Hola, amigos!

I had such a wonderful time in Spain! Although I accomplished a lot in 4 days, it was surely not enough time! I don’t think I’ll be ready to leave any of the countries we port in!

On Saturday, I looked out my porthole in the dark only to see a flashing light coming from a lighthouse. LAND! What a marvelous sight this was! The pier with light was most likely Portugal! I went up to eat breakfast with my friends and excitedly watched land grow nearer with the sun rising behind it. We decided that this would become a tradition for every port! After the ship got cleared, we were able to finally walk our first steps on stable ground again! I then ventured around Cadiz (pronounced Cahw-deeth) with some friends. It was too early in the morning for the city to be alive yet. Spain runs on quite a different time frame than us. Their days start at about 10 am, they Siesta (meaning lunch and nap) from 2-5 pm, go back to work from 5-9 pm, then have dinner and go out until very late into the night. We made our way through the narrow alleyways that were filled with a variety of shops, stores, and zipping mopeds. We then walked the perimeters of the city bordering water. Cadiz is shaped like an arm with a hand. The old city is the hand and the new is the arm. We walked the “fingers” along the coastline that have beaches and 2 old castles. Spain definitely felt European, with the architecture of buildings to the flavor of ice cream. But it has this Spanish flair to it! That evening I enjoyed a very special “Flamenco Night”. A group of about 150 SAS students were taken to a Spanish farm in which we had our very own performance! It started in an arena with 2 female dancers who danced to a horse (I found this seducing horses to be very interesting). There was also a horse-taming spectacle and an amateur bloodless bullfight. We then moved inside of a restaurant where some of the best flamenco performers in the land were dancing right in front of us! The music sounded from a guitarist, female singer, and the clapping and stomping of the dancers. There were 3 females and 1 male dancing. Oh, I just can’t even describe to you how amazing it was! They were SOOO talented! I would love to learn it, but, wow, do they move quickly! They’ve got rhythm in their soles and hands and know how to shake! It was most definitely a very impressive first day in Spain!

On Sunday, I took a trip to the Grazalema Mountains. We drove through white villages on the way, which are towns dedicated to pure whiteness in every structure. They’re such a beautiful site! The mountains were another amazing site! Our stick-shift tour bus had quite an adventure weaving in and out of the tiny roads (and rolling backwards…), but eventually we made it to our drop off point, thankfully, safely. We hiked for 4 hours in the Reserve portion of the mountains that are only permissable with a guide. The horizon seemed to be so far in the distance showing many many miles of rural Spain. What an amazing site and hike!

That evening a group of us went to find a nice little outdoor café for dinner at the normal time of 10:30 pm. It was enjoyed with background music of street performers and a non-English-speaking waiter (the way it ought to be! Good thing I took 2 years of Spanish in HS!). We all ordered differing dishes and tasted one another’s. There were 11 of us so we had quite the food selection! We didn’t know what one of the dishes was and the texture caught us off guard, so we went and looked it up later… It was fish ovaries!!! I can’t say it was terrible, but I also can’t say I’d ever order it again! The night was topped off with a beautiful walk along the sandy Cadiz beaches.

On Monday, my friends and I wanted to take an independent trip to Seville (Suh-vee-ya), which is a bigger city than Cadiz. We got up early to catch a 2-hour train ride to the city. We saw the impressive Plaza de Espana, beautiful gardens filled with palm trees and fountains, and tried helado (surprise surprise, that’s Spanish ice cream ☺). We then toured the Cathedral de Seville, which is the largest cathedral in Europe! And, boy, that was obvious. It had such ornate structures and so many rooms filled with treasures (literal gold), sculptures, and paintings. We then journeyed through the Real Alcazar, which was the King’s palace. This “home” was the biggest mansion I’ve ever seen! Not only were their so many rooms, but the garden was humongous too! It even included a tree maze! It was a wonderful day spent in Seville with quickly growing friendships.

Tuesday, my final day, was spent exploring Cadiz more. By then I felt as if I knew it pretty well! We went to the “mercado” (market) to see all the fresh seafood, meat, fruit, and cheese being sold. The three of us also bought some Churros. We thought that ½ a kilo would be about right, but soon learned that was way more than we expected or could even eat! It made for some good laughs as we sought out other SASers to get rid of our excess breakfast! As soon as I felt comfortable in Cadiz, Spain, it was time to go already. It’s amazing how quickly one can feel at home in a new country.

SAS staff let us go onto deck 8 for disembarkation! This means it was VERY windy! But yet sooo much fun. You’d never guess that wind can sort of be a “toy” to play with! We watched Spain fall away in the distance as the sun began to set. It was hard to imagine that we had really just spent time there when it now seems more like a dream.

Today has been dedicated towards orienting for Morocco. We port there tomorrow morning! And you guessed it, my friends and I are getting up early to watch the sun rise as we approach it. Today we also had quite an amazing view! We took a pit stop at Gibraltar to fuel up the ship’s 4 tanks. Have you ever heard of this country? Look it up! It’s basically a country on a huge rock! It’s quite a beautiful site and was actually a trip for some of the SASers. For lunch and dinner we had the neatest surroundings in close proximity: the 3 countries of Gibraltar, Spain, and Morocco; the 2 continents of Europe and Africa; and the 2 bodies of water of the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean! I just can’t even tell you how breathtaking this was! And there we were eating dinner as if it is just normal to be nestled between 2 continents, 3 countries, and 2 bodies of water! That is a site I will forever remember.

After losing 6 hours this past week, we gain 2 tonight! It is much needed because I’ve had so much to catch up on today amidst getting ready for Morocco! I leave tomorrow morning for a 4 day trip to Marrakech and a camel trek in the Saraha ☺ HOW AWESOME! Spain one day, Morocco the next… I just can’t believe this is reality for me right now, but I’m loving it oh so very much! I hope things are going well for each of you! I will update you in a few days!

Buenas noches! Y Dios te bendiga!

Kelsey :)