White Nights and Blurry Mornings...

Kevin has come and gone along with our good Austrian friend Phil but the tales of summer will be told for generations to come. They may include but are not limited to the following stories:

La Tomatina- Dirty Wet Tomato Red Fest.

Wingmans- The Fraternal Order of Crazy Men in Spain.

Recuerde Plaza Dos de Mayo!- The warcry will ring for decades.

Parque Warner- Its like you’re in Hollywood, except a little more classy.

El Tigre- Because El Leon doesn’t sound as cool.

Feliz Cumpleanos a mi- That means happy birthday to me.

Parilla- Like a sausagefest, except with more meat.

Fiesta en la Finca- Horses, BBQ, Eggs, Luis Jackson, and Ivanloca (Maniac).

Phil getting the most action he's had in years.....

Any of the above stories may be elaborated on by myself or Kevin. And half the tales will be withheld from the record books to remain as crazy memories of a wild month filled with madness and debauchery.

So I move on from a month filled of Hollywood a.k.a. Kevin expecting things to slow down a bit. This is not necessarily the case for Spain. The weather has cooled down a bit allowing Madrid to reawaken from its sleepy summer slumber. Holidays have ended and people and the Spaniards are back doing the things they do best, eating great food and consuming (you can’t say dr*nk, King’s Rule) wonderful beverages. Tintos de Verano flowed throughout the summer giving the drinker a brief respite from the unyielding heat.

So in honor of the last days of Summer what does Madrid do…. Throw a party of course. La Noche en Blanco (White Night) is Madrid last hurrah for summer bringing together the city’s biggest bands, best museums, performers, and sporting events. The museums open up their doors starting at 10pm and stay open until the party stops, 6am. Children and elderly alike use this excuse to skip a night of sleep and revel in the joys of the nightlife. The streets are quarantined from auto traffic and the people roam from barrio to barrio rediscovering the art and culture distinct to each area. The concerts don’t stop all night as you see Spanish bands, rappers, English rock, in addition to the broad range of street performing per usual from Madrid. Artwork from all of the country is displayed as people revel in the end of summer party. My flatmates and myself roamed the city for hours receiving an education on how successful a citywide party can be, especially when provided with the proper lubrication.

Me: and yes, its made from real Zebra!

We now move toward a more beer-centric style of outing in honor of Oktoberfest just a `hop’ around the corner in Germany. So cozy up as the leaves turn shades of yellow and orange with your frothy lager or warmed buttered rum… time for fall.

October starts and I start teaching classes again as all the kids head back to school. Stay tuned and I’ll keep you informed on what else Spain has in store for the closing of the year. Stop on by if you’re in town… I’ll take you to El Tigre… ask Kevin… he’ll let you know how it is.

Coming soon in the next edition of Angeloco: The Band: Uncle Meat and the Highway Children, they came, they saw, they were conquered...

-Lo

"Live as if you'll die tomorrow, Learn as if you'll live forever." -Ghandi