Planning a Trip Upside Down: Seville’s Fair

The tip to La Feria de Abril in Seville, Spain, was planned upside down: first we got the return ticket, and then we searched for a way to get there.

After running around Madrid, going through several train and bus stations and different travel agencies, we finally found tickets to get to the Fair. Even though we hadn’t started out journey, our adventure had already began.

We had a hurried, stressful and reckless start. But once we got to Seville, the locals made sure to change everything around: their cheerful nature, and never ending hospitality, their dances, music and food, ensured we had a wonderful trip.

The Fair of Seville is different from all the other Fairs that take place in Spain. In Seville, the fair was first organized in 1847 to showcase the cattle, while the rest of the fairs in Spain were first organized to venerate a Saint or the city’s patron.

The original Fair of Seville had around 19 “casetas” displayed at Prado de San Sebastián, an area in the suburbs of the city, while today, the fair summons close to 1,000 “casetas” in the center of Seville.

Groups of friends, neighbors, work colleagues or large families get together to collect enough funds to be able to reserve a spot and a “caseta” at the Fair. The hostesses decorate the “caseta” as they please. Yet, the “farolillos”, flamenco music and laughter are a must in ever "caseta".

At the Fair, women did not have hands; their extremities were brushes that painted elaborated drawings in the air. Even though I looked at their hands thoroughly, I found it impossible to copy their movements.

In the past, whenever I heard flamenco, I only heard screams and lamenting voices. Yet at the Fair, the dancers’ smiles, the colorful flamenco dresses, and the energetic clapping that accompanied the synchronized dances transformed flamenco into vigorous and happy songs.

In this context, “sevillanas” and flamenco music took on a new meaning for me.

Laying Down in the Valley of those who have Fallen

During Holy Week, we left Madrid searching for a place where we could find peace and tranquility. Searching the web, we found a place that seemed to meet our needs, took a bus and traveled to Guadarrama and the Valley of those who have Fallen. Once there, we hiked for a couple of hours, and then laid out our pic nic in front of the Jarrosa Reservoir.

Its incredible how the landscape transforms itself after a short bus ride: the tall buildings become extense prairies and green mountains, and the noise from the cars becomes inaudible.

Apart from the trails that we hicked through, you can go to Guadarrama’s website, to take a look at the various trails and choose the ones you want to use so you can rest and realx as you walk through them.

I hope I can soon return to lay down and rest on the grass of some other corner of this peaceful valley.

Alcalá Henares, Spain: Now and Forever a City of Immigrants

I went to Alcalá Henares, Spain, to visit a friend with some friends from my Masters' program. We went there to have a good time and discovered a historic city and interesting Holy Week Parades.

Never underestimate the visits to your friend’s towns in Spain, since you never know what you can find. How could I have undervalued the crib of Miguel de Cervantes, the author of Don Quixote de la Mancha, one of Spain's most famous literary pieces.

The population of the city has doubled in the last couple of years with the arrival of immigrants from Eastern Europe, Latin America and Africa. However, as we walked down the streets we noticed that Alcalá Henares has always been a city of immigrants where Christian, Jewish and Muslim people cohabitated for many years.

Even though Jewish people influenced the architecture of the city and its culture very little, the Muslim influence is imminent wherever you look, especially in the houses’ wide galleries and numerous arcs.


Nevertheless, as in the rest of Spain, the Christian influence continuous to have the greatest influence in the culture, especially during Holy Week, when Christian Processions leave a trail of incense that takes hold of every street corner.

After visiting Alcalá Henares I understood why my friend was so proud of his hometown, and why the city was declared World Heritage by UNESCO.






Religious Procession
This is how Spanish people celebrate Holy Week. They wear the veil to become anonymous, and despite the similarity suits that resemble KKK attires, although the two pieces of clothing and their significance are not related in any way.

I say Goodbye to Pamplona with Tears and Illusion

I left Pamplona with a tear and an illusion.

A tear because I was living in a city that made me feel at home, a place where I felt comfortable, where I was happy.

And an illusion of moving to a more diverse place, with more movement, and an open door to the working world.

When I got to Madrid I found that I continued to be happy and I still felt at home. I was still surrounded with the majority of the people who had made me happy in Pamplona. On top of that, I found a sunny city, inhabited with kind people and less contamination than what I remembered.



Madrid is a large city, with a town-spirit: office hours are relaxed, lunches are long and people pause to talk to you.

There are a lot of places to visit: from cienmas and theaters, to museums, parks and bars… And if you don’t feel like doing anything, you can still entertain yourself watching the diverse individuals that live in this city.

Madrid is a chaotic and disorganized city, where everything is far, yet everything is connected by the wonderful underground metro system.

At this time I wonder, How long will this illusion last? When I leave it, will I shed some tears as well?

Getting to Pamplona from Madrid:
Bus: Continental Auto
Intercambiador de Metro Avenida América
Phone: 917 45 63 00

Spain and France: Borderless Countries

There were no barriers, police officers, or immigration offices that indicated we had changed countries. We realized we were no longer in Spain when we noticed the street signs were now written in French.

After driving for several hours, we arrived at "Saint-Jean-de-Luz", a beautiful coastal town of the of the Pyrénées-Atlantiques département, France, situated between Biarritz and Hendaya.

Despite the closeness to Spain, it was evident that we were in a different country. The rock houses with small windows had been replaced with petite white houses. The dark, narrow and rustic Spanish bars had been replaced by small lighted restaurants and creperies with terraces.

Everything was calm. Everything was joyful. Nothing could ruin the moment or erase the city’s enchantment. Not even the thin drizzle that welcomed us to the city.

After walking through the little cobblestone-streets lighted with the dim street lanterns'light, we were captivated by the aroma of home made bread of “The Creperie”, and we decided go inside to eat.

I had tried crepes before. But it was the first time I tasted salty ones. And what a first time! The cheese hugged the jam that easily covered every inch of your tongue with a salty-cheesy sweetness.

The food became more and more delicious with every bite I made, and the city became increasingly embellished with every breath.

Etxachar: Decorations with Tombstones and Bizarre Stores

Standing in front of a map with irregular squares with numbers written in Euskera, we tried to figure out the name of the Church we had just visited in Etxalar , a small town in the north of Navarra, Spain.


But it was mission impossible. The map had no logic. The names did not belong to the streets or the places. "Maybe they were different family names," we speculated. However, non of them was duplicated. Consequently, we decided to enter the town’s shop to ask.

Inside the store, everything was bizarre. The shopkeeper wanted to make sure that her clients could find everything they needed, and due to the shop’s limited space, she chose variety over order.

To pick up an ice-cream, we had to look through salmons and oysters that were stored in the same fridge. We had to be careful not to get our fingers caught in the mouse traps that were sold next to the chocolate cookies, and when we got to the register, we had to control our sweet tooth so we wouldn’t buy Christmas sweets in the middle of march.

The store lady cordially explained to use that the map showed the names of the town’s houses. She said that since the town had only 800 inhabitants, it was easier to remember the names of the houses than the street names.

She also revealed to us that no one was buried underneath the tombstones that were scattered along Saint Mary’s Church's front yard. “One day, the current priest found them in a corner of the Church collecting dust, and he decided it was better to use them to decorate the Church than to keep them inside,” she told us.

Although I doubt I will adopt this strange decorating technique, I take with me a little magic from this town of enigmatic stories.

Pious Walk the Javieradas while we Drive

While pious walked for more than 40 kilometers to reach Saint Francis Xavier’s Church to celebrate mass, my friend and I drove to the church.

Even though it sounds bad, we did not mean to do it.

On Sunday, we got together at a friend’s house, picked up the map of Navarra, Spain, and some brochure with pictures of the area. After looking at them, we decided to drive to Saint Francis Xavier’s Castle and Leyre’s Monastery, without knowing the Javieradas (pious' anual walk to Saint Francis Xavier Church) were taking place that same day.

In Saint Xavier’s Castle, we visited the room that Saint Francis Xavier shared with Saint Ignacio of Loyola. We also looked through the window where the novices flamed their handkerchiefs to communicate with the gentlemen that walked through the parks.

In Sangüesa, the biggest town in the east of Navarra, we walked along the river and admired the wooden door of The Real Saint Mary’s Church, decorated with delicate, but complicated motives. However, we simply took a quick look at the impressive door since it was almost impossible to remain in that city longer: the strong odor that emanated from the industrial area was unbearable.

Finally, we enjoyed the magnificent sight from Leyre’s Monastery and enjoyed the Gregorian chorus.

It was a perfect trip to recharge our lungs with fresh mountain air, to fill our pupils with green prairies and snow covered hills, and to put a pause to a high speed weekend.


More pictures:
Saint Francis Xavier's Castle



View from Saint Francis Xavier's Castle

The Challenge: Pepsi vs. Wines

In this occasion, I am not going to argue if Wine is better than Pepsi or vice versa. Although you have no idea how much these products have in common.

Surprisingly, the fabrication and bottling process of both products is very similar, even though its ingredients and end product are extremely different.

On one hand, to make Pepsi, chemists first prepare a thick syrup that they later use as the base for the product. On the other hand, to make wine, farmers place the grapes in a large distillation bin where it ferments with the skin that taints the wine with that maroon color. Afterwards, the wine is left aside to settle. When the skin begins to float and it can be removed.

On the second stage, the syrup used to make Pepsi is stored in large vacuumed barrels to allow the taste to concentrate. While the wine is kept in wooden barrels where they incorporate some of the taste of the wood. (In the case of the wine, the type of wood and the age of de barrel determine the taste that the wine will acquire).

At the end of both processes, the liquids are bottled, labeled, and packed in boxes my automatic machines that follow very similar processes. Different ingredients, similar fabrication processes. Different products, yet at the end of the day, wine and Pepsi are distributed to the outlets in almost identical cardboard boxes. Who would have thought it could be hard to distinguish a bottle of wine from a Pepsi?

Once at the store you would have to face the Challenge: Pepsi or Wine. Although, if you are living in Span you might pick up both to prepare the traditional calimocho, and take home both beverages with you.

Beijing, China: Country like Life, City like Contamination

When you cross the street in Beijing, you have to watch out for cars, specially the black ones, which usually belong to public officials who pay little respect to traffic rules. You also have to be careful with the large number of cyclists who cover the roads and don’t respect the rules either.

Despite the chaotic traffic, I must admit that I was impressed by the city´s planning. The main streets have wide bike lanes, an essential detail that I have only seen in very few cities, for example.

Even though most people from Beijing have a country like lifestyle, the strong contamination and the imminent presence of skyscrapers, modern buildings and numerous construction sites, quickly remind you that you are visiting a large city.

Although you are aware that you are in a city, you are not always sure of where you are. All the street corners look alike, and the signs are only written in Chinese. Under these conditions, Having a map is useless!

If you dare, you can ask someone to give you a hand using the basic Chinese that you learned to survive in this foreign land. However, miscommunications are probable, since the other person probably won’t understand you if you mispronounce a word, or you might not understand what the person responds.

Therefore, the best way to get around is by taxi or metro, so you can go directly to the desired destination. If you prefer to walk, you can also choose to get lost in a city where everything is new and different. Whichever way you choose, you’ll hardly have a bad time. However, before you leave the hotel, I would recommend you to ask someone to use Chinese characters to write down the name of the places you want to visit and the hotel address, so you can show the taxi driver where you want to go. This will prevent you from getting lost with no return home.

Beijing is a city with plenty to offer: from its varied cooking, to its temples and its people. On top of that it is extremely safe for tourists, especially around this time, when the Chinese government is getting everything ready for the 2008 Olympics and they want to give “long noses” (that is, western tourists) a good impression.

After traveling around the city for a week, Beijing, China, continues to be a mystery sprinkled with unique flavors, smiling faces and intense colors.

How to Become Famous: Travel to China

If you have ever dreamt of being famous, and you don’t believe in “reality shows” where people have become famous in a matter of days, I have an alternative for you: go to China.

This idea might sound a little bizarre, but China is a country where everything is possible; a country where you will be eternally surprised.

When I was in Beijing, people would chase me with camera phones as I walked down the street. In the parks, people would approach me saying: “Picture, picture!” Cordially, I would nod my head agreeing to take a picture of them. However, instead of posing so I could take a picture of the group, they would hug me so they could take a picture with me…

I was unable to find out why Chinese people were so eager to take pictures of me. I am not sure if they mistook me for a celebrity, or they were simply curious by the fact I was different. I simply limited myself to smile for their flashes as I enjoyed the spontaneous minutes of glory.

After all, I don’t have the opportunity to be “famous” very often.