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.

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