Blogs from Triana, Seville, Andalusia, Spain, Europe

Last day to look around Seville so over to the old town & came across a parade of the Madonna from the Caterina church.....I have seen these type of events on tv etc but to witness first hand was interesting. So emotional for the crowd they were in awe of the Statue....the band was so loud & the procession was so long. The crowd truely appeared to be blessed she had passed their way. We went on & came out at the Caterdal to find it was open & there were no tour groups... so of course we were in. Gothic in style it started as a Mosque & over time it grew & changed. 3rd largest Catherdral in the Christian world but the 1st largest Gothic temple in the world. We felt quite small.... Easy ... read more

Triana established it's name for Spanish Ceramics. The clay soils of the Quadalquivir are a particulary good source for making pottery. Ceramic Tiles (azulejos) are just everywhere & the modern buildings use them as well. The Ceramics began here in the Islamic period then the Spanish-Muslim ceramists contributed the glazing techniques to architecture, in facades, sunrooms, baseboards & ceilings. Since then the Mudejar adopted oriental techniques that formed the basis of the local style. Then came the Mosaics & tiles usually hand painted with popular motifs. Eventually came an industrial process of wooden moulds. And being made in Triana the Plaza de Espana is covered in tiles too! And so today consisted of a walk to the incredible Plaza de Espana. Built in 1929. 50,000 sq metres, gates are open to the public free. Amazing!! The ... read more

Today was awesome! First we went to Zumba again in Dos Hermanas. Was really fun. Came back w/ some new songs. :) Afterward we visited our school from 3 years ago, Geranios. Unfortunately no one was there but it was still fun! After Dos Hermanas and an insanely long wait for the train, we stopped to change & went to visit our host family. It was so wonderful to spend time with them! We were supposed to stay there but they had to take in a couple students at the last min, but we enjoyed every min we did get to spend w/ them...all 360 minutes! Starbucks is going to close so I have to go find directions for the bus to the airport tomorrow. Don't want to leave Sevilla! We're here most of the day, ... read more

Yesterday was fantastic! We had the best Siesta Fiesta ever! Woke up to a gorgeous view. Rented chairs under an umbrella for only 3 Euros each for a full day. The breeze was making us chilly & the sun was blistering hot- very interesting combination. It was a little cold for me to go in the water. Water was still chilly. Put my feet in but mostly just really enjoyed watching & listening to the waves and oh how blue the water is! We were highly entertained by a number of children. 2 specifically got into the sunscreen- their parents were eating on the patio. It was hilarious watching them squirt gobs of sunscreen onto themselves. Entire beach area was watching & laughing. While we were walking before we left, I saw 2 parrots. I thought ... read more

Hellooooo. Thought I would update you on what my classes are like since I am going to school while I'm here. We officially register this Thursday, we've just been trying out classes for the last week and a half but I've narrowed my choices down to what I will be taking for the semester and got them all approved! On Mondays and Wednesdays I have Civil War Literature from 11-1pm and Literature and Cuisine from 1-3pm. They're both taught in Spanish and are already pretty tough. I don't really like or understand literature in English, so it's like 10X harder in Spanish, but my friends are taking them too so we'll figure it out. For the Literature and Cuisine class we learn about works of literature on Monday and then cook something related to it on ... read more