Delphi, Greece

We had a bus trip to Delphi, Greece for the majority of the day today. I can say that I enjoyed Delphi more than I did the Acropolis, partly because the weather was so beautiful, and because Delphi is located in the mountains. The ruins are not in great shape, but it was still amazing to see. It was at one time, a very important Greek city built into the side of a mountain. It was important for its legends of prophecy. People would travel from all around the world to receive their prophecy from Delphi priests. It turns out the site is located near a place where natural gas leaked. So the "prophets" were really just hallucinating from being poisoned. It is still a pretty cool history.

On the way to Delphi a song came on shuffle of my iPod, caught my attention, and just made me think. The Kutless song, "I’m Still Yours" put my life into perspective once again. Frequently, I lose sight of my purpose. It is not about architecture, or traveling, or making myself happy. It is only about my relationship with Christ. When that comes first, everything else will fall into place. Even though I struggle with remembering this daily, it is the most comforting thought! No one welcomes hard times, but I have always found that I come out of them so much stronger in my faith.
It is going to hit me one day just how lucky I am to see the world, hand-in-hand, with Christ; the mountains He created, the seas He filled with life, and the intelligence He gave to us all.

Athens, Greece

The historic site, The Acropolis, dominated much of my day today. It was another one of those places that I really cannot believe I was there. I have discovered that one of the coolest feelings in architecture is studying a place or building for years, and then getting to experience it in real life. Today was one of those days! Our guide took us to the top of the Acropolis and explained the site and buildings. The funny thing, though, is that I already knew about half of what she said. It was still very cool to listen to her because she is an archaeologist and she loves her Greek Mythology. Every time she gave an explanation there was a Greek myth tied to it somehow. I can easily say that I have had enough mythology for one day.
As I was trying to take a picture of Flat Stanley in front of the Parthenon, a lady came over and told me to put Stanley back in my bag, and warned me to delete any pictures I had already taken with him. She explained to me that it was disrespectful because the Acropolis is a sacred site and taking pictures shows disrespect. I can somewhat understand the reasoning behind this, but then again I do not. If I can take pictures like that in Saint Peter’s Basilica and other cathedrals, why is it any different here?
After a visit to the Acropolis we went to a modern museum of the Acropolis, where all the artifacts from the site are displayed. The stuff was cool to see, but I was honestly more excited about the building it was in. It is only four years old, so it contained a lot of new passive design. It was pretty inspiring to my design project.
The last stop of the day was the Poseidon Temple in Sounion, Greece. It is about an hour outside of Athens in the middle of a beautiful and rocky Aegean coast. The temple was pretty neat, but I enjoyed seeing the Greek countryside as well!
Tonight we went out for a family dinner for Chin and Jake’s birthday. It was an amazing Greek meal once again and everything was paid for, which made it even better. We even got free dessert and shots again. Tonight was the first night that I felt confident about the rest of this trip. I am finally starting to enjoy it more. After dinner I had to come back to the hotel for some more assignment work. I will be so glad when this rotation of assignments is over.

Greece Island Tour

One night in Greece was all it took for me to fall in love with the place. Last night we ate dinner at an amazing restaurant just off the pedestrian road near the Agora. We ordered 2 large platters of Greek samplers. Each platter is supposed to feed 4. We ate both platters entirely, and there were only 6 of us. The food was so amazing! It was nice to actually have some meat again! In addition to the platters, we ordered a Greek speciality, Saganaki, which is fried cheese! The restaurant had live music that was amazing as well. It definitely set the stage for the perfect first night in Greece.
Before dinner we did some shopping at a jewelry store just off the pedestrian street. Everything was half price, so I took advantage of that and bought several gifts for family and friend, including a necklace pendant and matching earrings for myself.

Today we spent the whole day cruising three popular islands of Greece: Hydra, Poros, and Aegina. Hydra was the first island we visited. Every single sidewalk and doorstep was a scene straight from a postcard or movie. It was fantastic! We went to a local gallery and I loved the paintings. I wish I could have gotten an original, but it just wasn’t practical, so I got a print instead! Poros was a short stop so I was not able to see much, but we did hike up to a clock tower at the top of the town. It was so beautiful! The last island, Aegina, did not have much compared to the other islands, except for a beautiful sunset. There have been a few terrorists’ attacks in Athens today, so we have been advised to stay close to the hotel this evening. Hopefully everything will turn out well, which I am sure it will because it doesn’t seem to be too serious.

Today was great because it was the first time we were able to relax and just enjoy the cruise without hurrying to the next destination. I can only pray that there are more days like this one in the future!

A Ferry Across the Adriatic Sea

As each day passes, I become increasingly confident in my ability to travel abroad. I am finally reaching some sort of rhythm; another day, another city. I would not say I am comfortable because I do not think that will ever be the case, but instead, at peace with the whole situation. Whatever happens, will happen, and there is nothing I can do to stop it.

Rod’s bag getting stolen was a huge eye opener to all of us. We basically saw it happen and couldn’t do anything about it. He set a great example for us though. He was beyond livid, but he also explained to us that it was just money. No one was hurt or in danger and everything could be replaced.

So I am learning how to enjoy myself more as I get more familiar with my classmates, and how to depend on them when I am having a rough time. I have learned so much and adapted to so many situations, my life has already changed. I love everything I have experienced so far. I am so scared that I will be over it by the end though. I pray that this does not happen because I want to soak up every country and city that I have a chance to. This trip will shape my life in more ways than one, and I want to remember almost every minute of it.

Ok enough of that! Right now we are on a bus to Athens. I had one of the best sleeps of my life on the ferry last night. It basically rocked me to sleep the whole night. Several of us got up to see the sunrise over the Greek islands, only to be disappointed by a heavy cloud cover. So we ate breakfast and went back to sleep. The ferry did not reach Greece until about 1:00p.m. which means we got to sleep until about 11:00a.m. This is probably the only time it will happen on this trip. It was just fantastic!

Pompeii, Italy

A sixth grade report was the beginning of my obsession with Pompeii. Today I finally got to go there, something I never really thought would be possible. Walking through the streets of a perfectly preserved Roman City is probably one of the coolest experiences I may ever have. I have done several research projects on Pompeii so it was amazing to discover it all finally in real life. I was disappointed that I was unable to see the Villa of Mysteries because of issues with time, which is the place I analyzed and presented last year for architecture history. We drove by it though, so I guess that will do.

The rest of the day has been a travel day with the final destination an overnight ferry to Greece. This is my first experience on a "cruise ship" and it has been ok so far. We had dinner and played Euchre for a couple of hours, and now it is time for homework. I have so many things due in the next few days, and so little time to do it.

When in Rome...

First of all I am going to start by saying that I probably will never come back here. It is a great city, but Momma Mia! I have seen all the sites and experienced almost everything there is to experience in this city… good and bad. The past 48 hours have possibly changed my life. Here are just a few highlights from Rome:

I saw and experienced the Vatican and St. Peter’s Basilica, The Pantheon, The Coliseum, Trevi Fountain, The Spanish Steps, The Forum, Trajan’s Column, and The Sistine Chapel.
The Coliseum looks so much better at night than during the day. I saw three times and it never got old.

The Vatican was pretty cool, but I think I just built it up too much in my mind. It didn’t live up to my expectation. I am still glad I went because like I said, I did enjoy it. I just think the whole tourist experience we had there was what ruined it for me. The Sistine Chapel, though, was possibly the best experience I had in Rome. It left me speechless for quite some time!

The Pantheon was a little too surreal for me to feel like I was actually there. It is almost like the pictures just appeared on my camera, like I took a picture of my textbook or something. Very, very cool! The dome seemed fake, almost.

The Spanish steps were somewhat disappointing. I sat on them, but that was about it.
I had gelato 5 times in 3 days. It sure is a good thing we walk miles every day. My favorite flavors are rice and caramel. I also tried Nutella, chocolate rum, butter whiskey, raisin rum, coffee, cookies, hazelnut, chocolate chip, and kiwi.

I also had pasta and wine each evening. Let’s just say the food I ate was my souvenir from Rome, because it was all pretty expensive. It tasted so amazing though, everything.
I was approached by so many street vendors that I can actually be rude to them now. This is something I never thought I could do.

One night in the Wi-Fi lobby at the hotel, a girl started choking. Her friends were with her so they got her some help, but it was still a little scary, and random.

We traveled one hour outside of Rome to visit Tivoli’s Villa de Este. This just happened to be on the same day that the public bus and metro transit system was going on strike. It never actually happened though; it just freaked the entire city of Rome to the point that half the population was using the system. (Maybe an exaggeration, but you just cannot understand how crowded it was) We basically sprinted from our hotel to the metro stop so we could get there before the lines terminated because of the strike. A 20 minute sardine- like metro ride, short walk, and 40 min public bus ride later we arrived at the Villa and gardens, also known as The Place of 1,000 Fountains. It was an awesome place, but I am still trying to figure out if it was worth it. All the traveling and hectic events involved with getting there and getting back were just too much for me. Maybe I just hate public transit.

As we were boarding the bus to leave Rome, Rod’s bag was stolen. There were about 10 of us on the bus at the time, the rest were in the hotel. Rod had his bag on the front sea;, the bus driver was loading bags on the other side of the bus. A guy slipped on the bus, took both of Rod’s bags, and was sprinting down the sidewalk before anyone had seen him. We all realized it at the same time, but he had disappeared around the corner before we could catch him. It is just so frustrating that he did it right in front of us! In the bags Rod had two laptops, an expensive camera, a Samsung Galaxy tablet, money, and worst of all, most of our tickets for transportation. They should be able to be replaced, but it is going to be such a pain for him. It is so weird how every one of us has reacted. It is like he stole from us personally.

So many things have made this Rome trip unforgettable. I just can’t imagine what is next to come.

Assisi and Orvieto, Italy

We visited a couple more hill towns today in Italy on our way to Rome.  The first, Assisi, looked exactly like the two towns we visited yesterday.  We were only there for an hour or so.  I had just enough time for a quick lunch and sketch.  Orvieto was a little different because it IS basically a town on top of a cliff.  To be honest it looked more interesting from the ground below the cliff than it did actually beGIn in the town.  There was one really cool view from the top, however, next to the Duomo.  Besides that, getting up the cliff was the most interesting thing about Orvieto.  We rode a tram, but it was weird because it felt more like a tame roller coaster.  I think this is because it was so steep, but it was cool to experience. 
We are now on our way to Rome, and it is a bit surreal at this point.  In a couple hours I will be in the middle of the most legendary architecture ever!  About 70 percent of what I have crammed into my brain the past three years have been about Roman design.  It will be a crazy few days because there is so much to see, but I am sure it will be awesome!

San Gimingano and Siena, Italy

We took a bus trip to the Tuscan area of Italy this afternoon, visiting San Gimignano and Siena.  Both communities are made entirely of stone and brick which I absolutely love!  I liked San Gimignano the best because it is a small relaxing town in the midst of the beautiful Italian countryside.  Neither town really has famous architecture but the places in general are just awesome.  At a café in San Gimignano, I got a cappuccino and pastry and sat down to sketch the quaint streetscape.  It began to rain but I was under an awning so it did not affect me at all.  If anything, it was more relaxing.  I look back on this moment and realize how much fun it was.

 Siena is much bigger than San Gimignano, so we had about 3 more hours there to explore.  We ate lunch there and tried to sketch, but it began to rain before we got much done.  We ended up roaming through the city, visiting a few shops along the way.

Nothing all that eventful happened today, but I think this is why I had such a good day.  I didn’t have the easiest start to the day though.  I woke up pretty much homesick and annoyed with everything this morning.  It was not even anything personal.  I just needed some space from a constant company of people.  On the way to San Gimignano I had a moment where I was ready to pack up and come home.  So I prayed, hoping for any sort of peace.  I do not know how else to describe it, except for the fact that my sketching experience at the cafe seemed like a Godsend moment.  It was not until after that I realized this.  He seemed to know the perfect time to intervene and give me peace.  Later on the bus ride from San Gimignano to Siena I was reminded how lucky I am to be on this journey.  Yeah, I have some major moments, and yeah, sometimes it would be easier to just pack up and go home.  But I have a purpose here.  I have to trust that God will take care of me every step of the way.  I find myself realizing this day after day! It is these moments that keep me in the game because going out of my comfort zone is probably one of the hardest things for me to do.  Afterwards though, I always find that it is worth it!  If I had not been blessed enough already for the day, on the bus ride back to the hostel, I saw the most beautiful rainbow behind rolling hills of the countryside.  It was a wonderful way to wrap up the spiritual day.

Also on the way back to the hostel, we ran into a cumulative hail storm.  The hail on the roof sounded like dooms day!  All I could think of was the scene from The Day After Tomorrow when huge chunks of ice were falling from the sky, knocking people out.  Luckily the storm did not reach this extent and we were able to walk back to our rooms in just the rain.  It was pretty intense for a bit though.  I would sure love it if it could quit raining sometime soon.  The forecast for the next five days though involves rain, rain, and more rain!  Oh well, it could be worse!  I could be walking on campus in 5 degree weather with freezing winds.

Venice, Italy

We left Milan pretty early in the morning, or we were supposed to anyways.  Our bus was an hour late, so we basically sat around for an hour in the lobby of the hotel just waiting.  Once we finally left, everyone settled in on the bus, and I began to work.  I had several things that I needed to get done, and the bus had Wi-Fi.  I was able to talk to some people on Facebook Chat.  It is about a 5 hour bus ride from Milan to Venice, so we were on the road for quite a while, stopping once for a bathroom break and once at a famous cemetery, Tomba Brion.  Originally a stop in Verona was on the itinerary, but since the bus was late Les and Rod decided to skip it.  I was a bit upset because Verona is where Romeo and Juliet originated.  Our bus driver told us that he has driven for Michael Jackson’s lawyer, Sting, and Rick Steves, the guy that does the nature shows.  I thought that was pretty cool! 
Anyways we arrived near Venice around 3:00p.m. and had to get a water taxi to take us to the city close to our hotel.  All 26 of us piled into two small boats, luggage in hand, and cruised through the canals of Venice.  Our hotel was a short walk from where the taxi stopped, so we had to drag our luggage a little further before we could set it down.  I was really bummed when we first got there because it was really cold and cloudy.  We were given a free day for the rest of the day so a group of us decided to wander around Venice and experience the culture.  Even as dingy as it was, the city was still beautiful.  Throughout the rest of the day we walked around, visiting shops and snack bars, and stopping periodically for photos.  I found a local artist’s shop and loved every single one of her watercolor paintings.  I walked in and she was painting in the shop, which was pretty awesome to see.  I bought some of her bookmarks because it was the only thing I could afford.  We got to Piazzo San Marco around dusk, so I got some great night photos of the place.  We ate an early dinner and headed back to the hotel because it began to rain.  On our way back we made our second gelato stop of the night!  The hotel had pretty good internet so I was able to Skype with Aubree and Facebook message several other people. 
The next morning we had a walking tour led by a native of Venice.  Unfortunately it poured most of the time we were touring so it was kind of miserable.  I was lucky we had taken photos that night before; otherwise I may not have gotten many.  Rod took us to a lady just off of San Marco square who makes her own sketchbooks and sells them.  Needless to say, about 20 architecture students had a grand ol time shopping in there.  I bought one for myself and a couple others for gifts.  We then quickly headed to the hotel to pick up our luggage, and then to the train station to catch a train to Florence. 
Venice is such an amazing and beautiful city, I am just sad that we did not have the greatest experience.  By the time we walked to the station with our luggage, everyone and everything was soaked!  So far I do not believe anything of mine was ruined.  At least I know now that my rain gear works. 

Milan, Italy

We had a tour this morning with a local Milan tour guide.  She took us around the city and showed us a few important staples to the community.  The first was an old castle. It was pretty neat because Davinci worked here every day for the family that once lived there.  Also in the castle was Michelangelo’s last Pieta sculpture.  Unfortunately I did not get to see it because the museum was not open.  We then walked to the cathedral known as the Duomo, the 5^th largest cathedral in the world.  It was very large and neat because its Renaissance style has a French influence that sets it apart from all other cathedrals.

Milan is the fashion capital of Italy, as well as the economic capital.  There are not too many main attractions in the city.  From what I have gathered the one thing Milan is good at is shopping.  After our moring tour, I walked around with a group the entire afternoon and window shopped.  There were some affordable stores, but most everything was way out of my price range.  It was a good thing too because I loved everything I saw, including the endless shoe stores.  I thought of my sister the whole time because she would have loved it! J  Also, while exploring we discovered the very first Prada store in the world.  I am not much into the fashion thing, but it was pretty neat to experience. Milan is where a lot of famous fashion names originated.

I did purchase one thing that probably seems a little silly to those who don’t know me, but it’s the little things that make me so happy!  For some time now I have been thinking about getting a hedgehog for my apartment next year, but after a couple months research I have found that they can be expensive and high maintenance.  Today I found the perfect compromise.  We were in a home designer shop when I came across a magnetic paperclip/ thumbtack holder in the shape of a hedgehog.  When you stick thumbtacks on its back it looks like the hedgehog’s spikes (or whatever they are called).  See I told you it was a little ridiculous, but it is so adorable!  I am proud of myself because this is the only thing I bought in Milan.  Believe me I would have loved about ten pairs of shoes, but that just wouldn’t be practical to carry around for the next three months.  Anyways, we spent the whole day walking around Milan and returned back to the hotel for a bit to collect ourselves before dinner. 

The room we stayed in was definitely the coolest I have ever stayed in.  The room was more like a loft because two beds were up on a second floor.  When you walked in the door there were stairs to the left that led up to the beds.  The ground floor had a queen bed, a desk, and the bathroom.  Add a kitchen sink and table and I could have definitely lived there.

Here are some interesting bits of culture that I picked up on in a little less than 24 hours in Italy. 

Eating is a very important social event to Italians.  When it is time to eat, the world stops, which I am pretty much ok with.  Eating anywhere in Milan requires a cover charge just to sit down and be served.  It is a little like a required fee for a tip.  The places we went to range from a 2-5 euro fee.  As if my 10 euro meal and 3 euro water isn’t enough, just tack on 3 more!  Bottom line, Italy is expensive, but always delicious!  I mean, pasta, pizza, and bread all a specialty in the same country!  What more could I ask for?  Oh yeah, Gelato for dessert!!!

Another thing, Americans here stick out like a sore thumb.  People stare and expect you to act like an idiot tourist.  At least most everyone is nice though! 

If you order a coffee in Milan it will always be an expresso.  Cappuccinos are pretty tasty, but Italians never drink one unless it is in the morning.  Also they never sit down to drink it, at least in cafes it is more popular to stand at the bar.  This is so they will not be charged a cover fee.
We leave tomorrow morning for Venice! It should be pretty fantastic!

Eze, France and Monte Carlo, Monaco

Today has been a pretty great day so far. We checked out of our hotel and traveled to an ancient village named Eze. It was located on a mountain so of course it had amazing views of the surrounding land and Mediterranean sea. At the top of the cliff was an old castle surrounded by a garden. Once I got to the top, I sketched a landscape looking down towards the sea.

After our visit in Eze, we headed down to Monte Carlo, Monaco. This is a town famous for its money and racing. The streets of Monte Carlo wind around the landscape making the perfect scene for sports cars. It was cool to see the town and experience a completely different way of life. The town practically sparkled because everything was so expensive and sophisticated. In just two hours I saw a handful of Lamborghinis, not to mention all the other fancy cars I don’t even know the names of. Also in Monte Carlo, I was able to confirm my theory that people actually do take their dogs everywhere with them, even to lunch! We were allowed to walk into the lobby of a famous casino that I cannot even afford the cover charge for. It was pretty awesome to see the marina as well because some of the world’s largest yachts are docked there. It blows my mind how someone can afford to live in a place like this. It was definitely another one-of-a-kind experience.

Now we are headed to Milan, Italy where we will spend a couple nights. I am beyond excited for gelato, pasta, and wine!

Nice and Menton, France

Well today has been pretty boring.  We had a seven hour bus ride from Barcelona to Nice, France, stopping a couple times along the way.  In Nice we spent a couple of hours walking around the city.  It is one of the richest towns in France, and after visiting there, I can see evidence of that.  We definitely did not belong there, in more ways than one.  We hiked up yet another mountain, but the views we saw were worth it!  I was able to see down into the harbor and up onto the mountain.  There were so many expensive yachts, sailboats, and houseboats.  It was ridiculous!  We returned to our bus and continued driving to Menton, France where we are staying for the evening.  The hotel room seems to be pretty sketch.  It is no bigger than a dorm room, has only two beds and is supposed to sleep three, the bathroom door has glass in it, the window won’t close, and we do not have WI-FI.  It is ok though, because we get three channels on the television.  Thank goodness we are only here for one night!  Guess we will be forced to get some homework done!  

Barcelona, Spain

The first day began bright and early with a train ride from Madrid to Barcelona.  The train was high-speed, which was a new experience for me.  It was pretty cool, but I guess it was not too exciting because I slept most of the way.

We arrived at Barcelona around 11 a.m. and were immediately chauffeured around the city on a bus tour.  The guide first took us to the Olympic stadium pavilion, where the Olympics were held in 1992.  We saw several buildings and plazas important to the city and learned about the vital process of how Barcelona rapidly cleaned up their city in preparation for the Olympic Games.
The one thing that I will remember most about today is finally getting to visit Antoni Gaudi’s Sagrada Familia, a very famous cathedral.  The construction on the famous cathedral began over 100 years ago and still has not been completed.  It is very unique in that as construction took place over the years, the style of architecture changed.  Because of this, it is very interesting to see the evolution of style in the construction of the cathedral.  It amazes me that after all these years it still has not been completed.  Tomorrow we get to go inside so I am really looking forward to that!

After a full day of exploring I can say that Barcelona has been my favorite city in Spain so far.  It is situated on the Mediterranean Sea and has a beautiful coast on one side with mountains bordering the city on the other side.  The city as a whole is much more similar to America than any other place we have been so far, but the culture of the city makes it a fun and unique place to be.

So far, the days that we walk the furthest are the days that are most memorable.  The second day in Barcelona we walked over 15 miles, but it was awesome!  I can now say that I have walked pretty much the entire city of Barcelona.  We began by walking to the Sangrada Familia Cathedral.  On the way we got to see a couple other projects designed by Antoni Gaudi.  At the cathedral we were given an hour inside to sketch and reflect on the design.  This was probably one of my favorite activities so far.  I had plenty of time to sketch and pray inside.  Being a part of an experience like that, I do not know how some people do not believe in God.  I think there is a reason churches around the world are the most impressive pieces of architecture.  There is just no other way the construction could be possible without Him.  Anyways, this cathedral was absolutely breath-taking.
 
After our visit there, we headed up the mountain across town to Park Guell, designed by Antoni Gaudi.  It was at least a 30 minute hike uphill, but it was worth it.  We were given another hour to explore the park on our own.  I knew nothing about the park that is apparently very famous in the landscape architecture world.  One can imagine the state of awe I was in as I came up a flight of stairs and saw the entire city of Barcelona laid out before the Mediterranean Sea.  It was beautiful!  I sat on the top plaza of the park and attempted to sketch possibly the most beautiful thing I have ever seen.  It is places like this that make this whole traveling thing worth it!  We ate lunch at a place close to the park that was completely overpriced.  I got a dish of mixed seafood paella, and I was not impressed all that much.  It also took forever, but it turned out to be ok because I had time to finish both of my sketches from earlier. 
The rest of the day was not necessarily exciting but we got to experience a large part of the city by walking.  We hiked back down the mountain and headed straight though the city to eventually end up on the coast.  The timing was perfect because we got to the coast right at sunset.  Once again the views were amazing!  It was a bit cold so I did not get to frolic in the Mediterranean (it is on my bucket list), but I was able to stick my hand in.  I was surprised by how warm the water was.  We all took way too many pictures, and then continued down the coast towards our hotel. 
About a half hour later we were released from our group for the evening.  A smaller group of us went to eat at a restaurant on the Rambla, a famous pedestrian street, to eat our last meal in Spain.  I finally got to try a specialty dish of fried eggplant and honey, and it was delicious.  After dinner we all headed back to the hotel and crashed.  I can honestly say my feet have never hurt so badly in my life.  For every great day there seems to be a hard one, so I am assuming that will be tomorrow.  We will be on a bus all day!  Oh well, maybe I can get caught up on some sleep.

Cordoba and Madrid, Spain

We left early in morning to begin our travels to Madrid, Spain.  It was a two hour drive to Cordoba, Spain where we stopped along the way.  The town was ok, but we stopped there to visit The Great Mosque.  The Cordoba Cathedral is very unique because it was originally constructed as a Muslim Mosque, but was converted into a Christian Cathedral.  It definitely was exciting to see because it is a hot topic in the history of architecture.  Being there it looked so much more impressive than I could have imagined.  I tried to sketch an interior scene but there was just no hope!  So I just sat and prayed for a while during the time the others were sketching. 

 After a visit in the cathedral, we were walking back to our bus when it began to rain!  I thought it was important to note our first rain of the trip.  We have been blessed with wonderful, but chilly weather so far.  I hear it has not been the same for everyone at home!  Anyways we boarded the bus and continued on to Madrid.  About 4 hours later we arrived in Madrid and had just enough time to go out for dinner and explore the area around our hotel. 

Most of the next day was spent exploring the city with Les and Rod, and a guided bus tour.  I was expecting Madrid to be a little more exciting than it was.  Don’t get me wrong I enjoyed my time there; it just was not what I expected it to be.  It was a very large city that seemed to be pretty modern.  We had a four hour bus tour in the morning, and about the same time walking in the afternoon.  An interesting place that we stumbled upon is called the Caxia Plaza.  This is a building my studio professor talked about almost once a week last semester.   Another building I enjoyed is the train station of Madrid because there was an entire garden inside of it.  This was one of the first buildings I experienced that really gave me inspiration for my hometown project.  Also in Madrid is an art museum that is home to the Picasso painting, Guernica.  We got to see the exterior of the building but I wanted so badly to actually see the painting itself.  We just did not have enough time!

  In the evening, a large group of people went to a soccer game.  I think it would have been awesome to see a European soccer game, but it was a little too expensive for me; so Adam, Dan, and I decided to eat somewhere instead and watch the game somewhere.  It still ended up being a great time because the restaurants were crazy with everyone watching the game.  Europeans sure love their soccer! 

We had pretty decent Wi-Fi at the hotel so I was able to Skype some people from home.  I got to talk to Sarah and the girls, Aubree, and Jenica so it made for a pretty great night, even though it just made me miss everyone more!

Granada, Spain

Our time in Granada has been short, but really great! We visited the Alhambra, which is a really old complex that houses an extravagant castle, palace, and garden. Words cannot even begin to describe the beauty of the place. This is one of the first places we have been that we have learned about in school, so it was pretty surreal to be there. After we visited the Alhambra we were given a free day for independent study. A group of us explored the city for a while, and then decided to eat lunch at a small brewery. We were told by our guide that tapas are free in Granada, so we got free appetizers and ordered some extra separately. We also ordered Alhambra beer to drink. I first had it in Sevilla and knew I liked it. Plus we were in Granada, the origin of Alhambra beer, so I pretty much had to order one. Later in the evening we got to experience a Flamenco Cave Dancing show. This was definitely a one-of-kind show. I took plenty of video so hopefully that will help me remember it all, even though I think it is something that I will never forget! Flamenco dancing is a dance unique to Spain, so it was a fantastic cultural experience. There is one other exciting thing to note. My friend Dan was told to try Lemon Fanta because it is only sold in Spain. We bought some to try and it ended up being pretty good, just like lemonade with carbonation. It’s easy to say that I enjoyed everything Granada had to offer me.

Fes, Morocco

Oh Morocco!  No amount of words can describe what we have all experienced the past 48 hours.  Where should I even start?  
After 2 bus rides, a ferry across the Strait of Gibraltar, and about 10 hours of traveling, we arrived in Fez, Morocco.  I can now say that I have been to Africa.  We got to our hotel around 7 p.m. on Thursday, January 8^th and were greeted by the hotel staff with a welcome tea.  They all seemed very excited to see us and serve.  They even unloaded our luggage and took it up to our rooms.  Shortly after we arrived, dinner was provided in the hotel for us.  Our guide Mohammad, nicknamed Momo, strongly encouraged us not to be out of our hotel after dark, and if we were to be in groups of at least 6 people.  Rod took advantage of this and assigned us our first paper on initial studio design ideas for our hometown project, so we were kept busy for the rest of the night.

The next day began with an early start exploring Fes.  Momo took us around the city on a bus tour where we stopped occasionally to take photos.  We spent the majority of the day inside the Medina, Fes’ oldest part of the city, dating back to the year 808 A.D.  The smell of the place alone suggested that the city was old.  It also looked very run-down.  It was so different that anything I have experienced.  The streets really weren’t even streets, more like narrow alleyways, because they were so small.  The culture of the Muslim religion is that beauty lies in the heart, not in the appearance.  Because of this, buildings are very plain on the outside and ornamental on the inside.  It was so dirty on the outside though, that I never really had any desire to explore and further.  Trash was piled up in corners so much so that I had to watch the ground constantly when I walked.  The alleyways were extremely narrow and closed in.  Houses and other buildings were sometimes so close together that the roofs overlapped hiding the sky.  Despite all of this, the culture that we got to experience was awesome. 
We visited several different “factories” that allowed us a look into the main trades of Morocco.  Momo escorted us to several factories including ceramic, weaving, leather tannery, rugs, metals, and a traditional pharmacy.  It was all pretty cool to see the processes of the products, but it just got annoying after a while.  It became more of a sales pitch because all they wanted was our money.  At the ceramics place I bought a set of bowls for myself that have an awesome black pattern printed on them.  It is unfortunate though because I have to carry it with me for the next 95 days!  I just couldn’t pass it up though.  I saw it and instantly fell in love.  I believe it will be a good addition to my future house one day.  I was very close to getting my mom a vase there as well, but decided the bowls were enough to carry with me.  Sorry Mom!  When we visited the weaving factory the workers taught us the proper way that Muslims tied their scarfs, and needless to say they ended up selling a lot of things to us.  I bought two of them, but I can’t decide if I want to gift them or keep them for myself.

Momo had so many connections throughout the city; it was a little scary!  He led us through the city and his nephew stayed in the back to make sure we did not get split up.  He said once he lost a person in his group in the Medina and they were found a couple months later married.  We pretty much went everywhere we wanted to with him, and I felt fairly safe too.  If the street vendors or homeless started to give us trouble, they stepped in and quickly took control. I learned very quickly how to ignore people when they are trying to sell me something.  This will be a useful skill for the rest of the trip I am sure.   Another thing, it seemed like Momo knew everyone and everything.  We all came up with a theory that Momo owns the whole place and is in a secret Mafia so he controls it all too.  It honestly would not surprise me. 
Here are just some random interesting experiences of my time in Morocco:

Morocco is famous for their olive trees, so naturally olives were served with every meal we ate.  If you know me well, you know I could eat a whole jar of olives in one sitting.  I tried several different kinds and flavorings, and I enjoyed every single one of them!
Bathrooms can be very different in Morocco.  I had my first experience with one as we stopped for lunch on our way to Fes.  I do not know what they are really called, but I will refer to them as “squatting stalls.” Let’s just say once I saw it, I decided I didn’t have to go that bad and walked out.  Apparently, this culture sees toilets as unsanitary.  I think I could argue against that.

We were warned before we entered the Medina that we should be careful taking pictures because some people believed that if they got their picture taken their soul would be lost.  So, I didn’t get as many pictures of the city as I wanted. 
After a long day in the Medina, we were walking to the bus when several children began to gather around us and even tried to follow.  All Momo’s nephew had to do was yell at the children and walk towards them and they scattered.  There were several other instances where children came up begging for money.  It was a little sad at first, but then it just got really frustrating.  It happened a few times with street vendors too!

While walking through the market in Medina, it occurred to me that there must be no sanitation there at all.  The vendors display their goods out in the open for bugs to swarm.  Raw meat was just lying on a countertop all day, the same countertop that I saw the butcher standing on to hang a cow leg, and not to mention how dirty the city is anyway.  There are community fountains, water closets, and bathhouses.  I cannot fathom growing up there and calling that place my home.

I experienced so many things first hand that most people only hear about.  It was crazy!  We are now driving back to Tangier to catch a ferry back to Spain.  A long night of travel is ahead.  We are on some country road between Fez and Tangier.  It is pretty cool to see all the little towns and their agricultural farms.  You see people out herding livestock, while at the same time working in their fields by hand, and then out of nowhere a really expensive tractor or vehicle pops up.  We even drove by a very populated market.  We were so out of place; people were stopping and just staring at the bus.  Fes has been a-once-in-a-lifetime experience, but I am very glad to be heading back to Spain.  I feel a little more secure there at least.

I am very grateful for this trip in that it gives me a way to find myself, away from home and everything I know.  It has forced me out of my comfort zone so that I have had to rely on more than just me.  The stuff I have experienced in just a week has already been life-changing, but I miss everyone at home.  So far it has been a difficult getting comfortable with everyone.  I hope that will change soon as the trip progresses because it is a little bit lonely here. 
Well sorry for the long saga of events.  I have had several hours of travel time to write.  Spain here I come… again!

Sevilla, Spain

I have spent the last two days, January 6^th and 7^th, in Sevilla, Spain.  So far my first impressions of Spain are so much better than Portugal.  One of the main things is probably because I know a little bit of Spanish.  That definitely helps a lot and not to mention that the food was much better!  Both nights a group of us went to the Catalina Tapas Bar because it was so good and cheap.  In Spain, tapas, or appetizers, are a big part of the culture, so a majority of the restaurants serve tapas.  At the Catalina a group of us ordered 7 different tapas to try.  We then ordered another round of our favorite dish.  It was hard to pick though because all 7 of them were amazing.  Catalina also had Alhambra, a type of beer, for very cheap that was really good.
 
Sevilla is a very old city that evolved with influences from Muslim, Christian, and Jewish religions.  Because of this there are several unique features to the city.  One that seems most prominent to me is the Santa Maria Cathedral.  It took hundreds of years for the church to be completed so there are very many architectural styles in the finished design.  The cathedral is located in the center of the old city, which is right next to the old castle that the king used to live in.  This is the area of the city that seems most interesting to me.  Narrow streets and uniquely paved roads give the city of Sevilla its identity.  Also, other interesting points in the city that we visited were Plaza de Espana, Calatrava’s Bridge, and the Metro Peresol.  It only took about 15 miles to visit all of these attractions yesterday.  It was worth it though.

Our tour guide informed us that both days we spent in Sevilla were national holidays.  I believe these days were in observance of Christmas.  The tour guide we had explained that citizens of the country do not gift on the day of Christmas, and instead get them about a week later.  It was hard to tell the reason why this is because the guide was not completely clear; but, I can only assume that it is because the gifting of Christmas did not happen until after the birth of Christ.  

I am not going to say that this experience is getting any easier, because it probably never will, but I think I am slowly getting used to what is expected of me while I am on this trip.  That basically means observing and learning about culture and design constantly with every experience.  I agree that I will never have an experience like this again; however, it is going to be exhausting.  Sometimes I just need some time to completely shove architecture out of my mind and just be.  I guess there will be plenty of time for that this summer.  This is Ball State’s immersive learning at its finest.

Lisbon, Portugal

I have only been gone for about 3 days, but it feels like an entire week already! World Tour began with a flight to Newark Airport in Jersey Thursday evening which was neat because we got to see the New York Skyline illuminating from above. The Statue of Liberty looked so small next to the sea of skyscrapers. We later had a flight from Newark to Portugal that was about six hours long. The plane left at 8:00 p.m. and arrived around 2:00 a.m. Indiana time, but it was 8:00 a.m. in Portugal when we arrived. Needless to say, I only got about 1 hour of sleep. It was my first experience with jet lag.

Friday was a fairly relaxed day. We had guided bus tour of Lisbon in the morning and were released for independent study time for the rest of the day, which is basically just exploring the city on our own. We also had a group welcome dinner at our hotel, Hotel Roma. Saturday began bright and early with a walking tour led by my professors, Rod and Les. We rode the metro to Lisbon’s Park of Nations exhibition, the location of a previous world fair. The entire area was designed by talented architects and designers. The next location we visited was downtown Portugal, which is also the most historic area. Downtown Portugal looked exactly how I’d imagined an old European city, and it was awesome! Rolling hills, crowded pedestrian streets, and live music created the unique atmosphere. I even got to experience a guy trying to pick-pocket me! Thank goodness I had nothing for him to get ahold of. We climbed a huge hill that led to a castle located at the highest point in Lisbon. This is the greatest part of the entire city. The views up there are priceless. No matter how many pictures you take; you can never capture the beauty of the place. Later that night a friend and I got roped into visiting an upscale neighborhood across town. After one metro ride and about 3 miles of walking, the destination was pretty disappointing, so we got a taxi back to our hotel and ate at a small bar nearby called The Cockpit Bar.

Portugal was my first experience outside the US and Canada, and because of that I definitely felt uncomfortable, even though it is a very safe city. A new language, culture, and city was a little too much all at one time, but I am sure I will get used to feeling like the outsider. Despite that though, it was a relaxing city, except for the taxi ride across town. That was terrifying. The food was pretty simple and bland. Fish and lamb are a couple main dishes that are very popular, and I got to try both meals. It wasn’t the best, but definitely edible. It just felt like the entire country was on a diet.

The first few days have been enough for me to realize that my participation on this trip is nothing short of a miracle. I am so very blessed to have this opportunity to discover the earth, one city at a time. I am going to need so much faith to make it through though. Right now I just can’t fathom doing this for the next 100 day because it is intense in almost every aspect! I just have to remember to take it one day at a time.

 

Just "A God Thing"

I cannot help but think that this is all a part of His plan.  The past year has been nothing short of what I like to call "A God Thing."  I have been blessed and spoiled beyond my comprehension with this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to travel the world, and I plan to make the best of it. 

Over the past year, my family and I have gone through our fair share of hectic preparation.  I never could have imagined how much work and planning would go into this.  More times than not I wonder, "What have I gotten myself into?"  Two days before I leave, this still rattles around in my brain, along with a million other thoughts and feelings, but one thing that trumps all these is a deep sense of peace.  While I am scared to death of what the next three-and-a-half months may bring, I realize that God has led me to this adventure, and that he will be with me every step of the way.
 
Yes, this trip is focused on architecture.  I actually get to experience global architecture rather than just learn about it.  It is a wonderful asset to the beginning of my professional career; however, I am more excited about the fact that I have a chance to share my faith with the world.  I pray that God will open my eyes to the beauty and cultures of the earth, and speak to me through His creation.  I am also very excited that I am able to share this discovery with all of you! 

"He said to them, "Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation." Mark 16:15 NIV