Escape to Andalucía

I didn't expect to be too wowed by Sevilla. And then I got there.

The red buildings with yellow trim, horse carriages, castle-like buildings, enormous parks full of green, cool temperatures, small town feeling, friendly Andalusians, and flamenco changed my mind. Even the hostel that I stayed at was fun. I met some really great people and we ended up hanging out together throughout our stay in Sevilla.

The first night I spent in the hostel a group of Chinese girls were cooking a big pot of noodle soup for their group of eight people. They offered me a bowl of soup since they made so much. I was so grateful because I hadn't yet eaten dinner and wasn't sure what I was going to eat since all the supermarkets had already closed for the night and I wasn't in the mood for some fried tapas. Though a bit picante, the soup was delicious. It was probably the most "real" Chinese food I have ever eaten. Go figure, I had to go to the south of Spain to eat it.

That same night I chatted with a group of six students studying in Madrid. Little did I know that they'd adopt me into their little clan and we'd explore Sevilla together. After chatting with them the night before, I spontaneously ran into the group the next day at the Alcázar (one of Sevilla's old castle buildings that was built by the Arabs way back when). They offered me to hang out with them for the rest of the day. And so I did. I loved it.

Our group was two Brazilians, two Germans, one Italian, one Frenchie, and your fellow United States-ian.

Us in the Alcázar.

We enjoyed each other's company. That same night we ended up going to La Carboneria, a bar located deep within the labyrinth that is Sevilla. La Carboneria is basically the only place that has free flamenco. So, being the poor students that we are, we arrived there at 9:oopm for the show that would start at 11:00pm. The place filled up and was jammed with humanity by the time the show started. It was smokey, crowded, and so worth it.

Sometimes, though, the simplest things are the most fun. My favorite thing we did was when we sat on the riverbank of the Guadalquivir (the longest river in Andalucía), eating sweets and enjoying the view. Viktor bought the sweets from the nuns that were selling them at the Alcázar. A bit random, you think? Yes, absolutely. Apparently every year around Christmastime nuns from all around Europe bake a bunch of candy and sweets and sell them at the Alcázar. Lucky us, we were there to buy them. The sweets were unusual and very good. One of them was simply an egg yoke with sugar added. It was ecstasy.

Other things we did (in no particular order):

- Walked through Parque Maria Luisa - a very beautiful park with tons of paths, foliage, and horse crap. Hostia, cuídate por la mierda de caballo.

- Talked.

-Took pictures.

-Visited the Plaza de Toros.

-Ate falafel and kebabs for lunch.

-Visited Plaza de España.

-Polished off the candy that was in Lucy's backpack. She says she always brings candy with her so that she can have something sweet after every meal.
-Drank the "Agua de Sevilla" as if it were really water...

If only my new friends were studying in Barcelona instead of Madrid. Oh well, I now have six reasons to go back to the capital city...