Andalucian Adventures

Ok, well, another weekend, another great trip!  This weekend was one of the program’s excursions, so that means cheap and already planned – wonderful!  You give up a little autonomy, but traveling in groups definitely has its advantages.  We went to Granada and Córdoba, two cities in the south of Spain (Andalucia) noted for their Moorish-influenced architecture.  Loaded the bus at 6:30 Friday and were on our way!  After a long ride to Granada, we got off and went straight to the Alhambra – the last Moorish stronghold that fell to the Catholic Monarchs in 1492.  What an impressive place!!!  The yesería, or plaster designs are SO fantastic, and so intricate.  The Moorish architecture in the south is DEFINITELY something you don’t see in the rest of Europe – it’s that exotic element I like about Spain. 

It keeps you guessing.  The next day in Granada we saw the Capilla Real (where Ferdinand and Isabel are entombed), a cool site.  Sad to say I’m becoming a little bit of an art and architecture snob – I can recognize between good large-scale and poor large-scale works – the Capilla Real had GOOD works – that was legit gold on that retablo, not just imitation sculpted wood with gold leaf.  Afterwards we saw the Granada cathedral with it’s WOW Baroque organs.  I’m keeping a photo journal of all the Baroque organs I see in Spain (which are all of them), and these had to be the most impressive yet. I spent so much time trying to capture good panoramas that I lost the group – oh well, that was kinda the story of my weekend.  After a little free time to explore the streets we boarded the bus headed for Córboba. I passed the trip listening to Les Mis and CATS in Spanish one one of our chaperone’s MP3 player.  I don’t think CATS should be allowed in English, let alone translated.  Whoa weird.  Upon arrival in Córdoba we had free time before we met for a traditional Cordoban meal of Berenjenas, Flamenquín, Salmorejo, and the likes.  The next day we awoke and saw the ruins of an old Moorish palace/city outside the city – that was cool.  You don’t even think about ruins in Spain – I felt like I was in Latin America! (plus the accent in Andalucia is more like Latin America – they pronounce all c’s and z’s as s’s, and chop of the ends of their words).  After our freetime in Córdoba in which it DELUGED, we met to see the Mequita – old Moorish mosque supplanted by a Cathedral after the Reconquest of Granada.  What a place!  Like an endless forest of candy cane striped arches (with this hideous Baroque monstrosity inerrumpting it smack dab in the middle). Oh well, at least the Christians didn’t just destroy the place.  I got lost a couple times (something I’ve found is also very fun in the narrow white-washed streets of southern Spain), and definitely got kicked out at closing time (suprisingly prompt here, given that everyone shows up late for everything ever).  We got back on the bus, and headed back for Cáceres, arriving at 11:30 – whoa!  One of the reasons I’ve got less than 5 hours of sleep every night for the last 4 days – oh dear, I thought Spain would be a break, but it’s turning out just as gloriously busy as normal life.  Between choir, classes, planning for weekend trips, and now I’m giving conversation lessons to a Spanish kid wanting to be a foreign exchange student in the US next year, I’ve been busy!    But, I’m only here once – gotta enjoy it while I can!!!  Sorry for the kind of diary-esque blah, and for all the superlatives, but the only way to experience this stuff is to see it.  Come visit if you like ;)  ¡Ciao!