Hola, amigos!
It has been a while since I've added on here. Life has been pretty chill these past couple of days, but there are a few things to share. First of all, the weather is pretty darn nice. Every morning is damp and chilly--same with the nights--but the midday hours are sunny and delightful. Perfect for taking a stroll across the bridge over the Guadalvivir (I think that's the name of it) River. And at night, with all the lights reflecting on the water and a dark sky...magnificent.
You know how I told you about how the people here don't really smile? Well, that is true, but I don't want to give you the wrong impression of Spaniards. I have found them to be very nice. Of course, just like in any other country, you'll come across some sour apples, but most of them are sweet sweet sweet. For example, I made friends with Chencho, a 50-something guy who works a kiosk on the side of the walkway. We talked for a while, and I see him almost every day now. The other day he gave me some of his toasted garbanzo beans that he was munching on...for free! How nice! When he's trying to make money off of snacks like that!
Then there's Jesus (no, not THAT friend of mine :) ), but the artist, who situates himself right next to the cathedral and creates beautiful pastel pieces every day. That is his job. Oh, and of course he has beside him his best pal, his little dog Senor Tom. I talked to Jesus, too, who is also a 50-something year old with an aged face and smiley eyes. Don't worry, I'm not trying to pull a Catharine Zeta Jones with these older men; they are just my friends haha. (She's freshly on the mind, because she, among other well-known actors in the States, are constantly on la tele while we eat lunch.) It's amazing how much Guille knows the names of stars from the U.S., and how much Spaniards pay attention to their business, even!
The food, as I've mentioned before, is wonderful. Guille comes up with some crazy but good inventions (ham with finely chopped up left over tuna and lettuce salad on white bread) haha. And something I really like is calamari rings. But these are fried and big rings. So addicting. And of course, while strolling the streets, you hit dessert places left and right. The icecream calls my name like crazy. We have gone out a couple of times to get "tapas", or cheap appetizers. That's the tradition here, to get them at about 9:00. One, two, three, four of them could make for a sufficient dinner.
Last night I had a few hours to kill before meeting up with a German girl and an American for tapas. I noticed a guy about my age with a guitar on his back, walking briskly. So, I followed him. I thought, "Well, maybe he's in a rush to a gig he's playing for!" Then, feeling like a major creeper, I went up to him; turns out he wasn't going to a gig, and he was half Iranian and half British. Then he asked for my number. Haha just kidding. But that woulda been cool if he had led me to a hoppin gig or something! I'll let you know if that happens. Following him did lead me to sitting on a bench with a girl I had seen earlier that day...small world. Her name is Noura, and boy was she cool. She is Muslim, with family mostly in Morrocco, but she and her immediates live in Amsterdam. She has been in Spain for three weeks now (visiting a friend in Barcelona and going by herself to Sevilla) after finishing a semester in England. She ended up joining us for tapas. It was so interesting to talk to her about Islam, something I don't know a whole lot about, when we were on the bench.
On Sunday Kristen (from App State) and I went to the 1:00 mass at this incredible cathedral that's within walking distance from where I live. And the mass was incredible. I can't explain to you how intricate the architecture. The mass was short, and I wasn't sure of what to do in some moments, but it was great, and I plan on going more times.
Well, besides a very nice and short jog through a beautiful park, one time reading under a gigantic tree in that same park, sitting at the bar of a cafe to drink a lovely hot chocolate and read, and hanging out with Americans a lot, I can't think of a whole lot of what else has been going on. However, tonight we all go to a partido de futbol! Sevilla against...I don't know. But it's gonna be a blast. And coming soon to computers near you, my blog about this upcoming weekend's trip to Ronda! With all other Americans (U.S.)! Haha there's like 11 of us. Don't worry, I won't just be in this bubble for long, once school starts.
Love and peace to all of you!
Allison :)
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