The plane ride to Sevilla happened without much excitement. Little bit of turbulence, but that’s about it. Once in Sevilla, some of us exchanged money, leaving Zack and I guarding the luggage with a mandolin. Very unique. The taxi to the hotel was apparently the “scenic route,” costing 20 euros instead of 15. Ouch. Better watch your back, next time.
After checking into the hotel and dumping the bags, it was time for food. It was around 12ish as I recall and we went exploring for, in Justin’s words, “anything edible”. We found this awesome Tapas place near the hotel, and after realizing in an awkward pause that we order at the counter, we sat ordered, then sat down and waited for dishes. The group consisted of Holli, Justin, Janine, David and myself, and funny/lively conversation abounded. Topics ranged from expectations about Sevilla, life at college/future plans, to the bizarre fact that Shania Twain’s “Don’t Be Stupid” (if I remember right) was playing in the background, along with “Material Girl” by Madonna and some oldish Alanis Morrisette.
Spain is not so different from America, really. It’s extremely Western. Like a sort-of New York built on ancient roots. A few exceptions: internet is not nearly as common, siesta REALLY exists (more on that later), and dressing fashionable is appropriate all the time for whatever age or gender. Especially, it seems, if you’re obese or ugly (hey, not so different from America, right?). Also to that woman on C/ Eduardo Dato: Uggs are still just as fugly in Europe as they are in America. Please change.
Back to lunch. We ordered a mystery tapa (randomly picked) that turned out to be goat cheese with honey and almonds. Very interesting, with a strong aftertaste. Then una tortilla de patatas, suggested by David as a kickass Spanish dish. VERY delicious. And lastly, French fries with bacon and cheese aka patatas fritas con queso y bacón. Classically delicious!
We started looking around a little, moseyed back to the hotel to check facebook and assure our parents that we were, in fact, not dead, just in Sevilla. I met my roommate, Michael, who would turn out to be my roommate for the entire trip. Nice guy, also a BSBA and Spanish kid, so lots in common. There was a trip to a cellphone store, but siesta’s full effect rendered acquiring international cellphones at this point as fail.
Dinner was at a very funky place next to el Real Alcázares, big enough to seat all of us studyabroad folks. It was hidden in back-alleys not much wider than a Mini-Cooper. I sat with David and Nick and waited about 3 whole hours for the damn dinner to be finished. It seemed like they were trying a little too hard to be pleasing to American’s taste palettes. We had basic salad, chicken and French fries, and chocolate ice cream (basically). Good, but not exactly what any of us had in mind.
So...your label globe thing is really really amazing/ distracting. I've now been playing with it for a good ten minutes.
ReplyDeleteI like that Shania Twain and Madonna are enjoyed internationally...not so excited about Alanis Morrisette.
No, seriously...the label thing moves like, every direction...it's amazing.
ReplyDeleteHe stole it from the CR blog! And it sounds like Sevilla is very similar to Rome.
ReplyDeleteThere's no such thing as an original idea. CR stole it from someone else, you know.
ReplyDeleteI second the bit about the label globe, for some reason I find immense entertainment by spinning it...
ReplyDeleteBut in relation to Sevilla, it sounds like you're having a great experience so far! Hopefully you'll get a chance to get some legit Spanish cuisine, I'm sure that once you get used to how things work there everything, including ordering food, will become much easier. I look forward to reading more!