Two days worth of info, and PHOTOS!

Hola, amigos! Sorry for the lack of an update yesterday, but it was a hectic day, so I wasn’t able to make time for a post. However, that just means more stuff to talk about in this update! (and of course, PHOTOS!)

I’ll start off from Tuesday afternoon! After my last blog post and declaring my knowledge of the way around the city- ironically, I got lost. For about an hour. Que dia! However, using my map and managing to wander on the right street, I was able to find my way home. My host mom was extremely nice about the whole ordeal, and told me it was very typical of students to get lost in their first days. So I didn’t feel too horrible about it!

For lunch, we had a delicious vegetable soup and with some smaller meat slices on the side, always with a little dish of bread. The bread is so good here! I don’t think I’ll ever be able to eat bread from the United States again, the difference is incredible!

Afterwards of my exciting adventures in getting lost, I took my daily siesta until about 4:45 PM. Then, me and my roommate headed for our planned meeting with Abroadco for a tour of Granada.

We met up with Scott, the other Abroadco student, in front of the post office, el correo, which is our ‘rally point’ for everything! (Trips, meetings, etc). We chatted as we waited for Inma to come and take us on the tour, always watching the very heavy traffic of Granada. Granada reminds me of a smaller version of New York City- maybe like San Francisco- it’s definitely a city, but it is a lot smaller than NYC. My host mom told me it was the smallest city in Andalucía, so it makes sense. But don’t be fooled, even for being small, there is a lot going on!

Inma then arrived, and the tour began. We first headed over to the ‘Theatre’ which was an outdoor theatre. It was originally built by the Romans, and refurbished by the Moors- as you may see below, it definitely reflected the Arabian time period!

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There was a show going on later tonight for all of the people to see, as it was a kind of city amphitheatre. The one thing I find really interesting about Spain is that, buildings may be centuries old, but if they work, they are still in use today!

(Walking down the road!)

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After visiting the outdoor theatre, my roommate Stephanie (who had been feeling ill earlier) asked if she could leave a bit early, as she felt very sick. She went back home to recuperate some more, which was sad that she missed out on the tour! (However, as soon as she feels back to normal, I’m going to take her on the tour myself! Can’t miss out on the excitement!)
After Stephanie went back to our house, we continued on our tour!

Next, we walked down an old Arab quarter- like a bazaar with items hung up everywhere, reflecting an extreme North African flavor. I found myself questioning whether I was in Spain or in Morocco! We walked down the narrow pathway through the shops, and saw all sorts of Arabian gifts and dress hanging up for sale. There were also some gypsies in the street that approached Inma with leafy branches, which she promptly responded with a ‘no’ when they tried to give them to her. She explained afterwards never to take their offerings- apparently, when you take the proffered items, they demand you give them money. If you don’t, they put a curse on you. Hmm…..

After walking down the Arab quarter, when then visited a Catherdal. Now, this isn’t your run of the mill Baptist Church. This place… was HUGE! Also of interest was this church is also the tomb of Isabella and Ferdinard, the King and Queen of Spain who paid Columbus to "discover" the new world. The funny thing was it has two sides as well- as it was worked on in both the Baroque and Reinassance period. It wasn´t finished, and today they are arguing whether or not to start again a 300 yeard overdue project. Who knows?

(Baroque side)

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(Reinassance side)

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As you can see from the photos and size comparison to people, this place was incredible! I was truly blown away, as I’ve never seen anything like it up close and personal. Inma told us that there were bigger churches in Seville, so I’m really looking forward to seeing those- I mean, insanity!

After the adventure to the huge Church, we then walked over to yet another large, old building that was the law school of Granada! It apparently had been built by the Romans as a palace, and of course, was converted into a school! We walked up a large staircase to discover a library full of students, who were studying for their own finals this week! The library was a new addition to the school, (new being around 1700s-1800s).

After visiting the law school, we then walked down the streets to visit a nearby hospital, which was once a Moorish palace. The definite influence was hard to miss in this old building:

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However, a Spanish flair was to be found in the many paintings that adorned the walls:

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And, the most recent repair of some tiles, was dated to be 1763, Que viejos los edificios! (How old are the buildings!)

It’s more of a recuperative center now than a hospital, but still in use today!

We then walked down a long calle (Spanish for road) to visit our last stop of the day, a huge park for all of the people, and specifically the students, to go and play sports. A lot of people were there when we went, and Inma said if we wanted to play sports, as students, we were more than welcome to participate in weekly sports as long as we had a student id! (Which, as a thought, I did receive one for the University of Granada before the tour. Here’s the picture: Soy un estudiante!)

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After the tour of the sports complex, we then walked back to the Post Office. From there, I decided to visit again all of the places we had visited today! I walked back to the bazaar and the Cathedral, and visited a local gift shop, where I bought my first cosa! (Spanish for thing)

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Que bonita!


After a bit more exploring, I headed home for a 9 o’clock dinner of ham sandwiches. I was very tired after all the excitement of my first day of class and my tour, so I promptly headed to bed.
And now, for yesterday’s events:


The morning started off with a wakeup at 7:30 AM, as usual! I get up and take a quick shower, and get ready for the day- about 8:15, I eat breakfast of some tea, toasted bread, and some cookies. This is what my everyday breakfast looks like:

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I’m growing fonder day by day of tea!

After breakfast, I leave the house at about 8:30 AM for my 9 o’clock class. It takes me about 23-25 minutes to walk all the way there, but it’s also because I take the longer, more linear route. (As a precaution, I’ve been lost already!) As the days grow on and I know my way around better, I will most likely try taking shortcuts. But for now, main roads only!

At 9 AM started my second day of class! Today we had a substitute, because my teacher, Susanna, had hurt her arm and was seeing a doctor. We went over different forms of grammar and verb conjugation, and answered different questions in Spanish for two hours. Afterwards, for the second 2 hours, our regular teacher returned and we went over pronunciation of different verbs, regulars and irregulars.

I’m really enjoying class, despite the long hours, as I learn something new everyday! Today’s learning of interest was El bote, which means if you are going out with friends and you all give your share of money to pay to one person, it is called ‘un bote!’

After class, I walked home for a 2:20 PM lunch. It consisted of rice with a cooked egg, with pasta sauce around the egg. As everything else I’ve eaten here, it was delicious! Afterwards, I took my afternoon siesta, where I finished reading The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway. I’m pretty sure it had deeper meaning, but it was okay by my standards. Much better than Old man and the Sea, for sure.

After the siesta, yesterday’s viaje (trip!) was to go to a Tea shop! My roommate is still under the weather, so she wasn’t able to participate- however, she has been to one before, so she wasn’t too disappointed! I met up with Inma and Scott once again, and off our adventure began.
We walked up the most central street and veered off into yet another Arabian quarter, and found a small Arabian themed tea shop. Inside, we ordered te calientes (hot tea!). Scott ordered a tea with mint, and I had the house special tea. It was AMAZING! The tea is made with real herbs, (I inspected the mini teapot to be sure) and that’s what makes it so delicious- I’m definitely planning a return trip!


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All music of Saudi Arabia, of course!

After visiting the tea house, Inma led us up to another road leading to the Sacromonte. The road was alongside the Alhambra, the huge castle that is the most famous of Granada, and offered an excellent view from our pathway to take some snapshots:

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The road’s name was Paseo de los triestes, or the walk of the ‘sad ones’. Inma explained that in Spain’s history, women were not allowed to visit graveyards- only men. There is a graveyard 30 minutes down the road near the Alhambra, and the men used to walk down there alone, leaving the women behind on the road. Since women were not allowed to mourn at the graves, they would mourn along the road- hence the name. The walk’s about 30 minutes to visit the graveyard, so I didn’t get a chance to visit, but I have definitely marked it down to remember!

Afterwards, Inma departed and we walked down the Sacromonte. We didn’t realize it was the Sacromonte until walking for about 30 minutes and asking Inma by cellphone if we were lost. What we didn’t understand was Sacromonte wasn’t a specific location, but all of the houses along the road that we were walking along. All of the houses were attached to the mountainside- they look like regular houses, but inside they are caves! Studying these houses on the walk back, we were able to see where the house began and where the rock attached ended! How interesting!

While walking back, I also experienced my first Machisimo. What this means is men in countries such as Spain, Greece, and Italy (older cities), the men have a ‘cultural’ way of expressing being Macho- they yell towards woman things such as ‘beautiful’ or ‘pretty’ or any word in an almost flirting sense- however, it’s only done to impress friends or companions, not to attract dates. I heard a ‘Guapas tu!’, and ignored it like the locals. It’s a cultural thing, I suppose!

After the viaje, me and Scott both headed our separate ways for home. Dinner was at 9PM, and I got to chat with my mom and dad at 9:30 local time, 3:30 PM EST. It was really great to hear their voices again! After talking, I worked on mi tarea (homework) and went to bed.
This morning was class as well, and later today I am planning to go with Scott to visit more of Granada, and hopefully go to a Discoteca! I am very excited to go, as if you say the word ‘discoteca’ to a Spaniard, they always get excited- it’s a big thing to do in Spain! It sounds much a hangout for young people and dancing, so I’m excited to get to meet new people- It should be fun!


Also, I have lots of more pictures from my days past. I have notes tagged to each ones, so if the photos weren’t mentioned in today’s journal, they will say what they are for your enjoyment! :) Here’s the link to find my entire album, browse at your leisure!

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Until my next entry, Hasta luego!