Flamenco and art

The flamenco performance was amazing. The singer had some lungs on her, and sang with such passion. I absolutely loved her dress, it was stunning. I had expected more of a dance, but I was informed that in different parts of Spain flamenco is different. But overall, the performance is something I will never forget. We then had a flamenco dance lesson on Friday morning, which I didn't know what to expect. I have two left feet, and the last thing I need is to attempt dancing with them. But, as soon as I got up to get our first lesson, I just went with it. I know I probably looked ridiculous, but I had fun. The instructors had given us a small performance, and the music, the dance, and costumes were absolutely stunning.

     My weekend ended with taking the bus to Toledo, and Madrid. On Saturday, I went to Toledo. The city was stunning. I was amazed how the city in one point in history had Arabs, Jews, and Christians living in the same city. Its shocking that these two different groups of people were able to live in the same city, which is something we can learn from. On Sunday I went to Madrid to the Prado Museum and Sofia Museum. I was excited to see Picasso's Guernica, and see Goya's painting The Third of May, and Saturn Devouring His Son. I was completely speechless when I saw these paintings. There is just so much art in beauty in Europe, that I have to pinch myself to see if I'm dreaming, or its all real. 

Show me the way to the next Whisky Bar.....

Whoever said that dreams come true were absolutely right. I got to spend the weekend in Paris, and its everything that I imagined it to be and more. It was a mission trying to get to Paris. The bus ride to Madrid, the metro to the airport, and once we arrived to the airport a taxi to the metro, and a lot of walking. I got to go to the Louvre Museum and see some spectacular paintings. I got to see the Mona Lisa, which was amazing. I also got to see Delacroix paintings, and so many others that the names escapes my mind. I do have to admit that its a bit pricier than Salamanca. I was stunned when I paid 4.40 euros for a cafe con leche, but its Paris and I'm not complaining. The city is full of love, beauty, and life. 

      The best part of my trip is I got the opportunity to go pay my respects to Jim Morrison. I took Jim some roses, whisky, a pen, and a cigarette, and wrote on the whisky bottle. I signed my four bestest friends, Marie, Marisol, Lorenzo, Leonard, and my love's name, Jerry. I got there and I started to cry like a baby, so I drank some whisky to calm my nervous. Being there, next to Jim, was something I have never felt before, and I think I haven't been able to digest it yet. His grave was gated, so I jumped over to set his gifts in order, and I just stood there, whisky in one hand, and cigarette in the other. I wrote on the tree where so many have left a message behind to Jim. I wrote my friends names on it, along with our favorite songs, and a heart with my boyfriends name and mine with our favorite song, "Love Street". I still can't believe I'm writing about it, and I was there, me!! I didn't want to leave Jim, but I knew time was running out, so I went and paid my respects to Edith Phiaf, Oscar Wilde, and Delacroix. Paris is beautiful, and romantic, and I feel like the luckiest girl in the world!!!

School, Field Trips, and Brujeria!!!!!

It’s been an interesting week in Salamanca. School and my free time equaled out to an experience, and an adventure. I had two papers due, and plenty of time to do it, but since I had spent the weekend in Portugal my time was limited. Luckily I work better under pressure, and was able to finish my two papers on time. In my conversation class, we got a chance to watch a Spanish series called “Cuentame”, based on fictional characters that lived through Franco’s control. The show was a great series that I would recommend. It made me understand differences and similarities that their culture, and ours had. A difference was not having the freedom to speak freely of your government, and a similarity was birth control, it was a big no-no in the 60’s and wasn’t promoted as a method to protect yourself. Also, in the cultural class, we got a history lesson, which was the most I ever learned about their history. I found “Juana la Loca”, most interesting, and a bit romantic.
It was a weird feeling going to El Escorial, and Avila, knowing that Japan had an 8.9 earthquake; my heart goes out to all the people that were affected by this natural disaster. It was a dose of reality that I needed, to just shut up, stop complaining, and enjoy every day. The field trip was beautiful. I definitely will never forget the mausoleum with the kings, and queens, of Spain. It was absolutely stunning. I got the goose bumps when I saw the portrait of the king’s daughter, which names escape my mind, but her portrait was breathtaking. She looked exactly like a young lady I met in a vintage boutique store in Lisbon, I swear it was the same person, and I will never forget that face. The last stop was at the walls in Avila, which I couldn’t believe that I was walking along on this historical place. Walking through it was peaceful, and I am glad that the cold weather didn’t stop me from walking on top of the walls. My weekend came to an interesting end. I went to the Brujeria exhibit that they are having at the Palacio de Congreso, which was interesting, and there are no words to describe what I saw, but I’m glad I went to it.

Educational week in school, with a incredible cultural lesson!!!!

The week in Salamanca has been very interesting. It started off with getting a card from the public library. My professor Estella took us there, and was generous to show us around. I was able to check out some poetry books, movies, and music, which is great because it’s free. I also got to enjoy the tapas tour, and got to learn something new about the culture. The food and wine was amazing I loved the tortillas that had potatoes, muy delicioso. I also got a chance to go to the museum of Salamanca, my art teacher gave her lecture at the museum, and it was spectacular.  I learned a lot from that trip, such as seeing the different color palettes that were used in a time period.  We also got to see the fresca painting, which was unbelievable. The image gave me a sense of peace, with the stars and the color of blue, white, gold, reds, brown, and a few others I can’t remember. But it was interesting to see the stars with the different astrological signs.

The weekend began at 7am on Friday, on a bus heading towards Portugual. It had hit me that it was going to be my first time in a country where I didn’t know the language, and communicating was going to be extremely challenging. But I figured that it would be a great learning experience, which turned out to be. I wasn’t intrigued by Portugual, since I hadn’t signed up from the very beginning. I was lucky enough to get the last spot, and now I’m super happy that I was able, because the country was so lovely. I am planning to be back again, the people, the food, the history, and language, was un like anything else I have ever encountered. The river in Lisboa was nice, since getting some fresh air made it more beautiful. I loved the castle by the river, and the amazing sunset that I had the opportunity to see. I experienced a language barrier for the first time in my life, but it was very sweet how the people were so patient, understanding, and had so much warmth, they made me feel extremely welcome.