Gibraltar y Marruecos

My roommate and one of my closest friends at Providence visited me in Seville this past month!  Lea is living in Dublin this semester and studies at Trinity College.  She had a week of for spring break and decided to stay with me for part of the trip.  Lea was able to stay in my home-stay since we have an open bedroom which worked out really well.  We didn’t have to book a hostel and she knew her luggage would be safe during the day when we were exploring the city.  Lea and I always have a great time together and it was so nice to have a little piece of home with me in a place that is so different from New England.

It was a beautiful day when Lea got to Seville so I took her down by the river to soak up some sun and spend the afternoon like a Sevillano.  Later, we met up with Emma, Lea’s friend from high school, and walked around the center.  We made a mandatory stop for Coolattas since there are no Dunkins in Dublin and Lea needed her fix.  While I showed Lea the different areas of the city I felt proud that I knew where everything was and didn’t need a map.  I realized how much I’ve learned about Seville after being here for only three months!  I had fun ordering meals and talking to the cab drivers in Spanish to show Lea how much I have improved since being here.  I think she was impressed.

Since Lea stayed with me for a week, we decided that we would take a weekend trip together to Morocco.  Since we also wanted to visit Gibraltar, a small small country just south of Spain, Lea and I decided to make one combined trip to both countries.  Unfortunately Emma had class on Friday morning so she decided to meet up with us for the Ferry to Morocco on Friday afternoon and skip Gibraltar.

Lea and I were very surprised when we arrived in Gibraltar, technically a British territory, and everyone was speaking English!  We were not expecting it at all.  Upon our arrival, we started to ask in Spanish where to find a taxi to get to our hostel when the guard stopped us and said he only spoke English!  We were amazed that even though we were only a few hundred meters from Spain, Spanish was not an option.  However, being able to communicate in English did make finding our hostel a lot easier.

We stayed in a very basic hostel with no bells and whistles, but it was just what we needed and nothing more.  When we got to our room, we both were very tired and since we wanted to start our day off early, we decided to go straight to bed.  Leaving our hostel was really not an option since neither of us had been to Gibraltar before and we hadn’t had a chance to explore before it got dark.

We got up bright and early so that we would have enough time to see everything before we had to catch the bus to meet up at the Ferry Port.  The Rock of Gibraltar is the main attraction of the country because it is so big.  The ownership of the country has changed many times throughout history since its location and its topography provide desirable defenses.  The country has a lot of historical landmarks from World War II but Lea and I (who are not necessarily big war-history buffs, and considering we only had one morning) were more concerned with visiting the top of the rock and its natural inhabitants: the Barbary Macaques.  The Macaques are wild monkeys that live at the top of the rock and socialize daily with the tourists who come to visit.  Since we were in Gibraltar, there was no way we were going to miss this opportunity.

First thing in the morning, we took the tram up to the top of the rock.  We had breakfast at a restaurant that overlooked the city and enjoyed the site.  After taking a few pictures, we decided to go find the monkeys.  We had been warned many times that the monkeys liked to steal food from people so we didn’t take anything with us.  We were also careful to make sure our sunglasses were in our purses because we were told that anything loose was up for grabs.  We asked one of the guards for directions to their den, which he said was a little bit of a walk, on the other side of the restaurant.  We started down the stairs, thinking it would be a while before we saw our first monkey.  The next series of events are so absurd, I cannot believe it happened.

I was walking down the set of stairs when all of a sudden three monkeys appear out of the middle of nowhere.  Lea and I were very surprised but excited also.  Before I know it, one of the monkeys is crawling up my leg towards my plastic bag.  He rips it open and all of its contents fall to the floor.  Before I can comprehend what is going on, the monkey is running off with my new box of tampons I had bought that morning.  Completely in shock, I spin around to watch as he runs off, out of our reach.  Lea and I watch, not sure whether to laugh or yell for help, as he rips open the cardboard box, takes out a tampon, and tries to eat it.  We could not believe what was happening!  When the monkey realized he hadn’t stolen any food, he tossed the box back over towards us and it was redeemed by one of the guards and returned to me.  Apparently, this kind of thing happens more than one would expect because the monkeys frequently mistake tampon wrappers for candies.  Who would have thought?!

After getting over the initial shock and fear, we gained the courage to go find the rest of the monkeys.  It turns out the majority of them were friendly and liked to play.  As long as we were not overbearing and respected their space, they also respect us and ours.  We probably spent more time playing with the monkey than most tourists but we thought they were so cute, we couldn’t help ourselves!

By the time we finished taking our pictures and playing with our new friends, it was time to meet up with Emma at the Ferry.

Morocco has been on my list of cities to see while I’m in Spain and I was so happy to not only finally be going, but going with two very fun girls.  We traveled with a program called We Love Spain, who provided us with food, housing, and guided tours of three cities: Tetuan, Tangier, and Chaouen.  I would recommend traveling to Morocco with a guide because if we had gone alone we would not have known where to eat or sleep since all of the signs were written in Arabic and not many people spoke English.

It was a packed weekend, fitting three cities into basically two full days, but well worth it.  We started Saturday off with a guided tour through Tetuan to see the Royal Palace in Hassan II, the main square, and to see the Medina, or walled city.  We explored the traditional Moroccan markets inside the Medina and saw a culture very different from anything I have been exposed to before.  The Medina was completely enclosed and almost seemed crowed compared to the openness of Holliston (my hometown in Massachusetts).  Inside the walls, there are no farms or yards, only small alley ways to get from one building to the next.  The alleys were crowded with vendors selling all sorts of things from food to shower heads to leather purses.  Every vendor surprised me with what he had to offer.

Half way through our tour we were taken to a traditional Moroccan medicine shop.  We were given an introduction on a lot of popular products (including cream to help clear acne and a liquid to cure hangovers!) and then given the opportunity to explore the store and make purchases.  We also could get a back massage for only 3 euro.  Of course we all wanted one!

For lunch we ate cous cous and typical Moroccan salad at a traditional Moroccan restaurant.  During our meal a Moroccan band played music along with various Moroccan performers who were very talented.

After lunch we left Tetuan and headed to Tangier.  On our way we stopped at the Hercules Grotto, a famous caved that fills with ocean water during high tide.  According to the myth, it is where Hercules rested after digging the Strait of Gibraltar.

A few miles down the road from the Hercules Grotto, we stopped for a camel ride that all three of us had been excited for all weekend.  When we got off the bus, we were disappointed to hear that the ride would only be about five minutes long.  We were dropped off in a parking lot by the ocean where the camels were waiting for us.  I was very disappointed and upset to see how the camels were being treated.  Each camel was tied to the ground, unable to move, and clearly felt constrained.  I could tell by their cries that they did not want to be there.  It was very sad to see two baby camels, only two and a half weeks old, leashed to the ground away from their mother, unable to reach her.  To me, it was very upsetting to see the camels being treated so poorly and I wanted to help them.  Unfortunately, there was not much I could do apart from petting them and being kind.

We ended our bus tour at Cape Spartel, where the Mediterranean Sea meets the Atlantic Ocean.  It was a beautiful landscape.

On Sunday, we spent the day exploring the beautifully blue Medina of Chaouen, a quaint town hidden inside the Rif Mountains.  The streets of the city were beautiful, lined with painted blue walls and doors.  We were given a presentation about traditional Moroccan wool rugs and silk scarves, which was very interesting, but we spent most of the day exploring and shopping in the markets.

After spending four days away from home, I was excited to get back to Seville and catch up on my sleep.  Lea stayed with me until Tuesday and I was able to show her more of the city that we hadn’t explored yet.  We had a great time together and I loved having a piece of the U.S. with me in Seville.  Lea’s visit has made me very excited to see my parents when they visit me in April.

Jerez de la Frontera

Two weeks ago, a few friends and I traveled to Jerez, a city outside of Seville known because it is the birthplace of Sherry wine.  We had a long weekend because of Dia de Andalusia (a federal holiday) and decided to get out of the city for the day.  Jerez, whose name was once pronounced the same way as the wine it is famous for, was only a short train ride away.  The train station is across the street from me so I was able to roll right out of bed in the morning and make it to the train on time.  Unfortunately for my friends that lived on the other side of the river, in Los Remedios (a barrio, or neighborhood in Seville that translates to “The Remedies”), the walk was about a half an hour.

There were six of us that went to Jerez together.  Initially, we were going to leave in the late morning but when Leah (a friend from my program) and I heard that there was an espectáculo de caballo (“horse show”) decided to leave earlier to see the show, and I am so happy that we did.  The show was much longer and a lot more exciting than the show we had seen in Córdoba.  The horses knew more tricks in Jerez and there was even a number with horse-drawn carriages that reminded me of Cinderella!  The horses attend the Real Escuela Andaluza del Arte Ecuestre (“Andalusian Royal School of Equestrian Art”), a beautiful Equestrian School located outside the city center.  Unfortunately we couldn’t use cameras during the show, but afterwards I was able to take pictures of the campus.

After the show, Leah and I decided we had enough time to tour a Bodega before meeting up with the rest of our group.  Bodega is simply the Spanish term for a winery or wine cellar and there are tons in Jerez.  The largest Bodegas run tours everyday to show how the world famous sherrys are made and stored.  While we were in Jerez, it was on the top of our list to go on at least one tour.

The Equestrian School just happened to be right across from the Sandeman Bodega and when we walked in we were just in time for a tour!  We learned a lot about the history of Sandeman sherry, a brand I had never heard of before.  Interestingly, Sandeman was the first brand of sherry to actually mark the barrels with a specific brand.  The idea caught on, and now almost all sherrys and, likewise wines, are labeled by their makers.

On our tour we learned a lot about the differences between dry and sweet sherrys, and how they ferment differently and for different lengths of time so that they can acquire just the right tastes.  At the end of the tour, we were able to try three of Sandeman’s most popular Sherry’s.  My favorite was the sweetest; although the taste was so rich I could only take small sips at a time.

In the afternoon, we wanted to explore the Alcazar.  When we arrived, we were pleasantly surprised to find out that a festival was going on for Dia de Andalusia and cheese and chorizo (a type of Spanish sausage) companies had come from all over the region to sell their products.  Booths were set up inside the Alcazar and there were free samples everywhere!  We quickly called the rest of our friends and let them know about our encounter so that they could meet up with us.  There was more cheese and meat and olives and pastries than you could imagine.

"Acetunas" (olives)

Yes, this pastry did taste as good as it looks!

We all ate more than our fair share of everything; especially because each booth wanted to make sure we American girls tried every type of cheese and every type of meat since we will not be in Spain for long.  It surprised me how many different kinds of cheese there are!  We tried everything from soft goat cheese to cheese made with Rosemary!  They were all delicious and by the end of the afternoon, we were full.

We left the Alcazar just in time to watch a beautiful sunset before we needed to catch our train.  Overall, I spent an amazing day with amazing company that was well worth it.

Carmona y Italica

My study abroad program does a great job of providing us with a surplus of opportunities to learn more about Seville.  Since the study center classes end on Thursday every week, a trip is planned every Friday to a part of Seville (in or outside of the city center).  The trips are 100% free!  On my first excursion, I went to Carmona, a small town just north of Seville.

A statue from the "Elephant Tomb"

Carmona was an important city during the Roman rule of Julius Caesar because of its location.  It served as a defense and the protector of Seville.  When the Romans lost Carmona, it was not long until they lost Seville as well.  Part of the Roman city is still standing and with our tour we were able walk down and explore the ruins.  A lot of what were explored was the underground tombs of the Roman Necropolis.  We also saw the old Roman Amphitheatre which was discovered along with the underground tombs in 1881.  After we explored the ruins outside, we were able to go into the museum and learn more about the artifacts that were discovered with the discovery of the chambers.

After we explored the ruins we took a walk through the old Moorish walled city.  We climbed up to the top of one of the fortresses and had a great view of the Iglesia de San Pedro, Carmona’s most famous church.

Carmona is a great city for exploring.  We spent the rest of the afternoon walking through the city and enjoying the views.

On my second Friday excursion with CIEE, we went to Italica, another small town north of Seville.  Italica houses one of most prevailing archeological site of Roman ruins in all of Andalusia.  There are remains from Royal Palaces that are still in great shape.  Most of the floors are designed with mosaics.  Here is one of the “salas” (rooms) with a tile floor depicted the seven gods who are represented in the seven days of the week:

We learned a lot about the Roman emperors and the politics of the Empire because our tour guide was very knowledgeable.  He taught me a lot I had never learned about the history of Rome.  For example, I never knew that instead of building new statues of a new emperor, the head of the old emperor would be chopped off of the statues and replaced with a sculpture of the new one! 

After we explored the palaces, we took a walk down to the ancient amphitheatre.  Although we were told that the amphitheatre was once four stories high and it’s now only two, it was incredible how much of the structure was still standing. 

I am lucky to be a part of a program that plans such great activities every week for no cost and I am happy that I chose to study abroad with CIEE.