Food, glorious food

WHAT I LEARNED TODAY:
I am a little malnourished...but not even that can keep the old Spanish dudes away.

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So, I´ve never in my life had to go grocery shopping so much.

It first became apparent that I had not been eating well this last week (due to the course becoming more and more demanding) when I developed scurvy. Well, maybe it isn't scurvy, but I have a cold sore inside my lower lip and I think it has developed in response to my lack of vitamin C intake. I realized that I have not had an orange or OJ since arriving in BCN. Will go to La Mercat de la Boqueria first thing tomorrow morning and grab some oranges. Check.

The contents of my fridge have also been dwindling. I generally make a sandwich or bring leftovers to class to eat during the "tea break." But yesterday, the only transportable food I had was an apple and some bicuits with chocolate in the middle. It wasn't going to do the trick, so I let Luis and Rina talk me in to going out for "eggs and chips," a classic British tea time treat evidently, and a treat they talked about nonstop all day. Earth to Britain, it's just fried eggs with french fries! But dipping those greasy patatas fritas in the egg yolk was pretty yummy....so I won't complain.

And the final indication that I needed to get some damn groceries....my dinner at 11pm last night was pathetic. I scraped the bottom of my all-natural, sugar-free peach jam jar with a spoon, sucking the stuff down like baby food. It was right out of Bridget Jones' Diary. When my stomach began to grumble afterward, my darting hunger-driven eyes landed on a cup of peanuts that had been sitting out since last week when I made dinner for the roommates and they provided "tapas," which included a variety of nuts. I figured no one would miss them, but even so, I took pains to have no one see me scarf them by carrying them off to my room like a demented squirrel.

But have no fear, Mom. I went to the Champion Supermercado this morning. I was there with all the little old couples 4 minutes before it opened at 9. The security guard (they have them at all the big stores) yelled at us and made us wait outside from 8:56 until 9:00 when the store officially opened, but in the end, food was bought. I will eat like the Spanish Queen today...I have a crazy fabulous salami and cheese sandwich and an apple :)

In the meantime, my state of malnourishment has not stopped at least one old Spanish dude from approaching me each day. Today was my favourite to date. On my way to school, I was about to cross the street when this handsome old guy (they are all handsome here) in an olive green tweed suit stopped me and said it wasn't safe to cross. I responded that the pedestrian light was, in fact, green. Then he struck up a conversation about how I was guapa and must be off to my office, and responded with mock shock when I said, "no, to school." It's hilarious to me because I am sure this man is probably retired and bored and just wanders the streets of BCN looking for chicks he can pretend to save from faulty traffic lights, all in the hopes that they will ditch the office/class and grab a cafe con leche with him. Unfortunately for him, this guapa had already had her cafe for the day.