The (new) Breakfast of Champions

Forget Wheaties.

THIS is the first meal of the day for me here in Valencia and I thank my lucky stars for it:

Yes, that’s right. Starbucks: It’s Everywhere I Am. And thank goodness because the other night I had to have eggs with bacon mixed in because I was sick and starving and no one here makes chicken soup and I don’t eat bacon so I felt guilty, but what could I do? I really think Starbucks should be paying me for all this advertising, too, but I digress.

Also, when I say first meal, I mean only meal. It’s 7:15 pm and all I’ve had other than this is gum. They eat late here in Spain so I haven’t even bothered to look for dinner yet.

But back to breakfast. There are at least three things here that I am allergic to, yet how could I resist having a fresh-squeezed Valencian Orange Juice, what with my miserable sickness and everything. Hives be damned, I swear that juice actually made me a little better.

As no one bothers to talk to me here (not only do they not speak English, but they are not particularly friendly either), I usually bring along something to read and today I chose Joyce, bought at Trinity College in Dublin. I am a writer and an English teacher and I’ve never really read him, so I feel I should. I tried reading The Dubliners but it bored me, so I’m trying this. I’m on page 12 and already I don’t know–or care–what’s going on. I’m determined to discover why Joyce is Ireland’s favorite boy, though, so I will continue. I can’t figure out how to work the tv in my new hotel anyway, I might as well read.

OH, the new hotel? Yeah, switched hotels…will tell you why in the next post…right after I find out where the hell I am now (slightly different neighborhood) and what’s around!! Let the dinner-seeking adventure begin! (oh god, my adventures are so lame. Tomorrow I’m gonna find a mountain to scale, or a river to swim…or, at least, a decent box of tissues. Seriously, it’s been nothing but scratchy tp 😉 My nose needs some Puffs!