I may just be in love with Paris. Or should I say, Je’taime, Paris. So, due to a lovely schedule change on Ryanair’s part, our flight left at 2 p.m. instead of noon on Friday, so we got in a little bit late. We arrived to the metro, only to wait for two completely packed metro cars to pass by until we could get on. So, we got onto said crowded metro and took it to our hostel, where we found Madelyn waiting in a lovely park with some simple, yet delicious French pastry for us to eat. I think they were actually called Madelines.
So, we checked into our hostel with Madelyn using her exquisite French skills although turns out the guy was from West Virginia or something. So, while he figured out how to let us pay separately, we opened up the bottle of wine that he gave us and had a glass. A very welcoming way to start off Paris. So, then we were off to the Louvre, which was FREE. Yes, on Friday evenings it’s free for everyone. So, we saw the Mandatory Mona Lisa and Venis de Milo, with barely any lines, mind you. The Mona Lisa is much smaller than one would suspect, and I have to say seeing all this art, I don’t understand what makes, say the Mona Lisa, more impressive than anything else. Perhaps I just don’t know the history, and maybe Leonardo Da Vinci just accomplished some tactic first. Anywho, that was good to see.
After the Louvre, we wanted to try to find a place for dinner on the way to see the Eiffel Tower by night, but I swear there were no restaurants. So, we never did make it to the Tower that night, but we did find a very nice little Rugby decorated bar. It was 12.50 euro for a roasted chicken breast, French french fries, a glass of good wine and a delcious crème de caramel. It was very nice. So, then we walked back in the cold to our hostel. Paris is very spaced out. It was a long walk to anything really. Got back at like 1 a.m. and went to sleep. We woke up on Saturday at 8 ish and were off to the Luxemburg Gardens. Again, a very far walk, but it was very pretty and well worth the walk. I believe it might have actually been before the gardens, we went to Sacre Bleu, haha. I’m not really sure of the name. Madelyn was our official Paris tour guide, so she knows all of that information. Anyway, it’s this big cathedral up on a hill. There are some of the most insistent venders there. They try to tie this string on your finger and say, “If you don’t like it, you can take it right off.” Right, buddy. So, we bypassed them and went inside. We weren’t allowed to take pictures, so I don’t really remember what it looked like. I’m sure it was like most cathedrals in Europe though. I’m kind of getting desensitized to it, which I know is awful, but it’s really hard not to be.
We then headed to a creperie for lunch and I ate a crepe complete=eggs, meat and cheese with some good cider. It was pretty weak though. Even the little kids were drinking it, so right up my alley. Haha. We then hit up the Pantheon, but didn’t enter because it cost money, and we went to the one in Rome anyway. After said event, we went to Champs du Elise, a tree lined avenue that was pretty and led to the Arc du Triumph. We saw the Arc du Triumph, and then our troubles started. So, one of Madelyn’s friends from Nantes who had already visited Paris told her about some place that served the best chocolate mousse that she had ever had. So, we searched long and hard for that mousse, and let me tell you. When we got to that street, no such restaurant/address existed. It may have been the biggest disappointment of my life. Then we decided to get a nutella crepe, because we had bypassed a lot of crepe stands, but those too, like the restaurants on the way to the Eiffel Tower seemed to have disappeared! Finally, we found one, and it was a delicious, delicious nutella crepe. We then ventured to the Eiffel Tower. It is so beautiful, and I think the first thing in Europe that has completely lived up to my expectations. Not to say that other things have been unimpressive, but Paris really just is a magical city. We took photos, which is hard to do, because when you’re right under it, you can’t get it all. So we exed out the perfect spot and had a man take a photo. Not the best photographer ever, but I suppose it’s okay.
Colleen, Madelyn and I decided that after having been to the Eiffel Tower, it’s going to be very hard to be proposed to anywhere but there. It’s just so cliché, but really feels romantic. There was an innumberable amount of men selling carnations, although they bypassed us single ladies and offered keychains instead. Haha. I suppose they think single girls just love keychains. Then we took the metro back to our hostel, and had a very Frenchy dinner of Kir wine (very delicious), baguettes, delicious, delicious French cheese, grapes and yogurt. It was superb, and I felt very authentic. Madelyn told us that it’s authentic. So, I’m not just being a stupid tourist.
Sunday we went to Notre Dame, which isn’t that beautiful on the outside, but the inside is very impressive. We heard the bells too, so I can say that I’ve heard the bells of Notre Dame. Then we tried to go see the first department store in France, but because it was closed, we couldn’t enter. That made me sad. In order to pass the time, I learned how to count to ten in French. I’m trying to learn how to do that for every country we visit, but I still need to learn Arabic and Portuguese. Then, we headed to catch our train, that we nearly missed, because the system was confusing and not a lot of Frenchies speak English, so that was tres stressful. So, then off we were to Belgium.
We arrived in Antwerpen, the second biggest city in Belgium after Brussels and Colleen’s distant cousin picked us up and we took the metro back to Mortsel, which was about half an hour away. Then we rented Mama Mia, had a delicious traditional Belgium dinner and chatted. Her English was so impressive, and she was such a sweet host. We got a good night’s sleep and woke up to a delicious breakfast consisting mostly of chocolate spreads, and the most delicious spread I have ever had in my life, that was called Speculoos, It’s a paste made of these Belgium cookies and it’s heaven. Then we headed into Antwerpen, which is actually a big fashion capital, and shopped all day because the museums were closed because it was Monday. Then we got home and went to dinner at Ann’s, Colleen’s cousin, parents house. They were so sweet, and it was a good dinner of just rolls with a lot of different spreads, but a really tasty peach wine. We talked about their family history a little bit and then just chatted about things. Again, very good English, and it wasn’t hard to communicate really at all.
Tuesday we went to Brugges, which has been compared to Venice. It’s not entirely made of water, but there certainly are a lot of little rivers and boats go through them and they’re through the middle of town. We went to the chocolate museum which was actually really interesting and saw the Madonna and Child which is supposedly one of Michaelangelo’s only sculptures outside of Italy, so that was cool. We took lots of pictures, and there were windmills, so I suppose we just can’t get away from Hope culture. We were actually very close to the Netherlands, so I suppose that makes a lot of sense. They speak Flemish in Flanders, which is the northern part of Belgium where we were, and it sounds what I would imagine Dutch to sound like, and the kids learn Dutch in school, along with English and French. I think Belgium may be one of the most well rounded, educated countries I have come across. Very impressive people. It was also interesting because the people are not very homogenous, which is different. Spain, basically you can tell that everyone is Spanish, although some people look a little different. But Belgium felt like a mini-US because it was very diverse. When we got back from Brugges, we met Ann’s children, Lein and Raf, and they were so sweet. They were intrigued by us, and that’s refreshing because in Spain sometimes it feels like they just like already have had their fill of Americans, and we’re nothing special. But Lein, perhaps because she was a fifteen year old girl, was very intrigued by us, so that was very flattering.
Wednesday we went to Antwerpen with Ann because it was her day off of work, and we had a lovely time. We started the day with Belgian chocolates, which I could unfortunately not taste because I was a bit stuffed up from traveling. We then moved on to Genevre, which is apparently a liquor that is from Antwerpen. It’s very strong, but again, I couldn’t really taste a difference. We had apple, passion fruit and amaretto. They were in essentially shot glasses, but you don’t shot it because it’s like 35% alcohol or something. The strongest one was 54%, but we didn’t try that one. ;) Theeeen we had schmotenballen or something, basically fried dough balls that taste like elephant ears, but I dare say better. Do you understand how to come back to the US during beach season is going to be torture now? Ay. Haha. So then Colleen and I went to Rubin’s house, which is the house of a painter from Belgium. It was interesting and free so that was good. We had a bite for lunch and returned to Mortsel for the night.
Thursday we woke up early to say goodbye to the kids, and they were so sweet. Especially Lien. She wrote us both notes to say how much she was going to miss us and how much fun she had with us, and we weren’t even that entertaining! But, nonetheless, sad to say goodbye. Then we had our last breakfast of Speculoos and toast, and ventured to the grocery store to buy some more. Sad part is, my stupid backpack was so stuffed and we were almost going to miss check in for our plane, so we had to redistribute my things. So I gave my Speculoos to Colleen, and when she was going through security with it, apparently 5 jars of peanut butter like substance seemed suspicious because they said that she couldn’t have it, and took it away. Saddest day of my life. I was so excited to share it with everyone, that I may just have to send Ann some money and ask her to ship some. You haven’t lived until you’ve had Speculoos. I got patted down searched too, so apparently Colleen and I were sketchy characters.
We got home to Sevilla after the 6 hour bus ride from Madrid, slept late, ate and went to Feria by night. But that will wait for the next post. Overall, I’m in love with Paris and I think I could live in Belgium. Also, a realization to which I have come is one of capturing a culture. You kind of just have to be there and soak it in. No amount of pictures will ever capture exactly the sentiment of a country, and no amount of trinkets can recreate it either. These things help, but really the most fun way to experience the culture is through talking to the people and getting to know them. Leading me to conclude with the fact that our trip was a great one.
Monday, May 4, 2009
Monday, April 13, 2009
Una Visita a Roma.
A week with Jumbo, Madelyn and Colleen in Rome was fun but certainly exhausting! So this past week was Semana Santa, or Holy Week, and because of that we had school off for the week. Spring Break if you will. So I, like a good half of my program, went to Italia. Flight and every thing went smoothly, and upon arrival to Termini station to meet Jumbo, I had my doubts it would work out because he doesn’t have a cell phone and we weren’t exactly sure where he meant to meet him when he said “Platform 22” of Termini, although that is where we were. Anywho, so we did actually find each other and when we did we made our way back to John’s house for pranza or lunch. Cooked by the Roman cook Vitorrio who was limping around the kitchen due to the moto accident he was in the day before. I think he came in even on the day of the accident. Stubborn, anyone?
Lunch was delicious. Pasta, clearly and some other delicious food. Then we made some tours of churches, and at 7:30 p.m. met up with Madelyn at Termini. We then headed to Carlomenta for delicious and cheap pizza. Like 3 euros. It was on our first day that we enacted the daily mandatory gelato rule. Yes, you read right. Everyday. It was Jumbo’s idea because we were only there for like a week. We made sure to enforce that.
Sunday we went to Palm Sunday mass with the Pope, which was really cool. Long, but really cool. Palm Sunday mass is always a long haul because of the reinaction of the Passion anyway. It was the most interesting thing though, because we all decided it’s like part mass/holy event/sporting event/rock concert. Those crazy European youth love el Papa. The Spaniards, like always, were well represented amongst the crowd with shouts of “Viva…el Papa!” Also curious is how Italian and Spanish are fairly similar. I found that for some of the mass I could actually follow what was going on.
Monday we visited the Vatican Museum essentially with intentions of seeing the Sistine Chapel. They really give you the run around there. There are signs in practically every room with an arrow that says Sistine Chapel, but it took forever for it to come. Then, we finally get there and it feels like a hostage situation. You’re not supposed to take pictures, and because of that people want to do it even more. To prevent this, there are bald scary Italian men who yell, “SILENZIO! NO FOTO!” I seriously felt like he was next going to say “Everyone on the ground.” I snagged one AWFUL picture and was content. After the museum we headed over to St. Peter’s itself and did our tour. Including rubbing the foot of a statue and taking a picture just because everyone else was doing it. Haha. It was St. Peter and people do it because it’s like they did their pilgrimage and have completed it and all.
Tuesday we went to Assisi and that was quite the workout. It is WAY hilly and mind you, I being the foolish “wanting to be stylish” girl that I am, only had room for/brought my flats. MISTAKE. My feet hurt so bad, but I’ll tell ya, by the time we got to Assisi I think they were so numb from it that it didn’t really bother me. Anywho, Assisi is where St. Francis and St. Clare lived, so that was cool to see. It’s very beautiful, just like the boys of Italy. Oh I am so enamored with Mediterranean men. Which is unfortunate because they aren’t enamored with me…haha. But yes, we did a lot of walking and visited the churches of St. Francis and St. Clare amongst many others. Due to poor planning on Jumbo’s part, we didn’t really get to eat lunch at a normal time, so we got pizza by the kilo (great, by the way) our daily gelato and some pastries. Then we headed home to Roma and ate our fill at a very charming restaurant there.
Wednesday we finished up what we had left to due. We started the morning with a hunt for what we were told was the most delicious cake. We referred to it as Benedicto Cake because Pope Benedict likes it a lot. So, we hunt for this bakery on the street we were told it was on and give up and get another piece of cake. Then, we find the specific bakery, but because it was Jewish they weren’t making leavened products, including Benedicto Cake! So sad, but you know. We then supplemented lake of cake with Nutella crepes. Italy is a very delicious country. We returned for another delicious Pranza by Vitorrio, and then headed to St. Paul Outside the Wall, which is perhaps my favorite church that we visited. It has really beautiful decoration, but unlike most other churches it wasn’t so completely filled that is was overwhelming. Then we walked down the Apian way where St. Peter walked after our failed attempt to visit the catacombs that were closed. For dinner we returned to our favorite Carlomenta for pizza and tiramisu, and afterwards, you guessed it. Mandatory gelato. Then to an Irish pub to finish off the night.
Madelyn and I had a goal of having, “Ciao bella” said to us, but the closest we got was when we were leaving the pub some boys from a window said, “Hi girls” when we saw them. We should have said “Ciao belli” to them and perhaps then we could have realized our goal! But, unmet goal aside, I like Rome but I like the smaller city feel of Sevilla better. Rome is so weird because it has that mix of modern culture/architecture along with some of the most ancients ruins you’ll see. So yet again I find myself happy with my study abroad decision.
Lunch was delicious. Pasta, clearly and some other delicious food. Then we made some tours of churches, and at 7:30 p.m. met up with Madelyn at Termini. We then headed to Carlomenta for delicious and cheap pizza. Like 3 euros. It was on our first day that we enacted the daily mandatory gelato rule. Yes, you read right. Everyday. It was Jumbo’s idea because we were only there for like a week. We made sure to enforce that.
Sunday we went to Palm Sunday mass with the Pope, which was really cool. Long, but really cool. Palm Sunday mass is always a long haul because of the reinaction of the Passion anyway. It was the most interesting thing though, because we all decided it’s like part mass/holy event/sporting event/rock concert. Those crazy European youth love el Papa. The Spaniards, like always, were well represented amongst the crowd with shouts of “Viva…el Papa!” Also curious is how Italian and Spanish are fairly similar. I found that for some of the mass I could actually follow what was going on.
Monday we visited the Vatican Museum essentially with intentions of seeing the Sistine Chapel. They really give you the run around there. There are signs in practically every room with an arrow that says Sistine Chapel, but it took forever for it to come. Then, we finally get there and it feels like a hostage situation. You’re not supposed to take pictures, and because of that people want to do it even more. To prevent this, there are bald scary Italian men who yell, “SILENZIO! NO FOTO!” I seriously felt like he was next going to say “Everyone on the ground.” I snagged one AWFUL picture and was content. After the museum we headed over to St. Peter’s itself and did our tour. Including rubbing the foot of a statue and taking a picture just because everyone else was doing it. Haha. It was St. Peter and people do it because it’s like they did their pilgrimage and have completed it and all.
Tuesday we went to Assisi and that was quite the workout. It is WAY hilly and mind you, I being the foolish “wanting to be stylish” girl that I am, only had room for/brought my flats. MISTAKE. My feet hurt so bad, but I’ll tell ya, by the time we got to Assisi I think they were so numb from it that it didn’t really bother me. Anywho, Assisi is where St. Francis and St. Clare lived, so that was cool to see. It’s very beautiful, just like the boys of Italy. Oh I am so enamored with Mediterranean men. Which is unfortunate because they aren’t enamored with me…haha. But yes, we did a lot of walking and visited the churches of St. Francis and St. Clare amongst many others. Due to poor planning on Jumbo’s part, we didn’t really get to eat lunch at a normal time, so we got pizza by the kilo (great, by the way) our daily gelato and some pastries. Then we headed home to Roma and ate our fill at a very charming restaurant there.
Wednesday we finished up what we had left to due. We started the morning with a hunt for what we were told was the most delicious cake. We referred to it as Benedicto Cake because Pope Benedict likes it a lot. So, we hunt for this bakery on the street we were told it was on and give up and get another piece of cake. Then, we find the specific bakery, but because it was Jewish they weren’t making leavened products, including Benedicto Cake! So sad, but you know. We then supplemented lake of cake with Nutella crepes. Italy is a very delicious country. We returned for another delicious Pranza by Vitorrio, and then headed to St. Paul Outside the Wall, which is perhaps my favorite church that we visited. It has really beautiful decoration, but unlike most other churches it wasn’t so completely filled that is was overwhelming. Then we walked down the Apian way where St. Peter walked after our failed attempt to visit the catacombs that were closed. For dinner we returned to our favorite Carlomenta for pizza and tiramisu, and afterwards, you guessed it. Mandatory gelato. Then to an Irish pub to finish off the night.
Madelyn and I had a goal of having, “Ciao bella” said to us, but the closest we got was when we were leaving the pub some boys from a window said, “Hi girls” when we saw them. We should have said “Ciao belli” to them and perhaps then we could have realized our goal! But, unmet goal aside, I like Rome but I like the smaller city feel of Sevilla better. Rome is so weird because it has that mix of modern culture/architecture along with some of the most ancients ruins you’ll see. So yet again I find myself happy with my study abroad decision.
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
A weekend in Africa.
Morocco. Where to begin? It was sooo cool, but an extremely different culture. It was the first time I felt truly stared at by everyone on the street. Although not all the women were dressed head to toe in the traditional dress, just by wearing jeans and normal shirts we stuck out like sore thumbs. There were bars were only men were served, and instead of sitting around tables when they were together, everyone was in one long line on one side of all the tables facing the street. There was also an eastern style toilet in one of the bathrooms. You know, the hole is the floor, stand up and go for it. I waited for the western toilet.
It took a long time to cross the border on Friday. Probably like an hour and a half or so. I don’t know why that was, but whatevs. So we got to the first city, Tetuan, which is apparently a fishing town. We didn’t really do too much in Tetuan, because we got there later. We ate dinner at the hotel, which was a delicious chicken with a lemon sauce. The hotel was lovely and we had a beautiful, what I think was Oceanside, view of the Mediterranean. So, after watching an episode of Friends in English with Arabic subtitles, we fell asleep to the waves.
The next day we went to Tanger. It was much bigger and bustling than the first, smaller town. We took a walking tour, and then had free time. We visited a rug store where we were showed many rugs and told a little bit about how they were made and such. They always say “You don’t have to buy anything,” but they are a bit insistent on at least your looking at some products…So when the man was finishing up his demonstration, this little Moroccan man who was translating for the Frenchies sitting by us goes to me and Colleen, “Come with me, I want to show you some more rugs. You are in good hands. My name is Abdul.” So, naturally, Colleen and I followed him up a stairwell, taken aback by his eagerness, but he wasn’t sketchy. So, we go up to this room and he’s showing us all these rugs like, “which would you like” and I was like, “Abdul, these are all very lovely, but I’m not really in the market for a rug.” And he, like every salesman in Morocco claimed, “It’s not expensive. A good price just for you. Because you are students, I will give you good price.” So he shows us these rugs that he wants 180 euros for, which is about $250, but the thing is, you’re supposed to barter. So eventually we got him down to 35 euros, more like $45, but I don’t know if that was necessarily a bargain or what. Then we took pictures with him and it was great. Refer to Colleen’s facebook for those.
Then we continued onto our free time to the markets. Seriously, though. The way we were stared at in Morocco makes Spain feel like home. From the market I got the tea pot and sweet tea cups I have been wanting, so I was very happy with that purchase. I also bought this silly camel that I think is so cool. I’m really excited about that. Oh, we also went to a “pharmacy” that I think I would tag more as an apothecary. They had spices and your good old “cure all” creams for dry hands, psoriasis you know, magic lipstick. I bought some spices, including saffron because it was 5 grams for 5 euros, which I’m not sure how expensive that is in terms of a better price than in the US, but I just know that saffron is supposedly very expensive.
Then we ventured on to Chefchauen which was a littler town. Very quaint, very blue. I loooved our guide. He was this little man (common trend in Morocco) with his robe and Fez and when we got off the bus, Colleen was taking a picture of me with the mountains in the background and he goes, “Helloooo, another one.” And he shook my hand in our picture. Haha. He was a hoot. Everytime someone took a picture with him, he said, “Helloooo.” Let me tell you though, speaking of the men, there are some really attractive Moroccan men. I am very attracted to them as a whole. Alright, so more walking tour with funny Moroccan guide, and cute little kids who don’t want their pictures taken. You have to ask there because it’s one of those cultures where they believe it steals your soul to have a picture taken of themselves.
Speaking of which, strange experience. When we were in some cave, I took a picture of some girls who were on our tour, and when I was done with that, two Moroccan girls get my attention, and I couldn’t figure out what they wanted at first. If they wanted me to take their picture or what, but turned out they took a picture of me in the cave. Weird, no? It’d be like if you were visiting Mt. Rushmore and asked some random person from another group to stand in front on the mountain so you could take a picture. I don’t know if it’s because they don’t want to take pictures of themselves and want someone in the picture, or if they thought I was a funny looking American, but whatever the reason, it made me chuckle.
So overall, Morocco was really great. It was beautiful in its rolling hills and little markets, but I don’t think that I could live in a culture where I felt so absolutely out of place. If given the opportunity though, I would go back.
Africa. Check.
It took a long time to cross the border on Friday. Probably like an hour and a half or so. I don’t know why that was, but whatevs. So we got to the first city, Tetuan, which is apparently a fishing town. We didn’t really do too much in Tetuan, because we got there later. We ate dinner at the hotel, which was a delicious chicken with a lemon sauce. The hotel was lovely and we had a beautiful, what I think was Oceanside, view of the Mediterranean. So, after watching an episode of Friends in English with Arabic subtitles, we fell asleep to the waves.
The next day we went to Tanger. It was much bigger and bustling than the first, smaller town. We took a walking tour, and then had free time. We visited a rug store where we were showed many rugs and told a little bit about how they were made and such. They always say “You don’t have to buy anything,” but they are a bit insistent on at least your looking at some products…So when the man was finishing up his demonstration, this little Moroccan man who was translating for the Frenchies sitting by us goes to me and Colleen, “Come with me, I want to show you some more rugs. You are in good hands. My name is Abdul.” So, naturally, Colleen and I followed him up a stairwell, taken aback by his eagerness, but he wasn’t sketchy. So, we go up to this room and he’s showing us all these rugs like, “which would you like” and I was like, “Abdul, these are all very lovely, but I’m not really in the market for a rug.” And he, like every salesman in Morocco claimed, “It’s not expensive. A good price just for you. Because you are students, I will give you good price.” So he shows us these rugs that he wants 180 euros for, which is about $250, but the thing is, you’re supposed to barter. So eventually we got him down to 35 euros, more like $45, but I don’t know if that was necessarily a bargain or what. Then we took pictures with him and it was great. Refer to Colleen’s facebook for those.
Then we continued onto our free time to the markets. Seriously, though. The way we were stared at in Morocco makes Spain feel like home. From the market I got the tea pot and sweet tea cups I have been wanting, so I was very happy with that purchase. I also bought this silly camel that I think is so cool. I’m really excited about that. Oh, we also went to a “pharmacy” that I think I would tag more as an apothecary. They had spices and your good old “cure all” creams for dry hands, psoriasis you know, magic lipstick. I bought some spices, including saffron because it was 5 grams for 5 euros, which I’m not sure how expensive that is in terms of a better price than in the US, but I just know that saffron is supposedly very expensive.
Then we ventured on to Chefchauen which was a littler town. Very quaint, very blue. I loooved our guide. He was this little man (common trend in Morocco) with his robe and Fez and when we got off the bus, Colleen was taking a picture of me with the mountains in the background and he goes, “Helloooo, another one.” And he shook my hand in our picture. Haha. He was a hoot. Everytime someone took a picture with him, he said, “Helloooo.” Let me tell you though, speaking of the men, there are some really attractive Moroccan men. I am very attracted to them as a whole. Alright, so more walking tour with funny Moroccan guide, and cute little kids who don’t want their pictures taken. You have to ask there because it’s one of those cultures where they believe it steals your soul to have a picture taken of themselves.
Speaking of which, strange experience. When we were in some cave, I took a picture of some girls who were on our tour, and when I was done with that, two Moroccan girls get my attention, and I couldn’t figure out what they wanted at first. If they wanted me to take their picture or what, but turned out they took a picture of me in the cave. Weird, no? It’d be like if you were visiting Mt. Rushmore and asked some random person from another group to stand in front on the mountain so you could take a picture. I don’t know if it’s because they don’t want to take pictures of themselves and want someone in the picture, or if they thought I was a funny looking American, but whatever the reason, it made me chuckle.
So overall, Morocco was really great. It was beautiful in its rolling hills and little markets, but I don’t think that I could live in a culture where I felt so absolutely out of place. If given the opportunity though, I would go back.
Africa. Check.
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Que mono!
Oh long type no talk. So basically life is pretty general. Even though I’m in Spain, I’m still just going to school everyday, which never really ends up being that exciting. However, we make up for that on the weekends with fun trips. So has begun the season of travel, I have decided. It seems like literally nearly every weekend from here on out, at least one day will be spent outside of Sevilla. Alright, recap.
Last weekend we went to Cordoba, which is probably about two hours from Sevilla. First we visited a “bodega” or a winery. That was a very cultural experience. I’m not very big into wine because it’s too bitter for me. We tasted three types of wine. One was vino fino, which is DISGUSTING. It’s just really dry and bitter. Then we had semi-dulce (semi-sweet) and dulce, which tasted like molasses. Needless to say, the semi-dulce was my favorite. Although my favorite was probably the picos, which are like the minibreadsticks you sometimes get at restaurants.
We then continued our journey onto La Mezquita. La Mezquita is a famous mosque that was the capital of Islam during the califato of the Omeyas, I think. Haha. Anyway, it was very big and beautiful and cool to see because I’ve learned about it in Spanish class, so it was cool to see it in real life. It actually has a Catholic church in the middle of it, This was done with permission of the king, who then got angry when he saw how beautiful the Mezquita was, and he thought they had ruined it. But, yes. Very pretty building. Sad story though. I lost my umbrella!
I know, I know. Ridiculous. But, I brought that umbrella from the US, and it was from Target and so cute, and when we were eating I put it down and I must have forgot it because at some point I was walking and I was like, “Oh know! My umbrella!” Following this, it rained. Just my luck.
Today I visited Gibratar which is about 3 hours from Sevilla, and it’s actually a British colony. Such a strange culture. They use the British pound, a lot of people are bilingual with British accents. I ate fish and chips too just because I love fish and chips and I couldn’t pass up the opportunity. I’m still not even sure if it’s like a little mini England or what. It did make me want to go back to England though. I think I liked it because it’s foreign but they speak English.
Onward in our journey! We took some mini buses up to the rock where we proceeded to St. Michael’s Cave. That was very cool, but one of those things where it’s really only cool in person because I’m not capable of taking pictures that capture it’s beauty. So, if you want to see the less than impressive pictures, you may check facebook. Then, the exciting stuff: MONKEYS! They were so cute, and actually pretty mild.
They are OBSESSED with food. My friend Sal had crackers in his pocket and he was going to take one out of the package, and a little baby monkey heard the wrapper crinkle and came running. Then later the bus driver let a monkey into the bus and he stole a girls lunch! That freaked me out. Let me tell you. I don’t do well with the whole monkey thing. Everyone was letting them crawl on their heads by luring them with food, but I was leary because I didn’t want there to be a monkey fight on me over the food we were luring, and by the time I was like “Well I should just do it’ the guy was like “ This one is the only mean one. She’s the only one who will bite.” Naturally, I declined. However, I have some photos that are pretty close, and some pictures of the monkeys themselves, and were they ever cute!
Last weekend we went to Cordoba, which is probably about two hours from Sevilla. First we visited a “bodega” or a winery. That was a very cultural experience. I’m not very big into wine because it’s too bitter for me. We tasted three types of wine. One was vino fino, which is DISGUSTING. It’s just really dry and bitter. Then we had semi-dulce (semi-sweet) and dulce, which tasted like molasses. Needless to say, the semi-dulce was my favorite. Although my favorite was probably the picos, which are like the minibreadsticks you sometimes get at restaurants.
We then continued our journey onto La Mezquita. La Mezquita is a famous mosque that was the capital of Islam during the califato of the Omeyas, I think. Haha. Anyway, it was very big and beautiful and cool to see because I’ve learned about it in Spanish class, so it was cool to see it in real life. It actually has a Catholic church in the middle of it, This was done with permission of the king, who then got angry when he saw how beautiful the Mezquita was, and he thought they had ruined it. But, yes. Very pretty building. Sad story though. I lost my umbrella!
I know, I know. Ridiculous. But, I brought that umbrella from the US, and it was from Target and so cute, and when we were eating I put it down and I must have forgot it because at some point I was walking and I was like, “Oh know! My umbrella!” Following this, it rained. Just my luck.
Today I visited Gibratar which is about 3 hours from Sevilla, and it’s actually a British colony. Such a strange culture. They use the British pound, a lot of people are bilingual with British accents. I ate fish and chips too just because I love fish and chips and I couldn’t pass up the opportunity. I’m still not even sure if it’s like a little mini England or what. It did make me want to go back to England though. I think I liked it because it’s foreign but they speak English.
Onward in our journey! We took some mini buses up to the rock where we proceeded to St. Michael’s Cave. That was very cool, but one of those things where it’s really only cool in person because I’m not capable of taking pictures that capture it’s beauty. So, if you want to see the less than impressive pictures, you may check facebook. Then, the exciting stuff: MONKEYS! They were so cute, and actually pretty mild.
They are OBSESSED with food. My friend Sal had crackers in his pocket and he was going to take one out of the package, and a little baby monkey heard the wrapper crinkle and came running. Then later the bus driver let a monkey into the bus and he stole a girls lunch! That freaked me out. Let me tell you. I don’t do well with the whole monkey thing. Everyone was letting them crawl on their heads by luring them with food, but I was leary because I didn’t want there to be a monkey fight on me over the food we were luring, and by the time I was like “Well I should just do it’ the guy was like “ This one is the only mean one. She’s the only one who will bite.” Naturally, I declined. However, I have some photos that are pretty close, and some pictures of the monkeys themselves, and were they ever cute!
Thursday, February 26, 2009
Like Laverne and Shirley...
So I’m at this point right now where I really just love everything about my life. I honestly think it’s in a big part due to the easier school system here. School always stresses me out, and here you just have to read like 20 pages each week for each class, you go to class and the teacher explains the lecture. It’s so much easier. I actually dread real classes when I come back. However, I think I may switch to a psychology major so I’m hoping that’s more interesting and I can enjoy it more.
Annnywho. Yeah. So I just am really enjoying Spain right now. The culture is so rich that it is really helping me to appreciate people’s talents. I think because it’s so expensive to go see things in the United States, I probably don’t spend the money to appreciate the arts, but being that the things I’m doing here are paid for in my tuition, it’s easier to enjoy them. The people here are just so laid back and they truly mean it when they say “No pasa nada” essentially, Colleen and I like to say, the equivalent of “Hakuna Matata” from the Lion King.
So. Today Colleen and I had an activity planned with our interest group. We went to see a Flamenco performance that was phenomenal. However, we weren’t so sure we were even going to make it to the show. Our group leader had sent us an email with the information on where to meet, but we didn’t really note it. There are basically two places were we ever meet, so we figured that we would just check those two out. Well, we did and still no one. So, I called my friend Kelly and she told us where it was, so we walked a bit and then took a taxi, only to find out that it’s literally like 5 minutes from our house.
We were supposed to have met with our group at 8:30, but because we were at the wrong places, 8:30 came and went and we made it to the theater right at about 9:00, only to be told that they had just closed the doors where our leader was sitting, so he couldn’t come bring the tickets to us. However, the people at the theater were so helpful and let us into the theater to look for him. Well, turns out there were two open seats really close to the front, so they just let us sit there. We felt like such cheaters. Here we are late and irresponsible, and we get these great seats that probably cost like 50 euro, and our poor teacher who probably would have loved our seats is in the upper balcony with our cheap tickets that CIEE was willing to pay for. Good things come to those who are late ☺. It just felt like such a TV episode like Lucy and Ethel or Laverne and Shirley causing shenannanigans or something.
The show was amazing though. The people have such rhythm, and there’s just a natural musicality to their performance. I loved the drummer, because he was just really good. Haha. There were three men who came out and danced. I feel like Flamenco is the Spanish River Dance. I might not mind to go see River Dance actually. They are so amazing and their feet move so fast. I’m sure their legs are in really good shape. Haha. Then there was a woman who looked strangely Mexican or gypsy like to me. She didn’t really strike me as Spanish. She was good too, but a little bit older. One of the guys was sooooo guapo. I would marry him. He was so cute and he had a smile on his face like he loved dancing. Ring on the finger though. Haha. But yes, overall a very enjoyable experience that turned out much better than I was expecting.
Annnywho. Yeah. So I just am really enjoying Spain right now. The culture is so rich that it is really helping me to appreciate people’s talents. I think because it’s so expensive to go see things in the United States, I probably don’t spend the money to appreciate the arts, but being that the things I’m doing here are paid for in my tuition, it’s easier to enjoy them. The people here are just so laid back and they truly mean it when they say “No pasa nada” essentially, Colleen and I like to say, the equivalent of “Hakuna Matata” from the Lion King.
So. Today Colleen and I had an activity planned with our interest group. We went to see a Flamenco performance that was phenomenal. However, we weren’t so sure we were even going to make it to the show. Our group leader had sent us an email with the information on where to meet, but we didn’t really note it. There are basically two places were we ever meet, so we figured that we would just check those two out. Well, we did and still no one. So, I called my friend Kelly and she told us where it was, so we walked a bit and then took a taxi, only to find out that it’s literally like 5 minutes from our house.
We were supposed to have met with our group at 8:30, but because we were at the wrong places, 8:30 came and went and we made it to the theater right at about 9:00, only to be told that they had just closed the doors where our leader was sitting, so he couldn’t come bring the tickets to us. However, the people at the theater were so helpful and let us into the theater to look for him. Well, turns out there were two open seats really close to the front, so they just let us sit there. We felt like such cheaters. Here we are late and irresponsible, and we get these great seats that probably cost like 50 euro, and our poor teacher who probably would have loved our seats is in the upper balcony with our cheap tickets that CIEE was willing to pay for. Good things come to those who are late ☺. It just felt like such a TV episode like Lucy and Ethel or Laverne and Shirley causing shenannanigans or something.
The show was amazing though. The people have such rhythm, and there’s just a natural musicality to their performance. I loved the drummer, because he was just really good. Haha. There were three men who came out and danced. I feel like Flamenco is the Spanish River Dance. I might not mind to go see River Dance actually. They are so amazing and their feet move so fast. I’m sure their legs are in really good shape. Haha. Then there was a woman who looked strangely Mexican or gypsy like to me. She didn’t really strike me as Spanish. She was good too, but a little bit older. One of the guys was sooooo guapo. I would marry him. He was so cute and he had a smile on his face like he loved dancing. Ring on the finger though. Haha. But yes, overall a very enjoyable experience that turned out much better than I was expecting.
Monday, February 23, 2009
It's Carnaval!
Alcohol, alcohol. Alcohol, alcohol, alcohol. Y bocadillos, embarachandos, los resultados me da igual! The chant heartily sung by many a drunk Spaniard at Carnaval in Cadiz. An experience to say the least. I ventured to Cadiz this weekend, a town south of Sevilla to what my friend’s guidebook says is “the craziest party in Spain.” I have to admit, it wasn’t as crazy as I would have expected.
I and three friends took the train from Sevilla to Cadiz for about $25 and arrived at 1 o’clock in the afternoon. This allowed for a lovely day at the beach of laying out, playing cards and eating our sack lunches. Or like the song says, bocadillos. After seeing the sunset on the beach, we ventured off to Telepizza to seek shelter from the somewhat cold outside. After this, we began our journey into Carnaval.
At Carnaval it’s very typical to go in a huge group all in the same costume. Some popular themes were Cruzcampo men (the guy on the label of the beer made in Sevilla), smurfs, chickens, and men dressed as women. The Cruzcampo men were so jolly. I asked to take a picture with them, and they were like “A picture with Pocohonta.” I went as an Indian, but I was referred to as Pocohonta throughout the night. No joke though, they loved giving me shout outs. Whether simply yelling, “Pocohonta,” “How (you know, like the Native American greeting) or lassoing me, they were very fascinated.
Really from what I saw from Carnaval, I’m not that impressed. It’s essentially like a huge community party, and it reminds me of a hybrid of Mardi Gras and Halloween. The streets and plazas are just flooded with people. People come in their groups of friends and essentially claim a spot and drink their chosen liquor for the night. There’s definite interaction amongst groups, but it’s not like everyone’s just there walking around trying to talk to everyone, but that inevitably happens. They’re so chatty and they like just having a little “where are you from, are you enjoying yourself” conversations.
At 3:30 a.m. Colleen and I began the walk back to the train, and once we got there for our 5:10 a.m. train there was a long line to get through even though we had tickets already. However, we got through the line, and claimed our seat on the floor for our two hour train ride. We arrived back at about 7:00 in the morning, took the bus home, showered and slept until 3:00 p.m. today. What a ridiculous lifestyle they have here.
So, this was the last weekend of Carnaval because it’s the big blowout before Lent, which starts Wednesday. My friends and I are giving up English for Lent, except to communicate with friends and family back home. I’m very excited because I try to speak Spanish with friends here, but no one has been that dedicated, so I just tend to use English too because it’s easier. However, I’m hoping this group effort makes things much more concrete.
I and three friends took the train from Sevilla to Cadiz for about $25 and arrived at 1 o’clock in the afternoon. This allowed for a lovely day at the beach of laying out, playing cards and eating our sack lunches. Or like the song says, bocadillos. After seeing the sunset on the beach, we ventured off to Telepizza to seek shelter from the somewhat cold outside. After this, we began our journey into Carnaval.
At Carnaval it’s very typical to go in a huge group all in the same costume. Some popular themes were Cruzcampo men (the guy on the label of the beer made in Sevilla), smurfs, chickens, and men dressed as women. The Cruzcampo men were so jolly. I asked to take a picture with them, and they were like “A picture with Pocohonta.” I went as an Indian, but I was referred to as Pocohonta throughout the night. No joke though, they loved giving me shout outs. Whether simply yelling, “Pocohonta,” “How (you know, like the Native American greeting) or lassoing me, they were very fascinated.
Really from what I saw from Carnaval, I’m not that impressed. It’s essentially like a huge community party, and it reminds me of a hybrid of Mardi Gras and Halloween. The streets and plazas are just flooded with people. People come in their groups of friends and essentially claim a spot and drink their chosen liquor for the night. There’s definite interaction amongst groups, but it’s not like everyone’s just there walking around trying to talk to everyone, but that inevitably happens. They’re so chatty and they like just having a little “where are you from, are you enjoying yourself” conversations.
At 3:30 a.m. Colleen and I began the walk back to the train, and once we got there for our 5:10 a.m. train there was a long line to get through even though we had tickets already. However, we got through the line, and claimed our seat on the floor for our two hour train ride. We arrived back at about 7:00 in the morning, took the bus home, showered and slept until 3:00 p.m. today. What a ridiculous lifestyle they have here.
So, this was the last weekend of Carnaval because it’s the big blowout before Lent, which starts Wednesday. My friends and I are giving up English for Lent, except to communicate with friends and family back home. I’m very excited because I try to speak Spanish with friends here, but no one has been that dedicated, so I just tend to use English too because it’s easier. However, I’m hoping this group effort makes things much more concrete.
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
Getting involved.
Well, senderismo (hiking) was very fun yesterday. It was also very exhausting, but so worth it. I’ve been wanting to get into naturey things, so this was a good introduction to it. It was a very lovely town in Huelva. I don’t really know what the town was, but I know it was in Huelva. This was a legit hike too. For a little bit I was concerned it would be wimpy and not be worth it, but we had to work. Steep hills, rocks. To the point where you couldn’t always be looking around you because you had to make sure you wouldn’t trip on any rocks.
Today I went to the old folks’ home to volunteer. It was fun, but I feel like it’s so much more laid back and unorganized than volunteering in the United States. I arrived, waited about 10 or 15 minutes for someone to come talk to me, then just followed a nun who led me to the room of a resident just to talk. Then I helped with the coffee time. I had to help a woman who was very picky about her coffee. She had cookies in her coffee, but I had to really stir them in because she didn’t like crumbs. I’ll tell ya. Then I accompanied a woman named Trinidad to what they refer to as “el teatro,” or the theater. That was a really confusing experience.
One of the sisters was setting up the elderly folk, and saying something about a boat, and how we needed to be in the shape of a boat. So, we were divided into two groups that were in the formation of “boats” and I and another volunteer were serving as captains of the boats. Then we did some basic exercises. I don’t understand if it really is a play they’re going to perform one day, or it’s just a way to make exercise fun, but nonetheless it was good.
Then I returned home and Colleen and I ventured to buy our train tickets for Carnaval. Our tickets are successfully purchased and our friends Sal and Mara are going to join us for a day at the beach with our packed lunches, followed by the party that is Carnaval at night. It should be a great time. Colleen and I want to be a bull and a matador as our costume, but we’ll see what the costume store has to offer us.
Classes are going fine. There’s a lot of reading, which is different than anything I’ve really had before. So it’s in one way easier, and in another more challenging. I suppose I shall just keep trucking along and we’ll see where it takes me.
Today I went to the old folks’ home to volunteer. It was fun, but I feel like it’s so much more laid back and unorganized than volunteering in the United States. I arrived, waited about 10 or 15 minutes for someone to come talk to me, then just followed a nun who led me to the room of a resident just to talk. Then I helped with the coffee time. I had to help a woman who was very picky about her coffee. She had cookies in her coffee, but I had to really stir them in because she didn’t like crumbs. I’ll tell ya. Then I accompanied a woman named Trinidad to what they refer to as “el teatro,” or the theater. That was a really confusing experience.
One of the sisters was setting up the elderly folk, and saying something about a boat, and how we needed to be in the shape of a boat. So, we were divided into two groups that were in the formation of “boats” and I and another volunteer were serving as captains of the boats. Then we did some basic exercises. I don’t understand if it really is a play they’re going to perform one day, or it’s just a way to make exercise fun, but nonetheless it was good.
Then I returned home and Colleen and I ventured to buy our train tickets for Carnaval. Our tickets are successfully purchased and our friends Sal and Mara are going to join us for a day at the beach with our packed lunches, followed by the party that is Carnaval at night. It should be a great time. Colleen and I want to be a bull and a matador as our costume, but we’ll see what the costume store has to offer us.
Classes are going fine. There’s a lot of reading, which is different than anything I’ve really had before. So it’s in one way easier, and in another more challenging. I suppose I shall just keep trucking along and we’ll see where it takes me.
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