La Comida de España

After traveling a lot these past few months, I've decided to slow it down the next few weeks and focus on some homework (yes, I do still have homework over here). While that's going on, I thought I'd spend a little time talking about some Spanish food!
First things first - a little bit about meals here in Spain. The meal schedule is a little different over here so getting used to that was really interesting when I got here.

My breakfast everyday!

Breakfast is at 8 (at least for me because I leave for class at 8:30) - pretty normal
However, lunch (la comida) is not until 2:30 - 3:30
and Supper is at 9:30 (or sometimes later)

Breakfast: Everyday for breakfast is pretty much the same and always very simple. Every morning I wake up to have 2 pieces of toast and then either some coffee (for my roommate), or Colacao (a type of hot chocolate - for me).

Tortilla Española - A potato omelette

After going to classes for the day, we then come home to lunch, which in Spain is the biggest meal of the day. Lunch is usually a three course meal. First up is always some type of soup. My family likes to make some types of vegetable purees. I'm pretty sure that they just cook a bunch of vegetables and then blend them together. The soups usually include carrots, potatoes, sometimes beans, spinach, peas, and pretty much any other vegetable they have. Not always my favorite, but sometimes they are really good! Other soups include lentils and vegetables (one of my favorites), garbonzo bean soup, and sometimes we just get a complete bowl of peas or beans.

Empanadas

The second course is then usually some kind of chicken, or maybe ham. Finally, we usually end with a piece of fruit for dessert.

Dinner is usually not a very big deal here in Spain and I have actually never seen my host family eat dinner which is kind-of strange. But for supper, we always have a small salad - each time made with lettuce and then olive oil and vinegar for dressing (the Spaniards love their olive oil). Along with the salad, we then have either pizza (it's delicious here), empanadas, tortilla española, fish, or something simple. 

Finally here's a little more information:

An example of something I had for tapas once

Tapas are something that doesn't really translate to English. Tapas are "small" snacks that come with drinks that Spaniards usually start enjoying around 8pm.

Churros are wonderful! I've never really been a big fan of churros until coming to Spain, but let me tell you, chocolate con churros is absolutely amazing! They always come with a cup of chocolate that you dip the churros into, and then drink at the end!

 Finally, here is a picture of some chorizo I had while in Portugal. This was cooked by soaking it in alcohol and then setting it on fire! It was absolutely delicious!

There you go and I hope you learned something. Needless to say I'm being well fed while over here, but I will be excited to come home and have some of the food I grew up having. The only thing I think I forgot to talk about on here was Paella. Paella is extremely common, and very good! It's flavored rice that is cooked with seafood, usually shrimp, some kalamari, and/or mussels? I'm not really good at naming my seafood, but it all does taste really good! hopefully I'll be able to learn how to make it before I leave.

Hasta Luego!

Granada and Sevilla

After many years of Spanish classes, I have spent a lot of time learning about different Spanish cities, Spanish architecture, and important monuments. Before coming to Spain, the two cities I was most excited to see were Granada and Sevilla in Andalucia (the southern part of Spain), and this weekend I had the opportunity to visit both!!!

The infamous patio de leones

Granada, the last stronghold for the Moors. In 1492, it was finally conquered by los Reyes Católicos (Ferdinand and Isabella) during La Reconquista. Granada was absolutely amazing, because I was able to see the monument I have wanted to see for years. While in Granada, I was able to visit the tombs of Los Reyes Catolicos (and their daughter Juana la loca), la Alhambra, and visit the neighborhood of Albaycin. Although Granada is a really big city, it still has a small-town feel to it and while there, my friends and I were able to meet up with someone from Eau Claire who is studying in Granada. It was fun to see her, and have a tour from someone we know who also lives in the city.

Plaza de España

After visiting as much of Granada in a day as possible, we then moved on to Sevilla. While there, we visited the major monuments including the Cathedral (biggest gothic church in the world), la giralda (the bell tower), the torre de oro (tower of gold), el Alcazar (ancient palace), the plaza de toros (most beautiful in Spain) and visit the gorgeous Plaza de España. Sevilla is a beautiful city, especially in the spring because there are many colorful trees that are blooming right now. An interesting fact about Sevilla is that every year they have what is called la feria de abril (the April fair) which is a festival where everyone dances, drinks, parties, and embraces their Andalucian culture for a week (with very little sleep). The day that we were in Sevilla was the day before the start of la feria so many people were preparing for the upcoming festivities. This meant that while we were there, we were able to see many horse carriages decorated for their competition and even some women dressed up in flamenco dresses for the next day!

Found the city I'm studying in! (in Sevilla)

Needless to say we had a lot of fun visiting these two cities and enjoying the slightly warmer weather. I would recommend visiting these cities to anyone who ever wants to visit Spain. It's hard to believe I only have about 5 weeks left here which means I only have a few trips left. Now it's time to start buckling down on homework, but before the end of the semester the other cities I will be visiting are ávila, Paris, and Santander.
Próxima Parada: Avila y el Escorial
Hasta Luego

Ireland

Last stop on the spring break extravaganza: Ireland!!

After a little mishap, I was able to take a ferry that went from Island to Island. It was an amazing ride with some great people and we had fun exploring the boat which was complete with an arcade and a movie theater.

After arriving in Dublin, we started exploring and inspecting all of the Irish souvenirs. After spending some money, we were then all ready to go to a pub and try some Irish food as well as enjoy some great music. Although I don't remember the name, the pub that we went to was absolutely amazing! The food was absolutely incredible and I think it was mostly because it was similar to stuff we would have at home (great comfort food). After finishing, we then started to hear some music playing and some clapping and of course, had to see what was happening. We arrived in time to see a couple dancing an Irish jig to some great music and of course, we joined in with clapping along!

After a night spent in Dublin, we then headed out bright and early to see the Cliffs of Moher. Our bus tour guide was great and I think we all enjoyed listening to his accent. After stopping at some castles along the way, we made it to the Cliffs in the early afternoon on a clear sunny day. Although it usually rains in Ireland, we had nearly perfect weather for our entire 2 week trip which was incredible! And on a clear day, the cliffs are amazing! If anyone ever makes it to Ireland, the Cliffs are a must-see (But make sure to actually be careful and don't get too close to the edge because it IS slippery and a long way down). And side note: they also filmed a scene from Harry Potter there too (You could say I really loved the UK!!!)






Our next day in Ireland was also spent exploring the countryside. Ireland is absolutely beautiful and full of great mountain views, lots of waterfalls, some lakes, and thousands of sheep! The sheep were sooo cute! and a lot of them had babies too!

Needless to say, Ireland was amazing and I hope to make it back one day. It was incredible, and a great way to end spring break! We really didn't want to leave and wanted to keep exploring the country, but alas, it was time to get back to Spain and "reality" (and studying). It's been interesting getting back into the swing of things and crazy to think there's only 7 weeks left! This means we've got to make the most of it!
Next trip: Sevilla and Granada (the two Spanish cities I'm looking forward to the most!)

Edinburgh

For those of you who don't know, like me before this trip, Edinburgh(pronounced Ed-in-bur-ough), Scotland is a beautiful city home of Edinburgh Castle and where the first Harry Potter books were written! If you haven't figured out by now that I LOVE Harry Potter, then I don't know where you've been :P

Love the architecture!

Arriving in Scotland, I was amazed at all of the incredible brick buildings and architecture. Although I absolutely love all of the Spanish and Italian cities, it was great to be in a different atmosphere filled with both history and greenery! - and lots of hills. After walking up and downs some large flights of stairs (good thing our legs didn't hurt anymore from the Cinque Terre), we were able to start our day with a walking tour of the city! We visited the main sites and learned a lot of the fables that are infamous within the area. Sites included, but are not limited to: City Hall, Edinburgh Cathedral, the podium where big events are still announced today (complete with a unicorn on top), some Harry Potter sites, and some pubs with great stories.

Más arquitectura

School based part of Hogwarts

While in Edinburgh, I learned that it was the inspiration for many well-known stories, including Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Maggie Dickson's - inspiration for Nearly Headless Nick, and more that I can't remember. It also was where J.K. Rowling was inspired and wrote her first few books. Harry Potter sites include Grayfriar's graveyard with gravestones that have the names of Tom Riddle Sr. and Jr., Moodie, and McGonagall (many are spelt different); the school and castle that Hogwarts was based on, and the elephant house where J.K. Rowling wrote the books.

Castle based part of Hogwarts

In addition to visiting these places, we also spent the next day exploring the castle and hearing the 1 o'clock cannon fired which is a tradition that had been done for hundreds? of years. Also, you can't leave Scotland without hearing some bagpipes and we were lucky enough to see someone playing them in the street, and we also found many stores that were selling some kilts. All in all, I'd say the trip was a success!!!

London

London was amazing!!!! That's all I can really saw about this beautiful city. I'm not really sure why we all enjoyed it so much, but it really was incredible. Our stops included Buckingham Palace, Kensington Palace, the Tower Bridge, London Bridge, Millennium Bridge, King's Cross Station, and so much more!
After making it to London, we were all pretty exhausted from all of our traveling, so when I first heard the British accents, I was just kind-of annoyed with the people for sounding so nice! Day two was a bit different though because then I went back to loving the British accents (especially the ones I understood). The day began by meeting up with someone who was studying abroad in England. We then proceeded to enjoy the day. My favorite part about the city: all of the Harry Potter locations! I am such a nerd that when we were on the Metro I almost cried from excitement every time I realized I would get to see Platform 9 3/4 on that trip!!


Our first stop was St. Paul's Cathedral, though we just peeked in for a little bit. After all of the Cathedrals,  I think we'll be good if we don't see any for a little while. Still, it was pretty impressive! Right next to the church is the Millennium Bridge and while we were walking there, we smelled the amazing scent of candied peanuts which were absolutely incredible on a cold rainy London day. After walking across the Millennium Bridge (famous for me because the death eaters attack it in the 6th Harry Potter!) where we were able to see the Globe Theatre, where many of Shakespeare's plays were performed (I think). Following these sights, we walked across London Bridge (and it didn't fall down!), saw the Tower of London, and then proceeded to visit one of the possible inspirations of Diagon Alley!

Big Ben

After seeing all the sights, we then went on a walking tour throughout the city and stopped at a lot of the important places including Buckingham Palace, number 10 Downing street, Big Ben!, and Westminster Abbey. Following our long day of seeing all the sights, we then proceeded to a Pub (that's fun to say!) where we had some traditional British food, Fish and Chips! It was so amazing to have some (almost) American food. Needless to say we ate a lot of food while in London.

Buckingham Palace

Our second day consisted of less sightseeing and more time walking around, exploring the city. We went to a market, looked for a bookstore, and (the most important part of the trip), went to Platform 9 3/4 at Kings Cross Station!!!!! I was beyond excited, and the people that were working at the store right next to the "platform" were hilarious and trying to recruit everyone into Slytherin :) Everything was absolutely fabulous, and the only regret I have is that we weren't in London for more time.
Next stop: Edinburgh, Scotland

Pisa and Venice

Last few stops on the Italian adventure include visiting the leaning tower of Pisa and Venice, home of the gondolas!!!

After our long day of hiking the Cinque Terre, our adventure continued with a short visit to Pisa to see: The Tower!!! Other than that monument, there isn't very much in the city so of course, we spent the day visiting the cathedral and taking the obligatory cheesy tourist pictures. Although they aren't perfect, here you go:

After Pisa, we made it to our final Italian destination: Venice.

While in Venice, we started the day off right with an absolutely amazing gondola ride! In addition to getting to ride around the city in their "streets", we also were able to hear a little bit of singing from our gondolier, Fabio! Following our gondola ride, we then proceeded to get a little lost trying to find the main plaza (Venice is confusing!!!) and then eventually found what we were looking for. Then we went to see Doge's Palace which was the stronghold of the empire for hundreds of years. The palace was amazing on the inside, full of ballrooms, the "golden staircase", and hundreds of painted ceilings showcasing the amazing artists of Italy.
Day 2 was spent exploring some museums and some cathedrals, and making sure we ended our Italian adventure in a good way. We enjoyed walking around and admiring the souvenirs, finding a Disney store, and watching some birds fight over some bread (we're weird people). We enjoyed our relaxing day before making it to the airport for our flight to London.

Florence and Cinque Terre

The next stops on the agenda were Florence and the Cinque Terre.

The Bell Tower and Cathedral

Florence is a lovely smaller city that is home to the Duomo and a couple of nice museums. While we were there, we enjoyed a nice rainy morning and spent our day exploring a museum, walking throughout the city, looking for some good pasta, and enjoying some gelato.



After Florence, we decided to get away from seeing all of the cathedrals and museums and spend some time in the outdoors. Before Spring Break I had never heard of the Cinque Terre and I still don't know how to pronounce it, but now I will be recommending it to anyone who wants to go on some gorgeous hikes along the coast. The Cinque Terre is made up of 5 small coastal cities and is a path that cuts through the mountains connecting each city with amazing views of the sea the entire way. Although at first, we didn't know if we would make it very far hiking up, we completed the open paths while singing along to some great songs, and meeting some people from around the world along the way! Since the views were the best part, here are some pictures to enjoy:

Moving from city to city means getting to weave up and down the mountains with all of our stuff. Here we go!

Saying there were lots of stairs would be an understatement. Needless to say, the legs were hurting for a few days.