Advertisement
Santa Barbara
Our flat is down there somewhere..Since last entry a lot has happened.
On the 12th we went to see the castle of Santa Barbara up on the hill. We took a bus up and walked down. Coming down I saw my first real Spanish old style town and was ecstatic. The first of many adventures among the streets of Alicante.
On the 13th I went on my own to explore the hill and the castle and the Old Town. I got a little lost but all for the better. What an amazing afternoon. I no longer had english in my ear and the rain turned to glorious sunshine by the time I reached el cima the top of the mountain.
Later that night a few of us met up with the teachers to go to a bar. It was a school activity.
Friday the 14th we delayed going to Barcelona. Spoke with Folarin via skype. Apparently the profundity of our conversations surpasses the limitations of proximity.
Saturday the 15th we got up early (too early because we were'nt awake enough to remember our bocadillos...) to catch the bus to Barcelona. What an awesome bus ride. As long as it was I
was entertained by watching the Spanish countryside fly by and taking the occasional photo out the window. Those times of reflection are my favorite. When we reached the city, we immediately got on a bike tour (filmed and took photos while still riding my bike). Saw Gaudi works and most of the city. Quite an excellent tour.
Sunday the 16th we all went and got a 3 hour tour of Camp Nou the very same day as the semi-final for Barca and the Champions League. It was exhilarating to be in the stadium as it was being prepared for the big day. We then drove to the Olympic Stadium, to the beautiful Pueblo Espanol for lunch and perusal and back to the hotel. I was dehydrated so after trying to watch the game from a second floor bar above La Ramblas (the main street where chaos ensued later that night), we decided to head back to the dorms to see if it was on tv. It wasn't. I fell asleep at 9 but woke up the next morning to stories of flares and fires crowds and stampedes broken things, stuffed subways and loud noises as Barcelona rejoiced in victory
that Sunday night.
The 17th was dedicated to Park Guell. A very peaceful place where it would be hard not to be content. Even if one dislikes Gaudi architecture etc, we must at least give credit to the fact that they are creative! I bargained with a store owner for a camera case and Brazil jacket.
The most important things about the 18th are that our group bought bus tickets to Cordoba and I spoke with Kendall (first roommate) on skype!
On the 19th I gave a presentation (in Spanish of course) on Peace Pilgrim. I enjoyed being able to communicate something I am passionate about in another language. It gives me hope that someday, somehow, I will be fluent in Spanish (if not French, German and Italian). After school we walked to the Archaelogical Museum of Alicante (voted the first most interactive museum in Europe). We left at 11:15 pm to catch the bus. Rode all night until the first rays of sun illuminated the long-awaited southern city of Cordoba.
La Mezquita, Por Fin
We got a little lost taking the bus to our hostel area so we decided to go find our tour.
Spain
My special spot I found while exploring We made it just in time after being redirected about four times. Our guide, Paqui, was a wonderful woman who could speak English, Spanish and French fluently. We toured the Alcazar Castle and gardens (made by Alfonso Sabio the XI I believe) and then the Juderia or Jewish Quarters, an old Temple and then the Mesquite. Entering the Mesquite took my breath away. The next day and a half were heavenly because our pueblo revolved around the precious building. It is incredible to me that such a mixture of history, religion, art and culture and be combined in one magnificent edifice.
We found our reserved hostel which was adorable. I have many pictures from walking around the streets of Cordoba with little on the agenda except living in the present. By the first night there Adrienne and I were on our own. Andalucia felt very safe, however, and not just because it is the land of my childhood dreams.
On the 21st I will admit we had icecream for breakfast. It was lunchtime by the time we got up so it doesn't count as irresponsible...I think. We took the bus (some nice lady guessed that we were italian!)
to the bus station to change our tickets to Friday night instead of saturday. We found out when we got there that we had mistaken the time (army time is deceiving) so there was no need to change anything, we were all set! We saw some of our group waiting at the bus station, about to head to Sevilla.
When we returned to the Mezquite we found El Tablao- across from the Mesquite where we booked Flamenco tickets for that night. I was elated to have both my goals met in Southern Spain (the Mosque and Flamenco). Funny because that morning Mom had told me to enjoy some Spanish Guitar music for her. Adrienne and I spent the next eight hours taking a siesta on the park lawn, reading, writing, exploring, putting flowers in our hair and watching as the sun set over the Guadalquivir. The sounds of birds and rushing water at our feet, the smell of a nearby pasteleria and the silhouette of the legendary Mesquite across the water are impressed on my mind as the realization of a wonderful dream.
That night we sat in the Tablao with bugenvilia on the wall and stars directly
above awaiting our first authentic Flamenco show. A free sangria was included with the ticket. We had to leave early to catch our bus (the local buses stopped running so we had to run to the station) but what we saw was beyond worth it. After carrying our backpacks around for the majority of the last two days we were glad to get some rest on the eight hour trip back home to Alicante. Pizza for breakfast at a favorite panederia.
There really is no separation between that day and the next because we went home to shower, charge the camera battery and download photos for an hour and then we were off on our next adventure. This morning we took the tram (with the school) to Altea, a beautiful white-washed spanish town with an exquisite view of the ocean. For the tenth time on this trip Adrienne and I said to each other that this place was our new favorite and that we could live there, for sure.
Tomorrow is free Paella on the beach!
Until next time...
besitos, paz y amor a todo el mundo
P.S. A few key photos are missing
because the majority of my collection was shot in RAW which is not supported by this sight so I have to convert them all to JPGs before I can post them.
Videos as well.
Advertisement
Tot: 0.062s; Tpl: 0.012s; cc: 5; qc: 45; dbt: 0.0382s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 2;
; mem: 1.1mb
