Hello all,

This is officially the first post while IN Spain:) Sevilla to be exact. Sylvia and her roommate, Alex, are both working on homework and such right so I figured I might as well post some pictures.

Yesterday, I managed to get in and settled pretty early in the afternoon so went for a walk around the city. (Don't worry momma, I was armed with my translation book, three maps, water and money for a taxi, and I was back before dark!) The streets here, like all European cities I would assume, have absolutely no rhyme or reason to their mapping so trying to rely on a grid system and sense of direction is basically a joke. (This is also my first time abroad so some of this may appear quite naive but I'm learning quickly ha.) I tried to make my way to the main Cathedral in the city but instead went the exact opposite direction. After about 3 hours, I found every major attraction including the Cathedral, plazas, grocery stores, a thousand and one cafes and three Starbucks - which means free internet! It was probably the best thing for me to wander on my own and get a little lost because I already have a pretty good feel for the city and how its (sort of) mapped out.

For dinner, Sylvia took me to my first, and definitely not the last, tapas bar. First lesson in Spain: Tapas = cheap and delicious food. We both ate about 5 dishes and each had a beer for less than 20 Euro. There is also really no tipping here and was told the place we went was more touristy as well as bit more expensive...?? I love the food here already, never mind that it also fresh, organic, local, and so so yummy. We then just wandered around and Sylvia showed me a few other plazas we will check out while I am here and had a nice walk and chat. I learned that the city is basically composed of plazas and then all the streets in between mostly involving restaurants, tapas, bars, and cafes. Each plaza has something signature or unique about it whether it be cultural or historical. Finally, just slept like a rock. After being a grump all day on the plane, jet lag was not a problem here.

That was a lot of natter I know but ah well.

Today, I slept in gloriously woot! Got up and went for a run, which I am sure is not terribly surprising, is way more enjoyable here by far. I ran through the park that I later went exploring so you will understand why I say so.

The Plaza d'Espagna was completely renovated in 1929 for a world fair showcase. A massive structure was built to showcase Spanish designs and technologies as well as a quite expansive garden and gazebo. Really, the Spanish built and redesigned a section of the city to show off. They did a pretty good job too, it is quite beautiful.

Pretty beautiful right? Its hard to show how big the plaza really is...well the fountain in the centre has a huge cobblestone "track" that surrounds it and the horse drawn carriages love to lap around the front grounds. What? Horse drawn carriages you say? Oh yes, by the dozens. They are really quite gorgeous and I will get a picture at some point but its tricky since I do not want to talk to the drivers. Spanish lesson number two: While looking like a Spaniard prevents all the tourist vendors from talking to you, it only means all the local vendors will approach you and they are VERY persistent.

 What else, oh right the gardens. They were really awesome to wander and had so many little nooks to explore. There would be suddenly a rose garden, or a mini maze, or a playgroud, or a random pond.

 

Then I found my perfect reading spot with a few ducks and ducklings as neighbours.

A pretty tame day all and all, nothing too exciting. Same for tonight. There seems to already be a pattern emerging for the day. Explore during the day, come back and nap - yes that seems old lady like but its a thing here since we don't eat until 8PM at the earliest (Paul you would love it), then walk and wander and completely pass out from exhaustion. Perfect vaca to me!

I'm going to try and keep future posts shorter and with more pictures. Unless of course there is a ridiculous story. Being oblivious and basically mute to the world however does have its benefits at times:)

Miss you all,

S