Kiki’s Spain Writings: ‘So far so clear: Christmas in España is totally the sh*t!’ 

Goodmorning Amayzine girl,

Well, I don't know how your weekend was, but mine had a golden edge. Un fiesta muy grande. A can-I-have-this-kind-of-weekends-please-always-weekend. Why? First of all, we had our ‘first party’. GOD, this sounds sad haha, but believe me: if you live on a mountain, your social circle is a bit smaller and it doesn't really matter that you've worn that sweater for the third day in a row, it's quite nice to finally put on a glitter suit.

Now, the Spaniards seize every opportunity to celebrate a good party (with an average of 76,583 national holidays in a year), but during Christmas, ALL brakes are off. In the center of Alicante, the world's largest nativity scene is traditionally set up. And when I say large, I mean gigantic, with a Joseph about twenty meters high and a little Jesus about three and a half meters tall. Everywhere in the city, lights are hanging, palm trees are transformed into Christmas trees with garlands, and there are Christmas markets to be found everywhere. It's incredibly cozy.

In that spectacle, the pre X-mas gathering of the padel club also took place. That's a kind of sacred thing here and the number 1 national sport. Yes, we suddenly seem to be padel players. GUT. Or better said: we want to be. Padel players... Is that a word? Anyhow, Sander seems to be a natural talent and I'm still hanging around a bit awkwardly and my backhand is laughable but hey: a person has to start somewhere.

And so we suddenly found ourselves at the Christmas dinner with 32 people on Saturday night. Shared dining at a mega-long table and a bit too much vino blanco. The hangover the next day was one of unprecedented magnitude, but hey: I felt alive.

The next day was dubbed Chill Out Break Sunday. And you should know: I love chill Sundays. On those days, the rules are simple: you wake up when you've had enough sleep. Wear a tracksuit all day. And cooking with pots and pans, we don't do that on a lazy Sunday, we just want tasty snacks.

And so I was in the kitchen rolling goat cheese balls with my mother (delicious with chives, chili, and lemon zest, yum) and we ended the evening in the jacuzzi overlooking a beautiful moon and a starry sky. You understand: a weekend with a golden edge. Sigh...

PS. They say you can learn to emigrate. So far so good!

PPS. Besides that, I'm bursting with pride because my new passion project also saw the light of day this weekend: On Retreat with Kiek. Yesss, it's finally here!! From June 16 to 20, I'm organizing a lovely come-totally-relax-retreat in the beautiful, sunny Benissa. I'll tell you more about it next week, but check the site if you can't wait.

Hasta la próxima semana!