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Published: February 7th 2010
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Little Living Room
This is inside of the house. We would move the couch to fit the table for meal times. The fireplace was glorious in those freezing rooms. These past few weeks have been mostly getting accustomed to the permanence of life here, sprinkled with a few adventures. My second week of school was easier to bring myself to go to, although I did miss one day due to having a night were my cough did not relent. It was a night of those coughs where you’re left gasping for air, pain creeping all over your torso from the shire physical effort. I felt worse for my roommate than anything, to keep her up all night listening to me. But after a day of sleep I was fine. It turned out that was the coughs grand finale and I’ve been healthy since. But this is getting ahead of myself.
Last weekend Jose and Lucia (my host brother and sister) took us to Llerena, a little town about an hour and 15 minutes north of Sevilla. Their father, Pepe, is from Llerena and he loves his hometown. The drive there was magnificent. Being from Florida I’m used to flatness that to other people is strange but going through the mountains on the way to Llerena made me feeling like we were driving through the Rockies. The mountains/hills were green
The Church Tower
I was surprised at somethig so grand in such a small town. with patches of grey from knarred trees and old Roman architecture just there on the side of the road. It always will amaze me that there are places in this world that the history that previously has only been real to me in books, remains in the daily life of others. To walk on the same roads as great thinkers and generals of the past did is not something spectacular or overlooked. It’s simply a part of their lives.
The hour drive flew by listening to American hip-hop with European techno mixes, which might I add are very good, and seeing the beautiful view of the Spanish countryside. Llerena is a little town with I’m guessing a population of about 5’000. All the buildings are the customary white with a beautiful church and tower in the center. The house was about 5 minutes of the town, down a pocketed dirt road, past one or two other houses until you can hear the barking of their dog Bubba (pronounced Booba). The house was more like two apartments with one on top of the other. We stayed in the top half and when we got inside I was overwhelmed by the
Stage
I had alot of fun exploring around there. country charm of the place. Equipped with a much need fireplace, cause it had to be 30 degrees in there, a comfy couch and chairs, tiny kitchen, and plenty of beds, it was perfect. Lucia’s boyfriend, Roberto, join us for a delicious lunch that Charro had packed for us. And this wasn’t your usually ham and cheese sandwich. It was a stew of beef and garbanzo beans which was so good in the cold room. (I could see my breath when we were eating!)
After lunch we went into Llerena to play billiards and have a few drinks. They’re rules for billiards here is different but I think I’m going to take the changes back to the States with me. I don’t remember all of them but I’m sure that we’ll be back there before my time in Sevilla is through. The hours flew by in the little billiard hall/ice cream shop/bar/lounge and before we knew it was 9 o’clock. We ran to the supermarket to get tomorrows dinner bought and about 5 liters of beer to have on hand in case the 7 others we had didn’t do the trick. It’s nice though that here people drink to
The Church
Really pretty at night. necessarily get drunk but more to enjoy something delicious that there is a specialty in making and drinking. Cruzcampo is to be enjoyed, not funneled. Afterwards Jose showed Robin and I around the town while Lucia and Roberto went to visit with his mother. The town is lovely and reminded me many times of the alleyways in Greece, except in Greece of can always smell the ocean. The church was beautiful all lit up in the night. As I was standing there admiring the tower, a man came up to me and said, “Do you know our tower is better than Giralda?”
I smiled at the genetic pride that fills every Spaniard. “Why?”
“Because ours starts with an arch. It’s sturdier and more beautiful.” He smiled and walked away. I love how Spaniards are so in love with what is theirs. I know that that man wasn’t saying something to charm me. He was letting me know “Look how beautiful my tower is. It’s more beautiful than anything else in Spain.” I love that.
After a brief tour we met back up with Lucia, Roberto, and were joined by 4 of Jose’s friends. We had tapas and
Pepe the Chef
Making dinner. watched the Real Madrid soccer game. The Martin Blanco family is unconventional in many ways, one of them being loyal Real Madrid fans. Jose cheered as they made some truly impressive goals and his friends solidified our loyalty to Sevilla saying that our hosts weren’t right in the head. I had never really watched soccer before coming here and I was missing out…the States are missing out! There is so much individual skill require along with 100% trust with all your teammates that they are going to be where you need them to be in the exact moment. Real Madrid ended up winning of course, and we soon after departed off to another bar.
The next morning we woke up, got dressed, and were off to the Roman ruins close by the town. It’s a relatively intact Roman theater. It’s not particularly huge but what made being there fantastic was the casualness that it was kept in. we were the only ones there free to explore the area without the restrictions of roped off areas or any such nonsense. It was cold and grey but it fit the mood of the area. To the west there was an ancient
Robin and I helped.
Well, she did. I was a bit late >.< Arab castle on a hill that I was dying to go explore but none of us were wearing the right shoes or clothes for such a climb. I hope that the next time we go back I’ll be able to explore up there. It sure it’s absolutely beautiful, the castle itself and the view. The rest of the afternoon was spent after the house eating a lovely meal (Lucia thought she put sugar instead of salt in the tortilla) and relaxing next to the fire. It was a great weekend with them and keep in mind that every time we spoke, it was in Spanish!
This past week wasn’t very eventful. Mostly a lot of walking back and forth from school. Class is class. The other night was really nice because Pepe made paella for the family and boy, can he make paella! I wish I had 4 stomachs so I could have kept eating but I couldn’t breathe after the first plate. It had chicken, squid, mushrooms, little octopus, and other delicious tidbits. I can’t wait for the next one!
To think that I have been here for three full weeks already doesn’t feel accurate. At times when I’m walking through the center and I see the Cathedral nearing, my breath still catches at the immense beauty, followed by the stark reminder that this is my new home for the next few months. Other times it’s the familiarity with Sevilla that surprises me. Having a daily routine and being able to give people directions have started to make me feel like a resident and less like a lost American. I love the fresh yet intimate relationship between myself and everything from my Cathedral to the orange trees. By the end, Sevilla won’t be home because home is my beloved Florida, but it will be a piece of me that I will never loose, nor will be tarnished with age. Sevilla and I will have shared secrets, covered for each other, had countless laughs, and sunny afternoons. But for its best not to focus on the future but instead embrace these moments now, laugh those laughs with a Cruzcampo in hands, and have an adventure.
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maria
non-member comment
hello guapa
Cristina me encanta leer tus comentarios sobre tu viaje a Cevilla y que te sientas tan bien. Que estas aprendiendo espanol asi puedes contarle a Chicho de tu viaje ,pon mas fotos que estan muy lindas.Cuidate, te quireo mucho tia Maria.