Arroz con Coca-Cola

I woke up Sunday morning and got ready for mass.  I thought that I was supposed to meet Trini outside my house in Plaza Bib-Rambla at 11am before going to noon mass, but it turned out that we had mixed up the times.  So I hung out in the plaza for a while before making the 1-minute journey behind the plaza to the cathedral.  Not surprisingly, the cathedral is absolutely beautiful.  It has the typical high-arching white ceilings with enormous paintings and sculptures.  Aside it from being in Spanish (and a few words in Latin I think), the strangest part about the mass was the fact that there was no singing or books to follow the liturgy.  Aside from that, everything else was more or less the same.  I hope to return again soon.  Laura came back in time for comida after spending the weekend with Ki Ke in Sevilla.  After siesta, I met Paige and we hiked up to San Miguel to watch the sunset.  There were surprisingly a lot of people there, but it was still a beautiful experience.  After we made our way down from Sacromonte, we were pleased to find a Chinese restaurant!  As delicious as it was, we still had room for gelato on the walk back.  Once I got home, I studied a bit and then went to bed.

Monday morning consisted mostly of class and my first test in Spain.  Considering it was in Flamenco theory, it wasn't very difficult, but it could have been easy if I had studied a bit harder!  During comida, Delia and I discussed our feelings about work.  She enjoys being a host mom, but she would also like to have a job where she gets ready and goes somewhere everyday.  Still, she knows how lucky she is to have any work taking into account the high Spanish unemployment rate.  I also learned today that the United States experienced daylight savings time last night.  However, we will not make the change for another two weeks, so the time difference will be one less hour between now and then.  How curious!  After siesta, I ran a few errands before meeting up with Lauren to study for my next test.  Then I went to Flamenco and studied for the rest of the night.  Monday was certainly a tiring day.

I was in class all morning on Tuesday, so I couldn't tell if I was more relieved or drained when I finally left IES.  My Islamic Art and Architecture test went well.  I crammed the night before so I was a bit concerned, but it wasn't too bad.  And now I have a better feel for my teacher's tests and grading style.  Before comida, Aja and I went up to the terrace and soaked in the sun for a few minutes--the weather has finally hit 70 degrees!  After siesta, I went to my watercolor class before meeting Paige to book our flight to Portugal!  I decided that I would rather stay geographically central, and travel there as opposed to England.  A bit later, I met up with Trini's friend, Oscar.  We went to a tapas bar and took a walk.  Once I got home, I talked with Delia before going to sleep.

Wednesday was another beautiful day; sunny and warm.  I did my usual late morning run, and met a girl in the park after she caught sight of my Pitt shirt.  She's a sophomore at Pitt too, and is studying in Granada with a different program.  After I came home, I sunbathed on the terrace until it was time for comida.  Delia prepared an interesting dish, which she learned from her Columbian friend.  It consisted of rice cooked in Coca-Cola, with raisins and coconut mixed in.  Aja and I submitted the recipe to IES for a Spanish recipe contest.  After siesta, I went to Islamic Art and Architecture, where we had a calligraphy workshop.  I practiced writing my name in Arabic.  I can't get over how pretty it is!  It's also interesting to write from right to left in order to avoid smearing the ink.  After class I ran a few errands and went to Flamenco.  Even though the steps aren't easy, I still love that class so much!  Since some students are leaving for the Morocco trip the following morning, classes were canceled.  Thus, I went out for the night!


I took it easy on Thursday in order to rest up for our upcoming excursion.  Delia and Laura were so funny during comida.  I couldn't be more content with my host family.  I went for a walk after siesta, which bettered my sense of direction and understanding of the city.  Then I returned home to pack and get ready.  At one point, Delia knocked on my door and surprised me with a tapa; strawberries, walnut, and carmel.  She's so wonderful!  I also saw one of her current paintings; a portrait of José for his birthday next week.  And I met one of Laura's friends before they went out for the night.  Ki Ke's here too.  Then it was off to bed and off to Morocco in the morning!

Los Ojos Bien Abiertos

Saturday morning was pretty relaxed.  I slept in, went for a run in the park, and uploaded pictures before siesta.  During comida, I tried a dish with pumpkin in it; not my favorite.  Later, I got ready to celebrate Tamara's 24th birthday.  I met Trini around 9 and we drove to Tamara's house.  She lives in a small pueblo called Armilla.  Her house is very modern and tidy, and I really liked her family.  I also met her girlfriends and shared in the glorious birthday feast.  Tamara's mom prepared two delicious pizzas, and everyone else brought a different Spanish dish.  We sang happy birthday, first in Spanish and then in English before digging into a homemade strawberry cheesecake.  I was surprised to learn that one of the girls named Fer moved here from Mendoza, Argentina--the exact city where I almost studied abroad.  Weird coincidence?  After dinner, the girls gave Tamara a collective birthday gift and she reciprocated with small candies for her guests.  Then we all got ready upstairs before heading out to the discoteca, Mae West.  Named after the famous American actress, it's ironically the Spaniard's favorite discoteca.  It was by far very different from the others discos that I have been to thus far.  First off, it was packed.  There were two enormous rooms (one playing salsa music, the other playing modern music) with two floors in each.  Thus, there must of been hundreds of people there, which made it difficult to move, dance, etc.  It was also a bit more classy and pricey (10 euro to get in plus two drinks).  I found it interesting that it is right in the middle of the mall.  But we all had a good time; definitely a place that I would like to go to here and there.  I also met up with Paige and introduced her to my new Spanish friends.  We left around 5am and I could not believe that there was still a huge line outside.  I don't know how the Spaniards do it!















Needless to say, I slept in on Sunday before going on a walk.  The weather was beautiful (sunny and upper 60s) and people filled the streets--taking walks, watching street performances, and eating gelato from the recently opened helado shops.  Afterwards, I sat on the terrace with Aja and soaked in the sun.  It felt amazing!  We pulled ourselves away when it was time for comida, where we conversed about religion.  José is quite opinionated sometimes!  After comida, I met up with my Semana Santa crew to start booking hostels.  We didn't have much luck though, because the wifi was not very reliable at the café.  We agreed to meet the following day in IES.  So Paige and I left and got gelatos.  The displays of flavors in the shops are very artistic and beautiful.  I managed to settle on passion fruit (el maracuyá).  Of course, it was fantastic.  As usual, Paige and I had a good talk, where we assessed our time in Spain thus far, and brainstormed ideas to try to make the most of the rest of our time here.  Then I took it easy at home, where I blogged, journaled, skyped, and rested up for the upcoming week.

Monday morning consisted of class, sketching, and a trip to the bank.  It took me a while to find the right one, and the line was quite long, but I successfully converted my money to euros.  I also ran into Javier at IES, who told me about his recent business trip to America and how happy he was to have been able to meet my mom!  When I finally came home for comida, I met Eva for the first time.  Eva is Delia's other daughter who lives with her boyfriend in a Sierra Nevada pueblo.  I immediately saw the resemblance between her and Delia; exact same amber-colored hair and mouth.  The only major difference is her eyes--they're a marvelous shade of light blue.  Laura shares Delia's dark brown eyes, but more-so resembles her father in my opinion.  Eva is 30 years old, but I would have guessed 22.  She is easily one of the most beautiful women that I have ever met in person.  She has also inherited many of Delia's gestures and mannerisms.  I felt so blessed to be able to sit at the table amongst these three beautiful Spanish women.  What a family!  After comida, I took a siesta and did some homework before meeting my Semana Santa crew at IES to continue working out the details of our trip.  We've successfully booked two out of three hostels.  Afterwards, I went to Flamenco and then out for tapas with Paige.

Tuesday morning was packed with class.  I returned home for a short siesta before going to my watercolor class, where we finally began working with watercolor--possibly my new favorite art medium!  Afterwards, I went home to work on homework and trip plans.

As usual, I slept in and went for a run on Wednesday.  By now, both Delia and Laura know that Wednesday is my favorite day of the week.  Once I got back from my run, I had just enough time to shower and get ready for the Morocco orientation.  Wow, I cannot believe how excited I am for that trip!  Listening to Javier talk about the experience, cultural differences, and stories, made me want to leave tomorrow.  But it's probably better that we're not leaving for another week because I have a few things to purchase and prepare for beforehand.  I also talked to Jeff and Alba before I left, who gave me good advice about traveling to Portugal.  Then I ran into the Moroccan store owner next to IES on my way out, and I told him a bit about the upcoming trip.  Needless to say, I was in the best mood when I left IES.  I returned home for comida to eat a delicious plate of lasagna.  I was surprised to learn that it was made with tofu.  Also, Aja made a pact to only speak in Spanish all week, giving me inspiration to try that soon.  After comida, I went to Islamic Art and Architecture and Flamenco.  Classes are finally starting to get semi serious seeing as I have exams in both of these classes next week.

Aja and I woke up early Thursday morning to go to Consejo.  I was pleased to see that the first edition of la Gaceta (IES's newspaper) had been published.  I was equally excited to see the article that I had written, entitled "Los Ojos Bien Abiertos".  It was about the barbecue that I went to on el Día de Andalucía.  La Gaceta was filled with a lot of other interesting and fun information, recommendations, and photos.  I hope to contribute to next month's edition as well.  After Consejo, I had an hour to kill before Spanish class, so I went to the lounge to find it deserted (too early for the other students to be there).  I read part of the newspaper, Granada Hoy, took a nap, and played the piano.  Naturally, I printed out sheet music of my favorite piano song, The River Flows in You.  It was so refreshing to play the piano, even though the keyboard was a bit tricky to use and I had trouble keeping all four sheets upright at one time--I made a mental note to bring tape with me next time.  My headphones didn't work with the keyboard, but I was the only one in the lounge, so it didn't matter.  Then I went to my two classes of the day, where I learned that it was the day of the woman.  Afterwards, I met up with Paige to run a few errands before heading home for comida and siesta.  A bit later, I found Jeff's new favorite café, La Qarmita.  It was great!  It reminded me a lot of coffee shops back home; comfy chairs, soft music, and cupcakes!  Plus a wonderful library with books in both Spanish and English.  I brought an English book with me that I picked up from IES, but reading a Spanish book is next on my list.  After spending an hour or so there, I left knowing that I would be back again soon, especially since it's only a five minute walk from my house.  When I came home, I took a nap and then went out for tapas, my friend Lauren's apartment, and then to Mae West.  It was an interesting night to say the least.

On Friday, I woke up early to catch the bus to Málaga with my watercolor class.  Usually, the weather is nicer and warmer there, but it was terrible; cold and cloudy.  It didn't bother me too much though, because we spent most of the day in the museums.  The first one that we went to was called Museo Carmen Thyssen, which had a great collection of Spanish paintings from the 19th century.  After that, we visited el Museo Picasso, which was a cool museum dedicated to Pablo Picasso (he was born in Málaga).  I really appreciate his unique style.  At the end of the tour, the class participated in a workshop, where we etched a design into a CD and then used a machine to make copies of it--very cool!  We had free time for the rest of the day, so everyone went to the beach--despite the bad weather--to eat our packed lunches.  Of course, Delia made my favorite spanish tortilla sandwich.  A bit later, my friends and I walked around the city, shared a liter of gelato (tiramisu, mango, and kinder), and met back up with the rest of the group to catch the bus back to Granada.  Delia made me dinner once I got home, or as she called it, a "tapa"; a bowl of noodle soup and crackers with goat cheese and a sugary type of fruit.  She's the sweetest!  After I ate, I was so exhausted and passed out for the night.

I went to el Parque de las Ciencias with Trini on Saturday morning.  Being the nerd that I am, I enjoyed every minute of it.  It reminded me of the Pittsburgh Science Center, except it was much bigger.  We visited the Biosphere Hall, the Hall of Perception, the Eureka Hall, the Astronomy Garden, the Observation Tower, the Tropical Butterfly House, a Tyrannosaurus Rex exhibit, and the Pavilion for Journey through the Human Body.  We also watched the "Birds of prey in flight" exhibition.  I could not believe that there was still much that we did not see--I could have spent days there.  However, I do plan on returning to see the planetarium.  Trini also told me that her and her friends saw the article that I had written about the barbecue, which made me very happy.  We left in time for me to make it home for comida.  Aja spent the day at a nearby beach, so I ate with Delia and José.  Delia told me that Eva works in el Parque de las Ciencias in the afternoons, which is why I did not see her.  Delia and José also told me about their plans to travel to Italy this summer.  Delia prepared las patatas a lo pobre, which is my new favorite food!  It was so rich and delicious.  I hope she makes it again soon.  She also made us eggs and a wonderful fruit and vegetable salad.  We both agreed that I need to start eating healthier.  After comida, I took a long siesta and laid low for the rest of the night.  I watched a Spanish movie with Delia, which I was happy had Spanish subtitles.  Knowing her, it was a romantic love story.  We talked until after 3am, covering everything from love to pets.  And then we finished with a solid English lesson.  It's actually a lot more difficult than I would have thought to teach someone English.  For example, sometimes it's hard to remember what's grammatically correct and what's colloquial, or which verbs are "irregular"; not to mention, it's tricky to switch between two languages mid-sentence!

This was certainly an eventful week.  I experienced and learned a lot.  Before I left the states, my Pittsburgh friend, Sarah, told me "eyes wide open" (los ojos bien abiertos).  My eyes were certainly wide open this week, and I hope that they continue to be for the rest of my time here, and for the rest of my life.

Córdoba

We met at 7:30am on Friday at los Jardines del Triunfo.  I tried to sleep on the way, but it was too uncomfortable.  We arrived at the historic site, Madinat-al-Zahra, around 11 and split into groups based on our section of Islamic Art and Architecture.  Thus, my teacher led our group, and explained the history of the site.  I found it very interesting to walk though the ruins and apply it to what we had been learning in class.  We also spent a little time in the museum.  After a few hours, we drove 10 minutes to the center of Córdoba where we had about an hour of free time to eat and explore the city.  Delia and José told me to find a famous tortilla bar beside the mosque.  After we ate our packed lunches, a few friends and I found the bar and split a delicious piece of tortilla de patatas.  One thing that bothered me was the amount of people that came up to us and asked for money; more apparent in Granada.  After eating, we went for a short walk before returning to the mosque at 3:30.  La Mezquita de Córdoba is very famous and now I understand why.  First off, it is enormous.  The outside patio is very pretty, with a fountain and many trees.  The inside looked like a mosque apart from the many Christian paintings and statues. At one point, we turned a corner and the dark rows of arcs (naves) were replaced with a bright, white cathedral.  I couldn't believe that a cathedral was built right in the middle of the mosque.  The history behind it is incredible (my art teacher led our tour again).  After the mosque visit, we had the option to leave, but I decided to make the most of the visit and stay.  The remainder of the activities were focused on the Sephardic Jews (Spanish Jews).  We visited la Sinagoga, la Casa de la Memoria de Sefarad, y Taller de música Sefardí.  Having only gotten a few hours of sleep the night before, I was dragging at that point and had a tough time concentrating on the history presented during the tours.  I still thought it was pretty cool though.  Afterwards, we had some free time before leaving for Granada around 7:30.  Once we got back around 10, I made myself something to eat before passing out.  What an exhausting day!

El Día de Andalucía

I went for a morning run on Saturday and then took it easy until siesta.  Ki Ke was here for the weekend and Delia was about to leave with José to visit her mother in Málaga.  After siesta, I met Paige at our favorite hippie café.  We window shopped for a little, before I headed home to get ready.  I was excited to go out because the University of Granada final exams are finally over and a new batch of Erasmus students have arrived so the nightlife will be completely different from now on.  I met Trini (my intercambio) and we went to one of her favorite tapas bars.  It had great sweet wine and played flamenco music.  Some young people got up on the tables and danced flamenco--so fun!  When Trini went to the bar to get a plate of "pipas", similar to sunflower seeds, she slipped on her heel and fell.  Two men rushed over to help her up, but she was really embarrassed.  I felt so bad, but then I started eating the pipas and it wasn't until I had about 20 of them that I realized I wasn't supposed to be eating the whole thing; only the actual seed inside the outer case.  So I told Trini that we were even with embarrassing ourselves.  I had such a great time with her!  I also got a text message from my IES friend, Karen, asking if I wanted to take a day trip to Málaga the following day.  It sounded like the perfect way to spend a Sunday afternoon.

I met Karen around noon on Sunday, and we walked together to meet her Spanish friends.  Sergi and Antonio are from Alicante (a costal city north of Granada) and Sam is from Romania but speaks fluent Spanish and is pretty good at English.  Sergi drove the five of us in his car for a fun, hour and a half road trip.  We stopped in the outskirts of Málaga to check out a historic archeology site called Conjunto Arqueológico Dólmenes de Antequera.  However, we didn't get to see much because it closed shortly after we got there, so we continued to the main part of the city.  Naturally, we hit the beach first.  The weather was beautiful (upper 60s), with many people soaking in the sun and a few even went for a swim.  We relaxed there for a while and ate lunch.  After we left the beach, we meandered through the city and did some sightseeing.  La Alcazaba de Málaga was very beautiful and reminded me of la Alhambra.  We also walked through the cathedral.  The weather cooled off after the sun went down, but it was still pleasant enough to sit outside a café in one of the city's plazas.  After getting coffee, we found our way back to the car and headed home.  I'm starting to realize how much I enjoy spending time with Europeans.  When I got home, it was so nice to see Delia and hear about her trip to Málaga.  Shortly after, I skyped with my "real" family for a bit.  Definitely an afternoon well spent.

Monday consisted of class, homework, and grocery shopping.  A sore throat prevented me from having much fun.  I knew it was coming though--all of the IES kids are sick, so it was only a matter of time.  But Delia made me a magical drink: a little hot water with a lot of honey and lemon.  I had hoped that this would do the trick to get me back to normal for la fiesta on Tuesday!

Tuesday was a day of fiesta: el Día de Andalucía.  This basically means that, in Andalucía, no one works, no one goes to class, and all of the stores are closed (similar to Sundays).  My throat felt a lot better (thank you Delia; and to think of all those times I relied on NyQuil), so I accepted my intercambio's invitation to go to her friend's barbecue.  I met Trini around 2pm and we drove about 10 minutes out of the city to a small pueblo on the outskirts.  We parked in front of a beautiful yellow "chalet" (something in between a house and a mansion).  It is the summer house of Trini's friend, Myriam--she lives in an apartment (a piso) in the city during the remainder of the year.  The house is gorgeous with an incredible view of Granada, a pool, and a tennis court.  Trini's friends were really nice and a ton of fun.  Many of them were eager to practice English with me, so they would talk to me in English and I would answer in Spanish, and we would correct each other when necessary.  It was perfect.  And Myriam's Moroccan boyfriend, Driss, asked if any of my American friends would ever want to practice English with him over coffee or a walk.  I couldn't think of any IES kids who wouldn't be interested.  The rest of Trini's friends live in Granada or one of the surrounding pueblos.  The food was great, consisting mainly of hamburgers, and different types of sausages and meat.  I tried almost everything, and afterwards, they would tell me what I actually ate.  There was also a huge jar of delicious homemade sangria.  My cup was labeled "Trinidad's friend from USA".  After lunch, we started a paddle tournament, where I put to use my high school tennis skills.  And the music playlist set a perfect backdrop to all of this; some Spanish, mostly English, everything from oldies to modern to Sweet Home Alabama.  Other than it being a bit windy with a few clouds, the weather was pleasant.  Although, of course, it cooled off at night.  Still, we played board games on the porch and made another small barbecue.  It probably wasn't the best thing to be outside all day when I was on the verge of being sick, but I figured that it was worth it (vale la pena!).  Everyone helped clean up before heading home.  I got back around midnight, when I talked to the family before going to bed.  Delia saved me a plate of pasta and salsa from comida that day since she knew it was my favorite.  I was thrilled and told her that I would eat it the next day for dinner.  Aja also came home from a weekend trip to Portugal.  I was glad that she had a good time.  I'm still hoping to make it there at some point this semester, but I was glad to spend the long weekend at "home".

Thank goodness I don't have class Wednesday mornings!  After I woke up, I went for my usual morning run before getting ready for the day.  However, instead of wandering through the Albaicín, I found my way to García Lorca Park.  What was once the countryside surrounding the home of poet, author, and playwright Federico García Lorca is now an enchanting park named after him.   It's the perfect place (and a bit safer) to go for a run or take a stroll.  It's a huge maze of secret paths lined with trees and bushes.  I can't wait to see it once the trees and flowers start blooming.  The weather has been beautiful and in the 60s this week.  However, it thundered a little later that day, and the forecast showed light rain on Friday.  After siesta, I sent off some postcards, went to Islamic Art class, and bought three pretty red flowers for Delia.  She was so excited when I gave them to her and understood that Aja and I wanted to cheer her up.  She assured me that she is content and happy; just slightly weighed down with typical "woman problems".  Then she showed me her most recent finished painting, even though she's not 100% certain that she's finished with it.  I think it looks incredible!  Afterwards, I finished up some homework and heated up Delia's spaghetti from the previous day before heading to Flamenco.  On the way, I passed the biggest protest that I've seen yet, with droves of people marching down Gran Vía.  Later, I met Paige for drinks--it had been far too long since I spent time with my best friend in Spain.

I was in disbelief when I realized that Thursday was March already.  Even though that meant warmer weather was on the way, it also meant that I have to leave the month after next.  I immediately quieted these thoughts and made a pact with Aja to only speak Spanish when we're together.  The morning routine was packed with consejo and class.  I had watercolor class outside in el Jardín del Carmen de los Mártires, which gave us a chance to try our hand at nature drawings.  Siesta marked the start of my weekend.  How did it start?  With a nap!  I also caught up with Grey's Anatomy, finished some homework, and got my stuff together for Córdoba before making something to eat.  Nutella is my new best friend.  Afterwards, I met Paige to hang out with our Italian friends for the night.

La Sierra Nevada

Carnaval--a masquerade festival that occurs before Lent--was completely nuts. A bunch of IES kids and I bought a round-trip bus ticket to Cádiz for 20 euro.  Cádiz is one of the most popular Spanish cities to celebrate Carnaval, and is located on the southern coast of Spain (not far too from Portugal).  We left Granada around 1pm on Saturday and arrived 4 hours later in Cádiz.  Of course, the first thing we did was hit the beach.  It was perfect weather, and the ocean and shoreline were beautiful.  After nightfall, the ridiculous costumes emerged.  Themed groups were very popular.  Paige and I stayed near the cathedral most of the night, among massive swarms of people.  It was very difficult to move through the crowds at certain points, but we still had so much fun meeting different groups of people.  We tried to take a picture with every group that we met (we bought a disposable camera for this event, just in case).  There wasn't much music or dancing so it seemed like more of a social gathering than anything else.  Maybe there were more cultural events (i.e. a parade) that I was not aware of though.  By the end of the night, the weather had gotten much colder and the city was absolutely trashed.  We left around 7am and everyone passed out until we got back to Granada (around 11am).  Many of the students did not have as good a time as I did, because they thought it was too crazy or too cold and long.  Also, one of my friends got sick and another got pick-pocketed.  Still, I think it was one of those things that is good to experience at least once in your life.

Accordingly, Sunday was recovery day.  Once Aja and I walked home, I sorted out my priorities:

1. Shower
2. Eat
3. Sleep

After I woke up, I bummed around for a bit before meeting Paige and Clarissa to finalize Semana Santa plans.  We are going to fly into southern France, and then make our way through Spain until finally reaching Granada!  Afterwards, Paige and I went to el Teatro Municipal Isabel la Católica to watch the movie, Pulp Fiction (in English with Spanish subtitles), which is part of the film festival, Retroback, that is showing classic movies all week.  It was amazing to see Pulp Fiction on the big screen.  It was also interesting to see the translations since a lot of slang is used in the movie.  And the venue was incredible; very vintage.  It was exactly what I needed to start off the week.

Monday was somewhat uneventful, but Tuesday began with a class visit to the mosque (mezquita). It was incredible. Our guide has had the most amazing life. I'll write what I remember, but I know it's only scratching the surface. She lived in California with a very stable job when she decided to take a year off to see the world. She traveled all throughout Europe and ended up dropping everything in the states to live in the Alpujarras. When her husband converted to Islam, she decided to convert as well. Born and raised Catholic, her family disowned her, and her friends in the Alpujarras violently persecuted her and her husband. I'm fascinated by the Christian-Muslim history. Inside the mosque (a rare opportunity for non-muslims), she told us about her pilgrimage to Meca and other stories from her past. Currently, she is divorced with four children. Still, she is very content with her religious life now. She's also very opinionated about the Islamic faith in other Arab countries. She invited us to join one of the weekly social meals at the mosque that occur every Friday after worship. I am very excited to go because I have so many questions for her--I feel like I could talk to her for days. She is such a strong and radical woman that, I believe, has much more to tell.

The mosque itself was quite interesting too. If I remember correctly, it was the first mosque that was built by Spaniards. It's also the only current mosque in Granada, since prior mosques have since been converted into churches. Thus, it was quite a challenge to build. Located in el Albaicín, it has a fantastic view of la Alhambra and la Sierra Nevada. The inside is very beautiful as well, and much smaller than a cathedral. It is required to remove your shoes and for women to wear a headscarf (hijab) before entering. A large red carpet that is sectioned with lines covered the main area--this is where the men pray. The women pray in the balcony above or in a golden cage behind the men. Mixed feelings about this, but still so fascinating; I cannot wait to learn more. After the mosque visit, I went to the Arab World and the West class, where my Islamic education continued. I also had Islamic Art and Architecture, where we got our first essays back. I was quite surprised to see my first A! We had one of my favorite foods at comida--couscous--before I headed off to my watercolor class, where we drew a masterpiece by our favorite artist. I drew a painting by Monet--he is not my favorite artist, but I do like his style. After class, I walked to the bus station with Paige, Clarissa, and the Matts to buy bus tickets for Semana Santa. It was quite a hike (45 minutes) but it was nice to explore a new part of the city. We also walked through a protest in the street on the way there. Apparently they were protesting about the brutal police treatment that had occurred in Valencia. Once we finally got back to IES, we bought our plane tickets--such a relief! Here's the itinerary: Paige, Clarissa, and I are taking a bus from Granada to Madrid, and then flying into Nice, France. We will spend the weekend there and hopefully take a bus trip to Monaco. Then we will fly to Barcelona for a few days where we will meet Matt, and then fly to Madrid. That weekend, we will take a bus back to Granada so that we can see the last two days of the religious processions. All that's left to do now is book hostels and research places that we want to see!

I slept in Wednesday and went for a run.  As usual, I ended up in el Albaicín, but instead of San Miguel, I found myself at San Nicolas, which has an equally beautiful view of the city and la Alhambra.  I had some downtime before comida, and then went to my Islamic art class, where we visited el Albaicín and learned more about its history.  When I came home, Delia was sad because she was fighting with José and wasn't content with her current painting.  It broke my heart, so Aja and I agreed to get her flowers this week to cheer her up.  I went to flamenco class before meeting up with Paige.  In her University of Granada course, she met a group of Erasmus (EU student exchange program) students from Italy.  We went to their apartment and had a great time.  I found it very refreshing to spend time with non-IES students.  Spanish was the common language, but we taught them a little English and they taught us some Italian words.  It's crazy how similar Spanish and Italian are.  If I ever get a chance, I would love to learn Italian, now having such a strong base in Spanish.

I left the United States exactly one month prior to Thursday.  It was so hard for me to wrap my mind around this; also sad to see how fast the time is going.  A representative from the IES Chicago headquarters joined us during el consejo that morning.  She was curious to see how things were going and what things need to be improved.  She is traveling to a few other IES programs in Europe after she leaves Granada, apparently doing this every couple years.  After the meeting, I worked on a few sketches for my watercolor class before spending the rest of the morning in class.  Many students (including Aja) are traveling this weekend since we don't have class on Tuesday, but I'm kind of excited to spend the long weekend in Granda.  During watercolor class, we were instructed to create our own version of the artwork that we selected to replicate in the previous class.  Instead of returning home for comida, a few IES students and I were invited to Café Botánico to have lunch with the IES Chicago director.  Running on only three hours of sleep, I took a longer nap than usual after lunch.  When I woke up, my friend, Matt, and I planned a day trip to la Sierra Nevada.  We found it difficult to plan, but researched as much as possible and hoped everything would work itself out the next day.  Afterwards, I went to a wine tasting class that was organized by IES.  It was a lot of fun, but I went home shortly after it was done to get some rest before hitting the slopes the next morning!


Matt and I met at a bus stop at 6:30am on Friday, which took us to the Estación de Autobuses de Granada.  We bought our bus tickets to la Sierra Nevada for only nine euro.  The bus left at 8 and we arrived about 45 minutes later.  As much as I wanted to sleep, I wouldn't let myself because the bus ride was so beautiful as we climbed higher and higher in the mountains towards the morning sun.  When we arrived, Matt and I walked though the small village to purchase lift tickets and rent skis.  It was a bit pricy all together, but I knew it would be worth it.  Then we took the gondola to the main ski area around 930.  I was completely blown away by the beauty of the area.  And the higher up we went, the scenery and mountain views somehow became more and more incredible.  I found it interesting that the mountains contained many boulders that were not covered in snow, and also by the lack of any trees.  Matt and I guessed that we were at too high an altitude to allow them to grow.  I was also initially surprised by the lift ticket because you keep it inside your pocket and the sensors catch it before you get on each ski lift.  Matt and I started skiing in the main green (easy) area.  It was extremely cold and windy in the morning, but it gradually warmed up throughout the day.  And it helped that the sun and blue skies never left.

We eventually worked our way up the mountain to harder areas (blue=intermediate, red=difficult, black=very difficult).  I felt like I decently mastered the blue level, but the red slopes were a bit tricky for me.  I did my best not to snow plow my way down them.  It was still tempting to try as many of them as I could because they had the best views and snow (more powder, less grooming).  The ski resort seemed huge, and I loved the fact that there wasn't even enough time to hit all of the slopes and that you could get on a lift or keep skiing down to a different lift.  My favorite slopes were the long trails that winded around the borders of the ski resort.  One of these started off along a steep ledge that looked over the main ski area, and later led to a tunnel.  A bit different than Seven Springs, right?  At one point, Matt and I decided to take a "t-bar" to a higher part of the mountain.  It was quite possibly one of the scariest things that I've ever done.  Not only was it tricky (and embarrassing) to get on, but it pulled us up very steep parts of the mountain.  I just kept trying not to think about what would happen if I somehow lost my grip and let go.  The view at the top made it all worth it though.

Matt and I split up for a while after that so that he could try some more difficult slopes.  I knew that I ended up on a different side of the mountain when I spotted the observatory from the back.  It was so surreal.  I also came across a crazy terrain park and half pipe.  The only really difficult part was trying to decipher what some of the signs meant--the arrows weren't always clear.  And I did need to pull my map out to plan a route to get back to the main side of the mountain and meet up with Matt.  Along the way, I rode on a lift that turned a corner (a bit frightening) and met a few Spaniards on two different lifts.  One of them was from Alicante and the other from Madrid.   Both of them complimented my Spanish and were surprised to learn that I was from the United States (YES!).  When I met up with Matt, he told me that he took a lift to the very top of the mountain, which had a spectacular 360 degree view.  And he could see the Mediterranean Sea from there.  I was so jealous, but told myself to gather up the courage for next time--I'm dying to go again!  We only skied a little while longer because the lifts closed around 5pm.  I found this odd, and I am still not sure if they opened again later on or not.  No pasa nada though--Matt and I skied our way down to the village, and returned our skis.  We walked around for a bit and had a few beers before catching the bus at 6:30.  I was so glad that we decided to leave at 6:30 instead of 4.  Initially I thought that 6:30 would be too late, but we never got tired or bored--even after taking only a few short breaks.  Nevertheless, I knew my muscles would be sore tomorrow after such a long day of intense skiing.  The bus ride back to Granada was equally as beautiful, seeing as it was perfect timing to watch the sunset.  But of course, Matt slept through it.  When we got back to Granada, we caught a city bus home around 7:30, and I showered and fell asleep.  I had planned on waking up later to go out, but I was too exhausted!