Bicis

Two Fridays ago, some of us decided to take a bike ride to one of the peninsulas to see the other part of the UIMP campus, as well as the Palacio where the old campus used to be.  Another friend and I had already seen this side of Santander via a run, but I wanted photos! After spending about 40 minutes trying to figure out the bike rental machine and meeting some Canadian peregrinos, we headed through town, along the beach, and up the hill to Magdalena.

I’ve decided that I’m going to talk about a new word (or words) at the end of every post that I’ve learned and find fitting in explaining some part of my story here in Spain. It’s also a great learning tool for all 7 of you who read my blog =)

Bochorno: an adjective describing the weather when it is really hot and humid. Spaniards LOVE to talk about the weather and do so constantly. Every time the temperature changes just slightly, they will talk about it as if a hurricane just hit. I think they should rename Houston “Bochorno.” 

Marmota: Yep, a marmot. Why would this ever be important? Because after telling my professor that I slept 8 hours, she said, “Ay! Dormiste como una marmota!” Which basically means, “Wow! You slept like a marmot!” I had no idea that marmots were famous for their sleeping habits but apparently they are. I also had no idea that marmots were a commonly found animal in Cantabria, or in Spain for that matter.