Living a dream: Extreme Sailing Series Nice

Pictures from the event are here

Videos from the live race is here

Nice promo video is here

Bliss. 25 degrees and torquoise water.  Light Mediterranean breeze caressing the palm trees that welcome a small group of visitors to the airport. Welcome to Nice!

Exactly one year ago we saw that the Extreme Sailing Series of Formula 40 catamarans was coming to Almeria, Spain. Unfortunately we weren't able to go. At the same time our interest in  being a part of this exciting event was peaked so we immediately checked the schedule for 2012 and booked a hotel in Nice, France, the closest venue to Spain.  To put some context around the importance of this event one must go back to 2001.  At that time Anatolijus was a keen sailor of HobieCats and in 2001 at one of the starts of the Swiftsure race he saw a Formula 40 catamaran called Dragon Fly and a dream was born: one day to sail on one of these.  As with many of his dreams, he put it on paper and....

So we got to Nice, weather was amazing. We got a very nice hotel with a little balcony several tram stops away from the Promenade Anglais (main promenade of the city on the sea) where the racing event was to take place.

The amazing thing about the Extreme Sailing Series is that their main purpose is to promote extreme sailing and bring it to the masses.  The event is free to watch from the shore and the stadium style racing allows spectators to see and hear the action, take pictures and make friends.  At the same time, the event is televised and is streamed live over the Internet.  We were very excited to see the event up-close.  Of course, getting onto one of the boats was not possible, because, according to the event site, you had to buy a hospitality suite (I believe they were starting at about 7k) which included one sail on the catamaran.

As we arrived on Thursday, we anticipated the first event but it was cancelled due to too much wind.  The next day there were races planned in the morning and afternoon, but we decided to take a train to Monaco and Monte Carlo to maximize the morning.

In Monaco we saw the harbor with a million massive yachts, we saw the Ponant cruise yacht coming into the harbor (the yacht is famous as in 2008 it was hijacked by pirates), visited the Royal Palace, which is a very nice place to visit and has an excellent audio guide, went to Monte Carlo to see the casino and admire Lamborghini, Bugatti, Bentley and Ferrari exhibits in the street.  I am not sure why we always imagined these places to be much bigger, but they were much cozier and had a very friendly, rich feeling...

We got back to the Promenade Anglais for the second set of racing and enjoyed the spectacle.  The race included several crashes we could see and hear which took 2 of the 8 boats out of action.  They  both had to go back and make repairs for the next day's sailing.  In the meantime, my head was full of thoughts on "I need to find a way to get on one of these!" so following the philosophy of "if you never ask you never win" I dialed the UK number of the event hospitality organizers to see if there is any way to buy a "ticket" to get on a boat.  A lady answered, but she had no info on this and said she would get back to me.  In the meantime, we went to check out the Extreme Sailing gear that was being sold at the racing village on the promenade.  There I asked one of the people working at the store if there was any way to get on one of the boats.  He said that I should talk to the woman who is the event coordinator.  He introduced me to Priscille and she was very energetic and excited about me being excited.  She said: “so nice to see fans that love this sport” and was very surprised we flew in just to see the event.  So I asked if there was any way to get onto one of the boats and she said "there may be", she just needs to check if there are any VIP tickets available.  Just as I am talking to her, my phone rings and I am getting a callback from the UK number from a different woman to whom my message was forwarded.  As we are talking we realize we are standing about 10 feet away from each other.  She tells me she got my message about tickets and was calling back to let me know there was a POSSIBILITY!!!! So I was standing there with the two very nice ladies telling me that Cathy and I could have VIP tickets for the Saturday hospitality suite which would include one live race on a Formula 40, spectator trips on zodiac inflatables to watch event from the water and full day access to the hospitality suite which is right on the edge of the promenade overlooking the race course.  At that point the price didn't really matter, as how can you put a price on living a dream!  So we said we are in and the ladies were very happy to have their new, extremely excited VIP guests.  To add to the excitement, Priscille told me that she would also try to see if she can get me onto two sailings on Saturday.  We finalized the details sitting in the VIP lounge sipping a drink and tasting what our future held.  Needless to say it was hard to fall asleep that night.

The next morning we got a call saying we needed to be at the race village at 10 and my first sailing was on!!! So we got there, I got into my sailing gear and we headed off to the harbor.  Cathy also came to go on the zodiac to be the official photographer of our first sail.  We got to the boat, got our instructions, met our crew-mates (guest sailors and crew). Our boat name was ZouLou skippered by a French skipper and we were off.  We got to put up sails, winch some sheets and steer a bit.  There was not much wind in the morning but we did manage to fly a hull with full sails and spinnaker deployed, it was amazing.  The nice part was meeting several very interesting (and I later learned, important) people.  We later had a nice time in the VIP lounge, exchanged info and I was able to send them video and photos I took with them.

After the sail they asked us if we were interested to go in the media zodiacs to watch the race from the water, to which we said yes (of course).  So we spent about 2 hours watching the races up very close, chasing the boats to get best views and shots.  It also allowed us to get a good perspective on how fast Formula 40s are...

As we were flying around, I was told I was slotted to go on the Formula 40 during the 3rd race of the second set.  When it was time the team zodiac came and picked us up, I handed over the photo equipment to Cathy and then I was delivered to the sailboat.

I got to ZouLou and boarded.  The crew was surprised to see me again, sailing for the second time.  Later I found out that there is a max one sail per VIP and that day, after my race they cancelled guest sailings due to conditions being too windy and dangerous.  So I got on, got my GoPro video cam setup and got ready for the pre-start sequence.

Things were different from the morning sail.  Things were intense before the race even started and it was interesting to see accomplished sailors concentrating, adjusting, counting and getting their mental state set to WIN.  The race started and the work began.  Pulling, jumping, hanging on the edge, tripping, avoiding the boom hitting me on the head.... Even without having to actually do anything for the boat, I was busy keeping out of the way and acting as the "rail meat" to provide some weight once the boat was flying the hull.  I also have to say that with all the adrenalin, coming to a near collision (you can see it in the video at about 5min 40s mark when The Wave Muscat came within inches of crashing with us) the race seemed to last an hour versus the 15 minutes it really was.  We finished the race, I thanked the crew and we went off to the VIP lounge.

At the VIP lounge upon our return at about 5pm, they served champagne as we finished watching the final races of the day.  We met lots of people from the event and many sponsors: SAP, Oman Air, Extreme Sailing and media.  Priscille and the others continued to be excellent hosts throughout the evening.  After the races we got invited to the staff BBQ that was happening late at night, which ended up being amazing.  All in all we felt like VIPs and the experience was truly unforgettable and worth it!

The next morning I went to the harbor where the boats were moored to get my team shirts that crews had promised me the evening before (things you cannot buy in a store) and said goodbye to my new friends.  Then we went to the real French flower market, had breakfast and headed out to the airport.

While at the airport we could see the boats lining up for the final set of races for the Sunday.  My dream was accomplished and we were very happy to be heading back.  Our plane got delayed an hour, but after an experience like this I was just sitting and quietly smiling to myself... My blue suitcase nicely matching my Extreme Sailing shirt I was wearing.... An experience we will both never forget...

Look at me now!

El Pilar Festival

In Zaragoza the most important day of the year is October 12^th, the celebration of the virgin of El Pliar.  In 2009 a record 450,000 attended the festival and this year saw many people come again.  The central activity is the ‘Ofrenda’ (offering) in which thousands of people in traditional dress process with flowers that are placed around the figure of the virgin which is sitting 40 feet high with a structure around it to hold the flowers.  The people who come with the flowers are dressed in traditional outfits from their city, or village or country and belong to a group that participates every year.  This year Anatolijus wanted to do more than just watch the procession; so he and his colleague Nacho borrowed traditional Aragonese outfits and through a woman at work were able to join a national police group, process and offer flowers to the Virgin.  Anatolijus looked very ‘authentic’ in his traditional dress called Baturro and is now considered ‘Mano’, which is a person of Zaragoza. 

During the festival, the town bull ring is open and there are 12 days of bullfights planned out.  This year one of the special events was the return of Juan Jose Padilla, the bullfighter that last year was gored in the eye and almost lost his life.  We had best seats for the event and watched this incredible bullfighter brave yet again those 1000+ lbs bulls.  On one hand this seemed very brave, on the other hand…

What was most amazing was the fact that he regained all of his motor skills and put on an amazing show exactly one year later after his injuries.  He ended up getting 2 ears (best ever performance gets you 3) and he was carried out of the ring on the shourlders of his friends.  As a special gesture, he dedicated one of the bulls to the doctor who saved his life.  We were told that this doctor only specializes in bullfighter injuries and when the bullfighter enters the ring, he first looks if this doctor is there, to feel more assured for the fight.

On Saturday we decided to go for a day trip to Olite which is 1.5 hours from Zaragoza and has a fabulous castle that is not very well known.  Olite is surrounded by vineyards (Navarra region, famous for its rose and red wines) and has a number of bodegas right in the town.    The castle has been restored and rebuilt in a number of projects but the space to explore is huge and there are at least 4 or 5 towers to climb for incredible views.  The next day my legs were a little sore as the spiral staircases never seemed to end!   One of the main reasons for going to Olite was: we tried to visit last May when Edita (Anatolijus’ mom) was with us but it was raining so hard we couldn’t even get out of the car.  So when she returned this October we went back on a beautiful sunny day that showed off the interesting landscapes and geography.  We packed a picnic and ate it overlooking the Puenta le Reina which is a bridge that brings the two paths of the “Way of Saint James” together as pilgrims then make their way to the famous Santiago de Compostella.    The bridge is in a small town of Gare and is about 30 mins from Olite and while we were there a number of pilgrims passed by on the bridge.  It was a very ideal place for an afternoon picnic.

That evening, to say our goodbyes to the festival of el Pilar, we went downtown without kids to see the Rosario de Cristal (crystal rosary), which is a procession of people, dressed in traditional costumes, carrying candles, floats made of glass and chanting the entire rosary.  We had a cerveza nearby and finished our evening at an amazing vegetarian restaurant called Baobab.

Then was Monday.  Back to reality, which takes a couple of days getting used to.   

On a separate note, just before the Pilares, we had our very good friends Alma and Evaldas visit us from Lithuania.  We had them only for a few nights, but managed to cover Spanish cooking, Spanish wines, some key tourist attractions and just catch up.  It was very wonderful to see them again and speak some Lithuanian.

The City of Lights!

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In the summer of 2010 when we told Grace and Tessa we were moving to Spain we promised them we would take them to Paris.  On September 15th we made good on our promise and spent 3 days in the City of Lights.  There is a Ryanair flight that goes directly from Zaragoza to Beauvais airport which is one hour and fifteen minutes north west of Paris.  There is a direct shuttle bus into the city so it was very easy and then we took the metro and had to walk 10 mins to our 'hostel'.  We were very fortunate to find out about a Catholic hostel that is in the heart of Paris, 1.5 blocks off the Champs-Élysées, and is reasonably priced.  Adveniat is the association and they provide you with sheets and we had two rooms with private bathrooms.  The place is very modern and nice with friendly helpful people.

The first morning we headed out and walked 25 mins along the river to the Eiffel Tower.  It has been a while since we were all very excited to see something and we were not disappointed.  We bought 'skip the line' tickets and had a great guide who made it very interesting.  Did you know Gustave Eiffel had to pay 80 percent of the cost to erect the tower for the World's Fair and then as a way to recoup his money he made a deal that he would get the revenue for the next 20 years?  (By the way, the tower was supposed to be taken completely down after the fair of 6 months)  Interestingly he made all his money back in the first 6 months!  The day was sunny and clear so the views were spectacular and Anatolijus took amazing photos.  Grace and Tessa were a little nervous when we took the elevator to the sommet (summit) but the view from the very top was incredible.

Following our time at the Eiffel Tower we took a taxi down to the Latin Quarter where a former colleague of Anatolijus now lives.  She and her partner had invited us to their apartment for lunch and it was so lovely to be 'in' a neighborhood and not just looking at it.  The lunch prepared by them was amazing and by far the best meal we had in Paris, thanks to our friends.  After eating we went for a walk to Pont Neuf and then to Notre Dame, it was Sunday and a Mass was starting so we were able to enter for free to look around.  We walked through the Latin Quarter and the girls each got gelato which was scooped to make a flower - lovely and tasty.

On our second day we headed out walking once again but this time we went up to the Champs-Élysées around the Place de la Concord and then through the Tuileries Gardens to the Louvre.  We had not planned to go to the Louvre but the line-up was short so we went and hit the highlights of Mona Lisa, Venus di Milo, Winged Victory and some of the Egyptian display (Grace's choice).  After our whirlwind tour we had to walk very quickly to the George's Pompidou Centre where we had reservations for lunch at the roof top restaurant.  The lunch was very nice the sun came out just as we were eating and we had great views of Sacre Coeur, Eiffel Tower and Notre Dame.  One food reviewer described this restaurant as “The food was amazing.  I do not remember what I was eating because of the view”.  It was true.  We were then ready for another 2.5 hour stint viewing the history of Modern Art which was fabulous.  The girls really enjoyed it as well and interestingly Grace said she liked the feel of Pompidou better than the Louvre.  At the end of our time we went to the children's gallery where they had an interactive display about funny things children say when they are little.  Grace and Tessa each wrote and drew their example and then they got to videotape their examples which are shown in the exhibit!   The museum then emailed it to us they will be included in the videos that are playing in the gallery - very cool! So you could say our girls were displayed in a museum J.

We were all tired after our long day so we had a coffee at a cafe looking at the modern Art museum, the building is 'inside out' and very fun to look at.  We then got subway sandwiches and took the Metro back to our hostel.  At 8:45pm we got ready and walked 10 minutes down to the river Seine to see the Eiffel tower lit up and then at 9pm on the dot the whole tower sparkled for 5 minutes - muy bonito!  We ended the evening sitting in the lounge of our hostel checking Internet and reading children's bedtime stories.

The highlight of our last day was visiting San Chappelle which is a small chapel where Louis IV kept the relics from the Holy Land (supposedly the actual Crown of Thorns!).  The amazing thing about this chapel is that the whole thing is stained glass.  They are in the process of restoring the windows and the process is incredible.  People who love puzzles and have an amazing attention to detail are good candidates for that job.  The rest of the day involved Anatolijus needing to be on a three hour call with work and the girls and I buying Eiffel tower t-shirts and necklaces.  Our flight left at 7:05pm but with catching the shuttle bus and needing to be there early we finished touring at 3pm retrieved our luggage and had a stress free journey home.  We all thoroughly enjoyed our time and all of us are keen to go back again.  We will watch for deals on Ryanair and a cold, rainy February weekend may be the perfect time to go and explore the Musee D'Orsay, Invalides and Versailles.

Festes d'Algemesi

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On return from Canada vacation, we headed down to Algemesi, close to Valencia, where our friends Katia and Vicente invited us for the fiesta de la Madre de la Salut (Mary mother of health).  This festival last year was declared an UNESCO World Heritage event and we got to experience it in from row seats, literally.  On the Friday night when we got there, Katia arranged for us to have seats in the street through which the processions were passing, and because the streets are so narrow, there is no place to stand for tourists, unless you know someone and have reserved seats along their houses.

Just as last year in their fiesta of the bulls (which starts two weeks after this fiesta) we were overwhelmed.  The procession started at the city square, main Cathedral and City Hall, where they start with muixerangas, which are pyramids built of humans, who are dressed in colorful costumes.  Blue ones are the traditional muixerangas, where previously only men participated (that is so Spanish!) and the green ones are relatively recent alternative muixerangas which developed as a movement to include both men and women.  In fact, the green ones are much more advanced as they push the limit of height and risk.  In one of the pyramids the next day they had the child on top of the pyramid grab onto a black scarf lowered from the 4th story of a building and the greens on the balcony pulled him all the way up.  You can only imagine the crowd at that moment, truly incredible!

So on Friday night we had our seats and experienced the procession with muixerangas and dances.  After a nice Spanish dinner we went to the procession at about 10pm and the procession went till about 1:30 in the morning.

The processions start with muixerangas teams walking through the streets and building different kinds of pyramids every block.  At times multiple pyramids are built simultaneously, and some have layers of multiple rings of people on top of one another while others are a single stack of people up to 7 or 8 high with no support other than the bottom.  Typically a child climbs to the top and when there he or she stands on one foot and with hands horizontally to the sides.  And sometimes in the process they fall.... Of the entire thing tumbles... In any which way, it is a spectacle to watch and see...

Then they have special dances where men and women dance with batonettes (which are wooden sticks) and brass cymbals, which they clang against one another in a very specific pattern to their traditional music.  The dance is very intense and quite hazardous if your face or arms get out of sequence, because you can get clanged right into your face.... In fact, many men feature blistered and bleeding hands after 3 days of processions... I am sure some refreshments keep the spirits and the flesh high for the duration of the processions.

Women do same dance, though not as violent, but still with enough force and attitude to command the respect of the spectators.  Their costumes are blue (men's are red) and the hats are adorned with colorful peacock feathers.

In the midst of the processing dances there are groups of children performing theater acts to raise money for their clubs, special traditional dances with tambourines, and the Valenciano artichoke dance, where kids dance around a pole with ribbons attached to the pole.

Of course, no fiesta in Valencia would be complete without valencianas, which are men and women dressed in traditional Valenciano costumes and dancing a traditional dance with castonettes.  Definitely one of my favorite dances, as it is so graceful and Spanish, and full of emotion and feeling that is so common to the Spanish south.

And then the procession features the most special dance of men dressed as medieval white soldiers holding very long tapered sticks.  It is a very primal looking dance, maybe resembling a mating call or some very intense and emotional struggle, where at one moment the long sticks get thrown very high into the air in a hope of catching them again.  Sometimes they do, and sometimes they don't.  I figured it is better not to look up when they do this, as a 2 meter stick falling onto you from 4 stories high cannot be a good thing.  But all of us were fine, standing in awe of this spectacle....

And then people processed with candles in their hands... Hundreds of people, mostly women, even thought in the recent years men started to join... People make promises, not unlike our New Year's resolutions, and march to demonstrate their commitment.  We tend to eat more turkey and have an extra glass of champagne.

And the grand finale was the Mary herself.  Ushered in by several white kings with humongous candles, cities' dignitaries, the Mary float, while not as large as some of the ones we saw in Seville during Easter processions, was still very impressive, being carried by about 20 men and women of the town.  Everything goes quiet and it creates an opportunity to make a promise, say a prayer or think about those who we value and who we care about. And then it was over.

The next day we were invited to another home with balcony views of the procession, where we saw the event from a different vantage point and in daylight.  I got to see the president of the Comunitat Valenciana, standing at the main entrance of the chapel where Mary stayed overnight.  With my massive photo equipment looking like paparazzi I had no trouble getting into the middle of the famous... So took advantage and snapped away...

After the procession we went to the Casino, which is a spectacular restaurant in an old city casino building.  Lunch lasted only about 3 hours and included about 5 courses, culminating in a dessert featuring but the Mary herself in chocolate and gold!  The girls and Cath and I had an extensive discussion on how to handle the dessert without being sacrilegious: should we start with the baby Jesus' arms, Mary's crown or go for her legs... In the end we worked around the vital parts and no saints were hurt during the lunch in Algemesi.

After lunch we were packed and drove to Cullera, Katia's beach home and spent Saturday afternoon and most of next day on the beach, with about 34 degrees, more Spanish food and fun...

With another wonderful and unforgettable experience under our belt, we returned back on Sunday with anticipation of the children starting school the next day.

Summer in Canada

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On July 10^th Cathy and the girls arrived in Victoria after a fabulous flight that only took 15 hours from Barcelona to Victoria, you cannot do it faster!  Grandma and Grandpa were waiting with open arms and bouquets of flowers for the girls.  The first order of events was to celebrate Grace’s 9^th birthday on July 13^th with a bowling party with our close friends.  It was lots of fun and wonderful for Grace to be with her Canadian friends for the special occasion.  In July we went to our cabin at Cowichan Lake every weekend and were able to have our dear friends Ale, Steve, Sebastian, Daniel and Matias up for a day.  A highlight for us was going to Chemanius Theatre with mom and dad to have lunch and see “Joseph’s Amazing Technicolor Dream Coat”.  It was a wonderful production and we are still singing the songs.  The rest of the month was filled with playdates, dinners with friends, visits to the park.

On July 30^th Anatolijus arrived and we had three great dinners that first week with friends and then went to Cowichan for the long weekend and had wonderful, hot weather.  The next week Anatolijus was able to play some golf, we met our good friend Duncan for coffee who had just arrived from New York and enjoyed a lovely evening with our friends Kathreen and Bill at our old favorite Canoe Club.  We were then off to Vancouver for our traditional sushi feast with the Jenkins and then we headed to Shuswap lake for our 2 week family vacation.  This year the weather was absolutely perfect so lots of time was spent boating, swimming and relaxing.  Anatolijus and Dad did a big job rebuilding the front steps and Susan and Dad painted the deck and stairs – everything was looking spiffy!  In addition to the fish fry with the Bassermans and Lyons we also had a visit from our friends Cathy and Paul Unger who are missionaries in the Solomon Islands but are spending a furlough year in Salmon Arm.  What are the chances that friends living is Spain and the Solomons could meet in Salmon Arm?  Very high apparently, they came with their 5 children on the hottest day so it was great to all be in the water.  Anatolijus and I also spent a night away down in Naramata wine touring, we met our friends Rob and Tara and had a great time!  On our way back to Victoria we stopped in at our friends Sharon and Dan in Abbotsford for lunch and a lovely visit and made it to the ferry in time to see a spectacular west coast sunset.

We then had only three days left before returning to Spain and wondering where all the time had gone.  We feel so blessed to be able to come home to BC to so many friends and family who we love and feel so connected to.  Now we will rely on emails and skype to stay in touch as we continue our adventure in Spain!

Tale of Two Weekends

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 A (short) Tale of Two Weekends and an Update

Weekend One

People are often surprised to learn that Spanish people are interested in sports other than football (soccer).  Currently in Spain, Argentina and Chile many people are crazy about Padel and clubs and courts are being set up to satisfy the demand.  Padel is a combination of tennis and racquet ball and the court looks like a small tennis court.  The racquets are similar to racquet ball in that they have short handles, large heads and are thick.  One thing that makes Padel particularly fun is that you can play off the walls so even a winning smash can be retrieved once it bounces off the wall.  Also Padel is played with two aside so you are working as a team moving from the net back to the wall covering all the space. 

Anatolijus and I learned about Padel as soon as we moved to Spain because we have a Padel court in our complex.  Santa brought us each a racquet the first Christmas and in the Spring I was invited to join a friend and start taking lessons.  One thing I love about the game is from the very beginning you can play well enough for it to be fun, and then as you improve the game can be much more difficult and challenging.  Anatolijus also started lessons last fall and we have enjoyed having friends over to play on the weekend while our children play in the garden.  It is the first time I have been able to utilize the benefits of meeting people and making friends through sport.

So when Anatolijus told me his work, HP, were organizing a Padel tournament for the staff we were first in line to sign up.  On June 2^nd we arrived and there were 42 teams (a great turnout of 84 people) and we were divided into ‘Pro” and “Amateur” divisions, we were in Amateur.  It was a hot day so we got started early and we were pleased to see in our first few matches that our play was at a competitive level.  In fact after 6 matches and being undefeated we found ourselves in the final!  By this time it was 3pm and 39C, but we had been drinking tons of water and PowerAde and Grace and Tessa were our devoted cheerleaders who ‘hung’ out for the whole day supporting us, so we were ready.  We played the best out of nine and if came down to 4 games to 4 and after reaching deuce and advantage about 8 times I served an ace down the middle and Anatolijus and I were the winners!!!!!!  I don’t know who was more excited us or the girls, Tessa was shouting ‘We won”!  It got even better when we were presented with a silver cup (Copa) with the date and event inscribed on it.  This was definitely a first for Anatolijus and I and we were thrilled to have done so well.

Weekend Two

On the first weekend in June we went back to Cullera to visit our friends who have hosted us a number of times.  This time we were invited for a beach weekend which means sitting on the beach, swimming, walking a little, eating, sitting and eating some more.  The weather was perfect, 33C with a breeze and the water was so warm!  For the first time since we went to Spain we didn't visit one castle or cathedral or museum, we just hung out at the beach.  The girls loved playing in the sand and the waves and swimming at the pool and the two days felt like a 5 day holiday - wonderful.

Grace and Tessa

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The past two weeks have been important in Grace and Tessa’s school life so we wanted to share what they have been up to.  The girls attend a semi-private Catholic school that has a very good reputation and high standards.  Their school is run by the Jesuits who have been providing education in Zaragoza for 450 years!!!  To say there is a strong foundation when it comes to pedagogy would be an understatement.  Our school schedule is quite different from at home, the regular school day is 9-12:30 then 3:30-5pm.  The time between 12:30-3:30pm includes one hour of extracurricular activities such as drawing/painting, rhythmic gymnastics, basketball, football, French etc.  The second hour they have a hot Spanish lunch with has a first plate, second plate and dessert always accompanied with bread and water and the third hour is an extra course the class participates in such as theatre, computers, English, or study hall.  All of these activities cost extra so families can choose what they can afford and if they want the full schedule.  I would say 98% of children go 9am-5pm every day; my girls go two full days a week and come home for lunch the other three days.

This year Grace has been working very hard in Grade 3, she has an enormous amount of homework and is tested consistently in math, language, social science, English and Religion.  We are very proud of her as her reading and writing in Spanish have greatly improved and without any special conditions she is in the top half of her class.  Her teacher Marta has supported and encouraged Grace every step which has been a great motivation for her.  She really enjoys music class where she has learned to play the recorder and has learned about the great composers and can identify their major works.  Religion is also very interesting for her and the curriculum is very sophisticated.  In addition Grace has just completed the first year of Catechism and next March she will have her First Communion.  To mark the end of the first year the families were invited to a great service in the church and the kids demonstrated what they had been learning.  This was followed by an elaborate merienda (5pm snack) in the cafeteria.  Grace also started private piano lessons in January with a very talented young music student from the Conservatory.  Grace loves Elena and is progressing very well.  Her big event last week was her theater class’ presentation of 3 songs from the musical “Grease”.  Grace had the role of Marty and spoke her line in perfect Spanish and then did 2 dance routines.  We curled her hair for the part and have included a picture for you to see.

Tessa, who turned 6 years old in March, is in Infantile Tercero which is the equivalent to kindergarten.  Infantile includes two years of preschool and then kindergarten, children begin at 3 years old here and many go full day.  Tessa has been blessed with an amazing teacher Marta and a wonderful class of good friends.  This is their second year together as the system here keeps classes and teachers together for 2 years in a row.  Tessa is reading in Spanish and like Grace has been speaking fluently for some time.  She loves school and thus has been very sad that she is graduating to primary leaving behind her beloved teacher Marta and the security of Infantile which is set apart from the rest of the school.   To commemorate this transition Tessa had her “Graduation” ceremony last Friday May 25^th.  It is held in the school theater and all 5 classes of Kindergarten had prepared songs to present.  They also sang all together a lovely song called,”Somos Amigos” (We are friends) and Tessa loved this song so much but it made her very emotional.  To end the ceremony they each wore a ‘cap’ (made by parents) and received their ‘scroll’ from their teacher.  It was a lovely event and we ended by having a small reception back in their classroom.  Anatolijus volunteered to take the pictures of all the children for our class when they received their scroll and he did a great job!

The following day Tessa performed in the end of the year Rhythmic Gymnastics Exhibition which showcases each of the classes.  She did very well and is no longer shy or embarrassed about performing as you can see from the photos.    So it has been a busy time but we are now on ’summer schedule’ which means the girls finish every day at 1pm and we do not go back, instead we head down to the pool as it has been 33C consistently for the past week.  The girls last day of school is June 19^th and on June 17^th our twin nephews, Rhys and Sam, arrive to spend three weeks with us before the girls and I join them flying back to Canada.  So things are going very well with the girls and we are looking forward to our return to Victoria this summer.