Actually, I've been back for a week, but I wanted to vegetate for a while before I did any work (yes, I consider writing this post "work". I'm quite worried about my already-poor work ethic when I return to Williams). When my program ended, my mom and sister visited me in Madrid. From Madrid, we started our "European blitz" tour - Madrid, Rome, Florence, Venice, Paris, and London in 10 days (yep, I went back to London and Paris). It was tough, only because we had to see and travel so much in so little time. Despite the crazy schedule, I had a good time with 2/3 of my family, and I really enjoyed what I saw of Italy.
Adjusting to the US, specially Irvine, has taken some time. For example, I still instinctively reach out to the button on top of the toilet to flush - there's a funny moment when my hand, reaching out for a button that is not there, pauses for a second then is lowered. Also, I don't think I'm used to all this driving. It's nice to be able to drive my Honda, but I think it was nicer to walk everywhere. Another thing that amazes me is the number of Asians around me. At Willams, Asians were still the minority, but at least they were a noticeable minority.
My identity as an Asian American will be further explored by me as I go to Korea this summer. I think I will have a true culture shock when I go to Seoul, a truly foreign place despite my ethnic background. (Madrid, in my opinion, was pretty Americanized compared to other European cities and I was usually stuck in a fixed schedule for the majority of my week.) In South Korea, there is an unusual adherence to social expectations that are defined by the idealization Western culture. One major example is the definition of beauty. Koreans are obsessed with plastic surgery, and the most popular type is double eyelid surgery. Why do so many people get it? (It's not even considered "surgery" because it's so common.) So their eyes can get bigger. Why do they want them bigger? ...because Caucasians' eyes are big? This puzzles me, since I don't see anything wrong with single eyelids. But this is the country where I will be spending the next two months of my life. My project is actually on English education, but I think this "obsession" with English education (heck, "obsession" with all things "Western") is related to what defines Korean culture and society.
Anyways, sorry for that little tangent. I realize that I still have not covered my time in Paris, Portugal, or Morocco. I probably will write about my lovely time in Paris (it was great! and I'm glad I had the chance to return) but we'll see about Morocco and Portugal. It all depends on my work ethic :) But I will definitely continue to write about my experiences this summer. So, for the few readers that actually read this, stay tuned for Susan's Adventures in South Korea! (Sorry, I couldn't find a catchy title with alliteration.)
Susan
Monday, May 25, 2009
Friday, May 8, 2009
Un-official Senior?
Yesterday, I finished my program in Madrid. This means that I am no longer a junior - so does mean that I am a senior? That's a scary thought, since people think I'm still in high school (I'm just going to take that as a compliment for my young-looking face). Anyways, this semester has been ridiculously fast, especially April (that was the month of heavy-duty traveling). I feel like I should do a mini-evaluation on this semester like the evaluations I had to do for my classes.
I studied abroad through the Syracuse University's abroad program. Since it was geared towards beginner/intermediate Spanish level students and offered multiple history classes, I decided to go with SU Madrid. Was I academically challenged? No (if I wanted to be academically challenged, I would have stayed at Williams). Looking back, I probably didn't learn as much Spanish through this program than if I went to another one. First of all, half my classes were in English and I was surrounded by students who refused to speak Spanish well or at all. My señora was barely home and didn´t eat meals with us (that´s rare - most señoras eat with the students). I probably learned most of my Spanish working in the Fulbright office.
Did I learn a lot? Yes, but not in ways that I expected. From my history classes, I learned how Spanish historians (at least the ones I was exposed to) think about history. They like to hold on to chronology, patterns of cause-and-effect, and revolve history around the "great men." This was a dramatic change from my last history class at Williams, and was probably why I questioned everything my Spanish history professors said. I was one of the more cynical students in my history classes, but hearing these professors also made me appreciate the different ways to interpret, processes and teach history (the feeling I get is that Williams history students in general are cynical when they study the "past"). One class that I absolutely loved was my art class with Patricia. Patricia reminds me of a female, older Peter Pan: she has short hair, likes to prance around when explaining things, is petite, and has an enthusiasm for anything. Classes at the Prado Museum also made the class amazing; you're in lecture on Monday and then you see the actual artwork on Wednesday.
I also learned a lot from my time with the two little terrors (they´re actually sweet for most of the time, but become almost unbearable when they go crazy). I tutored them two times a week, and they definitely came from a privileged background. They had two asistentes (housekeepers) and I frequently got lost in the apartment. I spontaneously attended a birthday party for one of the neighbors, and I was stunned by how lucky these kids were. Unlike my previous experiences with kids in other countries, these kids were rich (I mean their parents were rich). The mothers are involved in their kid´s lives, but not as much as they should since some of them don´t have jobs. In fact, I think the asistentes spend more time with the kids, but the kids (or at least my tutees) don´t treat them with respect. They knew that I was more "educated" than the asistentes in terms of schooling, and didn´t try to yell back at me and demand things from me. These kids are sweet, but they treat people differently based on who you are (quite strange for children to do, I think).
One new experience for me was being a real minority (I know Asians are technically minorities, but they´re not in southern California). Depending on where I was (not in the touristy part of Madrid) people usually brushed me off until they saw that I was American. I remember one time when I was trying to buy a bus ticket from a man who probably thought I was a Chinese immigrant. He would repeat things mockingly, but when I showed him my passport, his behavior suddenly changed. Of course, this doesn´t represent the majority of Madrileños, but it´s strange to me that people can turn 180 degrees once they see that blue passport. There are a lot of immigrants in Madrid, but they live in specific, discrete areas. I didn´t even realize that we lived near a large community of Dominican, African, and Chinese immigrants until much later in my stay in Madrid (we lived in the financial district of Madrid, which is pretty nice). Madrid is diverse in terms of statistics, but I think the people of Madrid have a long way to go before they can accept and embrace the diversity. (The same could be said of the US.)
Madrid was under a dictatorship not too longer ago (ended in 1975). Most of the remains of the dictatorship are gone (holding hands was illegal back then, so it´s cute to see elderly couples hold hands on the streets). There is still a group of older people who believe government under Franco was better than the current government. They think that the new generations are rejecting tradition (and religion); to some extent, this is true. People are always making out and I don´t think many young people go to church by choice. But this is pretty common in other countries, like the US. Spain has a history of going from one extreme to another, but I think it has found a middle ground in some sense.
I really like Madrid, and I can picture myself staying here and living here. It´s small enough that it´s not overwhelming, but also large enough that I´m never bored. The city is beautiful (although it doesn´t have that historic charm like other cities of Europe but sometimes you don´t need that historic charm in everyday life), orderly and clean. I wish I could stay here longer, but I´m off to Italy after the weekend! I probably won´t write another entry until I´m in the US, so the continuation of my adventures in April will have to wait.
¡Hasta luego!
Susan
I studied abroad through the Syracuse University's abroad program. Since it was geared towards beginner/intermediate Spanish level students and offered multiple history classes, I decided to go with SU Madrid. Was I academically challenged? No (if I wanted to be academically challenged, I would have stayed at Williams). Looking back, I probably didn't learn as much Spanish through this program than if I went to another one. First of all, half my classes were in English and I was surrounded by students who refused to speak Spanish well or at all. My señora was barely home and didn´t eat meals with us (that´s rare - most señoras eat with the students). I probably learned most of my Spanish working in the Fulbright office.
Did I learn a lot? Yes, but not in ways that I expected. From my history classes, I learned how Spanish historians (at least the ones I was exposed to) think about history. They like to hold on to chronology, patterns of cause-and-effect, and revolve history around the "great men." This was a dramatic change from my last history class at Williams, and was probably why I questioned everything my Spanish history professors said. I was one of the more cynical students in my history classes, but hearing these professors also made me appreciate the different ways to interpret, processes and teach history (the feeling I get is that Williams history students in general are cynical when they study the "past"). One class that I absolutely loved was my art class with Patricia. Patricia reminds me of a female, older Peter Pan: she has short hair, likes to prance around when explaining things, is petite, and has an enthusiasm for anything. Classes at the Prado Museum also made the class amazing; you're in lecture on Monday and then you see the actual artwork on Wednesday.
I also learned a lot from my time with the two little terrors (they´re actually sweet for most of the time, but become almost unbearable when they go crazy). I tutored them two times a week, and they definitely came from a privileged background. They had two asistentes (housekeepers) and I frequently got lost in the apartment. I spontaneously attended a birthday party for one of the neighbors, and I was stunned by how lucky these kids were. Unlike my previous experiences with kids in other countries, these kids were rich (I mean their parents were rich). The mothers are involved in their kid´s lives, but not as much as they should since some of them don´t have jobs. In fact, I think the asistentes spend more time with the kids, but the kids (or at least my tutees) don´t treat them with respect. They knew that I was more "educated" than the asistentes in terms of schooling, and didn´t try to yell back at me and demand things from me. These kids are sweet, but they treat people differently based on who you are (quite strange for children to do, I think).
One new experience for me was being a real minority (I know Asians are technically minorities, but they´re not in southern California). Depending on where I was (not in the touristy part of Madrid) people usually brushed me off until they saw that I was American. I remember one time when I was trying to buy a bus ticket from a man who probably thought I was a Chinese immigrant. He would repeat things mockingly, but when I showed him my passport, his behavior suddenly changed. Of course, this doesn´t represent the majority of Madrileños, but it´s strange to me that people can turn 180 degrees once they see that blue passport. There are a lot of immigrants in Madrid, but they live in specific, discrete areas. I didn´t even realize that we lived near a large community of Dominican, African, and Chinese immigrants until much later in my stay in Madrid (we lived in the financial district of Madrid, which is pretty nice). Madrid is diverse in terms of statistics, but I think the people of Madrid have a long way to go before they can accept and embrace the diversity. (The same could be said of the US.)
Madrid was under a dictatorship not too longer ago (ended in 1975). Most of the remains of the dictatorship are gone (holding hands was illegal back then, so it´s cute to see elderly couples hold hands on the streets). There is still a group of older people who believe government under Franco was better than the current government. They think that the new generations are rejecting tradition (and religion); to some extent, this is true. People are always making out and I don´t think many young people go to church by choice. But this is pretty common in other countries, like the US. Spain has a history of going from one extreme to another, but I think it has found a middle ground in some sense.
I really like Madrid, and I can picture myself staying here and living here. It´s small enough that it´s not overwhelming, but also large enough that I´m never bored. The city is beautiful (although it doesn´t have that historic charm like other cities of Europe but sometimes you don´t need that historic charm in everyday life), orderly and clean. I wish I could stay here longer, but I´m off to Italy after the weekend! I probably won´t write another entry until I´m in the US, so the continuation of my adventures in April will have to wait.
¡Hasta luego!
Susan
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
Adventure in Amsterdam
It was pretty cheap to fly from London to Amsterdam, so that is what I did. One of the first things I did was rent a bike (Susan + bikes = guaranteed adventure). I can hardly ride a bike, though I think my bike riding experience in Barcelona helped me out here. Regardless, in Amsterdam, everyone rides a bike - old people, young people, professionals, tourists, etc. So of course I had to rent a bike (I also didn't feel like walking everywhere.) My plan was to rent a bike and go to the Van Gogh Museum (theoretically takes 15 minutes). My journey to the Van Gogh Museum ended up taking an hour. I rented a bike and was on my way (so far so good). I didn't have a map, but I knew the general direction (that usually works for me). As I was riding towards the general direction, I knew that I had to turn at some point. However, riding next to cars (bikes and cars are on the road together) made it difficult for me to turn, since I can barely turn when I'm on my own. After many "I probably should have turned here but next time!" moments, I was no longer in the tourist part of Amsterdam (all the English signs were gone). Finally I got off my bicycle and asked an old lady who didn't speak English. When I said "Van Gogh", she looked shocked, laughed, then gave directions with hand signals. Pedaling according to those obscure hand signals, I finally found the Rijksmuseum (it's the biggest museum in Amsterdam)! From that point, it wasn't too difficult to find the Van Gogh Museum and I proceeded to continue my Amsterdam adventure.
Finally! After 1 hour of aimless bike riding in Amsterdam, I reach the Van Gogh Museum. Not quite there though - after 1.5 hours in line, I enter the Van Gogh Museum. Once again, there were a good number of Spaniards everywhere I went. I actually had to speak Spanish to two ladies to explain to them that I wasn't cutting the line (two lines merged into one at some point). The ladies looked surprised, commented on my Castellano, smiled, then left me alone without any death glares that the Spaniards are good at.
Amsterdam (at least tourist Amsterdam, which in concentrated in an area with canals) is really pretty. I like how the buildings along the canals are different from each other. Some of these buildings used to be mansions for the wealthy Dutch merchants back in the day, and I guess they didn't believe in copying your neighbors.
In the Jordaan district (where the Anne Frank museum is). It's pretty (the canals, small streets, and buildings work well together) and pretty expensive to live.
Bloemenmarkt! It's the only floating flower market in the world (the stalls float in the canal). It was tulip season, which meant lots of real and fake tulips.
Canal Cruise - apparently, Amsterdam has more canals than Venice. The cruise itself wasn't that amazing, but riding the canals in Amsterdam was great :)
Amsterdam isn't as vast as London, but it's still pretty big, especially on foot. There were some shockers - for example, "coffee" shops really were "places to smoke weed". My hostel, unfortunately, smelled like weed the whole time I was there. Also, I was not expecting the Red Light District to be the way it was. (I'm not really sure what I was expecting.) It was shocking to see the women in the windows, but it wasn't as crude as it could have been.
I really like Amsterdam and the people, and I wish I could have stayed for more than 2 days. I think I enjoyed it because it was beautiful, and it wasn't overwhelming. Just walking/biking around was great. Amsterdam has always been a wealthy city for centuries, so the architecture is not only pretty but unique (the buildings were all different from each other. Not like the housing scheme in Irvine, California). The city is doable in two days, but it deserves a lot more time. I will return though!
Susan
Finally! After 1 hour of aimless bike riding in Amsterdam, I reach the Van Gogh Museum. Not quite there though - after 1.5 hours in line, I enter the Van Gogh Museum. Once again, there were a good number of Spaniards everywhere I went. I actually had to speak Spanish to two ladies to explain to them that I wasn't cutting the line (two lines merged into one at some point). The ladies looked surprised, commented on my Castellano, smiled, then left me alone without any death glares that the Spaniards are good at.
Amsterdam (at least tourist Amsterdam, which in concentrated in an area with canals) is really pretty. I like how the buildings along the canals are different from each other. Some of these buildings used to be mansions for the wealthy Dutch merchants back in the day, and I guess they didn't believe in copying your neighbors.
In the Jordaan district (where the Anne Frank museum is). It's pretty (the canals, small streets, and buildings work well together) and pretty expensive to live.
Bloemenmarkt! It's the only floating flower market in the world (the stalls float in the canal). It was tulip season, which meant lots of real and fake tulips.
Canal Cruise - apparently, Amsterdam has more canals than Venice. The cruise itself wasn't that amazing, but riding the canals in Amsterdam was great :)
Amsterdam isn't as vast as London, but it's still pretty big, especially on foot. There were some shockers - for example, "coffee" shops really were "places to smoke weed". My hostel, unfortunately, smelled like weed the whole time I was there. Also, I was not expecting the Red Light District to be the way it was. (I'm not really sure what I was expecting.) It was shocking to see the women in the windows, but it wasn't as crude as it could have been.
I really like Amsterdam and the people, and I wish I could have stayed for more than 2 days. I think I enjoyed it because it was beautiful, and it wasn't overwhelming. Just walking/biking around was great. Amsterdam has always been a wealthy city for centuries, so the architecture is not only pretty but unique (the buildings were all different from each other. Not like the housing scheme in Irvine, California). The city is doable in two days, but it deserves a lot more time. I will return though!
Susan
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
Spring Break Starts with London
The Syracuse program likes to kick students out of Madrid during Semana Santa (the holy week, the week before Easter Sunday). In fact, if we wanted to stay in Madrid during our break (around 13 days), our señoras were not responsible for us and we would have to find our own housing and food. My señora tells me that Madrid becomes empty during Semana Santa since everyone leaves the city to go to other places.
I started Semana Santa in London, where Evita had family. For five days, I stayed with her aunt and uncle, who were extremely gracious hosts. Since they live near the Windsor Castle, it made sense to visit it.
Windor Palace - the people were so nice and knowledgeable. It was fun to just go up to them and ask some random question about anything in the room. They knew the answer, and more amazing, they answered my annoying questions with a genuine smile and nice accent (okay, the accent was not that much of an effort on their part).
Evita's uncle was our tour guide and took as around London. We were introduced to the city on the Hop-On, Hop-Off tour bus, led by our hilarious tour guide. She made us wave to everyone, especially to other tourists. I think listening to her talk about London was probably my favorite part of the trip :)
Driving on the Tower Bridge (London Bridge was pretty unremarkable - it was a normal bridge)
Changing of the Guard (sans horses) - there were so many Spaniards surrounding us (of course, they didn't have a sense of personal space in this country either). They were probably part of the majority of Madrileños who leave the city once vacation time hits. Watching the marching band with the mini-stands brought back some memories, and I'm glad that I never have to wear those fur helmet things (I don't look good in hats anyways).
Buckingham Palace - we waited until most of the tourists left (there are still so many left!). The guards in the palace were always standing or marching - this is why I could never be a guard (among other things).
Big Ben and houses of Parliament along the Thames River (not the cleanest body of water). Westminster Abbey is not too far away.
My time in London was a blur - I don't remember much except eating a lot of food and visiting free places (all the museums in London are free!). I think I was probably overwhelmed by the huge size of the city. It's the political and cultural spot of England, which means there are a lot of things going on. At least the US has DC and NYC to split the political and cultural tourist attractions (and you can experience both cities on a Korean tour of the East coast, though I wouldn't recommend it). I think I would have enjoyed London a lot more if I had at least a month in the city. While Evita stayed in London for a few more days, I decided to take an impromptu trip to Amsterdam since Easyjet made it so cheap and easy for me :)
Susan
I started Semana Santa in London, where Evita had family. For five days, I stayed with her aunt and uncle, who were extremely gracious hosts. Since they live near the Windsor Castle, it made sense to visit it.
Windor Palace - the people were so nice and knowledgeable. It was fun to just go up to them and ask some random question about anything in the room. They knew the answer, and more amazing, they answered my annoying questions with a genuine smile and nice accent (okay, the accent was not that much of an effort on their part).
Evita's uncle was our tour guide and took as around London. We were introduced to the city on the Hop-On, Hop-Off tour bus, led by our hilarious tour guide. She made us wave to everyone, especially to other tourists. I think listening to her talk about London was probably my favorite part of the trip :)
Driving on the Tower Bridge (London Bridge was pretty unremarkable - it was a normal bridge)
Changing of the Guard (sans horses) - there were so many Spaniards surrounding us (of course, they didn't have a sense of personal space in this country either). They were probably part of the majority of Madrileños who leave the city once vacation time hits. Watching the marching band with the mini-stands brought back some memories, and I'm glad that I never have to wear those fur helmet things (I don't look good in hats anyways).
Buckingham Palace - we waited until most of the tourists left (there are still so many left!). The guards in the palace were always standing or marching - this is why I could never be a guard (among other things).
Big Ben and houses of Parliament along the Thames River (not the cleanest body of water). Westminster Abbey is not too far away.
My time in London was a blur - I don't remember much except eating a lot of food and visiting free places (all the museums in London are free!). I think I was probably overwhelmed by the huge size of the city. It's the political and cultural spot of England, which means there are a lot of things going on. At least the US has DC and NYC to split the political and cultural tourist attractions (and you can experience both cities on a Korean tour of the East coast, though I wouldn't recommend it). I think I would have enjoyed London a lot more if I had at least a month in the city. While Evita stayed in London for a few more days, I decided to take an impromptu trip to Amsterdam since Easyjet made it so cheap and easy for me :)
Susan
Marseille
I am on a roll! The weekend after Barcelona, we went to Marseille to visit Rachel, who's studying abroad there.
One of the first things we did was visit (meaning hike up to) the Notre Dame de la Garde. Rachel recommended it for the views and the extravagant decor. What she didn't tell us was that you had to hike up a hill to reach the city's highest point (once again, not a huge fan of hills. But nothing can be worse can climbing up to Machu Picchu, which was much longer and much higher).
Mission accomplished! We have reached the church - now on to more steps to get to the top.
When we finally got to the top, there was a sense of accomplishment. This sense was so great, that we ended up just staying in the Notre Dame for a couple hours. We had the sun, a nice breeze, leftover croissants, nice seats...
A view from Notre Dame de la Garde. The islands in the back are supposedly the same islands from Count of Monte Cristo, one of my favorite books of all time (in fact, I'm sure that one of the islands was named Monte Cristo). I didn't enough money or interest to visit them but it's cool to see a part of the setting from your favorite novel (of course, my imagination rocks more).
One thing that was surprising about Marseille was the number of religious buildings. Spain is known for its Catholicism, but I never really associated Catholicism with France (I think of postmodern thinkers, good pastries, chopped off heads, etc.). We visited another place of worship (not the Cathedral of Marseille but the Abbey of St. Victor), which was much more humble in appearance. I think I like that better, sitting next to stones and listening to the the monks sing behind the walls, whose voices echo throughout the place. The Notre Dame was way too ornate for my taste. I couldn't stop looking at all the gold and pretty colors.
Another place we visited was a park (Jardin du Pharo). It was another place with nice views of the city, but closer to the water and not so high up. Near the gardens were the Palais du Pharo (built by Napoleon III) and a marine biology school.
Water! Unfortunately, we couldn't go to the beach (it rained on the day we were supposed to go) so this was as close I got to the water. We were joined in the park by old men who liked to just sit and stare at the sea.
Going to Marseille was one of the more unique experiences traveling because of the language. This was the first time I traveled to a city outside of Spain and the first time I traveled to a place in which I couldn't understand anything. Unlike Barcelona, where most people spoke English, Marseille didn't seem to have a strong English presence despite the tourists. Arabic had a much stronger presence in the city, especially where we stayed (our hostel was located in the Arabic section of Marseille). We always started the day with seeing a little Arabic.
Marseille has a diverse community - walking down the street, you can hear at least 5 different languages. People in Madrid like to say that they live in a diverse community, but I don't agree since groups of people are separated from other groups. In Marseille, partly because of its smaller size, you can't help but interact and live with people from different backgrounds (unless you live in the hills, where the wealthy people in Marseille live. But they are alone on their nice, high hills).
Marseille is not as cosmopolitan as Barcelona, where most Barcelonians could speak at least 3 languages, but it is charming in its own way. It's much more "gritty" than the other cities I've been to (that was the only word I could come up with, since my English vocabulary is shrinking). It wasn't as awe-inspiring or as beautiful as other cities, but I liked its diversity.
Susan
One of the first things we did was visit (meaning hike up to) the Notre Dame de la Garde. Rachel recommended it for the views and the extravagant decor. What she didn't tell us was that you had to hike up a hill to reach the city's highest point (once again, not a huge fan of hills. But nothing can be worse can climbing up to Machu Picchu, which was much longer and much higher).
Mission accomplished! We have reached the church - now on to more steps to get to the top.
When we finally got to the top, there was a sense of accomplishment. This sense was so great, that we ended up just staying in the Notre Dame for a couple hours. We had the sun, a nice breeze, leftover croissants, nice seats...
A view from Notre Dame de la Garde. The islands in the back are supposedly the same islands from Count of Monte Cristo, one of my favorite books of all time (in fact, I'm sure that one of the islands was named Monte Cristo). I didn't enough money or interest to visit them but it's cool to see a part of the setting from your favorite novel (of course, my imagination rocks more).
One thing that was surprising about Marseille was the number of religious buildings. Spain is known for its Catholicism, but I never really associated Catholicism with France (I think of postmodern thinkers, good pastries, chopped off heads, etc.). We visited another place of worship (not the Cathedral of Marseille but the Abbey of St. Victor), which was much more humble in appearance. I think I like that better, sitting next to stones and listening to the the monks sing behind the walls, whose voices echo throughout the place. The Notre Dame was way too ornate for my taste. I couldn't stop looking at all the gold and pretty colors.
Another place we visited was a park (Jardin du Pharo). It was another place with nice views of the city, but closer to the water and not so high up. Near the gardens were the Palais du Pharo (built by Napoleon III) and a marine biology school.
Water! Unfortunately, we couldn't go to the beach (it rained on the day we were supposed to go) so this was as close I got to the water. We were joined in the park by old men who liked to just sit and stare at the sea.
Going to Marseille was one of the more unique experiences traveling because of the language. This was the first time I traveled to a city outside of Spain and the first time I traveled to a place in which I couldn't understand anything. Unlike Barcelona, where most people spoke English, Marseille didn't seem to have a strong English presence despite the tourists. Arabic had a much stronger presence in the city, especially where we stayed (our hostel was located in the Arabic section of Marseille). We always started the day with seeing a little Arabic.
Marseille has a diverse community - walking down the street, you can hear at least 5 different languages. People in Madrid like to say that they live in a diverse community, but I don't agree since groups of people are separated from other groups. In Marseille, partly because of its smaller size, you can't help but interact and live with people from different backgrounds (unless you live in the hills, where the wealthy people in Marseille live. But they are alone on their nice, high hills).
Marseille is not as cosmopolitan as Barcelona, where most Barcelonians could speak at least 3 languages, but it is charming in its own way. It's much more "gritty" than the other cities I've been to (that was the only word I could come up with, since my English vocabulary is shrinking). It wasn't as awe-inspiring or as beautiful as other cities, but I liked its diversity.
Susan
Let's Start with Barcelona
I promised myself that I would write a blog on a city I have visited with every final I finish. So here I am, finished with 3 finals...in that case, let's start with Barcelona.
I visited Barcelona in March (I know, this is May) with Evita and Annie. Looking back, Barcelona is one of my favorite cities. There were a lot of Americans (I probably heard more English than Catalan or Castellano) and it seemed that most of the Barcelonians we met could speak English. Despite the ultra-tourist setting, I still loved the city. A friend of mine stayed in Barcelona for 10 days (there is so much to do). I wish I could have stayed that long in Barcelona since there was a lot more I wanted to do, but I'm thankful that I got to even visit for a couple of days.
Our weekend started with an overnight bus from Madrid to Barcelona. I apologize to the guy I was sitting next to - I'm sure my head hit him a couple times while I was sleeping. He seemed pretty excited to get off the bus. Once we arrived in Barcelona, we walked in Las Ramblas, the strip of small streets+stores that takes you to the beach. Beach! That's one thing I miss from California and I wish Madrid was near a body of water. It was good to just sit on the beach, take in the air, and watch and hear the waves. One major reason why I liked Barcelona was the location and the atmosphere. There was a calm feeling to the city and it seemed so normal to just walk along the coast with my yummy gelato. Another reason why I liked Barcelona was because of Gaudí, who was an architect and designed some of the buildings in Barcelona. You can instantly tell what buildings are his creations. He's works are so unique and shows how crazy his mind was (crazy in a good way).
Annie! I think this picture is a good representation of Barcelona in a nutshell, with the weird colorful monument and the old looking buildings in the background. Barcelona is a mixture of modernity and antiquity. It had some modern architectural structures (besides Gaudí's) yet there were also some Roman ruins (near the Cathedral) and buildings from centuries ago. Barcelona has always been an area of intellectual and economic prosperity, and you can definitely sense that by walking around and seeing the combination of the old and new.
Nightlife in Barcelona - old people dancing! The people were dancing to raise money for renovations for the Cathedral. There was a live band and the dancers were all in circles (from as small as 4 people to as big as 20) with their clothes and belongings in the center. People who lose their belongings in clubs should dance like them to avoid losing their things (it's also much more aesthetically pleasing to watch people dancing in circles holding hands than watch the dancing in clubs). I remember one woman who was really good - very straight back, very precise. I don't think I could have danced next to her; I don't have good control of my limbs apparently. I enjoyed watching them :)
At night, we also got to see a concert of a Spanish guitarist. One of my dream goals is to play the classical guitar (I say dream because it's probably only going to stay a dream - I'm too lazy to actually make it work). The guitarist was excellent, and I loved the songs he played.
Gaudí was a genius. Period. Here is a look inside the Sangria Familia, which was under his direction until he died. He combined elements of nature (hooray!) and math (yuck!) to design the church. It was a bit strange to have long forgotten multi-variable calculus lessons suddenly come back when I saw the building. The church is still undergoing construction (it´s privately funded which includes my admission ticket), but his ingenuity and innovation overpower the chaos from the construction work.
Park Guell - another Gaudí creation. This park was supposed to be an exclusive community for the rich people. It was on top of a hill (hills aren't my friends) and Gaudí designed the houses (his house was in the park). Unfortunately, the whole exclusive community idea didn't really take off, but fortunately, tourists like me can enjoy the workings of Gaudí's crazy mind in a large setting. It almost felt like I was in an amusement park, with the unique structures, vivid colors, music - and the people who were trying to sell you their stuff.
While I was at Barcelona, I rented a bike for a couple hours. It seemed like a good idea at the time since the weather was gorgeous, but then again, the last time I rode a bike was when I was 10. The guys who were after me in line in the bike shop actually clapped when I successfully pedaled my way out. (I had to practice in the small streets for more than a couple minutes to re-learn how to ride a bike. I am living proof that you never forget how to ride a bike, regardless of how nonathletic you are). I think this picture was taken on my magical bike ride along the ports of the Barcelona coast. It was magical because 1) I did not hit anyone, 2) I did not get hit by anyone although there were close calls, 3) I did not fall off, and 4) I made it back in one piece (the bike and me).
I have a not-so-great memory, and I know there's something I'm missing. But I remember that I truly enjoyed my weekend in Barcelona.
Unfortunately, Barcelona is the last Spanish city I will visit. I wish I could see more of Spain, especially the north, like San Sebastian and Santiago. Next time I come to Spain, I will definitely check out them and perhaps write them in this blog :)
Susan
I visited Barcelona in March (I know, this is May) with Evita and Annie. Looking back, Barcelona is one of my favorite cities. There were a lot of Americans (I probably heard more English than Catalan or Castellano) and it seemed that most of the Barcelonians we met could speak English. Despite the ultra-tourist setting, I still loved the city. A friend of mine stayed in Barcelona for 10 days (there is so much to do). I wish I could have stayed that long in Barcelona since there was a lot more I wanted to do, but I'm thankful that I got to even visit for a couple of days.
Our weekend started with an overnight bus from Madrid to Barcelona. I apologize to the guy I was sitting next to - I'm sure my head hit him a couple times while I was sleeping. He seemed pretty excited to get off the bus. Once we arrived in Barcelona, we walked in Las Ramblas, the strip of small streets+stores that takes you to the beach. Beach! That's one thing I miss from California and I wish Madrid was near a body of water. It was good to just sit on the beach, take in the air, and watch and hear the waves. One major reason why I liked Barcelona was the location and the atmosphere. There was a calm feeling to the city and it seemed so normal to just walk along the coast with my yummy gelato. Another reason why I liked Barcelona was because of Gaudí, who was an architect and designed some of the buildings in Barcelona. You can instantly tell what buildings are his creations. He's works are so unique and shows how crazy his mind was (crazy in a good way).
Annie! I think this picture is a good representation of Barcelona in a nutshell, with the weird colorful monument and the old looking buildings in the background. Barcelona is a mixture of modernity and antiquity. It had some modern architectural structures (besides Gaudí's) yet there were also some Roman ruins (near the Cathedral) and buildings from centuries ago. Barcelona has always been an area of intellectual and economic prosperity, and you can definitely sense that by walking around and seeing the combination of the old and new.
Nightlife in Barcelona - old people dancing! The people were dancing to raise money for renovations for the Cathedral. There was a live band and the dancers were all in circles (from as small as 4 people to as big as 20) with their clothes and belongings in the center. People who lose their belongings in clubs should dance like them to avoid losing their things (it's also much more aesthetically pleasing to watch people dancing in circles holding hands than watch the dancing in clubs). I remember one woman who was really good - very straight back, very precise. I don't think I could have danced next to her; I don't have good control of my limbs apparently. I enjoyed watching them :)
At night, we also got to see a concert of a Spanish guitarist. One of my dream goals is to play the classical guitar (I say dream because it's probably only going to stay a dream - I'm too lazy to actually make it work). The guitarist was excellent, and I loved the songs he played.
Gaudí was a genius. Period. Here is a look inside the Sangria Familia, which was under his direction until he died. He combined elements of nature (hooray!) and math (yuck!) to design the church. It was a bit strange to have long forgotten multi-variable calculus lessons suddenly come back when I saw the building. The church is still undergoing construction (it´s privately funded which includes my admission ticket), but his ingenuity and innovation overpower the chaos from the construction work.
Park Guell - another Gaudí creation. This park was supposed to be an exclusive community for the rich people. It was on top of a hill (hills aren't my friends) and Gaudí designed the houses (his house was in the park). Unfortunately, the whole exclusive community idea didn't really take off, but fortunately, tourists like me can enjoy the workings of Gaudí's crazy mind in a large setting. It almost felt like I was in an amusement park, with the unique structures, vivid colors, music - and the people who were trying to sell you their stuff.
While I was at Barcelona, I rented a bike for a couple hours. It seemed like a good idea at the time since the weather was gorgeous, but then again, the last time I rode a bike was when I was 10. The guys who were after me in line in the bike shop actually clapped when I successfully pedaled my way out. (I had to practice in the small streets for more than a couple minutes to re-learn how to ride a bike. I am living proof that you never forget how to ride a bike, regardless of how nonathletic you are). I think this picture was taken on my magical bike ride along the ports of the Barcelona coast. It was magical because 1) I did not hit anyone, 2) I did not get hit by anyone although there were close calls, 3) I did not fall off, and 4) I made it back in one piece (the bike and me).
I have a not-so-great memory, and I know there's something I'm missing. But I remember that I truly enjoyed my weekend in Barcelona.
Unfortunately, Barcelona is the last Spanish city I will visit. I wish I could see more of Spain, especially the north, like San Sebastian and Santiago. Next time I come to Spain, I will definitely check out them and perhaps write them in this blog :)
Susan
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