If you recall, Covid was a weird time in so many ways. Our typical routines were upended, our activities changed, and during those endless days in our homes we looked to Zoom meetings to connect with friends and family. Or we baked bread. But I digress. It was during this time that the eight other teachers I taught with in Bogota, Colombia back in 2000 reconnected over Zoom. And this was when Jay gave an open invite to her home in Valencia, Spain. It wasn't a matter of if we'd visit, but when.
As Paul and I were trying to figure out our path home from Madagascar, we figured Europe would provide a decent stop over. Ahhhh…Jay's invite! Quick message to see if that would work for her and her family. SI CLARO (yes of course)!
Jay was an amazing host. In fact, she's starting a business that will run tours for expats, so we got the full service stay. Jay took us to a local monestery and finangled tapas and wine at the restaurant even after closing hours. She ran an Experience Valencia event for us and 10 others, which included local drinks, local snacks, and the piece de resistance traditonally made paella. She also toured us around Valencia and her nearby Sagunto, sharing her vast knowledge of the past and present history of the two cities.
We were disappointed that we didn't get to catch up with Jay's husband Marcos, but he was away for work in Kazakhstan. It was super fun to spend a bit of time with Kethan and Sonya, Jay's teenage kids. But the best part of this 3 day mayhem was catching up with Jay and getting a glimpse of the crazy Spanish life she has built over the last 3 years. A close second was the paella - dang that chicken and rice dish was deli!
