Al Sur y Una Cultura Nueva

This past week, after a quick turn-around from Portugal, we headed off to Andalucia, in the south of Spain, for one of the trips planned as part of our program. Andalucia, with its beautiful weather, strong Muslim cultural influences, and fame for flamenco, represents what most foreigners are really thinking of when they call to mind their idea of Spain. It's certainly different from Madrid, and I was very excited to experience this part of my host country. Our trip was based around the route taken by American tourist and author Washington Irving a couple hundred years ago, so we headed by bus for a week in Córdoba, Sevilla, and Granada.

Our first stop, Córdoba, found us relieved to get off the bus and stretch our legs. We spent some time exploring the pretty river walk before lunch, soaking up the sun and 80-degree Andalucian weather. Then we met up for lunch at a traditional restaurant, getting our first experience with Salmorejo, which is a "salad" made of tomatoes, which our professors insist is NOT soup. But it's basically cold, creamy, light tomato soup. Not my favorite, but once you get used to it, it's not bad. I also found out on this trip that I really like calamari.

After lunch, we headed to the city's main attraction, its famous mezquita-catedral. It's a Muslim mosque that was partially converted into a Cathedral after the Catholics expelled the Moors from the peninsula. We got our first exposure to Muslim architecture, which is absolutely amazing. The whole place was filled with row upon row of double-arched columns with red and white stripes. Also, the walls and ceilings in most Muslim structures, as the culture is opposed to any sort of figures or visual representations of God, are covered in plant-like, geometrical plaster carvings. The detail on every surface with the beautiful tile, plaster, and wood ceilings, is truly astounding. It's also interesting to compare cultures based on the values they convey with their architecture. Muslim buildings are designed to be organic, with gardens, patios, and smoothly flowing water. They are not built to last for centuries, as stone Gothic cathedrals were, but instead are meant to grow and change with the various rulers who allow work on them. The columns used are often recycled from earlier structures as well, and therefore don't always match. It was strange to note the absence of art depicting religious figures, and how that changed in the part converted into a Gothic Cathedral. The blending and interacting of the two cultures that influenced this part of Spain was evident in each detail.

After that stop, we made our way to Sevilla, checked into our hotel, and did some exploring for our first night. It was quite the adventure to try to experiment with local specialties at a nearby restaurant. On top of pretty bad service, it was harder than usual to understand our waitress, as most Andalucians have a pretty heavy accent. Then, we stopped for some ice cream, and also ended up trying one of the oranges that are on the trees all over the streets of Andalucia. A waiter said we could, but I wouldn't suggest it. They're definitely more for decoration than taste... one of the most sour things I've ever had. However, it made for a humorous night before we headed back to the hotel.

The next day, we fit in a lot of educational sight-seeing. The great thing about these Fundacion trips it that we get to bring our professors with us as tour guides, who also happen to be a lot of fun. We saw more Moorish architecture and gardens at the Alcazares Reales, explored Barrio Santa Cruz, and went to Sevilla's Catedral, which is actually the biggest cathedral in Europe. All were great sights and experiences, followed up by a fantastic several-course lunch on the Fundacion.
During our free time that day, we decided to rent a paddle boat on the Guadalquivir River, which made for a perfect, fun, hot afternoon.

That night, we all got dressed up and headed to a flamenco show, which was one of the coolest things I've seen here yet. The show included both male and female dancers, a guitarist, and a singer. All of it was indescribable. From the guitarist's fingers to the dancers' heels, I've never seen such fast, passionate movement. As a music style, flamenco really conveys a lot of the exoticness, spice, energy, and tradition that are important to Spain's culture. I absolutely loved the show.

That brought our time in Sevilla to a close, and the next stop was Granada. We really enjoyed our time here as well, from simple things like walks on the river to the spectacular views of the Sierra Nevada mountain range. We did some shopping and exploring in our free time, and had a great dinner with the entire group, as well as some fun evening conversations with our professor, Chuck. The tourism highlights were definitely the Capilla Real and the Alhambra.

The Capilla Real (Royal Chapel) is in Granada's cathedral. As Granada was the last city conquered by Ferdinand and Isabella during the Reconquista, they decided that they should by buried there. The visit to their tombs, as well as those of their family members, was awesome for a history major like me. The cathedral itself was also a work of religious art, and included a museum. Afterward, we walked up one of Granada's many hills, to an open space where there was a beautiful view of the city, mountains, and the Alhambra across the valley. It seemed a popular hangout for some of Granada's citizens, and had an interesting feel to it, with a gitano band, street vendors, and a different type of behind-the-scenes culture.

The big highlight in Granada was la Alhambra. It's a fortress built long ago by Muslim kings in Spain, changed and added to throughout the centuries. The foundations of the earliest houses remain, as well as amazing towers and palaces. The fortress as a whole is almost a city itself. The gardens, architecture, and summer palaces were all fantastic, with similar architecture to the other mosques and Moorish palaces we had seen.

After the Alhambra, it was finally time to head back to Madrid. It was a great trip,and I loved this part of Spain's culture. Now I'm back in Madrid for a while, getting back into the swing of class, and looking forward to my mom and aunt's visit this week.

Hasta luego!