Chris Burrus
Orientation in Madrid
The first day of the trip, our EIL group flew into Madrid for a three day orientation to get to know our group from the States. The group stayed in a hostal that was in the very center of the city, which allowed me to be completely immersed in the life of Madrid. We visited several tourist spots in Spain with our group, such as the Prado and The Palacio Real, and also looked into the different attractions that were prevalent at the time. A fond memory from Madrid was watching Spain play in the 2012 Euro Cup game against Portugal in the Semifinals. We went to a nearby pub to watch the game with the local Spaniards. The energy was incomparable; it was phenomenal. After Spain, we headed towards the city of Guadix.
Day Trip to Toledo
On our way to Guadix, we stopped for a few hours in a small pueblo called Toledo, a famous fortress area. We walked around the cobble-stoned streets, watching the stores open up again after the "siesta." The views were miraculous from the top of the river-surrounded village. After we had a quick lunch consisting of bocadillos and gazpacho, we got back on the bus and made our way to Guadix.
We arrived in Guadix late at night on the 30th of June. The minute we stepped off of the bus in the small city, a large group of people was there to greet us and show us to the Hotel Comercio, the hotel we stayed. Our EIL group didn't know at the time, but these people who met us ended up being our guardian angels throughout the entire 12 days in Guadix. They compiled an entire schedule for our nightlife and also our afternoon excursions when we weren't taking our Flamenco dance classes or our ceramics classes. We spent 2 hours a day in each of the two classes. We decided as a group to use the Flamenco classes to explore the different types of Spanish music. We worked with two women named Lucia and Carolina to put on a play for another EIL group coming to Guadix in two weeks.
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| This is a rehearsal of our Flamenco class while working on our play |
Once we completed our Flamenco class for the day, we would make our way to a ceramics class to learn specific Spanish forms of art and pottery. The class was enjoyable because it was very hands on for each of the students and we were able to make different pieces of pottery such as benditeras, necklaces, and Spanish plates. Not only did we create our own works of art but we were able to visit a genuine Spanish ceramic artist named Pepe.
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| Pepe showed us how to create vases through spin pottery |
The classes were very rewarding for me because I was able to work hands-on everyday, investigating the Spanish arts instead of sitting in a class all day learning the language. I was still completely immersed in the language.was still completely immersed in Spanish, but didn’t have to sit and learn from a teacher. I learned from native Spaniards.
The classes were great in Guadix, but the excursions in the afternoon were the best part of the stay in the small village. We were able to go horseback riding, visit natural hot springs, tour the cave houses that some people stayed in (“cuevas”), watch the Euro Cup Finals, and experience the amazing tapas. I liked Guadix because there were hardly any tourist attractions in the town, but it was still very alive and very modern. We had our final performance of the show on July 11th. After the show, our host siblings surprised us by attending our show and riding with us to Granada for the two week homestay.
Homestay in Granada
The homestay began on July 12th with each of the students in the EIL group breaking apart for the day and meeting our families. My family was a family of five, the Sanchez family. The entire family was incredibly understanding and welcoming. I loved with Alicia, the mother, Pedro, the father, Pablo, the 16-year-old son, and Diego, the 10-year-old son. Granada was a rather large city, with a good deal of area spanning across Southern Spain.
The purpose of Granada was to communicate with a Spanish family for two weeks and see a larger city with native teenagers. We visited different places with our homestay sibling, the rest of the group and their homestay siblings as well. My family stayed in a nearby village called Huetor Vega, which created a closer family feel instead of being placed in the center of downtown Granada. As a group of about 30, we visited the Alhambra, a water park called Aguaola, nearby beaches such as Salobrena and Almeria, and the tombs of Ferdinand and Isabel. Although the tourist attractions were beautiful, the trips with my family and the time spent at their house were the most memorable. My host family had the prettiest overlook of the Sierra Nevadas. Every night we would have the privilege of seeing a gorgeous sunset.
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| The flamenco dance is unique because it is focused on the idea of tapping your feet very quickly and moving to the clapping and playing of the musicians. The singers use a completely different form of breathing and projecting to create a specific sound with the dancers and the guitar strums. |
Once we finished our time in Spain, we made our way to the Pyrenees mountains to spend a few days in the wilderness of the Pyrenees Mountains before we made our way to Barcelona.
Hiking in the Pyrenees
During our time in the Pyrenees Mountains, we met up with another EIL group to spend time hiking along the French border and visiting close villages to see ancient Spanish cathedrals. We took a seven hour hike to the top of the mountain that we were staying on. The mountain was considered a part of Spain so the joke of the group was that we hiked internationally.
After our time hiking in the mountains, we returned to our hostal (which is actually a wintertime ski lodge) to watch the opening ceremonies of the 2012 Olympics. All of the Americans dressed in red, white, and blue, much like the fourth of July to celebrate our native country.
Barcelona to Close
In Barcelona, we split up into our smaller group once again to really connect the final 3 nights. We spent the day time visiting areas such as the famous Catedral and the beaches on the coast. The city of Barcelona is much different than the other Spanish cities because there is grass next to the streets and enormous buildings on the beach coast.
We also visited discotecas at night as a group to have a great finale to an unbelievable trip. I couldn’t ask for anything more in some of the greatest five weeks of my life. I owe all of my experiences to the Wilson Family for allowing me to study abroad and also to Dr. Gaffney and Mr. Gaither for facilitating the logistics of the trip. I cannot wait to spread the word about the trip to all of the other students of MBA and my friends around Nashville!
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