Hotel Melia Sevilla Seville

... what was once a fortified Moorish tower. The views of the surrounding farming region and nearby lake are superb, and the town itself is stunning. Philip and his partner Jose’ Manuel live in a home built in the 19th century, which they have beautifully remodeled. The tile floors are covered in the exquisite rugs that Philip has acquired in his many travels to Iran. We ventured out and down the ...

... drunk and rowdy, chanting, scattered and broken beer bottles everywhere around the entrance and TONS of people.  My friends and I find out which door we need to enter through, more and more people come, we are squished up against one another like we're in the mosh pit of a rock concert, balancing on strangers.   Some Brit directly in front of me cried "Bullocks!" and realized he had had his wallet stolen as we were all sardined in there.  We still ...

... so we were back on our own trolling the streets. Hark, was that a sound down this way? We rushed down the street to find a nice restaurant with tables in front! Hurrah, success! Of course, the moment we went in they saw the Grim Reapers of New Years Eve and hastily made last call. We bumped into a couple of similarly perplexed Australians looking for a good time, and our group rapidly swelled with a group of young Italians ('Italianos ...

... so I jumped on it.    I think saying **** IT was one of the smartest things I ever did.  Some people have asked whether or not I miss home....   The answer is NO!  God, that feels good.  Im slipping into the Spanish routine whether i like it or not.  I had my first all nighter in Salamanca.  Didn't get home till six am, rediculous.  But in terms of the siesta and not going to school or work till nine or ten, I love it.  I have time ...

... one of the largest in Europe. Mass was on when we arrived, so we couldn't look all over, but going in & out the four different entrances, we got a pretty good idea what it was like.) the archive museum (with maps & documents showing how much the United States of America owed their history & existence to Spain!) Plaza d'Espana (the best place we saw in Seville. It was a giant semi circle of ...

... in the afternoons it gets pretty hot. So anyways, I've decided I need some warmer clothes. :) Nothing too exciting is going on here right now, hopefully this weekend will be really fun and I'll have more to talk about. I hope everyone is doing great. Love you and miss you all! Jennifer and Kurt come November 15th, so I'm really excited to see them! And as sad as I'm going to be to leave Sevilla in January, I miss everyone at home a lot and I can't wait to see you all again. Love you all!

... Peter's in Rome, and St. Paul's in London. So after this trip I will have visited the three largest in all the world. Holy.... moly! The other fantastic thing about the Cathedral is the gothic architecture... St. Peter's is High Renaissance style and St. Paul's is Neo-Classical/Baroque. The gothic style is just amazing on this scale, and it was probably built entirely without the use of mortar. Outside the cathedral, I encountered another ...

... week to grab a class of 'tinto de verano' and some Italian bruchetta, but it didn't open for another half hour so several of our group decided to go elsewhere to grab a snack on their way home. My host mom doesn't get back until after 3pm, usually closer to 4pm, so my lunch is later than everyone else's (they eat at 2:30, typically), so I went out with Sabrina to have a Cola Coa (hot chocolate, but a specific brand that is fabulous) at a cafe ...

... t going to pay $50 or more to get into the city - I'm a DC girl, I should know how to do it cheaper, right? I tried to get my friend George to drive me, but he was on his way back from New York and stuck in traffic in Delaware. Finally I saw a bus that said "Greenbelt", which is the end of the Metro closest to the airport. I missed that bus, but I found the stop and waited 20 minutes for the next bus. It was $3 and it took me to the subway stop directly, and it was less than $3 more ...

... ceiling. The royal armory was also as interesting, there was armor dating back to the 15th Century and full suits for jousting. Some of the rulers seemed to collect armor like other people collect shoes! Next we went to the Thysssen-Bornemisza Museum. Big name, big artists. We saw Picasso´s, Van Gough´s, Kandinsky´s and many more artists and styles. There was lots from the Dutch movement when they were known for the flowers and fruits (17th ...