I promised myself I wouldn't fall asleep on Sunday nights before I finish my blog for the week. Here's me fulfilling that goal and losing like 2 hours of sleep because of it. # dedic8ted
This week was extra special because our internship coordinator Dr. Scott Alvord came and treated us to some fantastic Spanish cultural experiences, beginning with a tour around the world-famous Prado art museum.
Bursting at the seams with masterpieces from centuries ago, the Prado is a must-see for art lovers (and regular old Joes like ourselves who just think we appreciate art). The three most important Spanish artists were Velázquez, Goya, and our main man Picasso, and the Prado is full of pieces by the former two. Seeing paintings that I've studied in humanities classes like Goya's famous "The Third of May" anti-war painting and, arguably the "greatest painting of all time," Velázquez's "Las Meninas," was such a treat!
We also got to see the Royal Palace...talk about sensory overload. I'm not sure how nobles in the past could handle living in such ornate palaces. Every room we walked in was filled with priceless furniture, fine china, and gorgeous tapestries. Even the wallpaper was threaded with gold! The place had noooo chill, like, good luck finding a place to wind down at the end of a long day.
It really was so beautiful though. It's too bad we couldn't take pictures, but luckily Dr. Alvord snagged this one of us before leaving the grounds:
So power. Much royal.
The next evening we met up as a group again to see a traditional flamenco show, and before we got there, I didn't really know what to expect. I just pictured a woman in a fancy dress clicking those castanets with a guy playing a beautiful Spanish guitar...and turns out I wasn't really that far off. I didn't anticipate how tiny the theater was or that we would be snacking on a delicious plate of tapas during the show, and I definitely didn't realize how much the Muslim culture influenced the rhythms and musical techniques.
I was BLOWN AWAY by the sheer talent of everyone involved in the show. There's something so beautiful to me about watching people who are so passionate about their culture express themselves through traditional dance and music. Tbh I get a little choked up about it:').
If you ever find yourself in Spain, a flamenco show is a MUST SEE.
The next day, we all hopped on a bus and headed to Segovia for a day trip (not to be confused with Genovia, for all you Princess Diaries fans). What I thought was going to be a freezing, snowy, windy trip turned into a beautiful cloudy day spent strolling down medieval streets gazing at the ancient Roman aqueduct and eating suckling pig.
This is probably the most well-known structure in Segovia. This aqueduct has been standing since sometime between 100 and 200 A.D., which is something I can't even wrap my head around considering that it's in perfect condition. Up until the 1980s, this thing was still functioning (why they stopped using it after going strong for so long, I have no idea).
This pic earned the high title of "Award Winner" from Hayden...Dad, you proud?
Yet another dope cathedral, this one in the Gothic style sort of like the Barcelona cathedral.
Ok, this place was cool. These are original plaster paintings were salvaged after the walls in this church were covered by mud for centuries. The beautifully symbolic art was done a loooooong time ago, we're talkin' 12th-century stuff, and had it not been coated in mud because of some serious roof leakage, it may not have been preserved.
We stopped for lunch at the most famous place to eat the local delicacy, the suckling pig. Before you get all grossed out, this was literally the best pork I've ever had, and eating in a 19th-century hunting lodge made the experience all the more complete.
Here you can see the foot...and the tail...you can't see the kidney, but that was in there too. Kind of an eyesore, but seriously the most delicious ever.
Besides the aqueduct and the suckling pig, the Alcázar is the other very iconic picture of Segovia. As the location of Queen Isabel's crowning and one of two castles that inspired the design of THE Disney's castle, this place is a pretty big deal.
Here is where Isabel and Ferdinand would have sat in their day. I wish I could say these are original thrones, but the castle was burned several times so not a whole lot of it is original, including this painting depicting Isabel's crowning.
Don't look too closely at peoples' faces. Low key suuuuper creepy.
We even got to climb to the tower and snap some pics of the breathtaking views.
(Peep the snow on the mountains...yiiiikes. But so beautiful, am I right?)
And here's the view from below. Can you see why Walt Disney loved this thing? I'm sure the trees are prettier in the springtime...all the more reason to return!
So there you have it. Another eventful week of our Spanish adventure! We don't have a lot planned for this week but in two weeks we'll be visiting the beautiful city of Toledo, and I am SO EXCITED! Stay tuned!
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