Well the honeymoon period has definitly run its course and i'm now starting to miss some of the luxuries (if you would call them that) of home. Running tally of things I miss:
Hotels that have wash clothes, irons, and ice machines (they can afford to put a telephone next to the toilet for God only knows what, but they can’t get me a stinking wash cloth… priorities people) CHIPOTLE ( I realize I’m getting the real deal, authentic, fresh Spanish food, but I do miss the fake stuff that is so unbelievably processed and fattening, but o so good) free refills (trust me, you don’t realize the things that really matter until you don’t have them anymore), free water, and Heinz ketchup. Now I have been told that the ketchup here tastes different because it’s made with real sugar instead of high fructose corn syrup which is apparently not as good for you, but as those commercials say, it’s made with corn so its natural, and either way… I miss my high fructose corn syrup! What else? O ya, not spending half my life on a bus, understanding when people speak around me, the food network (this is a big one!!!), and having the mouths of the people on a TV show match the sound of what they are saying (the whole dubbing over thing is surprisingly annoying). Not having my whole meal consist of carbs; I understand that this one is shocking for me since I am basically the queen of carbs, but there is only so much bread and potatoes one person can intake. I miss vegetables that aren’t cooked within an inch of their life. You could literally eat the vegetables here without teeth and be good to go. I think that’s about it. Oh, my family and friends… haha almost forgot (just kidding, I miss you all terribly).
While I am missing many of my American comforts, I wouldn't trade this experience for anything. I mean i'm in Spain!! I sometimes wake up not knowning where I am and then I get to be surprised all over again that i'm actually living in Spain! How cool is that?! Anyways onto the cultural stuff. This weekend we went to Andalucía, which is a region in the south of Spain. We managed to explore Granada, Cordoba, Seville, and Merida (which is actually in Extremadura not Andalucía) in 4 days… pretty impressive, although my body is definitely feeling it. In Granada we visited the Capilla Real or Royal Chapel (where Ferdinand and Isabel are buried), the Cathedral of Granada, and of course, the Alhambra. I find it interesting that there is so much money in the world these days, and we spend millions of dollars on these buildings that come no where even close to as magnificent as European buildings. People just don’t design and build like they used to. It’s so rare that a building is a piece of art these days which is sad because these cities are so full of beautiful buildings that everywhere you look there is something to marvel at. We were at a view looking over the city one day and I pointed to this beautiful orange and red building with a huge cupola and asked the director of our program what it was… turns out it was a restaurant. I felt like an idiot, but all I can say is it was the prettiest restaurant I have ever seen. The next day, I saw this beautiful castle looking building with a huge tower and bright colors and asked the director the same question thinking there was no way I could look like an idiot on this one because it had to be some royal palace of some kind… it was a gas station, awesome. I think the day there is a gas station in the US that is mistaken for a palace, the sky may actually fall. Well after our day in Granada we went to a flamenco show which was just incredible. They dance with such passion and strength and none of it is choreographed, it all about being taken over by the music. When the male flamenco dancer came out all the girls were rather underwhelmed and even whispering about how they expected him to be hotter. Then, when he started dancing all the girls were giggling and discussing how sexy he was. Lesson for men… learn to dance and it doesn’t really matter what you look like.
Our next stop was Cordoba where we visited la Mezquita de Cordoba. The mesquite was a place of worship built by the Arabs, and then when the Catholics took over the area and built a Cathedral literally in the center of the Mesquite. Kind of an interesting way to go about showing authority, but in those days if you wanted to express power you built a building taller and more ornate than your competition. However, it was very interesting to see the drastic contrast between the Arabic architecture and style and the Catholic/Spanish style. We then hit Seville, which ended up being my favorite out of the trip. The weather was so nice while we walked around Seville and the city is full of bright colors and palm trees. While in Seville we visited the Royal Alcazar, which is a series of beautiful buildings and gardens, and the Cathedral of Seville, which is the 3rd biggest cathedral in the world. 1st being The Vatican and 2nd being St. Paul’s in London, so after spring break I will have hit all three! Our last stop was Merida where we visited the ruins of a Roman amphitheatre and theatre. It was definitely a packed trip: 25 people, 4 days, 3 nights, 4 cities, 3 different hotels, countless cathedrals and palaces, about 700 pictures, 16 hours on a bus, MANY songs on my IPod, and an incredible experience later we headed back to home sweet Salamanca. Next adventure on the list… Mallorca in t-minus 8 days!
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