living it up

It is suddenly hitting me that my summer abroad is coming to a close. All the traveling, sight seeing and picture taking has made time whir by and suddenly we have less than ten precious European days slipping out of our hands. We are living it up these last two weeks, however. Monjira's parents visited from July 10-17 and on their last night they took us out to dinner and a jazz show in a Plaza off of la rambla. The jazz show was amazing! Two classical guitars accompanied a female vocalist who sang with passion and soul. The venue was reminiscent of a Chicago comedy club- brick walls, low lights and comfortable bench/chairs. Very intimate and relaxing.

In class these past few weeks we've been learning about the amazing, innovative and genius architecture (engineering) of Gaudí, who lived and designed- in Barcelona. During the first 5 weeks of our trip here we visited La Pedrera (aka Casa Mila). Another Gaudí "house," also located on Pg De Gracía, a famous shopping boulevard here in Barce, called Casa Batillo is also open for visits. We weren't going to visit both La Pedrera AND Casa Batillo but our interest in Gaudí was peaked by our teacher and we just had to see it! And boy, are we glad that we did! Gaudí designed the whole house based on an under the sea theme. Everything, from the furniture, to the handrail banisters to the tiles and light fixtures are reminiscent of underwater themes. There is BEAUTIFUL stained glass everywhere, of varying and gradient colors and ceramic tiles, too. Gaudí did not build a SINGLE straight wall in the house! Imagine that! The walls are all curved and molded (by hand) in circular shapes and round arcs. Not only is this aesthetically pleasing, but it also is functional. It allows for light (from skylights as well as windows) to fill the space. The air moves smoothly throughout the house thanks to Gaudí's genius and far ahead of his time inventions of air slots in the doors. The rich mahogany mixed with forged steel fixtures is such a royal and expressive look. It was honestly breathtaking. The tour ends on the roof, covered in hand broken tiles (a technique called "Trencadiz") and sculptures. You can look out to the city of Barcelona below, with all of its amazing architectural wonders, taxis whirring by and ocean in the background. It was an amazing experience.

When I say we've been living it up, I'm not lying. Friday night we attended a concert of "Opera y Flamenco" at the Palau de la Musica Catalana. This is another famous architectural wonder. The ceiling centerpiece of stained glass is jaw-dropping. Everything on the walls and ceiling is covered in bright colors and ornate decorations. We loved the show, too. There were several males and female voices accompanied by string instruments (including the BEST classical guitar I have ever heard in my life!!) and Flamenco dancing in traditional costumes with clapping! The mix of opera music, flamenco dancing and classical instruments sounds strange but it was amazing. It was an aesthetically pleasing masterpiece of a show. Afterwards we wandered out into the barrio gotico to take a few drinks at a bar. It was a night of humidity and darkness but the narrow cobblestone streets were full of young people and middle aged folks, everyone in hot, summer clothes, speaking a variety of languages and drinking and laughing. The city was alive and dancing right along with us.

In exactly 7 days we will be back on a plane to the USA. I cannot lie and say that I am not counting down those hours until I am back in my parent's arms, back to HOT (not perpetually cold) showers, back to a REAL pillow and a REAL bed and a ceiling fan and all of my other creature comforts. But a part of me will miss Spain, too. Since we depart so soon we invited our entire host family (Montse, her son Didac and his girlfriend Ana) to take a late lunch with us today. We went to an AMAZING hole-in-the-wall rice restaurant that Didac recommended in our neighborhood. It was the best paella/rice dish I have EVER HAD in my entire life! We had a blast! After the meal Montse gifted us girls little fans!! We have all been complaining of the heat and she had suggested days ago that we buy a small, hand fans like many of the women here carry in the street to battle the intense Mediterranean sun and humidity. We couldn't find a good one when we went to Madrid and we basically gave up after that. Seeing our struggle she purchased the PERFECT thing and we were so happy! It was a delightful exchange and yet another fantastic time with our host family. She made the experience great.

While it is hard to live in someone else's house, with different cultural norms and rules, I learned a lot from doing so. It was not always easy or fun, but we know we are going to miss her a lot when we leave. I tear up thinking about saying goodbye. She has been our rock these past 10 weeks- helping us with directions, trying to keep us from being hungry and teaching us a MOUNTAIN of information, vocabulary and speaking skills. I have realized that all that matters is perspective. If Monj and I had been negative about all that we are lacking here (because there is a lot) we would have had a horrible time and also missed the boat entirely. We have had an amazing summer simply because we made it thus for ourselves.


(Sidenote: the restaurant was completely gluten free friendly and had clearly marked what dishes I could and could not eat right on the menu. Furthermore, they had gluten free bread for me to enjoy with everyone else, hot out of the oven, before the meal! I was so happy and also felt like less of an outsider with my food allergies. I was able to take part in the human, social aspect that comes along with sharing food and laughter simultaneously...)

Oslo, Norwegia

I am so blessed and thankful to have spent the past weekend in Oslo, Norway with my friend Nora, who grew up and lives there. Not only was Nora a fantastic tour guide (in our short window of 48 hours) but she is also extremely hospitable, a seasoned traveler and a mature friend. We enjoyed each others company and I was able to see the best of Oslo!

I left home in Barcelona via taxi at 4:45am on Friday. It was a long morning of traveling but well worth it because my bus from the airport to central Oslo got in before noon. Nora met me at the bus station and we immediately started seeing the sights! (Thank god I only packed a small backpack). First we went to see the Oslo Opera House. I noticed, as the bus drove me closer and closer to the city center, that many of the buildings were very modern and innovative. The Opera House was no exception. It is a relatively new building and gorgeous! We walked on the roof and could see the whole bay/harbor area as well as a small view of the city. From there we saw the military fortress, had lunch on the shore (at a restaurant with gluten free pizza!!) and also trekked up to the Royal Palace and the gardens. Nora took me to the "naked park" which is a famous sculpture garden area and we bought little strawberries to take into the grass. There we sat and enjoyed the sun (and cool weather!) and chatted. It was so peaceful.

The air in Norway was different than anything else I had ever experienced. It was fresh and crisp and dry but also smelled slightly of salt, presumably from the fjords. Northern Europe in general is so vastly different than Spain! I was definitely in culture shock for most, if not all, of my time there simply because everything seemed opposite! Everyone was tall and blonde, which sounds funny but is actually true, and everything was clean and remote. Even though there were tourists, there was such a sense of space and personal space that I never felt overwhelmed. Spain lacks this sense of personal space, which as an American I am accustomed to. The streets were spotlessly clean and the public transportation was as well. In fact, I was amazed to find out that the public tram/metro system is based on the "honor system." Every once and awhile supposedly a guard comes around to check if you have a pass but I never saw one the entire time I was there, and we took the metro over 6 times! It is amazing to me that the culture is so trusting and clean. I felt like I suddenly went from a crazy, busy, hectic, hot, overwhelming city to an up north escape. It reminded me of how my family travels up north in the summers for peace and quiet. Also, everyone speaks English! This is a huge difference! Not only do people speak English, but they speak well. I was thankful for this only after I got off the plane, because the rest of the time I was with Nora and she was able to communicate in Norwegian for us.

There is absolutely something to say for visiting a foreign country with someone who knows the country well. I was able to sit back and relax because Nora knows the tram system, the great places to go, how to order food gluten free in a restaurant, etc. etc. It was comforting and helpful to have her leading me around, eager to show me her hometown.

On Saturday we took a ferry to one of the nearby islands right off of Oslo (there are many) and found a place in the rocks to swim! Everyone was changing right out in the open, grilling with portable grills and jumping straight from the rocks into the FREEZING cold ocean. We did the same. I was amazed at how people of all generations freely stripped down to put their bathing suits on... in public! It was not common to go swimming without a suit, however, which I found to be odd considering the fact that people were stripping down in front of strangers. Afterwards we took the ferry back to the shore and took a tram all the way up into the hills. There we visited the world famous ski jump and a ski museum and were able to go all the way to the top for a great view of Oslo! It was breathtaking! No words can describe how beautiful it is to have a city nestled in a shoreline of rocks and creeping ocean caves. It was also SO GREEN. The forest creeps between houses in neighborhoods and into the hills and mountains behind the city buildings. It is so bizarre to see a city nestled in a forest. The tram literally drops you off in the middle of the woods sometimes with nothing but a dirt road and forest paths to trek through. It is such an amazing experience!

Later that night we returned to the house to gather some hot dogs, marshmallows and wine and took it out to a lake near the house. We swam into the evening, drank wine on the dock and cooked out the hot dogs and marshmallows. It was a perfect summer night, full of girl-talk and laughter! We had a blast. I was so cozy in the 55 degree weather, snuggled up in bed later that night! I never wanted to leave. 

Madrid

Studying (and traveling) abroad is not all cupcakes, rainbows and unicorns. Monj and I have a TON of fun and have learned to stop complaining and being as high maintenance as we used to be, but we are getting tired. Tired of the heat, tired of the constant harassment and tired of everything being so difficult to access. This is not meant as a complaint post, because every single day we wake up and brush our teeth together in the bathroom and smile in the mirror at one another, happy to be living yet another day in a glorious European city. It is, however, OK to admit that constantly traveling can be tiring and difficult.

We decided to tackle Madrid this past weekend. We spent hours picking a good hotel, finding a bike tour on the web, teaching ourselves the metro system via the internet, and reading up in books and blogs all about the city. We took the metro to the bus to the airplane to the metro to FINALLY arrive. And Madrid was awesome!! We saw the Prado Art Museum (world renown) and botanical gardens on Friday. We also walked to the Fountain of Neptune, Retiro Park and along several plazas and boulevards. We carried our guidebook, sandwiches and maps with us so that we never missed a beat. By the time we got to the evening we were EXHAUSTED but restaurants don't even open for dinner until 9 or 9:30pm (the locals won't eat food until about 11) so we rested in the hotel and then found a nice restaurant in a small cobblestone street nestled in the La Latina neighborhood.

Saturday also went as planned. We got up early and did a 3 hour bike tour to see every highlight and major building! Our guide explained the history behind parks, the Royal Palace, Plaza Mayor, the city hall, National Bank and several other well-known landmarks. We even stopped for a drink with the tour group and we got a lot of good pictures! Afterwards we found some frozen yogurt in the shade and walked to find the Temple Debod and San Francisco Basilica. By then it was late afternoon and we rested in the hotel for the evening before dinner.

Madrid was over 100 degrees Fahrenheit on both days we visited. Not only was it hot but the sun shone like there was no tomorrow. The heat was inescapable and everyone walked around pouring sweat. People seemed edgy, tense and irritable because of the heat. To add to this atmosphere, an annual, national gay pride event had taken over the town for the weekend. Monj and I had no idea until we arrived that we would be greeted with THRONGS of drunk people, ready to riot. Both supporters and opponents flooded the streets. Police shut down major roads (like Gran Via!) and wouldn't allow any cars. People carried flags and shouted all day and all night. There was beer and loud music everywhere. It was an unbelievable sight and probably could be likened to a football Saturday at an American university.

We tried to do our best to see historic Madrid and enjoy the city despite these obstacles (and honestly we succeeded) but we also reached a breaking point. On Saturday night, after we had been out and about all day, sweating and sightseeing, we sat down to eat dinner around 10pm in a nice restaurant that we found in the center of town. Service was slow, as usual, but we were staying patient though we were tired. The drunkards at the bar near us began spilling their party over into our area, putting their wine glasses and drinks on the edge of our table. We said nothing for awhile and let it go. After about 20 minutes one of the really drunk men (wearing a wig of pink feathers and smelling of beer and sweat) sat down at our table with us. He said nothing but simply sat there. Monj and I looked at each other and did nothing.

The waitress came over and asked us if he was drunk. We told her yes he was and wondered if maybe we could move to a quieter back room of the restaurant? She said she would see what she could do and supposedly went to get her manager. Meanwhile, the man sitting with us and his friends started getting disruptive. We turned and politely told them we were eating dinner and this was our table, there were other open seats at the bar for them. (They had no reason to be sitting at our table where we were trying to eat a meal.) No sooner had we said that and all hell broke loose. The entire party of drunkard men started coming at us. They were screaming in Spanish and pointing and making fun of us. One of them had to be restrained. Naturally I burst into tears as my adrenaline soared. The managers had now come to investigate with the waitress. All three of the restaurant workers stood by, watching this happen, and conferring. They did nothing to help Monj and I extricate ourselves immediately from the situation.

We contemplated walking out the door but the men were blocking the door and we had not yet paid for half of the meal we had consumed. Instead we stood up and went to another room in the restaurant, now visibly upset. The men were still screaming and carrying on after us. At this point the entire restaurant full of people was staring at what was occurring as management looked on. Finally, the waitress and managers came to find us and told us "they will protect us" and that they "called the police" and that "the men will be leaving." But frankly, we were angry. Had we been in that exact same situation with a parent or a male friend or a boyfriend we are POSITIVE the situation would not have happened, or it at least would have gone another way. Both of us sat with new, full glasses of (free) wine at another table and sobbed about how we wished our dads were there to tell the men to shut up or help us move to another table sooner.

Monj and I do not feel helpless traveling alone. In fact, we feel quite the opposite. We do everything ourselves. Planning our weekend and day trips, making food to take out for the day, packing bags, setting alarms to wake up (we NEVER sleep enough) and the list goes on and on... But we also feel like we aren't taken seriously all of the time. As two, young, women, students we feel discriminated against. This may sound dramatic, but this wasn't the first time. In fact, when we walked into that same restaurant the wait staff didn't take us seriously. They asked if maybe we just wanted to have a drink at the bar instead of eat the nice (slightly expensive) food. We assured them no, we were there for dinner. Just because we are two young women doesn't mean we can be taken advantage of, openly harassed or judged.

Traveling is also very exhausting! Especially in the summer heat. People make sightseeing sound like fun and games but in reality you work for every pleasurable moment you get. On the positive side, we have started to appreciate every little windfall and every little thing that goes right, even more. When something we plan works out well we give each other a pat on the back and enjoy! We also recognize how privileged we are to even be on this trip, especially together, and thank our lucky stars with frequency. It is just important to tell the truth: you're not always happy and smiling when you're traveling- there's a lot of hard shit, too.