Making My Way Through Andalucia

You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes.
You can steer yourself in any direction you choose.
You're on your own & you know what you know.
You are the person, who'll decide where to go.
+Dr. Suess

Hola todos!

Last Thursday, we were on our way to Córdoba, in the region of Andalucia! I took a bus and got to Córboba around 9pm. We made our way to our hostel, Senses and Colours. It was really cool, with tons of different colored hallways and our room was great too! We had our own bathroom and little balcony. After we threw all of our stuff in our room, we headed out to explore the city for a little and ended up at a bar/terrace called SoHo. It was really pretty and had a great view of the city and across the river. We stayed there for a little over an hour and then decided to head back since we wanted to get up early to make use of our only full day in Córdoba. In the morning, we got some breakfast and then made our way over to The Mezquita. It's the oldest Mosque in Spain and I think all or most have been destroyed during all the wars and take overs of Kings and Moorish Rule. Once we bought tickets to enter The Mezquita/Catedral, we walked around and looked at all of the cool architecture and colors. I remember seeing the red/creme arches in books from high school and learning a little about The Mezquita, so it was really cool, even to realize that I remembered some of it! After walking around and taking pictures in The Mezquita, we left and headed into the Orchard/Garden just outside of the Mezquita. There is a big bell tower there and tons of orange trees and pebbled sidewalks. Later, we headed to a few of the shops surronding The Mezquita and of course made some purchases. After that, it was time for lunch. We walked around trying to find a good place and then sat down and ordered Salmorejo, which is like a thick Gazpacho with bacon and eggs on top... it was really good but VERY THICK!! We also ordered Rabo de Toro which is bull tail. Those are the 2 specialty dishes in Córdoba. After lunch, we went to the Sinagog and then headed to Alcazar de los Reyes Cristianos! In one of my guidebooks, I read that this garden is where Cristofer Columbus asked King Fernando and Queen Isabel to fund his voyage to the New World. As we walked the gardens and ate a few clementines and oranges, we saw the statue of Columbes and the King and Queen. It was really cool, even to think that 600 years ago they were walking in the same spots as we were at that exact moment! Later, we stopped at an Alimentation store to buy some cheap wine and coke for our CALIMOCHOS... la copa del pobre. Then we met up with 2 other guys staying in our hostel and drank on our terrace. Even though it was a little chilly, it was such a great spot to chat and drink. Then the rest of our group who went to Córdoba came to our hostel and then we left to find some bars.

Unfortunately, we had to leave around 9:30am for our bus to Granada. So we headed to the bus station and were on our way to the next city.

ADIOS CóRDOBA!

HOLA GRANADA!

The bus to Granada was about 2 1/2 hours. We got there around 1:15pm and then headed to the hotel where we met Silvia, our CEA director who was already there waiting for us! Que guay! But then she gave us our keys and we all headed to our rooms. Once the rest of the CEA group got there, we were able to explore the city and have the whole day for free time. We got lunch at a Chinese restaurant... haha and then toured the Royal Chapel and the church while hitting up the shops. The Royal Chapel had the tombs of King Fernando, Queen Isabel, Queen Juana la Loca, King Felipe and their young son who died at age 2, Prince Michael. They had a big statue on top of their tombs and then we were able to walk down the steps and look into a window and see all 5 caskets, it was a little creepy but cool at the same time. After all of that time, we went back to our hotel and then headed to a tapas bar. Granada is one of the cities, famous for their tapas. The place we went to was called "La Bella y La Bestia" or in english, The Beauty and the Beast! We each ordered drinks and then they gave us a huge huge huge plate of Tapas. We got sandwiches, chips, potatos, pasta, and tons of other stuff. And it was really cheap too! 2E for a drink and then tapas, so we didnt even have to get dinner. We got a few rounds of drinks and yummmy food. Later, we walked around and found our way to a Chupito bar... we were finally able to try this shot called Brains or Cerebritos. It's with grenadine and baileys, and when the baileys is poured in, it looks like a brain! It was real tasty too!

The next morning, we had to wake up early for our bus to Al Alhambra. We had a 3 hour guided tour of the entire Alhambra and saw the views of San Nicholas, which were gorgeous! We learned alot about the Alhambra and different things about it and then once it was over, we headed to a little restaurant and got some food before we had to leave to head back to Madrid. Which would be about a 6-7 hour bus ride... VERY LONG! We got back to Madrid around 8pm. And that was our last trip with CEA! How crazy!

On Wednesday, we had a Sevillana dance class which was alot of fun. We learned a flamenco dance to a traditional spanish song. Silvia and another CEA teacher showed us the dance. They also gave us the traditional Flamenco head piece and a flower, which was cool and FREE! Me encanta las cosas gratis!

AND ON WEDNESDAY NIGHT/ LAST NIGHT, WE SAW LUNA NUEVA IN SPANISH!!!! So amazing!!! Once the title came up Luna Nueva, I was hooked... even though I couldn't understand some of what they were saying, I was surprised at how much I could understand! New Moon was INSANELY BETTER THAN Twilight!!! We all deciced the same! and that Taylor Lautner is sexy as hell and only 17 years old... we all felt like pedophiles. But yeah, so good! We are going to see the movie in english as well, but it doesn't come out here in english until Friday. So we're gonna try and see it in Galicia but if we can't, we'll see it again on Sunday! OBSESSED MUCH??

Tomorrow morning, we are leaving for Santiago de Compostela, in the region of Galicia, which is way up North! I heard its cold and rainy there now, but thats ok! The flight was pretty expensive but the only time/weekend to would be this weekend, so 4 of us decided to pay the money and go. We decided that a plane would be better too, because by plane its about an hour flight and by bus its over 8 hours! Which is wayyyy too long in a bus! And it wastes a whole day!


But that's about all for now!

Adios! :]