Andalucía Road Trip

I spent a week traveling Andalucía with my parents in March.

Nothing is better than eating and drinking cheaply at 5-6 tapas bars a day with your parents, simply enjoying the ambience and relaxed way of life in Andalucía

First stop Córdoba: We wandered the old, narrow streets of Cordóba and visited the Mezquita in this beautiful city located 45 minutes from Sevilla on the fast train. Besides scratching the car on a street that was way to narrow (that is why there is insurance) the trip was amazing and Córdoba is a lovely small town.
On this trip we ran into one of my professors in Cordoba and a classmate from one of my linguistic classes at Appalachian State University in Granada.

                                         Just a normal man, wearing normal clothing.

We visited several of the pueblos blancos on our trip and my favorites were Zahara and Grazalema.
These villages are located close to one of the most popular white villages, Ronda, although Zahara and Grazalema are relatively off of the tourist track.

                                                                            Zahara

                                                                And Grazalema

Meeting friendly locals in the tiny villages who were happy to bring us tapa after tapa, was not a rare occurrence on this trip once they heard my parents speak spanish ;).

We even got to eat Paella on the beach made by this idol, Ayo!

morocco

The three days I spent in Northern Morocco were filled with new smells, ways of life, welcoming people, new friends and suprises. Morocco is only a short ferry ride away from Spain, yet the cultures are so different. I only skimmed the surface of this amazing country and I hope that I will be able to go back to enjoy more of this amazing country. When we first arrived we were rewarded with amazing views of the sea. So many families were walking on the beach, playing soccer and enjoying their Friday evening.

In the town of Tangier we were allowed an hour of free time and as my friend and I walked through the markets and the streets, I could not help but smile. And that smile must have been huge because a man selling colorful slippers at the souk told me "You are laughing too much." He said it with a smile and although the language barrier is evident, he meant this in the best of ways.

I highly recommend traveling to Morocco, especially if you are in Europe because it is relatively close and an amazing country of contrasts and friendly people.

Chefchauen is a village in Northern Morocco known for the various hues of blue, which encompass the city. We crossed a bridge over a river in order to see a view of the town. Although the view was beautiful, the people below the river were the one's who grabbed our attention. Families gathered near the river, little boys played on a roof, while an older woman washed her clothes.

La feria de abril

     This was my favorite week of my semester abroad, a week with no classes when I could appreciate Sevilla's amazing fiesta like a local. During La Feria de Abril in Sevilla the women dress in elegant flamenco dresses and the men wear suits or nice dress clothing. Thousands of tent-like structures fill the fairgrounds in the neighborhood of Los Remedios.

     The feria is spent socializing with friends, dancing, eating and drinking. There is a bar in each feria tent that serves items such as the spanish omlette, sandwiches, fish and meat. The classic drink that people enjoy during feria is a mixture of sprite and sherry, known as rebujito. The drink is served in a pitcher (jarra) and is served with 6 or 7 cups. It is the perfect refreshment to keep everyone hydrated throughout the festival. Sevillanas are a type of dance and music popular in Sevilla, this is made obvious by the blaring sevillanas coming from the feria tents at all hours of the night. There are four parts to the dance and people of all ages dance sevillanas day and night.

     One of the most amazing moments of the feria was having the parents of my friend welcome us into their caseta, to dance and enjoy the early hours of the morning. This scene would have been beautiful to any bystander; happy and pretty girls twirling around the dance floor in their flamenco dresses with smiles that never ceased. I was fortunate enough to be with friends who I had made in the mountains of North Carolina, those who had been apart of my daily life in Sevilla since January and those who I had met that very night.

Goals

I have been in Spain for 4 weeks now, and the time has flown incredibly fast. With that being said, I want to take advantage of this time abroad.

1. Learn to dance Sevillanas, which is the type of Flamenco people dance at la Fería de abril. I signed up for classes and I plan on practicing at the flamenco bars and during La Feria.

2. Find the best tinto de verano and chocolate con churros in Sevilla.

3. Travel to three countries. I do not want to travel every weekend, because I want to enjoy the culture of Sevilla and hang out with friends, and second of all I can not afford to travel every weekend. :) As of now I am traveling to Morocco in May and other little towns and villages in the coming weeks.

4. Travel to the little villages and towns near Sevilla. Little villages will always hold a special place in my heart, like this little village, Estella, in the North of Spain

5. Speak spanish more fluidly. I would like to have a good grip on Spanish and be able to converse with whoever I want, even the Andalucían abuelos.

Goodbyes

Saying goodbye to people who have been a big part in your life, even if only for several months is never easy. I was so fortunate to have the most amazing Spanish friends and friends from all over the world who helped make my five months abroad truly amazing. Saying goodbye is hard, especially when your friend writes you a sweet message. Yes, I was that person who cried in 100 Montaditos.

I believe that as a traveler you never have to say goodbye because you understand how important these friendships are and will take advantage of relative closeness. Spain and Holland aren't really that far as compared to Holland and The United States.

I have been lucky to see so many friends on this trip, who I had previously said goodbye to, and I hope to see more friends on future trips and adventures.

Life in Sevilla

I love Sevilla. First of all, the city is very pedestrian friendly/bike friendly which I absolutely love. Whenever I walk around in the center or other neighborhoods near the center I always run into people I know.

Running in to friends during La Feria de Abril.

     I have heard multiple people say that Sevillanos live their social life in the streets and bars and I completely agree with them. As a study abroad student, I was able to take full advantage of this lifestyle. I lived with a family when I was an aupair in the North of Spain so when I was deciding on my living situation I chose to live in a shared apartment with other students so that I would be free to enjoy the culture of tapas without worrying about being home for dinner. This allowed me to enjoy Sevilla to the fullest. I loved being able to have several plans each day to have a tapa or a drink with friends. Often times I would run into friends while walking through the city, or would receive a call from someone who was wondering if I wanted to "tomar algo" with them, and of course the answer was yes because this was a semester of enjoying life in Sevilla to the fullest, without worrying about the fact that I hadn't been to my flat all day.

Eating with friends near the neighborhood of Los Remedios

     I enjoyed having countless tinto de verano's (which is wine mixed with some sort of fizzy drink, such as fanta) in Plaza del Salvador, having a coffee near San Bernado or the river, or just spending hours at the bars in Alemeda. My time in Sevilla was spent simply enjoying life while meeting new friends from Sevilla and other places. Being able to live in Sevilla allowed me to go beyond the tourist activities and live in Sevilla more or less like a local. Often times just venturing five or ten minutes from the tourist areas (around the cathedral, Avenida de Constitución and San Fernando) allowed me to find lively tapas bars with a friendly atmosphere and without the translated menus. For example, the tapas bars on calle Mateos Gago, the street that is located no more than five minutes from La Giralda, and surprisingly out of the touristy zone.

When things go wrong

I love to travel and live in in a place for a longer period of time, but of course nothing is perfect.

While traveling sometimes you miss the last bus home, or the ATM machine turns off with your debit card in it and you have to go back to the bank the next morning to retrieve it at 8 am when you have class in an hour. This can happen anywhere, but dealing with situations like these in a foreign country can take a toll on you.

Last night I was walking with three friends to a friends party. We had walked no more than four minutes past the mushroom looking architecture (Las Setas) in the center of Sevilla.

(Las Setas)

We took a side street to our friends apartment and noticed a guy started following us. We had been walking for five minutes when he lunged at us and grabbed my friends bag. Luckily within five seconds of running we were on a bigger street where we saw around 6-10 people.



I had been to the same streets earlier this week where the event occurred and this is what I found; a playground filled with children and people enjoying a snack or drink at the surrounding bars.

Sevilla is a very safe city, but this type of event happens everywhere and luckily we were not hurt.


Getting Lost:

When I come to a new city I like to know where some of the major tourist sites are and how to get to them. After visiting the main sites I like to put away the map and walk whichever way I feel like. This sounds silly but I always go in the direction of good smells and music.

Most of the time I am completely fine with being lost because it is a chance to explore a different part of the city, but sometimes it can take a toll on you. I was talking to a student on one of the city busses in Granada about traveling, because he could see that I had a gigantic suitcase. He asked me if traveling "Te cuesta mucho" meaning is it physically and emotionally draining, and I responded that yes, but I would not be traveling if it was unbearable.

Getting lost teaches you to keep confident and calm and to walk a little slower and enjoy the new scenery that surrounds you.

La Universidad Pablo de Olavide

I am studying at La Universidad Pablo de Olavide this semester. The University is located on the outskirts of the city, because I live close to the city center, I take the metro to class everyday. The metro is very clean, and there are always one or two security guards. I love seeing all of the students using the metro.

Last Tuesday there was an orientation and the metro was filled with foreigners (mostly Americans.) After the orientation we gathered in the cafeteria to have sangria, cerveza, jamón, and cheese. This is where I met two people from Appalachian who had been studying in Sevilla during the fall semester.

I have eaten lunch at the University's  outdoor cafe, and the two people who work there are so nice! One of my friends has been here for 5 months already, and they like to practice their English with her. It is really charming. I have been to the cafe twice now and they recognize me, they even announce the numbers of the tickets in English when we are there, although we know our numbers in Spanish.

They even apologized that my food took 10 minutes to cook because the oven is broken, which was not even an issue for me.

My classes seem very interesting and the professors are very nice and funny, as well as my classmates.

Granada

On the way back from visiting my previous roommate in Alicante I decided to stop in Granada for a few days. I would have had to switch buses in Granada to get to Sevilla anyway, so it was convenient and well worth the visit. Granada was my first taste of Andalucía. The locals are warm, friendly, and overall buena gente.

Another aspect that I like about Granada is that it is a very small and manageable city, which is great for those of us who are not the best with directions. I could easily navigate the city because going uphill would lead you to the Alhambra or the neighborhood of Albayzín and going downhill would lead me to my hostel, well eventually. One can easily see the main sights in a few days.

The Alhambra was constructed in 889 as a Moorish fortress, it was then converted to a palace in 1333. The tickets are divided into morning and afternoon: I suggest spending the amount of time allotted because the Alhambra is GIGANTIC.

I loved my visit in January, there were hardly any people walking around which made it even more fascinating and real without all of the tourists with their fancy cameras. It was nice being able to talk to the security guards and workers for a long time in order to learn more about the Alhambra, instead of being rushed. Just remember to dress warm because the Sierra Nevada mountains are located in the Granada province.

I leave you guys with too many photos: