Wednesday, September 9, 2009

Hola from Espana

SPAIN

 

Day 1 – Cadiz, Spain

 

Hola amigos! I still feel as though I’m in Espana because I can’t stop saying “gracias”! Let me tell you, I had the time of my life! I absolutely love Spain. I don’t even know how to describe how I felt when I was there but it was definitely a great feeling. I’m ready to move there when I’m done with Semester at Sea. I have never been to a place with so much history and beautiful architecture. We spent a total of four days in Spain from September 5th to September 8th. We ported in Cadiz, Spain at promptly 0800 on Saturday morning! It was so exciting to finally see land! I didn’t wake up early enough (about 0700) to see the man from port climb onto the ship to help steer us in. I guess it’s a pretty neat process so I plan to get up early to see us pull in to Morocco. When I looked out my window I saw a building with Spanish written on the side and some men walking in and out of big pull down doors – we were officially docked and in Spain!!! Breakfast on the deck was awesome. We looked into port and could already see the beautiful buildings of Cadiz. Everyone was antsy to get off the ship but we still had to be cleared by Spanish Customs and Immigration. They board the ship and check all of our passports, and then we get cleared to get off the ship! It had been so long since we’d seen land or other forms of life other than the people on the ship, so it was great to be joined with the world again.

            The first day in port I did the Cadiz City Orientation. The tour didn’t start until 1300 so I had some time to kill. I was ready to go by 0900 so I packed my backpack with my camera and some Euros and headed off with my map of Cadiz. I ran into some girls who were exploring too so we ventured into Cadiz together. The city was amazing. There were so many old buildings that had beautiful architecture. We explored the back streets which led us right into the life of Spain. People were going about their daily routines as we passed apartment buildings, cafes, small grocery stores, bakeries, and even a bar! The streets were so narrow and made of cobblestone – I loved it! I couldn’t stop taking pictures of the buildings, balconies, and even the people. They probably thought I was a crazy tourist!

            We ran into a plaza in the center of town and it was already so lively even at 1000 in the morning. We found some little shops and I bought some postcards, magnet, and a dress! There were fellow SASers all around; it was like we were taking over the city! We headed back to the ship for lunch (it’s free and we can save our Euros if we eat on the ship!) and to grab last minute stuff for the city orientation. Everyone boarded the buses for the tour at 1300 and we had a half an hour bus tour through the city with our guide, Carmen. We stopped at the famous Cadiz beach and took pictures. The scenery was breathtaking! Carmen told us the walls built at each end of the beach were for protection because the city had been attacked by 7,000 men way back when. Cadiz is known as the best fortified city in the world (pretty impressive). After the tour of the city through the Old Town and the New Town we embarked on our walking tour. We walked through many of the streets I had seen earlier but it was great to hear the history of the buildings. We passed an old merchant’s house from the 14th century. We went to the Holy and Apostolic Cathedral of Cadiz. I can’t even begin to describe what it was like walking through such a phenomenal place like that. The detail, the architecture, the size – it was amazing. Following the cathedral we went to two museums and La Plaza de las Flores. The plaza was so neat because there were flower shops everywhere with other little stores. We bought some helado (Spanish gelato) which was amazing!!! After that our tour was over so we headed to the ship. That night I went out with Becky, Kate, and Ashley to explore more of Cadiz. We found a café right in the middle of the plaza and ordered some sangria. Our waiter was so friendly and knew we couldn’t speak Spanish very well. We tried to order tapas (appetizer) but what we thought was nachos was actually cheese slices and anchovies. That changed our mind fast so we stuck with the sangria. The four of us sat in the plaza and talked for hours. It felt great to be immersed in the Spanish culture surrounded by the people of Cadiz. Before we knew it, it was 1AM. The plaza had not quieted at all! There were little kids running around and families still eating and chatting. I couldn’t believe how late it was and everyone was still out and about like it was 7PM. The siesta (afternoon nap/rest time between 2-5) makes so much more sense to me now. We walked around a bit more and found our way back to the ship about 2AM. We had an early morning for our Sevilla, Cordoba, and Granada trip.  I still hadn’t packed yet!

 

Day 2 – Sevilla, Spain

 

            We left Cadiz for Sevilla at 0800 with two coach buses full of SAS students, faculty, staff, and LifeLong Learners. We met our tour guide, Martella, and took a short bus tour of the city. We stopped at Plaza de Espana, which was a huge open area with the most beautiful building surrounding the plaza. It was built to represent the different states of Spain and was one of the most incredible places I’ve ever seen. We passed the Plaza de Toros, the famous and 2nd oldest bull fighting arena in the world. Our first main visit was to the Royal Palace of Spain, or the Reales Alcazares. It has been the Royal Fortress for the Royal Family of Spain for more than 1,000 years. The family only stays there when they visit Sevilla which is the only time the palace is closed to the public. The palace was built with a Moorish style (Moorish is rooted with Muslim religion) and includes their intricate mosaic ceramic walls. The King of Spain was Christian and it is ironic that much of the palace is rooted with Muslim symbolism, yet there are Christian symbols found throughout. The gardens of the palace were breathtaking. The garden was split up into about 17 different parts and was dedicated to something special (ie. The Lion Gardens). I was ready to become a Spanish queen after our visit to the Reales Alcazares!

            Before lunch we toured the Jewish Quarter where the Jew, Muslims, and Christians all lived together in peace centuries ago. It was so interesting learning the history behind the city walls. We went to lunch at a restaurant, Laurels, right in the middle of the Jewish Quarter. Inside were hams hanging from the ceiling, bull heads on the wall, and free wine with lunch! It was a great experience. We had tapas which included: tortillas (Spanish omelets), calamari, chicken, pork, and rabbit, asparagus, mushrooms, watermelon, and wine. It was a unique lunch and although different, it was very delicious. Our entire SAS group (2 buses worth) sat in one room and chatted over the tapas before some free time in the square. I bought some souvenirs and then we headed for the Seville Cathedral.

            The Seville Cathedral is the world’s 3rd largest cathedral and is the largest gothic cathedral. The cathedral was originally a mosque until it was adapted into a place of Christian worship. Again, my jaw dropped when I entered. The size was insane and I couldn’t believe I was walking through such a grand building that had been standing for centuries. Inside were the remains of Christopher Columbus (or so it is said – they’re not sure if it is really him because his body was moved so many times). It was a steel coffin held up by four huge statues of men. It was so surreal to be standing at the feet of Christopher Columbus. At the end of the cathedral tour we were allowed to climb to the top of the tallest tower for a view of Sevilla. It was a long hike up the tower but the view was worth it! You could see everything and it was beautiful.

            At 1545 we left Sevilla for Cordoba where we would have dinner and stay for the night.. Everyone was pretty tired that night so our free time was spent napping. Dinner was at the hotel and was a buffet style of different Spanish food. It was similar to what we have been eating on the ship with a Spanish twist. After dinner we visited with everyone for a while and headed to bed.

 

Day 3 – Cordoba, Spain

 

            Our guide, Terry, greeted us brightly in the morning before our tour of the city. He took us to the Church of St. Nicolas which was a mosque before it was converted into a Christian church. The theme of Christian dominance was very prominent throughout my visit in Spain, which I thought was very interesting. We visited the heart of the Roman town from 2,000 years ago. The square had a bronze statue with a marble head mounted in the middle! The University of Cordoba was next. It is a liberal arts school dating back to the 9th century. I couldn’t believe how long these buildings have been around and they are still in usable condition.

            We then visited Cordoba’s medieval Jewish Quarter which was quite similar to Sevilla. Our biggest destination was the Cathedral of Cordoba which is also a present mosque. Not to sound repetitive but when I walked inside my jaw dropped. I had seen pictures of the candy cane striped arches but never did I imagine what I saw when I walked through the cathedral doors. The place was HUGE! We began our tour and I kept looking around trying to find the end – I couldn’t. It was one of the most amazing places I could ever have imagined. It was so neat to hear that the cathedral is literally a Christian church and a Muslim mosque existing together in one place. There was also a Roman temple discovered beneath the cathedral which shows that many different religions used the cathedral in peace with each other. The cathedral is obviously split into the respective religions own portions of the building to be used for their own purposes. I just couldn’t believe how big it really was. I recommend anyone to visit the Cathedral of Cordoba just to truly understand what I mean.

            We got some free time between the end of the tour and lunch to shop around. I bought some stamps to mail my postcards in none other than a tobacco and cigarette shop. I guess it’s pretty common to buy stamps in a shop like this. We had lunch at the hotel then departed for Granada. The bus ride was about 3 hours so we all got some long naps in! When we arrived in Granada I think everyone was surprised at what they saw – it was beautiful. We were driving up a hill to our hotel that gave us a view of the entire city outline. It was much quieter and less populated on our small hill above Granada but it was so peaceful. We had free time before dinner so Becky, Katie, Alex, and I explored the little shops. I bought some authentic Spanish sandals and a few more postcards. The area reminded me so much of Italy but it was so unique that it was obvious we were in Spain.

            After dinner a group of us ordered some bottles of wine from the hotel bar and sat around chatting. It was so fun to finally be getting to know more people on SAS. It’s hard to know more about everyone on the ship because we are always so busy so it was definitely a relaxing evening. I can’t believe how many awesome people I’ve already met and it’s only our first SAS trip. Another big group was going to go into Granada to find a discoteca (bar with dancing). I, along with three other girls, decided to join their group! We got a few taxis and took a very long ride into town to one of the coolest places I’ve ever been to. The bar place had about 4 or 5 different bar areas with a huge one in the center. There were different stages to dance and the whole floor was open for dancing too. We were nearly the first ones there because it was only midnight but once the music started pumping more people started coming. I had a great time dancing to some Spanish and American music. Who would have thought I’d be listening to Single Ladies in a Spanish bar!? It was awesome! We left about 0230 in the morning and took a taxi back to the hotel for a little bit of sleep before our tour in the morning.

 

Day 4 – Granada, Spain

           

            Today our tour guide was Lucia and we didn’t have very far to walk to the Palace of Alhambra. It was literally two blocks down the hill from our hotel. I didn’t even know the palace was there the night before because it is so hidden from everything. The Alhambra is a Moorish palace built for a Christian king, Ferdenand and his wife, Isabel. It was very similar to the Reales Alcazares because there was the same rooted architecture and design. The mosaics and wall detail resembled the Reales Alcazares so much I thought they were identical. We saw the famous Patio de los Leones although the lions were not surrounding the fountain because they were in the museum for restoration. We then came upon the women’s living quarters which had a very interesting story behind it: all the guards of this area were castrated so the women could not have affairs with them. I guess this was pretty typical centuries ago. Pretty crazy! The gardens were my favorite part of the palace. It was set up as a maze which made it hard to navigate through but our guide was very helpful! The flowers were gorgeous and there were running fountains all over with small pools filled with lily pads. After my visit to Spain I’m ready to become a princess or queen!

            We had lunch at the hotel and then had some free time before we left Granada. I mailed out my postcards and then boarded the bus just in time! We had a four hour bus ride ahead of us which I was not looking forward to. After being out late the night before I slept the entire way back to Cadiz! On ship time (designated time to be on the ship which is two hours before port departure) was 1800 and we arrived in Cadiz about 1820. Luckily, we don’t get dock time (delayed entry to next port – punishment for being late to on ship time) because we are a SAS sponsored trip and they knew we were running late. We got our bags checked, handed in our passports, and were finally home! It’s still kinda crazy that I’m calling a huge traveling ship my home! It felt good to be back.

            After dinner we left Spain and began our trip over to Morocco. It’s not too far considering they’re right across the Mediterranean from each other!

 

On ship – Morocco Day

 

            Today we had Global Studies – our only class for today. We were lectured by a Women’s Studies teacher who is Muslim and she explained to us part of what to expect in Morocco. We had the majority of the day free to catch up on school work and pack for Morocco. At 1900 we had our cultural pre-port where we learned about the customs of Moroccan culture and things to avoid while in the country. We were all warned to dress modestly out of respect for the culture and were also told not to drink the water. Overall the cultural pre port was a little nerve racking because there are so many things to remember. Our logistic pre port followed at 2000 and we discussed trips and time changes and we also received our trusty Green Sheet (paper with emergency phone numbers, trip info, country info regarding transportation, money exchange, and postal services). Then it was time to pack!!

            Tomorrow morning I leave for Marakkech and the Camel Trek through the Sahara. It’s a 3 night/4 day trip and I’m so excited!! I can’t believe we only had one day between Spain and Morocco but I guess that’s what makes this trip so crazy and unique. Wish me luck on this adventure, I think I might need it!! Miss everyone so much! I’ll report back when I return!

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