Spain - part 2

My last two weeks in Salamanca went by so fast and taught me an extremely important lesson. I am somewhat of a shutterbug (of course) but in Salamanca I didn't get out and take photos that much because I kept telling myself I have plenty of time to explore and photograph, since we were going to be there 4 weeks. Well, the 4 weeks went by and I had only a handful of pictures of the town I spent the majority of my time in. Lesson learned - time is relative and make the most of it right now. The last two weeks in Salamanca were filed with term papers and final exams.

My second weekend excursion was to Lisbon, Portugal. It was interesting to me, since Portugal and Spain are so connected, both physically and historically, I didn't expect to see many differences in culture between the two countries. I was very wrong. The culture from one country to the next was extremely different. The Portuguese are a very warm, friendly people (not to say the Spanish weren't but it was a different kind of warm). They were also very eager to help with my pronunciation of Portuguese words, because my Spanish would get in the way of proper Portuguese pronunciation. Though, it was amusing to me how they would have to add "It is very different from Spanish" after each "lesson". I started to wonder if it was some sort of law since everyone seemed to do it. The languages are very similar, but I was surprised how much more like French it sounded than Spanish.

It was wonderful being near an ocean! As much as I am *not* a beach person, I love the ocean. Though, unfortunately for my wallet, I tend to start craving seafood too, which is never "cheap" (at least not the stuff that is edible).

Lisbon = San Francisco. Hills and everything. Which is not a dig at all because I really do like San Francisco a lot. But it was very shocking to me how much hiking there was to do in Lisbon. There were some spectacular hills that were so steep I wasn't certain if I needed shoes or climbing gear to scale them. But walk it we did!

View from the old palace

 You can see more of my Lisbon photos HERE

Day 2 of the excursion we went to Cascais and got a chance to go to the beach. Again, not really a beach person. But me and my friend walked around the town. We had lunch, and I'm not entirely certain if I said this in the other post or not, but one of the things I adore about Europe is the "food culture". I love that I can sit outside in a cafe for hours, enjoy my food, and there is generally some sort of street music playing nearby. It's the most relaxing thing. You can just hang out without feeling pressured to "turn over" the table for the waiter.

After eating, we wandered around and got "lost". We stumbled across a book fair, which was selling antique books. All published in Portuguese, but it was still cool to look at. Later we found a coffee shop that had a rooftop terrace to sit on that had wonderful views of the city. We had coffee and just enjoyed the sun and the sea there for a bit. After a bit more wandering around we got on the train and headed back to Lisbon (our group left before we felt we were "done" with the city so we took the train back separately).

You can see more of Cascais HERE 

On the last day we stopped at a small town of Obidos, which is a walled in city. It also happened to be preparing for a Medival festival which was starting the next day (of course!). We also made a stop at Batalha Monastery. We visited a couple of monasteries in Portugal. They each had chapels which looked suspiciously like cathedrals (though they were not cathedrals). 

Photos of Obidos and Batalha HERE

My last week in Salamanca, I finished up my dance class and took my exams. Then wandered around taking photos the few days before we departed for Barcelona. 

Barcelona is an incredible city! Most definitely my favorite city we visited - I can see myself living there (and summering in Segovia!). I always sort of liked Gaudi, but seeing his works in real life was incredible! He is a visionary in every sense of the word. 

First off, La Sagrada Familia is spectacular! I didn't know where to even *begin* taking photos of it. Then walking inside was sensory overload. It was like walking into Wonderland, and it seemed like every turn I made something new and interesting was waiting to be photographed. But the exterior, the detail is astounding. From far away it looks like a melting candle. But as you get close, and the detail work begins to show - it's mind blowing. 

You can see all my photos of this masterpiece of Gaudi's HERE and see it at night HERE

Then we went to Park Güell, a park that Gaudi designed in the middle of the city, and finally we saw La Pedrera, an apartment complex he designed. All of his designs are beyond words. Though I found them difficult to photograph (at least in the capacity I was there - as part of a group) because they are so different from every angle - and capturing it was a real challenge.

Park Güell

La Pedrera

See more photos HERE

We took a day trip out to Figures to the Dalí Museum. I have never been much of a Dalí fan personally (apparently this is blasphemy), I don't dislike Dalí, but I have never really enjoyed his works. There are some motifs of his I have liked, usually the melting clocks, and there are a few pieces by him I like, but overall I wouldn't put him in my top 10 favorite artists. The museum though, I will say, definitely kept you interested because everything was so bizarre, and it seemed as if every corner was filled with something to look at.

See more of Dalí HERE

The final day in Barcelona, and my final day in Spain, was a free day. I wandered around getting lost. I really enjoyed my time to myself. After five weeks of being with a group, it was nice to have a day to myself, to wander around with my camera and get lost, get un-lost, and lost again.

My wandering photos are HERE

I also took the time to assess how I felt about the trip. I will say, in some ways I was a bit let down with Spain. I expected to fall in love with the country, much in the same way I fell in love with India. There is a passion that I can't help but feel when I talk or think about India. With Spain - I really enjoyed myself, but I wasn't in love either. I would go to Spain again, especially Barcelona, but I can't really say it changed me as a person either. It was an interesting experience. My Spanish definitely improved over my time there. I found myself much more comfortable with the language by the end of the trip, and more confident with my speaking abilities by the end of the trip. I was glad to get to go somewhere that speaks my language as a first language and spend a significant amount of time. There are things about the Spanish way of life that didn't "click" with me. For one, the concept of not going out until 1-2 in the morning. Call me an old fart (I am) but 1-2 in the morning I am winding down and ready for bed, not just getting started for the night. But it is an interesting country. It has an incredibly rich history (I was very glad I changed from Spanish Translation to History of Spain at the University) and I was glad I got a chance to study it a bit more.

Overall it was a wonderful trip.

For those in the Georgia area (or nearby) I highly recommend the program. You can find more information about it HERE.

The Rain in Spain

Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Loewe are liars. The rain in Spain does not stay mainly in the plain. There is no rain in Spain! I feel cheated. 

Anyway, I apologize for falling short on my duties to update this blog. The first half of the trip  had spotty internet at best. The second half I was studying for final exams, writing final papers, preparing my senior portfolio, taking senior exit exams, and the like. So, I will try to summarize my experiences in Spain as best as possible in just a few posts. I will also link to albums with the photos in them. 

In Salamanca we stayed with host families, which was wonderful because it gave us an opportunity to get a feel for traditional-Spanish lifestyles (and not to mention the food!) and also saved us some money on food (as we were provided 3 meals a day from our families). The Spanish life is easy enough to get into. The first thing you learn is the ever-famous siesta. I have come to understand how this concept developed. Lunch (Comida) is served between 2-2:30, siesta is from 2-5. It is so oppressively hot outside during that time, that the best place to be is inside as it is. So, bravo to the Spanish for this wonderful idea! 

I am not going to comment much on my first family in Salamanca since half way through the trip my roommate and I had to switch houses. The second family I stayed with was a single mother of 2 (11 and 22) who works three jobs (and still takes in students for the extra income). The house was close to campus and the food was wonderful. It is always interesting to be reminded that people have the same people problems in every part of the world. The problems of raising children as a single mother are not unique to Americans.

Also, children/teenagers are the same in every country. Just saying. 

Salamanca is an interesting town. It is in the Castilla-León region and centers around the University of Salamanca, which is one of the oldest universities in Europe. It very much has the feel of a college town. It's small, so you are able to walk everywhere. There are lots of cafés and shops to explore. Of course, in the center of town is the Plaza Mayor, which is where much of the action takes place. The first day we arrived, Spain played the final match against Italy in the Eurocup, which Spain won. It seemed the entire town spilled into the Plaza after the win, in order to join in the celebrations! It was quite the spectacle to see. 

The Plaza Mayor, lit with Spanish colors, after the Eurocup win

More Eurocup Photos

The first weekend, we took a bus ride up to Pamplona for the Festival of San Fermin. I was really looking forward to being a part of the festival that Ernest Hemingway made so famous. I was not disappointed. Though, I will say, it was, by far, the single most disgusting event I've ever seen. We arrived on the first day of the festival and already, trash was thrown all over the sidewalks, our shoes stuck to the cement thanks to the sangria that had been poured all over people, and the smell was horrific. But, it was energetic, there was lots of music playing, people dancing, and having a good time. 

The encierro (the running of the bulls) was something spectacular to witness. The first morning we bought tickets to be in the Plaza de Toros and wait for the runners. Everyone was singing, chanting, and in some cases, fighting sleep (most of the people in my group had stayed out the entire night joining in the celebrations, I got separated from the group during the evening, so I had decided to return to the dorms and get at least a few hours of sleep). 

Fighting sleep. 

Shortly before 8:00, the doors must have opened outside because people came running into the arena. These were not actual runners, just people who had been waiting outside for the doors to open, so they could get into the arena for free. The people in the stands were wise to this and did not take kindly to it, greeting them with 'boo's and throwing things at them. At 8:00 the running began, and we were able to watch on screens what was happening in the street. About 2 minutes later the first of the runners began to pour in, followed shortly after that by the bulls. It was incredible to see so many people in white and red fill up the arena. 

Despite the controversy it may cause, I will say, that I did attend the bull fight that evening. It wasn't something that I particularly enjoyed, but it was something I wanted to see and experience for myself, and I am glad I went. 

You can see all of my Pamplona photos HERE and HERE

The Cursos Internacionales Program at the University of Salamanca offers several optional excursions for students. I participated in one each weekend I was in Salamanca. The first excursion I took was to the Andalusia region of Spain, more specifically Sevilla and Granada. 

If I thought I was frying to death in Salamanca, I got a rude awakening when I arrived in Sevilla. I am not entirely certain what temperature human skin melts at, but I am fairly certain I was hitting close to it. The problem with this excursion was it was a very long bus ride (about 6 hours) to get to Sevilla, and then we had a walking tour of the city, in which we hiked up to the bell tower of the cathedral (I was *so* over cathedrals by the end of my month in Spain!). All of this in sweltering heat. None of us wanted to do anything that night except lay in our air-conditioned room (most of us hadn't felt air-conditioning since we got to Salamanca). The next morning we visited the Real Alcázar gardens before heading out for Granada.

Photos of Sevilla | Photos of the Alcazar

Granada was amazing though. We arrived in Granada and were offered tickets to a Flamenco show in the Gypsy district. It was an absolutely spectacular show. Afterwords we took a tour of the city at night and saw the Alhambra lit up. 

Granada at sunset

Before leaving, we visited the Alhambra, which was what I was most looking forward to on the excursion. Arabic architecture has always fascinated me, even more so since I took my trip to India two years ago. The Alhambra was incredible.

Photos of Granada | La Alhambra 

Okay, so that is two weeks in Salamanca of the 4. I will post more very soon, as I am going to be heading off for orientation in the Netherlands next Wednesday, and boy do I have a story to share revolving around an emergency trip home!

Leaving home.

Plaza Mayor in Madrid

I've always been an adventurous, independent type. To be completely honest, when I decided to enroll in Webster's Global MAIR I didn't even consider that I would have anxiety about the traveling or living away from home. I was more anxious about my courses, and money. So, when I broke down in the airport, I surprised myself. All of it hit me at once, I was going to be gone for the next thirteen months, and in that moment it might as well have been a lifetime. I was going to be in places where I don't speak the language (short of my month in Spain where I do, in fact, speak Spanish and would be studying the language), having food that I wasn't used to, and I would not have anyone around that I really knew. It became, in that moment, the scariest thing I'd ever experienced. I was glad that my dad and my best friend were at the airport with me, though in some ways that made it a little harder. It is also nice that I am starting out with my undergraduate program, so my first month in Europe I have friends here with me, and will be staying with a friend before beginning at Webster. In the end, I am still very excited to be here, and wouldn't change my decision because of a little bit of anxiety.

Pablo Picasso

Toledo

 We spent the first few days in Madrid, which is an incredible city! We visited the Reina Sofia the first day, which is a modern art museum. I am not much for modern art, but I do love the cubist movement. The Reina Sofia also houses Picasso's  Guernica. I have seen plenty of prints of that painting, but in real life it is incredible and very moving. We took a half day tour of Toledo which I was excited to find out was "la ruta de Don Quixote", because Toledo is in Castillo-La Mancha. Additionally, and maybe it was the pathetic tourist in me, but I kept walking around thinking "Holy Toledo Batman!" Later, in my Culture class, I came to find out that Toledo is the Catholic center of Spain. Well then. We then visited the Prado, which, considering everyone has described it as a museum heavy-weight, I wasn't that impressed, though it wasn't bad either. A few pieces were pretty astounding. Goya's Second of May 1808 and Third of May 1808 were amazing, and Velazquez's Las Meninas was stunning. It really struck me just how *big* some of these paintings were. When you study paintings in books, you don't really get a good perspective on their size. 

And artist sketching Toledo. 

The last night in Madrid was something else, it was gay pride in Madrid, so we went down and checked out the parade. There were so many people there it was incredible! After a short nap we went out. It was a night to remember - I am still working on that though!


We left Madrid for Salamanca and stopped in Segovia. I have never been so astounded by a city before. It is by far the most beautiful place I have ever seen. I kept asking if we were on a movie set or in a theme park of some sort because it just seemed too perfect to actually be real! And the Roman aqueduct is impressive as well. It really puts things into perspective:  The Segovia aqueduct was built before Rome had invented cement, in the 1st century AD. Rome fell 1500+ years ago, the Moors invaded, ruled, and were driven out of Spain, Christopher Columbus discovered another country, Spain's empire expanded across the globe, Spain's empire fell, the world has changed so much - yet this structure still stands!

Aqueduct

Jana told us a legend relating to the aqueduct. It goes like this: This girl had to walk up the mountain to get water for the town everyday. One day, she made a deal with the Devil: if, in one night, he can build a way to get water to the town without having to go up the mountain, she would go with him to the inferno. As the Devil began building the aqueduct she began to realize he was going to finish before morning, so she prayed to God for mercy and for help. God sent a huge rainstorm and as the sun rose, the Devil was unable to lay the last stone in the aqueduct. The girl did not have to go with the Devil and the town now could get its water without having to climb the mountain.

Cathedral in Madrid 

Cervantes statue in Madrid

Gay Pride crowd in Madrid

Me in Toledo

Segovia

I will post more about Salamanca when I have photos. As it is, I haven't even really processed my Gay Pride or Segovia pictures. Since I am in Salamanca the next month, I haven't gone out and photographed yet, getting a feel for the city and getting an idea where to go get photos.


We are homestaying in Salamanca, and my Señora is the most amazing cook. I love that we get fed authentic Spanish food, plus it saves money not having to eat out the whole month. So far, this is starting out to be an incredible journey!

Mis vacaciones

I am required to write a weekly blog for my Spanish composition class, but the professor has made the blog available only to our class. Anyway, here is my first entry, the prompt was "¿Qué hiciste durante las Navidades? Cuéntanos lo que hiciste y añade unas fotos o videos si puedes. No te olvides de dejar por lo menos un comentario."

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Tengo un trabajo del comercio minorista así yo trabaje mucho durante invierno. Yo ofrecí una pequeña cena por mis amigos antes de navidad. Toda mi familia está en Minnesota, pero no pude ir para las Navidades porque necesité trabajar después de navidad. En el día de Navidad, fue a casa de mi amigo para ¡una gran cena!  

Mis amigos y yo (uno amigo detrás de cámera)  - durante mi cena
Foto por Keith Jones

Despues de Navidad y antes de Nochevieja, yo fue a Minnesota. ¡Veía toda mi familia! Mi abuela (madre de mi padre) cocinó un cena tradicional de Suecia – es muy delicioso.

Las Comidas de Suecia - mi abuela cocinó

  Papa Noel visitó en el Nochevieja y llenó nuestras medias. ¡Papa Noel es muy generoso en su vacación porque llenó nuestras medias con muchas botellas de bebidas alcohólicos! 

Mi hermana y su promitido con sus bebidas de Papa Noel

Tenía un buen tiempo con mi familia y estuve muy triste cuando necesité salir. 

El Salvador - Habitat for Humanity

I went to El Salvador with Habitat for Humanity over the spring break. It was a truly amazing experience! I only took my Canon Powershot because the build site was an open-site so I didn't know how well I would be able to secure my camera. I don't think the photos were terrible considering. 

After arriving!

The walls around town were all painted with these amazing, bright , colorful murals!

Shopping

The main cathedral in San Salvador

Main cathedral

Our build site on the first day

Mixing cement

End of the first day

Playing 'football' with one of the kids that will be living in the house.

The other child

Volcano in El Salvador

Cutest kids!

Learning how to make Papusas!