What I'll Look Like Next Week

THE KIND OF SHAPE I WAS IN. OYSTER BAY, LONG ISLAND, 1960.
(THERE'S ANOTHER MUSCLE SHOT AT THE END OF THIS POST.)

I was walking home the other day and made a tremendous discovery. A new gym has opened about 2 minutes away from our house, right on Calle Baños. It's a simple place (no sauna, no pool, no classes, just one big room filled with brand-new equipment and free weights. And it's affordable — i.e., cheap! So that's my birthday present to myself. The other neighborhood gym is nice. It's much bigger, offers classes, and has lots more equipment. But it doesn't have one square-inch of free space. I hit my elbows on other equipment and other gym members when I try to work out. Just a bit too claustrophobic for me. I'm hoping to make it through the night without injury (no falling out of bed — my leg is finally healed enough that I can bend down without whining), so I can start working out there tomorrow. I used to work out religiously and loved every minute of it. I've been lax since arriving in Sevilla. I'm really excited to get back into a much more regular routine.

AFTER MY FIRST WEEK AT THE NEW GYM, I'LL SHAVE ALL MY HAIR AND
YOU WON'T BE ABLE TO TELL ME FROM THE GUY IN FRONT (EXCEPT THAT I'M TALLER).

There are plenty of opportunities for exercise here in Sevilla. Great running and bicycling trails, an excellent public bike rental system, and of course constant opportunities to walk through beautiful parks and streets. I've been taking regular walks along the river and continue to find more and more of interest. Natural beauty and public gardens, along with museums and cultural centers. There are also several kayaking clubs that encourage people of all shapes and sizes to hit the river. Jerry would love that (and has done it in the past). I'm too afraid of flipping the boat.

MORE FEARLESS FLYERS...

... AND FLAPPERS.

On one of my walks across the river to the Island of Cartuja, I stumbled upon the Gardens of the America's. Built for Expo '92, it includes a contemporary building containing plants from the Americas; behind it along the river are beautiful gardens containing more of the same. Due to a lack of funds and poor management, the gardens were abandoned shortly after the exposition, leaving much of it to die or become forlorn, and bridges and walkways to rot and collapse. In 2007, a new managing foundation was formed and, five years later, the gardens and structures are in great shape.

FROM THE BRIDGE.
THE BUILDING OF THE GARDENS OF THE AMERICAS (LEFT). GARDENS (RIGHT).

THE BIKE AND FOOTPATH RUNNING ALONGSIDE THE GARDENS, WHICH PARALLEL THE RIVER.

A BOTANICAL MOSAIC UNDER THE BRIDGE.

IF  I DON'T END UP LOOKING AT LEAST AS GOOD AS THE GUY IN THE FIRST KAYAK,
I WON'T SHAVE AND I'LL PLAY HERE. NO CHANCE OF FLIPPING THE BOAT.
(SAN GERALDO THINKS I LOOK BETTER NOW. HE'S A KEEPER.)

THE KIND OF SHAPE I WAS REALLY IN BACK IN 1960.