Semana Santa Adventures Week 2

The day that Mom and Dad left Nicole came. So, there was no gap between the two. We even all ate breakfast at the airport together. After we left the airport me and Nicole went to el Parque de Buen Retiro (as I have said before, its my favorite place in Madrid). We then ate lunch in Plaza Santa Ana (popular place to eat). We ate outside in the Plaza and had some good, traditional Spanish food: tostadas with tomato titurado (pureed tomatoes), empanadilla de verduras, un canapé with salmon, y tintos de verano. Yum

We then went and got dessert: Chocolate con churros

While we were eating the churros Nicole kinda hit a low point, sleepiness wise so we went back to the hostel to take naps.

After napping for a looonnggg time we went shopping on Gran Via-- Madrid's main drag. And then we went out for tapas, we had several delicious tostas (toasts with toppings)

On Sunday, we tried to go to Toledo, but when we got to the Train station there was a sign up saying that all trains returning from Toledo to Madrid that day were full, so we could have gotten there, but not gotten back. So we decided to go to Alcalá de Henares instead. Its a small but quaint town outside of Madrid. Its well known for being the birth place of Cervantes and also for its old University.

Here is a picture of the Plaza de Cervantes:

Here is a picture of Nicole with the statues of Don Quixote and Sancho Panza. The building behind her is Cervantes birth place/house. We got to go inside and look around. It housed lots of different copies of Don Quixote in all different languages. (There are also some classic Spanish nuns in the picture, how lucky!)

We visited several places in Alcalá de Henares: a mudejar palace, churches, parks, and a guided visit of the university. We returned to Madrid late, but in time for some more late night tapas.

On Monday, we headed out early to Don Benito and spent the rest of the day there. I was glad I got to show Don Benito to Nicole as well as everyone else who has come to visit me. I showed her the parks and the main avenue, etc etc.

On Tuesday, I went to work in the morning and Nicole went shopping in Don Benito. After lunch that afternoon, we headed out on a bus to go to Sevilla. However, we had to take a bus first to the city of Merida and then get on another to Sevilla. So since we were going to have a lay-over in Merida anyway, we decided to make the most of it. We went to see the Aqueducto de los Milagros (Aqueduct of Miracles). Its a roman ruin (obviously). Merida is full of roman ruins, but this is what we had time to go see. I decided to do a classic jumping pose infront of the aqueducto.

That night we got to Sevilla and checked into our hostel and ate close by. We were pretty tired from the day of traveling.

On Wednesday, we got to spend the whole day in Sevilla. we started out by going to the Reales Alcazares. Then we went to the Plaza de Espana. This is a pic of me there:

Then we went on a free walking tour of Sevilla organized by our hostel. It lasted almost 3 hours. It was pretty great. I learned alot of stuff about the city that I had never heard before.

The next day, we got to spend most of the day in Sevilla, so I finally got to see stuff I have never seen before. This was the fourth time I had visited Sevilla and I always see the exact same thing because Im always going with people who have never been before, so we always go to the top, same sites. Soooo, me and Nicole went to Cartuja-- a part of Sevilla and walked around the monastery there. Then we went to Macerena (another barrio) and saw some of the original border walls of Sevilla that were built by the moors when they inhabited the area:

Late that afternoon we headed east to Granada. We got there late so just got some kebabs and went to bed.

The next day (Friday), we started off the morning with a delcious breakfast of catalanas and then headed to the Cathedral of Granada. It is in my top 3 favorite church buildings that I have seen. So I was excited to see it again. Its a lot sunnier/happier than the cathedral in Sevilla. White and a lot of light. Here is a view down the center isle towards the main altar:

After the church we went to the nieghboring Capilla (chapel) hat houses the tombs of the Catholic Kings-- Ferdinand and Isabella.

After that we went and walked around the Albaycin. Which is the old, historic, moorish section of town. And it still houses a large population of Mosques and muslims-- a rarity in Spain. It is a beautiful section of town with beautiful views of La Alhambra and Granada itself.

After walking around the Albaycin, we headed to La Alhambra for the massive visit it is. We had to hike up the hill, but of course it is worth it. There are 4 parts to La Alhambra. The first we went to was los Palacios Nazares. This was the palace section of La Alhambra during the moorish times. Here is a view from one of the windows looking out on the Albaycin across the way. Is it beautiful or what?

We then went to Carlos V's palace (built right in the midst of all the moorish buildings) and then to the Alcazaba (moorish fortress), then to the little church, then to Los Palacios y Jardines del Generalife (Palace and gardens). It was all very beautiful. I didnt remember a lot of stuff, so it was awesome to see it again. This pic is of the Generalife:

So we spent a little over 4 hours at La Alhambra which is pretty normal. Its massive. But needless to say, we were pretty tired after all was said and done.

For dinner that night we went to get kebabs, which are everywhere in europe and usually of the exact same quality, BUT this night was an exception. We went to some place thats menu only said they had chicken kebabs, but ofcourse we wanted lamb kebabs, so we asked the waiter and he kinda of gave this weird answer like he wasnt sure if they had any meat left, but yeah we could have some. Then our kebabs show up with this weird looking meat inside. Its ground beef first of all, but in addition it didnt looked cooked. EEkk! So I spit it out right away and the waiter came over and asked what was wrong and he said that it was pink because it was flavored with red pepper. And after tasting it again it did taste cooked, but after half way thru, my mind took over and I just couldnt eat the rest of it. That was the last kebab of the trip-- i think me and nicole were scared after that kebab that we would get another one like that. So we declared those kebabs, kLebabs, becasue they were fake. Haha

That night we went to the Arabic Baths. I learned about these when I was in Spain the first time, but no one would go with me. So, luckily Nicole went with me. :) Its origins are from moorish tradition. The moors had public "baths" which were for the rich but was a form of relaxation. You move around from different temperature warm pools and cool pools. Its kind of like a mixture of going to the pool and a spa. It was really relaxing. And at first, the cool pool seemed silly because it was really cold but after being in the really hot water you kinda needed to cool down. It was decorated very arabic-ish. I loved it.

The next day, we spent the morning walking around the Albaycin again and getting some souvenirs. We then headed out of Granada for Madrid. It was a long bus ride-- 5 hours. But it could have been worse I guess.

That night we had a wonderful last meal, full of wonderful Spanish delights: tinto de veranos surtido de pueblo: queso manchego, jamón ibérico, chorizo, croquetas de carne, albóndigas, and cava. Buenísima!

The next morning, me and Nicole headed to the airport, and I saw her off. Sad.

I am so happy Nicole got to come and visit Spain. I really wanted her to see Spain and I also feel like it is probably the last opportunity we will ever have to take a trip just the two of us. Because we probably wont have an opportunity like this in the future with future marriages and families it can never be just us. So, it was awesome to get to have a sisters trip!

Having two weeks of family here was very refreshing and it was something to look forward to. Something that kept me excited. But, it also made me miss the US more than I thought. I think I am more anxious to get back now especially after hearing all about all the happenings back home.

So, whew, that was a long post. I applaud you if you made it all the way thru.

Thanks for reading. I love you all! (5 and half weeks till I return to US soil) :)

Semana Santa Adventures Week 1

Mom and Dad came and visited me for the week of Semana Santa. We went to Barcelona, Sevilla, Don Benito, and Madrid. Here are some pictures and stories from our trip together!

We started off the trip in Barcelona. Our first excrusion was to Parc Güell. This is a park that was designed by the famous, Antonio Gaudi.

Here is a picture of Mom and I on one of the beautiful benches in Parc Güell. The first year I took Spanish-- 7th grade-- I saw a picture of the benches in Parc Güell and I decided then that I had to someday go see them. And so I finally fulfilled that wish! :)

Our next stop was the Sagrada Familia, another Gaudi work. It was impressive as ever. And this time we got to go inside. And I realized just how unfinished it is! However the towers were closed so we couldnt go up in the spires or walk on the little bridges. I was pretty bummed.

The next day, we walked down the famous Las Ramblas with all its craziness and me and mom took a picture with one of the street performers. I carefully selected him as well. He didnt look scary like several of them do. :)

At the end of Las Ramblas, we continued on to the harbor in Barcelona. It was an absolutely beautiful day to walk around the harbor-- the sun was shining, it was warm and there was a nice lil breeze. I absolutely love coastal harbor towns; and this part of Barcelona definitely gave that vibe.

After walking around the harbor, we went to Parc de la Citudella-- a beautiful park where we saw the impressive fountain called, la Cascada.

Next, we went the the "Gothic Bari"-- which is the old part of town. We walked around the exterior of the Cathedral (La Seu).

Then we ate lunch on Las Ramblas and headed to the Montjuïc section of town.

We saw and climbed up to the Museu Nacional D’Art de Catalunya-MNAC (huge building, very impressive). Montjuïc is on this huge hill in the center of town. So we got some great views!

Also from up here, we walked around the Olympic Stadium (the olympics were in Barcelona in 1992).

The next day we walked around Barcelona a little more and visited Casa Milá aka “La Pedrera”. ANother Gaudi creation. This is a few of the rooftop:

Then later that day, we flew to Sevilla. And then the whole next day, we had to take care of some travel issues and made an emergency trip to and from Madrid. Even with the craziness, we still had time to go to el Parque de Buen Retiro in Madrid. I would say it is my favorite part of Madrid. I go there every time I am i Madrid, so of course, I had to show it to my parents. :)

This picture is of me and Mom in front of one of the big ponds:

The next day, we finally got to see Sevilla-- and we sure did see a lot! We started off by going to los Reales Alcazares. This was once the Moorish palace and then was taken over by the Christians and then served various political purposes. However, it still maintains its "mudejar" (morrish) style. Its very beautiful. Here is a pic of the gardens:

We then went to the Plaza de Espana. It is a beautiful plaza that was built in 1929 for an exposition of all countries that speak Spanish. It might be my favorite place in Sevilla.

Then, we headed back to the historic center and went to the Cathedral of Sevilla. It is the largest cathedral in the world and the 3rd largest Christian church. It is massive and impressve. Here is a picture from La Giralda (the tower that is in moorish style, because it was once a Mosque).

Sevilla is world famous for its processions that occur all over town during Semana Santa. It was insanely crowded at night and there were processions going on everywhere. There were 9 going on at once! And all within a relatively concentrated area because they all have to pass by the Cathedral. We would get stuck in zones because the processions would be blocking off all of our routes. Mom and Dad did not enjoy the craziness very much, but I thought it was an amazing thing to experience. Ever since i learned about the processions in Sevilla, it has been on my list of things to see. Here is a pic of one:

The next day morning. We headed off to Don Benito, my little town. I was very excited to get to show them Don Benito since its where I am living my life right now. I showed them the parks, my apartment, the main avenue and we even got to see Don Benito's procession for Maudy Thursday.

Here is Mom and Dad in the Plaza de Espana in Don Benito:

And here is a pic of the Procession in Don Benito:

The next morning we headed off the Madrid-- the last stop on mom and dad's trip. I first took them on the normal site-seeign route in Madrid. The route I pretty much take everyone on. We went to the normal locations: Plaza de Espana, El Palacio Real, Plaza Mayor, Puerta del Sol, Gran Via, The National Library. I have never been able to make inside the National Library. I have tried to go many times, but I have never actually made it inside. And, of course, when we tried to go, it was closed for Holiday. ... sigh... Some day.

Here is Mom and Dad in the lovely Plaza Mayor:

Then we hiked it out to the Plaza de Toros. It is a beautiful plaza. We couldnt go in, but the outside is impressive enough. (Mom got in my picture, haha)

And then on Saturday morning, Mom and Dad flew back to the United States. I was lucky that they could come and visit me. It was great to have them here and I was glad I got to share something that is a big part of who I am-- Spain and Spanish.

Coming soon-- the blog about me and Nicole's adventures!

Madrid-- Megafaun, Bull Fight and Flamenco

We arrived in Madrid on Friday afternoon. Our hostel had a great location. It was right on Gran Via and our room looked out onto the plaza and the street. Here is me and Justin and the plaza behind us.

That night, we went to a show in Madrid. Megafaun (from Durham, NC, and friends of Spencer) were playing in Madrid. I had been planning on going to Madrid for the show since I heard about it. And, fortunately it was on weekend, so I was able to. Here is a picture of the poster that advertised the show.

Here we (Justin, Nick, and I) are waiting for the show to start:

The name of the club was Moby Dick and it was all decorated very nautical-ish.

The show was absolutely fantastic. I had seen Megafaun a few times in NC before Madrid, so I know it was going to be great. I was able to talk to them some after the show and it was nice to see people from NC-- a little bit of home in Spain.

I have a video of part of one of their songs at the end of the post. The quality is pretty bad.

On Saturday, Justin was flying out and Nick and I stayed in Madrid to enjoy the day. The day started off with a weird occurence-- There was some type of filming going on right outside of our hostel in which hundreds of motorcycles were parading threw the plaza and out onto Gran Via.

Nick and I had kind of a slow start to the morning-- we had to change hostels and we went to a book shop, and a few more things. Before we knew it, it was lunch time and we went and ate at the lovely Parque de Buen Retiro. Its probably my favorite part of Madrid. I make a point to go there pretty much everytime I am in Madrid. It has been kinda sad and cold in Madrid recently until this trip, so I got to enjoy it the way it should be enjoyed. :)

Later that day we went to a Bull fight. It was my first one. I must say that the Bull ring stadium in Madrid is quite beautiful.

Here is some art outside of the Plaza de Toros:

I had been warned many times by Spaniards that I was not going to like bullfighting. So, I felt like I had mentally prepared alot. Even so, the first bull that was killed was still quite jarring. But after the first bull you get kinda de-sensitized. And I spent a lot of the time trying to figure out the rules, etc of the sport. Here is a video of the last part of the killing of one bull. I think this was the third bull of the Corrida. (Corrida is the name for the bullfight)

Here is a picture of the "team" of torreros (bullfighters). The 'lesser' toreros use pink capes, and the head honcho uses a red cape like you saw in the video above.

Here is an image of the bullfight in the plaza. I think it helps emit the true sense and "antiguedad" of the Spanish corridas.

And, here is me sitting in the stands:

Later that night we sought out a bar that had Flamenco music. We finally found a place that had this older man and guitarist just playing and singing their hearts out. I was pretty happy to see that everyone else there was Spanish, so it felt a little more authentic. As with Spanish music, everyone watching claps along and yells "ole" when the singer/guitarist/dancer does a good job. I have a video below of the singer and guitarist and also two girls who did some improv Sevillanas dancing. I am taking Sevillanas classes, so it was awesome to see some Sevillanas as it is done in the little Spanish bars. It was pretty thrilling for me.

Video of the concert: This recording is really bad. Some guy in front of me kept getting in my way, so i had to keep moving and I eventually gave up before the song was over. But I wanted to put it on here for my own memory.

Weekend in Herrera del Duque

So this past weekend,myself, 3 other auxiliares, and 2 visiting Americans all went to the village, Herrera del Duque to visit another auxiliar, Nick.

The first night we just hung out in Nick's piso and made some delicious pasta carbonara.

Saturday morning we woke up early and went and had some coffee and tostadas/catalanas with a couple who Nick is friends with.

Then we all drove halfway up a mountain, that neighbors Herrera del Duque. Once halfway-up, we hiked the other half up and explored a deteriorating castle. It was super guay.

This is me and Cheri in front of the landscape. And here is a picture of the beautiful olive trees that were all along the path up to the castle.

This is a picture of Liam, Justin, myself, and Cheri in front of the Castle.

We kinda had to walk over rubble to get into the castle. It was quite an adventure. We felt like we had discovered some unknown ruin. Javier, who is in the background, told us that most people did not care about the castle because it is not well conserved. But it was for that reason that we all found it so intriguing.

Later that day we met a lot of Nick's friends for lunch.  We ate cuchinillo, which is like a small suckling pig.  It was pretty good.  But it was a pricey meal (23 euros a piece).  Eek!

Then we headed to a bar to watch the Real Madrid game.  The Spaniards are so crazy about their futbol.  The power kept flickering earlier because of the crazy winds, so they brought in a generator to insure that not a second would be lost of the game.  That bar was super packed during the game.

After the Real Madrid game we watched the Barcelona game and apparently Herrera people are all Madrid fans because they were routing hard against Barca even though they were playing Malaga.

During the Barca game we all shared raciones and then all hung out till late into the night.

It was a wonderful weekend.  I am so glad I got to see this small town in Spain!

Paris, Je t'aime

This past weekend we had off Monday and Tuesday because it was a holiday. It was carnival in Spain. While most of my friends stayed in Spain to enjoy the huge Carnivale parties, I took advantage of the long weekend and went to Paris. I was very fortunate to also have one of my best friends from home visit me-- my college roommate Nicholle. she arrived in Madrid on Friday Feb 12th and that same day we flew off to Paris.

On Saturday, we spent the day walking around to most of the outdoor sites in Paris. We started off by going to see the church Sacre Coeur, which is located in Montmatre. We did this first because this was the main thing I wanted to do in Paris since I did not make it there when I went to Paris 3 years ago. It was absolutely beautiful. It was snowing while we were there, so the view from the church was phenomenal. Paris was so lovely covered in a cap of white snow.

We walked around Montmatre a little more, but we were unable to find the Moulin Rouge, so we just headed to our next destination-- The Eiffel Tower. This was my favorite part of Paris the first time around, so I was excited to do it again. 3 years ago, we were only able to go up to the second floor, but this time, Nicholle and I were able to go up to the top level, in which you are right below the needle at the very top. The view was amazing. Paris was still snowy, so it was a great view. And, as Im sure you have deduced, if it was snowing, that means it was cold. And it was very very cold. Half the time I could not feel my toes.

After the Eiffel Tower we went to the Arc de Triumph and then started to walk down the Champs Elysses but decided to go back to the hotel to warm up for a little while and then to later return to the city center to see Paris at night.

We did return later that night and walked around the Champs Elysses, Place de Concorde and then on the Seine towards the Eiffel Tower. We picked up some nutella crepes and ate them as we walked. We got to a good spot and we were able to see the Eiffel Tower for when it is all sparkly at the start of the hour.

The second day in Paris, we went to Versailles. The first time I went, we took a paid excursion, but this time we took the train out there and waited in the very ling ticket line. Versailles was very interesting to see this go 'round because the gardens were covered in a thin layer of snow which gave them a completely different character.

When we got back to Paris from Versailles, we went straight to Musee d'Orsay. The line was very long because on Sundays there is a reduced entrance fee. I loved Musee d'Orsay. It was the perfect amount of paintings without being overwhelming and the building was gorgeous-- it used to be a train station and it maintains that charm.

Afterwards we walked around a little more before returning to our hostel and then to dinner at a Brasserie. We both tried the Beef borgeonon (sp??). And it was delicious and very filling!

Our last day, we started off the morning by going to Montmatre again to try and track down the Moulin Rouge and do a little tourist shoppin before heading back. We also got some crepes and wandered around the neighborhood a little more.

Then we headed to Notre Dame, and then we wandered around the Latin Quarter and headed to the Pantheon.

We flew back to Madrid that night, but after being delayed over an hour and a half. Im about to give up on flying. I dont think I have been on a single on-time flight in a very very long time.

We arrived in Madrid, and I was pleased to discover that Nicholle really liked Madrid.

We spent most of Monday wandering the streets of Madrid (when it wasnt raining that is) and just having a more relaxed day. Nicholle and I both happened to injure a foot, so we were not too speedy at walking.

We returned to Don Benito Tuesday night at 11:30pm. It was a very full weekend, but wonderful. I was so happy to go to Paris again. It is such a beautiful city. I dare say it is the most beautiful in Spain. However, in the end, I was ready to return to Don Benito, where it is much warmer. :)

Nicholle left today to go back to Madrid to catch her flight in the morning. It was sad to see her go. I enjoyed so much having her here. But I know it is not long till my parents come, so I cant be too upset.

It feels good to be back in Spain for awhile. In France I missed Spain, so its nice to be "home".

Trip to Italy

Today is MLK Day in the States, but you would never know that here. I would never have realized it if it wasnt for Spencer mentioning it. No vacation for me. I have school today, but I get plenty of other days off, so Im not complaining.

Jenna left on Saturday after being here for 2 weeks. With Spencer and Jenna both visiting I had a month with visitors. How lucky I am

The day Jenna arrived was the day Spencer left. That same day, Jenna and I flew to Rome, Italy. We got to our hostel at 11pm, and were very exhausted, especially Jenna after the flight and jet lag. The next morning we walked around Rome. We went to the coliseum and Roman forum and then went to the Trevi fountian and then to that small island in the middle of the river... that was kind of lackluster after it took us awhile to walk there. We did discover some more ruins along the way. That afternoon we caught a train to Naples and got to our hostel by 6:30 or 7ish. We were pretty excited about this hostel because it had a 99% rating on hostel world, and I have never seen a rating that high. And I have to say– it did not disappoint. When we first arrived the hostel owner sat down with us and told us all about Naples (Napoli in italian) and the good places to go, etc etc. He talked with us for an hour and a half. In the midst he asked if we had eaten (and we hadn’t) so he told us he was going to cook for us. How kind He made us pasta with home-made pesto sauce– delicious

The next day we went sitseeing around Napoli. The best part of the day was going up to the Castle of St. Elmo. It had amazing views of all around Napoli (360 view). We got up there right before sunset so we got to see Napoli in the 3 lights- daylight, sunset, and night. It was wonderful.

The next day we went to Mt. Vesuvio and Pompeii. We joined up with 3 guys from our hostel, and thus, with such a large group it took us awhile to get started. We caught a shuttle up to a parking lot and then we had to climb up to the summit. It was really cold. Jenna did not like the climbing too much, but I kinda liked it. It was straight-up but it wasnt too awful far. However, the summit was absolutely freezing. It was windy and then it began to snow. We were lucky we got there when we did because when we started to climb back down all these clouds moved in and you couldnt see anything. Whew Just in time

Once we got back down the mountain, we set off for Pompeii.

Pompeii was amazing, but it cost. 11 euros for entrance. Thats like $16.50. And somehow none of the 5 of us spotted the free maps that were given out at the ticket office. So here we were wondering around this massive town of ruins with no map and no idea our direction. We eventually borrowed someone’s map to see what we had seen and what parts we still hadnt seen yet. I think we eventually made it to everything major, but im sure we missed a few sights. It was absoutely incredible to see an entire city preserved like that– streets and houses, temples, and theatres. We spent like 2.5 hours. They say the norm is 4. I think the lack of map and the freezing, rainy weather cut our time short.

Even though we were not there long, we were exhausted by the end of the day. Luckily when we got back to the hostel Giovanni (our hostel owner) was making lasagna for dinner for everyone. Made with homemade noodles. He was cooking for hours. He told us that morning that we were going to have dinner at 8:30.... however it was 11pm by the time we actually started eating. But I must say it was worth the wait. It was delicious

The next day Jenna and I went to Capri (island off of the coast of Napoli). It was a beautiful day. We took the ferry there and then walked all around the island.

We hiked up to a roman palace that had fantastic views all around the island. AAAnnddd it actually did not rain. It was amazing since it had rained and was horrible weather the day before.

That night we ate at the most famous and best pizza restaurant in Naples (Gino Sorbillo), and since Naples has the world’s best pizza, then it was clearly the best pizza in the world. Yummmmm

So, the following day we were planning on going to Dubrovnik, but we realized that the ferry times would not permit us to go, so we added another night in Naples and added an extra night in Rome. So, with our extra day in Naples we went to a town called Casera and visited the Royal Palace there. The say the palace is bigger than Versailles with gardens that rival Versailles’ as well. However, I do not think that the gardens were as spectacular as Versailles, but the palace was nicer I would say.

That night Giovanni cooked another meal. Homemade pasta with chickpeas. Delicious

The next morning we went to a few churches in Napoles we hadn’t visited yet and then we did a little shopping at a store jenna wanted to go to.

That afternooon we caught a train to Rome. We got to our hostel around 6 or 7 and then decided to go explore Rome by night. We went to the Pantheon and got there right before it closed. We ate at a restaurant right next to the Pantheon in their outdoor patio. Then we walked over to Piazzo Navona. Then we walked back to our hostel but went thru the Roman Forum section. It was so different at night– all the ruins were lit-up and it was silent, because none of the tourists were around. I am glad we got to see the ruins that way.

The next day we decided to do the catacombs tour. It required a little bit of travel– metro and city bus. A little difficult since we don’t speak italian, but we made it alright. Our tour guide was a little difficult to understand, but it was ery interesting over all. He said essentially that we were exploring the ruins of the very first Christian church in Rome. Paul had been there and everything. That was pretty amazing.

After the catacombs we decided to hunt down this hot air balloon. I read in a otur book that there were hot air balloon rides in the biggest hot air balloon in the world (holds 35 people). I looked it up online too to make sure it existed. It cost 15 euros– not bad for a balloon ride. So we hunted the location down and as luck would have it the company is out of buisness.... sad. We got to walk thru a new part of Rome, so it was okay.

We then went to Vatican City. We got into St. Peter’s basilica right before it started pouring. And we decided to stay until the rain calmed down. It really didnt take long and St. Peters was pretty empty compared to how it was when I was there 3 years ago.

That night we had free dinner at our hostel and then went out for some gelati :) Yummmm

The next day, our last day in Rome, our last day in italy, was not good. The weather was terrible. It just rained all day. And it was cold. We walked around some. We went to this church, where the crypt is decorated with bones. Super creepy. Like there are floral designs on the ceiling and walls that are made out of vertebrae. Bizarre. Me and Jenna were not keen on staying there long. What we read was that the decorations were intended to celebrate death, etc.... but I didnt really get that.

We did a little shopping, well mainly Jenna, I don’t think I bought anything and then we were off to the airport.

We got to Madrid by 11:45 and to our hostel by 1 am. That was a miserbale night. It was freezing in Madrid and our hostel had no heat. We barely slept because of the temperature. For once, we were actually happy to get up early and go to the bus station. We caught the 8:30 bus and were back in Don Benito by 12:30.

When we got back to don Benito it was freezing My piso was so cold Because it takes time to heat up my room with my little heater. It was Sunday so we had to take a little walk to this small store to buy some vegetables and bread to help us make some lunch (all the supermarkets are closed on Sundays. Well pretty much everything is closed on Sundays). But on the way home— it started snowing Now I know this isnt a crazy thing for most people, but it is extremely rare in Don Benito. By 8:00pm that night there was like 4 inches on the ground. And they said it hadnt snowed like that since 1983. And it was three years ago that flurrys just fell out of the sky.

The people were really funny about it. They had snowball fights and people brought out their nice cameras to take photos.

I was kinda hoping that I didnt have to go to school the next day, but as my luck goes, all the snow had washed away by the morning.

The first day back was fine. The students werent as crazy as I thought they would be.

Jenna seemed to enjoy the week in Don Benito. It was definitely a lot more laid back than our trip in Italy. We went shopping on Tuesday (I don’t work on Tuesdays except for a private lesson). But Jenna’s debit card had been blocked so we spent a good amount of time trying to call her bank on skype, etc, etc. Finally we got it all worked out and were able to go shopping. Lucky for Jenna it is “rebajas” time in Spain. This is essentially a nation-wide sale in Spain to encourage people to go shopping. This goes from the beginning of January to the beginning of March. I have not done much shopping at all since I have been here, so it was definitely fun to be able to with Jenna. On Friday morning, we left for Madrid. It actually wasn’t too cold in Madrid and we spent the afternoon walking around and site seeing and little bit of shopping. I was actually pretty impressed that Jenna was able to fit everything into her luggage when all her shopping was complete. On Saturday I saw Jenna off at the airport and I spent the afternoon wandering around Madrid a little bit. I went to a music store to see what kinda of music they sell. And I was kinda surprised at the breadth it had. One thing that I thougt was funny/interesting was that Weezer’s pinkerton album was on the “ofertas” rack (on sale). I almost bought just because it was a good deal and I liked that it was there. But my reasonable side kicked in and reminded me that I already have that CD and I did not need it.

After a few hours I wandered onto the bus station and then eventually I made it back to Don Benito. I was pretty warn out from all my travels so I slept like 12 hours that night.

Well, if you made it all the way thru that post, I am very impressed. I know I should write shorter, more frequent posts... I will try that.

Thanks for reading.

Un beso

Update on my christmas travels

I wrote a blog entry a month ago, but never posted it... i think it is too late to post it now. So i will just write a new one.

Today is my first day back at work after my three week break. During that break I traveled alot around Europe/Africa.

Spencer arrived on December 19th and we stayed two nights in Madrid. I was so excited for him to come! I am so lucky that he missed Christmas in NC to spend it with me here. On Dec 21, we flew to Marrakech and stayed there 3 nights. It was not like any other place I have ever been. It is a lot what you imagine. There were street performers and snake charmers and general madness around the main square in the medina. Marrakech kinda wore me out in the sense that I always had to watch my back. Traffic was crazy and women are second class citizens, which was not something i was used to. Overall it was a great excperience and I am glad we went.

After Morroco, spencer and I flew to lisbon, portugal and arrived on Christmas eve and stayed there 3 nights. I loved lisbon! (even tho it rained most of the time we were there) . We got caught in the rain on Christmas day and spent the next several hours drying off in our hostel.

It was definitely weird not to be at home for Christmas, especially since europeans arent into it like americans are. The lights were beautiful in lisbon tho. Every street had a different kind of lights. Ill put up pics on facebook later. While in Lisbon, we took a day trip to Sintra and neighboring town. It was a very beautifulplace with lost of palaces and an awesome castle perched high on a hill. It actually didnt rain that day, so we had a beautiful day.

After portugal we returned to Spain and spent the next two nights in don benito. We took a day trip to Merida, a city 40 mins away that is filled with roman ruins. It was pretty incrdible. They have a beautiful roman theatre. One our way back to the bus station we got caught in the rain (again) and we were completely soaked. Our umbrella and rain jackets did not help defend us from the rain. I dont think spencer was in too good of a mood by this point. At least we were able to dry off in my apartment that night.

The next day we left early for sevilla and stayed there for one night. It was pretty rainy there as well. I kept telling spencer how beautiful sevilla is when its sunny. The second day we were there, it was sunny! Yay! But storms started rolling in when we left. At least he got to see it in some sunlight.

The next day we went off to madrid to spend new years. In spain the tradition is to drink Cava (champagne) and eat grapes at midnight. 12 grapes to be exact- You eat a grape at each chime of the clock at midnight. With every grape you eat on the chime you are supposed to have a month of good luck. We were in the main plaza and we could not hear the chimes well at all, so we just ate our grapes... i dont think I will have good luck, haha. Afterwards we went to the most famous chocolate con churros place in madrid. Its open everyday of the year. It was really good i have to admit and i normally dont like churros con chocolate.

The next day, spencer left me :( I was really sad to see him go. Luckily, jenna arrived the same day so i didnt wallow in self-pity. hehe.

I will write another post to update on me and jennas trip. I think this is enough for now. Thanks for reading!