From Beautful Beaches to Legendary Fish Bowls

    Home from a whirlwind weekend in Lagos, Portugal full of Shane, Aussies and yummy food, I must say it was some of the most fun I have ever had. We took the 7:30 am bus from Sevilla to Lagos, a little over a 5 hour ride. Once we got there, the 9 of us searched for our Hostel "Cloud 9" and we immediately realized Lagos was full of nice and super helpful people. We also soon realized that most of them were not from Portugal. As a matter of fact, I'm pretty sure I did not meet a single person from Portugal throughout the weekend. There are tons of Australians in Lagos, vacationing for the summer since it's their winter, and a large number Canadians and English. Lagos is the epitome of a beach town atmosphere. Almost everyone we met were students or 20 something year olds working there for the summer because they visited once and had to come back. 

nahnahbah burger

     We got to the hostel and met the owners, some awesome guys that really helped us out with information and recommendations. Then Hillary, Colin and I met our fourth roommate - Shane. Shane was a 38 year old Australian who had been living in the hostel for a few weeks. We were assured that he was harmless, but warned that his snoring was a bit out of control (with proved to be an understatement). But nonetheless, he was possibly one of the funniest people I have ever met. He tended to slur a bit when he talked, consequence of having a but too much to drink - every day. But hey who am I to Judge. We dropped our stuff off and headed to Cafe Odeon, where we were told had the best breakfast in town for only 3 euro. We of course could not turn down the opportunity to get a real American Breakfast that was also so cheap. I enjoyed eggs, toast, bacon, and a pancake - the first breakfast different from toast and cereal for over two weeks. After Cafe Odeon we headed to our first beach. We immediately saw how beautiful the beaches were in Portugal. Blue water, light sand, and cliffs surrounding the shore. We enjoyed the sun then decided to try Nahnahbah - a recommended restaurant which supposedly has one of the top 50 burgers in the world. It was probably the best burger I have ever had. We were all so excited to have a classic American burger, one thing we do miss from home. The rest of the night we enjoyed out on the town and meeting new people. One of the greatest things about Lagos is we ran into some of the same people every day. It was nice to in a way make some new friends.
    On Saturday we woke up and peruse, went to cafe odeon for some breakfast. We then tried a new beach, Praia Dona Ana, and it was spectacular. The cliffs and water were absolutely gorgeous. It is taking a bit of getting used to the occasional topless woman and the very present thong bathing suit bottoms which are definitely accepted in Europe, but to each their own. After some swimming and tanning, we tried The Green Room for dinner, a recommended Mexican restaurant (food we all desperately miss - Los Pos and Qdoba withdrawals). Again, the food was wonderful. We shared Sangria and enjoyed chatting with one another. That night we went back to our favorites from the night before while trying some new places.

Praia Pinhou

    On Sunday, after the Odeon breakfast we went to the third beach of the weekend, Praia Pinhou. It was even prettier than the two before, if that's possible. You had to climb down numerous make shift stairs but when we got to the bottom we basically had our own private beach. The weather was absolutely perfect, high of only 75 with a nice breeze. We had a great day of tanning, reading and napping before heading in. We decided to try an Italian restaurant for dinner which proved to be an amazing meal as well. We definitely were three for three in choosing restaurants. For our last night there we went to all of our usual spots and hung out with friends from our group, those we had met in Lagos, and met some interesting new people as well (one being a woman of short stature who I don't think spoke one word yet continued to take numerous self pics with us. I guess there's some pictures of us floating around on this random women's facebook somewhere, but it made of a great story)
    One of the things I loved the most about Lagos is the absolute laid back atmosphere. Most everyone seems to have the attitude of have as much fun as possible, sleep when you're dead, and whatever happens, happens. The people were so friendly and it was a nice break to be able to speak English. While Portuguese is considered similar to Spanish, especially when written, the two languages sound nothing alike when spoken. Also, people in Portugal take offense when spoken to in Spanish, something were warned about before heading to Lagos. One would think that Portugal would be extremely similar to Spain, considering the two share borders and the Iberian Peninsula, but that proved to be a false assumption. The architecture, people, and atmosphere were all quite different. Our weekend in Lagos was full of countless funny stories, uncontrollable laughter, crazy adventures and awesome new people. I had an amazing time with some of my very best friends. This trip is continuously proving to be the best of my life. All in all, Lagos is definitely somewhere I would like to enjoy a second time, and I would love to explore other areas of Portugal as well.

Corrida de Toros - Una Experiencia Española

Plaza de Toros

    I have always heard about the infamous bullfights in Spain, both in high cultural regard and as one of the cruelest mistreatments of animals in the world. Yesterday, a group of us were able to experience the Spanish tradition first hand and I must say it is something everyone should see once in their life. Just like everything else, you can't judge it until you have experienced it yourself.
   When we first got there, scalpers tried to sell us tickets mas barato mas barato (cheaper). It was just like walking into any sporting event in the US, guess the idea of scalping is universal. We figured the official tickets would be the best idea so we bought 13 euro tickets in the sol/sombra (sun/shade) which were good seats. We had an hour or so to kill until the fight so we found a fantastic heladeria Rayas - the helado was to die for, and I'll definitely be going back often. Around 6:30 we entered the plaza and found our seats. We soon realized the fight was an occasion to dress up for - the majority of women in dresses and men in oxfords and khakis (those not dressed up were easily recognizable as tourists). It was also interesting to note the number of small children there, bullfights are clearly a Sunday family affair.

Paseíllo

   At 7:00pm a live band began playing and the paseíllo or parade began. The parade is where each matador along with their team enters the arena. Thier team is made of six assistants including two picadores, three banderilleros, and a mozo de espadas (sword page). After the parade finishes, most clear the arena except for the matadors and the banderilleros. The first bull is then let into the stadium, clearly a bit confused as to what is going on.
 
     

     Stage 1: Tercia de Varas (the lancing third)

In the first stage, the bull is tested for it's ferocity by the matador and his/her banderilleros. Bulls are colorblind and only respond to the movement of the capes. This stage is when the matador first confronts the bull with the pink and gold cape and learns about his movements and temperament.  We watched as one of the first bulls decided to trip a banderillero and continue to roll him across the arena until another one distracted the bull. Next, two picadores enter the arena - men on horseback carrying lances. The horses are blindfolded and wear protective covering. As the bull rams the horse, the picador stabs the bull in the back in order to weaken its back muscles and if successful, the bull will hold its head/horns slightly lower for the remainder of the fight. The picadors stab the bull in this manner twice then exit the arena.  This signifies the end of the first stage.

Banderiellos

Picador

   Stage 2: Tercio de Banderillas (third of banderillas)

At this point, each of the three baderiellos attempts to place two banderiallas (sharp barbed sticks) into the bulls shoulders. These remain in the bull for the remainder of the fight. Their purpose is to further anger yet weaken the bull. I cannot imagine facing an angry bull head on and being able to accurately place the banderillas into its back. In my opinion, this stage shows an incredible deal of courage by the banderiellos.

Bull with banderillas.

   Stage 3: Tercio de Muerte (third of death)

In the third and final stage of the fight, the ultimate goal is death of the bull. The matador now enters the ring alone the with classic red cape. This stage of the fight is what most regard as an artform, and I have to say I agree. The matador performs a series of passes with the bull, sometimes extremely close to their body, showing total domination over the bull. It was incredible to see how close the matador comes to the bull yet remains in control over the animal. This control was lost at one point however for the second matador as the bull rammed the matador flipping him into the air. All of us gasped as we watched him fly through the air but somehow he landed safely, got up, and resumed his fight. It was unbelievable. Finally, in the last part of the fight, the matador attempts to maneuver the bull into a position where he can easily stab it. The matador attempts to stab the bull with his estoque (sword) between the shoulder blades and if successful, through the heart. The last matador, a female, was not strong enough to stab the sword completely into the bull (of course fulfilling the female stereotype). Nevertheless, once the sword is successfully stabbed into the bull, the matador waits until the bull falls to the ground at which points the crowd stands and erupts into cheers. The bull is then killed by a team member and dragged out of the arena.

Matador

Preparing for the Kill

 
  There are a total of three matadors that perform in each fight,  facing off against two bulls a piece. The fight we attended was a novillada de picadores, or an amateur fight. Clearly we were not able to tell they were amateurs. Apparently, these fights can prove to be more interesting because the amateurs tend to fight more dangerously because they are trying to become professionals.

   All in all, the Corrida de Toros was an interesting and worthwhile experience. While at times a bit gruesome, it is such a rich and prominent part of Spanish culture. I'm extremely glad I had the opportunity to experience one firsthand. However, I am surprised PETA has not done more to try and shut them down. Apparently they are outlawed in some areas now, including Barcelona. I asked my Senora if she thought they would be prohibited in Sevilla, and she said no, that's not possible.

Whether you find it to be a facinating art form, or simply an animal bloodbath, bullfights are undoubtedly an elaborate display of Spanish culture and something you must see for yourself in order to formulate your own opinions.

Wait, Was I Just Thinking in Spanish?

   After three days of classes behind us, I find myself forgetting that the teachers and people around me are speaking a different language. Suddenly I am no longer thinking and translating to English. I'm taking notes in Spanish, asking questions in Spanish, and understanding (most of the time) lectures taught completely in Spanish. Es Increible! That's not to say that it's always easy, or I am anywhere near fluent, but I feel like my knowledge of the language has increased exponentially during the short week and a half we have been here. Although I have taken Spanish since sophomore year of high school, I have never used Spanish every day until now. When taking classes at home, you're only in class for an hour or so and not every day. I also never practice outside of the classroom. Here I live with two people who know zero English, have professors that speak zero English, and interact on a daily basis with a community that speaks entirely Spanish. The hardest part in learning to speak a new language is getting over the fear of speaking. It's easy to feel like you're going to say something incorrectly or embarrassing, but that's all part of the learning process. You make mistakes to learn. Not to mention a lot of these mistakes lead to funny stories. (Like when Hillary told me she needed to "shower me"). I have always wanted to learn Spanish, but I never know the learning process could be so enjoyable.  At home when it's simply endless worksheets, grammar charts, quizzes and exams learning Spanish is just another annoying task on your to do list. But here, it's like a whole new world that has been opened up to you. When you find yourself thinking in Spanish, accidentally writing in Spanish when you're meaning to write in English, having a complete conversation with someone who knows no English, it's an incredible feeling. They say immersion is the only way to truly learn a language and I completely agree. I feel like a 2 year old that can finally convey what they have been trying to say before through "baby talk." And while I still make mistakes, can't think of the word for something, conjugate verbs incorrectly, and continully ask people to repeat themselves, I definitely know I'm learning. And I must say, this is one of the greatest learning experiences I have ever had.

Art 154 In Real Life!

   You know when you find yourself sitting in those gen ed requirement classes and as the teacher rambles on and on all you can think about is when am I ever going to use this? First semester sophomore year, a bunch of my friends and I decided to take an Islamic Art and Architecture class solely to fulfill a bunch of credits. And while it was at times a little interesting, all I cared about was that I came out of the class with an A. Little did I know, in a few months I was going to be seeing those endless powerpoint slides in real life.
 

Cordoba

    On Saturday the intermediate group took a day trip to Cordoba, which is only about an hour outside of Sevilla. Once thought to be the most populous city in Europe, Cordoba is now home to one of the most spectacular examples of Islamic architecture with Catholic additions. The Great Mosque of Cordoba was built during the late 700's (a date I can barely wrap my head around) when the area was under Islamic rule. Many additions were made to the Mosque throughout the Islamic reign. However, when Ferdinand conquered Cordoba, the Catholic church took over and the mosque was turned into a Cathedral. The entire structure of the Mezquita-Catedral (mosque-cathedral) is original, with no reconstructions and it is without a doubt breathtaking. The sheer massiveness is unreal, and the detail is unbelievable. One of my favorite things about Cordoba is the juxtaposition of the ornate islamic architecture directly beside the elegant catholic additions. It is simply stunning.

Poly-lobed arches of the mosque

Mihrab - area of prayer

Cathedral with mosque in the background

    On Sunday, we ventured on a longer overnight trip to Granada, a city nestled at the foot of the Sierra Nevada mountains and the location of the third most visited monument in the world, The Alhambra. The Alhambra was the palace city of the Nasrids built during the 13th century. The Alhambra included the palace, a citadel, and fortress. It is situated higher in order to be separated from the "general life" of Granada, since it was home to royalty. The Alhambra is massive, and the detail both inside and out is astonishing. For example, Muqarnas is the type of ceiling in one area of the palace, something we learned all about in Art 154. How people created it by hand is beyond me

Muqarnas

    While I could go on and on about the Alhambra, Granada has so much more to offer. The city itself is small, yet unbelievably beautiful. The graffiti in areas is not vandalism but elaborate artwork. The streets are narrow cobblestone, most meant only for pedestrians. We were able to go to an outlook and see the entire city at night-breathtaking. There are also numerous shops, restaurants, and an amazing nightlife that includes a plethora of free tapas. Granada is home to The University of Granada so many students live in the area giving it an interesting dynamic. We also visited the Cathedral which was incredible and the tombs of Ferdinand and Isabella, along with their daughter Joanna and her husband Phillipe. Granada is also known to have some of the best Helado (Gelado/Ice cream) in Spain and of course we treated ourselves to this twice while we were there.

    I wish there was some way I could express the beauty and charm possessed by both Cordoba and Granada, but unfortunately my descriptions and pictures are inept. Granada, especially, was another love at first sight situation. I certainly want to return and explore even more the city. I have definitely added it to the list of potential places to move one day. It was also an amazing experience to see for myself something I had studied for an entire semester. Who knew the places Glaire lectured about in a class that seemed so irrelevant would prove to be some of the most amazing places I have ever been in my life. I guess I understand her love for the subject now. And while I desperately wish I could share everything I saw and enjoyed in both Cordoba and Granada, tomorrow's my first day of classes so I guess I should try and get some sleep. 8:15 is going to come really early. I look forward to sharing my first experiences as a student in Spain with you guys!

Check out the entire album of Granada on Facebook

No llamame Senora, es Matilde Chica

Yesterday, a nervous Hillary and I were dropped off by the cab driver and it was up to us to find the building and apartment where our Senora lives. After asking a couple people we were welcomed into "la casa de Matilde" with open arms. Our Senora's name is Matilde and she lives with her daughter Ana, who is 20 years old. Also, Charlotte Lindeman from UNC has been living here for the spring semester. It's been so helpful to have her show us around and try and translate some of Matilde's rambling (even though our spanish is not the greatest, Matilde rambles on and on to us as she walks throughout the apartment, its quite funny at times). However, I can already tell my Spanish is improving so understanding is easier every day. The apartment es perfecta and decorated with the cutest spanish style.

Out Apartment Building

 

The Living Room

Its not a far walk from the school, around 6 minutes and its close to a couple of our friends here so its nice to have people to walk with everywhere. The set up we have here is really nice. I share a room right now with Charlotte until she leaves and Hillary has her own room until then. And the three of us share a bathroom.

My Room 

   Matilde just explained to Hillary and I that she has 4 sons and 1 daughter (Ana is the only one that lives here). Her sons are muy guapo (very attractive) however unfortunately their all in their 30s and married. One is married to a man who she said was una persona fantastica. That son works in fashion and their wedding was featured in a wedding magazine here in Spain. It seemed like a beautiful wedding and it was crazy to see our senora in the magazine. Her husband is no longer living, but Hillary and I didn't ask what happened. She showed us a picture of her husband and one of her grandsons and said it was scary how much they looked alike.
    Matilde fixed us our first lunch which was pasta with tomato sauce and cheese, salad and beef. It's going to take a while to get used to their eating pattern in Spain. Lunch is your biggest meal of the day and is usually around 2 or 2:30. Dinner is smaller and isn't until 9 or 10:00. Matilde is a good cook and provides us with a ridiculous amount of food so I know I will be well fed over the next 6 weeks. Hillary and I were most definitely placed in a great homestay, and I look forward to spending even more time with Matilde and Ana and getting to know more about their family and sharing with them about mine.

Love at First Sight

I had started this blog post about Madrid before we got to Sevilla but then Blogger was down. So now that it's back I'll finish this post before moving on to Sevilla, because Madrid can most definitely not be left out...

I've never been sure how I feel about the whole "love at first sight" concept when it comes to meeting someone, but Madrid definitely showed me you can fall in love immediately with a place. After only the first day ideas of moving to Spain were fluttering through my head (sorry mom and dad). The architecture was unbelievable. One of the first places we went on our full day was the Plaza Mayor, which is a large square lined with buildings. At the bottom of the buildings are countless restaurants, tapas bars, and shops. People are everywhere in the plaza eating, shopping, relaxing, or playing with their kids. I would definitely recommend it as a place to go in Madrid.

Plaza Mayor

The plaza is where we had our first taste of my second love, Sangria. It was amazing to sit outside in the Plaza Mayor under a beautiful blue sky and share a pitcher of Sangria with friends. One of my favorite things about Spain so far is the absolute "no rush" attitude. If you want to sit for an hour just chatting or take 3 hours to eat dinner at 9:00 at night, no problema.  I wish we could find a bit of this mentality in America.

Sangria - attempt at an artsy picture

One of my other favorite places we went was one of the old palaces. Once it was no longer the palace, the building was turned into the bank of Spain. Today, it is considered their town hall. At one point, the inside had major reconstruction, turning into a magnificent mixture of old and modern architecture. I have never seen anything quite like it. You are able to go to the 8th floor of the building where they have an observation deck. When we got to the top, Madrid become even more breathtaking. Madrid is much bigger than I though, stretching for miles and miles across Spain. From the top, we realized we had only seen such a tiny portion of the magnificent city.

Throughout the day we also visited the Museo del Prado, which housed works of some amazing artists including my favorite, Goya. The sculptures were unbelievable. How someone can create works like that out of limestone is beyond me. We also saw the most amazing McDonald's I have ever seen, the Plaza del Sol, a cathedral during communion, and an awesome market with tapas, fresh fruit, meat, and cheese. 

I can say without a doubt that I want to return to Madrid for a longer period of time. The people were so nice, the atmosphere was wonderful, and the city itself was beyond beautiful. Words and pictures do not do it justice. I still don't know if it's possible to fall in love with someone at first sight, but Madrid proved you can definitely fall in love with a place at first sight. From what I have seen of Sevilla, I have a feeling I'm going to start many of these love affairs across Europe. And so far the best part is - these relationships never have to end.

Donde esta la Plaza Celenque?

After 10 hours of traveling and crossing multiple time zones, the three of us have finally arrived in Madrid safe and sound. All and all we had no problems with our travels, however, that is not to say it was the easiest thing I have ever done. Once we got to Madrid we decided to take the Metro to our hostel. We found the metro, finally figured out which ticket to buy and got one. We somehow managed to get on to all of the correct metros - but this included lugging our suitcases up multiple flights of stairs (we always managed to get off on the side without an escalator but at least we got a good workout in). We finally made it to the stop we needed, but had no idea where plaza celenque was, and it seemed neither did the locals. But after many "Pardon, yo tengo una pregunta, donde esta la plaza celenques?" We were finally able to piece together the different ahh right here left theres and make it to Plaza Celenque and find our hostel. Because we immediately got on the metro after flying into Madrid, we had been here over 2 hours without even seeing the city. But as we finally lugged our giant suitcases up the last flight of stairs onto Calle Mayor right in the center of the Plaza del Sol and we we were amazed! I have never seen something so amazing. It is like being in the middle of a huge city bursting through the architecture of an old Spanish town. Suddenly Colin, Hillary and I forgot how tired we were and realized we were actually here. We had made it, we had done it on our own, and we were standing in the middle of the capitol of Spain. It all seems surreal. We keep saying it seems like were at Disney World walking through the fake towns made of cardboard buildings. Fortunately, these building are not cardboard but beautiful hundreds of years old structures that contain both a rich history and culture.  The three of us have done pretty well interacting and talking with locals so far. My spanish has proved to be better than I expected - now if only I could make every speak super slow to me I think I'll have it made. I feel so self sufficient that I am able to make it on my own with a couple friends a world away from the familiarity of Chapel Hill. This isn't Franklin St. any more. I cannot wait to explore all Madrid has to offer this afternoon and tomorrow before making our way to Sevilla, but all of that may have to come after a shower and short nap first.

Adios de Madrid!

Colin and I at the Metro

Plaza del Sol

Hillary and I

It Feels Like Christmas Eve

When you are a kid, nothing is more exciting than Christmas Eve. You lay in bed but there is no way you can possibly sleep because all you can do is think about Santa and the presents that are sure to be under the tree when you wake up in the morning. That's exactly how I feel right now. Except it's not Santa that's coming it's a plane and it's not presents that await me it's Europe. My mind cannot stop running through all of the things I have packed and re-packed, all of the things I cannot forget tomorrow, and all of the experiences I am about to embark on. I don't think I have been this excited since the Christmas eve before my sister ruined the whole Santa Claus thing for me. So I guess this trip is sort of like Christmas for me, it brings new, unopened experiences waiting for me to explore them. However, it does have a one up on everyone's favorite holiday - it isn't over in one day. I look forward to sharing with you my first experiences of Europe, starting with Madrid on Tuesday!

Exams Are Over, Spain Awaits.

Finally, the infinite hours of studying, bleary eyes and Alpine coffee are over and in only 4 short days I will be on a plane. Unending to-do lists and an unpacked bag await but regardless on Tuesday morning a Jetlagged Colin, Hillary and I will be finding our way through the capitol of Spain. This trip will be my first to Europe so I am filled with nervous excitement. We're starting the summer in Madrid for two days before heading to Sevilla to start the Study Abroad program. A few of my friends are also coming to Madrid on Tuesday while the rest are joining us on Wednesday. Madrid is one of the top 3 largest cities in the EU only behind London and Berlin. It upholds a modern infrastructure while retaining the historic atmosphere of Spain I cannot wait to experience. I am sure my friends and I will find some great ways to enjoy Madrid and kick off our time abroad. Anticipation abounds as I look forward to leaving and I cannot wait to begin a summer that promises to be the best of my life thus far.

Madrid, Spain