06.20.2011

It’s COLD.  I mean, not nearly as cold as Princeton, NJ or Washington, DC or Buffalo, NY is in winter, but it’s COLD.  While you all back home are “suffering” in the heat, I cannot leave my grandmother’s apartment without 5 layers, spandex underneath my jeans, and a jacket on.  Unfair.  My body is not used to cold in June.  This is the first time in my life it is experiencing this extremity of cold temperatures when it has been used to the extreme opposite—hot & humid!

Winter time back in the US for me consisted of hot chocolate (sometimes with Bailey’s), lots of movies, hardcore training for swimming, staying inside at all moments possible, freezing hair, and, if available, fireplaces.  Here, even in the cold, people still go outside, have lunch or even DINNER on tables outside, and continue to work out.  Instead of central heating, each house may have one or two “estufas” which literally means “stoves,” however they are essentially large stoves emitting heat…not enough to actually warm one up.  I actually have not been in a building since winter has begun in which I was not absolutely freezing.  Literally, you enter a house or a building with hat, gloves, jacket, your five layers, spandex, and 3 pairs of socks, yet you only take off the hat and gloves for courtesy.  Everyone is used to this, though.

They keep going though, which is something that has surprised me.  They go on with their lives.  They still go out.  They still party.  They continue to do physical activity.  They do not allow for excuses.  If they make excuses, they are taking away from a life they should be living.  They make every moment and take advantage of that moment to the fullest.  And, yes, most of the people that I have been surrounded by my entire life have been this way as well.  We don’t stop.  However, in a nation that is known for their “taking a break” attitude, they still get a whole lot of stuff done.  But, it’s not in a competitive spirit.  It’s not because they feel as if they will fall behind.  It’s because they seriously want to take each moment and use it up to its fullest.  Cool…even in the cold.

K bye.