Sierra Nevadas

11/27/2010

Today I went to the Sierra Nevadas in Spain (there’s also a range called the Sierra Nevadas in California). I got up at 8:30a and met up with Paige to take the city bus to the bus station. We almost missed the bus to Sierra Nevada, and then they almost didn't let us on because they were low on space, but in the end we made it. 

When we arrived we made our way through the town using switchbacks and I haggled with a Moroccan dude for some gloves that I didn’t really want but was glad I got. The gloves really were a good idea and considering I was able to talk him down from 20 euro to about 3.50 in random change, such a bargain! Eventually we hit snow and soon after climbing a huge hillside we ran into a blizzard. At this point I made a scarf out of an extra t-shirt I had in order to protect my face. Soon we arrived at a hotel/bar called El Albergue and took some time to warm up (Paige was pretty much getting frostbite in her feet from hiking in a pair of converse…) then we headed for the top. 

As we rose the clouds poured out of the valley below us revealing the town and mountains that had been obscured for the whole time since we had arrived. After we hiked back down we took the bus back to Granada where Andrew had everybody over for beer pong.

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Civilizacion y Cultura de Espana

11/23/2010

Today after class Tom and Brian came over to make Tortillas Espanoles (Spanish Tortillas). We had a few drinks and went to Totes for intercambio (exchange Spanish & English lessons) where we received tickets for free drinks and salsa lessons at a place called Chicago.

11/25/2010

Today Andrew and I  presented on Asturias and drank Sidra in class; I still can’t get over the fact that they allowed alcohol in class. Afterward I decided to celebrate my Thanksgiving at the bar… after a tapa I decided to head down to Totes for intercambio where I found they had turkey tapas, this made my day.

Sustainability

11/26/2010

Today I got up early and went to the Culture Museum of Andalucia with my culture class. After a few hours of starvation I went to the casino at Neptuno with Elise and Andrew. Using Andrews wonderful, amazing, fool proof roulette technique I lost 40 euros… According to the math you will always at least break even, if you bet long enough and double it every 7 turns. After a few rounds of losing I couldn't go on, so I took the damage and quit.

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Córdoba

11/19/2010

Today I got up and went to Cordoba where I met up with Lidia and her dad. We went to their home and had a tasty meal of papas fritas (french fries), pollo (chicken), y huevo (egg). After lunch I went to school with Lidia and watched her give a presentation in English for her class. Later we went to the albergue (hostel) and after dinner we all sang some songs.

11/20/2010

Today after breakfast we all played basketball and met for bible study.

11/21/2010

Today we had breakfast, sang some songs and started saying goodbyes.

We stopped for some sweets on the way to the Cordoba Mosque. It was closed, but fortunately a guard had a door open and allowed me to take some pictures inside.

Next we headed back and I caught a ride to the Estacion de Autobuses with Pedro and his wife. I was almost late so I couldn’t stop to use the bathroom. This proved to be something of a predicament as I was in horrible pain for the 2 1/2 hour bus ride back to Granada.

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Two Cathedrals and a Quarter

11/08/2010

Today I finally went to get some pants as well as some shirts, rock climbing shoes, bananas, and a toaster. I noticed the second example of false advertising today since I’ve arrived in Europe, seems small businesses here take liberties with more than just customer service. In France I wanted a combo advertised outside on the window and they just looked at me funny and tried to sell me something less impressive for twice as much. Today when I bought the toaster it was advertised for 9 euro outside but when I entered the advertised price jumped to 10.90 (before tax)… I guess that’s just their way of getting you in the door.  Also, I recently found out that since I don’t have a Shengen visa I’m basically here illegally… more surprises.

11/09/2010

Today after class some of us 45 hour students went to a cathedral called Nuestra Senora De Las Angustias (Our Lady of Sorrows). Later I tried to fix myself an earlier flight out… unfortunately I didn’t account for the 31 day month so now I’m out $265 and still illegal.

11/12/2010

Today the water in the shower turned cold while I was shampooing. I got out into the freezing air and went to find that the gas can was empty. I didn’t know how to replace it, but luckily Fee came out to see what I was doing. After replacing the gas I finished my shower and finished getting ready for class… great start to my birthday. In Spanish class I brought cake for everyone going along with the custom here of giving gifts to everyone else on YOUR birthday… After class I called the border police in Germany to find out about my Schengen situation and apparently this whole time I could have just extended it (instead of spending $265 and losing 2 days in Germany). Later I showed a guy around the flat and he pretty much decided to take over my contract when I leave in December. At about 9:30p I went to POE for some drinks with Andres and his soon-to-be fiance Erica.

11/13/2010

Today I went to Capilla Real and Granada Cathedral. The cathedral was very big, semi-renaissance and bright white. Afterward I went home, took a siesta and went back out for the tour of the Albayzin quarter.

11/15/2010

Today I met up with Brian to go to Mercadona for some drinks for my birthday hangout tonight. While out and about we we got some really good doughnuts and ran into Farah and Julia. Some of us went for tea and stopped for Schwarmas at a new place. They brought us some small tapas after which I asked for the bill, but was surprised to find that the tapas were only an introduction to the Schwarmas which were actually pretty fairly sized. I guess you can't be too quick to assume things about a new place!

11/18/2010

After class today I went on a tour of the forest of the Alhambra. The guide spoke really fast Spanish and it was cold… interesting fact about the trees though - they produce poisonous needles that have the ability to cure cancer, how about that!

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La Ronda

11/06/2010

Today I caught the bus to Ronda with Tom, Elise and Andrew where we saw Plaza de Toros (bullring), explored around Puente Nuevo (New Bridge), ate some good food and caught the bus back to Granada. Later, while making “bangers and mash,” I caught the sausages on fire while cooking them in oil. Apparently oil is flammable, who knew?? The flame was probably over a foot high… food still turned out great though!

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Halloween in Granada

10/31/2010

Today for Halloween I went out as a Zombie and/or Heath Ledger. Either way, people were plenty creeped out. Fee and I went to get the others and we all went to a club. We saw some interesting costumes and at about 6a we left and I got a Schwarma.

Monachil

10/30/2010

Today I got up at 7a to go hiking in Monachil with Elise and Andreas. After we arrived we began following a route that Andreas found online. We found a huge valley with a bridge and a strange brick structure with the goofy graffiti commonly found Granada. After climbing around in the hills for a few hours we headed back through an orchard and into town in time to catch the bus back to Grandada.

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Jaén

10/15/2010

Today I woke up at 5p… I spent some time at the computer lab at the Huerta de las Angeles building and later went out to Sacromonte to check out El Camborio. On the way I ran into Thomas who showed me a little bar/cave where they were having live flamenco performances. I really enjoyed the music, the performance in general was pretty vibrant.

10/16/2010

Today I woke up late again and relaxed until around 9p then went to Thomas’ party which was actually pretty intense… at one point the police even showed up and kicked everyone out.

10/21/2010

Today we finally got internet in our apartment! I went with Paige to Hipercor and got lost on the way back. I ended up a bit out out in the middle of nowhere, but was able to get directions to the Albycin area and made my way back to my neighborhood, Realejo. Looking back it's actually pretty crazy how far out I walked, would have been a nightmare for someone who doesn't speak Spanish.

10/24/2010

Today Paige and I went to Jaen and walked around looking at many sites, including the Jaen Cathedral - a Spanish Renaissance cathedral constructed over 230 years and completed in 1802.

At 6p we returned for the potluck Fee and I were hosting at the piso. We ate burritos, Spanish Tortillas, Gazpacho, etc. Later we went with Fee’s friend Anna to some tapas bars and an ice cream parlor.

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The Search for las Cuevas

10/10/2010

Paige and I went to look for the caves (las cuevas), but instead found a nice park and some peacocks. We went into the Alhambra Hotel pretending to be guests and got some nice pics of the city from some upper story windows. We plan to make another attempt at the caves tomorrow.

10/11/2010

Today Paige and I went to look for the caves again and found ourselves looking at them from across a valley… on top of that we had to walk back in the rain. This time we made crepes, Spanish Tortillas and made plans to finally find the caves tomorrow.

10/12/2010

Today we finally found the caves! We took a right where we previously took a left and followed a path with plaques of poetry in Spanish. The path soon turned into a trail which we followed until we stumbled upon the first cave. This cave had something cooking out front but all I could see was the smoke. We didn’t want to go up closer and disturb the cave dwellers who were having a chat out front so we continued along the path and found another, smaller cave. Next we climbed a hill where we found another cave with a mattress in it, it was only big enough for the mattress really, but someone must have just been too desperate to care.

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Hola Granada!

09/26/2010

Today I got up at 6:30a for a 7:20a bus which I missed due to the extremely slow metro in the morning… I ended up paying for a cab with some others that missed the bus which still cost me 45 euros. This wonderful strike of luck was followed up with a 40 euro fee from good ol’ RyanAir for them to print out my ticket. Finally I was headed for Madrid where I caught the metro to the bus station in order to get to Granada. In Granada I walked three miles for my hostel in the middle of the night.

09/27/2010

Today I got up early and went to take my placement exam. I ended up scoring lower than I hoped because of the super fast accent and general shortening of the pronunciation of words in Spain. After the ridiculously stressful exam I went to a bar for some tapas.

09/28/2010

Today I went on a tour of Granada with a guide name Saul. We went to many places including viewpoints of the Alhambra and a Moorish garden. After the tour I took advantage of a siesta and went looking for a room. I talked to my friend Thomas from Germany who told me about a place which ultimately ended up being my new home. After finding a piso I went with my friend y companero de piso Kirara on the tapas tour.

09/29/2010

Upon moving in to our piso we found out from our other roommate Fee that not everything was as it seemed. Utilities may cost more than the limit of $60 which means we will have to pay the extra amount. We have to buy the gas for heating water and we don’t have internet. Also, I have to find a replacement when I leave due to the year-long contract breach fee of 250… otherwise the place is pretty nice and cozy. After moving in we had some spaghetti for dinner and I worked on my book project.

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Au Revoir Paris

09/25/2010

Today I moved back to Caulaincourt and went on the tour of Paris. After the tour I went to the Sacre de Couer then returned to the hostel where I ran into Garrett. Lee showed up shortly after with her friend Kelly and we all went for Crepes. I had a flaming crepe which tasted like lighter fluid due to the excessive amount of alcohol it had on it. After that we went back to the Sacre de Couer and watched the Eiffel Tower sparkle.

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Louvre

09/22/2010

Today I went to a new place to stay with my friend Lee who found it on a site called AirBnB.com.
Tyler and I went to the Toulleries instead of the tour because it turned out to be at 1p not 2p. At 7:45p Lee and I finally got going for the meeting at the Newman’s which was supposed to be ending at 8p, but it was a 5 minute walk so I figured it would be best to at least show up. We ended up staying there and talking for probably a good hour, so I’m glad we went. I learned that the Louvre is free friday nights so on Friday I plan to go. When we got back to the place the owners (Phillip and Eric) had set me up a blow up mattress in the closet - plenty comfortable and at 10 euro/night it's a steal compared to the 25/night at the hostel!

09/23/2010

Today I went to the sandwich place and had a very unique and tasty “grilled cheese sandwich” with a drink and flan for dessert. Later, I went with Lee to the marche (market) for some very French handmade fromage (cheese), a super fluffy baguette and a bottle of wine.

09/24/2010

Today I woke up late and got a slow start only to finally leave for the Louvre at around 5p. The Louvre is free on friday nights for people younger than 25 so it was a pretty awesome deal.

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Bonjour Paris!

09/19/2010

This morning I arrived in Paris and met up with my friend John Brooks who lives there. We went to the Lord’s Table meeting and everyone spoke French which was confusing but cool. Afterward, we went for lunch at a really good Vietnamese restaurant and then John and his wife Elaine helped me on my way to my hostel. After stopping to withdraw cash from a machine that only existed on my GPS I located a different cash machine and then walked 2 miles to finally settle into Caulaincourt Hostel in Montmartre.

09/20/2010

Today I woke up and had breakfast at 9a then went back to sleep until 2p. After waking I went down and worked on an itinerary for Paris and met some new Aussie friends. At 7p we all took the metro to the Eiffel Tower and had a picnic. At the metro I kept noticing strange advertisements with young teens photoshopped to look super old and creepy... very odd.

09/21/2010

Today I went down for breakfast then at around 5p I met up with a couple other Americans (Tyler and Garret) and went to the Arch de Triomphe where we looked for car accidents. Down beneath the eternal flame commemorating the dead from the world wars was once extinguished by a couple Aussies trying to cook a hot dog over it. After visiting the arch we went back and ate some interesting snacks out in front of the hostel.

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