Abril lluvioso hace a Mayo hermoso!

So again…I apologize for being a very bad “blogger”…I never seem to have the time to sit and write what I’m doing…or maybe I just don’t want to find the time? Who knows! Either way a LOT has happened since the last time I wrote so I’ll just give a brief description of each!

Belgium:
           Back in March I got to visit Jimmy in Brussels! In all honestly I probably wouldn’t have chosen Brussels as a place to visit during my time in Europe but I’m SO happy I got the chance to see it! I think its better actually because I got to go somewhere I probably wouldn’t have gone any other time. We had ourselves a little Norwell reunion because it was me, jimmy, molly (who came from the US -DEDICATION), Gwynne came from Germany, and then Maya (since she lives there duh). It was so awesome to get a little taste of home, but definitely odd being with people from home in another country. Brussels was a wonderful surprise of a country but one word to describe it….Random! I feel like this word sometimes has a negative connotation to it so I want to explain myself…in no way did I think Brussels was a BAD random. I mean random in the sense that while walking around Brussels, I would see a lot of buildings/artwork/monuments/etc that were just, well…random! I found myself constantly asking poor jimmy what everything was and a lot of it seems to just be universally accepted by the people of Brussels as part of their city. Lots of modern things but then also beautiful, older plazas like Grand Plaza (which was amazing). Food wise I think Brussels has got it down perfectly…fries and waffles covered in chocolate and other goodies…what else could you want? I had the BEST waffle of my life there with a beautiful banana/chocolate/whipped cream trio that I’m pretty sure I will never be able to top. There were certain times while in Brussels that kind of felt like Boston or another US city which was comforting but also strange, since I always think that Europe is a completelyyyy different world…since Sevilla pretty much is exactly that. One thing I did not enjoy about Brussels was the public transportation. It seemed that everyone heavily relies on it and coming from Sevilla, where I walk everywhere, it was very different. I think I prefer Sevilla (sorry Jimmy). BUT Brussels was yet another amazing city I am lucky enough to have visited and even better, I got to see it with some great friends from home!

Me and Molly enjoying some frites

Visitors:
            Also in march, I got some awesome visitors in Sevilla! My family arrived the day after I returned from Belgium. I can’t explain how amazing it was having them here!! Of all the times I have raved about Spain and Sevilla, it was so nice to finally share this incredible place with them and let them see how great it is for themselves. They got an AMAZING apartment (thanks to aunt Kathy and uncle mark) that had a rooftop pool that looked directly at the Giralda (the tower of the cathedral)! We were all of a 2 minute walk from it…a truly perfect location! The week was kinda crazy because I had two midterms and was running around a lot between the apartment, school, my house, and the spots I wanted to take them too but I think it all worked out really well! They got to see all the important spots and do some authentic stuff like see a flamenco show and a true Spanish restaurant with my Spanish madre, Rosario! I don’t know howww her and my dad got along so well since they don’t speak the same language but everyone had so much fun! (maybe all the sangria and wine had something to do with it….)

Erin and I at the bullring

            I also got a nice little visit from Jimmy too! His cousin is also studying here in Sevilla and she has an apartment so it worked out perfectly since he couldn’t stay with me. We had a really nice, relaxing weekend with a few touristy spots thrown in the mix. Going to Belgium, I didn’t really feel homesick at all but when my family and Jimmy came to Sevilla, I did a little. Just having everyone here in a place I feel comfortable in, Sevilla, reminded me of being home. It is impossible to miss home for a long time though when you’re in a place like Sevilla, I have no power against the sun, warmth, and flowers. I hope Jimmy enjoyed his time here…although I think I already know that answer since he kept saying it reminded him of Disney world and we all know how much the Kelly family loves Disney! J

Granada:
            Our last CIEE trip was Granada. I had passed through Granada when I came to Spain in high school. We only got to visit the Alhambra (which is AMAZING) but didn’t really see much of the city so I was excited to revisit it. It was absolutely beautiful! Certain parts reminded me of Sevilla, like the trees and Spanish atmosphere, but Granada definitely sets itself apart from the rest. We were walking around in 80 degree weather and could see mountains with snow in the background haha. We visited the Alhambra which was even better than what I remembered. I think knowing Spanish now and the history behind the palace really made all the difference. It made the experience so much better and more rewarding. My friend in my program had a friend studying in Granada so she took us out to her favorite places at night. One thing I LOVE about Granada…they have a custom that when you go to bars and order a drink…you get free TAPAS!! And not just one either…the place we went had FOUR different tapas you get with each consecutive drink…amazing custom if you ask me!
 
Paris:
            So I have wanted to go to Paris for as long as I can remember….I honestly don’t even know why but it has always been on my list of places to see. My mom and I always wanted to go but she’ll be going this summer so I decided to check it out while I’m in Europe...why not! I don’t really know what I was expecting of Paris but it was AMAZING! It surpassed ANY expectations I could have ever had. It was one of the most beautiful cities I have ever been to! Whenever I thought of Paris I automatically thought of the Eiffel Tower of course…which was my FAVORITE…but there’s so much MORE in Paris than the tower. I went from Friday to Monday morning with one other girl from my program and we tried to do as much a humanly possible but that city is BIG and filled with places to see. We also took a boat tour along the Seine…it was amazing!
 
We saw/visited the following places:

·         Arc de triomphe-amazing view at the top!

·         Eiffel tower-…enough said

·         Grand Palais- huge!

·         Musee du Louvre-could probably spend a week there it’s so big (but I saw the Mona Lisa!)

·         Notre Dame- got to see the beginning of a mass there!

·         Pantheon

·         Sacre Coeur- AMAZING view of all of Paris

·         Versailles-the most beautiful palace

·         Moulin Rouge-surrounding area was definitely interesting…

I can’t wait for my mom to visit Paris because I know she will love it as much as I did, or maybe more!

Eiffel Tower!

at the top!

  --> I can’t believe it but I am actually coming to the end of my time here in Sevilla. I leave in a little less than one month and it is bittersweet. I am so excited to see all my friends at home and my family but I know I will miss Sevilla SO much. All the people I have met, Rosario, and just the overall lifestyle and atmosphere they have here. We are in the middle of spring now, the supposedly best time of year here. The flowers are in bloom and it is in the 80s every day! (the title of this post is the spanish equivalent of "april showers bring may flowers"-Rosario says it all the time)I kept waiting for those beautiful days in the70s where it’s not too hot or too cold but they never came…it drastically switched from high 60s to high 80s! I am in no way complaining though because I know what the weather at home is like. It doesn’t get dark here now until about 9:15 pm and the streets are filled with people at all hours.
 

            Semana Santa (Holy Week) started yesterday on Palm Sunday, Domingo de Ramos, and it was definitely an experience. I have never seen ANYTHING like it. All of Sevilla got in their best dressed and took to the streets for the entire day, watching processions filled with Nazarenos and pasos (floats) decorated and filled with figures depicting the life of Christ. There are certain churches that participate on different days and yesterday was one of the most important days of the week with 9 different processions all over the city. I was able to see 4 different processions, 8 pasos in total, the first starting at 3:45pm and the last at 1am! I saw the first three on the street in different locations and then the last one from my friend’s balcony! Her senora was kind enough to invite me and two other friends over to eat and watch the procession since she was having a small gathering anyways. Some of the pasos were more lighthearted and others were more serious and somber, depending on the scene it depicted. For instance the first one I saw, the last supper, was much more upbeat than the paso with Christ, bleeding and holding the cross. These HUGE pasos are held up by men called costaleros. They hold it on their backs and you can’t even see them because there are drapes along the bottom of the paso. These men find it a privilege to be involved and I give them credit because those things are HEAVY and yesterday it was soooo hot, I can’t even imagine what it must have been like with 20-40 men under this huge float. And they can’t even see where they are going! They have a guide at the front who uses a door-knocker type thing to get their attention and tell them which way to turn. The floats are always accompanied by dozens of Nazarenos, who unfortunately resemble the KKK….which was freaky at first but didn’t bother me after the first paso because no one else associates their look with it and it’s all part of the overall celebration. Plus, only a couple have the white head pieces…other parish groups have different colors depending on the church.  Semana Santa lasts all the way until Easter, with different processions everyday starting in different places. However, mine is cut a little short since I am off to IRELAND tomorrow!!!

second paso I saw with a few Nazarenos

another with candles lit!

Un besito!