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April 17, 2009
If you like then beach, then you'd love Cadiz.

My friend Emily and I decided to try to go to Gibraltar the weekend of March 27 to see the monkeys that live there. Gibraltar is actually a territory of England. The people all speak English, use the British Pound, and pledge allegiance to the Queen. Although this is an interesting tidbit to tell your friends, it also sucks because you need to bring a passport just to pass the border. Emily seemed to be on top of it, but I forgot to bring my passport despite being early to our meeting point. We got to the bus just in time to watch it leave.

After checking the bus schedule for alternative plans we decided to go to Cadiz, a small beach town about two hours south. There's not much to see there, some old ruins and old city walls, but it's still pretty. We walked around a little, found the beach, and walked for a few hours pausing to watch kite-surfers, normal surfers, and people just playing on the beach. To my disappointment, the water was too cold to swim in, but we still had a really good time.

April 15, 2009
Morocco bound

Last week, my good buddy James came up to me and said, "Hey Dave, let's go to Morocco next weekend, we need to sign up this week."

"Ok."

It was by far the coolest thing I have done thus far! I had been thinking about it, but finally got the motivation to go and sign up. We went with a company called SolChasers and they took care of everything. Last Friday, I got up at 5:00 a.m. to be at the meeting point at 5:45 (this is not easy when you go out until 2 a.m. the night before). We slept on the bus, which took us to Tarifa, Spain, where we jumped on a fatty boat to take us to Tangier, Morocco. The boat ride is approximately 45 minutes, and depending on the weather it can be a rough ride. When we got off the boat, it didn't feel that different. We changed our money over to the local currency (Dirham), and got on a bus bound for Fes.

Our first stop was in a small city called Chefchaouen. It really was charming and beautiful. We had a local guide who walked us around the city, showing us landmarks and telling us about the history of the city. One thing that seemed unique about the city was how they dyed almost everything with an indigo dye. Our guide explained that it helps decrease the intensity of the sun reflected from the walls and also helps deter mosquitoes. I thought that was really interesting. Unfortunately, since our group was so big I couldn’t hear half of what our guide was saying, but I figured Wikipedia would fill in the gaps. After a little over an hour, we jumped back on the bus and headed off to Menkes, Fes, where we would be spending the night.

Fes is a great city. We got up early to jump on the bus and go explore the city. The best part had to be the markets and the people. We realized that we weren’t in America anymore when we passed by a camel head hanging from one of the butcher shops. Little treasures like this were everywhere. Dead fish, cow heads, goats, and meats of all shapes and sizes hung from just about everywhere. The amount of flies deterred me from buying any steak, but it was a trip to see. I also noticed that Morocco doesn’t believe in or can’t afford refrigeration in most places. You know your food is fresh, because they have nowhere to keep the old stuff.

We got to see the dye pits where they stain and tan leather. The smell was just under unbearable, but we got to learn how they treat, stain, and manufacture the leather. Then, we went to a ceramic shop where they make ceramic pots and mosaics which can be seen in most of the architecture and buildings in the city. The ceramic was really durable and BEAUTIFUL. We saw each stage of the process. The potters, the men who chiseled each mosaic piece and the ovens where the pots were glazed and fired were all on the tour. The second night, there was an optional belly-dancing dinner thing, which James and I opted to skip and sleep instead.

The last day, we left the hotel bright and early to say goodbye to Fes and jump on the bus for Tangier. We made a few pits stops along the way, including a stop in Asilah, where beautiful beach views were a dime a dozen. Finally, we made it back to Tangier, one of the more modern cities of Morocco. I was surprised at how many hotels they were building, it seems Morocco is growing its tourism, and for good reason — the place is beautiful.

The boat left from Tangier and took us back to Tarifa, just in time for sunset. I wish I could convey the true experience of the country in this blog, but unfortunately I’m limited to only words. I think that someday I will return to Africa, maybe even Morocco, to explore the continent that in so many ways is still wild. It was definitely worth it to see people who live with what they have instead of complaining about what they don’t. Maybe that’s the magic of Morocco, its ability to truly bring you back down to earth.

April 14, 2009 - Off to Barcelona

I'm very behind in blogs and I realize this, so I have some catching up to do! The first thing I feel that all you CSU students need to hear about is Barcelona. With the release of Vicky Cristina Barcelona in the U.S., Barcelona got some pretty good attention in Denver for its natural beauty and charm. The city is much bigger than Sevilla, but it has a reliable metro system which came in very handy for seeing things. The native language is Catalan, which I've learned through research is an entirely different language from Spanish that descended from Latin, but most of the people there also spoke Spanish, which helped.

I went to Barcelona to visit Ashley Carlson and Senait Isaac, two juniors at CSU who are also studying abroad in London and Prague, respectively. I stayed in a hostel right on the beach called Sea Point Hostel, so the first part of my trip was mostly spent exploring the beach. During the day, I visited the famous tourist attractions of renowned architect Antoni Gaudi including his house, Park Guell, La Rambla, and La Sagrada Familia. La Sagrada Familia was by far the most impressive part in the city of Barcelona. It’s much bigger than I thought, and creatively designed after structures found in nature. The building had almost a tree-house feel to it. As you look up into the rafters you can see Gaudi's creative use of lines and curves to create geometric shapes that are both efficient and strong. It's definitely an impressive building.

At night I met up with Ashley and Senait to check out some of the clubs and bars that Barcelona has to offer. Much more vibrant (and expensive) than the bars in Sevilla, the clubs in Barcelona are decidedly upscale and can be as much as 20 euro to get into! We visited a club called Opium. The dancing was fantastic.

The next big attraction in Barcelona is the Rambla, a large stretch of road that houses some of Barcelona's most popular shops and kiosks. Here you could buy flowers, animals, postcards, and art from street artists and entrepreneurs.

Overall, Barcelona was a great city to visit. It's big, modern, and home to some great people who are fun to interact with. Up next: Morocco.

March 13, 2009

A little about Dave...

My name is David Fox. I am a junior at Colorado State studying business and Spanish. This semester, I decided to study in Sevilla, Spain, to further my understanding of the Spanish language and to try to bring my business and Spanish majors. I arrived here on Jan. 23rd and will be here until June. I have some cool trips planned to Belgium, Amsterdam, Germany, and Italy and I will be documenting those trips here. Check back often.

I flew in a little bit early to get used to the city before the program started. The airport lost one of my bags — the one with all the clothes — so I was stuck in the same thing for a few days. All went well. I stayed in Oasis Backpacker's Hostel in downtown Sevilla and loved it. I met a lot of cool people from around the world, and the atmosphere was conducive to meeting new people.

School at the University of Sevilla has been going well. It isn't nearly as difficult as the classes I was taking at CSU, but I've found the real education is acquired from everyday life here. The people you talk to, the food you eat, and asking for directions all contribute to what we're learning here. I'm living in a home-stay with one lady and another student from the University of Florida, we only speak Spanish.

I'm a Colorado native, so it amazed me when I saw orange trees growing on the side of the road. We live right next to Quadalquivir, the river that runs through the middle of the city, and usually when class is out we go there to hang out, talk, and drink wine. Adjusting to the schedule was also difficult. Leaving your house at midnight or 1:00 a.m.is common to go out for the night so the siesta is almost necessary.

I'll try to make my next few blogs more content-specific. The food, football games, school, parties, places we visit, and buildings will all be discussed in greater detail as they occur. Thanks for reading!