Lagos, Portugal #YouOnlyLagosOnce

Lagos was absolutely beautiful, with the prettiest beaches I have ever seen. We made the quick 3 hour bus ride with Discover Sevilla and had a blast with everyone in the group and the guides for the rest of our time there. We laid on the beaches all day, went cliff jumping, drank the best sangria and went out to eat at some really yummy restaurants. We visited two different beaches and one night went to watch the sunset along the coast at the cliffs of Sagres, also known as "The end of the World." It was a little windy but absolutely beautiful. Our only complaints the entire trip were forgetting to put on sunscreen the first day and being sleepy in the morning from going out to the bars with all our friends the night before- not real complaints at all. Even though it was a little early in the season and the water was freezing cold, we could not have had better weather and a better time relaxing on the beach, making new friends and reconnecting with old ones!

Media Maraton

Back in January I signed up to run the half marathon in Malaga having never ran even half that number of miles in my life. But I thought it would be a good way to stay in shape and explore the city. This plan was working out perfectly until I went to Italy and ate gelato 8 days in a row... But I came back to Spain and a week later, Sheldon and I were off to Malaga not really knowing what we were getting ourselves into. But after a good night's sleep we arrived in the stadium and the energy and adrenaline of the other 5,000 runners was infectious. Together, the two of us ran the 13.1 miles in 2 hours chatting the entire way enjoying the run along the ocean in a city we had never explored. We finished smiling, only a little tired and so happy with what we had accomplished. We rewarded ourselves with a burger (the first I have eaten since arriving here!) and a few hours of sitting on the beach stretching. It was such a good feeling to know all my training the past 4 months helped reach a goal I had set so long ago.

Spring Break in Italy (Rome, Florence, Cinque Terre)

 Italy and the 8 days we spent there were way too incredible for words and a short blog post so this one is all photos. Enjoy:)

Morrocco

One Wednesday I spontaneously signed up for a trip to Morocco  with DiscoverExcursions and left that Friday for Africa! A completely new continent that's only only a 2.5 hour bus ride and 45 min ferry away. When we arrived I was so glad I decided to take the trip because the country was so different than I had imagined and so cool to explore with new friends. We visited a beautiful blue-walled city called Chefchaouen where I got a henna tattoo (not permanent) and we ate lunch on a terrace overlooking the entire town. After bargaining for jewelry in the markets we went on to the next town called Assilah where we visited caves, rode camels, and saw where the Mediterranean meets the Atlantic! And despite not being able to drink the water and a 4am arrival back in Sevilla due to some technical difficulties caused by Moroccan children illegally trying to cross the border on our bus, the adventure, the people, and the cous cous are things I will never forget. 

Carrera 10K

I ran in my first 10K this Sunday in training for the half marathon and felt great! We ran all through the city, including down my street where Lola and the pups were standing out on the balcony waving and cheering me on. Overall such a good experience and fun to see other women in Spain who run, up until this point I had only seen maybe one or two. Now I'm just hoping for the rain to let up so I can keep training! Dedos cruzados! (fingers crossed)

Sevilla FC vs. Celta Vigo

Our first fútbol game! The game was dedicated to international students so tickets were only 5 euros, everyone received a free Sevilla FC scarf, and there was even a 'exposition' of American football during halftime. Sevilla won 4-1 and the energy in the stadium was unlike athletic event I've ever been to, so fun and so much passion for the sport.

Cosas extras...

This post is a mix of all things I've been up to lately: First was a great and semi-embarrassing afternoon of rollerblading along the river. Totally worth the 5 euros to rent, but way more difficult than the Sevillana pros make it look. Next was a hilarious and unproductive dinner party with Anna, Lola and her amiga Miriam from Italy that's original purpose was to help Anna and I plan for our trip to Italy. After all the delicious wine, tapas, and chocolate covered strawberries it was 2am and we were having way too much fun to plan any details. We're still eating leftovers. Next is a picture from a day trip we took to Osuna, which was really beautiful but hard to appreciate from our 3 hour tour inside the convent and church... Last but not least, I figured I should include a little bit about the 'study' part of 'studying abroad,' a picture of the beautiful University building that was once an old tabacco factory. So far classes are going well and I am understanding the professors. Most of the time.

Granada

This past weekend we made a last minute spontaneous decision to make the three hour trip to Granada, a beautiful city located only one hour from the Mediterranean Coast and at the base of the Sierra Nevada Mountains (where the mountain range in California got its name!). We did an amazing amount of things in the short amount of time we were there including: taking a tour of the street art and las cuevas (caves) of Sacramonte where the hippies and Gypsies live, stopping for a cup of tea at one of the many Arab teterías, enjoying the popular custom of free tapas, visiting the Cathedral and Royal Chapel where we saw the tombs of Isabel and Ferdinand, and finally, touring the Alhambra. This amazing Muslim fortress was built in 889, then converted into a palace in the 14th century, and is now a UNESCO World Heritage site and one of the most popular tourist attractions in Spain. The picture doesn't really portray just how big the entire site is, but after our 3 and a half hour self-guided tour-- compliments of Rick Steve-- we were both amazed and exhausted. This last photo is a good summary of the trip and my favorite silly group of girlfriends:)

Carnival

Carnival. There aren't a lot of words to describe this night or these pictures but I can definitely say it lived up to all its expectations, LOCO. Essentially, it's the Spanish Mardi Gras which lasts for two weeks and the biggest night of all is February 8th in Cadiz, so naturally we all had to go and Lola was dying to join us. Hundreds of thousands of people in wild costumes came to the city to see the shows, hang out in the plazas, dance, and just have a good time. We definitely did:) We came back to Sevilla at 6 am, slept all day Sunday, then had the rude awakening of the beginning of the first week of classes on Monday.... Overall, worth the 10 euro bus ride and 5 euro blue wig.

Basura, Basura, Basura...

Something I have been avoiding blogging about but has been hard to ignore... THE TRASH. 7,000 tons of trash have been building up around the dumpsters and covering the usually beautiful streets for the past 11 days due to the trash collectors strike, a protest against laws threatening to increase working hours and decrease wages. Today, finally, negotiations were made between the collectors and the union, all the trash was collected, and the smell is beginning to dissipate, thank goodness. Now Sevilla can go back to smelling like orange blossoms instead of garbage:)

Las Setas

After my first of only 2 classes this week, my friends and I decided to take advantage of the sunshine and pay the 1.35 euros to go to the top of Las Setas (or the Mushrooms), a mostly wooden building located in the old quarter of Sevilla that was just completed in April of last year. Its construction has been controversial because the locals don't think it fits in with the authenticity and antiquity of the rest of the city (which, to be fair, it doesn't at all) but the view was well worth it. Oh, there's also a fro yo place underneath which made it that much better...