Our second module started last week, with some of the best lecturers and topics yet. Ines Nunez de la Parte lectured on trading internationally and the basics of drafting international contracts. Many of the class' concepts reminded me of studying contracts in the States, but this class had a very real international aspect as European business contracts are rarely domestic. Professor Nunez de la Parte is General Counsel for Ingeteam, one of the biggest companies in Basque Country, so she had a great deal of real life experience to share with us. The lessons and anecdotes made her a great lecturer and it was a great class overall.
Aside from classes, I spent the weekend mostly indoors trying to keep dry – monsoon-like rains poured throughout Bilbao from Saturday to Monday and it made me want to curl up in bed with a book. And, for most of the weekend, I did. I eventually rallied and did venture out to the grocery store - which is actually one of my favorite cultural experiences. When I travel, I always love the moments that make me think “I’m definitely not in the States right now.” These moments happen all over, of course, but many of them – and most of my favorites – happen in the grocery store. See exhibits below:
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| The Nutella Section in the Store: note the lone jars of peanut butter up top. |
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| The peanut butter is American themed. |
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| teehee. |
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| Ok, this could be done in the States, too, but it makes me giggle. That's greek yogurt. |
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| No, bad milk is not sexy, but apparently this wigged out cat is. |
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| Share? What? in the States, 2 free donuts would not mean sharing.... (The sign essentially translates to "Who are you going to invite to share with?") |
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| This is just not appetizing to me ... and note that its called the "rape" fish. |
And a few more non-grocery store culture clashes:
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| Excuse the bad picture - I took it on the subway, but the sign is an aspirin and translates to "Avoid headaches, Consult with your lawyer." ... I'm pretty sure that's not the reputation lawyers have in the States... |
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| Somehow I don't think this ad campaign would work in the States... there are other signs with elephants, birds and other animals "doin' their thang". |
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| Stag parties... ha, enough said, I think... |
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| Ok, this is not in Spain. But, I love it nonetheless. |
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| Funny English translations... would you like some fried varied for lunch? |
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| Topless beach going... |
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| Dogs inside restaurants... |
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| Books in vending machines. |
y mas! Oh, how I love the little nuances.
On Tuesday the rain finally cleared so Jenny, Kristen and I took a day trip to Burgos, which is about an hour and a half south of Bilbao. Burgos is on the Camino del Santiago, a famous pilgrimage route recently made famous-er by Martin Sheen. Back in the day, a cathedral was built over the remains of St. James, Spain’s patron saint, and people from all over started making pilgrimages to visit. There are actually five different routes and the “Northern Route” runs straight through Bilbao, a few blocks from my house in Casco Viejo. But, the most traditional route is the “French Way” which starts in the Pyrenees, crossing through Pamplona, Navarra, La Rioja and Leon before finally reaching the cathedral in Santiago de Compostela. The entire route is 780 km (around 500 miles) and thousands of pilgrims still walk it, bike it, or horseride it today. The entire route is clearly marked with scallop shells so that pilgrims claim they don’t even need a map. We easily found the route in Burgos and traversed along it for about an hour, enjoying the beautiful fall scenery and the ancient tradition.
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| The City Wall and the Cathedral beyond it in Burgos. |
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| A sign indicating how much of the Camino is left. |
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| Shells pointing out pilgrims are still on the Camino. |
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| More Shells. |
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| Mas Shells. |
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| and an arrow pointing the way. |
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| All on a beautiful fall day in Burgos! |
