España

First off traveling by motorcycle in the wind is an experience. With everything flashing by so quickly as we zipped along from Granada to Jerez, I felt as though I was in a movie that was fast forwarding. I must admit, I was not very impressed when we first got to Jerez and were walking around because for some strange reason it was completely abandoned.

We had a delicious dinner of octopus and croquetas, then decided to wander around and ask about the Feria de Caballos (Horse Fair) that was going on that week. Finally we kept seeing more and more people making their way in the same direction, all of them dressed to the nines! The women were either wearing fancy clothes and heels or a full on flamenco dress, and the men were all wearing buttoned shirts and blazers.

The Spaniards definitely know how to throw a party, the amount of lights, rides, food, music, dancing and people that were present were INCREDIBLE! Completely changed my opinion of the city, and I could understand why nothing closer to the center of the city was open -- all of the people were out celebrating at this event. We we walked into the main area where there were a bunch of little houses that served food and had bunches of people, I felt like I had stepped into the middle of a firework.

I realized that I have not been to the fair probably since high school either, the flashing rides and the huge ferris wheel were a strange contrast against the old style flamenco dresses.

The next day we went to the horse-show aspect of the event schedule. I was so impressed, and I know absolutely nothing about horses. My dad was explaining a lot of the things going on to me throughout the performance. All of the horses were so well trained. There were flamenco dancers that would flip their shawls in front of the horse -- literally dancing in front of their faces as well, and they were trained to not freak out or become startled in the least. There were two horses that even were trained to dance as partners facing each other, creating a mirror image. I felt like I was watching a mixture of a dog show and a circus performance. Some of the horses were able to stand on their back legs, bow, and then process to sit down with their two front legs propping them up. Really amazing.

I would have to say though that probably the most emotionally stimulating and exciting thing about the weekend was the Corrida de Toros that my dad and I went to. It is a very controversial subject in Spain as well in the rest of the world, because to some it is seen as cruel and barbaric. I can definitely see where people are coming from on this, but for myself I feel like I cannot denounce the Corrida because I also eat meat. The large bulls have the best of lives for 5 years, where they live comfortably and eat the best food. It was an incredibly interesting experience. I would say that I am a worrier as well, so watching people purposefully get as close as they possibly can to a 1,000+ lbs animal made me nervous to say the least. At first with all of the adrenaline pulsing though my veins my hand was shaking enough that it was difficult to take pictures, I can't even begin to imagine how the toreros felt being in the ring.

A little bit of information about the Corrida that can help you visualize: there are 6 bulls, 2 for each torero. There are 4 main phases and in total I believe that each bull is supposed to take no longer than 20 minutes because after 20 minutes the bull will have learned all of the moves of the torero, because they are very smart. First off, the bull enters the plaza and many toreros come out with the magenta and yellow cape (capote) trying to rile it up. The matador takes the bull by doing some cape work.

Next comes the picador, this person is on horse back (the horses are completely padded up, have their eyes covered, and cannot hear) and the picador jabs the bull in its hump, I think to enrage them more? But I am not exactly positive. This part I was not a huge fan of because the bull runs straight into the horse; which yes it is padded but that cannot feel good at all.

Then come the bandilleros who face off to the bull with nothing but these spikes that they have to stick into the flesh of the bull.

Finally, comes the matador which is what most people think of when they picture a Corrida. He uses a red cape, and we learned that the reason it is red is because they wanted it to be the same color as the blood which is better for the spectators. Bulls are colorblind and can only see in black and white anyways, so the movement of the cape is what is important. You can tell when a matador is good, I would have to say that it is definitely an art. The second matador put on the best show in my opinion, but I think the third was supposed to be the favorite. The second matador: David Fandila Marín is from Granada actually, but he just had so much confidence that he was able to dominate the performance. On his first bull he received both ears (which means they did a really good job), and he threw them to the crowd... The whole crowd rose their feet when he was done and waved their white handkerchiefs in approval.

David Fandila Marín had that macho attitude that so far he has been really successful with, but he was definitely playing with fire. He would do cape work on his knees, run backwards with the bull chasing him with his hand out, and turning his back on the bull -- a sign of bravery (or stupidity depending on your opinion).

So being from Boise of course I knew about the Basque Country, and it was on my list of places I absolutely had to make it to while traveling. Finally accomplished after this past week! After traveling with my dad in Portugal, I met up with Alice and we spent the evening in Madrid and walked to the bus station to catch our early morning bus. I think I am becoming a pro at sleeping on buses, and I passed out for the 4 1/2 hours to Bilbao. Hopped on the metro and made it to the stop that Gus told us to go to, and there he was! So grateful that he was able to meet us early in the morning. Stayed with friends from his program: Brynne, Amelia and Ashlee who were fantastic and so nice for letting us crash at their place. Walked around Bilbao the first few days just exploring the city and OF COURSE visiting the Guggenheim.

We decided not to go in because we heard that the outside is more impressive than the art collection inside, I'm sure some people debate this but I felt satisfied looking at the architecture. Had an amazing lunch at La Mary, they offered a menu of the day for a mere 10 euro. My first course was lentils and chorizo, second a steak with soft red peppers and fries, and finally tiramisu ice cream for dessert. Too delicious.

It was a bit rainy the first two days, but gave us a greater appreciation when we went on a hike that Friday in between the two towns of Bakio and Burmeo. BEAUTIFUL! The water was such a deep blue, and contrasted starkly against the green of the island. We climbed the more than 200 stairs to the top of the island, a top of which was the church San Juan de Gaztelugatze. I could easily convert it into a little house if they would let me Might be a bit windy and cold on a rainier day though. Definitely happy that Alice motivated me in the early morning to catch the bus to say the least.

Looking at the weather we planned on San Sebastian Saturday, and it was gorgeous. We spend basically all day just lying on the famous beach: La Concha, soaking up the rays and eating cheese, chorizo and crackers. We wandered around the city and did a bit of shopping and purchasing of ice cream. The city center area is historic and bustling with life. Successful and relaxing day on the beach to say the least.

Our trip ended on Sunday with a 10 hour bus ride back to Granada :/ We decided to break up the trip a little bit by spending three hours in Madrid walking around, and moving our bodies again before another 5 hours on the bus. Got in late that night and fell asleep quickly. So happy I was able to make it to the Basque Country, I will definitely have to go back.

Started my trip taking a bus far too early in the morning/late at night from Granada to Madrid where my attempt to sleep on the bus left me feeling a little bit off but enjoying life none the less Very random but the Madrid airport bathrooms had the scent of pink bubblegum, you know the kind that is 6 feet long or something and in a giant roll like a measuring tape. I stepped off the plane in Lisbon and out to the entrance to see my dad standing there with a flower -- best father of the year award already won but a sweet surprise. Reminded me of every time he would come down for my birthday and meet me at school with a bouquet of flowers. We took the metro to our hotel and I passed out for at least an hour so that I could be a functioning human being again.

Lisbon reminded me a lot of San Francisco, there a old trolleys climbing the hills all around town and a bridge that looks very similar to the Golden Gate Bridge but is called the the Bridge of the 25th of April.

We spent the grand majority of our time walking up and down, over and across all of the city. The neighborhoods were the best part (along with the pastries of course -- the pastry that is famous in Portugal is called Pastel de Nata which is a flaky dough with cream in it, nom nom). There are three major neighborhoods: Baixa, Barrio Alto, and the Alfama. We had a delicious first lunch in Barrio Alto of a salmon salad for me and a rabbit burger for my dad.

I think that my favorite thing about traveling is honestly just walking around and getting to know a city. It isn't really an event but I feel like it is the most real, if I can walk around a city and know where I am going because I recognize the area I have such a feeling of contentment. On our walk down from one of the many lookouts over the city, we walked past a building that had the XX blaring from a window and I couldn't help from smiling. You have to enjoy the simple things in life, and be happy in every moment.

We had a delicious dinner of arroz de mariscos which is kind of similar to paella. We spent a lot of our time going into random churches that were beautiful, my favorite reminded me of a sunflower with yellow, pinkish, and orange colored marble. The church even had flower decorations on the ceiling. My dad and I were commenting on the fact that even in tiny little towns that he has been visiting on his travels they have magnificent churches.

We spent Friday and Saturday walking around Lisbon, and then took my dad's motorcycle to Sintra to spend the night on Sunday. Now I want to just go live on the beach, do yoga, learn how to surf, and ride a motorcycle around. Yes this does sound a bit fantastical, but it was so beautiful just staring at the waves on the back of my dad's motorcycle with the wind beating us from side to side. We stopped on the way at a kind fancy place, and had a tasty lunch -- obviously we have been eating well while traveling. The view was amazing, staring out at the deep blue waves touched with white, and crashing upon the golden, sandy beaches.

Sintra is super cute. Our hotel was great, with a view that looked out over a glimmering patio. I also thought it was a fun coincidence that the guy who worked at the front desk was named Domingo and we happened to be there on domingo (Sunday).

The city is tiny but it has at least three palaces that we could see.

We walked around town the first night and had both of our first port -- in PORTugal which I thought was appropriate.

The next day we went to the Pena Palace; which is quite the wild mix of colors and shapes. It is half goldenrod and half a maroon/purple color. Cool to see how everything had been preserved, but I cannot imagine living there because everything was so incredibly over the top.

We returned to Lisbon on Monday and stopped at the Westernmost point of Europe, Cabo da Roca, and the wind nearly pushed us off the edge from how powerful it was. Spent the night at the same hotel, went out to dinner where our waiter spoke a modest 6 languages... but that wasn't many because his father was a translator in Washington DC and spoke 10. We went to a bar before walking back to our hotel that reminded me of Portland, because of its weird hipster vibe. It was very dark inside and the lamp shades that hung from the ceiling were plastic cabbage or lettuce leaves.

Tuesday I had to say goodbye to my papa at the airport, but then flew to Madrid and spent a few hours wandering around exploring before meeting up with Alice to go up to the Basque Country. A second spring break was an excellent idea!

Sevilla (Seville) did not start out the best. I felt feverish the night before and on the 4 hour bus ride from Granada. Sleeping on the bus unfortunately did not help and once we arrived in Italica to view the old Roman ruins I was had a burning forehead with freezing hands. Too stubborn to say anything, Lauren finally spoke up for me and I took some aspirin and ate some food. Everyone got back on the bus and we headed to our hotel for the night with our program. The thing that sticks with me most about Sevilla is the smell. The weather had finally turned and it felt exactly as I imagined Southern Spain to feel. Along with the heat came the blossoming of every plant in sight, and Sevilla particularly the orange blossoms. The scent is incredible, they even bottle it and sell it as perfume -- which I should probably just buy so that I will remember Spain as sitting inside of an orange with brilliant white blossoms bursting all around me. Sevilla was just incredibly lush. We walked to the Plaza de Espana (there is a scene from one of the Star Wars movies that was filmed here) which is a beautiful plaza with a fountain in the middle and a body of water where individuals attempted to row themselves from side to side. We shared icey blended lemonades and then walked over to Maria Luisa Park. Everything was a lively green, but incredibly peaceful.

We visited the cathedral which is the third largest, but the largest Gothic Cathedral in the world. Great views from the top of the tower and it has the tomb of Christopher Columbus.

I still cannot comprehend the historical significance of things. How is it possible that in the 21t century I can look upon the remains of the man who Sailed the Ocean Blue in 1492? Does not seem real to me. I want to visit Sevilla again, the city just gave me such a good feeling and who knows if it was just the timing of the weather or more than that but it was definitely magical. Something that I am realizing study abroad, the world is HUGE and it is possible to live in so many places. I think the point of study abroad and experiencing another country and another culture is to realize how many more options there are out there and to expand your perspective on life. Thanks for the lovely weekend Sevilla, I hope to be back sometime.

Having the ability to fly off to such a gorgeous city is crazy to me. Casey and I had smooth traveling which is more than can be said about everyone on our flight. This girl in front of us in line for the plane forgot her identification card, and was freaking out and calling her mom. Her friends had to leave her behind :/ We ended up seeing them twice randomly just walking around Barcelona, and their friend wasn't with them. Another reminder to always check to make sure you have your passport or driver's license whenever you're traveling.

Landed in Barcelona and everyone was incredibly friendly to us. A man from Barcelona sat next to us on the plane and told us all the ins and outs of the city. We stayed at St. Christopher's hostal which was in the perfect location, I would definitely recommend it. It was just off of Plaça Catalunya and La Rambla (a main street) which are central to the city. We walked down La Rambla and down to the beach. The weather was such a wonderful break from how it had been in Granada, I did not even need to wear a jacket. We also went to the open market that is there and saw brilliant colored fruits, fresh fish, live crab, and sweets of all type.

We met up with Leigh and hung out at her friend's apartment. I cannot imagine living in my own apartment while studying abroad, it would be such a different experience. I am happy to be in a home stay and learning more about the culture and learning the language at this point in my life. Then we went to Kaskade! Such a fun concert with an awesome venue on the beach.

Our last day we spent walking all over Barcelona seeing the sights. We visited all of the Gaudí buildings: Casa Batlló, La Pedrera, La Sagrada Familia (of course), and Park Güell - soooooo beautiful!

Casa Batlló

La Pedrera

La Sagrada Familia

I will definitely have to return to Barcelona at some point during my life to go inside all of the buildings, since we didn't want to hand over 15 euro to go inside each building. I am a huge fan of Gaudí's style which is modernismo catalán. The buildings and park are just so incredible because they are somewhat shocking in my opinion, they are out of the ordinary. As you're walking along you see normal building after normal building, until suddenly there is this enormous and beautiful building that looks like the scales of a dragon, or a melting rock, or a giant medieval castle-church that has been warped.

Park Güell

We finished our trip by splitting a delicious meal because we had been living off of the bread, ham, cheese or peanut butter and jelly sandwiches that we absconded from the free hostel breakfast. Wishing we could go to sleep but unable to because our flight left early in the morning. We left the hostel for the bus stop at 02:30 and got to the airport around 03:30 for our 06:15 flight. Thank you Ryanair... Traveling definitely keeps you on your toes and makes you adapt to each and every situation. Sleeping in the airport, on the airplane and the bus did not amount to a full nights sleep in the least. Ended up "taking a siesta" at 5:00pm and not waking up until 02:30am the next morning. Good thing I finished most of my homework before the weekend