These past few weeks have been a bit crazy. We’ve now experienced every type of transportation possible, or close to it! I’m glad to be back home in Granada, but glad that we were ale to take trips to the Basque Country (San Sebastian and Bilbao-to see the Guggenheim Museum) and to Valencia.
Annie, Brittany, Kailey, Kathryn and I traveled up to the North of Spain by bus and train (a full day of travel but it was well worth it). San Sebastian in Pais Vasco (The Basque Country) is an amazing and beautiful little town that I would love to go back to some day. It was filled with friendly people, talented artisans, and delicious carrot cake with chocolatey-goodness from “Sentido Comun” (Common Sense, cute little food store, with the nicest people).
(deliciousness from Sentido Comun)
The city is much greener than Granada, it’s located in the north, where the rain is more abundant. We were within 10 minutes walking-distance from the beach. The weather was great the whole time we were there. If I can remember correctly I believe only a few drops fell. Who would have thought that in October you could spend a day on the beach, swimming in the ocean? It’s definitely a lot different from Oregon coast weather at this time of year.
We hiked up Mt. Urgull, located really close to our hostel (everything in San Sebastian is really close) and saw “Castillo
de la Mota” built, I believe in the 12th century. There was a huge statue of Jesus atop the castle… pretty neat! We spent quite a long time sitting on the top of the little mountain, looking out over the beautiful blue Cantabrian Sea and the city covered with burnt orange rooftops, old buildings, and churches. The hills were green and covered in trees. All I could think about while looking out over the land was how much I wanted to run through those green grasses or sit in the middle of a large field. The quietness atop the mountain was calming.
The girls and I took a boat ride out into the ocean one day. It was pretty hot that day, but once we were on the water, the breeze felt great! The captain allowed the 4 of us to go below deck as they threw bread over the side of the boat. There were windows below and we were able to see all of the fish swimming up to the surface. After making it back to land, we passed some time sitting on the dock, eating our sandwiches we’d gotten from a little shop, listening to a man and woman play guitar, violin and sing. They seemed to be playing only for one another, for themselves, it was beautiful.
Later, we walked along “La Concha” (playa) to the other castle/lookout. We took an old wooden tram to the top because we were all too tired to hike. The cart creaked and we were headed, what felt like, straight up… brushing through the trees. Looking down you could see the ropes and cables that were suspending us… safely, and thankfully, we made it! The view from the top was incredible and for only 2 euros more, we hiked up this old tower to have an even clearer view of the ocean and city.
What an exhilarating feeling so high up, away from everything. Before we all sat down and got too comfortable, we thought it’d be best to take the 2-plus mile walk back home.
(Part of the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, 1 hr. from SS)
San Sebastian was a peaceful break for us from our daily routine of classes, homework, etc. We got back to Granada on a Tuesday and that following Friday morning at 2 am.. we were off via bus to Valencia (SE) for our last little break for awhile.
So it just so happens that we went to Valencia on a holiday (not knowing it) and were greeted in the evening by a big parade through the city. There were bands, people in costume, dancers and horses marching the streets. The parade was so neat to watch and the costumes were so intricate. My favorite part was a group of kids about our age playing percussion instruments, djembes, and other hand-drums. They danced as the played and were all so full of energy.
(one of the floats, with really cute children)
We spent time roaming the city, exploring, and probably a little too much time napping (I think we were all so tired from the traveling we had just done).
On our last of 3 full days there, we tried to go to the aquarium but the lines were immense and we decided not to go. Instead we headed for the beach.
(Aquarium we didn't go to, haha. Look at the giant leaf in my backpack!)
Kailey and I laid on the beach in the hot sun (yes, with sunscreen on) while Annie and Kathryn enjoyed themselves by walking along the beach, finding shade.
For lunch, we ate the famous Spanish cuisine- Paella- on the waterfront. Kailey and I split lobster paella and justified the price by saying that because we weren’t able to go to the aquarium, we had money for the paella.. hehe. It was delicious and we were all pleasantly full after eating it. We made the best choice and took the street car back to the hostel. I don’t think we could have made it by walking.
(Looks way tastier in person!)
After a little rest, we were back out, walking around. We decided to walk up in the tower of the cathedral to see the view from the top. The sky had been gray and smoggy that evening so I didn’t think we’d see anything too special… however, we climbed at the perfect time to see the sun setting- how pretty it was. Very orange!
After, we had 15 minutes until the flamenco show we had heard about would start. We chose to go and I’m glad we did! The setting was small, but had a great atmosphere. There was a guitar player, 2 men playing box-drums (not sure the correct name), one singer, and 2 dancers. The music and dance were incredible. One couldn’t exist without the other. I loved how everything fit together, the music, singing, percussion, clapping, dance, etc. No one around me was getting into it, but I wanted so badly to clap along or get up and move a little. Haha. I should’ve probably just done it! I loved the flamenco show entirely, even just watching their hands at the same time, watching how they all made music that complimented the others. At the end, in order for the crowd to have a chance to applaud each individual.. they did it in a very interesting way: they switched roles; the dancer would play guitar, the singer would dance and the percussionist would sing, we clap and they switched roles again. We were all laughing the entire time, it was really neat and quite funny. The funniest part was when the singer and guitar player tried to dance flamenco.. it’s about what I would look like trying to do it! I guess it just goes to show that we all have our own talents and abilities, and that together we can create something beautiful.
We left the club really amazed and uplifted. We headed back to the hostel where we made spaghetti, tomato sauce, cheese, and bread to go with it. A meal costing us each less than one euro! It was tasty! After dinner Kailey, Kathryn and I went out in search for ice cream or something sweet (like we really needed it..). It was 11:30 by that time and I thought everything would be closed. Boy was I wrong! There were lots of people out ‘n’ about. Ice cream was open, but we all decided that the trek across the plaza for some chocolate con churros would be a better choice. We split a plate.. each eating 2 churros, dipping them into a hot and really rich cup of chocolate. Yumm Yumm! And SO healthy.. haha. After, we waddled our way back to the hostel, showered and hit the hay.
Waking up at 8 am wasn’t too pleasant, but once we were out in the crisp and beautiful morning air, it was enjoyable. Craving Valencia’s famous orange juice, we sat ourselves down at a café. Annie wanted her morning cup of joe and headed to Starbucks right down the road (yep, starbucks exists there). The girls and I saw that the sign said “Agua de Valencia” and we thought we’d order it because for one, Rick Steves recommended it and two, we were sure it was freshly squeezed OJ. We awaited our OJ, but when looking over at the bar, Kathryn noticed that alcohol and a good helping of it was being poured in. hahahaha. It wasn’t even 10 am… I’m sure the waiter thought we were complete dorks for ordering a liter of an alcoholic beverage so early in the morning. Ha. We felt pretty dumb, but the waiter served it with a smile and we finished it.. an hour and a half later. Now we know.
Our bus ride back to Granada was smooth, all 7 ½ hours of it! Now we’re back in the school routine J Which actually, right now, feels nice! Annie and I met with our Intercambio, a 19 year old girl, who lives here in Spain. When we meet, we spend some time speaking in Spanish and some time speaking in English. She is so sweet and really friendly. She’s very patient with us when we don’t understand something, or when we’re trying to explain something difficult. She’s already invited us to come to her school on a Friday (when we don’t normally have class) to meet her friends. I’m so glad we have this opportunity!
Here are the classes I’m taking:
Monday & Wednesday:
9:00- Culture and Civilization of Spain
12:30- Written and Oral Production
Tuesday & Thursday:
10:30- Spanish Art: Barroco- Present day
12:30- Politics and Government in Spain
Doesn’t seem like too much, but having classes, tests, and assignments all in Spanish can be a little tough at times. It’s a good kind of tough though. And I’m really enjoying my time here. In a couple days, half of our trip will have been completed and we’ll have only 2 more months to soak in all that we can!
More to come..
