Submitted by Maya Blackwell on the 2019 summer session program in Granada, Spain sponsored by the Department of Languages, Literatures and Cultures…
Just from my experiences in Seville and Granada so far, I can definitely say with certainty that the lifestyles of Spainards and Americans vary greatly. Scaling the comparison down to just the area where I live in the United States to Seville makes for even more specific differences. First, and most obvious, is the architectural side of of things. All of the architecture is incredible and not at all what I am use to seeing on an everyday basis. At home, I get boring buildings with no significance or history, but here I felt every turn you took there was a building which you knew had a story behind it, maybe not a famous legend, but it was never a regular old building with several more exactly like it. Where I live in Delaware, everything is the same. Neighbourhoods vary slightly, but there are no eye-catching, bright colours or remnants of the craftsmanship of our ancestors. For the most part, you could leave one neighbourhood and enter another without knowing you even left the previous one. On a walking tour of the city with some others from the program, I was told a legend that I feel really drives my point home of every place having a story. We stood on a small stone street called Calle del Rey Don Pedro. A building stood with a statue of King Pedro (Peter) of Castile, or Peter the Cruel as many called him, mounted up on the second floor. I had passed this building the day before and thought nothing of it, I didn’t even know who it was. Our tour guide explained the legend.
Walking through the city and seeing the different remnants of different cultures was fascinating. It made me realise just how much history is staring you right in the face at every corner. The influence of Arab, Jewish, and Christian can be seen all around the city, telling the story of who was before us. One feature that really blends together three religions well in chronological order is La Giralda. La Giralda is the massive tower where the bell now sits atop. If you look at the tower the foundational layer has Roman brick work, the midsection is Arab (Muslim) architecture, and the bell tower was added by the Christians.
