A Day in the Life

Imagine that you could follow me around for a day in Spain, (scary... I know) but in this post I'm going to discuss a typical day in the life of yours truly, so you can get a better feel of my daily encounters in Sevilla :)

Every morning before school, I have a pretty normal routine - I wake up, eat breakfast, and take a shower (if I have time, but food is usually my first priority since we don't eat lunch until mid-afternoon!) When I'm finally ready to leave the house, as most of you may know, I'm typically running about 3-5 minutes late, so I start on my "light jog" to the metro as I like to call it. Every Monday & Wednesday, I meet the metro at 11:32, and every Tuesday & Thursday, I meet the metro at 8:32 (or try to at least). If by some chance my jog wasn't fast enough that morning, I get stuck taking the next metro which comes anywhere from 4-8 minutes later. Depending on which metro I'm able to catch is how I decide whether I can leisurely walk to class or have to continue my light jog/sprint once I finally arrive to school :)

I have two classes each day, Monday through Thursday. On Mondays & Wednesdays, I study the historical ties between the U.S. and Spain, followed by my Intercultural Communications class that afternoon. On Tuesdays & Thursdays, I have Advanced Spanish Conversation bright and early at 9am, followed by Spanish Pragmatics directly afterwards.

Mondays & Wednesdays, my host mom packs a salad or a sandwich for me to take to school to eat in between my classes since I have a two and a half hour break. I like to take that time to catch up on my homework, my blogs, or chat with my amigos. I'm not finished until 5:20, which at that time I head toward the metro and arrive home around 6:00.

I always dread waking up so early on Tuesdays & Thursdays, but the nice thing is that I'm done with class by 11:50, so I have the entire day to myself afterward. Most days I go home and relax awhile before lunch, and I usually spend a part of the afternoon taking a siesta... in other words, I pass out for a solid 2-3 hours.

Around 5 or 6 everyday, I take time for myself. I like to go outside for a walk as most of the stores and cafés are opening back up, go to the gym, or go out to do a little shopping. There are some great restaurants and tapas bars nearby that sometimes we'll visit to hold us over until we eat our late dinner. One of my favorite places to go is down by the river near the city center because it is absolutely beautiful there! The way of life in Spain is so much more relaxed, and everyone just enjoys the evenings at their leisure (which is so refreshing to not be on a time schedule!)

By 8:30-9, I'm usually heading back to Nervión, the neighborhood where I live, to see what kind of dinner our host mom, Encarna, has prepared. After dinner, I usually work on homework, hang out with Katie, or chat with Encarna at the house. Sometimes we'll go back out to experience the night life of Sevilla, but often times, we're so tired after a long day that we like to just relax in the comfort of our own room.

And there you have it... the super exciting, never-a-dull-moment, day in the life of none other, than me :)

Something Doesn't Seem Right...

Something that at first I thought was strange or unusual about my host culture but now makes perfect sense are the ham legs that are hanging in many windows of different tapas bars in Sevilla. Now, I know what you’re thinking... “What in the world is this girl talking about?” But I’m not kidding you! This was a very strange concept for the first couple weeks until we finally understood the reason. 

Many years ago, dating back to the 800s, what is now Southern Andalucía was inhabited by many Muslims and the Arabic influence is still present today, especially in the cities of Granada and Malaga. Anyway, when Ferdinand and Isabella united the castles of Aragon and Castille in the late 1400s, they were determined to drive all of the Muslims out of the region and stormed their precious castle (La Alhambra, Spain’s most popular tourist attraction within the whole country) Eventually, the newly reunited crown drove almost the entire population of Muslims out of the Iberian Peninsula... (I promise, I'm getting to the point that supports my original claim with all of this history!) So after, the new rulers of the Spanish Crown forced this Arabic influence out of the country, they wanted to make sure that they would never come back as a threat and that there were no more lingering around in hiding. As a way to test whether or not someone practiced the Muslim religion, they would give them pork to eat. If they were indeed Muslim, they would not be able to eat the ham because it was/is against their religion. As a result, these people would be (killed, exiled, ??? -- I didn't quite hear that part because this was all being explained to me in Spanish) Anyway, hanging the ham legs in the windows of tapas bars is therefore not only a sign of power, but also a long withstanding tradition that the Spanish have upheld for all of these years... For the first few weeks, I just thought the Spaniards really liked ham!! :)

***On a side note, I never really explained the concept of "tapas bars", but a tapa in Spain is basically like a snack in America. It's a smaller sized portion of a meal that many Spaniards will enjoy after work, school, etc., usually complemented by a "cervezita" or little beer at countless restaurants throughout the city. 

Mi Visita a Granada

Last weekend, I went on an overnight bus trip to Granada, the ancient city in which the Muslims discovered almost 1,300 years ago. When the Muslims arrived to this city in Southern Andalucía, they thought that it was the most beautiful sight that they had ever seen, and especially after they saw the breathtaking Sierra Nevada mountain range, they decided that they wanted to settle there. They built the Alhambra in the late 800s, the huge castle and surrounding gardens that is the most visited tourist attraction in all of Spain. So, on Saturday we took a trip with WeLoveSpain to check out this world renowned masterpiece that still remains almost perfectly in tact.

My friend Dan and I left at 9 that morning from Sevilla and embarked on the three hour bus ride southeast of the city to Granada. When we arrived, we grabbed some lunch at a nearby tapas bar, got checked into our hotel, and immediately headed towards the Alhambra. Granada is not nearly as flat as Sevilla, so the incline up the mountain to tour the Alhambra was quite the workout! Once we finally got inside the palace, we were able to look out at the magnificent views of the city and view the snow covered Sierra Nevada off in the distance... talk about a beautiful sight! 

We toured the ins and outs of the castle and gardens, and although it was raining that day, it was still so incredible to see! When we finished up with our tour in the gardens, we went on a small walking tour with our group to see a few of the different neighborhoods in the city. We stopped for a coffee, I did some shopping within the small shops, and we explored the city a bit more before dinner. The amount of Arabic influence within the streets was so evident as many of the shops contained many traditional handmade Arabic trinkets, jewelry, tapestries, etc. Continuing our little Arabic experience, we went out for dinner that night to a Moroccan restaurant and had roasted lamb, couscous, and other delicacies. After dinner, our guides took us to a club in the caves back up the mountain; it was such a unique experience to say the least.

The next morning, we woke up and got ready for the day. Unfortunately, it was still raining, but we didn’t let that stop us. Dan and I enjoyed a bountiful English breakfast with some of our new friends. Present at breakfast that morning, there were two Americans (Dan & I), two British girls, two Canadians, and one Finnish girl - much diversity to say the least! After breakfast, our two Canadian friends, Steph and Harris, went with Dan and I to see the tombs of their Royal Majesties Ferdinand and Isabella. We walked through the Cathedral and took a look through their immaculate museum before walking downstairs to view their actual tombs. I was disappointed that we were unable to take any pictures inside the Cathedral, but it was so surreal to have a glimpse at their tombs that I don’t think I’ll ever be able to forget it anyway! 

After we left the museum, it was almost time to meet the bus and head back to Sevilla. We walked through the streets one last time, I got a Subway sub for lunch (I was in all of my glory at that point in time!), and we said our farewells to the ancient city. It was a great little trip, despite all the rain, but now the only thing I can think about is my family coming to visit at the end of the month!! :)

Goooooooal!!!

Last night, Katie, Dan, and I attended the Sevilla vs Celta fútbol game with a bunch of our new amigos from UPO. We were able to get discounted tickets in the nosebleed section and a free scarf as well! It was a win win situation though because where we were sitting in the stands was the only part that was sheltered, and at one point in the game it was pouring!!

Soccer is a way of life here in Spain, and it's great to see the Spanish people get so excited about something they love. The best part about the night was that Sevilla won the game 4-1, so everyone was happy! It was awesome to be able to watch soccer again, having played all my life. Hopefully I'll be able to make it to a few more games before it's time to leave at the end of the semester!

Gent & Brussels: Belgium!

This past weekend, I embarked on an adventure to Belgium, the land of waffles, chocolate, french fries, and of course, great beer. Belgium was a country unlike anything I’ve ever experienced. I’ve always been accustomed to cold winters living in Pennsylvania all my life, but the combination of cold and dreary weather is another story. Although there were many beautiful things to see and do in this Northern European country, I could never live there for an extended period of time. 

Our journey started quite early from Sevilla as we met the airport bus around 6:45am on Thursday morning. There were three of us traveling together, (Tony from Texas Christian University, Patrick from Appalachian State University and myself) and we were going to meet up with Jake another friend from TCU that arrived to Brussels earlier. That weekend, we would be staying with Tom and Hanna, a very nice couple that my friend Tony had met through an internship in the states.

After spending essentially all day in airports on Thursday, we had finally arrived to Brussels with little to no problems. However, Tom and Hanna live in Gent which was a distance away from the airport in Brussels and required a few different means of transportation to get there. One of the first problems that we encountered was the language barrier. There is a wide variety of dialects within this region, but the two languages that are primarily spoken are French and Dutch, neither of which any of us had any prior knowledge. When our none of our credit or debit cards worked at the machine that was required to get tickets for the bus transport to the train station, our only other option was to take a taxi, which was our last resort. Taxis are normally expensive in the first place, but in Belgium, the taxi fees are astronomical! A seemingly harmless 40 minute ride split between three people amounted to rack up to 160 euros, which is about 210 American dollars. After we were practically robbed by the taxi, we still had to take a train the remainder of the way. We finally met up with Jake and boarded the train toward Gent.

At this point, all of us were exhausted, cold, nearly bankrupt, and just needed to relax for the night. Thankfully when we arrived to Tom and Hanna’s house in Gent, they opened their home up to us, making us feel so comfortable from the minute we stepped in the door. Our night quickly turned around as they welcomed us with red wine, traditional Belgium beer, french fries, lasagna, chips and great conversation. A tediously long day ended on a great note, as we settled in for the night and rested up for our tour throughout Belgium the following day.

We woke up on Friday morning, and Hanna provided us with a great breakfast, fresh bread, fruit, coffee, and delicious chocolate spreads (and no, not Nutella!) Afterwards, we went into the city of Gent to explore through the Friday markets and take lots of pictures! The different types of architecture throughout the city was incredible, ranging from time periods when Gent was first founded in the 900s to what is considered “modern” structures, built in the 1800s. As an American and being from a fairly young country, it’s amazing to see how architecture has evolved through time in nations that are over 1000 years old. Hanna’s mom’s boyfriend gave us a very detailed tour that afternoon, and explained so much of the history of Belgium throughout the past centuries. After our tour, we went back to Hanna’s mom’s house in the city and had tasty champagne to pass the time and warm up until our dinner reservations later that evening. 

We ate dinner at a wonderful restaurant and tasted some more of the Belgium culture by enjoying a great beer to complement my delicious pasta dish with shrimp, mussels and other seafood. Our group went to a few other bars that night, and I was checking all the Belgium beers off of my list that my brother told me I had to try. There are between 800-1000 different kinds of beer within Belgium, so it was very cool to be able to try new brands other than the well known Stella Artois. My favorite kinds were probably Hoegaarden Grand Cru and La Trappe Blond. After visiting numerous bars and a club, all of us decided to head back and turn in for the night around 2am. 

The next morning, we slept in a little later and again, enjoyed a filling Belgium breakfast. We all boarded the train and headed to Brussels for the day. We walked through the Saturday markets in the center of town and explored the streets throughout the rest of the afternoon. We saw the King’s Palace, old churches, and shops upon shops of Belgium chocolates. We enjoyed some Belgium waffles and fries during the afternoon to hold us over until we ate dinner later that night.

Personally, I liked Gent much better than Brussels, not only because of the canals that ran through the town, setting up some of the best pictures, but because it was much more quaint, yet diverse. Brussels had the big city feel to it, but I much rather prefer the small, historical towns most of the time.

After our explorations within Brussels, it was time for dinner (more food! I vowed to go to the gym for 3 weeks straight after returning from this trip!) Anyway, instead of eating more Belgium food that evening, we decided to try out this authentic Moroccan restaurant. Although I was hesitant at first, I’m so glad we chose to go there because it was delicious! I had a roasted chicken dish complemented by steamed vegetables, and to my surprise, it was heavenly. I’m so glad that I am able to try all of these new things while I’m traveling because it really broadens my horizons in the grand scheme of worldly culture and cuisine. 

We went out for one last drink after dinner and headed back to Gent fairly early because we had to get up at the crack of dawn on Sunday morning to head home. We spent the remainder of the evening enjoying each other’s company at Tom and Hanna’s, before heading to bed for the night. 

Getting up on Sunday morning at 5:30am was quite the challenge, but we wanted to leave early enough to make sure we had plenty of time to get back to the airport and completely checked in. Although I could never live in Belgium, my experience was so incredible, thanks to Tom and Hanna. Our gracious hosts helped provide us with the best Belgium experience that I’ll surely never forget. With that being said, it’s back to Sevilla for me and time to start preparing for midterms! 

The Good and the Bad

During a semester abroad, we experience a vast range of emotions. One of the times that caused me the most frustration was the day that I could not print out a homework assignment that was due for my class that afternoon. I had bought a printing card through the school’s copísteria and was planning on printing out my assignment that I had completed days in advance in between class on that Monday. I have a long two and a half hour break with more than enough time to get some lunch and work on homework, so rather than spending more money and printing my homework out at a different copísteria in my neighborhood, I decided to wait until I was at school to print. After lunch when Monday rolled around, I worked on other homework in the library and went to print off my materials about 45 minutes before the class started. First I tried within the library and quickly realized that none of the printers were working so I went to a different building that I knew worked, as I had printed there previously. I ended up going through a string of four or five totally different buildings before someone finally had the courtesy to tell me that the copísteria was on strike, and I would not be able to print at school that day. By this time, I had only 5-10 minutes before my class started, and I knew that there was no way I could take the metro elsewhere and return in time for my class. I had already had a stressful week, and this being the icing on the cake, I had an emotional breakdown right in the middle of the outdoor hallways at UPO. I was so upset and exhausted that I decided not to even go to my class and just go home for the day. I didn’t want to go to class without an assignment, so I simply refused to go. This was definitely one of the most frustrating experiences that I’ve had since I’ve been in Sevilla mainly because homework assignments were worth a lot of points since there are so few in that particular class. Anyway, I decided to print out the homework the following day and took it along with me to class on Wednesday. Luckily enough for me, my professor saw my frustration when she asked about what had happened on Monday, and she accepted my homework that day, without any problem. My week was finally looking up!

Although I’ve had several moments of frustration, I’ve equally had many days of laughter and positive emotions as well. One of the best times I’ve had since I’ve been in Sevilla didn’t have any significance other than it was just a really good day. Katie, Dan, and I decided to explore the city one Sunday afternoon and we walked down along the river, taking pictures and enjoying the afternoon sun. It was so relaxing just to walk around the city without being on any particular time schedule or having other commitments. We stopped at a café, got a drink, and sat for hours just talking about anything and everything. We engaged in conversation that had me laughing harder than I may ever have before. There haven’t really been any specific instances that I remember being funnier than the other days, but I definitely believe that there has been something good to come out of everyday, whether it’s something on a larger scale like flying to London or something so simple as enjoying a coffee in the afternoon with friends. It’s been quite the emotional roller coaster so far, but I’m sure that my next few months will be just as exciting as the days that have already passed.

You Sound Like You're From London

Last weekend, we took a trip to the U.K. and stayed in London for a long weekend. From the moment we arrived in London on Thursday, I knew that I was going to love that city. Thursday evening we had time to explore the city a little bit before our group tour the next day. Our Bus2alps guide (Dean, who was born and raised in the U.K.) showed us the city around the London Bridge and took us to get fish and chips, the one thing that I had been anxiously awaiting for since we planned the trip! We walked through the markets and over into the Financial District. On the way back to our hostel, we stopped to gaze out over the Thames; we saw Tower Bridge, along with various landmarks in and around the river. Our guide pointed out the WWII naval ship that has been anchored in the river since the war and has been preserved and turned into a museum. After a long day of traveling, we decided to relax at the hostel and try out a few different kinds of British beer. One interesting fact that our guide told us that in London, there is one camera for every seven people and it is considered to be one of the "most watched" cities in the world. On a side note, another fun fact that Dean shared with us is that he can always spot an American because a.) we overuse the word "awesome" to describe things and b.) we say "omg that's so funny" all the time and then don't laugh...both of which I got a good laugh out of because I find myself doing the same things. After an evening full of good conversation and laughter, we called it a night fairly early to rest up for the next couple days!

The next morning we got an early start and headed out for our tour of London. We started near Buckingham Palace and learned various bits of information about the United Kingdom's past monarchs. One of the stories that I specifically remember was that Queen Victoria had seven assassination attempts against her life during her reign (talk about a marked woman!) We strolled past Buckingham and watched Queen Elizabeth's soldiers parade around her palace. We continued on our tour and viewed the changing of the guards, then saw St. James's Palace as well. We learned that this palace in particular has so many chimneys because in the past, having many heat sources was a sign that you had a lot of money, and the King at the time wanted to show off his riches. We ended the tour by walking through the remainder of the touristic sections of the city. I was able to see Big Ben, Westminster Abbey, the Houses of Parliament, and even saw a statue of Abraham Lincoln!

After our tour finished, we went for lunch at a local pub to warm up because the weather was quite cold in London! Our group did the London Eye tour (the structure that looks like a ferris wheel) later that afternoon. It was money well spent, as we were able to have the best view over the entire city.

That night we went to Harrod's... my bank account's worst nightmare. Although I didn't buy anything, which was probably for the best, it was still so cool to walk through the six story building of hundreds of designers. Even later that night, we went out on the town to experience some of the nightlight in London.

The following day, we went to several different markets. We went to Portobello Market, Camden Market, and even stopped at the Victoria's Secret in London, where most of the outfits from the VS fashion show are kept. For lunch that day, we went to an Italian restaurant; I had amazing red wine and incredible homemade Italian pizza--so delicious! We went out again that night after a big day of shopping and experienced a true London pub crawl. Although catching a cab at the end of the night was so difficult, we had such a fun evening with great friends.

On Sunday, we had to prepare to head back to Sevilla, but we wanted to enjoy the last few hours that we had in London. Katie and I went to Abbey Road and took pictures like the Beatles on the cover of their 1969 album. After that we went shopping for a couple hours and got our last fix of fish and chips. Our last store was at Primark which was the most incredible store we've encountered in all of Europe because everything was of very good quality for great prices. We bought so much stuff that we had to buy another suitcase so we could transport all of our purchases back to Sevilla.

We were sad to leave London, but it was so nice to come back to the warm weather in Spain. The United Kingdom was an amazing place to visit that reminded me so much of home, not only to hear English again and the British accents were just an added bonus, but I didn't miss the freezing cold weather. Keep watch for my next adventure to Belgium!