Where to begin! I suppose I left off before we went to Córdoba a few weeks ago! Anyways really all I have to say about that is veni vidi vici! Really the only reason Córdoba is a must see is for La Mezquita which is huge and very pretty, the town itself is quaint, but a few hours was certainly enough time to wander around. And I know you may be thinking that Córdoba is wonderful and it was, but I guess I really don't appreciate the architecture as much as I should and I honestly just get a little bored! We have also since been to La Catedral en Sevilla and I actually liked it much better than La Mezquita. It is huuge! The biggest cathedral in the world (yes, guiness book said so!) and it just had more interesting stuff inside. To begin with Columbus' tomb is inside and he really is in it! There is also a crocodile hanging outside in the patio. The short story (from what I understood, this was in spanish) is that he was a gift to the king, but the king was afraid of him so he kept him at the Cathedral and all the people of Sevilla grew to love him and then he died and it was a huge deal but now a wooden crocodile with his skin hangs there. Also there is the Giralda, the tower of the Cathedral that you can climb up and get a great view of Sevilla! Besides La Catedral we were supposed to go to Italica (roman ruins) but it rained and we didnt end up getting to go but I probably will later in the semester.
We went to Madrid a couple weekends ago and it was a really fun, smooth! (we didn't have any problems getting lost or being late) trip! We rode the bus 6 hours each way (yes very long) but it actually wasnt that bad. I guess all my 3.5 hour drives to Carolina prepared me! We watched a couple of movies in Spanish which was interesting, it really helps if I have seen them before! When we arrived in Madrid we went to our hostel Las Musas which I would describe as interesting. It was just fine, clean and everything, there were just a couple drawbacks. The showers were pretty much just glass doors and you could basically see everything (yea we didnt use them) and the artwork on the walls was interesting. They were all sketches of naked women which ya know... I mean its not really my style, but whatever floats your boat. Buut, there were also a couple with a bloody vagina (yes I realize I am being vulgar and I apologize, but I told my mother and she said I must include this so thank her). It wasnt like blatantly there but ya know I am sitting at breakfast (consisting of the piece of toast I made- yes that is what they mean by breakfast included) and I look up at the art and then I look down and think... wait! did I just see what I think I saw and I look up and it is, as a matter of fact, a vag with blood! In the dining room! Really? I just didn
't think that was necessary, but a nice hostel other than that! Anyways back to Madrid, we ate at a very nice Peruvian restaurant for dinner one night and an italian place the other night. Both were very good. At the Peruvian place I got basically chinese fried rice with chicken, the menu said arroz something con pollo and I figured I couldn't go wrong! There were also a couple guys singing and the atmosphere was great. At the Italian place I got Gnocchi which my friend Caroline recommended and it was really really good I would definitely get it again. We also ate at a McDonalds, I would just like to mention that was the only time I have eaten there so far so I think I am doing very good! I got a happy meal and the cheeseburger tasted just like it does in NC! In Madrid, we went to El Prado (art museum, there was a very interesting bearded lady, and another lady with a fro and a mullet which we think is why guys in Spain seem to think that mullets are wonderful!... yes, this is what my art appreciation consists of, but truly I like El Greco's style and I do know that the word rubenesque came from Rubens the painter... dont burst my bubble if you already knew that!), El Palacio Real(royal palace), El Rastro(flea market, just what it suggests... mostly junk), Teleferico (gondola ride thing to a park that looked like Africa and we got a great view of the Palace and as my friend Sarah got very excited about, some homeless people which was actually sad and I feel bad laughing about it but it was just the way she said it!)and Gran Vía (wanna be Times Square). So that was Madrid in a nutshell! When we got back it felt like we were home which just seems so crazy but it is nice to feel at home so far away! I like Sevilla soooo much better and I am so happy we do not live in Madrid!This past weekend we went to Granada which was really pretty and I actually really liked it a lot. It is in the foothills of the sierra Nevada mtns so the views are gorgeous.. kinda reminded me of home! We didn’t really get to see much of the town cause we didn’t have much free time. When we arrived on Saturday (in the rain) we had to wait for about an hour for our rooms to be ready and we then went for a beer. I got a cruzcampo (I think it is like the busch lite of southern spain… everybody drinks it) and Granada is like the only city that still gives a free tapa with a drink so I got like this little piece of pork on a slice of bread with like some bruschetta it was pretty good, especially since it was free. I really think all of Spain should go back to that! Afterwards we met our group to go see la capilla the little chapel where Fernando and Isabel are buried along with their crazy daughter Juana “la loca” yea homegirl was literally crazy… I know this thanks to my art and culture class… I do actually pay a little attention! :) We also went to the cathedral where I think the highlight was a provocatively posing angel child… no I was not the only one in my group that noticed this, we were all thinking it and then somebody actually said it… I did feel bad thinking that in a church though. There were also these massive hymnals that I thought were pretty cool… again I just don’t have enough appreciation for the architecture… they are all kind of starting to run together now and I separate them with things like that! Again I apologize for my somewhat philistinian ways and continue to apologize profusely because I found La Alhambra (yes it is like the most famous islamic architecture in spain) a little boring as well! The views were gorgeous though! Definitely my favorite part! The architecture was pretty but Fernando (our teacher/tour guide) can definitely get a little boring. I really liked the ceilings one was wood inlaid designed while others were kinda stalactite looking and in the building with the baths there were star shaped holes in the ceiling which I loved… although it just occurred to me that that could be inconvenien
t when it rains so I will probably hold off on having my house built with them. Ha I know Im lame just go with it, I come by it honestly (eg my father)! I really wish we could have seen the lion fountain in the patio of the lions however it was being restored… I did however learn that are four little streams leading to it representing the 4 major Islamic rivers (nile tigris euphrates and ganges). And according to Ricky (my pet name for Rick Steves) there are 12 lions and they would spout water to tell time but when the Christians came they took it apart to see how it worked and it has not worked since… isn’t that cool! It can be an interesting fact you tell at your next dinner party.. again don’t judge me! Fortunately for us, it did not rain on Sunday when we saw the Alhambra! However, it rained pretty much all day Saturday making it too peligroso (dangerous) for us to go to the San Nicolas church and see the view of the Alhambra at night which I think would have been amazing! :( Yea I personally thought it was a buncha crap but not everybody can be as daring as I am… yes I am just full of it tonight. Im really gonna try to stop! Saturday night I went out with the girls I stayed with one of which had a friend studying in Granada so we met him and his roommate and went to a hookah bar where I smoked hookah for the first time ever! And we had tea… mine was strawberry and pretty good.. we also walked around a bit and got some drinks at a bar which about brings us to the close of this trip, however, I will mention a couple more highlights/ interesting lessons… 1. The breakfast at the hotel on Sunday morning was fabulous I had a kiwi! (way more excited than I should be about that) and I stole some very good baked goods for later! 2. The shower was amazing! Especially since showers in Spain are in like the worlds tiniest bath tubs and we are only allowed like 2 minutes… pretty much heaven! 3. Now this one is a lesson… little old Spanish ladies look cute and sweet, however, when waiting in line for the bathroom, do not let them fool you.. they are ruthless and will continuously push past you for the next stall and you have to stand up for yourself and push past the cute little old lady cause gosh darnit you need to pee too! Ok thats it for my trip to Granada overall it was pretty enjoyable and I would definitely recommend it on a trip to spain… probably moreso that Madrid!Sooo life in Sevilla! I would like to begin this section with my thoughts on rain. I am not a fan! Apparently it hardly ever rains in Sevilla we just happen to be lucky enough to catch the extremely nonstop rain that has been a occurring pretty much since we got here! That said I really wish I had brought my rain boots and I am praying for it to cease very soon! Besides that a few weeks ago Melanie, our German roommate, went home and Carmen's (our señora) daughter moved in. Her name is Rebekah and she is like 30ish I think, she seems nice and looking at her you would think she is our age, but she doesn't eat with us and we really have not talked to her at all. Carmen is super cute as always just talking away and Rachel and I nodding and trying really hard to understand, but it doesn't seem much easier. School is school, not horrrrible, but in a way kind of! I only have ONE more week of my literature class thank goodness because I pretty much hate it and after that I will have afternoons free! And only 3 classes! I can't wait! I have decided I will be going to the Canary Islands over Semana Santa and Morocco over Feria de Abril and I have also booked my flight home for may 18th from rome so I will be spending about 10 days in Italy after my program. Now I just have to figure out when I am going to Barcelona and hopefully a few more towns like Ronda and Cadiz or Malaga and Gibraltar. As far as other aspects of my daily life its fairly routine with classes and stuff but hopefully it will get more interesting once lit ends and I have afternoons free. Our food is interesting I find myself trying a lot of new things. I am actually very proud that I have eaten some of the stuff I have including little squid things and these little fish that basically had their heads cut off and fried (at first I thought they still had heads and I was terrified bc that I couldn’t do). My rule is basically I just cant be able to literally see what it looked like alive (ie no heads) I did get a tenicle looking thing though that I had to give to my roommate cause I just couldn’t eat it. We also have odd combinations of food like pasta with marinara sauce and hotdogs! Or tonight for dinner I had broccoli with marinara sauce on it. My favorite food is croquetas which look kinda like hushpuppies with stuff in the middle they are very good! I also really like flan, which I used to hate and chocolate croissants!
That is pretty much my daily life, but as far as experiences go I have had some interesting ones! 1. On the way back from the bus station to get my ticket to Madrid, I sort of got lost for the first time, I wasn't so much upset about getting lost as that I was very late for dinner! I thought I was going the right direction, but as it turns out that was not so much the case! I ended up walking like the opposite direction I needed to go and it got dark and I was by myself and it was slightly scary, but I had my pepper spray in my purse and I took it out (thanks mom and dad), so I felt better. After asking a couple ladies I figured out I had indeed found the right direction and I was about 30 mins late for dinner. My lesson here: look at my map and don't assume you are on the correct street. 2. Taxi drivers! The other night we were coming back from a club with a few of our friends and this taxi driver charged us like double to get to their house! (we know this because we go out fairly often) So they argued, but just paid it, he then reset the meter (only the jerky ones do that) and took us to our house and cleared it hoping we wouldnt see the price and told me 5 euro, I did however see the price that said 2.50 euro and I was very angry so I told him I wouldn't pay that and he said ok 4 euro to which I said NO! and asked where the price was (I didnt really understand his response). So we paid him like 3 euro and I got out and told my roommate to, but he drove across the intersection with the door open and then stopped and let her out. I think this was only because the door was open. The next night a friend went home in a cab by herself and the taxi driver stuck his tounge in her mouth twice and told her she didnt have to pay if she made out with him and she said no and he started driving away again and she paid him! I am really shocked at how terrible they are! My lesson here: Always get the cab number, sit in the back seat and make sure they know you want a receipt! 3. My roommate got her wallet stolen one night when we went out and she has had a horrrrrrible time trying to get everything that the banks need to get her money back… she has had to go to the police station as well as the us consulate multiple times and I feel terrible for her cause I know it sucks. My lesson here: Avoid taking credit cards out whenever possible (yes I know this and I don’t and my roommate doesn’t usually either but ya know if something can go wrong it will) so basically just be super duper careful whenever you have stuff like that!.. Also we saw a male dancer in these super tiny shorts at one club and of course I would find that hilarious and I was laughing like the whole time… I know Im very mature! haha
Sooo yea that’s about all Ive got for interesting experiences, however, Im sure there will be more to come and I promise to try to update more often although I make no guarantees! But considering that if you have read this far then you have read nearly 4 pages worth of typing and I commend you for taking that much interest… I do not want to have this much to write again so be assured I will make a solid effort to do better about updates!
Besitos to all! Buenas noches!
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