Bullfight

Another thing I highly recommend is attending a bullfight. It can be bloody and rather shocking, but it is a very strong example of Spanish culture. The couple sitting behind me was explaining bullfighting to a boy seated in front of them, and when he asked about it being a sport, the woman replied that bullfighting is not a sport, but an art. It truly is. All involved face death and injury regularly, and do so with such grace and presence. The animals themselves are amazing, the bulls powerful and wild and beautiful, and the horses, oh the horses. They are blindfolded and are routinely hit by the bulls, and still they behave. The mules that haul out the bull at the end are very well trained as well, as they do not respond to the scent of blood in any way. Any one who knows horses knows that this in itself is amazing. Horses and mules do not like the smell of blood. It means danger to them, which causes them to run away. The mules at the bullfight behaved beautifully, and only ran when instructed to do so. The only part that truly bothered me was at the end when the bull was dead and being hauled out, it seemed to me that they were parading him out, until a friend pointed out that it was necessary to drag him to the center of the ring because they would not be able to get him out at any other angle.

All in all, the bullfight was a pleasant experience with wonderful people surrounding us, beautiful animals below, and unbelievably skilled and brave men using their talents for the sake of art.

Flamenco :)

In Andalusia, we had the please of going to watch two shows for Flamenco style dancing. Both were pretty amazing. The first was in a fairly nice theater where we were able to sit very close to the stage, and therefore, were able to see the dancers’ feet. Flamenco is full of steps that are so unbelievably fast, and so crisp and sharp. This performance was fun because of all the wild costumes and amusing story lines within the dances, not to mention the live music, which I found out is a necessary staple of nearly all Flamenco dancing. The second show I went to was very different, much less structured and organized, but full of passion and energy. These dances were less choreographed and elaborated, but that was very well compensated for by the amount of with which they danced.

While those two dances were fun to watch, the most recent one that I attended, Ballet Nacional de España was simply spectacular, the dancers graceful and powerful, the choreography beautiful, the music amazing. Having danced for many years myself, I was fully able to appreciate the level of difficulty involved in their performances. Everything was so smooth and crisp and strong. So often in group dances like that, the dancers are always split by gender, but this was different. The dancers were mixed up in their ‘groups’ with each group performing the same moves. It was spectacular to see that both the men and the women could perform the same steps and still look amazing, the men still strong and powerful, and the woman smooth and graceful and beautiful. If anyone is planning on coming to Spain, I highly recommend going to watch Flamenco, the Ballet Nacional de España, if possible. Just prepare to be hot (no AC).

The First Week

The first week has been the hardest so far. Trying to get accustomed to people speaking to you in Spanish (very fast Spanish) and having to understand AND respond was not an easy thing to do. I typically froze and stood there wide-eyed until someone else stepped in and responded to whatever had been said. I still do sometimes lol. Life here is so different than what I am used to. For one thing, city life is completely new, since I grew up in a small town and have only lived in Marietta for a year (and that’s not even city life). The Metro was a new experience, a fun one, too. It is so nice to be able to go almost anywhere you want in the city without having to drive. I would be much too terrified to drive around here. The roads are confusing, the drivers really good and really crazy, and the parking places impossibly small. I can definitely see why the cars are so small. Many people don’t even drive, and just walk everywhere. It is so nice to be in a country where people walk everywhere and cars actually stop for pedestrians. And it’s amazing to see people, families even, walking around at 10, 11, 12 o’clock at night. This is partly due to the fact that it doesn’t get dark until nearly 10:30, but even taking that into consideration, it’s not what I’m used to. Most of the people here are quite friendly, but most don’t smile as much as Americans, or rather Southerners, do. They seem to be more open about their feelings, and only smile when they really mean it. My favorite thing has definitely been the siesta. I love naps, and having one basically scheduled into my everyday routine has been lovely. Its so hot here, so I can understand why no one wants to be working or moving around during that time, and it also helps to further explain why everyone stays up so late. It has definitely been nice living in Spain, but I still have a lot of adjusting to do.

First Impressions

That amount of traveling is EXHAUSTING. I was so excited to go to Spain, but once I got there, I was almost too tired to appreciate my first few hours there. In the Atlanta airport, it was all nerves and anticipation. The flight over the Atlantic was the first big energy drain. When we landed in France seven to eight hours later, it was somewhat shocking to hear everyday, normal conversations and realize that I couldn’t understand a word. There wasn’t a whole lot to be explored in that airport, so instead you would see an ocean of students lying in the floor trying to sleep, while untold numbers of other people boarded their flights and flew away. The next flight was much shorter, but those two hours still managed to drain even more energy. The end of that flight was the most memorable part. The clouds were spectacular, pure white and full and fluffy, with every single one of them completely flat on the bottom, so that there was a horizon of clouds as far as the eye could see. Then, upon looking down, you could see the land below. It looked as though someone had laid a topographical map beneath us, the lines perfectly drawn. It was awesome. After the plane landed, there was the typical hustle and bustle about airports, claiming luggage, finding your ride, and so on. The bus ride from the airport to Mara, our colegio, showed more of Madrid, and served as a type of introduction to the country. Mara itself was quite cute, in my opinion at least, with everyone having their own dorm and bathroom, a good place for a tired traveler to crash. I was finally here, and it still didn’t seem real :) .

Getting Around in Spain

The transportation situation in Spain is much different from what most people are used to back in the US. For starters, although many people do use a car to gat around, a lot more people use the metro system here. It helps that it is fully integrated into the infrastructure of Madrid, as opposed the the MARTA in Atlanta. Madrid was already developed well before the automobile, so it is much easier to integrate an underground system than an above ground road system. The city's age also helped avoid the urban sprawl which makes a metro system so difficult. Besides the underground systems, Spain has an extensive train network, wherein you can get from Madrid to about anywhere in Spain in 6 hours of less. In many outlying cities, like Toledo or Avila, the busline can take you wherever you need to go. Overall, Spain is a step or two ahead of the US in getting large groups of people on the go.

Bullfight

A couple of weeks ago, I had the chance to observe a bullfight. Though very bloody and hard to understand, I did find it interesting, and somewhat beautiful. Bullfighting originated in Spain, and the dress of the bullfighters is modeled after traditional Andalucian dress. First, the fighters all parade out into the ring to pay their respect to the visiting dignitary. Afterward, the bull is released into the ring, and his stregnth and temperment are tested by the matador and banderilleros. Next, the picadores come in on armored horseback and stab a mound of muscle on the bull's back. This lowers the bull's blood pressure, so it won't die of a heart attack before the fight is over. Once the picadores leave, the banderilleros attempt to stick small barbed sticks into the bull's back to forther weaken him. Finally, the matador faces the bull alone, and ultimately runs a sword between the shoulder blades and into the heart.

The Fights I saw were both interesting in their own way. In the first fight, two unusual events occurred. In one fight, the bull was let go. As I heard it, if the bull stumbles enough times before the picadores get summoned, the bull is allowed to go free. The other unusual incident was that there was a woman matador. While not as showy as the others, she did do a good, professional job of killing the bull cleanly. The second show I saw had a lot more showmanship. One of the banderilleros actually laid down and invoked the bull to charge almost directly over him, escaping unharmed. In either show, the amount of skill required was evident. Around this time of year, the bullfighting is in its off season, and the more inexperiences fighters are given the ring for practice and crowd exposure.

Los dos Museos

Since I have been here, I have seen a couple of really good museums, the Museo del Prado, and the Museo de la Reina Sofia. Both were art museums, and both in their own way intrigued me.

The Museo del Prado has been around in Madrid for a long time. Most of the artwork within hails from artists from centuries ago up until about the end of the 19th century. I loved having the chance to see some of the really old works, such as some original works from Van Eyck, Boticelli, and Velásquez. They also had an extensive collection by Goya, in cluding the very famous The Third of May 1808, which depicted the execution of the men who defended Madrid against the invasion of Napoleon.

The Museo de la Reina Sofia has several signifciant works as well, including Picasso's Guernica, for which the museum was created after the death of Francisco Franco. Picasso had vowed that the work would never come home to Spain until after the death of Franco. Franco outlived Picasso, but after a short spat between the Spanish government and the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the painting was turned over the museum after Franco's death. The work was comissioned by the republican resistance to Franco, and was meant to depict the bombing of the basque city of Guernica by the Germans, and act that Franco allegedly gave permission to.

Toledo

Last weekend, I took a day trip to Toledo. Though I didn't get to see as much of the city as I would have liked to, I still managed to get a good look at some of the city and get a grasp on the history and significance of the place.

The oldest Toledo has been put at is as a Phoenecian settlement in 540BC. When the Romans found the city, it was already famous for its sword making and steel working abilities. Toledo also served as the capital of the Visigothic empire, starting with Leovigild.

Under the Arab caliphate, the city encountered what many consider to be its golden age. During this time, the Arabs allowed religious tolerance and free flow of ideas, a combination which made Toledo a center of knowlege that helped Spain gain respect among the other major European nations as an intellectual center. For centuries, Arabs, Christians, and Jews coexisted in the city, sharing ideas.

When Alfonso VI took Toledo, he made it the capital of his empire, and launched the first major Christian offensives of the Reconquista from there. However, when Philip II moved the capital to Madrid, the city slowly went into decline.

When I went to Toledo, I had the chance to see the Cathedral. I was mostly impressed by the sheer size of it. After asking a local where the cathedral was, he pointed our group in a certain direction. After only a couple minutes walk, we could see the spire of the cathedral dominating the sky ahead. The inside was just as impressive, with cielings which seemed to be at least 50 feet high. The decorations and paintings were absolutely stunning, some covered richly in gold and silver.

Ballet Naciònal de España

This past weekend I had a chance to see the National Spanish Ballet, and it really blew me away. The music and dance was an interesting blend of predominantly flamenco, fused with several other styles of dance. The music was rythmic and flowing, much like flamenco, and the costumes were elaborate and flowing, much of the extra material being used to control the flow of the dance. There were about 8 musicians, and, as in flamenco, the dancers provided a large portion of the rythm. In this case, there were about 20 dancers in total.

Having already seen one form of flamenco before, I was able to pick up on some of the different nuances of the ballet. There was much more movement and choreography involved in the ballet, naturally drawing from the traditional ballet performance of motion and carfully planned coordinated groups. This chief difference is what separates the ballet from the flamenco. Like flamenco, the dancers used their feet and hands to keep and command the ebb and flow of sound.

Overall, the lighting, costuming, and beauty of sound combined to make one of the better performances I have seen here in Spain.

I've Been Sick

As is common with any large group of students living together, someone invariably brings some form of disease with them to spread to the rest of the community. Of course, this time around, someone brought the flu with them from the states, and of course, I had to catch it. This past week has been my first time sick in a different country, and the way I was taken care of is distincly different from the states. For starters, I saw the officials at FORSPRO for some guidance. They recommended I wait until the morning unless I felt really sick, since the clinics in Spain are more or less packed full after the early morning. Since I didn't feel like waiting that long, I opted to see the clinic in the morning if I still felt horrible. In the meantime, since I had no medicines and many physical issues, we headed to the pharmacy to get some meds. The pharmacies here have a little of everything available, such as pain meds, medical supplies, and even some mild antibiotics available over the counter, if one really needs them. On the reverse side, the grocery stores, unlike the US, have little or no medical supplies. Anyway, I got something akin to Tylenol for the fever, but more of the horsepill sized variety, and two other pills for the issues at either end. As I laid down to rest after walking half a block to the pharmacy and back, La Profe, in her kindness, was willing to go to the store and pick up some water and Aquarius Limòn (Spanish Gatorade) for me. After a few days, I began to feel better, and after a week I was back to my old self again.

Ballet de Espana

The other night we went to the Spanish Ballet and it was phenomenal! It was nothing at all what I expected it to be. We had to pay about 20 euros for it, so I was really hoping it would be good. It totally blew me alway. I was expecting ballet in the sense of soft music and people spinning around on there tiptoes and basically the kinda stuff that puts me to sleep after awhile. However, this was nothing at all like that.
The way that I tried to describe it was a mix between tango, step, tap dancing, and a little ballet. But profe overheard me and quickly corrected me saying it was a fusion between flamenco and ballet. But whatever it was it was good.
There were a total of probably about 20 dancers give or take, not always on the stage at the same time. And then about 8 musicians, some played the guitar, one played the drums, and then there was a singer/wailer and then the clappers. The sound was amazing, if I could I would get the soundtrack, if I had more money. Cuz it was really good.
Then the dancers costumes were beautiful, I loved how the womens skirts were all long and full flowing down to the ground and some trailing really far behind them. They were able to move their bodies so beautifully and elegantly, if I ever tried I'd look ridiculous. They made it look second nature. While they were dancing around they kept their feet in rhythm to the music so that in their dancing was also the music. It was probably the most interesting and beautiful forms of dance that I have ever seen.

Flamenco Show

A couple of weekends back I had the opportunity to go see a flamenco show. What I saw was a professional show, called a tablau show. Though not true flamenco, which is completely improvised as more of a "street art", the tablau was still a good example of the dance and music itself.

It is very hard to separate the dance from the music, since the two are so closely intermingled. The music is very rhythmic, comprised mostly of some of the most intricate guitar work I have ever heard, some drums, and clapping. Most of the percussion work, however, is provided by the dancers themselves. Their shoes have very thick, hard soles on them to produce all kinds of sound, much like a tapdancing shoe. Unlike tapdancing, the flamenco is much more intense and flowing. The best way I can think of to describe the sounds is it sounds like a river or rainstorm of sound, where the dancer and guitarist play off each other to control the ebb and flow of the sounds. I also found it interesting that the female dancers wore flowing traditional dress, but the male dancers all seemed to wear some kind of business suit. In either case, the extra material was used as a way to keep the visual flow of the dance.

Also while I was there, I had a chance to try jamòn bellota. It is a type of ham reputed to be the best in all of Spain. It is made from farm raised Iberian pigs which are fed only acorns their whole life, which gives the meat its own unique flavor. Personally, I loved the taste, though it was a little unusual to eat uncooked ham, though it has been cured and aged for a long time.

Barcelona

We spent a weekend in Barcelona, and although I did not like it as much as I like Madrid I still did enjoy it. I think had I spent more time there and gotten to know the city better I would have enjoyed it more.
We went on a brief tour the first morning we were there and went to see El Sagrado Familia, the Sacred Family Cathedral. We were unable to go in b/c the line was like a mile long, but the outside was beautiful. It is still under construction and from what I've heard will remain under construction for another 5o years or so.
Then Casey and I broke off from the rest of the group and went to find the Picasso museum. This was probably my favorite part of the trip. My grandmother is a bit of an art fanatic and brought me going to art museums and with an appreciation for the arts, so it was really fun to go see the works of someone like Picasso. While there I bought my grandma a book with all the paintings we saw, I figured she'd like that alot.
Then on the last day Casey and I went to spend the whole day on the beach. It was so nice and relaxing. However, it was the most crowded beach I have ever been on in my entire life. I had also forgotten that it's normal for European women to go topless at the beach, so that was a bit of a shock, but Casey and I got a couple good laughs outta it.
All in all once we were able to figure out the subway system it wasn't too bad. However, if I ever return to Spain, Barcelona probably will not be on my list of hot spots to revisit.

Monastery of El Escorial

We took a city tour to Escorial ans saw the beautiful Monastery of El Escorial. I was absolutely amazed at the beauty of it. Our tour guide told us that it is still an active monestary on one half and the other half is a boy's school. They also still hold mass there every week. We went on a Sunday so we only got to go into the cathedral for a few minutes in between services. I still felt bad going in there on a tour while there were people in the pews trying to pray, it felt kinda disrespectful to me. On the other hand I was really glad we got to go in and see the sanctuary b/c it was beautiful. The intricate details on all the statues and murals were breathtaking.

I was also impressed with the amount of history there as well. All of the Spanish royal family is buried there. They took us down to see the burial of all the kings as well as of all the queens who had a son inheriet the throne. The burial room was really beautiful. Then they took us upstairs to show us where the all the rest of the members of the royal family were buried. It was a bit of an eerie feeling walking around all these graves but at the same time it was really cool b/c it was all members of the royal family going back hundreds of years.

They also had a very large library of old handwritten books. Each one worth thousands of dollars. There were hundreds of books, all of them turned around backwards so as to better preserve the pages. I thought it was really amazing how such and old building with such a rich history is still functioning today.

Avila

Perhaps one of the better, more exciting trips I have had the chance to go on has been the day trip to Avila. I came into the trip with a set of expectations and left with some surprising answers that challenged my assumptions about Spanish history.



I thought initially that Avila would most likely be one of those little towns founded in the Middle Ages as the surrounding countryside developed to support the feudalistic society of the time, much like the development of several cities in Europe around that time. Although the city was still old, I expected to see a sleepy little town nestled in the countryside.



What I found out about Avila was far from my presumptions. Indeed, the town has existed since the Middle Ages, but looking from the Middle Ages forward would be maybe half the story. People have been living in the valley of present day Avila since recorded history began. The Vuttones have lived, made war, practiced religion, and raised cattle in the valley for millenia. The Romans were the first to settle in the region during their subjugation of the lesser tribes, a process that lasted until the second century BC. The present day name of the city is a corruption of Obila, the original Roman name for the city. Over the centuries, the city has also been in the in the hands of the Visigoths and the Moors before finally being reintegrated into Spain during the Reconquista.

There were several interesting landmarks around the city. Most prominently, the city wall, which dominates the view of the old district, was built in 1090 by the Spanish to protect it during the Reconquista. It is in surprisingly good repair for its age, and it seemed to me that some sections looked like they were under restoration, as I saw the occasional scaffolding and green netting to keep debris from falling into the road. Avila is also famous for the Convento de Santa Teresa, named for Saint Teresa, who was born there in 1517. She is known for working hard to reform the convent, which had been living in the lap of luxury for years, rather than living modestly and aiding the people of the community.

The other big surprise was how modern the city was, despite its age. Since I didn't pick up a map of the city, the circular busline seemed the most logical way to find the old wall and the historic district. Along they way, we passed modern supermarkets, highways, and all the conveniences you would expect of a bigger city, minus traffic lights interestingly enough. I assume they designed the later development of the city to accomodate this feature as a way to reduce light pollution around the historic district, as the city is now a World Culture Landmark.

Overall, I had a great experience in Avila, and enjoyed that side trip the most so far.

Cultural Findings

Today, I will talk about 2 different cultural experiences; the bullfight, the national ballet of Spain. Both are very significant and beautiful.

The bullfight. Quite possibly the most famous cultural tradition of Spain that is known outside of Spain. It is a dance between the toro and the matador that ends in the injury or death of one of the participants (almost always the bull). I have never seen anything killed in front of me, so I was quite nervous about the whole situation. When we got to our destination, I was treated to the commanding stadium where the fight would take place. We bought our tickets and made our way to our seats, which were actually quite close to the arena. I sat patiently wondering what the event would be like, when I was brought back to reality by a small band which announced the start of the event. A door opened down in the arena and out ran the most important participant in the fight, the bull. He came charging out, ready to attack anything that moved and he did just that. The crew of the matador stood out there taunting the bull to attack them to show the audience that the bull was indeed a worthy competitor. The bull fell for the taunts and you could clearly see that it was highly agitated. The band announced the next participants in the event. In came men riding blindfolded horses which had some padded armor on them. They made their way over to the bull, who wasted no time in attacking the horse. I was surprised by the calmness of the horse, as it did not seem in the least bit frightened by the large animal trying to impale it. As this happened, the man on the horse wasted no time and drove his pike into the back of the bull. I learned later that this was to hit a certain nerve cluster so that the bull would not have a heart attack. After this was over, the men on horses left and out came the matador and his crew. They proceeded to ram (or attempt to) 6 objects in between the bulls shoulder blades (to make it easier to put the sword through). The matador was then left alone to face the bull himself. The matador, filled to the brim with a near arrogant confidence taunted the bull into making passes at him. The mortal dance between the two continued for a while when all of the sudden, the matador raised his sword and everything fell silent. The air got thick with tenseness and anticipation. Everyone, including me, knew what was about to happen. It was the final confrontation. Silence permeated every inch of the colosseum until finally, the matador let out a yell and lunged with his sword. The bull, not to be outdone, lunged at the matador. La espada was plunged in between the bull´s shoulder blades into his heart and with that, the bull was finished....or that is how it was supposed to go.

Unfortunately, the first matador I saw was a novice. His sword slid off the back and barely went in. Not only that, it was at a very odd angle. The matador then had to get another sword to get back the one that was lodged in the bull´s back. This took him a few tries, as the bull was still pretty livid. After he got his sword back, the matador, at least this is what it looked like to me, poked the bull until it finally died. The crowd was pretty angry and the matador was booed. So needless to say, my first introduction to bullfighting was rather terrible. However, it was made up by following contestants, special notice going to a female matador, or maybe it should be matadora. She handled her bull expertly and each time killed the bull nearly instantly. Her skill made me truly enjoy the spectacle and showed me the skill and form required to do this deadly art.

My next cultural experience in Spain was el Ballet Nacional de España. At this point in the trip, I just wanted to experience as much Spanish culture as I could, not really caring what it was. To tell the truth, I just wanted to go to say I went. Like usual, I had no idea what to expect (this is a common thing among every single post I have made). Anyways, we were nearly late, which put me in a sour mood. Then, when we got into the theater, it was hot and stuffy, which didn´t alleviate any of my sourness. I sat down, just wanting to know what it was all about. The lights finally dimmed and the curtains came up revealing the group of performers. They circled around, each one of them making it to the front as a sort of introduction. Then they broke off and the first steps were danced.

From the first step on, a constant shiver ran up and down my spine. The skill that these people had was apparent in every movement they made. Their hands and feet moved in perfect unison with the music that was being played by the live group of guitarists on stage. It was such perfect movement that you could not tell if the dancers were following the strum of the guitar or if the guitarists played according to the beat of the dancer´s feet. It reminded me of bomba y plena from Puerto Rico where the drummers and dancers move with such harmony, you can not tell who is following who. Along with the guitars, there were singers with handsome, powerful voices that seemed to encourage the dancers and musicians alike to move more furiously.

The act that was especially memorable was with two women completely dressed in black. Back and forth they switched roles, dancing a combination of flamenco and ballet to quiet, ominous music. These two worked so perfectly together that it almost seemed as one lone dancer. However, the final act was no slouch either. One dancer came out with a elegant white dress that stretched on far behind her followed by a dancer sporting a black dress at about half the length. The performance these two put on was very symbolic almost seeming to speak about the balance between light and dark, or in my martial arts brain, yin and yang. They were joined by the rest of the dancers on stage after a while, but this in no way slowed them down. They weaved in and out of each group of dancers, keeping the attention all on them. The whole program seemed to end as soon as it started. I sat in awe after it was over fully taking in what I had just experienced.

This ballet, along with El Escorial, was an experience that had a huge impact on me. It was something so beautiful and powerful that it reminds exactly why I hold Spain with such high regard. I feel honored to have experienced it and I hope it is not the last time I get to see a ballet in Spain.

My next entry will be about things that have given me a renewed pride in my name and of things that remind me of my own culture and blood.

Barcelona

This past weekend we had an excursion to Barcelona. I was so excited. I heard from so many people that it was beautiful and that they really enjoyed it there. Well I have no idea what those people were talking about because I did not like Barcelona very much.

It began as a really difference experience because I had to ride on a bus without the forspro program. All the people I sat with were spanish and spoke no english at all, but they were so friendly and really wanted to talk to me. We had to use my dictionary so many times, but we managed to carry on a conversation for the whole 8 hour trip. And when I got to Barcelona one of the men I was sitting with was nice enough to help me find the hotel I had to go to.

The next day we took a tour of the city and it really wasn't very exciting. They are so religious there that we couldn't see alot of the sites because we were showing our shoulders. Even worse the tour ended suddenly in the middle of the city. They didnt tell us this was going to happen or even give us maps so we could figure out how to get back to the hotel. We were smart and went to a hotel in the plaza and found the museum of picasso that we really wanted to go. That night we went out to this main street that has alot of bars on it. It was crazy and filled with tourist. Men were touching us and saying really rude things to try to flirt with us I guess. We ended up finding a place and stopping for some wine. While we were there some men from Poland decided to flirt with me by buying me 6 roses and coming over to our table to sit with us. I had no idea what they were saying, one spoke spanish/polish, one spoke english/polish and the other spoke only polish. We hurried up and rushed out of there.

The next day we went to the beach all day. We were really shocked when we noticed a lot of women with no tops on. The beach was crazy packed. Heres a pick of us at the beach.

The main thing I didn't like about Barcelona was the smell. It smelled like sewage everywhere we went it was crazy. Also everything was so expensive because there was so much tourism there.

Last week was so much fun here. I went to my first disco here in Madrid. It was Kapital in El Sol. It was a seven layer club that played all kinds of music. We had a huge group of girls from colleges in Tampa all go with us to the club. The girls and I have really began to noticed the difference between the men here in Spain and the men in the U.S. Men here are so aggressive. Anytime we go out walking in public we have men hitting on us. Sometimes its nice and flattering but a lot of the time its men that are just gross. Here is a pick of us before we left for the disco.


We have also been doing a lot of shopping here. There are so many streets that just have store after store, its like it goes on forever. But we have really noticed the difference in fashion here. Barely anyone wears shorts or flip flops. The women are usually nicely dressed. I have never seen a woman wearing a T shirt out in public except for girls from the U.S. that are in our program. I wonder if the way we dress really makes us stand out as people from the U.S.

Segovia y El Escorial

I´m writing this in reverse order of how the events actually went down for reasons that will be listed below.

Segovia was the second destination on our tour. What this city is known for is its grand Roman aqueduct. This aqueduct is one of the many monuments in Spain that show the sheer amount of influences Spain has had in its rich history. The other in Segovia was this large and very beautifully built cathedral. Its architecture was one of the more impressive that I had seen. Unfortunately, other than these two monuments, I did not get to see much else of Segovia. We weren´t given nearly as much time as would be needed to truly explore. The overall impression that I got from Segovia is that it is very tourist driven (thought this may have come from the specific area we were dropped off in). Nonetheless, it was a pretty city.

El Escorial, or more specifically, the cathedral of El Escorial, is by far the most impressive and spiritual structure I have ever had the pleasure of experiencing. Of course, I had no idea what to expect beforehand. As we walked the streets, I was wondering what exactly our destination was going to be. It didn´t take long for me to find out. In front of me was an absolutely massive building that seemed to stretch on and on. It was then, that i knew I was in for something great. As the group gathered in the courtyard, I was wondering what this imposing building could possibly contain within. My inquiry would soon be answered with something so powerful, that even now, I can find no words that can even begin to describe its grandeur. It cam in the form of a towering cathedral. Spain is full of cathedrals, so what made this one so different? Among its walls and ceilings there were delicate but masterful paintings telling ageless tales of religion, of redemtion, of happiness and sadness and forgiveness. The paintings stretched for what seemed an eternity with these tales, not even ending at the altar. Soft organ music and chanting accompanied and accentuated the storytelling aspect of the paintings. All of this was made all the more impressive by the structural design of the cathedral itself. The atmosphere was intimidating to say the least. Being in this cathedral made me believe that no matter what beliefs or non beliefs one may hold, no matter your religion or lack thereof, it is impossible to deny the spiritual and near otherworldly energy this cathedral emanated.

The rest of the structure did not disappoint either as the cathedral gave way to a humble castle of past royal families which eventually gave way to pantheons where these royal familes were buried. These pantheons are of special interest as well. The resting places of the dead are very often associated with the negative (especially in the U.S.), but these carried a feeling of peace and just being down there made me feel calm.

Escorial was a place that changed the way I view some things, spiritual wise. Although I wasn´t able to take any photos, it´s a place that has been ingrained into my memory. And even though my trip in Spain isn´t over quite yet, I doubt that I will experience anything quite like what I experienced in El Escorial.

Maybe it´s for this reason that I didn´t enjoy Segovia as much as El Escorial is a hard act to follow. However, the overall trip was amazing to say the least.

Unfortunately, although we passed El Valle de los Caídos, we didn´t actually get to go in. I did see the giant solemn cross perched on the mountain and that alone made me shiver a bit.

The next destination and the one I was most excited about, Ávila, the city with which I share my last name.

Toledo

Yea these are a little late, but I will eventually catch up.

Well, the next excursion was to Toledo, one of the oldest cities in Spain. I didn´t really know what to expect and honestly, I didn´t have time to think because the night before, we went tapa hopping. Of course, that is not what it is called but I had to come up with a name for one of Spain´s national pasttimes for my own use. What we did is we travelled around to a few different bars eating tapas and finally ending up at a famous chocolatería. Now, I am always going to remember this night because it is the first and last night that I will ever drink alcohol. I ordered a sangria because I am a huge fan of the nonalcholic version and I just wanted to taste the original. Of course, I thought it was pretty nasty and immediately after, I regretted ordering it. However, every single place had a brand new delicious tapa to offer which made up for my mistake. We eventually ended up in a chocolatería which needless to say, was awesome. This little venture really gave me an idea of what Spanish life is like.

The next day, we went to Toledo. I hadn´t done any research on Toledo, so I wasn´t prepared for what I was going to see. As we rounded a road to Toledo, we came to the most breathtaking view I had ever seen. From this view alone, you could nearly see the diverse history and spirit of Spain Luckily, they stopped so we could take pictures. Before I started shooting away, I just took in and admired the view, mesmerized. It was truly something that was one of a kind. After this appetizer, I could not wait to get down there to explore the city.

We eventually made it to the city and we were treated to a nice tour of the more important places in the city. One of the first things I noticed was that there were swords EVERYWHERE. I later came to find out that Toledo was and is renowned for it´s steel making, namely swords. I even heard from a fellow student that there was an actually swordsmith somewhere in the city who would personally forge a sword for you. Unfortunately, I didn´t not get to see him. However, everything else I saw made me forget about this circumstance. We got to see one of El Greco´s most famous paintings, which gave me my first taste of the beautiful art I would come to see all over Spain. The specific piece I mention is El entierro del Conde del Orgaz. The painting, of course, was amazing, but it also seemed to have a life of it´s own. You could almost see all the activity going on in the painting which made the experience all the more surreal.

Unbelievably, this wouldn´t be the most impressive part of the trip. This would be claimed by the Cathedral of Toledo. This cathedral was just amazing. The most impressive part of it for me was the garden in the middle. This garden, to me, embodied purity and innocence. With birds flying everywhere within and orange trees growing it is something I hope, will never be ruined by human hands.

Like all things, the tour had to come to an end. I was not in the least bit disappointed and it left me wanting to immediately go on the next trip. Each trip brings something new a beautiful to the table and the only bad part is waiting until the day of the trip. Segovia and Escorial are next on my list.

Toledo

This past weekend we went to visit a couple different cities. My favorite was Toledo, it was absolutely beautiful. It was a very old and historic. We were driving up the hill and then we looked out the window to the left and we could see the entire old city. It looked like a scene from a movie. When we got there we drove around a little bit to get a basic idea of what the city was like. Then we got off the bus for a walking tour. We went all throughout the old city with the cobblestone road, which took a tole on our feet after a while. We saw the oldest synagogue which was interesting because it was built by Muslims for the Jews. Then it was later turned into a church and now it's just a museum. My favorite part of the city was just walking around and looking at the scenery because it was so beautiful.

Spain Post #2

Last weekend was very interesting. We went on tours of three cities outside of Madrid, Toledo, Segovia, and Escorial. On Saturday we went to Toledo. We began by going up this narrow little road to the side of a mountain in this huge tour bus. I was scarred to death, but when we stopped the view was amazing of the city. When we got into the town, we took a walking tour of everything there. We look at the churches all over the town. The way they were all painted was amazing. We also visited a grave site/ location of El Greco's famous "The Burial of the Count of Orgaz." They said that the painting is in its original form since El Greco painted it from 1586-1588.

On Sunday, we went to two cities beginning with El Escorial. This is where we visited the basilic church of King Philip II. It was huge and there were so many stories about it since it had been there since 1584. Now it is used as a church with monks and a boys boarding school. On our tour we went down below the church where there a grave monuments everywhere. Almost all of the Kings of Spain and their families were buried there.
The second city we visited that day was Segovia. This city wasn't really as exciting as the other two but probably because we couldn't understand our tour guide's spanish accent. The only exciting thing there was the Castle of Segovia. It was built in the 15th and 16th centuries.

I wrote this a few days ago actually and I had saved it because I wanted to make a few changes. The date of creation of this article would be July 5, 2007.


Well, it started innocently enough. I was excited about flying to Spain. I had not been on a plane since about 8 or 9 years ago. My excitement soon turned to extreme boredom, waiting for the plane to take off and after the plane took off my boredom turned to complete misery. The seats were uncomfortable, there was no space AND I was stuck in the middle giving me the least amout of room. I had forgotten my mp3 player and all of my books in my bag. I got absolutely no sleep and I was very dehydrated. To say the least, the flight was quite hellish. However, I quickly got over all of my self-pity as soon as we landed in Madrid.

We got off the plane and I was able to fully take in my surroundings. The airport was nothing too different from what you see in the states, but something that I found absolutely enthralling was that everything was in Spanish. Of course, I knew that this was going to be the case before I got there, but when I actually saw it, the full impact finally hit me: I was in Spain.
As we drove to Colegio Mayor Mara, my first impressions were that it was not much different than most big cities. There were cars and people everywhere, grafitti on the walls, the works. One funny I noticed is that many of the cars were quite small. I later came to find out that these small cars were absolutely necessary and also that one must be superhuman to drive and survive in the crowded streets of Spain.

Our first tour was to Madrid. We drove to many different places such as Plaza Mayor, El Palacio Real and Plaza de Oriente. From these visits, you could truly feel the Spanish flavor. Everything was beautifully constructed, exquisite and grand. However, Palacio Real was the most amazing for me. It is a giant palace reserved for the King of Spain (although he doesn´t actually reside there). The building itself was enormous. I couldn´t help but marvel at its size and take lots of pictures. At that point, I was the definition of tourist.

Afterwards, they gave us the choice of exploring Madrid on our own and so I went along with a group who invited me. We started in Plaza de España, where there are statues of Cervantes with his greatest creations Don Quixote de la Mancha y Pancho. Madrid is another big city, like Atlanta, but which much more flair and life. There´s food, shops, bars and people everywhere and it´s extremely lively at all times with no slowdown ever. This was also the first time I got to eat a few different tapas, and I have to say, they were absolutely delicious.
So far, my experiences have been great. I am loving Spain and wanting to do more every day. Soon I go to Toledo, one of the oldest cities in Spain. I can´t wait.

SPSU 2007 Madrileños

SPSU 2007 Madrileños--Back row: David Hampe, Aleksey Ávila Vila; seated: Eleanor Rochelle, Hagen Saunders (Brenau College, we adopted her!), Casey Adcock, and Marguerite Cheatham.

So far our trip to Madrid has been awesome. There is so much to do and see here. At first it was hard to get used to the time change. I think all of us are still trying to fully adapt to it, since it is 6 hours ahead of Atlanta time. Everyday we have been going to classes in the morning and then taking the afternoons off to go and see the city. Fortunately there have been many tours organized by FORSPRO that have taken us to the best places in the city. The biggest change for me though is all of the walking we have been doing. I swear we walking almost 5 miles a day. We also have been using the Metro here, a subway system that takes us all over the city. I like most of the people here in Spain. The culture is different because these people do not really have their personal space "bubbles" like we do in the U.S. The also have graffiti everywhere here. Like its all over buildings, signs, historical monuments, its everywhere!
I had the most fun the other night when we went out for tapas and wine at 5 different places. Tapas are like little appetizers. Another fun night for us was when we went to El Parque del Retiro. We went rowing on a little boat for awhile, it was funny to see four girls rowing. Here is a picture of us at the lake.

First Impressions

My first impressions of Spain thus far, have all been very good. I love city life, can't ever get enough of it. I don't think I was fully aware of how much i missed living in a big city until coming out here. The people of Madrid are wonderful and incredibly friendly, making the experience all the more enjoyable. It's hot here, but not as hot as I thought it would be, I really like the weather. I did not know what to expect when it came to the food and have decided that I am not a fan of the food that we are given to eat here at Collegio Mara, however when we go out into the city and are eating real authentic Spanish food, I really enjoy it. It's very exciting being here in the city because there is so much to do! It's impossible to get bored! The only problem that I might be having is not getting enough rest do to the fact that I never want to stop! I just want to do and see everything here that Spain has to offer!
Marguerite