This past week and a half has been pretty busy for me and has made me realize more reasons why I love Spain! Me encanta Espana! I'll start with last Wednesday, when I went to a wine tasting session hosted by a local wine shop and IES after classes. It was very cool, actually, and I learned things like how to differentiate between good and bad wines and old and young. Things such as the "Brightness" and "shininess (sp.)" of the wine, and how clear it is, and also the different color hints when the glass is tilted all determine quality. You can tell the age by the consistency of the wine and its darkness (with a red wine). To determine the consistency you have to swirl the wine in the glass and watch the liquid drip down the side back into the remainder of the glass (I would have never thought of this myself!) I was able to try a cava (champagne, but made especially in Catalonia), a very delicious white wine, and two red wines, one older than the other. The teacher had us smell each wine before tasting, then swirl and smell for a stronger scent, and finally to taste and then notice whether the smell was similar to the taste. The white wine smelled like peaches and tasted really really good! Even the red wines were surprisingly good, and the older wine actually tasted kind of like wood, a sort of juniper. All in all, it was a really good experience and I was able to try quality spanish wines!
After the wine tasting, I went with Megan to a rugby game that our mutual friend Eloi invited us to. They were playing the French Navy (apparently they play all sorts of teams from different countries to get practice since there are few teams in Barcelona). We had a great time, and the field was down by the beaches, although it was night so we didn't get to enjoy any view. The game was hard to keep up with without someone who could explain what was happening as it went on, but we occupied ourselves by talking to some guys who were from the navy and knew some spanish and some english but mostly French. They were fun, but we were secretly glad when the game was over and Eloi called us down to say hi. He immediately introduced us to Carlos, a guy who was a player but coaching as well, and said we should stay with him while everyone showered, and then afterward the two teams would get together to eat and "celebrate" the game, ha ha. So, we went into the sports complex, to this large room that was their "club" and had all their awards, photos, and gifts from teams they had played. It was pretty cool and they laid out food and drinks, and well, Megan and I were one of the few people there NOT boys and NOT on a team, ha ha. There were a few girls with the French team, but we felt pretty special! As you can imagine, in a room full of 50 rugby players and us being one of 4 girls total, we were very content :D. We had a great time and ended up hitting it off with a few players (Mom knows the result of this, ha ha).
My next adventure didn't start until Friday. On Friday and Saturday my days were filled with fun..Oceanography field trips! yay! (not really). They would have been ok, but with the travel time and just general waste of time, I was glad to be done on Saturday night. However, on Friday I went with the classes to Palamos in the Costa Brava region, an hour and a half or so from Barcelona to see a fishing museum, a harbor, some nets, and a fish auction and market. The auction was the coolest part because I had no idea the fishermen sold ALL of their catch through an auction to keep the prices fair and let everyone know total catches. Basically to keep the fishermen honest. We left town at 1:30pm and returned a little after 7pm. Saturday was a MUCH longer day. I left Barcelona at 8:30 (well it was really 8:50 because IES never does anything on time!) and did not return until 8:30 at night. We traveled to the Ebro Delta to see a museum and various parts of the delta, including lagoons, rice fields, bays, and the beach front, and then a secluded beach with a Posidonia Oceanica seagrass meadow nearby. It had potential to be really interesting but I felt as though we spent most of the day in the bus traveling from place to place :(. However, I did see wild flamingos...LOTS of them and they were fairly close and really, really cool! That was the most fun part of my day. After I got back and ran to dinner ( I was starving. But then again, I am always starving by the time I get to have dinner!), I got ready to go out for the night, because a lot of us on the hall had tickets to a club that night to see an artist, "girltalk", perform, if that is what you can call it. He mixes music, all he had to do was technically push play on his computers, and he's not really a DJ either..I don't know what he is, really, but his music was pretty cool. The club, Razmatazz, was crazy and Megan and I didn't let each other out of our sights all night for fear of getting lost in the mass crowds of people. Our friends, well, they disappeared fairly quickly, though we ran into them randomly throughout the night. The club itself was really neat, with 3 floors, and different rooms of different sizes that played types of music like pop, house, alternative, rock, etc., plus the main dance floor where Girltalk was performing. Oh, and Megan had rented a scooter that day so we scooted there and back, saving the hassle of the metro! We got lost on the way to the club and had fun finding our way using bus-route maps at the bus stops, and finally found the club in the end.
Sunday was low-key, with only homework, gotta have a rest day!
Monday, well, I went out on my first date in Spain, with Isaac, who I had met at the rugby game last Wednesday. I had a great time, and although we struggle with communication a little bit, he knows a good amount of English, that with my Spanish, we get along just fine! Es Perfecto. I'll leave it at that :) Oh, and he's still around, in case you are wondering :):)
Tuesday I went to another rugby match, a double-header with UPC vs Harvard. Tara and Megan came with and we had a good time since it was an afternoon game and sunny and nice. The UPC boys ended up losing but fought hard. They were just too tired the second game, when Harvard had put out fresh players and they had none because a lot of guys were in classes. I said hi to Isaac afterward and chatted for a bit before I, too, had to go to class.
Oh, and I have heard that a spoonful of sugar in the milk here makes it taste better, so I am going to try it and see what happens!
Saturday, March 28, 2009
Friday, March 20, 2009
Life is good in Barcelona!
Within the past week I have had a lot of fun experiences, it seems like! Megan's sister was here from last Thursday until Wednesday and I did a few things with her and Megan. On Friday after class, we met up with Steph (her sis) and decided to go to Montjuic. Montjuic is a hill on the south side of Barcelona with a large Catalonian art museum (MNAC), botanical garden, Poble Espanol(a place which imitates the many regions, traditions, and trades in Spain), the Olympic Stadium from 1992, and other things..We walked up the main sidewalk up to the MNAC museum, past lots of fountains that were going to be part of a light and music show later that evening. It was a long walk, but the view back the way we came was beautiful, looking onto Plaza Espanol. We walked toward Poble Espanol and on the way, Megan looked over into the bushes and saw a naked man!! She turned to me and asked if he was really naked, and I confirmed it! So we walked by nonchalantly (although Megan kept looking back over as we passed, curious girlie...she told us details afterward haha) and oh, did we laugh! We got to Poble Espanol around 6:30 or so, and decided to go in although the shops were closed. We did walk into some shops that happened to still be open and the dresses/paintings and other artsy things were so neat! The mini town/country was great in general, especially since it was sunset and the buildings were very pretty. We started hurrying at the end in order to go to the fountain show at 8pm. We got there in time to find a seat on some steps in front of the large fountain. The show was wonderful!! The music was classical, although I'm told there is also a pop music show, and the colors and water coordinated really well with the music. I didn't have my camera that night but I plan on going back to see it again, this time with a camera. Afterward we decided to go to a restaurant for dinner, and headed to Benedictus, the small tapas bar where the R.A. took my hall on our first weekend here in Spain. We had many problems ordering with the waiter and he probably tells stories about the dumb americans who came to the restaurant that night lol! We accidentally ordered calamari without meaning to and then wanted to order tortilla espanola but it was out...However, the food that we got was great and we had a good time. By the end of the night the we had reconciled with the waiter, in part because of Megan's spanish skills, saying we were "tonto" ha ha.
On Saturday morning, Tara, Megan, Steph, and I went on a scooter tour! Tara and I were late but not too late to the place, and we got started about 11:15. I rode behind the tour guide because I did not want my first time riding a scooter to be in a city of 3m people. The guide was super cute, too :). Tara rode behind Megan because after testing out the scooter she didn't feel confident enough to drive one herself. On the tour we went down the coastline to Port Olympia, an area revamped for the Olympics with many beaches and clubs and shops. We then drove on to the Sagrada Familia, after driving past a beautiful decorative bull-fighting ring. Next we drove to an apartment designed by Gaudi, the Pedrera (It was neat but I'm not all that interested in Gaudi's work. It's just an apartment!). Here we switched bikes..turns out the guide's 50cc bike couldn't handle 2 people that well so we got on the 125cc one instead lol. We drove to Montjuic next and stopped at MNAC for a break, then we went to the Olympic Stadium, and then down the mountain for a ride once more along the coast before the tour was over. It was so much fun! The ride down the mountain was beautiful, with land on one side and sea on the other, and riding in the city was exciting. I managed to smack helmets with Robert, the guide, many times when he stopped quickly and I wasn't paying attention or holding on tightly enough. I also learned more about things to do and see in the city from talking with Robert while riding around. I got the more "personal" tour ha ha. I might have developed a slight crush on him as well, but maybe that was just an effect of the motobike driving and cute smile...And the fact that he plans on going to India to study yoga(but plans on coming back to Barca because his mother would miss him if he moved to India), which is completely random but so cool! After the tour, Tara, Meg, and I went back to the dorm to eat lunch around 2:45pm and then Megan met back up with her sis while Tara and I went to the beach. We stayed until 6ish (when the sun went behind the buildings and it got CHILLY) but had a great time. I brought homework, which I didn't do, and a book, which I read, and a stolen airplane blanket to lie on. Taleah, after many phone calls and confusing directions, found us and chilled as well. We then went back to the dorm, napped, ate dinner, and went out. We ended up meeting some mutual friends at Pippermint's, a nearby bar (for us that live in the dorm, only 2 blocks away!), and then went on to Elephante, a club/lounge that was also nearby. So many places are close to where I live, which really saves on taxi fares and things when the metro is closed in the middle of the night, because we can just walk home, especially now when it's not freezing outside.
Sunday was a very lazy day, Tara and I went to the beach again and met up with Caitlin, a good friend of mine in IES. We only stayed for an hour and then met Megan and her sister near the Catedral. We walked and found a Gofres shop, which are delicious sweet waffles with icecream and chocolate drizzled all over them. YUM! We ate those, and then split again, with Caitlin and I going to see a church, the Santa Maria Del Mar. The church was amazingly beautiful, with tall ceilings and columns. Even though the walls were bare, it was surprisingly pretty that way, with only soft lights and some priest speaking Spanish up front. Afterward I went home and at some point that night managed to do my homework.
Monday I went out, yet again, for Caitlin's 21st birthday. Megan and I met her at a Mexican restaurant for dinner, where we tried Cava, the catalonian version of Champagne. It was good but not too special. We then traveled across town after some debate, to go to Pippermint's again, and then when her and her roommates were sufficiently drunk, we went to Broadbar, a club not too far away. It was a lot of fun! Megan's sister came with and so we got to show her a bit of the night life as well.
On Saturday morning, Tara, Megan, Steph, and I went on a scooter tour! Tara and I were late but not too late to the place, and we got started about 11:15. I rode behind the tour guide because I did not want my first time riding a scooter to be in a city of 3m people. The guide was super cute, too :). Tara rode behind Megan because after testing out the scooter she didn't feel confident enough to drive one herself. On the tour we went down the coastline to Port Olympia, an area revamped for the Olympics with many beaches and clubs and shops. We then drove on to the Sagrada Familia, after driving past a beautiful decorative bull-fighting ring. Next we drove to an apartment designed by Gaudi, the Pedrera (It was neat but I'm not all that interested in Gaudi's work. It's just an apartment!). Here we switched bikes..turns out the guide's 50cc bike couldn't handle 2 people that well so we got on the 125cc one instead lol. We drove to Montjuic next and stopped at MNAC for a break, then we went to the Olympic Stadium, and then down the mountain for a ride once more along the coast before the tour was over. It was so much fun! The ride down the mountain was beautiful, with land on one side and sea on the other, and riding in the city was exciting. I managed to smack helmets with Robert, the guide, many times when he stopped quickly and I wasn't paying attention or holding on tightly enough. I also learned more about things to do and see in the city from talking with Robert while riding around. I got the more "personal" tour ha ha. I might have developed a slight crush on him as well, but maybe that was just an effect of the motobike driving and cute smile...And the fact that he plans on going to India to study yoga(but plans on coming back to Barca because his mother would miss him if he moved to India), which is completely random but so cool! After the tour, Tara, Meg, and I went back to the dorm to eat lunch around 2:45pm and then Megan met back up with her sis while Tara and I went to the beach. We stayed until 6ish (when the sun went behind the buildings and it got CHILLY) but had a great time. I brought homework, which I didn't do, and a book, which I read, and a stolen airplane blanket to lie on. Taleah, after many phone calls and confusing directions, found us and chilled as well. We then went back to the dorm, napped, ate dinner, and went out. We ended up meeting some mutual friends at Pippermint's, a nearby bar (for us that live in the dorm, only 2 blocks away!), and then went on to Elephante, a club/lounge that was also nearby. So many places are close to where I live, which really saves on taxi fares and things when the metro is closed in the middle of the night, because we can just walk home, especially now when it's not freezing outside.
Sunday was a very lazy day, Tara and I went to the beach again and met up with Caitlin, a good friend of mine in IES. We only stayed for an hour and then met Megan and her sister near the Catedral. We walked and found a Gofres shop, which are delicious sweet waffles with icecream and chocolate drizzled all over them. YUM! We ate those, and then split again, with Caitlin and I going to see a church, the Santa Maria Del Mar. The church was amazingly beautiful, with tall ceilings and columns. Even though the walls were bare, it was surprisingly pretty that way, with only soft lights and some priest speaking Spanish up front. Afterward I went home and at some point that night managed to do my homework.
Monday I went out, yet again, for Caitlin's 21st birthday. Megan and I met her at a Mexican restaurant for dinner, where we tried Cava, the catalonian version of Champagne. It was good but not too special. We then traveled across town after some debate, to go to Pippermint's again, and then when her and her roommates were sufficiently drunk, we went to Broadbar, a club not too far away. It was a lot of fun! Megan's sister came with and so we got to show her a bit of the night life as well.
Friday, March 13, 2009
The top of the hill
Oh, and I realized today that the semester is officially more than halfway over! This is exciting because school is blah, but bittersweet since it's all downhill from here and I'll be back in the U.S. before I know it. I'm going to enjoy every bit of the next 8 weeks!
Random thoughts and events
I have a lot of small things I write down on post-its and that never seem to make it to the blog; these are some of those random things.
I have started learning Catalan! I never thought I would be learning another language other than Spanish when I came here to study, but that is just one more advantage of Barcelona. I haven't learned much, just random phrases and the words posted all over Barcelona, but most things in Barcelona are primarily in Catalan, and in Spanish secondly. So, the metro, bus, signs and stores, everything in the dorm, it is all in Catalan. One evening a few weeks ago, Megan and I also went to a dorm meeting about a trip being organized to Granada. After the meeting, Xavi decided (with some of our help) to teach us some Catalan phrases, as well as more Spanish. It is so interesting!
To do with that, last night I went to a speaker at the University de Barcelona, near the hospital, where the medical program is. I met up with Monica, a girl from across the hall. She had told me at lunch that the speech was about refugees and had to do with Doctors without Borders, and could very well be in English. It sounded interesting, so I went. Well, it turns out that the speaker was actually 3 speakers, a lawyer, a doctor, and an architect. The lawyer spoke in Catalan about the process of applying and living in Asylum in Spain when a refugee, the doctor was from Medicos sin Fronteras and spoke in Spanish, and the architect spoke in Catalan about refugee camps. It was challenging, but with the help of the powerpoints and Monica translating some things for me on paper, I understood a good part of the presentations, catalan and espanol! I found it very interesting, but was languaged out by the end of all the questions. By the way, the spanish LOVE asking questions; they used 45 minutes or more for them, whereas at presentations at WJC, questions have to be pried from the students. The guy/girl ratio was about the same in the medical program there as it is at Jewell as well (lack of guys). Monica also said in engineering it is the exact opposite, which is also similar in the U.S.
On the way home from France, while on a bus back from the airport to Plaza Catalunya, I realized that I have become truly comfortable in Barcelona. I felt at home surrounded by Spanish people and language, compared to the relative foreignness of French language and custom. I was so relieved to be back in the city after traveling, and it was a new feeling I hadn't noticed before. This doesn't mean I am settling down for good, but it is nice to not feel out of place and to have a home, while I am away from HOME. I also almost lost my nalgene bottle on the ride home and was really sad, until I found it behind me. I've been through a lot with that bottle, climbed mountains and into alpine lakes and seen bears and buffalo, and would have been sad to lose it!
Public bathrooms in other countries are not truly public because you have to PAY to use them! It ranges from 20-80 cents as far as I've seen, but is totally unfair! Why should I have to pay in order to perform a bodily function that has to happen?? Ridiculous. I can't wait to be back in the US where I can use the bathroom anywhere without worries of payment or dirty looks from the shopkeepers.
Megan and I have officially decided we are lazy and have to start leaving our rooms more often and exploring. Our excuse is that it's been cold, but we haven't explored too much of the city. And even though most days it has been nice in the middle of the day, I've only been to the beach one time in Barcelona so far. I need to fix that problem!
Parks in Barcelona compared to parks I am used to at home are very different. Here the parks are more walking paths with beds of flowers, bushes, trees etc. I am comparing this to at home where parks include tons of fields of grass, and areas you can walk in with just trees and grass. Plots of grass are very hard to find in the city, and if there are some, there are usually signs that say no walking on the grass. So different!
Like Megan did on her blog, I created a list of things I miss/crave from home...
Milk(of course)
Country music on the radio
A sky full of stars ( I saw two last night and was excited)
Mom's fajitas
family meals (the kind we have at birthday parties and Sunday meals, with mashed potatoes, green beans, rolls, chicken, scalloped p., pie, you know...)
My room
Brownies
My car! (I'm having car withdrawals, and I hate public transportation. I want to go where I want, WHEN I want)
The country in general(Being in the city is neat for a new experience, but in general, I don't like it)
Morel shrooms...(I hope to pull some out of the freezer when I get home..hint hint)
to be continued.
I love and miss you all from home! Send me emails and comments, pretty please!
I have started learning Catalan! I never thought I would be learning another language other than Spanish when I came here to study, but that is just one more advantage of Barcelona. I haven't learned much, just random phrases and the words posted all over Barcelona, but most things in Barcelona are primarily in Catalan, and in Spanish secondly. So, the metro, bus, signs and stores, everything in the dorm, it is all in Catalan. One evening a few weeks ago, Megan and I also went to a dorm meeting about a trip being organized to Granada. After the meeting, Xavi decided (with some of our help) to teach us some Catalan phrases, as well as more Spanish. It is so interesting!
To do with that, last night I went to a speaker at the University de Barcelona, near the hospital, where the medical program is. I met up with Monica, a girl from across the hall. She had told me at lunch that the speech was about refugees and had to do with Doctors without Borders, and could very well be in English. It sounded interesting, so I went. Well, it turns out that the speaker was actually 3 speakers, a lawyer, a doctor, and an architect. The lawyer spoke in Catalan about the process of applying and living in Asylum in Spain when a refugee, the doctor was from Medicos sin Fronteras and spoke in Spanish, and the architect spoke in Catalan about refugee camps. It was challenging, but with the help of the powerpoints and Monica translating some things for me on paper, I understood a good part of the presentations, catalan and espanol! I found it very interesting, but was languaged out by the end of all the questions. By the way, the spanish LOVE asking questions; they used 45 minutes or more for them, whereas at presentations at WJC, questions have to be pried from the students. The guy/girl ratio was about the same in the medical program there as it is at Jewell as well (lack of guys). Monica also said in engineering it is the exact opposite, which is also similar in the U.S.
On the way home from France, while on a bus back from the airport to Plaza Catalunya, I realized that I have become truly comfortable in Barcelona. I felt at home surrounded by Spanish people and language, compared to the relative foreignness of French language and custom. I was so relieved to be back in the city after traveling, and it was a new feeling I hadn't noticed before. This doesn't mean I am settling down for good, but it is nice to not feel out of place and to have a home, while I am away from HOME. I also almost lost my nalgene bottle on the ride home and was really sad, until I found it behind me. I've been through a lot with that bottle, climbed mountains and into alpine lakes and seen bears and buffalo, and would have been sad to lose it!
Public bathrooms in other countries are not truly public because you have to PAY to use them! It ranges from 20-80 cents as far as I've seen, but is totally unfair! Why should I have to pay in order to perform a bodily function that has to happen?? Ridiculous. I can't wait to be back in the US where I can use the bathroom anywhere without worries of payment or dirty looks from the shopkeepers.
Megan and I have officially decided we are lazy and have to start leaving our rooms more often and exploring. Our excuse is that it's been cold, but we haven't explored too much of the city. And even though most days it has been nice in the middle of the day, I've only been to the beach one time in Barcelona so far. I need to fix that problem!
Parks in Barcelona compared to parks I am used to at home are very different. Here the parks are more walking paths with beds of flowers, bushes, trees etc. I am comparing this to at home where parks include tons of fields of grass, and areas you can walk in with just trees and grass. Plots of grass are very hard to find in the city, and if there are some, there are usually signs that say no walking on the grass. So different!
Like Megan did on her blog, I created a list of things I miss/crave from home...
Milk(of course)
Country music on the radio
A sky full of stars ( I saw two last night and was excited)
Mom's fajitas
family meals (the kind we have at birthday parties and Sunday meals, with mashed potatoes, green beans, rolls, chicken, scalloped p., pie, you know...)
My room
Brownies
My car! (I'm having car withdrawals, and I hate public transportation. I want to go where I want, WHEN I want)
The country in general(Being in the city is neat for a new experience, but in general, I don't like it)
Morel shrooms...(I hope to pull some out of the freezer when I get home..hint hint)
to be continued.
I love and miss you all from home! Send me emails and comments, pretty please!
More about the best/worst trip
So, the Castle de Javier was beautiful on the one hand, and super touristy on the other. Just about the whole bus had to go to the restroom once we stopped, and then most of us also bought some roasted almonds on the road leading up to the castle since there were many snack booths. The almonds were ok, but nowhere near as good as roasted almonds at Good Ol Days! On the bus ride to the Castle, the tour guide had explained all about Francisco de Javier and his life and works, and how the castle was built to defend the valley of the river Aragon in the 10th century. It was only finished as a true castle in the 14th century. Javier was born in the castle in 1506 and is the patron of Navarre and Catholic missions. The castle itself is beautiful in construction and the surrounding countryside only adds to the beauty. However, inside, there are too many additions of walkways, roped off paths, etc that make it so touristy. The castle also held a large collection of paintings of Javier's life. We took a tour of most of the castle. The last bit I saw before leaving the castle was the Tower of Saint Christ, where a crucifix from the 13th century hung in a room of frescos representing the dance of death. Jesus is smiling on the crucifix, indicating his triumph over death even as the dance of death continues around him. This crucifix was the very opposite of the German version in Puente la Reina. Megan and I also explored the dungeon before leaving the castle to head back to Pamplona! On the way I napped, and then did some homework before dinner. Dinner was better than the night before, with salad, baked chicken, french fries, weird flan, and yummy scrambled eggs. I went out with Megan, Tara, and a group of others I met on the trip, had a lot of fun, and of course stayed out far too late for having to be up at 7:30am. I stole food from breakfast again for a lunch, and in a bit we all left for the tour of Pamplona (once all hung-over people had been dragged from their beds...). The tour was really interesting and I learned all about the Festival of Enfermines (Running of the Bulls, among other things). Only 25 people have died since the festival started! But...over 200 get injured every year, though the guide says they're the stupid, drunk ones who have know idea what they're doing. At one point, Megan and I ducked into a shop because I wanted to get a postcard. Well, not only were there no postcards, the shopkeeper and her son were SO slow that when i finally bought a shot glass for Zach, they took way to long and Megan and I couldn't find our group when we came back outside. We ran down the road and found other groups and walked along till we got to the bull ring, where our group was also. We learned how to lead a bull through with the cape and many other things. On the way back to the hotel, we learned about Ernest Hemingway, who made the Pamplona area popular with his books and had a lot to do with some areas of the town. Then, it was time to go home..I napped a good amount of the way home, though I heard that I missed a really good Spanish movie. After I got home (just in time for dinner!) Megan and I watched a movie and then went to sleep; we were exhausted.
Sunday was another day of relaxation, the last day of study week. I should have gone outside and enjoyed the day, but I wanted to be lazy and nap and read instead, so I did!
The rest of this week has been uneventful. The days have gone from chilly and cloudy one day to sunny and 65 the next. Today it's back to sunny and 65 again! I had a really fun night dancing with Megan, Britney, and some of Britney's friends on Wednesday, and yesterday Megan's sister Stephanie arrived. I'll have a lot of fun exploring the city with Megan and her sister in the next week!
Sunday was another day of relaxation, the last day of study week. I should have gone outside and enjoyed the day, but I wanted to be lazy and nap and read instead, so I did!
The rest of this week has been uneventful. The days have gone from chilly and cloudy one day to sunny and 65 the next. Today it's back to sunny and 65 again! I had a really fun night dancing with Megan, Britney, and some of Britney's friends on Wednesday, and yesterday Megan's sister Stephanie arrived. I'll have a lot of fun exploring the city with Megan and her sister in the next week!
Sunday, March 8, 2009
The best (and worst) 3 day trip sponsored by IES
Well, do you miss me yet?? Haha. My “study week” has turned into lots of traveling, as I left for Navarra on Thursday morning, after only being back from Paris on Monday night! Navarra is in the central, northern region of Spain, a place termed Vasco (pronounced Basque) country. The trip was sponsored and run by IES and they called it “The Journey”…. It went along with our day trip to Besalu and Vic during orientation week, as far as medieval history of Spain. IES wanted us to discover more about Spain as we also discovered more about ourselves. Neato, right? My bus left on Thursday morning at 9:30am. By 9:30 I actually mean 9:50am, because one of the girls was late…and she got up an hour and a half beforehand, as she told everyone who asked if she slept through her alarm. We drove through the Spanish countryside, which was beautiful during the 30 minutes or so that I was awake. Around noon, the bus stopped for a 20 minute snack break, and then 30 or 45 minutes later we left again. We stopped an hour later because some boy had to pee so bad that he couldn’t hold it. He was sitting in the front cussing up a storm, and all the stop did was put us even later for our lunch stop. We watched Marie Antoinette on the bus, which I thought was cool even though I’ve seen it before, just to see Versailles as it might have been during her reign. We finally reached Olite, the town where we were to eat lunch, at 3:45pm. It was very disorganized, but we were shown to a few places where sandwiches could be ordered. The town was too small for a barrage of 150 hungry college students. Luckily, I brought a lunch from the cafeteria and so I didn’t have to wait in any lines. Olite is in the Navarra region and was the seat of the royal court of the Navarran kingdom in the middle ages. We toured the Palace of Olite and the nearby church which all dated back to the middle ages, although somewhat reconstructed because of fires (Napoleon’s fault, supposedly). Our tour finally got started at 5ish and we were leaving Olite by 6:45pm. Keep in mind, however, that according to the schedule, we were supposed to have started the tour at 3:30pm, and left at 4:30pm. IES tends to be very disorganized and slow, but what else can be expected when there is such a large group of students who don’t want to be there. We didn’t want to be there because it was only 3 degrees Celsius outside, snowy/rainy, and windy! The palace was really neat, as was the story behind it, but it was FREEZING, and our female guide didn’t like us because most of the group was being rude, so she didn’t try to be loud, and I didn’t get to hear half of what she said. We drove on from Olite and it was only an hour till Pamplona, the town of 150,000 where we were staying for the duration of the trip. When we got to our hotel, we were assigned roommates; my class was told we would be roommates with whoever we wanted in our Spanish class. But no, they did it alphabetically, so my roommate was a girl named Clark whom I had never met before. She was nice, however. Megan ended up having no roommate because they had her down as Michael Hathaway on the list! I chilled with Megan in the hour before dinner. Dinner was a set menu for everyone in the hotel (3 buses worth of kids) and oh, was there some complaining about what was served, and oh did I have some picky eaters at my table! I mean, dinner wasn’t great, but it wasn’t horrible either. We had rolls, then Spanish tortilla (good but very bland), salad drenched in olive oil (pretty good), “white fish with sauce” (tasteless and very, very white), and then ice-cream (delicious). Girls who either were truly vegetarian, or who just didn’t like fish were served steamed veggies that looked worse than the fish. After dinner, Megan and I hung out with Crissy, Caitlin, and Colleen and we all talked as though we would go out. But, after not doing anything and it becoming 11 at night, I decided to just shower and go to sleep, and it was a great idea! We all snacked and shared stories from the day, as well as from the past few weeks since we hadn’t seen each other in a while. The next morning, after the really, really annoying wake-up call that was not at 7:45, but at 7:35am, I got ready and met Meg for breakfast (which was actually really good). We were back on the bus by 9:15 and leaving by 9:30, 30 minutes behind schedule yet again. We left for the Irache vineyards and monastery and got there after an hour or so, during which time the guide who was with us for the weekend told us all about the history of Navarra and winemaking in northern Spain. The tour guide was amazing!! He made the trip so much fun. He knew everything about Navarra and was hilarious and made jokes that us college students actually found funny. He gave us a tour of the monastery, and then the wine museum, current cellars for wine storage, and warehouse where the wine is bottled and shipped out. Some fun facts about the tour:
Wine started being produced in the area in the 2nd century B.C., introduced by Romans.
The Irache vineyards have the quality of Denominaciones de Pago, which only 6 other estates have and that is the highest quality rating Spain gives.
American oak is the best type of wood barrel to age wine
Spain is known for it’s Rosa wine (pink), but now for it’s red wine as well, since the French brought the right type of grapes to the area.
The Holy Mary inside the monastery’s church is Romanesque, which means she was seen as the “throne” of Jesus, rather than playing a motherly role. This changed in the Baroque time period, when a simple adjustment in her hand placement to where she held the baby meant her role had increased as a mother and therefore a more important part in Jesus’s life. (I found this really interesting) It gave women a more important role in general once this belief change occurred.
The winery has a pilgrim’s fountain, which has been around for years, for the pilgrims passing through on their way to Santiago de Compostela, since the monastery was an important resting point. The fountain has one spout for wine and one for water, to keep the pilgrims’ strength up on their journey. (We all were able to sample the wine from the spout; not bad, I’d say!)
After Irache, we went on to Puente la Reina, a crossroads of pilgrim’s paths, (the name translates to ‘the crossroads of the ways’) with a famous Roman bridge and Church. Here we had a short tour of the church and then the bridge, where our guide said the bridge is the model for the bridge on the back of the 10 euro bill. The bridge was also build as a metaphor for life, with a high point in the top so only half of the bridge can be seen at any time. This symbolizes how no one knows what the future holds. The guide also told us all about the scenes that referred to sex on the archway into the church, and then about the crucifix inside the church. It was a gift given to the town after German pilgrims passed through and were kindly met. The crucifix is German in that the arms of the cross point upward at an angle. The crucifix is also one of the most, emotional, I guess you could say, in the pain expressed by Jesus in it, and the graphicness of the scene. It was really interesting. After our tour, we had two free hours for lunch, which Megan and I spent in a warm café, where we ate our lunches stolen from breakfast and I drank coffee. We then took photos on the bridge and at the river, and played on a swing set near the river. It was great fun. We were back on the bus at 3, though our sponsor didn’t make it back till 3:15pm. Once again, late. I forgive him though, because Caesar is HILARIOUS! He was always saying Venga! Vamos! Come on! Let’s go! And cracking jokes and just making the bus an all-around good time for everyone.
Our next stop was the Castle of Javier (de Francisco, the same Francisco that San Francisco is named after).
Wine started being produced in the area in the 2nd century B.C., introduced by Romans.
The Irache vineyards have the quality of Denominaciones de Pago, which only 6 other estates have and that is the highest quality rating Spain gives.
American oak is the best type of wood barrel to age wine
Spain is known for it’s Rosa wine (pink), but now for it’s red wine as well, since the French brought the right type of grapes to the area.
The Holy Mary inside the monastery’s church is Romanesque, which means she was seen as the “throne” of Jesus, rather than playing a motherly role. This changed in the Baroque time period, when a simple adjustment in her hand placement to where she held the baby meant her role had increased as a mother and therefore a more important part in Jesus’s life. (I found this really interesting) It gave women a more important role in general once this belief change occurred.
The winery has a pilgrim’s fountain, which has been around for years, for the pilgrims passing through on their way to Santiago de Compostela, since the monastery was an important resting point. The fountain has one spout for wine and one for water, to keep the pilgrims’ strength up on their journey. (We all were able to sample the wine from the spout; not bad, I’d say!)
After Irache, we went on to Puente la Reina, a crossroads of pilgrim’s paths, (the name translates to ‘the crossroads of the ways’) with a famous Roman bridge and Church. Here we had a short tour of the church and then the bridge, where our guide said the bridge is the model for the bridge on the back of the 10 euro bill. The bridge was also build as a metaphor for life, with a high point in the top so only half of the bridge can be seen at any time. This symbolizes how no one knows what the future holds. The guide also told us all about the scenes that referred to sex on the archway into the church, and then about the crucifix inside the church. It was a gift given to the town after German pilgrims passed through and were kindly met. The crucifix is German in that the arms of the cross point upward at an angle. The crucifix is also one of the most, emotional, I guess you could say, in the pain expressed by Jesus in it, and the graphicness of the scene. It was really interesting. After our tour, we had two free hours for lunch, which Megan and I spent in a warm café, where we ate our lunches stolen from breakfast and I drank coffee. We then took photos on the bridge and at the river, and played on a swing set near the river. It was great fun. We were back on the bus at 3, though our sponsor didn’t make it back till 3:15pm. Once again, late. I forgive him though, because Caesar is HILARIOUS! He was always saying Venga! Vamos! Come on! Let’s go! And cracking jokes and just making the bus an all-around good time for everyone.
Our next stop was the Castle of Javier (de Francisco, the same Francisco that San Francisco is named after).
In the north of Spain
The guide showed us how the bullfighter leads the bull through with the cape while visiting the bullring in Pamplona. (and the cape IS supposed to be pink, not red like in movies)
The castle of Javier (San Francisco's namesake saint) that is 45km south of Pamplona. The mountain background was beautiful.
The scallop shell signals the Camino de Santiago, or the Pilgrim's route to Santiago de Compostela, where Saint James the apostle is believed to be buried.
In the wine cellar of the Irache vineyards, where some of the most prestigious wines in Spain are made!
Around the world
Feeding the crazy birds in the Luxembourg gardens
In Marie Antoinette's hideaway near the back of Versailles
Marie Antoinette's Petite Trianon built for her by her husband, the king
The Hall of Mirrors in Versailles
Standing in front of Notre Dame
Standing in front of the Louvre
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
Auxxxxx Champs-Elysees!
Sunday morning, Megan and I were up and ready to go by 12:30 or so (we decided to sleep in), and listened to a French music video countdown while getting ready. We met up with Bailey and Aric and grabbed food for lunch in a bakery and market. We walked to the station and said goodbye since they were returning to Angers and we were going to Versailles for the afternoon. We got to Versailles just before the tickets were reduced for the afternoon, good news for us, so we got some and were helped by an attractive French man (Megan liked him more than me, I found him slightly creepy). Versailles was BEAUTIFUL and really BIG! I kept repeating how big the place was, palace and gardens, the whole time we were there, you can ask Megan. She turned it into a that's what she said joke every time I said it lol. The rooms were filled with amazing art-ceilings and walls and tapestries and fabrics, it was all way luxurious. I could never imagine living in that palace. And we only saw certain parts; there were so many rooms we did not even get to go into. The beds were ridiculous, as were the whole rooms where the King, Queen, heirs, sons, daughters, etc slept. The funny thing was that the rooms were set up as to have not very much privacy, with doors on either end leading to waiting rooms, sitting rooms, etc. I can see that from the period books I've read as well..The Hall of Mirrors, one of Versailles claims to fame, is absolutely amazing. It is full of chandeliers and light (and mirrors, obviously) and I could almost imagine kings going about important business and making treaties in the room. Outside, the gardens were just as amazing (and BIG!)! They still had a wintry look, since nothing had bloomed as of yet and the fountains weren't running, but still beautiful. Megan and I explored all around, and then walked to Marie Antoinette's estate on the far end of the gardens. Her estate I found even more beautiful, in a simpler way, than the larger Versailles. We sat and rested for a while, then explored her gardens and found a "temple of Love" and went further to find a farm and summer cottage sort of place she stayed in at times to be away from the etiquette of the court. The farm area was my favorite area. After looking around we attempted to find a way out which the map pointed to near the farm, failed, and walked all the way back to her estate to escape the gardens. We then walked back to Versailles, found some sheep along the way, bought pop as a pick-me-up after all the walking we had done near the train station, and hopped on a train back to Paris. I crashed on the way back (30 minute ride is all) and was exhausted! Our plan was to see the Eiffel tower again and find some dinner and we did. We found a crepe place near to the metro station and I had a DELICIOUS ham and cheese and egg crepe. Wow, it was good. After we got one, we looked at the tower for, oh, 2 or 3 minutes, and then decided we were tired and got back on the metro to go home. This was at 8 pm. We were in bed by nine after having a Mars bar, and asleep by 10. It was glorious!
Sunday morning we got up at a decent hour and checked out of the hotel at 9:30am. We got food for breakfast and lunch at a grocery store and then went to find the Catacombs, a long metro ride away. When we got to the stop, we had no idea where to go, and looked at a map till Megan asked some British-sounding people if they knew where they were. Turns out they were looking for the Catacombs as well! We followed them for a few minutes till they found it (It was right across the street from the metro stop, haha). Turns out as well that the Catacombs close on Mondays! We were SO disappointed! There was nothing we could do, so we took pictures of the entrance and went to find something else to do. I'll come back someday to see them! We went to the Eiffel tower next, which we hadn't seen during the day, then past the Hotel des Invalides and down some strange streets till we made it back to the Luxembourg Garden. We ate lunch, and had pulled some chairs up closer to the duck pond until two police officers told us we couldn't have the chairs there. What a dumb rule. We moved and continued to eat lunch, and some pigeons started coming over, so of course we fed them! They kept coming over, and soon our lunches were gone and the only thing we had left was cheese slices. We kept it up with cheese, and then some sea gull looking birds came over as well. They had really good eyesight and caught the tiny cheese pieces in the air. They would even jump off the ground to catch it and fight each other. Hilarious! Soon, we got them to jump by waving our hand like we threw something with out ever throwing it. Then we got them to hover to wait for cheese and then they started flying to right over our heads and we threw cheese to them. It was great fun, but reminded me a little of the birds off Alfred Hitchcock's movie...creepy! People nearby were having a laugh at us and the birds, especially this older lady who spoke some english sat nearby till the flying happened.
We left and went back towards Notre Dame after the cheese ran out, got a delicious Nutella and Banana crepe on the way, and proceeded to 'chill' in Notre Dame, where it was warm and relaxing with background music, for nearly an hour. We went past the Hotel de Ville next and got on a Carousel right outside the Hotel (Megan's idea, but such a great one!). We went next to the Moulin Rouge area, where we did not expect to find SEX shops everywhere!! I guess we need to actually watch the movie, cause we thought we were going to some antique part of town lol! The only think related to Moulin Rouge that we recognized was the theater itself. We sat down by a fountain at one point and saw what we think was an eyeball! We didn't go closer to find out...At this point we were tired and so we just went back to the hostel, grabbed our bags, and went to meet a bus for the airport, which we had to get on soon anyway. We were home in Barcelona by 10:20 or so and I was in bed by midnight, exhausted! (sorry for not calling, mom!) The end.
Sunday morning we got up at a decent hour and checked out of the hotel at 9:30am. We got food for breakfast and lunch at a grocery store and then went to find the Catacombs, a long metro ride away. When we got to the stop, we had no idea where to go, and looked at a map till Megan asked some British-sounding people if they knew where they were. Turns out they were looking for the Catacombs as well! We followed them for a few minutes till they found it (It was right across the street from the metro stop, haha). Turns out as well that the Catacombs close on Mondays! We were SO disappointed! There was nothing we could do, so we took pictures of the entrance and went to find something else to do. I'll come back someday to see them! We went to the Eiffel tower next, which we hadn't seen during the day, then past the Hotel des Invalides and down some strange streets till we made it back to the Luxembourg Garden. We ate lunch, and had pulled some chairs up closer to the duck pond until two police officers told us we couldn't have the chairs there. What a dumb rule. We moved and continued to eat lunch, and some pigeons started coming over, so of course we fed them! They kept coming over, and soon our lunches were gone and the only thing we had left was cheese slices. We kept it up with cheese, and then some sea gull looking birds came over as well. They had really good eyesight and caught the tiny cheese pieces in the air. They would even jump off the ground to catch it and fight each other. Hilarious! Soon, we got them to jump by waving our hand like we threw something with out ever throwing it. Then we got them to hover to wait for cheese and then they started flying to right over our heads and we threw cheese to them. It was great fun, but reminded me a little of the birds off Alfred Hitchcock's movie...creepy! People nearby were having a laugh at us and the birds, especially this older lady who spoke some english sat nearby till the flying happened.
We left and went back towards Notre Dame after the cheese ran out, got a delicious Nutella and Banana crepe on the way, and proceeded to 'chill' in Notre Dame, where it was warm and relaxing with background music, for nearly an hour. We went past the Hotel de Ville next and got on a Carousel right outside the Hotel (Megan's idea, but such a great one!). We went next to the Moulin Rouge area, where we did not expect to find SEX shops everywhere!! I guess we need to actually watch the movie, cause we thought we were going to some antique part of town lol! The only think related to Moulin Rouge that we recognized was the theater itself. We sat down by a fountain at one point and saw what we think was an eyeball! We didn't go closer to find out...At this point we were tired and so we just went back to the hostel, grabbed our bags, and went to meet a bus for the airport, which we had to get on soon anyway. We were home in Barcelona by 10:20 or so and I was in bed by midnight, exhausted! (sorry for not calling, mom!) The end.
Week eight-Going to Paris!
Last week, after Carnaval, was pretty uneventful. I had 3 midterms to study for and take (none of which were too challenging) and a trip to Paris to plan, which Megan and I waited to do till Friday evening, the night before our plane left. On Thursday (I think) Megan and I were convinced by Xavi and Eloi to come to a meeting where some students were working on details for the Granada trip. It was interesting, and our input was asked on dates and flight times, but other than that we understood nothing because they spoke in Catalan the whole time! Catalonians have SO much pride, it is unbelievable. We got in on a little bit, however, because after the meeting Xavi started teaching us some Catalan words that we might need. We had fun in our little learning session. On the way back to our hall, we then taught Xavi the 'that's what she said' joke and showed him clips from The Office to give him examples. I think he found it funny...I hope so, atleast!
On Saturday morning Megan and I left for the airport at 3:45 in the morning...We had to take a taxi since nothing else was open, but got there with plenty of time and were in the CDG airport outside of Paris by 8am. (Side note: Vueling flights are some of the best I've been on as far as landing and taking off-I could hardly tell we had left the ground or were back on it because they were so smooth!)
We took a bus into the Paris city center, with a bus driver who barely watched the road and swerved all over the place. We were dropped off by the Opera house where Phantom of the Opera takes place, and immediately found a cafe to grab a quick breakfast. The breakfast turned out to be not so quick, since in Europe they do not believe in ever bringing you a check, but delicious. I had cafe au lait and a chocolate croissant (expensive: 5euro for the coffee and 2.5euro for the croissant...didn't know that beforehand) and we spread our maps out and planned our day with a few tips from our waiter. He was hilarious, spoke 5 languages, and cussed in english like a sailor. An example: "Versailles...Where is %$#*ing Versailles? I think..no, here, you must go here. S**t! &*#@ing map! This map is crap...Oh the catacombs? Well, I know where the illegal catacombs are, but the legal..? Let me ask her...Here you can access the legal catacombs. The illegal entrances are here and here, but there you will find water up to here and rats." Etc. Haha! We left after finally paying and found our hostel across town to drop our bags off. We then started walking. And oh, did we walk! We walked to the Arc de Triomf (beautiful), then down the Champs Elysses (not that impressive, all big brand stores) to some really cool buildings and took a side trip to the Pont Alexander III bridge with awesome monuments on it, then back down the road till we found the Concorde (an Obelisk) and on to the Tuileries Gardens. The gardens were not that impressive, but then again, nothing was in bloom yet in Paris. We sat in some reclining chairs to take a break in front of a pond, then walked on to the Louvre, where we took photos outside but didn't go inside.
After, we walked toward the Jardin du Luxembourg and found big, cheap sandwiches for lunch on the way there (mine was delicious) because we were starving! The Jardin du Luxembourg was beautiful! Tons of people were there, but it was big enough so that we did not feel crowded at all, and voices were just a pleasant hum in the background. We sat on a stone fence that ran around a raised area and looked out over the central area and sunbathed and people-watched for a while. We then explored the rest of the garden and looked at all the statues of historical queens and other amazing women in France's past. We went and sat down by some cute guys to see if they would start a conversation with us next. They didn't. Losers.
At 2:30ish we left the Jardin du Luxembourg and headed to Notre Dame. It was beautiful inside, and an actual Mass was going on while people were filing around the outer parts to see the windows and alcoves. I felt bad, but we were really quiet, as were all the other visitors. We went the long way around the church trying to find the entrance to see the bell tower (my fault) but on the way we got to see the entire outside architecture of the church and some sweet gymnasts doing flips in the grass. We got in line for the bell tower, got spanish guide pamphlets cause the english ones were out, and watched an entertainer jump out at people across the street and yell "MAMA!" and then to the crowd "That's me mother!". He was hilarious and kept us occupied till it was our turn to ascend the MILLION stairs on the spiral staircase. The tour took forever because they squeezed a bunch of people on the narrow balconies, but the view was amazing. We could see all across Paris! We then went up MORE stairs to go above the bell tower to the highest part of the church. Then we went ALL the way down (as fast as we could go cause we were first in line) and out the doors. We walked to find a snack at a French passaterie afterward and found a metro that took us to Sacre Coeur. We met up with Bailey and his friend Aric at Sacre Coeur and went inside the Basilique to look around. A choir was singing and it was beautiful, light, French hymns. I loved it! The interior of the Sacre Coeur was beautiful as well. Afterward we got a good view of the Eiffel tower at sunset and then went to find dinner and I caught up with Bailey. We ate kebabs for dinner, which are pitas, basically and the same thing as the weird pita pits here in Barcelona. These kebabs were better tasting and came with french fries! Afterward we walked along the Seine and chatted, then decided to go to the Eiffel tower and go up it. The Eiffel tower was beautiful at night, and sparkled every so often. When we got there, the top level was closed so we just went to the second level (wasn't that cool) and then raced down the stairs cause the elevators were taking a long time. We went to the hostel to check in, changed to go out, and then walked back towards the center of town. Some of Bailey's and Aric's friends were in a club along the Champs-Elysses called Queen. We went there, found out the overhead was 20euro and decided it wasn't worth it, so we walked back toward our hostel, found a lame bar, and then decided to just call it a night.
On Saturday morning Megan and I left for the airport at 3:45 in the morning...We had to take a taxi since nothing else was open, but got there with plenty of time and were in the CDG airport outside of Paris by 8am. (Side note: Vueling flights are some of the best I've been on as far as landing and taking off-I could hardly tell we had left the ground or were back on it because they were so smooth!)
We took a bus into the Paris city center, with a bus driver who barely watched the road and swerved all over the place. We were dropped off by the Opera house where Phantom of the Opera takes place, and immediately found a cafe to grab a quick breakfast. The breakfast turned out to be not so quick, since in Europe they do not believe in ever bringing you a check, but delicious. I had cafe au lait and a chocolate croissant (expensive: 5euro for the coffee and 2.5euro for the croissant...didn't know that beforehand) and we spread our maps out and planned our day with a few tips from our waiter. He was hilarious, spoke 5 languages, and cussed in english like a sailor. An example: "Versailles...Where is %$#*ing Versailles? I think..no, here, you must go here. S**t! &*#@ing map! This map is crap...Oh the catacombs? Well, I know where the illegal catacombs are, but the legal..? Let me ask her...Here you can access the legal catacombs. The illegal entrances are here and here, but there you will find water up to here and rats." Etc. Haha! We left after finally paying and found our hostel across town to drop our bags off. We then started walking. And oh, did we walk! We walked to the Arc de Triomf (beautiful), then down the Champs Elysses (not that impressive, all big brand stores) to some really cool buildings and took a side trip to the Pont Alexander III bridge with awesome monuments on it, then back down the road till we found the Concorde (an Obelisk) and on to the Tuileries Gardens. The gardens were not that impressive, but then again, nothing was in bloom yet in Paris. We sat in some reclining chairs to take a break in front of a pond, then walked on to the Louvre, where we took photos outside but didn't go inside.
After, we walked toward the Jardin du Luxembourg and found big, cheap sandwiches for lunch on the way there (mine was delicious) because we were starving! The Jardin du Luxembourg was beautiful! Tons of people were there, but it was big enough so that we did not feel crowded at all, and voices were just a pleasant hum in the background. We sat on a stone fence that ran around a raised area and looked out over the central area and sunbathed and people-watched for a while. We then explored the rest of the garden and looked at all the statues of historical queens and other amazing women in France's past. We went and sat down by some cute guys to see if they would start a conversation with us next. They didn't. Losers.
At 2:30ish we left the Jardin du Luxembourg and headed to Notre Dame. It was beautiful inside, and an actual Mass was going on while people were filing around the outer parts to see the windows and alcoves. I felt bad, but we were really quiet, as were all the other visitors. We went the long way around the church trying to find the entrance to see the bell tower (my fault) but on the way we got to see the entire outside architecture of the church and some sweet gymnasts doing flips in the grass. We got in line for the bell tower, got spanish guide pamphlets cause the english ones were out, and watched an entertainer jump out at people across the street and yell "MAMA!" and then to the crowd "That's me mother!". He was hilarious and kept us occupied till it was our turn to ascend the MILLION stairs on the spiral staircase. The tour took forever because they squeezed a bunch of people on the narrow balconies, but the view was amazing. We could see all across Paris! We then went up MORE stairs to go above the bell tower to the highest part of the church. Then we went ALL the way down (as fast as we could go cause we were first in line) and out the doors. We walked to find a snack at a French passaterie afterward and found a metro that took us to Sacre Coeur. We met up with Bailey and his friend Aric at Sacre Coeur and went inside the Basilique to look around. A choir was singing and it was beautiful, light, French hymns. I loved it! The interior of the Sacre Coeur was beautiful as well. Afterward we got a good view of the Eiffel tower at sunset and then went to find dinner and I caught up with Bailey. We ate kebabs for dinner, which are pitas, basically and the same thing as the weird pita pits here in Barcelona. These kebabs were better tasting and came with french fries! Afterward we walked along the Seine and chatted, then decided to go to the Eiffel tower and go up it. The Eiffel tower was beautiful at night, and sparkled every so often. When we got there, the top level was closed so we just went to the second level (wasn't that cool) and then raced down the stairs cause the elevators were taking a long time. We went to the hostel to check in, changed to go out, and then walked back towards the center of town. Some of Bailey's and Aric's friends were in a club along the Champs-Elysses called Queen. We went there, found out the overhead was 20euro and decided it wasn't worth it, so we walked back toward our hostel, found a lame bar, and then decided to just call it a night.
Mas Carnaval!
Ok, so..the barrier. After we ran through, we spent a good hour or two running up and down the streets, through parade floats and crowds of people. We were distracted by some Spaniards dressed like Irishmen and took some photos with them, and later by some Spaniards dressed like Frenchmen. Haha. At one point a policeman told us we couldn't go down a street, but we stood there looking distraught and after a minute he just waved us through. (The policemen secretly loved our costumes too, we heard them sometimes say Barca! as we passed, but with a serious look on their faces so you couldn't hardly tell. It was funny.) We found the beginning of the parade again, our favorite part, and this time danced in the street with the red, bird-looking men, and the abominable snowpeople, and the chiquita banana people, etc. We met the "Prince of Sitges", who was pretty adorable in his black and white suit and had a FCBarcelona flag. We also ran into the 80's costumed men (still my favorite) and a float where we almost jumped on with the revelers, but were told we couldn't by someone at the last minute :(. The parade began dying down as the costumed people in it either got to drunk to run around or just left the parade altogether, so we walked around some other places to see where everyone in Sitges was going to end the night. We got some more policemen to let us through barriers, found a party where you had to have a ticket to get in (no fun!), and then walked toward the street of bars. We walked through but were pretty tired and it was close to the time we needed to be leaving. We decided to head back towards the train station to find our bus. On the way, Megan really, really wanted a muffin, and I was hungry as well. We found the street the shop was on, but 5 or 6 policemen were blocking it. Megan started talking to the one on the end, explaining that we just wanted a muffin and weren't going to the parade that was at the end of the street. He claimed he didn't speak english (though he said it in english) and pointed us to someone who did. That guy also said he didn't speak english and pointed us to someone else. By this time we were getting what was happening, these policemen were having some fun and trying to confuse us! We proceeded to tell them we weren't drunk but continued to play along, trying to get on their good side so they'd let us through. We talked to them for 5 more minutes, asking for photos, to be let through, phone numbers, and more, haha. Finally one of them talked to someone behind him and then waved us through. Victory! The muffin shop was open (miraculously) and we got one each and ran off towards the station. At the train station we asked around till they told us where the buses stopped (which was far away!). We got there, and saw a huge line. A policeman told us only one more bus was coming. We went ahead and got in line, now in a bad mood because it was 3am, we wanted to go home, and buses were supposed to run till 5am. Megan asked him again to make sure, and then we left because there was no way we'd be getting on that bus. We walked back towards the city center, slightly dejected and wanting our beds-the fun had mostly worn off, and the train station didn't open till 4:30. However, after we found a bathroom we felt better and decided to make the most out of our last hour. Even though we'd be getting home really late, the night had been so much fun that it was worth it! We ran into some friends from our dorm on the way to the bar street who were heading for the train station, and we said we'd see them there. We then ran into someone else we knew who was lost and we made sure she made it back to the rest of the crew. Later on in the street we ran into more people we knew, danced a little, and then decided to go back to the station. When we got a block or two away, we saw a horrible sight-a line stretched down the street away from the station-everyone waiting in line to get a ticket and wait for the train. Oh no. We walked closer and luckily found our friends about half-way up and jumped into line with them at about 4:25ish. The line actually wasn't so bad and only took 15 minutes before we made it into the station, but I waited another 10 minutes in line for a ticket, and then 5 minutes outside for the train that came right before 5am. The rush for the train was crazy. People cheered when they heard it coming and police had to be by the doors to make sure no one was pushing and shoving to get on the train. Megan and I made it on with no problem and I was surprised at the number of people who fit. We had made friends with a French and a German exchange student while waiting and talked to them on the way home. They were both studying spanish in Barcelona. They were nice, but we promptly forgot their names after leaving the train and heading home. Oh well. It was a long walk home from the metro station, our backs and legs hurt from standing and dancing around for 12 hours, and we hopped into bed without even washing off our makeup at 6:15am. I then got up for class at 7:45, and came straight home afterward to sleep for hours! What a night!
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