So the trip over to Lisbon was more or less like the movie Rat Race. One of my friends was unable to use her credit card to book a flight online; so, she ended up having to take a bus. And my other friend had accidentally booked the wrong flight to Lisbon… she booked a flight that was leaving Madrid at the same time as the flight we had discussed BUT the day before. So we were all arriving at different times, and the two others were arriving the night before me. Our mobiles didn’t work in Lisbon (or were too expensive to function), and the hostel we had planned on meeting at was overbooked. So, there was a huge miscommunication at the start of the trip and lots of panicked e-mails to people who didn’t have access to computers, etc. I had to spend the night in the Madrid airport to avoid spending money on a taxi, but I ended up running into 2 girls from class who were in a similar situation; so, it ended up being pretty pleasant. Once we all finally found each other in Lisbon, we were definitely excited.
Day 1 we got to our hostel and dropped our stuff off. The hostel owner perked up at the sight of my last name and kept calling me Maria and telling me all the directions to places (like I can speak Portuguese…and well, I was the only one of the three of us who had any sort of experience with the language… which doesn’t bode well, but I was actually pretty functional). We ended up finding our way around fine. We walked around the entire city, to a castle, just stopping and peeking into little shops or stumbling upon terraces and gaping at the view of the ocean. The weather was 23 degrees Celsius and sunnier than anything. It wasn’t muggy heat though, it was really nice (twisting the knife, I’m sorry). We had been walking around all day and decided to have a picnic in a botanical garden; so, we stopped into a little fruit shop and got cheese, rolls (Portugal has the BEST bread), salami, wine and a bunch of bananas, plums, and strawberries. We just sat around in the sun and enjoyed that. Then we went back to the hostel and took a nap before we went out that night. We went to a couple bars and I tried a caiparinha a.k.a. the mojito’s crazy cousin. If you waited for the ice to melt and stirred it a lot, it was okay, but… at points it tasted like cough syrup. Very strange. Anyways, we ended up at this club where there were two djs in a row of pretty weird electro/hip-hop stuff, but fortunately we ended up sticking around because this underground hip-hop “legend” from the UK showed up and did an impromptu show. We had never heard of him, but we decided to make the most of it and ran up to the front and were dancing crazy and throwing our hands in the air like we just [don’t] care. It was so fun, until we realized there were cameras there recording the gig, and at one point one of my friends went up on stage with a bunch of other people (I got shy). Anyways, we’re thinking there will be videos of this up on youtube at some point, and I haven’t decided if this is a good thing or not…
Day 2 we went to the beach in Cascais, a half-an-hour train ride east on the coast. It was gorgeous and we just lay around for the afternoon and then headed back to town to catch a traditional fado show, two guys playing guitar and a bunch of solo vocalists singing traditional Portuguese musics, odes to Lisboa and the like. We ate a traditional Portuguese meal, I had bacalhau à lagareiro, a salty cod fillet that was grilled and served with small roasted potatoes and grilled onion and pepper and it sat in a bunch of olive oil. So good… so rich.
Day 3 we walked around and then took a train 20 minutes east along the coast to the cultural center at Belem (Bethlehem). We went to this famous pasteis de nata pastry “factory” and grabbed some of those delights as well as some coffee. Then, we had collected enough energy to go to a contemporary art museum there and then lay around in a park in front of the Monastery of the Jeronimos. Then we grabbed some fresh fruit from a fruit store and headed off to the airport and caught our plane home. When we got home, it was almost midnight and we caught the last train home… which we had to run to catch and would have been a crying shame to have missed, as we would have had to wait an hour and a half for a bus, and we had class the next morning.
It’s allergy season in Spain and Portugal; so, I got some medicine from the Farmacia here, but… it’s still a pain in the butt. I can’t really complain though, other than the fact that the allergies were aggravated at the beach, which is very weird to me. I think that was the first beach I’ve been on in 6 years or something ridiculous like that; so, it felt pretty good, and the sun wasn’t too intense, but I’m pretty golden brown I suppose. I’ll be getting my disposable camera pictures back tomorrow. So, I’ll post those when they come! Okay, I should go get some Smithwicks (if they sell it) and celebrate St. Paddy’s day!
P.S. Lisbon might be better than Barcelona....
modern tales of quixotry from the land of la vida loca
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Toledo Santo
So... after a bit of deliberation, I have decided that Toledo beats out Segovia for the best Madrid daytrip I have been on. They are very similar vibes, straight out of medieval times... and they are both very accessible (2 hours North to Segovia, a little over an hour south to Toledo), affordable (12 euro train roundtrip to Segovia, 8 euro bus roundtrip to Toledo), and they are both teeming with history.
Toledo is a bit bigger than Segovia, and there was a path you could go down that Don Quixote traveled down in the book. There is a Jewish influence in Toledo that there isn't in Segovia. This influence is fairly restricted to one small neighbourhood with some old synogogues. Also, there is a really nice cathedral here, that is less aesthetically appealing from the outside than the one in Segovia, but, you can go through the backdoor and get a peek for free (or pay 7euro to enter the front door); whereas, you have to pay to get into the cathedral in Segovia. Toledo also has more artisan work (mainly gold, leather and swords... as I mentioned, this is where the Lord of the Rings swords were crafted). It is interesting because I got a cheap necklace with a cross, and the patterns on it are almost gaelic-looking. Any boys would go crazy for the weaponry and armour in the windows, pretty cool-looking stuff, and I kept saying "my brothers would love that"... somehow, my friends were under the impression that they are 12 years-old or so... and I said they pretty much are! Hah just kidding...
Toledo has a nice art gallery and the house of El Greco. Also, there is a really cool fairy tale bridge on the south side of the city that goes over a gorgeous river. The views really were great. The only downside is that Alcazar, the castle in Toledo, is under construction so we couldn't go there. And, as many know, I was quite taken with the Segovian alcazar. We didn't have a meal in Toledo; so, I'm not so sure what they have that would rival the Segovian pig hoof, but I did see some promising signs for paella. Toledo is full of little restaurants you just want to take pictures of and quaint alleyways. While I was there, one of my friends had a toledana, which is a traditional pastry, crusty and scone-shaped, with hard frosting flaked on the top and filled with pumpkin marmalade, if that makes sense. I tried some, and it was pretty good, very sweet. I tried marzipan (mazapan) that was shaped like little fish. They sell it everywhere, and it's a pretty big deal there. It was really delicious, too sweet perhaps, like bread with doughy, sugar clumps keeping it together. It was my first experience with marzipan, and I'd say it was overall a good one.
What really set my trip to Toledo apart from my trip to Segovia was the weather. It was about 72 and sunny on Saturday, and we walked everywhere. It seemed like EVERY hill was uphill, I don't think that's possible, but maybe in Toledo. The little shops around Toledo are so interesting, especially if you had a lot of money and were going to be renovating a house or something, there were antique lantern shops and decorative glassware, pretty cool stuff! Also, we sat around in a park for an hour or so that was really gorgeous in the sun.
I shouldn't judge Segovia on account of its weather... though snow is obviously such nonsense! I would say the Roman aqueduct and alcazar there are very cool, and the trainride a bit more picturesque than the mostly urban busride to Toledo... even though I said Toledo wins out, it is definitely a close call.
Sorry this post is kind of rambling and not well-written. I'm exhausted, and I have to brush up on my elementary-level portuguese so I can navigate my friends and myself around Lisbon this weekend!! Again, the pics for this post are on my disposable cam. So, be patient. Okay, I'm going to go now. Until later!
Toledo is a bit bigger than Segovia, and there was a path you could go down that Don Quixote traveled down in the book. There is a Jewish influence in Toledo that there isn't in Segovia. This influence is fairly restricted to one small neighbourhood with some old synogogues. Also, there is a really nice cathedral here, that is less aesthetically appealing from the outside than the one in Segovia, but, you can go through the backdoor and get a peek for free (or pay 7euro to enter the front door); whereas, you have to pay to get into the cathedral in Segovia. Toledo also has more artisan work (mainly gold, leather and swords... as I mentioned, this is where the Lord of the Rings swords were crafted). It is interesting because I got a cheap necklace with a cross, and the patterns on it are almost gaelic-looking. Any boys would go crazy for the weaponry and armour in the windows, pretty cool-looking stuff, and I kept saying "my brothers would love that"... somehow, my friends were under the impression that they are 12 years-old or so... and I said they pretty much are! Hah just kidding...
Toledo has a nice art gallery and the house of El Greco. Also, there is a really cool fairy tale bridge on the south side of the city that goes over a gorgeous river. The views really were great. The only downside is that Alcazar, the castle in Toledo, is under construction so we couldn't go there. And, as many know, I was quite taken with the Segovian alcazar. We didn't have a meal in Toledo; so, I'm not so sure what they have that would rival the Segovian pig hoof, but I did see some promising signs for paella. Toledo is full of little restaurants you just want to take pictures of and quaint alleyways. While I was there, one of my friends had a toledana, which is a traditional pastry, crusty and scone-shaped, with hard frosting flaked on the top and filled with pumpkin marmalade, if that makes sense. I tried some, and it was pretty good, very sweet. I tried marzipan (mazapan) that was shaped like little fish. They sell it everywhere, and it's a pretty big deal there. It was really delicious, too sweet perhaps, like bread with doughy, sugar clumps keeping it together. It was my first experience with marzipan, and I'd say it was overall a good one.
What really set my trip to Toledo apart from my trip to Segovia was the weather. It was about 72 and sunny on Saturday, and we walked everywhere. It seemed like EVERY hill was uphill, I don't think that's possible, but maybe in Toledo. The little shops around Toledo are so interesting, especially if you had a lot of money and were going to be renovating a house or something, there were antique lantern shops and decorative glassware, pretty cool stuff! Also, we sat around in a park for an hour or so that was really gorgeous in the sun.
I shouldn't judge Segovia on account of its weather... though snow is obviously such nonsense! I would say the Roman aqueduct and alcazar there are very cool, and the trainride a bit more picturesque than the mostly urban busride to Toledo... even though I said Toledo wins out, it is definitely a close call.
Sorry this post is kind of rambling and not well-written. I'm exhausted, and I have to brush up on my elementary-level portuguese so I can navigate my friends and myself around Lisbon this weekend!! Again, the pics for this post are on my disposable cam. So, be patient. Okay, I'm going to go now. Until later!
Friday, March 6, 2009
TGIViernes!
So, I'm just having a relaxed Friday night at home, updating the blog... add a pint of ice cream and a dozen cats and I would sound pretty pathetic. BUT on the contrary, I am up to some pretty cool stuff! Some of my friends were going out tonight, but my friend Julia and I are going to Toledo tomorrow around 9am... It was the former capital of Spain (and where they made the swords for Lord of the Rings... look how cool I am now ha). Anyways, we're just going for the day and coming back to hit the town tomorrow night! I'll take some pictures with my disposable cam! You'll all have to be a tad bit patient (how conditioned we are to the instant gratification of the digital camera)! The bus to Toledo is only 4euros. So, it's a pretty good deal, and I've heard it's really cool. The painter El Greco had a house (now museum) there!
Hmm, what else happened today? I went grocery shopping. Oh, I got up early for a morning class that ended up being cancelled. It was worth going though because a girl in the class told me I look a lot like Aishwarya Rai... I walked away without administering an eye exam because when all else fails, there's always delusion! I'll take what I can get!
Oh, I also booked a trip to Lisboa today (don't call it Lisbon or the locals will think you are saying "lesbian"). I'm going with two of my friends, the aforementioned Julia (the Aussie, far left with black hoodie in first pic below and then the one really close to the camera in the 2nd) and one of the Germans, Sibs or Sibkins (one pictured in the white hoodie...I call her these names because I quite frankly cannot pronounce/don't really know her name). I'm so excited because it's supposed to be 20 grados (20 degrees C... I think that converts to about 70 degrees F) and sunny!! It's been cold for the past two days in Madrid, but I won't say the temperature because I understand it's all relative! So.........I'm SO excited to go to a city/country where finding a novelty item with the name "Marie Figueiredo" printed on it isn't absurd! Call me crazy... I just want a nice license plate or pen with my name on it for once!
I'm excited, and hopefully I will be able to go to Cristiano Ronaldo's CR7 boutique that his sister runs. And if she tries to set me up on a date with her brother, then so be it... Sorry, what was I saying? I think I just drifted off into a daydream!
Okay, I'm going to take a shower and do some homework and get my act together! I'll post a few pictures from last weekend so you guys don't think my friends are "Gossi"s... I hope all the Rochesterians have fun celebrating CAT's bday.
so, 2 of the pics below were taken by Jess'(denim jacket) camera, and 2 by dad's old Palm Pilot. Guess which are which...
Sunday, March 1, 2009
Update!
Hey everybody, sorry this post is so delayed!! I've been pretty bad about this and even keeping in touch with people because my residence internet sometimes goes down for 2 days at a time... pretty frustrating! Anyways, I'm sure many of you are aware that the digital camera I received for Christmas is gone forever... possibly into the hands of gypsy children at the open-air market near the Sol/the city center. Also, for the gypsy-fearing, here's a funny little sidenote- there is a Christmas carol here that talks about how Joseph told the gypsies in Bethlehem to watch their hands because he didn't want them to steal the baby Jesus. Pretty funny, and definitely reflective of the Spanish culture's xenophobia (in my opinion)... that's a generalization. Anyways, I was almost pick-pocketed again today, I'm pretty sure... but I was prepared this time.
I was in this store called Blanco with one of my friends just browsing, and I had my wristlet with a couple of euros in it (all my important stuff was hidden away)... ANYways, this guy and his girlfriend were next to me looking at shirts, and the guy was putting shirts in his hand one by one and ever so gently pulled my wallet between two shirts. Little did he know, my wallet is attached to my wrist, and I had the wallet in my hand... so I felt it leave my hand and shot him a look of pure and utter loathing... he had this unapologetic look on his face and knew EXACTLY what he was doing, and I pulled my wallet away and told him exactly what Joseph said to the gypsies ("cuidadido con las manos"... "careful with your hands")... in retrospect, I should have added an expletive. Luckily, he hadn't taken anything, but my adrenaline was definitely pumping after that!
Okay, let's see, other than that what's going on?! Oh, I'm taking 5 classes (3 spanish -- Morphology, the history of the Spanish language from the 15th century on, and Varieties in Peninsular Spanish)... I'm taking two electives because I can (one is in English on Contemporary English Poetry and the other is in Spanish and is about the History and Culture of the U.S. hahaha). It's actually really interesting learning about the U.S. from this vantage point. I have to read the spanish translation of this article on the American frontier that I read in AP U.S. History 4 years ago. I thought that was pretty funny.
It is unbelievable how much I learn from just going to class and listening to the professors speak Spanish. On Tuesday and Thursday, I have a full day of classes, and I sit there all day, mostly understanding (if I'm concentrating)... at the end of the day last Thursday, I seriously felt brain dead, and was speaking Spanish to one of my classmates but was really struggling. It was really discouraging, and I was so confused because I felt like I was really progressing. Anyways, that night, I had a dream that was partly in Spanish (I've had a few). Then, the next day, I woke up and my facility for the language was so good. Honestly, it astounds me what the brain absorbs when you're not even really aware.
So, I was talking to Emily on the phone yesterday, and she was saying she'd love to know what I do on a daily basis because... I just write about day-trips and such. It's so weird writing about mundane daily things if you're living them, but I understand that you guys might find them interesting (or at least Emily will)... mostly because even little things here are quite different.
So, my weekday starts with a cafe con leche (coffee with milk) with some of my friends at the Filosofia y Letras Cafe on campus. The friends I speak of are an Australian girl, a New Zealand girl and 2 German girls... give or take some random Italian and German acquaintances who we see around campus. The Spanish students are pretty cliquey but nice if you get to know them apart from their group. The Spanish guys are nicer to us girls than the Spanish girls are, which I guess is to be expected? Kind of weird though. Anyways, I am thinking the cliquey-ness might have to do with the fact that it's 2nd semester... I'm thinking I'll give that situation a little time. The rest of the day is spent in class, then I come home and make dinner or do homework, and a couple nights a week I'll go into the city center and either go to a cafe or pub or do salsa or just hang around with friends... it's a really cool city. There are random mariachi bands just playing music in the middle of the plazas, and everybody and their brother is milling around! It's a very fun atmosphere and a great way to meet people and speak Spanish and just hang out with friends.
I've been here for a little over a month now... how crazy is that? I looked at the pictures on Ofoto of EAW and Sara's 30th and I spied Elephant Wallace in the background of one picture!! I'm glad I have a proxy... and I'm really glad I sewed a camcorder into that stuffed animal so I can hear what you guys are talking about hahah (I wish I had the foresight). Mostly of course, I just looked at EAW. What a darling!! Those eyes and that little baby body, way too cute!! I feel like I might come home with a suitcase full of baby souvenirs, like Real Madrid onesies and diaper bloomers with Penelope Cruz's face on them (I bet they sell them... she's a national obsession). Anyways, I should probably go do some homework. I have to read a chapter about segmentation in Spanish morphology... should be a blast! I hope everyone is doing well, enjoyed their Mardi Gras and is having a productive Lent.
Speaking of Lent, one more thing... I have my Easter plans booked. I'm going to Italy for 1.5 weeks (Rome, Florence and Venice)... We're taking a train through the country! I'm so excited, let me know if anyone has been to Italy and has any suggestions!!!!
Miss you guys!!
I was in this store called Blanco with one of my friends just browsing, and I had my wristlet with a couple of euros in it (all my important stuff was hidden away)... ANYways, this guy and his girlfriend were next to me looking at shirts, and the guy was putting shirts in his hand one by one and ever so gently pulled my wallet between two shirts. Little did he know, my wallet is attached to my wrist, and I had the wallet in my hand... so I felt it leave my hand and shot him a look of pure and utter loathing... he had this unapologetic look on his face and knew EXACTLY what he was doing, and I pulled my wallet away and told him exactly what Joseph said to the gypsies ("cuidadido con las manos"... "careful with your hands")... in retrospect, I should have added an expletive. Luckily, he hadn't taken anything, but my adrenaline was definitely pumping after that!
Okay, let's see, other than that what's going on?! Oh, I'm taking 5 classes (3 spanish -- Morphology, the history of the Spanish language from the 15th century on, and Varieties in Peninsular Spanish)... I'm taking two electives because I can (one is in English on Contemporary English Poetry and the other is in Spanish and is about the History and Culture of the U.S. hahaha). It's actually really interesting learning about the U.S. from this vantage point. I have to read the spanish translation of this article on the American frontier that I read in AP U.S. History 4 years ago. I thought that was pretty funny.
It is unbelievable how much I learn from just going to class and listening to the professors speak Spanish. On Tuesday and Thursday, I have a full day of classes, and I sit there all day, mostly understanding (if I'm concentrating)... at the end of the day last Thursday, I seriously felt brain dead, and was speaking Spanish to one of my classmates but was really struggling. It was really discouraging, and I was so confused because I felt like I was really progressing. Anyways, that night, I had a dream that was partly in Spanish (I've had a few). Then, the next day, I woke up and my facility for the language was so good. Honestly, it astounds me what the brain absorbs when you're not even really aware.
So, I was talking to Emily on the phone yesterday, and she was saying she'd love to know what I do on a daily basis because... I just write about day-trips and such. It's so weird writing about mundane daily things if you're living them, but I understand that you guys might find them interesting (or at least Emily will)... mostly because even little things here are quite different.
So, my weekday starts with a cafe con leche (coffee with milk) with some of my friends at the Filosofia y Letras Cafe on campus. The friends I speak of are an Australian girl, a New Zealand girl and 2 German girls... give or take some random Italian and German acquaintances who we see around campus. The Spanish students are pretty cliquey but nice if you get to know them apart from their group. The Spanish guys are nicer to us girls than the Spanish girls are, which I guess is to be expected? Kind of weird though. Anyways, I am thinking the cliquey-ness might have to do with the fact that it's 2nd semester... I'm thinking I'll give that situation a little time. The rest of the day is spent in class, then I come home and make dinner or do homework, and a couple nights a week I'll go into the city center and either go to a cafe or pub or do salsa or just hang around with friends... it's a really cool city. There are random mariachi bands just playing music in the middle of the plazas, and everybody and their brother is milling around! It's a very fun atmosphere and a great way to meet people and speak Spanish and just hang out with friends.
I've been here for a little over a month now... how crazy is that? I looked at the pictures on Ofoto of EAW and Sara's 30th and I spied Elephant Wallace in the background of one picture!! I'm glad I have a proxy... and I'm really glad I sewed a camcorder into that stuffed animal so I can hear what you guys are talking about hahah (I wish I had the foresight). Mostly of course, I just looked at EAW. What a darling!! Those eyes and that little baby body, way too cute!! I feel like I might come home with a suitcase full of baby souvenirs, like Real Madrid onesies and diaper bloomers with Penelope Cruz's face on them (I bet they sell them... she's a national obsession). Anyways, I should probably go do some homework. I have to read a chapter about segmentation in Spanish morphology... should be a blast! I hope everyone is doing well, enjoyed their Mardi Gras and is having a productive Lent.
Speaking of Lent, one more thing... I have my Easter plans booked. I'm going to Italy for 1.5 weeks (Rome, Florence and Venice)... We're taking a train through the country! I'm so excited, let me know if anyone has been to Italy and has any suggestions!!!!
Miss you guys!!
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