by Jeni Martinez | Nov 12, 2023 | Aging, Food, Friendship, Health, Hiking, Kindness, Language, Letting Go, Life and Death, Love, Travel
My high school boyfriend and I used to sing “When I’m Sixty-Four” by the Beatles. At the time, the lyrics had us imagining that we might have a long and happy life together. Of course sixty-four seemed ancient and so far in the future that we also...
by Jeni Martinez | Aug 18, 2022 | American Yogi in Spain, Americans in Gijon, Downsizing, Ex-pats in Spain, Family, Letting Go, Life and Death
Three years before we moved to Spain, we started the tedious process of downsizing. With so many new storage facilities springing up in Federal Way at the time, it was tempting to rent a large unit or two to store our favorite furniture, Rocky’s essential...
by Jeni Martinez | Apr 25, 2022 | American Yogi in Spain, Ex-pats in Spain, Family, Food, Letting Go, Spain, Travel
Madrid 1978-79: Forty-four years ago I landed in Madrid to study at La Universidad Complutense during my sophomore year in college. Madrid was the historic, provinical capital of Spain and was just emerging from the bleak Franco years. As a result, there were still...
by Jeni Martinez | Oct 31, 2021 | American Yogi in Spain, Americans in Gijon, Ex-pats in Spain, Family, Letting Go, Love, Spain, Yoga
I grabbed my necklace from the bathroom counter intending to put it on before going to the market. I noticed the leather cord was tangled so I gave it a little tug. Instead of straightening the cord, as I had hoped, I broke it in half. I stood staring at the two...
by Jeni Martinez | Oct 25, 2021 | American Yogi in Spain, Ex-pats in Spain, Hiking, Kindness, Letting Go, Life and Death, Peace, Spain, Travel
This week we became sort of an albergue (hostel) on the Camino de Santiago (Way of St. James Pilgrimage) when we welcomed my nephew Ian and his girlfriend Alba to our apartment. We were so happy to feed them, and offer a place for them to do laundry, rest and shower....
by Jeni Martinez | Jun 3, 2021 | 2020, American Yogi in Spain, Americans in Gijon, Downsizing, Ex-pats in Spain, Language, Letting Go, Retirement, Spain, Travel, Yoga
On Sunday afternoon, Rocky and I, along with our friends Eileen and Kieran, grabbed a table in the outdoor patio of a bar in a quaint fishing village called Viavelez. Two red and white fishing boats floated lazily in the small port across from the bar. Rows of green...
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