Carreras, Viajes, y Torros

How to survive if your senora doesn’t give you enough food:

You reel it up in a zip lock bag from the generous boys downstairs who are lucky enough to have a senora that gives them bountiful amounts of food. Thanks guys for not letting us starve!

(Don’t worry mom, we’ve since talked to her and now she gives us so much food we feel like porky the pig every day after lunch.)

Well if blogging was a race, I’d surely be at the rear, because I have not been very good about keeping ya’ll updated! So here is a little recap of my last couple of weeks here:

First of all speaking of races… I just ran a 10.5 k friday night (6.5 miles), and if you know me, then you probably just hit the floor in shock. It was definitely something I did on a whim and decided the morning of that I was going to do it (I really just wanted the free t-shirt…just kidding, kind of). About 20 of us from my program ran in the Carrera Noctura, which is a night race here in Sevilla that happens once a year. Over twenty thousand people were running through the streets of Sevilla starting at 10 pm. I have never seen so many sweaty hairy Spaniards in my entire life! I was convinced it was going to take me at least 3 hours to complete, but empowered by the adrenaline of running amidst the hoards of cheering Spaniards, I finished in under an hour and 15 minutes. Again, if you know me then that’s quite an accomplishment! I was feeling fine during the race and feeling on top of the world once I finished, but as we began our 6 mile walk home, it started taking a turn for the worse. Let’s just say that after running 6.5 miles already, and not drinking hardly any water that day was a bad mix. I think I have learned my lesson of the importance of hydration. I am thankful for good friends here who were so gracious during my miserable walk home. I also appreciated the piggy-back ride up five flights of stairs to my apartment. I might have not made it up those mountainous stairs otherwise. Though my 10k experience ended badly due to the lack of sufficient water in my body, I am thankful for the opportunity to have taken part in the race last night. I felt like such a true Sevillano as we ran through the streets with people lining the sidewalks to cheer on all 20,000 of us. It was such a good experience and an accomplished feeling to do something I had once not thought was possible, though I do see now why it would have been helpful that the last time I worked out to not have been over a month ago… but yes I got my free t-shirt, which of course made it all worth it!

Last weekend I went to Lagos, Portugal, a.k.a. the most beautiful place I have ever been. The views were breathtaking, the ocean water was crystal clear and the prettiest blue I have ever seen, and best of all, our hotel was located on a cliff that overlooked all of it. It was so relaxing to just lie on the beach under the warm Portuguese sun. We also went on a cruise in the middle of the Atlantic and got to hop off our boat onto these little speedboats that took us deep into little grottos nestled against rock formations in the middle of the ocean. Our last night in Portugal we went to the very place which had once been considered the “end of the world” because you drive down this long road of Portuguese countryside and end up at this lighthouse that is ¾ surrounded by water. It’s absolutely beautiful and you can see why they would have once thought this was the very edge of the world. All you see is ocean for miles, and the sunsets there are apparently astounding, unfortunately we went on a day where the sun was covered by clouds, but this was even more beautiful to me because I absolutely love the ocean on a gray cloudy day.

Two weekends ago, (see I told you I’ve been bad about keeping up with my blogging!) we went to a bull fight. One word: YIKES. I had no idea that this whole bull fight thing consisted in killing six bulls. Seriously, where is PETA when you need them?! It was difficult for me to watch the first bull get slaughtered and even harder to watch the sixth bull die because he died a slow and painful death. I suppose I should say I’m glad I went for the experience of attending a bull fight in Spain, but it hurt my heart to watch these innocent animals die for no reason other than to provide Sunday afternoon entertainment for a bunch of heartless Spaniards. Okay maybe that is a little cold of me to say, but really people, those poor bulls! I do have to say though that it’s entertainment in itself to watch the quick, graceful movements of the matadors and see their crazily colored sparkly outfits. I was given a fright when one of the bulls reared his head and there was a matador caught between the two bull horns, holding on for dear life! Well maybe buddy you should have chosen a different profession, preferably one where your job isn’t to kill innocent animals! At least the experience was educational… I found out that bulls are male cows, and the black and white cows you milk are only females… who knew?

I named him Pablo. This was before I realized Pablo was going to be killed.

The same weekend of the bull fight, my program went to Cordoba, Spain for one day, and it was a very educational experience as well. First we visited the Madinat Al-Zahra, which are archeological remains that are left from a mosque of the past, nestled into the countryside above the hills of Córdoba. We then went to a beautiful mosque that is now a Christian church. It was called The Mezquita when the Muslims constructed it in 785 but the Christians took over in 1236 and it’s now called the Cathedral of Córdoba, the oldest cathedral in Spain. It was considered the most important sanctuary of Western Islam in a time when Córdoba was the capital of Al-Andalus (now called Andalucia, which is the part of Spain where Sevilla is located.) Just a little history lesson for you!

Other than immersing myself in cultural Spanish activities such as bull fights, Sevillan art museums, ancient mosques, and taking advantage of travel opportunities, I am very busy with my classes, salsa dancing lessons, and soon to be volunteering at a convent and helping out with the elderly people who live there. Oh yes, nuns run the convent. I hear they can be a little crabby, so that should be fun! Salsa lessons are twice a week, and probably my favorite time of the day. Our teacher is from Peru and he sure knows his stuff!

I am having an absolutely wonderful in experience in Spain so far, and look forward to what’s awaiting me on the horizon of the next few months! By the way, in case you weren’t already aware of this, I miss you all at home a TON, but I wouldn’t trade this experience for anything. I know this is where I am supposed to be right now.

Mucho amor!

Meagan

Week one, check.

                                          A typical Sevillan street

                                                            Torre del Oro

                                              Paddle boating on the river

                                             My roommate and I

Imagine yourself living in Spain, living in an apartment, living directly above two boys that are in the same program with you, what is the most embarrassing thing you can think of? Oh I know, THIS:

Oh yes, that is indeed my laundry hung high for all to see. Talk about humiliating. Who wants their delicates blowing in the wind where new friends of the opposite gender can see them, not to mention any other unsavory characters who may be sticking their head out the window. Don't worry, none of my own undergarments can be seen from the angle the picture was taken above. Those would be my roommates. Sorry Yesi! I just had to vent about this. Not to mention that this has been a day full of mala suerte (for you non-Spanish privileged people out there, that means bad luck). Let’s start from the beginning. I am awoken at 3 am by a rustle outside of my bedroom door. I lay there for a second trying to orient myself and I realize the room is quieter than usual, and I’m more drenched in sweat than usual (have I mentioned it’s been like 150 degrees here?) and I realize the fan is off. The fan that I have so very much come to love, because it is the one appliance that has kept me from going insane in this sweltering heat. And then I realize…our Senora turned it off. “She turned it off and I am going to die of heat exhaustion”, these were the thoughts running through my head at 3 am. Needless to say my night of sleep was not comfortable from that moment forward. Let me explain the fan situation in a bit more detail. Our senora told us to not use the fan at night, and usually I would respect her wishes but I’m sorry I am not keen on losing ten pounds by means of sweating it off due to sleeping sans fan. So every night we have been using the fan and our senora sleeps way on the other side of the apartment so we figure she would never know. I know I know, it’s sneaky and devious, but if you were me and you had to sweat 24 hours out of your day you would do the same. Trust me. And my poor roommate, she’s from Oregon so she is not used to this heat. I guess I owe you one Fresno for preparing me so well for this extreme weather. Okay back to mi dia de mala suerte. So we wake up late after finally falling asleep for possibly the last hour, and head to breakfast. What did we get today? We each got a heel of the loaf of bread. What are our friends getting from their senoras? Whole loaves. Okay great. Thanks. Yeah that kept me full for about ten minutes. So then we go on our merry way and are making our way out of the building when I swing open the door and misjudge the distance between the bottom of the gigantic iron clad gate/door and it very roughly scrapes/smashes my toes, rips off my toe ring and leaves me howling in pain with battle wounds, most definitely a visual remembrance of the bad luck I was faced with today.  So I am hobbling to school and crossing the street when a funny-looking, little, gray, very European car ever so swiftly starts backing up without looking behind him and nearly misses hitting my roommate and I. Spaniards are not striking a good note with me today. As I walked to school today I probably looked more like a Spaniard than I have my entire time here: A disgruntled look plastered to my face and no smile to be seen. I would like to say my luck improved but alas it did not until much later in the day. Next drop of bad luck? Lunch; a meal that most Spaniards take pride in making the largest and most filling meal of the day. Today we had rice, and a small medley of tomatoes and cucumbers. I know people getting five course meals. Mom, can you put a rush on the peanut butter please? Okay, okay maybe I am being a little extreme, (but not really). My host senora is a very nice lady who I very much enjoy conversing in Spanish with. Maybe cooking just isn’t her thing. Yeah, dinner was a chopped-up hot dog (I think) mixed in with tomato sauce and a side of mashed potatoes. Yum? Since when is that an authentic Spanish dish! The good part was the mound of watermelon she placed in front of me for dessert. YUM! Ah but not all was a loss today for I greatly enjoyed my classes, went on a shopping excursion with two of my friends and had our first Encuentro! Encuentro is like a version of Kaleo, which is a nighttime worship/church service at my school. It was very refreshing to set aside time to worship God and to hear a message from one of our ministry directors. It made APU feel not so far away. The message was one that hit home for me, because it was one about purpose and how we are all here in Spain because we are meant to be. We’re here because God has a plan for us while we are here. We were told to be intentional while we are here to seek Him out and use this time as a gift away from our everyday busy lives and seek out who we really are without all of the things around us that usually define us. We can so easily be defined by what we do, who we are with, what programs we volunteer with, what sports we play (or in my case, don’t play).  But we have this opportunity to be away from everything in this new place and we should be intentional about trying to see all that God will try to show us about ourselves, and our purpose while we are here. So here’s to you Spain! Show me, teach me; let me experience and learn and grow.  

Siestas, Salsa, Children & Capris

Things I like about Spain: SIESTAS! Here they designate 2-5pm everyday as siesta time. What is looked down upon in the US, taking a nap in the afternoon after eating a huge lunch (did you know that’s how they get summa wrestlers to be so fat?), is the way of life here in Spain! Granted, real Spaniards probably only take a 30 minute nap during siesta time, and I tend to take advantage of the full three hours…but hey I’m not claiming to be a Spaniard yet. Though I’m really beginning to grow a strong love for this country. I start classes tomorrow and I am very much looking forward to them. School is about a ten minute walk from mi casa, and I must say that walking past a beautiful bridge overlooking a river and ornate buildings is much more serene and visually captivating than walking from east to west campus at APU. This weekend has been a great start to a new semester of adventures. On Friday night a bunch of us went to a restaurant/bar that becomes a salsa club at midnight. It was fun to dance salsa, and reminded me of Thursday nights in Fresno at the Starline. The Spanish nightlife is unlike anything I have ever seen; people crowd the streets until 2 in the morning and beyond, we’re talking people EVERYWHERE. It’s safe to say that the streets become more crowded at night than in the afternoons here. I also think Spaniards are friendlier at night. During the day it is literally impossible to get them to smile at you.  I didn’t realize how much I smile at people during the day at home and how nice it is to get that smile back in return. Not here, and trust me, I’ve been experimenting. I’ve tried several times per day to smile at passerby and they either look at you and just stare expressionless, or they look away. I was offended by this at first, but am learning to accept this, as this is their culture, and their reasoning is “why smile at you if I don’t know you”. Another thing I like about Spain: The children. I have never seen cuter kids in my entire life. The way they are dressed, the way their hair is combed, their faces, everything is so darn cute. They wear cute little suspender pinstripe short-overall outfits that make you want to just grab the kids up and take them home with you. Yes yes, I know, that would get me thrown in jail.  Seriously though, I thought Mexican children were the cutest things ever, but that was before I laid my eyes on the children of Spain. Mom, Dad, want to adopt one?!

Today, three of my friends and I attended mass at the cathedral here in Sevilla. It is said to be the largest Gothic cathedral in the entire world. With the stained glass inside and the architecture both in and out, it was absolutely breathtaking. Afterwards, though most things are closed here on Sundays, we found an open ice cream place and sat outside in the plaza and people watched, which is a very interesting thing to do in Europe. The men with their short neon shorts and cargo capris really kill me. I feel like men just couldn’t get away with those capris in the states. But by all means, if anyone wants a pair send in your requests to me now.

 

Vale! Hasta luego!

Meaganita (that’s for you Michael and Maren) 

Settling in to Sevilla

 

Well, I've officially been in Spain for two days now! I must admit I've had a bit of a rocky start to the "Adventure of a Lifetime." First I came down with the flu right before I was supposed to leave and of course as luck would have it, it turned into the stomach flu the night I was staying in Chicago and was supposed to catch my flight to Spain the next day. I must say that being nauseas on an airplane has got to be one of the most uncomfortable feelings ever. I dubbed my night in Chicago as the most miserable night ever, but that was before I knew last night was on the realm of existence, where I experienced the most severe bout of homesickness I believe anyone could ever feel. Thank you culture shock, for kicking in so soon. Really, you could have stayed away for a few days or so. I know how much I love my family, but I didn't expect to miss them to the severity of which I do. But thanks to the prayers and support of many people last night I was able to overcome my night of temporary insanity and today was a wonderful day in the city of Sevilla. I'd like to blame my extreme homesickness on the fact that a) I still didn't feel good, b) It's like 145 degrees here and my host family doesn't believe in air conditioning. I thought I would be able to use the fan, but apparently that's a no-no at night, c) the food here has this strange aroma and we eat a combination of things like egg pancakes and salad for dinner, and I felt like my stomach couldn't handle too much of it, so I hadn't been eating very much, and d) JET LAG. Boy, they weren't kidding when they said it really turns you around. Wide awake at four in the morning. It was like 7 pm California time so of course it makes sense that I wouldn't be at all sleepy.

Today we had our first day of orientation, along with a placement test, which my fingers are crossed that I place high enough to get into the advanced classes, because those are the only classes that transfer to APU! It was so fun getting to know the people in my group a little better, and we got to continue that process of getting to know each other on a walking tour of the city tonight! It was beyond beautiful. We had an authentic Spanish tour guide who showed us all the landmarks and beautiful architecture. I'm meeting some really cool people, which is making the transition easier, and am excited for the activities that the program has planned for us in the upcoming months, as well as the travel I hope to do outside of Spain. To all of you back home, I love and miss you!

Ps. Dear all Spanish flight attendants of the world, you can stop being so grumpy, you’re making a bad first impression for those who are entering your country for the first time. Especially you, Mr. Flight Attendant of Iberia Airlines, I understand there is a bit of a language barrier, but next time I ask for ginger ale, don’t get hostile because you think I’m asking for beer.

Adios! (Ya'll better start practicing your spanish, because one of these days I'm going to write a blog post in espanol!)