Oh Valencia!

I'm a few hours away from taking a bus and a flight to Valencia. I hear their beaches along the Mediterranean are just gorgeous. Our beach here in Valladolid is along a river, but no one swims in it because it's a bit polluted. So I think we're planning on running from the terminal to the beach and jump right in the sea with our clothes on.

I just filled out the forms for a library card here. They have a limited selection of English books, but the ones they have are quite well known. I just checked out East of Eden by John Steinbeck. The receptionist here was very helpful and very nice. I've only had to speak Spanish to complete strangers a few times and so far it's gone well. Of course when I'm at home or in class it's much easier to spit out what I want to say than if I'm talking to someone on the street who doesn't know who I am.

At the beach today we talked about some funny topics. One was whether or not the change in altitude makes some more drunk faster than on land. The pressure of the cabin might regulate some of that, but all of it? I don't know. Also, what's the drinking age when you're in the air? Can a boy from 18 year old from Spain drink on the plane but not a 18 year old from the USA? Maybe my Uncle Scott can help us out on this one.
(Editor's note: NO, the people in my group are not raging alcoholics nor do they plan on drinking on the flight. They were just topìcs of discussion. You can stop raising your eyebrows mother.)

On a more personal note, I've told myself that I want to be ready for the spiritual/religious part of the Camino that I'm about to travel. I've looked up quite a bit about the life of Santiago and the legends surrounding him. I've also looked a bit into the topics of "prayer" and "free will". If God has set things in motion after the creation of the universe, does He intervene and change what he has set in motion?(e.g. through miracles, or by granting prayers) In addition, when we pray and ask for something, are we asking for God to intervene as well into the plan which He set forth? Whaaaaaa? I've read that there have been something like 50 comfirmed and accepted miracles that have passed rigorous standards that science cannot explain, meaning there has been a Divine intervention of sorts into our physical world. It's a crazy plan that we're a part of. I wonder how God sorts through and decides when to give us a miracle ...

The weather is just tremendous here and I'm ready to head to the coast.

Love,
Jack