In search of shrooms

SHROOMS!
Shrooms are very popular here in Barcelona, but not with the younger generation trying to take a trip. I'm talking 50 year old or plus little of Catalan ladies who are in love with mushrooms. They go off on weekend excursions or day trips to the mountains armed with guide books and search for mushrooms. Now I don't exactly fit the criteria of a 'mushroom hunter' ...young american girl...but I am intrigued to the max! And I want to join the shroom frenzy! Pilar made me run to the street corner on Saturday morning to buy a shroom book before they all were sold out.

I first heard about these mushrooms when one of the other BCA students told me his mom was going on a four day mushroom excursion to the mountains, then with Pilar and her mushroom book, and then today with my second language partner, Monce.

If I had to guess I would say Monce is in her late 50's. I was wondering what we would talk about and after we covered the basics, my family, the USA, school, her job exct...we began to talk about hobbies. And there the mushrooms cropped up again. I told her I was completely fascinated by the mushroom hunting going on and if there were places near Barcelona where I could go mushroom hunting. She was thrilled that I was excited by this and quickly agreed that after we got a bit more rain we could drive to the mountains and start the search. She said she knew a good mountain an hour away. Monce explained that some women are obsessed with finding these mushrooms and she enjoys more being in nature and walking. I like that, that way pressures off if I suck at mushroom gathering...

Monce loves walking and after we got tea at a typical Barcelona cafe she showed me her neighborhood. It reminded me a lot of La Mesa. It's like a little city inside a huge city it has that smaller, tranquilo, calmer feel to it. It turns out we really don't live that far away from each other because we ended up walking back to my apartment after. Monce and I spent 2 and a half hours talking together and agreed to meet next Saturday to see a new Woody Allen movie. These Barcelona people love Woody Allen!

Other news: Juniata asked me to write an official blog for the school. I guess more people have seen this than I originally thought... :) And Cribsy I hope the tests went well!