BarceLOCA

Hi everyone!

Spent this past weekend in Barcelona! It was SUCH a different experience than being in Sevilla. First, the city is so much bigger. We all kept saying that we felt like small town girls in a big city. In Sevilla, there's much more of a friendly, local feel than in Barcelona. Also the city was, as I had heard, much less "Spanish" than Sevilla. The people speak a lot in Catalan and, a lot of the times, in English.

We did a few sight-seeing activities, including seeing the Gaudí buildings and La Boqueria. The architecture was incredible in Barcelona. Even the normal apartment buildings were so detailed. Dad, if you're reading this, you're going to LOVE La Boqueria. It was a marketplace with all different kinds of fresh meats, seafood, produce, chocolates, cakes, etc. I bought myself a coconut smoothie, some chocolate, and fresh passion fruit there.

Fruits at La Boqueria

At night we went to the clubs, which reminded me a lot of the Miami club scene. The venues were HUGE and really upscale. They were also full of Americans (visiting and ones studying in Barcelona) so of course I, the QUEEN of running into people, saw sooo many people from school, camp, and home.

Roommates and me

We ate amazing food in Barcelona as well, but a lot of it wasn't necessarily Spanish food. Just like in almost any big city I've been too, we were able to have all kinds of food. The first night we ate at a Japanese restaurant with a conveyer belt of sushi and small plates of Japanese food. It was all you can eat (including dessert!), so we left there completely stuffed.

The second night, I had the BEST meal I've had so far. We shared smoked salmon with toast points, avocado with lobster and pink sauce, and a caprese salad for an appetizer. For our entrees, we had spaghetti in a white garlic sauce with shrimp, crayfish, and clams and tortellini in a gorgonzola sauce with white truffle oil. It was UNREAL.

Avocado with lobster and pink sauce

Tortellini in a gorgonzola sauce with white truffle oil

Spending this upcoming weekend in Sevilla and doing a day trip to Jerez for a wine tour. Hope everyone is doing well!
xx Hannah

Córdoba and Granada

Got back yesterday from a really great trip to Córdoba and Granada. Both cities were really beautiful and it was nice seeing other parts of Spain.

We only spent a few hours in Córdoba, mostly touring the Cathedral, formerly the Great Mosque of Córdoba, and having lunch in the city.

Outside the Cathedral

Inside the Cathedral

Inside the Cathedral

 

After Córdoba, we went to our hotel in Granada. Granada felt much more like Sevilla than Córdoba did. We ate similar food to what we eat in Sevilla, but in Granada a random tapa comes free with a drink order so we tried a few new dishes. We visited the Alhambra the next day, the main attraction in Granada. The Alhambra was a palace and fortress complex constructed for Moorish royalty. It was full of beautiful rooms, gardens, and views of the city.

Ceiling in the Alhambra

Alhambra

Alhambra

Alhambra garden

Alhambra
 

We decided to stay an extra night in Granada with friends, which ended up being a lot of fun. We spent the rest of the day shopping and walking around Granada. At night, we went to a few shot bars (chupiterias) and a little club up on a mountain.

The next day wasn't quite as fun. We went to the train station to buy a 5PM ticket to go back to Sevilla. The tickets for the 5 train were sold out, but they had ones for the 8:50 train. We call the bus station and they told us they had tickets for a bus that worked for us. We then took a taxi to the bus station and the tickets were sold out by the time we got there. THEN, we had to go back to the train station to get the 8:50 tickets. While we were at the bus station, we had warned our other friends that the tickets were sold out. They then got to the train station before us and bought tickets for the 8:50 train and by the time we were there the tickets were sold out.

At this point, its 4PM and we're really trying to leave Granada, but there was no public transportation until the next morning. Finally, we figured out how to rent a car and had to pay 350 euro to get the only automatic car that the company owned....which turned out to be a brand new white audi :). So we road-tripped from Granada to Sevilla and eventually made it home way before any of our other friends.


Will write again soon! xx Hannah

First Post!

 My roommates and me at Plaza de España

Over two weeks in and I am finally posting my first entry into my blog. I am loving it here in Sevilla! Everything is so incredibly beautiful -- from the buildings to the people -- and they have such a relaxed lifestyle. They have naps built into the day, which is so perfect for me, and everyone is so happy all the time.

Our apartment!

Because I haven't written in two weeks, it will take too long to long to write out all of the things I've done so I'm going to list a few of them:

-Bike tour of Sevilla
-Walking tour of the neighborhood
-Classes started (taking Cultures and Stereotypes, Gender Roles in Spain, Global Competence, and Advanced Spanish)
-Flamenco dancing class

The food here is also amazing. I've eaten so many dishes, including tortilas de patatas (sort of like a potato omelet),  grilled queso de cabra (goat cheese) with marmalade and small toasts, paella, patatas bravas (kind of like small cubes of french fries) with brava sauce, grilled octopus and so much more.

Lastly, we took a trip to Morocco this past weekend. It was unlike any country I had been to before, which was really exciting. The food was alright (a lot of meat and strong spices), but the cities were unbelievable. We went to a medicinal spice store and learned about the different treatments. I bought Moroccan hair oil there and it was so much cheaper than the one I get at home. We also went to a carpet/blanket place where they hand-weave everything. I bought a beautiful orange and red blanket. We also toured the markets, went into the Cave of Hercules (which had an opening to the sea), rode camels, and explored three different cities in Northern Morocco. We also ate at a traditional Moroccan restaurant, where we watched a live music and dancing show. One man danced with a tray of candles without dropping them! We all got henna tattoos on our hands after.

Inside the Cave of Hercules in Tangier, Morocco

Opening in the Cave of Hercules

Right before it slobbered my arm!

Chefchaouen, Morocco

Market in Tangier

Will write again soon!
xx Hannah