Rooftop Bars, Pancake Rocks, Arab Baths, Gypsy Caves and the Meditteranean Sea

AHH I have done so many amazing things since my last post! My parents and Aunt Sandy arrived after a bit of a bumpy ride (literally and figuratively). They conquered the windy narrow streets of Sevilla (barely) and arrived safely at the Dona Maria hotel...it had a prime location in the heart of the old section at the foot of the giralda...The rooftop bar had some of the best views of Sevilla and you felt like you could reach out and touch the giralda, we got lunch the first day and I introduced them to all my favorite tapas: croquetas, jamon iberico, espinaca y garbanzos, tortilla and of course an abundance of wine. I showed them around my school and took my Mom to the Plaza de Espana, which is my favorite spot in all of Sevilla. That night we went to dinner and Kerry, Brittney and Elena came too. We went to an Italian restaurant which was AMAZING and everyone had such a great time with tons of laughs. Sadly the next day I had to leave for Granada, but they kept themselves busy on a tour of the rio, and a horse and buggy ride through Maria Luisa...if I hadnt been off hiking and spending time in Granada I would have been very jealous. On our way to Granada we stopped for an hour long, somewhat treacherous hike through a park called Torcal de Antequera. It was underground at one point in the past so the rocks had been weathered by salt water which made them look like pancakes. It was beautiful out and good practice for our ten mile hike through Extremadura later in the semester. We got to Granada a little later and had to book it to our Arab baths. It was the most relaxing experience of my life...basically we spent two hours in a dimly lit spa with candles, aromatherapy, amazing tea, a sauna, a hot bath, an ice bath and our own massages..I was in heaven and the baths had a really cool atmosphere with all the mosaics and star cut outs on the ceilings...We did a little shopping then went to las cuevas to see un espectaculo de flamenco! I loved it and Kerry Brittney and I all ended up getting up and dancing with the performers at the end it was so much fun. The next day we went to La Alhambra which is the most visited site in all of Europe...it had a number of functions but it was mainly a palace and a sort of fort I guess with tons of gardens, baths and amazing architecture...after the Alhambra I met up with my parents and we took a 2 hour long breathtaking drive along the Mediterranean to Marbella. We went to the resort's restaurant and had a great time while my family tried to practice their Spanish with the waiter even though one of the only words my Dad knows is albondigas (meatballs)....The next day we lounged around all day on the beautiful grounds of the hotel since it was a little too cold for the beach, but we were close enough to see it and put our feet in the water if we wanted to. After a little while of sunbathing we realized we had accidentally sat in the Zona Topless... luckily no one was taking advantage of that option....For dinner we went to the casco antiguo or Old Marbella which was really quaint but since it was a Sunday not much was open...we ended up choosing a British restaurant which had great food and a lot of snobby British people since apparently Marbella is really popular with people from England...On our last day together we went to Ronda and even though the weather wasn't cooperating since it was cloudy and chilly we had a great time. The cliffs there are amazing and the gorge or Tajo is absolutely beautiful, I loved the restaurant we went to since the walls were covered with bullfighting paraphernalia and we completed the day with a trip to Ronda's Plaza de Toros. All in all it was the best weekend yet and I was so happy to spend time with my family in so many wonderful places. When I got back to Sevilla I realized I had been sort of homesick for my new home and it felt good to be back. On Tuesday we went to La Bachillera to teach the ninos English, it was kind of funny since there were more of us than ninos but Eileen and I paired up to teach a six year old girl the English names of some animals...she was sooo cute and had such a funny personality I had a really good time there and I think it will be a great way to give back throughout the semester...Its shocking how fast time is going and how few weekends I have left in Sevilla when I won't be travelling...Speaking of travelling, I booked a trip to IRELAND and I cannot wait...we're going for almost a week and I'm so excited to travel around the country side and see everything there. Tomorrow I leave for Barcelona and I know I'm going to have the time of my life...then on Monday I'm going to Gibraltar...Remind me how I got so lucky?


Now prepare yourself for tons of pictures...

Torcal de Antequera

700 (?) year old arabic writing and mosaics at La Alhambra

jardines afueras de la alhambra

la playa de Marbella

parents resort...looks like a postcard!

cliffs at Ronda

more cliffs SO BEAUTIFUL

plaza de toros

me trying to keep up with a flamenco dancer!!

Aunt Sandy, Me Elena Dad Mom Kerry and Brittney <3<3

lluvia lluvia desaparece

It's been a little while since my last post but classes have been going well and this weekend was really fun! Over the weekend we went out every night and tried a bunch of new places. We started it out right by going straight to the rio after class for mojitos and then on Thursday night we started at a place called Bar Long Island which I loved...mainly because of the name..they had free sangria for girls so I took full advantage of that and they had a different shot for each state...don't ask me why but I ended up doing a Connecticut instead of a New York..it was pretty good and now I just have an excuse to go back and try the New York! After that we went to a club called Boss on Calle Betis which was soo much fun...at first there was this weird whiny Spanish rock band but then a DJ started playing American music and a bunch of girls (including Kerry the birthday girl) got up on stage and started dancing...Kerry may or may not have grabbed the microphone lol...We got home at our usual ungodly hour of about 430...the next night was just as fun and we tried a club called Bandalai...it was a little bit of a walk and after being shooed away from the entrance that led to a private party we went around back where the bouncers tried to charge us ten euro to get in...I quickly solved this problem by refusing to pay and shouting PERO SOMOS BONITAS...(but we're pretty) and somehow it worked....after several free shots of caramel vodka (which is really popular here) and Erin winning a dance off...we called it a night...Saturday night was a lot more low key, we went out to dinner at a Tex Mex place which was pretty interesting...definitely not like American Tex Mex but then again we are in Spain so I don't know what I was expecting...later we tried to go to Botellon at a new place, Plaza de San Salvador but we were foiled by the cops...instead we ended up at a bar called Lone Star Bar that was Texas themed (much to the delight of Miss Brittney Bell) All in all the weekend was a success and on Sunday the rain started...but that did not stop us from jumping at the chance to go to a Spanish rock concert when our host family invited us...it was right around the corner in a really cute bar and the main guitarist was the novio of our host sister...halfway through the concert some man who was apparently a Spanish television star named Pipe jumped up on stage and sang a few numbers... its been raining pretty much since then which is a bummer but most days there are at least a few hours of sun and next week is supposed to be beautiful....I didn't mind the rain yesterday since without it we wouldn't have seen the beautiful rainbow on our way to teach ninos English in a poorer neighborhood called La Bachillera...though we didnt get to meet any ninos yesterday we are going to teach them every Tuesday night for the rest of the semester...In other news I booked a trip to Lagos Portugal in April!!! and my parents get here tomorrow so this weekend I'll be going to Granada with API and to Marbella and Ronda with my parents...I'm so excited now its time for pictures and some examples of the funny Spanish slip ups we've been having lately...

Kerry did her nails with my mint colored nail polish...Fina said ooh I like your "pistacho"...meaning pistachio colored nails...but we all thought that pistacho was the word for polish and ended up saying "ohh yeah that's my nail pistachio" and "I love painting my nails with pistachios"

Same night..we had what we thought were hamburgers but were really made out of chicken...so when Kerry tried to say "Pollo no tiene demasiado grasa" meaning Chicken doesn't have as much fat....She accidentally said "Pollo no tiene bastante grasa" meaning chicken doesn't have enough fat....Fina was not amused

spanish rock starssss

cute pic of the roomies

ARCOIRIS!

host sis, host mom and roomies!

Sevilla: Una ciudad hermosa

Sooo I kinda forgot about my blog since last week cause I've been soo busy! The first weekend was soo fun! We went to Calle Betis and Calle Alfalfa and barhopped everywhere. Also I had my first botellon experience which is just a huge outdoor pregame under el torre del oro. I still have to get used to a) being able to drink legally and b) being able to do it in public...When I went outside at a bar I felt like I had to hide my drink when en realidad, no es necesario. Next time I'm definitely gonna buy something better for botellon though because the 55 cent wine was not cutting it. I guess you get what you pay for...Over the weekend we did some shopping but I tried to hold back even though now is when all the rebajas (sales) are. We also did alot of walking and exploring which was a little rough on my feet so since then I've gotten a week long Sevici pass which allows you to just pick up a bike at any of around 20 something stations throughout the city..I love it so far and riding a bike everywhere reminds me of my Block Island days when that was my main mode of transportation...In the craziness of the first week I ended up being too tired to watch the superbowl...but the whole idea of it made me miss America a little since its kind of a tradition...oh well, missing it made me less tired for my first day of classes the next day...I started out the first day with three classes...cine, historia contemporanea, y literatura...my history and cine professors were nice, funny and easy to understand...I think I may end up dropping history though since it is a 9 am and I don't actually need to take 5 classes. Right now I think that cine may end up being my favorite class since it sounds sooo easy and the movies seem funny and interesting for the most part. The literature class was terrible so today I'm trying a new one and hopefully it will be mas facil. On my second day of classes I had cultural anthropology and flamenco. I think I will end up liking cultural anthropology alot cause the professor was really nice. We had a sub for flamenco but I have high hopes for that class as well. I haven't tried to many new foods except for tostadas, helado de galleta (cookie flavored ice cream ;-)) and some weird Arab fruit that Fina gave us...I also tried 55 cent vino tinto when we sat by el rio yesterday to watch the sunset...it was alot better than the 55 cent vino blancoo...There is so much to look forward to in the next few months...in February alone we have an excursion to Granada and a long weekend when Elena and I are going to BARCELONA! I can't wait to visit Jacki and see all the exciting new places there! Also, my parents are coming which will be great and I can't wait to show them around even though I barely know that many places so far...After February I think I will definitely go to Ireland and Lagos, Portugal...If i can manage it I really want to try to go to Italy and Amsterdam but I don't know if I'll be able to...One great thing is that we have two spring breaks (although one is feria which I'm hesitant to miss) and we always have off on Fridays...I am also excited for our trip to Morocco in March...This weekend is Kerry's birthday so it should be an awesome time and we might go wine tasting at a vineyard outside of Sevilla...I'm so excited

Okay I'm done rambling but here are some random observations:
1) Our school is so confusing...its just one building (an old tobacco factory) in the shape of a huge square so you'd think it'd be easy but its not...there is no rhyme or reason to the rooms and some numbers are Roman numerals while others aren't...room 113 and room XVI might be right next to eachother and the hallways are so windy and weird....I have yet to make it to class on time and I leave like half an hour early but every day it gets a little easier..
2) I needed to buy something so I bought a poster today and I'm gonna go back and get a Universidad de Sevilla sweatshirt :-)
3) Restaurants are really weird here...sometimes you order at a counter and sit at a table and others a waiter comes up...and they never bring you the bill when you want it..you basically have to beg them to pay and you never tip which I love
4) In our house the TV is always on...during lunch dinner and pretty much all day...pretty different than the US and the house is still FREEZING even though its hot outside
5) I don't like walking and I need to stop hating it so much.
6) I wish I had a real phone instead of a stupid, expensive Piccelll

Okay enough ranting, picture time!

mi cama y dos cuadros de fina

plaza de cuba where alot of us meet to walk to class...cruzcampo is a type of beer ;)

living room in the apartment!

a crew of spanish boys who serenaded me brittney tayler and kerry

Holy Toledo y Primeros Dias en Sevilla

toledo con mis companeras de cuarto

vista encima de la giralda

grafitti al lado del rio guadalquivir

After our first days in Madrid we had a six or seven hour drive to Sevilla and we stopped at Toledo on the way. Toledo is a really interesting city mainly because of the collision of three main religions there, Muslim, Christian and Jewish. We saw a synagogue that was once a mosque but also had a cross hanging and had been converted into a museum. We also saw the cathedral and as far as cathedrals go I thought it was pretty, but freeezing!! Our guide told us that the larger Sevilla cathedral is the jewel case while Toledo's cathedral is the jewel, which I would have to agree with. While in Toledo we stopped to see El Greco's painting El entierro del conde del orgaz, which I thought was really beautiful in an eerie sort of way, kind of like Las meninas...After a long day of traveling we arrived in Sevilla at night and we were greeted by our families. Brittany, Kerry and I got off to a rough start with our family since they seemed legitimately pissed at how much luggage we brought...(which doesnt surprise me since I had 120 dollars worth of extra baggage and overweight charges..oops) but it got better as we struggled through dinner in broken Spanish. While Fina and Eloy aren't your typical warm fuzzy host parents they are nice enough and are always willing to talk if you approach them first. They are pretty blunt and they will tell you exactly what they expect of you in terms of how they want things to be in their house which is good and bad. My second day in Sevilla was possibly the busiest day of my life. We met at 9:15 near the school which is about a 20 minute walk, across the river from our house. From there Kepa showed us where our classes would be and showed us around the city. We ended up in the old section of the city which I think is the most beautiful and we toured the cathedral. I think that I've already reached my cathedral limit and it's only the first week, so hopefully there aren't too many more to visit. The cathedral was still very interesting especially because of its world record size and la giralda. We climbed the 39 ramps to the top of la giralda (not stairs because when it was built they needed to be able to ride their horses to the top) and saw great views of the entire city. After that I went back to the apartment and had lunch, with just my host parents and me...it was pretty intense but I can understand everything they say and I really feel like my speaking has improved already. At around four we met again for a bike tour around the city. It was incredibly long, over two hours, but I loved it and it was an awesome way to see the city. We were mainly biking along the river which was amazing and easy enough since every sidewalk has un carril para los bicicletas. We biked over a bridge and through el parque de alamillo, it was tiring but fun and a nice change from walking everywhere. For dinner Fina made hot dogs which I thought was funny since its pretty much the most American thing I can think of but it was good and it made me feel more at home. After that we went to pregame at a bar in Plaza de Cuba called Phoenix where a beer came with a free shot (weird I know) and then we went off to Buddha, a multiple story club that basically the coolest place I've ever been to...we didn't get home til 4;30 so today I was exhausted and skipped a chance to see the alcazar which is kind of a bummer but now I know I need to see it before I leave. Things are still a little awkward with our host family and Brittney Kerry and I got yelled at for leaving our space heaters on when we were asleep :-/ but I have four blankets and I'm always freezing so I really hope it warms up soon...the weather outside es bien but its like ten degrees colder in our apartment, no se porque. We had a meeting this morning at the university which was quite a struggle and I may or may not have fallen asleep during it...but they told us about classes, volunteer opportunities and intercambios. I really want to have an intercambio cause it seems like a great way to meet a Spanish student and get more confident with speaking the language. Eso es todo ahorita, hasta pronto!

Bienvenidos a MADRID!

Our first few days of Spain we stayed at Hotel Regina, a really nice hotel in Madrid. I was so jetlagged and tired because I didn't sleep at all on the plane. We met our director Kepa, he's really nice and from the Basque territory of Spain. He took us on a bunch of walking tours and we saw the Plaza Mayor, Puerta del Sol  and Palacio Real which took about 25 years to build and had something crazy like 1,000 rooms. There were dressing rooms, throne rooms, dining rooms, bedrooms, all with marble, crystal and gold everywhere they were so pretty and reminded me of a fairytale. All of the ceilings were really detailed and had frescoes painted directly on the ceiling. While we were in Madrid I tried to eat authentic food and I sort of succeeded. The most authentic place we went was El Tigre, a tapas bar where you had to stand the whole time and if you ordered a drink (I got cider which tasted like a sweeter version of beer) you just got about four heaping plates of tapas for free. So I tried croquetas and a few other mysterious things...I still don't know what they were. While in Madrid a bunch of us got churros con chocolate  and paella and lots of sangria so I think I we did good enough on trying Spanish food. We went to El Escorial, a mountain town an hour outside of Madrid, where the summer palace is located. All in all the whole place is a palace, a monastery, a school and a cathedral, it was huge. There were a lot of tombs of important dead people that were really ornate and cool to see. After that we went to El Museo del Prado where we saw a lot of Goya and Velazquez paintings. My favorite was Las Meninas by Velazquez. Our guide was really energetic and knowledgeable and told us about alot of the aspects of each painting in Spanish and she was really easy to understand unlike some Spaniards who have hardcore lisps and talk really fast. We went out one night in Madrid when we were walking through Puerta del Sol and some guy came up to us, offered us free entrance and a free drink to a club and brought us down a side street. I was pretty sketched out and I don't think I would do that at home but we were in a big group and apparently this type of club promotion is pretty common in Spain. It ended up being awesome and they played the weirdest music including Cotton Eyed Joe, Spice Girls, Destinys Child and some other pretty weird stuff with some fun American music mixed in like Teach Me How to Dougie. All in all I loved Madrid but it made me even more excited to get to Sevilla!!