Cadiz, Spain

**Note: Postdate: June 24th 2009**

wild cats roam the streets of Spain. I guess they aren’t domestic animals like they are in the states. I don’ know why because I love my cats back home, actually I miss them, especially Stimpy who might as well be a dog. But these cats aren’t fat like him. They are scrawny, and gangly because they have no food and have to survive off of human left overs. I want to give one a home, or pet one even, but they probably aren’t very friendly seeing that they treat them like animals! I tend to treat my cats like people.

The Spanish people have one crazy-ass schedule. Pardon my French (or Spanish rather), But honestly, if I didn’t know that going out dancing didn’t start until 3am I probably wouldn’t have woken up at 6am to catch the sunrise. (Who am I kidding? Yes I would!) We were arriving in Spain: one of the biggest countries in Europe and our first stop on this extraordinary voyage (I’m going to run out of adjectives soon!) I was so excited. People were singing, cheering and just celebrating this great arrival! The rising sun was so welcoming and as we drew closer to land I could only think about one thing: we just sailed the Atlantic Ocean! How freaking cool!? Who needs planes anymore? Water is the way to go!

Except we are all a little too used to the water. Walking on stationery ground is quite strange. I found myself swaying periodically throughout the day especially when I closed my eyes or took a nap. I feel like I’m swaying now. It is so weird that we now have to adjust to the stillness of the earth. I hope we don’t loose our acclamation to the boat though because I refuse to become nauseous again! I napped because I was exhausted. I couldn’t even keep my eyes open by the end of our long afternoon. And I was a bit Cranky. I don’t think Kevin or Bo were up for that side of me. Who is!? I’m a bit of a diva.

The day started with some breakfast, where I had an insightful discussion about the Disney Internship with Danilo, who has already participated in the program. I am always planning ahead. Life doesn’t stop, not even on vacation. It was nice to get someone’s perspective on the program and I’m sure I’ll be asking him more questions about it in the future. Danilo is going to Portugal, that’s where my ancestors are from. It is so surreal that I’m right next door. Kevin, Bo, Erika, Shannon, Nina and I disembarked from the boat (enforced with Sun Screen of course) at about 9:30-10:00am….a long time had passed from 6:00am.We were already four hours into our day and we hadn’t even started. We didn’t have any plans, any tour guide but we hit the streets of Cadiz, Spain.

And what a beautiful, quaint city it is! With alley ways in the middle and big, turquoise beaches along the peninsula. Everything is about in a 20-25 minute walking radius. Including the train station or the Le Tren, which we walked to and bought our 11:00 am ticket for Seville tomorrow morning. I hate waiting in lines, I am extremely impatient and get grumpy. Thankfully I have Kevin, Bo and Erika to keep me occupied. On the way to the train station, Burger King caught Erika’s eye. She can’t resist. However Bo was not having it! He refused that any of us go to a fast food restaurant during the entirety of the trip. I stand by his decision but Erika was glued to the establishment. Bo took it into his own hands to literally carry her away from BK and continue forward to the train station. We are so excited to explore other parts of Spain, seeing as we basically covered the entire city already.

While walking around and sight setting in the afternoon, Erika, Becca and I started to talk about how much we missed our families and how much we wish they were with us on this amazing trip. I believe that one can have an amazing time by their self but it is when you share your experiences that it truly becomes worth it. This blog is a true testament to that. I am more than happy to share my experiences with anyone who wishes to follow along. We connect through experiences and I treasure each and every one … both the good and not so good.

In the afternoon it was just me, Becca and Erika. Everyone else was on a trip sponsored by SAS. We walked along the beach, which was beautiful and had some topless girls. Oo0o la la!
We walked through some amazing parks including the Public Garden called Parque Groves. Why we don’t have these in the states? I don’t know. We of course have the botanical gardens but they cost money for one and I’m sure they aren’t as exotic and adventurous as these. This park had waterfalls, ponds, bridges, caves, exotic trees and intricately shapes plants. It was beautiful! I also took some pictures of the impressive and old cathedrals. I can’t wait to share them with Papa. I’m sure I’ll see an immeasurable amount during this trip.

The alleys are lined with shops, similar to those in the US and restaurants which are open at particular hours and have a slightly different service decorum than we do. First, lunch is from 2:00-4:00, and dinner isn’t until 9:30pm. It is rude for them to bring you your check, you must ask for it, and the Spaniards sit for lunch or dinner for hours on end.

“They better have something good today, or I’m going to Burger King,” Says Erika.

To save money we ate lunch and “dinner” on the explorer (The Apple Crisp was mind blowing!) Later, a group of us went out for a evening bite of pizza and Sangria. Now we have added Niko (With his suave hair), and the lovely new member of the group Lindsay. We are in SPAIN!

This was strange: Someone just came up to a table and took people’s food from the table next to us! What on earth? He just took it and walked away. I’m sure they were in shock, because we certainly were!

Anywho, The sangria was so delicious, so cheap and sweet: just the way I like my wine, or any alcoholic beverage for that matter. The meal was good and cheap, but more importantly the time there was precious. Once again we were enjoying each other’s company, but this time in Spain! It was here that I realized how truly over-rushed we are in America. These people sit for hours to eat a meal, where we on average take a half an hour. Why!? Even when we have full days off we try to cram as much as possible into it and are immediately jumping from one thing to the next. We need to just relax.

I say that even as we rush to find the nightlife in Cadiz. When I mean find…I mean search and scavenge the deep, dark alleys of Cadiz. We get down and dirty and asked locals where the happening places were, because from our initial sight, the town was DEAD! So through the twist and turns of the alleys we eventually found the bar, Nahu. It was way to crowded and with Semester at Sea students, who at this point in the trip we are kind of sick of seeing. We want to be where the culture is and experience some true Spanish life, not just replicate our parties from the boat and place them in Spain, so we left. And thank god we did because we (meaning Bo) ended up finding a Salsa Bar!

I loved it! This type of dancing is so fun, so communal and I think a wonderful part of Spanish culture. Watching 20 people in unison doing this complicated foot work was just so exciting and impressive nonetheless. Lindsay, Shannon and ERIKA (the same one who was hesitant to participate in belly dancing) were all brave souls and jumped right in! They were all pretty good! I could get it down for maybe 2 seconds and then I’d lose it! Watching was a little more enjoyable for me. I’ll stick to Broadway, Thank You. Kevin even danced at this bar. The sarcastic, old man that he is actually showed off some moves tonight. Love that Kid!

Anyway, the night was fun…long but fun! Kate and Becca talked with two locals for like the entire night, since they know Spanish. Having friends that know Spanish is going to be extremely useful for our travels here. Kate, Becca, Rachael and Bo all studied it in High school and lucky us they are all traveling with us to Seville. Through translation, the locals asked me what I thought of Spain before I came and I told them I never thought I would come. It is true. I never had any strong desire to plan a trip to Spain. Nothing interested me here, but now coming, it is truly beautiful and a fun culture to experience.

Erika and I had a wonderful, peaceful walk back to the boat together and we talked about our opportunity to study abroad and how amazing it is once again. But Erika does truly hold traveling dear to heart. She has always loved researching different places of the world and I am so glad that I can share this love with her and even more, do it with her! I love her! We had a great time together today!

Today’s Expenses:

Gelato: 1.50 Euros $2.18 Dollars
Train Ticket to Seville: 10.00 Euros $14.50 Dollars
Dinner at Nino’s 10:00 Euros $14.50 Dollars
Drinks 6.50 Euros $9.43 Dollars

Today’s Total: 28.00 Euros $40.61 Dollars



Spanish Words

Hello Hola
Goodbye Adios
Where: Donde
Thank You: Gracias
Please: Por Favor
Excuse me: Pardon
How Much: Caunto Cuesto

Packed and ready for Seville. Day 2 in Spain ready to commence. Adios!

Explore. Dream. Discover.

~ Michael-Anthony

P.S. Why don’t they like cats?