in all of the US and after an hour or two we were on our way back to the hostel.  The next day we spent walking around the snow globe and checking out EVERYTHING there was to see in Brugges.  I got a brat which was obviously madatory in Belgium and we saw the amazing windmills that were there.  It was a great city and I can't wait to go back...only in the snow.  And with a significant other because it was just toooo freaking beautiful to explore it without one!  We grabbed a paper funnel full of fries (french fries were invented in Belgium, who would have guessed!?!) which were just out of this world, and boarded the train to Brussels.

AmsterDAAAAMMMMMM

Winterland Amsterdam '10

Holy puente, I love Spain!!  Puente is spanish for "bridge" and i have grown to love our wonderful puentes here.  They mean long weekends in terms of working and school which is precisely why they are soooo fantastic.  If there just so happens to be a holiday that falls on a thursday or Tuesday, they go ahead and call that Friday or Monday off of school, hence the word "bridge" used.  It's kind of like having thanksgiving on a thursday every year and just not doing anything that Friday either.  Well we had a wonderful puente this past week and it lasted for 3 whole freakin days.  Marvelous.  Due to the fact that this just so happened to fall on my birthday as well (which I am pretty sure they did on purpose since I am just that important over here...siiiiike!) We decided to take this opportunity and travel.  A lot.  We started our travels in Holland and I am convinced this is where I am destined to live.  Forever.  The men are tall, handsome, and all speak english. HOLLER!  Never in my life have a met a country of happier people.  No seriously, all of them are happy and love speaking in perfect english to all the wide eyed happy tourists.  We started our trip by stepping off the plane at the amsterdam airport and boarding the train to what we thought was going to be the center of the city.  Well this was only supposed to be a short ride and after about 30 minutes we decided we were certainly not in the right place.  We asked where we were and were promptly told that the next stop would be Utricht.  Fantastic city, however NOT where we were supposed to be.  AWESOME.  We get off the train, ask a worker which train we were supposed to be on and were answered with "are you guys high?? wouldn't you like to be?? do you smell the weed in this place? Yeah, the sign on the side of the train said 'Amsterdam central' but it's broke so I'm not surprised you wound up here.  Take that train over there and you'll be in Amsterdam Central soon enough".  Yep, pretty much as nonchallant as they come.  Well, we got on the right train, landed in Amsterdam and walked for about an hour in the fridged cold to our hostel.  When we arrived we were given our room and bed numbers and decided to drop our stuff off and explore for a bit.  It was only about 11 so we figured we had plenty of time before things were shutting down.  We got in the room and were greeted by a man that was very much under the influence of something crazy and his two friends were sound asleep in beds.  That sounds wonderful but the problem is that one of the beds that one of them was in just so happened to be mine and his bed was dirty and had shit on it too so I couldn't even trade them.  No biggy, we went down stairs and asked if there were any other clean beds so that guy could sleep off whatever it was that he needed to sleep off and not cause too much trouble and we were on our way to explore.  We were gone for about 2 hours and arrived back to our hostel to see an ambulence parked outside.  When we got inside we saw the 3 guys that were in our room down stairs and one was hooked up to a machine checking his vitals.  perfect, we come in to amsterdam, cause problems, and have the ambulence called in on our roommates after we kicked them out of bed.  Needless to say we didn't really make friends in that place.  We saw everything the city had to offer and lived as a local for the day we were there.  It snowed like a snow globe on the last day we were there, which just so happened to by my birthday.  Which again, I am partially convinced was a gift from God just for me since I love snow so much :)  You will have to check out facebook to get all the pictures, but we really had a great time.  We ran for about 30 minutes in the blizzard to our bus that eventually got us to Brugges and so ended a wonderful stay in a wonderful city :)

This is how we do it. our hands are in the air, wavin' from here to there

OOOO hey girl hey.  Yet another international Thanksgiving in my life.  Still nothing close to the amazing times I have with my family and friends back home, but it was as close as it could get.  My first thanksgiving celebrated abroad was 2 years ago in Ireland.  We had a bitchin good time on the emrald isle where we rented out the local party house and got rowdy with about 100 of closest and not so close international friends.  Good food, good people, great black out.  I will be the first to tell you that during that irish thanksgiving I started drinking around 8 AM, puked on the way to my 9AM class, and then rallied afterwards with more booze.  God, how great it would be to be young again...  Anyway, I had some really great friends over there and I blacked out with them around 2 in the afternoon and somehow managed to party until about midnight that night without remembering a single thing.  Those were the wild days, I'm tellin ya!  So things were different for this international thanksgiving although the company was argueably just as amazing.  Although there were not as many amigos to celebrate with, the quality was outrageous.  It amazes me every single time I think about how incredible my friends are over here in Espanya.  I have somehow been gifted the right to have the most genuine, loyal, and all around greatest people in the world as my very spontaneous yet wonderful friends.  You don't fully understand how it happens until you are in the situation, but somehow one day you are living in a country minding your own business and the next you move to a different country without friends or family and are suddenly closest to complete strangers.  You share amazing life experiences and live extraordinary lives abroad with complete strangers that somehow over night turn into your closest friends and confidants.  Theresa, Lisa, Callie, Rio, and Stanek were present during our wonderful thanksgiving abroad and I need to confess that I am so thankful for them being in my life here.  Without them I am not sure just how functional I would be (Also mad props to James for setting me up with such amazing people in spain!!!).  They were strangers to me as of August and now I can't see my life without them.  They mean the world to me and I can't wait to see how much closer our friendships grow over time :)  My spanish family was also in attendance.  And by that I mean my absolutely fabulous co-worker, Belen.  I work at a school that I am completely in love with (pretty sure I've said that before...about a million times) and the teachers there are just perfect.  Almost none of them speak english but all of them are making incredible efforts to communicate with me.  It's an incredible blessing to absolutely love what you are doing with your life every single day.  Well anyway, Belen is one of those amazing teachers at my school that I have been growing closer to as the school year progresses.  She has let me into her home and I finally had the chance to pay the favor back to her.  I don't know if it's lame on my part to say that my closest spanish friend that I have made is another teacher at my school who is just a bit my senior or if it just means she is wicked cool (no seriously, she is)  but she's great.  She brought her niece with her (slowly I'm planning on working my way into her family, meeting each member one by one!) and they celebrated their first american thanksgiving with us.  We had the usual spread: green bean casserole, sweet potatoes, stuffing, mashed potatoes, etc.  HOWEVER, due to the lacking demand of huge turkeys at the end of November, we couldn't find one good enough in time and settled on chickens.  Surprisingly, I didn't really notice the difference.  Could have been all the wine, but they tasted just as good as turkey tastes every year :)  After quite a few bottles of wine, a bunch of photos taken, an uncountable number of laughs, and of course the cha cha slide, the night came to a close.  We also had some British guests over as well and I am hoping they enjoyed their first american thanksgiving as well.  All in all it was a spectacular evening and I can't believe how great my friends are over here.  Not exactly the same as spending with my family, but it was a nice and very much appreciated substitution :)  Needless to say I am a little girl with A LOT to be thankful for :) :) :)
<3