Somewhere in the land of Windmills

More than half a year has passed since I started working as a volunteer in Ciudad Real, and the entire experience does not cease to amaze me. I have arrived here having no idea what to expect and it proved to be the best decision ever. Whether I am thinking about the people I met, the places I have been to, or the culinary delights I got to try in these months, I can say for sure that Spain is the land of the unexpected (at times).

During my time here, I have had the fortune of visiting my hosting region, Castilla-La Mancha, and see with my own eyes the land that Miguel de Cervantes grew up to love and respect with all his being. It is a hot place, filled with hot blooded people who make you fall in love with their passion and will to help their community. It is a place of endless parties and ruled by the law of siesta. And, in the end, the place where tradition and the new times are working together towards a better future.

This shall be the story of how my friend got scared and delighted by Ciudad Real

This, being the place where my project is taking place, became my new home far away from home. Even though it is a small city, it is always filled with new things to uncover and, if you manage to make a volunteer friend, then you will realise that there is something new to do here almost every week. Taking into account the high number of associations, who are eager to engage the population into open-space activities, this alone can make Ciudad Real a real dynamic place to be. 

He came to visit me during the Easter holidays. Also you should not miss the Semana Santa parades, where, if you are new to Spain, it might fill you with wonder and confusion at the same time. (keep in mind: Not everything is at is seems)

I think the photo speaks for itself. Imagine seeing them at  2 o’clock in the morning … alone…

Speaking of things that are not as they seem, if somebody approaches you and asks if you want to participate in a “carrera”, do not say yes from the start. Apparently, it is not a Job Fair, nor anything related to a career and you might end up on a cold-ish morning, dressed in jeans and a hoodie, wondering why are there so many people dressed like they are preparing for a race. Me and my friend, had to learn that the hard way:

So: we ended up wet, tired and starving. It was at this point in his visit, when my firend saw one of the beauties of La Mancha. Unlike the other reagions of Spain i went to, Castilla-La Mancha is the only place where every beverage comes with a FREE tapa. Why is this great? Well, depending on the place you go, these little snacks might turn out to be a taste buds pleasing experience, making you want more and more. And, since we all know how jamon and beer work together, having them together is like a perfect relationship. (In case you do not know what  Jamon is.... well, it is a good enough reason to visit Spain.

Just look at this beauty:

And you can imagine my friend’s reaction after his first tapa + beer combo. In the end, I do not know who was happier: My friend, or the waiter seeing my friend asking for one tapa after another?

But you may be wondering: As a true friend, how did i continue torturing my friend further?

Well, I took the long run: “How to torture a dynamic person in 3 museums” During the day, taking advantage of the discounts and gratuities on Wednesday, I decided to show him the art museum in CR, where he admired the photography exhibition and religious themed paintings, combined with the new age art. (well, his grin changed a bit when we got to the nude model paintings). After having to take him out of there, we visited the history museum, where he had time from the beginning of the universe, until the Middle Ages to tell me how he started thinking I am trying to bring him to a slow death (at least he loved all of it, including the mammoth skeleton).

As a final destination, we went to the house of a former painter and baron who lived in Ciudad Real (for those interested, it is located right next to the cathedral). That was the place that captured my friend’s attention, though I still do not know if it was thanks to the paintings or the cute tour guides .

For the next day, as the first place to visit, I took him to Museo del Quijote, that being the place that made his day. Having the luck of getting there during the theatre exhibition (as you can see from the 1st photo), he could use the prop to put back into stage the winds, storms and thunders heard on the stage ages ago.

As a small surprise, the museum has included a little page of history into their tour. Not wanting to spoil the surprise, all I can tell you is that you will live during the time the Quijote was printed and, at the end, you will live through the first book of “Don Quijote de la Mancha”. For those who need a reason to go… even my hard-to-stay-put-friend wanted a second visit.

Well, for now I shall end his story here. Who knows… maybe I will write about what he started doing in Madrid, or how we got lost in the war museum in Toledo for more than 5 hours. But, for now, I shall conclude it here.

(here is him getting to know his favorite Miguel)

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