Semana Santa

Packed in like a sardine on the street in front of the cathedral, I was lucky enough to get the real Sevilla Semana Santa experience last night. Semana Santa (Holy Week) is celebrated in Sevilla with pasos all throughout the day and night.  Pasos are parades done by hermandads (clubs) of up to 1,600 people. The members wear KKK-like pointy hats and full length robes. This year the rain has kept the majority of the hermandads from being able to make their pasos, however, yesterday my friend Lauren and I were lucky enough to stumble across the last possible hermandad to paso and the only one that had been able to paso in over 2 days.

La hermandad del sol wore dark green robes and had the customary two pasos (in this case paso means float). The float first to leave the cathedral, through which all pasos must pass, was that of the Critso (Christ). Later, after many more people in tall green pointy hats had passed all the pomp and circumstance came out for the Maria (Mary). Incense, bands, candles and crying... A hush fell over the crowd as we awaited the Maria.

The floats are heald on the shoulders of 30 men underneath the floats. They are usually in 6 rows of 5 across and wear a special turban to protect the back of their necks and heads. They practice for weeks before Semana Santa to learn to walk (shuffle) together and how to turn corners. Also they have to be able to carry this while bent to get through the doorways of churches. It's pretty impressive. Many of the other members (depending on the hermandad) walk the entire paso (some up to 13 hours!!) barefoot. Why you might ask... well for penitence, of course! My friend Pablo is in 2 hermandads and said that more young people go without shoes. When I asked why he smirked and said because they have more to be sorry for.

The traditional robes worn by the hermandads during Semana Santa. La hermandad del sol wears dark green but colors range from white, purple and red to black and blue as well.

The paso del cristo  - the Christ float had a statue of the Christ post-torture hugging limply carrying his cross.

The Maria was the most ornately decorated paso and the one that brings the crowds in thousands to see each hermandad's paso. Complete with over 30 candles and hundreds of flowers, it is quite a sight to see. I am so glad we got to finally see a paso during what I have heard was the rainiest Semana Santa for the past 10 years or so.

Pictures - Prague and Berlin

Old Town Square in Prague. Our favorite place to take a lazy stroll. The tents were full of traditional Easter goodies and crafts.

Note all the eggs in the tree- this is the traditional way to decorate for Easter.

The astronomical clock - such a disappointment the first time around, really really cool the second!

View from the giant Metronome that keeps time on a hill overlooking the city center. Before the modern metronome was here there was a giant (30 meter high) statue of Stalin. I think everyone is in agreement that the metronome is much better.

Prague Castle and Cathedral

View from the castle - royals really knowhow to do things right. Castles, views, wealth - living the life!

Charles Bridge - over 650 years old!  The bridge is packed all throughout the day and into the night with people strolling across. Street vendors, musicians, and artists sketching caricatures fill the sides

Yum! My favorite Czech Easter treat - called Chimney cakes these delightful dough cylinders were delectable!

Prague's old Jewish cemetery was the only place thousands of Jewish people were allowed to bury their dead for a over a hundred years. Smaller than a city block, the cemetery is the resting place of an estimated 400,000 Czech Jews. In some places they are buried 14 deep because they ran out of room to bury people only one deep, these people are buried one on top of the other. The unevenness of the ground due to the multiple graves is one reason the 1200 headstones are all tilted and toppled, sunk into the ground so close together that it would be impossible to walk between them. 

View from Petrine Hill in the Little Quarter.

Prague's mini - Eiffel Tower!  it's 1/5th the size of it's Paris Counter part, but it also sits on top of a a giant hill in the Little Quarter so you can see just as far!

The perfect meadow for an afternoon rest

The Lennon wall - after John Lennon. Filled with colorful grafiti, the wall is covered in Beatles lyrics, peace signs (my favorite!) and names from where people have signed it. I could have spent hours looking at all the inscriptions. I signed (twice!)

We added a lock with all our initials and the year to the bridge just outside the Lennon Wall. an

Start of Berlin pictures >  This is the Jewish Memorial in Berlin. Blocks of smooth, gray cement of varying height take up a whole city bock. You can walk through the aisle-ways. In the middle the cement blocks are about 10 feet tall. What an epic place to play hide-and-go-seek tag!

The gate to the concentration camp outside Berlin - the transcription means "Work makes you Free"  A horrible truth for the prisoners that were literally worked to death at this manual labor camp.

The crematorium a the concentration camp. Originally this camp was not meant as an extermination camp but over crowding by the late 30's made the camp into even more of a death camp than it had previously been.

Can you say Shnitzel? yes? ok well try saying it 5 times fast!   - Yum, this stuff was good!

Our dinner our last night in Berlin

Brandenburg Tor in Berlin - a magnificent sight to behold at night

Cutest car ever - it's like they forgot to put the rest of the car together. It has no doors and about 4 inches of windshield. Can I have one please???

I hope you enjoy the pictures and the descriptions. I have so much fun documenting this trip but tried to keep it short enough that no one would fall asleep reading about it. I miss and love you all and can't wait to see everyone.  <3 At

Czech it out! - I LOVE PRAUGE!!!

I absolutely love Prague. It has been my favorite place I have visited in Europe. Its relaxed bohemian atmosphere is welcoming and relaxing. Its colorful buildings are aglow at night and so interesting architecturally during the day that you never know where to look. I could wander down its cobblestone streets all day and night and never get bored. Everything is so old! The Charles Bridge is 654 years old – that’s 134 years before Columbus decided to see if he could get to India a little quicker.

Prague is divided into 4 quarters – Old Town, New town, the Castle Quarter, and the Little Quarter. May favorite were the Old Town and the Little Quarter. Old Town square is a large plaza in the middle of the oldest section of Prague, the city center. While we were there it was decorated for Easter with red tents selling traditional Czech goodies and bohemian Easter crafts like painted eggs that you hang on your trees. Old Town Square is surrounded by some of the most important sights in Prague- the astronomical clock (600 years old) and the Adam and Eve towers (likewise ancient) to name a few.

The first time we watched the astronomical clock ring it was a huge disappointment. We expected something spectacular – we totally missed it. There is a man (real life human) who plays a trumpet at the end of the hour and statues on the clock are supposed to move when the clock hands hit the hour mark. The first time we watched the clock nothing really happened and the trumpeter sounded more like an elephant in pain than anything else. One our last night in Prague we tried again and this time the clock show was really something to see. There are 4 statues to the right and left of the clock face representing the fears of the medieval world 600 years ago when the clock was made – vanity, greed, death, and infidelity. This statues move when the clock strikes the next hour. Also little windows above the clock face open and the apostles appear and move in a circle. Then at the end of the show the trumpeter sounds his horn and this time it was impressive. Maybe the first time we heard him he had had a little too much of the delicious Czech beer? It is cheaper the water in Prague.

The traditional Czech food is delicious. We had sausages and potatoes cooked with cheese and sauerkraut – yum! And my personal favorite was kurtoskalacs, or chimney cakes. Sweet dough is spiraled around a metal cylinder and cooked over a bed of hot coals. After cooked it is rolled in cinnamon, sugar, and almonds then handed to the lucky snacker while still warm. A cheap and delicious Easter snack!

If you know me well you probably know that pretzels and bagels could both be considered one my main food groups. Well in Prague I got both! Bohemian bagel was started us by an American living in Prague and filled the bagel shaped hole in my heart. I ate 3 (over 3 days…). Of course I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to grad a fresh soft pretzel from the red tents while strolling through Old Town Square. My tummy was very, very happy on this trip! We ate at a local hangout called Atmosphere that Brittany’s boyfriend told us about. The food and the place were both great and it was the perfect end to our last night in Prague.

Prague also comes with its own joke. Czech!  As in “let’s get Ice cream?” “Czech!”  or “did you bring the map?” “Czech!”    Needless to say we probably exercised that one a few too many times… One last little random thing to let you know about – I love clocks. I have tons of them in my Bloomington apartment and we have one in every room at home in Indy. Well in Sevilla there are no clocks – no one cares what time it is because no one expects you to be on time. That drives me nuts! Prague has clocks, clocks, and more clocks! I loved it!  Prague is called the City of a 1000 spires and most all of those spires have clocks! It’s the simple things in life that make me so utterly happy!

Prague’s nickname is the Golden City and it is well deserved. The city is beautiful to behold day or night. I would love to come back some day. I have never seen a city I loved more than Prague.

I hope you enjoy the photos – I loved taking them!

Berlin - a city divided yet united

I took my first long distance train! It was a 5 hour trip up to Berlin from Prague. Trains are amazing – so silent, smooth, and comfy. It was by far my favorite way to travel in the trip where we took planes, trains, buses, metros and a taxi. All we needed was a boat and a hovercraft thrown in an we would have taken every kind of transportation possible during this trip

Berlin surprised me. It is a city overflowing with a conflicted history. In my mind I had pictured a gorgeous city like much like Paris, with old buildings and fountains everywhere. What I got was a GIANT thriving metropolis with extremely modern buildings. Berlin is the Chicago of Europe. I couldn’t get over seeing the gleaming buildings with walls of windows that looked younger than I am. But then I realized something – many of the buildings here were destroyed during WWII so the city had to rebuild itself. It was strange to know you were standing on perhaps the same spot where Hilter had stood less than 70 years ago. 

The Berlin wall was a bit of a shock too. I’m not sure why but I had expected a pretty wall of square-cut stones. Wrong. Its utilitarian slabs of cement. We visited the longest remaining section of the wall which is filled with murals. My favorite was painted red with what looked like bullet holes and cracks in which blue skies were painted. It looked like you could see through the wall to freedom. The only words being “You can see infinity”  

Sachsenhausen (pronounced Zach-sin-house-in) Concentration camp was a humbling and sad experience. Until a few days ago when I visited the camp WWII and horrors that took place in that era seemed very distant, like black and white photo, far removed from my life today. I couldn’t put and name and a face with a victim. I could image their lives inside the camp. It was just number being thrown at me in history class of how many perished. That has changed. Now I have walked where the political prisoners walked. I got to see their barracks, the crematorium, and the harsh conditions they lived and died in. Our guide Michael is a historian who gave a very thorough look into the lives of the prisoners. It was a sad visit, but an informative one that makes me wish peace upon the world more than I ever had before. 

On a happier note – I got to see Evan again. He came up from Karlsruhe, Germany. Wow did we all eat well in Germany. Authentic German food is delicious. I had: wiener schnitzel (like a pork fritter but better), döner (like a gyro but better), käsespatzle (fried noodles with cheese), bratwurst and sauerkraut, plenty of german weizen beer, Bavarian pretzels and apple strudel. It doesn’t get much better!

Berlin was exciting to me because it was so unexpected. It’s modern metropolis that has only been united as long as I have been alive. The city is full of contrasts, beauty, and history.

Czech it out!

Headed to Prague tomorrow. We will be in Prague, Czech Republic for Saturday and Sunday. Monday we take a midday train to Berlin for Monday, Tuesaday, and Wednesday hop an afternoon train back to Prague for our last night before heading home in the afternoon on Thursday.

You know I will have a ton to tell you all about when I get back so get your reading glasses cleamed off for next friday/saturday/sunday!  I love and miss you all  <3 At

"Al tejado!" - "to the roof!"

Excellent new discovery this past week - rooftop tanning. Check! Our roof is virtually uninhabited. There are only clothes lines that the occasional family will use when doing inordinate amounts of laundry. So what does that mean for me? Uninterrupted tanning with no one around to stare. The park I have found is ruled out as a potential place to soak up the sun due the the creepy/disgusted stares you get from the old people sitting on the benches. The river is always packed with people and you have to watch out for broken glass. So the roof was the obvious choice and I have to say, it's my own personal paradise. Oh and did I mention that it's covered in highly reflective metal so that when I sit up to read I get the 365 degree tan? Yep, you have to love the roof!

Evan's Visit - Granada

Thursday Evan and I hopped a bus to Granada for a day of exploring. Tickets for the Alhambra were sold out but I would not have changed our day at all. It was one of my favorites in Spain thus far. A gorgeous day of blue skies, not a hint of clouds, and a hot sun – we got into the town center about noon and started the hike up towards the Alhambra. Forested pathways of luscious green provided shade on the 45 degree incline it took 25 minutes to hike up. When we got to the top we found a rooftop terrace restaurant and had a leisurely lunch from a beautiful vantage point. I had spaghetti and Evan ordered fish. I forgot to warn him that fish here comes in true fish form – complete head to tail it was literally a trout that was fried whole. 

After lunch we headed back down towards the old part of Granada to my favorite neighborhood called Albacin. Built on a hill for protection the whitewashed Carmens (multiple level houses known for their beautiful gardens and terraces) are strewn about on narrow winding roads that abruptly end of turn into a set up steps that disappear around a corner. You could spend all day in this neighborhood and wander aimlessly just soaking up the beauty. And that is almost what we did, but instead…

We rented a moped! 

Our last 2 hours in Granada we came across a rent-a-moped store and popped in. Evan has owned a motorcycle and I of course just wanted to chill on the back and enjoy the views so we rented a nice blue moped and cruised around Granada. We got to explore far and wide on our moped and it was the most fun I have had in a long time. Evan had the hard part, I just sat back and waved to people as we sped along the windy one way roads and turned down unmarked streets. 2 helmets, a camera, and a map to get back at the end of the day were all we needed. 

Near the end of our moped adventure we knew we needed to fill it back up with gas before returning it. Just as we sat at the top of the great hill that is the Albacin neighborhood our moped died. We thought it had run out of gas. Luckily we were wrong but regardless it gave us the little jolt we needed to come out of our fantasy moped world and ask someone for direction s to the nearest gas station. All I can say is the Spanish people are such a friendly population. We asked 2 guys where the nearest gas was and I was happy to find that I could understand everything they said and respond well. Everyone we encountered was so nice and helpful and talkative. I am thoroughly enjoying my time here and the moped experience was one I will never forget. So much fun! 

We got back to Sevilla at midnight and headed straight for the Triana Brigde. I was not going to let Evan leave Spain without trying chocolate con churros. This is Spain’s version of what we consider fair food. Churros are long airy fried strips of dough that you dunk into what is considered hot chocolate but really is more like a thick chocolate sauce. Hot out of the fryer, I prefer to roll my churros around in sugar before crunching away on the unhealthiest snack of all time. So tasty! What a perfect end to an unforgettable day. 

Best. Day. Ever.

We found a gorgeous lookout point. Notice the snow capped mountains of the Sierra Nevada in the background

A gorgeous little plaza where we took a little break when we we walking around in Albacin

The restaurant we had lunch at - if you could spin 180 degrees you would be staring right at the Alhambra

Old bridges across the river (more like a stream...) in Granada. It reminded me of the good old Jordan River in Bloomington!

The entrance to a Carmen. And to think that people actually live here!

This is for you Aunt Marty - we found some real caves that people live in. These has painted doors and laundry hanging outside.

All smiles on our great day in Granada!

 I love and miss you all!  -At

Evan's Visit - Sevilla

Evan was here to visit sunny southern Spain beginning Monday night and her left Friday morning. Monday evening we explored Sevilla at night. This wonderful city never sleeps before at least 2 in the morning. You can wander down streets packed with bars and café and see women in their 70’s and 80’s relaxing in the warm night air as they sip their red wine and gossip the night away. Next down will be a popular club for younger people. In Sevilla you can always see the amusing juxtaposition of something very relaxed like old men sitting on a bench having a beer right outside the hyped up night clubs packed with people in their 20’s. 

Tuesday we set off on foot to walk all over the city. My friend Becky runs walking tours so we hopped on that and learned some fun little legends about different plazas in Sevilla (I’ll tell you soon!) and when the 2 hour walk finished we went for lunch with a few people we had met. Later we headed out by ourselves so that I could show Evan the Sevilla that I know and love. It’s so fun to watch people’s expressions the first time they see Plaza de España. It’s truly awe-inspiring but now I have seen its beauty so many times that I have come to think of it as the place where I go before class to read and people watch. 

Tuesday evening we went to la Carbonaria – a local flamenco joint with live music and dancing. I am not flamenco aficionado but it is quite the experience to see a show. It is the most intense dancing you will ever see. It is a dance of passion, loud and with lots of stomping and eye contact. 

Wednesday we hit the Cathedral and the Alcazar (palace) in the morning then made ourselves a picnic lunch and sat down by the river. Later that evening we went to what I have been told is a life-changing ice cream shop called Rayas. They weren’t lying. It was delicious. I got lemon and strawberry and it was the best ice cream I have ever tasted. Without a doubt I will now a considered a regular there. 

Wednesday night we went to the International Cerveceria – International beerhouse which has a menu of over 200 beers from all over the world. Evan picked out a German beer for me (delicious and wheaty – Krombacher Weizen) and I he got an Irish beer. The second round ended up with me having an Argentinian beer and Evan had a Belgium beer. It was fun to going a literally have no clue what you are going to get. We finished the night with burgers when we met up with my friends Brandon, Brian, and Leo. Yummm

Barrio Santa Cruz - the old Jeswish quarter in Sevilla is the most beautiful neighborhood of the city.

I'm not sure exactly what these purple flowers are but they have the most heavenly smell ever and they grow on vines that are planted on fences and walls all over Sevilla. This picture was taken in the gardens of the Alcazar

My life-changing ice cream from Rayas

The flamenco show

Sevilla's Plaza de Torros bull ring. It looks out over the river and is a beautiful building when lit up at night.

Portugal Paradise

Albufeira – Our home base for the Portugal trip. A strange mix of elderly British snowbirds and bachelor parties, we called this place home for a few days. In a swanky apartments complete with our own kitchen we enjoyed cooking our own dinner Friday night. Friday during the day we set off for the beach – a 3 minute walk down hill.  Portugal is gorgeous. Cliffs drop straight into the water and create little island rocks a hundred meters out from the beach. The sand was soft and warm and all my cares melted away as I watched a group of guys playing soccer on the beach (unfortunately one was wearing a man thong – note to all men: no one wants to see that). 

Rocky cliffs with striations of alternating orange, yellow, and white created a half moon sheltered beach where we enjoyed the warm sun and the sound of the ocean all Friday afternoon. Grumbling bellies and a setting sun signaled it was time to head back to the apartment and hit the grocery. We were so happy to be able to cook our own dinner -burgers, corn, green grapes and spaghetti with pesto. Can you tell we have American stomachs that are lacking some of our basic US food groups? 

Saturday we headed half an hour westward to Lagos. Lagos is quite possibly on of the most beautiful areas I have ever been. Rocky cliffs drop into a churning ocean. Nature-made arcs channel the heaving ocean into smaller bays. Bright blue in color and spraying white foam at your feet, the ocean is the loudest sound around here. Large rock formations are a hundred meters away standing formidably, like silent soldiers vigilantly protecting Portuguese shoreline. Sea birds nest on the top of these wind-ridden rocks and I have to think that if I was a bird this would totally be where I would have a nest. We climbed all over the cliffs and sat for a while just looking out into the mesmerizing blue ocean from our cliff-top perch. 

After Lagos we continued further west – to the END OF THE WORLD. Literally. We went to the most western point of the European continent where up until Columbus was considered considered the end of the world. Sheer cliff faces drop off hundreds of feet into a swirling, churning, angry looking Atlantic Ocean. Giant white sprays erupted up from the waves as they crashed into the cliffs. It was a truly amazing sight. I can understand how one could believe that was the end of the world. All of a sudden, Europe ends and all you can see forever is a deep blue horizon. We watched the sun set at the end of the world. Breath-taking. 

All weekend I got to joke around with Brittany, Kelsey, and Maggie. What fun we had. Everything we did we incorporated my favorite phrase of the weekend – Portugal Promise. You can Portugal Promise anything. For example: Maggie and I Portugal Promised each other that we would swim. Therefore Sunday morning after breakfast (when it was freezing outside) we donned our suits and cannonballed into the deep end of the hotel pool. BRRRR  “Refreshing!” as my dad would say. But we had to do it – we Portugal Promised! 

 

Sunday was the worst weather day but we didn’t let that get us down. After the dip in the pool we packed up and headed out for a few hours in Albufeira before heading back to Sevilla. Too chilly for the beach, we talked and window shopped to our hearts content. I got a Portugal patch to add to my growing collection. I am trying to collect a patch from every country I visit. By the end of my trip I hope to have them as a fun way to remember my trip to places. So far I have: Seville University, Paris, Portugal, and a European Union patch. I’ll keep you posted as the collection grows! 

I love and miss you all –At

I hope you enjoy the photos. I had so much fun taking them!  

Lagos -the most beautiful place we went on our trip. We got to hike around on these cliffs and take pictures. It was a great stop on our journey through southern Portugal.

Our lookout point.

I'm Queen of the World!

Our tootsies  :)

One of my favorite pictures. I thought this rope was a beautiful color in contrast with the rock and the ocean.

There were wild flowers abloom everywhere. Even if the ocean wasn't there this place would still be beautiful because of the carpet of yellow, pink, and white wild flowers.

The End of the World!

"I can see America!"  

Beach day #1 - Albufeira

Beach day #2 - Lagos

An outdoor escalator that takes townspeople and tourists down a hill. Ugh this age of technology should be dubbed the age of Obesity. Honestly, this is ridiculous.