A TALE OF ONE CITY

The tale of Málaga had to be continued! I couldn’t just leave you hanging, now could I? Of course not! So after Picasso´s house, we went to the Picasso museum. It was truly marvelous to see even a sample of his massive amounts of works. I was nothing but impressed by how much art he had contributed to the world in his rather long life. I was not sure whether or not he took breaks from art in his life. Maybe art was his break and that was his secret to longevity. However, in my opinion the best part of the excursion was saved for last. The beach! The beach of Málaga was so beautiful and the people there were quiet nice and friendly. I would say more but I believe this photo says more than I ever could.   

Our group went to Málaga for our last excursion and it was a fantastic time. First we stopped near the port and saw some of the beautiful boats and yachts there. I really liked seeing the view of the water and the outdoor gym that they had constructed. As I would later learn, the city is constantly adding to what we now see. Even Yisu noted that so much had changed since he had been here in Málaga last. I was beginning to think that I had made a great decision to make this my destination for my free weekend. After we left the port we then went to the house of the famous and world renowned Picasso. What a pleasure it was to be there perusing his toy soldiers and looking at some of his earliest works of art.

 

 

For me, the Fair began when our Profe Alberto was inspired with a great idea. He decided to cancel class and take us to Plaza Trinidad (I think that’s the name) in order to see the upcoming opening parade (desfile). For this I and my other classmates were very grateful and excited to have this opportunity to experience more culture of Spain. What was great about the parade was that it was a first hand and eye witness account. It wasn’t a picture and pages out of a textbook. The music, the people, the floats they were all tangible and interactive! There was nothing on the same level as this engagement and I enjoyed it because it engaged all my senses. Some of the floats surprised me, specifically the final two. The last two were of Arabic descent and I did not anticipate this diversity of people groups  in the parade. I believe it added to my experience and appreciation of this cultural moment. I hope for more events like this.

 

About two weeks ago I had tried to upload from La Plaza de España. But, for some reason I couldn’t edit the photo properly and it was saved as a draft. Here I am weeks later with that same post and I have found success. Or rather success found me and I am able to edit the photo and show a beautiful ceramic image from the Plaza in Sevilla! For this great opportunity I am eternally indebted to my blog. Expect more posts friends and family or rather framily! Spoiler Alert: There many be posts and photos from a certain religious celebration. Also, the main celebrated figure maybe the Son of God! No te preocupes porque vamos a ver amigos 🙂

Also notice the San Antonio Spurs Web Browser subtlety placed in the background for aesthetic awe.

I am not sure if you are familiar with the logo above but it is a rather large, even global scale event. This event only takes place every four years and millions upon millions of people tune in from literally around the globe. Not even America’s Super Bowl gains as many spectators as, The World Cup. This event began Thursday night with the host country Brazil playing against Croatia and what a match it was.

Brazil was crazy and controversial
1. Scored a goal against his own team and that was the first time that had happened since 1994.
2. The referees were not well received based on many of their calls, but FIFA did back them up.

Mexico won against the excellent Cameroon
1. Many people doubted them, counted them out and downright said they didn’t belong there.
2. They proved so many people wrong and shocked Cameroon and possibly the world.

Spain lost BIG in their first game of the World Cup

1. Unfortunately, Spain continued their trend of losing the first match,  just like in 2010.
2. The Netherlands (Holland) got its revenge against Spain and it was very sweet.
3. The final score was 5-1 and I do not believe that anyone saw that coming.

Traveling can be a great thing to do. However, as our experience in both airports coming to Spain have shown, it can be quite troublesome. As a gift from our program coordinators we were all given a free weekend that consists of four days. At first, this seemed like a great opportunity to have a lot of fun and hopefully not spend too much money. That was before I started trying to travel throughout Spain.

When I first thought of where I wanted to spend my time I considered Gibraltar. A very small location yet very close (2.5 hour ride) and much cheaper than other excursions. However, I soon found out thanks to my Profe Marta that there aren’t beaches there unless you want a rocky situation. This was the first of of many issues I would encounter in my pursuit of happiness, in España. Hopefully things will improve and I will be able to find my perfect beach.