St. Andrew’s Episcopal Spain 2019

June 12, 2019

We took the bus and arrived in Sevilla. Firstly, we had lunch at a restaurant called Levies and tried our first menú del día. Secondly, we went to the Cathedral Real, the third largest in the word, and we walked up to the bell tower. We went back to the hotel and had our first “siesta”. Lastly, we went to get cooking lessons across the river at Taller Andaluz de Cocina. We learned how to cook gazpacho and paella ). It was delicious!

-Hailey K. and Reevu G.

June 13, 2019

We had breakfast at Hotel Simon. Next, we had a tour of parts of sevilla like the Alcazar. Then all of us ate lunch at Mamarracha and tried typical dishes like eggplants with honey and peppers al padron. After that we went back to our hotel for a long awaited siesta aka nap. After our siesta we headed to La Abuela for ice cream. After that we walked over to Parque Maria Luisa. At the park we made a contract that to follow as a group throughout the trip on wrote it on a fan. After that we did a scavenger hunt in the park to practice our Spanish and we also fed pigeons. For dinner we went to Taberna Colonia for a large tapas dinner. Then we went back to our hotel to get some well deserved sleep!

-Anya M. and Jack A.

June 14, 2019

We started with a tasty breakfast at Hotel Simon, consisting of assorted meats, breads, yogurts, and drinks. Then we packed up to embark on a 2 hour bus ride to Cordoba. Throughout the bus ride we napped and played games. When we arrived we walked across the river, Guadalquivir, over a large bridge where many people were playing music. Next, we took a tour of the Mezquita where there were many arches and pillars. There was a variety of art and sculptures. We learned about the Muslim and Christian history that was laced throughout the entire place and even tried to draw a little bit of the arches as a memory. After our tour was over, we went to lunch, where we tried many new things including a chocolate and vanilla cream cake which was very tasty. After, we re-boarded our bus and headed off on another 2 hour bus ride that also consisted of fun conversations and games. Later that evening we arrived at FES, a community that all works together and where we would be doing our community service. We got settled into our house and separate rooms. After we were all settled in we took a tour of the FES community with its founder, Ignacio. There was a pool, a large garden with many tomatoes, a bakery, and workshop, and even a nice and relaxing meditation room. We then went down to dinner where we ate delicious fresh baked bread, meat, and a tasty plate of paella. After dinner, we settled back into our rooms and went to sleep, ready for a hard-working but fun day.

– Nathan C & Noelle H

June 15, 2019
Today was our first full day at the FES. We split into four groups of three. Afterwards, each group went to do their service activities. The four activities we did were gardening, bread making, marmalade making, and mosaic cleaning. At the garden, some people pulled out weeds and watered the plants. At the bakery, we made olive oil bread. In addition, at the marmalade place, we cut peaches and packaged the marmalade into containers. Finally, at the mosaic, we cleaned up the mosaic and added clay in certain parts. It was great to help out those who had complicated lives. During the afternoon, we took a bus to Granada. At Granada, we went to the Capilla Real. Granda was known to be the last stronghold of the Muslims and this chapel is where Queen Isabella and King Fernando were buried. Then, we went souvenir shopping and churros y chocolate eating. Lastly, we got back to the FES where we went to sleep after a community dinner.

– Sydney C & Aaron M

June 16, 2019
Just like yesterday, we started off the day with a Community Breakfast and then got going into more Community Service. Our service jobs once again included making marmalade, baking bread, gardening, and cleaning the mosaic. However, we rotated jobs. The group that was making the marmalade and bread yesterday were gardening and cleaning the mosaic, and vice versa. We started off with our chores for about 2 hours, took a small snack break, and then rotated to our next chore for the rest of the service time. Once we finished our service, we had a Community Lunch. Once we finished, we boarded a bus to head to the city of Granada, where we ended up walking to a restaurant called Jardines de Zoraya, which is also where we learned how to dance Flamenco. We started off practicing with some footwork and then continued learning a combo. Once we finished an hour of dancing, we went to dinner. We ate some fancy food at the restaurant at the same place and then ate dessert in front of a stage where we watched a Flamenco Show. Once the Flamenco Show wrapped up, it started getting dark, and we then concluded the day with walking down the hill, taking a bus back to FES, and going to bed.

-Eden M & Yash N.

June 17, 2019
Today, we headed out to the Alhambra, a massive series of towers, gardens, palaces on top of a hill. Our tour guide first led us to the “Generalife” which means “Gardens of Paradise” (not general life). As we strolled through the graceful gardens, we observed the pretty flowers and the marble canals. From the gardens we went to the three Moorish Palaces; the Administration, the Political Palace, and the Private Palace. The Administration and Political Palace were both splendid and designed with intricate designs. However the most splendid of all the palaces was the Private Palace, completed with the “Fuente de los Leones” and meeting rooms that, 500 years ago were covered in luxurious tapestries and carpets. After walking for a bit, we went to have a picnic out in a nice scenic park to write our poems. Then we walked up a tower to see the view of Granada. The view was filled with buildings and caves where flameco dancing was started. All around the viewpoint was the Sierra Nevada mountain range. After our Alhambra trip, we traveled back to the FES where we met different families of the community offering cuisines from around the world: Morrocan, West African and Latin. After an adventurous day, we went to bed with memories of our a brilliant red-stoned Alhambra and the tastes of cultural food in our mouths.

-Isabelle F & Andrew H