Futbal en la playa

This is a very special week for us as we are able to share in some of the true experiences of Spain, rather than hitting tourist spots that we would if we were here alone. Marta took us today to a beach that is all locals, then we had authentic paella (YUM), and then took a siesta, strolled around the port and had a casual dinner. My favorite part of the evening was when Mason asked if he could play soccer with some of the Spanish boys on the beach. Borja took him over to the boys and made introductions. Borja went to another area where the older guys were playing, and Mason was soon engaged in the game.

As Mason does, he went full-force, running up and down the "field." He scored a couple of goals and kept going. Then he did a slide-tackle into a boy, flattening both of them. They both got up, and then Mason went to kick the ball, but got the boy instead...in a place that shouldn't be kicked, if you know what I mean. So the boy was flattened and soon all the boys were in a circle around Mason and this other kid. We watched from afar, curious as to how he was going to navigate this one. He later told me that the kid started yelling in Spanish, but switched to English saying "I am going to KILL you," at which point Mason pretended to not speak English either. I'm not sure what happened from there, but a few minutes later the boy offered a hand-shake and the game continued, but with a penalty kick(!). Mason remained aggressive, but we didn't see any more slide-tackles, thankfully. Soon Borja returned and refereed the game

The kid in the blue was the "victim" - the closest guy in the black shorts is the one who yelled the most.

Chirpie le gusta a España

Chirpie is nine and has gone on all of vacations. A well traveled purple pup.

Welcome Borja!

We made it to the Puerto de Mazarrón today and met up with our new exchange student, Borja, and his sweet family. Luckily for Kenzie, his sister Rocío is 12. We had a fantastic night. We went sailing on their boat, then went back to their house and had dinner. The condo here is on the top floor with an amazing terrace that looks over the small town and the sea. Borja and Rocío took Kenzie and Mason out to play with all the kids in the street (don't worry, no cars), which was just below the terrace. For several hours they all ran, stood in circles, laid down, laughed....it was very fun to watch.

Kenzie said that immediately the other kids just welcomed them in. It didn't matter that they didn't speak Spanish. She said that in America the kids would have been more reserved and judgmental, but here they welcomed them immediately.

At midnight when we finally left to get them, Mason's first words were "can I take a Spanish class?"

We are very excited to get to know Borja more and welcome him into our family. His mom describes him as very easy-going and relaxed, which is what we saw. He and Mason hit it off immediately. Borja knows karate and says that his half-brother is a black-belt and hits harder than Mason. He is great with kids, has a good sense of humor, and I think he will fit in just fine with us.

At about 11PM my brain stopped speaking Spanish. I think it's like running a marathon without training...after a while the body just says No More. But, even with language difficulties we had a great evening. Marta and I do just fine with a Spanish/English mixture. Cindy has no Spanish and Fernando has no English, so we try to translate. It's a lot of work, but so so cool to be able to do. It's been many years since I have spoken any Spanish, so I'm surprised at how much has come back to me. When Borja arrives though, all English so he can fully immerse (and I can put my Spanish back on the shelf for another 20 years).

Kenzie and Rocio sang and sang...

"yah, I think you will do just fine!"

me, Marta and Borja

These two hit it off immediately

smiles!

vacation hair...and tan

The guided road

What did we ever do before GPS and iPhones? Here we are in a foreign country with not even a paper map. If this phone dies, we are toast. Ok, well, Cindy's phone and our 3 iPads would have to die too for that to happen, but still, we are completely dependent on and enabled by our devices.

I realized this when we went to look for the car rental place and the address was more of an approximation. We left the hotel with our bags in tow and phone in hand, walked across Dénia, arrived at where the blue dot on the screen told us to go, and found no car rental places. Walking in circles, we eventually found it, but it hit me that a miss of 3 blocks is a major disconnect when you're in a foreign country with two little kids. But we are on the road to Puerto de Mazarrón (which I just realized is different than Mazarrón, where I thought we were headed). Luckily we have a strong signal so I can navigate, text Borja's mom Marta, and blog. It's an absolutely beautiful drive down the coast of Spain. 1.5 hours to go...and from there we will have native escorts that will suppress some of the need for our technology.

I just wish there were a few Starbucks drive-throughs...

Dénia

We made it! Kids didn't but Cindy and I are enjoying sangria. Just kidding...we just made them hide for the picture. It's hot here!!!

When we arrived they were having a paella cooking contest in the streets.

I tried to have paella for dinner but I think we found a tourist trap instead. Oh well, the ambiance was off the charts...super cool street too narrow for cars, warm night, and lots of people.

We are loving the little 15 room boutique hotel we found. The room is spacious and lovely, plus they have turtles, rabbits and cats in the courtyard. Something for everyone.

Sangria, just the two of us on a European vacation. And a duck, evidently.

Paella contest in the street. I can still smell it.....

Hotel doesn't have a pool? NO problem, it has TURTLES!

Super cool street not meant for cars

Mallorcan Mason

Mallorcan MacKenzie

Shoeless

The day Mason forgot his shoes I was not happy. Look at the gleam in his eye, however.

Pool

Some favorite pool shots from the house in Santa Eugenia...I love the ones of Ulli and me dunking Felix. It might have taken two of us, but we did teach him some respect, I believe. Yet somehow Cindy can manage to swim without getting her hair wet...at least some of the time.

Sights on Mallorca