Ole Spain! - Day 1 Recap

It feels so good to blog again, the past week I have been travelling through Spain! Spain is the best place I have ever visited in Europe...okay it's the only. During my trip I visited Barcelona (3 days), Sevilla (1.5 days) and Madrid (1.5 days). To recap I am going to do a day by day summary because their is so much to see in each city. :)

Day 1 - Arrived in Barcelona around 7:30am and rode the bus from the airport to hotel...okay not completely true. We got dropped off in the square where all protests were going on and then took a short cab ride to our hotel.

Our hotel was the Gran Torre Catalunya and it was great. It was about a 20 minute walk to the beach but close to the train and bus station. As soon as I unpacked my stuff I took about a 3 hour nap...oops. The plan for the day was to just walk and see whatever we ran into. :) The weather was perfect around 75 degrees and not muggy at all. See the map below to see where we walked and how much ground we covered.

1) Plaza Espana - This plaza was huge! The "round-about" was 4 lanes wide and the center of it was a huge statue. I am just not used to seeing this kind of architecture in the middle of the "round about." :)

2) Snack @ Port Vell - This was my first tapas experience in Spain and it didn't disappoint. The food was delish but I was expecting more bold flavors...everything seemed a little bland. The octopus, shrimp couldn't have been fresher. The pan tomate bread and spanish omelete were just okay but the potatoes bravas saved the day...think less greasy mexi-fries!! It was awesome to sit outside and enjoy Sangria, beer and tapas!

3) Barceloneta Beach - The beach was beautiful and BUSY! It was so nice to walk the beach and soak up the vitamin D...oh and enjoy GELADO! Gelado stands are everywhere. Walking the beach we came across numerous pieces of art that were very interesting to say the least.

4) Santa Maria del Mar Cathedral - We were just walking and came across this cathedral and when I walked in I was in complete shock of how beautiful it was. I have never seen a church with this much detail and beauty. We just happened to stumble across it in the middle of the city...no huge signs to signify that it was a big deal. I couldn't wait to see more architecture in Barcelona!!

5) MarisCo in Plaza Real - We just continued to walk the streets and stumbled across another thing of beauty...Plaza Real aka Royal Plaza. This was a square filled with restaurants, a beautiful fountain, tons of shops and even some street vendors and performers. I wasn't super hungry so I just had a tuna salad and glass of wine because I was still stuffed from my earlier snack. :) This square was so beautiful at night that we just sat their and enjoyed the atmosphere.

6) La Ramblas - This is supposed to be the busiest tourist street in Barcelona and it was. Restaurants, shops, markets and tons of people were here. This street was pure excitement for me and I couldn't wait to come back during the day to see all the shops open.

7) Gran Torre Dessert - After walking a ton, I felt as though I deserved dessert before hitting the sack. I ordered an almond hazelnut dessert that was simply the best thing ever! I mean if you look at the picture below and don't start drooling we probably can never share the same passion for desserts. :)

My first day in Spain was so much fun and a good taste of Europe. But I couldn't wait to see all the big tourists spots. :)

Thanksgiving Style Turkey Burgers

Today was quite an eventful day...I woke up early to attend a mandatory "Reemployment Orientation." It was an hour and a half of learning how to be more employable. I have to say that in theory it is a really good great idea but the actual orientation fell short for me.

After attending my ridic orientation I met my mom for a Target run, lunch and a search for comfy cute flats for my upcoming trip to Barcelona, Spain. Today was pretty successful, I only need to run a few more errands tomorrow and then I will be all set. :) Below are my two favorite purchases...BCBG flats for $27 (courtesy of DWS) and my $20 purse (courtesy of Target).

I love when you find deals on your favorite brand...I LOVE U BCBG!

As soon as I got home I went for a nice hilly run around my house...I ran for 45 minutes in the 70 degree weather. It was an awesome run and makes me really excited for this upcoming summer. :) After I was done with my run I made a plain blueberry protein shake to energize me for my evening walk with Mary.

I have been craving a great turkey burger lately so I decided to make them tonight with a twist. On today's menu Thanksgiving Style Turkey Burgers with homemade parsnip & sweet potato fries! I know it sounds odd but the picture looked amazing. I of course found this recipe on MyRecipes.com, Turkey Burgers with Cranberry & Peach Chutney.

I had to alter the recipe a bit because I couldn't find premade cranberry chutney anywhere so I decided to wing it with a can of cranberry sauce (whole berries) & cinnamon. I pre-sliced the peaches, sweet potato and parsnip fries and made the turkey patties before my walk with Mary. We decided to go on a 3 mile evening stroll which was great, by the time we got home we were starving and ready to eat our faces off!

Both Mary and I only ate half of our whole wheat sandwich thins...to cut
down on carbs and calories. :)

The recipe turned out really good...I just love turkey burgers especially with a fruity twist. This was my first time making parsnip chips/fries and I learned that they are delicious if you cut them really thinly and cook them for (20 minutes at 400 degrees) flipping halfway through. The sweet potato fries turned out good to but next time I am going to use yams...because I think they are more tasty and beautiful.

PS I can't believe I leave for my trip is less than 48 hours. :)

Recovery Sunday

Today I woke up feeling very sluggish I think it was because of my horrendous diet of cheese & alcohol yesterday! I think I went a little overboard...but it was worth it. I decided to hit the gym even though everything in my body was saying stay in bed. :) Luckily when I got to the gym a Zumba class was just starting.

This Zumba class was taught by Kelly, who is super cute and bubbly. The class was definitely an older crowd but I still managed to look the most RIDICULOUS out of everyone. I wonder if I should be concerned that I am not getting better...still looking like Richard Simmons! :) At one point in the class we all got in a circle and danced and ran around giving each other high fives...I wish I could have seen other people's reactions. It was a good workout and way to start off my Sunday. I headed back to nourish my body with a Strawberry & Banana Protein Shake. It really ended up tasting like a creamy stawberry milkshake...I love when you get the right combo!

Strawberry & Banana Deliciousness

1 frozen banana
5-8 frozen strawberries
1 scoop of protein powder
1 cup of almond milk







I really don't know what else I did this morning but it felt great to move at a slow pace. Before I knew it, it was time for lunch and I was craving a salad! Check out my awesome Chef/Chopped Salad: mixed greens, grape tomatoes, salami, grilled chicken and avocado topped with olive oil & balsamic! I thought about topping it with some of my Kokos Cheese but decided against it because I was still full of cheese from yesterday. :)



I'm not sure what else I feel like doing today...so I will probably Skype with the Boston Crew and be a bum. I love Sunday's they are so relaxing!

Seattle Cheese Festival

Today is such a beautiful day and perfect weather for the Cheese Festival I am attending. My friend Kristin aka Bums planned a romantic wine and cheese day for us. :) We road the bus downtown (we are all about saving money) to Pike Place Market super hungry. It was a beautiful Seattle day...believe me nothing beats Seattle on a nice day!

As we entered the market area all we saw were tents full of free cheese! I think there were over 30 vendors of cheese that were all giving out free sample of the most delicious cheese. We were both starving so we just started hitting booth after booth. Our first stop was the Honey Bee tent, they were sampling 5 different cheeses and we both fell in lust...(we later purchased two of the five cheeses) :) We started taking notes on which cheese we wanted to come back and purchase, all the cheeses were extremely affordable...$5 for a decent size wedge.

Our favorite booth was our first one!

We just kept on tasting...everything which included dairy-free/low-fat cheese (seriously), 8 year aged Gouda, strawberry goat cheese, wasabi cheddar to name a few of my fav. I fell further in love with goat cheese this afternoon almost wanting to bathe in it. As Kristin and I approached tent #15 or so we looked at each other and sighed  "Are you already full too?" to each other.

We were both double fisting handfuls of cheese like this! AMAZING.

It was fairly disappoining because from that point on we weren't trying every sample...we had to pick and choose. I felt defeated because I LOVE free samples...especially of CHEESE. After an hour and a half of sampling we decided to make some purchases and then head to the wine garden which was only $10 for 5 tastings.

We bought three cheeses and a baguette and headed to drink it up! When we got to wine garden we were a little disappointed because we couldn't sit down and enjoy our purchases. :( We just started drinking...and we stumbled across The Pike Brewery which was pouring 8 oz pours for 1 ticket! We were sold on using a few of our tickets on beer because it was the perfect weather for it.

Great Surprise!



You are not mistaken we are double cupping...we are very classy ladies. :)

I also tried a pretty tasty Viognier and Muscat...they were the perfect whites for a nice summer day. I was a little bummed because red wine just isn't appropriate on a sunny day. :( After we used all our tickets we decided to walk off our little buzz with a nice walk tby walking to Kristin's apartment to tear into our cheeses purchases. Check out the spread we purchased for under $20:

Walnut & Apricot Baguette - $4.50

Le Roule Cranberry - $5

Honey Bee Goat Cheese - $5

Koko Coconut Cheese - $5 (tastes like paradise in your mouth)

The Seattle Cheese Festival is wonderful for those of us who are on a budget that still want to be fabulous! I tasted over 30 cheeses and enjoyed a wine garden for under $30! This would be a great event to take a group of girls, couples and family to because there is something for everyone. Be sure and come hungry and be prepared to feel a tiny bit sick because of all the delicious cheese. :)

I felt a little off the whole night but it was well worth it because I had so much fun!! Thanks Kristin for inviting me to this amazing festival!

Homemade Thai Food - Mission Failed

I had a variety of missions to accomplish today and sadly have to report that I failed at least one of them. :)Today's mission:

1) Find an interval workout and complete it - Acommplished (actually succeed expectations) :)

I found a interval workout on my favorite site http://www.fitnessmagazine.com/! Here is my workout using the Quick Cardio Blaster:

Elliptical
5 minutes - Warm-Up (Level 4)
5 minutes - Level 6
5 minutes - Level 7
10 minutes - Level 9
5 minutes - Level 7
5 minutes - Cool Down (Level 4)

After my elliptical workout I headed to do some push-ups and sit-ups! I did 3 sets of the following circuit. :)

10 push-ups using the BOSU Ball
20 regular crunches on a stability ball
20 side wall crunch each side
20 knee tucks on a stability ball

I decided to be a complete gym rat and finished with a variation of the Quick Cardio Blaster on the stairmaster...it just felt like the right thing to do. :) I tend to get a bit bored on the stairmaster so I decided to change up my climbing the steps by doing 1 minute normal, 1 minute skipping a step, 1 minute turning to my left (working the side of my leg), 1 minute turning to my right and then 1 minute of normal! This makes the workout go by so fast but it also is a bit challenging because of my coordination issues...be careful!

5 minutes - Warm-Up (Level 4)
5 minutes - Level 7
10 minutes - Level 9
5 minutes - Level 7
5 minutes - Cool Down (Level 4)

Great workout followed with a delicious blueberry protein shake and raw veggies.
2) Find a job - Mission failed
No interviews scheduled...:( But I did submit for a couple positions.

3) Make a homemade Thai food that tastes good - Mission Miserably Failed

I have tried to make homemade Thai food numerous times and it never tastes the same...what am I missing? I found a great looking recipe in Food Network Magazine: Eggplant & Tofu Curry. I decided to try it and see what happens...it looked good but tasted nothing like the curry I enjoy at a Thai food restaurant. :( Again someone please help me figure out what spice I am missing??

Paired with quinoa to be healthy!

4) Read a good portion of Marketing in the Moment & The Girls of Ames - Mission accomplished

I am really enjoying Marketing in the Moment and learning about Web 3.0 Marketing...hopefully this will help me while interviewing. :) I read a couple of chapters of The Girls of Ames but it isn't hooking me like before.

5) Make a delicious dessert for 1 - Mission accomplished (Thanks to Chocolate Covered Katie)

She has a section in recipes called Single Lady Desserts. I love this idea because it satisfies my sweet toothe without overindulging. Tonight I wanted a single chocolate chip cookie! This cookie didn't have any dairy and still tasted AMAZING. I paired my dessert with a DIY Iced Matcha Green Tea Latte (made with almond milk). This hit the spot and made me SMILE BIG.

Perfect Serving Size!

Today had a few failures but ultimately was a successful and fun day! 

No Hassle BBQ Chicken for ONE Please!

Yesterday I ran like the wind with my friend Tim around Greenlake and....he killed me. We ran around 8 minute miles but honestly I was sucking wind (total distance around 3 miles)!! So today I decided against hitting the gym because I was freaking tired. I wanted to find a killer butt workout so I went on the prowl and found a couple workouts on Fitnessmagazine.com.

Workout 1 - The 15 Minute Bootylicious Butt Workout

• Single Sky Bridge - 20 reps
• Tree Twist - 20 reps
• Step Up, Kick-Back - 15 reps
• Squat Dips - 15 reps
• Sky Squat - 15 reps

This workout got me sweating because of the high reps and my booty was burning so good. :) I didn't take breaks in between the exercises because I wanted to keep my heart rate up. If you start to lose perfect form on your squats I recommend stopping and moving to the next move.

Workout 2 - Melt it Off: Calorie-Burning Circuit Workout
You do each of the exercises below for 30 seconds and rest 15 seconds in between. I did this circuit three times.

• Squat Walk - I did a push-up to make it more difficult
• Roll Pop-Up
• Attitude Touchdown
• Spider Jumps - My least favorite exercise!
• Half Turkish Get-Up

The rest of my day was consumed of writing the DREADED cover letters for all the positons I want to apply for. It takes me so long to write them because I want each of them to be perfect. The entire process of finding a job is excruciating. I absolutely hate interviewing because I get so darn nervous... all I want is to impress them and make them hire me. UGH....I have had two interviews and I am still jobless. I think I really need to find a way to be self-employed. :) After writing about five cover letters I decided I needed to take a break to make dinner and watch the Celtics. For dinner I decided to make No Hassle BBQ Chicken:

1 Chicken Breast
1 1/2 tablespoons of BBQ Sauce
1/2 Red Onion
1 cup of broccoli
1/4 cup of prepared quinoa

I sauteed the red onion in a skillet while I boiled the chicken breast (10 minutes or so). I then took out the chicken breast and pulled it apart and mixed it with the sauteed onions and bbq sauce! That's it and now I had the perfect Pulled BBQ Chicken paired with premade quinoa and steamed broccoli. This No Hassle BBQ Chicken is the perfect single serving meal!

Now it is time to read and get my butt to bed because I am currently fighting a cold...a battle I am losing. Hopefully tomorrow will be better. :)

Working It!

I can't believe this but I have gotten another cold...which is a little frustrating. I woke up at 3:00am today because my noise was stuffy and my head hurt. Not the best way to wake up on a Saturday but I eventually was able to get back to sleep until 7:00am.

I was feeling a bit better and decided to make myself a nice breakfast. Which included a Baked Oatmeal Muffin, a fried egg, a few slices of fresh mango and a cup of coffee. It tasted good to have a different type of breakfast this morning...yummy egg.



The baked oatmeal was sooo good again today!

After breakfast I was finally able to get motivated and head into the gym. I decided to do a favorite workout of mine: Burn 400 Calories Without Getting Bored. I love this workout because 40 minutes of constantly switching machines and doing intervals ensures you are never bored!!! As I was heading to the locker room I saw that a Zumba class was in session. So I decided to jump in for the last 40 minutes of class. Zumba is one of my very favorite workouts!

Why do I LOVE Zumba?

I love Zumba classes because it gives you an awesome workout (burns around 500 calories) while dancing your butt off. Another plus to this class is that you just end up smiling alot because it is almost impossible to look normal doing some of the moves! I totally recommend going with a couple of girlfriends because it is so fun to be ridiculous together.

This class was more latin infused and our instructor Connie was a master of moving her hips. I on the other hand tried to imitate JLO but ended up looking more like Richard Simmons!! I looked completely ridic...I really wish I had a video of myself so everyone could get a good laugh. I knew I looked ridic so I decided to work it and embrace my lack of rhythm, timing and sexiness.

Yep...this is pretty much what I looked like in Zumba today!

I was starving when I got home because of my double workout so I decided to make myself a DIY Matcha Green Tea Smoothie and a Quinoa Spinach Salad with some fresh veggies on the side. I was craving a Matcha Green Tea Latte but decided to try and make it a smoothie instead and it turned out really really good! It didn't look so good but trust me it tasted yummy!

Matcha Green Tea Smoothie

1/2 cup matcha mix

1/2 almond milk

1 frozen banana

1 scoop of protein powder

2-4 ice cubes

Now it is time to relax and enjoy my Saturday of decluttering my apartment and watching the Celtics. My brother has tickets five rows back tonight...I knew I should have stayed another week. :)