San Jose and La Alhambra

Last weekend the entire early start API group traveled to San Jose for the weekend and I have been neglecting to blog about the experience until now. Looking back at the pictures, I am truly jealous of the people who live in San Jose because they are able to wake up every day to the beauty of the National Park of Cabo de Gata-Nijar. In 1997 the area was designated as a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve and since then it has been closely protected. To me, it was really unique to be able to look to my left and see the mountain range of Sierra de Cabo de Gata and then look to my right and see a beautiful stretch of crystal blue Mediterranean Sea. It was my first time swimming in the Mediterranean by the way!! On the path to one of the more secluded beaches in San Jose, the plant life that I saw was incredible. There were the most extreme looking cacti, thorny bushes, and trees and I felt like I was wondering through a new world. The climate is semi-arid and San Jose is actually one of the driest locations in all of Europe. Between the breathtaking white buildings (which reminded me of Greece), to the varying terrain and plant life, San Jose was more than just a hotspot for sun bunnies , although I must admit, I absolutely loved laying on my towel admiring the sea for pretty much the entire weekend.

Yesterday was the day that I have been looking foward to for over a year. My API group went to visit the Alhambra and it was just as fantastic as I imagined it would be. The day started with threatening clouds and scattered showers and may I add that every single day here so far has been clear blue skies. Needless to say, I was grumpy and bitter that the one day I wanted nice weather it chose to rain. By the time that we were walking to the Alhambra, it stopped raining so in the end I had nothing to complain about. Our tour guide Frederico was extremely knowledgeable and helped us to feel like we were foreign ambassadors who were visiting the various quarters during the peak of the Muslim dynasty in Andalucia. I found the entire tour extremely moving and I could not stop taking pictures although Frederico reminded us more than once that the best pictures to take are with the mind; fiddling with a camera may only leave you with superficial pictures that you have no real connection with.

I was semi-disappointed but at the same time semi-happy to see the restored lions from the Patio de los Leones. We could not take pictures in the room that they are in but at the same time, we were some of the first visitors to see the completed restoration process. The craftsmanship and detailing is amazing and the completed process allows visitors to mentally retain a truly authentic image of each lion. In addition to the lions, I loved walking through the gardens and I saw some flowers that I have never seen before. I took pictures and if anyone can identify the purple coral looking flowers please let me know!

I definitely plan on re-visiting the buildings sometime in the future because it is always hard to see everything when you are with a big group. I also want to go back at night when the lights illuminate the Alhambra in a way that I hear is mystical and beautiful. Well, I hope you enjoy looking at the pictures from my visit!

Some more interesting facts I have learned in the past couple of weeks…
1. Americans are considered to be very “smiley” people; in Spain and it is considered a romantic gesture to openly smile to a stranger. I was just told this today by one of my professors and I definitely will be changing the way that I walk down the street.
2. Spaniards do not accept invitations, drinks, food, etc on the first request. It is considered almost rude or easy (in the case of a man asking a woman to dance or to go on a date).
3. Everything is drenched in delicious olive oil. Raw veggies such as tomatoes and cucumbers are served with olive oil. The salads, soups, eggs, and pretty much everything is coated in it. Soooo yummy!
4. The hot water needs to be manually turned on in most houses. I have tried showering at different times in the day and sadly learned that my host Mom or Dad shut off the hot water earlier. It is really easy to take a quick shower when the water is frigid.

I am sure there are more but I cannot think of them right now. It is dinner time for me and tonight it is a salad of what looks like lentil beans, diced ham, tomatoes, green peppers and of course olive oil! Yummy!