Hola amigos,
Just a quick update... I cannot believe this will be my final blog post! I am back in Madrid now after a wonderful 3 weeks full of travel. I went on a 5 day road trip from Madrid, to Bilbao, through southern France and the Pyrenees, to Barcelona, Valencia and then back to Madrid. It was an amazing trip - I got to see so many sides of Spain that I hadn't seen yet. I think after all of my travels throughout Spain, I have realized that it really has such a huge mix of landscapes and cultures. Our first day of driving, we left Madrid, drove through land that looked like Arizona, then drove through beautiful lush green that reminded me of Virginia, then up to the north coast to drive through mountains along the ocean. I am so glad I was able to see so many wonderful parts of Spain before leaving. We rented a Smart car, which actually worked out perfectly and was really fun! We tried our best to keep off of the toll roads, which was a great decision - we got to see so many little Spanish towns. The Pyrenees were just beautiful. It isn't tourist season here yet (starts in July), so it was pretty neat to see the chalet towns with mostly locals. And of course, it was great to return to Barcelona. I really like returning places... it really makes me feel like I actually live in Madrid. Valencia was also a lot of fun - we spent as much time as we could at the beach and walked around their really neat "City of Arts and Sciences", a museum complex designed by Santiago Calatrava. Ah what a wonderful trip. Somewhere along the way, my camera stopped working, which has been a bummer - so I have to rely on getting pictures from friends for all of June.
I then went to Paris for 5 days! Another absolutely beautiful city. I had such a good time there. Our hostel was in Montmarte, where Moulin Rouge is, which is such a neat neighborhood. We did a couple walking tours, got in free to all of the museums (EU residents under 26 wohoo!), went to Versailles and just enjoyed the city... which included getting banana nutella crepes :). I loved the musee d'orsay, which just has a BUNCH of impressionist paintings. I had a bit of trouble trying to pronounce anything French, but that just made it that much better to come back to españa. The World Cup kicked off while we were there, so we made sure we were able to watch some of those games.. including USA vs. England! It was really neat though, France played on opening night, so we went down to a FIFA festival that was just across the river from the Eiffel Tower... not a bad place to watch a soccer match!
Christina flew back to Madrid with me and on Monday night we left to do our leg of the Camino de Santiago. The camino is a pilgrimage that people have been doing for about a thousand years to Santiago de Compostela, where supposedly St. James's bones are buried. Over the course of 5 days, we hiked 115 km - so walking for about 7 hours a day. At night, they have cheap hostels or other accommodations set up in the small towns. It was basically like my trip out to the rockies, except you don't have to carry tents or cooking gear or a lot of food - much easier! Once again, I am so happy to have been able to see so many small towns. Galicia (the province that we were in, northwest corner of Spain) is absolutely beautiful and most people compare its landscape to Ireland. It felt so good to get out and HIKE.. and made me so excited to go up to the boundary waters in just a couple weeks! Most people walked about the same distance each day, so we got to know the people who were doing the walk also. We met a really nice Spanish guy and a great old German man. It was such a nice last trip for me... plenty of time to reflect on my life here in Spain, but also just time to be in the moment and enjoy the part of Spain that I was seeing. I would really like to come back sometime and do a different path - there are about 8 all leading towards Santiago. It is so neat because they have markers (sea shell tiles and arrows) every step of the way, so you don't need to have a map or directions or anything... you can just hike and take in what's around you. What a fabulous trip. The whole thing has gotten into a tourist business, so it was a bit of a quick change when we made it into Santiago to see tour groups who had purchased fake walking sticks all waiting in line for the pilgrims mass (which we unfortunately missed). Although I didn't do the walk for any "religious" reasons, it was touching to walk by the handfuls of churches along the route that had been built by pilgrims.
Well and now I'm back in the lovely Madrid and I feel at home... my feelings of almost being done are so mixed. I take my last exam and turn in a project tomorrow morning, and then I'm free as a bird to live as a Spaniard does for six days - enjoy the sun, futbol matches, my roommates' company and beer in the park. I leave here next Monday morning and will get into Chicago at 7 pm central time. After so much traveling, I think that the 15 hour day will be a piece of cake and then I will have my wonderful sister to greet me at the airport! :D The rest of my summer is pretty busy, mostly catching up with family and friends, with trips to the boundary waters, Madison, North Carolina built in. I will be back in Mahtomedi on the 4th, and I hope to see you all soon!
Go USA and España!!, Bonnie
Monday, June 21, 2010
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
The end of May
AAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH.
...me becoming anxious/eager about the prospect of having only 4 weeks left here. I've had a wonderful last week and a half. Will got here just after I last posted, and we have had some nice adventures :) He has met most of my friends here, which has been a lot of fun! Last weekend, we went to Avila, which is a small city about an hour and a half northwest of Madrid that is known for its well-preserved medieval walls, built in the 11th century. The walls, which we were able to climb and walk (almost) on top of, are 2.5 km long and make a full circle around the old city. It was my first time seeing something so extensive! Although similar to the wall in Alcudia in Mallorca that I was able to climb on, the one in Avila is complete; this makes it much easier to imagine the city actually fitting inside the walls (... or better yet to imagine Monty Python and the Holy Grail taking place there!) Last Monday and Tuesday, I had to turn in my last paper and take 3 exams for my Reunidas (American) classes. They all went pretty well.. and I am soooo relieved to have them finished! I no longer have 8 hours straight of classes, nor do I have to wake up at 7:30 for class :) I just have two more days of class for my Complutense (Spanish) classes, so I'll be done with those this Tuesday. Only three things (assignment, paper, exam) remain for those classes and then I'm officially a senior.. that deserves another aaaahhhhhh!
Will and I just got back the other night from our quick trip to Córdoba, Sevilla and Lisbon. It was all fabulous! Córdoba has La Mezquita, a really famous old mosque (the one with hundreds of red and white striped arches and pillars). It was so overwhelming yet so intimate at the same time. When the Christians reconquered, they set up a cathedral smack dab in the center of the mosque, so it was a really interesting contrast. The entire building is 600 x 400 feet - maybe half of that is a closed-in court yard. Of the indoors part, most of it is the old mosque: low ceilings with the regular pattern of double arches and marble pillars. The focus was on the horizontal plane and being able to walk and walk.. and still be inside this haven. They said that when it was in use, 20,000 Muslims could pray inside of it on their Friday services. It was so large but wasn't overpowering. Then, in the middle, it opens into a beautiful cathedral that is so different: vastly tall and overpowering. It all brings up interesting contrasts of the religions and the interpretation of god.
After a few hours in Córdoba, we took a quick bus ride to Sevilla. I'm so glad I got to return there! The first time I went was after being in Spain for only 2 weeks, so this time I had a completely different view on Spanish culture. Sevilla is an absolutely beautiful city, and we spent our day and a half there mostly exploring, but also seeing the cathedral and the old fortress. The cathedral is the biggest gothic one in the world - this aspect of it was breathtaking. It houses what are supposedly Columbus's bones (they have somehow been DNA tested) and the world's largest pearl (which acts as the torso of the body of an angel on an insanely decorated crown). Also in Sevilla, we went to the Bullfighting museum. I am so glad that I went! Bullfighting is more traditional in Andalucia and the stadium in Sevilla is much older than Madrid's, so it was really neat to see their museum. I am considering seeing a bullfight before I leave. Our tour guide told us about a lot of the history behind the cultural practice; back in the day, the townspeople loved the days of bullfights because the meat of the killed bulls was given to the townspeople - so a bullfight meant food. Now, although they no longer donate the meat, they do sell it in markets. Apparently, they have the breed of the bull down just right so that it has enough grit but also has the right ratio of muscle and fat! Anyways, it seems to me that it is much better to acknowledge the bull's life and take it in a ceremonial fashion, than to systematically slaughter him. But at the same time, bullfighting is becoming less popular with locals and is slowly becoming a tourist-only activity. I keep going back and forth on this issue... we'll see what I decide!
On Thursday night, we took an overnight bus to Lisbon. Friday was an absolutely awesome day - we went "casteling" in Sintra, a small town 30 km outside of Lisbon. It is in the mountains and completely, ABSOLUTELY, breathtaking. We visited 3 castles - 2 recent (the last 200 years) and one from the Moors in the 8th century. The whole day was just so wonderful. The grounds of all of the places were just so fun to explore... minus the fact that the only shoes I had were flip flops! From the castles, you can see the ocean in 3 directions (there is a river/bay that goes inland toward Lisbon). Although none of my pictures come even close to showing the stunning views, I sure did take a lot. When we were back in the city, we spent our time mostly walking around. Lisbon is also very hilly, so there are a lot of really great views of the city and the ocean. In 1755, a big earthquake flattened most of the city, so a lot of it is rebuilt in grid pattern... but some neighborhoods remain with the haphazard narrow winding streets; the contrast of the two is so cool, and you can even see it from some views of the city. Apparently Lisbon's sister city is San Francisco.. and there is a bridge there over the large river/bay that looks just like the Golden Gate bridge. They also have a large cross (on the opposite side of the bay) that is like the one in Rio de Janiero.
I loved the vibe of Lisbon. It seems like a worn down city, but with people who love "keeping it real" and enjoying life. English is definitely received a lot better in Lisbon than here in Madrid; I even felt a bit like the Portuguese would prefer me to speak in English over Spanish. Lisbon is definitely somewhere I want to return to!
As for now, I'm spending a couple of days in Madrid. Tomorrow is my last day of class (for my Complutense classes) - I am really excited to be done with it! On Wednesday morning, my friend Amanda and I are going on our road trip through northern and eastern Spain... this is one trip that I have been looking forward to (hoping to do) for quite some time... it is going to be great! Although we still don't know our exact route, we're driving from Madrid, north to Bilbao, east through the Pyrenees to Barcelona and south along the Mediterranean coast to Valencia, where we'll turn back toward Madrid. I am so so lucky :) :)
Sending my love, Bonnie
...me becoming anxious/eager about the prospect of having only 4 weeks left here. I've had a wonderful last week and a half. Will got here just after I last posted, and we have had some nice adventures :) He has met most of my friends here, which has been a lot of fun! Last weekend, we went to Avila, which is a small city about an hour and a half northwest of Madrid that is known for its well-preserved medieval walls, built in the 11th century. The walls, which we were able to climb and walk (almost) on top of, are 2.5 km long and make a full circle around the old city. It was my first time seeing something so extensive! Although similar to the wall in Alcudia in Mallorca that I was able to climb on, the one in Avila is complete; this makes it much easier to imagine the city actually fitting inside the walls (... or better yet to imagine Monty Python and the Holy Grail taking place there!) Last Monday and Tuesday, I had to turn in my last paper and take 3 exams for my Reunidas (American) classes. They all went pretty well.. and I am soooo relieved to have them finished! I no longer have 8 hours straight of classes, nor do I have to wake up at 7:30 for class :) I just have two more days of class for my Complutense (Spanish) classes, so I'll be done with those this Tuesday. Only three things (assignment, paper, exam) remain for those classes and then I'm officially a senior.. that deserves another aaaahhhhhh!
Will and I just got back the other night from our quick trip to Córdoba, Sevilla and Lisbon. It was all fabulous! Córdoba has La Mezquita, a really famous old mosque (the one with hundreds of red and white striped arches and pillars). It was so overwhelming yet so intimate at the same time. When the Christians reconquered, they set up a cathedral smack dab in the center of the mosque, so it was a really interesting contrast. The entire building is 600 x 400 feet - maybe half of that is a closed-in court yard. Of the indoors part, most of it is the old mosque: low ceilings with the regular pattern of double arches and marble pillars. The focus was on the horizontal plane and being able to walk and walk.. and still be inside this haven. They said that when it was in use, 20,000 Muslims could pray inside of it on their Friday services. It was so large but wasn't overpowering. Then, in the middle, it opens into a beautiful cathedral that is so different: vastly tall and overpowering. It all brings up interesting contrasts of the religions and the interpretation of god.After a few hours in Córdoba, we took a quick bus ride to Sevilla. I'm so glad I got to return there! The first time I went was after being in Spain for only 2 weeks, so this time I had a completely different view on Spanish culture. Sevilla is an absolutely beautiful city, and we spent our day and a half there mostly exploring, but also seeing the cathedral and the old fortress. The cathedral is the biggest gothic one in the world - this aspect of it was breathtaking. It houses what are supposedly Columbus's bones (they have somehow been DNA tested) and the world's largest pearl (which acts as the torso of the body of an angel on an insanely decorated crown). Also in Sevilla, we went to the Bullfighting museum. I am so glad that I went! Bullfighting is more traditional in Andalucia and the stadium in Sevilla is much older than Madrid's, so it was really neat to see their museum. I am considering seeing a bullfight before I leave. Our tour guide told us about a lot of the history behind the cultural practice; back in the day, the townspeople loved the days of bullfights because the meat of the killed bulls was given to the townspeople - so a bullfight meant food. Now, although they no longer donate the meat, they do sell it in markets. Apparently, they have the breed of the bull down just right so that it has enough grit but also has the right ratio of muscle and fat! Anyways, it seems to me that it is much better to acknowledge the bull's life and take it in a ceremonial fashion, than to systematically slaughter him. But at the same time, bullfighting is becoming less popular with locals and is slowly becoming a tourist-only activity. I keep going back and forth on this issue... we'll see what I decide!
On Thursday night, we took an overnight bus to Lisbon. Friday was an absolutely awesome day - we went "casteling" in Sintra, a small town 30 km outside of Lisbon. It is in the mountains and completely, ABSOLUTELY, breathtaking. We visited 3 castles - 2 recent (the last 200 years) and one from the Moors in the 8th century. The whole day was just so wonderful. The grounds of all of the places were just so fun to explore... minus the fact that the only shoes I had were flip flops! From the castles, you can see the ocean in 3 directions (there is a river/bay that goes inland toward Lisbon). Although none of my pictures come even close to showing the stunning views, I sure did take a lot. When we were back in the city, we spent our time mostly walking around. Lisbon is also very hilly, so there are a lot of really great views of the city and the ocean. In 1755, a big earthquake flattened most of the city, so a lot of it is rebuilt in grid pattern... but some neighborhoods remain with the haphazard narrow winding streets; the contrast of the two is so cool, and you can even see it from some views of the city. Apparently Lisbon's sister city is San Francisco.. and there is a bridge there over the large river/bay that looks just like the Golden Gate bridge. They also have a large cross (on the opposite side of the bay) that is like the one in Rio de Janiero.
The gorgeous view from one castle (built in the 1800s) - you can see the old Moorish castle on the next hump in the background!
My friend Jacob and I with the Lisbon hills in the background
I loved the vibe of Lisbon. It seems like a worn down city, but with people who love "keeping it real" and enjoying life. English is definitely received a lot better in Lisbon than here in Madrid; I even felt a bit like the Portuguese would prefer me to speak in English over Spanish. Lisbon is definitely somewhere I want to return to!
As for now, I'm spending a couple of days in Madrid. Tomorrow is my last day of class (for my Complutense classes) - I am really excited to be done with it! On Wednesday morning, my friend Amanda and I are going on our road trip through northern and eastern Spain... this is one trip that I have been looking forward to (hoping to do) for quite some time... it is going to be great! Although we still don't know our exact route, we're driving from Madrid, north to Bilbao, east through the Pyrenees to Barcelona and south along the Mediterranean coast to Valencia, where we'll turn back toward Madrid. I am so so lucky :) :)
Sending my love, Bonnie
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