caipirinhas, gitanos, y misas

Today's long-overdue blog post is dedicated to musing over a few interesting experiences during the past few weeks, none of which include class work (the intensive session ended on Friday and I am elated that it's over and that regular classes begin this week). I should warn you in advance that this post is a bit lengthy.

Easily my favorite thing so far about Sevilla is the laid-back social aspect of the culture. Meeting friends and family takes place in the street, at bars for a tinto de verano, a restaurant for tapas, or the Jardines Reales Alcázares on a shady bench next to the fountain. I love walking home at night and seeing people - even children and babies - out at 10pm eating and drinking and laughing together. José, a Spanish student we met during our first week, says, "trabajar para vivir, no vivir para trabajar" (work to live, don't live to work).

The other night I met up with other CIEE students at El Capote, an open-air bar next the Puente de Isabel II near to the river. It was supposed to be an opportunity to meet our intercambio, a Spanish student with whom we can practice speaking. However, there were probably about forty CIEE students and ten Spaniards, which when combined with the incredibly weak sangría, made for a lame party. Harmony and I decided to visit a bar close by in Triana where we could get a caipirinha, a drink she discovered while out with another friend.

The bar was wonderfully Spanish - dingy, smoky, crammed full of people. We ordered our drink (a caipirinha is sweet rum, crushed lime, and sugar and neither of us are exceptionally skilled at drinking hard liquor, so we shared it) and sat outside next to the Guadalquivir river. This was probably my favorite night here so far; sharing a drink and chatting with a friend on a brisk night next to the river was so much more enjoyable than any discoteca.

I had an interesting conversation with my señora the other night about gitanos (gypsies) in Andalucía. Sadly my Spanish history is lacking, so I can't give you much background on them, but I do know that flamenco is thought to be invented by the gitanos, and that they're usually treated as second-class citizens. My señora had a lot of stereotypes to share about the gitanos: they steal from kind people with knives and refuse to live in apartments like normal people. But then she tells me that she knows a few "good" gitanos: a nice gitano family lives nearby, and she would call Elena, another gitana neighbor, a close friend. I've heard before that ignorance is the cause of racism, and it seems the same is true in Sevilla, or at least for my señora.

Lastly, I'd like to share my first experience at a Catholic Mass. I'd never been to Mass even in the States before Sunday, and I must say it was interesting. Unfortunately I could only understand about 20% of the service, and the Lord's Prayer was the only part in which I could participate! The church had a great number of icons representing Jesus, Mary, and a few prophets, something I am definitely not accustomed to seeing. I couldn't help wondering what the purpose of so many huge statues is: do they facilitate one's connection to God, or are they just for decoration? Maybe my Catholic friends can help me out; I'm sadly uneducated in this area.

Thus concludes my long blog post; if you're interested in pictures, check them out on http://picasaweb.google.com/alaynair. Here's a brief preview of some of the photos you'll find on Picasa:

Itálica - Roman ruins near Sevilla

Diana (Artemis) at the Museo Arqueológico

My favorite meal prepared by my señora: lentils and rice with potatoes, carrots, and sausage. In the background is fresh bread, cheese, and raw tomatoes with olive oil and salt.

The view outside my window

El Puente de Isabel II

>> more photos on Picasa: http://picasaweb.google.com/alaynair
>> Also, don't be surprised if you don't find me online in the next week or two; the Internet suddenly doesn't work at my house and I'm not sure when I'll get it back!