32 ºC = 89.6 ºF

Yes. You read correctly... 89.6 DEGREES!

As I mentioned, from Sevillia, my two friends (Janelle & Molly) and I left the group and took a short bus ride to Málaga. Once we arrived in the late afternoon, we were exhausted and decided to just head straight to our hostel and then wander around the area nearby. Our hostel was called "Picasso's Corner" because it was located literally across the street from where Pablo Picasso was born! It was also painted with bright colors and had some really funky stuff in it...(For example, the showers looked somewhat like little rocket ships! Picture a cylindrical shower standing on it's own with a little seat where the water came at you from literally every angle!)

We found our hostel with ease (navigating the bus system and windy streets) and went out to explore right away. About a three minute walk from our hostel was shopping heaven, so we spent some time absorbing local culture! ;) We found a cute restaurant and had an amazing dinner (complete with free tapas of bread, cheese, & sweet caramelized onions from our waiter, who found our Spanish impressive...or funny, we couldn't tell).

After that, it was straight back to the hostel and into sweats for us! We wandered downstairs to look at the games and found Monopoly (Spain style). The properties were all located in Spain, and we'd even been to a few of them over the past few weeks. We played with a funny Latvian man who seemed to think he knew the rules way better than we did and took the game very seriously. When the three of us were too tired to pass Go and collect our 200 Euros one more time, we let him win, and he was at least content with that.

The next day our adventure continued with a few tourist activities. We went into the Málaga Cathedral, which, I hate to say, was what I would call a rip-off. It was 4 euros to enter (no student discount, which is practically unheard of here), and it was pretty much just like every other church I've seen over the past month.

The coolest part, however, was a photo exhibit set up within the cathedral. It was a collection of pictures taken around the world by an organization called Manos Unidas (United Hands). It is a campaign to end world hunger and poverty, and to promote women's rights and education. The photos and descriptions (in Spanish!) were extremely moving and I spent most of my time in the church looking at the exhibition.

Next, we went to the Picasso museum. Since, as I mentioned, Pablo (yes, now we're on a first name basis) was born in Málaga, the museum had over 155 of his works. They were all donated by his relatives and were some of his lesser known works. It was exciting to see the different styles that Picasso painted in, and learn a little more about why his art developed the way it did. It was not only an awesome collection, but an incredible building with an array of Roman ruins below it too!




I bought a print of the painting you see above. While I bought this particular one because I love the painting itself, it will also forever remind me of the museum, and that is what i really love about it. We took a tour from a spunky Spanish woman who insisted that we speak almost as much as she did. She would ask us what we saw in the colors and brushstrokes and what we thought all the details meant. At first I was nervous to speak, but after a few tartamudea (stutters), it was actually fun to participate. (If I haven't already mentioned this, Spaniards LOVE to talk...and talk loudly. Imagine My Big Fat Greek Wedding meets an Italian dinner table.. in Spainish. Of course when there are Americans around they all want to hear US talk (or try to), so I'm usually able to get a couple words in).

Next, we decided to explore the waterfront and went to rent some bicycles at a nearby shop. On the way, we stopped back at our hostel to ask for a recommendation for a cheap lunch. We were directed to a little shop that looked sort of like a super mini 7-11. There was a 8.5x11 piece of paper with about 4 choices for sandwiches on it.
BOCADILLOS:
tortilla
jamón
jámon y queseo
chorizo

In Spain, there must be some law against putting more than two ingredients on a Sandwich (for those of you reading from the Bay Area..I will be patronizing Domenico's Deli about the moment I get home). Anyways, if you ever find yourself choosing from a menu like this, the jámon y queso is a solid choice, but I'd recommend the tortilla. Spanish tortillas are very different from Mexican tortillas, so don't picture a Mexican tortilla in between two slices of bread! (more on this in my food post, which I swear will come eventually!)

The bike trip was beautiful. Absolutely beautiful. The combination of the weather, the good company, and the blue water made for quite the afternoon. Here are a few of a my favorite pictures from this day and the next!







Later that night, again, too tired to venture out into the city, we stayed in the hostel and made some friends...and some Paella! (Again with the food, I know). This was a really cool experience: an Argentinian and a German teaching 3 Americans how to make an authentic Spanish dish!



(As you can see, we are quite the chefs...sorry there isn't a finished product picture, but we were a little too hungry to stop and snap a shot!)

The next and last day was also an adventure. Mostly exploring the city and beach some more, as well as a long trek up to one of the highest point in Málaga: the Alcazabar and Castille de Gibralfaro. It was wonderful to see the beautiful Mediterranean Sea from up high and to spend time with some really great people. My one regret is that I never touched the water! Oh well, I guess I will have to go back! Any takers....?



I'm off to Cádiz this weekend for Carnival! Can't wait to tell you all about it!

¡Besos!

.Viaje Numero Uno.

The past few weeks, the thought echoing in my head has consistently been
"how is this real life?"

I've been a little MIA from the world of cyberspace because I was off exploring Andalucía! Now that I've returned, it's time to recap!

The trip began in Cordoba, moved on to Sevilla, and ended in beautiful Malaga (which I will be giving its own post).

CÓRDOBA




When we arrived in this city, we immediately crossed the Puente Romano. On the other side, I explored the Gardens of the Alcázar, noting the beautiful architecture of the attached building as well as the views of the quaint city.




After that, a couple friends and I wandered through the narrow windy streets to the historical Jewish neighborhood. There, I entered one of the only three synagogues in Spain that pre-date the Reconquista (1492) when the Jews were expelled from the country. It was built 1315 and is still beautifully preserved.



The next part of my day was one of those surreal moments where I can't believe my life here is reality. We went to the Arab Baths in Córdoba.

Imagine you are living in Medieval Spain. There, the Arab Baths, or Hammams, are the focus of social life. Bathing is not a daily task, but rather a ritualistic, spiritual, & social activity. There are multiple pools, each a different temperature, a steam room, and a warm cup of mint tea waiting each time you experience this full body purification.

Now...snap back to 2010, but put yourself right in those baths again. We spent a couple hours relaxing in these pools, and even finished our visit with a quick (well I thought it was too quick) massage. Here is a photo from the website to make you even more jealous!




After two hours of feeling like a princessa, the last thing I wanted to do was go on a tour of other old building. Fortunately, I didn't really have a choice and got to explore one of the most amazing structures I've ever seen. La Mezquita de Córdoba is a vast mosque with a Gothic cathedral smack in the center of it. It was converted to a church after the Reconquista, but all of the Moorish influences are still visible.




This photo is just the Moorish part of the architecture, but I assure you, the cathedral inside is also breathtaking. After the tour of the mosque, we filed back onto the bus and inched our way to Sevilla.

SEVILLA

Being Americans, we had all eaten the sandwiches our "Madres" had made for us by about 11 am. Upon arrival in Sevilla at about 9:30 pm, I'm pretty sure that the only thing anyone could think of was la cena (dinner). Our group of about 40 Northwesterners filled this tiny, authentic restaurant, and as the smells of the meal we were about to enjoy wafted into the dining area, you could almost feel the excitement in the room! (I will be dedicating an entire post to food later, because the Spanish sure do know how to cook!)

In Sevilla, I explored the Reales Alcázares, the Cathedral, the Italica archaeological site, and and Plaza de España.

Reales Alcázares
was a pretty cool place, but I was too tired, cold, cranky, and hungry to really enjoy another Mudejar castle. My favorite part of the palace was the Garden, which seemed to stretch for miles, and I would have liked to stay there wandering for hours on end.




The Cathedral in Sevilla
was pretty, but two coolest parts were 1. a 20 some-odd story walk up a tower to see a beautiful panoramic view of the city and 2. the world's only DNA confirmed tomb of Christopher Columbus!




The Italica archaeological site
also had its unique characteristics. This array of Roman ruins included the 2nd largest uncovered Roman amphitheater in the world! It was interesting to learn about the past functions of all the different ruins and to contrast that with what still stands today.



The Plaza de España
is a beautiful, surprisingly devoid of tourists, semicircular plaza where each city in Andalucía and each Spanish province has its own ceramic alcove. A mote runs around the inside of the plaza and has numerous bridges that lead to a majestic fountain!









My favorite thing that happened in Sevilla, however, was a result of pure, unplanned luck (which is also why I don't have any pictures of it). A few friends and I went out to experience a little bit of Sevilla nightlife. After our unsuccessful attempts to find a cool place to go, we ended up just grabbing dinner and slowly wandering back to our hotel. Right before we walked in, we noticed a small building that looked sort of like a bar with the door just barely open. Lupita, Janelle, and I apprehensively wandered in. It felt a little like one of those movies where a stranger walks into a local dive bar and everyone stares at the outsiders. As we took a minute to soak in the environment of the bar, we noticed that all the chairs and tables had been pushed into an oval. A few older men (who could have only been regulars) were sitting at the front of this circle holding guitars. Once they started playing, we couldn't help but sit down and join the ring of Spaniards. I had never heard live Flamenco music, but it was completely unique. After a couple songs, two older women sitting next to us got up and began dancing with each other. I felt like a fly on the wall, getting a private show of this beautiful musical culture. I could have stayed there all night watching the twists and turns of the two women's writs, listening to the interesting melodies, and attempting to understand the interesting ad lib lyrics. At that moment, I thought to myself: THIS IS WHY I AM HERE! Earlier in the night, we wandered in to some bar that was basically built for American tourists. It had flags from different Universities in the States, the menus were in English and everyone inside was from the US. I actually just feel bad for the students who hang out at those types of places. I had a really cool, random immersion experience, and I think that everyone that studies abroad should get to absorb the culture in this way too!


Until next time.

Hasta Luego ♥