
<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-august-2015/21152519151_c97905e85b_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image post-thumb" title="Summer Son">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-august-2015/21152519151_e7b73e3690_t.jpg" alt="Summer Son"/>
</a>

To say that August was a month of milestones would be an understatement. The kids spent almost all of August in the little town of Higuera de la Serena, in Extremadura, in southern Spain, where their maternal grandmother is from. They had a blast, with the lack of schedule and structure that accompanies many memories of summer vacations. The milestone that most excites me is that Nora _finally_ learned how to ride her bicycle. 

### Nora Can (FINALLY) Ride A Bicycle

It's been a long, bumpy, and frustrating road since [the first time she tried another kid's bike](/2012/10/09/noras-first-bicycle-ride/) in a playground, through her [efforts with her own bicycle](/2015/01/30/state-of-the-offspring-address-january-2015/) this year. This month, over summer vacation, she finally got the hang of it, over the course of two days, with probably only 60 times down a 50 meter stretch of road with someone holding onto the bicycle to prevent her from falling. Because this has been such a stressful battle, her mother and I are absolutely elated!

<iframe width="505" height="284" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/CHcFmAdUIEU" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

### Ian Can Ride His Pedal-less Bicycle

Ian also got a bike last Christmas, but it was the pedal-less kind. During the spring, the seat, at its lowest setting, was still a little too high for him, but this summer we had to actually raise it a bit once he got the hang of it. He _loves_ it! Of course, it helps that his sister was spending so much time on her bike, too.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-august-2015/20957023200_0af27e282e_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Ian and Joel">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-august-2015/20957023200_32954ef03b.jpg" alt="Ian and Joel"/>
</a>

Ian immediately bonded with the next door neighbor, Joel, who is a couple months older than him, and talks quite a bit more. They have the same totally-stereotypical-boy interests of motorcycles and cars and balls.

<iframe width="505" height="284" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/t_pqInCGAeo" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

In the first scene, you can hear Joel saying, "_Eso se puede arreglar, Ian._" (That can be fixed, Ian), and Ian looking at me, saying, "_Roto!_" (Broken!), and not letting Joel fix it.

### Potty Training

In southern Spain during the summer, the kids spend most of the time barely clothed, and the clothes dry in the sun on the clothes line faster than they would in a dryer. So we took the opportunity to take off Ian's diaper. After a week or so, he got the hang of doing a poo in the potty in the morning right after waking up, but he never, ever figured out how to predict urination with more than one second of warning, just enough for him to spread his legs apart to not pee on his own feet.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-august-2015/20523752074_f40250f4f5_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Ian - First Poo">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-august-2015/20523752074_c66898bd1f.jpg" alt="Ian - First Poo"/>
</a>

Proud pooper. It turns out that we were celebrating over the hard cork, and the rest of it came out a few minutes later in his undies. Ugh... As they say, It happens.

### Pacifier Lost

When we arrived back down south to pick up the kids, after two blissful weeks of solitude on the north coast, we were informed that my in-laws had taken a step we have been fearing for a while now. Nora never, ever used a pacifier. Ian rarely used them as a baby, but around his second birthday, he became quite the chain-smoking addict, asking for his pacifier, called _el te-te_ in our house (short for _chupete_), any time he was even moderately stressed. My in-laws informed us that all of the _te-tes_ were "lost", and that whenever one was requested, they had been saying, "Okay! Let's go look for it!" which distracted Ian just long enough for him to forget about his thirst for a _te-te_ hit.

So far we've managed to maintain the ruse, although we did give him one briefly on the drive back north when we were passing through the Cantabria mountains near Reinosa, and he was right on the puking precipice. If we could have this problem solved, that would be _awesome_!

### Summer Friends

Nora's best friend at home, Carmen, is two years older than her, and her best friend in the little town where we go in the summer, Nahia, is, too. They have very similar personalities, a little solitary and shy, but they kept asking their parents when they could get together next. Both Carmen and Nahia pull Nora in good directions of maturity and good behavior.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-august-2015/21134750602_84bc6133f4_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Nora and Nahia">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-august-2015/21134750602_d03c0b5738_z.jpg" alt="Nora and Nahia"/>
</a>

Nora is about to start first grade, and Nahia third. Nahia's grandfather is Nora's great-grandfather's nephew, which I think makes them third cousins. They are also related via Nahia's grandmother, so they are 3+ cousins.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-august-2015/20956886760_c59ae33003_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Hand Slap Game">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-august-2015/20956886760_71f652d318.jpg" alt="Hand Slap Game"/>
</a>

I taught them how to play this hand-slapping game that I learned as a child. It kept them occupied for a while, letting the grown-ups chat. We get along well with Nahia's father.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-august-2015/20957977569_885f85fd71_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Ian, Nahia, Nora">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-august-2015/20957977569_5b917feccc.jpg" alt="Ian, Nahia, Nora"/>
</a>

Nora, Ian, Nahia, and Nahia's grandmother, Antonia.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-august-2015/21118561096_a24ba93971_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Banana Eating Cousins">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-august-2015/21118561096_cf24b47639.jpg" alt="Banana Eating Cousins"/>
</a>

Banana Eaters.

Nora also hit it off immediately with her second cousin, Valle, who she only sees a couple days a year. Valle, despite their similarity in height, is also two years older than Nora.

### Terrible Twos

I'm certain that at least some of it is from coming off a fortnight of total will-bending control over his grandparents, but Ian's personality and temperment have changed this month. He gets tantrum-angry at the drop of a hat, and seems to go out of his way to disobey rules. While I believe that the whole "terrible twos" phenomenon is largely a myth, both Nora and Ian have undergone a shift at this age that made them much harder to deal with as a parent.

Since returning, he has been going to bed at around 1:00 am, and being a real crankshaft in the morning when it's time to get up. Because my wife gets up at 6:00 am to go to work, we can't really leave him in bed whether he likes it or not, because then she can't sleep at all. At least until school starts on September 10th, I have relatively unstructured mornings and can deal with his late nights, but something's gotta change. We'll see...

### Multimedia

That's about all I have to say for this month, so I'll leave you with a photo and video presentation.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-august-2015/21119031216_ab65ecd4bd_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Ian Trampoline">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-august-2015/21119031216_a07a2df233.jpg" alt="Ian Trampoline"/>
</a>

Both Ian and Nora lost their trampoline virginity this summer. I had a brilliantly edited video, with slow motion effects, ready to share with you, but my phone crashed and I lost it. It was fun to watch both of them go from being total klutzes to actually figuring out how to bounce. Nora made it as far as learning to bounce on her bottom and back up to her feet.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-august-2015/21118733536_a32167fb97_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Walking with Abuelo">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-august-2015/21118733536_8f1ffe8cef.jpg" alt="Walking with Abuelo"/>
</a>

Bar hopping with Abuelo.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-august-2015/20958103289_0b4f4e3a1c_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Ian meets puppy">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-august-2015/20958103289_ddf8c40180.jpg" alt="Ian meets puppy"/>
</a>

Getting to know the fauna.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-august-2015/21152519151_c97905e85b_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Summer Son">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-august-2015/21152519151_e7b73e3690_z.jpg" alt="Summer Son"/>
</a>

This sums up summer vacation.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-august-2015/21152580771_c3c8b5369a_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Ian the Pimp">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-august-2015/21152580771_4626e06861_z.jpg" alt="Ian the Pimp"/>
</a>

Hello, ladies! Welcome to my chalet.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-august-2015/21145195085_0c7696f942_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Eating Spearmint from Mommy's Mojito">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-august-2015/21145195085_e5d2e97c9d_z.jpg" alt="Eating Spearmint from Mommy's Mojito"/>
</a>

My mother used to eat the olives from her father's gin martinis, and my daughter eats the spearmint from her mother's mojitos.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-august-2015/20959220569_1d450eccff_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Ian Summer Walking">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-august-2015/20959220569_736d31d2fa.jpg" alt="Ian Summer Walking"/>
</a>

Tourist.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-august-2015/20957818560_e178793fd9_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Two mojitos, please!">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-august-2015/20957818560_4d95aabc67.jpg" alt="Two mojitos, please!"/>
</a>

Two mojitos, please. Extra mint.

<iframe width="505" height="284" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/N_DJc2vvD0M" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Winking Ian.

<iframe width="505" height="284" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Ewpxffn5CX4" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Riding their bicycles up north (notice the gray sky and wet ground).

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-august-2015/20522595784_216af68e16_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Family Walk">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-august-2015/20522595784_270f927ceb.jpg" alt="Family Walk"/>
</a>

Summer sunset family walk.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-august-2015/21121427336_c4f33306ab_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="My family">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-august-2015/21121427336_d278bbd422_z.jpg" alt="My family"/>
</a>

With Mommy.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-august-2015/20959763188_57862cc577_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Pink Family">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-august-2015/20959763188_1e594ccac4_z.jpg" alt="Pink Family"/>
</a>

With Daddy.

The state of the offspring is strong! ...and agile!

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-august-2015/21121475456_68d69b011d_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Circus Act">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-30-state-of-the-offspring-address-august-2015/21121475456_071e7f5009.jpg" alt="Circus Act"/>
</a>


State of the Offspring Address - August 2015


<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20827786331_df00759ed5_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image post-thumb" title="Hiking Mount Buciero">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20827786331_8dce96a250_t.jpg" alt="Hiking Mount Buciero"/>
</a>

By far the most predominant geography where I live is the mountain that protects my town of Colindres, and the neighboring tourism beach town of Laredo, from the open Cantabrian Sea: Mount Buciero. Today I have yet another harrowing tale, not unlike [the one from a few months ago](https://erikras.com/2015/05/11/boating-in-the-bay/), involving this salient landscape feature. Go have a glance at the introduction to that post to get a feel for the size and layout of this big green peninsular mountain.  For the ten long years that we have lived here, my wife and I have wanted to climb this mountain, and when we heard that there was a set of four hiking trails of varying difficulties, we were sure we wanted to try it. This past weekend, with our children in Extremadura with their grandparents, we invited my sister-in-law to come visit, and we decided to give the mountain hike a try.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20836718252_8be521be95_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Hiking Routes - Mount Buciero">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20836718252_189686476f.jpg" alt="Hiking Routes - Mount Buciero"/>
</a>

The Blue Route, which circumnavigates the entire mountain, was listed as "Easy", with a distance of 11 kilometers (6.84 miles) and a time of three hours, which we all felt pretty sure we could handle. I can walk for three hours, no problem! And I can totally go without water for three hours. Easy peasy!

[Here is a PDF](http://www.turismosantona.com/administracion/documentos/ficheros/20070818172640SENDAS%20DEL%20MONTE%20BUCIERO.pdf) from which I copied that image. In fact, it would have been very good to have read that entire document _before_ setting out, for reasons that will become clear shortly.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20632591350_0a88cc21dc_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Hiking Mount Buciero">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20632591350_938039a622.jpg" alt="Hiking Mount Buciero"/>
</a>

The hike begins by climbing the stairs to the old fort, which overlooks the tip of the peninsular Laredo beach.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20632685648_f3b8344d9f_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Hiking Mount Buciero">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20632685648_9eb6b769bb.jpg" alt="Hiking Mount Buciero"/>
</a>

The weather was gorgeous.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20633943449_1924f52a00_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Hiking Mount Buciero">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20633943449_4f97975832.jpg" alt="Hiking Mount Buciero"/>
</a>

It didn't take long before we had climbed to a considerable altitude above the water.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20811232842_4c9da7273e_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Hiking Mount Buciero">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20811232842_bcacdbc928_z.jpg" alt="Hiking Mount Buciero"/>
</a>

Soon, we had rounded the corner to where we could look down upon the mountains most prominent feature, which will, in another million years or so, probably become an independent [seastack](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stack_(geology)).

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20827786331_df00759ed5_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Hiking Mount Buciero">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20827786331_8dce96a250.jpg" alt="Hiking Mount Buciero"/>
</a>

Selfie time! Feeling proud. Unaware of the doom lurking around the next bend...

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20632689360_8e59ee4ee0_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Hiking Mount Buciero">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20632689360_17f0b54c91.jpg" alt="Hiking Mount Buciero"/>
</a>

My sister-in-law is a fan of the back-of-the-head genre of travel photography. I can see its charm.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20632797008_de96de2f8b_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Hiking Mount Buciero">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20632797008_e50d41324b.jpg" alt="Hiking Mount Buciero"/>
</a>

We prefer to show our faces.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20632770980_bed90552d9_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Hiking Mount Buciero">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20632770980_fb8b37305c_z.jpg" alt="Hiking Mount Buciero"/>
</a>

"Ooh, what's down there?"

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20820822485_753716d1f0_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Hiking Mount Buciero">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20820822485_f8ac48ff53_z.jpg" alt="Hiking Mount Buciero"/>
</a>

The views through the foliage were breathtakingly blue.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20632840478_803c53c869_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Hiking Mount Buciero">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20632840478_0ee8a97a84.jpg" alt="Hiking Mount Buciero"/>
</a>

Mountain sisters.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20632787770_1979da86fa_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Hiking Mount Buciero">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20632787770_cda2167ff6.jpg" alt="Hiking Mount Buciero"/>
</a>

Much of the hike was through the cool dense forest.

### El Faro del Caballo - The Horse Lighthouse

When I did [my boat tour](https://erikras.com/2015/05/11/boating-in-the-bay/) around the mountain, the point at which we turned around was at the Horse Lighthouse. I remember seeing that there were stairs down to the lighthouse, and being surprised to see someone running down them.

At this point in the hike, we were presented with a sign pointing to the right to the lighthouse. We went to investigate to look down to the lighthouse, but there was no line of sight. What there was, was another sign.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20828066461_86855352a1_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Hiking Mount Buciero">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20828066461_fbf093924d.jpg" alt="Hiking Mount Buciero"/>
</a>

763 stairs.

We were feeling good, and it had taken us a decade to get out to the mountain, so if we were ever going to go down to the lighthouse, now was the time. Plus, there was a big group of people who had gone ahead of us, so it couldn't be _that_ bad. As we were deciding, ten 14-year-olds ran by us towards the lighthouse. "We don't have to go down _all_ the stairs...just enough to take a photo and we'll come back. How bad can it be?"

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20199851283_8be819ef94_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Hiking Mount Buciero">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20199851283_c4cae44b3c_z.jpg" alt="Hiking Mount Buciero"/>
</a>

None of the photos we took really capture just how steep these steps were.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20632861308_d20cb91b96_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Hiking Mount Buciero">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20632861308_0b4fd14d83_z.jpg" alt="Hiking Mount Buciero"/>
</a>

There was a steel cable running along the side of the stairs. That was all there was to hold on to. The whole time, we were keenly aware that any little slip, by us or anyone above us on the staircase, would mean a _really_ bad rocky tumble and a helicopter rescue to the hospital. We would learn the day after that a Belgian teen had such a fall a few months ago and was, in fact, taken away in a helicopter.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20811371502_8b8c905462_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Hiking Mount Buciero">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20811371502_c87701bf98_z.jpg" alt="Hiking Mount Buciero"/>
</a>

"Are we there, yet?" It only took about thirty steps before my calves began to ache. At no time during the descent was there any view of the lighthouse.

After what seemed like an endless calf-muscle-destroying plunge towards sea level, we finally arrived to the little lighthouse.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20632906478_bc6178eddb_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Hiking Mount Buciero">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20632906478_e91aac6acf_z.jpg" alt="Hiking Mount Buciero"/>
</a>

"Hello, down there!"

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20827975371_61a5f1bd87_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Hiking Mount Buciero">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20827975371_181ddfe482.jpg" alt="Hiking Mount Buciero"/>
</a>

The views down the rocky clifflike were gorgeous. That's a kayaker in the water.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20632923458_7dfd3e9d90_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Hiking Mount Buciero">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20632923458_e3df85f0e3.jpg" alt="Hiking Mount Buciero"/>
</a>

Looking north, out towards sea. I can see how having a lighthouse to warn about the rocks might have been a good idea.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20198320224_5cae6f4d65_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Hiking Mount Buciero">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20198320224_84c7a8044b_z.jpg" alt="Hiking Mount Buciero"/>
</a>

Down even _more_ steps, we saw all the youngsters who had come with a specific activity in mind: swinging off a rope into the cool emerald water. I later found a video online showing what total fun this must be.

<iframe width="505" height="284" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/98wdi1hm694" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Soon, there was only one thing to do...

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20632897640_6bd747c51b_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Hiking Mount Buciero">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20632897640_f19e9cfa37_z.jpg" alt="Hiking Mount Buciero"/>
</a>

Back up the stairs!

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20634228349_f867809b91_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Hiking Mount Buciero">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20634228349_2d05754e7e.jpg" alt="Hiking Mount Buciero"/>
</a>

There were helpful notes along the way telling you how many _Stairs of Misery_ you had left in your future.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20632979468_abdf758bea_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Hiking Mount Buciero">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20632979468_7590d52203_z.jpg" alt="Hiking Mount Buciero"/>
</a>

Sis-in-law, happy that she made it to the halfway point.

One thing became exceedingly clear.

**_HOLY CRAP, ARE WE OUT OF SHAPE!_**

My heart rate monitor got up to 185 bpm on the half-dozen occasions when I had no option but to stop and rest, and never dropped below 150 bpm on the whole ascent. The CDC estimates 181 bpm as the maximum heart rate for my age.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20632953550_9a9ae25f54_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Hiking Mount Buciero">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20632953550_b7e28a59fa_z.jpg" alt="Hiking Mount Buciero"/>
</a>

Stair selfie of the three of us approaching the top.

Maybe 100 steps before reaching the top, an older gentleman sped by us, literally _running_ down the stairs. Just after we reached the top, he came back up. I asked him, "You're back already? How far down did you go?" Before I could catch my breath again from asking the question, he said, breathing totally normally, "All the way down." When we expressed disbelief, he explained that he does it 3-4 times a week, and, while he's not the slowest of a club that does it regularly, he's not the fastest, either. He said he was 63-years-old, and I think my face has more wrinkles. Both of the women I was with later commented on how attractive he was. I'm pretty sure his heart is twice the size of mine. Humans are amazing!

The stairs in my house are not nearly as steep as the ones going down to the lighthouse, and there are sixteen stairs to go from one floor to the next. So, if we adjust a bit for added steepness, our jaunt down to the lighthouse works out to the equivalent of walking down and back up **_50 floors_**.

So far, we had only walked 4 kilometers of the 11 kilometer blue route, and we had to decide what to do, to go back or to continue around. We asked another hiker, who hikes the mountain often, and he told us that the rest of the path forward was less rocky and easier to traverse than going back the way we had come, so we took his advice and continued around our counterclockwise route around the mountain.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20821038495_a8f9467f3c_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Hiking Mount Buciero">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20821038495_1ca69eb86a_z.jpg" alt="Hiking Mount Buciero"/>
</a>

The color of the water through the trees was positively tropical.

The rest of the journey was not nearly as easy as our mountain friend had made it out to be. There were some wet muddy slopes that were quite dangerous, but we made it, even as our leg muscles were screaming at us.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20794759396_d79e2bebf5_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Hiking Mount Buciero">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20794759396_f6259ab29b.jpg" alt="Hiking Mount Buciero"/>
</a>

The mountain's other lighthouse. No path to get to it, and _definitely_ no interest in going there. This lighthouse, however, has a road going to it, so the rest of the journey was on asphalt, which was a very welcome surface.

At this point, I could already taste the cold beer I was fantasizing about at the end of the journey.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20200064263_96f2972a7c_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Hiking Mount Buciero">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20200064263_92a306406b_z.jpg" alt="Hiking Mount Buciero"/>
</a>

More gorgeous coastline.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20811590552_991d0252a0_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Hiking Mount Buciero">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20811590552_f7ce2b2c86.jpg" alt="Hiking Mount Buciero"/>
</a>

Yay, asphalt!

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20633098798_42cf488fda_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Hiking Mount Buciero">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20633098798_11bf242ec2.jpg" alt="Hiking Mount Buciero"/>
</a>

Eventually, we could see _Playa Berria_ and signs of civilization.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20200105343_54150fc3d7_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Hiking Mount Buciero">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20200105343_0a3a71f5ba.jpg" alt="Hiking Mount Buciero"/>
</a>

We stopped at the first bar we came to and ordered three glasses of water and three beers. Mine didn't last very long.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20658236660_fec1763024_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Blue Route - Mount Buciero">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/20658236660_487260a5e1.jpg" alt="Blue Route - Mount Buciero"/>
</a>

If we had had the PDF that I linked to above, with this lovely altitude chart of the route, we might have seen the leg-demolishing feature of the route and avoided it. Or maybe not...

We stopped for a few tapas on the way to the car.

We were very worried about how crippling our cramps would be the following day, and, while we are definitely in pain, we can all still walk. Although going down stairs is pretty painful. And my calves seem to be twice as big as before.

In the end, it was a wonderful day out, and, although we suffered at times, we're glad and proud that we walked around the beautiful landmark that is Mount Buciero.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/157162079_c90498d99e_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Colindres, Laredo and Santoña">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-24-hiking-mount-buciero/157162079_c90498d99e.jpg" alt="Colindres, Laredo and Santoña"/>
</a>


Hiking Mount Buciero


<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-19-textbooks-spanish-schools-are-not-free/20698301822_83cd7d97fe_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image post-thumb" title="First grade Spanish text books.">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-19-textbooks-spanish-schools-are-not-free/20698301822_dae1c9ca2a_t.jpg" alt="First grade Spanish text books."/>
</a>

This September, my six-year-old daughter will embark upon her academic journey as a student; she's starting first grade. When I was an elementary school student in the United States, I remember going to school on the first day, and finding each desk with a stack of books on it. Almost always, each book was old and worn, and part of the fun of the first day of school was to open the front cover to sign your name on the list of previous students who had been assigned that book. Sometimes you even knew the previous one-year-older kid who had had that book before you.  I remember the shock of arriving to college and being told, "These are the textbooks that you need," each semester, and then being expected to go to one of the half dozen textbook stores full of school-branded sweatshirts that lined the perimeter of the campus to purchase your textbooks. As any reasonably frugal college student would do, I purchased most of my textbooks second hand, and I sold most of my books back, at half the original price, to the same book stores at the end of the semester. The only college course that I was so impressed with that I saved _and brought to Europe with me_ the book _and all my notes for_, was my Artificial Intelligence course, and I have not looked at them a single time.

Contrast this experience with that of my wife, growing up in Spain. Her memory of the beginning of every school year involves the purchase of brand new textbooks, and especially the sacred process of wrapping them in plastic (basically laminating them with [Saran Wrap](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plastic_wrap)) to protect them. I totally understand the lusty rush of excitement from having brand new notebooks and pencils and backpack to start a school year (my personal nerd fetish was mechanical pencils), but textbooks never played a role in that; they were always a dingy afterthought.

### <Side Rant>

While I'm on the topic. When I was a teen, in various years, in the utterly inane world of teen fashion, it became "cool" to wear one's backpack full of books both with the straps incredibly long so that the backpack was really resting upon the buttocks, and also to wear it over only one shoulder. I honestly remember being mocked for using both straps (the horror!) in middle school. While this was happening, I remember the grown-ups always declaring, "You will ruin your back!" both about these silly practices, and also in general about the fact that we were made to carry _so much weight_ around. Now that a quarter century has passed, I must say that I don't see any of my peers walking around totally crippled by the weight they bore as teens, so, like "Don't sit so close to the TV!", I have to call bullshit on the "You will ruin your back!" argument, even as I can feel it forming in the back of my throat as a parent.

In Spain – in elementary school, at least – there is no stigma attached to backpacks that also have suitcase-like wheels and extendable handles on them, so the kids going to school look like those carry-on-only business people you see rushing around airports. Presumably this will change in middle school and high school.

### </Side Rant>

Where was I? Oh, right...

My daughter's school has posted, on the wall outside, the list of books that each class needs for the coming school year. As you might expect, as a parent, you don't really need to write any of this down, you simply need to walk across the street to the book store and say, "I need all the first grade books," and they will order them for you. In fact, they had a list of registered first graders and checked my daughter off that list when I ordered them a few months ago. "So _that's_ how this little school supplies shop and book store stays in business!", I realized.

The books finally arrived, and I went to buy them. They are more what I would call "workbooks", flimsy, with no real spine – [don't get me started!](/2007/03/03/spinal-discord/) – on which to print a title. They are divided into trimesters, so she won't have to carry all of them each day. The subjects, as best I can judge are: language (Spanish, of course), reading, music, mathematics, and English. Aside from the official list of books, there was an additional list of materials that included notebooks with preprinted five lines – remember those chalk holders!? – for musical notation.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-19-textbooks-spanish-schools-are-not-free/20698301822_83cd7d97fe_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="First grade Spanish text books.">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2015-08-19-textbooks-spanish-schools-are-not-free/20698301822_dae1c9ca2a.jpg" alt="First grade Spanish text books."/>
</a>

The grand total?

195 €

That's $217 USD at the time of this writing.

A Spaniard would not flinch at this price, but as an American coming from a history of free textbooks, I wanted to shout, "You call this Public Education!??" I've asked several Spaniards, including the woman at the bookstore who is benefiting from this racket:

1. Are any sort of subsidies for families who cannot afford an extra $200 every year for school books?
2. What happens if you show up to school with no books? Do you still get a free government education?

Both questions were met with the stunned absurdity I saw when my parents asked my Danish coworkers what the illiteracy rate in Denmark was. Neither the bookstore owner nor the other parents in the bookstore had ever considered or seen the consequences of such scenarios. In fact, I was told by everyone present that the total I was required to pay was the lowest they had ever seen.

By all means, don't get me wrong. The textbook market in the US is _completely absurd_! Most of them are horribly out of date, and, due to the nature of the market, the manufacturers respond to the whim of their largest customer, Texas, a state whose legislators often struggle with concepts of "What is science and what is religion?" _However_, the Spanish model, in which a sibling _only one year behind_ another sibling cannot reuse the same textbooks because another edition is "required", is also total bullshit.

### The Future

This month, on summer vacation, my daughter spent some time with a third cousin who is two years older than she is, and is about to begin third grade at a Basque private school. After much parental clamor – try getting all the parents of an elementary school class to agree on something! – last year, she will begin this coming school year with **_all of her textbooks on an iPad_**!! Their apparent yearly bill is closer to 350€, also known as the price of an iPad, and the iPad can be reused year after year. I totally embrace the concept of e-books, but even I feel some old-man-skepticism when it comes to, "Okay, class, everyone turn to 'page' 57!". The amount of distracting tomfoolery that an eight year old can get up to on an iPad when she should be doing classwork seems too high, but no doubt The Future will prove me wrong.

As I was formulating this post in my mind, a videographer Facebook friend of mine shared [this Kickstarter video](https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/760937316/vastly), which he worked on for many months, that is right on topic. Contribute if you'd like.

<iframe width="506" height="379" src="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/760937316/vastly/widget/video.html" frameborder="0" scrolling="no"></iframe>


Textbooks – Spanish Schools Are Not Free


Every year, during my two week August vacation, I run out of data on my mobile data plan. Last year, when I ran out, I called my provider to ask them to take more of my money in exchange for more data, and they said, "Sure, we can give you more data starting on September 1st!" I told them where to shove their policies. This year, I was smart, and I called them in July, a few days before my departure! I asked for more data, and they responded that they could give me THREE TIMES the megabits for the same price that I'm paying. Fucking thieves! I said, "Yes, please." I was then informed that they would need to send me a new sim card (my provider was purchased by Vodafone this past year). They said it would take 3-7 days to arrive. I was leaving before that, so I told them to send it to my vacation destination, not to my billing address. I also asked for the same upgrade for my wife.

The first day of mail delivery of the vacation, we received an envelope with my wife's new sim card. The following day, my neighbor back home said that some delivery person had taped a failed delivery notice to the lobby wall. Sure enough, they had sent my card to my house, not to me. After a long process of authorizing the neighbor to receive the envelop, it was too late to have it sent and to expect a reasonable delivery time. So I decided to just wait until I get home, and live with the slow (practically useless) data rate.

Then, I receive an SMS from Vodafone telling me that, since I clearly received the new card, they were going to cut off the service to my old card. So, because of THEIR error, I'm going to be incommunicado for 5-6 days, starting tonight at 2am. 😡

### Epilogue

I actually had the thought, "Well, I might as well not carry this stupid phone around for The Dark Days," but then I realized that it is still an HD video camera, MP3 player, e-book reader, and portable video game console. Oh yeah.


4 posts from August, 2015