Mi familia y casa in Granada- Emily Pardington

Mi Familia

Here in Granada, my host family and the house I am living in are very different from my family and house in Michigan. In Michigan, I live with my mom, dad, and brother Jack. My sister, Claire, lives in New York City and my brother Max is in Traverse City.

My family

My mom Lisa, John Jr. (aka Jack), my dad John, Claire, Max and me

Here in Granada, I live with my señora, Maria Dolores, and her eleven year old daughter, Patricia. 

Patricia, Maria, and me

Maria is the absolute best señora I could have asked for. She is extremely kind and loving and has made me feel right at home. I feel comfortable getting food when I am hungry, asking her for help when needed, and talking to her about everything. She reminds me a lot of my mom in many ways. She just has a nurturing, loving aura and you cannot help but love her. She works with a fruit company right outside Granada, cutting fruit for individual packaging and ensuring the crops are doing well. This is awesome for me because we always have the freshest fruit in the house. 

Patricia is extremely cute. She is in grade school and loves drawing. She is always drawing me pictures or we are drawing pictures together. She has even done my nails.

Patricia's drawing and doing my nails

Maria is awesome in showing me around the city. The first day, she showed me all around Granada and two weekends ago, she took me to Frigiliana, Spain. This is a small little town in the mountains. It is extremely old and quaint, but with the most incredible views. I had the best time. After we walked around this tiny city, we got wine and cheese at a small café. It was an awesome day.

Frigiliana, Spain

I am excited for this weekend because many students are traveling to Barcelona, Madrid, or Morocco but I am staying in Granada to experience Corpus Christi. Maria has many things planned for us, so I cannot wait to see more of the city.

La Casa

My house in Michigan is located in a neighborhood right outside Ann Arbor. It is big and spacious. Here, my apartment is located in the city. I live on Buenos Aires, a small and short street right next to a large park.

Buenos Aires and the entrance to my apartment in Granada

I live on the fourth floor. When you first enter the apartment, the kitchen is to your left and a hallway to your right. The kitchen is large (I think) for an apartment and contains the laundry machine. There is also a large window that has clothes lines stretching from the kitchen window to a wall on the other side of a small hole in the middle of the apartment complex where clothes are hung to dry.

 

Kitchen and laundry

About half way down the hallway is two bathrooms, one I use and one for Maria and Patricia. I am extremely grateful and lucky to have my own bathroom (thank you Maria!!).

My bathroom

As you continue down the hallway, you approach a larger open area, the family room. Here is where most of our time is spent. While breakfast is usually in the kitchen, we eat lunch and dinner in this room. This is also where, at night, we watch TV or Maria reads while Patricia and I draw or play games. A large balcony is connected to the family room and it has an awesome view of the park.

Family room and view from the balcony 

If you continue past the family room you walk into my bedroom. My bedroom is very nice. It is not huge, but not small; a perfect size. I have a desk, WiFi, a bed, and a large closet. 

My bedroom

While we were gone this weekend, I began to miss this apartment and my host family! It has begun to feel like home. I love my family here in Granada and my little apartment. I miss my family in Michigan and cannot wait to sleep in my own bed soon, however I know I will miss my host family here and this apartment that has been my home for this spring semester.

Seville and Cordoba- Emily Pardington

We just got back from an incredible weekend trip to Córdoba and Seville. Spain has so much extraordinary history; I absolutely loved exploring a different part of this country. 

 

Izabella, Niyati, Natalie, and myself at the Plaza de España

While the entire trip was breathtaking, four of my absolute favorite things we saw and learned about were the Mezquita and Calleja de las Flores in Córdoba, and the Plaza de España and the Cathedral in Seville.

Saturday, May 30^th: Our trip begins

All the students met at the Post Office at (an early) 8:00 am and headed to our first stop, Córdoba. We arrived around 11:00 am. Our first stop in Córdoba was the Mezquita. 

This is an incredible mosque-cathedral that takes up most of the city. This unique building symbolizes religious unity. In the center of the Mezquita, is a garden/patio that contains four different kinds of trees to represent three different religions living in unison, palm trees and orange trees to represent the Muslim religion, olive trees to represent the Jewish religion, and cypress trees to represent the Christian religion. From this patio you step through the incredibly tall horseshoe arch doorways into the Mezquita whose interior is a mix of Islamic and Christian architecture.

While my senses were initially overwhelmed by the incredible intricacy of the Muslim decoration and the rows and rows of tall pillars, a closer look revealed the depth of this buildings character. When initially building the Mezquita, “old” material was used, so every pillar supporting the building is different, some marble, some granite, each one propped up on different size cement blocks to ensure a uniform height. Furthermore, each pillar has a very small, but unique symbol or name carved into it adding to their uniqueness. 

We learned the workers (slaves) who built the Mezquita were paid based on how many pillars they handled, so they carved their name or if they did not know how to write, a symbol (a boat, a cross, etc.) unique to each man into the pillars they were responsible for. This was a way they could be paid correctly for their work! These pillars are supporting horseshoe archways, lined up in rows creating the mosque where Muslim men would come to pray. 

These rows of pillars make up the outer edge of the Mezquita, surrounding a huge, and seemingly infinitely tall Christian cathedral in the center. 

The contrast between these two parts of the building is incredible. While the mosque has a darker, almost romantic atmosphere, decorated with symbols and calligraphy, the cathedral is bright and lively, decorated with the faces of Angels, Mother Mary, and Jesus. This cathedral is extraordinary with every inch decorated.

Next, we were taken to Calleja de las Flores. This extremely tiny street was crowded with people from all over the world. We literally had to wait in line to see Calleja de las Flores, but the wait was worth it. Córdoba is known for their patios, where the most beautiful flowers decorate the walls.

 Waiting in line to see Calleja de las Flores

Natalie and myself, Calleja de las Flores 

Patio with beautiful flowers decorating the walls

After our guided tour, we were given free time in Córdoba to get lunch and explore the city ourselves before leaving for Seville. Iza, Niyati, Natalie, and myself went to a small cafe/restaurant and ordered some typical dishes of Córdoba we were told to try: salmorejo and rabo de toro.

 Lunch in Córdoba

 

Ice cream in Córdoba

Salmorejo is a cold tomato soup. Rabo de toro is tail of the bull! They both were extremely delicious, of course our lunch was followed by ice cream.

Sunday, May 31^st: Seville, Spain

After a two hour bus ride, we arrived in Seville, Spain. Here we had a quick dinner, then we all decided to go out to the local bars and explore the city. 

This bar was incredible. It was busy with locals, however around 11pm, three men pull out a guitar and begin playing and singing the most beautiful Spanish songs. It was an unforgettable night. 

The next morning, our guided tour began with the Plaza de España. This is a beautiful plaza where a scene in Star Wars was filmed! We waited here for our tour guide and were able to see how life in Seville is for the locals. There was a spin class fundraiser happening in the plaza and stores across the plaza selling locally made things.

Iza, Natalie, Niyati, and me in front of the Plaza de España

 Within the Plaza de España, there are tens of hundreds of benches representing all the cities in Spain. Each bench has a tile mural showing an important event that occurred within that city.

We spent time by Barcelona's bench, which showed Christopher Columbus and the Native Americans he brought back to Spain after he discovered America. We learned a lot about Christopher Columbus this trip, because Seville is where he sailed from to discover "the new world". I love how our history is tied to this country. It reminds me how connected every country in the world is. 

Christopher Columbus is the reason why our next and final stop in Seville was my favorite. 

Our final stop in Seville was the Cathedral de Seville, the third largest cathedral in world, the largest gothic church in the world, and the place where Christopher Columbus is buried. This cathedral is dripping with gold, history, and intricacy. 

 

Cathedral de Seville

In the cathedral, we saw a huge painting showing a monk and angels. We learned someone, about twenty years ago, cut the monk out of the painting. Later the monk was found in New York City! It was brought back to Seville and the painting was restored.

But as mentioned before, my favorite part of the trip was seeing Christopher Columbus's tomb. 

Knowing the remains of a man we all learn about in grade school was right in front of me was overwhelming. I took about 30 pictures of his tomb and just stood in awe of the incredible cathedral I was in and what was in front of me. 

I feel truly blessed to have experienced this weekend. I cannot wait to see what the last three weeks of my time in Granada has in store.