USC MADRID in Sevilla

Yesterday I went back in time. I spent the day with 25 USC students and two professors. USC Madrid makes a trip once a semester to visit Sevilla so the students get to know another, important part of Spain. Since Lette is better at keeping in touch with people than I am, she had been in contact with the program coordinators (yes, for those of you who didn’t know, Lette and I did know each other before coming to Sevilla, we both went to USC and studied abroad in Madrid) and they kept her updated about when they would be in Sevilla in the spring semester.

They invited us to join their Saturday city tour which included a trip to the Museo de Bellas Artes and Plaza del Toros, two places in the city that I have passed by one million times (but pretty sure I’ve never actually visited). It was great to be able to go to the fine art museum with the USC art history professor. Unfortunately, when I studied abroad, due to scheduling conflicts, I wasn’t able to take his class. For me it was a real treat to be guided through the museum by a professor that is not only extremely knowledgeable about art, but also extremely enthusiastic about sharing his knowledge. As my parents told me multiple times in college, a good professor is the most important factor in choosing a good class, even more so then interest in the subject.  And now almost two years after graduating college, I finally really understand what they meant by that.

Paco, the art history teacher, is one of the most enthusiastic and intelligent professors I have ever heard. He guided us through the museum showing us the most important paintings, explaining the history of the artist, of the painting in general and the time period in which it was painted. Usually, when I am in a museum I look at my watch every three minutes because I am so bored. I hardly noticed we had spent an hour and a half going around the museum. I was so happy to be learning again in a “classroom” type environment, it has been so long.  I noticed a lot of the students got bored while we were visiting the museum, and I just wanted to tell them to try to appreciate how lucky they are to have such a great teacher because sooner or later they will miss it. But, I didn’t say that. Instead I decided to listen and learn as much as I possibly could because lucky for me I didn’t have to scribble all the facts down to study for a test next week!

After the museum we strolled over to the Plaza de Toros, where they have a bullfighting museum and you can walk around the bullring. We took the necessary café con leche break and then continued our day. I don’t think I mentioned that the day started at 10:30 AM on a Saturday. I can’t even remember the last time I woke up that early on a Saturday.

At the Plaza de Toros, we did a guided tour with a really great tour guide. I love when I get good tour guides because really it is just a question of luck. Everyone pays the same amount for a guided tour, and the guide can really make or break one’s opinion of a place. Our tour was in English and Spanish. It came in handy that I understand both languages because I realized the tour guide was giving different information in each language. Sometimes she would forget to say something she had said in Spanish in English, and vice versa. So the people on the tour who understood both languages ended up learning the most.

After a morning full of learning and being on our feet, USC treated us to an amazing I don’t know how many course lunch at La Taberna del Alabardero. This is a restaurant that I walk past almost everyday on my way to work and always thought was a hotel. It is also “la escuela de hosteleria”, which I think means something like hospitality school. I think since I always see the word “hosteleria” outside the building, I just assumed it was a hotel because hostel and hotel look similar. I’m not sure. It is in a really fancy old building that used to be a palace, home to a wealthy Sevillian family. The inside is even more gorgeous than the outside, and the food as delicious and beautiful as the décor of the building.

We ate a typical three-hour lunch that consisted of three courses of appetizers and a main course and dessert. To start, to share we were given paté and bread chips, tortillitas de camarones (fried shrimp pancakes) and croquetas filled with something delicious and unidentifiable. Then, each person got a bowl of seafood rice, something like paella but also with broth. Not sure what it was exactly but I know it was really yummy. By the time my main dish came I was so full I could hardly eat it. Had I known all the appetizers would be fish/seafood based, I might not have chosen fish for my main course (we had a choice between fish and meat). Still, being full has almost never stopped me from eating when good food is put in front of me (or any food for that matter) and yesterday was no exception. Then dessert…something like cheesecake but not as good. To avoid having to be rolled out of the restaurant I decided not to eat the cake and just stick with coffee to help the digestion process.

At lunch we sat at a big table with about 10 students and the two professors chatting about our experiences and theirs, answering questions about our lives in Sevilla, why we decided to come here to teach, how we were enjoying it and so on. I was really happy to be able to talk about my experience here with the students because I remember when I was in their position and even when I was still living in Madrid, all I could think about was how I would be able to get back to Spain. And the students for the most part seemed really interested in what we had to say.

It was a great day. Made me feel like I was back at USC for a little while, tuition footing the bill for our museum entrances and food. But also, just being in a learning environment, with other people who share similar interests with me. I found out that one of the girls is staying at the same home stay I stayed in. Jealous. I hope Christina (my study abroad roommate) and I remain our host moms’ favorites but I am happy that someone else gets to experience their generosity, kindness and good cooking.

Alternative Carnaval

 

Being a Jew, I don’t really know all that much about Christianity. But I know that Easter is a really big holiday, and lent is somehow involved with that holiday, although lent begins 40 days before Easter (mas o menos). Well lent (just speculating here) means that you have to give up something that is important to you, and therefore must commence with a big party. In some countries like New Orleans (okay some cities), this celebration takes the form of Mardi Gras. For some reason the rest of the glamorous USA has not caught on to this incredible tradition (I hear it is incredible but I’ve never been myself). And in many other countries around the world, the beginning of lent is marked by carnaval.

In Spain, the biggest carnaval celebration is in Cadiz (I think). Many people from Sevilla flock to Cadiz to celebrate (to drink on the street and dress up in costumes, much like adult Halloween in the States). Now I really love dressing up. I have always loved Halloween and costume parties in general, always calls for a good time… 

But for some reason, neither this year nor last, the festivities in Cadiz haven’t really caught my attention. A costume party YES A costume party in a plaza filled with so many people that you can’t move around and its 45 degrees outside NAHHH.

I didn’t want to give up on the dream completely, so, like that time I went to Belize for Christmas instead of going home (alternative winter break) I did what I am calling "alternative carnaval."

Carnaval goes on for two weekends. During the day, it is quite similar to what I imagine happens at night except they also have the chirigotas all around the city. Chirigotas are comical musical groups that sing about current events in Spain: the president, the crisis etc. Given that they sing in Spanish, about very topical issues, and use colloquialisms, I don’t completely understand the chirigotas, but I appreciate them for their cultural importance. 

a chirigota

Last Sunday, one week ago, I went to Cadiz for the day to soak in this cultural experience and the sun. Cadiz is a city right on the beach, so on a clear day, even though its not quite beach weather yet, it is a great place to spend the day. The trains from Sevilla to Cadiz during Carnaval are a hot commodity. Since it was a last minute decision, I didn’t have many options in terms of which trains to take, so in the end I was only there for the afternoon. Not complaining though, went with two American friends and we had a good time (well cant speak for other people but I know I enjoyed myself).

We “dressed up” (painted our faces) to be a part of the festival. 

When we got off the train in Cadiz, we walked into the center of town and joined the party. The chirigotas were singing in corners in front of the cathedral, in the main plaza and on the main road that follows the beach. At some points there were so many people on one street (one super small ancient European city street) that I wasn’t walking, I was just gliding along with the crowd. I did feel so claustrophobic at one point that I told myself “I am never ever going to do this again.”

But then I just started thinking about how comical all this was and I couldn’t stop laughing (maybe the beers I had drank helped a little). There were adults and children of all ages (and I mean all ages, grandparents included) dressed up in costumes varying from Batman to policemen to farm animals roaming the streets, drinking beers and cokes and snacking on bocadillos and pipas (all typical street festivities in Spain involve beer and sandwiches and/or sunflower seeds). Despite my spells of claustrophobia, I realized I was having a lot of fun.

We spent a good portion of the day sitting on a ledge in front of this:

So I would say it was a good day. I think I am always going to be a little curious about what the evening carnaval parties are like, but I think I am okay with leaving it as a curiosity.