The last couple of days I've been bouncing back and forth between Salinas and new found Arnao beach. Jose asked me which I liked better and I started to analyze the characteristics of each beach.
I like both, but Salinas is a little bit more of a scene. People are there to be seen. There's even a private swim club, think country club, right on the beach. You can partially see in as you walk by. They have one of those fences that lets you see what you're missing but not the whole thing.
Arnao is a townie beach. It's filled with people who just love the beach. Most of them are surfing, fishing, swimming or just looking out across the water. It's a really serene place and has many little details like cool multicolored rocks scattered everywhere. And the bar is a family owned joint where you catch them sitting down to dinner everyday. Arnao is also a great place to sit down and paint.
The beach choice kinda makes me think of the campaigning going on in the states right now. It's really been interesting to see an American election from over here. Every night there is something about Obama or McCain on the news. Many people are very interested in the outcome over here. Especially Tio. He LOVES himself some Obama. He always asks me who I'm going to vote for and I tell him Obama, of course. He thinks he will make a very good president for the U.S. and the world. I tell Tio that when I vote the day after I get back, he'll be voting too. He loves that and smiles big.
I'm kinda embarrassed with my world leaders knowledge. I realized after getting into a political discussion with the family that I don't know much about world leaders that doesn't relate to the U.S. while they can name our entire cabinet. Something I plan to work on.
We started talking about Spain's economic problems and recession. After seeing Europeans pour into Key West this summer spending like the U.S. was a factory outlet mall, I asked Jose - "But the Euro is so strong. Isn't that good?" He said no, because no one is buying Spain's products.
We are all interconnected like it or not and the more I read the newspapers here, the more I see Spain having similar problems to the U.S.
The election is exciting and seeing parts of the speeches from the Democratic Convention made me get goosebumps. It's good to have hope and optimism for our future something that has been missing the last eight years. When McCain announced his running partner, Tio got animated "A woman!". I kinda grimaced.
While I think it's great that both parties have chosen groundbreaking candidates, Palin is anti-choice and pro-gun. I don't get that. It's not ok to have an abortion but you can whip out your AK 47 when they're older and open fire? It makes no sense. Plus taking away choice from people is against everything that this country is built on. Fine, you take away that and maybe the women get to vote on who gets Viagra. That seems fair.
She looks like an intelligent woman and already is speaking like more of a candidate than McCain is but the whole thing is insulting. The GOP thinking is Vagina = Votes. Don't worry if she's got enough experience or will complement McCain's skills just get a vagina in there pronto! I guess their thinking is similar to flashing a shiny object in front of a monkey.
The one thing I miss over here is Bill Maher. He's got plenty of material to work from on both sides this year. It's going to be a good show no matter what and these groundbreaking candidates will open dialogue on subjects that haven't been fully discussed.
In the end, everyone has to decide what's right for them and vote accordingly. There are different perspectives to bring to the table and that's always a good thing.
Just like my candidate decision, the beach decision has been a thought-provoking one. I have decided that Arnao is my favorite because the people are more real and the beach has a natural beauty to it I enjoy.
And I love that the best shot I got of the hilltop cafe was from a stall in the ladies bathroom.
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