The Festival of San Fermin

So let me just start by saying that I was COMPLETELY unprepared for what I saw(and smelled) in Pamplona. I realized a lot about myself over the course of this trip and one of the things I realized was that I am ready to take a step out of some of the excitement that I have been filling my days and nights with. I am not taking advantage of the fabulous things that even Florida has to offer. Just as an example, I have only taken my kayak out once in the past six months! Ok, that trip was a little traumatic because I got bumped by a gator and lost Bruce's fishing rod, but still. I am ready to maybe slow down just a tad (I really can't see myself actually slowing per say, but finding some more positive activities might be a better way to say it).

Having realized all of that, I reached Pamplona on the 7th evening of a 9-day, 24 hour frat party. I met my new friend Richard and we dropped our stuff and went to get something to eat. We had to walk through the city of Pamplona where, no lie, the city goes from 200,000 to 2 million for this 9-day festival.

So here is a little history of the festival of San Fermin. San Fermin was actually a priest who was beheaded for his religious preachings. Because he was from Pamplona and because he was beheaded while preaching the gospel, he was made a saint and a festival was held annually to celebrate his life. Later on the bulls came. The running of the bulls was originally held to bring the bulls from the pasture to the squirrel(the bull ring), where the bulls were slaughtered. Somewhere along the way some guys decided it would be fun to run with or try to outrun the bulls on their way through the streets of Pamplona. It wasn't until Ernest Hemmingway wrote The Sun Also Rises, that the festival became popular to Americans.

These days, the festival lasts 9-days and begins each morning at 8am with 6 bulls and many people-almost all of them men, running through the streets of Pamplona to the squirrel, where they are tormented at 6pm by fancy dressed matadors who torture and kill the bulls while drunk people cheer them on. In the photos you see almost everyone wearing white and red. Those who run wear clean white clothes and red sashes, although I am really not sure why although I think that it is to be clean when the bull's blood gets on you? No idea really. I do know that the red is Pamplona's colour. Oh and by the way, the party lasts all day and all night. I almost vomited when I walked through the streets that first night. The smell of urine (people freely urinate in the streets and I was so thankful that it had rained earlier!!), wine(ok, everyone was drinking wine and cokes, mixed. YUCK!!), and vomit was overwhelming. Richard ended up going to the concert in the Plaza (the center of the city) at midnight. It was Chuck Berry-how funny! I however, wanted nothing more than a hot shower and sleep. I did have full intentions of getting up on Sunday to watch the bulls run because we were only a street away, but I ended up sleeping until 11am and watched the recap on the tele, which is akin to watching the commentary on Sportscenter. A bit funny for a 2 minute event where the biggest excitement comes from the bulls running people down on the slippery stone streets.

I was glad that we walked around that Sunday afternoon because more of the family aspect of the festival was visible. Big headed puppets and street musicians were all over, but you couldn't help but notice all of the formally drunk, now extremely hung over people asleep on the streets and staggering around aimlessly. We left later on Sunday afternoon for Richard's apartment about 15 minutes outside of Pamplona. Ah peace and quiet and no ferrel smelling people!!!

Expanding My Horizons.........

I had the wonderful fortune in Malaga of meeting two guys from Morocco. The reason I consider meeting them such a fortunate experience is because they are Islamic, the media puts such a negative spin on Islam and I really don't know very much about it. I met Nordin and Mohammed at a club called Cool in Malaga (imagine that-me meeting people in a club! How unlike me!). Anyhow, when I went to Denia, they came to visit. They made me a fantastic meal and we had one of the best conversations that I have had in a very long time. It was so very informative and insightful for me and I believe that they felt the same way. I would like to share a bit of what I learned......

Islam is the umbrella that Muslim, Suni, and Sheite religion sects fall under(It is along the same lines as the different branches of Christianity). Muslims follow the Koran as it is written and it is their belief that as well as following the teachings of the Koran, it is their obligation to be open minded and to learn about what others believe. One does not have to agree to appreciate the differences in people. However we are all human beings and must treat eachother with the utmost respect. Peace and tolerance are very important to the Muslim people. They are not a violent people. And their family values and practices put ours to shame.

As for the Sheite and Suni people, although they also use the Koran, they have interpretted it and follow certain parts, not the Koran as a whole. I believe that this would be comparable to those extremist religious sects in the U.S. who interpret and follow only certain parts of the Bible. It is very dangerous to take things out of context. Our media does this constantly. Giving us the bits and pieces of information that they know will make us react but never the entire story. It is this incomplete picture of the real story that creates strife, and of course these days people are so easily aggitated and they want immediate retribution or gratification that there is no patience to find out the whole truth before acting.

Ok, enough of my tangent on the media but suffice it to say you understand the danger of what the Suni and Sheite are doing. We didn't have the time to go into what the differences were and what parts each sect of the religion follow, but I found it extremely valuable to learn from people who actually practice the religion. And although I do not follow any religion, I do believe that we are all a part of the human race and must practice patience, tolerance, and especially compassion with eachother.

So here are the photos of Nordin(in the formal Moroccan attire that his mother hand-sewed!!!)and Mohammed(the taller one) and the dinner they prepared. By the way, I did not eat any fish heads. I just can't bring myself to eat something that is looking right at me!!!

Dénia-absolute paradise!!

Now this is my idea of a holiday. Golden sand beaches, families on the other end of the beach, a promanade to walk or run, and the gorgeous warm and clear Mediterranean sea to swim in.

These are photos of the coastal resort town of Dénia from the inlet (my resort is in there somewhere!)When I walked out of my slider to the pool, those mountains were the backdrop to the resort. I just don´t think I could have asked for a better place to relax for a week. Thanks to my mother for setting this one up.

Dénia sits on the east coast of Spain and there are ferries that run out to the party elite island of Ibiza everyday. I decided that I could get into enough trouble without having to take a ferry out to an elite party island, so I opted to stay on the mainland. The resort, Ogisaka Gardens, was full of families but thankfully the beach (as you can see) had enough space for those families to be noisy and for me to enjoy the tranquility that I came for.
I was grateful for Jen´s company over the past few days as well. Remember that I met Jen in Málaga? Well, she decided to come join me in Dénia as well. We´ve had a great time together this week and will be parting ways on Saturday. Me to go run with the bulls (don´t get nervous people, I promised that I wouldn´t actually run, just watch them run by!), in Pamplona and Jen to meet some friends in Valencia. Jen works on a whale watching boat in Australia and has just finished a tour all over Europe. She is great fun to have around and we have learned some new Spanish words together (hehehehehe)!

I have decided that almost all of Spain is converted churches, fortresses, palaces, or some combination of the three and subsequently I am not as interested in seeing every historic building that each city has to offer. So no Dénia photos. This city was for the beach and the relaxation baby!

Malaga

Ah, the beach. Finally. I was completely jonesing to hit the beach, especially after Cordoba. When I looked up hostels online, as soon as I saw "one minute from the beach", I stopped looking and immediately made a reservation. It turned out to be a great place and I made a new friend in Jennifer, an Australian traveling around Spain as well. We took some time to walk around the city and went to Alhambra together, and had a great time. The best historical place in Málaga was the Roman Theatre. The steps leading up are all uneven rock and the theatre is in the process of being restored, but as we sat there I could almost imagine people hundreds of years ago sitting on those very same stone bleachers watching some satire.

The Málaga beach wasn´t like any beach I had visited. First of all, there were no waves, but that´s not what I hadn´t seen. The beach was for lack of a better term, dirt. It was like the dirt we use at home to mix with cement to make concrete. Not such a fan of it, but I was so happy to be at the beach that I really didn´t care. I also appreciated the liberal attitude that the people had. The human body is not hidden or shamed and children run around and play with hardly any clothes. The innocence of children I believe is preserved better this way. There were many families and I as love people watching, I was able to watch life, and it was beautiful. Parents playing in the sand with their grand children, older people standing around having some pretty intense discussions but then breaking into deep laughter that I couldn´t help but smile at. Beach vendors coming by with cold water, or beach dresses, and even a few runners. And on the promanade was an entire set of exercise equipment, designed for the outside, that people stopped and used all day. I saw 80 plus year old men and women out there in the morning, doing their exercises, it was fantastic!!!

This was also the place where I finally broke out and stayed up until midnight to get to the clubs. I went with a few girls from the hostel and we walked to the absolute other end of the city, but the club was great. Europeon men love to sing, even if they aren´t drunk!! At this club however, the music was older American music, like Chubby Checker, Duran Duran, and even the Beatles!! I had a great time and met a couple of guys from Morocco, who were probably the most interesting people I met during my entire trip. But more on that later. I stayed up until 530 am, which was fine, because my entire next day would be spent on a bus getting to Alicante, my next stop. Enjoy the photos!

By the way, the one photo of the Jen and I was interesting because we ate there a couple of nights and it was great. Málaga is one of the big fish and seafood ports so the fish is always fresh. They stoke fires in old boats in the afternoons and when you order sardines, or other fish, it is actually shish-kabobbed and cooked in those fires. Believe it or not, sardines aren´t so bad that way! Especially when you have the Mediterranian as your scenery!!

Smiles!!

A Little Introspective on My Experiences Thus Far.....

So now I´ve been here in Spain for almost two weeks and I really have noticed a lot. Part of this trip for me was to experience how other people lived and viewed life and to step out of the glass house that I lived in. Truthfully, I expected to have a very different experience than I have. I love Spain, the history, the culture, the friendliness of the people, but I have really seen that just like the United States, Spain is not without its issues. The people here seem to have little regard for cleanliness. They throw their trash all over the ground and don´t think twice. I actually watched a woman throw a chip bag into the ocean one evening. I was very bothered. Also, it being an old country, things look very run down. Now that is different to me than the historical aspects that I have visited, this is just plain broken down, dilapidated buildings and properties. It is sad to see actually.
Finally, the most difficult has been the schedule that these people keep. Not much opens before 10 am and then there is a seista time from approximately 4-8pm when most things close up. Then everyone seems to re-emerge around 8pm for dinner and the clubs and bars don´t even open until after 11pm!! I have seen people sitting for breakfast in their party clothes at 7:30 in the morning after clubbing all night. Now people, you know I like to have a good time, but I am also a daytime person for the most part and this schedule is not my favorite. I am almost the only one up at 8 am (which I don´t mind because I can enjoy the place I am at without other human interruption) and usually the first to hit the sack at around 11pm, which is rather late for me!
All in all so far, I think that this has been a great learning experience for me to have a better perspective of life on the global scale. Ok, enough thinking for now, back to my holiday!!

Alhambra

This was, by far, the best place I have ever visited in my life. This was the residence of sultans and kings and has been around since about the 1400s. I really can´t say any words to do the place justice. The ornate and detailed carvings on the walls of almost every room, the star shaped ceiling with carvings that culminate into a center star representing the heavens, the view of the snow (yes folks, I did say snow) in the mountains behind us, even the original entryway hidden in the woods on the way down the main road absolutely blew me away. I was in awe. I could´ve taken up residence there myself I loved it so much. The Alhambra actually made it as a finalist for one of the Seven Wonders of the World, and I completely understand why.

Washington Irving was the ambassador to Spain and travelled to the Alhambra many times. A plaque bearing his name actually hangs in the room that he stayed in when he visited. It was his "voice" that guided me through the rooms and explained the history and insights to the design and creation of this magnificant palace.

By the way, the photo of the kitten is included because there are dozens of these kittens around the property, and even some almost fox looking dogs!

Cordoba

Well, here is Cordoba. This is by far my least favorite place. The temps were in the mid 40s(that is over 100 degrees!) and the air was so very dry. The hostel that I stayed at was very nice with a beautiful Moroccan flair and had a wonderful rooftop terrace. The downside was that the rooms were separated and you really didn´t see anyone during the day, except maybe at breakfast, which was very good for a hostel. Cereal, coffee, juice, and they brought out cake muffins and fresh bread to you. Very friendly too! And I think this was the only place where something in the bathroom didn´t leak! Cordoba also has beautiful sights, however I was really touristed out by the time I arrived. Doesn´t take much for me to get bored of something. The bridge you see is a dam really. And the water is seriously the colour of cafe con leche. Crazy. This was also the city of my first experience being conned. I was walking down the street when an old woman came up to me, pressed rosemary into my hand, and began to tell my future, how I was going to have 2 loves, lots of success, and bambinos. I had no warning and thought she was sweet, until she finished and then demanded money from me, hoping to get 5€ (Euros) out of me. I ended up giving her some change (in Europe, anything less than 5€ is in change) and probably gave her 5, but she finally left me alone. Next time I know better. Alright then, enjoy the photos and I am off to Malaga......and the beach!!!!

España-Championnes!!

Hola! Since I was in Madrid, I couldn´t pass up going to the Europeon Fútbol Cup (soccer for you yanks). Since the match was being played in Austria, we went to the Plaza de Cólon with 50,000 Spaniards to watch the match on huge screens set up for the event. It was absolute madness, but the experience of a lifetime!





The fans were absolutely insane and some even brought their pets!!










This is what happened when the only goal of the match was scored by España!! Flares and fireworks were set off, people shook the scaffoldings that they were standing on, and everyone just went nuts!!











These are my new friends, Sarah and Jules, who thankfully were my support while standing in the mass of people (holy claustrophobia Batman!!) I would never have gone there without them. All in all, it was awesome. The entire city was closed down for the event (except any place with a big screen tv). The people were up until the wee hours of the morning singing in the streets. I swear, Europeon men will sing for ANY reason! And they don´t even have to be drinking! I have to say that it was great to see a country united around such a happy occasion. National pride and unity is not something I´ve seen in the states. I´ve seen people wearing their España jerseys this entire week!

Adios Amigos y Amigas!