The Spanish are a special breed of human, nocturnal in nature, who's culture can have harmful side affects to an outsider trying to fit in. For youth, life seems to revolve around many typical things that cross cultures in the XXI century: social networking, sports, beach, family, friends, academics etc etc. The nightlife is where things start to get different. I know before I have mentioned how the Spanish party; how you don't come home until 6am or 7am, how the discotecas are empty until at the very least 3am, etc etc. I am starting to realize that the Spanish diet (eggs, bread, potatoes, and ham) consists of just protein and carbs to help them party longer and harder...now that I think about it, eating supper at 10pm (the norm for many households) is a way to kick-start a long night of partying and the siesta after lunch (2pm-6pm) is to provide sleep so that a person can dance until the sun rises the next day. It's smart because (from what I hear) hang-overs are few and far between and once you leave the clubs the bus lines have started up again.
Going back to the harmful side affects, I've noticed that I've been getting sick a lot lately. The past 4 days I have been suffering a horrendously sore throat, 24 hour fevers, chills, clogged nasal passages, a whooping cough, congestion, bloodshot eyes, clogged ears (airplane syndrome you could say), achy muscles, etc etc. This is probably the worse I've been yet. I'm finally getting over it (as I sniffle and cough in my bed at 6:30am, light-headed from the twinge of a headache lurking in the depths of my head), but it was pretty bad. A handful of days before this came about I was also sick, and before that I got sick during Carnaval, and I must say that I am not a typically sickly person.
Here I've been eating rather healthy too; oat cereal with milk, nuts, cut up fresh strawberries and bananas for breakfast, eggs come with everything and are on everything which is good protein, I eat vegetables here (my favorite is this cabbage Noni makes), I only drink water, I have a small cup of yogurt or strawberries after every meal, and the list goes on. The only time I get sick is on the weekends (usually before Sunday)...If you put two and two together, and look on my calendar in my room, it's obvious that I get sick a day after a full night/morning of "discoteking" or "carnavaling"...The only way to stop this is to, of course, build up an immunity so Javi will be getting a few texts and phone calls from me to see if we can fix this problem.
Luckily, like I said, I am getting better because tomorrow I am flying to Barcelona!! I am super excited because before coming to Spain my favorite cities were Barcelona, Cádiz, Ciudad Real, Córdoba, Granada, etc. I've done presentations, papers, and all sorts of research on the city, Gaudí, and the Catalán culture so this is a dream come true! And with a flight from Seville for 21€ round trip: an INCREDIBLE deal.
While sick in bed the past week, I also planned a Birthday extravaganza for myself. In the American tradition -as most of my blog followers know- the person turning 21 tends to get extremely drunk and parties with friends until they black out because they are finally legal and can enter any club...here in Spain, since drinking is legal at 18, I've been legal to drink for the past 3 months which kind of takes the novelty out of the BIG leap over the final restriction (minus the age to join the AARP). This is a blessing in disguise I guess since I've never black-out nor gotten sick from alcohol and the idea of doing so isn't appealing to me in the slightest. Instead, I am going to Prague with one of my best friends Carolyn!! 5 days in the Czech Republic with the girl who lives right down the street from me back at home! The flight was extremely expensive and 5 days of food, transportation, lodging, etc is also pretty expensive, but Prague is definitely at the top of my list of must-see places. It has always been the number 2 on my list right before Brussels, Belgium and after Spain in general. The flight is booked and within a week of turning 21 I will be in the dark and mysterious Eastern Europe!
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
Saturday, March 26, 2011
Too busy to sleep!
At around 11pm I find myself sitting on a city bus, alone, on my way to a friend's house in Cortadura for a birthday party. Javi: a friend of a friend in Ciudad Real. I went out with him once before and had a really fun time so I figured this would be another fun night with a local. Too much was running through my mind: would I be able to keep up with the Spanish? Would I bond with these people who already knew each other and were all close friends with Javi? Would I just shut down?
The bus stopped at the final parada and I got off after the 20 minute bus ride of pure anxiety. Delfin 12 enfrente de Holiday. I found the apartment complex and got buzzed in. Apartment 5b. One flight of stairs, two, three...my heart pounds...four...I hear music and people. Is it a lot of people? What type of party is it?...Five. As I go to grab the handle the door opens and I am face-to-face with Javi, mojito in hand, who pulls me in for a hug and a kiss on each cheek. He takes me around the apartment and introduces me to a couple groups of friends. Some were in the bedroom blasting music from the computer, some were smoking in the living room, and some were in the kitchen. I didn't get welcoming vibes from that many people.
I stuck with Javi in the kitchen for a bit and talked with him and a couple of his friends. He had to go about and socialize (it was his birthday) so I worked my way through the smoke cloud to the patio where I saw a couple of girls sitting. I sat down and started with awkward ice-breaking questions and suddenly the girl next to me and I were having a full fledged conversation. I could now cross "antisocial mess" off my worried-list. I talked with these two girls for a while with Javi popping in and out as the night went on and by 2am we were ready to go to Anfi.
The two girls, Javi and I all took a taxi to Anfi while everyone else went home for the night since they had practicals in the morning for their marine biology classes. We went discoteca-hopping for a bit until I looked down at my watch and realized that it was 5:50am. Time sped by faster than I thought. After a fun night of dancing and socializing we headed to the bus stop and I stayed with them until the bus came at 6:15.
Keep in mind that I needed to be at the bus stop for 7:30am. Oh, must have forgotten to tell you that. I walked back home, changed, and then walked back to the bus stop to meet Kirsten, Jacqueline, and Teri because today was our day to give back to mother-nature. I volunteered to plant pine saplings in the Spanish countryside to do my part to fix deforestation. Sitting next to Jacqueline and Kirsten, I realized that my legs ached and I was falling asleep...not a good start. We got on the bus and headed out to site where we were given gloves, hoes, and a bunch of pine trees. Trekking through the open area was actually pretty tough. I wore shorts and there were briers and prickly holly bushes everywhere. It looks like someone took razor blades to my legs. I got sunburned as well which makes it feel like I'm constantly dragging my legs on sandpaper....even as I write this now... Lovely.
I dug and planted until 2pm, made some new Spanish friends, got a cool volunteer t-shirt, got some color, and overall enjoyed myself. Even though I was sleep deprived, got cut up, and did manual labor I was extremely happy today. Tonight I am going to sleep 100% content with my day.
The bus stopped at the final parada and I got off after the 20 minute bus ride of pure anxiety. Delfin 12 enfrente de Holiday. I found the apartment complex and got buzzed in. Apartment 5b. One flight of stairs, two, three...my heart pounds...four...I hear music and people. Is it a lot of people? What type of party is it?...Five. As I go to grab the handle the door opens and I am face-to-face with Javi, mojito in hand, who pulls me in for a hug and a kiss on each cheek. He takes me around the apartment and introduces me to a couple groups of friends. Some were in the bedroom blasting music from the computer, some were smoking in the living room, and some were in the kitchen. I didn't get welcoming vibes from that many people.
I stuck with Javi in the kitchen for a bit and talked with him and a couple of his friends. He had to go about and socialize (it was his birthday) so I worked my way through the smoke cloud to the patio where I saw a couple of girls sitting. I sat down and started with awkward ice-breaking questions and suddenly the girl next to me and I were having a full fledged conversation. I could now cross "antisocial mess" off my worried-list. I talked with these two girls for a while with Javi popping in and out as the night went on and by 2am we were ready to go to Anfi.
The two girls, Javi and I all took a taxi to Anfi while everyone else went home for the night since they had practicals in the morning for their marine biology classes. We went discoteca-hopping for a bit until I looked down at my watch and realized that it was 5:50am. Time sped by faster than I thought. After a fun night of dancing and socializing we headed to the bus stop and I stayed with them until the bus came at 6:15.
Keep in mind that I needed to be at the bus stop for 7:30am. Oh, must have forgotten to tell you that. I walked back home, changed, and then walked back to the bus stop to meet Kirsten, Jacqueline, and Teri because today was our day to give back to mother-nature. I volunteered to plant pine saplings in the Spanish countryside to do my part to fix deforestation. Sitting next to Jacqueline and Kirsten, I realized that my legs ached and I was falling asleep...not a good start. We got on the bus and headed out to site where we were given gloves, hoes, and a bunch of pine trees. Trekking through the open area was actually pretty tough. I wore shorts and there were briers and prickly holly bushes everywhere. It looks like someone took razor blades to my legs. I got sunburned as well which makes it feel like I'm constantly dragging my legs on sandpaper....even as I write this now... Lovely.
I dug and planted until 2pm, made some new Spanish friends, got a cool volunteer t-shirt, got some color, and overall enjoyed myself. Even though I was sleep deprived, got cut up, and did manual labor I was extremely happy today. Tonight I am going to sleep 100% content with my day.
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Ruins, Goat Herders, and Medieval towns: Extremadura at its Best
When I started telling people that I was going to Extremadura they all asked the same thing: why? This is a region of Spain that reached its glory in the time of Rome but in modern times has been lost and forgotten about. A landlocked region overshadowed by its neighbors, Extremadura -from what I've seen- is a break from everything. After a long bus ride from Seville, we arrived in Mérida. After crossing through a gate and walking down a path of leave-less Spanish trees we were all surprised to see Roman ruins. Well, we knew we would see Roman ruins, but what surprised me was the scale of it all. The amphitheater was the first site. We sat down on the rock staircase that circled a large pit. For the first time I could truly imagine a gladiator fight. I've seen them in movies before but the camera angle is rarely in the stands at the spectator level. Seeing a little girl run out into the pit and hearing the acoustics of her feet hitting the ground brought it all to life for me. We moved on to the other theater which was even more impressive architecturally with incredibly tall columns, statues, and a beautiful stage.
For lunch we were left to explore the city and experience the amazing culinary talents of the region. My friends and I stumbled across a cheap restaurant with really good food. I ordered the Kumpao chicken with fried rice a spring roll, vanilla ice cream, and a coca cola for 6,50€ An authentic meal for the locals if you think about it...all the tourists eat at the overpriced traditional places in the plaza and everyone else avoids it at all costs.
From Mérida we took a bus ride to Guadalupe to our hotel. The hotel itself is a Monastery and is the most impressive place that I have ever stayed in before in my life. It is basically a cross between a church and a castle stuck in a gorgeous and quaint city. We were staying in the most beautiful sight in the city and nothing I write could possibly give it justice. We stayed in that night and explored the tiny town for a bit; a relaxing night.
The next morning we set off on a hike. From the monastery we walked out of the city and up a mountain trail leaving the medieval looking buildings and old stone walls for green rolling hills and areas of pine tree forests. We hiked around mountains, through meadows, around a lake and it was absolutely beautiful. We even ran into a wondering goat herder and his hundreds of goats. 10 miles later we were all happy to cross over a giant hill and enter another city.
We spent the next night in Trujillo, an medieval city where some very important conquistadores of the New World were born and raised. Another relaxing night. We walked around the city, had supper, and then made our way back to the hotel for an early night's sleep.
Overall this trip was a nice change from the touristy stuff that you usually do when you travel. I really enjoyed the hike and the tiny towns that we stayed in. Extremadura is a place that not many North Americans travel to and I am happy that I got to experience the best of the most boring part of Spain. Definitely my favorite trip so far!
For lunch we were left to explore the city and experience the amazing culinary talents of the region. My friends and I stumbled across a cheap restaurant with really good food. I ordered the Kumpao chicken with fried rice a spring roll, vanilla ice cream, and a coca cola for 6,50€ An authentic meal for the locals if you think about it...all the tourists eat at the overpriced traditional places in the plaza and everyone else avoids it at all costs.
From Mérida we took a bus ride to Guadalupe to our hotel. The hotel itself is a Monastery and is the most impressive place that I have ever stayed in before in my life. It is basically a cross between a church and a castle stuck in a gorgeous and quaint city. We were staying in the most beautiful sight in the city and nothing I write could possibly give it justice. We stayed in that night and explored the tiny town for a bit; a relaxing night.
The next morning we set off on a hike. From the monastery we walked out of the city and up a mountain trail leaving the medieval looking buildings and old stone walls for green rolling hills and areas of pine tree forests. We hiked around mountains, through meadows, around a lake and it was absolutely beautiful. We even ran into a wondering goat herder and his hundreds of goats. 10 miles later we were all happy to cross over a giant hill and enter another city.
We spent the next night in Trujillo, an medieval city where some very important conquistadores of the New World were born and raised. Another relaxing night. We walked around the city, had supper, and then made our way back to the hotel for an early night's sleep.
Overall this trip was a nice change from the touristy stuff that you usually do when you travel. I really enjoyed the hike and the tiny towns that we stayed in. Extremadura is a place that not many North Americans travel to and I am happy that I got to experience the best of the most boring part of Spain. Definitely my favorite trip so far!
Monday, March 21, 2011
Sunken Ancient Ruins
Imagine yourself alone in a room in complete darkness. Now add the soft sounds of waves and the moonlight that illuminates the rocks that you are standing on: rocks that extend for miles until they disappear into the darkness. Water surrounds you and weaves around the jutting rocks creating little rivers and tiny dark salty lakes. Behind you is an ancient fortress; in front you see a pile of rocks. You get closer and stop in front of the pile which actually turns out to be a tiny perfectly square pile of rocks....ancient ruins once buried under the ocean.
This past weekend the tides have been going out farther than they ever have been in the past 1000 years because of the proximity of the moon. Cádiz is getting recognized all over Spain because around La Caleta, Roman ruins are getting revealed of where the old city used to be. Today I explored sunken roman ruins at around midnight, alone, only illuminated by the moonlight...how cool is that?! I will write about my AMAZING weekend soon, but this was too cool to pass up! Time for bed!
This past weekend the tides have been going out farther than they ever have been in the past 1000 years because of the proximity of the moon. Cádiz is getting recognized all over Spain because around La Caleta, Roman ruins are getting revealed of where the old city used to be. Today I explored sunken roman ruins at around midnight, alone, only illuminated by the moonlight...how cool is that?! I will write about my AMAZING weekend soon, but this was too cool to pass up! Time for bed!
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
Sun and fried zucchini [words that warm my heart]
I walked down the stairs into the courtyard to see something strange but yet oddly familiar. On the leaves of the plants, on the tiled floor, on the peeling walls on the metal gate; sunlight. Oh what a sight! After days of rain, housebound sick days, and Carnaval nights the sun was a beautiful sight. A good omen for the start of the day.
Some days are just depressing in nature I think. I've been a bit of a funk lately but the moment I saw the sun I finally felt it come to an end. I met up with Chelsea and went to my 9am class: Introducción al siglo XX with the new teacher who I absolutely hate. The teacher who picks on the foreigners, has a thick accent, mumbles, and is extremely unorganized...that one. And with that the funk should return
But it didn't! I was able to sit through the class without my heart dropping in fear of being humiliated! I spoke up a few times even!! I don't what got into me today, but everything just went smoothly...The other class that I was afraid about -lingüística aplicada- actually turned out to be extremely interesting the other day too! I was at the edge of my seat listening to a lecture about phonetics and decoding recordings to identify vowel and letter sounds. This sounds pretty boring to most, but what usually tickles my fancy tends to be a little different from what most people like.
After class I went back home for breakfast and then headed back out with Chelsea and Sara to head to the Chinese shop to pick up envelopes and then to post office to send a couple letters. Sara went to her class after and Chelsea and I walked back to the plaza to talk for a couple of hours. By 3 I was back in the house for lunch and was given one of my favorites: fried zucchini! 6 crispy and salty slices of breaded goodness. I had it with some of my beloved hot sauce, some bread, and a bowl of rice and chicken: another bright side to my day.
My goal for the rest of the week before I leave for Cáceres on Friday: buy red pants and watch Torrente 4 Lethal Crisis in the movie theater.
Monday, March 14, 2011
La Barraca
So Carnaval is finally over! On Saturday I went to a free concert put on by Andy y Lucas (I'll put a music video in the sidebar, they're pretty famous here in Spain), my friends and I got dressed up again and pushed through the crowds to get pictures with some of the cooler costumes, and then I went home early. I think I was in bed by midnight!
Why so early? Well, if you must ask, I am sick. I almost had a priest come over to perform my last rights but he was too busy drinking and talking with his pregnant nun cross-dressing friends. But anyway there has been a bug that has spread through the household affecting everyone, including Floppy; the dog. On my way weezing over to the bathroom this morning I saw Floppy sneezing and coughing as well.
My diet this weekend has been filled with unidentifiable horse pills for the chest, ibuprofen for the fever, manzanilla tea for the throat, and incredibly picante hot sauce for my nasal passages and sinuses. Sunday I almost didn't leave the house, but by 7pm my cabin fever had reached its peak so I went for a walk and stumbled across the heavenly paradise that is La Barraca.
Three words in the Spanish language stir up indescribable emotions. Maybe one day there will be a word to describe the feeling I get when I see "frutos secos" or "Barraca". This chain of stores is a humble one (even though Barraca is to Cádiz as Starbucks is to Boston or New York), with tiny shops huddled in between other stores. When you walk in, the bright light shines off of the white floors and metallic scale and Dora the Explorer or Sponge Bob balloons. The wall is lined with clear plastic containers: a cabinet of pure bliss. There must be a hundred choices on that wall of gummy fruits, sour apple disks, gummy eggs, chocolate, sour straws, sour strawberry gummies, worms, watermelon sours, chocolate coins, etc etc etc. This chain of penny candy stores is what makes my life a little bit better here. The gummies are a bit chewier, the sour levels are perfect, the selection is impressive and at 5 cents a candy the price isn't unreasonable. A trip to la Barraca makes any sick day better.
Off to class in a few hours! Back to school. Today: Lingüística Aplicada with my "favorite" professor.... feeling happy and optimistic though!
Why so early? Well, if you must ask, I am sick. I almost had a priest come over to perform my last rights but he was too busy drinking and talking with his pregnant nun cross-dressing friends. But anyway there has been a bug that has spread through the household affecting everyone, including Floppy; the dog. On my way weezing over to the bathroom this morning I saw Floppy sneezing and coughing as well.
My diet this weekend has been filled with unidentifiable horse pills for the chest, ibuprofen for the fever, manzanilla tea for the throat, and incredibly picante hot sauce for my nasal passages and sinuses. Sunday I almost didn't leave the house, but by 7pm my cabin fever had reached its peak so I went for a walk and stumbled across the heavenly paradise that is La Barraca.
Three words in the Spanish language stir up indescribable emotions. Maybe one day there will be a word to describe the feeling I get when I see "frutos secos" or "Barraca". This chain of stores is a humble one (even though Barraca is to Cádiz as Starbucks is to Boston or New York), with tiny shops huddled in between other stores. When you walk in, the bright light shines off of the white floors and metallic scale and Dora the Explorer or Sponge Bob balloons. The wall is lined with clear plastic containers: a cabinet of pure bliss. There must be a hundred choices on that wall of gummy fruits, sour apple disks, gummy eggs, chocolate, sour straws, sour strawberry gummies, worms, watermelon sours, chocolate coins, etc etc etc. This chain of penny candy stores is what makes my life a little bit better here. The gummies are a bit chewier, the sour levels are perfect, the selection is impressive and at 5 cents a candy the price isn't unreasonable. A trip to la Barraca makes any sick day better.
Off to class in a few hours! Back to school. Today: Lingüística Aplicada with my "favorite" professor.... feeling happy and optimistic though!
Friday, March 11, 2011
photo shoot
The past couple days have kind of been a blur. I haven't really done anything but at the same time I've been doing things everyday. Confused? So am I. For example; ever since the start of the week I've been sleeping in until noon everyday, I eat breakfast at 12:30, hang around the house watching some dating show and then eat lunch with the Simpsons at 2:30. Then I usually go out for a walk (cause I get bored in the house easily) come back at around 6, have a snack, hang around the house with Yeyo and Javi, eat dinner at around 9:30 and then head out with my friends....Needless to say, when your day starts getting good at 10pm, you're body starts getting confused.
So besides the eating, TV and going for walks, what have I done since we last spoke? Well, I did go to a concert in my plaza. I don't exactly know who was singing...except that he won Operación Triunfo (Spanish American Idol), there was a going away party for my Irish friend Alannah, we went to la Viña one night (an old neighborhood), I went to Bahía Sur in San Fernando, and I guess that's it. Oh, I also finally have access to Campus Virtual (where all my homework is for my courses). I was getting worried that I'd never be able to do anything for my classes but they finally registered me and I've started studying already...yey geekiness!
Yesterday I went out on my walk with Jacqueline and we took some really nice pictures!! I'm attaching them below. And also later on today I think I'm going to Jerez with Javi (Yeyo already left this morning). That's all I have to say for now (10:30am), hasta luego. OH! I almost forgot! I also gave up speaking English to my friends for Lent. It's actually been going pretty well and I don't feel like a loser for wanting to speak Spanish to them. I got other people to do it too: I'm a trend setter!
So besides the eating, TV and going for walks, what have I done since we last spoke? Well, I did go to a concert in my plaza. I don't exactly know who was singing...except that he won Operación Triunfo (Spanish American Idol), there was a going away party for my Irish friend Alannah, we went to la Viña one night (an old neighborhood), I went to Bahía Sur in San Fernando, and I guess that's it. Oh, I also finally have access to Campus Virtual (where all my homework is for my courses). I was getting worried that I'd never be able to do anything for my classes but they finally registered me and I've started studying already...yey geekiness!
Yesterday I went out on my walk with Jacqueline and we took some really nice pictures!! I'm attaching them below. And also later on today I think I'm going to Jerez with Javi (Yeyo already left this morning). That's all I have to say for now (10:30am), hasta luego. OH! I almost forgot! I also gave up speaking English to my friends for Lent. It's actually been going pretty well and I don't feel like a loser for wanting to speak Spanish to them. I got other people to do it too: I'm a trend setter!
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
Carnaval: fed up
I, Kevin Gravier, am completely over and done with Carnaval. Three days in and I'm calling it quits. I mean, don't get me wrong, I'm in my 20s in a city where (according to la Policia Local and several newspapers) 360,000 people traveled to Cádiz Saturday to party into Sunday morning ....but let me just repeat that for you...360,000 people CAME to the city on top of the residents of the city...a city of 5.1 square miles. A 5 minute walk on a normal day took me over 20 minutes because of all of the people I had to push through and awkwardly rub up against. This seems complicated enough, but add glass cruzcampo beer bottles, wine bottles, cacique, coca cola (can't be without the mixer), tinto de verano, etc etc
Not to mention when you step out of the house you're wafted with the wonderful scent of day old urine rehydrated by fresh drunk-people urine. Add the constant sounds of whistles and kazoos and annoying bird callers to the mix and add confetti EVERYWHERE. Cádiz changed from a quiet sea city to a touristy party hub in days and I'm already sick of it.
There are some positive aspects: there are people singing in the streets, on tractors, and on stages. The food is pretty good and the nightlife is crazy. But I've decided to curl back into my old-grandpa self and go to bed early tonight (it's almost 2am already) and actually get some sleep and forget about how dirty this city and my shoes are.
Not to mention when you step out of the house you're wafted with the wonderful scent of day old urine rehydrated by fresh drunk-people urine. Add the constant sounds of whistles and kazoos and annoying bird callers to the mix and add confetti EVERYWHERE. Cádiz changed from a quiet sea city to a touristy party hub in days and I'm already sick of it.
There are some positive aspects: there are people singing in the streets, on tractors, and on stages. The food is pretty good and the nightlife is crazy. But I've decided to curl back into my old-grandpa self and go to bed early tonight (it's almost 2am already) and actually get some sleep and forget about how dirty this city and my shoes are.
Sunday, March 6, 2011
Carnaval: Day 1
Walking down the street has never been a project before. Walking down the street, a person usually doesn't encounter groups of manly cross dressers...or pregnant nuns...or octopi. A geisha here, a penguin there, fake boobs everywhere. ¡Bienvenidos a Carnaval!
The cobblestone streets became carpeted with bags, cups, and broken bottles which served as good traction to the slippery wet stone. It didn't rained, it was just urine and spilled alcohol...everywhere. One of my biggest fears in life is slipping and busting my teeth on rocks and last night I was put to the test. Pushing and shoving my way through the crowd I basically ran into everyone I've met here so far: Davide is always everywhere so obviously I saw him numerous times throughout the night, but apart from him I saw that French guy Geoff from the beach when the drunk guy peed his pants, Javi my friend from Ciudad Real, the Spanish people I went out with who go to school in Puerta Santa María, all the API students from Seville, Santa, the Brits, the Americans, some pandas, etc etc.
I am writing this in my pajamas right now, my face still has some face paint and my hair is still flamboyantly red with golden glitter. It's a little past 1 and I just woke up an hour ago...I didn't get home until 4:30 this morning which is actually early if you can believe it. I'm a bit achy, a bit smelly, a bit grungy but ready to head out into the madness again tonight. There are some chirigotas in the Plaza de las flores in an hour and then something going on in la Puerta at around 6...thank God there is no school because waking up at 7 would require not falling asleep.
Until the next blog!
The cobblestone streets became carpeted with bags, cups, and broken bottles which served as good traction to the slippery wet stone. It didn't rained, it was just urine and spilled alcohol...everywhere. One of my biggest fears in life is slipping and busting my teeth on rocks and last night I was put to the test. Pushing and shoving my way through the crowd I basically ran into everyone I've met here so far: Davide is always everywhere so obviously I saw him numerous times throughout the night, but apart from him I saw that French guy Geoff from the beach when the drunk guy peed his pants, Javi my friend from Ciudad Real, the Spanish people I went out with who go to school in Puerta Santa María, all the API students from Seville, Santa, the Brits, the Americans, some pandas, etc etc.
I am writing this in my pajamas right now, my face still has some face paint and my hair is still flamboyantly red with golden glitter. It's a little past 1 and I just woke up an hour ago...I didn't get home until 4:30 this morning which is actually early if you can believe it. I'm a bit achy, a bit smelly, a bit grungy but ready to head out into the madness again tonight. There are some chirigotas in the Plaza de las flores in an hour and then something going on in la Puerta at around 6...thank God there is no school because waking up at 7 would require not falling asleep.
Until the next blog!
Friday, March 4, 2011
Lady Gaga and her body guards
So as I mentioned in my last blog entry, I am officially out of school for the next week due to Carnaval along with every other student in Cádiz which means Thursday was party night. I think it's time to explain Carnaval to those who don't know what it is: Mardi Gras is famous in New Orleans for parades, costumes, and partying. This is routed in the Christian tradition of preparation for the Lenten Season (40 days of fasting, no meat, no pleasure until Easter Sunday). Since there are so many restrictions, people use up all the old food they can't eat for the next 40 days and get all of their sinning out of their system. Well Carnaval is like Mardi Gras but it lasts 8 days and everyone from all over Spain and some parts of Europe flock to Cádiz. Cádiz IS Carnaval. We were told that our front entrance way had to be closed to avoid people urinating, defecating, and sleeping in the door way...this is how intense this should be. Saturday to Monday everyone goes out in a costume like for Halloween (just without the candy). There will be singers in the street, free concerts, churro stands, cotton candy stands, people with Kazoos, etc etc.
Since this was pre-pre-carnaval, all the clubs/bars were having costume nights, my friends and I met by a lamp post in Plaza San Antonio to walk down to Nahú (the erasmus dominated bar). Then from the balcony she appeared; the star of our night out, the stylish mess that is Lady Gaga. Wearing a necklace with Christmas tree ornaments, cans of soda in her hair, and face paint that would make any star jealous, Lady Gaga arrived to party and things were about to get good. Chelsea, Jacqueline and I acted as body guards for the night; wearing all black with sunglasses and head phones to look like headsets. It was brilliant. We started in Nahú where the DJ blasted "Alejandro" when he saw us walk in. All of our German friends met up with us there dressed up as Candy Girls and colorful fashion disasters. Snacking from their bags of candy and dancing the night away was perfectly fantastic. The bar got so crowded that dancing turned impossible so a couple hours later we moved onto the next one.
At about 2:30 we moved over to Magdala's which is another bar/discoteca around the corner. Ironically, Davide was there (keep in mind he went back to Napoli after the semester ended weeks ago). I also ran into Vera and Eva who both went to Morocco for almost a month. This bar was slightly more crowded than Nahú...almost impossible I thought, but there I ran into all of the New York kids and made friends with some more British/Irish people. It got too crowded to handle there too so at around 3 we went to another spot: Umec.
Umec was almost completely empty when we got there (we were REALLY early). Within the next 15 minutes though it became as packed as Nahú. I saw Davide. All of my American friends left in Magdala and I stayed with the Brits and New Yorkers in the new club until 5. That's when I had to call it quits. People were still coming in and I was sick of being pushed around by people trying to use the bathroom. I ended up going home early before we could go out to the actual discotecas but I still had a bunch of fun and am looking forward to the craziness of Carnaval...a rezar
Since this was pre-pre-carnaval, all the clubs/bars were having costume nights, my friends and I met by a lamp post in Plaza San Antonio to walk down to Nahú (the erasmus dominated bar). Then from the balcony she appeared; the star of our night out, the stylish mess that is Lady Gaga. Wearing a necklace with Christmas tree ornaments, cans of soda in her hair, and face paint that would make any star jealous, Lady Gaga arrived to party and things were about to get good. Chelsea, Jacqueline and I acted as body guards for the night; wearing all black with sunglasses and head phones to look like headsets. It was brilliant. We started in Nahú where the DJ blasted "Alejandro" when he saw us walk in. All of our German friends met up with us there dressed up as Candy Girls and colorful fashion disasters. Snacking from their bags of candy and dancing the night away was perfectly fantastic. The bar got so crowded that dancing turned impossible so a couple hours later we moved onto the next one.
At about 2:30 we moved over to Magdala's which is another bar/discoteca around the corner. Ironically, Davide was there (keep in mind he went back to Napoli after the semester ended weeks ago). I also ran into Vera and Eva who both went to Morocco for almost a month. This bar was slightly more crowded than Nahú...almost impossible I thought, but there I ran into all of the New York kids and made friends with some more British/Irish people. It got too crowded to handle there too so at around 3 we went to another spot: Umec.
Umec was almost completely empty when we got there (we were REALLY early). Within the next 15 minutes though it became as packed as Nahú. I saw Davide. All of my American friends left in Magdala and I stayed with the Brits and New Yorkers in the new club until 5. That's when I had to call it quits. People were still coming in and I was sick of being pushed around by people trying to use the bathroom. I ended up going home early before we could go out to the actual discotecas but I still had a bunch of fun and am looking forward to the craziness of Carnaval...a rezar
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)