All kinds of parties, reflections, and anticipations

An interrogation scene

Hello my name is Christine Dimke and you are reading Christine-sees-the-world the most up to date and accurate news source for Exchange Student experiences in Malaga capital.  Today we have some exclusive reports on Los Fiestas Patronales, first communions, sun burns, Ferias, and finals, so lets get to it.

Europe's Balcony

We kicked off the Fiestas Patronales on Friday with a concert that some of my friends rocked; Alfredo may not pass but he can play the guitar. Then we headed off to the port with an Oreo Cheesecake in hand to celebrate my 18th birthday.  It was a great night, because of the great friends I got to spend it with (plus they all loved the cheesecake, so much they made me make another one.)

The next week the party continued with Agatha Christie's The Mousetrap, in which I played a slightly modified version of Paravicini.  We changed the name to Miss Jarlov and the nationality from Italy to England to make it more believable.  I got a lot of comments after the show on the authenticity of my accent.  I just smiled and told everyone that it was difficult to pull off, but that with practice anything is possible.  My friends stood behind me and laughed.

Nerja

We spent the next couple of days in such trying activities as giving science demonstrations, judging cake competitions, and playing student vs. teacher sports games.  It all culminated on with a paella making contest in which all the classes were given a space on the patio to make a paella in a 2 hour window.  We all went to work bringing different things and chopping and stirring (and stealing what we lacked from our friend's classes.)  4 bags of chips, 2 tortilla de patatas, 10 liters of soda, one sunburned back,one giant paella, and another cheesecake later the dust settled, and out of 44 classes the class of yours truly,2B, took second place.

One of the streets

The Jerez Feria is the horse Feria

A couple of weeks later I headed off to Marbella to give some presentations and got a chance to go to Jerez and witness one of the most famous Ferias of all time.  Whilst in Spain I have heard numerous times about Ferias, but the conclusion is always the same, they are magical, a big party and completely indescribable.  After finally experiencing one I can tell you that no words can due the atmosphere justice.  Its like a step back in time, a temporary town erected in a matter of days that is a completely separate world from the one just outside its gates.  Everyone leaves there worries outside and comes in to dance and talk and be a part of something that it really unique.  It was a beautiful expression of the Spanish spirit and culture.

The Feria at night

The other two weekends in May were spent in the good company of my dad's side of the family at the first communions of two of my cousins.  For the first one we packed up and headed off to Granada where I had the opportunity to meet the final few cousins that I had been lacking.  The ceremony was simple much like those we have in the United States, but the after celebration was huge.  All 70 some guests headed off to a venta (country side restaurant similar to a golf clubhouse but without the golf-course.)  There we talked, drank, danced, congratulated, and enjoyed a 6 course meal til 7 pm.  From there the family headed off to a country house to celebrate my Aunt and Uncles 25th anniversary.  There we enjoyed jokes, dances, beautiful views, and of course more eating and drinking.  We headed home early around midnight because of our longer commute, but I imagine the party continued well into the night.

In Granada with the family!

The other communion we celebrated here in Malaga in a beautiful little church in Capuchinos.  Then we headed down to the port for a much calmer, but equally enjoyable celebration.  Although not all the family could make it, we still had a great time.  After everyone had hit the road we lingered with my closest Aunt and Uncle and some friends and enjoyed a drink until 8 or so.

More family time with my uncles!

Now we are in finals week for the seniors so everyone has chained themselves to their respective desks till Thursday; well everyone, except me that is.  After the last final though it will be time to start celebrating!  All the way from the 31st to the 4th when we get the grades to the 7th when they graduate, and we have the biggest party of them all.  Then its back to the books to study for Selectividad or the universal college entrance exams here in Spain which pretty much determine what you can study and where.

My cousin after the celebration

 In the mean time, I'm off to Barcelona with my parents and cousin this weekend which is super exciting! It was the one place I really wanted to see when I came to here, and I didn't think it would be possible. After that its end of the year trip time.  The exchange students are taking a tour through all of Andalucia and up to Portugal for the Rotary International Convention, which should be a blast.  Summer has hit hard here on the Coast of the Sun and we mean to make the most of it and have fun!  Well just as soon as finals end.

"Cake" made of candy for comunion

The crunch of my fellow classmates for finals has given me the opportunity to work on some projects and develop some skills that I otherwise would never have found time to do.  It has also opened up for me the perfect time to explore my city and try to capture some of its essence in pictures to take back home.  Malaga really gives you a special feel and reminds you to look at the history around you to remember it, respect it, and learn from it and then to set your sights on the future so you can leave your mark for others to see. The culture, the city, the people, the landscape all of those things have left their mark on everyone that passes through here, especially me.

and its demise

To me the change, the evolution of how I see the world now from what I saw a year ago verges on incredible.  It has taught me the huge importance of cultural context and point of view, and how we can use those things to understand ourselves and the people around us.  It has lead me to understand how to sit and listen and watch and to know when to talk and to know when to be quiet.  It has given me space to examine my life before and to realize that many of my conflicts were simply in my head; all the disappointments that were caused by expectations that didn't need to exist.  To understand that counsel, no matter how seemingly overbearing always stems from a desire to see you succeed.

Cousins and Friends at a comunion

Most of all it has cemented my priorities, and the Spanish culture has taught me that when a threat comes to your top priorities it is time to stress out and do everything you can to fix it, but if whatever problem you think you have doesn't affect those priorities in a meaningful way, then don't sweat it, its not worth it.  Everything comes and goes in its season, and if you are patient everything will be okay in the end, or maybe it won't, but either way worrying about things you cannot change does nothing for you.  When I first applied those principles to my life it felt scary and out of control, but really its liberating.  It keeps you from wasting energy on things that don't matter and helps you to enjoy the things that you have.

All of this brings us to the elephant in the room for all the exchangees right now, going home.  It is safe to say that we are experiencing a bigger sense of uncertainty about going home than we did about coming.  Everything will be the same, but it won't.  The people there have changed, we have definitely changed, and we aren't exactly sure how the game is played now.  We have to go find the pieces of the lives we left, throw out the ones that don't fit anymore, and add the ones we've found here and try to form them all into something coherent and use that as the framework to build the lives we want to live.  We are ready to try new things, meet new people, and change the world , but is the world, our world that we left, ready to be changed?  We have grown up in a lot of ways here, but there will be still more responsibility to take on when we get back, and we are more than a little nervous about it.  Then there is all the freedom that we have here, can we keep it?  We are excited to go back to a place where we can express ourselves in our native language, see our loved ones, and generally count on knowing things; there is something else magical about going home as well.  Its the sensation that you belong, and that you have a little ownership of that place that no one can rob you of.  No matter how much we are in love with where we are now, and we are, there is always a little part of us that reminds us that it isn't ours to keep.  It makes our time here that much more special, and it also takes away a little of that fear and uncertainty about going home.  We are going back to people who know us and have seen us change before and a world that has always supported us when we've been close, and more importantly when we haven't, and will always be there for us through it all acting as home base.








We will shed tears of sadness when we leave and ones of joy when we put our feet on home turf and see our family again.  We will take with us all that we have learned from these wonderful places and put them to good use. We will dream about returning to our host country, and most of all we will use all of these things as the first step on the journey of the rest of our lives.  As of right now though, our adventure isn't over and having the end looming closely overhead pushes us to double up our efforts to seize everyday, go farther, and do more.  After all what we are living here is once in a lifetime, and we intend to make the most of it.

This is what makes Exchange unforgettable!

I hope you are sitting in a comfortable chair because it is time for some March updates and reflections, and there is much to say.

The first week after Semana Blanca was long and so was the second, but we made up for it on the weekends hanging out and having a good time.  My family and I packed off to Antequera the first weekend, and the second was graced with Vanessa's presence, but the real fun was yet to come.  

My family headed off to America to see Angela, and also visit Chicago and New York.  It felt strange to see them walk out the door, and as I closed it behind them I had the opportunity to contemplate two things that have become very evident to me.  I am not very good at staying put, and I wish the Atlantic was smaller.  

The first one is not very shocking; anyone who has ever seriously asked me anything about my past, present, or future could easily gather that waiting patiently is not my strong suit.  From my tentative career path, to my extra curricular activities, to the posters on my wall it becomes quickly evident that I have never intended to sit and wait for the world to come to me, that would be conceited.  My goodbyes are awkward and sometimes nonexistent, and as my dad waited for the elevator I couldn't hardly manage to say "you too" in response to his "Have a good time."   

It was the first time I had ever really seen people that I had loved and lived with pack up and leave, even if it was just for 10 days.   As the door shut and I returned to my coffee I was faced with a looming question, was I afraid of being alone?  The answer was immediate, of course not; I thrive on it,  even considering that notion was laughable.  The truth is that I know the risks I run living my life like I do, forming the relationships, knowing the people, leaving bits of myself in places around the globe and I know that I have a lot to lose.  Its not everyday though that they stare me right in the face though, and it was good to get a wakeup call and a new perspective on things.

Exchange gives you all kinds of life lessons from knowing who you are to how to navigate public transportation systems.  It also leaves you with a distinct sense that the world is unfathomably huge and filled with secrets that must be discovered; while at the same time small because we are all the same on the inside and how can you be so far aways from family and places that are so familiar to you.  

With those thoughts in hand I headed off to school, and on the way thought of all the amazing things I have gotten to see over the years and the amazing people who have helped me get to where I am.  Thank you all.

Antonio Banderas at el Ejercito's
demonstration Semana santa 

Then things got interesting.  Met up with CJ and headed off to Marbella in a downpour.  The festivities were kicked of Palm Sunday with a beautiful service in Marbella's biggest church.  Vanessa and I met up with her host grandmother and afterwards spent the next day and a half under the weather at Nina's.

On Wednesday I finally got to see what Semana Santa is all about.  My cousin and I headed out with her friends to get a good view of the processions.  After some waiting and a beautiful sunset I caught my first glance, and it was astounding.  Tronos, or huge decorated statues of Mary and Jesus covered with lowers and reliefs of precious metals, weighing tons, and carried by hundreds of men lit up the dark streets with nothing more than candles.  Music filled the ears of the quiet crown as marching bands and penitents (that dress like, but have no relation to the KKK) accompanied the Tronos around the center of Malaga.  I was completely in awe at the beauty of it all, and the general spirit of the city.  There were 8 or so different processions every night until Friday, and the streets of Malaga were packed with people to
the point where it was difficult to move.  

Easter we spent back in Marbella American style.  Vanessa and I made ham, quiche, cinnamon rolls, cheesecake, oatmeal rolls, and other staples and ate to our hearts content before we headed back to our real world life.  My parents also returned from their trip and reported that they had a fantastic time seeing everything, and that Angela is doing very well.

Last weekend I had the opportunity to spend in Cordoba at the district conference with all of the exchange students in Andalucia.  We had a great time and got to see a little of the city.  As ever I was struck by the history of the place.  As we we were standing in the conference center in between speakers chatting to one of the Rotarians he turned and said "Did you know this is where Isabel of Castille signed the papers to send Columbus to discover your country?"  I didn't know how to respond for a moment and just stood there thinking of the building that had only a moment earlier been a pretty somewhat old building in my head as a major Historic landmark.

The Roman Bridge Cordoba

Now my school is gearing for los Festivos Patronales which I am honestly pretty excited for.  The warm winds from the south are starting to bring us fully into the spring season( I am trying not to think of how hot it will be in the summer.)  Everything here in Malaga is coming to life with the arrival of the good weather and the tourists and it is just fun to sit back and relax as everything comes together.  

La Mezquita Cordoba

La Mezquita Cordoba

Italy! (and other things)

Its Carnival!!

Hey everyone, time for the February update!  It was a crazy month including trips to to Ceuta (a Spanish city in Africa), Granada, and most recently Italy!

The Alhambra and Sierra Nevadas from St. Nicholas' lookout

As the Carnival was ending and all the costumes and masks where being  put away we didn't let the party go home.  I headed up to Marbella to meet Vanessa's new host parents(who are some of the sweetest people in the world), and to have some American time.  We watched the Pirates of the Caribbean, which follows in the great tradition of amazing movies based on rides at Disneyland that I loved as a child.  Afterwords we took a walk downtown to see the parade in honor of the last night of Carnival.

Gibraltar and Ceuta are known as the pillars of Hercules

After a relatively quiet week  my grandmothers came for a family dinner on Friday and the next day Mama, Papa, Moko, and I headed to Granada.  We saw the snow in the Sierra Nevadas, a great view of the Alhambra from St. Nicholas's lookout, the Cathedral, the final resting place of the Catholic Kings, Isabel of Castilla and Ferdinand of Aragon , and some of the many beautiful other things Granada has to offer.  We also participated in an old family past time, running into relatives in random places when we met up with my Aunt Monoles and her family who also happened to be in Granada shopping.

That night I got home exhausted and went almost directly to bed, but, after I had said goodnight and turned off my light, I got on Facebook to quickly check my messages.  I had one from Shona outlining our plans to go to Ceuta the very next day.  So I wandered sleepily back to the living room and said, " Ummm I am going to Africa tomorrow.   I have to leave early so I probably wont see you til tomorrow night, is that okay?"

So long Carnival until, 2014!

The Fountain of Trevi at night

And with that off we went!  I met up with the guys on the way to Algeciras to catch the ferry and we passed over without problems.  It felt great to stand on the African continent, but it wasn't the only reason that we had gotten together that day.  We had a British guest with us; it was our first chance to meet Nina's grandson Christian whom Shona had met and told us a lot about after her trip to England for Christmas.   The views were spectacular and we managed to catch the End of Carnival Parade; although, to be honest the term parade is a bit misleading.  It was a funeral march culminating in the slaughtering of a huge sparkly fish sculpture representing Carnival 2013.  After chowing down on some Kebabs we caught a boat back to Europe and started the long trip home.

The climb up, so steep
that it has to curve
to the shape of the dome

I didn't have much time to rest, however, because the very next Saturday my friends and I took a 6:10 flight to Madrid as the first leg of our trip to Italy.  No words can truly do this country justice, and pictures are a pathetic reflection of its true beauty.  As a child I watched the travel channel religiously and studied the history and architecture of Italy with zeal up until the time of the Renaissance, but nothing could prepare me for seeing Rome.  The first day I spent in a total daze not truly believing my own eyes.

After the climb to the top of the Basilica 

It seems that when I take trips to other the countries they are typically heralded by some historical happenings, and this one was no different.  The inconclusive elections lead to a general air of frustration and uncertainty among locals and sent small shock waves through the EU.  With no clear future for the Italian government and the distinct possibility of political unrest in the country with the EU's third largest economy it captivated News stories and cause nearly universal losses in the continents financial markets.

The candle holders

The crowd waiting for the Pope

Something I observed more directly was one for the History books.  While we where in Rome we stood on the deck that surrounds the Dome of St. Peters Basilica in the Vatican and listened to the last Angelus and Sunday blessing of Pope Benedict the XVI, and were witness to a beautiful Mass full of Cardinals and Bishops before meetings in the Sistine Chapel to choose the next Pope.  It was one of the most beautiful things I have been privy to.  Something in the Pope's words that day reflected a great man of faith who had been lead after much prayer to do what he felt was best for his fellow believers with the full knowledge that it would not be easy.  His voice sounded tired and he looked much frailer than the day of John Paul's funeral 8 years ago.  It was his humble nature and contemplative tone however that made the biggest impression demonstrating to the entire world that walking the road of the cross is neither easy nor sure, and that even the greatest men are still servants to God's will and must look to him for guidance.  He was trying to do what he thought was right, and asked for the Catholic church bodies support and prayers.  He is the first Pope to resign in nearly 800 years.

As the square was filling up and I was enjoying the hard fought view (we took the stairs up to the top) I happened to look down at the dome and saw a tone of little metal disks tracing every line on the dome, in the middle each one had a little spike sticking out of it.  At first I didn't know what to make of them they looked so out of place in the airy elegance of the basilica. They must have a purpose, I thought, but what?  Then I realized that in the days before electricity the entirety of the dome had been lit by candles inside and out.  I spent the next ten minutes thinking about how they had gotten all of the candles up and placed without the help of such modern technology as elevators or climbing equipment to place them around the dome 453 feet in the air.  Later we saw the Fountain of Trevi(a personal favorite) both by night and day, the Parthenon, the Colosseum, and countless other things that had seemed only figments of my imagination before.

On the way to Florence we stopped by Sienna to see the famous square of the horse races and Pisa to take some cheesy pictures.  In Florence we saw the Gates or Paradise, David, Primavera, the birth of Venus, the Medici Museum, and possibly the most important and influential Dome of the Renaissance and maybe even of all time.   As we walked through what used to be the Medici's private collection literally getting lost in the enormous maze of galleries I pondered the power of one non-royal banking family to make such a lasting impact on the history of Europe bringing it out of an age filled with doubt, disease, and wars into a much more beautiful time valuing knowledge and advancement of all types. Even though the city of Florence itself cannot rival the magnificence of Rome in the remotest sense, walking the streets that the fathers of the Renaissance walked and seeing what they saw and created almost as it was in their time is enough to awake anyone's imagination.  I couldn't help but wonder if Michelangelo had ever imagined the impact his art would have on the world, or what he saw reflected in the buildings and people around him.

In a Gondola in Venice!!

Soon enough though it was time to pack up and go to Venice by way of Padua a City home to the most horribly mismatched church I have ever seen and a gelato shop serving up 5 different kinds of creamy goodness in a homemade waffle cone.

Once in Venice we rolled up our sleeves and started on the job we had been ignoring and procrastinating all week long, shopping.  Up until that point we had put that aside to see everything we could see, rushing across Rome on foot covering many miles everyday.  To show for my efforts I had 2 Euros in post cards, 3 key chains  and an etching from Florence, but in Venice we made up for it.  After seeing the Cathedral, the square, the Bridge called Rio Alto, and taking a ride in a Gondola we settled down to work.  I came away with 3 handmade masks, 2 pairs of Venetian glass earrings, and one Pandora bead.  The masks where a group favorite, almost everyone bought at least one and afterwords we walked around Venice clutching our shopping bags and wearing the world's dorkiest smiles on our faces, singing, and talking about masquerade parties.  I fell in love all over again with Venetian glass and had to exercise some serious self restraint, and at the same time Ada was finding a passion of her own, buying 45 Euros worth of pasta that she carried all the way back to Malaga by hand.

In Retiro in Madrid

On the trip home we slept through the entirety of the bus and plane rides, but made the most of our layover in Madrid seeing the Puerto del Sol and the Retiro Park before making our way home to Malaga.  Afterwords we all welcomed the sight of our beds and fell asleep with smiles still dreaming of Rome.

Reflections and Projections

Its February!  The time for Carnival celebrations, exams, and trips to Italy, but before we get to that I would just like to stop and reflect for a moment.  One of the most common pieces of advice that rebounds and inbounds(past exchange students and current exchange students respectively) give to outbounds(future exchange students) is that your exchange starts to fly by after the holidays.  I always took that with a grain of salt thinking that mine would be different.  Now that I am staring down the barrel of my exchange ending, having to think about when I am going to go home, booking flights, and scrambling to fit in all of the things that I haven't yet done,  I can say that the time just flies.  Its more than a little bit scary.  Up to this point exchange students are thinking really hard about making relationships and meeting people; we have been finding our way.  Now that we have family and friends, that we feel really comfortable in our city, that we finally can speak to people without any difficulty in our host language, that we have started to develop a local accent, and that we have adopted this place as a home it is impossible to not think about the giant hourglass of our time here, ticking down at an impossibly fast rate.  

As my parents turned over the page of the calender I had given them for Christmas, I was a little shocked and nervous.  I couldn't believe that it had really been a month since Reyes.  The start of February meant that my exchange was now halfway over for sure.  I wanted to hug my family to me, to call the master of time and say that he had made a mistake, to run away, but you can't run from time.  Now is the time when I as an exchange student have to do what exchange students do best, make the most of the time we have.  As an exchange student I am not going to sit and cry for something that is not yet over, but instead do everything I can to make this second half better than the first.  One of the things that makes exchange students so special is that we make relationships with people we know for sure that we will one day have to leave.  We answer the question once and for all, It is better to have loved and lost than to have missed out and never loved at all.  We will never forget our experiences here, the family that we have, the friends that have made, and the country that we call our new home.  We realize that distance doesn't diminish the importance of relationships, but instead makes them even more valuable, and that home doesn't have to be one place, but it is anywhere that part of your heart lives.

Vanessa and I in Antequera

Now on to the newsy part.  The first part of January was filled with presentation prepping and studying.  I gave a presentation to the English-speaking Rotary Club in Marbella on the 24th, and consequently earned myself a speaking slot at district convention on the topic of Rotary's Youth Programs.  The 26th I took the SAT, and that night I collapsed in a heap.  

Okay, the whole month wasn't work.  Vanessa came to Antequera with my family to see the town and meet my grandmother.  We toured the museum in La Plaza de Torros, saw some churches (there are 33 in Antequera, and they are all beautiful), planned Shona's wedding, and had some good heart to hearts.

The Picasso float

After my SAT, the other exchangees and I went off to explore Puerto Banus.  It was an incredible sight.  The port is lined with private yachts on one side and Porsches on the other.  The pedestrian walkway that runs along the water is filled with Gucci and Rolex vendors.  We probably looked incredibly out of place, but we had a nice discussion about which luxury car we would prefer to be run over by.

Part of the parade

Last weekend was the beginning of Carnival here in Malaga.  I had absolutely no idea what to expect, but it was amazing.  Hannah. an exchange student living in Granada, was here staying with me.  As we were touring downtown we stumbled upon  *cough* oh I mean I lead us right to the into the opening ceremonies.  The theme this year is Piccasso and Magic, and one big part of Carnival, aside from the party part, are these big "floats."  They are huge costumes more or less.  It is one person, who is dressed to represent an idea, pulling a huge "train" that has pictures and decorations that relates to what they are representing and the theme of Carnival.  We had a great time watching the show and watching the audience as well because everyone dresses up for carnival and many people dress up with there friends based on a theme(for example mariachi) and walk around playing music.

Back of one of the float/costumes

I also found the American food store which just opened in Malaga. Its been great because now I can cook for my family many more things than before.  Without this store it is impossible to find things like cocoa powder, oatmeal, and salad dressing.  I felt like a magician when I brought it all home.  I didn't realize how different the food here was from what I suppose is "normal" for the US until I tried to cook typical dishes.  It makes me wonder what kind of Spanish things I wont be able to get when I go back.  

Another Train

In other news, my poor sister and classmates are freaking out about all of the exams we are having.  I am in Bachigerato segundo, which is the most important year here because it is the one that decides what you can study in college.  I am in the Medical sciences track so most of my class wants to be doctors or scientists.  These are the most competitive majors right now so they are all looking for really high scores.  All of the Universities are having their global finals right now as well so the stress here is nearly tangible here.  Its like AP exam season at Kennedy.  I decided to join a gym and run while they study, so for a couple of weeks we all have become hermits.  Next weekend the whole Spanish student body is going to take a deep breath, meet their friends again, have a party, and prep for the trip to Italy.  

Looking ahead to the future, here in the province of Malaga we have the last week of February off and my school is offering a trip to Italy.  My friends and I are going and we are really excited about it.  Whenever we aren't studying we are talking about Italy, especially my friends in art history. We pass around phrase books and dream of pizza, frescos, gelato, and Renascence masters.

Love from Malaga!

 

 

Reyes, Navidad, and Noche Vieja

My Uncle Pepe, Aunt Yacko, and my mom

It is the end of the Holiday Season and high time for a report on what I have been doing.  My family and I started out the long holiday break celebrating the Birthday of my aunt here in Malaga.  The next day we headed off to the old olive plantation that my grandfather bought as a summer home when my mom was little.  There we met my Aunt Yacko and Uncle Pepe  along with my two cousins Pepe and Alvaro who had already been there for a few days.

The day after we arrived in the country was Christmas Eve or Noche Buena; we spent the night with my Dad's family in the nearby town of Antequera.  A large part of the family was there and we totaled 23 people.  We had a five hour dinner and stayed up till the early hours of the morning playing games, telling stories, and celebrating the importance of family.  There was a toast that particularly stuck with me that embodied this sentiment, in English it translates, " to our family and friends both here and far away, we loved you yesterday, we love you today, and we will love you forever."

A veiw from the Torcal

In the morning (what is classified in America as early afternoon), we returned to the country to celebrate with the entirety of my mom's family.  There were almost thirty of us and it was some of the most fun I have ever had.  Here it is not  a traditional to give gifts on Christmas; this part comes later in the break.  The next day my parents, Aunt Yacko, and Uncle Pepe took me to see the unique species of Pine trees there are in the Sierra de las Nieves.  They are a relic species of one of the last Ice Ages, and my uncle has been studying them and and other species all over the world in his Career as a Biology Professor. It was so strange to me because the Sierra de las Nieves looked just like the Mountains around my home town of Bozeman do in June.  I was temporarily confused about time and place and had a hard time believing it was the day after Christmas.

La Primera Pista

The next day we went to the Torcal a giant rock forest near Antequera that formed because this part of the Iberian Peninsula used to be underwater, and also lies on a fault line.  The top was formed as a type of kelp forest, and then after it was uncovered the two continental plates rubbed together.  Normally this would lead to a mounding up of earth, this is the way most mountains are formed, but instead it "popped up."  The pressure came from both sides and the Torcal rose up out of the earth in one piece.  It is really a curious place and again my uncle was our guide and local expert.  he grew up exploring the Torcal and has a little cabin nearby it called the Torcalina.

More from the torcal

The next day we packed up and returned home to Malaga thoroughly exhausted.  After a quiet day or two it was Noche Vieja or new Years Eve.     At Midnight we skyped with my parents and my host sister, Angela, who is on exchange in Minnesota.  We all watched the clock in the port of the Sun in Madrid and just after the stroke of Midnight ate 12 grapes, one for every chime. The eating of grapes on the cusp of the New Year is said to be the only thing that the Spanish people do altogether.  During the count down everyone makes a wish, then when the clock chimes they eat a grape, if you successfully eat them all(which is no small trick) then your wish should come true in the coming year and you will have good luck.  After that we went to a family friends house, and after that celebration my sister and I went to a party at our friends house.  The next day we were so tired we slept till 3 in the afternoon.  It was a great way to ring in the New Year!

Views of the torcal

The Holiday season did not end there.  The 4th I met the exchange students living in Marbella in a little tourist town halfway in between us.  We had a really good time decompressing, playing mini golf, and of course eating. The next day my family met up with some family friends for lunch and then headed off to the parade in honor of the coming of the Three Kings.  After that we left directly for Antequera to celebrate Three Kings day with my Dad's family.  That night, after all of the smaller kids went to bed my parents exchanged gifts and we ate a Rosco, which from the information I have gathered should be the same as a King cake that is traditional for Mardi Gras.  Is looks a bit like a giant donut that has candied fruit on top of it, some, like the one we ate, are filled with whipped cream; it was delicious. All of the kids put their shoes around the house and overnight the "Reyes Magicos" put presents and candy in them.  The younger kids tried to wake us all up at 4:30, but seeing as how we had only gone to bed at 2 the adults made them go back to sleep.  The next day was magical, like Christmas.  All the happy cousins, smiling parents, family, and gratitude filled the air with joy and laughter.  After lunch we came home, so I could repack and we could get the gifts for my Grandma. We spent the afternoon at her Residence home and then at 8 I caught a bus to Marbella.

The Main Street of Malaga decked out for Christmas

I stayed with my counselor, Nina, that night and in the Morning our club, all of the exchange students, and some other members of the community went  to Ronda to give out gifts at a nursing home.  After we celebrated Reyes there the students headed of to do a bit of sight seeing.  We headed home early because the next day was school and the end of a very satisfying vacation.






It was definitely one of the most jam packed and interesting Christmas breaks I have ever experienced, and I cherish every moment of it.  I am so blessed to have this opportunity, this family, Rotary,and all of the great people around me who support me in everything I do, Thank you.