This is NOT a Switzerland blog.

The title says it all...I am NOT going to blog about Switzerland...at least...yet.

I thought that I would give three important tidbits:

1. Last night I hopped in the boss's car with all of the other work folks and took a drive to Murcia. I was not there to go to IKEA as you all may be thinking, but rather I spent the night anxiously awaiting the arrival of the next tray of delicious canapés. Because of the boss's many friends in the design community and his previous residence in Murcia, we were all invited to the gallery opening for Edra at the designer furniture showroom CUARTA. The furniture was ALRIGHT, but the experience was AMAZING. Hanging out with my South American buddies, chatting up some important patrons of Spanish architecture (the best I could y'know), and chowing down on some seriously fussy and delicous hors d'oeuvres (including but certainly not limited to loads of Jamón Ibérico!) under the spanish sky was one of those surreal experiences which makes me NEVER WANT TO LEAVE!

2. We're leaving. Due to our complete distaste for illegal activities we will be saying 'hasta luego' to Alicante the day before my 90 tourist visa days run out. It is indeed incredibly sad for us, but as the previous spanish phrase indicates, we plan on returning as soon as the Spanish government permits us. To find the best airfare, we are being 'forced' to make a two and a half day layover in Dublin (Gracias a Ireland's EU but non-Schengen status!). We will hopefully load up on the luck of the Irish before we return to Arizona on the 10th.

3. I WILL eventually blog about adventures in Swiss architecture, but that will have to wait for the weekend. Lots of photos to go through and gussy up = Lots of work that I do not have time for!

Spain is not Kansas

A coworker asked me on Friday, "How close is Arizona to Kansas?" This caused much laughter and the repetition of the phrase:"This is not Kansas." (This is the translation that they were given for The Wizard of Oz.) It turns out that they are right.

Truthfully, this is not that much of a shock to me, and it should not be for you. However, since I can already hear you all clamoring, "Tell us what exactly makes Alicante all that different from Topeka" I will indulge you with a few examples.

Finally! This is my OFFICE!

1- The Spanish work day

Have you all heard of the siesta? Of course you have! Here is how it works for me:

9:30am - I arrive at work, and everyone else shows up within the next 10-15 minutes.
11:30am - I leave with everyone at the office to a nearby café for our daily 30 minute breakfast break
12:00pm - Back at the office
2:30pm - I leave the office for my 2hr lunch break.
4:30pm - After eating, hanging around the house, walking on the beach or taking a brief nap, I get back to the office.
8:30pm-9pm - The evenings in the office usually fly by, and usually end in a mad dash to complete some drawing, email or graphic before leaving. So the end of the work day is anywhere from 8:30pm until the time that such a task is finished.

I have heard that not everyone enjoys the breakfast break that we do, and schedules obviously vary between offices. Being architects (that is, a hard-working bunch) we tend to work later than many, and this is no different than Kansas. I neither love nor hate this schedule. The day surprisingly goes by much quicker with the multiple breaks, but should an 8.5hr workday really end at 8:30pm? I often find myself walking back to work from lunch at 5pm (If it is one of many late-lunch days) realizing that if I were at a typical job in the USA I would be walking the other direction. One reason not to hate the schedule is that it aligns quite well with the Spanish meal schedule.

Wifey wants me to mention that she does cook (not always salads), but how amazing did this look?!?!

2 - The Spanish meal schedule
8-8:30am - I wake up
10am-12pm - Typical breakfast time
2-4pm - Typical lunch time
8-11pm - Typical dinner time
11:30pm-12:30am - Bedtime

Much like the work schedule, there is much to love and hate about the meal schedule. Pros: I usually have a granola bar or bowl 'o' cereal when I wake up, so my typical Spanish breakfast (media tostada con tomate: half a toasted baguette with finely diced tomato and olive oil) that I have at 11:30 is a perfect snack. Lunch is big and relaxed (and wifey is always fixing something delicious). Cons: Dinner is too close to bedtime. Afternoons tend to be very unproductive. I eat too much (but that's a problem anywhere or anytime).

3 - Nomenclature
"I'll have that to you by...I'll call or see you in...Meet me in the office in...
...the morning" - anytime from 8:30am-1pm
...the afternoon" - certainly no earlier than 4pm and as late as 7pm
...the evening" - after 9pm

These definitions are not TERRIBLY different than Kanasas, but are punctuated by the fact that one is seldom given any specific time-frame. As with all things Spanish, everything is skewed a little later (as with the arrival of our visas). When I first arrived, this took some getting-used-to. I was always asked to meet with someone "in the afternoon," and all further inquiries (eg "What hour would be best?") were met with shrugging shoulders.

Next issue will be past the basics and on to what I've been up to lately!