martes, 29 de marzo de 2011
Barcelona would've been fun but..
I left for Barcelona on Friday morning. Being that Barcelona is one of the top party destinations in the world, I decided to get a good nights sleep, so that I could be well rested for the weekend ahead of me. However, I woke up Friday morning feeling nauseous and threw up 2 times before even arriving in Barcelona. So basically, my entire first day/night in Barcelona was spent laying in a my bed in possibly one of the dodgiest, unclean hostels I have stayed to this date. Oh irony. I later found out that a 24 hour stomach flu had been going around Sevilla. Thankfully, I woke up Saturday feeling fine. I explored the city with some friends, and later that night we went out for Mexican food. Let me tell you, it is difficult to find Mexican food in Spain. I think that miiight have to be my first meal when I get back. After dinner, we went to a bar called Dow Jones. Basically, alcohol prices were all about supply and demand, so we chose our drink selections based on what was cheap at the moment. The next morning I had to head back to Sevilla. I felt like I was barely there due to my unexpected bought of the stomach flu. Oh well, better luck next time!
miércoles, 16 de marzo de 2011
Parla inglese?
What a weekend! On Monday I got back from Rome, and this was by far my favorite trip yet. We arrived in Rome around 9pm on Friday night. We then took a 40 minute bus ride into the city. I tried to do my homework before I left so that we wouldn't have to take a cab to where we were staying and I researched the metro stops. Unfortunately, the metro closed at 9pm. To add to that, the bus dropped us off in possibly one of the most dodgy areas of town. As my friend and I frantically looked for cab, homeless men were yelling things in Italian at us. We speed walk to a more well lit area, clutching our bags and hoping nothing would go wrong. We tried multiple times to flag down a cab, but none would stop for us. Finally in desperation we sprinted across the street and basically ran right in front of a cab hoping it would stop. Thank god he stopped. Without speaking a word of Italian, and only having a piece of paper with an address on it, this was by far the most unsafe I have felt in Europe. We later found out that Rome uses taxi stands where you must wait for a cab to pick you up. Makes sense why it was so difficult to find a cab!
My friend Alison had some friends in Rome, so we got to stay in their apartment for free. We arrived around 11pm and quickly got ready to go out. That night we went to a club called Coyote. Since Alison and I didn't know Italian, we had fun speaking Spanish to each other to throw the locals off. Surprisingly, many Italians didn't know how to speak Spanish. The languages are so similar, so I thought it would be more commonly spoken.
The next day we did a plethora of sight seeing. We started out with St Peter's Square and St Peter's Basilica. The church was by far the prettiest church I have been to. I was in awe the entire time. After that, we headed to the Vatican Museum. The Museum was interesting, but I wish I would've understood more of what everything was. At the end of the Vatican Museum was the Sistine Chapel. I was surprised by how small it was, but it was interesting to see how Michelangelo added depth and dimension to the flat walls of the Chapel. The Last Judgment painting was pretty amazing to see too. After that, we hiked over to a different part of the city to check out Trevi Fountain and make a wish. Instead of a euro, we threw a quarter in because a cab driver had given one of the guys quarters for change instead of euros. We thought it was funny and figured they were useless, so why waste our precious euros? After that went to the Pantheon.
Around 5 the guys went back to the apartment to siesta, while Alison and I stayed out to eat a late lunch. We went to this little restaurant that was known for having international students visit. The waiter was quite interesting - he insisted my eyelashes were too long to be real and had me pull on them. He then proceeded to kiss my cheek and asked me what I would like to eat. One good part of this unwanted attention was free wine. This restaurant made a special wine called "sexy wine." It was a sweeter version of red wine. It kind of reminded me of tinto de verano in Spain. With every meal, you were given a free glass of wine, but our waiter gave us an additional glass for no reason at all.
That night we went to a place called Tony's and I had the best Italian meal of my life. We started off with bruschetta. The tomatoes in Rome are absolutely amazing, so after that meal we ordered bruschetta with every meal. My friend and I split chicken parmesan and tortellini. I was stuffed midway through the meal, but it was too delicious to let it go to waste. After appetizers, entrees, and 2 liters of wine, our meal split between the 4 of us was only 15 euro. Rome was surprisingly a lot cheaper than I expected it to be!
The next morning we got up and headed to the Colosseum and the Forum. Unfortunately, it was rainy and windy, so sightseeing was quite miserable. The Colosseum was huge, and I bought an audio tour headset to learn more, but it was a little too detailed for my liking. I'm more interested in the general history, not on specifics, so I quite using my headset midway through. We then went to the Forum, but didn't spend too much time there because we were cold and miserable. We quickly went home to change, and then went on a hunt for authentic Italian gelato. All I have to say is thank god I am not studying in Rome-I would easily come back 15 pounds heavier! The gelato was the best tasting I had ever had. Later that night we went out for pizza at a little family owned joint then spent the rest of the night at an Irish Pub.
On Monday we did a last bit of sightseeing at the Spanish Steps and ate our last delicious Italian meal. Now I know what they mean that you need at least a week in Rome. I would love to go back someday!
My friend Alison had some friends in Rome, so we got to stay in their apartment for free. We arrived around 11pm and quickly got ready to go out. That night we went to a club called Coyote. Since Alison and I didn't know Italian, we had fun speaking Spanish to each other to throw the locals off. Surprisingly, many Italians didn't know how to speak Spanish. The languages are so similar, so I thought it would be more commonly spoken.
The next day we did a plethora of sight seeing. We started out with St Peter's Square and St Peter's Basilica. The church was by far the prettiest church I have been to. I was in awe the entire time. After that, we headed to the Vatican Museum. The Museum was interesting, but I wish I would've understood more of what everything was. At the end of the Vatican Museum was the Sistine Chapel. I was surprised by how small it was, but it was interesting to see how Michelangelo added depth and dimension to the flat walls of the Chapel. The Last Judgment painting was pretty amazing to see too. After that, we hiked over to a different part of the city to check out Trevi Fountain and make a wish. Instead of a euro, we threw a quarter in because a cab driver had given one of the guys quarters for change instead of euros. We thought it was funny and figured they were useless, so why waste our precious euros? After that went to the Pantheon.
Around 5 the guys went back to the apartment to siesta, while Alison and I stayed out to eat a late lunch. We went to this little restaurant that was known for having international students visit. The waiter was quite interesting - he insisted my eyelashes were too long to be real and had me pull on them. He then proceeded to kiss my cheek and asked me what I would like to eat. One good part of this unwanted attention was free wine. This restaurant made a special wine called "sexy wine." It was a sweeter version of red wine. It kind of reminded me of tinto de verano in Spain. With every meal, you were given a free glass of wine, but our waiter gave us an additional glass for no reason at all.
That night we went to a place called Tony's and I had the best Italian meal of my life. We started off with bruschetta. The tomatoes in Rome are absolutely amazing, so after that meal we ordered bruschetta with every meal. My friend and I split chicken parmesan and tortellini. I was stuffed midway through the meal, but it was too delicious to let it go to waste. After appetizers, entrees, and 2 liters of wine, our meal split between the 4 of us was only 15 euro. Rome was surprisingly a lot cheaper than I expected it to be!
The next morning we got up and headed to the Colosseum and the Forum. Unfortunately, it was rainy and windy, so sightseeing was quite miserable. The Colosseum was huge, and I bought an audio tour headset to learn more, but it was a little too detailed for my liking. I'm more interested in the general history, not on specifics, so I quite using my headset midway through. We then went to the Forum, but didn't spend too much time there because we were cold and miserable. We quickly went home to change, and then went on a hunt for authentic Italian gelato. All I have to say is thank god I am not studying in Rome-I would easily come back 15 pounds heavier! The gelato was the best tasting I had ever had. Later that night we went out for pizza at a little family owned joint then spent the rest of the night at an Irish Pub.
On Monday we did a last bit of sightseeing at the Spanish Steps and ate our last delicious Italian meal. Now I know what they mean that you need at least a week in Rome. I would love to go back someday!
Vatican Museum
Trevi Fountain
Pantheon
Colosseum
Mmmmm gelato
View from the top of the Spanish Steps
domingo, 6 de marzo de 2011
Welcome to the palace
Hola! So as some of you know, I just moved into a new homestay. A lot changed this past week! Basically, I had been living with a bunch of random exchange students and I was very uncomfortable with it - 8 different people in my homestay since I had arrived. I felt like I lived in a hostel! So I went to my program coordinator asking if this was acceptable, and to my surprise she was appalled. She told me that we were not supposed to be living with any other exchange students in our homestays. Well, let me tell you, Isabel did NOT like that I ratted her out. After finding out that I had spoken to CIEE (my program), she went from sweet, innocent old lady, to Nazi patrol woman. It was terrifying. Well, she kicked us out (my friend and I) but let me tell you, it was a definite upgrade. I feel like I went from rags to riches!
Right now I am living in the heart of the centro with a family. My host parents are Juan and Lola, and they have a 22 year old daughter named Monica, and two little dogs - Nana and Chici. I love the family - Lola and Juan are soooo nice and Monica is awesome. Its nice that we're close in age because she's really easy to relate to. She also has a very attractive boyfriend, so of course my roommate and I are going to try and meet his friends :) Good looking men roll in packs, right? Anyway, their house is absolutely GORGEOUS. My roommate and I like to call it the palace as a joke. It's an old style Spanish home with a courtyard, 4 levels, and a roof top deck. Tanning please? Lola told me that it was built in the 16th century. Also, Lola is an amazing cook. My old Señora became accustom to feeding me only vegetables and bland pasta. Often times I would have to go to the grocery store to grab a snack in between meals because I was always hungry. But Lola never leaves me hungry. For example, this afternoon when I woke up at 3:30pm (please don't judge me. I was at the second largest Carnival in the world last night in Cadiz and didn't get home until 8:30am), she told us that she understood that after a night of dancing and partying that we would be hungry. She then proceeded to feed us the largest meal I have had since I've been here - a chicken parmesan crusted chicken breast, a spanish omelette, noodle soup, a baguette, an apple and a pudding dessert. Did I eat all of it? Yes. It was sooo delicious.
As you can tell, I am extremely happy I moved. Best decision yet. Oh and my internet works ALL THE TIME! No more freezing/pausing skype conversations :) Get excited people!
As I said earlier, last night I went to the Carnival in Cadiz. Its basically a week long festival in the streets. Everyone wears costumes, drinks and has a great time. Cadiz is an hour a half away, so we all went with a travel agency called "We Love Spain." When I first heard about Carnival, I assumed it was during the day (aka a Mifflin Block party type thing). Nope, we left for Cadiz at 8:30pm. The way there was basically a party bus and we arrived to Cadiz around 10pm. They then let us run wild in the city until 5:30am and basically if we weren't back in time that we would be responsible for our own way home. Well, I only brought 5 euro with me, so I immediately knew I could not mess this one up. Although I managed to get separated from everyone I was with, I still had a great time making friends with people on the street. It was a blast! And yes, I made the bus on time.
Right now I am living in the heart of the centro with a family. My host parents are Juan and Lola, and they have a 22 year old daughter named Monica, and two little dogs - Nana and Chici. I love the family - Lola and Juan are soooo nice and Monica is awesome. Its nice that we're close in age because she's really easy to relate to. She also has a very attractive boyfriend, so of course my roommate and I are going to try and meet his friends :) Good looking men roll in packs, right? Anyway, their house is absolutely GORGEOUS. My roommate and I like to call it the palace as a joke. It's an old style Spanish home with a courtyard, 4 levels, and a roof top deck. Tanning please? Lola told me that it was built in the 16th century. Also, Lola is an amazing cook. My old Señora became accustom to feeding me only vegetables and bland pasta. Often times I would have to go to the grocery store to grab a snack in between meals because I was always hungry. But Lola never leaves me hungry. For example, this afternoon when I woke up at 3:30pm (please don't judge me. I was at the second largest Carnival in the world last night in Cadiz and didn't get home until 8:30am), she told us that she understood that after a night of dancing and partying that we would be hungry. She then proceeded to feed us the largest meal I have had since I've been here - a chicken parmesan crusted chicken breast, a spanish omelette, noodle soup, a baguette, an apple and a pudding dessert. Did I eat all of it? Yes. It was sooo delicious.
As you can tell, I am extremely happy I moved. Best decision yet. Oh and my internet works ALL THE TIME! No more freezing/pausing skype conversations :) Get excited people!
As I said earlier, last night I went to the Carnival in Cadiz. Its basically a week long festival in the streets. Everyone wears costumes, drinks and has a great time. Cadiz is an hour a half away, so we all went with a travel agency called "We Love Spain." When I first heard about Carnival, I assumed it was during the day (aka a Mifflin Block party type thing). Nope, we left for Cadiz at 8:30pm. The way there was basically a party bus and we arrived to Cadiz around 10pm. They then let us run wild in the city until 5:30am and basically if we weren't back in time that we would be responsible for our own way home. Well, I only brought 5 euro with me, so I immediately knew I could not mess this one up. Although I managed to get separated from everyone I was with, I still had a great time making friends with people on the street. It was a blast! And yes, I made the bus on time.
My new room!
Hang out area
Our balcony
Chici!
Dressed before Carnival. After being pick-pocketed in Madrid, I refused to bring my camera to Carnival, so sadly I have no pictures of me there
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