"Como la pena de ser ciego en Granada..."

"Dale limosna mujer,
que no hay en la vida nada;
como la pena de ser
ciego en Granada" --Francisco A. de Icaza

"Give him [blind beggar] alms, my wife,

For there is nothing in life... nothing

Like the pain of being

Blind in Granada"

We had an amazing weekend in Granada with our program. Nos preocupamos por el tiempo (we were worried about the weather), initially, because the city is located at the foot of the Sierra Nevada mountains, which translates to COLD. Packing for the trip wasn't too bad, because we only stayed for one night-- Mom, i packed up the Lesportsac messenger bag, glad I brought it!

I'm impressed because we were out of the house by 7:40. Vicki nos preparó dos bocadillos (made us each 2 sandwiches) to take with us for lunch, because our program does not like to feed us, so we packed them away for later. We hit the road about an hour later-- I think the entire trip doesn't take more than 3 hours, but we took close to 3 and a half because paramos para un descanso (we stopped for a break) at some weird rest stop. When we pulled into our destino (destination) in Granada, it was drizzling a bit, and you could tell they had had nasty weather for a little while, now.

We were in kind of a rush because La Capilla Real (The Royal Chapel) of Granada was threatening to close on us, so this was where the bus dropped us off first. This was definitely an interesting site because it is a mausoleo (mausoleum) that has the actual tombs of Los Reyes Católicos (the Catholic monarchs), King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella. On display were large monuments created to simulate and honor the tombs-- I think Laura and I were the only two whose ears perked up when the tour guide called our attention to the king's and queen's heads laying on the pillows: Isabella's head sunk deeper into the pillow because her head was full of heavier brains! Tanto monta... And then you could walk downstairs to a basement area and peak through a little ventana (window) and see the real things. We stared at the Gothic architecture for a little while (there were a few tours going on at once), and then we saw a really big alter piece that basically explained the history of Catholicism in Granada. Some of it was harder to appreciate because I'm just not educated enough on this religion, and a lot of the details went over my head. But the fact that everything is depicted in imágenes (images) mitigates it a little bit, especially because some of them are really profound-- they vividly display the suffering of Jesus, with blood and sad faces. We talked about a few different St. Johns, both the Baptist and the Evangelist. One was clearly portrayed as being hervido (boiled) because his ideas went against the norm. The other one was decapitated (you could see specific detail in his exposed neck) because he didn't reciprocate someone's love, and she ordered his head be served to her on a silver platter. They take everything literally. We quickly browsed through a room filled with sculptures, paintings, tapestries, and other reliquias (relics) before calling it quits.

It was definitely un alivio (a relief) to see that the rain had stopped, though it was still chilly and a little cloudy when we boarded the bus again. The bus took us to the top of St. Nicholas' viewpoint, a very high point in the city from which you can get a great panoramic view of the city and the Alhambra palace/citadel. We took some lovely scenic pictures from up top, and then walked all the way down through narrow streets and alley ways. It was kind of weird to be walking right through some people's backyards, but it all seemed really nice and rustic. The bus was waiting for us at the bottom, conveniently 5 minutes away from our lovely hostal, Atenas. We grabbed our stuff and braved the inside... which actually wasn't so bad! Laura and I shared a room with one of the Abby's and her roommate, Ashley (other Abby had already seen Granada con sus padres (with her parents) so she wasn't there). The beds took up most of the room, and the bathroom was pretty clean-- It served its purpose.

After scoping out the room, we grabbed our sandwiches (gracias a Vicki!) and then took advantage of all the tiempo libre (free time) that lay ahead. We walked up and down these little side streets with all kinds of boutiques. It was really helpful navigating the city with Ashley, because she had already been to Granada and has a photographic memory. The city, itself, is much smaller than Sevilla and seems more modern, sobre todo (over all)-- see the pictures. You can definitely feel the difference in the paces of life led by los Sevillanos in comparison with the people of Granada. The only thing that struck me as odd were the perros (dogs). And that's because they were alllll the size of wolves, were running amuck in the streets without leashes (but they somehow knew when it was a good idea to cross the street, as to evitar (avoid) being hit by a car), and all appeared to have their eyes covered with bangs. OK.

After walking our feet off, we ducked into a Moroccan tea place recommended by Ashley. The ambiente (atmosphere) was really relaxed-- hookah laced the entire room, we sat on little couchy things, and the tea came in old fashioned kettles. It was a nice break, and we ended up spending a few hours just talking. By this point, our friend Robin had joined us.

Close to 10PM, we were ready to experience la marcha (the night life) that is Granada! It is definitely heavily populated with college students all over the place, so the streets were definitely packed with students. We were so excited to go tapeando (tapa-hopping) the RIGHT way-- that is, ordering una cerveza (a beer-- or any drink, for that matter) from every restaurant and enjoying the free tapa that came with it! At our first stop, we all had bocadillos, and they served us bread with ham and aceite de oliva (olive oil). Laura and I don't eat ham, so it was kind of a problem, given how prevalent pork is, but we made do with bowls of olives, bread baskets, and boiled potatoes. We actually made it to 3 different tapas places before deciding it was time to get on with our night-- we also may or may not have convinced the camareros (bartenders) to let us come behind the bar and pretend to be cool....So, thanks to Ashley [again], we made it into the center of life and found the notorious Chupiteria, the greatest invention of a shot bar! They had 100 different shots, all 0.50 euros! We tried some good dessert flavored ones-- we are determined to find something comparable in Sevilla.

By 9am la próxima mañana (the next morning), we were all set to board the bus to the short drive over to La Alhambra. And we got SO lucky because the sun was out and everything, which really just makes everything and everyone much more pleasant-- remember the time it rained in Sevilla for 2 consecutive weeks without stopping? Right. So hacía sol (it was sunny), conveniently facilitating the 2 hour walking tour of one of the most incredible places I have ever seen-- construction of this palace/fortress (although the tour guide insisted we refer to it as un ciudadela (citadel)) was begun by the Moors in el siglo catorce (14th century), and lasted for around 250 years. The culture and architecture with La Alhambra reflects the last days of Muslim rule (Nasrid Emirate of Granada), as seen in the careful detail and tiniest arabesque calligraphy that repeats over and over in the arches and ceilings. We toured many of the chambers (I am blanking on specifics because there were just so many). The Christian conquista (conquest) of Granada was especially significant, seeing as this was the last city necessary to conquer in order to officially have united the Iberian peninsula under this rule; taking over the Alhambra sent a LOUD message to the people. Even without the tour guide's side notes, you could tell which portions had been majorly altered by the Christians.

One of my favorite parts was the Corte de Leones (the Court of the Lions). The actual fountain is being renovated, but we saw pictures in class. Our art teacher told us a little about the history, how the Mudejar style is apparent in the geometric and brick designs, embellished with ornamental tiles. The 12 bronze lions are quite the site when they complete the fountain, surrounding the exterior. According to our books, it was a reference to a "Paradise Garden," and also to the Temple of Solomon, which alludes to the wisdom of the monarch that inhabited the Alhambra at the time (Solomon the Wise). The actual courtyard was built before Sevilla's Alcázar, but reconstructed after-- we noted many similarities in designs between the two.

I also liked the section dedicated to Washington Irving, who wrote The Chronicles of the Conquest of Granada, which made him quite the super star. What we saw were the remains of sus muebles (his furniture) from when he actually moved into La Alhambra for literary inspiration for his Tales of La Alhambra. I'll post these pictures online as soon as I get the chance.

The final leg of the tour took us to el Palacio de Generalife, the "Garden of the Architect." Even though it is literally walking distance from La Alhambra, it was known as the summer palace/country estate for the Nasrid sultans when they needed a break from real palace life. At the time of the Muslim conquest, it became their last resort for hiding from the Christians (we got to the angle within Generalife where we could peer through a lookout point at el camino (the path) that the horses took to reach them. We walked through the Water-Garden Courtyard, with a long pool and beautiful fountains, all bordered by flowers. We walked through the Sultan's Garden, filled with Cypress árboles (trees), organized kind of like un laberinto (labyrinth). You could feel what was left of the Muslim influence, although the Christians definitely came in and made it their own. It was breath-taking.

Needless to say, we were muy consadas (very tired) by the end of this tour, but still had the rest of the day to ourselves. For lunch, we went to a Kebab place and I had my first exposure to Shawarma! It came with the big pita sandwich, french fries, and a drink for 5 euros, so we definitely went to town on that. We all got chicken, except for Abby who got falafel so we obviously sampled some of hers. And GO FIGURE we ran into other Cornell people from other programs on the streets of Granada-- only us! We spent the rest of the day shopping around, and we made it to their Corte Inglés, which looks exactly the same as ours in Sevilla. We marveled at the fact that they sell mantequilla de cacahuete (peanut butter), which you simply cannot find anywhere else, but we cringed at the fact that it sells for 6 euros. No thanks.

We slept for most of the bus ride home, and were muertas de hambre (starving) when we walked in. Except Ana and Manolo were nowhere to be found when we opened the door. Instead, we entered into Cristina's 50th birthday party! The room was filled with people smoking, eating, drinking, and laughing but naturally, the world stopped the second we opened our mouths to say "Hola." We recognized none of the faces staring back at us and quickly ran out as fast as we went in. Later on, when Vicki set us up for la cena, she mentioned that there was a muchacho (boy) at the party... he is studying in la Universidad and is from Tennessee. His name happens to be Zach. GO FREAKING FIGURE it was the same kid who pretended to be Spanish at that club and then awkwardly brought it up in class. And then he saw us walk in and make morons of ourselves. Laura jabbed me under the table and we rolled over laughing.

Although we had been non-stop moving since early viernes (Friday), we were ready to go out for the night. So we took our sweet time and did la marcha como si fuéramos sevillanas (night life as if we were from Sevilla). That is to say: go out to la discoteca at 2:30 and salir (leave) at 6. Well, we actually ended up staying out a little past 6, after contemplating the ever so popular dessert, churros con chocolate, and trying to figure out the bus system. Oh yeah, it was raining, too. By the time we walked in, it was about 7am, and we slept and slept until we heard la campana de la comida (the comida bell!)

So, it is now Tuesday night... we successfully booked our Madrid/Toledo trip for this weekend-- get there by bus, stay in a hostel. Laura and I will be traveling with our friends Abby and Robin-- qué divertido! (how fun!) I had my first examencito (quiz) experience... It pains me to even use the word, considering it was more like the teacher giving us the quiz and encouraging us to ask her to read over our answers before handing it in. Hey, I'm not complaining!

In other news, our favorite expression, "MIRA MIRA MIRA" (Deborah, you know the voice) was taken to the extreme this evening, when Vicki literally stormed into el comedor (dining room) with a huge magnifying glass, chanting, "NOW! MIRA MIRA MIRA!" We died. Once again.

All right, enough for now. Enjoy my pictures!

ADIOSSSS!

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"Y también, ella es lactosa!"

It's nice to be able to say buenas tardes (good afternoon/evening) at 7:30, and still note that the world hasn't turned pitch black.

Lueve, llueve, llueve (rain, rain, rain) seems to be the anthem this week. This weather is honestly bipolar-- within a 5 minute walk along the same path, it will be sunny and then, de repente (suddenly) the sky opens up.

On Tuesday morning, nos despedimos a (we said good-bye to) Deborah after a very nice desayuno (breakfast) with Ana. Manolo has not been joining us for meals lately because he has gotten really ill. His fever continúa subiendo (continues climbing), and he is really too weak to go up and down stairs. I popped in to see what he was up to, because he has been lounging in the second floor TV room-- you would never know he was sick by the way he lights up for us and gives us his staple, "HOLA HOLA HOLA." He was also fully clothed in his collared shirt, tie, and sweater. Pretty incredible. Ana has hope, as she keeps reassuring everyone that he respira muy fuerte (is breathing very strongly), or however strong you can breathe when aided by one of those oxygen machines. We're praying for him.

Back to desayuno... so we had our tostadas con mermelada de naranja (toast with orange jam) that I saw her making a few nights ago. It was buenisimo (delicious!) I like when Ana eats with breakfast with us-- we don't do it that often anymore because our horarios (schedules) are don't permit it. It's times like these when she gets very nostálgica (nostalgic) and talks to us about her past. She talked a little bit about growing up in Madrid, and how by the mere edad (age) of 9, her father sent her to el internado (boarding school). She just kept shaking her head, emphasizing how young she was to be doing this but how great the experience was. Her father had motives, she explained. Her mother was apparently "muy muy muy caprichosa. Una mala influencia, pensaba mi padre. Caprichosa caprichosa caprichosa" (very capricious/unpredictable) with respect to her mood and her habits. We didn't probe, we just listened. It segued into a conversation about how having a lot of money doesn't translate to la felicidad (happiness), and how she acquired thick skin from el internado. It was hard to follow her train of thought as she recounted her past, but she talked about how much she loved los trajes (dresses), and how by the time she got out of boarding school, she felt like Cinderella-- she used a Spanish name for her but I can't remember. Soon after, she met Manolo, so great things were in store, por supuesto. She talked a little bit about life in el campo (rural farm). It was where she raised 3 of her 7 children, AND HER PATOS! YES, she raised ducks INSIDE the house! She talked about how there were, indeed, times when los patitos saltaban (the ducks jumped out) and over the fence and ran all over the house. And we thought our gatos were a handful!

Today, el miércoles (Wednesday), I started my day early again. My biggest morning accomplishment was finding a shortcut through the University to get to class, which shaved off about 5 minutes. At 9 in the morning, I'll take anything. Our profesora volvió (teacher returned), since she canceled class on Monday, and the first thing she talked about was trying to find a time to recuperar la clase (make up the class). HAAAAAAAAA. The thing is, everyone is from all different programs with different schedules that it's nearly impossible to coordinate with 15 students. Until she suggested the SINGLE day of the week that everyone is OBVIOUSLY libre (free) because no university has classes: EL VIERNES (Friday). You could cut the tension with a knife-- it wasn't even worth pretending we didn't have other academic commitments, but the real reason Fridays such is because we travel. Pues (well), she caught on because no one was jumping at her offer. So we left it at, "Díganme que pueden recuperar la clase al comienzo de una semana que saben que no tienen planes el viernes." (At the beginning of a week you know you won't be traveling, let me know and we'll schedule the class). I think she will come to find the major flaw in the plan, but let's cross that bridge at another time. She was really cool about the fact that I didn't have my book-- "No importa, no importa." We don't really read directly from it during class, and she spends most of the class giving us the history of the text and the author, Huidobro. I took a look at some of the poem online, and it is really challenging because he invents words and breaks all the rules of syntax and semantics. But that is clearly what excites this teacher the most, and she enjoys having us try to pronounce some of the words for her pleasure.

Other exciting news from the propaganda class... This is the 4th time we've met, and todavía (still) we lack a permanent meeting spot. The routine is that we all file into the assigned room, and then when we don't all inevitably fit, we pack up and move somewhere else. The professor is really funny (not intentionally) when he gets frustrated. Today, there was a gato in our classroom. Really, though. The professor was breaking a sweat in the front of the room, jumping up and down and preaching about how Hitler manipulated the world using the radio, when we heard what sounded like a baby wining. I'm sorry, but no one was ignoring it and we were all abstraídos (distracted) by this wining that got louder and louder. And then he slammed his fist and walked up the stairs (the classroom is stadium-style seating), and there it was: el gato blanco! That small, white cat was making the biggest fuss. I don't really even know how it got in there. Needless to say, the rest of the class was history. I guess the only other eventful thing from class today was that I ran into the boy who Laura and I met at la discoteca last weekend who pretended to be Spanish. To be honest, I never would have known a thing-- it never would have occurred to me that THAT was the boy! It was his decision to approach me and confront the fact... he said something like "I noticed you were in this class the other day, and I figured it would be a good idea to clear the air. I'm sorry. And, by the way, I am American."

REALLLLLLYYYYYY!?!

Yeahhhh.

Anyway, in my clase de cultura y sociedad (culture and society), we wrapped our discussion of Semana Santa (Holy week-- celebrated in the week leading to Easter) by watching a documentary... without words. It was just exposure to the actual ceremonial walk through the streets from the churches to the cathedral. I could not get over la bulla (the MASS quantity of people) who participate, and how organized and rigid the marches look from the outside. During the procession, people carry these HUGE, ornate pasos (lifesize floats of carved wood) of Jesus and the Virgin Mary. The pasos are all advocaciones, which means they are images of the same person just captured at different points, as to emphasize there is only ONE Jesus and Virgin Mary, simply captured at different points. The hermandades, religious associations and brotherhoods, dress up in designated uniform (usually covering their entire bodies) and lead the marches. Laura and I will be here to see the first 3 or 4 days of this before we head off to Mallorca.

Today was also important because it was the greatly awaited cita (appointment) that Ana booked for me at Sagrado Corazón, Sacred Heart medical clinic. It was literally around the corner from our house, but Ana was more than happy to accompany me. Our appointment was at 6:45, which meant we were seen AT 6:45 ON THE DOT. I was NOT expecting this, given the track record of just about everything else here, running extremely late, but this was no chiste (no joke!) What was interesting about this building was that it USED to be the mansion of one of Ana's dear friends. She said that la pareja (the couple) was incredibly rico (rich), moved into the house, and did some AMAZING things to both the interior and the garden. And after solo un mes (only one month) of being together, la pareja se separó (they broke up). Go figure... So then the house was rented a lot, considering it was too big to live in alone, and now it is what it is. When we walked in, I was given the grand tour of how it used to look, as Ana pointed to things and led me through "la sala" (quite the grandiose living room) and to the door that led to the beautiful garden.

The check in was really easy-- I handed the woman my tarjeta (insurance card) that the school provided and I was given a room number upstairs. The way it works is that each doctor has their own little wing and mini waiting area (everything is open-- no doors separating the wings), and each doctor has their own office, a door that remains closed. So we sat down and esperamos (waited) almost negative amounts of time before doctor Pérez-Cabeza me llamó (called me). Spanish people don't really know what to make the of the "H" that hangs out at the end of my name, so it's usually kind of awkward when they look at it at first. He made a comment "Sara con H" (pronounced ah-chay) and then giggled to himself, and to Ana who doesn't really understand it, tampoco (either). The office itself was maybe 2x the size of Dad's private office space, and we each sat on opposite sides of his desk. There seemed to be another smaller section curtained off. And then he got right to the point: "Cuéntame!" And I told him what was bothering me, with the help of Ana when I needed it. I understood most of what he was saying, and when I didn't he demonstrated physically (pushing my head down and picking it up to see if I had dolor [pain] when my head hangs). The hardest part was communicating las alergias (my allergies) just because I wasn't sure what translated or not. He understood Amoxicillin, but I had to write out Zithromax. He was able to understand it on paper-- the problem is that in Spanish, it's spelled with a Y, not a Z, and there is no H. And just as he was finishing up making notes, Ana chimed in

"Ay. Y también ella es lactosa! No puede comer queso. Y la leche. Hay que saber eso!" (It's critical you know she is also lactose intolerant! She can't eat cheese... And milk!)

There and then, I broke down hysterically laughing. She looked so serious, with her arms crossed, and was confused as to why I was convulsing. The ONE time she really gets it-- probably not the appropriate time her her to bring it up just because it's not really necessary, but maybe this means I've made a break through with her! Maybe my days of helado are over!

The doctor was really nice and encouraging, and told me I spoke well, and after tapping me in a few more places on my face, he pulled out his prescription sheets. Which just looked like a white piece of paper. But I didn't question it. He has me taking Disneumón Pernasal, which is a nasal spray, twice a day. For an antibiotic, he prescribed Ciprofloxacino, which is the same Cipro I usually take when this happens I think. So in a week from now, I should be all done!

So now we're just relaxing, waiting for la campana (the dinner bell). We are considering going out tonight to this place called, "Cerveceria 100 Montaditos" which was that sandwich place I blogged about MUCH earlier with the 100 kinds of teeny tiny sandwiches for 1 euro... but we wouldn't really eat-- apparently their cerveza is also 1 euro and it's good. We'll see! Not sure how many people will be out and about, considering it is miércoles de ceniza (ash Wednesday). Lots of people going to la misa (mass)!

Hasta luego!!!

Mira! Fotos nuevas!

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Updates: La Catedral; Noches en Sevilla

Soon: Carnaval!

Tonight, I am quite agotada (exhausted)... I got up early and had el desayuno (breakfast) at around 9:45 with Vicki-- never a dull moment! It was raining AGAIN ughhh it really makes the day seem crappy. It's the kind of weather that blows your paraguas (umbrella) inside out :( But once again, I am thankful for the rain boots! Before I left the house, I sat with Ana, who helped by calling el hospital (the hospital/doctor) for me... I definitely have a sinus infection (happens often), so I really need the antibiotic. She helped secure una cita (appointment) for Wednesday afternoon. I cleared it with my teacher at the program and he didn't seem concerned.

Tonight's highlight: Vicki served me helado... for like the 5th night in a row! And every time she does it, I always have to explain to her that it hurts my stomach! They really just don't get it and it's sad and kind of uncomfortable! They don't seem to understand what lactose intolerance means... They'll serve a dish loaded with leche (milk), and then innocently protest:

Cómatelo! No tiene queso... está bien!

In other words, since it doesn't have cheese I should be able to eat it. Grr.

We went to La Carboner ía tonight for the free Flamenco! It's always packed with tourists, but we managed to find a place to sit.

I'm calling it a night here, considering I word-vomited yesterday and uploaded a ton of pics! So you should be plenty ocupado (busy!)

Adiossss

"So... is THIS Carnaval?"

Buenas tardes (good afternoon)!

What a crazy rest of week... in the most literal sense. Picking up where I left off...

Me sentí un poquito mejor (I felt a little better) for class on Wednesday, so I picked myself up and got there by 9am. I noticed that la clase de poesía (poetry class) had thinned out a bit, so things definitely felt more intimate with la profesora (the teacher). We are now starting to read Huidobro's Altazor-- what's hard is that she really doesn't indicate how much of it we should be reading on our own to prepare for class, or what we will be covering at all for that matter. I also had an issue cuando fui de compras, buscando el libro (when I went to buy the book). It was sold out in the two main librerías (book stores) in el Centro, so I was put on a waiting list. It should be in by next week, so I hope it's not a huge problem. Anyway, la profesora nos dijo (our teacher told us) that she was going to be at a conference on Monday, so we wouldn't be seeing each other until Wednesday. I'm hoping the problem tendrá la resolución (will be solved-- an Ana-ism) by then. So it figures that in class, she wants us to begin reading and she begins panning the small classroom and lands on me, por supuesto (DUH).

Levántate. Lee en voz alta. (Stand up... read aloud!)

And so she shoves her book at me and has me stand up in front of the class and start reading aloud-- thank you Ana for all the drilling, and you would think I would have been good at it but naturally I had difficulties. I should preface that I took an ibuprofin before class, so not only was I temblando (shaking) from nerves, I was also sweating like Daddy in Disney World because my fever broke. Everyone, stop and stare at the spectacle in front of the room. No obstante (nevertheless), I survived.

By the end of the day, I was feeling much better. Laura, por otra parte (on the other hand), wasn't feeling so up for going out-- we like to do this thing where we trade off being sick. So Deborah and I decided to brave the Heliopolis district that is our very own backyard. As we were heading toward La Avenida de Reina Mercedes (I've been mistakenly referring to is as La Calle), I heard the Abby's and Robin call out-- remember, Robin lives around the corner. So the 4 of us tried walking up and down the strip. Desafortunadamente (Unfortunately), not many places were open on a random Wedensday night. We walked in and out of a few smaller places before deciding on a wine bar closer to our house. It wasn't such a late night, but I thought it would be best to take it easy, anyway. It was nice to catch up with my friends.

El jueves: el fin de semana comienza! (Thursday, technically the beginning of our weekend!) It was a beautiful day to walk to class, and Deborah decided to sit in. Our teacher is getting more and more-- umm-- eccentric? We started off LOVING her, and we really still do! But she sometimes gets really repetitive. A veces (sometimes), it's hard to pay attention when she speaks because we are very focused on her outfits/hair piece. We talked a little bit about Romanesque architecture, and she gave us a preview into what we would be seeing on Friday's day trip to La Ciudad Romana Itálica (The Italica Roman Ruins), located just outside the village of Santiponce. More on this later... We walked around the town a little bit before returning for la comida. We found a really cute store with big rebajas (sales). We tried on some abrigos cursis (gaudy jackets). The word "cursi" was introduced to us by Ana's daughter Patricia, so it's fun to use it in context when it really applies. We were thinking these awful jackets may be part of our Carnavales de Cadiz costumes, but NOT for 40 euros. We got a picture out of it, at least.

Durante la comida (during lunch), we explained to Ana that we would be going out for our first real dinner in la ciudad (the city)-- we don't really count Superbowl because it wasn't quite as authentic as it could've been. But Manolo estaba MUY emocionado (was VERY excited) to hear we would be going out for dinner because he was full of suggestions for sitios populares para jóvenes (popular places for young people). "Hay que ir a Las Columnas! A Las Columnas!" (You need to go to Las Columnas!) In el Centro, bordering on el Barrio de Santa Cruz (the Jewish quarters) are little Tapas restaurants, where people spill into the streets eating and drinking. We liked the idea of Tapas-- definitely a MUST while in Spain. You go with a group and order a bunch of little food items or appetizers. You can order them hot or cold, depending on the dish, ranging from bread and nuts to cheese, fish, meat, rice, etc.

It took us a little longer to get ready to go out than usual, mainly because we no longer have una plancha de pelo (hair iron). See, there was clearly a miscommunication on our part a while ago when Cristina offered us one of Paloma's two irons, claiming we could keep it because it was only her spare. Cristina came over one afternoon last week, claiming that Paloma se quejaba (was whining) about wanting it back. So, we returned it at the cost of having to manage wavy, curly, frizzy hair. We actually have mastered the art of el secador de pelo (the hair dryer), something I was never able to manage because I don't get how to hold the dryer, brush, and hair at once. But I'm at the point where I can at least feel confident going out without needing an iron all the time. We ordered a cheap on online, due to come in any day now.

We wandered around el Centro for a little while, until we arrived at Las Columnas. It wasn't exactly what we were expecting... there were jóvenes, and there sure was a large crowd of people both in and outside the Tapas bar, but we really preferred somewhere we could comfortably sit down and enjoy the food. So we walked a little further and finally found a cute little place, more on the quiet side. Since Deborah es vegetariano (is a vegetarian), we tried some different veggie dishes. In the end, we shared a bread/breadstick basket, paella (with los mariscos- the seafood- on the side), y las espinacas con garbanzas/zanahorias (and spinach with chickpeas and carrots mixed in). We also had a nice big pitcher of Sangria! It was muy delicioso (very delicious), but you apparently are NOT supposed to eat the fruit at the bottom. Frankly, you know you are American when you are spotted dipping your fork into the bottom of your wine glass. We were heavily stared at, but we didn't mind.

We left the Tapas bar and decided to head over to La Plaza de Armas, home of the mall, more bars, and por supuesto BUDDHA, that multi-story discoteca we love so dearly. When we got there, we felt like it was still too early to make an appearance at Buddha (12:30ish), and we were easily seduced by a girl who gave us discount drink coupons at International Esencia, a bar that actually employed 3 or 4 people from our program. We stayed there for a little bit, but when we felt ready to rage, we made our way back to Buddha! And it was una noche divertida! (a fun night!) It was the "FINDING NEMO EFFECT" (described in earlier blog entries) at its finest. What was really weird though was that this one boy started talking to us in English in his really bad Spanish accent. And we thought it was kind of funny and responded in Spanish, as usual, until he decided to reveal that he was faking it the whole time-- that he was actually American. NOT funny, I know. After a few hours of dancing, people watching, and running into other Cornellians, we decided to call it a night.

Coming back into the house after una noche larga (a long night) has become our next challenge, now that we have a new boarder: WENDY!!! I'm not really sure about all the details, but Cristina briefly explained that Teo se enamora de Wendy, y eso es malo (Theo is "in love" with Wendy, and this is a bad thing). Yeah, it's pretty bad when Father dog is humping Baby dog-- I still don't get how they know that Teo is for sure the father, but we kind of just go along with it. It's also not the first time this has happened? So yeah, Wendy is living with us now. And when we come home, ladra muchisimo (she barks a LOT). So we are trying to be very careful, as not to wake Ana and Manolo and, of course, Vicki who sleeps with the little monster.

Friday morning, we got up nice and early because we had to meet our program for the Itálica trip at 11:40. As the story of our lives seem to go, the bus got us to the meeting point nearly 45 minutes after we were asked to arrive, so we missed the bus that was taking everyone to Itálica. And it was freezing cold and pouring rain. The rain was coming down and I cannot describe how miserable we were. Luckily, it wasn't hard to figure out how to catch the next bus, and we found our way. I don't remember how long the ride really was-- not too long-- and it wasn't hard to catch up with the tour. But it WAS hard to pretend we weren't freezing our butts off and trying not to get soaking wet, as none of our paraguas (umbrellas) could resist the wind, blowing them inside out. As it turns out, the whole tour-- all outside-- was terminated after 20 minutes because it was just too unbearable to continue in those conditions. So here is what I learned about Itálica thanks to what I heard Judy say and what I read in the little pamphlets they gave us:

Itálica represents the very first Roman settlement in the south of the Iberian peninsula, founded in 206 BC. It was evidently the majesty of a Roman metropolis. It was founded by Roman general Publius Cornelius Scipio Africanus to settle Roman wounded soldiers from the Battle of Ilipa, where the Carthaginian army was defeated during the Second Punic War. Itálica was the birthplace of Trajan, the first emperor from a Roman province, and his successor, Hadrian, added great temples and rebuilt public buildings. Ultimately, a shift of the Guadalquivir River bed left Italica isolated, and the city started dwindling by the 3rd century. Left over is the well-preserved Roman city of Hispania Baetica, and we found a lot of the remains on display in el Museo Arqueologico (last week's day trip), with its famous marble colossus of Trajan. In Itálica, even in the pouring rain, you could see the cobbled Roman streets and mosaic floors still "IN SITIO" (in place-- one of Judy's FAVORITE expressions). The excavation of Itálica began in 1781, and is still going on.

Vamos a volver (we are going to return) with the program on a sunny day, so we can actually take some pictures and enjoy the sites because it really is a spectacular place.

The highlight of this trip was definitely el restaurante, the restaurant with the most AMAZING comida. They gave us huge hunks of fresh bread and potatoes to dip in an oil and garlic sauce (there was definitely another spice in there that I don't know). Then, they served a salad. Next (yes there was more to come), you had a choice of either pescado o carne (fish or meat-- steak). So I was served a piece of fish that could've easily fed 3 people, and this came with its own sides. Por fin (finally), they came out with dessert, which was a pudding that kind of resembled flan. FOOOODDD COMAAAA.

We waited like an hour and a half for the bus to finally take us from Itálica to our meeting spot. Everything just runs SO late here, on top of the fact that the weather sucked. But you just can't complain. "No pasa nada" they say, meaning "No big deal!" You just need to embrace the motto, or else you'll just get pissed off. So we embraced!

The rest of the day, we were in relaxation mode. Deborah celebrates Shabbat, so we stayed in for the night and hung around. We watched a fun show on the Spanish gameshow channel, I think it translated to Password. It was a guessing game for us, and my Spanish dictionary app on the iPod touch came in handy. We managed to get some more information out of Manolo FINALLY with respect to the family wine business. Apparently, Manolo decided not to pursue the family name and carry on this business, as he was in favor of other negocios (business), specifically that of las aceitunas (olives). So, Terry wine was ultimately sold! No wonder we never really saw those bottles laying around-- and they really are big wine drinkers.

Saturday was a really big day for us. Nos despertamos (we woke up) early enough to get out of the house and into el Centro to do some exploring. We decided to make a morning out of a tour through la Catedral, which is the largest Gothic cathedral and apparently the 3rd largest church in the world! It was initially built in order to boast Seville's wealth-- the oral tradition: "Let a church so beautiful and so great that those who see it built will think we were mad." Inside the Cathedral: the tomb of Christopher Columbus, mosaics and stained glass windows, Cathedral treasure, the Gate to the Patio de los Naranjos, and the finest silver and gold alter pieces. Our favorite part was La Giralda, a minaret converted into the bell tower approximately 320 feet high. We climbed all the way to the top-- luckily, there were stairs, sino (but rather) ramps for us to walk up, considering people used to travel to the top on their horses. It was really a great climb, and we took lots of aerial pictures of the city. I will post those ASAP.

After our visit to la Catedral, we wandered the streets of Plaza Nueva looking for ideas for una disfraz (a costume) for CARNAVAL! Yes, the night had finally arrived for our epic trip to Cadiz! We found ourselves in H&M by the funky maquillaje (make-up), jewelry, and accessories. We bought lots a crazy things and decided we were going to be gitanas (gipsies)/girls from the 80s/girls from the 70s/girls from the 60s. Ha Ha. So for this event, everyone dressed up in the most wide array of costumes I've ever seen (I can't wait to put up our pictures). We all boarded buses from Seville and arrived at Cadiz about an hour and a half later. There were THOUSANDS of people who come from all over Spain, to dance, eat, and drink in the streets.

It took us a little while to digest everything that was going on when we first got there... we spent the first media hora (half hour) making a mass migration, following people screaming and playing drums.

"So... is THIS Carnaval?" ,we asked a few times- rhetorically, por supuesto. I think we were expecting something more organized, like carnival groups and contests. It was really just mass chaos, but in the most fun way possible! We met tons of people, and also ran into a bunch of people we knew, which was kind of ridiculous given the mobb scene. There were churos con chocolate, a popular Spanish treat, that I still need to try, candy stands, and caramel popcorn. I think Grandma Natalie would LOVEEEE to know that I ran into Hilary, a girl from Plainview that worked at the Center the same summer as me, and then a few after. She is studying in Barcelona, and they came all the way here to celebrate.

Getting home was one of the biggest pesadillas (nightmares). Everyone who came with Discover Sevilla was instructed to meet at the bus area by 2:45, but obviously the buses came slowly, 1 by 1. People were pushing and shoving, trying to get on each bus as it came, if you can imagine. The clot was kind of like trying to shove a huge cheeseburger through a small artery. It reminded us of the chaos of leaving Crush parties at school. We eventually got on a bus at around 3:30, which got us home by 5AM. Deborah used her abogada (lawyer) skills and talked the bus driver into dropping us off at el campo de Betis, seeing as it would have passed through the stadium to el Centro just to make us take a cab back. Thank goodness, because we were exhausted!!

We slept nice and late today, had a relaxing comida, and spent a nice afternoon in el Centro. There was a big flea market sale going on in Plaza Nueva, as there is every Sunday, considering mostly everything else is closed for the day. We walked around, stopped at a cafe, and wanted to take a horse carriage ride on this lovely romantic day. But we really didn't have enough time to do everything-- Laura and Deb wanted to make an 8:00 movie and I had a Skype date with the family. So we parted ways, and I came back home... I watched some TV and talked with Ana and Manolo, watched Ana put the finishing touches on her marmalada de naranja (orange jam), and talked to everyone minus Craig on the computer. Ana even made her first Skype debut with impressive English! She kept going on an on about how simpática (nice) y MONA our family is-- she LOVED repeating this throughout la cena, which was just the 3 of us. We curled up under la camilla and watched Los Premios Goya, their version of the Oscars, until it got late...

ANDDDDD aquí estoy (here I am). This was a long entry, so I'll let you digest it.

HASTA LUEGO!!