Weekend trips

One of the nicest things about the program I'm taking part in--which, by the way, is called auxiliares norteamericanos and is run by the Spanish Ministry of Education--is the amount of free time we have.  I'm only under contract to work 12 hours a week at the school, which means I have a lot time outside of school to do what ever suits my fancy, whether it's tutoring to earn some extra money or joining a local club or group to practice Spanish.  Moreover, the 12 hour work week is spread out over 4 days, which in turn means that we have a three day weekend every weekend.  This arrangement greatly facilitates weekend trips, and while you usually can't go anywhere really far away, there's plenty to explore around here.  The second weekend Pedro was living with us he drove us to the Sierra, a mountainous region about equidistant from Sevilla and Huelva.  The countryside was gorgeous; plains turned into rolling, tree-covered hills, which eventually turned into small mountains, dotted with the occasional pueblo. Our destination, Cortegana, was known for the 14th century castle perched on a rocky hilltop overlooking the village, but we passed through other villages with claims to fame as well; Jabugo, for its ham; Aracena, for its caves; Almonaster, for its mosque.  We didn't have time to stop, but I would have loved to have explored each of them.

Which isn't to say that Cortegana was very nice in itself; it was, particularly the castle.  It had obviously been restored since it was built--it was in far too good a shape for something almost 700 years old--but it had been restored quite well and I didn't mind.  The castle provided great views of Cortegana and the surrounding area, which looked even more quaint with the sun setting around it.  After descending from the castle, we went to a little restaurant in one of the main squares and had some very tasty traditional Spanish fare: pizza and Coke.  I apologize for nothing.
The following weekend I went to Sevilla for the first time and explored the city, which was a lot of fun.  Sevilla is a really interesting city with a lot of historical significance, probably why every study abroad in Spain program on earth has students there.  Seriously, depending on where you are in the city, I bet there are more English speakers than Spanish speakers in a given area.  But that aside, the city has a lot to offer.  I didn't actually go into anything, just wandered around in the streets, but everything I saw was very impressive.  Standing out in my Sevilla once-over was la Giralda, the immense and soaring cathedral whose lone tower is the tallest point in the city, and the Plaza de España, a massive semi-circle of two-story pillared façades with a huge tower on either end.  The Plaza de España in particular was a revelation for me, because I'd heard about la Giralda and its immensity before.  The Plaza, however, was something completely new to me, whether because it was never mentioned in high school Spanish or because I didn't pay close enough attention I have no idea.
This past weekend I went to Cádiz and Gibraltar, both really cool places that I didn't get to enjoy fully due to bad planning.  Located on a narrow spit of land reaching out into the Atlantic, Cádiz was originally founded by the Phonecians sometime before 1000 BC, making it the oldest continuously inhabited city in Western Europe.  The old city has a rich and eventful past; from being Hannibal's Iberian capital to a prestigious city in the Roman Empire (there is a Roman theatre dating from the first century BC) to the home of the Spanish treasure fleets (and, consequently, a target for foreign nations and pirates), much of Western Europe's history has passed through Cádiz.  It certainly has the feel of an old city, though I confess I wouldn't have guess that it is as old as it is.  The narrow, winding streets and brick sea walls reminded me more of San Juan than anything else.  But a city can't exist for as long as Cádiz has without reinventing itself a few times, and so it has been there; even now, a glance down the beach reveals the high-rise apartments and condos in the new section of the city.  But that aside, I definitely liked Cádiz and would love to go back to enjoy the justly famous beaches as more than window dressing.

The next day, yesterday, was... frustrating.  I took a bus from Cádiz to Gibraltar at 10:15 and got to Gibraltar at 1.  The last bus for Sevilla left at 4, so I had less than three hours to explore all of Gibraltar.  It was not nearly--not even close--to enough.  All I had time to do was walk out to the Europa Point lighthouse on the tip of the peninsula, which was really cool, but there are other things to do in Gibraltar, like the monkeys which live up on the rock and the old siege tunnels and a huge Victorian-era cliff gun (not to mention that the whole thing is British), that I missed out on because I had to be on the bus by 4.  It was totally my fault for not planning better, and I probably should have gone to Gibraltar the day before and done Cadiz on Sunday (because there are later trains and buses from there to Sevilla).  So it was really my doing.  But the upshot of the weekend was that I got incredibly sick of buses and busing, so much so that my goal now is to do anything and everything to avoid long distance bus travel.  Hopefully that will include renting a car, which based on what I've seen, is really the best way to see the closer portions of Spain.

So after all that, here I am back in Huelva, preparing to begin another week. I have no idea what I'm doing in school this week.  I guess I'll find out tomorrow.