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Editor’s Note: Christian Meier was born in Sussex, New Brunswick and now rides for the Garmin-Transitions ProTour cycling team. He previously raced for the Symmetrics Pro Cycling squad out of B.C. He was the 2008 Canadian road racing champion and finished second in last year’s Canadian time trial championships. He’ll be blogging for us throughout the season.

Just got back from a solid three hour ride around the beautiful country sides that surround Girona. The weather was pristine. The air was warm, sun was shining and its days like today that I am really grateful for the job I have. I am now going on my third year of living in Spain and have grown quite fond of the different aspects of living in another country.

Every morning there is a market with fresh vegetables, fruits and a variety of fish and meat. We have a man, Jordan, we usually buy from, and he literally has six varieties of items: onions, red peppers, carrots, potatoes, eggs and homemade honey. They all come freshly handpicked from his backyard garden. I can easily walk away with a grocery bag full of produce for three euros. It’s easy to conjure up tasty meal ideas when all the inspiration and fresh ingredients are only a couple of blocks from my apartment door. Dinner tonight is going to be pizza from scratch. Thin crust. Half will be pineapple, teriyaki chicken, crushed walnuts, grilled peppers and onions (thanks Jordan). The other half: prosciutto olives, pesto, artichoke hearts and some pine nuts. Any takers?

The riding is some of the best I have experienced, roads are well maintained, cars respect the riders, and the surrounding areas offer everything from the one hour easy coffee loop to the six-hour mountainous epics. There is always someone close by who will ride along and give’r or head towards the beach for a coffee ride. Just fire off a message or catch them at the stone bridge, the usual meeting place.

So far, the hardest adjustment to living in Spain is the later dinner eating times. If you feel like an evening out on the town, you better snack on a few Clif bars beforehand. The earliest restaurants open is 8 p.m. and even then you are waiting at the door for them to open as Spanish time runs a bit slower than the average clock. That being said, the food is always worth the wait. My favourite meal time out is for lunch, which you can grab after training as it goes until 4 p.m., plus you can’t beat the set lunch menus while sitting out on a sunny patio people watching.

I look forward to sharing dinner recipes, training hours, stories from the road and just the everyday life of cyclist given’er in Europe.

Christian Meier is a Canadian professional rider on the Garmin-Transitions ProTour team for 2010.