Hello all , Something I didn’t mention that I found out during orientation is that all my classes will be at the University of Sevilla and my classes don’t start till the 26th of this month , so until then I am for all intents and purposes a tourist.
I have been trying to fill my time as much as possible before classes start. On Monday I took a long walk ( 45 -60 min.) from Nervion which is the district that I live in to Paseo de Cristobal Colon. While I was at Paseo de Cristobal Colon, I walked along the river and visited the Torre de Oro and the Plaza de Toros.
The Torre del Oro (Spanish for Gold Tower) is a military watchtower built during the Almohad dynasty in order to control access to the city via the Guadalquivir river. The
tower was built as part of the defensive works running from the Alcázar to the river. The tower may have received its name from the golden tiles which cover its dome and may have once adorned the rest of the tower.
Constructed in the first third of the 13th century, it has twelve sides, and from its base a chain would be stretched, underwater, across the river to another fort on the opposite shore, thereby preventing enemy ships from traveling upstream to the port of Seville. The Castilian naval force commanded by Ramón de Bonifaz broke this defense, helping Ferdinand III of Castile capture Seville in 1248.
I also passed by the Plaza de Toros and took pictures of it and the statues of famous matadores. The Plaza de Toros is where Bull Fights take place. I went to my first bullfight two years ago in Granada. During the short month that I was there, I went twice. On one occasion I got great seats free from some guys, it was 3 rows in from the center of the ring and so close that I could smell the bull. I know that there are many people who are against it, so in order to be sensitive to people who might think that is extreme cruelty I would just say that I am a fan of Corridos or Bull Fighting. Since Sevilla is credited as the birthplace of this sport, I also plan on going to a couple as well.
I have been doing research on visiting other EU countries and on Monday decided that on Tuesday I would go to Portugal. The fact that it was a 3 hr bus ride made it a great day trip for me. I was texting back and forth with 2 girls that I had met at Orientation who also only have classes at the U de S and they were interested in coming along, but the day off they overslept and missed the bus. C’est la vie, so I ended up going to Portugal myself because I had already bought my ticket. I can honestly say that I wasn’t happy about going alone and when I got off the bus wanted to get right back on another bus and return to Sevilla , but after mentally slapping myself for my attitude I enjoyed myself.
While in Faro, I first walked around the shopping districts and tried not to butcher the little Portuguese that I know. A lot of the people that I interacted with spoke a little English and Spanish and I got around the whole day with a hodgepodge of the three languages , but for people who speak only English I would definitely recommend Faro. You can visit there and be understood by speaking English only. I also found a tourist center and after 2 hrs in Faro, finally got a map and toured Old Faro. Starting with Arco da Vila or the Village’s Arch. A huge door built in the beginning of the 19th Century to mark the entry into the city I presume. I also went to the town’s Cathedral and the old cloistered nunnery. The nunnery made me think of the time when I wanted to be a nun. The people who know me, might laugh at that but yea, I wanted to be a nun. I also sneaked into an archeological dig site and took a picture of whatever they were digging up.
Os homens em Faro, Portugal seja muito futura com elogios. Me fui falado no
português e inglês que eu parecia bonito e eu também tive outro cavalheiro me
chegar e nós tivemos pela metade entre outras coisas uma conversação meio
portuguese espanhol sobre Sevilha.(Pardon my errors in Portuguese). The men in Faro
were very forthcoming with compliments . I was told in Portuguese and English
that I looked pretty and I also had another gentleman approach me and we had a
conversation in half spanish half portuguese about Seville among other things.
All in all I really enjoyed myself in Faro.
On Wednesday in the morning I had another
little adventure tying to find the regional Post Office to pick up a package
that came for me in the mail. I had asked the postman who was entering my
building as I was leaving how to get to it. He said, pass the el Corte Ingles, go up a bit more make a
right and the post office will be there opposite the only gas station in that
area. I have been the corte ingles before and I know that it’s a 20 minute
walk, I figured ok, a 40 minute walk at the most, that’s doable. TWO HOURS
LATER!! I was leaving the post office with my package. I wasn’t going to
walk back with a 26 pound box in 90
degree weather (I already learnt my lesson with the laptop) so I took 2 buses
to get back and only had to walk about 20 minutes with the box. That was a bit
of a work out and not surprisingly once I was back home I got a great old
migraine. I slept a bit during siesta and after a short trip to the farmácia to get something
other than aspirin met up with the girls who had overslept on the day I went to
Faro. Lynair, Val and I did a bit of window-shopping and we parted ways so that
they could get supper at their house.
I then met up with my sister and instead of supper,
we got ready and went to a free Flamenco concert in Plaza Nueva. I love Flamenco
music, the music really moves me to dance, the cry. It’s the sort of music that
calls to my heart and its also very Andalucían. To me Flamenco is another place
where the Moorish and Gypsy ancestry of this part of Spain is very evident.
After the concert, my sis and I went to a Tapas Bar to get something to eat and
we didn’t get home till sometime after 1 am.
Not surprising with the week I have had so far I took it easy today (Thursday) and other than a quick trip to help my sis as a translator for an appointment and a trip to the supermarket to get juice I’ve been home , catching up on emails , calling the family.
Just to add caption to the pics . 1. Torre de Oro 2. Plaza de Torros 3. Statue of a famous Matador. 4. and 5. Faro, Portugal 6.and 7. The Archelogical dig that I peaked into. 8. A picture of the crowd at the Plaza de Armas where the free flamenco show was being held and 9. to give you a perspective of where I was seated in relation to the stage and 10. a pic of my sis and I from that night for the family :)
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