Spain ((Day Three))

I woke up at a ripe 6:45am this morning because we had to grab a quick breakfast and head to the bus station for a roundtrip ticket to Seville (pronounced, SA-VEA). As we were walking to the station, a boy that I recognized from SAS sidled up next to me and shadily whispered that he knows where to find the cheapest hashish and pot. Of course, me being me, I laughed. It was 7AM and this random student who I’ve maybe said hi to in passing was trying to get me (of all people) to come with him to buy pot? It was absurd, something out of a B rated movie. I really wanted to ask him how he knew this and where he found it, but then he might think I was interested, so I refrained.

We hopped on the bus, prepared with novels and Ipods and imaginations for our 2 hour ride to this place we knew nothing about. On the ride there, we met a guy who was fresh out of college in New York. He said he was “trying to empty out his checkbook before starting work in a month”, his words, not mine. I asked him where he’d been before Cadiz and Seville, and he named cities in Spain and Italy…just making his way through Europe until his wallet deemed empty and he needed to ‘do something with his life’, as if traveling the world is just a little something one does until they find their place, their niche. He had a job waiting for him, a law firm, that he didn’t seem too excited about. “If I can give you one piece of advice, it would be to stay in school forever”. I told him that I planned on it, and when I couldn’t anymore, when my time is up, I plan on traveling just as he was traveling.

Seville, as it turned out, is dirty and elegant and a place of beautiful architecture and class. That description is skewed and probably doesn’t make much sense seeing as how ‘dirty’ and ‘elegant’ are in the same sentence, but it’s all very true. The buildings are incredibly modern, ranging from an extreme Spanish style to a more contemporary beauty. There is one bridge that was included in a world Expo, something that architectural engineers dream about at night, I’m sure.

We ended up taking a really sketchy tour bus ride, with a driver who should not have been driving, around the gigantic city of Seville. It was one of those hop on/hop off as you please tours, and was only 12 Euro, which we seemed to think was a good idea. We ended up getting off at a large portion of city with a Cathedral that seemed to blow away all other cathedrals. Apparently, Christopher Columbus is buried inside this cathedral, Cathedral de Sevilla, and it’s the 3rd largest cathedral in all of the world. Go figure. We travel to a city that I’ve never even heard of, and BOOM, Christopher Columbus is BURIED inside the walls of this city. That’s intense!

Not only does a famous historical figure lie in the cathedral, but also 35 flights of weary walking up to The Tower. Of course none of us knew that the tower would be such a hefty climb, but the view was pretty sweet. It overlooked Seville and many of the very cool architectural pieces that make the city what it is. I told Michelle that if Mount Vesuvius in Italy would be anything like those 35 flights up to The Tower, I think I might keel over. Just a little. Nothing to break a sweat over.

That night after returning pretty late from Seville, everyone wanted to go out to celebrate my birthday (two days late). I figured since my age was being celebrated, then I might as well be present. It was the least I could do. We basically bar-hopped until 2:30am, and then we sleepily staggered back to the ship. It was a fun night, one that was unexpected, and pleasantly surprising. It was our last night in port and felt nice to relax with some new friends, dance to a little Hanson, and try a few Bacardi Breezers, which are truly yummy.

Yours,
A.