Barça! Barça! Barça!

Sometimes in life you are in exactly the right place at exactly the right time. For my study abroad group and I, that is exactly the case for our recent trip to Barcelona. I had mentioned earlier last week that we were going to Barcelona for a long weekend. We flew out of Valladolid on Wednesday afternoon and arrived at our hostel in the early evening. It was called Sun and Moon and was located right off of La Rambla, which is an extremely popular street in Barcelona. It was a nice place that hosted 8 of us per room, with each room having its own bathroom and shower as well as lockers to stow away our valuables. On Wednesday we were thinking about taking it easy and getting our bearings in this brand new and massive city. Naturally, we did exactly the opposite. We hopped on a pub crawl put on by the hostel. We hit some bars down by the pier and ended up at a large discoteca called Shoko, it was quite the welcoming to Barcelona. Despite little sleep, we woke early to do some touristy things and see the city. Our first stop was La Sagrada Familia. If you have ever heard of it or seen pictures, you know that it is amazingly beautiful. Let me just say that pictures do not do it justice at all, not even close. It might be one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen. Outside, you notice the Gothic style of Antoni Gaudi, a very prominent architect in Barcelona and Spain. When you walk inside you realize just how vast this place is. You also notice all of the stained glass and how vibrant it is (yellow, green, blue, red, orange, etc.) Side note, La Sagrada Familia has yet to be finished even though building commenced in the 1800's. So there are still cranes and what not around it but this does not subtract from the beauty. After Sagrada Familia, we started the trek towards Park Guell, which is another popular destination for tourists. We walked a bit and then hopped on the subway to get to the park. Once off the subway, we had to climb a pretty impressive hill that actually had a series of escalators to make it easier to get up. Once we made it to the top of the park, the views were absolutely breathtaking. You could see the majority of Barcelona, even Sagrada Familia, where we were earlier in the day. After Park Guell, we hit a series of subways to get home and rest up for the festivities to come. After a short siesta, we began the night which started at the bars by the pier again. From there, we made our way to one of the biggest discos in Barcelona/Spain called Opium. This is a very popular spot for professional athletes as well as celebrities. It was a very fun time, and later in the night I made some friends with some other Americans and ended up in VIP, the same spot that Lionel Messi was rumored to be one week ago. It was a great night. Friday was another long night turned morning, but we still were able to rise and do daily activities. Some of our friends went to Camp Nou, where FC Barcelona plays. This is the one thing that I wish we could have done that I didn't. A group of guys and myself decided to get a little rugged and go on a hike. We climbed for a good two hours to reach which we later learned to be the highest point in Barcelona. There were trails to follow, but we decided to go rogue and find our own route, which was definitely worth it. At the top, there is a really old cathedral and an amusement park of all things. The views from the cathedral were 100 times better than Park Guell We could see so much it was really, really cool. We opted for public transit because we were a little gassed. Once back, we siested for a bit again, and then got ready for the night. This time we didn't go to the Disco because we had an early bus to catch so we just hit the bars and got a taxi back relatively early. It is tough to pick favorites on such an awesome trip, but Saturday in Barcelona/Costa Brava may have been my favorite day of the whole trip. We got up early and caught a bud to Costa Brava which is around an hour and a half away from Barcelona. Upon arrival, you were immediately hit with an amazing view of cliffs and the clearest water that I have seen in my entire life. We kayaked and snorkeled through caves and what not for a few hours. After the kayaking and snorkeling we ate some lunch and then played a far too competitive game of volleyball on the beach amongst all the guys that made the trip. It was so much fun. We departed back towards Barcelona for the nights activities. This is where the whole right place, right time thing comes into play. It just so happened that FC Barcelona was to face off against Juventus of Italy for the Champions cup of Europe which is a very big deal. We all bought Messi, Neymar, Suarez, etc jerseys and prepared for the game. We found a local bar early so that we would all fit and be able to watch the game. We cheered on the hometown team along with the locals in the bar to a 3-1 victory and riots literally ensued. We headed straight towards La Rambla, which is where everyone else was heading. We chanted chants and drank beers and had an amazing time. I don't know if I have ever had as much fun in my entire life. After the streets began to clear, we went back to the hostel to recoup for the night. We felt obligated to go out because it was our last night, but nothing in the bar our disco was going to top what we had just done and witnessed. Pure euphoria. Sunday morning we woke up, packed, and headed for the airport. Almost everyone slept in the airport waiting to board the plane after an extremely long weekend with little sleep. We arrived back in Valladolid in the evening on Sunday and headed straight for bed. At this point we have a little less than two weeks left. There is still much to do and much fun to be had. We head to Segovia on Saturday, which I am really excited about because I have only heard good things. I will probably not post again until next week, so until then peeps...

Cheers

Parker

¿Dónde está el baño?

If you have pretty basic Spanish skills, you know that the title means, "Where is the bathroom?" You are probably curious why this is the title of my latest blog post... Two words: stomach virus. In the second week in Spain, both my and my roommates immune system gave way to a Spanish virus. Pat got it first and and went to the hospital because they didn't know what it was. That was on Wednesday night/Thursday morning. Friday morning came my fight with the virus. It was kind of poor timing because we could not take part in a class trip to a tapas bar for tapas and sangria that was paid for by our instructors, oh well. We were also bummed that we couldn't go out with the amigos on Friday night. However, we did get some much needed rest. On Saturday, we woke up early for a day excursion to a pair of castles in Coca and Penafiel. First, we visited the castle in Penafiel, which also serves as wine museum. The castle was constructed in the 15th century I believe. It is perched high on a hill overlooking miles of terrain, giving those in the castle a great vantage point. It was strictly used as a castle for defense/protection. From the image below (not my image, do not have my cord currently) you can see that it is extremely beautiful. After touring the castle, we went downstairs for the wine tasting. We tasted vino blanco (white), vino rosado (rose), and 2 vino tintos (red). They were all made with grapes that came from the Ribera del Duero region, which is renowned for its wine. They were all extremely good, especially the last one. We were told that the last one, which is the wine of the museum, is award winning and went through a unique process of gaining the title wine of the museum. Around 180 wineries in the region come together for a competition that is well known around Spain and in the world. Long story short, it is narrowed down to 20 and a panel randomly tastes and selects one to be the winner. This award winning wine is one that we tasted and it was absolutely amazing. Also, there were only 3,000 bottles produced, and this was in 2013. After the tasting, we were given some free time. Some of my buddies and I decided to part ways from those meandering around the town of Penafiel and be a little adventurous. There was a decent sized hill with a cross on top and we wanted to make it there and back within the 1 and 45 minutes we had. We made it and with that we had great views of the castle and the surrounding areas. After Penafiel, we departed for Coca, where we found another castle, however this castle acted as a residence. We toured the castle and learned about the history of its inhabitants. Saturday night consisted of the usual bar, bar, discoteca, etc. Today (Sunday), Pat and I took part in a little Spanish tradition with Inma an Carlos. We met with friends of Inma and Carlos at a local cafe/bar around 11:30 we had a beer or two, ate some tapas and then went to another bar and we repeated this a few times. It was very fun to take in a part of their daily life/culture. This Wednesday we depart for Barcelona, which is shaping up to be a very fun long-weekend. I probably will not post until after that, so I look forward to sharing how the weekend went. Until then...

Cheers

Parker

                                                           Castle at Penafiel

PP

Inma

Pat and I have arguably the best possible host family. As mentioned earlier, our family consists of Inma, the 31 year old mother, Carlos her boyfriend who is a cop in Madrid, Jorge the 13 year old soccer star, and Yadira and Angela the 10 and 7 year old gymnasts. We have made such a great connection with them. This past week, Inma asked if Pat and I wanted to go to her mothers village which is about 30 minutes away to deliver some things. We were hesitant because all of our friends were going to the beach and we did not want to miss out on that. However, we decided to go and it was one of the better decisions of the trip. We arrived to a pretty small and run down "pueblo" or village. Inma kept mentioning something about a castle so I was intrigued about what we were going to see. After moving the groceries and such in the house, we were given the tour of the house that Inma's grandpa had built by himself. After that, Inma's grandma showed us all of the things she painted and sewed. Some of the things were very, very cool. Next we made our way towards the castle. It was spectacular. It is situated on a hillside that looks over rolling Spanish countryside. Next she took us to a toppled church, we took some pictures and moved on to the next church that is still in use and it was built in 1835. We were really glad we made the trip. Another reason why Inma and Co. rule is because they are the only host family to come out and meet our group. It was an absolute riot we went to the usual watering hole La Negra Flor and all of our friends had a great time. We also went to Juanita and another discoteca, it was a really fun night. Its not all party here though, class is pretty intense because we have to learn 2 classes worth of material in 5 weeks, but it is manageable. We still find time to make it to "la playa" (the beach) most days. It is a pretty nice beach on a river that runs through the city. The only downer is that the water is really gross, so there is no swimming. It is still a great spot to catch some rays, toss the frisbee around, and drink a little bit of vino. We head to Barcelona next Wednesday, but there is still much fun to be had until then. Today we visited a contemporary art museum in Valladolid. It was fun and a nice little change up from the daily routine. This past Saturday, we took a day trip to Salamanca, which was extremely beautiful. We toured the massive cathedral, and walked the rest of the town. After shopping for a little bit and enjoying some ice cream, tapas, etc, we headed back for Valladolid. I am falling in love with Spain, and time is moving to fast. Until next time!

Cheers

Parker

La Negra Flor

Hola, I haven't posted in awhile so I figured I should share some things since the last time I posted. The title is La Negra Flor because that is where I currently am writing this post. It just so happens to be the bar that we go to every night. We have made good friends with an extremely nice Spaniard named Carlos. Carlos loves giving out free chupitas, which are known as shots in America, so we love Carlos. La Negra Flor also has Wi-Fi (pronounced wee-fee in Espana) so I spend a lot of time either working on homework or drinking or both at the bar. Classes started this week and it has been more difficult than previously expected. Our teachers name is Sarah, and she is extremely nice, but she does not speak English. This makes for some very interesting classes and communication. Even though class may be difficult, and Pat and I have to walk over 10 miles a day, Spain is great. Oh, and so is siesta. Every single day after lunch, which is usually a carb based meal like pasta, we nap for while and then hit the beach. The beach is a great time, although it has not been as warm or sunny as we would like it to be. After the beach, dinner is at roughly 9, where we eat more protein based foods and and lettuce. Oh yea, and "pan" with every meal (bread). After dinner, we hit La Negra Flor, then a dancing bar called Juanita and then we head home from anywhere from 2:00 to 5:00, wake up the next day and repeat. The first exam is tomorrow, so we are skipping the bar tonight and hitting the books. This weekend we are making a day trip to Salamanca, which should be fun. I cannot wait to see what the next few weeks have in store. 

Cheers

Parker

Welcome to Valladolid

We have arrived in Valladolid-- (minus a couple members of our group, but I will get to that later)-- The travel was extremely long and tiresome, but the anticipation of the upcoming journey kept some of my fellow classmates and I lively throughout the process. We departed Minneapolis en route for Philadelphia, before we made our leap across the pond for Spain. Once in Philly, we grabbed some food and waited for our upcoming flight. Those who were of age consumed some adult beverages-- some more than others. This brings me to the losing a couple of members part. Once we boarded the plane, we sat for a while, and some of those participating in Happy Hour were having a bit of fun, maybe a little too much. Before we left for Madrid, 5 students from our group were kicked of the plane, forcing our only instructor on the plane to stay back. The flight went well after that, movies were watched, music played, etc. Once in Madrid, we had some time to kill so naturally our first destination was an airport bar. We had a few cervezas before the bus ride to Valladolid. The bus ride was longer than expected, but there was enough to look at to pass the time. Once in Valladolid, we were introduced to our host family. Patrick (my roommate) and I met our Spanish mother named Inma, who is 31 and does not speak a lick of english. She is extremely nice and has three kids named Jorge, Yadira, Angela. We have already created a great bond with the family. We went to Jorge's soccer practice, and hung out for a bit. The first night out consisted of some drinking and dancing at bars and discotecas. At 3:30, Pat and I departed for our house about 30 minutes away on foot. There was a big problem... We didn't exactly know where to go, paired with the fact that we were slightly inebriated. A half our or so passes and we have no idea where we are at. I stop a couple passing by and ask them to type the address into is phones GPS (our phones do not work). We find out that we were walking the opposite way and he advised we take a taxi. I hail one quickly and we should be home free. Another issue, we spent the little amount of Euros we had at the bar. We asked to pay in debit card but it was a no g. I desperately check my wallet one more time and a 10 Euro magically appears. Pat and I finally make it back, and joyfully embraced once we got home. Today consisted of orientation and walking around the city that is extremely massive and beautiful. All is well on the Spanish front, it is shaping up to be a great 5 weeks.

Cheers

Parker

Here We Go

Testing my new blog for my adventure in Spain. Stay Tuned...