You're extremely lucky if you are reading this and can do any (or all) of the following things:
*Get out of your bed, get dressed and WALK to your classes
*Have a bowl of cereal with milk in it!
*Can print things from your own room/house instead of having to go a store or the school copy center!!!
*Pay for things in dollars and not have to take money out of ATMs
*Not have to watch the exchange rate for the Euro constantly
*See your family on the weekends or call them up from your own cell phone
*Have the OPTION of putting salt on or in your food
*Breathe air that's free and clear of smoke!!
*Have access to a kitchen and can bake or cook things for yourself whenever you want
*Making money every week instead of just spending but not earning any
I'm not home sick or anything but I have been comparing life in Spain vs. America lately cause I've had a few bad days off and on. Today was actually one of those frustrating days cause there is just so much to do and not enough time!
But I'm lucky, too cause in Spain I am able to:
*Hear Spanish and lots of other different languages in the streets all the time
*Try new and exciting foods almost every week and not have to spend money
*Meet people from all over the world
*Go to different countries on the weekends and on vacations
*Go to a Spanish church and praise God in another language
*See sunsets and sunrises that blow my mind almost every day
*Slowly become more fluent in a language that I love
*Learn things I never thought I'd be learning
*Fly to other countries for super cheap
*Have memories that money cannot buy but time will make even sweeter (you know, the little things :)
*Attempt to be as sophisticated and stylish as a European
*Learn how to party like the Spaniards
*Bring all of this knowledge, style and information back to the United States of America!
I'll be doing some updates soon, but I just wanted to write what has been on my mind for a little bit. So in the next posts....you will be reading about what my daily routine is like, Cadiz and MOROCCO!
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
Spring is here and love is in the air!
For the past couple weeks it has been warm and very pleasant here in Sevilla. Today will be our first day in the 80s in fact and I know that it´s gonna be WARM. The constant rain from February is just an awful, but distant memory for us Americans and the Sevillanos....all that´s predicted now and until the end of the semester are warmer tempertures and lots of sun! ¡Por fin!
Spring is in full swing here in Sevilla as the mornings are getting warmer, the sun is rising earlier and the aromas of orange blossoms are filling the air of almost every street. OH, what a heavenly smell that is...
Flowers are blooming and more restaurants are setting up outdoor seating...but what´s even more is that the city is coming alive in new ways both socially and romantically. More couples are taking strolls along the riverbank or spending hours in the afternoons and weekends sitting by it with the one they love. It´s quite cute and sometimes adorable to see the couples by the river or in the streets interact but it, albeit not meant to be on purpose mind you, just reminds me of how much I want that.
And it´s especially hard to be in Spain seeing all these super hot guys (which is almost every guy I see-haha) in April when I know I´m not going to be here much longer. I´ve seen some pretty good-looking guys here, but for some reason these past couple weeks, the drop-dead gorgeous guys have been coming out of the woodwork lately! Granted it was Semana Santa last week and all of these hip and savvy Spaniards visited Sevilla (and thousands of other tourists too) so that changed the make-up of the city for about a week, but it kinds seems like some are sticking around...and I´m perfectly okay with that, but I´m having a little trouble focusing on not getting a Spanish boyfriend. Let me explain how love crazy or Spaniard crazy I´ve been lately. haha
Semana Santa: Last Tuesday I went out at night to see a couple more passos not far from my house near Puerta Jerez. As I walked across the Puente del San Telmo to get there, I passed by some nazarenos (people who wore the KKK attire) dressd in white and black. I saw some pretty good-looking men dressed as those but for some reason I decided to see which ones were wearing shoes and which ones weren´t. I caught some peeks at Spanish men´s feet....and let´s just say I liked what I saw. I started laughing to myself after I realized another thing that I like about Spanish men. I said to myself, ¨Oh, my gosh, even their feet are hot!!! Ahhhh...I´ve got it bad!¨
I blushed after I said that but I agree. I have full-fledged Spanish fever now and it´s raging apparently. haha
What´s even more is I´m just like attracted to every guy I see. Even the ugly ones too cause they still dress nice and wear the MOST amazing colognes (like Armani Mani, Nathan!!). Plus, I´ve seen older, middle-aged men who I think look hot too....and I just berate myself for staring at them when I do. But I can´t help it cause Spain just has too many fine-looking men to offer! And for someone who loves tall, dark and handsome men (but is still an absolute sucker for blue eyes!), this country is lethal for me to be in. Just like the incredible desserts I see in the windows of las confiterias but can´t have cause they´re horrible for my skin!
My friend Krystol made a perfect statement about Spanish men a couple weeks ago and I´ll leave you with that for now. She said, while trying to figure out why all the guys everywhere look so good, ¨You´re hot, but you´re picking up trash!¨
And that concludes my digresion of Spanish men and how I am in love with every single one I see. haha :)
Spring is in full swing here in Sevilla as the mornings are getting warmer, the sun is rising earlier and the aromas of orange blossoms are filling the air of almost every street. OH, what a heavenly smell that is...
Flowers are blooming and more restaurants are setting up outdoor seating...but what´s even more is that the city is coming alive in new ways both socially and romantically. More couples are taking strolls along the riverbank or spending hours in the afternoons and weekends sitting by it with the one they love. It´s quite cute and sometimes adorable to see the couples by the river or in the streets interact but it, albeit not meant to be on purpose mind you, just reminds me of how much I want that.
And it´s especially hard to be in Spain seeing all these super hot guys (which is almost every guy I see-haha) in April when I know I´m not going to be here much longer. I´ve seen some pretty good-looking guys here, but for some reason these past couple weeks, the drop-dead gorgeous guys have been coming out of the woodwork lately! Granted it was Semana Santa last week and all of these hip and savvy Spaniards visited Sevilla (and thousands of other tourists too) so that changed the make-up of the city for about a week, but it kinds seems like some are sticking around...and I´m perfectly okay with that, but I´m having a little trouble focusing on not getting a Spanish boyfriend. Let me explain how love crazy or Spaniard crazy I´ve been lately. haha
Semana Santa: Last Tuesday I went out at night to see a couple more passos not far from my house near Puerta Jerez. As I walked across the Puente del San Telmo to get there, I passed by some nazarenos (people who wore the KKK attire) dressd in white and black. I saw some pretty good-looking men dressed as those but for some reason I decided to see which ones were wearing shoes and which ones weren´t. I caught some peeks at Spanish men´s feet....and let´s just say I liked what I saw. I started laughing to myself after I realized another thing that I like about Spanish men. I said to myself, ¨Oh, my gosh, even their feet are hot!!! Ahhhh...I´ve got it bad!¨
I blushed after I said that but I agree. I have full-fledged Spanish fever now and it´s raging apparently. haha
What´s even more is I´m just like attracted to every guy I see. Even the ugly ones too cause they still dress nice and wear the MOST amazing colognes (like Armani Mani, Nathan!!). Plus, I´ve seen older, middle-aged men who I think look hot too....and I just berate myself for staring at them when I do. But I can´t help it cause Spain just has too many fine-looking men to offer! And for someone who loves tall, dark and handsome men (but is still an absolute sucker for blue eyes!), this country is lethal for me to be in. Just like the incredible desserts I see in the windows of las confiterias but can´t have cause they´re horrible for my skin!
My friend Krystol made a perfect statement about Spanish men a couple weeks ago and I´ll leave you with that for now. She said, while trying to figure out why all the guys everywhere look so good, ¨You´re hot, but you´re picking up trash!¨
And that concludes my digresion of Spanish men and how I am in love with every single one I see. haha :)
Saturday, April 3, 2010
Too much of a good thing...
So raise your hand if saw the sunrise in Spain yesterday morning but didn't go to sleep the night before?! Haha...um, [raises hand]. That would be me!
Early Friday morning my American and Sevillian friends and I all met up (around 1 a.m) and watched the processions of the infamous Madruga (early morning/dawn) until the sun rose, well, and then some.
What is so special about jueves santo [holy Thursday] and viernes santo [holy Friday], you are probably wondering? Well, most people know that Jesus was said to be crucified on a Friday so naturally for Catholics this calls for a time of great reflection and remembrance. One of my friends explained to me that the reason why she thinks there are so many pasos during the week and only one paso for el domingo de resureccion is because Jesus suffered many, many times but only rose again once, so why make such a big deal about Easter and not the rest? When I think about it makes sense, but the fact that MY Savior died and rose again makes me want to celebrate and praise Him for all he's done all day!
Anyways, back to the Madrugada on Friday. I left my house at 12:30 a.m to walk over to the Plaza Nueva (one of the usual places where I go to meet up with friends). The streets were swarming with people and there was a different feeling in the air. It was something mixed with excitement and reverence....kind of like New Year's, minus the reverent attitude. I nearly got swallowed up in the hoards of people on my favorite bridge, the Triana bridge, as there were tons of people lined up on the sides sitting in chairs, laying down or standing up...or standing in the middle of the bridge carrying on conversations like typical Spaniards. haha What was even crazier was that when I paused to take a couple pictures of the crowds, I noticed that the bridge was bouncing! It felt like it was literally bouncing up and down as I stood on it! It kind of makes me wonder how much weight this bridge can handle before anything happens to it [which I don't want to know until after I leave though-haha]
I met up with my two friends from Ohio (we met for the first time in Spain of all places :) right at 1 a.m...but the rest of the group was nowhere to be found. After we walked around and checked parts of the Plaza Nueva, we figured the rest of the Americans were just late because they were with the Spaniards. BUT... a Spanish friend of my friend Abby called her and asked where she was and it turns out that she got the places mixed up and we were meeting at Puerta Jerez instead--which is all the way on the other side of the city center! But as the saying goes in Spain, no pasa nada, and after cutting through several side streets together to avoid the massive crowds in the center we made it to Puerta Jerez and weren't late at all [by Spanish standards]. I saw the same people I had met at a picnic the other day and greeted some new friends with dos besos (on the cheeks).
One of the sevillanos, Abraham, still had to meet and bring another friend to our meeting place, so we had at least 30 minutes before we even started off for the first paso. It was about 2 a.m. at that point and my friends and I began to wonder how we would make it through this night awake.
Surprisingly, the night passed quicker than I thought it would. I wasn't planning on staying out and awake until 9 freaking A.M, but I did and I had a good time. Around 3 a.m we saw the "El silencio" float, about 5 a.m was "El Gran Poder" and the one that took us the longest to see was "La Macarena." We got to the street that it was supposed to be on and waited an hr before we got to see the Cruz (float with a scene from Jesus' final days on Earth--this one had the trial before Pilate) and then we waited another hour before we could see the big thing (La virgen de la Macarena)...so that was the only thing that made the night drag on. We were all exhausted and cold that for about 15 mins we all sat down in the street and huddled up and tried "to sleep." We really just tried to stay warm because it's chilly on the narrow streets of Spain after dusk. My friend Melody didn't dress as warmly as she should have for the night so Abby and I took turns warming her up [mostly in the form of a Melody sandwich :] A few people took pictures [both friends and strangers] of our group sleeping in the middle of the street...it was pretty hilarious actually.
After we saw the much anticipated Macarena, we all walked back towards the center around 8 a.m and went in search of churros and chocolate. I honestly didn't feel like eating anything, especially after the sinfully sweet pieces of chocolate I had had earlier that night...but I tagged along anyway cause I had no clue where we were at. Melody and I chose not to have churros while the rest of the group did and they all shared them and the chocolate. One of the Spaniards, Abraham, saw that Melody and I were not eating anything so he had someone had us a churro to share and said, "Chicas. Come! Este es una experiencia." [Girls, eat....this [churros are] is an experience]. I've had churros y chocolate before and they're good, but I just wasn't hungry for anything. I ate the one he passed over to us just to appease him though. Another guy tried to get us to eat some of his (an American) but I just had to tell him that I wasn't hungry.
I'm glad I turned the churros down, but that did not save my body from getting thrown off track. I walked back with another girl who lives in Triana and by the time I got home it was just a few minutes before 9 a.m! I felt like a rebel as I walked into my house but my senora already expected us to stay out late, so it didn't really matter. I got ready for bed, drew my curtains closed and went to sleep a little after 9 a.m. I slept kind of restlessly and woke up before my alarm (set for 2 p.m) which meant I barely got 5 hours of sleep. Mistake number 1.
Secondly, after I woke up and reoriented myself for the day, I basically woke up for lunch--which I never do!--and that consisted of leftovers from the day before (an Arabic dish that consisted of pork, peppers and onions eaten on top of bread). Mistake number 2.
Just think for a second what spicy foods do to your stomach when it's still at the delicate stage of the day. Yeah...lunch did not catch up with me until dinner time, when we had another puree (yuck) and fried calamari.
Not the greatest thing for a stomach that had missed breakfast once again. I didn't eat too much of the puree (which I'm pretty sure is a zucchini puree) nor did I eat too many pieces of fried calamari but like an hour after dinner something just did not sit right with my stomach. I was going to go out to a flamenco bar, but decided against it once my stomach started churning. I tried to relax and rub my stomach and that worked up until I went to bed....but it didn't help me get through the night. Around 2 a.m I woke up and was not only burning up but my stomach was aching. I thought it was going to be something else, but to make this part of the story short, I threw up around 2:30ish a couple times. I've thrown up several different things in my life but let me tell you, throwing up anything with peppers in it is absolutely disgusting. I still had an after taste of it no matter how much I rinsed my mouth out. Sickkkk. Afterward, I went back to my room, was still feeling hot but cold at the same time so I grabbed a sweater and got into my bed. I got the chills after that which was horrible but was able to fall back to sleep even though I slept poorly. :-/
I woke up again around 7 a.m, stomach still hurting, but thought I just needed to use the bathroom again but guess what? I threw up again....thankfully only once that time, but it was still pretty bad cause I threw up more peppers and crap. I also kept dreaming about being nauseous and all the things that make me nauseous so that wasn't fun either. I did decide to stay up after that last time I threw up and it only proved to be a little productive for me. I checked a few things online but really should have been doing my quiet time or listening to some encouraging music on my Zune.
But I didn't and I think that's one of the lessons I'm learning from this 24 hr. sickness thing. I had a wonderful night with friends the night before, friends who are all believers and want to get to know me and share in my struggles...and the devil doesn't want that. God wants me to continue to have genuine fellowship with other believers over here and in order for me to avoid the attacks of Satan I must be armed with the Word of God each and everyday. I've been falling behind on my readings each morning because I've been a little too busy, but I'm taking a stand now and making it a point to read the Bible every morning and strive to read a passage at night too.
I feel like there's a lot of opposition against me here and I know that there is. If you are reading this, you have probably prayed for me at some point during this semester as many, many others have too. And the more I am strengthened by your prayers, my prayers, and what God is doing through my life, the more the devil wants to tear me down and discourage me.
I refuse to let him take a foothold because we serve a great and powerful God! He is more than able to do things beyond what we think or see on this earth. And we serve a risen God too! I hope that tomorrow morning you will reflect on that and praise Him for all that He has done for you in your life. Since it's official in Spain, Happy Easter everyone!
**And if you have made it to the end of this post, I commend you! I was just rambling really, but if you've read down to the end of this post...I hope you didn't get bored at any part. :) **
Hasta la proxima,
Sarah
Early Friday morning my American and Sevillian friends and I all met up (around 1 a.m) and watched the processions of the infamous Madruga (early morning/dawn) until the sun rose, well, and then some.
What is so special about jueves santo [holy Thursday] and viernes santo [holy Friday], you are probably wondering? Well, most people know that Jesus was said to be crucified on a Friday so naturally for Catholics this calls for a time of great reflection and remembrance. One of my friends explained to me that the reason why she thinks there are so many pasos during the week and only one paso for el domingo de resureccion is because Jesus suffered many, many times but only rose again once, so why make such a big deal about Easter and not the rest? When I think about it makes sense, but the fact that MY Savior died and rose again makes me want to celebrate and praise Him for all he's done all day!
Anyways, back to the Madrugada on Friday. I left my house at 12:30 a.m to walk over to the Plaza Nueva (one of the usual places where I go to meet up with friends). The streets were swarming with people and there was a different feeling in the air. It was something mixed with excitement and reverence....kind of like New Year's, minus the reverent attitude. I nearly got swallowed up in the hoards of people on my favorite bridge, the Triana bridge, as there were tons of people lined up on the sides sitting in chairs, laying down or standing up...or standing in the middle of the bridge carrying on conversations like typical Spaniards. haha What was even crazier was that when I paused to take a couple pictures of the crowds, I noticed that the bridge was bouncing! It felt like it was literally bouncing up and down as I stood on it! It kind of makes me wonder how much weight this bridge can handle before anything happens to it [which I don't want to know until after I leave though-haha]
I met up with my two friends from Ohio (we met for the first time in Spain of all places :) right at 1 a.m...but the rest of the group was nowhere to be found. After we walked around and checked parts of the Plaza Nueva, we figured the rest of the Americans were just late because they were with the Spaniards. BUT... a Spanish friend of my friend Abby called her and asked where she was and it turns out that she got the places mixed up and we were meeting at Puerta Jerez instead--which is all the way on the other side of the city center! But as the saying goes in Spain, no pasa nada, and after cutting through several side streets together to avoid the massive crowds in the center we made it to Puerta Jerez and weren't late at all [by Spanish standards]. I saw the same people I had met at a picnic the other day and greeted some new friends with dos besos (on the cheeks).
One of the sevillanos, Abraham, still had to meet and bring another friend to our meeting place, so we had at least 30 minutes before we even started off for the first paso. It was about 2 a.m. at that point and my friends and I began to wonder how we would make it through this night awake.
Surprisingly, the night passed quicker than I thought it would. I wasn't planning on staying out and awake until 9 freaking A.M, but I did and I had a good time. Around 3 a.m we saw the "El silencio" float, about 5 a.m was "El Gran Poder" and the one that took us the longest to see was "La Macarena." We got to the street that it was supposed to be on and waited an hr before we got to see the Cruz (float with a scene from Jesus' final days on Earth--this one had the trial before Pilate) and then we waited another hour before we could see the big thing (La virgen de la Macarena)...so that was the only thing that made the night drag on. We were all exhausted and cold that for about 15 mins we all sat down in the street and huddled up and tried "to sleep." We really just tried to stay warm because it's chilly on the narrow streets of Spain after dusk. My friend Melody didn't dress as warmly as she should have for the night so Abby and I took turns warming her up [mostly in the form of a Melody sandwich :] A few people took pictures [both friends and strangers] of our group sleeping in the middle of the street...it was pretty hilarious actually.
After we saw the much anticipated Macarena, we all walked back towards the center around 8 a.m and went in search of churros and chocolate. I honestly didn't feel like eating anything, especially after the sinfully sweet pieces of chocolate I had had earlier that night...but I tagged along anyway cause I had no clue where we were at. Melody and I chose not to have churros while the rest of the group did and they all shared them and the chocolate. One of the Spaniards, Abraham, saw that Melody and I were not eating anything so he had someone had us a churro to share and said, "Chicas. Come! Este es una experiencia." [Girls, eat....this [churros are] is an experience]. I've had churros y chocolate before and they're good, but I just wasn't hungry for anything. I ate the one he passed over to us just to appease him though. Another guy tried to get us to eat some of his (an American) but I just had to tell him that I wasn't hungry.
I'm glad I turned the churros down, but that did not save my body from getting thrown off track. I walked back with another girl who lives in Triana and by the time I got home it was just a few minutes before 9 a.m! I felt like a rebel as I walked into my house but my senora already expected us to stay out late, so it didn't really matter. I got ready for bed, drew my curtains closed and went to sleep a little after 9 a.m. I slept kind of restlessly and woke up before my alarm (set for 2 p.m) which meant I barely got 5 hours of sleep. Mistake number 1.
Secondly, after I woke up and reoriented myself for the day, I basically woke up for lunch--which I never do!--and that consisted of leftovers from the day before (an Arabic dish that consisted of pork, peppers and onions eaten on top of bread). Mistake number 2.
Just think for a second what spicy foods do to your stomach when it's still at the delicate stage of the day. Yeah...lunch did not catch up with me until dinner time, when we had another puree (yuck) and fried calamari.
Not the greatest thing for a stomach that had missed breakfast once again. I didn't eat too much of the puree (which I'm pretty sure is a zucchini puree) nor did I eat too many pieces of fried calamari but like an hour after dinner something just did not sit right with my stomach. I was going to go out to a flamenco bar, but decided against it once my stomach started churning. I tried to relax and rub my stomach and that worked up until I went to bed....but it didn't help me get through the night. Around 2 a.m I woke up and was not only burning up but my stomach was aching. I thought it was going to be something else, but to make this part of the story short, I threw up around 2:30ish a couple times. I've thrown up several different things in my life but let me tell you, throwing up anything with peppers in it is absolutely disgusting. I still had an after taste of it no matter how much I rinsed my mouth out. Sickkkk. Afterward, I went back to my room, was still feeling hot but cold at the same time so I grabbed a sweater and got into my bed. I got the chills after that which was horrible but was able to fall back to sleep even though I slept poorly. :-/
I woke up again around 7 a.m, stomach still hurting, but thought I just needed to use the bathroom again but guess what? I threw up again....thankfully only once that time, but it was still pretty bad cause I threw up more peppers and crap. I also kept dreaming about being nauseous and all the things that make me nauseous so that wasn't fun either. I did decide to stay up after that last time I threw up and it only proved to be a little productive for me. I checked a few things online but really should have been doing my quiet time or listening to some encouraging music on my Zune.
But I didn't and I think that's one of the lessons I'm learning from this 24 hr. sickness thing. I had a wonderful night with friends the night before, friends who are all believers and want to get to know me and share in my struggles...and the devil doesn't want that. God wants me to continue to have genuine fellowship with other believers over here and in order for me to avoid the attacks of Satan I must be armed with the Word of God each and everyday. I've been falling behind on my readings each morning because I've been a little too busy, but I'm taking a stand now and making it a point to read the Bible every morning and strive to read a passage at night too.
I feel like there's a lot of opposition against me here and I know that there is. If you are reading this, you have probably prayed for me at some point during this semester as many, many others have too. And the more I am strengthened by your prayers, my prayers, and what God is doing through my life, the more the devil wants to tear me down and discourage me.
I refuse to let him take a foothold because we serve a great and powerful God! He is more than able to do things beyond what we think or see on this earth. And we serve a risen God too! I hope that tomorrow morning you will reflect on that and praise Him for all that He has done for you in your life. Since it's official in Spain, Happy Easter everyone!
**And if you have made it to the end of this post, I commend you! I was just rambling really, but if you've read down to the end of this post...I hope you didn't get bored at any part. :) **
Hasta la proxima,
Sarah
Thursday, April 1, 2010
Semana Santa...que es esto?
Bienvenidos a todos a Semana Santa!
I know it's mid-way into "Holy Week," but an update about it now is better than never right? I've been out enjoying the festivities and hanging with my friends (both American and Sevillian) so that's why I didn't start writing about it in the beginning of the week. And besides, who wants to sit inside all day doing homework or blogging when there is fantastic weather to enjoy and orange blossoms to be breathed in...and did I mention the festivities of Semana Santa, oh, yeah, I did. haha But what are they and what exactly is Semana Santa? Keep reading and I will explain it.
This week though is my first of two spring breaks but it's most commonly known as Holy Week for Spain. The week before Easter is really important to Catholics but in Spain they celebrate it religiously. Every church has a float that they carry on their backs through the streets and back to the respective church were it belongs. Each float tells the story of Jesus' last week on Earth as it leads up to His Resurrection. The floats weigh like a ton too! For me as a foreigner and a born-again believer it's neat to see these processions--even though I don't agree with a lot of things in Catholicism or see the need to be so focused on rituals like these.
Tomorrow morning is supposed to be the most important part of Semana Santa because it's the day before Good Friday and these processions will tell the trial and betrayal of Christ. All of these floats are like worshiped here (esp. the ones of the Virgin) and I don't like that, but it's still neat to be a part of it.
My adopted city, Sevilla, has the best floats in the country so people from around the world come here to see them. I'm so thankful that I live here and I'm not a traveler!
I will post pictures and videos on Facebook if you keep up with me on there, but the picture below is a picture of "los nazarinos" or members of the KKK as we Americans may think they are. But trust me, they are not--they're just Sevillanos! They are actually just members from each individual church (both men and women) who march in front of their float (la cofradia) with candles. It's like a pilgrimage for them because they lead their float all throughout the city and some do not wear shoes (as a part of penance) because participating in the processions is a very personal journey for them.
The second one is a picture of one of the most elaborate floats I have seen so far. The church in which it comes from is also just a few mins from my apartment! It was incredible!!
Hope you enjoy the pics and that the nazarinos don't startle you! :)
I know it's mid-way into "Holy Week," but an update about it now is better than never right? I've been out enjoying the festivities and hanging with my friends (both American and Sevillian) so that's why I didn't start writing about it in the beginning of the week. And besides, who wants to sit inside all day doing homework or blogging when there is fantastic weather to enjoy and orange blossoms to be breathed in...and did I mention the festivities of Semana Santa, oh, yeah, I did. haha But what are they and what exactly is Semana Santa? Keep reading and I will explain it.
This week though is my first of two spring breaks but it's most commonly known as Holy Week for Spain. The week before Easter is really important to Catholics but in Spain they celebrate it religiously. Every church has a float that they carry on their backs through the streets and back to the respective church were it belongs. Each float tells the story of Jesus' last week on Earth as it leads up to His Resurrection. The floats weigh like a ton too! For me as a foreigner and a born-again believer it's neat to see these processions--even though I don't agree with a lot of things in Catholicism or see the need to be so focused on rituals like these.
Tomorrow morning is supposed to be the most important part of Semana Santa because it's the day before Good Friday and these processions will tell the trial and betrayal of Christ. All of these floats are like worshiped here (esp. the ones of the Virgin) and I don't like that, but it's still neat to be a part of it.
My adopted city, Sevilla, has the best floats in the country so people from around the world come here to see them. I'm so thankful that I live here and I'm not a traveler!
I will post pictures and videos on Facebook if you keep up with me on there, but the picture below is a picture of "los nazarinos" or members of the KKK as we Americans may think they are. But trust me, they are not--they're just Sevillanos! They are actually just members from each individual church (both men and women) who march in front of their float (la cofradia) with candles. It's like a pilgrimage for them because they lead their float all throughout the city and some do not wear shoes (as a part of penance) because participating in the processions is a very personal journey for them.
The second one is a picture of one of the most elaborate floats I have seen so far. The church in which it comes from is also just a few mins from my apartment! It was incredible!!
Hope you enjoy the pics and that the nazarinos don't startle you! :)
Monday, March 29, 2010
Time is flying!
So I've been in Spain for nearly 9 weeks now. Just writing that out blows my mind...I have never been in a foreign country for this long. It's absolutely crazy! But I'm loving every day here and just trying to make the time last....even though with Daylight Saving Time in effect as of yesterday, it seems to be slipping through my hands.
But what's been going on with me since the last time I wrote? I'm sure that's what's on your mind right now. Well, I made it through some of my toughest midterms in my college career and now I'm at spring break numero uno--Semana Santa (Spain's Holy Week). This is a huge time for the country of Spain as a whole as they get ready for Easter, but it's an even bigger deal for Sevilla because they boast the best processions and floats in the country. I was a little bummed that I decided to stay here for the first break (after I thought about my study abroad budget realistically) but now I'm really pumped! I'm so blessed to be in a city as culturally-rich and beautiful as Sevilla that I'm glad to be here for this week. People come from all over the world to Sevilla just to see its Semana Santa processions and I get to live here and see the sights as I please? I'll take that!
I'll explain what Semana Santa is exactly in the coming posts (or you can research it online!) but I just wanted to tell you all where I'm at right now in this study abroad journey.
I was looking at my pictures from New York and other places around Spain and already I see myself from a different perspective. I mean I just tackled New York City a little more than two months ago all by myself, but as I looked at my pics I thought, "Man, I look so young...and innocent."
Normally this is something you say when you're looking at pics from your teen years and you're in your late twenties--not two months after you started living abroad! But what's even more shocking is the farther I go back (like just last semester), the younger I look to myself! It's crazy, but it just goes to show you how much living abroad can change your perspective. I know so many more things now and am exposed to many different things everyday that I just can't go back to how I thought in the past. I'm gonna have one heck of a time readjusting to the United States, let me tell you!
Well, it is after midnight for me now and I have a busy week ahead of me. It's time to get some rest so I can see more of the processions tomorrow and...maybe do some homework?! Yep, such is my life in Spain.
There's always something I should be reading or working on!
'Ta luego y buenas noches! :)
--Sarah
P.S. I saw the funniest thing today: A carriage horse was snacking on the seat of someone's Vespa parked near the famous Alfonso XII hotel. He only scuffed it up though. I've never seen that happen in daily life so I had a good laugh as I passed by. The owner nor the carriage driver was around to reprimand the horse, so that just made it even funnier!
But what's been going on with me since the last time I wrote? I'm sure that's what's on your mind right now. Well, I made it through some of my toughest midterms in my college career and now I'm at spring break numero uno--Semana Santa (Spain's Holy Week). This is a huge time for the country of Spain as a whole as they get ready for Easter, but it's an even bigger deal for Sevilla because they boast the best processions and floats in the country. I was a little bummed that I decided to stay here for the first break (after I thought about my study abroad budget realistically) but now I'm really pumped! I'm so blessed to be in a city as culturally-rich and beautiful as Sevilla that I'm glad to be here for this week. People come from all over the world to Sevilla just to see its Semana Santa processions and I get to live here and see the sights as I please? I'll take that!
I'll explain what Semana Santa is exactly in the coming posts (or you can research it online!) but I just wanted to tell you all where I'm at right now in this study abroad journey.
I was looking at my pictures from New York and other places around Spain and already I see myself from a different perspective. I mean I just tackled New York City a little more than two months ago all by myself, but as I looked at my pics I thought, "Man, I look so young...and innocent."
Normally this is something you say when you're looking at pics from your teen years and you're in your late twenties--not two months after you started living abroad! But what's even more shocking is the farther I go back (like just last semester), the younger I look to myself! It's crazy, but it just goes to show you how much living abroad can change your perspective. I know so many more things now and am exposed to many different things everyday that I just can't go back to how I thought in the past. I'm gonna have one heck of a time readjusting to the United States, let me tell you!
Well, it is after midnight for me now and I have a busy week ahead of me. It's time to get some rest so I can see more of the processions tomorrow and...maybe do some homework?! Yep, such is my life in Spain.
There's always something I should be reading or working on!
'Ta luego y buenas noches! :)
--Sarah
P.S. I saw the funniest thing today: A carriage horse was snacking on the seat of someone's Vespa parked near the famous Alfonso XII hotel. He only scuffed it up though. I've never seen that happen in daily life so I had a good laugh as I passed by. The owner nor the carriage driver was around to reprimand the horse, so that just made it even funnier!
Monday, March 15, 2010
Spanish paradoxes
Here are some rather confusing, yet hilarious paradoxes I have come up against here in Spain:
***There are tons of commercials for these special digestive cookies that Spanish people supposedly eat all the time that are good for you (supposedly). But here's the thing they contain wheat gluten and all these other kinds of preservatives (and salt) that are horrible for you...guess what I got the whole time I was eating them? Diarrhea. Yeah, just an ironic little side effect for something that's supposed to regulate your body.
***Bathrooms in Spain almost always have soap in them, but what can you never find? Hot water! How are you supposed to kill the germs and why aren't Spanish people getting sick all the time??
***Choose wisely which kind of tissues you should buy. Ironically I'm pretty sure I'm allergic to the ones I was using when I had allergy symptoms a few days ago. Once again it defeats the purpose!
***All the fruit juices and yogurt drinks that are supposed to be extremely good for you have so much sugar in them! Which once again defeats the purpose of drinking them to get more natural sugars or calcium for that matter!
And my absolute favorite:
***No two clocks in Spain are set to the same time. Everyone's movil has a different time, the city runs on a much faster time, my senora's clock is ten minutes faster than my phone the metro is a couple minutes slower than my senora's clock and the world clock on my computer is off too! What is with you and time, Spain??? Ahhh, stop confusing me!
All that matters is that my watch is set 10 minutes faster than my phone so that I can make it back in time for lunch and dinner. The most important things in one's life, you know! ;)
***There are tons of commercials for these special digestive cookies that Spanish people supposedly eat all the time that are good for you (supposedly). But here's the thing they contain wheat gluten and all these other kinds of preservatives (and salt) that are horrible for you...guess what I got the whole time I was eating them? Diarrhea. Yeah, just an ironic little side effect for something that's supposed to regulate your body.
***Bathrooms in Spain almost always have soap in them, but what can you never find? Hot water! How are you supposed to kill the germs and why aren't Spanish people getting sick all the time??
***Choose wisely which kind of tissues you should buy. Ironically I'm pretty sure I'm allergic to the ones I was using when I had allergy symptoms a few days ago. Once again it defeats the purpose!
***All the fruit juices and yogurt drinks that are supposed to be extremely good for you have so much sugar in them! Which once again defeats the purpose of drinking them to get more natural sugars or calcium for that matter!
And my absolute favorite:
***No two clocks in Spain are set to the same time. Everyone's movil has a different time, the city runs on a much faster time, my senora's clock is ten minutes faster than my phone the metro is a couple minutes slower than my senora's clock and the world clock on my computer is off too! What is with you and time, Spain??? Ahhh, stop confusing me!
All that matters is that my watch is set 10 minutes faster than my phone so that I can make it back in time for lunch and dinner. The most important things in one's life, you know! ;)
Monday, March 8, 2010
God is truly amazing!
So yesterday I rediscovered that God does indeed have a sense of humor. I was on my way to my Spanish church last night but couldn't remember what the name of the street was or how far away it was from my house, so needless to say I was a little lost. Thank goodness, though, it was just a little side street off one of the main streets here in Sevilla...but finding that side street? Now, that was the struggle. However, I had a little help...
As I wandered around these smaller streets (where I thought the church was), I prayed, "God, if you want me at church to tonight, please get me there." Just your simple to-the-point prayer with a little bit of doubt mixed in there, but boy, did God answer it! Once I got back to the main street, I decided to just give up and go somewhere to sit and study, but then I kept thinking the church was farther than where I was, so I turned around. It's a good thing I did because I would've missed one of God's most beautiful reminders to us as believers:
And the street that this rainbow was over was the EXACT street Encounter Church was on! I took a few pictures of course and just started laughing.
GOD IS AWESOME!!!!!!! I hope you don't forget that (I hope I don't) as you go about your daily lives. We serve an awesome God who has an incredible sense of humor. :)
As I wandered around these smaller streets (where I thought the church was), I prayed, "God, if you want me at church to tonight, please get me there." Just your simple to-the-point prayer with a little bit of doubt mixed in there, but boy, did God answer it! Once I got back to the main street, I decided to just give up and go somewhere to sit and study, but then I kept thinking the church was farther than where I was, so I turned around. It's a good thing I did because I would've missed one of God's most beautiful reminders to us as believers:
And the street that this rainbow was over was the EXACT street Encounter Church was on! I took a few pictures of course and just started laughing.
GOD IS AWESOME!!!!!!! I hope you don't forget that (I hope I don't) as you go about your daily lives. We serve an awesome God who has an incredible sense of humor. :)
Saturday, March 6, 2010
Only in Spain...
I haven't really shared any stories or memories on here yet, so here goes...hope you enjoy!
Nearly a month ago (wow!!!) I went to los Carnavales en Cadiz (Ka-deeth) with some friends and Discover Sevilla, a tourist agency here that works with and plans trips for college students and tourists in Sevilla. The closest thing that I can relate it to is a big huge college Halloween party in the streets where everyone is dressed up in ridiculously good or bad costumes getting shwasted--and yet, still continuing to drink. Except not everyone who's there was young, in fact at times I saw more older people than young ones. My friends and I unfortunately got sucked into the center of the city where all the drunken mayhem was going on and didn't have the greatest time that night. Little did all of us know that just like 1/4 of a mile down the main street were plays and spoofs of political and historical figures/events being put on. I heard that there were people dressed up as Obama, Hitler and the Chinese president (whose name I don't know) and that would've been fun to see, especially since everything was satirical and politically incorrect! haha
But our schedule for the night turned into visiting the different people who dressed in groups and getting pictures taken with them. My favorites were the cavemen, penguins, ducks, crazy rocker guys from Barcelona who wore plain white tees so that American girls could write their numbers on them...and Aladdin and Jasmine. Jasmine was really drunk and gave each of my friends a page that she tore out of paperback book--which was hilarious and I kept the page! haha
My most memorable and vivid memory of the night was when I was talking to this really nice college-aged guy from Brazil. He is in his last year at the University of Salamanca and if you can believe it or not, he's studying Economics! In just the few minutes I talked with him--in English in the beginning--we had a lot in common...and he was the first decent guy I had met at Carnaval and didn't seem to be drunk. However, just a few feet away from me my friends were getting harassed by a group of cows or something and they wanted to get away from them as fast as possible...but I didn't want to leave cause I was having a nice time talking with this guy. Unfortunately I had to tell him goodbye, but he still wanted to keep talking to me! Two of my friends then proceeded to drag me away from him and I remember him asking me in Spanish, "Pero, quieres hablar sobre la economia?" [Don't you want to talk about the economy?]. No, but you're cute, I thought. I responded with, "My friends want to go so I can't. Sorry!"
I will never forget yelling that out to this guy as he watched me be physically dragged away by my friends. It all happened in slow motion too so that made it even harder to break away, but it made for an awesome memory. I didn't see him again that night and probably won't ever see him again. If I'm meant to run into him again I will, but if not, then God's got something else in store.
Time is flying by here in Spain, but I am enjoying every second I can. I hope to have so many more of these "Only in Spain" moments and be able pull them out whenever I am missing Sevilla.
Nearly a month ago (wow!!!) I went to los Carnavales en Cadiz (Ka-deeth) with some friends and Discover Sevilla, a tourist agency here that works with and plans trips for college students and tourists in Sevilla. The closest thing that I can relate it to is a big huge college Halloween party in the streets where everyone is dressed up in ridiculously good or bad costumes getting shwasted--and yet, still continuing to drink. Except not everyone who's there was young, in fact at times I saw more older people than young ones. My friends and I unfortunately got sucked into the center of the city where all the drunken mayhem was going on and didn't have the greatest time that night. Little did all of us know that just like 1/4 of a mile down the main street were plays and spoofs of political and historical figures/events being put on. I heard that there were people dressed up as Obama, Hitler and the Chinese president (whose name I don't know) and that would've been fun to see, especially since everything was satirical and politically incorrect! haha
But our schedule for the night turned into visiting the different people who dressed in groups and getting pictures taken with them. My favorites were the cavemen, penguins, ducks, crazy rocker guys from Barcelona who wore plain white tees so that American girls could write their numbers on them...and Aladdin and Jasmine. Jasmine was really drunk and gave each of my friends a page that she tore out of paperback book--which was hilarious and I kept the page! haha
My most memorable and vivid memory of the night was when I was talking to this really nice college-aged guy from Brazil. He is in his last year at the University of Salamanca and if you can believe it or not, he's studying Economics! In just the few minutes I talked with him--in English in the beginning--we had a lot in common...and he was the first decent guy I had met at Carnaval and didn't seem to be drunk. However, just a few feet away from me my friends were getting harassed by a group of cows or something and they wanted to get away from them as fast as possible...but I didn't want to leave cause I was having a nice time talking with this guy. Unfortunately I had to tell him goodbye, but he still wanted to keep talking to me! Two of my friends then proceeded to drag me away from him and I remember him asking me in Spanish, "Pero, quieres hablar sobre la economia?" [Don't you want to talk about the economy?]. No, but you're cute, I thought. I responded with, "My friends want to go so I can't. Sorry!"
I will never forget yelling that out to this guy as he watched me be physically dragged away by my friends. It all happened in slow motion too so that made it even harder to break away, but it made for an awesome memory. I didn't see him again that night and probably won't ever see him again. If I'm meant to run into him again I will, but if not, then God's got something else in store.
Time is flying by here in Spain, but I am enjoying every second I can. I hope to have so many more of these "Only in Spain" moments and be able pull them out whenever I am missing Sevilla.
Thursday, March 4, 2010
Longing for familiar things...
Things I miss:
MILK!!!!!!! (both skim and CHOCOLATE)
Eggs and Sausage
BAGELS!!!!!!!!!!!
Mexican food (as in Chipotle...)
My buckwheat husk pillow that is amazingly wonderful to sleep on!
Dinner at a decent time in the afternoon/evening
A smaller school and one that actually looks nice
Stores staying open past 9pm.
Walking to class/living close to your classes
PEANUT BUTTER (a small jar is like $4-5 here!)
Morning classes (I know I'm crazy to say that...haha)
Hanging out with friends in public places/apts instead of at bars!
FRESH, CLEAN AIR most places I go
Taking American money out of ATMs
My friends and family of course!!!!! :)
Peace and quiet
UNSALTED FOOD! :(
Driving a car/carpooling with people!
Things I DON'T MISS:
Whiny closed-minded Americans :P
Speaking English everywhere I go
Being informed everyday of how much the gov't is screwing things up yet again
Staying in touch with American pop culture--aka what the celebs are doing
Life before Nutella with breakfast
TV (except for one certain show in particular)
Dressing informally (Dressing up is fun and makes you feel more confident during the day!)
Living at school and eating on campus :)
Getting hit on by creepy guys and black guys during the day (it only happens to me occasionally at night here)
...well, that's all I can think of right now. There's probably one thing I'm missing on both lists...but you tell me. :)
MILK!!!!!!! (both skim and CHOCOLATE)
Eggs and Sausage
BAGELS!!!!!!!!!!!
Mexican food (as in Chipotle...)
My buckwheat husk pillow that is amazingly wonderful to sleep on!
Dinner at a decent time in the afternoon/evening
A smaller school and one that actually looks nice
Stores staying open past 9pm.
Walking to class/living close to your classes
PEANUT BUTTER (a small jar is like $4-5 here!)
Morning classes (I know I'm crazy to say that...haha)
Hanging out with friends in public places/apts instead of at bars!
FRESH, CLEAN AIR most places I go
Taking American money out of ATMs
My friends and family of course!!!!! :)
Peace and quiet
UNSALTED FOOD! :(
Driving a car/carpooling with people!
Things I DON'T MISS:
Whiny closed-minded Americans :P
Speaking English everywhere I go
Being informed everyday of how much the gov't is screwing things up yet again
Staying in touch with American pop culture--aka what the celebs are doing
Life before Nutella with breakfast
TV (except for one certain show in particular)
Dressing informally (Dressing up is fun and makes you feel more confident during the day!)
Living at school and eating on campus :)
Getting hit on by creepy guys and black guys during the day (it only happens to me occasionally at night here)
...well, that's all I can think of right now. There's probably one thing I'm missing on both lists...but you tell me. :)
Monday, March 1, 2010
Daily reminders
Well, it's hard for me to believe that I have been in Spain for almost 6 weeks now! It still feels like I'm new to the culture but in reality I'm not. I can for sure say that I have fully adjusted because I am hungry at meal times and I feel sleepy when it gets late here. I also was just thinking about my upcoming 3 day week (today was a holiday too :) and mentally preparing for classes and my schedule...and I was able to visualize how the week would go mostly. So yes, I have adjusted but I'm still learning new things about the people, the culture and myself everyday. I could even say that I'm getting comfortable but I DON'T want to feel that way. Because, once you get comfortable in a geographical region or a place in your life, you begin to get desensitized and I want to see, feel, hear and do everything possible here, not just in Spain, but all over Europe too! This is an experience of a lifetime and I have to keep reminding myself of that.
Here are a few things I tell myself everyday when I'm feeling overwhelmed or discouraged:
*I did not come here to fail...I came here to succeed above and beyond my expectations.
*I did not come here to speak English...I came here to improve my Spanish and get to know the locals and become a part of this culture!
*No one here knows who I am or was...so why not seize the opportunity to let my personality shine and make a fresh start?
*I did not come here to be the same person I usually am...I came here to find out who I really am, what I'm capable of and--if it's in God's will--to find someone to love.
Verses that have been encouraging me:
One thing I ask of the LORD, this is what I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD and to seek him in his temple. For in the day of trouble he will keep me safe in his dwelling; he will hide me in the shelter of his tabernacle and set me high upon a rock. Then my head will be exalted above the enemies who surround me; at his tabernacle will I sacrifice with shouts of joy; I will sing and make music to the LORD.
***Psalm 27:4-6***
Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you.
My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. ***Psalm 73:25-26***
Please pray for me as I am working hard at reading the Bible every morning before I get ready. I feel like there is a strong opposition against me when I do read and pray before I start the day and those days are actually pretty bad and chaotic...so I know that the devil is working against me. Spiritual warfare and the workings of Satan are very real but I keep reminding myself that if God is for me, who can be against me? I am under His umbrella of protection and am strengthened by your prayers as well as mine. He has a purpose for me here that goes beyond studying and traveling and I hope to discover it and possibly fulfill it while I'm here.
Pues, buenas noches a todos! :)
Here are a few things I tell myself everyday when I'm feeling overwhelmed or discouraged:
*I did not come here to fail...I came here to succeed above and beyond my expectations.
*I did not come here to speak English...I came here to improve my Spanish and get to know the locals and become a part of this culture!
*No one here knows who I am or was...so why not seize the opportunity to let my personality shine and make a fresh start?
*I did not come here to be the same person I usually am...I came here to find out who I really am, what I'm capable of and--if it's in God's will--to find someone to love.
Verses that have been encouraging me:
One thing I ask of the LORD, this is what I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD and to seek him in his temple. For in the day of trouble he will keep me safe in his dwelling; he will hide me in the shelter of his tabernacle and set me high upon a rock. Then my head will be exalted above the enemies who surround me; at his tabernacle will I sacrifice with shouts of joy; I will sing and make music to the LORD.
***Psalm 27:4-6***
Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you.
My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. ***Psalm 73:25-26***
Please pray for me as I am working hard at reading the Bible every morning before I get ready. I feel like there is a strong opposition against me when I do read and pray before I start the day and those days are actually pretty bad and chaotic...so I know that the devil is working against me. Spiritual warfare and the workings of Satan are very real but I keep reminding myself that if God is for me, who can be against me? I am under His umbrella of protection and am strengthened by your prayers as well as mine. He has a purpose for me here that goes beyond studying and traveling and I hope to discover it and possibly fulfill it while I'm here.
Pues, buenas noches a todos! :)
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