Nada pero Granada

Hola a todos! Aubrey here in Sevilla checking in again. Despite the projected 7-10 days of rain ahead of us, it is currently sunny and warm in Sevilla. We have been getting a ton of rain lately, but so has all of Spain, so what can you do. Apparently it hasn't rained like this in ten years, and if it keeps up we'll break the record from way long ago.

Thank you Aubrey for that weather report. Now back to you, Aubrey, with travel news. (Oh gosh, now I'm talking to myself on an imaginary news program.) This past weekend (Friday to Saturday) I ventured with my program CEA to Granada, a city about a four hour bus ride east of here. It is a beautiful city, very different from Seville or Madrid. It's in the snow-covered Sierra Nevada mountains, which can be seen in the distance. It has a high Arabic influence from when it was in the Islamic empire around the 10th (?) century. When we arrived, we took a short walking tour to our four star hotel (sorry to brag, but it was sooo nice!). Friday was very cloudy and foggy (as you can see in the pictures) but it was still a good tour. In Granada (and many other parts of Spain--except Sevilla) when you order a drink at a bar, you are given a free plate of tapas. This was very exciting for my friends and me, as a glass of wine and a little sandwich and pasta for 2 euro is a perfect meal. We went to a bar called La Bella y la Bestia (Beauty and the Beast) and had delicious free tapas. Saturday was beautiful, a little chilly, but sunny. We walked around, bought some souvenirs, and visited a tea shop. Granada is also known for its tea, and we went to a beautiful teateria with about 40 different kinds.

Granada is known for the Alhambra, a huge fortress and the most visited site in Spain. We went there Saturday afternoon. It is expansive and has many parts constructed at different times by different types of people, Christian and Muslim. We saw the 3 palaces (Palacios Nazaries) which had amazing ceilings with stalactites and walls covered with reliefs. The art is geometric and sometimes shows animals and also has lines from the Koran written in Arabic. There are gardens with fountains that use the force of water coming down the nearby mountains to propel them still! There is some Christian influence from when Charles V ruled there in the 15th (?) century. One of the most famous parts, the Palace of the Lions, is missing the lions because they are being worked on for conservation. I hear good things though. Our tourguide told us it is just an excuse to come back, they should be finished in 2 or 3 years (a very Spanish time line).

I was out last week with some of my friends who happen to be from Baltimore and we found a bar with a bartender whose girlfriend is from Baltimore. They had a UMD pennant, Orioles Drive sign, National Bohemian sign (hidden for some reason, but the bartender showed us because we were so excited), and the Maryland state flag. We were so shocked! The bar is really cool and they have a shot for each of the 50 states. We tried the Maryland and the North Carolina. Maryland was better, of course!

This coming weekend I am going to Morocco. I never thought I would say that I am going to Africa, but on Friday I am and I'm very excited.

Hope the US is still wonderful! I am going to enjoy the rest of my Tuesday doing homework and relaxing.
Love,
Aubrey