The End of the Trip

Greetings parents and well wishers,

We have lost our access to the Internet at the school. Other classes were using it and thus we couldn´t. I am writing this from an internet cafe, but they don´t like us downloading pictures or videos. Unfortunately, this may be the last blog entry.

All of the students are doing well. Today was the last day of classes and there was a touch of sadness though it felt like the last day of school. It was a free afternoon and then tonight we will be having a big final dinner all together. Tomorrow we tour around some other towns in Andulucia - Teriffa and Bolonia, returning to Cadiz around 8 PM. Then it is final packing when the first group leaves for the USA at 2AM. The second group has a free day on Sunday (sounds like a beach day ;) ) before repeating the 2AM departure, 24 hours behind the first group. All in all, everyone has had a wonderful, marvelous and spectacular time. Group 1 will see you Sunday night and Group 2 on Monday night. Faarewell!

Day 9 in Cadiz

Elizabeth Atkins
Hi Mom!! And Reagan, and everyone…
Right, so, the blog – It’s now been over a week and everyone is a liiiiiiittle tired, but we’ve learned to take advantage of the Siesta hour and so we’re continuing to have a really good time. Yesterday we had classes in the morning (…) and then free time for a while in the afternoon (Kelsey and I got our nails done and talked with the Spanish manicurists for a full hour) and then the “Clubs de Mundolengua,” where we got to choose from a number of different activities. Some of us did sports (word on the street is that Mars Lima and Dara Brown destroyed all the boys at baloncesto, while Greg Jokl took a couple of soccer balls to the face), others did dancing (which turned out to be of the Arabian nights style, affording us some verrrrry entertaining views of Kelley Sousa and Emily Graybeal wearing the scarves and everything over their t-shirts), others made jewelry, others made these ball-on-string contraptions that they proceeded to swing at people for the rest of the afternoon, and some of us got tattoos! …Henna tattoos, but whatever, we’re still cool…
Anyway after clubs and dinner (which most people went home for, but a couple of us rocked the Burger King and TellaPizza) we all met up – at the McDonalds, like the Americans we are – to go to a Discoteca. We listened to some crazy Spanish music, most of which we could sing because of our experiences in Sr. Quesada’s class, danced a little bit, and cheered on Seth Johnson and David Deerson at Karaoke. Following that crazy party, a bunch of us headed down to the beach to search for the ever-popular heladería (ice cream shop to you Americans) but most of them were closed because it was midnight and we ended up – surprise, surprise – back at McDonalds for some McFlurries. Which, by the way, are way better in Spain than in the US – sorry guys.
That’s about it for yesterday, but in other news, about half the group is ridiculously sun-burnt and hunting for aloe, Mitchell Ford nearly walked into a moving bus (don’t worry, Tyler and Traci, we stopped him and he’s fine), most of us girls have given up on straightening our hair and are now rocking the frizzed out curly look (except Emily and Kelsey who we all hate because theirs is straight naturally), and I’ve decided to be the First Ever Female American Matador. Just kidding. Kind of.
Hope everything is going well at home – we send our brazos and besos (hugs and kisses) to everyone, and we can’t wait to see you (and our entire extended family, who we expect to be at the airport waiting for us with open arms and Diet Coke, not Coca-Cola Light). LOVE.

Day 8 in Cadiz

Today, all of the Mundolengua classes went to the open air market called el mercadillo del piojillo. The market was parallel to the water and was basically one long strip of street venders that seemed to go on for miles. On either side of the street were stands that sold everything you could imagine, from jewelry to clothes to fresh shrimp. Each student had a partner in which to walk around with, take pictures, and complete a worksheet that we had received in class. It was kind of overwhelming, because there were so many people moving through the street, and all the vendors were calling out sales and prices. Everything was pretty inexpensive, causing many of us to buy lots of items. After the market, everyone went home for lunch. While some groups made paella or learned salsa, my group had the afternoon off. I took this time to visit the beautiful shores of Cadiz. After a quick siesta, Liz and I met up with some friends at the school and walked to the beach. It was the perfect day to go, as it wasn’t too hot and there was a great breeze. The rest of the afternoon was spent splashing in the water, relaxing on the sand, and napping on huge beach blankets. After the beach, Liz and I returned to our house for a great homemade dinner. After spending the entire day outside, we stayed in and relaxed with our family.
(Mimi)

Weekend in Seville

Hey families!
So this weekend, the entire group got to go to Seville, Spain. The first thing we all noticed was how much larger it is than Cadiz. Though there were a few different groups, strangely named after colleges (I was in Davidson), everyone got to see the same things.
For my group, the day we got there we got to see the Catedral de Sevilla (Cathedral of Seville). It’s beautiful and large and has an awesome set up for acoustics. It’s got a lot of gold and intricate designs everywhere-the ceilings, the walls, each room was completely different from the next. When we had walked around the entirety of the cathedral, we went to the top of the torre [tower], where we could see all of Seville, all the way to the river. After a short lunch break, the next stop was the bull fighting stadium. I’m not a fan of the actual sport, but it was interesting to learn about. If you ever watch America’s Next Top Model, I heard it was the same place of a photo shoot in one of the more recent cycles. If you don’t, the stadium is oval shaped, painted yellow and red, as well as being able to seat up to 14,000 people. There are two different major doors, one for the bull and one for the fighter, as well as walls to jump behind when the bull charges.
After a scrumptious dinner, we were free to explore the city a little more. My friends and I went back around to the cathedral and happened to be able to do a midnight carriage ride through the city. Everything looks different all lit up, and it certainly was gorgeous. Other people went to the middle of Seville and shopped in the multitude of shops, ate ice cream, and just enjoyed being in Spain.
The next day, Davidson went to the Plaza de Espana, a beautifully tiled castle once lived in by a princess, with benches for each of the cities in Spain. Doing a scavenger hunt through the park right across the street also showed the uniqueness of Seville. There was a square covered with birds, enormous gardens, hidden monuments, fountains, many great expanses of green grass, at least 20 horse carriages, and my favorite: Montaña de Gúrugu (Mountain of Gurugu, which my group pronounced “GOO-ROO-GOO”). We all were lucky enough to be there on a beautiful weekend, and enjoyed a warm up…okay, enjoyed may not be the best word choice, but it was definitely different! Finally, we went to Alcazar, a collection of different castles all built together. Our guide, Santi, spiced things up a bit by feeding us prunes and letting us smell the favorite perfumes of the Arabic people, who actually built Alcazar.
Another interesting note is the number fountains in Seville. The sound of the water calms the city and in any one place, there is at least a small fountain. For each one, it seemed, there were different plants, giving a personality to where the fountain was. It was relaxing as well as beautiful.
Even though I could probably write for a lot longer about Seville, I do have to return to class. Adios!
XOXO,
Ava

Cadiz - Day 5

Firoz Jameel -

After spending four days here, it’s a relief to finally use an American keyboard. Because the punctuation on Spanish keyboards is in many different places, finding the apostrophe becomes a twenty minute ordeal. Aside from the different keyboards, most of us have adapted to life herein
Please note - these videos are at normal speed, not fast motion!

Cadiz. We’ve overcome jet lag, adapted to slightly smaller quarters, and figured out the transit system (given that there are only five parallel bus lines, its not that difficult).
Yesterday, we had a slightly more relaxed day. At our school, we abandoned the grammar lessons for real human interaction. We got to talk to Spanish students. Much to our surprise, their lives are remarkably similar to ours. Many of us have similar taste in music, cinema, and television (hint, most of these songs, movies, and shows are American). During this time, we both took the time to clear up some popular misconceptions about both cultures. For example, America is NOT a nation of gun-toting cowboys (that’s only Texas) and Spain is NOT in a perpetual “siesta,” or nap (it only lasts from 2:00 until 5:30 in the afternoon). However, the most shocking revelation of all was the lack of homework. When we revealed that we spent an average of four or five hours working, our Spanish peers chuckled. The average Spanish high-school student spends an hour and a half doing homework a night. After writing thirty-five lab reports in chemistry, authoring six papers in English, and doing countless worksheets in math, all I could do was stare at them in awe and envy.
Normally, at the end of our school day, we begin our afternoon activities. However, today was different. There would be no salsa classes or paella cooking; instead, we could roam the city free until dinner time. While many of us planned on spending a relaxing day at the beach, those plans had to be shelved because of the cold, damp weather. So instead of sunbathing, we turned to the only other things we knew how to do: eat and shop. We roamed the streets of Cadiz searching for “authentic Spanish food.” Many of us stumbled upon these tiny hole-in-the-wall tapas bars. They provided us with uniquely Spanish foods (fried octopus anybody?). Better yet, these restaurants were relatively inexpensive. With this left over cash burning a hole in our wallets, we ventured to cobblestoned streets of Old Cadiz, home to many of the shops in Cadiz. There, we bought Spanish clothing from Zara (a Spanish chain that is akin to either a Gap or Express), flamenco CDs from street vendors, and of course, gifts for those back in the States. Ironically, the men of Cary Academy outspent and outpurchased many of the women.
Tomorrow, we will be visiting Seville, a city that is steeped in Spanish culture and history. We will visit the Plaza de Torres, the Catedral de Sevilla, and many other historic sites. Until then, adios!

Day 4 in Cadiz

Today has been a little crazy with many plans activities and adventures. Thus, there were no students available to blog. So enjoy these pictures and video.

Day 3 in Cadiz

Friends, Romans, Countrymen, I am writing to you from the great country of Spain (more specifically, Cadiz, pronounced CAH-dith) Yesterday, May 28th was a day like no other. For the first time we got what we had been told we would get – some HEAT (caliente, as the locals might say). It was a beautiful warm day in the south of Spain. We started off the day in the normal way, waking, eating a delicious Spanish breakfast (toast seems to be in fashion), and heading of to school. Some groups yesterday, as others will today, had an opportunity to sit in a class and get acquainted with the local students. The consensus was a rewarding and fascinating, if not a little awkward, experience. After school, many took advantage of the warm weather and hit the beach. Apparently, the locals had the same idea, as the beaches were well populated (but not too crowded.) We had more time than usual between lunch and our evening activity, so many a long walk on the beach ended in a siesta (nap) or long shower. We met at 8 in the old part of the city to start a walking tour. We walked in and out of alleyways and small streets, filled with plaques to famous Cadiz-ians, statues, and murals (usually of Jesus, the city is a cool mixture of Arab architecture and Christian imagery). We walked by giant buildings and did our best to understand what they were for (just kidding, the tour guides speak slowly enough so we understand most of the Spanish). The tour ended in a bar (no alcohol for us) with a stage. Onto the stage walked three men, and we were suddenly engulfed in flamenco music. Two dancers came on (a man and a woman) to dazzle us with their movement. I think most people were pleasantly surprised – the image of flamenco in our minds was a bit different than what we saw, which had very Arabic influenced vocals, a sort of Spanish tap-dancing, and even a bit of Step-Dancing included (not quite CAMotion, however). The dance ended late, so we had to go straight home. Few of us minded, however, because the Flamenco show was truly a great experience. Tonight, they tell me, we will be getting salsa lessons. Don’t worry, parents, I will make sure to get pictures of all of your children doing Salsa.
Here’s to you, from Cadiz,
Signing off
David Deerson, Spanish Speaker Extraordinaire.