Cadiz and Málaga Weekend!

Last weekend, my awesome German roommate, Juliane and I along with some of her friends from school rented a car and decided to explore Andalucia! Driving in Spain is ridiculously scary because no one really obey’s traffic laws and everyone loves to speed! However, Juliane was a very safe driver and we made it all weekend with no accidents! Saturday morning we embarked upon a 2 hour car ride to Cadiz. Although it was overcast when we arrived, it was so nice to see Cadiz during the daylight hours as opposed to my last trip to Cadiz during our failed attempt at Carnival! The temperature was nice, not hot, but nice, so we walked along the coast for quite a while, enjoying the lovely Atlantic. We had lunch in a nice patio and I enjoyed paella and my favorite, croquetas! After lunch we went to some small museums of local artists and toured the Cathedral. We ended our day trip in Cadiz by sticking our feet into the freezing cold Atlantic (some crazy girls were actually swimming in it…the water was way to frigid for me) then we decided to stop by Jerez on the way back to Sevilla. Jerez is famous for their Sherry, but by the time we got there, everything was closing, so we walked around the center and enjoyed the quaint town for a bit, then headed home.

Sunday we started out early again this time to Malaga. The drive was about 3 hours, but it was through beautiful rolling hills that turned into the Sierra Nevada Mountains because Malaga is on the way to Granada. When we got to Malaga it was raining, so we headed straight for the Picasso Museum (he was born here in Malaga). We spent nearly two hours looking at his amazing works before our stomach’s got the best of us and we went in search of lunch. We ate at this quirky little coffee bar and I had a wonderful ham and cheese crepe! After lunch, we walked across the Plaza to Picasso’s house and toured the few rooms that were open…so awesome! It was a bit too cold and rainy to go to the coast, so instead, with the remaining time we had, we visited the Alcazaba, and explored its many towers, fountains and beautiful patios! We had the option of walking 25 minutes up hill to see more castles, but it was getting late and we were all pretty tired, so reluctantly we dismounted the lovely tower walls of the Muslim fortress and headed back to Sevilla (after we stopped for some pastries and coffee)!

I miss cars, so this trip was great! It’s so nice to be able to just hop into a vehicle and go when you want. I’m so glad that I have such an awesome roommate who isn’t afraid to navigate Spain’s crazy roadways! We tried listening to the radio on the way back…but the reception was bad going through the mountains…but all in all a great weekend! I will definitely be returning to Malaga when the sun is shining and its hot out, and since I’ve already done all of the touristy things, I can head straight for the beach!

The Girls in the park in Cadiz

Cat Juliane wouldn't let me pet in the park in Cadiz...

Crazy Dr. Seus tree in Cadiz

Ocean view in Cadiz

Cadiz Coast!

More Cadiz Coast

Enjoy the Atlantic Ocean breeze in Cadiz

Gabriel, Juliane and Courtney in Cadiz by some fortress

Me on the beach in Cadiz

Founder of a Sherry company in Jerez

Picasso's house in Málaga!

View of Málaga from the Alcazaba

Juliane and I in a tower in the Alcazaba in Málaga!

Granada!

Friday morning I had to wake up at 5:20am to be at the train station by 6:40am. It was a very early morning, but well worth it because after a nice nap on a three hour train ride, our group was in the beautiful Spanish city of Granada. It was a bit chilly when we arrived because the city is surrounded by the Sierra Nevada mountain range and in the distance, behind the beautiful Alhambra palace, you could see the snow capped mountains of the Sierra Nevada’s where people flock to ski. We started our day in Granada at a lovely little café for a wonderful breakfast of café con leche and some bread with the famous Iberian ham and delicious queso on it! Then we checked in the fabulous Hotel Carmon that had a balcony view of Corte Ingles a popular Spanish chain store (but we luckily could see the mountains as well). The rest of the afternoon we spent touring the quaint city, which, besides of my beloved Sevilla has been my favorite Spanish city. We wound through the old Muslim Barrios and enjoyed the sunny plazas and monuments of the city. The rest of the day we had free time, so we all ate our sandwiches in a sunny plaza and then toured the burial place of Queen Isabella and King Ferdinand and walked in one of the most beautiful cathedrals I have ever witnessed in my life! It was enormous and had beautiful stained glass like the Cathedral in Sevilla, but the interior was filled with much more light, and the colors were more pastel and white, so everything looked so pure and bright. The center of the Cathedral had a beautifully painted blue dome with pinkish colored stars, emulating the Muslim style. That evening, we went up one of the hills for an amazing view of the Alhambra. I took a taxi up with my friend Stephanie because she hurt her foot, and we got there right before the sun set so we saw the Alhambra and the Sierra Nevada’s with the beautiful contrast of a pink and purple sky! Then, when it got dark, the Alhambra is well lit up and so beautiful to view! For dinner that evening we went to a nice restaurant and I had wonderful chicken with garlic and lemon sauce. Then we all went out for pastries at this “Willy-Wonka” type bakery and enjoyed some amazing desserts! Tired from the early start to the day, we called it an early night so we would be well rested for the Alhambra.

The Alhambra was breathtakingly beautiful situated on a hilltop surrounded by the picturesque white houses from the time of Muslim rule as well as the lovely mountains! We had a tour through the four palaces (there were seven but the French came a blew some up…ugg) and saw some beautiful courtyards and gardens as well as the lovely pools and fountains that are so Moorish in style. Also, the intricate details of the walls and ceilings as well as the very ornate and colorful tile work made me feel like I had stepped into another time! We saw the famous Court of Lions, but the landmark fountain with the twelve lions “guarding” the courtyard was under reconstruction, so I saw no lions. One of the best parts of our visit was going to the summer palace of the Alhambra called General Life. It is garden after garden of lovely shrubs and flowers and fountains. There was even a wedding taking place there during our tour and we saw the bride getting her picture taken in the gardens! The entire trip was amazing and I enjoyed visiting the wonderful Alhambra that I just read about in Washington Irving’s book: Tales of the Alhambra! He was the one who made the Alhambra so famous among tourists because of his book and now it is the most visited monument in Spain! Unfortunately we only had one night and two full days there, and caught the train back at 9pm, arriving back in Sevilla very late! Still, an amazing trip with wonderful pictures and memories to take back with me!

Cathedral in Granada!

Beautiful Ceilings in the Cathedral!

Bell Tower in Granada

View of the Alhambra Palace from a hilltop in Granada!

Stephanie, Claudia and I looking at the beautiful palace at night!

Oldest Part of the Alhambra

Me on top of the oldest tower in the Alhambra!

Old Muslim Neighborhood (view from the Alhambra)

Alhambra Palace

Wedding at the General Life!!!

Beautiful Muslim pools in the Alhambra

Fountain in the General Life garden!

At the Washington Irving Statue in the Alhambra!

Barcelona! Crazy Place!

Gaudi, Gaudi, Gaudi! Definitely my favorite part of Barcelona was the unique and crazy Gaudi architecture! We visited Sagrada Familia (his famous unfinished Cathedral), park Guell, another park of his where he built this huge fountain monument thing, and two of his famous houses! Friday, our first full day in Barcelona, the sun was shinning and it was a beautiful warm day! We started off this lovely day by walking down Las Ramblas (a crazy street full of performers and vendors) and finding the Market…so lively and colorful. Next we headed straight for Park Guell. The interestingly out of place gingerbread type houses at the entrance made me feel like I was entering a land of Dr. Seuss or Alice in Wonderland! Then you go further into the park where all the people are and can sit on the long curvy mosaic bench and look out over all of Barcelona! I could have spent all weekend just in that park! Saturday we toured La Sagrada Familia! The nature inspired interior was amazing, even unfinished! The stained glass was absolutely stunning and the geometric religious figures that decorated the exterior were so interestingly new! Later that day, I went to the Picasso Museum where his earlier work (before cubism) is kept. It was so interesting to read about Picasso before he became famous for his cubism. When he was young and just starting to study, a lot of his works were of landscapes and he used pastels and blurred lines. How much he evolved! Saturday evening we walked along the beaches (which were not there prior to the Barcelona Olympics I found out…the sand was imported from Egypt to make miles and miles of coast for the tourist that came for the games) and although it was too cold to swim, the scenery was lovely! We ended our day at another park where Gaudi built this amazing fountain…more like a waterfall with mythical statues and creatures of gold decorating it! Despite the somewhat rainy weather and cold, Barcelona was a very interesting city…very big with such diverse people and language (I couldn’t even begin to understand Catalan) that it was hard to take it all in…but I still love my city of Sevilla the most! Something about it is comforting and charming. Maybe its because my phone was pick pocketed in Barcelona or that everyone spoke English to us even if we started a conversation in Spanish…but I’m glad I got to experience the crazy-ness that is Barcelona!

Market off Las Ramblas!

Park Guell!

Me posing on Gaudi's bench in Park Guell!

Flat designed by Gaudi!

"Magic Fountain" -the lights and music and water change and create an awesome show!

Gaudi's La Sagrada Familia

Standing at La Sagrada Familia

Beautiful Stained Glass in La Sagrada Familia

Sand artists at the beach! Playing with Egyptian sand!

Part of the Olympic Village when it was in Barc. in 2004

Chilling with an elephant in a park in Barc.

In front of Gaudi's amazing fountain!

Madrid/Toledo!!!

Prado Museum!

Cathedral in Toledo

Looking Down On Toledo!

Syd in Toledo!

Holy Toledo!!! So gorgeous!!!

The "Times Square" Of Spain!

Symbol of Spain...Bear kissing Tree!

More banks...really fancy b/c Madrid is the financial part of Spain

Puerta del Sol (lots of bank buildings)

Our Hotel In Madrid

Despite the general lack of sleep and freezing weather of Madrid/Toledo, my weekend was amazing! Friday around lunch our group took the Ave train from Sevilla to Madrid and got to view the gorgeous Spanish countryside full of mountainous ridges and groves of olive trees! We arrived in Madrid around 5pm and after a quick stop to our really nice hotel to drop off our stuff, we headed on a tour of the city. The tour was very informative and we were shown the outside of the Palace and some of the main monuments and squares, but it was dark and really windy and cold, so my pictures are a bit scarce from that event! After the tour we had free time and some of the people from my group went out in search of a nice restaurant to sit down and have dinner in (since lunch is the main meal of the day, most Spaniards go to bars for dinner and have drinks and tapas, but they usually have to stand up in a loud smoky bar to do so). We ate at this delicious restaurant, Wogaboo where I had an amazing pasta dish! It was my first real restaurant experience since I’ve been here and it was so nice to be able to sit down with all of my friends and choose what we want to eat (although I love my señora’s cooking at home!) After that we went out dancing and got in pretty late…but were able to make our 8:40am call time for the day excursion to Toledo!

Our site director wasn’t too strict about times, so we thought we had plenty of time to get to the train station, but she made us literally sprint there because she didn’t allow us enough time to walk there…that was miserable because it was far away from our hotel and we were all really sleepy....luckily we made it to the station and as soon as we got on the train, we had barely found our seats when the train took off…close call! Although I have been to Toledo before, I forgot how hilly it was! Our walking tour was very fun, but exhausting! Up and down a million streets and we climbed the main stairs that led up to the main part of the city (when I got to the top, after almost dying on the way up, I looked to my left and saw an elevator…ugh!) The view of the city from the hill-top was absolutely breathtaking though! We were shown the Cathedral (but for some reason didn’t go in) and the outside of what once was the mosque and we walked by the shops and saw the workers making the famous gold jewelry of Toledo (which I later bought!) The entire day the sky was so blue and it was the first full day in weeks that we had no rain!

Sunday morning, we spent our last few hours in the lovely city at the Prado Museum of Art (one of the most famous art museums in Spain). We toured the museum and got to see some amazing pieces by arts such as Goya, El Greco, Valesquez, and many more. After that we headed back to the train station to go back home to Sevilla (it was about 10 degrees celcius warmer here than in Madrid!) Such a fun time! Only 4 days until Barcelona! Hitting up all the big cities in Spain!!!!

Italica and Córdoba!

What an exciting weekend! On Friday, I went to Italica, ancient Roman ruins just outside of Sevilla with my art and culture class! It was a great field trip! We were able to see the layout of the Roman houses with its many courtyards. Then we went over to the thermae, which were the public baths. In those days, people went daily not only to physically relax, but also to also mentally relax and have social interactions and stimulating political and philosophical conversations and debates. The last thing we saw was the impressive amphitheater where slaves and gladiators battled beast and man! It the most intact of all the sites there and made me feel like I was in a gladiator movie! Overall, a very enjoyable and historical trip!

Saturday, our ASA group took an early train to Córdoba to see the mosque and the alcazar. The mosque is the only one in the world that has a cathedral built in the middle of it. Instead of destroying any Muslim influence when the Christians conquered Spain in 1492, they decided that it would be more impressive to build their place of worship into the enormous mosque. As far as the eye can see there are columns and arches! The cathedral is also very impressive, with ornate marble ceilings and statues! After touring that, the sun finally started to come out as we were walking through the Barrios (neighborhoods) that were filled with beautiful plant-filled patios and plazas. After winding through the maze of streets, we arrived at the alcazar (or Moorish palace). I think that the alcazar in Sevilla is more ornate and the gardens are larger, but I am biased! Nonetheless, this alcazar was still very nice, and we were able to climb up into its towers and take an Ariel shot of this lovely town! We all ate our lunch in the garden by the beautiful fountain and spent the rest of our short time in Córdoba walking around some shops!