Day 4

This morning was a struggle. Getting 4 hours of sleep & having to be up at the crack of dawn to meet our train 🚂 to Córdoba wasn’t easy. I’m still getting used to the time difference a bit, as I’ve been up until 2am wide awake most mornings. By train, it took about 1.5 hours to get there. Thankfully I was able to take a short nap on the train ride- but it wasn’t the most comfortable so my neck is sore.

There’s just something about a new place that makes me feel so giddy- the unknown. There is so much history behind each & every place, my mind is overwhelmed yet fascinated at the same time. Córdoba is a city in the southern Spanish region of Andalusia and the capital of the province of Córdoba. It was an important Roman city and a major Islamic center in the Middle Ages. While in Córdoba, we also visited the Mezquita-Cathedral and the Juderia (Jewish quarter).

After a few hours of touring the city, we had free time to grab something to eat. This will have been my first time on the trip going to an actual restaurant. Me being somebody who strives to be put out of their comfort zone, I ordered something that sounded like something I knew- but it completely wasn’t. I ordered “fish with rice”, honestly thinking it would be tilapia with rice.

When I received my plate the first thing I saw was the tails of a squid 🐙, shells 🐚, shrimp 🍤 legs, and other things I was not able to name. My appetite was GONE. I’m all for trying new things, but when they look slimy and have tails- I’m no longer for it. The least the restaurant could have done was label the meal as “seafood”.

Thankfully my meal came with another dish in which I ate French fries 🍟 & ham wrapped in chunks of ham that was batterfried (I forgot the name of it). I chose ice cream for a desert which was muy delicioso. Overall, my first experience ordering a meal in Spain could have been better.

As we continued on to meet with the others & our teacher, I had accidentally stepped in horse poop 💩. Of course today of all days I chose to wear my nice boots. Once we reached the train station I couldn’t help but notice how the escalators didn’t turn into steps- but rather stayed straight at at an angle/slope. Waiting for the train in the station, another student & myself went and got a CHURRO- it was so yummy & chocolate filled!

On the train ride back to Sevilla, I wrote a bit in my blog and tried my best to get some rest. Upon arrival to the apartment my roommates & I took a long nap before getting ready to go out for the night to celebrate the New Year! 🎊 On a side note, the wine 🍷 here is so good, & cheap! My roommate got a bottle for 2 euros- 11%. It’s also considered good luck to wear the color red, as well as stepping off on the “right foot” after the clock strikes midnight.

In Spain, December 31st is a very special celebration, where the fun & partying go on well into the early hours. Eating 12 grapes 🍇 at midnight on New Years Eve is both a tradition & superstition in Spain. The first 12 seconds of the New Year are somewhat quieter & more intense, as everyone focuses on eating all 12 of the “miraculous grapes” that symbolize 12 lucky 🍀 months ahead.