It?s hard to believe that we?re officially wrapping up our second to last week in Spain and moving on towards our final days in the place we?ve called home for the past 4 weeks! This week was filled with fun, with our group day trip exploring both Girona and Tossa Del Mar, and then with our group cooking class. The class was definitely a highlight of the trip, as it was really fun to attempt to make the traditional dishes that we?ve been enjoying for the past month. I?d say we did a pretty good job ? even though my job was mainly just chopping up vegetables.
After our class, my roommates and I packed up for our last field trip, a 5-day trip to both Granada and Sevilla! Granada is definitely the most unique city that we?ve visited during our time in Spain, and spending time there really allowed me to see a different part of the Spanish culture. Right when we got off the plane, we noticed a difference in the pace of the city, as we were met with a fairly small airport and a noticeable lack of public transport. Even after 4 weeks in Spain, I?m still surprised at the fact that there?s a different curve to traveling throughout the different parts of the country. After a little bit of confusion, we ended up hopping on the airport bus and made our way into the central Granada area. When we arrived, we headed straight for our Airbnb, but as we started to lug our bags through the narrow backroads, the city started to take on a completely different feel. We came to find out (very quickly) that Granada holds an extremely strong Arab influence; it almost felt like I had been transported to another country entirely. The rest of our first day in Granada was spent exploring the streets, trying new foods, and attempting to understand the culture of the area. One of my favorite finds would have to be the Arabic teas that are so popular in Granada. While exploring, we stopped at a local shop in the Albacin district that had an incredible view of the city below and tea flavors that I could never have dreamed of. The next day, our first and only full day to experience the city, we visited La Alhambra, the largest tourist attraction in Granada. The palace and gardens were stunning, and most definitely worthy of the worldwide praise that they receive. When deciding what to do with the rest of our time in Granada, my roommates and I decided to live out one of the goals that we made at the beginning of our study abroad: to find something adventurous to do in each new city that we visited. This week, we chose to hike along a trail in the Sierra Nevada?s. Our tour guide, Sonia, led us over suspension bridges and down by rivers, finishing with a sunset view atop the mountain. The views were unlike anything I had seen before, and getting to know Sonia was a highlight of the weekend! As I said earlier, it?s hard to believe this trip is starting to wind down, but I can?t wait to see what excitement our last week in Barcelona holds!