Eurotrip!

This week in Spain is Semana Santa (Holy Week), so I had no classes. To get away from the masses of tourists that come to Sevilla for the Semana Santa parades and festivities, I spent 3 days in Paris, 2 in Amsterdam and 2 in Berlin.

Last Thursday I left for Paris. We got there around 8pm, and we immediately met up with our friend Ali who is studying in Paris. It was so nice to be able to stay with someone that knows the city, otherwise it would've been overwhelming. Paris is HUGE! That night we celebrated Ali's roommate's 21st birthday. After some drinks and games of flip cup, we headed out to a club. The next day we woke up early to see the Louvre, walk through the Jardines des Tuileries and the Avenue des Champs Elysees, and to see the Arc de Triomphe. I thought I walked a lot in Sevilla-I was wrong! My feet have never hurt so much. After hours of walking around the city and along the Seine, we headed home to rest before going out. That night we cooked vegetable pasta, and I realized how much I miss cooking! Wierd, right? In Spain, Lola (my host mom) makes all my meals for me so it sometimes gets old not to be able to pick what I want to eat. After dinner, we headed out to an Australian Bar and I had a blast. After an hour or two we tried to get into a an upscale club, but with one look at the 5 of us the bouncer turned us down. I guess we didn't dress to impress. Also, being American isn't always the most favorable in Europe.

The next day we checked out the Notre Dame, climbed the Eiffel Tower (only to the second floor because the top was closed), ate nutella and banana crepes by the Palais de Chaillot, and wandered around the city some more. Wandering is  probably one of my favorite ways to explore cities because I get a feel for a city this way. Also, Paris was beautiful so I loved walking around and seeing different parts of it.

On the third day we took a train to Fountainebleau to see the Chateau de Fontainebleau. I learned that the Chateau was used by all of the French ruling dynasties, dating back to the 1100s. The Chateau was had absolutely beautiful gardens and was breathtaking from the outside. Inside, we toured the Grand Apartments, which included the Papal Apartment, the sovereign's apartments and the Emperor's apartment and the Throne Room. All of the rooms we saw had much of the original furniture and intricate tapestries and paintings. It was quite a sight to see. After touring the Chateau, we headed back to Paris to see the Sacre-Coure, a beautiful Roman Catholic Church located on the highest point of the city. This area of the city was one of my favorites because there were hundreds of people sitting on the hills below the Sacre Coure lounging around and enjoying the weather. There were also a lot of cute shops and restaurants. After enjoying yet another crepe, we headed to the Moulin Rouge.

The next morning we woke up at 6am to catch a train to Amsterdam. Amsterdam was a lot smaller than I expected, but it was really pretty with all its canals and small bridges. In Amsterdam we found a foreign food that I haven't been able to find in Europe yet - BAGELS! I was so excited to finally have one. After eating breakfast, we headed to the Anne Frank House. It was really eerie and sad to see, but I am so glad I did. That night we met some Dutch guys who took us out on the town and bought us multiple rounds of Heineken. Let's just say, I don't like Heineken in the first place, and after this trip I never want to drink it again!

The next day we went on a hunt to the find the Taco Shop. There's a Taco Shop in Madison, and the only other 2 locations in the world are Amsterdam and Copenhagen. After walking for what seemed like an eternity we finally found it but it was CLOSED! Instead, we took a picture just to document our dedication. We then headed over to the Van Gogh museum. Although I enjoyed the museum, I was disappointed that this museum didn't have Starry Night. Oh well! That night we went to a restaurant that boasted over 100 specialty beers and traditional Belgian food.

The next morning we woke up at nice and early to catch a plane to Berlin. Berlin was not what I expected at all. Since its the capital of Germany, I expected to be extremely modern and metropolitan. Although some areas were, there were other areas that were really old and there were obvious remnants from the Cold War. I think this is what made Berlin such an interesting city. Different parts of it seemed like a completely different city.

On the first day we headed to a section of the old Berlin Wall were there was a memorial for all those that died trying to cross it. We then headed to the Parliament building, the Brandenburg Gate (the only remaining city gate of the original 14), Unter den Linden, and Bebelplatz (the square where the Nazi's burned the books). That night we ate some authentic German food - unleavened bread, sausage, potatoes and sauerkraut. Although I wouldn't want to eat heavy food like that everyday, it was surprisingly really good. I even ate the sauerkraut, which I've always been hesitant to try at home. That night we headed out to a club called Watergate that overlooked the river. Going out in Berlin is MUCH different than Spain. In Spain if you want to even think about getting into a trendy club, you must wear heels, a skirt or dress. If you want to get in for free, I've learned to not speak English while I'm waiting in line. However, Berlin is more laid back. Basically, you won't get into a club if you are too dressed up. Also, house music was founded in Berlin, so the music was a lot different. Although I had a lot of fun at Watergate, the club scene in Berlin wasn't my favorite. Trying to dance to house music was an interesting experience..

The next day we checked out Topographie des Terrors, which was the former location of the headquarters for the SS and the Gestapo during WWII. Outside there were more remains of the Berlin Wall and inside there was a plethora of history on WWII. I find WWII really interesting to read about, so I tried to take my time going through this exhibit. We then went to the Berliner Dom, a church that was supposed to have a good view of Berlin, but it was closed. Instead, we decided to enjoy some German beers by the river and we met some Dutch people that we ended up going out with that night.

Its good to be back in Sevilla, but its bittersweet. This trip was my largest, and it felt like it was so far away for such a long time. Now that its over means I go home soon :( Although I do miss my family and friends at times, this trip had been such an amazing experience. I'm not ready to go home yet, but I have to snap back into reality at some point. I only have 3 weeks left here, so I better take advantage of it!

waka waka AFRICA

This weekend I went to Morocco with my program. Traveling was quite extensive. We first took a 2 and a half hour bus ride to the coast of Spain, a one hour ferry ride across the Strait of Gibraltar, and finally another hour and a half bus ride to Tangier. Tangier was probably my least favorite city because it was really dirty. Our guide gave us a tour of the markets, where there were endless amounts of raw meat, fish, and flies. There were even speckled of blood on the cobble stone from killing chickens in public! This was by far the most different place I have traveled to date. Also, during our tour of the city, I saw 4 funeral processions. The bodies of the dead were carried in a wooden coffin by about 4 men. What I found really odd was that only men were present at these funeral processions. Sometimes they were singing in Arabic, and other times they were silent. I was also really surprised by how Western many of the men dressed. On the other hand, many women dressed in the traditional long gowns over their clothing with scarves over their heads.

After our tour we ate a traditional Moroccan meal. All of the meals were 3 to 5 courses, which I wasn't expecting at all. The first course was a broth which was kind of bland. I must be getting used to the salty food in Spain. The second course was cmeat kebabs. They proceeded to serve us another course of cous cous with chicken and vegetables. After that we had green spearmint tea which was by far the best tea I have ever tasted. Our tour guide told us that Moroccans like to add a lot of sugar to their food, so this must've been why it was so delicious. Finally, after the tea we finished the meal with cookies. What a meal!

The next day we went to Tetouan. On the bus ride to Tetouan I noticed that Morocco was much greener than I expected. No, I wasn't expecting sand dunes and dessert, but the green landscape and mountains reminded me a little of Colorado. It was really beautiful.

Tetouan was much more modern than Tangier. We started our day off with a visit to the Coca Cola  factory. We got to see how the different products were manufactured, and we also sampled some of the special products sold in Morocco. I even took a glass coke bottle with writing in Arabic for a souvenir. After the visit we stopped at the beach, which was absolutely breathtaking. The beaches were so natural and untouched, I had never seen anything like it. After lunch, we went to the Caves of Hercules. We then headed into town to do some shopping. I absolutely loved bargaining with the locals. What really surprised me is my Spanish skills came in handy in Morocco. For some odd reason, many of the venders approached me in Spanish. I'm still slightly confused by this because I know others that were approached in English all the time, and we all know I don't look Spanish at all! But hey, I'm always up for practicing my speaking.

On our final day we went to Chechuan, a city where many of the walls and doors are painted blue. This city was by far my favorite because it was beautiful and I actually felt pretty safe. Originally, the purpose of the blue paint color blue was to make the city cooler during the day. I question if that is actually true, but regardless it was fun to see. After the tour, we did some more bargaining and I bought most of my souvenirs for my friends and family for a total of 440 dirham or 40 euro. I even bought a purse and a bracelet for myself :) Gotta love bargaining! After lunch we headed back to Sevilla, which involved excessive amounts of traveling. After about 7 hours of bus rides and ferries, it was good to be back.

I only have about 3 more weeks of classes left. I can't believe it! This Thursday I leave for my 8 day eurotrip, which includes 4 days in Paris, 2 days in Amsterdam and the last 2 in Berlin. I will get back to Seville on the 22nd, just in time to see the end of Semana Santa (Holy Week). Semana Santa in Sevilla is a huge week long celebration. I have heard it is almost impossible to walk around the narrow streets of the centro because there are so many tourists. Thank god I will be gone for the majority of it!

Can life get any better?

Hey everyone! Every day the weather in Sevilla is getting more and more beautiful. This past week I went to the river with friends almost every day after class to enjoy the sunny 80 degree weather :) On Wednesday night I met up with some Spanish friends and we got drinks by the river and later went to a hookah bar. I ended up staying out until 4:00 am with them, so I was not a ball of sunshine when I had to wake up for class the next morning. Only in Spain :)

On Friday I went to Portugal with a few friends through a travel agency. It was nice to not have to plan our own excursions for once. All we had to do was show up to the bus every morning, and they took us to beaches and other sight seeing spots. Portugal was definitely a more spring break type trip. Friday was probably my favorite day because the weather was beautiful and we just sipped on drinks all day. We later went on a little excursion and hiked around the rocks on the beach. That night the travel agency took us out on a bar crawl and we ended the night at a club that didn't open up until 3am. The next day we woke up early to check outs Lagos, and we then spent another relaxing day on the beach. Unfortunately it was raining today, so we packed up a little early and headed back to Sevilla.

Lagos, Portugal

Elise and I riding the bull. I thought that all the leg muscle I've acquired from running would've made me a pro at this. False. I fell off within 10 seconds.

This month I am going to be doing a lot of traveling. On Thursday I am going to Morocco. Then, on the 14th I leave for my 8 day Eurotrip - Paris, Amsterdam and Berlin! Although I am excited to explore more countries, its makes me sad to miss a weekend in Sevilla. My days here are dwindling!

Hasta luego!