 |
| Camino de Santiago |
Friday, April 17, 2009
Wednesday, April 8, 2009
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
Glad that's over with and Palm Sunday
I had my last "dance" class on Saturday. I would have had it on Sunday, but all of us Americans decided that we weren't going to go, which meant there were probably like 5 people there on Sunday, suckers. Saturday was pretty ridiculous, but it started out ok. We did this exercise in partners and pretty much gave each other massages and stuff, so that wasn't too bad. After that, we did an activity with 3 chairs and one person would go up and move them a certain way, and then someone else would go up and move them. We did that for an hour...yeah. After lunch, we found out that we were going to be going to one of the parks on campus. This time our activity in pairs was that one of us would close our eyes and walk around, and the other person would watch them and make sure that they didn't run into a tree or something. My friend and I participated for a little, but then we realized that we were far from the group and our teacher, so I opened my eyes. We walked over to 2 of our other friends who did the same thing. We just sat on a bench and talked for an hour. That was pretty much the best part of the whole day. Then it just got worse. Our next activity was to find an object, so I picked my chapstick, and then we were to do motions with it, so I put my chapstick on and then rolled it around on the floor and then bounced it in my hands. The next part was that we had to do it in pairs in front of everyone. So I did it no problem. Then we had to do it without the object. Ok, not so bad. Then we had to only do the movements aka make yourself look like a fool. After that, we got into pairs again and while the one person was doing the motions without their object, the other person would try to push them around and change their positions and stuff. Yeah, in other words, just do a bunch of crazy stuff and make it look like you're insane. Just wait, it gets better, after that, we had to act like there was someone pushing us around while we were doing our movements. So in case we didn't feel dumb enough, this was the cherry on top, better yet, why not do it in front of the whole class? Perfect. We were all watching each other and saying how crazy this all looks. Ridiculous. BUT it's over now!!!! Yesssssss. I don't think I could have taken another day with that crazy lady.
This Sunday was Palm Sunday, el domingo de ramos, and it started the celebrations of Semana Santa, Holy Week. During this week, they have processions with floats that people carry with statue things that represent Jesus' final days. It is so cool to be able to see this new part of the culture that I haven't seen before. The only part that I don't like is that there are people dressed up in the KKK looking outfits. These religious groups were around before the KKK, but it's still really creepy to see dozens and dozens of people dressed up like that. There are processions all day. I'm glad that I am getting the chance to see them, since I will be on the Camino de Santiago during Easter. I have been taking lots of pictures, because this is great teaching material for the future!
So, I am officially on Spring Break!! and will be until the 26th of April! Here is my plan for my 2 1/2 weeks:
9-16- going on a pilgrimage on the Camino de Santiago, 60-70 miles of hiking
18-23- Mom, Dad, Aunt Margie, Aunt Star and Lillie are coming to visit and we are going to Madrid, Toledo, Malaga, Sevilla, Cordoba, Granada, Morocco and some white towns
I'm pretty excited!! I can't wait to see my family and travel with them! I will be sure to take lots of pictures! I hope everyone has a great Easter!!
This Sunday was Palm Sunday, el domingo de ramos, and it started the celebrations of Semana Santa, Holy Week. During this week, they have processions with floats that people carry with statue things that represent Jesus' final days. It is so cool to be able to see this new part of the culture that I haven't seen before. The only part that I don't like is that there are people dressed up in the KKK looking outfits. These religious groups were around before the KKK, but it's still really creepy to see dozens and dozens of people dressed up like that. There are processions all day. I'm glad that I am getting the chance to see them, since I will be on the Camino de Santiago during Easter. I have been taking lots of pictures, because this is great teaching material for the future!
So, I am officially on Spring Break!! and will be until the 26th of April! Here is my plan for my 2 1/2 weeks:
9-16- going on a pilgrimage on the Camino de Santiago, 60-70 miles of hiking
18-23- Mom, Dad, Aunt Margie, Aunt Star and Lillie are coming to visit and we are going to Madrid, Toledo, Malaga, Sevilla, Cordoba, Granada, Morocco and some white towns
I'm pretty excited!! I can't wait to see my family and travel with them! I will be sure to take lots of pictures! I hope everyone has a great Easter!!
Monday, March 30, 2009
What did I get myself into...
So I had my first Direct Enrollment class, which is a 2 weekend course with the University of Alicante on Saturday from 10-2 then 4-8, and let me tell you, it was not what I, or anyone else, expected. The class is called "Cuerpo, movimiento y accion" which means "body, movement and action." So I figured that we would be dancing and moving like that. Yeah, no. We spent over 4 hours rolling around on the floor, "feeling the movements." I could not stop laughing because I felt ridiculous, along with the other Americans in the class. There were also Spanish people in the class that were actually PAYING to do all this crazy stuff. We did an activity outside in partners. The one person would close their eyes, while the other would lead them around by the back of the neck. When the exercise was over, the teacher asked us what we felt. This one Spanish girl said that when she hugged a tree, she could feel the energy from it....yeah, I had to hold back my laughter so hard. I was like you people are nuts. After our lunch break, we did another lame activity which consisted of 3 people sitting in chairs in front of everyone and they could only raise their hands...yeah...this lasted for about an hour. When I went up, I apparently wasn't raising my hand straight, and she called me out on it in front of everyone. I told her that when I normally raise my hand, I don't do it straight up. She said it seemed like I was being lazy and I was like um...ok. This was after she told me to stop laughing and smiling so much. Then the creepy old guy in our class with a crazy eye said that he liked my presence...I was like oh gee thanks...NOT. Geez louize. We ended the class with some improv dancing, but it was optional, so I opted not to do it. One of my friends got a video of it, and everyone that was "dancing" looked like they were on drugs or something. So yeah after the first day, I figured the teacher pretty much hated me.
Then on Sunday, I had the class again from 10-2, and it was so hard to wake up for it, because we all left the class saying how much we hated it and felt so dirty after being on the floor for a billion hours. The walk to the bus stop felt like the longest walk of my life, and then the ride to the University felt even longer than usual. I was not looking forward to it at all, especially now that I know I have a not-so-secret admirer...yuck! Once we got there, the difference between our culture and the Spanish culture was clearly visible. In Spain, "being on time" means if the class starts at 10, you come around 10:15. So there were all the Americans right at 10 and a little earlier, and the first Spaniard didn't come waltzing in til 10:20ish. 20 mins of waiting for a class that we hated. We finally got started and it actually wasn't bad at all. Our first activity was doing different walks across the room. It was fun watching everyone's take on what the teacher told us to do. It was actually what I expected the class to be like. After our break, we focused on speed. We got into groups and we each picked a pose and then we would switch spots and do each other's poses. Every time we would switch, we would have to go slower and slower. Our last activity was doing a string of movements 3 times at different speeds in front of the class. So with mine, I pretended like I was creeping around these wooden polls things in our class, and when I was done, my teacher said that she really liked mine, and I was like Oh! Thanks! Haha, so I don't think she hates me as much now. We didn't leave the class hating it, just dead tired, because what we did was actually like a work out, and now we are all sore from it! We only have the class this Saturday and Sunday, and then we're done, so hopefully I can survive til then!
For an update on what I'm doing, my spring break starts in a week and a half! I'm really excited, I just have a lot of work to finish before then. I also booked 2 more trips! I am going to France the first weekend in May and then Ireland in the middle of May. Also, there has been a change of plans for when I'm coming home. My new date is May 31st. A little early than what I wanted, but there's nothing I can do about it, and I know that I will be back here sometime, so I'm trying to get over it. I hope everyone is doing well, and I miss you!!
Then on Sunday, I had the class again from 10-2, and it was so hard to wake up for it, because we all left the class saying how much we hated it and felt so dirty after being on the floor for a billion hours. The walk to the bus stop felt like the longest walk of my life, and then the ride to the University felt even longer than usual. I was not looking forward to it at all, especially now that I know I have a not-so-secret admirer...yuck! Once we got there, the difference between our culture and the Spanish culture was clearly visible. In Spain, "being on time" means if the class starts at 10, you come around 10:15. So there were all the Americans right at 10 and a little earlier, and the first Spaniard didn't come waltzing in til 10:20ish. 20 mins of waiting for a class that we hated. We finally got started and it actually wasn't bad at all. Our first activity was doing different walks across the room. It was fun watching everyone's take on what the teacher told us to do. It was actually what I expected the class to be like. After our break, we focused on speed. We got into groups and we each picked a pose and then we would switch spots and do each other's poses. Every time we would switch, we would have to go slower and slower. Our last activity was doing a string of movements 3 times at different speeds in front of the class. So with mine, I pretended like I was creeping around these wooden polls things in our class, and when I was done, my teacher said that she really liked mine, and I was like Oh! Thanks! Haha, so I don't think she hates me as much now. We didn't leave the class hating it, just dead tired, because what we did was actually like a work out, and now we are all sore from it! We only have the class this Saturday and Sunday, and then we're done, so hopefully I can survive til then!
For an update on what I'm doing, my spring break starts in a week and a half! I'm really excited, I just have a lot of work to finish before then. I also booked 2 more trips! I am going to France the first weekend in May and then Ireland in the middle of May. Also, there has been a change of plans for when I'm coming home. My new date is May 31st. A little early than what I wanted, but there's nothing I can do about it, and I know that I will be back here sometime, so I'm trying to get over it. I hope everyone is doing well, and I miss you!!
Switzerland DOES have the BEST chocolate!
Last weekend I went to Switzerland and it was such a great trip! Even the flight over was amazing because we went over the Alps! There are sooo big!! And they just go on for miles as far as the eye can see! Our first stop was in Basel which is a cute little city. We checked into our hostel and went exploring. We didn't start out too well, because we got on the right bus, but wrong direction. Luckily Swiss people are really nice and told us when to get off so that we could catch the right bus. Another thing we learned is that they don't have to pay to ride the buses. Our hostel person told us that you may have to pay like once a month. So it was crazy to see people getting on the bus in the back. Once we got off at the right spot, we were surronding by cute little buildings that felt really European. We walked to the Monster Cathedral, but we couldn't get in because it was closed but we were able to go around it to where there was a balcony. We were able to see the Rhine River and the other side of the town. We were told that we should take a boat across the river which was only a 5 minute ride, if that. It was a lot of fun, and quite a touristy thing to do. After we got to the other side, we did some more exploring and got some dinner. After dinner is dessert and you know what that means...CHOCOLATE!! I had my taste of real Swiss chocolate and it was soooooooo delicious. I was hooked and now I am a chocolate snob. Later that night we went out to a pub to check out the night life. We went to a club too, but the Swiss don't know how to have a fiesta like Spanish people do. So we decided to call it a night because the next day was a trip to Lucerne!
Lucerne is where you can see the Alps, so we were all really excited to see them and the city. We hopped on a train and again we did something wrong. Apparently we sat in the first class without knowing it, so when the ticket puncher came around, he told us that we have to move. Oops! The train ride was so pretty. And we knew we were getting close when we saw a huuuuuge mountain. When we got off the train and walked outside of the station, I was in awe of what I was seeing. Lucerne is surrounded by the snow-covered Alps and it is such a beautiful place. I immediately started taking pictures and I couldn't stop staring at the Alps. It was just so cool to actually see them. We made our way to our hostel and then started exploring the new city. We started by going through the longest covered bridge in the world! Right beside the bridge is a tower that was used as a torture chamber back in the day. Nice huh. Then we made our way to the Dying Lion monument, which symbolizes the Swiss Guards who were killed during the French Revolution. It was carved out of natural rock and it was really cool. After that, we were on a mission to find a place that we could go up to get a complete view of the city and the Alps. We couldn't find any and there were towers for that purpose, but they're closed in the winter. Lame. After lunch, we took a little break to recuperate, then it was back to touring. We walked over to a little park by the lake and again, there were some great views of the Alps. We walked around to the older part of the city which had some really cool buildings that were decorated on the outside. Along the way, we stopped in some stores and got some really cool stuff and tons of chocolate. We all bought at least 10 bars of chocolate, but some of those bars were for friends and family. We went out for some dinner that night and in the distance on one of the mountains, you could see a string of lights, and I decided that some day, I will come back to Switzerland and be where those lights are on the mountain because that just looked too cool. After a full day of walking, I was dead. We were going to go out, but only 2 of my friends did. My other friend and I ended up watching Titanic in German and then Murder by Numbers in German. It was pretty funny because we had no idea what they were saying. Switzerland was such a cool country with some really nice people. I definitely want to go back!
Lucerne is where you can see the Alps, so we were all really excited to see them and the city. We hopped on a train and again we did something wrong. Apparently we sat in the first class without knowing it, so when the ticket puncher came around, he told us that we have to move. Oops! The train ride was so pretty. And we knew we were getting close when we saw a huuuuuge mountain. When we got off the train and walked outside of the station, I was in awe of what I was seeing. Lucerne is surrounded by the snow-covered Alps and it is such a beautiful place. I immediately started taking pictures and I couldn't stop staring at the Alps. It was just so cool to actually see them. We made our way to our hostel and then started exploring the new city. We started by going through the longest covered bridge in the world! Right beside the bridge is a tower that was used as a torture chamber back in the day. Nice huh. Then we made our way to the Dying Lion monument, which symbolizes the Swiss Guards who were killed during the French Revolution. It was carved out of natural rock and it was really cool. After that, we were on a mission to find a place that we could go up to get a complete view of the city and the Alps. We couldn't find any and there were towers for that purpose, but they're closed in the winter. Lame. After lunch, we took a little break to recuperate, then it was back to touring. We walked over to a little park by the lake and again, there were some great views of the Alps. We walked around to the older part of the city which had some really cool buildings that were decorated on the outside. Along the way, we stopped in some stores and got some really cool stuff and tons of chocolate. We all bought at least 10 bars of chocolate, but some of those bars were for friends and family. We went out for some dinner that night and in the distance on one of the mountains, you could see a string of lights, and I decided that some day, I will come back to Switzerland and be where those lights are on the mountain because that just looked too cool. After a full day of walking, I was dead. We were going to go out, but only 2 of my friends did. My other friend and I ended up watching Titanic in German and then Murder by Numbers in German. It was pretty funny because we had no idea what they were saying. Switzerland was such a cool country with some really nice people. I definitely want to go back!
Las Fallas de Valencia
Hola everyone! Sorry I have taken so long to post, but here is what I did in Valencia! We only went for the day, which wasn't long enough, but the reason we went was to see the Fallas, which are like huge paper mache statues that make fun of things in society or pop culture. Then the next day they light the suckers on fire! We didn't stay for that though. Luckily we had some great weather. It was sunny and warm all day. We were given a list of stuff that we should see, but it was kinda hard because there were over a million people in the city that day to see the Fallas. And let me tell you, there were people everyyyywhere. We were only able to get a few of the things on the list because we didn't have enough time. The first thing we got to was the huge wooden statue of the Virgen Mary that was decorated with flowers. There were tons of flowers surrounding her too. After that, we went into a cathedral that supposedly has the cup that Jesus used on the Last Supper. We didn't get to see it because it closed for lunch time. Instead, we had time to climb the billions of winding steps to the top of the cathedral which had some great views. After the long climb down, we went to the center of town for the Mascleta, which the only way to describe it is that it's kinda like the annoying fireworks on the 4th of July that only pop and make loud noises. Before we got to Valencia, we were told that this was a must-see, and that when we watch them, we should do it with our mouths open so that our eardrums wouldn't break because of the intense sounds they make when they go off. Yeah, they weren't joking. We somehow managed to get really close to them and they started at 2:00 and were done at 2:10. It was sooooooooo loud!! And there was smoke everywhere, and at one point, it was hard to see clearly. It was such a cool experience because there was the constant sound of loud fireworks. I took a couple videos of it to prove how crazy it was. After that we just walked around the city and enjoyed the weather. We walked around to the different neighborhoods to see their Fallas, which I took pictures of. Before we knew it, it was time to get back on the bus. It was a really fun trip, but I could have used more time there!
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Foggy London Town
Hola everyone! So last weekend I finally got to travel outside of Spain and I went to London, England! It was sooooo much fun! It is such a cool city. The flight over wasn't too bad but the passport checking people were really rude and mean. I later found out that they are supposed to be like that because they don't want any immigrants and they try to ask you dumb questions to get you to trip up. I didn't appreciate it and I just wanted my passport stamped. After we got out of that mess, we soon realized that every other person from London is really nice and very willing to help you get you wherever you're going. In order to get to the place we were staying, we had to take the Tube, which is the metro. My friend and I ended up running into a couple from Madrid that has a summer house in San Juan, which is 10 mins by bus from Alicante. Their English wasn't that good and we talked to them for awhile, and they were wondering if we could translate for them so that they could get an "Oyster Card" which is the Tube pass. We were able to translate and get them their Oyster cards! Casey and I couldn't believe that we actually were able to use our Spanish, because we were afraid that we would just speak English all weekend. After a Tube ride, we met up with Casey's cousin and we went our for a drink at a Pub. I tried a Strongbow which is like a Cider beer. I really liked it. We told her cousin about the passport people and she told us that they are always mean. She also told us that it is said that you always have 3 cameras on you in London. We were like ahhhh Big Brother!! She said that they just want a safe city. Crazy...After the pub, we went back to her dorm to get some sleep and great ready to start a brand new day in the city!
The next day, we got some breakfast at the Tube station and starting our site seeing tour. Right when we got out of the Tube, the first thing we saw was Big Ben, and we were like wooooowwwww. It was just so cool to finally be able to see it. We started walking because we wanted to see the changing of the guard at Buckingham Palace, and everyone says to get there an hour early. We made it into Tralfagar Square where the National Gallery is. We asked for directions to the Palace and started the long walk. Once we got there, which was right when it was starting, we saw tons and tons of people. It was crazy. We decided that we wanted to get closer because we couldn't see anything from where we were. We were actually able to get up to one of the gates, and so we were able to get some pictures and a guy in front of us was taking a video of what was happening so I just watched it haha. It really wasn't anything that cool and sometimes it was hard to see or know what was going on. BUT, the guard band played "Singing in the Rain" so I was super pumped about that! We decided that we wanted to move on to other things, so we walked back to the square. We went into the National Gallery for a little bit and that was cool. Then we went to the London Eye, which is like a huge ferris wheel. It takes you up really high and you can see the whole city. That was really cool and I was able to take some good pictures. After the Eye, we went to the Westminster Abby. We had to pay to get in so we decided not too. A little later, 2 more of our friends arrived and we met up at the Tube station. We took the famous phone booth pictures and we were lucky enough to get ones with Big Ben in the background. For lunch, we got Fish and Chips, which is just a fried piece of fish and french fries. It was really good, and we all got pictures with it. Later that night, we went out on the town. Our first stop was at a pub, and of course, I got some Strongbow. Then we made our way to the Ice Bar. It was really cool because everything on the inside was made of ice, like the bar, the seats and the glasses! The drink I had was called the Reactor. It was delicious. After that, we went out to other bars and clubs to experience the night life in London.
The next day, we had a huge list of things we wanted to do. Our first stop was at Platform 9 3/4 which is from Harry Potter. We all got our pictures in front of it and I did a sweet jumping picture with it haha. After that, we got on a double decker bus and went to Camden Town. It was a weird and crazy place. All of the buildings of the shops were decorated with huge. Then we got back on the bus and went to Abbey Road to take the famous Beatles picture. We got some good ones and it was so cool. So many people were walking across with their friends on the other side taking pictures. We signed the wall that was in front of the Abbey House. I signed mine and I tried to take a picture of it, but it didn't come out too well, so hopefully my parents can fix it up so that it shows up. After that, we went to Saint Paul's Cathedral which was pretty cool. We were able to get in but we kinda had to hurry because a church service was going to be starting soon. Our next mission was to see the London Bridge, the Tower Bridge and the Tower of London. On our way we passed Shakespeare's Globe Theatre and a sweet Pirate ship. Turns out, the London Bridge is pretty lame and the popular bridge is the Tower Bridge. We took tons of pictures and crossed the Millennium Bridge and the Tower Bridge, but not the London Bridge. Our last stop was the Tower of London, which was used as a prison back in the day. It was pretty cool. After all of our sight seeing, we went out again for one last night in London.
It was such a good trip and so much fun, because we saw so much in such a short amount of time. I definitely want to go back, and hopefully I can some day! My plans for this week are going to Valencia on Wednesday and then going to Switzerland on Thursday through Saturday. I'm really excited!! I hope everyone has a great Saint Patrick's Day! <3
The next day, we got some breakfast at the Tube station and starting our site seeing tour. Right when we got out of the Tube, the first thing we saw was Big Ben, and we were like wooooowwwww. It was just so cool to finally be able to see it. We started walking because we wanted to see the changing of the guard at Buckingham Palace, and everyone says to get there an hour early. We made it into Tralfagar Square where the National Gallery is. We asked for directions to the Palace and started the long walk. Once we got there, which was right when it was starting, we saw tons and tons of people. It was crazy. We decided that we wanted to get closer because we couldn't see anything from where we were. We were actually able to get up to one of the gates, and so we were able to get some pictures and a guy in front of us was taking a video of what was happening so I just watched it haha. It really wasn't anything that cool and sometimes it was hard to see or know what was going on. BUT, the guard band played "Singing in the Rain" so I was super pumped about that! We decided that we wanted to move on to other things, so we walked back to the square. We went into the National Gallery for a little bit and that was cool. Then we went to the London Eye, which is like a huge ferris wheel. It takes you up really high and you can see the whole city. That was really cool and I was able to take some good pictures. After the Eye, we went to the Westminster Abby. We had to pay to get in so we decided not too. A little later, 2 more of our friends arrived and we met up at the Tube station. We took the famous phone booth pictures and we were lucky enough to get ones with Big Ben in the background. For lunch, we got Fish and Chips, which is just a fried piece of fish and french fries. It was really good, and we all got pictures with it. Later that night, we went out on the town. Our first stop was at a pub, and of course, I got some Strongbow. Then we made our way to the Ice Bar. It was really cool because everything on the inside was made of ice, like the bar, the seats and the glasses! The drink I had was called the Reactor. It was delicious. After that, we went out to other bars and clubs to experience the night life in London.
The next day, we had a huge list of things we wanted to do. Our first stop was at Platform 9 3/4 which is from Harry Potter. We all got our pictures in front of it and I did a sweet jumping picture with it haha. After that, we got on a double decker bus and went to Camden Town. It was a weird and crazy place. All of the buildings of the shops were decorated with huge. Then we got back on the bus and went to Abbey Road to take the famous Beatles picture. We got some good ones and it was so cool. So many people were walking across with their friends on the other side taking pictures. We signed the wall that was in front of the Abbey House. I signed mine and I tried to take a picture of it, but it didn't come out too well, so hopefully my parents can fix it up so that it shows up. After that, we went to Saint Paul's Cathedral which was pretty cool. We were able to get in but we kinda had to hurry because a church service was going to be starting soon. Our next mission was to see the London Bridge, the Tower Bridge and the Tower of London. On our way we passed Shakespeare's Globe Theatre and a sweet Pirate ship. Turns out, the London Bridge is pretty lame and the popular bridge is the Tower Bridge. We took tons of pictures and crossed the Millennium Bridge and the Tower Bridge, but not the London Bridge. Our last stop was the Tower of London, which was used as a prison back in the day. It was pretty cool. After all of our sight seeing, we went out again for one last night in London.
It was such a good trip and so much fun, because we saw so much in such a short amount of time. I definitely want to go back, and hopefully I can some day! My plans for this week are going to Valencia on Wednesday and then going to Switzerland on Thursday through Saturday. I'm really excited!! I hope everyone has a great Saint Patrick's Day! <3
Sunday, March 15, 2009
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
A little weekend trip to Granada, Spain
Hola a todos! So last weekend, some of us went on a trip to Granada, and let me tell you, it was such a good trip. There weren't many of us, because a lot of people couldn't go because they had already scheduled trips for that weekend. It actually made it better, because when we go places as a big group, we realllly stick out. As a smaller group, we don't stand out as much. When we got there, we checked into our hotel, which was kinda crappy in comparison to other ones that we have stayed at with CIEE. I was in a room with 3 of my friends, and at first, we only saw 2 beds that were pushed together, and we were like oooh man we have to fit 4 people on those!! But then we found 2 more beds, so it was all good haha. After resting for a little, we took a small tour around the city. It was really cool, because a lot of the buildings have different looks to them with different accents or decorations. Granada is very different than Alicante in that aspect. We went to the main plazas, as well as a cathedral that was huuuge. After that, we had a lot of free time to eat lunch and go shopping and explore. Everyone went to the same restaurant to eat, but my friends and I decided to split from the group to find another place. A well-known thing about Granada is that at some restaurants and bars, if you order a drink, you get a tapa. So that's what we were looking for. We found a cute place and the tapas were delicious. What we didn't know was that the tapas weren't free, but luckily they weren't expensive at all, so it was all good. Then we spent the rest of the time shopping and exploring. Another well-known thing about Granada is that everything is cheap. So I was able to score some great souvenirs at great prices. We shopped til we dropped and decided to rest a bit at the hotel. After some rest, we went out for dinner, and we decided to go to the place that everyone went to for lunch. When we got there, we noticed that there was like nobody there, but we sat down anyways and ordered some drinks and picked our tapas. When we got the tapas, our eyes got kinda big because they weren't that big, and we were planning on this being our dinner. So we decided to order 2 more tapas, and that filled us up for the most part.
Then it was time for the Flamenco show!!! We all got into our bus and we were all so excited. The little place was so cute and the dancers danced in the middle of everyone. I had a pretty good seat. The dancers were so great, and it was so much fun to watch. It is just incredible how fast they can move their feet and legs like that! When the show was over, we went on a night tour to look at La Alhambra, which is a castle/mosque. It looked really cool with the lights shining on it, but my camera just couldn't capture it. After that, some of my friends and I decided to go out and enjoy the night life. It was a really fun night.
The next morning we took a tour of La Alhambra, which was amazing. As you can see, I took tonsss of pictures. It was just a beautiful day at a beautiful place. Our tour guide was really cool and easy to understand. We spent all morning there walking around and taking pictures. Then we walked back down to the city and got some lunch. After lunch, we had some more free time to do some shopping. It was a really warm, sunny day, so before it was time to leave, we laid out in the sun. I liked Granada way more than Madrid, because it felt more authentic, and not like just another city.
On Sunday, I spent all day at the beach getting my tan on, and let me tell you, I now look like a Guido from Jersey. I got really dark really quick. It was so great because we haven't had really good beach weather in like a month. Everyone was outside enjoying the beautiful day.
I have midterms this week, and I've been really stressed lately because I've been having problems with one of my professors. He assigns us way too much work, and I have him for 2 of my 3 classes, so that means I have tons of work to do. Luckily, Paco, the main director of CIEE, is going to talk to him, so hopefully things will get better.
This weekend I am off to London!! I am so excited! I am definitely gonna talk in a British accent for 90% of the trip...100% probably...haha jolly good! Well, I miss everyone sooo much, and I hope you enjoy my Granada pictures!
Then it was time for the Flamenco show!!! We all got into our bus and we were all so excited. The little place was so cute and the dancers danced in the middle of everyone. I had a pretty good seat. The dancers were so great, and it was so much fun to watch. It is just incredible how fast they can move their feet and legs like that! When the show was over, we went on a night tour to look at La Alhambra, which is a castle/mosque. It looked really cool with the lights shining on it, but my camera just couldn't capture it. After that, some of my friends and I decided to go out and enjoy the night life. It was a really fun night.
The next morning we took a tour of La Alhambra, which was amazing. As you can see, I took tonsss of pictures. It was just a beautiful day at a beautiful place. Our tour guide was really cool and easy to understand. We spent all morning there walking around and taking pictures. Then we walked back down to the city and got some lunch. After lunch, we had some more free time to do some shopping. It was a really warm, sunny day, so before it was time to leave, we laid out in the sun. I liked Granada way more than Madrid, because it felt more authentic, and not like just another city.
On Sunday, I spent all day at the beach getting my tan on, and let me tell you, I now look like a Guido from Jersey. I got really dark really quick. It was so great because we haven't had really good beach weather in like a month. Everyone was outside enjoying the beautiful day.
I have midterms this week, and I've been really stressed lately because I've been having problems with one of my professors. He assigns us way too much work, and I have him for 2 of my 3 classes, so that means I have tons of work to do. Luckily, Paco, the main director of CIEE, is going to talk to him, so hopefully things will get better.
This weekend I am off to London!! I am so excited! I am definitely gonna talk in a British accent for 90% of the trip...100% probably...haha jolly good! Well, I miss everyone sooo much, and I hope you enjoy my Granada pictures!
Monday, March 2, 2009
Madrid!!
We arrived to Madrid safe and sound. It's just crazy to think that I was here 4 years ago when I was 17. It's funny because I remember getting here and being so miserable and homesick. I appreciated everything I was seeing, but now it will actually mean something to me. I was very excited to see the city again and go on tours. This was where it all started 4 years ago!
We visited The Prado, which is an art museum, and it was so great. I made sure to see all the works of art I remembered and studied in high school. I was actually able to remember some of the things I learned about the paintings and told my friends what I knew. I went to the gift shop to see if they had a good book about the Prado and I found a great one, in Spanish of course, that explains all of the important pieces. I figured it would be very useful for classroom material. After the Prado, we went in search of some tapas. We asked someone where a good place was, but he said that there weren't any tapas bars, but a lot of places that had "raciones" like small rations of food. So we ended up at a little place and got bocadillos (sandwiches). I got a Calamari (fried rings of squid) bocadillo and it was really good. After that, we went back to the hotel to get ready to go out. We waited over an hour because people couldn't make up their minds, so my friend and I decided to just walk around for a little bit and then head back. I was really excited about the next day because we get to visit the Palace, the Reina Sofia and tons of other places.
We went to El Palacio Real and took a tour of the inside, which was incredible. The Palace has over 2,000 rooms! Each room we visited was so lavish, and it sucked that we couldn't take any pictures. Every ceiling had a beautiful painting, and they were decorated from top to bottom. Some of the uses of the rooms were funny because the rooms were so amazing. There would be a huge room, but it would just be the room where the king changed his clothes, or they would have different rooms for meals. there was a certain room for lunch and a certain room for dinner. It was a great tour. After the Palace, we had free time to walk around and go to La Plaza Mayor. It brought back memories of my first time in Spain. We ate lunch and did some shopping. I'm finding some great things for a classroom!
Then we went to El Retiro, which is just a big park area that reminded me of Central Park. It had tons of paths and some soccer fields and even a lake where people could take boats in. There was also a glass house thing which was pretty cool. It was fun exploring the park with everyone. Our next stop was the Reina Sofia which is a museum of contemporary art. This museum has the famous painting "Guernica" by Picasso. It is a huge painting and is just incredible to see. Of course, it was my second time seeing it but it was so great. We also walked around to other paintings that we knew of, but Guernica was our main objective. There is a song by one of my favorite bands that is titled "Guernica", so of course I was singing it the whole time. It was a good time. After that we went out to dinner for Kebap, which is Turkish food but it is sooooooooooooooo good. I love it. To end the night, a group of us decided to go out but we couldn't get into one club because we were 22, which was weird, so we kept searching for places and asking people, and no one seem to know of any places. We finally found a place to go but it took a while.
The next day we took a walking tour of the city, but it started out crappy because it was a little rainy and cold, but as the day went on, the weather got better. Some people didn't want to go, but I wanted to see more of the city and take more pictures. When we were done with our tour, we ate some lunch and we picked this cute little restaurant/bar. I ordered a Calamari bocadillo again, just because Madrid is known for the best Calamari, and let me tell you, it was the best Calamari I have ever had. I just couldn't stop talking about it. It was perfect and sooo delicious. It was a great note to leave Madrid on. It was such a good trip and I hope everyone likes my pictures!
We visited The Prado, which is an art museum, and it was so great. I made sure to see all the works of art I remembered and studied in high school. I was actually able to remember some of the things I learned about the paintings and told my friends what I knew. I went to the gift shop to see if they had a good book about the Prado and I found a great one, in Spanish of course, that explains all of the important pieces. I figured it would be very useful for classroom material. After the Prado, we went in search of some tapas. We asked someone where a good place was, but he said that there weren't any tapas bars, but a lot of places that had "raciones" like small rations of food. So we ended up at a little place and got bocadillos (sandwiches). I got a Calamari (fried rings of squid) bocadillo and it was really good. After that, we went back to the hotel to get ready to go out. We waited over an hour because people couldn't make up their minds, so my friend and I decided to just walk around for a little bit and then head back. I was really excited about the next day because we get to visit the Palace, the Reina Sofia and tons of other places.
We went to El Palacio Real and took a tour of the inside, which was incredible. The Palace has over 2,000 rooms! Each room we visited was so lavish, and it sucked that we couldn't take any pictures. Every ceiling had a beautiful painting, and they were decorated from top to bottom. Some of the uses of the rooms were funny because the rooms were so amazing. There would be a huge room, but it would just be the room where the king changed his clothes, or they would have different rooms for meals. there was a certain room for lunch and a certain room for dinner. It was a great tour. After the Palace, we had free time to walk around and go to La Plaza Mayor. It brought back memories of my first time in Spain. We ate lunch and did some shopping. I'm finding some great things for a classroom!
Then we went to El Retiro, which is just a big park area that reminded me of Central Park. It had tons of paths and some soccer fields and even a lake where people could take boats in. There was also a glass house thing which was pretty cool. It was fun exploring the park with everyone. Our next stop was the Reina Sofia which is a museum of contemporary art. This museum has the famous painting "Guernica" by Picasso. It is a huge painting and is just incredible to see. Of course, it was my second time seeing it but it was so great. We also walked around to other paintings that we knew of, but Guernica was our main objective. There is a song by one of my favorite bands that is titled "Guernica", so of course I was singing it the whole time. It was a good time. After that we went out to dinner for Kebap, which is Turkish food but it is sooooooooooooooo good. I love it. To end the night, a group of us decided to go out but we couldn't get into one club because we were 22, which was weird, so we kept searching for places and asking people, and no one seem to know of any places. We finally found a place to go but it took a while.
The next day we took a walking tour of the city, but it started out crappy because it was a little rainy and cold, but as the day went on, the weather got better. Some people didn't want to go, but I wanted to see more of the city and take more pictures. When we were done with our tour, we ate some lunch and we picked this cute little restaurant/bar. I ordered a Calamari bocadillo again, just because Madrid is known for the best Calamari, and let me tell you, it was the best Calamari I have ever had. I just couldn't stop talking about it. It was perfect and sooo delicious. It was a great note to leave Madrid on. It was such a good trip and I hope everyone likes my pictures!
Thursday, February 26, 2009
Carnaval, Tapas and Intercambios
Hola a todos!! I hope everyone is doing well! Everything is going pretty well here! So let me give you an update on what's been going on! This past weekend was Carnaval here and it was a lot of fun! It is pretty much like Mardi Gras in the sense of partying hard before Lent. So everyone was out in the street drinking and living it up! Also, you're supposed to dress up. I was a hippie, but it kinda looks more like a flower child. Some of the costumes the locals wore were absolutely crazy. As you will see in my pictures, many men dressed like women and some costumes were just absurd and out there! It was such a cool experience. The only thing I didn't like was that there were 2 stages with live music and the one that my friends and I were at, they were playing really old American music, like "You ain't nothing but a hound dog" and songs like that. So we were like umm why are they playing this because no one but us knows what they're saying haha. It was kinda weird. It was just crazy to see the whole city out in the street. There were even families with their kids out. It was just a huge celebration for everyone of all ages.
A common thing here is something called Tapas, which are kinda like appetizers. There are so many different types of Tapas and I pretty much love them all. So I decided to take a 2 day class on how to make some of the main ones. It was really cool because we got to watch a chef make them and then we got to eat them when we were done! We were allowed to help make them if we wanted but I was sick for the first class and I didn't want to risk it for the second class, so I just watched. We got the recipes for them too, so I can try to make them when I come back home, or even make them for my future class! It was a lot of fun and a great way to experience the Spanish culture.
I have met up with my intercambios 2 more times since my last post and every time we have a good time together. It is just really cool actually having Spanish friends that you can talk to and hold conversations with. We keep making all of these plans that we want to do as a group, like go to Vikky's campo (little country house) and eat Paella, or go to the beach and play volleyball, or go out to the barrio. They are really easy to talk to you and it is so great being able to practice Spanish with them. I'm really glad that I got Vikky and Isa because a lot of people have not been able to meet up with their intercambios, so I'm really lucky.
This weekend we are going to Madrid!! I'm so excited! I will take lots of pictures and tell you guys all about it when I get back! And here are my upcoming trips:
March 6-7: Granada, Spain
March 12-15: London, England
March 18: Valencia, Spain
March 19-21: Basel, Switzerland
It's gonna be a busy month, but I'm so ready to travel and see more of the world!! I miss everyone so much!! Muchos besos!! (Many kisses)
A common thing here is something called Tapas, which are kinda like appetizers. There are so many different types of Tapas and I pretty much love them all. So I decided to take a 2 day class on how to make some of the main ones. It was really cool because we got to watch a chef make them and then we got to eat them when we were done! We were allowed to help make them if we wanted but I was sick for the first class and I didn't want to risk it for the second class, so I just watched. We got the recipes for them too, so I can try to make them when I come back home, or even make them for my future class! It was a lot of fun and a great way to experience the Spanish culture.
I have met up with my intercambios 2 more times since my last post and every time we have a good time together. It is just really cool actually having Spanish friends that you can talk to and hold conversations with. We keep making all of these plans that we want to do as a group, like go to Vikky's campo (little country house) and eat Paella, or go to the beach and play volleyball, or go out to the barrio. They are really easy to talk to you and it is so great being able to practice Spanish with them. I'm really glad that I got Vikky and Isa because a lot of people have not been able to meet up with their intercambios, so I'm really lucky.
This weekend we are going to Madrid!! I'm so excited! I will take lots of pictures and tell you guys all about it when I get back! And here are my upcoming trips:
March 6-7: Granada, Spain
March 12-15: London, England
March 18: Valencia, Spain
March 19-21: Basel, Switzerland
It's gonna be a busy month, but I'm so ready to travel and see more of the world!! I miss everyone so much!! Muchos besos!! (Many kisses)
Monday, February 16, 2009
Sunday, February 15, 2009
¡Gracias, San Valentín!
Happy late Valentine´s Day to everyone!! Mine was different over here. Apparently it´s mainly just celebrated by couples, so my familia didn´t have anything for me. It was weird because usually my mom gives all of us kids goodie bags and cards and stuff like that. I got my familia a card and Amy´s one too. I think they appreciated the gesture. It was kind of a depressing day for me, because it really made me miss home and being with everyone on Valentine´s Day. I was pretty bummed. Plus, I´m sorta coming down with something. I barely have a voice and I don´t really feel like myself. Also, Ivan and Noelia came back from their honeymoon and they had tons of gifts for everyone, except me. I mean, yeah, I shouldn´t expect anything, but I was invited to the wedding, and I´m supposed to be part of the family. So not even getting something small made me feel really left out, and I knew that if I was at home, I would be getting tons of little gifts. So yeah...pretty depressing, but don´t worry it got better...
That night, we had the chance to go to a Hércules soccer game, which is Alicante´s team. We were supposed to go as a group, but we were never given a time or a place to meet to buy the tickets, so Amy and I just took the bus there and made our way to the stadium. We asked someone where to buy tickets and they told us to go to the other side of the stadium. So we did that and decided to ask a security guard where to go from there. He said just wait a second...and he dug in his pocket and pulled out 2 tickets!! And we were like oooh mannn!! Gracias!! And he said it was because of Saint Valentine and that he was in love with us (that is something normal to say over here, so we just laughed it off). So we took our free tickets and made our way inside. We actually scored some pretty good seats, like 10 or so rows from the field. The game was so much fun. We missed the first goal they scored because we were outside, as well as the other team´s first goal. It was just crazy being around all of the crazy Spaniards. My dad would have fit right in because if they didn´t like a call or something bad happened, they would all do a sharp, shrill whistle. And of course there was lots of chanting. We would clap along and chant but we weren´t sure what they were saying sometimes. They also handed out blue and white carnations to all of the girls, and luckily we were able to get them! We took lots of pictures and I will have them up on here soon. Hércules ended up winning 4-2!! Champeones!! Champeones!! I definitely want to go to another game, and I want a Hércules scarf and t shirt too!!
So even though it started out crappy, I had a good Valentine´s Day with my free tix and some great soccer! Tonight, me and Amy are going with our madres to see Australia! I´m pretty excited!
That night, we had the chance to go to a Hércules soccer game, which is Alicante´s team. We were supposed to go as a group, but we were never given a time or a place to meet to buy the tickets, so Amy and I just took the bus there and made our way to the stadium. We asked someone where to buy tickets and they told us to go to the other side of the stadium. So we did that and decided to ask a security guard where to go from there. He said just wait a second...and he dug in his pocket and pulled out 2 tickets!! And we were like oooh mannn!! Gracias!! And he said it was because of Saint Valentine and that he was in love with us (that is something normal to say over here, so we just laughed it off). So we took our free tickets and made our way inside. We actually scored some pretty good seats, like 10 or so rows from the field. The game was so much fun. We missed the first goal they scored because we were outside, as well as the other team´s first goal. It was just crazy being around all of the crazy Spaniards. My dad would have fit right in because if they didn´t like a call or something bad happened, they would all do a sharp, shrill whistle. And of course there was lots of chanting. We would clap along and chant but we weren´t sure what they were saying sometimes. They also handed out blue and white carnations to all of the girls, and luckily we were able to get them! We took lots of pictures and I will have them up on here soon. Hércules ended up winning 4-2!! Champeones!! Champeones!! I definitely want to go to another game, and I want a Hércules scarf and t shirt too!!
So even though it started out crappy, I had a good Valentine´s Day with my free tix and some great soccer! Tonight, me and Amy are going with our madres to see Australia! I´m pretty excited!
Friday, February 13, 2009
I could become a movie star. . .
¡Hola everyone! I hope you are having a great Friday the 13th! Here´s a fun fact for you, over here, the unlucky day is Tuesday the 13th. So there you go! I´ve had a pretty good week filled with classes and good food! I´m enjoying most of my classes, but one of them is pretty boring and hard to get through usually. It´s still been pretty windy here, so that puts a damper on things. Recently, a production crew for an upcoming movie (probably just a low budget movie that will go straight to dvd) called Mr. Nice, came to Alicante University looking for Americans that are willing to be extras in the movie! They said they were looking for California girls, beach type girls, cops and people like that. And we were all like yeah why not!! So we filled out our information and they took a picture of each one of us. I´m not sure when we´ll know if they´re gonna use us. I´m not holding my breath, because I have dark hair, so I don´t really fit the California girl, but I do have a good chance of being in it because they said they could use all of us. So I could potentially become a movie star...haha.
Another exciting thing this week was that we got our "intercambios", which are Spanish students from the University that pretty much become our friends. They help us with our Spanish, and we help them with their English. It´s a good deal. I got 2 girls in my group, Isabel and Victoria. They are both 21, like me, and they are both from Alicante. Their English is pretty good, but they said that my Spanish was better. I was pretty flattered by that haha. After we got to know them and asked some ice breaker questions, they wanted to know if we wanted to hang out that night! We were like sure!! I was so excited that these girls genuinely wanted to be our friends! So we met up with them later that night at a pub for some drinks. We spent half of our time speaking Spanish and the other half speaking English. It was so much fun, and they are really nice girls. When we were done, we scheduled to meet up again another day! I am so happy that this is working out, because it´s really going to help me with my language development. I´m really looking forward to spending more time with Isabel and Victoria.
Tomorrow, we are going to a Hercules soccer game, which is Alicante´s team. I´m really excited because I know it´s gonna be a lot of fun. Right now I´m in the process of planning a trip to London and a trip to Switzerland!! I really hope everything works out! I hope everyone has a great Día de San Valentín!!
Another exciting thing this week was that we got our "intercambios", which are Spanish students from the University that pretty much become our friends. They help us with our Spanish, and we help them with their English. It´s a good deal. I got 2 girls in my group, Isabel and Victoria. They are both 21, like me, and they are both from Alicante. Their English is pretty good, but they said that my Spanish was better. I was pretty flattered by that haha. After we got to know them and asked some ice breaker questions, they wanted to know if we wanted to hang out that night! We were like sure!! I was so excited that these girls genuinely wanted to be our friends! So we met up with them later that night at a pub for some drinks. We spent half of our time speaking Spanish and the other half speaking English. It was so much fun, and they are really nice girls. When we were done, we scheduled to meet up again another day! I am so happy that this is working out, because it´s really going to help me with my language development. I´m really looking forward to spending more time with Isabel and Victoria.
Tomorrow, we are going to a Hercules soccer game, which is Alicante´s team. I´m really excited because I know it´s gonna be a lot of fun. Right now I´m in the process of planning a trip to London and a trip to Switzerland!! I really hope everything works out! I hope everyone has a great Día de San Valentín!!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
