Granada, Spain

Granada was one of the last moorish strongholds in Spain and has retained quite a bit of North African influence.  When mixed with traditional and modern Spanish culture, it truly is a unique type of beauty.  Also, hellllo awesome shopping.  

Something I keep noticing across Europe is the mixture of old and new.  Constantly seeing a cathedral from the 1400s or an ancient Roman amphitheater right in the middle of a modern city is so mind blowing to me, having grown up in what is technically a "new" country.  In Granada we visited the cathedral that King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella (among other Spanish royals) are buried in, as well as the Alhambra, an incredible Moorish fortress/palace.  

Our study abroad group surprised us with a private flamenco show!  The location we went to was obviously very old, very unique, and very Spanish.  Experiencing this Spanish tradition for the first time was actually really cool.  I couldn't stop taking pictures.

Below are pictures of the Alhambra, a moorish fortress that is still standing- and beautiful- today. Notice all the fountains- they were everywhere.  The guide told us that they try to maintain the palace's condition as close as possible to the original.  INCLUDING the fact that NONE of the fountains are automated.  All of them run on the ancient pressure/aqueduct system they were built with. 

The Barcelona Adventure

What's Spain without Barcelona?? That's a question I found myself asking, and to solve the issue, my room-mate Natalie and I took off on a weekend journey to the city.  Side note, thank you Europe for making flights so cheap!

Adventure doesn't even begin to describe the weekend.  Before we even left Málaga we began having issues...  Everyone told us the airport bus was #19.  The only problem was, we couldn't find bus 19.  It was like it didn't exist.  We literally walked/jogged/ran all over downtown before realizing that bus 19 is also known as Bus A.  By the time we board said bus, we were running SO late.  We got to the airport at 715... Our flight was scheduled to take off at 740.  We busted out of the bus and sprinted across the parking lot.... to the wrong terminal.  Finally, we get to our gate and are pleasantly surprised to see that our plane wasn't even half boarded yet.  

So then we finally get to Barcelona and sit at the airport cafe for a short break... where a random male proceeds to ask us if we were traveling alone.  No, we're in a big group actually, we're just gonna go meet the rest of our group now... In defense against any more bad vibes, we proceeded to use fake names all weekend.  I'm now Audrey, btw.  

Around 5 pm we arrived at our hostel.  Yes, hostel.  For those of you who don't know, a hostel is different than a hotel in that you only pay for a bed, not a room.  In ends up being SUPER cheap- staying three nights in total was way less than staying one single night in a hotel.  The catch is, you're in a large room with bunks of random other people.  Generally hostels are popular with people my age because its really easy to meet other traveling people our age, it's a very laid back atmosphere, there are activities, etc.  Personally, I just liked the cheap price.  For 3 nights, I can handle a bunch of other random girls in a room.  It's not ideal, but its interesting for sure.  

Oh, funny story.  Day 2 we decide that it would be a good idea to rent vespas, after all they are super cute.  According to the rental people, it didn't matter that we had never driven a motorcycle or vespa before, in fact, a bicycle was sufficient.   Well well.  Let me just tell you that a bicycle is NOT sufficient experience.  I thought I was going to die (see picture sequence below.)  In fact, when people tell you not to drive in a foreign country, you really should listen to them.  Because what happens to Americans driving vespas in a foreign country?  They end up lost... on the Barcelona freeway.  Yes.  That actually happened to us.  No worries, we returned the vespas early and walked away safe and sound with a new appreciation for life.  

Now that I've rambled on, a short conclusion.  From the markets to the works of Gaudi (the artist who designed the famous church, Sagrada Familia, among other things) Barcelona was definitely a fun visit.  Next week I'll be here in Malaga, but the week after that I'm headed to Paris!

I sincerely regret not going back for the chocolate drink...

First thoughts- Yay!  A cute vespa!

Second thoughts- This isn't so cute anymore.  I don't think I know what I'm doing... oh. my. gosh.  Is that the FREEWAY?!

And finally- I'm too scared to drive back.  What do we do now??

Trip Time!

Although all students treat their abroad experience differently, a vast majority chooses to go with a study abroad company.  It makes everything from applying to school to traveling around SO much easier (in my opinion at least.)  I chose to go with ISA, International Studies Abroad, and so far I’ve been pretty stoked with my choice.  One of the main reasons I chose ISA is because they really want their students to experience the culture and history of the country they are staying in.  ISA offers all students multiple excursions during their stay that is actually built into the beginning bulk price (as in, no more bus payments, hotel rooms, etc., now that we’re here!)  They organize all tours, and generally help us get the most bang for our buck.  

Today they took us to Ronda, Spain.  I had never heard of this city before... actually, I haven’t really heard of many Spanish cities before.  But let me tell you, Ronda is GORGEOUS.  The road that runs by the city was actually the ancient road that took travelers and merchants from Gibraltar to Athens- so much history took place there!  While in Ronda we visited ancient Arabic Baths (wayyy cooler than I was expecting) and got to walk around the fortress surrounding the city.  The vastness of the area really just can’t be put into pictures or words.  It was truly breathtaking.  After all of that, we visited the Plaza de Torros and got a little history lesson on bullfighting.  Although I think the sport is sad and cruel, I understand that it is a part of Spanish culture.  I definitely won’t be watching a bullfight while in Spain though.  Culture or not, I don’t think I could watch the gruesomeness that takes place.  

Back to happy topics though, not only were the views were stunning, but I was able to pick up some pretty cheap jewelry for Christmas presents for my family... and for myself :)  

Next weekend I’m heading to Barcelona, Spain with a few friends- so be on the watch for more adventures!

My roommate Natalie, who couldn't have been a better match!  

Despite being incredibly old, the Arabic Baths had a surprisingly efficient system of water heating and cooling, as well as a super pretty layout- notice the ceiling cutouts that allowed sunlight to keep the rooms perfectly lit. 

A first day unlike any other.

So yesterday was our first day of school.  Our host padre walked us the 6 or 7 minutes to Universidad de Málaga Para Extranjeros where we took a Spanish placement exam and got settled in.  The school is really little and is just for International students.  This semester its mainly American and Chinese kids, but there are also students from Germany, Denmark, and a few other places.  It's crazy because back home students almost always prefer to speak english in their spanish classes, but here we have to speak spanish, because we have no other common language!

I'm taking an intensive Spanish course- high intermediate level, a Spanish culture course (in which we're only allowed to speak spanish,) History of the European Union, and International Marketing.  AND, on Fridays I only have Spanish from 8:30-10:20.  Weekend adventures?  I think so.  

Lastly, this beach takes less than 2 minutes to walk to, and despite the pictures, it has a great sandy beach!