Hello Readers!!
Before arriving in Spain, we had an in-transit day at sea. It was a really lazy and relaxing day for me. There were only 150 or so students onboard, so it was quiet. It made it ideal for journaling and it was nice to not have to wait in a long line for meals. In the morning I got to sleep in until 9AM, which is a first! I ate my breakfast on deck and wrote in my journal as I watched the trail our ship left in the ocean waves. It wasn't sunny but it was really warm outside with a nice, refreshing breeze. I spent the day sleeping, writing and socializing. It was a perfect day and I finished it off watching a movie with my roommate. Movies are like gold here! I only brought a few, but I am glad I did. It is a real treat to be able to sit and watch a movie when you don't have the pressure to read or do an assignment. It was a great day.
Tomorrow we will be in Cadiz until about 5PM or so, but we won't be able to get off the ship. It will be a much appreciated study day. I have several midterms coming up after Morocco, so it will be good to dedicate some time to that. There will also be presentations throughout the day about Moroccan culture. Hopefully I will be able to attend a few, but I do have a lot of catching up to do. Tomorrow is also twin day! I will be coordinating with Laura because we have a lot of the same clothes from the student store. On Thursday we arrive in Morocco! This is a very big port for me. For one thing, it is my first African trip. It is also a place where I will be working on two class assignments, so I need to make sure to take detailed notes. Finally, I will be busy because I have a field program scheduled for every day. These programs include a trip to the mosque in Casablanca, a trip to the market/ interactive cooking class in Casablanca, a trip to Marrakech to see the Medina gardens and spending an evening with a Moroccan family. I think they will all be very enriching experiences and I am super excited!!
I will now divulge my favorite experiences in Spain! :)
1) Seville Monumental Tour
The first day in port we traveled to Seville to see the major monuments and sights. The bus ride lasted about two hours and I must admit that I slept for most of the ride. I was able to see some beautiful countryside when I was awake. I definitely appreciated that! We arrived in Seville and it was pouring rain. Unfortunately, I assumed the weather would be nice, so I did not pack a jacket or an umbrella. But, everything turned out to be all right. The air was very humid, so it wasn't really cold. We ended up walking to this small courtyard area for free time, which gave me the chance to buy an umbrella. It is royal purple and I love it because it is a large umbrella. The one I have in my cabin is small and it broke in Paris due to strong winds. After purchasing the umbrella, my overall experience improved.
During the tour we walked to the Cathedral of St. Mary, Alcazar, and the Palace of San Telmo. I loved the Cathedral! It was so beautiful and I felt like you could get lost in the vastness of the place. There were many beautiful stained glass windows. I also loved seeing the organ, which has over 7,000 pipes! It was surprising to learn that Christopher Columbus is buried here! One of my favorite experiences was climbing the tower of Giralda, which consisted of walking up 35 ramps and 17 stairs. The view from the tower was spectacular! You really got a panoramic view. While we were up there, the bells began to ring. It was a beautiful sound, though a little loud. Luckily the weather was ideal for viewing. Inside this Cathedral are 80 different chapels! You could spend a long time in there and I can imagine that mass is spectacular to behold and listen to.
Another wonderful building we toured was Alcazar, which is the royal palace. It was extremely intricate and beautiful. I loved the bright teals and blues and yellows that were used inside the palace. Alcazar of Seville has Moorish influence. It is also the oldest European palace still in use. There are three different sections of the Alcazar, and we were able to walk through all three. Each had their own unique style and design. My favorite section was Peter of Castile's Palace. Everywhere you turned, there was something new to see. I really enjoyed looking at the intricate patterns. The wooden doors were also really cool. In one of the rooms, there was a secret door that led to a small chapel. In this chapel, one man married his wife because she was so beautiful before the scheduled wedding that was to take place in the Cathedral of St. Mary. I also loved seeing the gardens and fountains. It was a lot of fun and very relaxing.
During the walking tour we passed the Jewish Quarter as well as the Palace of San Telmo. Someday I hope to return to tour these areas as well. After walking around the city, we headed to lunch. It was around 2 PM and we were all pretty hungry. Unfortunately, this was not one of my better experiences. The staff seemed unprepared to house our large group (we met up with a group that did the Seville bike tour). We weren't served anything besides bread until 3PM, an hour after we had arrived. The lunch was supposed to be tapas. We received a small salad with chickpeas, olives, feta cheese and tomato. For the second course, I received some sort of croquette but I wasn't sure what it was made of. Everyone else received a plate with a small salad and some pieces of fish. Originally, we were supposed to have free time after lunch. By this point we only had about 20 minutes, so Laura and I opted to leave the meal to go shopping. Apparently, there was one more course but I didn't get to have it. This has been the most disappointing experience so far. Oh well, you can't win them all! I still thought it was cool to experience the whole tapas thing. It really allows you to try a variety of items and to socialize with friends. I do understand that in Spain, they eat much later. That is something we Americans are not used to.
Overall, though, I learned a lot and had a pretty good experience :)
On the opposite end of the spectrum, I had a wonderful meal today in Cadiz. We happened upon a small café that served pizza. I know, I know. Pizza is not native to Spain. However, I was in dire need of pizza because it was my last chance to get it for a while. I think I have mentioned before that it is the thing I miss most, food-wise, from America. I ended up ordering a margarita pizza. It was so good and definitely much needed! I noticed while I was sitting there that many people weren't eating yet. They probably thought we were pretty silly for eating at 11:30AM. :) I ended up eating the entire pizza and was not ashamed one bit!!
For dessert I had the chance to order Churros con Chocolat. I was so excited to try it because I had read about it before in one of my culinary classes back at JWU. I knew that it was going to be very different from what I deem to be a churro- a delicious fried dough covered in cinnamon sugar. When I got the dessert I was served a cup of thick, hot, melted chocolate and about seven thin fried pieces of choux dough. I immediately dug in. When I tasted it, I was surprised to find that the dough wasn't sweet but resembled funnel cake without the sugar. It was a familiar shape- a star tip pattern, but was much more airy than the version created in the US. The cup of chocolate was so amazing!! It was hot and rich. It tasted more like melted hot chocolate than it did melted chocolate. I loved it! It really rounded out the churro and added a hint of sweetness. Once we had eaten all the churros, I took spoonfuls of the chocolate and enjoyed the rich chocolate flavor.
This had to be my favorite meal in Spain! Next time I will make sure to have something more traditional, but the time constraint really limited me.
3) Wandering Cadiz with fellow SASers
Today I spent time with Liz and Morgan, two of my fellow shipmates. We decided to travel around Cadiz and explore on our own. It was definitely a good decision. The weather was still a little muggy, but it didn't really rain. Our first destination was a post office. On the way there, we wandered the streets and explored some of the shops, even though they weren't open yet. We eventually happened upon the post office and Morgan and Liz got their postage stamps. After the post office we wandered through more streets. I really loved seeing the city and we went at such a leisurely pace, which allowed me to absorb my surroundings. The buildings were gorgeous and also featured the rod ironwork around the windows. Some even had flower pots attached to them, which added to the beauty. While we walked along the side streets, many motorcycles would pass by. Very, very European. You definitely had to be aware of your surroundings.
Another thing I noticed was that streets are unmarked. A lot of them look like sidewalks, until a car comes up and beeps its horn at you! That definitely happened a few times. One of the most confusing areas was close to the ship. There were two fountains that shot up water. At night they light up and change colors. In between the fountains are rows of cement poles. Apparently, one of these is a street, even though it truly looks like a sidewalk. You have no idea it's a street. The night before I actually witnessed a car that was half on the "sidewalk" and half in the fountain. I wonder how that happened. I can only guess that the non-street looking area confused him as well.
While walking around, we stopped in several small shops. There were tons of people everywhere! At first, I thought they were tourists. Then I heard them speak Spanish so I have to guess that they are either from Cadiz or from other areas of Spain visiting the city. I thought it was strange to see so many older adults shopping in the middle of the day. It made me wonder about work. I have heard of the practice of Siesta but I know that occurs much later in the day. I guess it was surprising because everyone seemed so carefree and relaxed. No one looked like they were in a rush or that they had somewhere to be. It was refreshing.
One of the last cool things we saw while wandering was the ocean. We walked to a different area of the city and encountered a wall and a wonderful view of both the ocean and the city. It was nice to see an area without cranes, ships and cargo containers. I also saw a man fishing with a giant fishing pole below us. It seemed pretty precarious because he was standing on some rocks really close to the water. I would not want to fall in and then be pushed back into the rocks. I think he knew what he was doing though.
The experience of walking around the city was serendipitous in that I got to see some beautiful and interesting things I may not have seen in a tour. I also got to interact more with people, though I am still too shy to strike up a conversation. Maybe that will work out better in Africa and South America. While in Cadiz I also got to spend time with friends, which is always a plus. Furthermore, I got to make more observations without being so imposing, like I feel that I am in a tour group. Plus, wandering is free (and who doesn't like free?)!
Those experiences were the major highlights of my time in Spain. Like I said, I did not have much time here. I hope to return to witness Flamenco, because my field program got canceled and I didn't get to see it. I did enjoy a bottle of wine with Morgan before getting back on the ship. Unfortunately, it was not Spanish wine. When I got back to the ship I took a decent nap and since then have spent time reflecting and thinking about my time in Europe. It truly has been a whirlwind and I have had an amazing time. Europe is a great place and I learned a lot about things I had no concept of prior to arriving. Visiting areas like Moscow and Belfast and Seville and Lisbon opened my eyes to how much rich history exists in the world. The serendipitous moments I have had in places like Hamburg, really round out and enhance my journey. They make it more meaningful. I have so many stories and so many experiences that have worked their way into my life and have changed me. Already, I feel like a new woman. I am faced with challenges every day, and those challenges have allowed me to learn about myself. I really hope to stay involved when I return to "normal" life. I want this experience to mean something beyond the "I just traveled around this one time". I want to help the world and see the world and become a more well-rounded and mature person. I would love to work abroad at some point.
I know that some of the most culture-shocking moments are about to occur. I have no idea what to expect in Africa. In a way, I am glad we started in Europe so I could get my feet wet in the whole experience of traveling and exploring. Now, I will put that knowledge and experience to good use in Africa. :)
Because I am experiencing so much change, it is hard to think about life after the ship. Several of my shipmates have put forth good input. Many are planning to donate to particular organizations or to work and continue their education abroad. I don't have any idea what I want to do, and in a way, that pressure is enormous. I try not to think too much about the future, but all of us have it in the back of our minds. How do you return to a normal life after this? The answer is so unclear and maybe can't even be answered. Maybe all of us on this voyage will form an answer. It is also hard because no matter what I do, I cannot forget home. My personal life at home often conflicts with my life on the ship. It is hard for me, and I struggle with it. I think the hardest thing is being disconnected. It is difficult to communicate with people over Email. For one thing, no one uses Email. They prefer to use Facebook or text messages. When I am so disconnected out here, it truly makes my day to receive a long message. Most of the time, people aren't able to do that. I do get pretty homesick and it is hard to hear about my friends and family when they are dealing with difficult situations. All I can do is offer my most supporting words, and often times that isn't enough. I wish I could be home and be on here. I try to focus on the moment, but it is hard when you have your ties at home or if you enter a conflict with someone. Emails are also difficult because you can't determine tone or inflection. It leads to confusion at times. All I know is that I care about those at home, but that for me to have the best experience I sometimes have to let all that go and be the person I am here. I can't worry all the time.
Despite my fears and thoughts, I think this experience will make me a better person. My family has been extremely supportive, and it helps me a lot. They have given me the greatest gift that I probably will never be able to pay back. That gift is knowledge, challenge, adventure and discovery.
I just want to end with a fun quote we received in our Dean's memo:
"Travel is more than the seeing of sights; it is a change that goes on, deep and permanent, in the ideas of living."
~Miriam Beard
Thanks for reading! Have a great week!!
-Jessica
Hotel Alfonso XII- This place costs 400 Euro a night!
Really liked the street design (sorry it's blurry- the rain made it difficult for photos)
small courtyard
some street photos
Jewish quarter
View of the Cathedral from the Royal Palace
Cathedral of St. Mary
The Alcazar
Alcazar Gardens
The Cathedral of St. Mary
There were a lot of horse-drawn carriages in Seville
Inside the cathedral- sorry about the photos- it was dark in there!
Christopher Columbus' grave
Panoramic view from the tower
Cathedral in Cadiz
This made me go hmmmmm....
Loved the streets!
PIZZA!
Churros con Chocolat
Market- forgot to mention this! We walked through a really cool market with tons of trinkets and flowers. There was even a man that was selling birds! The one I liked the best was a small blue parrot. We saw a green one in Seville that said 'Hola'! Very fun indeed.
View of the sea and city of Cadiz
crazy Fisherman!
Had to include this- as per request- here are the magnets I have collected so far!
<3
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