The bus trip wasn´t so bad. Actually, it was kinda bad and I just am not easily bothered I guess. The seats were roomy and comfy, so that made it easy to dismiss the other stuff. Other stuff: smelled like complete ass. I think it was the guy sitting behind me and next to Owen who smelled like ass and not the bus because he kept standing to stretch his legs and I got some good whiffs.
Also they showed bootlegged DVDs without any access to sound. These were terrible terrible terrible films to begin with (Jumper, The Bucket List, John Rambo) and the wavy, grainy versions didn´t improve them. Once in Jumper whoever was filming dropped the f-ing camera. What an idiot. On the other hand, maybe without sound they were better. Although, without sound I still was forced to watch Sly´s pinched and stapled face. I didn´t have to hear his incomprehendable mumbling, though, so that was nice.
Plenty of bodies blowing up also which I didn´t appreciate viewing. I am not completely opposed to the blowing up of bodies in films when there is a point to make, but for a Rambo movie I feel like it´s a waste of violence. It´s movies like these that make violence too common to be affective in more important cases. For example: I think blowing people up in Blood Diamond (whatever your opinion on Leo´s wavering South African accent) is more legit than blowing them up (more ferociously, might I add) in John Rambo. Violent films like these are just yucky whereas others have important messages. Anyway...
Instead of watching these crappy movies I elected instead to just listen to Bob Marley and drift in and out of consciousness. We purchased pastries from this tiny panadería before leaving Sevilla and they were flaky and delicious. Although impractical for staving off starvation as I soon discovered, they were more than enjoyable.
Now I´m back in Madrid. It is so nice to be back home. It´s the same feeling I had at the end of every vball trip. Just walking into your house and throwing your bag down before collapsing on the couch. Traveling hotel to hotel with luggage wears you out, man. I forgot about that.
It was also nice to see Carmen again. She had a quiet week without Vanessa and me running around and eating everything. She also had leftover paella from that afternoon so it was an entirely wonderful homecoming.
Right now I am sitting in the library at school killing time until I head to my art history class. I think I should note here that they have that same saying in Spanish... to kill time, or matar el tiempo. I never really thought about it but it´s a pretty dark idea.
The kid sitting next to me (who is most definitely Spanish as his mohawk/mullet would confirm) is wearing a bright yellow and purple LA Lakers jersey, presumably worn previously by Kobe Bryant as that is the name across the back. They love basketball here and, as my profe made sure to inform us, Spain is the reigning world champion. I didn´t know this and now that I do, I can honestly say I still don´t care.
Also, that Bavarian pothead guy we met in Sevilla who was from a one hundred person town was IN LOVE with baseball. I guess they really love baseball in Germany. He played for some sort of minors team there and is a pretty decent player from what he told me. I didn´t know they cared so much about it. Just little fun facts.
So, Javier Bordem winning an oscar is like the biggest thing to ever happen to Spain. He is on the frontpage of every newspaper in the country hailed as the first Spaniard to ever accomplish this. It´s important to keep in mind the fact that their presidential elections are this month and the winner of the Best Supporting Actor in LA is way more important to them. I saw a headline on the Metro yesterday morning that loosely translates to "Hollywood opening its mind" and referred to the fact that foreigners won some Oscars this year. They also recounted the year recently when Halle Berry and Jamie Foxx won Oscars. I thought this was humorous. Apparently the rest of the world feels that we are closed-minded. Surely this is not true. We are very open-minded, we just don´t like stupid foreigners (or races other than white or genders other than male). Don´t hate us because we have different opinions, world. Perhaps it is you who are closed-minded...
Monday, February 25, 2008
Saturday, February 23, 2008
Damp (but determined) touristing
Today is our last day in Sevilla and it has been absolutely PISSING rain all day. Literally the best rain storm I have experienced in a long time. Did this stop us from going out and being tourists? No, no, no... in fact, we had a great time because there was nobody else around. Even the gypsies weren´t out to bother us today. But officially my umbrella is the best purchase I have made since arriving in Spain. I have pledged my eternal affection to it.
Now for those of you fans of Star Wars out there we had a brush with royalty this morning. You may or may not recall the setting of Padme´s palace on Naboo in Attack of the Clones. It is vivid in my mind because I visited it this morning. It is actually the Palacio Español that wraps around the Plaza de España here in Sevilla. There was nobody else there at all and it was absolutely breathtaking. Seriously, probably the most beautiful non-cathedral building I have seen in Europe so far. Wrap around building with Venetian azulejo-tiled bridges over a legit moat. There is an enormous fountain in the middle of the plaza, too, which was still lovely even in the pouring rain. It was built in 1929 for some sort of World´s Fair deal but it is used as some governmental building now. It was really great to see it in person even though it was raining. I can´t even imagine how stunning it is on bright sunny days in the summer. Google image it (or fly to Sevilla and visit if you can manage because it´s infinitely better in person) if you want to check it out.
We also visited some azulejos workshops and admired their handiwork. Every building here, literally every single one, has these tiles all over the place. It´s a very Andalusian traditional thing and they are beyond proud of them. This pride is completely deserved because they´re fantastic. If I ever have a house or anything else that I can possibly tile I am going to hop on a plain back out here to get my hands on some of them. The azulejos and all the fruit and greenery around give this region its very Mediterranean feel. The humid weather and abundance of great seafood helps too.
There´s this young British lady staying in the hostel who has this kid. He´s probably 10 or 11 if I had to guess and more than a little annoying. She just leaves the hostel all day doing whatever she does and leaves him here. He sits on the computers and messes around and yells British profanity (this part is actually really enjoyable). His mom basically relies on other people to babysit because nobody wants to just leave him alone. This has been a very strange/awkward situation at times (we´re out for most of the daytime so it´s not too bad for us). The guy from the Netherlands told me that he has been keeping an eye on him and feeding him lunch for the past few days. Yeah, his mom just leaves all day, returning late at night, without any food for him but the continental breakfast that the hostel provides. I´m not one to judge (wait, what?) but she doesn´t seem like a very good parent to me. This really has no relevance to my stay here except for the fact that they just left raucously for the airport to fly back to wherever. I feel bad for the kid. His name is Spike by the way which I think is funny.
So the big bday last night was a complete success. We took Owen around and I made a big old stink about it (like I usually do for birthdays because they are wonderful). He had a great night, especially because I didn´t throw him into the Guadalquivir. I don´t think you´re supposed to swim in it anyway so it all worked out for the best. Owen is usually that guy who wakes up with the sun (he once told me how much he hates that the sun doesn´t rise until about 7:30 in Madrid which received a blank stare from me) but this morning he slept until 10:30. I considered this a pretty good sign that I did a more than adequate job last night. This and the fact that he couldn´t speak Spanish for anything when we met these Spanish university students partying in a square in our neighborhood. He was hilarious because he just kept saying (poorly) that he couldn´t speak Spanish because he was 21. I thoroughly enjoyed this part because it made no sense to those kids. Also when we tried to get into a fancier place and they wouldn´t let him in because he was wearing tennis shoes (no matter how hard I pleaded or batted my eyelashes), he just kept saying that the big bouncer guy was just jealous because he didn´t have any hair and his head was cold. He was a pretty funny 21 year-old dude last night, let me tell you. For those of you who know Wayne-o, you basically know Owen as well. He is even a mean cyclist... seriously, they would be best friends if they ever met.
Now we´re all sitting around enjoying a quiet (except for the pounding rain) afternoon/early night at the end of a full week of traveling and sightseeing. We took a siesta in the hammocks earlier until we woke up and realized that it was a little too chilly as the afternoon wore on. It was nice to be outside but still out of the rain for a little.
Tomorrow we head back home and I am pretty excited to get back into my own bed again, no matter how springy it may be. I have realized how very comfortable I actually am in my apartment now that I have been away for a full week. I miss Carmen´s cooking, too :)
The bus ride is about 6-7 hours, though, and I´m not too excited about that. It will give me a good rest though because I do love my car/bus naps. Oh, gross, and then back to school on Monday.
Oh, and we also bought some goodies from a panadería in place of a bday cake so I´m pretty excited about them. Poor Lauren had to walk home with the paper package tucked under her jacket so they would stay dry.
Now for those of you fans of Star Wars out there we had a brush with royalty this morning. You may or may not recall the setting of Padme´s palace on Naboo in Attack of the Clones. It is vivid in my mind because I visited it this morning. It is actually the Palacio Español that wraps around the Plaza de España here in Sevilla. There was nobody else there at all and it was absolutely breathtaking. Seriously, probably the most beautiful non-cathedral building I have seen in Europe so far. Wrap around building with Venetian azulejo-tiled bridges over a legit moat. There is an enormous fountain in the middle of the plaza, too, which was still lovely even in the pouring rain. It was built in 1929 for some sort of World´s Fair deal but it is used as some governmental building now. It was really great to see it in person even though it was raining. I can´t even imagine how stunning it is on bright sunny days in the summer. Google image it (or fly to Sevilla and visit if you can manage because it´s infinitely better in person) if you want to check it out.
We also visited some azulejos workshops and admired their handiwork. Every building here, literally every single one, has these tiles all over the place. It´s a very Andalusian traditional thing and they are beyond proud of them. This pride is completely deserved because they´re fantastic. If I ever have a house or anything else that I can possibly tile I am going to hop on a plain back out here to get my hands on some of them. The azulejos and all the fruit and greenery around give this region its very Mediterranean feel. The humid weather and abundance of great seafood helps too.
There´s this young British lady staying in the hostel who has this kid. He´s probably 10 or 11 if I had to guess and more than a little annoying. She just leaves the hostel all day doing whatever she does and leaves him here. He sits on the computers and messes around and yells British profanity (this part is actually really enjoyable). His mom basically relies on other people to babysit because nobody wants to just leave him alone. This has been a very strange/awkward situation at times (we´re out for most of the daytime so it´s not too bad for us). The guy from the Netherlands told me that he has been keeping an eye on him and feeding him lunch for the past few days. Yeah, his mom just leaves all day, returning late at night, without any food for him but the continental breakfast that the hostel provides. I´m not one to judge (wait, what?) but she doesn´t seem like a very good parent to me. This really has no relevance to my stay here except for the fact that they just left raucously for the airport to fly back to wherever. I feel bad for the kid. His name is Spike by the way which I think is funny.
So the big bday last night was a complete success. We took Owen around and I made a big old stink about it (like I usually do for birthdays because they are wonderful). He had a great night, especially because I didn´t throw him into the Guadalquivir. I don´t think you´re supposed to swim in it anyway so it all worked out for the best. Owen is usually that guy who wakes up with the sun (he once told me how much he hates that the sun doesn´t rise until about 7:30 in Madrid which received a blank stare from me) but this morning he slept until 10:30. I considered this a pretty good sign that I did a more than adequate job last night. This and the fact that he couldn´t speak Spanish for anything when we met these Spanish university students partying in a square in our neighborhood. He was hilarious because he just kept saying (poorly) that he couldn´t speak Spanish because he was 21. I thoroughly enjoyed this part because it made no sense to those kids. Also when we tried to get into a fancier place and they wouldn´t let him in because he was wearing tennis shoes (no matter how hard I pleaded or batted my eyelashes), he just kept saying that the big bouncer guy was just jealous because he didn´t have any hair and his head was cold. He was a pretty funny 21 year-old dude last night, let me tell you. For those of you who know Wayne-o, you basically know Owen as well. He is even a mean cyclist... seriously, they would be best friends if they ever met.
Now we´re all sitting around enjoying a quiet (except for the pounding rain) afternoon/early night at the end of a full week of traveling and sightseeing. We took a siesta in the hammocks earlier until we woke up and realized that it was a little too chilly as the afternoon wore on. It was nice to be outside but still out of the rain for a little.
Tomorrow we head back home and I am pretty excited to get back into my own bed again, no matter how springy it may be. I have realized how very comfortable I actually am in my apartment now that I have been away for a full week. I miss Carmen´s cooking, too :)
The bus ride is about 6-7 hours, though, and I´m not too excited about that. It will give me a good rest though because I do love my car/bus naps. Oh, gross, and then back to school on Monday.
Oh, and we also bought some goodies from a panadería in place of a bday cake so I´m pretty excited about them. Poor Lauren had to walk home with the paper package tucked under her jacket so they would stay dry.
Friday, February 22, 2008
Right now...
I am sitting at the keyboard of a computer in our hostel in Sevilla during siesta time. Actually at the end of siesta time. I know it´s the end because we just had to wait outside the grocery store for 10 minutes for them to reopen. We bought some fresh bread and jamón to make sandwiches for dinner and some bottled sangria for 1€ with some citrus fruit to give it some class. I have two things to say about this: 1) I always thought it was odd that there is no differentiation in Spanish between lemon and lime but now I realize that this is because they don´t use limes, they don´t even sell them in grocery stores, and 2) alcohol is SOOOO much cheaper here than at home, I mean the few things they have here that we have at home are about a quarter of the price. This is good for me now but will be bad for me in a couple months when I return. Oh well, both McDonalds and Ben & Jerry´s are way cheaper at home (and I consume them in greater quantities than alcohol) so I suppose it all evens out in the end.
I adore everything about Sevilla. The city is beautiful and it´s been warm with occasional rain showers. It reminds me a lot of southern California with the weather and the green. Madrid is still in the end/middle of winter and for the most part everything is still brown. It´s much more humid here (with palm trees no less) and the scent of orange is always in the air because there are an abundance of orange trees. These oranges are too sour to eat but the nuns in the closed convents here make marmalade (much of this fruit is sent to England and they make their marmalade with it as well). Also they make their regional drink, vino de naranja or orange wine. We tried this as soon as we arrived and it tastes just like port but sweeter and orange flavored. I´m not a big fan of port but I really enjoyed vino de naranja.
ANYWAY... our hostel is great as well. White with blue azulejos (Andalisian tiles) and very clean. It was only opened within the last year so it´s pretty much new. It has a huge terrace on the roof where there are hammocks, tables, couches and lawn chairs. You can see over the edge to the street and orange trees down below. It´s beautiful. Last night the hostel was full and we made some sweet new friends:
There was a REALLY tall, REALLY hot guy from The Hague who is writing his master´s thesis on social networks of Amterdam´s homeless and was here on vacation.
There were three guys from University of Illinois (I think) who are studying in Barcelona. I had an extensive argument with one of these guys (originally from New Jersey) about which was better between Barcelona and Madrid. Neither of us have been to the other so this seems now like a moot discussion. One of his arguments was actually that Barcelona is so much more touristy and he never has to speak Spanish. I considered this to be a negative and decided that I won. But seriously, we made friends with them and all of us decided that to prove our city was the best we would exchange phone numbers and show the others the best time there is to be had when we visit. This was a good solution I feel.
Also there is a foreign exchange student from Hong Kong who is studying in Berlin. He told us just to call him Freddie because it would be easier but Lauren and I decided that it would be horrible to have to go by a name other than your own because nobody could pronounce it. He taught us how to say his name in Cantonese and Mandarin but it WAS really difficult and we kept forgetting it all night. But at least we tried.
There is also a German kid who is 20 but has a full beard and looks like he is 30. He´s not a student but was very mysterious about the reason he is traveling. He gave us a very "to find myself" kinda Jack Kerouac hippie answer. He´s cool, though. He´s from Bavaria and was teaching me to say things in German and chatting with Hong Kong.
Brazilian girl, too, who is actually sitting at the computer beside me right now and speaks the most beautiful English I have ever heard. We also found out throughout the night that she speaks perfect French and Spanish. Plus she´s gorgeous and tiny. I hate her (but really I like her and my hate stems from jealousy). Cut to me tilting my computer toward the other way because she can probably read English better than I can as well.
The point of explaining all this was to follow it up with the tale of how we all went out together and had a truly fantastic night out in Sevilla. It is a large city and we were shocked to discover that it is really quiet at night compared to Madrid. We went to the club everyone told us was the hopping one downtown and it was a very medium-sized, nothing special dance club. It was a great time, though, and we danced forever. Great, great time.
We have been doing quite a bit of sightseeing as well. Today we went and walked through the palaces, fortress and extensive gardens of the Sevilla Alcazar. It was amazing, way bigger than any of us had expected. We spent all afternoon walking around and admiring the greenery. One thing I adore about Andalucía are the azulejos. These are the unique, world-famous tiles that decorate everything here. They are from the Mudéjar people, those Muslims who stayed after the Reconquest of the Catholic Kings Ferdinand and Isabella. Their style was a perfect mix between Catholic Spanish and Islam. They are very symmetrical plants and designs in bright colors. The effect of walls of these is stunning. Our hostel is actually near the neighborhood where the most popular azulejos makers are and we´re going to see their stuff tomorrow morning.
We will probably be needing more sleep than usual (which for me is a ton anyway) because tonight is Owen´s 21st bday and I have big plans for him. We have already had a few 21st bdays in Madrid for kids on the program and I have carded/harassed each and every one of them properly and thoroughly. They needed the experience. I told Owen that I plan on throwing him in the Guadalquivir tonight (even though I PROBABLY won´t). I don´t want to have him start drowning and then have to jump in after him. He had to go home early last night to console the gf over the phone about something so he ditched us before we hit the nightclub. He got plenty of sleep so he´s ready to go.
That´s all for right now, although I will most likely think of something else to add in a few minutes. There are 3 computers here and everyone is mostly out doing stuff already so I will hop on again if that is the case. Until later...
I adore everything about Sevilla. The city is beautiful and it´s been warm with occasional rain showers. It reminds me a lot of southern California with the weather and the green. Madrid is still in the end/middle of winter and for the most part everything is still brown. It´s much more humid here (with palm trees no less) and the scent of orange is always in the air because there are an abundance of orange trees. These oranges are too sour to eat but the nuns in the closed convents here make marmalade (much of this fruit is sent to England and they make their marmalade with it as well). Also they make their regional drink, vino de naranja or orange wine. We tried this as soon as we arrived and it tastes just like port but sweeter and orange flavored. I´m not a big fan of port but I really enjoyed vino de naranja.
ANYWAY... our hostel is great as well. White with blue azulejos (Andalisian tiles) and very clean. It was only opened within the last year so it´s pretty much new. It has a huge terrace on the roof where there are hammocks, tables, couches and lawn chairs. You can see over the edge to the street and orange trees down below. It´s beautiful. Last night the hostel was full and we made some sweet new friends:
There was a REALLY tall, REALLY hot guy from The Hague who is writing his master´s thesis on social networks of Amterdam´s homeless and was here on vacation.
There were three guys from University of Illinois (I think) who are studying in Barcelona. I had an extensive argument with one of these guys (originally from New Jersey) about which was better between Barcelona and Madrid. Neither of us have been to the other so this seems now like a moot discussion. One of his arguments was actually that Barcelona is so much more touristy and he never has to speak Spanish. I considered this to be a negative and decided that I won. But seriously, we made friends with them and all of us decided that to prove our city was the best we would exchange phone numbers and show the others the best time there is to be had when we visit. This was a good solution I feel.
Also there is a foreign exchange student from Hong Kong who is studying in Berlin. He told us just to call him Freddie because it would be easier but Lauren and I decided that it would be horrible to have to go by a name other than your own because nobody could pronounce it. He taught us how to say his name in Cantonese and Mandarin but it WAS really difficult and we kept forgetting it all night. But at least we tried.
There is also a German kid who is 20 but has a full beard and looks like he is 30. He´s not a student but was very mysterious about the reason he is traveling. He gave us a very "to find myself" kinda Jack Kerouac hippie answer. He´s cool, though. He´s from Bavaria and was teaching me to say things in German and chatting with Hong Kong.
Brazilian girl, too, who is actually sitting at the computer beside me right now and speaks the most beautiful English I have ever heard. We also found out throughout the night that she speaks perfect French and Spanish. Plus she´s gorgeous and tiny. I hate her (but really I like her and my hate stems from jealousy). Cut to me tilting my computer toward the other way because she can probably read English better than I can as well.
The point of explaining all this was to follow it up with the tale of how we all went out together and had a truly fantastic night out in Sevilla. It is a large city and we were shocked to discover that it is really quiet at night compared to Madrid. We went to the club everyone told us was the hopping one downtown and it was a very medium-sized, nothing special dance club. It was a great time, though, and we danced forever. Great, great time.
We have been doing quite a bit of sightseeing as well. Today we went and walked through the palaces, fortress and extensive gardens of the Sevilla Alcazar. It was amazing, way bigger than any of us had expected. We spent all afternoon walking around and admiring the greenery. One thing I adore about Andalucía are the azulejos. These are the unique, world-famous tiles that decorate everything here. They are from the Mudéjar people, those Muslims who stayed after the Reconquest of the Catholic Kings Ferdinand and Isabella. Their style was a perfect mix between Catholic Spanish and Islam. They are very symmetrical plants and designs in bright colors. The effect of walls of these is stunning. Our hostel is actually near the neighborhood where the most popular azulejos makers are and we´re going to see their stuff tomorrow morning.
We will probably be needing more sleep than usual (which for me is a ton anyway) because tonight is Owen´s 21st bday and I have big plans for him. We have already had a few 21st bdays in Madrid for kids on the program and I have carded/harassed each and every one of them properly and thoroughly. They needed the experience. I told Owen that I plan on throwing him in the Guadalquivir tonight (even though I PROBABLY won´t). I don´t want to have him start drowning and then have to jump in after him. He had to go home early last night to console the gf over the phone about something so he ditched us before we hit the nightclub. He got plenty of sleep so he´s ready to go.
That´s all for right now, although I will most likely think of something else to add in a few minutes. There are 3 computers here and everyone is mostly out doing stuff already so I will hop on again if that is the case. Until later...
Saturday, February 16, 2008
Segovia
So, we went to Segovia. This place was fantastic. Lauren and I were completely in love with it - tiny Euro streets, old school Baroque cathedral, castle complete with moat. We went by bus from the station at Príncipe Pío here in Madrid for 11€ roundtrip. The bus left us off kinda at the side of town but their tourist desk gave us maps and drew out the streets to walk to see all the good stuff. We ventured off this route and it was all pretty good, though.
Next stop on the tourist desk tour was the cathedral. I want to keep saying that every part was my favorite just because they all felt that way. This was by far my favorite cathedral I have seen so far though by leaps and bounds. Just the outside alone is completely breathtaking. You can´t appreciate its incredible size in the pictures. The thing I like most about this cathedral in comparison to the others, though, is its elegance. Most of the other rely on sheer size and intimidation but I felt like this one has a softer and more pleasant outside, not very characteristic of the dominant Catholic church.
I am standing by the fountain at the center of the courtyard in this picture. This courtyard was so beautiful and serene, it´s hard to imagine the thriving tourism industry that exists outside the cathedral. Also, the day was so warm and pleasant that it was great to get out of the freezing cathedral and into the sunshine again.
I believe I ate this little guys brother. Maybe his cousin. Either way, it´s not like he´s going to miss him/her. The famed cuchinillo, or suckling piglet and Segovia´s specialty and method for eating pork. When people go to Segovia they eat cuchinillo so of course Lauren and I simply had to.
Our first stop was the old Roman Aqueduct left from when the Roman empire stretched all the way across Europe. They ditched quite a few Spanish towns when they took over, but for some reason they settled Segovia and it grew considerably under their influence. This old aqueduct is the best artifact from Roman occupied Spain. Being next to it is pretty surreal. It looks large in pictures but in person it is unreal. And from some views it just goes on forever! I´m really glad I got the chance to see this.
Next stop on the tourist desk tour was the cathedral. I want to keep saying that every part was my favorite just because they all felt that way. This was by far my favorite cathedral I have seen so far though by leaps and bounds. Just the outside alone is completely breathtaking. You can´t appreciate its incredible size in the pictures. The thing I like most about this cathedral in comparison to the others, though, is its elegance. Most of the other rely on sheer size and intimidation but I felt like this one has a softer and more pleasant outside, not very characteristic of the dominant Catholic church.
I am standing by the fountain at the center of the courtyard in this picture. This courtyard was so beautiful and serene, it´s hard to imagine the thriving tourism industry that exists outside the cathedral. Also, the day was so warm and pleasant that it was great to get out of the freezing cathedral and into the sunshine again.
I believe I ate this little guys brother. Maybe his cousin. Either way, it´s not like he´s going to miss him/her. The famed cuchinillo, or suckling piglet and Segovia´s specialty and method for eating pork. When people go to Segovia they eat cuchinillo so of course Lauren and I simply had to.
The best part was that it was incredible! Seriously, hands down best pork I have ever had. They roasted it and then quick fried it so the skin was really crunchy. It was a lot like moist roast chicken but with 10 times the flavor. I highly recommend it.
After late lunch (and a bottle of wine between the 2 of us) we headed to the old Segovian castle. For you folks who appreciate Disney cartoons, this was the castle that inspired old Walt when designing Sleeping Beauty´s castle for Disneyland. Speaking as one who had been to the happiest place on earth on more than one occasion, it really does look just like it. We climbed to the top of the tower behind us, too, and the picture at the top of this blog is from that view.
It was all so amazing because it was warm and the last sun of the day was shining on the surrounding woods/pasture lands. We stayed up there for about an hour just because once you´re there you don´t want to leave! I was in a castle turret.
We also met this old Spanish guy who was super nice and chatted with us about American politics, geography and genetically modified food. Like every Spaniard I have met (practically) he expressed his suprise at the fact that we have a black guy and a woman at the head of the pack for president. They are all so suprised because they think there is nothing but racism and sexism in the U.S. This made me feel bad. Also, it made me feel worse that this old Spanish guy reading a newspaper in front of the castle in Segovia knows infinitely more about our political current events than most of my peers. On this same note, some guys Lauren and I met at our sangria bar a few weeks ago knew all about the electoral process of our government, and they were just some typical college students. They also wanted to discuss the current election and administration with us. Man, if I ever thought nobody ever wanted to talk about politics with me at home I am sure getting a change of pace here! I feel also guilty because I only knew anything about the Spanish democracy because I studied up before arrival. I still don´t know anything about the royal family.
That´s all for now, my hands are chilly. I´m going to head up to my apartment to eat a little dinner and then start on some homework so I don´t have to think about it the whole week while I´m in Andalucía. I have been feeling on the verge of the flu for a few days so I have been trying to combat oncoming illness with sleep and drugs. Last night before I went to sleep (at 9:30 on a Friday night, no less) I took an Airborne tablet and some Advil with about a huhdred glasses of water, followed in an hour by some Alka-seltzer. I slept well, let me tell ya. I am determined to avoid this illness so I can feel all sorts of great on our trip.
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
Telephone Number
I thought it may be a good idea to put my phone number up in case anyone really needs to get in contact with me urgently... it´ll be easily accessible here on the good old web.
cell phone in Madrid: (34) 622.398.027
cell phone in Madrid: (34) 622.398.027
OK, gray and dreary again
I just finished taking my first exam in my art history class.
My initial thought upon leaving the classroom was: "Oh, shit! I put Velazquez for the painting La conversión de San Pablo and not Caravaggio! Damn."
My thought immediately after that, however, was more positive: "I really have been learning Spanish over here."
Today (this afternoon, to be more exact) was the first time in a while (maybe ever) that I realized I´ve really been ingesting the language. As I was writing, it struck me that I could never write Spanish so fluidly and so descriptively before I arrived. Even as I write this now I am expressing the same sentiment in Spanish in the back of my mind. Today I am excited about Spanish. I have been comprehending, speaking and writing much better and that´s exciting.
This is a nice contrast to my feelings yesterday, which were considerably more negative. I was researching travel options online and the flights for weekend times are ridiculously more expensive than during the weeks. I was angry at school for this. I was annoyed that their attendance policy is so strict. Today I am thinking that maybe they have this policy for a reason... going to class improves your comprehension, what a concept.
On another point, I know I said in a previous blog that I was sad Obama may lose the nomination but now that they really are so close and he´s supposed to win the primaries/caucuses today in the Potomac states, I am really sad that Clinton may lose. This all comes down to the fact that I really like them both. For all practical purposes they have the same plans. There are specific reasons I like each and dislike (very minimally) each , as well. (For a complete rundown on this you can send me an e-mail because I don´t want to write it here. I´m trying to keep my blog kinda neutral for the time being.) I don´t want to see either of them go. If Clinton does end up losing, she won´t run again (probably). I think it´s about time America had a Madam President. My heart is frowning now.
From politics to what´s really important: I am going to note that the girl who just walked in the computer lab has an absolutely wicked buzz cut in back with long bangs that reach almost to her shoulders. The front is bleached out blond and one side is much longer than the other. God, Spanish haircuts are so sweet. For example, the mohawk mullet is killin it in this country. People can´t get enough of it. Two guys from my program (one whom I despise) actually paid someone to cut their hair in this style. I told em I would have done it for fewer €!
Another thing very de moda en España are the facial piercings. You think the states has a high population of facially pierced people, you should see the random Metro full of people here. I would say, without exaggeration, that in the age group of 13-25 yr-old madrileños about 40-50% have one or more facial piercings. It really is a lot. And usually they have more than one if any. I have always wanted one (again) so we´ll see. Sorry, mom and dad.
Also, I really love playing minesweeper on computers and I found out that in Spanish it´s called Buscamines. This is literally looking for mines. Thought it was interesting...
I also went to Segovia with Lauren on Saturday but I am going to wait until I can get on a computer that will let me save pics and post them before I write about it. Just know that I ADORED it and I think it may be one of my favorite places ever.
Until later...
My initial thought upon leaving the classroom was: "Oh, shit! I put Velazquez for the painting La conversión de San Pablo and not Caravaggio! Damn."
My thought immediately after that, however, was more positive: "I really have been learning Spanish over here."
Today (this afternoon, to be more exact) was the first time in a while (maybe ever) that I realized I´ve really been ingesting the language. As I was writing, it struck me that I could never write Spanish so fluidly and so descriptively before I arrived. Even as I write this now I am expressing the same sentiment in Spanish in the back of my mind. Today I am excited about Spanish. I have been comprehending, speaking and writing much better and that´s exciting.
This is a nice contrast to my feelings yesterday, which were considerably more negative. I was researching travel options online and the flights for weekend times are ridiculously more expensive than during the weeks. I was angry at school for this. I was annoyed that their attendance policy is so strict. Today I am thinking that maybe they have this policy for a reason... going to class improves your comprehension, what a concept.
On another point, I know I said in a previous blog that I was sad Obama may lose the nomination but now that they really are so close and he´s supposed to win the primaries/caucuses today in the Potomac states, I am really sad that Clinton may lose. This all comes down to the fact that I really like them both. For all practical purposes they have the same plans. There are specific reasons I like each and dislike (very minimally) each , as well. (For a complete rundown on this you can send me an e-mail because I don´t want to write it here. I´m trying to keep my blog kinda neutral for the time being.) I don´t want to see either of them go. If Clinton does end up losing, she won´t run again (probably). I think it´s about time America had a Madam President. My heart is frowning now.
From politics to what´s really important: I am going to note that the girl who just walked in the computer lab has an absolutely wicked buzz cut in back with long bangs that reach almost to her shoulders. The front is bleached out blond and one side is much longer than the other. God, Spanish haircuts are so sweet. For example, the mohawk mullet is killin it in this country. People can´t get enough of it. Two guys from my program (one whom I despise) actually paid someone to cut their hair in this style. I told em I would have done it for fewer €!
Another thing very de moda en España are the facial piercings. You think the states has a high population of facially pierced people, you should see the random Metro full of people here. I would say, without exaggeration, that in the age group of 13-25 yr-old madrileños about 40-50% have one or more facial piercings. It really is a lot. And usually they have more than one if any. I have always wanted one (again) so we´ll see. Sorry, mom and dad.
Also, I really love playing minesweeper on computers and I found out that in Spanish it´s called Buscamines. This is literally looking for mines. Thought it was interesting...
I also went to Segovia with Lauren on Saturday but I am going to wait until I can get on a computer that will let me save pics and post them before I write about it. Just know that I ADORED it and I think it may be one of my favorite places ever.
Until later...
Friday, February 8, 2008
Perhaps spring???
It´s a gorgeous day here in Madrid, much too nice to sit inside and write a blog post! I spent the morning reading a book for class but (bad me) mostly a book not for class on the terrace of our apartment. I think this may be spring poking her head out to look around. People are ready to welcome her because they´re out with all enthusiasm.
Retiro is calling my name...
Retiro is calling my name...
Thursday, February 7, 2008
Catch-22 and Lisbon
"He had decided to live forever or die in the attempt." -Catch-22 I really love this book so far. I am disappointed that I am finding it so late in my education career. What have they been teaching me in English class? F John Steinbeck, I hate that stuff!
I booked the first of many trips outside of Madrid yesterday and I have been in a state of complete enthusiasm ever since I received the confirmation e-mail. When Lauren (volleyball Lauren, as opposed to Iowa Lauren) gets here the week after la Semana Santa (which I will be spending elsewhere as well) we are going to Lisbon, Portugal for the weekend. I found a great deal on a flight and a beautiful hostel in the city. Now the only problem is that I want to go right now and I don´t want to wait! Stupid February... it´s only redeeming quality is that it contains Valentine´s Day which I am a big fan of for inexplicable reasons. I don´t have any male Valentine´s (but who needs male Valentine´s when I have my ladies!) but I have always been happy on the big day. Also, it has only 29 days (this year at least) so I won´t have as long to wait, either. That´s nice. I´ll keep everyone updated on the Semana Santa plans but I´m looking into going to the beach by myself for 5 days and soaking up as much playa as I can just as spring is in full swing (I really really hope).
I just realized that I began with a quote about living forever and then wrote about how I need instant gratification... man, I´m a complicated lady.
I booked the first of many trips outside of Madrid yesterday and I have been in a state of complete enthusiasm ever since I received the confirmation e-mail. When Lauren (volleyball Lauren, as opposed to Iowa Lauren) gets here the week after la Semana Santa (which I will be spending elsewhere as well) we are going to Lisbon, Portugal for the weekend. I found a great deal on a flight and a beautiful hostel in the city. Now the only problem is that I want to go right now and I don´t want to wait! Stupid February... it´s only redeeming quality is that it contains Valentine´s Day which I am a big fan of for inexplicable reasons. I don´t have any male Valentine´s (but who needs male Valentine´s when I have my ladies!) but I have always been happy on the big day. Also, it has only 29 days (this year at least) so I won´t have as long to wait, either. That´s nice. I´ll keep everyone updated on the Semana Santa plans but I´m looking into going to the beach by myself for 5 days and soaking up as much playa as I can just as spring is in full swing (I really really hope).
I just realized that I began with a quote about living forever and then wrote about how I need instant gratification... man, I´m a complicated lady.
Wednesday, February 6, 2008
Briefly Super Tuesday and book purchasing
Let me just begin by saying that I didn´t know how much I wanted Obama to win the nomination before about five minutes ago. After class this morning, I rushed here to the library to check the results from Super Tuesday (and yes I did, for all of you out there wondering if I wore my t-shirt that reads "Everyone Loves a Democrat" to school and all over Madrid yesterday). CNN says that Clinton and Obama are still pretty tight but from the article I understood that to really mean that they both got votes but we think Hilary got a few more. I really do like her and I think she´ll be a great president. I have no problem voting for her come Nov 2 (and I like that she´s a woman, unlike Garrett). When I read this article, however, there was a pain in my heart that Obama could be finished with this whole deal. It´s the same feeling I get when my Chargers lose a big game. I really hope he still pulls through, something that apparently can still happen. To make things worse, John McCain, probably my least favorite of my least favorite party, has pretty much locked that shit up. Damnit...
On a completely different note, I finally ventured to this English-language used bookstore/cafe yesterday with Lauren to check out the selection. It was a pretty cool place, although I expected the books to be a bit más barato than 6€ más o menos. We perused pretty heavily until I stumbled upon an interesting find that I snatched right up. It´s called Have a Nice Doomsday and it´s about this Brit who travels throughout the Bible Belt in America and interviews some of the 50 million Americans who believe in the inevitability of the literal Apocalypse happening within their lifetimes. I´m on page 100 and it´s pretty interesting so far; brief history of Christian Apocalypse ideology and interviews with a Pastor Hagee of the largest mega-church in the US in San Antonio. Author is pretty funny and the material leaves the joke/sarcasm lane wide open (probably the best lane there is). ANYWAY, this store is a cool place and it lets me continue my previous addiction of book purchasing (the one previous to cookie consuming, that is). I am going to keep myself under control with the book purchasing, though, because the USAC office has some English-language books that I can borrow (I actually have checked out Catch-22 already but have yet to crack it) and I also have books para leer en español. Besides, books are heavy, expensive and take up space in suitcases.
Also, for anyone who wants my mailing address, eso es:
Teal Ericson
c/o Carmen Martínez
Paseo Reína Cristína 28, 7· Izquierda
CP 28014 Madrid España
(and you don´t have to put the accent marks if you don´t want to, mom...)
All my friends have been getting cards, notes and packages from home and I expect some any day now...
On a completely different note, I finally ventured to this English-language used bookstore/cafe yesterday with Lauren to check out the selection. It was a pretty cool place, although I expected the books to be a bit más barato than 6€ más o menos. We perused pretty heavily until I stumbled upon an interesting find that I snatched right up. It´s called Have a Nice Doomsday and it´s about this Brit who travels throughout the Bible Belt in America and interviews some of the 50 million Americans who believe in the inevitability of the literal Apocalypse happening within their lifetimes. I´m on page 100 and it´s pretty interesting so far; brief history of Christian Apocalypse ideology and interviews with a Pastor Hagee of the largest mega-church in the US in San Antonio. Author is pretty funny and the material leaves the joke/sarcasm lane wide open (probably the best lane there is). ANYWAY, this store is a cool place and it lets me continue my previous addiction of book purchasing (the one previous to cookie consuming, that is). I am going to keep myself under control with the book purchasing, though, because the USAC office has some English-language books that I can borrow (I actually have checked out Catch-22 already but have yet to crack it) and I also have books para leer en español. Besides, books are heavy, expensive and take up space in suitcases.
Also, for anyone who wants my mailing address, eso es:
Teal Ericson
c/o Carmen Martínez
Paseo Reína Cristína 28, 7· Izquierda
CP 28014 Madrid España
(and you don´t have to put the accent marks if you don´t want to, mom...)
All my friends have been getting cards, notes and packages from home and I expect some any day now...
Monday, February 4, 2008
Superbowl and some other stuff
OK, the Superbowl:
I am ecstatic that the Patriots lost last night. The bar where I watched it contained some crazed Giants supporters (or Patriots haters, like myself) and people were nuts. When the Giants scored that final touchdown, we all were standing and screaming, jumping around like Tom Brady had literally been kicked in the junk and not only figuratively. This drunk Pats fan next to our table threw his empty glass at the wall (maybe he saw Manning´s face?) and walked out. What a poor sport. He was that guy who was yelling "What now? What now?" to all the Giants supporters when the Pats were up 14-10 near the end. I really hate guys like that. But he was a Patriots fan and what can you expect from those? This is the best part, even better than Tom Brady completely sucking yesterday: Patriots fans lost, too. They lost some confidence, some pride (maybe?) and at least a little dignity. The one bad thing is that now we all have to listen to them bitch all year that "you know the Patriots were the superior team and they deserved the win!" Yeah, but they didn´t, so shut up.
After the game there were some pretty sweet fights between a bunch of guys and also between some dumb drunk girls in Giants and Pats jerseys (knotted at the back for sex appeal, of course). Yours truly got a little involved but only because this guy pushed these 2 tiny little girls down to the ground and I chastised him. That´s not ok. He didn´t want to push me down, though, so that was good, although he did call me a bitch (if I had a dime for every time, I swear). I had a good time watching the actual game (especially the part where Tom Brady lost and cried... wait, did I imagine that?) but without the food and the couch the Superbowl just wasn´t the same. It was the very first time I really wished I could be back home. At least this bar replaced their former Irish stout, Beamish, with some quality Guinness. As soon as I saw that I should I have known the game would go my way.
In a related matter, I think Tom Brady is secretly into kiddie porn. I don´t trust anyone who seems that perfect. Also, I hate Eli Manning much less today than I did yesterday purely for beating Tom Brady and Co. Perfect season my ass, I have been referring to the Pats as "those losers" all day today. I think I´ll continue into next season (please, please give my Chargers the win!).
Just some random comments that don´t form any sort of narrative:
In Reno we have Mexican ladies who clean our house. In Madrid we have Mexican ladies who clean our house. Interesting.
I really enjoy learning Spanish words one day and then being able to use them in the next few days when I really need them. I have a perfect example. Chupa Chup lollipops (you know, the really good ones on the plastic stick) are produced in Spain and are a pretty big deal here. They sell them absolutely everywhere. So I was searching through my 501 verb book and discovered that chupar is the verb to suck in Spanish. I thought this was interesting and told my roommate (who eats almost as many Chupa Chups as she does apples, and that´s a shit ton). Fast forward to yesterday when I was chatting with Carmen about this vampire book I was reading. I had to use the verb chupar in connection with la sangre. It worked out.
I tried to watch some American tv shows on the internet here like I watch them at home. I got all the way through the website until I pressed play. Then they told me that I couldn´t watch them outside the U.S.... I was pissed and very disappointed. Stupid ABC...
I am ecstatic that the Patriots lost last night. The bar where I watched it contained some crazed Giants supporters (or Patriots haters, like myself) and people were nuts. When the Giants scored that final touchdown, we all were standing and screaming, jumping around like Tom Brady had literally been kicked in the junk and not only figuratively. This drunk Pats fan next to our table threw his empty glass at the wall (maybe he saw Manning´s face?) and walked out. What a poor sport. He was that guy who was yelling "What now? What now?" to all the Giants supporters when the Pats were up 14-10 near the end. I really hate guys like that. But he was a Patriots fan and what can you expect from those? This is the best part, even better than Tom Brady completely sucking yesterday: Patriots fans lost, too. They lost some confidence, some pride (maybe?) and at least a little dignity. The one bad thing is that now we all have to listen to them bitch all year that "you know the Patriots were the superior team and they deserved the win!" Yeah, but they didn´t, so shut up.
After the game there were some pretty sweet fights between a bunch of guys and also between some dumb drunk girls in Giants and Pats jerseys (knotted at the back for sex appeal, of course). Yours truly got a little involved but only because this guy pushed these 2 tiny little girls down to the ground and I chastised him. That´s not ok. He didn´t want to push me down, though, so that was good, although he did call me a bitch (if I had a dime for every time, I swear). I had a good time watching the actual game (especially the part where Tom Brady lost and cried... wait, did I imagine that?) but without the food and the couch the Superbowl just wasn´t the same. It was the very first time I really wished I could be back home. At least this bar replaced their former Irish stout, Beamish, with some quality Guinness. As soon as I saw that I should I have known the game would go my way.
In a related matter, I think Tom Brady is secretly into kiddie porn. I don´t trust anyone who seems that perfect. Also, I hate Eli Manning much less today than I did yesterday purely for beating Tom Brady and Co. Perfect season my ass, I have been referring to the Pats as "those losers" all day today. I think I´ll continue into next season (please, please give my Chargers the win!).
Just some random comments that don´t form any sort of narrative:
In Reno we have Mexican ladies who clean our house. In Madrid we have Mexican ladies who clean our house. Interesting.
I really enjoy learning Spanish words one day and then being able to use them in the next few days when I really need them. I have a perfect example. Chupa Chup lollipops (you know, the really good ones on the plastic stick) are produced in Spain and are a pretty big deal here. They sell them absolutely everywhere. So I was searching through my 501 verb book and discovered that chupar is the verb to suck in Spanish. I thought this was interesting and told my roommate (who eats almost as many Chupa Chups as she does apples, and that´s a shit ton). Fast forward to yesterday when I was chatting with Carmen about this vampire book I was reading. I had to use the verb chupar in connection with la sangre. It worked out.
I tried to watch some American tv shows on the internet here like I watch them at home. I got all the way through the website until I pressed play. Then they told me that I couldn´t watch them outside the U.S.... I was pissed and very disappointed. Stupid ABC...
Saturday, February 2, 2008
El Valle de los Caídos y El Escorial
First things first... isn´t this picture funny? Lauren and I laughed and laughed about how short she is and how tall I am. Ok, secondly...
This is the front view of the memorial at Valle de los Caídos, or Valley of the Fallen. It was built by Franco and dedicated to the fallen soldiers of the Spanish Civil War. All the bodies were moved here in the late 50s and entombed behind 2 chapels inside. The cathedral goes through the mountain and ends in a monastery going out the back. This monastery was used as a home for orphan boys from the war. This entire monument is seen by most people as a relic of Franco´s dictatorship and therefore is very controversial here. It was built by 25 k Spanish republican prisoners of war, many of whom died or were injured. Apparently Franco claimed they were atoning for their sins. Every November 20, the day Franco died, was celebrated by rallies at the monument by his supporters until last year when it was made illegal. They have very tight security here because many people would want to destroy it.
Franco was buried here following his death even though he had requested to be buried in Madrid. An interesting story, though: the dome over the altar piece (picture below) is a mosaic including a bunch of people who are supposedly important folks hangin out with JC in heaven. Franco had himself put into this group with a bunch of saints and kings and the like. Interesting...
The inside of the dome with the altar and these super scary hooded angels of death gaurding the souls of the entombed soldiers make it very dreary and imposing. I suppose all Catholic churches can be described as this but each one seems newly daunting to me. Behind the chapels to the sides of the main altar you can see the sealed entrances to the crypts. This is all deliciously creepy. In the chapels it reads "¡Caídos por Dios y por España!" which means "Fallen for God and for Spain!" This is Franco´s outstanding, anti-communist, pro-nationalist sentiment that he commissioned personally.
After a morning here we went to the town right nearby, San Lorenzo de El Escorial. King Felipe II promised God a beautiful monastery if He granted them a victory against those Protestant losers in an important battle. They were victorious on Saint Lawrence´s Day which is why Felipe dedicated the monastery to him. For those of you unfamilar with Catholic saints (what are you learning in school?) he´s the one who was roasted to death on a grill. The layout of the building is actually a grill shape (with the courtyards separating the halls) because of this, with the Cathedral as the handle. The symbol for the monastery is a grill as well.
It is in the cathedral here that I decided to visit as many Catholic cathedrals in my life as possible. Every time I enter one I get the chills and have to hold myself back from crying. They are all so different, too, because of different styles varying by time period and country. I have heard of some gorgeous cathedrals all over Spain and I can´t wait to see more traveling in the coming months.
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