I am going to warn you straight off that this is going to be a long post. Hang in there, folks!
So, this weekend was one of the best that I have had in Spain, thus far! I am literally convinced that I live in the most beautiful country in the entire world.
We had school on Friday to make up for the day that we had off on Tuesday, which made this weekend feel so much shorter than it normally is. On Friday after class, I just relaxed and hung out at home with Ebony. We didn’t want to go out and do too much because we knew we would have to be up very early on Saturday morning to head to Gibraltar! Gibraltar is the southernmost tip of Spain, and the southernmost point of all of Europe. It has been an English territory since 1704, which is when it was taken from the Spanish, I believe?
So we got up and left the house and made it to our 9am bus. It took 2 and a half hours to get there, but it was the most scenic and gorgeous drive ever! We drove through a nature preserve most of the way that had every type of ancient tree that you can imagine: rolling hills and mountains, lakes and rivers, the most beautiful trees and flowers. I didn’t take my eyes off the window the whole time. When we finally arrived at Gibraltar, the view only got better! It is literally the meeting point of two continents and two large bodies of water: Spain, the southern tip of Europe, and Morocco, the northern tip of Africa; as well as the Atlantic Ocean on the west side, and the Mediterranean Sea on the east side. It is literally an indescribably beautiful site.
Getting into Gibraltar is exactly like having to travel to a different country, and we needed our passports to cross the border. The customs agents also came and searched our bus. It was kind of annoying to have to wait so long when all I wanted to do was get off the bus and explore, but it was super cool to hear the British accents from the customs agents! English is the official language of Gibraltar, but since it is so close to Spain, everyone speaks at least some Spanish as well. Unfortunately, one of the guys that was on the bus with us wasn’t let in, and had to wait all day on the other side of the border, because he forgot his passport. Bummer! Once we got across the border and the bus parked, we got out and had time to explore the city. It is small, and easy to walk in its entirety within two hours. The town itself is very touristy, and they even have fake royal processions that go through the streets. This kind of rubbed me the wrong way, since I wanted something rich and authentic, but I guess it is supposedly a “mini London” (telephone boxes and all). However, the town was not the part of Gibraltar that was the not interesting/exciting. Gibraltar is famous for “The Rock of Gibraltar”, which is a massive mountain that juts out into the strait, and is home to steeps cliffs, deep caves, and wild monkeys!
We boarded a tiny white bus/van thing that was supposed to take us to the top of this peak. I had my doubts that it would make it up the essentially vertical climb up the cliff, but that actually made the ride that much more fun. Our driver/guide, Charlie, was talking to himself into the microphone in his adorable old man English accent as he drove and made the tight turns twisting up the mountain. “That’s it; c’mon!; bit further!” We stopped at several points on the way up to see the different views from the rock, and each one was more amazing than the next. About half way up, we stopped to venture into St. Michaels Cave. There is a huge network of caves that run through the mountain, and St. Michaels is supposedly “bottomless” and keeps going down down down into the earth for eternity. It was such an eerie experience. We were all talking and laughing but the second we entered the cave and started the descent into the chilly gray rocks, we fell silent one by one. It was almost as if they cave was telling us to hush, and the ground we walked on felt so sacred and ancient that it almost deserved the respect of silence upon entry. We weaved up and down through the network of carved out rock paths through the cave. The stalagmites and stalactites jutted up and down from the ceiling and the floor, creating shapes that looked like jaws and claws in the shadowy half light. I literally felt like I was in a different world. I loved every second of it.
When we returned back to the light of day, the excited chatter began again and we boarded our little rickety white van, and continued higher still. Our last stop was near the top where we found our monkey friends! The monkeys are wild, but they are monitored and controlled by the government of Gibraltar (which is technically ruled by the Parliament and Queen of England, since it is an English Colony). The monkeys are also used to people climbing/hiking/driving up the rock, so they won’t do you any harm (unless you have a super shiny object or food which they want to steal and eat). We were able to get close to them and if they permitted it, touch them. Most of them were either quite mischievous or quite lazy. One little baby had hopped onto a car and was chewing the antennae! What a rascal! And others were simply in family groups, grooming each other or sleeping. I loved seeing them and interacting with them and it was by far the best part of the trip!
We went back down the rock, and then eventually made our way home to Sevilla. I fell into bed and slept long and hard. On Sunday morning, it was another early day and up and at ‘em to catch a bus to Grazalema! Grazalema is a city in the south of Spain, roughly 2 hours from Sevilla that is nestled into the mountains. It is literally the only sign of life for miles and miles around. It looks as if the village was just placed down by the hands of God into the mountainside. I have never been to California, but I have heard stories of the wild coastal highways there. However, I can say with near certainty that those highways have NOTHING on the ridiculousness of the “highway” that we had to take on to get up the mountain! The sharpest, narrowest hairpins turns were around every bend, winding higher and higher still into the mountain. And there were NO GUARDRAILS of any kind! Can you say dangerous?! But I guess that the road is not often used, so it doesn’t necessarily have to be the “safest”. I’m sure it was difficult enough to carve the road out of the mountainside without also having the burden of building guardrails.
After an hour of seeing nothing but green and mountains and clouds, and wild sheep and mountain goats frolicking in the hills, we finally rounded a corner and saw the beautifully quaint village that is Grazalema! It is a “pueblo blanco” which means white town/village. It means that all of the buildings all look the same and are all painted white, which is typical in smaller villages in southern Spain.
Once we got off the bus, we began our amazing hike through the mountain. Words can’t do it justice. I have a handful of amazingly descriptive adjectives, but words and pictures do not even do this area justice! It was such a gorgeous day, warm and sunny. After about two hours of hiking, we wound our way back down to the little village and had lunch and explored the little twisting streets. The bus ride home was quite ridiculous, and I felt at times we were literally going to fall off the edge of the cliffs, but it was so worth it. The whole trip was amazing!
But today, I am SO SORE! My whole body is in pain. Clearly I am out of shape, because hiking really kicked my butt! My hips, knees and legs are feeling like they belong to an 80 rather than a 20 year old woman!
In other news aside from the weekend trips, life here is getting better and better. I am in my second week of Continuation Period classes, and I like how laid back and discussion based my classes are. The relationship between student and professor here is much more causal and relaxed, and we call them by their first names. My classes are small, all less than 20 students. At first, I wasn’t sure how I would feel about that, however, I am liking it more and more as the time passes.
This weekend, my boyfriend Brent is coming to visit me! He is also studying abroad in Prague, Czech Republic, this semester, and so it isn’t that far/expensive for him to come visit. I am very excited to show him around me new beloved hometown of Sevilla! I hope that this week passes by quickly, I am ready for some fun in the sun!
Missing everyone at home, and you’re all in my thoughts and prayers!
xoxo
