A Lovely Sunday Morning: Batalla de las Flores

The morning after my Sevilla excursion was Cordoba's Batalla de las Flores. One of the many events that happen at the end of April and into May, Batalla de las Flores involved floats full of people riding down the main avenue and throwing carnations into the crowds that the crowds then throw back at the floats. A rather odd tradition with a significance that I have yet to discover, but it was great fun and pretty hilarious. Take a peek:

I decided if I was a child I would want to be one of the girls who got to be on the floats in these awesome outfits:

So many flowers

This was my favorite float. These women were having so much fun!

Fun for all ages...

...and beauty queens

And a little video footage:

Sevilla con PRESCHO

Don't  be fooled by the Córdoba sign in this picture, this is indeed a post about a trip to Sevilla! On Friday April 24th was the PRESHCO day trip to Sevilla and our first stop was in the Plaza de España where there are "bancos" for each Spanish city. Above is a picture in the banco de Córdoba. The plaza itself is gorgeous and one of the sites I had visited a few weeks earlier with Jordyn, Kendra, and Drew during Semana Santa. Now was my opportunity to see the city without all the chaos of the Semana Santa pasos. 

After the plaza it was off to the Catedral de Sevilla. This Cathedral is the third largest cathedral in the world. Like the Mezquita in Córdoba, this cathedral had been a mosque and then became the site for the cathedral when the Catholics regained control of the city. Our tour guide pointed out some interesting art pieces. Some Preshco students in an art history class had just taken their mid-term and were excited to see some of the pieces they studied for it now on display in person. We also saw  the tomb (pictured below) where there are about 300g of Christopher Colombus. Most of his body is somewhere in the Caribbean, but they brought some of him back to Spain. Kind of odd, but there you go. 

Where the catholics of Córdoba built there cathedral within the still standing structure of the mosque, the mosque of Sevilla was torn down to allow a new structure on the same site. Two things that do remain of the original site are the courtyard and bell tower that we were able to climb after our tour for an incredible site of the city.

 Instead of stairs to the top there were 36 ramps to climb. It had been constructed that way so that the person who rang the bells for the five times daily call to prayer would be able to ride a horse up to the top. 

After the cathedral we walked through Sevilla to the Alcazar and its Gardens. What a gorgeous place. The Alcazar itself was rather reminiscent of the Alhambra with intricate arab designs and running water. 

The gardens were fantastic and a bunch of us spent some time there after our tour before heading off to find some ice cream and shade. It was so hot that day that it was hard to stay active a really explore too far around the city. 

While a good portion of the group headed to the bus to go back to Córdoba, a group of us collected our stuff from the bus and then went to check into a hostel for the night for a little extra time in Sevilla. Our hostel was great though they had managed to mess up our reservation. This ended up working in our favor since it was there fault and they put three of us in private double and single for the same price we would have paid for the dorm style room we reserved. 

After relaxing and recuperating in the hostel for a bit, we headed back out. We went to a bar for a while where we were stumbled upon a 30 year old's birthday party and were welcomed into the celebration. After being there for a while, many decided to stay, but I left with three others to get some tapas, then dessert, and a nice walk around the city before bedtime. A lovely and relaxing evening. 

The next day was another relaxing day. Emily, Laura, and I headed off separately from the other since we needed to buy our train tickets for that evening, and then spent the rest of the day exploring, shopping, and eating. It was great and then we were on the train and back to Cordoba. 

I have loved both of my short trips to Sevilla. It is a really nice city and I recommend it as a travel destination for anyone who takes a trip to Spain!

That's all for now...

Adios

"Time to Dispose of" in Morocco

This weekend I added both another country and another continent to the list of places I have been. Going to Morocco certainly was a different experience than my other travels thus far and it was an incredibly valuable and great weekend that will be difficult to really express in words. But I shall try my best to fill you all in. 

We left Cordoba on Friday morning and took a bus to Sevilla where we were meeting up with our tour group for the weekend. Not only was the tour probably the most economical way to go, as it was incredibly well priced and all inclusive (hotel, food, travel from Sevilla) but I would have had no idea where to go and how to get there in Morocco. Our tour guide was an incredible asset to our journey. He also provided the very entertaining phrase that is now the title of this album as he frequently told us that we would have "time to dispose of" in the ferry station, in the market place, before dinner, etc. 

From Sevilla we took a bus to Algeciras where we got the ferry to Cueta. The ferry was quite the impressive boat. Someone commented that the inside of it was like the airplane and airport combined and put on a boat.  The boat was fast and we watched Africa come closer.  And then we were on the African continent. Upon landed in Cueta we were technically still in Spain though (it is one of two cities in northern Africa that are Spanish strongholds). 

We got on a bus and then had to head over the border. Already the view out the bus window was quite different then what we had become accustomed to in Southern Spain: the people we saw, the condition of buildings and roads, slight starkness of the enclosed border cross station. We were there for an hour getting all of our passports stamps and then we went onward after sunset and in darkness arrived at our hotel in Tetuan. We then had a rather delicious dinner, brushed our teeth with bottled water, and turned in early to bed for one of the best night's sleep I have had in quite a while. It was only about 10pm when we went to bed, but surprisingly enough that time was after a two hour time difference between Spain and Morocco. The first hour was because Morocco does not observe daylight savings, but that second hour was a complete mystery to me. 

The next day we awoke to a delicious carb-filled breakfast, then got on the bus to head into the city for our first sights in daylight. 

TETUAN

Our tour in Tetuan was of the old city or "Medina."  We walked through markets, down narrow muddy streets, and past tiny hole in the wall shops. Stray cats wandered everywhere and were a part of the life in the medina.  It was still pretty early in the day when we arrived, so the shops were still in the process of opening and not many shoppers had arrived yet. Shopkeepers sat in their shops and crafts man worked, looking up to watch us as we passed by. It seemed like we were quite the site as this was not a typical tourist destination. Different areas were dedicated to different types of crafts: leather work, wood work, etc.Then there was also the flea market. As we passed through the flea market, one of our guides said, "Flea market, today no fleas." What a very comforting statement. It was here that the phrase "one man's trash is another man's treasure" came to mind. The entire place really seemed to be filled with trash, yet it was on sale and must be purchased by somebody. 

Other stops in Tetuan included a spice shop and rug shop where the owners explained to us their products. These stops were both very much sales pitches, but also certainly informative of the culture and lifestyle of this city. After our tour, we had our first truly touristy event of the day: lunch. There were performers, music, and a bunch of us got henna tattoos. 

After lunch, it was back on the bus and on our way to our second destination: Tangiers. It was about an hour long drive and I was rather surprised by the scenery we passed through. The green mountains was not what I was expecting from Morocco given the Sahara in the south of the country. Since we were in the northern mountainous region, we were surrounded by farms. Many of the farmers could not afford to take time to go into town to sell their goods, so we would see some women and children sitting along the road to sell their cheese, crafts, etc. 

We drove through the city of Tangiers and the guide pointed out the biggest Mosque of the city just around the corner from the cities Catholic church. Though officially Morocco is an Islamic nation, other religions are present and tolerated. Our guide made a point of telling us that the islam, christianity, and Judaism, were all living side by side harmoniously. Our ride continued on through the city up into the hills where the richest houses of the city are including the king's summer house and a summer palace for the King of Saudi Arabia. Then we drove over to the site where the Mediterranean meets the Atlantic. 

After the lookout, we drove a little further past some great ocean views and then had an opportunity for a Camel Ride by the Ocean! That is right, I have now rode on a camel. Granted it was only in a short circle, but that is what you get when you only pay one euro. 

After riding we climbed down to the beach and touched the Atlantic from the eastern side. I could not believe how blue it was. It was absolutely gorgeous. 

After the beach side time we went back into the city and checked into the hotel. Then a bunch of us headed out to find the Tangiers market where we mastered the art of haggling. (I got a necklace for 2 Euros/20 durham.) We also walked by an overlook where you can see the Spanish coast a mere 9 miles across the straight of Gibraltar. 

On our way back to the hotel for dinner we passed many cafes and shops where we noticed tons of men sitting for coffee at outdoor tables. They were all sitting with their backs to the shop, facing out to the street. No one sat on the other side and there were no women there for this  evening refreshment. 

After dinner we went to a cultural floor show which was quite the tourist trap rip off and then went back to the hotel for bedtime. Unfortunately this night's sleep was not as successful as the night before as I found a bug and a couple of hairs in my bed when I pulled back the covers. I decided to sleep on top of the covers. Oh well. 

The next day we visited my favorite city of the tour. We had another carb filled breakfast and then drove the tour hours through gorgeous mountains to a small mountain city: Chefchouen. 

CHEFCHOUEN

As you can see, the entire city was blue and i thought it was gorgeous. We had the most ridiculous tour guide (pictured below) and he explained  that the blue was to ward off mosquitos and demons. Many people referred to this tour guide as yoda. He talked like yoda and slowly walked through the small streets making hilarious comments. 

We went to another rug shop in Chefchouen and this one was much more successful at making sales (they had pretty remarkable prices that even college students could afford, and everything could be haggled down). Then we had lunch at a lovely restaurant that felt like a home and a family dinner type environment. 

This city was also not much of a tourist attraction. The tour had been great because it brought us to what I believe is the real Morocco for this northern area of the country. And then the tour had come to an end and we were back on the bus to head to Cueta, take the ferry to Algecieras, and ride on to Sevilla. 

We got back to Sevilla after the last buses and trains had left for Cordoba, so with our tour guides help we had arranged for a private bus to pick us up in Sevilla and bring us home. Since there were so many of us on the trip, it was not too expensive and very much worth it for the night's sleep in our own beds before classes the next day. 

All in all a wonderful trip that has taken me forever to tell you all about (sorry about that, but now, on May 4th, it is finally finished).  I shall try to keep the posts coming in a slightly more timely fashion. 

Hope all is well. 

Adios

Italy with Jordyn!

So now that I am finally writing (on April 20th) it has been a while since my trip to Italia with the lovely Jordyn Sims. Luckily, I took notes along the way and should still be able to give you all a pretty full update and account of the trip. Aren't you so very glad another potentially long post is coming your way. Oh dear. Ok, let's see. 

We left when it was still very much dark outside on Tuesday morning to head to the Sevilla airport. We knew from the start that we had a rather long travel day ahead of us and having had very little sleep the night before, we were tired from the start. After awkwardly waking up the hostel employee on duty so that we could check out and get our deposit back, we were off walking through the city while the street cleaners were still out. Once again, European cities are rather on top of transportation needs and we very easily could grab a bus from the center of the city, which took us directly out to the airport. 

Our flight was on time and we arrived in Milan no problem. (I think we might have even been a little early.) Now, the Milan airport is not a terribly exciting place, but it is also a pretty solid distance and pricey bus into the city itself, so we passed some quality time in the airport on our super long layover. We played cards, played catch up on eachother's lives, ate some food, and found a Maura Soule look alike (Courtney agreed when we showed her photographic proof). Then it was off to Rome!

ROME

Once again a pretty easy flight, we landed in Rome and took a bus right into Termini Station in Rome. Our hostel was an easy walk from the station and Jordyn set about locating it on a map while I bought my train tickets for the coming days (I had tried to buy them online before coming, but tren italia does not like foreign credit cards- that was a nightmare of a story I won't elaborate upon here). We went to our hostel and while checking in found out that while we were on the ground outside we had apparently missed an aftershock of the recent earthquake that was felt higher up in the building. How dramatic that we arrived in Rome the day after such an event. Actually, except for that one moment at the hostel, we did not encounter much of a response or result of the earthquake during our travels. 

After settling in at the slightly sub-par (though perfectly do-able) hostel we walked to the nearby Piazza Venezia to meet my friend Stephanie Turnbull! It was so exciting to see her and was amazingly enough the first time I had seen her in I think three years. The three of us went to dinner and ate some delicious pasta. Stephanie also gave us some great tips for navigating the city, including the must know method of crossing the street: just go for it and make eye contact with anyone driving towards you. They'll stop. I had some trouble with this at first, but Jordyn and I came to master the art of crossing the Roman streets. After dinner, Jordyn and I (the exhausted travelers that we were) headed back to bed. 

As is always best while traveling and seeing as much as possible in a little amount of time, we were up bright and early the next day and off to see the sites. Day 1: The Vatican! Jordyn and I are both fans of discovering cities by walking everywhere, so that is just what we did. The Vatican was a solid distance from our hostel, but we really didn't mind. We set our path so as to pass through Piazza Venezia in the daytime (where we visited the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier- or what Stephanie tells us is referred to as the Giant Wedding Cake) and the Trevi Fountain. Then we made our way over the river and walked towards St. Peter's square. Lucky for us, it was Wednesday. You may be thinking, what is so lucky about Wednesday? Well, it just so happens that every Wednesday the Pope goes into St. Peter's square to address the public. We arrived right at the end of his public time and walked up to the barriors of the square just in time to see the pope drive in the pope-mobile down the center aisle, around, and out of the square. My initial reaction to this site was complete disbelief. I can't believe our timing! It was wonderful to see him. 

Since the pope had just been out, the place was mobbed with people and the line to get into St. Peter's Basilica was insanely long.  We were considering hopping on a tour which attracted our attention by telling us that on tours you can go into the Vatican Museum, Sistine Chapel, and St. Peter's only having to wait to get through the much shorted line at the Museum. Though the tour guide seemed great, we ditched the tour idea and decided to aid our wallets.  The tour had already provided us with a rather fantastic piece of information: there existed a way to get from the Sistine Chapel, directly into St. Peters. 

We decided to use this knowledge to slightly cheat the system. But I am getting ahead of myself: The Sistine Chapel. It is amazing and I was with the perfect travel companion. We both really observe and take things in at a similar rate and with similar methods. We were both entirely content to move rather quickly through the Vatican Museum in order to sit in the chapel and marvel at the magnificent work that is its ceiling. There are so many things to look at. The chapel itself was jammed packed of people and despite the signs and announcements there was no hope for silence in the chapel. But despite the guards "shhhhhs" and commands of "No Photos!!" we certainly enjoyed ourselves. 

And then came the time to cheat. We followed several tour groups out of a door at the other end of the chapel that (let's be honest) is pretty clearly marked for tour groups only. Fun fact, they don't actually check to see that you are with a tour. We were clearly no a part of the asian tour group that we were following, but were completely able to walk through.  We found ourselves under the Basilica and able to see the tombs of the popes which was incredible and very emotional for some of those around us who found themselves brought to tears in this sacred space. Then we head up and into the main doors of the Basilica (no line waiting necessary). How incredibly worth it. The Basilica is beautiful and huge. I didn't realize quite how high and large the ceilings were until I heard a guide tell her group that the letters that run along the bottom of the dome are about seven feet tall. 

After spending some time in St. Peter's Square, we headed off for some delicious pizza for lunch and then walked down a ways to the Trastevere area of Rome. It was a lovely walk with great sites. I really enjoyed this neighborhood. 

After such an extensive day of walking we headed back to the hostel for a bit of a break and then to a restaurant nearby for some dinner. After dinner we decided to check out the Spanish Steps. I enjoyed the nighttime view. There was so much life there.
The next day, Thursday, was our last day in Rome and the day we headed off to Florence. We had decided to start the day with a visit to the Colosseum, but unfortunately we ended up waiting in the decently long line just to find out at the ticket counter that we could not pay with credit cards. No worries, we would press on to other sites and search out an ATM along our way. Our plans now altered, we walked along past the Roman Forum and back up into the center of the city to go to the Pantheon (Rotunda and area in general). 

After that visit we did in fact find an ATM, and cash now in our wallets we headed back over to the Colosseum. 
And I was definitely glad we made the trip back. After pretending that we were from the EU in order to get the student discount which only applies to EU citizens, we were inside. It really is an incredible place to visit. And once again we were able to divide our time between exploration and just sitting and soaking up the atmosphere. A great visit!
Then it was time for lunch (more delicious pizza!). After lunch we took a quick internet break, walked around some more, and then stopped at a cafe on our way to the train station. 

Then we were on the train and off to Florence where we met up with Jordyn's friend Siena who has been studying this semester in Bologna. 

FLORENCE

After meeting up with Siena we walked the remarkably short distance to our hostel to get checked in before heading out for dinner. Our Hostel was amazing! Budget travelers heading to Florence, Stay in Ostello Archi Rossi for big clean rooms, a free breakfast (including 8 options such as eggs and bacon). 

The hostel also had a wonderful location. So close to the train station, it was also close to pretty much everywhere we wanted to go in the city. We walked down our street and found a lovely little restaurant where I got some pesto pasta which was great. After dinner we went over by the Duomo and found an amazing gelato shop (Mark has told me that I missed the best gelato, but I definitely thought this was the best I have ever had) called Grom that the lovely Katie Kuppens had recommended to us. Thanks Katie! We ended up getting gelato there at least four times. After Gelato we walked Siena back to the train station and then headed back to the hostel where we met two of our hostel roommates, Caitlin and Colleen. They are both students at USF and are studying in London. Colleen and Jordyn live very close to each other and discovered several commonalities in their lives. It is always pretty wacky when those small world moments happen.

The next day we had our delicious free breakfast and then went on a walking tour of the historic center of the city, also offered free by our hostel!  It was a nice tour and good to get some info since we had found ourselves feeling a need to search the internet for information pertaining to our non-guided visits in Rome. After the tour Jordyn and I went to lunch which Colleen and Caitlin. They were really nice and it was great to make some friends along our journey. 

Then Jordyn and I went our separate way and headed to go see the statue of David. This was of course on my must do list while in Florence. When we got there, the line was insanely long though. So instead of waste our afternoon away in line, we decided to come back the next morning around opening time (ended up being a very good decision on our part).  Instead, we decided to rent bikes for a couple hours and take off into the Tuscan country side. 

The ride was amazingly beautiful, though hard at the start. I can tell you I was not at all in proper biking shape for the uphill climb that the lady at the bike shop had mapped out for us. But that was okay. After a pit stop for some water, I was feeling better hydrated and we began to head our way back towards the city, this time mostly downhill. From then on had a much better handle on the biking portion of our day. We biked down and then along the river and stopped by some great views of the city.  

Our ride then continued through the city streets for a while and back to the shop where we had rented. 

After the ride we stopped by the markets and both Jordyn and I just couldn't resist buying some leather sandals (that we bartered for!) and then we went back to the hostel for a bit of a rest and shower time. Then it was dinner, more gelato, and bedtime. 

The next day was David day! We got there at a great time and only had to wait for about ten minutes to get inside. David lived up to and then surpassed all of my expectations. I cannot even believe how well he is shaped and how real he is. Every curve, bone, vein, and ligament in its exact place. And his eyes were full and expressive. So many sculptures of that time that I have seen just have blank eyes, but David had the iris and the pupil. Once again, Jordyn and I followed our tour pattern of sitting and absorbing the wonder. Then we walked through the rest of the museum. 

Alas it was my day to leave Jordyn, but we did have the morning together. After the museum, we went to a delicious and adorable little cafe, did some more exploring and market going, and then after a quick lunch, I was off to the train station to begin what ended up being a 17 hour journey back to Cordoba. Woah. 

I took a train to Rome, then a bus from Termini station to the airport. That section of my journey was incredibly easy and got me in at the airport kind of insanely early. Then there was a little bit of drama on the plane when a lady and her daughter who had already boarded, got off the plane just before take off. For some reason her husband could not get on board and she would not leave Rome with out him. As a result the flight attendants had to search her area of the plane and move us three rows at a time with all our stuff. I was sitting next to two men who only spoke spanish and found myself calming their confusion by translation what the english speaking flight attendant was saying to us all.  After that plane fiasco I had some time to kill at the Madrid airport. I then got on a bus that I thought went straight to Cordoba, but alas it actually went to a bus station in Madrid where I then had to wait another hour and a half until 1am for my bus to leave for Cordoba. I finally got home around 6am on Easter Sunday. It was quite the long journey. But the trip was completely worth it.

And then Easter I got to see Sarah Lewis who was in Cordoba for a few days! It was great to see her. We went to Easter Mass together and then I showed her around Cordoba a bit (though she had already done quite a bit of exploring of her own).

Good times with good friends!  Overall I had a wonderful Semana Santa spring break. 

Hope all is well and I shall continue to keep you updated. 

Adios

Visitors in Andalucia

Hello Everyone!   It has been a while since I have been in touch. So much has happened! As I mentioned las post, this past week was my spring break and I can tell you now I could not have asked for a better trip.

(I have no idea why the following paragraph is underlined, and I can't seem to make it go away...oh well)

On Saturday (April 4th) Jordyn arrived in Cordoba!  She had been in Granada visiting her cousin Kendra. Kendra and Kendra's roommate from UCLA, Drew, both came with Jordyn to Cordoba and then after two nights there we all traveled together to Sevilla. It was a great weekend with really good company. And it was so exciting to be able to show off Cordoba! 

I met Jordyn, Kendra, and Drew at the bus station midday on Saturday and then walked with them over to their hostel to check in. Afterwards, Jordyn and I went back to my apartment for lunch with Pilar! Pilar had made Tortilla Espanola and Salmorejo so that Jordyn could have a traditional Cordobese meal. After lunch, Jordyn and I reunited with Kendra and Drew to walk around the city and see the sites. We went into the Mezquita, walked around the Juderia, and got some ice cream. At the ice cream stand we went to, there were three size options: one scoop, one large scoop, and two scoops. I thought that one large scoop sounded like a happy medium. What I had not anticipated was that the "bola grande" came in a larger than normal cone. Let me also add that the normal size spanish cones are already bigger than the American sugar cones we are accustomed to. My "bola grande" sure was grande. 

After ice cream, the four of us walked around some more, this time over the Puente Romano to see a lovely view of the city and walked down to the Roman Ruins that I had explored with Tara the day before. Tara was one of the other few PRESHCO students still in Cordoba at this point, and after our ruins exploration, the four of us went over to Tara's apartment for some dinner. Tara is not with a host family, but rather lives in an apartment with a couple of other PRESHCO girls and several Spanish students. All of her roommates were gone for the vacation, so we had free run of the living room and kitchen. It was great to get a chance to cook for ourselves and the food was delicious! Stephie, an international student from Austria who is also studying at the University of Cordoba, also came over and our dinner turned into quite the multilingual and multicultural event. We had several Spanish speakers, Three German speakers, and all spoke English. We could also throw in some French and Italian (thanks to Jordyn and Stephie). Conversation and great company kept the dinner event going until it was time to turn in for the night. It was a great evening. 

The next day, as everyday of our journey, was up bright and early for a full day ahead of us. First we stopped off at the train and bus station to arrange our methods of transport for the coming days. Then we got some breakfast at the bakery on the corner by my apartment and ran into Pilar there (a funny coincidence). After breakfast, it was time for the Zoo! We were practically the only people at the zoo when we arrived (it was pretty early on a Sunday morning by Spanish standards), so it was just us and the animals.  After the zoo, we headed across the street for a bit to the Botanical Gardens and then I headed home for lunch, a skype date with my parents, and to pack. Then we met up again for more exploring of the city. With a request for a coffee break, we took a pit stop at one of my favorite places in Cordoba, Salon de Te. It is a lovely little arab tea shop in a traditional Andalusian patio. After the tea shop we walked through the rest of the city to find the pasos. 

Pasos are catholic parades that go on all during Semana Santa (Holy Week) all over Spain, though certain cities are known more for this celebration. Cordoba is one such city that is very dedicated to the Semana Santa celebrations. The pasos begin with crowd of hooded people walking with candles and crosses. The costumes worn in the processions looks very similar (well pretty much exactly the same actually) as the outfits of the KKK. This is an unfortunate association that we have as Americans, but it is important to keep in mind while watching the pasos, that the KKK got the costume from the procession, not the other way around. Followed by the hooded men, comes the float. Float is really not the right word to use, but I can think of no other word that may be appropriate. These "floats" are adorned with religious images, statues, candles, and other elaborate decorations. They way up to 5 tons and are carried on the shoulders of many men, who walk hidden underneath them.  Because of this extreme weight, the processions proceed rather slowly. Following the float comes a brass band playing what sounds mostly like a funeral dirge. It is a somber sight to see, but also incredible. I was very glad we got a chance to catch some pasos before leaving the area. Though our paso viewing in Cordoba was not from the best viewpoint. We got a much closer look the next day in Sevilla. 

Monday we were up once again bright and early and off on the train to Sevilla. The city is beautiful! I loved it and we of course had lovely weather. We walked around down by the Cathedral, which I believe is the biggest Cathedral by volume in Europe (If not in the world). We walked through gardens and then headed back towards the hostel to check in and get stuff ready for lunch and the rest of the day. For lunch we sat by the paso route and were able to see very up close the paso procession. 

After watching the paso, we headed down towards the river where we rented paddle boats! It was so nice to get out on the water and a fun way to get another view of the city. We even got to watch some pasos going over the bridge.

After the paddle boats we went further down the river and to a park where we rented another fun form of transport, a surrey! It was a really nice park and a hilarious way to make our way around it. 

After the surreys we decided to head back to the hostel to clean up a bit before dinner. Little did we know how difficult that would be. Instead we found ourselves literally spending hours trying to work our way around the pasos which now filled the city in order to make our way back. It was impossible. We ended up literally across the square from our hostel, but simply could not cross. We had to throw in the towel and get some dinner while we waited for the paso to pass by and leave an opening before the next one came through (they continued until 3am!). At this point, we were no longer particularly big fans of the pasos. But we did finally find our way back and while Kendra and Drew headed out to find some Flamenco, Jordyn and I stayed in. We had to get up at 5 the next day to go off to the airport and fly to Italy!

I will try to get an update on Italy up soon, but for now have to head off to class. Hope all is well with everyone!

Adios

La Vida Cordobesa

Before I am reunited with the lovely Jordyn Sims tomorrow (so excited!) and head off on my spring break travels to Italy, I figured I would do one more Cordoba blog post. Last time I wrote, I was looking forward to a lovely Cordoba weekend. Sadly, last weekend, I ended up being sick and spent all of saturday in bed and all of sunday indoors. It was also raining all weekend, which certainly did not facilitate an active weekend. Luckily my time in bed helped me to quickly kick my sickness and I was pretty much better by the time the week began. On Tuesday, my friend Laura and I decided to take advantage of the beautiful spring weather that had returned to Cordoba to take some photos of our everyday sites.  Take a look:

Universidad de Cordoba: Facultad de Filosofia y Letras

This is my school where I have all of my classes:

Standing next to the Facultad and looking down the street, here the the view:

One of the many orange trees that are all over Cordoba:

Horses by the Mezquita: Looks lovely, but can make for some pretty smelly streets occasionally

La Puerta Romana: over the Guadalquivir River

Before my sick weekend, I did manage to have a slightly eventful Friday evening. Friday was our second cooking class of the semester. We got to watch and learn preparation of typical Cordobese dishes and then went to a restaurant across the street where we ate the same meal that had just been prepared. It was delicious. Afterwards I went with a bunch of people up to the Plaza de Tendillas, a very central part of Cordoba to see a parade of Tuna bands. If you remember from my very first post, Tuna bands are formed in the Universities in Spain. This past friday all of the Tunas from the Facultades de Derechos (Law Schools) in Spain (including the same Tuna that performed for us our first night in Salamanca) were in Cordoba. Tons of people were out in the street to watch the Tunas parade and show their pride for their cities. Here is a video of Granada, Sevilla, and Salamanca's Tunas:

After the Tuna parade, Mary and I went to the filmoteca and saw a slightly terrible movie. Then I was back home and in bed since I was indeed beginning to get sick. 

So I think that is all for now. Next time I write I will have been in my third European country: Italy!

Hope all is well with you all. 

Adios