The city of the arts and sciences
La Virgen made of flowers
The burning of a Falla
The soccer stadium
San Sebastian - Cantabrian Sea from a hill-top
Pinxtos :)
The Guggenheim museum
makes time FLY! I can't believe it's been a month since I last wrote, time is flying by, but what a blast.
I went to Valencia 3 weeks ago to see Las Fallas, and it was a lot of fun. My boyfriend from Whitman, Nick, came to visit and we jetted off (via bus) right away to the east. Valencia was a cute city, had more of the Andalucia-southern Spain-relaxed feel about it, but it was bustling with tourists and locals, everyone there perusing the beautiful wood statues. It was a lot more of a festival than I was expecting - we were constantly just walking with the flow of traffic, it was difficult to go at any other pace, but it was enjoyable! The wood statues are actually wood frames surrounded by a mix of card board, paper mache and intricate paint jobs, and inside they are filled with fireworks-thus the "burning" of the statues is actually an explosive party. Artists work on them all year, and they are put on display all over the city for the whole week, and the last night they are all burned! Nick and I really enjoyed just walking around and seeing the different statues, trying Paella Valenciana (paella is a rice dish and in Valencia they serve it mixed with chicken, rabbit, and sometimes snails!) and experiencing a new city. We spent a good 5 hours walking to and from the beach, dipped our toes in the Mediterranean, got delicious Italian food, and saw the amazing City of the Arts and Sciences, a "museum" that has 4 different centers (it's huge!), and is almost as enjoyable to see from the outside as it is from within (all white, beautiful architecture). We got a good spot the last night (the night of the burnings) in the main square to watch the biggest Falla burn - that was by accident, since we thought it was at 12 but it wasn't until 1am. But it was fun nonetheless - you could feel the heat from the statue once it was on fire, it was intense! And the fireworks show that started it off was very cool, so close to us! One of the pieces had a malfunction and came burning down a little early, caused a (slightly scary) sudden movement of everyone in front of me...aka like 1000 people, but it all turned out fine. All in all Valencia was a blast! It was unlike anything I've seen before, and we really took advantage of everything. Oh and one more thing - the people all dress in the traditional costumes, women with Princess Leah hair and hoop skirts under their floral and lace dresses, men in indescribable clothes that reminded me of "Shrek" in a terrible mix-up with a pirate. They would play music and march down the streets, all going in the direction of La Virgen, a HUGE wooden statue of the virgin, where all the flower bouquets were placed in color-specific patterns to construct her dress etc, pretty cool...
Once Nick and I got back to Madrid it was time to show him around! We did lots of walking and bike riding, seeing the city by day and night. I introduced him to the culture of tapas and canas (small beers) and I think he appreciated that. I also took him to a soccer game! My first one - that was WAY cool. The stadium is HUGE, and filled with people yelling and eating sunflower seeds and not caring where the shells go. We were in the cheap sets, properly labeled the "vomitorio" on our tickets, and I think they were the best seats in the house! You could see the whole stadium and still tell what was going on down below on the field. Way fun.
Last weekend I went on a school-organized trip to the north of Spain - San Sebastian. On the way up we stopped in Burgos for lunch, and on the way back we went to Bilbao to see the Guggenheim museum. All very cool. I was SOSOSO happy to see lots of GREEN! I hadn't realized how much I missed it. The north of Spain is precious. On the bus ride there we saw lots of little towns tucked away in the green hillsides, and sheep farms around all of them. San Sebastian is a tranquil city, with the mountains in the background and the Cantabrian Sea to it's side. Just a wonderful place, I really hope I can go back. San Sebastian (and most of the north in the basque country) is known for the Pinxtos ("Pinchos") which are like tapas, but really extravagant and usually bigger. They line the bar, and you pick the few you want and pay for each one individually. Very fun and visually appealing, but I like plates of greasy free tapas better ;)
We explored the downtown and climbed a hill right on the sea to watch the sunset, one of the most beautiful days I've ever experienced. We didn't pass up the opportunity to go to a disco right on the beach, that was way fun. I was sad to leave, but the Guggenheim on the way back was pretty cool! The building itself is a masterpiece, way cool. And I liked some of the exhibits...it's bound to be funky and difficult to understand, but there were a few that I REALLY liked. All in all - I'm totally in love with the north of Spain. A friend of mine wants to rent a car and go camping in Galicia, which is the very north-west corner(above Portugal) so if we can find time, that should be pretty cool!
I leave tonight for ITALY!!! I'm going with a girl I met at the university, Kristina from Texas. We have a week and a half off for Semana Santa, so we're taking advantage of it! We're both super organized so I think it should be a good trip filled with too much to do. We fly into Rome tonight, spend a few days there, will stop at Siena on our way to Florence, spend a few days there, see Verona on the way to Venice, and after 2 days there, head up north to Bergamo to fly out. Should be pretty fun!!! I'm SO excited, Italy is top top on my list of places I want to visit, so it's pretty cool I'm getting to do it! Lots to come with pictures and stories I'm sure.
Hope all is well wherever you are, talk to you soon!
Alex
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