We have been ignorant in our blogging, and as such are extremely apologetic.
However, we have gained jobs, returned to/continued University, been drinking and eating wonderful food, and meeting with long lost friends. We have been music hunting, soul-searching, running, swimming, and hiking. We have been hungover, and conversely, as mentally resolute as our faculties allow. We have consumed beer, planned travel, read, written, and received letters, and spent quality time with those we miss and love. We have had health scares, familial worries, financial barrel-scrapings, and quarrelsome frustrations at the world around us, and the people in it. We have made promises and been lack-some upon our laurels, but resolute in our means to not only meet them, but further them and exceed even our own expectations.
So when we return, we hope to regale you with a few more tales, some photos, some lists (particularly in terms of beer consumption), maybe even some videos, and definitely some crazy laughs.
“Matt. For the last time, will you please get your licence. I wanna drink at these beer-tastings too you know.”
– Connor, every single time he has to drive us (well, to be honest, me) to a beer-tasting event.
Matt – enjoying not being Deso Driver for the night. Connor – not quite as impressed.
Well, as far as I’m concerned, that sounds like a challenge.
But first to explain.
I don’t have a drivers licence. *dodges abuse hurled from everywhere*.
Yes, I know!! I should!! I’m almost 23!!! But I just never got around to it. I left home for uni, moved into a place with good public transport, but no car, money to own/run a car, and no-one to sit in the passenger seat next to me and accrue the hours, without paying through the mouth for some unknown person to do it.
Sooooo, I just never got around to it, yet. Now, this is not to say I can’t drive, that I can do, but that’s no excuse. I’ve been lazy, I know. Bad Dobby.
This is Connor – DD for the past 3 months. Whoops.
So lately when I’ve been visiting Connor and we go hunting brewskies, guess who has to drive?? And guess who (teeheehee) gets to enjoy the beverages?? Cheeky Dobby.
So, after Connor so vehemently announced his desire to drink and not drive, I have decided I should get onto my licence. Well, here comes the twist, I guess I should more appropriately say, ‘a’ licence.
You see, all those highlighted reasons for me not getting it, well, they still exist. Money is a big hurdle, as is time, and the fact that I have so many hours of commitment before it becomes of any worth – the ability to independently drive.
However, I do have a solution.
Challenge #12 – To get my Motorcycle licence.
Pretty sure my dad juuuuuust had a shiver go up his spine.
Anyway, to explain. The rules associated with getting a motorcycle licence in Australia are much better suited to Learner drivers. They enable, after completing a practical course over a few days, a to Learner essentially explore the use of low-powered motorbikes and scooters as they are learning. This helps me not only gain independent mobility very soon, but means I can get out and explore and move about while I am still on my L’s, in a cost-effective means. These two things are extremely enticing.
It means that after a few months of riding, I can pass my second licence exam, and start to possibly take a pillion passenger. Ie Connor.
Although to be honest, I think in the end i would just rather take a taxi, so we can both enjoy the beverages together.
However, it does have a second, more long-term use and importance. The attainment of my licence, and the subsequent practice I undertake will hopefully prepare me for a much larger challenge to possibly be faced later on in the year.
——– ——— ——— ——— ———
After reading of Unicef through my research on last week’s post on Ewan McGregor, and finding myself a role model with which I can follow a bit of a path of self-discovery so to speak, I have avidly researched ways in which I can undertake fundraising for the organisation. 2012 is, as some of you may or may not know, a big year for my family, but probably more so for me.
It will be the 18th Anniversary of my brother Ben Orman’s passing. My younger brother died at a very young age of health complications, in a modern society where we are privileged to receive direct and high quality health care. I have been through my own turmoil and reasoning with ways to cope with the anniversary, the day my brother would’ve been free to start his own life in essence; make his own choices, decide who he wanted to be. But nothing yet has seemed to stick.
And as even more of a coincidence, it appears that I will be in India or Nepal on the 16th of December, his birthday, later this year. So the way in which I commemorate it will probably be without the rest of my family, harrowing somewhat, but meaning I have some freedom to decide how I want to approach the day.
So, plans are in the way to do something big, that maybe entails much more than just one day of celebration, but instead a journey, as much as I hate that word (courtesy of Year 12 English). Something that I can look back on and fondly remember the way in which I celebrated my own life and the pleasure I have in living it to the fullest, when he in many ways was unable to enjoy his own, himself, if nothing else but for it’s brevity.
The idea at the moment is to circle India, or rather, circumnavigate it (so to speak).
Sounds alright, perhaps even quite possible. Until I say that I am intending to do it on a motorcycle.
Yes, thrusting a somewhat newby at riding into one of the most hellish driving situations on Earth. Maybe not the smartest of ideas, but, it is just that at the moment – an idea.
Preliminary Route Plans
The initial plans focus on short days of driving, approximately 300-350km a day, along major highways, stopping at major cities that will have decent supplies and accomodation. The aim is to try and do it within roughly a month, but only requiring 25 actual days of driving to achieve the 7,500km route. It may be lengthened slightly to include the Sikkim and Bihar regions, and explore maybe as far as Darjeeling in the North. This would of course add additional time.
Connor may or may not come along for the journey, I will leave that up to him. It of course may ultimately never happen. That is just fate. But we will try our best to generate some form of grand challenge to undertake on the continent.
But before you continue on about why I would do this, my intentions are two-fold. To commemorate the passing of my brother, yes.
But also to generate awareness of the health conditions and availability of health care in third world countries, in particular the Indian subcontinent. Trying to draw perspective and understanding from friends, family, acquaintances, and unknown donors, that even with all the health care in the world, we still have children dying in the midst of high sanitation, plentiful food, water, and nutrition, and with professional health staff to advise families and friends of their options. And in doing so, show how people without all these resources struggle not only to make ends meet, but to survive all that they face, all that rises up to dissuade them from being able to enjoy life, much in the way that I am by travelling and exploring. And in the process, raise valuable funds for Unicef, supporting it’s worldwide programs and initiatives that aim to give the underprivileged children of the world a fighting chance. And hopefully Unicef will jump on board the plan, and organise some tours to see first hand what they’re doing throughout the country in it’s fight against child poverty, malnutrition, health epidemics, and education.
So, be on the look out for this later challenge. If it eventuates, then this blog will be the primary location to see it being put into action. And if it doesn’t, something else will surely take it’s place.
We are, after all, doing everything we always said we would.
It was raining at this year’s Michigan/Ohio Tough Mudder event. So not only were there set, distinct, obstacles, but even the starting line became a challenge (note the guy who slips in the front row!)
Enjoy this awesome video!
You have to earn that beer at the finish line…
Getting more and more pumped for this by the day!!
Melon Gibson @ Mrs. Parma's - 25 Little Bourke Street
This was a stellar little drop we enjoyed a few week’s ago at the blooming Gastropub Mrs. Parma’s on Little Bourke Street. At first, the three of us trying it were taken a bit aback, neither of us preferring to keep drinking. But after a few sips, a light flush of refreshing watermelon grabbed you by the tongue, and had us all fighting to pour the remaining dregs into our glass! This would be perfect on a warm summer’s day, feet in a paddle pool, and a case of these in an Esky within easy reachable distance. We highly recommend it, and also to Mrs Parma’s. They had a fantastic selection of beer’s and cider’s on offer, and their tasting paddle had a nice variety of predominantly craft beer’s and important delicacies.
Now as Matthew has so kindly pointed out in a previous blog post, I am indeed currently in the process of returning from a minor physical set back, which reared its ugly head in the form of a broken hand and arm. To say broken would perhaps not do justice to the structural damage which my hand suffered; perhaps decimated, destroyed or ruined provide a more accurate descriptor. Take your pick. To fully explain what has proven to be a minor ordeal, resulting in a somewhat slow start to the year 2012, I will return to the end of January, and to an event which I would prefer to erase from my memory bank. Venturing to remote Central Australia to take part in an indigenous medical placement, the beginning of my remote and isolated experience was proving to be incredibly enlightening, both clinically and culturally.
View of Kata Tjuta from the plane.
However, participating in a seemingly harmless walk up a local gorge on a peaceful Summer Sunday afternoon would prove to be a vastly different to expected experience, and with it came running an array of challenges. The sensual wonder of birds chirping, fresh water running, wind rustling native grasses, sun warming the back of the neck and smell of flowers would be adequate for most, yet I still felt a sense of existential angst; I could feel the inner stupidity of my teenage boy begging to me (if only I had chosen to complete my placement post-adolescence). Crooning my head upwards to see the peak of the gorge, suddenly the wondrous sounds which had previously been resonating romantically from wall to wall were replaced with the incessant taunting of mother earth, ‘climb this gorge’ it challenged me.
Like the ever so ego-centric teenage boy who could not handle being emasculated, a characteristic which I had indeed been beginning to become proud of riding myself from, I took to the task like a bull at a red flag. And failed. Emphatically. To summarise what I would like to think of a gallant attempt (which in reality was more akin to a chicken with one wing trying to fly), I fell from a decent distance on to my outstretched left upper limb. As you may well have guessed, this little fall of mine culminated in a definitely unwanted predicament. A radial styloid avulsion fracture, shattered 2nd metacarpal, severe soft tissue damage, a 50 hour wait without painkillers, 5 hour 4WD ride, 2 plane flights, 5 x-rays, a CT, 2 operations, a small mechano set inside my hand (3 wires and 3 pins), intensive massage and finger-exercises to reduce swelling and a 12 week lay-off, yesterday I finally received the sweetest of news – I could, for a few hours a day at my discretion, remove my splint AND, commence running.
Uluru - Not the way i had planned to visit.
I am sure that everyone can associate with the experience of completing a CV and getting towards the end where hides the section titled ‘Interests and hobbies’, with this segment quite often being the most enjoyable part of an otherwise monotonous and laboursome activity. For as long as I can recall, my first entry to this section has undoubtedly and without hesitation been ‘SPORT!!!’ (for the sake of professional presentation I refrain from the use of capitalization and excessive exclamation marks. Normally). Now, due to a 10 week Andean Odyssey and 12 week injury, I had not participated in any premeditated form of exercise for a considerable period of time. Today, out on my first run, the wind blowing through my luscious locks and Matt riding shotgun provided a truly unforgettable experience. Needless to say we were indeed moving at a snail’s pace, so it is arguable that will most likely turn into another experience I will wish to erase from my memory.
Not the best that my left hand has ever looked.
Just like how the hare won the race, slow and steady will have to be my motto for the present, as I attempt to regain some form of cardiovascular fitness. With many upcoming physical challenges this year, including Tough Mudder in September, a 50km Trailblazer in October, Everest Base Camp and a yet to be determined marathon I undoubtedly have a long way to go, but I am most definitely looking forward to the challenge of getting back in the pool, on the bike, pulling on my runners as well as eventually returning to the gym.
Firstly Matt, cheers for coming along today. Secondly, better keep training hard, I’ll be close behind soon and as Road Runner says, ‘Beep. Beep’. Wish me luck , I’ll need it.
This blog post will be short and sweet – I think we have all seen it in some way shape or form before on our televisions or on our news-feeds on facebook.
Challenge #10 – To Live Below the Line.
I have been meaning to pursue this challenge for quite a few years. I have had numerous friends constantly update my news-feed with their fundraising stories, meals, and subsequent pride in completing this challenge, and I think it’s fitting with this blog now in motion to add it to the growing list of things I have committed to.
If you are unaware of the program, Live Below the Line is a fundraising affront organised by the Oaktree Foundation to aid in it’s ‘war’ against poverty. The challenge of the program is to live like those who live below the poverty line – $2 a day for food, total – for an entire 5 days. This may sound difficult, but it is manageable. And furthermore, it gives you an understanding of just how much the 1.4 billion people below the Extreme Poverty Line eat daily.
But in going through this, it is hoped that awareness, while important, is not the only thing being raised. Fundraising from the efforts of those taking the challenge goes towards trying to raise the percentage of people around the world who do indeed live everyday below this line. The Australian funds directly go to our nearest and poorest neighbour, Papua New Guinea. Money will be utilised to develop schools, boost educational backgrounds and literacy, and allow a greater number of people the opportunity to find work and income.
If you have any queries with the regards to the organisation or to the utilisation of funds, head on over to the website (link above) and scroll through their media and information.
So in order to assist me in this challenge, I hope you can head on over to my page, and donate a small amount, whatever is within your means, towards this challenge. It will be the first of quite a few fundraising challenges we pursue on the blog this year, but we feel this one is more likely to strike a wider audience, and hence have a greater chance of success than many other relatively unknown organisations. I hope to raise approximately $500 for the cause, and anything you could contribute to that would be much appreciated!
To donate, follow the directions in the link below:
I will use the blog during fundraising, and especially throughout the week of eating, to document the challenge faced. Complete with meal diary, photo’s, shopping lists, and regular hunger complaints. For any of you wanting to see me in relative agony (some of you know how much I love food after your travels through San Sebastian!) – this is your chance.
The other request is to form a network of people committed to our challenge. If you yourself are signing up, and do not have a team or organisation with which to amalgamate a group total, join ours!! Simply add: YearofExperiences as your Network name during your application. It would be fantastic to get a great network of people joining, and amass more towards a network challenge sum.
As a reward for joining the network, get in touch with us and we’d love to have you do a guest blog to talk about your own fundraising efforts, your food diary, or subsequent hunger pangs.
If nothing else, please share this blog link with your friends and family, and explain the situation. Or ultimately, convince them to join the appeal and Live Below the Line themselves.
I will also hopefully coax Connor into joining me. I’m sure he’d oblige!
Well it has indeed been a while since we posted. A lot has happened in this time, and we hope this post can summarise the majority of it!
Matt has returned to Australia, and spent a week or so drinking his way through Sydney. In that time he added 40 or so beers to the list. Ouch. Taking one for the team so to speak (poor bastard).
Connor has returned to University – avec a lovely set of pins and plates in his left wrist – this is going to be a fun series of challenges to complete by the end of the year.
So not only are we not posting, we are being hampered via injuries, inability to drink, or vice-versa, over-consumption.
However, let’s put a few kicks back into it, and give you a progress report with regards to the beer drinking festivities.
Well, at the moment due to conflicting abilities to drink, obvious necessities to have a designated driver, and bi-weekly poverty, the drinking process has been hampered at times, and glowing at others. At present Matt is on 92 beers for the year, and Connor on about 12 (however, he did sneak one or two sips at a few tastings recently while nominated (almost without choice as Matt doesn’t drive) as designated driver, so his tally probably levels out more at about 30 to be honest.)
While in Sydney, Matt stayed with his cousin Mark – a prolific beer taster himself, having sampled over 2100 different beer-beverages over the years, and compiling his own list of triumphs. Included were a few small Spanish gifts that he had yet to get his hands on, and even a few Basque beers that are virtually impossible to get anywhere else in the world. Believe it or not, they were actually some of the best we’ve had of late.
Also, Matt had the distinct luck of timing his homecoming with one of the the infamous ‘Local Taphouse Spectapular’s’ in Darlinghurst, comprising of 20 never before seen beers – obviously instant additions to the list!
Star Spangled Spec'tap'ular - 20 US Craft Beers on Tap at The Local Taphouse.
The initial tastings were somewhat week, but a series of Red Ales from the Bear republic and Green Flash Breweries started a tide-turning flush of delicious American Pale Ales, Saison style beers, Indian Pale Ales, and culminated in a deliciously scrumptious offering from the Marin Brewing Company – their Marin Chocolate Airporter was the standout of the day. Highly recommended!
After a series of weekends with Mark, Matt then headed down to Melbourne to catch-up with Connor after an 8 month absence in each other’s company – which obviously required a few Brewskie’s to cap off the meeting.
Hence that evening we skipped off to the local 2 Brothers Breweryin Moorabbin, a short drive away from Mannix College here in Clayton. We were met by a range of 4 beers and a Cider – we agreed at this point that cider’s were welcome to join the list – and met a lovely bargirl who was happy to let us try all of the beers in their range so we could settle on their best.
Beer Offerings at 2-Brothers Brewery, Moorabbin.
Believe it or not, despite having a nice range of Brown Ales and an interesting Rice-based Beer, the crew settled on a cider each haha. It was sweet and delicious, and went down with their $8 pizza’s very nicely. The venue itself has a wonderful chilled vibe – a group of regulars it seems fills the bar trying their variety of offerings, while some local music plays in the background near the relaxing lounge areas. It is however located in the middle of nowhere – an Industrial Estate hideaway, that despite it’s weird location which one would think acts like a deterrent, only increases it’s charm in the sense that it is a little hideaway retreat for beer-lovers. Highly recommended.
After some weekend shenanigans in Ballarat, and a quick roadtrip home to visit Connor’s family in Bendigo, we had the privelage of two short stops on the way back to Melbourne to sample some beers. Again, as Connor was driving, Matt was forced (haha – sigh – bullshit) to do the drinking, and knocked back a series of 100mL shots of beer in quick succession. He was breaking the seal in minutes. Weak.
Holgate Brewhouse Tasting Paddle
The first stop was in Woodend at the Holgate Brewhouse. This is a fantastic country pub just 5 minutes of the highway, with an impressive selection of premium beers on offer – the tasting paddles provided (while not free of charge) were to a reasonable quality. 8 beers were sampled here, with a final 9th in bottle for the road.
While the Extra Special Bitter (ESB) was quite warm to taste, it was obvious that this beer would be held in high regard if it was colder. hence, we bought another one for the road. Of the other offerings, the Bruges Bombshell Blond and the 2 varieties of the Road Trip (one with locally produced Randall Hops) were standouts. However, despite all our convictions towards them, again the winning beer of the day was the dark beer – the Temptress Chocolate Porter – having the sweet chocolaty smell as if it had been brewed from Hershey’s Waffle Syrup, and a surprisingly light and refreshing taste, it was further proof that this beer challenge may result in the both of us drinking a lot more black beers than we had previously supposed.
Temple Brewhouse Tasting Platter
Not to be outdone, after a quick turnoff down Brunswick Road, we found one of 2 of our target Breweries open at 8pm on a Sunday. Hence, we stopped in for a few more at the Temple Brewery & Brasserie.
A selection of 5 beers (and the offering of a free glass of the 6th – another dark beer – I can feel a pattern coming on here) were presented with a lovely bowl of roasted Almonds. A nice touch to reset the palette between beers. These beers were actually standouts. Again, for a small brewery in the middle of what appeared to be an industrial sub-district, the selection had numerous standouts. The Extra Special Bitter was richly malty, the American Pale Ale crisp and lathered in flavour, and the Soba and Saison beers did not fail to impress. A balanced collection – props to the brewers we must say! But again, the standout was the Jet-Black Indian Pale Ale, the Midnight IPA. It’s deep caramel bitterness and hoppy head were matched well with the caramel tones of the almonds. It was a shame they didn’t have bottles – we would have easily taken a couple home. But alas, after knocking off 15 beers in a day, and over 20 to the list in the space of a weekend, we probably needed a few days rest from the brown devil haha.
Hence, with the beer total sitting on just over the century mark, and with another week or so of shenanigans in Melbourne, we should see the total quickly reach the on-par number of 124 by the end of March.
Oh, and did we mention, it’s Connor’s Birthday this week. This Thursday in fact. Send him some love – god knows he needs it – through a few Birthday messages via the comments below. As sloppy and lovey-dovey and ridiculous as possible. He is of course turning 20, and moving beyond his maturity level and out of the teens. Also keep a mind out for him this Thursday/Friday/Saturday when he is hitting those drunken highs, and then those hungover lows. But with the locations prepped for a big couple of nights of beer drinking, I am sure that we will be knocking off the 20 or so required to get on par. Don’t you worry (if in the advent chance you were actually worried).
Today is a special day. Today is my last day in San Sebastian before I move back home to Australia to finish my studies. People recently through the hostel have always asked one thing:
“Am I ready to leave?”
That is such a difficult and complex question… So let’s break it down. They ask in the present tense, expecting me to have spent many sleepless nights, up and until the posing of that question, debating why on Earth I would consider leaving here. In which case they’re exactly right. I have not slept well since I set the date to return. “What will I miss out on?? Will I get the chance to come back??” Pounding through my head all night long, echoing off of all the other doubts that fill an inquisitive mind. They use the word ready – fairly enough it seems – but I have pondered whether anyone can ever be ‘ready’. Maybe there are some things I have not yet contemplated that may occur when I depart? Maybe not. Maybe I over-think things? And maybe over-thinking means I am actually ready.
And then the word leave: I know they mean the physical sense, but I think no matter how much I amalgamate objects and possessions from my time here, I keep wondering if I should spend more time gathering the metaphorical fruits of my time here? Should I leave some things here? – that recently awakened chunk of cardiac tissue that, until now, had never fallen in love with a city in the way I have here. Metaphorically leave it here might I add – I’ll probably need it later in life. Do I imprint it firmly in my memories by exact moments and inspirations, or generalise it into one ever-present memorial event? Do I leave an imprint for others to remember me, or is it natural to let that memory in itself fade?
So, am I ready?
Well, by the time I finish writing this, I hope to be… or at least somewhat closer.
Le Histoire:
I arrived in San Sebastian exactly 5 months ago from today – fitting in some ways. I had spent a horrible couple of days in Paris, not to say that I don’t love the city, but that in the few days before leaving I had spent hundreds of Euro’s on meat-factory-like hostels. Work was becoming difficult with needing to move back around the country (France) to follow up another internship opportunity with Airbus, and I just needed some sun, and to escape the ever present check-box tourism that is heavily associated with Paris. This was followed by a horrible upgrade fee to escape to the coast of Spain by Train with the last remaining legs of an old Eurail Pass, spending hours waiting in Bordeaux, and then having four onward stops for a train that supposedly arrived at San Sebastian.
The day improved when a lovely couple at the border town of Hendaye instructed me to simply walk about 50m down the road, and catch a local train into San Sebastian – at the wonderful price of €1.60. SO I cashed in my remaining tickets and arrived comfortably in San Sebastian after a bungled conversation in the 3 words of Spanish I knew with some lovely mountain-bikers arriving home after exploring France all day. Shame they didn’t speak French – I would have loved to thank them more for their assistance.
And then it happened – I fell in Love.
In the 25 minute walk from the Euskotren station to my Hostel, Olga’s Place, I walked past hundreds of people on the streets. Eating, walking, running, skating cycling, speaking French, Spanish, Euskera, and some English, swimming, surfing, eating some more, walking dogs, and appreciating every tiny morsel of their lives – more or less through every morsel of their fine food.
I saw this:
The Kursaal (Convention centre) lit up in a magnificent azure blue for a psychology convention held that weekend.
In my later time here it would turn rainbow for Carnavale, Blue and White like the flag of Donostia for La Tamborada (see previous blog post), white with the silhouette of the Peine de los Vientos for New Years Eve, Salmon Orange for a Gastronomic Convention, and on the odd occasion there was no festival in town (there are over 50 a year) – bright creme-white.
I walked past beautiful bridges, crashing surf, and cafes spilling with people, drinks, cuisine, and the odour of cigarette smoke entwined through indistinguishably enticing gastronomic entities. Mesmerisingly so, the 25 minute walk actually took me double the time – of which I only noticed (but didn’t care) when I later found the hostel.
Inside, I was greeted to a friendly Australian accent – God I miss you Scotty, mate we need to hit the Rum again asap when I am home – and two amazing people that would later, unbeknownst to me at the time, become like my Mum and Dad.
I spent the next month drinking – copiously – every night, and spending my days chatting to some amazing people, surfing, swimming, and of course, eating. It was really a life of utter indulgence. And more often than not I paid for it in the morning! Deservedly so it seems haha.
But then chance prevailed – Poor Scott had to return to Australia, and someone needed to replace him. Tom and Trudy (see previous Life Challenge post) were also at the hostel at the time, and tossing up whether they put plans to move to The Netherlands on hold to work in the hostel. But alas, they needed a more solid work offer, and so the offer was extended to me. After sorting work opportunities with Airbus to work from distance, I finally had a solid enough footing to accept the job. And this spawned forth an incredible 4 months. But not without it’s own questions and difficulties! Can I live in a hostel, will I have enough money, will I have any privacy? Will I gain anything out of this, or am I just setting myself back in career progression?? Will I learn enough Spanish to survive!?!?
I was in utter internal turmoil.
And so in casting back my thoughts to this struggle, I now project my thoughts upon my current internal struggles. I’m being stupid if I don’t just jump at chances that pop up, and so instead of seeing this as the end, I am now going to see this as a new beginning.
If I had not embraced change and opportunity – then I never would have had the past 5 months. So by embracing this need for change, I’m going to turn what I often considered a negative into a positive. But first I must do 1 thing: spread the ashes (so to speak) of my time here in Northern Spain.
So…
Life Challenge #2: Remember, Remember the Fifth of November.
Shortly after starting work here, I realised I needed to keep a bit of a mental diary of my time here. Not in the literal sense – “Dear Diary, Today I went to…” – but more for those moments of utter introspection and self realisation (cough drunkenness cough). Because I had put aside what I thought was about 6 months to not only find myself a bit, but to understand exactly who I, and those around, me see me for. So on the 5th of November, a small unused travel diary found a new life – a life diary.
Within it’s pages contain all the things I told myself I need to remember. Work, study, food, exercise, life, people. Everything that struck me as important at some point to never forget.
So, in metaphorically spreading the ashes, here are the five most important things I realised while here, to help remember the 5th of November:
#1 – Remember that to Eat, is to Live:
The food here in San Sebastian is ridiculous. There is no other word for it. Places like A Fuego Negro, Cuchara de San Telmo, Zeruko, La Mejillonera, and Txondorra all contain stupendous concoctions of gastronomic delight. With 12 people on a food tour the other day, in the space of 3 of these ‘bars’, we managed to try over 45 plates, featuring 22 different meats, and no-one paid more than €14 euro each. Wow. That simply spits on the French concept of cooking small amounts of rich food and charging an arm & a leg for it. My passion for food – already at astronomic levels before I came here – has skyrocketed. My knowledge of Spanish language is limited, except when it comes to food terminology. Because all I do is eat haha! If anything, I am going to miss the indulgence of the food here. BUT, hopefully with the Cocinero challenge, I will continue to carry on a bit of the feel for San Sebastian’s epic (yes, it does deserve that 15-year-old’s surplus-ly phrased title, I am like a speechless 15 year old after every mouthful) cuisine.
And if I ever need any re-energising, all I have to do is follow the links back through 365 Donostia’s website. Or this photo:
And just smile.
#2 – Life Doesn’t Have to Follow any Predefined Path:
SO much of my recent good fortune has abounded from taking the path less traveled. It honestly has made all the difference – cue – Robert Frost is presently turning in his grave. SO much of my life up until now has seen to me in retrospect to be mapped out. School – check. Uni – check. Employment – check. Travel in predefined holiday periods – check. Now I think about it – I don’t like it that way. Well, I didn’t like it that way, and that’s why I changed. This was a blip on my life map upon first consideration of taking this job. An interference so to speak preventing me from achieving my goals as quickly as I hoped – whatever my goals were – whatever my expected date of completion was. Who knew? I sure as hell didn’t. But I did know what I thought was expected of me, and what I expected of myself.
And now in retrospect, I can safely say that this is what I wanted. To go off of course a tad, test the waters, see how green that grass actually was. I kind of ridicule my own hesitation in some ways, and while I know I should waste no time in self-scorn, I cannot help but wish this realisation had happened sooner. So with expectations on their head, plans and goals in arrears, and the return to what appears to be a more structured rigor of life, I hope I remember this one short moment of plain thought: When it comes to life and opportunities, come on in, the water is warm.
#3 – University Enables Access, but Life Skills Seal the Deal:
When I first started work at the Hostel, it was kind of an excuse to sustain myself in Europe that little longer. I thought I’d have some fun, and then return to seriousness. You know, buckle down, pull up my socks, move on in life. Progression. Rooaarrr. Resumé filling.
But it became apparent just after Christmas, right about when my family came to visit here in Spain, that a few other things were much more important, and unbeknownst to me were solely developed in a workplace like Olga’s Hostel.
Immediately, I was able to talk to anyone and everyone, despite backgrounds, interests, religion, political views, field of employment etc. And it flowed through into my work relations with Airbus! People skills + coercion = favours. Despite being 450km from work, I held a dignity and power with people simply through being able to describe my needs to them in a way that they could relate. I also learnt to effectively read people in a variety of serious and also awkward situations. This aided my ability to talk to them, and either calm them, enthuse them, or adjust my reactions to them accordingly.
At this point in time, I realised almost instantly how my Spanish had taken off. After not speaking a lick of it when I started work, I could now get across my point in fluid conversation – albeit in poor grammar – and even some Spanish employees back in Toulouse had commented how quickly I’d got into the terms of phrase. So as part of learning to converse with everyone, I started to believe that it was also necessary to learn as many portions of as many languages as possible. They earned respect with people, very quickly. And as in past examples with work in France (in particular), they reminded me more than ever that they get you places. Literally. For someone utterly writhing in the infections of the Travel Bug, this is a massive plus. *imprints in forehead for memories sake*
I learnt patience. People don’t always share my views, interests, and thoughts, and to some extent everyone differs in their sense of awareness at impoliteness. But to smile through that is a hard challenge. When you are hungover, at 8am, and someone needs to pay for their stay, waking up with a smile can be a challenge!! But unselfishness is important, and to understand their situation helps that smile peak as close to it’s widest as the remaining alcohol in my system will allow. And customer service only goes so far in normal life – interfering with sleep is rarely one of those occasions. I think that’s a pretty good definition of life experience. Resumé that shit.
#4 – Let People Form Their Own Impressions:
Yet taking into account the above comments, I have learnt one other thing. Some people will often surprise you. Reading people is one thing, but expecting things of some people is another.
If anyone has ever watched the documentary ‘A Map for Saturday‘ you will start to understand my life of talking to travelers through one particular scene in the documentary. Brook perfectly describes the first 10 questions you ask in any backpacking-based conversation. I laugh every time I ask them. It sounds so funny to have to go through such a rigmarole every time you meet someone on the road, but it’s the only thing to do.
“Hi! I’m Matt, How’re things?? Where are you from? Where are you going next? How long have you been traveling? How old are you? Where have you been? What’s been your favourite place so far? What do you do back home? What made you start travelling? What would you suggest I do while I’m here?? etc etc etc…”
Ten things I hate about travel: Those 10 questions. But everyone falls into the pattern, asks them, repeats their favourite anecdotal rendition of their standard answers, to Shakespearean Iambic Pentameter on the odd occasion they want to shake things up, and then life moves on into the other worldly domain of shared interests and beliefs. It’s actually kind of magical – it never fails to bore anyone despite it’s repetitiveness. But it can often frustrate. This shallowness of introduction is then followed by the day 2 progression to deep and meaningfull (DNM) conversation, just to make up for the slow start (if a 3-4 day friendship could ever be called slow).
But that said, it is very easy after these first 10 questions to make a judgement of people based on stereotypical figures in your past travelling encounters. This is a must avoid in my mind – the #1 failure is to underestimate people, or to box them in a sub-type of their general classification. After meeting over 500 travelers, predominantly Australian, Canadian, American (Californian), French & Spanish, it can easily be seen that people are so individual despite every ounce of conviction it takes to call another Aussie a ‘JAFA’ (Just Another F*ckin Australian) or to openly say Hella to anyone from NorCal without having them cringe. It can be an utter insult. It also causes an immediate loss of face with the person – bad move when you only have 2-5 days to recover. Sometimes only one evening.
But back home, the 10 questions don’t exist. You openly assume everyone you meet has 99% of things in common, and to some extent it can be hard to jump into conversation without asking the obvious – particularly if you follow the hot 10 travelers questions!
So I am adamant to remember, that as much as I think I can read someone on a case by case basis, I cannot box all their reactions into one typecast. This may prove more difficult to uphold – but by god I know I’ll try.
5 – Despite Having what Appears to be Too Many Passions, I MUST Go with them:
I love everything. It has become so apparent. I want to enjoy art, photography, videography, running, music, surfing, history, writing, comedy, maths, science, reading, travel, people, culture, language, mineralogy, aircraft, beer, wine, food, cooking, etc, etc, etc…
It hurts my head. But that said, if I didn’t have such a diverse gathering of interests, I would be unhappy.
This ‘time off’ so to speak has allowed me to reach those passions, and identify them. And I now know that I need to touch on them every so often to keep my life in that balance. I enjoy being able to communicate with a wide range of people based on their interests, which more often or not overlap in some way with mine. It only aids in relating and furthering conversation with people – see point #2.
———————————————————————————————————————————–
So…
San Sebastian.
I do declare my undying love for you. Your captivating nature, your food, your beaches, your languages, your people. It has been a treacherous effort internally to come to grips with, not only accepting my need to be here, but also accepting my need to leave. But here I am, exactly 24 hours and counting from leaving at 6pm tomorrow.
I promise to return, and to re-fall in love with you again in whatever way inspires me.
To those people who have come through the hostel:
You have all shaped my time here, I have had a wonderful 5 months. To think of the nights out, the food, the closed eyes while licking every enjoyable mouthful off of your spoon in the numerous bar’s we all frequented, to the hangovers, the beach days, and the days in on the lounge. To your conversations, to your interest in my life, and the interesting perspectives you imparted. To your shear enjoyment at the simple pleasures of San Sebastian. And, most importantly, for embracing my passion for this place, by leaving equally as passionate about it.
Thank you.
To Olga and Rafael:
You are saints, and this is a haven on Earth. I love your company, your acceptance and patience, and your familial love. Rafael, I will miss your dad jokes, your childish playful nature, and your cooking. And Olga, I will miss your knowing smile, your Spanish lessons and corrections, and your sense of humour – especially when I am horribly hungover.
I promise to return. Promise.
So to close, let’s make another poet roll in their grave:
Remember, remember the fifth of November
the Pintxos, people, and plot.
I see no reason why the Pintxos and people
Should ever be forgot…
– Guy Fawkes, and with horrible poetic licence, Me.
And, knowing what I do now, I think I am ready to leave,
Facing the problem of leaving Spain a little earlier than expected, Challenge #1 has been made all the more difficult. Not having Rafael to teach me new recipes every so often will be a real downer – more of a buzzkill than Buzz Killington…
So to continue this challenge I need to find the resources back home to push me onward to Spanish home-cooking glory.
Hence I have found a new assailant in this years Spanish Cocinero challenge: 1080 recipesby Simone and Inés Ortega.
My New Spanish Cuisine Bible
This recipe book, not only exquisitely illustrated, contains a wide range of authentic and timeless Spanish culinary treats. It also takes into account a wider range of Spanish regional styles, more-so than Rafael’s repertoire extends. This will hopefully round out my background in Spanish fare, and allow me to practice cooking without his watchful eye, loud Spanish instructions, gestures, and insults, but sadly also without his sense of humour and enjoyment of the final product. Hopefully this book will also be matched with a series of other equally useful and interesting recipes, with maybe a few guest recipes along the way.
Since my last post on this topic, I have learnt 4 new recipes:
Spanish Migas and Orange Segments
Pollo a Laurel
Spanish Potato and Onion Tortilla
Receta de Kokotxas de Merluza en Salsa Verde
These recipes will feature on the blog soon!!
And in the meantime, I have seen some fantastic videos regarding Spanish cuisine. In particular, having eaten more Foie Gras here in San Sebastian than I have in the rest of my life combined, I thought it pertinent to show this wonderful video describing not only what foie gras is, but how it can be a *shudder* sustainable venture while still considering animal rights – and still be incredibly scrumdiddlyumptios. Oh, by the way, this is Spanish Foie Gras. Hence, in the process of achieving all that it has, and by defying many of the prominent countering arguments against it’s production, it also beat the French at their own game. Win!
As an Engineer, while it is utterly important and necessary, I think the word has been repeated so many times that it is permanently echoing around in my skull – Tinnitus Sustainabilitus. This may or may not have been exacerbated by it also being the buzzword of my generation, thanks primarily to it’s consistent usage in reference to Global Warming. Case in point:
Logarithmic plot of Sustainability Usage vs. Time - Cartoon by Xkcd
But having had a few months to reflect on the blog and the way in which I want it’s importance to pan out in my life, I’ve realised that maybe a year of challenges in not sufficient. I do agree that an imminent deadline is proficient in making me achieve the things I’ve always said I wanted to do, but never followed up on, but long term goals may be a little more useful at shaping my mentality and perspective on life. So the sustainability (or, preferably, the long term viability) of this blog needs to also focus somewhat on challenges and goals that are more distant than the rapidly approaching New Years Eve deadline.
This little episode, possibly a little existentialistic in tone, was brought on by a blog post from a good friend of mine, Trudy. Her basic dream/plan/goal is, along with her boyfriend, another of my good friends Tom, to make their lives location-independent i.e. not dictated by constraints such as family, vocation, possessions, and/or money.
As wonderfully holistic, passionate, and endearing people in their own right and as a couple, I only wish them the best in their pursuit! In doing so, they hope to achieve their goals by making their websites their source of income – enough so to cover the costs of living and life’s basic pleasures, and to ensure that they can work regardless of where they choose to hang their proverbial coat-rack. For more information, I suggest you scoot over to Trudy’s page, and also have a look at Tom’s page for some great travel tips and inspiration!
So in response, and to continue on with the theme of this blog, I propose a bit more of a long term challenge:
Life Challenge #1 -To fund my future travels through tourism ventures
This is quite open ended, and in it’s own way I kind of like that. It is more of an ethos than a goal, and I will aim to reply as often as possible with the measures I (possibly we in some cases) have pursued achieving this.
Working in a Spanish Hostel (L’Auberge Espagnole anyone??) for the past 4 months, I have enjoyed not only talking with people and doing the usual meet & greet, but giving city tours, and sharing some incredible food and drinks with numerous rounds of guests. And now that I am close to returning home *more shuddering*, the thought of not having this constant flood of interesting people, conversations, and cuisine in my life is a little hard to swallow. So I am aiming to return to Australia and work in a hostel as a part time job to continue this feeling of being on the road – damn travel bug bit too hard. Possibly, even continue to give food & cultural tours to students or travelers new to the region. Connor & I have also flaunted with the idea of setting up a small travel agency/service, whereby we organise group travel for football teams and college/university/school groups to foreign locations. Between us, we have a great background in many of the party destinations people our age want to visit. But we will see. Maybe more on this later.
So, here’s to the first open-ended challenge and to the hopeful sustainability (eeeuuuggghhhh) of this blog, to my friends and their wonderful dreams with whom I hope to partake vicariously, and to the thought of never having to be 2 weeks away from ending a holiday ever again.
Now that I think of it, that would imply never having to use the word ‘holiday’ again either… as far as I’m concerned, that’s the definition of winning at life; good luck Trudy and Tom!!
yearofexperiences 