Pan de Vida

Inside the cathedral in Sevilla

The first time I went into the famous cathedral in Sevilla, we were going to mass. Simply walking into the cathedral is a bit stupefying. It’s HUGE. It’s also incredibly ornate. The wall behind the altar has dozens of carved, painted and gilded panoramas from Biblical literature. Apparently some people are under the impression that the more ornate the cathedral, the more pleasing it is to God.

Just a tiny snapshot of the immense altar

Spain is famously – and notoriously – Catholic. The history and cultural traditions of Spain are deeply Catholic, even though a small percentage of the population goes to mass each week.

Iglesia de Salvador, downtown Sevilla

A spectacular ceiling inside the cathedral in Toledo

Under Franco, the fascist dictator who ruled Spain for decades (until 1975), Catholicism was the state religion. Children could not even enroll in school without a Saint’s name. (One reason there are so many Marias and Ignacios in Spain.) Franco designed and constructed a large tomb for himself which also functions as a memorial for those who died fighting for him in the Spanish Civil War. We saw this tomb, out of our bus window, on our way to Segovia from Madrid. The cross at this site is the tallest memorial cross in the world.

The Franco period in Spain is quite controversial and I have no authority to comment on it. Depictions of Franco and the Spanish civil war can be found in countless works of art, literature and films.

Catholicism fascinates me and I obviously love the Jesuits since I’ve been working for them for 4 years. I have a great deal of respect for the Jesuit emphasis on critical thinking and social justice. I also appreciate the emphasis on generosity, humility and community service in the Catholic Church.

The virgin on the exterior of a church in Sevilla – this is very common here

Mass at the cathedral was quite different than any mass I’ve attended. I felt distanced from the service because of the language barrier, the physical distance of 30 feet in between the congregation and the altar and the fact that I’m not Catholic. There was no music during the mass, the bishop’s homily was too old fashioned and they didn’t have wine with communion – what’s up with that?

At mass, I happened to look to my right and this is what I saw: the tomb of Columbus!

This week, we attended a service at one of the 2 Anglican churches in Sevilla. Iglesia de San Basilio was lovely. The small church is decorated simply – no weeping virgins or bleeding Christs. Above the altar was a simple wooden cross.

We arrived a few minutes early and chatted with the one and only priest for a while. He found us 2 worship service books with an English translation from the Book of Common Prayer. The service was the same Episcopal service we’re used to – just in Spanish.

The congregation included about 25 other parishioners, most of whom were over 65. The church wasn’t that different than any other tiny church. There was the one woman who sings really loud and a little flat. The priest introduced Brad and me by name before the end of the service. And, after church, we were greeted by several friendly parishioners, one of whom gave us some café con leche.

During the passing of the peace, the priest went to each parishoner in attendance; he gave the women kisses on our cheeks and shook the men's hands. Loved it! Everyone said, “La paz contingo,” (Peace be with you.)

The music at the service brought me joy. As the first chords of the first hymn played on the keyboard, I instantly recognized the tune: Praise Ye the Lord, the Almighty. I printed a verse of this hymn in our wedding program.

Praise Ye the Lord, who o'er all things so wondrously reigneth,
Shelters thee under His wings, yea so gently sustaineth!
Hast thou not seen, how thy desires e’er have been,
Granted in what He ordaineth?

The final hymn was another familiar tune: The Church’s One Foundation. It’s pretty to cool to sing these in Spanish. It’s also nice to take communion after a month . . . my sins were starting to pile up.

Boda

Shout out time!

My dear friends Mary Grace and Grant are getting married today. (I've already seen the wedding program and it's gorgeous.) Living in Europe has few drawbacks - missing friends' weddings is a biggie.

Here's to Mary Grace, Grant and everyone in their wonderful families!

Tres Semanas en España

Things I've learned:

• How to whip open a fan when necessary

Every Sevillana woman has a fan – claro que si!

• Bedtime for Spanish children is after 11 p.m.
• Where my neighborhood florist is
• Where to buy the cheapest groceries in Sevilla
• How weak the dollar is against the euro right now
• I like anchovies
• I like cured ham
• Eating nothing but pork, cheese and bread for more than 2 days makes me feel bloated

Jamón Ibérico (If you are what you eat, Brad is one of these)

• How to drink wine with almost every meal
• Just because your Spain guidebook describes small fried fish that can be eaten whole, it doesn't mean you should dive into the first fried fish you are served in Sevilla, and eat it - bones and all


• The smaller the apartment, the easier to clean


• Spanish women know how to look sharp – even in 95 degree weather


• How to say, “Which is the best dessert here?” in Spanish


• How to say, “This is delicious” in Spanish


• European milk: no refrigeration needed
• Why Spain is the 2nd most immigrated-to country in the world


• When the bishops buried in the cathedral of Toledo will finally get out of purgatory and go to heaven
• What My Way sounds like on an accordion


• What I Wish You Love sounds like on an accordion


• Spaniards think the wind makes people crazy

Los Molinos (windmills) near the southern coast of Spain

• How to use “vale” correctly in a sentence
• How to do without hair appliances for 3 weeks (it hasn't been easy)


• Don’t talk to gypsies
• Which bus you take to get to IKEA
• How to kiss on both cheeks as a greeting or a goodbye


• Vodka and Fanta is a perfect combination

Donde vives?

How do you say “amazing hosts” in Spanish? We stayed with some when we first arrived in Sevilla. Lino, who is in Brad’s program at UCLA, graciously offered us housing at his family’s home in Sevilla. When you’re in a strange new place, breaking bread with a family in their home can truly warm your heart and lift your spirits.

With Livia and Lino before our first meal in Sevilla.

Lino’s parents are professionals who work hard, but know how to relax and enjoy a 3-hour lunch in their beautiful jardín (garden). Lino’s Mom owns her own company and travels all over the world. She speaks excellent English, which was a relief for me. Lino’s Dad and sister (Livia) speak a little English too. So, with my tiny bit of Spanish, we all got along splendidly.

Speaking of Lino’s darling sister, she just turned 11 on Sunday! And, we were invited to her birthday party – what a treat. The party involved several rambunctious 11-year-olds, soccer, swimming in the pool, a huge pan of paella, a piñata and perfect weather.

When Brad and I arrived in Sevilla, we needed an apartment, bank account, cell phones, internet connection and a street map. Lino did not balk for one second at how high maintenance we were. He had already arranged for us to see 3 apartments the first night we were in town! Then, when we decided on an apartment, he went with us to the real estate agency to be our advocate throughout a very convoluted process.

Supper in our piso: manchego cheese, chorizo sausage, bread and wine
We may only have 2 electric stove burners, no oven and no microwave. But, we have a washer/dryer!!!

A blanket for the bed will definitely be our next big purchase . . .

Our little piso (apartment) is quite lovely and it is in “El Centro” – the center of Sevilla! We are a 1 minute walk from the river (Guadalquivir) and a 15 minute walk from the cathedral downtown. The cathedral is the 3rd largest cathedral in the world and it is situated right next to the archive (Archivo de Indias) where Brad is researching.

On the left, the cathedral; on the right, the Archivo de Indias

Sevilla is a beautiful city with beautiful people. We have yet to do the tourist thing, but, by not having a car, we are discovering many hidden treasures throughout the city. I learn a lot about Sevilla simply by going to put more euros on my cell phone, finding a shortcut through a plaza or shopping for milk.

At the Plaza de España
Items for sale at a souvenir shop

Speaking of shopping, another quirky thing about Spain: no concept of customer service. The silver lining is that no one is speaking to me in Spanish when I step into a store. In the U.S., a retail person might say, “Now you lemme know if there’s any I can do ya’ fer, honey!” If someone said that to me in Spanish, I would be dumfounded and have no response. But in Spain, they just tell you how much you owe for your purchases. Now if I could just learn my numbers, I’d be set . . .

Pueblos Blancos

Lino, our friend from UCLA and our wonderful host in Sevilla, invited us to visit the "white towns" and some of southern Spain with him and his girlfriend, Ana. We jumped at the chance.

From Sevilla, Lino drove us to Ronda: a town on top of a mountain, with a huge gorge dividing the old city from the new city. Ronda is beautiful. The vistas from the cliffs from the gorge make Ronda a city you want to return to again. We did lots of wandering and I did lots of trying to restrain myself from taking so many photos (as you will see, I failed.)



We were in Ronda on a Saturday afternoon/evening, and I think every church in town had a wedding that night. We saw countless wedding guests and even a few newly married couples riding in a fancy car or horse carriage.

As a special treat in Ronda, we went to a Flamenco performance in the most venerated bull ring in Spain. I had never been to a bull ring or seen flamenco, so this was pretty awesome. The flamenco performance (that we only could stay for half of) involved guitar, singing and dancing. We only saw one performance by a female flamenco dancer, but the entire performance gave me a much greater understanding of flamenco.

Flamenco is more than those recognizable female dancers. It is a “cultural tradition” born in Andalucía! (According to Wikipedia anyway.) Now I also know that I could never sing flamenco (it’s got to be hell on your vocal cords) and I would never try to dance flamenco (my bum would look huge in those dresses.) Flamenco seems to be so personal to the Spanish and performing it seems to be pretty soul-baring.

After Ronda, we wound our way through mountains and past many tiny “pueblos blancos” nestled in the mountains and seemingly isolated from the world. We arrived at destination, Jiména de la Frontera, late. At supper, I expected little from the dirty, fluorescently lighted bar we chose to patronize. But, Spain is full of surprises. We had some delicious shellfish that I would never have ordered without Lino’s recommendation.

In the light of morning, Jiména de la Frontera looked even more depressing that it had the night before. I mean, if you live here, what is there to do? Litter, drink before noon and look shifty-eyed apparently!

We looked at this old castle or something and Brad and I were obviously getting a little punchy . . .
It's a bird, it's a plane . . .

It's a big goober standing in a centuries-old Moorish castle!

After we departed "Sadberg," as I like to call it, we drove on to Castellar de la Frontera. (Everything is “de la Frontera” around this area – don’t ask.) Castellar is a city built entirely inside a Moorish castle on top of a mountain. By city, I mean like 10 little 2-story buildings where a bunch of hippies selling cheap jewelry to tourists or Germans live. It was pretty cool, but do those people get cell phone service up there?

View from Castellar de la Frontera

We had a picnic lunch on our way down the mountain. Through the fog (we’re really close to the ocean at this point), we could see the rock of Gibraltar! Brad and I started singing a made-up song, “Gibraltar Rock,” to the tune of “Elijah Rock” by Moses Hogan.

On to Tarifa – in Lino’s words “quite a beautiful city.” But we only spent 20 minutes there. Oh well, I guess we’ll be back to Tarifa when we take the ferry to Morocco some day.

Next: Playa de Bolonia. A gorgeous beach! I was reminded of California beaches with the mountains near the ocean. Brad and I grabbed a couple of ice cream cones and hit the sand. It was so relaxing to lie in the sun. As a side note, some sunbathers were nude. We plan to revisit Playa de Bolonia and I’ll be sure to go topless. My motto is, “When in Spain . . .”

Whose sexy leg is that? Es la pierna de mi esposo!

Arte Español

We spent a week in Madrid upon first arriving in Spain – supposedly a week of orientation for Fulbright awardees. However, Brad was only occupied with orientation activities during 2 days, so I only had 2 days to experience Madrid Neely-style. By Neely-style, I mean lots of time looking at surrealist art and very long lunches. And brazenly using Spanish with natives, but probably embarrassing myself in the process.

During my 2 days on my own, I obsessively used the metro and I was mistaken for a native Spaniard like 3 times. I also visited the Reina Sofía Museum and the Prado – the museums were the highlight of my time in Madrid.

At the Reina Sofía, I stared at Miro, Picasso and Kandinsky works for hours. Dalí, eh, I can take him or leave him. But Miro and Picasso? LOVE THEM. You can spend hours wondering what their paintings/drawings/scupltures mean. The most famous work at the Reina Sofia is Picasso’s "Guernica." After experiencing that, you’re emotionally exhausted. Miro's pieces are a bit more whimsical and fun.

Dragonfly with red wings Miro

The Prado has a ton of Goya, Velasquez and El Greco. It also has some famous Italian, Flemish and Dutch painters. The most notable painting at the Prado is probably "Las Meninas" by Velasquez. Out of all the paintings I saw there, one of my favorites is by Goya (see below). I think the monster symbolizes a civil war in Spain. Every human and animal is fleeing in terror from him, but there’s this one donkey that’s just standing there (white and in the foreground.) I can’t remember what the donkey symbollizes . . .

The Colossus Goya

My time at the museums was completely delightful. And, I gave myself plenty of time to simply wander around Madrid.

Meanwhile, Brad was getting to know the other Fulbrights awardees to Spain. We went out with a few of the other Fulbrights while in Madrid. Most of them were going to be teaching K-12 in Madrid. The majority of the “teaching assistants,” as they were called, were new college grads. So the age gap and maturity gap between me and them was pretty huge. Not really. But, I bet I’ll appreciate this year in Spain about 4 times more than they will because I’ve been working full-time for 4 more years than they have. Additionally, I’m not accountable to anyone but myself for the work I do this year – YIPPEE!

Primeros Días

Bar hopping in Madrid’s gay district, roaming through an iconic castle in Segovia, gazing at Velasquez and Goya masterpieces at The Prado museum, marveling in the cathedral of Toledo, meeting the U.S. ambassador to Spain, apartment hunting in Sevilla, stuffing 1,000 euros in my bra for safekeeping, dining on gazpacho, sausages, patatas fritas and wine with real Spaniards in their backyard . . . and that was just our first week in Spain.

When Brad and I arrived in Spain just over two weeks ago, we hit the ground running. We’ve only stopped every now and then for a 3-hour lunch. That’s right; Spaniards have a unique daily schedule that typically involves a 2 to 3-hour lunch break or “siesta.”

A typical day in Spain:

7 a.m. Despierta (Wake up)

11 a.m. Merienda (Mid-morning snack) Maybe a cafesito (little coffee) and cruasan (croissant)

2-5 p.m. Comer (Lunch) Most restaurants will have a “Menu” for a set price. You get 3 or 4 choices for your 1st course and 3 or 4 choices for your second course. Both courses can be pretty heavy. Bebida (a glass of wine or beer) and postre (dessert) are included.

9-11 p.m. Cena (Supper) Supper typically involves some wine or beer and tapas – small plates of olives, cheese, cured ham, etc. In Sevilla, pork, cheese and fried seafood are especially popular.

Does this schedule imply that one's day revolves around food? That's how they roll in Spain. Doesn't really take much to get used to this.

During the siesta, many businesses close – some for the rest of the day. Hence, it is best to simply go with the flow and embrace the schedule. During our first week in Sevilla, Brad and I encountered serious difficulties getting a bank account, cell phones, lease on an apartment and even electricity. But I’m learning to respect that not everyone does it like we Americans do – and thank goodness for that!

I’m discovering that for every little quirk about Spain that may annoy me, there is some other quirk that is brilliant. For example, many businesses (banks included) are only open from 8 or 9 a.m. until 2 p.m. each day, but you get to have a big 2-hour lunch with 3 courses and wine every day!

Below are some photos from our first week in Spain:



When the manhole covers are this lovely, you know Madrid will be a classy city. Brad's suggested caption for this photo: "Covering Madrid's smelly parts for 500 years."









This is a 1st-century aquaduct in Segovia (a city about 1 hour north of Madrid.) Look how happy I am to not be at work . . . I couldn't care less when that aquaduct was built. Just kidding!

The Real Alcázar in Segovia. It's really old and it has a moat - how cool. This castle allegedly inspired the design of Cinderella's castle at Disneyworld. A view of Segovia from the tower in the castle.

In Toledo: Brad with Rob, a fellow colonial Mexian historian, who also has a Fulbright to research in Sevilla.




Before I forget all of the adventures that Brad and I have had, let me mention a few. We’ve been to: Madrid, Segovia, Toledo, Sevilla, Ronda, Jimena de la Frontera, Castellar de la Frontera, Tarifa, Bolonia . . . Stay tuned!