This weekend I went to Granada (also the name for pomegranate). Before I left, I was not sure about the importance of Granada. However, after two days of being guided through La Capilla and La Alhambra, my brain is still absorbing all the information. It's  insane to think how important certain landmarks or buildings are to not only the city they are in but to the nation and the world itself. 





La Capilla, or the Royal Chapel of Granada, was breathtaking. Although I was unable to take pictures within La Capilla, it is something you just have to see in person. It reminded me of St Paul's Cathedral in London, just a lot smaller. Within La Capilla, you can see the tombs of King Ferdinand and Queen Isabel. Above the tombs are monuments to honor them. Here are some outside views of La Capilla to make up for not having inside views. 

La Alhambra was even more breathtaking and unbelievable. There is just so much history attached to such a big monument. Despite a three hour tour, I learned so much about the defensive system, the gardens, how the Sultan and his wives/mistresses lived, and much more! Every time I think that Spain cannot get any prettier, it does! The Arabs developed this monument  in such a way that there is no way you can forget about the architecture nor the beauty of it. La Alhambra means the red one, and it definitely lives up to its name. Also, I may or may not want to take my wedding pictures here..It is just so mesmerizing. To help you see what I mean, here are more pictures! 

La Alhambra

Port System

 

Even with all that learning, we had lots of free time to visit the city! My friends and I went to a market named La Alcaiceria. There were so many stores with great items! It was really hard not buying almost everything because it was all so beautiful. However, I bought myself a leather backpack for only twenty five euros, roughly 30 dollars. I normally would not buy something so nice for myself, but it was a much needed reward to myself.




Oh, also, the accents in Granada are so much easier to understand than in Sevilla! I noticed this in the market as well as in a restaurant that I went to with a different group of friends. We also met a very nice man from Copenhagen, Denmark who is spending the week in Granada. He had asked us if we spoke English because he wanted to know if we managed to order something we liked. He couldn't understand the menu, o la carta en español, and ended up ordering something he thought would taste good.  

I never thought that one city would entail so many adventures and memories. I guess you never know what the future has in store for you until you step out of your comfort zone and try something new! With that in mind, go try something new this week..who knows, you may end up loving it. 

 Ronda

Almond Tree in Ronda

On February 18th, a group of friends and I visited Ronda and Setenil! These pueblos have such a great atmosphere to both visit and live in. Throughout the whole trip, I could not stop thinking how much I would love to live in a small village like Ronda and Setenil.
The scenery was a dream.

Churros, Churritos, Chocolate

 The village of Setenil was just as
 beautiful as Ronda. We bought
churros from a churro kiosk that
a  woman runs all by herself at
 one euro per churro! So cheap
for such great quality!


After a great start to the week, it felt like everything went downhill until today (Friday). On February 19th, I was given multiple projects and study guides to complete by Wednesday or Thursday. Also, since my arrival in Spain, my foot has been bothering me a lot. On the 19th, I decided to finally go to the doctor since the pain was unbearable, and it turns out I have tendinitis. I'm really glad I made the decision to go to the doctor because if it had gotten any worse, I would have gone to physical therapy.

On February 21st, I was given an assignment to learn more about Spanish traditions, personal or global traditions. I went to Cafe de Indias, which is two minutes from my home, to grab a coffee. I ended up trying a vanilla cappuccino and loved it! Since I was at the cafe, I decided to ask a few people about their traditions. Unfortunately, the only person willing to talk to me was the barista. I also spoke to my homestay mom about traditions. I learned that birthday are not celebrated as much as days for Saints because many people are named after Saints. Most people celebrate their birthday on the same day as "their" Saint's day.

On February 22nd, I had a relatively normal day. I met up with my intercambio, spanish-speaking buddy, at 9:30 pm. We talked about the differences within a country like Spain and USA. We also talked about feminism and how possible changes can be brought about if we really tried.

To finish off, today (February 23rd) I completed the intensive period of my semester abroad. Starting next week, I have mostly evening/night classes Monday-Thursday. I also went shopping today, alone. I never go shopping alone. I am becoming more independent and confident in Spain! I bought The Hunger Games but in Spanish to immerse myself into the language even more.

Hasta luego! Keep your eye out for my next blog about my trip to Granada this weekend!

On February 12, 2018, I went to La Torre del Oro. This tower was built as a way to monitor the entering and exiting of ships through the river and a place to guard to the gold, hence the name. Also, I learned a lot about the the first full trip around the world, which started in Sevilla!

   








On February 13th, I visited el Alcazar! The gardens and architecture were absolutely breathtaking. I also saw peacocks!

The next day, February 14th was probably one of my worst days in Sevilla yet. My bad luck did not stop all day. However, the day got better because I went out with a friend to socialize and do homework. My homestay mom made a quiche out of green onions, and I was speechless. It tasted like heaven!

Elise (left) Pooja (right)

On February 16th, we had a half-day of classes.
 My friends, Pooja and Elise, and I went out for some 
tapas en el centro (city center). I finally tried churros 
con chocolate...they were 10/10. After tapas, Pooja 
and I walked around en el centro and guess what?
 I finally found chocolate chip cookie dough 
ice cream..at a Haagn-Dasz! I was super excited to find it!

Mis primeras amigas 

The weather is finally warming up to the mid-60s. 
Each day I am making more friends and getting to

Patatas alí-oli

know them even better. On Wednesday (February 2, 2018), my school hosted a social mixer between our Spanish speaking buddies, intercambios. The activity to get to know one each other was to identify people, events, and organizations from each other's country. Even though my intercambio was unable to attend, I had a great time getting to know my friends' intercambios. The following day was a bit more rough. I found out that I had to present a presentation in my oral communication course on Friday by myself since my partner had dropped the course. Also, I had to create a news article, in Spanish of course, for Friday as well. However, both assignments went well and so did Friday! During the evening of Friday, a few friends and I walked around the city. I finally had tapas! Comí patatas alí-oli y me encantaron (I ate garlic potatoes and loved them)! 

Muslim garden with a pomegranate tree

On Saturday, we went to Córdoba. This place was absolutely stunning. It's mind-boggling how a cathedral was built within a mosque. Also the gardens were breathtaking. I've always seen gardens from Islamic culture in Hindi movies but walking 
through them in real life was something else. 

Más amigos

After returning back to Sevilla, I stopped at a pharmacy to invest in motion 

sickness medicine because being carsick during every trip is just fantastic. 

I learned that motion sickness is mareo. 

Today (Sunday) was very productive. I was able to do everything I had to do this weekend within five hours! Also, I met my intercambio, Joaquín today! He's very nice and amazing! I love that Spanish Studies Abroad provides us the opportunity to connect with a Sevillano to immerse ourselves even more to the culture and lifestyle. We went to a bar that had a view of the Cathedral and Giralda!   

Stay tuned for my next adventures! 

Sopa con pasta
February 1st, 2018
La Cena (dinner)

Mocca
February 2nd, 2018
Cafe de Indias

After a long five days, I have finally been able to adjust to the lifestyle in Spain. First off, the meals here are very different. Here is how my meals are. Breakfast is a small meal, often milk and cereal with a piece of toast and juice very early in the morning. Oh, fun fact: juice in Sevilla is not jugo, it's zumo. Because breakfast is light and eaten early, around 10:30 or mid-morning, a second breakfast is eaten. This could include going to a bar or cafe to grab another coffee or even entire second breakfast. The coffee here is absolutely amazing, and relatively cheap. Lunch is eaten between the hours of 2 and 4, also siesta time, and is very heavy. Often it includes a salad, an entree that´s protein heavy, and dessert: yogurt or fruits. I have fallen in love with the organic oranges my home stay mom buys. The oranges that grow on the trees are not to be eaten; marmalade is made from those oranges. Siesta is a real thing here. It is not necessarily "nap time," but it is a time to rest, read, watch television, etc. Many stores are also closed for siesta. Dinner is eaten between the hours of 8:30 and 10:30 pm. This is very different than the U.S. So far, dinner has consisted of soups with a side of veggies or pasta/carbs and dessert. I do miss, however, the spices from Indian food.

Río Guadalquivir

Over these past 5 days, I have also been touring around Sevilla and traveling throughout southern Spain. I must say, each day I see more and more beauty in the city. However, you'd think that it would be sunny and nice and warm here,
right? No. It's been in the high 40s, low 50s with cold wind so far, not as cold as Chicago but still cold. The residents of Sevilla are  absolutely very nice and understanding as well as my professors. They allow you to figure everything out on your own unless you absolutely cannot find the words. Also, I learned that scoops for ice cream and gelato are called bonbons! Isn't that name fun?! So far Sevilla has been great. I have made many friends through my school who are all very sweet and amazing to be around.
I cannot wait to keep exploring!

Aracena
February 4th, 2018

Plaza de España
February 3rd, 2018

    

                             

Itálica
February 6, 2018

Wednesday morning (January 31, 2018) , I arrived to O’hare at 7:45 am. As I went through security, it was brought to my attention I was given the wrong boarding pass. After returning to security with the right boarding pass, I spent 2 hours waiting to get on a flight to New York—where I met a wonderful lady right before boarding and talked about studying abroad. After I arrived to JFK airport, I had to spend my time wisely. Within the 9.5 hour layour, I completed my online course assignments, talked to a French citizen who spent the last 10 months traveling across North America. After boarding my flight to Lisbon, Portugal from FJK, I was given an amazing flying buddy. He moved to New York from Australia four years ago and now is taking a 2 week trip to Munich with two of his friends. I have never met anyone who was so like me. It’s crazy to think about a randomized seating assignment can impact a 6.5 hour. We arrived to Lisbon 15 minutes late.  Now it is February 1st, 2017. (Oh, on my flight to New York, I was sitting across two little kids who fought the whole time and a crying baby right next to me for the last half of the flight to Portugal). This only allowed me 10 minutes to get off of one plane, go through security again, and board my next flight. Due to the amazing hospitality of employees at Lisbon, Airpot, I  as along with many other travelers made it to our flight just on time. During this chaotic time, I met my roommate as well as another fellow peer. After arriving to Seville, Spain, we went picked up our bags and went through customs all within 20 minutes. As my taxi, and my roommate’s taxi arrived to my homestay neighborhood, we drove through downtown Sevilla. Due to the unclear direction of where our homestay was, I was forced to ask a stranger for help. As some may know, I hate asking people for help. However, this man was so kind that he helped my roommate and me to our homestay, helped carry our luggage, and waited until our homestay mom responded to us saying she is coming down. After entering my homestay, we took a small resting break and then headed over to our school. At orientation, I met so many wonderful students from all across the U.S. We had a tour and partook in a ice breaker. It became time to return to our homestay. Upon coming home, my roommate and I decided to unpack before eating. Little did I realize, I accidentally locked the keys to the locks on my suitcases into one of my suitcases. I called my dad who said I would have to go get the locks broken off, but my homestay mom, Marta, worked some magic with a hair pin and opened the lock! We then had a pasta soup with veggies on the side (not pictured). My first meal in Seville absolutely fantastic. 

After eating, I finished unpacking and cleaned up my room. I also gave Marta her present, a Chicago mug and Frango mints.

 That being said, now matter how chaotic life may get, just remember how important it is to realize how the little things in life impact us so positively.