Last Week in Sevilla

Today is the start of my last week in Spain. Unfortunately I can't fully enjoy it because I have finals all week long. I had my cine one today. I think it went fine. I had to write about the image of women in Spanish film. Tomorrow is flamenco which I'm really nervous about, lit on Wednesday should be fine, and I've got my fingers crossed for my art history one on Thursday. This weekend I walked around Sevilla a lot. I checked out the area up the river, it's mostly sketchy. I saw a park where a bunch of gypsies were living. They had their laundry hung out and everything, I felt like I'd completely invaded their privacy. Oops. Last week we went to a club we'd never been to before. It was pretty fun, they kept on putting the fog machine on though and it was kind of hard to breathe. Oh well. I did some Christmas shopping as well. The shops here are getting crazy. They are packed and people can barely move. It's ridiculous, the Spanish really like their shopping. This week I'm going to try to get out for some tapas, I will miss the cheese here a lot. The girls at the other apartment are throwing a Christmas party this weekend too so that should be fun. A little taste of the holidays before I head home. They've turned on the Christmas lights here now so all the streets are lit up at night. It's really beautiful. It's been getting so foggy at night though. The other day we couldn't even see across the river. It was ridiculous. The humidity is crazy. Anyhow, I'm just going to try to enjoy this last week here and not waste too much of it studying or looking forward to seeing everyone at home! Miss you all! XOXO

Protest March

So, a week ago today, when Mama was still here, I tried to go to my afternoon class. I had left between classes to print off a boarding pass for Ireland. The API office is just around the corner so I knew I could make it back in time for my only class in which attendance is taken. As my roommate Sanja and I were walking back to school we noticed several police trucks and a crowd outside the main gates to the university. The school is very different from American universities in that it is only in one building and due to the fact that it used to be the royal tobacco factory it has enormous gates at every entrance as well as the remnants of a moat. Well, when we got closer we realized the gates were locked. Turns out there was a protest or march of sorts coming down the street. I'm still not sure what it was for, but it passed and we waited for them to open the gates. We were still only a few minutes late for class, but they didn't open them. After 20 minutes, the protesters came back down the street and sat down in front of the gates blocking the rail tracks. They showed no signs of leaving in the near future. Best reason to skip class: The school locked me out!

Ireland

Ireland:

To continue my exploration of the world, my roommate Zoe and I went on one final trip. We spent this past weekend enjoying all the wonder that is Ireland. I now have visited six countries in three months, something of which I’m quite proud. Ireland was one of my favorites. It really is amazingly green, with fields stretching between rolling hills. I saw sheep and cows and realized I haven’t seen animals in quite a while. We arrived in Dublin Friday afternoon and hopped on a bus to Casteblayney, where Great-Grandpa McDonnell was from. Unsure of where to get off we asked a young guy if he knew which stop it was. He told us and politely inquired, “Why the hell would anyone go to Castleblayney?” What a gentleman! After arriving in the essentially one-street town the roots of his question became more evident. We checked in to the Rockville House B&B and Joan showed us to our very violet room. After layering on more clothes (turns out Ireland is colder than Sevilla, who would have thought?) we set out to explore the town. The main street was lined with pubs and cafes and we stopped in at Café Cuisine for a delicious, hot latte. Zoe taught me how to play backgammon which is actually a fun game. After a few games we left in search of fish and chips. We ended up at Corrigan’s Kitchen a gothic themed bar. It was cozy inside and we got a table right by the roaring fire. Dinner was great, potato-leek soup, garlic-tomato-cheese bread and an order of fish and chips. It ended up being way to much for just the two of us, but it was great to have food with flavor after so much Spanish food. As the group at the table across from us was leaving they told us they were all in a play that night and said they would put two tickets in our name if we wanted to go. After another game of backgammon and a rough tutorial in chess for Zoe, we went off in search of the theater. We barely made it in time, but the show was great. It was about the Americanization of Ireland in the 1970s. Granted, we didn’t understand a lot of it, but it was still entertaining and just something unique to have done. After the show we ended up at Ballymacmanus, a local pub where we met the stairbuilders of Castleblayney and spent the evening learning about Ireland through some locals. Apparently it’s not often that two young American girls stumble into Castleblayney.

Saturday morning we woke early to eat the full Irish breakfast Joan prepared for us. Sausage, ham, fried egg, toast, potato cake thing, and black and white pudding…it was so refreshing to have a real breakfast again after the toast and cereal we’ve been eating for the past three months. We then caught the bus back into Dublin and checked into the shady Litton Lane Hostel, supposedly a former recording studio that housed the likes of U2 and the Cranberries. We were in and out again as fast as possible and wandered down the streets of Dublin. We found a bead shop which had me completely captivated with bins upon bins of sparkling beads sorted in a rainbow of color. We then found the Temple Bar neighborhood complete with an Urban Outfitters. After admiring all the overpriced clothes we left in search of food. A quaint Italian restaurant served us well with spring rolls, fried brie with cranberry sauce, and a shared chicken/pepper pizza. So good!!! After wandering some more we ended up back in the Temple Bar district for the night. We met a gang of middle-aged Scotsmen who insisted we join them in their search for a karaoke bar. The search was fruitless, but we spent a good few hours with them chatting and laughing about how they were all old enough to be our fathers. When we returned to the hostel I discovered that someone had hijacked my blanket and I was left to pile on all my clothes and hope I’d be warm enough for the night.

Sunday morning we took the DART, the public transit system, south to a small town called Dun Leary. It was the perfect combination of Dublin and Castleblayney. It was right on the ocean and the salty air was quite refreshing after our night in Dublin. Marina House hostel was much better than Litton Lane. We were given an upgraded room because Zoe’s last name is Kosovic due to her Croatian heritage while the hostelkeeper was Serbian. We walked all through the town which was completely decorated with twinkling multi-colored Christmas lights. At the far end was People’s Park which was hosting an organic market. There we had a great lunch and some fantastic people watching. We then walked along the boardwalk and out to the end of what seemed like the longest pier in the world. It was so beautiful. The day was overcast and it felt almost as though there was a melancholy mist hanging over the whole town. It was very peaceful and relaxing. We stopped in at a small bookstore on our way back. Zoe nearly bought the place out while I just indulged in a little romance novel. Haha. After relaxing in the hostel with our new books we went to Purty Kitchen for dinner. We split the seafood chowder and the fish and chips. They were great, but still a little fancy for our taste. We called it an early night due to the fact that we had to be up at 7 to catch the bus back to the airport.

All in all, Ireland was amazing. It felt so good to be in an English speaking country again and it was very cool to see where my family had once lived. The people of Ireland were very friendly and the land itself was stunning. I would love to go back one day and be able to better explore the area. Oh, and we met a guy who works in recruitment who said he’d be able to help us find jobs if we ever decided to move there. That could be fun for a year or so, yeah?

Sorry I've written a novel.

Paris

I'm way behind in keeping this updated, I know, and I'm really sorry. I've been wildly busy the past few weeks though. I'll start with Paris. We spent November 15th through 18th exploring Paris. I wasn't even that excited to go because I've been there already and didn't want to experience it without Khaia and Jillian. Turns out I enjoyed it just as much, if not even more this time. There was a public transportation strike so the Metro wasn't running as much as it should have been. My friend Martin and I didn't realize any of the lines were running and thus spent about 9 hours walking through Paris on Friday. It was great, but our sore legs were happy to learn that some lines were working on Saturday. Friday we just wandered the city. We went under the Eiffel Tower and walked all along the river. We went to this little cafe where French existentialists used to hang out and drink coffee and write about...life. It made Martin really happy to be there and I liked it in spite of the 4 euro coffees and mice running around under the booths. After the cafe and much deliberation we decided it was necessary to go to the Louvre. I was torn because it's said to take 6 months to view every piece of art in the museum. I hated the idea of going in just to see the big name pieces, like Da Vinci's 'Mona Lisa' and ignoring all the other works that probably get ignored all the time. I felt bad for them. In the end I decided I had to go. We saw the Mona Lisa and then concentrated ourselves in the wing of the Spanish and Italian painters. It was really neat to see works of the Spanish artists I've been studying. We tried to see Rubens' work as well, but that wing was closed. All in all, I'm glad I went. Later we tried to go to this bar where Khaia, Jilly and I hung out, but it was too packed so we went across the street to O'Neil's, a little Irish pub where they brew their own beer. It was great. Exhausted from walking and drowsy from the beer we strolled home and stopped for pizza a great little Italian restaurant near our hotel. Saturday we set off in search of the Marche des Luces, an enormous flea market across the city from our hotel. We found it and it was everything I'd hoped for. Stands around the perimeter offered an eclectic blend of ghetto fabulous clothing, hookah and other smoking supplies, vintage records and cd collections, army clothes and beautiful jewelry. Once you pressed through to the inner part of the market you could find gorgeous antiques and vintage clothing as well as a variety of paintings. It was huge and just really cool to wander through. We had crepes there for lunch. They were fantastic and so so cheap! Saturday afternoon we wandered through Printemps and Galeries Lafayette, two high end department stores. They had the 360 euro Swarovski crystal necklace I've been coveting and great wool pea coats that Martin would have bought were it not for the 800 euro price tags. Exhausted and overwhelmed by the crowds we found a grocery store to buy our feast of cheese, baguette, ham and blush wine, hopped back on the Metro to the hotel, stopping along the way to pick up a small strawberry tart and a walnut one as well. We spread our feast out and Zoe joined us to watch "Hook" in German. Luckily I have the movie practically memorized so we all knew what was going on. The plan was to find a jazz bar after the movie, but we all fell asleep before it ended and were too wiped out to go out at all. Sunday Martin, Matt, Sam and I went to Musee D'Orsay, a beautiful museum which houses the works of many of the impressionists. They were amazing! Monet, Manet, Van Gogh, Degas, all under one roof. The colors were incredible and it was great to see such famous works in person. After the museum we grabbed some more crepes and ran to catch the bus at the hotel. Paris was so great. It was freezing cold, but it was a nice change from the heat of Sevilla. The Parisians were unbelievably friendly and so forgiving of my lack of knowledge of the French language. I would love to go there sometime in the spring or summer and visit Versailles and the gardens when everything is in bloom.

When in Rome...

The title's for you, NY, so I hope you're reading this. I spent the last three days in beautiful Rome. It was a short trip, seeing as how I didn't arrive in the city until around 3 on Friday and left for the airport at 11 on Sunday, but it was a great one. Fears of a public transportation strike on Friday turned out to be unwarranted. I found Sarah and her handsome boyfriend, Silvio at the train station mostly as planned. They took me to their apartment and my culinary enjoyment of Italy began. Fresh tortellini with fresh tomato/onion/garlic sauce and fresh mozzarella. It was delicious! Sarah then took me out for a nighttime stroll past the major monuments, Colosseum, Roman Ruins, a building the Romans refer to as "The Wedding Cake." The city was stunning all lit up and I kept having "Oh my gosh, I can't believe I'm in Rome" moments.

The next morning we got up early-ish to explore the city by the light of day. We started at the Vatican where we found the square to be full of people. It wasn't just crowded with typical tourists though, there were several groups of people proudly wearing capes and carrying banners declaring their specific Catholic sect. There was a blocked off pathway weaving its way around the square and on the steps of St. Peters was a full orchestra and choir next to a sort of stage. Obviously something was going on so Sarah and I decided to stay and see what happened. Sure enough, about 45 minutes later the Pope himself came out on a little Jeep type thing and cruised around the pathway waving. It was pretty incredible. He was only about ten feet away from me! It was surreal. What are the chances?

We walked over tons of the city and saw all the main attractions in the daylight. It's all so impressive and it's hard to believe there can be so much history in one place. Sarah said they keep trying to build a Metro system, but every time they dig they find some new ruins and have to stop construction. We tried to go out Saturday night, but could not find anywhere to park. Finally after a few hours of driving around, Silvio parked illegally and we ran into a cafe for cappuccinos and cornettos, which are chocolate filled croissants. Delicious!

All in all, it was a great weekend with great people. I threw my coin into the Trevi Fountain so hopefully I'll be returning one day!

Photos from Granada and Isla Magica

Rome!

Well, I'm done with midterms. I think they went well, maybe, hopefully. I had three, novel, film and art history and they were all essay exams which I feel like I'm pretty decent at. My roommates and I studied our buns off for the art history one. We wanted to prove to the butthead professor that Americans aren't worthless. We'll see how that goes. I'm completely wiped out from the effort though. I think I'm just going to curl up with a movie tonight, and maybe some popcorn too!

I'm sitting in the Java Cafe which is around the corner from my flat. It's this stylish little cafe/bar that has free wireless Mondays-Thursdays as long as it's not a holiday. I like it here better than the internet place, plus I get coffee or Coke here. I've just finished with my painting class. I think I'm done with my pomegranate painting. It was pretty awful at the beginning but I think it's turned out alright. I would maybe considering showing it to people. The other students in my class are so talented. They're mostly middle aged women, so maybe it's just that they've had more time to practice. There's also a younger guy, maybe high school-ish and sometimes he just comes and stands behind me and watches me paint. I really don't like it at all. Oh well. I was dreading going to class today because I was so tired, but I'm really glad I went and I feel a lot better now that I've accomplished something.

Tomorrow I'm off to Rome. Sometimes I can't believe this is actually my life. I'll be staying with Sarah (who went to Sweden with me) and her Italian boyfriend for the weekend. I'm hoping to get a basic tour of the city and to eat some delicious food! It will be nice to have a little break from Sevilla so I can appreciate it more when I come home. Two of my roommates are doing a huge pilgrimage this weekend. El camino de Santiago. They just walk for 20 km a day and stay in these little, I don't even know what, boarding houses I guess. I'm really excited for them and wish I could have gone too. I'll let you know what they think of it though.

Can't wait for this weekend and next weekend in Paris and then to have my family here!!!! It's going to be amazing! Hope all is well back in the States!

XOXO

Isla Magica

On Thursday afternoon, Julia, Zoe, Martin and I went to Isla Magica, the theme park up the river. We’d been warned to go in knowing it was a little lame, so our expectations were quite low. Man, we were blown away! It was absolutely amazing! First of all, Thrusday was All Saint’s Day, the day after Halloween so the whole park was ‘haunted’ for the week and they had special events going on throughout the park. We entered and quickly formed a game plan so we would be sure to see everything. The park is essentially a circle around a lake with a few little peninsulas protruding off the main path. We first went to El Dorado, an area that features the Rapids of Orinoco. On the map the rapids are described as ‘Almost 500 meters of “rafting” aboard a rubber dinghy.’ How could it not be great? There was a sign in the line that warned we would get very wet on this ride. We were quite disappointed as we all left only wet and not very wet. It was a pretty good ride nonetheless. We moved on to El Cubo, where we were going to experience a laser show, but we missed it and didn’t want to wait for the next one. The line for the Dimension 4 movie was too long, so we skipped that as well. It was on to La Fuente de La Juventud (fountain of youth) for us. Turns out it really is just an area for little kids, but it was cool to see little huts with bright seashells coming out of the roofs. We moved on to La Guarida de Los Piratas where we waited in line forever for Capitan Bala’s Ride. There were tons of costumed children shouting and singing in Spanish and also a man beating out flamenco rhythms on his belly. It was a little hellish, but totally worth it! We got on the ride, four of us with our backs to eachother on a car thing. We each had a laser gun and got to shoot at targets which made the people and canons and things move or shoot when you hit the target. Martin won, with 700 something points, but I came in second! We checked out the old fashioned photo booth in the pirate area, but the line was long for that as well. Too bad. We pressed on. Amazonia was next and held the promise of the Jaguar, the roller coaster our cab driver had informed us we had to go on. It looked relatively harmless; sure it had a mind-boggling amount of twists and turns and your feet dangled freely from the cars, but it was only Isla Magica, how good could it be? Amazing. Best roller coaster I’ve ever been on. We got off and I couldn’t stop laughing and Julia had to sit down for a while. After she recovered we all ran to get in line to go again. It was great! Also in Amazonia was Iguazu, another water ride described as follows: Rafting down the Iguazu falls at over 50 km/h. Sounds pretty intense, but we were only warned of getting wet and not very wet so we weren’t expecting much. It was a mean trick. At the end of the plunge over the ‘falls’ we all got nailed full-on by a wave. We were drenched and felt as though we’d been completely duped. It was also getting late and the sun had gone down so we were sufficiently freezing for the rest of the night. We didn’t let our damp condition get to us though; we still had plenty of park to see. It was on to the Anaconda in Puerta de America, a “big dipper with water chute over trunks, with mind-bending drops of 7, 12, and 16 meters.” In English that means ‘log ride,’ but the best log ride ever, next to Splash Mountain of course. It was really long and also provided a ‘very wet’ warning. None of us got too wet, except for Martin who had to sit in the front. Poor guy. We then headed to Sevilla, Puerto de Indias, for El Desafio a “spectacular free-fall from 68 meters.” Julia and Zoe opted out of this one and Martin had to talk me through it while we waited in line. It wasn’t so bad and offered an incredible view of the city from the top. After we were finished, as we were walking to the Corral of Terror for a haunted house, a woman in a mask would not leave me alone. I figured she worked at the park and was just doing her job, like the two creepy little girls walking around in white nightgowns holding candles, when she chased me around for a bit. Later, the others told me they were pretty sure she was just some girl messing with people. Oh well. The Corral of Terror was a good haunted house and we all produced some genuine screams, well, maybe not Martin, but the rest of us did.

All in all it was an incredibly satisfying trip to the amusement park and I would definitely recommend Isla Magica to anyone in Sevilla for more than a week. It was also a good way to satisfy my longing for an American Halloween experience. They had all sorts of creepy people wandering around and even a little show with circus freakish folks and lots of fog and lights. It was great!

After the park, Julia and I headed to Santa Cruz for an amazing dinner. The restaurant was beautiful and even though they were out of about half of their menu, the food they did have was delicious. Julia got steak, seeing as how she won’t be able to eat red meat for six weeks and I had the pork since they were out of duck. Each was served with French fries, of course, because no matter how classy the place is, it’s still Spanish and the Spaniards love their fries. My brandy sauce was to die for and the mushroom/olive side was amazing. For dessert we split tocino del cielo which literally means heavenly bacon, but is actually a caramel custard. It was so flavorful and I didn’t even mind the texture. It was the perfect end to a perfect day and perfect week with a good friend.

New Entry Coming

So, I have a long, detailed post all typed up and ready to go, but it´s not letting me actually post it. I´m gonna work on it tomorrow when I have my own computer. I promise it´s coming though. It involves an amusement park. Get ready. Also, we´re having a Jenga party at the apartment tonight, instead of studying for my novel midterm. Should be fun! Miss you all tons and tons and tons!!!
XOXO

Continued...

After tea we went back up the enormous hill to the hotel for dinner. Dinner was alright, bland Spanish buffet, but we made it through without anyone singing "Happy Birthday" which is good. When we finished we headed up to the room to get ready for flamenco. Once we were all dolled up, we opened a bottle of champagne for my first drink. It was delicious! Just as we were about to leave for the caves, it began to our. Several people were actually refusing to go out in the downpour. It hadn´t even occurred to us to bring our umbrellas to Granada. FInally we called a small fleet of taxis to take us to the show.

We pulled up in front of the building and ran from the cab into the shelter of the "cave." The cave was really a sort of small tunnel-like room with whitewashed walls, brightly colored lights and gleaming copper pots dangling from the ceiling. The walls were covered in black and white photos of flamenco greats, famous toreros and Spanish celebrities, like the beautiful Antonio Banderas. The room was long and narrow and each wall was lined with chairs. We took seats near the center and a waiter came around for drink orders. As soon as he left, the show began.

Flamenco is difficult to describe. It´s essentially a dance and music that conveys complete passion. Even after having studied it for the past month, I understand very little. In this "espectaculo" there were several female dancers (they only dance one at a time though) and a few males. There was at least one guitarist and several different people singing and clapping. Hands become an instrument of their own in flamenco, clapping out seemingly impossible rhythms at ridiculous speeds. The women´s dresses are elaborate, fitted on top and gaudily ruffled on the skirt. Many are vibrantly colored and covered in large polka dots. Their hair was pulled back and adorned with combs and flowers, but quickly fell down as soon as they began to dance.

They danced for about an hour. Flamenco is very sensual, but not in an overly graphic or offensive way. It involves a lot of arm and hand movement as well as an emphasis on the stamping of the feet. Flamenco singing comes from deep within the singer´s throat and is quite a challenge to try to understand. They play with the syllables, stretching some and then squeezing the rest into the short time left by the exaggeration of the first.

At the end of the performance they pulled in people from the audience to attempt to dance with them. My friends were kindly informed that if they mentioned it was my birthday, they would be killed. The warning worked and I wasn´t even asked to dance. Several people did have the courage to dance and it was quite enterataining. One of the real dancers has a brother who lives in Spokane with his Mexican wife. How crazy is that? She just had a baby. Maybe you helped deliver it, Mama.

When we left, the rain had stopped and it was only eleven. The night was young and we headed out to celebrate.

XOXO

Julia, Granada, Flamenco and the 21st.

Hello! I was gone for the weekend and without internet and it feels like I have a thousand things to write about. I apologize in advance if this is a really long post. First of all, Julia got here Friday night. It was so good to see her and although her trip was long, she made it here without any trouble. We just went to bed because we had to be up early to catch the bus to Granada on Saturday morning.

We arrived in Granada at 11 am. The city is beautiful and has a completely different atmosphere than Sevilla. For one, it was actually kind of cold there. The air was nice and crisp, as fall air should be. It´s quite a bit smaller than Sevilla, but seems to run at a faster pace. Sevillanos tend not to hurry anywhere whereas Granada seemed buzzing with people going places. After exploring the city a bit, we trekked back up the enormous hill to our hotel which was across the street from the Alhambra. At the top of the hill were the gypsies. I don´t know if I´ve mentioned, but there are gypsies at every main tourist attraction in Andalusia. They carry little sprigs of rosemary and try to read your palm with them. This is fine, but they charge 3€ for this elaborate display and unsuspecting tourists easily fall victim because they don´t give you much of a choice,essnetially thrusting the herb into your hand while distracting you with a torrent of Spanish compliments. I was unsure if they would let Julia get away without her fortune told, so when the elegant gypsy woman in the gaudy fur coat approached Julia, I grabbed the fur-covered elbow to pull her back and firmly said "No". Life lesson here: Don´t touch gypsies. They will turn around with fire in their eyes and curse you. I didn´t understand much,mostly just something about my ugly face. That was my first birthday gift, a gypsy curse. Awesome.

Later, as we were waiting to go in to the Alhambra, I recieved birthday gift number two. A bird pooped on my hands. Equally awesome. Turns out though, that several people think getting pooped on or stepping in poop is good luck. I think the bird saved me from the gypsy curse. As of yet, my face is not disfigured. Knock on wood.

The Alhambra was stunning, of course. I will post pictures when my camara battery is charged. After the tour, we walked back down into the center in search of a tetería. Martín, Julia Zoë and I ended up in this tiny,dimly lit cafe with cushioned stools and benches around tables made for a dollhouse. We were brought the menu which consisted of three or four pages of tea options and a page of Arabic sweets. We made our selections, Hawaian for Julia, Chai for Zoë, Al Andalus for me, and some unpronouncible green tea for Martín and ordered them along with an assortment of desserts. We were each given our own little pot and beatifully colored glass. It was exquisite. The room was so cozy and warm and filled with the sweet smoke from the hookahs which were also available. The sweets were amazing. There was a brownie with walnuts, some sort of moist, well, more like dripping wet, almond bread, a miniature caramelized funnel cake and a large slice of what I think was fig pie. It was the perfect way to spend a chilly afternoon.

I have to go to class now, but I will continue the Granada adventure later.

Much love!

Clase de Pintura!!!

I´m really proud of myself right now because I just signed up for a painting class. I´ll be taking a course in acrylics twice a week for the month of November. It´s on the second floor (really the third because that´s the way things work here)of this cute little building on Calle Betis which runs along the river. I need to buy a smock and some other things I need to translate into English in order to buy. The woman was really nice and said the class was . There were six people in there painting while I was there. Everyone was working on their own individual project, some in watercolor, some with oils. They seemed to be of all different levels, but all the paintings were beautiful. They had soft music playing and the entire room smelled of oil paints. I think it will be a great way to work on my Spanish and to just relax as well as feel productive. Who knows, maybe I´ll bring back a masterpiece. Or maybe not. I´ll post photos of what I paint, how does that sound? I´m really excited! Whenever I succeed in speaking Spanish and actually communicating my message I feel all giddy and like I can do anything. Plus, the moon is full and the river is beautiful right now. This city is stunning at night. The Plaza de Toros, La Giralda, Puente de Triana and El Torre del Oro are all lit up. I just want to sit at a café along the river and have a nice glass of wine and just admire everything. Maybe I will go do just that. ¡Buenas noches!

La Vida De Una Sevillana

Sorry it's been so long since I've written anything. Life has been pretty average here lately. Except that last night I went to a book release in a convent in the old Arab quarter. Mayda, Tres' friend called me and invited me to go with her. I went for a quick run with my roommate, rinsed off in the shower and set off in search of La Giralda cafe. I knew it was near La Giralda, which is the name of the large tower on the cathedral here, but beyond that I was clueless. Fortunately I found the place; I wasn't even late! Mayda met me there and we set off into the barrio Santa Cruz. It's a part of Sevilla where the streets are maybe four feet wide, thus it's only accesible by foot, bike or moto. The houses are beautiful and it's full of quaint bars and restaurants, and, well, a convent. The nuns in the convent are cloistered, is that the right word? Where they can't leave? I think it is. Oh, that's right we have several convents and monestaries in Sevilla and many of them still house monks and nuns. Mayda is taking a class on theology and a friend had given her invitations to this release. Usually the convent is closed to the public, but the book was about the life of Sta. Teresa and this convent was possibly where she lived? Needless to say it was in Spanish and I've discovered that Spanish in churches is really difficult to understand. I believe she lived in the convent for some time or at least these nuns are followers of hers. We left about halfway through because they were going to have a slideshow and the screen was tiny. Mayda took me out for tapas which were delicous. Curried chicken crepes, and little tostadas with cheese and ham and others with foie gras and fried onions. Que deliciosas! It was a really fun night and she even told me that my Spanish was good. She may have been lying, but I'll take it anyway. Much to my delight, she also informed me that I was not getting fat. The Spanish are very open about weight; a complete contrast to the American viewpoint. In their eyes, if you're gaining weight, you just change something and lose it. Alternatively, if you're too thin, they will feed you and feed you. They openly tell you what they think. I suppose this is good, for you never have to guess what's going on in their heads.

Julia is coming on Friday! I can't wait. I'm already drawing up an itinerary. I can't wait to show her around the city. We will first spend the weekend in Granada, a beautiful little city east of here. It should be a good trip. We'll get to see an espectaculo de flamenco in some caves on Saturday night. I promise to take lots of pictures, it's a great little town. I'm excited to show off Sevilla. The weather has been nasty today, we had to hang our laundry inside and let it dry all over again because it got drenched in the courtyard. It's been nice to have a cool grey day though.

Well, I need to go study for art history. Yesterday the profe told us that we were all going to fail; that he couldn't study for us and what more could he do than explain things and write them on the board? That we were there voluntarily and no one was making us do anything. That Spain may not have money, like we do in the US, but that it had culture and art. He said he was like Christ with his hands tied and there wasn't anything more he could do for us. It was a bit infuriating. In any case, I need to review the material.

Miss you all tons and tons! Oh, UB, I emailed your friend in Paris. I'll let you know if I hear back from him.

Love you lots and lots!
XOXO

More Photos from Sweden

Uppsala and Stockholm, Sweden

Well, I'm back from Sweden. What a beautiful country! It reminded me so much of fall in Washington. There were gorgeous yellow leaves on the ground and on the trees and the air was crisp and made me want to carve pumpkins and drink cider. Unfortunately, they don't have cider in Sweden. I arrived at Arlanda airport Thursday afternoon after a rather sleepless night in the shady hotel in Malaga. I got off the plane, got my luggage and found Mikael who hasn't changed much over the past four years. He's just taller and still as handsome as ever. We took the 30 minute train to Uppsala the college town where he lives. With 130,000 people it's the fourth largest city in Sweden. It's a quaint town full of history. I had no idea how influential Sweden has been historically. We saw museums and even the first ever thermometer which had 0 degrees as boiling and 100 as freezing. After the inventor died they changed this. Mikael took me to his school where he's studying medicine and I got to see a preserved whale heart and he showed me a few slides through his microscope. Tongue is very interesting. Friday afternoon we met Sarah, another friend of ours, at the train station in Stockholm. Stockholm is the world's most ecologically friendly city. It's built on islands and we had coffee and delicious pie with Mikael's friends Bjern and Frida in a cozy cafe in Old Stockholm. Frida had to catch a train so she didn't join us for dinner, but the rest of us ate at a funky little Mongolian restaurant where they were very eager to show the correct way to do things. Sarah had taken my plate to dish me up and the waiter came over and informed her that she was not to have two plates and that one was for me. When Bjern was eating his rice plain, a waitress arrived and showed him how he should put the sweet and sour sauce on it. Very interesting. That night we wandered between 'nations' or student clubs. It was fun, but the walk home was freezing. Saturday we explored Uppsala. The governor's castle, the botanical gardens, an old cathedral and one of the old university buildings. We returned home in the afternoon for lunch (Mikael is an incredible cook) and to get ready for the Oktoberfest party. It was a great time. The party was in the hospital as it was put on for the med students. We had huge steins of beer and German sausage, potatos and saurkraut for dinner. Everyone was very dressed up and we met lots of nice people. If you all ever have the chance to go to Sweden you most certainly should!!!

Off to Sweden...

Well, this week has been pretty normal so far. Lola brought us a feast! Empanada, rice with garlic, turkey in cream sauce, tuna/veggie salad, mini-muffins, bread, cookies, and a big ole thing of jam! We eat a lot of jam because you can put it on anything! I'm really liking my novel class. We started reading and it's slow and tedious having to look up words all the time, but it's reading, which I love. My cine class is tough because the professor is so enthusiastic and the students are so apathetic. So far all we've really done is watch movies and then say what we like about them. Not sure what the test is going to be like in there. I get to miss my art history and flamenco classes tomorrow! I like them, but it's always nice to not have to go. I'm going to Malaga on the train tonight and staying in a hotel there...by myself...I'm going to try not to think about scary things. Unfortunately I'm missing the movie night with API tonight. I think it's worth it though. Mikael has said he will meet me at the airport which is very nice of him considering it's about a 45 minute bus ride away. I'm kind of nervous. Who goes to Sweden to see someone they haven't seen for 4 years? I promise to take lots of pictures and write about it as soon as I get back. Love you all! Miss you! XOXO

Well, I've officially had the laziest weekend ever. We did end up going out on Thursday night...out until 6:30 Friday morning. Needless to say, Friday was mostly spent sleeping. Friday night I just watched a movie here at the apartment, Seven, it's very suspenseful and clever, but a lot disturbing. Yesterday I did a lot more sleeping as well. I did walk to el centro to buy a book for class and look for Oktoberfest attire for the party we're going to in Sweden. No luck, apprently German attire isn't popular in southern Spain. Went for a run with Zoe, we definitley worked it, which is ridiculous because we went in the middle of siesta, the hottest part of the day. We also did lunges down our street on the way back. Bad news, two women walked by and I'm almost positive they were talking about us. Good news, they definitely lowered their voices to do so, so I think they thought we were real Spaniards! Got some quality TV watching in yesterday. Saw the ends of both "Free Willy" and "Jungle 2 Jungle." No wonder people in foreign countries have such strange perceptions of Americans. Our food supplies are getting low again. We have some meat/potato dish that's mostly fat, some potatoes with egg and onion (basically unblended tortilla that you eat cold) and a garbanzo bean/sausage soup thing. Oh, and HICKEN. You probably read that and think, "Oh good, they have chicken and she was so excited about it she used all caps and didn't realize she'd forgotten the first C." Oh no, my friends, I mean hicken. Hicken is a lovely treat we found in our fridge this week. It looks like a small Christmas ham. It's actually pollo relleno de jamon or ham stuffed chicken. We're a little weirded out but then justify it as essentiallyl chicken cordon bleu, no? So I pull it out, open it and begin to slice. Not chicken cordon bleu. Somehow they have managed to magically blend the two meats into some sort of unified marbled meat...hicken. I hate to say that it actually tastes pretty good and that you can eat a few small slices before getting too freaked out to eat anymore. Alas, even the hicken is beginning to dwindle. I hope Senora Lola or Mari or yet unnamed woman comes today with more, real food that is, not hicken.

Mez and Jez

Today we bought pets! We now have two goldfish, one black one with big oogly eyeballs and one orange and white one, sitting on our coffee table. They are Mez and Jez, the El Dude Brothers. Zoe and I named them after the star characters of "Peep Show" a British sitcom she got me hooked on. They are lovely additions to our apartment. Today was a really good day. I was feeling sick earlier this week, but I feel a lot better today. Classes were really interesting. We learned how to clap, palmear, in flamenco class. Apparently, I'm terrible. After school I took care of finalizing my Sweden plans at the API office and came home. Zoe and I went shopping at one of the little China stores in our neighborhood and bought some necessities (stationary and a hairbrush) for very cheap and went to the pet store for our new little friends. We also went running which felt great today. I think we're getting faster! It's 10:00 and the night is young. We don't have school tomorrow so we might go out. It should be a good weekend! I can't believe that next week at this time I'll be in Sweden. It's ridiculous! Miss you guys lots!

Spain, for real...

This has been the most Spanish of all my weekends. Last night I went to la corrida de toros...the bullfight. Here are pictures. I'm still trying to process it. It's horrible grusome and violent and awful, but at the same time it's beautiful and graceful and I don't even know. There were three main matadors and each got to kill two bulls. It's about a 15 minute process and begins with los banderilleros (men with pink capes) essentially taunting the bull. Next los picadores enter the ring. They are two men mounted on blindfolded horses draped in woven armor. They carry long spears and stab the bull in the back while the bull rams into the unsuspecting horse. The picadores exit and the banderilleros come back and take turn piercing the bull with two smaller baton-like spears which stick in the bull's back, in theory for the rest of the ordeal. The bull ends up with six of these dangling out of his shoulders. Then the ring empties but for the matador and the crowd is silenced. He waves his red cape and faces the bull for a while before stabbing him with his sword. The banderilleros return and taunt the bull a bit more before the bull eventually collapses and is dragged out of the ring by decorated mules. If it was a particularly good fight, the crow will wave white hankies in the air indicating they wish to have the bull's ear cut off and given to the matador. He then parades around the ring brandishing his prize. It's interesting to me that this country's symbol of masculinity is a man in sparkly beaded tights, pink socks, and ballet flats. It was quite an experience and at times I wanted to throw up, but I stuck it out because it is such a typical part of the culture. When the torero makes a good turn of his cape the entire crowd murmurs "Ole" but it's quiet and breathy and almost eerie, not full of passion and spirit. People of all ages were there and it truly is a family affair.

As I was leaving the plaza, my phone rang and it was Mayda, a friend of a friend of my Dad. She lives in Sevilla and invited me to eat lunch, Spain's main meal, with her family. I was with them from 1 until 7 today. We had a typical Spanish almuerzo at the tennis club and then returned to their gorgeous apartment for coffee. Mayda and her husband have two daughters, Mayda (14) and Teresa(5) they are both adorable. We were also joined by their cousin Felipe who is a 27 year old tax lawyer. I only slept for 3 1/2 hours last night so 6 hours of attempting to speak Spanish was a little difficult today. Also, we're out of gas again so I haven't showered in a few days and I felt absolutely disgusting. I'm going to have to brave a freezing cold one tonight. The whole family was incredibly kind to me though and encouraged me to call them if I ever need anything. I hope they call again and that I can be better prepared to be an interesting conversationalist, ie, know more Spanish and not be completely sleep deprived.

Oh, I also went to mass today with my friend Martin who is Colombian. It was so short and the church was quite empty. That's understandable though because we went at 10 and Spaniards are not morning people...which makes sense because a good night out for them doesn't end before 7 am. I didn't understand much because the priest mumbled and the church echoed, but I'm excited to go again and try to comprehend more. I've written out the prayers in Spanish and hopefully will become better at them soon.

Hope you all are great. Miss you loads! XOXO

Today was the first day of classes. I only had two though, Contemporary Spanish Cinema, and the Contemporary Spanish Novel. They both seem like they'll be really interesting. I could understand the professors, too! Unfortunately all my classes are only with American students, but they will all be taught in Spanish and the exams must be written in Spanish as well. Tomorrow I'm going to go to a Spanish art history class, from El Greco to Picasso. I'm really excited about that one. I also have Flamenco as an Expression of Andalusian Culture and something or other about the political development of the European Union. Should be pretty fun. My roommates and I went out for tapas the other night. We each had two small dishes and a glass of wine and only spent 5 euro each. Incredible. They were delicious too! I had some sort of chicken kabob wtih french fries and a sausage-stuffed, fried bell pepper. It sounds strange, but it was tasty. They really like to fry things here. I've been running with Zoe which is nice. We just do a little loop across two bridges and along the river. The river is my favorite part of the city, which is strange because it's actually rather disgusting and reminds me of the pond at Manito. The branch we live by is actually manmade because the real one used to flood all the time so they cut this one in. It's stillwater, but it's still nice to run along. One of these days I'm going to rent a little kayak and boat along it. I'm going to go to mass on Sunday. I printed off the Our Father and Apostle's Creed today in Spanish so I don't look like an idiot. Well, that's about all I know right now. XOXO

Here are some Portugal pics. It was amazing, as you can see. I love Lagos.

Portugal

Oh my goodness! Portugal is incredible. A group of six of us got on a bus at 6:30 am Friday morning, fell asleep, and woke up in a new country. We got off the bus, not sure where to go becuase Brian, who was in charge of planning, hadn't written down the address of our condo because he couldn't find a pen. It was cold and completely overcast and we realized none of us knew a word of Portuguese and the whole trip suddenly seemed crazy. Fortunately, we quickly found a little internet cafe, got the address of the condo and set off in what we hoped was the right direction. After walking about a mile Kristen and Brian asked a woman for directions, not only did she tell us where to go, she drove the other three girls there and then returned to pick up me, Brian and Matt. She was so sweet, a little crazy, but so helpful. Needless to say, our first impression of the Portuguese was a great one. We found the condo and it was perfect, two bedrooms, a little kitchen a bathroom and living room. After sitting around for a bit we decided we might as well check out the beach, despite the bad weather. We walked down the road and down about a thousand stairs to this beautiful little cove. We'd been there for about 15 minutes when the sun came out and everything warmed up. It was perfect. When I have more time I'll post pictures. It looked just like an ad from a travel magazine. Amazing. We spent the afternoon there, swimming, tanning and reading the British women's magazines we'd found in the condo. We did the same the next day at a beach just a little down the way from that one. It was the perfect weekend getaway. I just now got back, the bus trip took 5 1/2 hours this time, a little absurd, but worth it for the weekend we had. Tomorrow we have orientation at the university. I'm ready to have some direction and purpose again. I hope you all are still doing well. I love reading the comments and finding out about what you're all up to. Miss everyone! XOXO

Not much new has happened, so this entry probably won't be too exciting. Yesterday morning we had bike tour of the city. 17 Americans cruising around the town on rented bikes, not the best idea if you ask me. Everything went well though and we didn't have any mishaps. We went around the whole center of the city. I didn't realize that Expo '92 was held here. It was during that time that most of the city's bridges were built. The river divides Triana and a few other neighborhoods from Sevilla and for a long time residents of Triana considered themselves to be in a separate city. Today we saw the Real Alcazar which is essentially the palace where the royal family stays when they are in Sevilla. Parts of it date back to the 10th century. It's the place where Colombus frequently begged Queen Isabel for money for his trip to "India." Pretty incredible, huh? It has these beautiful gardens with all sorts of plants and fountains and even a small labyrinth. Lola, our senora, finally came again today. She hadn't been here since Saturday and all we had left to eat were a few muffins, half a loaf of bread, some apples and a few cornflakes. Oh, and the two jars of pate, one anchovy and the other duck. No thank you. She brought us tortilla espanola, salad, delicious chicken and some sort of lentil/veggie thing. It's all so so good! She and Mari also started our mountain of laundry. It's kind of weird to have your underwear just hanging out to dry in the courtyard where everyone can see. Oh well, at least it's not on the roof like it is at the other residencia. Our intensive Spanish grammar classes are leaving a little something to be desired. It's good to get back into Spanish mode though and I like having some sort of purpose in life, even if it is just to show up at the API office at 3:30 everyday. Today I got asked for directions and was even able to give them! I think I'm practically a native now. Yeah, I wish. It's been so hot here. I debate leaving 15 minutes early so I can slowly stroll everywhere so as not to arrive covered in sweat. Since it takes half an hour to get to school anyway I think I'll just go glistening because I'm not getting up that extra 15 minutes just for vanity's sake. I hope all is well with you all. I miss you lots and am loving the emails and facebook messages. Love you lots! XOXO

My Bedroom.
The Living Room.
Trees outside the main entrance to school.
Corridor in school.
Fountain in a courtyard in school.

Livin' the Life

Life is amazing right now. You will not believe my day yesterday. After sleeping until 1 pm, my roommate Sanja and I walked around Sevilla for about three hours just taking pictures and exploring. We thought we were a little lost, but only used the map once which just confirmed we were on the right track. It felt good. We also got asked for directions twice, of course we weren't any help, but it was nice to get asked. When we got back to Triana, our neighborhood, we saw a bride in a horse carriage and all these people in complete formal attire going into a little chapel. I love weddings! After coming home, eating, resting and showering, we set out for our evening adventure. Zoe, another roommate, had read about movies in the park and she spent the day searching for the gardens so we could go see "Pan's Labyrinth" a Spanish film, in Spanish, in a garden! We walked about a mile, caught a cab, fumbled around with the pronunciation of "jardines de buhaira" and finally ended up in a completely dark and almost deserted park across town. Sketchy, no? We followed movie posters to what looked like a small fortress. We bought tickets and passed through a gate into a beautiful courtyard with vine-covered walls and a screen on one side. There was even a concession stand. There we watched the film, which is a little terrifying but also wonderful, under the clouds accompanied by the occasional breeze. I can't even explain how cool it was. After the movie we went out to Calle Alfalfa, a little street where locals and foreigners go at night to drink and mingle. We stayed for a little while and then just came home. It was an incredible night and I can't wait to go back next weekend. Today I am going over to Meaghan's apartment which is across the river. She's giving me her computer for a while so I can mess around with loading pictures. I hope all is well back at home. Miss you guys!

I have a home! It's very little and I have to share a room, but it's a home! It looks exactly like it's straight out of an IKEA catalog. It's crazy. Lola, my senora, is adorable. She has bright red hair and comes to bring us food three days a week. I live with three other American girls who seem really nice so far. Today we took a tour of the university which actually used to be a tobacco factory, the factory in which Carmen, from the famous opera, worked. Cool, huh? Anyway, the school is 501 years old!!!! Ridiculous, right? It looks like the Davenport Hotel inside. I'm absolutely in awe of everything. It's about a 25 minute walk from my apartment, which is in Triana, an old gypsy neighborhood, to the school which is in el centro. I have to cross the river on a bridge which is beautiful and then walk along the river under a canopy of trees, really it's a canopy. We don't have to be anywhere until Monday morning when we're taking a biking tour of Sevilla. I'm excited. We have intensive languages classes in the evening next week and a few more sights to see. Classes start on the 24th and I'm getting nervous. It's kind of hard to understand the Spanish here. I really need to practice more which sometimes makes me wish I'd chosen to live with a family because we're mostly speaking English in the apartment. Some people are going to the beach this weekend, but I just want to stay here and explore what could be the most beautiful city I've ever seen. Did I mention I walk past the bullring on my way to school? I don't feel like this is real yet. It's great though!

I'm here! Well, I'm in Madrid. It's pretty incredible. We went out last night to a club and the whole thing felt like a dream. It was so surreal. There were frescos on the walls and marble statues and "Family Guy" was playing on a projection screen. They played Madonna, "Call on Me," "Gettin' Jiggy With It" and the sphere-off song from the camp dance. There was also a shirtless male go-go dancer dressed as a cowboy. Like I said, surreal. Tomorrow we go to Toledo and then Thursday we have a 6 hour bus ride to Sevilla. So fun. Everyone here is really nice and I think it's going to be an amazing quarter. I already miss people at home though. Oh well, I think I'll survive. I have a phone now and it's free for incoming calls so if anyone feels like calling me you're quite welcome. There is a 9 hour time difference and I don't know how much international calls are for you, but here's my number anyway 011 34 607 98 13 94. Love you! Hasta luego

Hi. Well, I'm not really the blogging type, but I decided this would be the easiest way to keep everyone updated on life in Spain. My good friend Trek helped me set this up and hopefully I don't ruin it without her to help me. Basically, I leave for Madrid on Saturday. I'll arrive Sunday and don't have orientation until Monday evening. I can survive for a day on my own though, right? Well, I guess we'll find out. After a few days touring Madrid we head to Toledo as a group and then finally down to Sevilla. I don't know when classes start or anything. I don't even know what classes I'm taking yet. I do know I'm living in an apartment type thing with three other students. Lola is the landlady who cooks and cleans for us. I think it will be a pretty sweet life. I'll try to keep this updated as much as I can and try to figure out how to put fun things like pictures up. I know I'm going to miss everyone tons and tons so if you feel so inclined, I would love a little hello every now and then, even if it's just through Facebook or something. Hope you all have a great fall and know that I'll be thinking of you. Lots of love! -Krista