This week we had our final exams for our classes. We finished up our first term of classes and now we have a two week long spring break. On Friday we had a trip planned with the school that went to Seville and Granada. On Friday the taxi would pick me up and bring me to the bus bright and early (at 6:15am). I almost didn’t make it; and here’s why:
I kicked butt in all of my classes and ended up with good grades. This was a cause for celebration, so on Thursday night we went out. You all probably know by now that the Spaniards party a little differently. They start their fiesta at midnight or later and party until 4 or 5am the next day. It was an awesome night. We were also out because it was the last weekend that my Japanese friends were here. They left back to Japan today. This makes me extremely sad because they were the nicest and most fun people I have ever met. So, in Spanish style I arrived home at 4:30am and went to bed. At 5:30am my alarm rang but I shut it off. At 6:15am my host mom popped into my room and asked if I had to go. I said no, I had time and kept sleeping. A minute or two went by and I realized I was late! I sprang out of bed at 6:17 (two minutes after the taxi was supposed to be here) and threw on clothes and ran out the door. I didn’t even put on my shoes; I had them in my hand. Luckily my friends made the taxi wait a few minutes for me. I made it on the bus in time and realized I never grabbed a jacket or sweatshirt on the way out.
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| Sevilla |
After a 6 hour bus ride we made it to Seville. Seville is a beautiful city. The city is filled with old ornate houses, and orange trees line the streets. Because of this the whole city smells like oranges. Also there are horses and carriages that you can ride around the city. After finding our hotel we went to the Real Alcazar. This is the Royal Palace. It is filled with Arab influence and beautiful gardens.
The next day we visited the Catedral. There used to be a mosque at this site until it was knocked down in order to make the cathedral. You can tell that it used to be a mosque because they still have a plaza area filled with fountains. The Catedral is huge! It is said to be one of the biggest in the world. Inside this church is the tomb of Christopher Columbus. The reason his tomb is here is because this is where Columbus started his travel to the Americas. There is some speculation as to if Columbus really is inside the tomb because before he died he stated that he didn’t want to be buried on Spanish soil, this is because he was angry with the Spanish at this time. The next thing we did was climb the Giralda.
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| Giralda |
The Giralda is a giant tower that was built connected to the Mosque. The tower was used by the Muslim people for oration. Multiple times a day someone would climb to the top of the tower and yell prayer. In order to get to the top of the tower we had to climb a bunch of ramps. The reason there are ramps in the tower instead of stairs is because in order to get to the top, the person that said the oration would ride a horse.
After this we got on a bus and headed to Granada. Granada is a not as pretty as Seville but is still really nice. The first thing we did when we got here was visit the Capilla Real. This is the mausoleum where Queen Isabella and King Ferdinand are. Also we were able to see their weapons and jewels.
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| Alhambra |
The next day we visited la Alhambra. It is hard for me to explain what the Alhambra actually is. First of all, it is huge. It is almost like a little city that sits atop the highest hill in Granada. It is made up of many different sections. But, all in all, I think the best way to describe it is that it is a big palace. The reason the Alhambra is so large and has so many little parts is because throughout the years different rulers added different parts onto it. It started being built in the year 900 and the last big part of it was added in 1527. The Alhambra is one of the prettiest places I have ever been. It is full of fountains and gardens and Muslim architecture. One of the most famous places in the Alhambra that we saw is the Patio de los Leones. It is a little plaza or patio that has a fountain with twelve marble lion statues around it. The area was under construction when we were there in order to fix some of the area, but it was still really cool to see. My favorite part of the Alhambra is not very pretty at all. In one section of one of the palaces there is an area full of little rooms with very oval ceilings. The acoustics are so good in these little rooms that one person can go to one corner of the room and whisper into the wall and the person standing in the opposite corner is able to hear what you whispered.
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| Patio de los leones |
All in all, I enjoyed Seville and Granada because of all the Islamic influence. It was really different from anywhere that I’ve been in Spain. The Tuesday after this trip my Spring Break adventure started. I would be traveling to Amsterdam, Berlin, Prague, and Budapest in two weeks time.
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