Only the Beginning

First week of classes have flown by and the weather is finally getting warm.  Unlike in the US, during mid-day it is mid 60's with the sun heating you up.  On Wednesday, we went on a bus tour of Seville and the weather was perfect for sitting on the second level of the double-decker bus.  The picture above is one of the many pictures that I was able to get that day.  It was a very informative bus ride in which we learned a lot about the culture and history of the buildings.  While on the bus, all of us definitely felt like true tourists, all we needed were fanny packs and maps out at hand.  

    Yesteryday, consisted of class and then practice later on in the day.  Practice was again on the dirt, which I am definitely getting more used to.  All the guys on the team are very nice and helpful to Chris and I, which makes everything a lot easier.  Classes have been pretty typical nothing special, very informative with teachers that love what they are doing.  Most of the teachers at the school also have other jobs, which is really impressive the amount of time they are able to put into both of their jobs.  I am still getting used to the time change, at nights it is very hard to go to sleep so reading books has been my go to thing at night.  It also doesn't help that I take a couple of siestas throughout the day especially on my Mondays and Wednesdays.  

The Plaza de España is the picture above.  This beautiful semi-circle building is one of the most popular areas to visit in Seville and no wonder why.  It was absolutely stunning the attention to detail, mosaics lay along the ground, bridges, and building.  Every state in Spain is displayed as a Mosaic along the boarder of the plaza.  Pictures can never do anything justice and the same goes for this building.

This park is directly behind where I am standing in the picture of the Plaza.  Orange trees grow all around the city and in this park there were tons scattered along with other varieties of trees and vegetation. It was a great time to explore the city and the history that is scattered throughout.  The group met up with each other that night and we went to this Italian restaurant, which was very hidden and low key, as usual those places are always the best.  This was yet another restaurant that didn't disappoint, it is hard to beat fresh Italian food. One thing I have noticed throughout the city is the amount of people that stay out late.  The other night my roommate and I were at this outside bar and as we looked around us there was only older people sipping on some whisky, smoking cigars, and having coffee.  We looked at our clocks and noticed that it was 2am and these people were not even close to finishing their night.  The priority of socializing and spending time with friends is definitely on the top of the list here and I love it.  I think that is the purpose of bars and going out, it is to socialize and enjoy sipping on some beer or wine rather than trying to drink so much alcohol that you don't even remember your night.  I never thought the city was for me, especially growing up in a small town I always thought a large amount of people were so overwhelming.  Each day that I spend living here in Seville, the more I am enjoying the atmosphere that goes along with it.  One week down, many more to go but excitement starts this weekend when we get to go to Granada, a state to the east of Seville, to go snowboarding.  I will be sure to go into detail about the trip.  Until next time, ¡Adios!  

One Class, One practice, Sounds like a Perfect Day

Today is my easy school day, I have one 11:45am class and then I am done for the day.  The pictue above is the place where I have all my classes.  Very different than the two other universities in Seville.  The one class I have today is probably going to be one of my favorites because Artistic monuments have always fascinated me but even more so, the learning style is going to more enjoyable.  The professor will lecture for about 30 minutes then, we go out and walk to the monuments we just learned about.  During class today, we learned a little bit about the history of Seville and luckily for all you reading, I will share some with you.

Seville, before 3 B.C, was inhabitated by many tribes in which there was no common language between them.  The Romans took over Seville and united the city as well as gave it an offficial language of Latin.  Christianity was also brought over by the Romans, which has stayed a part of the culture ever since.  The fall of the Romans meant the rise of the Muslims in which Islam then became the primary religion in Seville.  The picture shown above is an awesome examble of the Muslims trying to build over the Roman architecture.  Those arches used to be apart of a Roman building and it extended down below what is now the ground.  A Mosque now lies above what was then a Roman building.  The rise of the Spanish Empire started with Fernando III and the discover of the Americas in 1492.  The major river called Guadalquiuir was the main mode of transportation from the Americas to Seville then Madrid.  Where my school is located (the first picture above), is the closest highest point to the river, which meant that the the hub of Seville was there.  The plaza in which my school stands, used to be a fish market and right down the street was the bread market and so on and so forth.  Well there is your history lesson for today, maybe use it for a fun fact of the day.  Now that I've shown my parents that I am in fact learing something over here, time to talk about soccer!

First practice went really well.  Triana C.F has two fields and a building with a training room and two lockerrooms for women and men.  Supposedly compared to other facilities, this is a 5 star park.  The guys have a game this Sunday in some village.  Because of that, we practiced on a dirt field.  This is completely normal for many of the semi-pro teams around Spain.  I could not believe it, players of this caliber playing on dirt, it just goes to show how lucky we really are playing on beautiful grass fields from  the day we start club soccer back in the states.  I found the speed of the game only a little bit quicker than that of college soccer.  The only difference is every player on the field had unbelievable ball skills and technique even the goalies.  I also noticed that a lot of the players like to hold on to the ball a tad bit longer and also physicality does not play a huge role in their play.  We started practice with a jog around the field then some passing drills to get our feet moving.  We played a little possession from end line to end line and then we ended practice with a 7v7.  I was able to get my first goal of the new year during the scrimmage, which was awesome.  I played very well after getting used to the ground and how the ball reacted to bouncing on it.  Once I got adjusted I had so much fun and could not ask for a better practice, I could do without the

 rain and cold weather but other than that it was a perfect introduction into the spanish culture through their soccer.  My next blog will probably be over the weekend because not much will be different in the coming days.  Until then, ¡Adios!

First day of Classes

First day of classes are done and the first set of homework was issued, vacation time is over and it looks like this semester is going to be hard.  Today, I have an early morning spanish class and then two business classes later on in the morning.  Monday and Wednesday are definitely my hardest days for school but fortunately, I am done at 3pm so the rest of the day is open to studying.  The picture above has nothing to do with my classes at all but this is called the Toro de Oro and it is located right along the river.  Not quite sure its significance but maybe my class tomorrow will tell me that, Art Monuments.  Many of my teachers have said that time flies and so don't waste a single day.  This afternoon I was going through my calender and seeing the trips that I might take this semester and those teachers are absolutely right.  Three months seems like a long time but as trips, soccer practice, and classes continue on, weeks will seem like days.      

The picture above is the field where Triana C.F, the semi-pro team I will be playing for this spring, plays and trains.  This new turf field is also home to locals on Monday nights, where pick-up games are played constantly.  The sports director for SAIIE was able to get us in with these group of guys that play every Monday night at 9:30, unfortunately you have to rent the field out so there is a fee to play but all the guys are very nice and fun to play with. Although it was great to get my foot on the ball, real practice starts tomorrow at 8:30pm.  I am very excited for the opportunity to play with such a great team.  The director of SAIIE said that this team has produced some players that have later on played professionally for Sevilla.  This will be a good test to see where I stand with some of the best spanish players.  I will be sure to go into depth about the soccer tomorrow!  Until then, ¡Nos Vemos!

Last Day of Rest

Sunday is definitely a day of rest in the city of Seville.  My roommate and I walked around trying to find somwhere to eat breakfast, luckily both of us our content to have a cup of coffee and some toast, yes more bread.  After breakfast, we noticed that these futsal coarts were full with some kind of league that happens every Sunday.  Unfortunately, it is not something you can just hop on and play but it was fun to watch some locals play.  I would never want to be a goalie, especially on this concrete field but that didn't stop the goalies from diving and sliding.  Each time they did, I cringed and wondered why that would be the option.  Nothing was really planned for today but the weather was beautiful especially when the afternoon came.  The wind died down and just begged you to go out and walk around.  Luckily for you guys, the camera was out and snapping pictures left and right.

The pictures above are of the Catedral y Geralda.  I happened to eat lunch right next to this Gothic cathedral today.  I wish I could tell you more about it but that might have to come later on in the semester, but trust me I will learn its importance because of the monument art class I am taking this semester.  I walked around the city after lunch but nothing was open so I decided to take full advantage of la siesta back at the house.  My roommate and I went to this English bar called O'neals to watch the Manchester United vs. Chelsea game.  It was fun to be able to have a beer and watch the game with everyone in the area, but what was not fun was the outcome of the game.  Fortunately, for you guys I won't dwell on how terrible Manchester United are doing this year.  Tonight, Charo, our señora, cooks dinner for us and I am super excited.  She usually prepares this unbelievable meal that I am forced to eat more than can fit my stomach.  Tomorrow, classes start up and my first class is at 8am.  This coming week will definitely be nice just so I can get some kind of structure and schedule while I am here.  Every day since I have been here, there has been something new to write about but I have a feeling that the blog entries will slowly turn into weekly intervals or at least till something new happens, which will most likely be every weekend.  Until tomorrow, ¡Hasta Luego!

Real Betis vs. Real Madrid

After lunch on Friday, our señora doesn't make food until Sunday for dinner, therefore, we have to go out and walk around town in order to find good food, which is like trying to find starbucks in any city.  The picture above is the first breakfast and surprisingly the first food bought while in Seville.  I can get used to eating this kind of food for only $7.  Our morning was pretty boring but the fun began at noon when we met the rest of the students in the SAIIE program to head to the Real Betis game.  The walk took us about 30-35 minutes, although this was a long walk, our excitement kept us going.  That feeling of excitment quickly disappeared when we walked up to the ticket booth.

As the group of 19 of us approached the ticket booth wondering where to sit and hoping we could get seats close to each other, suddenly the security guard to our right said that there were no more tickets unless you were willing to pay 60-90 Euros.  Even though Real Madrid was playing, that is way too much.  Most of the students immediatly left in order to find some restaurant to eat and watch the game.  My roommate, Chris, another student, and I decided we were going to try and buy some tickets off of fans around the stadium.  We got tickets for 35 Euros but noticed once we got the tickets that it said "infantil" on them, which means infants.  Once we looked up to ask the guy about the ticket he and his friend disappeared.  We thought for sure that we got ripped off but we had the tickets and were going to try anyways.  The door to enter the stadium was all the way on the other side of the stadium and as we were walking toward it, I had this disheartening feeling that we weren't going to get in.  I scanned my ticket, then the ticket officer ripped off a piece of it, then said vale (ok).  Somehow my roommate and I were able to get these seats (look above) saying that we were infants.  The game itself was unbelievable, the Real Betis fans were singing and chanting until the five minute mark, when Cristiano Ronaldo had this amazing shot from about 25 yards out to fly into the top corner.  Gareth Bale, shortly after that scored a free kick and all of a sudden the fans started booing their own goalie.  Goal after goal after goal, the final score ended up 5-0 Real Madrid.  I guess I should have picked a better team to support, seeing that Real Betis is currently in last place.  Below is the link to the highlights of the game and trust me I will be attending more games hopefully without so much bargaining but I guess I should start working on my bargaining skills in spanish.  ¡Nos Vemos!

Link:   http://www.footytube.com/video/real-betis-0-5-real-madrid-all-goals-18-01-ourmatch-net-251117?ref=wv_relbox

(Just copy and paste)

Cold, Rainy, but Beautiful

Today was another orientation, but this time with the director of the program who gave us a more detailed outline of what the program offers so on and so forth.  We had the rest of the day to do whatever we wanted.  Many of the students stayed out late last night and just went back to bed but my roomate and I decided to walk around the city aka get lost in Seville.  It was perfect we just started taking random turns down different streets eventually leading us to this amazing shopping center.  The architecture is a lot better than the clothes and shoes inside.  Although it was cold and rainy, we made the most of what was around us.  We eventually ran into a street that sounded familiar and it was shopping galore (Shown below).  Literally a hundred shops along this one street, granted this street, called Sierpes, stretches across most of Seville and it is a shopper's dream.  Chris and I made it back to our house and ate lunch with our señora, Charo.  She made this unbelievable soup that consisted of potatoes, carrots, beef, and beans.  On the side was bread and more bread.  I think every meal my roommate and I eat has a side of about half a loaf of bread.  Most meals have either bread with cream cheese, bread with jelly, bread with cheese, bread with butter, and the list will probably grow.  Charo says that we are soccer players so we need to be eating lots of carbs, but I guess she doesn't realize soccer hasn't started yet.  After lunch, Chris and I went to this local concrete futsal field, which is where all the locals play at nights.  There was no one there during this time because everyone was napping, have to get used to la siesta.  We kicked the ball around for about an hour then made our way back home in order to get ready for the long night ahead.

Anywhere you go in Seville, you walk.  I have a watch that caculates the number of steps I take in a day and today was a record breaking 12,487 steps.  This record will surely be broken especially when soccer starts up.  Tonight was our welcome to Seville party, that was hosted at a local bar that served tapas (appetizers) and drinks in which SAIIE, the program I am enrolled in, paid for it all.  It was a great opportunity to get to know everyone even more.  I was fortunate enough to talk to the director of the program as wells as his brother, who manages the sports for SAIIE, about traveling and most importantly futbol.  They are really interesting people to know and definitely ones that I want to stay in contact with for the rest of my life.  After the party, all of the students decided to bar hop around Seville and experience the night life a little more.  It was a lot of fun getting to know more of the students. Most of them live in Wisconsin, which is probably why they think I have a southern accent.  I told them I talk like a yankee compared to where I live.  The rain continued to pour down throughout the night but that didn't stop us from taking pictures and experiencing Seville.  Today was a great day and although it is suppose to rain tomorrow as well, nothing is going to dampen the day when Real Madrid comes to play Real Betis.  There will be plenty of pictures trust me.  ¡Nos Vemos!

First Day in Paradise

 

My day started out by waking up to my señora yelling from downstairs, "Alejandro! Vete aquí!"(come here) around 9:30, which is really 3:30am at home.  The breakfast conisted of bread topped with either butter or jelly.  A delicious cup of coffee was also brewed just the way I like it, half milk, half coffee, and lots of sugar.  After breakfast we walked the city to meet with the rest of the students in the program.  They gave us a little pre-orientation information regarding future trips and oh yeah classes.  After that, we had the freedom to walk around.  My roommate and I came back to the room, which is the picture above, to change into clothes to go for a run.  Luckily this is only my room, my roommate, Chris, lives in a room next door to mine and we share a bathroom at the end of the hall.  Pretty much exactly like a suite style dorm room in the States.  The only advantage is we have a porch off of our little hallway that provides a somewhat nice view of some local churches, which is nice to look at as you're drying your clothes.  Chris and I got dressed and went for a run along the banks of the Canal de Alfonso.  This beautiful canal flows a couple streets away from the house.  We ran down about 15 minutes one way trying to find the Real Betis stadium, which is a tiny little stadim that is home to the locals around this area.  This coming weekend they play the best team in the world, Real Madrid, in which I am fortunate enough to go see for only 30 Euros.  I can't explain how excited I am to go see Cristiano Ronaldo, Gareth Bale, Iker Casillas, Xabi Alonso, Sergio Ramos, Pepe, and all the other great soccer players.  I do have to keep in mind that I am a Real Betis fan now... kinda.  The weather here is around the same as in Florida, cold in the mornings and nights (cold meaning low 50's) and warm during the middle of the day.  Walking the streets of Seville you truely appreciate the architechure and time spent into each building especially the churches.  Every one of them are beautiful, full of color and sculpures.  Don't worry there will be a picture of some as the blog continues.  

Seville really comes alive around 7-8pm.  Everyone gets off work, grabs something to eat and then starts heading to the bars.  I got my first taste of the bar scene tonight, which is much different to the States.  In Spain, one or two beers is enough for the night.  As you walk around the city at night you notice double the number of restaurants and bars that are open.  It is truely amazing how the city comes alive.  During the day it seems as though most of the people are either shopping or smoking outside, but at night the city illuminates.  I was able to get my first glimpse of the spanish culture by attending a Flameco Show at Casa De La Guitarra.  The guitarist, singer, and dancer were absolutely amazing, they are shown above.  The music consisted of a type of salsa but a bit quicker tempo.  The dancing was comparable to tap dancing in the States.  Overall, great day in Seville can't wait to keep exploring the beautiful city and more importantly soccer starts Tuesday, so the real experience starts then.  ¡Hasta luego!

Arrival into Seville, Spain

Saying goodbye is the hardest thing to do when traveling, whether that's back to school or to another country.  My parents dropped me off in the Richmond airport Tuesday 14th of January around 10:00am.  After a moment spent with hugs and tears, I was finally on my way to Spain.  Richmond to Chicago was an easy flight but as usual you can't fly into the Chicago airport without waiting at least an hour for another plane to leave your gate.  I met this man named Mike on the flight over to Chicago, he was on his way to Germany because that is where he is stationed for the military.  We both had a long layover in Chicago so we decided to grab some food and waste some time.  As lunch progresses, he starts explaining about his life and duty when in Afghanistan.  It turns out that Mike's job is defusing bombs around the city.  I made the immediate connection to the movie, The Hurt Locker, which is a little different than what he actually does.  I asked the question, which any civilian that has no idea what the military is like would ask, "has anything gone wrong during one of your missions?"  He ellaborates on this whole mission where they misjudged where the bomb actually was and long story short the bomb blows up very close to him and his team.  He ended up receiving three ribbons, one of them being a Purple Heart for the injury that was sustained to him.  It truely is amazing the people you meet and I was fortunate to start off my journey with this first encounter.

Chicago to Madrid was the longest and most difficult flight for me.  The movie selection was fantastic as well as the food, but the mixture between food, turbulance, and motion sickness soon resulted with me spending a good hour in the bathroom yelling outside the door, "Lo siento!"  I was able to get back to my seat and sleep/watch Somos Los Miller (We're the Millers).  I arrived in Madrid today at 8:00am and was lucky enough to follow another friend I met from the Canary Islands into a McDonalds.  The picture above is one of the tables you eat on, and in case you get bored talking.  You can play touch-screen games on it such as pong, fruit ninja, and air hockey.  It was very easy to find study abroad students in the Madrid airport because we are the ones with the look on our faces saying, "Someone who can speak English please come help me".  I met some other students and we eventually got onto our flight heading south to Seville.  We arrived in the Seville airport around 1:00pm and waiting for us outside the baggage claim was our program leaders.  Then my roommate Chris and I took a cab to the house in which we are staying.  Along the way we dealt with the usual craziness of cab drivers and European driving but what was perhaps the most interesting was the cab drivers choice of music.  The CD consisted of all American break-up and love hurts songs.  Let's also be clear this driver knew no English whatsoever so I guess he just enjoys the beat and melody?  I am now sitting comfortably with no internet in my Spanish home with what seems to be the nicest señora, that's what I think at lease I can't really understand what she is saying to me.  Until next time ¡adiós! 

Day Before Departure

Well January 14th, 2014 seemed so far away when the ticket to Seville, Spain was bought.  Thankfully everything is completed and all documents needed to travel have arrived so the day before my flight is being spent watching soccer, packing, and eating.  Surprisingly, all of my clothes and what not needed for Spain fit snuggly into my pack, which in fact only weighed about 30 pounds.  Tomorrow is travel day if all goes well then I should be in Seville, Spain Wednesday by 1:10pm.  I hope to keep this blog up to date with a new picture every day.  Those who keep up with my blog, I will do my best to write one every day but I have good feeling as my study abroad experience lengthens and my comfortability with the locals and others grows, this blog will slowly fall to the wayside.  The next time you read this blog I will be sitting comfortably in my new spanish home trying to figure out what everyone is saying.  ¡Nos vemos!