Walking to Jesus

Last weekend we walked up to Naranco, a hill to the north of Oviedo. On the top, it has a 50 foot statue of Jesus, arms outstretched. At night, it's lit with floodlights. All this in a public park. The cosmetic differences of how Europe handles things, such as religion, are so interesting to observe. While seeing the statue up close didn't give me any great understanding of it, it provided an amazing view of the city and surrounding landscape. Oviedo really is nestled in a bowl of mountains. It's a city of 200,000 people, the size of Eugene/Springfield or Salem/Keizer, and yet it's crammed into such a compact area. I was thinking about it and you could probably walk from one end of the city to the other in 1.5-2 hours. 1.5-2 hours in Eugene might get you from the far side of campus through downtown. What a difference cars make.

We passed by a couple ancient churches. If I understood what my art history teacher said, one is the oldest example of the Asturian style of church architecture in Spain. They're such a perfect example of one of the things I find more appealing about Europe than the US. In the US, almost any building could be torn down for a new mall sooner or later. Buildings change with the decades. In Europe, there are churches that have been there for more than a thousand years and will remain for a thousand more. There's a feeling of permanence, like the buildings mean more than a generation's whims.

I had to make a video of the view from the top of the hill since photos wouldn't do it justice. Email me if you want it.

Bit more about Barcelona

Thought I'd post a few more thoughts and photos about Barcelona. Hard to believe we left a week ago. The city is structured in such a way that it is squashed between hills and the ocean. The hills are similar to the west hills of Portland in that they provide a fairly effect natural barrier to expansion of the city, and you can't beat the ocean for limiting growth. As a result, the city has spread itself out so that it is very long. In a way, this makes the city more digestible. It's not some expansive metropolis going on as far as the eye can see. It's a very manageable strip that doesn't look to be more than 5 miles or so wide. This makes it possible to see landmarks clearly from one side of the city to the other when at a high vantage point, making the whole thing relatable. Still, that doesn't mean it's easy to manage. We were there for four days and barely saw the smallest sliver of it. Can't wait to go back and do some more.

Barcelona

Barcelona is one of the most amazing places I've ever been. It had three of the things I wanted to see before I died, all of them Gaudi creations, and I got to see all of them in one day. It's an incredibly international city, much more so than Madrid. Seriously, if you ever have to choose between seeing Madrid and seeing Barcelona, go with Barcelona. No contest. Barcelona doesn't make you look for reasons to like it. It lays them all out before you. We got to see Montjuic, the Olympic Stadium, a great pedestrian area called the Ramblas, la Segrada Familia, Gaudi's residences and park, the Barcelona Cathedrals, some great ice cream, the Picasso museum, and so much more I know I'm forgetting. Up there with Paris and London for great cities of the world. If any of you plan on visiting while I'm in Spain, I'd be down with meeting in Barcelona. Here are a few pics to get things started.

Taking It Easy

So, the past week has been pretty non-descript. I'm taking classes in literature, Hispanoamerican history, vocabulary, poetry, and Spanish art. The teachers are pretty mellow and all the homework gets done in class, which is sweet. It's kind of hard to take it seriously since Spanish students are hard to find on the campus, but as long as the credits transfer, I'm happy. I got bumped up from Intermediate 2 to Advanced 1. Not sure how well it'll work, but I get more credits from UO, so that's cool. We're leaving for Barcelona tomorrow at 6.45 AM. Definitely the part of the stay abroad I'm looking forward to the most. Anyways, here's a few more pics of Madrid to tide over.

Umbrellas

This town is addicted to umbrellas. The slightest bit of rain and every single person on the street has their umbrella out. They have shops devoted to nothing but umbrellas. Never seen so many posh umbrellas.

Classes are going ok, but I'm thinking of bumping up a level or two. The levels are pretty flexible, nothing is assigned, so I'm going to check with my advisor at UO and see if it will help me take care of credits.

The University of Oviedo isn't set up like your average American university. Rather than having one central campus, it's got buildings all over the city, actually all over the region, each one specializing in a different topic. I guess it integrates the university into the community, but at the same time it makes it harder to have an association with the school as a whole, rather than a specific building. Anyways, here are a few pics of the section of the university that I go to, the Milán site.

Oviedo

Oviedo, capital of the Spanish state of Asturias, is located towards the northwest corner of the country. Surrounded by mountains, it was the center of the pushback against the Moors in the 1400s and was the one part of the country Franco was not able to dominate. Oviedo has about 200,000 people, so it's about the size of the Eugene/Springfield area, but it's much more densely built. Therefore, it doesn't have as much landmass, but it feels like a very dense, large city. It loves its statues. Not sure why, but they're all over. They have the Prince of Asturias cultural award, which has been accepted by some big folks, including Woody Allen and Johnny Depp. Woody Allen even has his own statue in the shopping area. Oviedo is also famous for its cheese, hard cider, and ham. The cider has no bubbles, so they have to pour it at a height and split the flow on the rim of the glass, which forms bubbles in the drink. They pour you about an inch and you have to chug it. If you're sharing a glass, you have to leave a bit in the bottom that you pour over where you drank from to "sterilize" the spot (the cider is only like 5 or 6% alcohol. Food here is super-cheap and tastes great. A full bottle of cider, enough for 3 or 4 rounds at a table, is 2.20 euros. A glass of good wine is about 1.50 euros. You can get a good sandwich and a soft drink for about 2.30 euros. And their hot chocolate is basically hot chocolate pudding, it's so thick.

Madrid

I guess I got here on a fairly pleasant day, but this morning it's pouring. Madrid has some really neat places to visit, like a glass-enclosed market (kind of 5th Street Market-esque), some plazas, and some incredible old buildings. Unfortunately, yesterday was the day after Three Kings Day, I think it's called, which is their big Christmas day, rather than December 25th, so all the museums and such were shut down. They've got some amazing Christmas light displays set up throughout town. Some really incredible lights that looked kind of like ceilings in some of the squares. We just wouldn't see this sort of thing in the US, since Spain is an officially Christian nation. The guy sharing my room at the hostel, Bobby, is from Florida had already been in town for a few days, so he took me on a great walking tour of the central area of the city. There are beautiful buildings and great spots, but overall Madrid's vibe is a little underwhelming. It's definitely a city you'd live in, not visit. Anyways, here's some pics: