Pale Little Rugrat

Luv me sum summer.

I was looking at some very summery images online. Like this one…

and this one…

and then I came across this one…

the description says, “A boy swims in the algae-filled coastline of Qingdao, Shandong province, China.” I want to know how is he possibly swimming in this green sludge and WHY? Is there no other body of water in which he can possibly escape the summer heat? It seems as if he wouldn’t even need the safety of his floaties with all of that green foam around him. 

but these floaties I like…

FORGIVE ME MRS. ZIEGLER

In Mrs. Ziegler’s AP Literature class we were supposed to read Don Quixote. I read part of the book, and then I got lazy senioritis and subsequently gave up and read the spark notes. Lazy I know, I am sure I would have been much more prepared for my time in Spain had I read it. Once again Mrs. Ziegler, if you ever come across this post I am sorry. But since coming to Alcalá, the birthplace of Cervantes, author of Don Quixote I have learned a TON about Don Quixote, and we even read a passage in my Spanish Literature class this past week (I now have the goal to go home and read the whole book). Along the way to Cordoba we stopped to visit the windmills that Don Quixote confuses as giants and tries to fight. (They probably aren’t the real windmills, but they match pretty closely the description that Cervantes gives.) We read the passage where Don Quixote tells Sancho about the giants and then attacks them.

“…they caught sight of thirty or forty windmills which were standing on the plain there, and no sooner had Don Quixote laid eyes upon them than he turned to his squire and said, “Fortune is guiding our affairs better than we could have wished; for you see there before you, friend Sancho Panza, some thirty or more lawless giants which whom I mean to do battle. I shall deprive them of their lives, and with the spoils from this encounter we shall begin to enrich ourselves, for this is righteous warfare, and it is a great service to God to remove so accursed a breed from the face of the earth.

” “What giants?” said Sancho Panza.

“Those that you see there,” replied his master, “those with the long arms some of which are as much as two leagues in length.”

“But look, your Grace, those are not giants but windmills, and what appear to be arms are their wings which, when whirled in the breeze, cause the millstone to go.”

“It is plain to be seen,” said Don Quixote, “that you have had little experience in this matter of adventures. If you are afraid, go off to one side and say your prayers while I am engaging them in fierce, unequal combat.”

A good time was had by all, and I figure that visiting the windmills makes up for my failure in reading the book in the 12th grade.

tyallen asked: I found your tunmblr-hmph. So my question is do Madrid indies (who i assume you hang out with) have the matted rat-tails like they do in Barcelona?

they have nasty a rat tails. so smelly

salamancancan

Our weekend trip to Salamanca proved to be a pleasurable surprise and many memorable events. We all went with little knowledge about what there was to do/see in Salamanca, and I went with fairly low expectations, but it turns out that Salamanca has a rich history, as it is the location of the first established university in Spain, and the fourth oldest university in Europe. We were able to tour some parts of the university and learn about traditions that were involved with graduation. 

The university in Salamanca is famous for the facade of the main building. It is extremely ornate and shows homage to the catholic King and Queen, Isabel and Fernando. There is a sculpture of a frog in the facade, and there are many legends about finding the frog: good luck, the students who find it will do well in their classes and those that do not will fail, those who find it will find love and marry, and those who find it will return to Salamanca . All of the above would help me out, but I had trouble finding it, and someone had to show me.

Another really cool thing that we saw was “El cielo de Salamanca” or The Heavens of Salamanca. It is a large painting by Fernando Gallego depicting the constellations and their corresponding zodiac signs. Before Columbus left Spain, many astronomers and other scientists were consulted about the earth and the calculations of ship sizes, the actual size of the earth and many other things that I cannot remember. But it was interesting to learn about these astronomers who studied the heavens and were able to draw many conclusions about the earth and the winds. I really want to study more about this when I get home. Some of the painting has been lost, and is now preserved in a dark room— so it is really surprising to see when you walk in and see the beautiful colors pop out of the darkness.

We visited the cathedral, and as always I was amazed by the size and detail of the building. I cannot even comprehend how they would be able to construct such a tall structure without modern technology. And after taking intro to sculpture this past semester I respect the patience and dedication that the artists put into all of the detail of the architecture and sculptures. A few of us climbed up to the top of the cathedral and we were greeted by a wonderful view of the city and we were able to get some nice pics of the cathedral from above.

As tradition calls for, I enjoyed some delicious lemon helado in the plaza mayor and enjoyed the city at night.

Finally after many weeks of searching we found a place that opened early, where I was able to get out on the dance floor and grace Spain with some of my dance moves (in Spain the nightlife doesn’t start until 2 am, which is way past my bedtime). After a few weeks of not dancing, I actually felt really sore the day after.

On our way to and from Salamanca we stopped in Avila, Tordesillas, and Toro. We visited the convent, and museum that is dedicated to Santa Theresa. I remember learning a bit about her in art history when we studied Bernini’s sculpture “The Ecstasy of Santa Theresa” but I didn’t really remember most of what I learned, so it was interesting to walk through the small museum and learn a bit about her: She was a nun involved with the counter reformation, established many convents, wrote many books and claimed to have had a vision in which she saw Christ. 

This is Bernini’s sculpture “The Ecstasy of Saint Teresa”

I also saw Santa Teresas severed finger which is being preserved in the museum. What is up with Spaniards preserving severed body parts?

It was interesting to see a museum dedicated to someone who was so respected for their religious beliefs and efforts from a religion other than my own, and to gain a sense of understanding of what people who come to Temple Square or something experience. As I have been in Spain I have looked for similarities between my own faith and the religious beliefs of other religions—predominantly the Catholic church, with Islamic and Jewish influences. As we have toured various cathedral, museums, synagogues, and mosques it has been really curious to see beliefs that are related—especially in art. It is hard to explain—and visualize without actually  seeing these works of art + having a knowledge about LDS beliefs and practices. If you are curious about what I am talking about, come to Spain and I will show you…or go to this place.

Valencia and other things.

I started writing this forever ago, and then neglected to finish it. Usually I like to write more about what I felt while there, or give some background, but I just want to get this posted. So sorry for the trip summary.

I just got back from our first multi-day trip to Valencia. I love Valencia. Imagine hundred year old castles and cathedrals mixed with contemporary architecture in a mediterranean climate with a nice beach. That is what Valencia is—magic. I really don’t know what about the city made me like it so much, maybe it was the energy that I felt from walking around in a perfect climate, or maybe it was the excitement of people eating outside on the cobblestone streets and laughing. Maybe it was because i ate delicious ice cream, wonderful fresh produce, and the BEST churros and chocolate i have yet to taste these past few weeks. 

We did not get enough time in Valencia, I would have liked another day to explore all that the city had to offer. It really came to life at night and it was fun to watch people.

-Here we saw THE holy grail, or rather what is claimed to be the holy grail, in the Cathedral.

-We went to the beach and swam in the Mediterranean. The water was a bit chilly, but we still had tons of fun. The beach had nice sand, and there was no seaweed, which I greatly appreciated.

-Visited the Lladró Factory—which was really interesting. Started by Juan, José and Vicente Lladró in the 1950’s. It is now known worldwide for their porcelain figurines which can cost upwards of $15,000. Too expensive for my taste, but being able to see how they make them was very impressive, everything is done by hand by a team of artists who must endure 3 years of training before they are hired to work at the factory. They DO make a porcelain missionary companionship for anyone who might be interested.

-Went to the Aquarium in Valencia. After watching “The Cove” I vowed I would never go to another aquarium, but I didn’t have much of a choice. Saw fish from various areas, the penguins were hilarious—but stank, saw the dolphins perform—and the whole time i was thinking of how awful it is that they are stuck in those tanks.

-Went to one of the most famous European markets. They had tons of fruit, vegetables, meat, fish, lobsters, shrimp, pastries and of course…chocolate and churros.

-Visited Cuenca—the hanging city. Buildings and homes are constructed on cliffside that often are extended further and further down the cliff edge. Very pretty, not enough time there.

Other things I have done aside from weekend travels.

-went to a 2 part flamenco performance at “El Teatro Real”, saw the spanish ballet-flamenco of “Blood Wedding” and then another part of just dancing —cool but long.

REAL nice MADRID CF

Listening to some classic Sufjan as i write this.

I went to the Reina Sofia Museum. It is probably the second biggest/famous museum in Madrid (the first being el Prado). The Reina Sofia has a vast collection of modern and contemporary art. It’s biggest claim to fame is that it houses Picassos Guernica. I studied Guernica a few years ago in Professor Goughs art history class (by far one of the best/passionate/motivational professors that I have ever had.) In Guernica, Picasso depicts the chaos, torment and agony that an innocent civilian town in northern Spain suffered as Franco, the Spanish dictator allowed Hitler to test out new weapons and military tactics. Guernica was shipped to the US and was housed in the MoMA in NYC until 1981, when it returned to Spain after the death of Franco, and the government was transformed into a democratic constitutional monarchy.

Picassos Guernica

I was so excited to see Guernica, and when I entered the room that it is in, I was stunned. It is huge. Much bigger than I had pictured in my minds-eye. It was such a moving experience to stand there and try to take it all in. At first it was hard to make out the different characters as each jagged piece blended in together. As I continued to look at it, it became easier to discern where one contorted body ended and where another began. I wish that I could remember better the discussions we had in Professors Gough class as we each shared what we felt as we looked—I tried to recall what everything in the composition meant, unfortunately I have the memory (and apparently the knees) of a 90 year old man. I stood there with a few people in my group and we each shared what we saw and felt. I wanted so badly to get up close and look at the texture and the various layers that you can make out, but I was too scared of the guards and also the anger of the crowd behind me. In the adjacent room there are variations of sketches and drawings that Picasso had done of various characters of the painting. I really liked seeing the evolution of the horse, the sketches ranged from actual studies of a horses body to stick figures of a horse wings (haha Jana—FINALLY I GOT TO SEE A REAL LIFE PEGASUS!). Anyways, if you get a chance to visit Madrid, you must go see it, and all of the other cubist works. You won’t regret it.

Last night I experienced another aspect of Spanish culture, futbol. Or soccer for those uneducated americans who happen to be reading this. Last night Real Madrid played Getafe CF  here in Madrid. We purchased the cheapest tickets possible (20 euros) which ended up being  the third to last row in the stadium. As we climbed up there I thought I had somehow mistaken venues and was actually going to a Quidditch match—the stadium is much more vertical than anything I have ever been in. We cheered on Cristiano Ronaldo as he scored 2 points. Real Madrid won 4-0. It was actually a lot less interactive than I thought it would have been. There was NO commentary from an announcer. They only thing that they would announce was when players would sub in and out. There was no “cougar first down” growls that Larson and I love, or any music clips. But it was non-stop action. I really respect that the players are able to run up and down the field for 45 minutes without any time outs or breaks. The opposing team did have some great support—they had airhorns and drums and cheers for basically the entire game. I wanted to sneak over into the group, but there were no seats and I didn’t want to take off my shirt to fit in. 

our view from the very top

trying to take a photo of myself at the game.

Classes are going well, this week I only have one day of class because we are leaving Thursday morning to go to Valencia. I am not much of a literature expert—especially in old Spanish, but I really like our teacher Sonia, and she keeps me entertained so the material is more interesting. My other teacher, Rebeca is crazy about history and is determined to instill within us the classification of roman/greek temples and does so by stomping her foot and banging the wall. I think she is so loud to keep everyone awake. 

In other news, yesterday we discovered this cafe by the university that sells delicious cola coa (a hot chocolate of sorts) —bad news for my pocket book.

Weekend travels

This weekend we took some day trips to a few nearby sites. On Friday we visited Segovia, which is known for the Roman Aqueduct that was constructed in 1 a.d. It was fascinating to walk under/around/almost climb on top of a structure that is over 2000 years old. The most fascinating thing was that it was constructed without any mortar or concrete. It is simply rock upon rock. I was truly mesmerized by its height, length and then realizing that it has survived years and years of war, earthquakes/other natural disasters and people living by/under/over/around it. romans, job well done.

28 meters high.16 kilometers long. 20,400 stones. 20 years to complete. 

Today we had a multi-city tour. On our way to El Escorial, we stopped by Santa Cruz del Valle de los Caidos—which is a war memorial dedicated to the soldiers who were killed during Spain’s civil war and is also the final resting place of Franco. Franco was ruled Spain as dictator for a little over 30 years. The monument is controversial because it is a reminder of the rule of Franco and was constructed by convicts. Aside from being a tomb and war monument, it is also a basilica. We were allowed to enter inside the basilica, but we were asked to not take any photos inside. It was rather interesting because we have been to many churches, synagogues and cathedrals and there has been almost no emphasis on those places being holy or sacred. But today as we walked in there was a big emphasis on being reverent and absolutely no photos. 

The basilica was so cool, and HUGE. I guess it is almost as big as St. Peters Basilica. 

I found this piccy online. I really liked the layout of the granite blocks on the ceiling. it created such an interesting texture and i wanted to touch it all. the design of the basilica felt like a mixture of gothic/roman/modern. at first it was really eerie (especially since the size made it seem somewhat fantastical) but as we walked up and down, the mass started and a choir/congregation began to sing—it was really beautiful and completely changed the feeling of the building. i wish i could have stayed a bit longer to continue looking at the sculptures and artwork, but we were rushed to make it to el Escorial to visit the tombs of the Kings.

Afterwards, we went to el Escorial to visit El Real Monasterio de San Lorenzo—which is the burial place of the kings and queens of spain. Our tour guide sounded just like Dumbledore, except in spanish obviously. We saw the tombs—which was like unto “The Haunted Mansion” the castle and the living quarters, and the royal library—which houses 50,000 books, in various languages. Jana they were so cool, you would have loved the typography and the beautiful covers. I could share some more history, but instead I will just post some pictures for your viewing pleasure

obviously i have been eating a good deal of ice cream.

look at that gut.

suit of armor made for babies.

i am bad at tumblr-ing.

writing on this thing requires so much effort. 

in other news…

this illustration by joao lauro fontemade me smile.