Hi everyone! 2 weekends ago I went to San Sebastian, which is a beautiful costal city in the north of Spain, specifically in the Pais Vasco (Basque Province) only 11km away from the French border. Driving up there took about 7 hours, but it was gorgeous outside, and kind of looked like Ireland or New Zealand pictures with all the green and hills around. I went with my program, and it was so nice to stay in a 4 star hotel which just happened to house a French rugby team the same weekend ;). The coast of San Sebastian is a large cove and has an absolutely beautiful island in the middle of the water, and is a major desination vacation spot for many French, Spanish, and royal families. We all got really lucky and had gorgeous sunshine most of the trip and it only rained at night. Usually, spring is when it rains a lot up there. It is city, but it definitely had a more laid back vibe, and it was nice to not have to feel pressed for time to see everything and just sit on the beach and shop. As part of the program's city tour, we were able to go up the funicular and see some awesome views of the cove and the city. Some of my favoritie memories of San Sebastian are from the food. The have pinchos there, which means that food is on a small bread, and the food varies from spanish tortilla, crab, other seafood, tomatoes and cheese, or pretty much anything. Up there the pinchos are artfully arranged on large plates, and easily 20 or more large plates take over the bar space, and you just go pick up the ones you like and stand and eat. Good places to eat have standing room only, and everything is very cheap, at least compared to Barcelona. Overall, a very relaxing weekend filled with good weather, a beach, and great food.
Last weekend I went to see 3 cities in the south of Spain in the Andalucia provinces: Granada, Cordoba, and Sevilla. I spent a day in each city, which was actually very manageable because they are small. In Granada the highlight of the city was definitely seeing the Alhambra, which is a large and beautifully conserved moorish palace from the 12th century. The walls have intracite preserved writing and decoration from top to bottom, and a common misconseption is that the writing and decoration was all carved. Instead, everything was molded out of stucco. Pictures can only convey so much; this monument is a must see if you ever find yourself in Spain.
After Granada I went to Cordoba, which is well known for it's Mezquita. I actually had some trouble finding the moorish mosque. It turns out I went to to right place in the beginning, but because the name "Cathedral of Cordoba" was everywhere, I walked around for another 30 minutes trying to find the Mezquita. I eventually went back to the Cathedral, and in very fine print on the bottom of posters, I found "formerly the Mezquita." Ha ha. But that does perfectly preface what I was going to see inside. I only expected the typical moorish arches with red and bone altering colors in a dark mosque, which I found, but I wasn't expecting a huge, light filled, and ornately decorated cathedral in the middle of the mosque. It turns out the mosque was converted into a cathedral after the moors were forced out of Spain after 8 centuries. The mosque is older than the Alhambra and the cathedral dates back to the 17th century. After the Mezquita/Cathedral, I saw the Real Alcazar (Royal Gardens) and walked around the city. It was very hot and sticky out, especially since the city was right by a river.
After Cordoba, I went to Sevilla, and out of the three cities Sevilla was my favorite. It was so pretty and colorful! I saw the Giralda, which started out as a moorish building, but the construction was finished by the Christians. The result is a beautiful and unique building, with moorish windows and large gothic bell tower. Inside it looks like any other cathedral; the outside arquitecture was more interesting. I also saw the Real Alcazar of Sevilla, some more royal gardens, but this Real Alcazar had a moorish palace too. It was pretty, but not a grand as the Alhambra. The gardens were beautiful! Then it started to rain so I hid out in a bakery for a bit and after it stopped I walked over to Plaza Espana. Sevilla's Plaza Espana is huge and it served as the Planet Naboo in a StarWars movie. I haven't watched StarWars for long time, so I couldn't picture the scene where Plaza Espana was featured, but I'm sure if I watch it again I could see it. I also saw flamenco in Sevilla, the traditional Spanish dance, and it was great! Very intense, but good.
That's all for now! This weekend is my last weekend in Barcelona (very scary; I don't want to leave!), and then for Spring Break I'm going to Italy and Greece, and then I have finals and then home. Which means, my last update about Italy and Greece won't be for another couple weeks, maybe even on my way home! I'll see you all soon!
