Feria de Sevilla

The flower on the top of the head is very typical... but I don't like it

In Cari's very traditional Spanish patio

The full view of the dress

The door to Feria

Awwwww

Even the horses get dressed up!

Girls dancing the Sevillana

Dana and Me

Riding in a horse-drawn carriage

FERIA

Some of my coworkers

Men dressed up in their carriage

Feria after dark

The door at night!

So, the week of April 23-28, there was the famous Feria de Sevilla (Sevilla Fair).  It is one of the most popular events in Andalucía, and of course in Sevilla.  It is a week long in the neighborhood of Los Remedios in a big open space that gets filled with tents, lights, decorations, and lots of people! I went with my coworkers on the Thursday.  Even though I have some pictures at the top in a flamenco dress which is worn by almost all the women at the festival, it actually didn't fit me so I didn't wear one to the Feria.  My American coworker Dana did though, and she looked so Spanish! We entered the Feria through the big "door" that is different every year.  It is supposed to be representative of the city, and this year it looked like the Salvador church which is near my house.  Upon entering the Feria, I was immediately surrounded by men dressed up nicely and all the women dressed in their uniquely designed flamenco dresses.  There were many different tents that you have to know somebody to get in to.  Some people pay for a membership to certain tents, and then they can invite people inside.  One of my coworkers Flori (the religion teacher) has a tent, or "caseta", that we all could to in to.  Everybody drinks the same drink of rebujitos, which is manzanilla (a sweet Spanish wine) and Sprite mixed together.  Sevillana music plays over and over all day all week and people dance the typical dance "Sevillana" when they want to.  Horses trot through the street, some with carriages and some just with people riding them.  The vibe all throughout the Feria is that of a very elegant and macho feel.  People eat various tapas in the tents and hang out with their friends there, and then can go to other tents of their other friends.  We hung out some in the caseta of Flori and then one of Noami, another teacher at my school.  One treat that we got was we got to go on a horse-drawn carriage ride from Meli's husband (Meli is my coordinator) all around the grounds of the Feria.  Normally, those rides are super expensive, but we got to go for free!  It was cool to have a nice little tour of the festival.  It was interesting to see, but it wasn't really my scene, but I'm glad I got to go see it!

Arcos de la Frontera

View outside my hostel

View outside my hostel

View outside my hostel

View outside my hostel

Down below my hostel

A summary of my weekend getaway

Beautiful!!!!!!

Streets of Arcos

View from down below the cliffs

View from down below the cliffs

So, being that I am about to move back to the United States after living my super unorganized and flexible life here in Spain, it is completely natural that I would be a little stressed.  The culture in the United States is sooo different from here as far as concept of time and efficiency, which are things that are going to be crucial as I embark on my job hunt when I return.  I don't know what job I'm going to have, where it will be, or how long it will take to find one, so yea, my stress level has been a little high.  On April 21, I decided that I needed to get away and do some thinking.  My 1000 Places to See Before You Die book had mentioned that Arcos de la Frontera was worth a visit, as it is the first pueblo on the "Ruta de los Pueblos Blancos"  (Route of the White Villages), so I decided that I had to go there, especially since it is not very far away, and not very accessible for a day trip.  I thought that if I didn't go there this year while I am here living in Sevilla, than I may never go there.  I am soooo glad that I went.  I took the 2 hour bus ride there in the morning and still arrived early in the day.  I got on a local bus to go to my hostel, but the driver forgot to tell me when to get off so I got a little tour of the village, haha.  It is quite small, and the historical center of town is even smaller. When I arrived to my hostel, it was much more like a hotel.  I was the only person staying there too so it was awesome!!! The upstairs had a sitting room with wifi with free tea and coffee and a beautiful vista.  Down below were the rooms, and my room was perfect for me, with an individual bathroom that was nice and clean.  The guy that ran the hostel was a British guy that was really artsy and peaceful.  After dropping my stuff off I went for a walk around town and then stopped in the center for some tapas.  WOW, the food was awesome.  I had crepes with ham and asparagus with a balsamic sauce, pepper stuffed chicken, and spinach & pine nut croquettes.  Delicious!  I read my book while eating in the sun and it was really relaxing.  Since I was travelling alone, I could do whatever I wanted to do, and ya know what, I wanted to take a nap, so that is what I did.  It was a great nap too with only the sounds of the peaceful surroundings and the goats grazing at the bottom of the hill.  After my nap, I went on a hike to the bottom of the cliffs.  It was so beautiful, and the hike back up the cliffs was a great work out! I bought some wine when I got back in town and went up to the rooftop terrace of my hostel to read, think, admire the view, and have some wine.  It was absolutely perfect.  After it started to cool down, I used the internet for a while and then went to eat dinner at the place recommended by the guy that ran the hostel.  I had quail breast in an orange olive oil sauce, chicken "cake" with ham and a pate oregano sauce, and spinach and pine nut stuffed hake fish.  I was the only one eating there so the waiter talked with me for almost the whole time which was good Spanish practice.  I returned to the hostel where I took a nice hot bath with my music blasting since I was the only one there, did some sewing, and then slept peacefully.  I woke up to some roosters and the goats grazing again with their bells clanging along the cliffs.  I left after getting up and going.  It was a fantastic trip and just what I needed!  I am so glad that I went.  One of my best mini-vacations ever! 

Ireland: Part 4 Dublin (for the second time)

All the Guiness bottles over the years

View from the top of the Guinness Brewery

Liffey River in Dublin

Bonnie on Easter Sunday

The Oldest Pub in Dublin

Bonnie participating in the Jameson Challenge 

Umm... I don't like whiskey that much...

Streets of Dublin

Dublin Castle Grounds

Temple Bar area

We had head out early from Galway to Dublin because we wanted to make sure we got to visit the Guinness Storehouse Brewery, which had been highly recommended by many.  It indeed was interested, but sooo crowded and very poorly organized, so it was hard to learn anything.  And actually, the free Guinness we had at the top was actually the worst Guinness we had tasted in Ireland... it was very bitter.  Maybe the brewery was having a bad day?  I don't know.  None of us could finish the free beers, but the view was nice.  The area around the brewery was really shady though.  Dublin was kind of a sad city in general.  Evidently, Ireland is one of the top countries for having a heroin problem.  In all of the public bathrooms, even in our hostel, there were black lights so that you couldn't see your veins... uggghhhh.  It is obvious from walking around that the crisis has hit Ireland pretty hard and therefore has produced a lot of alcoholics, drunks, druggies, etc.  Anyways, we walked around some more and looked at she shops and then ate in the Temple Bar area, where I had some vegetable curry.  Curry is actually very popular in Ireland and is offered at most pubs and restaurants.  The next day Alex had his flight back to Spain but Bonnie and I still had another day.  It was Easter so Bonnie and I went to Christ Church for the service which was interesting.  We went afterwards to the Brazen Head Pub which is the 2nd oldest pub in Ireland, but the oldest in Dublin.  It was probably my favorite pub we had been in.  We then went to the Jameson Distillery.  It was much more organized, less crowded, and more educational and fun.  However, turns out I'm not much of a whiskey fan, though I do prefer it to scotch.  Bonnie got selected to be part of a taste test.  We walked around to walk off the alcohol and stumbled upon Dublin Castle that had the Chester Beatty Library where we saw a very interesting video about how leather bound handmade books were made in the Middle East.  It was really cool. We had some dinner at another pub and then caught a bus to the Hilton where we got a great deal for the night by the airport.  It was a lovely way to end the trip.  I really enjoyed Ireland, but honestly it was the most expensive week of my life, so if you are going to go there, prepare yourself! 

Ireland: Part 3 Galway & Cliffs of Moher

A beautiful B&B in Galway (but we didn't stay there)

Streets of Galway

Galway

Picking up rocks in the Atlantic Ocean

Spanish Arch

Street in Ireland

"The Burren"

Corcomroe Abbey

Poulnabrone Temple

Cliffs of Moher

Harp player playing along the Cliffs

Don't fall off the cliff!!!

SHEEP COWS!!!!!!!!!! (aka Alpaca)

Streets of Galway

Breakfast crepe!

When we arrived to Galway, we went to our hostel that was right off of one of the main squares, Eyre Square.  We went to a cafe to eat paninis and then went to walk around the center.  We went to walk along Salt Hill, which is this big stretch of rocky shoreline along the Atlantic Ocean.  I loved it!  It was fun looking at all the rocks, and surprisingly the water was really warm, although it was really cold outside... very strange.  The ocean was pretty and we could see out to a lighthouse and the Aran Islands.  Bonnie found some sea glass and was really happy about that.  We then went to the King's Head Pub which was a really cool pub, but the bartender was such an asshole.  I had my first Guinness in Ireland, but only a half-pint.  Honestly, I'm not a big fan... We then went to the Merry Fiddler Pub to eat where I had some fish and chips.  There was an old Irish drunk man singing Irish tunes at the bar which was kind of funny at first because it was so stereotypical Ireland.  The next day we got on a tour bus to go tour through the area called "The Burren" and also see the Cliffs of Moher.  Unfortunately, most of our tour bus was filled with obnoxious immature Belgians that were drinking and smoking on the bus and being disrespectful.  On the other hand, our tour guides were really strange, but I still enjoyed the things we got to see.  We stopped by a few abbeys, temples, "fairy mounds", and castles... and then of course the Cliffs.  This region of Ireland is famous for having different type of landscape than the other regions.  It is mostly not green and very rocky.  The Cliffs of Moher were beautiful and extremely windy!!  When we returned to Galway that evening we wanted to just relax and have some wine, but it was Good Friday and so alcohol was illegal to sell/serve in all of Ireland (very religious country), but as luck would have it, we found one of the only Italian restaurants that didn't get the memo.  We had delicious Italian food and some wine.  The next morning, Alex decided to sleep in, but Bonnie and I went to the local market which was awesome.  We got breakfast crepes from a stand, bought some local cheese, and looked at what the people sold.  Bonnie bought a painting.  We both really loved the market.  I think the quality of life in Galway would be really great if you lived there.  Then, unfortunately we had to get on a bus to leave to go back to Dublin.