Zaragoza: where everyone shakes their finger at you

I left my apartment Friday morning with hopes of seeing the Pyrennes Mountains and jumping off a bridge at some point in the next few days (tied to something of course). I saw the mountains, from a distance, and didn't jump off any bridges. But I did get to see the beautiful cities of Zaragoza and Huesca, meet up with my friend Liz from high school, and eat Mexican food!

Zaragoza was incredibly different from Madrid and it didn't feel as "Spanish." The roads were wide, the buildings were not very tall, most people drive cars and there was a lot of greenspace. There were all sorts of modern bridges that reminded me of Xenon from Disney channel and looked like they were from outer space. There were also a lot of contemporary art statues. I felt like I was in a modern city, and dare I say it a bit like I was in America!

Inside the space man statue

The Rio Ebro cuts through the city and we spent Friday afternoon having a picnic by the river, it reminded me of the Mississippi (only less dirty but that's not saying much). The weather was beautiful and we saw the Basilica de Nuestra Senora Pilar and Palacio Aljaferia, which had some of the most beautiful and intricate ceilings I have ever seen.

Palacio Aljaferia

We began to notice two trends throughout the day. First, cars DO NOT stop in Zaragoza. After practically being run over twice we realized jay-walking was not a good idea and that it is absolutely necessary to wait for the walk signal. Second, everyone shakes their finger in disapproval and apparently we were not approval worthy. Every builiding we went into or street we crossed we were scolded by someone shaking their finger at us. After a while we began to expect the finger and were surprised when we didn't see it. 

Basilica de Nuestra Senora Pilar at night

 After a day of sight seeing, we returned to our hostel and the receptionist pointed us in the direction of  a Mexican restaurant owned by a woman from Mexico. The restaurant was very VIP. When we showed up there was a group of people waiting outside to get in. We walked in and the woman shook her finger at us, we had to outside until they opened the door for each group to enter. When we were finally granted entry, we could hardly contain our excitement and proceeded to order enough food to feed a family. But man, were those rice and beans worth it!

We woke up bright and early to take a bus to Huesca. My roommate Stephanie and I had our hopes set on finding an extreme sporting adventure, such as puenting, that involved jumping off a bridge. We had researched many sporting companies based in Huesca prior to leaving. However once we get there we quickly realized all of these companies were located 40 kilometers outside the city and only accessible by car. So my mom will be happy to know the bridge jumping has been postponed. Instead we settled for a picturesque hike through fields with the Pyrennes Mountains in the distance. We trespassed, got a bit lost in the fields, made it back to a highway, thought about hitchhiking, decided not to, stopped at a gas station for some water, and finally found downtown Huesca again a few hours later.

Back in Zaragoza we continued our theme of "foreign" foods by eating at an Irish pub. Stephanie ordered chicken nuggets and boy were they delicious! After dinner we saw the Basilica lit up at night. Then we started to notice lots of middle aged people dressed in Halloween costumes. At first we thought it might have been a Halloween party but quickly realized pretty much everyone was dressed up but us. Two men dressed as pirates explained that it was part of Carnaval which is the Mardi Gras celebration in Spain. It was very different than St. Louis' celebration (where people mostly drink a lot of alcohol and lift their shirts) but equally as fun. Looks like I need a costume for this weekend!

This weekend also made me even more grateful for my wonderful host family. My friend Liz told us that she has walked into the kitchen to find her Senora completely naked! Yikes! Huge sigh of relief that it hasn't happened in our apartment yet.

I am looking forward to a few travel-free weeks in Madrid. With the stresses of midterms behind me I can go out and enjoy the city. My parents will be arriving this weekend and I can't wait to see them and show them around!

¡Hasta la próxima!

La ciudad de Zaragoza es un ejemplo bueno de las influencias durante la Edad Media en España. El Palacio Aljafería es una combinación del palacio musulmán y cristiano. Puede ver la mezcla y las diferencias de las influencias en la arquitectura y el arte especialmente. También, vi las ruinas de la muralla romana que rodeo la ciudad durante el imperio romano. ¡Los sillares son enormes! Es tan admirable especialmente porque la base de las estructuras existe todavía. Yo tuve mi primera experiencia con Carnaval en Zaragoza. El sábado por la noche, todos se estaban disfrazados y yo estaba confundida porque no era Halloween. Eventualmente me dio cuenta de que en España la gente se disfraza para celebrar. A mí me encanta disfrazarme y quiero encontrar una buena para el fin de semana. La celebración de Mardi Gras es muy importante y grande en la ciudad de San Luis y estoy emocionada experimentar tradiciones de Mardi Gras nuevas en España.

No parlo italiano

All of these adventures make for one exhausted gringa. After 4 days of travel in Italy I arrived back in Madrid tired and dirty. But I can't complain because I was also full of gelato and pasta and carrying a few items made of genuine Italian leather.

We jetted off early Friday morning to Rome and spent a whirlwind two days seeing the sights (Colosseum, Pantheon, Palatine, Roman Forum, Trevi Fountain, Spanish Steps, the Vatican, and Villa Borghese), catching up with my friend Lena from SLU, eating as much gelato, pasta, and pizza as we could find, and pretending we were in the Lizzie McGuire Movie. Then we hopped on a train to Florence for two days where I was able to see my best friend Anna!

In the Colosseum

Villa Borghese

Making a wish at the Trevi Fountain!

My favorite sight in Rome was the Colosseum. We took a tour from a Roman woman with bright teal eye liner who preferred McDonald's ice cream to gelato...go figure. She had so many interesting stories about the Colosseum. I started to realize that the whole idea of the Colosseum is pretty morbid. It was used as an entertainment venue but the entertainment was watching men die in various disturbing ways. For example, they would bring in crocodiles and lions and the people would fill the stadium to watch the animals face the humans. The first time they brought in crocodiles they realized it was too many because the water stopped moving in a matter of minutes and the men were nowhere to be seen...but soon they realized the perfect number of crocodiles was 3 because the fight lasted longer. It seems so strange to me that people enjoyed seeing these things. I guess it could be compared to a bull fight in Spain, those who are not accustomed to the tradition find it cruel and difficult to watch.

Piazza de Michelangelo

Florence was much less touristy than Rome which I liked. It was easier to get around and more manageable. We spent the first day catching up and eating giant pizzas inside because it was raining. But the second day was beautiful and we were able to climb to Piazza Michalangelo and see panoramic views of the city. Then we saw the Ponte Vecchio and the Duomo church. We tried to go to the Academia museum to see Michalangelo's the David but it was closed! It was a bummer but we spent our sorrows away at the San Lorenzo market which sells all sorts of Italian leather goodies and other cool items. We spent the day bartering and I bought a real Italian leather bag after arguing about the price for a pretty long time...my mom would have been proud of my bartering skills. We spent the rest of the afternoon having tea and pastries and then it was time to say goodbye to Anna and head back to Rome.

Il Duomo

 On to the food: I ate 4-cheese and walnut cream gnocchi, penne alla siciliana, spaghetti nonna rosa, mushroom pizza, margherita pizza, prosciutto pizza, a turkey pesto panini, a a prosciutto panini, a nutella croissant, oreo gelato, tiramisu gelato, chocolate gelato and peanut butter gelato. Add lots of bread, some great balsamic vinaigrette, various pastries and wine and you could say my stomach left Italy feeling VERY satsified.

My trip to Italy was wonderful and I could not have asked for a better weekend with my old and new friends. (Although it wasn't quite like Lizzie McGuire's trip to Rome) so here is a clip for you to enjoy!

I will upload pictures to my Flickr by this weekend, be sure to check 'em out!

¡Hasta la próxima!

Estoy aprendiendo sobre el imperio romano en mi clase de español. Hemos hablado sobre la arquitectura y el gobierno durante esa época. Podía ver evidencia del imperio, por ejemplo los sillares en las estructuras en muchos lugares de la ciudad. Los sillares son los ladrillos grandes apilados para formar paredes enormes y son comunes en las ruinas de Roma. Una guía nos mostró algunos sitios incluyendo Colosseum, Panteón y Foro Romano. Aprendí sobre los emperadores en Roma y muchos de ellos eran horribles y mataron a muchas personas para razones insignificantes.

Piazza de Spagne

También fue a Piazza de Spagne o “The Spanish Steps.” Es un lugar bonito y los pasos son cubiertos con gente hablando y disfrutando el día. Los pasos fueron un regalo para unir la familia Bourbon con la iglesia católica en Roma. Durante mi tiempo en Roma, me sentía el gran poder de Roma durante la Edad Antigua en España y entiendo mejor la magnitud de su influencia. Para España, y mucho de Europa, hubiera sido imposible escapar el reinado de Roma.

La alfombra roja

 

The other night after returning home from San Sebastian we noticed a huge tent, red carpet, and lots of people outside our window. As the night went on the cheering got louder. We knew we were witnessing something pretty exciting but we had no idea what. So we asked Mar who told us it was los Premios Goya, which is the Spanish equivalent of the Academy Awards. And it was happening right outside our window! Gotta love the perks of living next door to the Opera House! It was too bad I am not familiar with many Spanish actors. I could sort of tell who was well known by the cheers from the crowd but I eventually gave up and started paying attention to the beautiful gowns instead. I felt so VIP watching from my balcony!

This weekend I am off to Rome and Florence! I will be meeting up with my friend Lena in Rome and Anna in Florence. I am so excited to see them!!! (and the cities too). I plan to eat a lot, walk a lot, see a lot and learn a lot. Sounds like a lot...good thing I have three midterms next week to worry about as well...oh well, when in Rome!

Here is another phrase I learned from my Dirty Spanish book: "jalar" means to grub or chow down. Estoy emocionada jalar en Italia.

¡Hasta la próxima! (cuando tendré mucha comida en mi estomago)

Los premios Goya son una parte importante en la cultura y los artes en España. Este año es el aniversario 25 de los premios y la mejor película es Pan Negro. Estaba mirando otras películas que fueron nominadas en años pasados y vi algunas que yo conozco, por ejemplo El laberinto del fauno y Volver. No se mucho sobre las películas en España pero he visto y disfrutado algunas en mis clases de español en St. Louis. Pensaba que muchos ven películas americanas porque mi familia aquí tiene muchísimas películas americanas y pocas películas españolas. Los hijos ven las mismas que yo vi cuando era joven. Todo el tiempo oigo que la industria del cine en los EEUU infiltra a todas partes del mundo. Pero es importante acordar que existe una industria del cine muy fuerte aquí en Madrid. Quiero ver Pan Negro para que pueda aumentar mi conocimiento del cine español. Es buena manera de entender una cultura y sus pasiones, intereses, y problemas (y también mejorar mi español!)

Pintxos, pintxos, and more pintxos!

Overlooking beautiful San Sebastián

 This weekend I ventured north to San Sebastián in Pais Vasco. I was familiar with Pais Vasco from my Spanish class last semester when we learned about ETA, a nationalist terrorist group in Spain. Being that this was the only thing I knew about the region, I was a bit nervous. But my host dad Nando is from Pais Vasco and he could not say enough good things about the region. Plus everyone said the food was phenomenal in San Sebastian so I had to go!

My roommates and I left Friday morning and arrived in beautiful San Sebastian mid afternoon. We wandered to the ocean and sat on top of a giant wall on the edge of the ocean for 45 minutes just taking it all in.

Later that night we returned to the hostel, made some new German friends, and went to try the famous San Sebastian food! We went to a restaurant that served all variations of mejillones, or mussels. Stephanie and I tried 2 different kinds and they were both delicious, although one involved so much onion I might as well have taken a bit out of an onion as if it were an apple. We sidled up to the bar, ordered our mejillones, and ate them right then and there. The restaurants in San Sebastian rarely have tables or waiters. When we finished our mussels we took the shell and tossed them on the floor. It was a very different dining experience but it was so fun!

After our ride to the top of the mountain on the funicular

The next day it was a bit rainy but we went out to see the sights of San Sebastián and decided to ride a funicular to the top of the mountain in the bay. At the top they have all sorts of carnival rides and stupid things that parents can be suckered into buying at the top which I found amusing. I guess you can put anything on top of a mountain! That afternoon we had a traditional pintxos experience. Pintxos (pronounced "peench-o's") are like tapas, or appetizers, but on steroids. They are also served at the bar. We had no idea what we were ordering but we pointed to what looked good and ate it!! It was the most delicious lunch I have had in Spain and invloved some sort of tortilla española, a meatball, and a ham and cheese ball. If you ever have the chance to travel to San Sebastián and taste pintxos I highly recommend it! At night, pintxos bars would be full and people would spill over into the streets. It was really cool to take part in such a different eating custom.

Harbor

 Most beach cities are built around the beach and tourism. While San Sebastian is physically built around a city, the social customs revolve around the food and the beach seems to be an afterthought. We asked one of the workers at our hotel to suggest things to do at night and she told us that people from San Sebastian worry first about the food. Only once they have been to multiple pintxos bars will they begin to talk about what to do afterward. Definitely a culture I could get used to!

It is hard coming back to reality (is this reality?) after a weekend of adventures. Midterms begin this week which means it is time to buckle down before my big trip to Italy this weekend.

Y ahora, algo en español sobre la cultura de San Sebastián. La diferencia mas distinta en la ciudad es el uso de la lengua vasca. Es muy diferente de español y no puedo entender vasco. En mi opinión es interesante que las partes de España hablan formas diferentes. Quiero saber los raizes de cada lengua y las razones para las diferencias. Mi parte favorita de San Sebastián es el pintxo. Es obvio que es rico pero a la misma vez el pintxo es una razon para reunir con sus amigos. Cada noche en los calles habia mucha gente charlando y bebiendo y disfrutando su comida. Es una manera de comer mucho mas cómoda, nadie se sienta en los restaurantes y no hay meseros. Pero es divertido y un poco mas verdad porque el foco es la comida.

Otra cosa que note es la preponderancia de ETA en el graffiti y los avisos. Obviamente ETA tiene una presencia fuerte en la sociedad. Yo se algunas cosas sobre ETA porque he estudiado la organización en mi clase de español el semestre pasado. Es un grupo nacionalista y terrorista y quieren ser parte separado de España. Puedo ver que hay diferencias grandes entre País Vasco y España pero en mi opinión los dos tienen muchas semejanzas también. Los políticos de una región extraña son difícil entender especialmente cuando no se la historia. Quiero aprender mas sobre las tensiones con ETA en mi semestre aqui, voy a tener unas semanas para discutir los problemas en mi clase de sociología mas tarde en el semestre.

Una semana bonita en Madrid

Hace buen tiempo esta semana y he pasado mucho tiempo afuera de mi casa. Algo difícil para mí es la forma vosotros. En escuela elementaría y colegio la forma no es ensenado porque en América Central y América Latina no es usado. Pero en España todos usan la forma. Puedo entenderla pero no puedo decirla. Martes, fui a un restaurante y encontré a algunas chicas de otra universidad en Madrid. Ellas son simpáticas y hablaron conmigo sobre la lengua, sus clases, y Madrid. Las chicas me ayudaron con la forma vosotros y practique diciendo “habláis” y “jugáis”.  Necesito practicar la forma vosotros y el acento española. Es difícil y necesito aprender porque no puedo escapar el vosotros.

Fui a Parque del Oeste otra vez y note algo interesante sobre el ocio en España, en la tarde hay muchos viejos caminando por los parques y en los calles. Muchos viejos estaban en el parque pero los jóvenes y los niños no están. ¡Yo estuve la sola chica en el parque! Me parece extraño porque en los Estados Unidos es el opuesto, solo hay niños y sus padres en los parques. Es buena cosa que los viejos son tan activos en Madrid. Por ejemplo, la abuela de mi familia aquí en Madrid tiene 96 años y ella va a la iglesia y hace cosas durante el día todavía. Quiero ser vieja en Madrid en vez de los EEUU porque los viejos aquí tienen una vida social mejor.

Esta fin de semana voy a San Sebastián, será interesante ver las diferencias entre la cultura en Madrid y en País Vasco. Estoy emocionada y debe ser un fin de semana divertido (¡y muchos me han dicho que la comida allí  es tan rica también!)

The land of chocolate, cheese, and bratwursts

Megan and me on a boat cruise across Lake Luzern

 This weekend I ventured out of Spain for the first time this semester to Zurich and Luzern, Switzerland with my friend Megan! When I arrived I realized how helpful it is to know the language. I know two words in German and am not even fully sure how to pronounce them correctly. I was instantly grateful that I know Spanish in Madrid because otherwise I would feel lost all the time.

Park overlooking Lake Zurich

 Zurich is built around Lake Zurich. Friday we walked around the lake, watched the birds, and saw a few sights. The stained glass windows in Zurich were some of the most interesting and unique I have ever seen. There were many abstract, graphic and colorful panes. Unfortunately I wasn't able to take pictures in the churches so you'll have to take my word for it. We stumbled upon a chocolate shop named P'eclard in Old Towne Zurich to try some truffles and soak up the true Swiss experience. The shop was beautifully decorated and three stories tall filled with chandeliers and comfy velvet chairs. I tried a champagne truffle, a coffe truffle and a dark chocolate truffle. Megan opted for a log of chocolate ganache. It was some of the best chocolate I have ever tasted.

On Chapel Bridge

Chapel Bridge

 The next morning we hopped on the train to Luzern. The Swiss rail system is incredibly well developed and runs between every city in the country. It was convenient and reasonably priced. Spain has train systems but nothing quite like the Swiss trains. Luzern is a picturesque and relaxing city full of history and more chocolate shops! We wandered through a market along the river, walked through Chapel Bridge, walked around the lake, and saw the Lion Monument. Later that night we had dinner at a Swiss brewery and enjoyed some traditional Bavarian food. Gotta love pretzels!


A few humorous moments from the weekend:

On Saturday afternoon we were hoping to parasail. Unfortunately it was too windy and the conditions were unsafe. So instead we opted for a boat cruise across Lake Luzern to a little town called Weggis. The weather was beautiful and the boat ride was set against the magestic backdrop of the Alps, it reminded me of boat rides on Lake Minnetonka in Minnesota minus the huge yacht and the Asian tourists and the mountains. Weggis was picture perfect and full of quaint hotels and cafes. Megan and I ventured into a cafe to try another delicacy and we couldn't believe who we found!  The cafe was filled with old women who didn't speak a word of English and yet St. Louis' very own Nelly was playing on the radio. It is nice to know that Nelly transcends all cultures.

View from the boat

 Later that night, Megan and I headed to dinner at a brewery. On our way we were stopped by a group of rowdy men dressed in pink and green feathered capes and leather pants. Somehow we figured out it was a bachelor party and the groom quickly grabbed me and started spinning me around. Then all of his friends took off their hats and extended them to us. We weren't sure what they were doing but we quickly learned about the old Swiss tradition of giving money to the groom. Too bad we spent all our Francs on chocolate!

I guess this is what a Swiss bachelor party looks like

  I am safely and happily back in Madrid! I noticed many cultural differences between Spain and Switzerland. Obviously the language was the most noticeable difference because I do not speak German which made communicating difficult. The cuisines were different as well, Bavarian food is salty and they love their bratwursts! The Swiss have an eating schedule more similar to the Americans that consists of a smaller lunch and big dinner. Zurich and Luzern were very quiet cities. There were people out walking around but I never felt like I was in a downtown area. Whereas in Madrid there is a constant bustle of people, music and street performers. It was nice to escape the city and soak in the serenity of the Swiss landscape for a weekend.

Y ahora, algo en español sobre mis observaciones culturales en España esta semana. (Si no puedes leer español puedes usar un traductor o haz como si la entrada no estuviera)

Después de llegar en Madrid, fui a Parque del Oeste para la primera vez con mi compañera de cuarto Stephanie (No sabíamos que el parque es tan cerca a nuestra casa). Había mucha gente en el parque, más gente que he visto en un parque en los EEUU en toda mi vida. Y fue la primera vez en que yo vi “botellón.” Mar, mi madre en Madrid, nos dijo que botellón es parte de la cultura joven en España y es cuando los jóvenes van a algún sitio para beber. Ahora es prohibido en Madrid pero ocurre todavía. No había visto este fenómeno antes de ir al parque el domingo. Los jóvenes se sentaron en mantas en la hierba y estaban bebiendo de la botella. Pareció algo normal, no algo prohibido. La actitud sobre alcohol es muy diferente en España y no hay tabús sobre alcohol como en los EEUU. Pienso que es una actitud en mucho de Europa también y viene de la creencia que alcohol es parte de la vida, no es algo tabú.  ¡Me disfruté mucho mí tiempo tomando el sol en Parque del Oeste!

Holy flea market! (and a trip through time)

In my last post I said that I would be taking a day trip to Segovia. Unfortunately this trip was postponed due to some serious oversleeping (on the part of my roommates and me) and a rainy and cold forecast (on the part of mother nature). So instead we decided to experience Madrid!

Capillo de San Isidro

On Saturday we went to Museo de San Isidro. San Isidro is the patron saint of Madrid and this museum and chapel is devoted to him. The first part of the museum is about San Isidro and his life. You can also enter the Capillo de San Isidro which is breathaking and the ceiling is hard to look away from (although it is recently renovated and you can tell it looks a bit fake). One of the coolest parts was seeing the Miracle Well. At first glance it is a giant well and when you look down you can't see the bottom (thank goodness there is a piece of glass over the top...reminds me of the Ring). Later we found out the story behind the well, Isidro and Maria's son was accidentally dropped into it and when they prayed for his safety the water rose and he was delivered safely to them.

A model of Madrid in the 1600s

The other part of the museum showed the evolution of the city of Madrid from prehistoric times. This part of the museum provided a visual depiction of everything I have been studying in my Spanish Culture and Civilization class. It was nice to see artifacts so I could take my knowledge from class and relate it to tangible objects. The museum had everything from the rocks (puntas de flecha) that the first Madrilenos used to kill animals to artifacts depicting the Roman influence in Spain during la Edad Antigua. One of my favorite things in this exhibit was seeing the Roman architectural influence. But hands down the coolest part was seeing a large map of what Madrid looked like in 1562 and a small model made of blocks representing the 16th century. I could pick out where my apartment would have been located! This made me feel like a true Madrileña!

Sunday we headed to El Rastro, the mother of all flea markets. Every Sunday morning it is set up in La Latina, a barrio close to our apartment. Vendors come to sell literally everything including books, antiques, art, fake fur coats, comics, jewelry, old pieces of metal, boomboxes, and even underwear. I have never seen such a mishmash of items in my life. It makes me wonder who buys this stuff, especially the old pieces of metal and underwear...Anyways, the tables are lined up along winding streets and seem to go on forever. We walked around for close to three hours and I think we only saw about half of the market. I used my bartering skills (honed on the beaches of Mexico) to barter for a scarf.

This week I also met with Antonio, my language exchange partner! He is going to help me with my Spanish and I will help him with his English. He is from Madrid and wants to become a science teacher at an English school in Spain. I am so incredibly excited about this opportunity because I feel like I have not been speaking enough Spanish and this is the perfect way to practice.

This weekend I am off to Zurich and Luzern in Switzerland!
¡Hasta la próxima!