reMAKE

Hello, all.

It's been far too long since I've posted. That is, unfortunately, due to the fact that I no longer have Spanish adventure to report on.
However, I am still engaged in plenty of smaller, daily adventures of my own.
Throughout the month, I'm going to try to blog semi-daily about my happenings. Some of them are actual trips - Chicago, Seattle, etc. - and maybe, just maybe, I'll have a big announcement sometime down the road.

Thanks to everyone for reading this blog for the past year. It truly means a lot.

To a great future!

Jacob

The End

Well, it's here. I never thought it actually would come, but it has. The end of my adventure in Spain. I sit here typing this blog post at my relatives house in Sweden, but my study abroad adventure is all but nearly done now. Of course, I'm excited to see home and the people I left behind, but let's be honest how me and 90% of my program friends are feeling/thinking right now.

This sucks.

Spain was, undoubtedly, the best experience of my life thus far. It has changed my life in so many ways, from my current views on topics and life to my future plans, and many details in between, that I can't even begin to express how much I appreciate the opportunity to go abroad like I did. I earnestly hope and pray every other student has the chance to do what I did these past five months - experience a whole other world and live your life to the absolute max (do I sound inspirational, or what?!) in this short time frame of college.

The people I've met here will undoubtedly be some of my best friends for the remainder of my life. Don't worry, friends back home, we're still tight, but when you are thrust into a foreign country that speaks a different language, operates on a different time frame with different laws, you fuse together really quickly.

Back home, I'm already going over what I will do differently. Language, actions, how I treat others, being able to relate...and then some! Reverse culture shock might kill me, though.

Examples. Let's review the experience.

A trip down memory lane; the first week in Granada. I looked so young.

Our first night out. These two girls would end up being some of my best friends.

And of course, old friends are also present. Kelly, it was awesome getting to share Spain with you! Best buds for life!

Sometimes, you just had to get to the highest point in town and take it in...and then take a selfie.

Best birthday ever. 21st, you're gonna have to try really hard to beat this one.

Festivals that you'll never find on our continent. Carnaval in Cadiz, one of the most memorable experiences of my life.

Oh, the people you meet...

Nights out in Spain are undoubtedly the best.

Yet, you learn to appreciate the things you left behind, such as your parents. I love you mom and dad!

Beach days were never more than a quick bus ride away.

And travel was so accessible. Here, one of our first trips, Seville. 

Sometimes, you just have to jump into probably-ill-advised water with friends! (Pretty much a metaphor for my life abroad.)

The locals you meet will stick in your memory forever..

Honestly, I debated for a good hour on what to put in this (not final) blog post. I'm gonna say what I have to say to everyone back home when they ask me the very broad question "How was Spain?".
It is indescribable. I couldn't write down everything because I simply wouldn't have time. More will come in convo, and perhaps some memory blogs I make later, but in the meantime, I'll close with this.

Spain, I'll be back. Don't you worry.

Thank you God for everything!

Jacob

I found Paradise, guys. It was in Portugal!

Hello all,

I'm back from a weekend of sun, fun, and friends in Portugal, and I loved every minute of it! I'd even argue it was one of the best vacations of my life, and that's saying something, because I've been on a lot of awesome vacations! Where oh where do I begin?

Well, we can start at five in the morning on May 2nd, 2014. I had to double and triple check my backpack that I had everything I'd need for the next three days, because my bus left at six thirty in the morning. I realized at this moment that I'm in serious trouble, because waking up this morning was extraordinarily difficult, even though I was about to embark on an awesome adventure! I guess we'll deal with work at 6 AM when we arrive at that bridge, no?
We double checked that all 200ish of us were there (they were) and headed off to Lagos, Portugal, located near the southwestern corner of the country.

We arrived and, well, it was hot. The first thing on the agenda was a Sangria Boat Cruise among the beautiful coastline of Lagos. Stupidly, I had forgotten back in Granada to take out money for it, so I immediately rushed to the nearest ATM. Here is where I began to create a list of things that annoy me in the Mediterranean area, and topping the list at this moment was/is the lack of ability to use card. I spent a good twenty minutes walking in what I discovered later to be the wrong direction in an attempt to find the ATM that was so vaguely described for me. Walking back, getting directions for a third time, and going and finally finding it, I finally acquired the money. Heading back to the hotel, we boarded the bus to the port, where we would begin our boat "cruise" adventure.

It was a cruise, technically. You could call it that. It also was every American college student's dream: a big sailboat in beautiful waters, sailing the sea with friends, girls, and free alcohol. Yes, quite literally that was it. It was awesome. Every half hour or so as well, a smaller boat would arrive and take us on a mini tour of the grottos in the area. They were quite gorgeous, if I do say so myself!

Behold, the party boat!

While the others were on the boat, we were downing our free sangria by the "boatful" (get it?!). The crew had a really good summer playlist going as well, and the water was just warm enough to jump in (but not stay in). I would go as so far to say this was the highlight of my study abroad experience thus far. Beautiful people, scenery, friends, and relaxation. It really doesn't get better than this.

Out on the grotto.

 

After about two hours, we disembarked from the boat onto land, although, for some of us, the boat feeling followed us (a bit much sangria for some). We headed back to the hotel to freshen up/hardcore power nap before dinner. Our group, Discover Excursions, had everything set up for us, including discount meals and drinks at the nightclubs. The first night, some of my friends and I headed out to a local bar that served a hodge-podge of pretty much anything. I had ribs. Dare I say, I devoured them, and I had/have no regrets (There's still nothing quite like American meat...). Then, it was off to the club for most of us; some decided they weren't ready to turn up and headed back to sleep.
For some reason, we were taken to a seemingly-obscure bar out of the way and left there by our guide. Immediately, we were persuaded by the not-so-subtle bartenders to take some shots and buy some beer. Now these bartenders were very, very good at their jobs; wearing nothing buy a sports bra, ripped jean shorts, and a shirt bearing a bit more than usual cleavage, they squeezed at least five euros out of us that we didn't intend to. At least they made good conversation while they were robbing us...
Then we were off to the club. Entering, it was immediately different than the others we had experienced. It was pretty much full of Americans, other people from our program/group, but fun nonetheless. The free drinks didn't hurt either.
After dancing our hearts out, we wandered around the warm, old streets of Lagos back to our hotel and passed out. A good, full day indeed, and we still had two more ahead of us.

Day 2. It would be hard to beat the first day. We enjoyed a free breakfast, one we took full advantage of, as it was the only free meal on the trip (breakfast, that is). Stuffing ourselves to the max, we waddled back over to the buses again to head off to the beach. Here they had the option to go sea kayaking, but given my [lack of] money situation, I opted to stay on the beach. On this beach, which spanned a good length of the city, we drank more free sangria, rented some paddle boats and proceeded to get them stuck out in the water, and body surf for a good hour. I'm not a huge fan of salt water, but I'll tell ya, the ability to body surf is awesome and definitely makes up for the salt.

After recovering from the beach, we set out to one of the coolest destinations I've ever been to; the "end of the world" in Portugal. It's the most western point on the European continent, and we went there to watch the sunset. I'll just leave some pictures up, because words don't adequately describe it.

Somewhere wayyy over there is America.

That night, we headed out again to a place called Joe's Garage, where we were given free drinks (you sense a pattern here?) and fun! Somehow, one of the bartenders that we had met the night before was working at this bar/club as well, so we met up with her again and...surprise...ended up buying drinks from her. *sighs* We are hopeless.

Day 3: Waking up after a good balcony talk with some friends after the club, we proceeded to enjoy our final free breakfast, and headed out to yet another beach. This time we were on our own; our bus would pick us up at around four thirty, so we had to make sure just to be there on time (though, I wouldn't have necessarily minded being left behind there.).
Some people (aka those most sunburnt) weren't necessarily feeling another day at the beach. So, after doing some incredible exploring over the rocks at the first beach, some females and I packed up and headed to another.

Finally, maybe now my father will love me!

The beach was awesome, though a bit cold, and it was nice to just chill and talk before heading back to Granada.

The bus ride back was quiet, because we were all so dead. We got back at 1:30 AM Monday morning, so I ended up missing class the next day (my 8:30 one, at least). Regardless, it was totally worth the experience, and I'd recommend it in a heartbeat to anyone.


Next post: Germany and Semana Santa.

Jacob

Lost in the Mountains

Late night blog post. I'm currently debating on whether I should even go to bed tonight, since I have to get up at 5 AM tomorrow (the 2nd of May) to catch a bus to Portugal. Decisions, decisions. In the meantime, enjoy my misfortunes in the mountains of Granada today!

I've been living in Granada, Spain for nearly four months now (wow, time flies!), yet not once have I managed to get to the Sierra Nevada mountains that are but a few miles away (I know they use kilometers here, but miles are clearly superior, right?!). Well, after a night out we decided to shotgun a trip to Los Cahorros, a series of trails up near the base of the Sierra Nevada mountain range. First. we had to catch a bus to the base town of Monachil, except we caught a bus that decided it didn't want to go the whole way, so it dropped us off a good mile away and we had to walk. No biggie, right? We're young, strapping, handsome (I'd even argue gorgeous) Americans on a Spanish adventure; walking is no biggie. Well, it was only the beginning.

We made it! Well, erm, to the almost-beginning.

The town was completely shut down due to the Spanish Día del Trabajador (Labor Day). (I actually find it kinda ironic they have a labor day, since it seems like they have a holiday/party every week anyway, but hey, when in Spain...). Following some dirt roads up, and up, and up.........and up..........and up, until we reached the entrance of the national park.
Yay. We've already seemingly hiked miles, and our adventure has just begun.

Here we go!

If you've ever been to Zion National Park in Utah, that's the closest place I can relate it to that I know of. They're both beautiful. To start, we had to cross a pretty long swaying bridge (after waiting in line for about half an hour, of course, because who said nature doesn't have lines?), only 4 at a time are allowed to cross.

See ya on the other side!

Once on the other side, we were mesmerized by some waterfalls and rock climbers - there were a lot of the latter - as we hiked, crawled, and hanged (yes, literally) our way across the path. The hiking "trail" is a human-placed cement block that hugs some of the rocks, meaning at certain points we had to hang on to the provided hooks, get on our knees and crawl, or my personal favorite, jump into the parallel river and just avoid it all! The water was a bit nippy, but it felt good on such a hot day.
Then we emerged onto the other side. Incredible.

On the other side, we spent more time walking in between the beautiful mountains, streams, and even waterfalls. Eventually, we reached a big gathering point for groups by the stream. Dozens of people were lounging around, eating lunch, and generally just relaxing. It was a great atmosphere. After finishing our makeshift lunches and recharging a bit, we decided to keep going and find the other way out. Consulting some locals, we headed out.
Moving on over nature and at one time literally through a waterfall, the trail started to disappear. It was still evidently a man-made trail, but we found ourselves at quite literally a dead end (still beautiful, but it didn't get us out of the park).

Just follow me into my cave; I swear it's okay...

I suddenly found my climbing skills...

Like I said, quite literally through this waterfall.
Credit Brianne Burie

Frustrated, tired, and running out of water, we finally decided to turn around, something I like to avoid because I want to keep exploring. Backtracking a good half hour, we found more people and asked them how to get out of this beautiful, yet entrapping Eden. The man we asked directed us back in the direction we came from, a good hour's walk, assuming we didn't stop.
We stopped. A lot.
Murphy's Law states that "if something can go wrong, it will.". Well, I'd like to amend it to "if there are two paths to choose from, you're going to choose the wrong one first 100% of the time". Again, it was beautiful and I'm glad we could see these new angles, but we were all starting to tucker out now, and we still had to walk back to town once we left the park. Uf-dah.
Finally, after dragging some of the slower folk with us, we made it. We had escaped the national park. Walking back to town, we caught the bus back to town and quite literally passed out on the half hour ride back. All I remember of this part is that it was uncomfortably hot...darn that mass transit! Hungry, tired, sore, and very much desiring to just sit and reflect, we all headed home to shower up and rest.

Thus, here I am, finishing this. En fin, the hike was awesome and possibly one of the best uses of my day! (cheap, as well!) Now, we're heading off to Lagos, Portugal for a weekend retreat with a bunch of other students. Now that will be an interesting blog post.

Thanks for reading. Feel free to comment!

Jacob

PS. Yes, Semana Santa will happen...





Fútbol, McDonalds, y más

Note: Semana Santa blog will come; it's a bit larger, so it's still under construction. In the meantime, enjoy the summary of my other shinnanigans I've been getting myself into.

Fútbol. Spain is crazy about it. Heck, most of Europe and the world is crazy about it. Us Americans just haven't really caught the bug yet (who needs soccer when you have big men hitting each other on a heavily commercialized and over-priced American football match?). Spain has more than two dozen teams, sorted into various divisions, but the two important ones are the first division and the second division. Granada is in the first division...barely. This year, and more importantly this game, they were fighting to retain their first division rights, which allows them to play with the big dogs, such as Barcelona and Madrid. The game we went to was against Raya (Real/Royal) Vallecano from southeast Madrid (Madrid is like the New York in terms of sports; they have a lot of them to varying levels of success, and also receive varying amounts of money ranging from absurd (Real Madrid) to a funding equivalent to a high school soccer team.

Alright, so it wasn't quite like this. Still, it gets pretty intense.
Source: Alberto Di Lolli / AP 

We arrived a little late due to bus mix-ups and the simple fact there was a larping convention next door. No, seriously; an anime/larping convention. Who said Spaniards can't nerd it out either?! Once we arrived and were oh-so-politely informed that tickets were 10 euro higher than expected, we got our tickets and rushed in. Inside, after being harassed by some drunk Spaniards trying to hit on our female friends (I was told I had "mucho suerte" (very good luck) by drunkard numero uno for having all of these attractive females by me.) and asking the staff to find our seats, we were told that our seats were already occupied by some others and that the police couldn't/wouldn't go down and forcibly remove them. You know Spaniards take soccer seriously when they have police dedicated to ejecting people sitting in the wrong seats.

After mumbling and grumbling, we ran into some fellow Americans from New York who had the same problem. We managed to snag some upper balcony seats, which admittedly weren't that bad given the stadium's size, and began watching the show that is a Spanish soccer game.

I mean, it ain't no Lambeau, but it'll do.

To put it lightly, Granada sucked. I was shocked, because not even two weeks ago, this small town team had shocked Spain and beat Barcelona, one of the biggest, most popular, and most well-funded teams there is in professional soccer. Here, they couldn't beat a pretty equal team from Madrid. They lost 3-0, and now they'll be in division two next year. *sighs* It's like Packer football; heartbreak when it should be easy, champions when there's usually no hope.

We left and went to the neighboring McDonalds and let me tell you, American McDonalds have some catching up to do. I could order and pay for my entire order at a kiosk right when I entered, and the food arrived relatively fast. It actually looked like a classy restaurant! We took the bus back after a meal of greasy indulgence, and that was the day.

Or so I thought. The day never ends here in Spain.

In Valencia there is a world famous festival called Las Fallas in which the locals construct massive sculptures of politicians, documents, and other important figures that they believe are the cause of problems in Spanish society. Then, after days of partying, they burn them.

Because you know what's more terrifying than clowns? Ones on fire apparently chasing you. Good job, Valencia. Nightmares for weeks.

I know, every pyromaniacs dream; legally burning a really big object in the middle of a city filled with millions of drunk partiers. What could possibly go wrong? Anyways, turns out they brought a mini version of it here in Granada, and it looks like they are going to burn it tonight (the 27th of April)! I'll have to go and satisfy my secret pyro desires.
In Spain, I've learned that even though they are a modern, first world developed country with a progressive outlook on life (Spain was recently voted the most gay-friendly country in the world), they have some ancient traditions that just make you question their sanity (bull fighting and bull runs, buddy horse racing, and tomato fights). The best thing you can do is simply participate and enjoy, because they are some of the most fun times you'll ever have, and can't be replicated anywhere, no matter how hard American might try. That's a part of experiencing the culture, and it should be relished and affect how you see these other cultures, no matter how different/similar they may appear.

Semana Santa blog is in progress, I swear. Stay tuned!

Jacob

One post, Two major trips, Three weeks too late - Post 1: Africa

Blogger tells me the last time I blogged was March 9th, more than a month ago. Yeah, I get distracted a bit sometimes. Whoops. One month left; I'll try to update a little more, because there is still a lot to do here!

Morocco 

About mid-March, my study abroad group and I crossed the big sea border and stepped onto an entirely different continent; Africa! This is my first time in Africa, so I had no idea what to expect. I gotta say, I'm impressed! It was an awesome trip, with countless memories (and pictures, of course) made with every experience.

On the ferry with the boys.

We had to first take a bus to the south of Spain in order to board an hour long ferry ride to Tangiers, Morocco. Some enjoyed the ferry ride more than others; we didn't have any pukers, though! Me? I was fine. No boat ride is gonna get me to puke! Then, we landed.

Yes, much like Columbus' first step onto the Americas, we had discovered Africa! For me, this was a huge deal, because of all the continents I was likely to visit, Africa was probably the least likely to happen due to obvious safety, health, and budget reasons. This weekend excursion, however, was included with my tuition to the University of Granada through my program, CEA.
Through a series of local connections via CEA, we had a brief (and rainy) intercambio with some local Moroccan students. It was interesting to me, because one of the first questions they asked me was "What did you think Africa would be like?", and honestly, I couldn't answer them. Obviously, we have our stereotypes of a run-down, poverty-stricken, dangerous Africa, and there are certainly still areas of the continent like that, but I was also aware there were perfectly safe and middle-class/upper-class areas as well, and we were clearly in the latter. That was the first lesson I learned; every continent has its good and bad areas.
But what is a trip to a new land without trying some local cuisine? Cush-cush (I believe that is how it's spelled) is a hodgepodge of lamb, rice, and some vegetables and spices, and it's pretty delicious and very filling.

Pardon me while I go curl up in a ball and just nap after eating this delicious meal.

We said farewell and embarked on another bus ride after visiting some of the markets and more of the city. Tangiers struck me as very industrial and not exactly the most touristy place in Morocco. Also, it was quite rainy the entire time, so we spent more of our time dodging water-filled pot holes than really admiring the scenery. Nevertheless, I still found it a very interesting place.
We hopped on the bus again and headed to the Cueva de Hercules (Hercules Cave). Legend has it, here is where Europe and Africa were once connected until that famous demigod Hercules split the two with his bare arms. What a guy, that Hercules.
Possibly considered the highlight of our trip, we then got to ride camels. Yup, authentic camels.

#camelselfie

Eric had a stare-down. The camel won.

In a little bit of a sad twist, we realized after that those camels were probably not treated very well and existed only for the reason to entertain tourists like us. Regardless, it was a fun experience, even if we only got to ride for about a minute or two. Camels in Africa - that's authentic. This means that next time hump day is a thing...I got the pics and resources to provide adequate reminders of the day.

Guess what day it is?!

We went to our hotel and had dinner; the hotel was possibly the nicest I've ever stayed at! We were all exhausted from our travels and bed time in Africa was definitely needed. The other good thing about the hotel: everything was in English! This meant we could actually enjoy our favorite programs and not have to translate. Seriously, in the U.S. we take our language for granted, but only when you're in a country filled with four main languages, English not being one of them, do you appreciate the comfort of your native tongue. 

The second day we awoke relatively early, had some breakfast, and set out to the road again. We went to another Tangiers-like town, Tetouan, but it was relatively the same atmosphere-wise; more industrial. After touring some more markets and local architecture with the help of our very useful and kind guide, we set off again. The drive there was spectacular. In an unexpected twist, we ended up watching the Queen of Morocco drive by with her 20 or so Mercedes-Benz's - that's when I realized we weren't exactly in the Euro-American republics we're so used to. 

Our stop.

We then continued to the real destination - Chefchaouen, the city of blue. This place was awesome.

Central Market

The entire city was quite full of tourists, which I really didn't mind considering I don't speak French or Arabic, and bartering was quite interesting (I'm not forceful enough to really argue the price down a lot), and we had lunch with more locals. They showed us around, and it was cool to ask them about the average Moroccan and how they live - not too differently from us, it turns out. They are quite fond of technology, just like us. The only downside was that, again, English was not spoken very much, so conversation was limited, or had to go through multiple language translations (English-Spanish-Arabic), so needless to say, I was a little tired at the end. The food, again, was delicious. Moroccans do know how to cook!

For our last night, we were treated to a typical dinner party for Al-Andalus, the ancient Arab Empire that once spread from Morocco up into Spain and almost France at points. Awesome music, dancing, and, again, more food made this probably one of the most enjoyable nights abroad so far. As with the aforementioned dancing, my table was one of the first selected to dance, and well, I figured why not. News flash: just because I'm in Africa does not make my whiteness go away, nor my inherited white dance skills. Regardless, I still thought it was fun!

We dorked around in the hotel for a bit, chilling in rooms, watching TV, and eating some more (I don't know how). The next day, we sadly said goodbye to our guides and geared up for a bus ride to the coast, a ferry ride back (again, some struggles), and one more bus ride back to Granada. I was more than a little tired, and I happened to lose my keys (again) in Africa, but it was an incredible adventure that I would do all over again if offered the chance.

Obviously, to describe everything that went on there in one blog post would be impossible; ask me if you want to know more. From the tiny, tiny percentage of the place I saw, Africa looks like an incredibly diverse, beautiful, and friendly place that has its problems, just like any other continent. Go if you can. You won't regret it.

Jacob

March Madness

Two plus months into Spain and still going strong. My, where has the time gone? Before you know it, we'll be heading home to old America and...no, we're not going to think about that anymore! We still have plenty of time to enjoy Spain and all it offers us!

It's a mere nine days into March and it's already been cray-cray (you can kill me later for typing that.). What was supposed to be a trip with a friend to Germany ended up being a surprise last-minute trip to Carnaval in Cadiz, which, I have to say, was probably the most fun I've had in Spain yet.

How do I explain Carnaval to those who have not yet been able to experience it? Well, take American Halloween, put it in the oldest city in Europe, change the month to March, subtract the scandalous costumes (not literally) and put in some legit costumes that took time and preparation, and severely loosen the open container laws, and you have Carnaval!

Very creative. I'm sure the lady is proud. Photo credit to Laura Peltonen.

We boarded the buses in Granada around 10 AM on Saturday the first and embarked on the five hour bus ride to Cadiz. On the bus, many new friends were made, this time around a majority seem to be from Finland. I can't speak Finnish, so, I guess now is a better time than ever to learn. We arrived a little later than planned, at about four, and then the festivities began. After a good meal and some sight seeing, we spent time with all our friends, met knew ones (I felt so popular; apparently I knew a lot more people from school than I remember), and made memories with every encounter. All in all, twelve tired hours later we stumbled back to the buses and passed out on the ride back to Granada. I'd like to say we all did walk of shames back in our costumes, but so was the rest of the town, so it was okay.

Arrive week two and school is in full swing again. I'll admit, it's actually pretty nice to get back into the normal cycle of things, even if the normality won't last past this semester. The week was also the best Spanish I've ever spoken. Between having to try/buy new clothes, buy a used smartphone, and navigate streets and directions at night, it was the first time I legitimately felt Spanish.

Do I look European yet??

Spanish comes and goes depending on the day, I really have no idea why. The off days suck, but the days where it clicks makes every year, every prueba y examen, and every night spent crying over a test worth it. I can only imagine what I will be able to do toward the end of the trip when I have more experience.

The weather is also getting really nice, at least to snowpacalypse-Minnesota standards. It's been consistently around 22 degrees Celsius all week, which at home would equal shorts weather, but apparently shorts don't exist as a fashion object here. So, skinny jeans it is.

Imma get your heart racin' in my skin-tight jeans...

So ultimately, here I am, laying in bed typing this. We spent a good three and a half hours sunbathing in the park after a fun night out, and I gotta say, Sundays are pretty chill in Europe. I used to get very flustered when literally nothing was open, but after spending a day lounging around sipping on pop and eating sandwiches, sometimes the slower-paced lifestyle ain't so bad. We'll see how it is when it gets really hot in the next few months.

#groundselfie

Oh, I forgot. We had class on a Friday. It was terrible. I realize now that we're all in for a rough school year next year if we can't handle Friday morning classes. Ah, pues, asi es la vida...

Jacob

It's the small things

Time seems to fly by here, and I realized this when I saw the period between when I published my latest posts. Like, two weeks. Whoops. I'm just having so much fun here, sometimes the interweb slips my mind.

This weekend (March 1st - March already!) is Carnaval in Cadiz (or, if you're a cool Spainard like we are, Cadi). I actually don't know what to expect, other than it's like a non-slutty American Halloween on steroids with floats, really good costumes, and looser open container laws. I have yet to pick out my costume. (Oh yes, pictures will follow.)

The weekend before, though, some of my friends and I took advantage of the developed bus system here and went to the beach for the day. A quick 40 minute bus ride south, and we're at the Mediterranean Sea; Beautiful in any season! The day after, we ventured out and saw our city a little more with the help of a local guide.

Top of the hill selfie.

There are also a bunch of parks that are just asking to be taken advantage of; I never knew that they existed! Sometimes, getting off of the main streets and looking for the hidden stuff is more rewarding than anything else. 

Castles are everywhere. Literally. This one makes zero sense but it's in a park.

Expect to see a blog update after Carnaval!

Jacob