"El fin es mi Principio"

Okay, so I am going to preface by saying that today's date is February 6, 2009... just a few days after the 1 yr anniversary of when my amazing Spain adventure began. I was looking over my blog and came across this post which was actually supposed to be my final posting. I never fished writing it, and with all the craziness of adjusting back in the States (followed by organic summer school), it simply got pushed to the side and was never put up. Here is as far as I got on May 17, 2008: "El Fin es mi Principio" (meaning, "The End is my Beginning") was the title of a book that I saw while at the airport in Madrid, Spain. How fitting is it, though, to think that the end of this amazing journey is simply the beginning for me: the beginning of life-long friendships, world-traveling, truly learning a foreign language and growing as an individual. I am currently sitting on the floor of the JFK airport in New York where a few series of unfortunate events took place, causing a few tears to be shed. You see, after having already been flying in an airplane for a total of 9 1/2 hours from Sevilla to New York (and not to mention already attempting to adjust to the time difference of 6 hours back AND recuperating from less than 2 hours of sleep), I wasn't prepared for just how intense the remainder of this journey would be. To make things short, after arriving to New York, I needed to collect my luggage through customs and then go check-in with US airways for my connecting flight to Charlotte, NC. The catch was, it wasn't supposed to leave until 6:20am...around 13 hours or so later. This apparently creates problems and am not able to be checked until around 4:45am or so. This also meant that I wasn't able to say goodbye to Elena (my roommate, my sister). OH, the terminal where I need to be also closes at midnight and so I had to lug all of my stuff to a separate terminal via "train" that is open for 24 hours. I am now left wandering the terminals of the airport and am beginning to feel like a homeless person or something as I push all of my things around on a cart...."

That is as far as I got. I will continue the last of my story now: I ended up sitting on that cold hard floor for the remainder of the night. Never to sleep a wink, for the fear of all of my 4 months worth of luggage being stolen. (Irony of it is, I am smiling now while reminiscing of this moment...) Anyway, I remember when it finally turned to be 4:30am. The time when I could finally check in my luggage and cross to the "safe side" of things. Ya know, the side where not just any hoodlum off the street could wander! I had never been so anxious, as I waited in line, grimacing at the sound of all of this English (and extreme "Northern-talk", at that!) being spoken around me while wishing I were either in Spain or home in South Carolina... okay, well maybe just Spain- but South Carolina works just as well at this point! I remember there being a woman who was frantically trying to cut in line, due to her apparent tardiness and fear of missing her flight. Time after time, people just shook their heads "no", not fazed at all by this woman's distress. I finally was able to get her attention and told her that she could get in front of me. After all, after 13 hours of waiting, what's another 5-10 min? It really seemed like no big deal to me... that is, until I got to see something pretty remarkable. Ever seen the movie "Pay it Forward"? In short, it is about doing something nice for someone, in hopes that they will continue with a good deed for someone else; and eventually this "paying it forward" action will grow exponentially until the act of one person's kindness inadvertently reaches that of hundreds or even thousands! The "pay it forward" part of my story is that just 2 people in front of me, was a girl whose carry on was far too big to fit on the airplane and that she would have to have to pay an enormous overage fee to check yet a third bag. She began to pitch a fit, claiming that she couldn't afford it and would have to leave one of her bags there. At this time, the same woman who I let in front of me spoke up and said that she could fit the carry on in one of her empty bags and since she happened to have the same destination, would simply give it to her after they landed. She then said "after all, this young lady behind me helped me out already, the least I can do is help someone else". Wow. How incredible!

So okay. None of that last part had anything to do with my Sevilla trip... or did it?? I believe it had everything to do with the person that my experience has helped me to be- which leads me to ending this blog by saying this: It is a true statement to say that I have yet to go a single day without thinking about Sevilla, the friendships made, the family that I became apart of, and the eye-opening viajes and endeavors. Most importantly, not a day goes by that I don't think of the way that all of these things combined have helped shape me into the person that I am at this point in my life. I know that there is much more time for growth- and I count my blessings that I have each and every one of my friends from abroad to share them with. It truly is no coincidence that we all met one another and became such great friends. It's so funny to think how different each and every one of is, yet how well we work together as a "team"... the A-team. Without even just one of us, it feels as though the puzzle is not quite complete.

I will forever be thankful for my time abroad. Vale. Venga. Besitos. Ha luego. Adios.

NO8DO

Las Ultimas Semanas:(

Boy, oh boy... what a semester it's been. As usual, I can't exactly express the joy that I have experienced this semester. From the very first day, I fell in love with Sevilla and continued to encounter more things that added to these feelings. Since I last wrote, we had Feria, Portugal trip to the beaches in Lagos, family week, and random shananogans around Sevilla in order to soak up everything as much as possible before the all-dreaded plane ride on May 17th. To try to make things as quick as possible, I will attempt the bullet system again:

Feria:

• Feria is a week long celebration where women often dress up in elaborate flamenco dresses, men often ride horses, fair-like rides are ridden, and there are "casetas" (tents, more or less) where the whole purpose is to eat, drink, dance, and just have fun!

• There was a catch this year, however. We pretty much had a torrential downpour the first half of the week. I mean, when it rains in Sevilla... it POURS! If only I had pictures from the 45 minute walk home at 4am with all of us drenched, attempting to dodge the bullets of stinging rain after a not-so-great Tex-Mex food adventure shortly before... If only we hadn't gone to stupid Tex-Mex...
• During this first part of the week, several of us attempted to go to a bull fight (yes, I know.. I actually bought a ticket to go). HOWEVER, just like all things that week, it got rained-out. I have proof that I actually stepped foot inside of the bull ring though. And actually more than stepped foot inside, sat for almost more than an hour with some angry clouds as they tried to decide whether to have it or now. Turns out they don't really let you know when it's cancelled. People just start becoming irritated, throw their seat cushions into the center of the ring, and head out. Typical Spanish.
• The remainder of the week, as the rain finally stopped, was tons of fun! One of the nights a large group of us went to Feria to enjoy the festivities within a public caseta. It was a lot of fun- but nothing compared to living and doing as the real Spaniards do... Te explico: Elena and I were very fortunate and were able to borrow real flamenco dresses that used to be our host sisters. Although they didn't exactly fit perfectly ( I actually felt kind of foolish rather than sexy- the way you are supposed to feel wearing such a femenine outfit), I was super excited to be able to wear one in general! Elena and I were told which number Caseta and at one point in time the name of the streets within Feria grounds. However, of course all of the streets look and sound the same annnnd there were definitely about 10 number 34 casetas... Elena and I spent about 2 hours roaming the streets looking for this private tent of our family's and fortunately found it! There, we ate things such as cheese, sliced ham (but not the normal American ham I'm sure you're thinking of.. real, fresh cerdo), pimientos, and drank the drink of Feria: Rebujito (Manzanilla and 7up). Oh, I almost forgot. Elena and I ended up dancing with 5 and 8 year olds where THEY tried to teach US how to dance. Wow, maybe I'm a little farther off from being a true Sevillana than I thought...
  

Lagos, Portugal:

• There honestly isn't too much I can say about Lagos, except that the rain hates us and probably more specifically me. I feel that every trip that I go on, or at least the ones where it is vital to have good weather, gets rained on. This weekend was supposed to be filled with the beautiful beaches, laying out, great food, dancing, and things that shall not be mentioned via the internet... only kidding! That would be for many other people's blogs. My adventures are pretty much always PG, so no worries on that one:). Anyway, we made the most of what we had and ended up having an amazing time anyway. We laid out and played some games on the beach in semi-warm weather on the first day on the property of our hotel. Later that night, we ate at one of the most amazing places I've ever been to: the food was INCREDIBLE! For once in MONTHS I was able to eat a real American-style hamburger and then returned again to get coconut shrimp pasta. Deeeeliciosa! We danced the nights away and the party boat that we were supposed to take during the day through the caves of Portugal was cancelled twice due to rain and even hail. By that point, all I wanted to do was head back home to Sevilla- where mom and Robby would soon be awaiting my arrival!!

Family week:

• What a crazy week. I have to say it was one of the most surreal moments of my life, walking into Plaza Nueva, only to see my brother waiting outside calling my name. For the past 3 months before, this had been my turf. My country. My city...Surrounded by practically nothing from the Southern states (afterall, my nick name here is "Y'all"). I came here without anyone from home, so to have that for the first time this far into the semester was almost too good to be true. As happy as I was to seem them, I was even more excited to be able to show them first-hand just how amazing this city is and to be able to share a piece of my new friends with them, as well. We were able to see flamenco shows, drink Spanish wine, eat 2 gigantic meals with my host family, and visit important landmarks like the top of the Cathedral, una finca (bull ranch), and El Museo de Bellas Artes with the Sorolla exhibit, etc.
  
• Oh-- and yes, Robby was apart of BYOB night: Bring Your Own Brother night. I took my slightly-older-of-a-brother down to the rio (river) where we sometimes socialize and take part in what is called a "botellon", which is basically just a mini-fiesta down by the river. Robby liked to point out this is was pretty much a "5 up, 5 down night", where he was about 5 yrs older than the average study abroader and there were 2 other brothers about 5 yrs younger than ourselves. How could I almost forget, my friend Andrew Streaman brought his parents along as well. Quite the fun family night, I suppose!

• Mom, Robby, and myself got to experience a day in Jerez where they are known for their wonderful sherry. So naturally, we went sherry tasting and later got to see a magnificant horse-dancing show. You pretty much had to be there to understand... (P.S. Thanks mom for getting me out of class to do all of that! Straight ballin.)

Well, I believe it's time for me to stop here. I mentioned previously that we had been doing some fun and crazy things around Sevilla as this chapter in our life comes to an end. I believe that I will just have to wait and write about them, along with my final thoughts and feelings, in the up and coming final blog post; so be on the lookout for the city-wide scavenger hunt and the paddle-boat race between distant bridges on the river...

I don't ever want to leave. Me encanta Sevilla.

So I understand that I haven't written in quite some time, this I know. (Actually, it's been over a month now!) Please take that as a good thing, though. I have been having the time of my life over here both in Spain and traveling around some more. So many things have happened that I don't even know where to begin, much less keep it short. However, I will do my best and believe that using bullet points will be the best option:

• For my "spring break" this year, I went to MOROCCO, AFRICA March 14-March 18. Kinda crazy, huh? It was absolutely the best trip of my life... not because it had the most beautiful sights, was the most relaxing, or even had the best food. The trip simply was filled with many "adventures" and excursions that I will never have the opportunity to do again in my lifetime. (You can see below just how close Spain is to Africa and just how far away the Sahara Desert is as well.)

• We spent most of the trip traveling in a bus (more on that later) to cities such as Chefchaoan, Fes, Midelt, Erfound, the Oasis del Chergui and eventually took land cruisers and CAMELS in the Sahara Desert where we got to spend the night then watch the sunrise over the dunes. (Please notice both us and the other group in the background pushing the stuck SUV's.)
  

• We saw things such as one of the king's palaces, a shop filled with handmade carpets, an African performance with singing and a little bit of dancing, both the sunset and the sunrise in the Sahara Desert, and poverty like I've never seen before.

• Did I mention that the bus broke down for 5 whole hours on the second day?? Yeah... good times in the middle of nowhere. Oh! And after finally getting a new bus to come pick us up, we found out later that the new bus didn't have a liscence to go any further south... soo, there was more waiting (where we were able to enjoy 2 "free" rounds of our choice a beverage: hot mint tea, coffee, wine, and/or beer made right there in Fes!-->*Interesting fact: alcohol used to be prohibited in Morocco due to their strict religious rules. However, things have become a bit more modernized and within moderation, of course, certain places allow the consumption of alcohol).

• Despite the unexpected "hiccups" of the trip, I had the experience of a life time. Thank you Mom and Dad for allowing me to go!

Secondly, the rest of the week after returning from Morocco was filled with demasiada gente (too many people) and tons of pasos ("floats" carried by foot) for the week known as "Semana Santa". There's not much to say about it except that it is a week long event leading up to Easter Sunday. Men carry these heavy pasos and often walk bare-footed as a type of sacfrice. There are also many people, called nazarenos, who dress up in these outfits that have a striking resemblence to the... well, I won't even say it. It's quite obvious:




Last weekend I went to Granada with my school. We saw things such as the Alhambra, the Cathedral, and La Capilla Real (where we got to see where Fernando de Aragon y Isabel de Castilla are buried... this was actually one of the coolest parts, for I have learned quite a bit in my Spanish Civilization class about Los Reyes Catolicos.) We had an amazing time!





I can't express how much I am going to miss Spain and specifically Sevilla. Time has flown by and before I know it, it will be time to go. Mom and Robby come in only 1 more week and after they leave... only 3 weeks will be left. As I have said before, I have fallen in love with this place. Moreover, I have fallen in love with my Spanish family, my new friends, and simply the lifestyle here in Sevilla, Spain. It's so crazy to think that people of all different backgrounds, places, interests, etc. can come together half way across the world to find some of the best friendships being made. Many of us have already begun making plans to visit one another at each other's school during the next year- as well as when we will all be moving back here to share an apartment:)

Soon to come: Feria, family, and Portugal. Woo hoo!!