Academia Manhattan

One of Spain’s traditions that I enjoyed experiencing the most was the Cabalgata de Reyes Magos.

I have never seen such a celebration like it before and it was definitely a very cool experience. In the United States, the Christmas customs are all quite different among families and are not really observed as a whole community or country. The cabalgata is an event that all of Spain celebrates but each city has their own unique way of presenting it. It is essentially a parade of the Three Kings, or Magi, as they ride through the streets with children throwing candy and sweets into the crowd. The parade is meant to commemorate the Christian feast day, Epiphany, which occurs on the following day.

During the cabalgata in Córdoba, everyone crowded the main avenida to witness the arrival of the kings. There were crowds of families with their young children holding bags to gather the candy that will be thrown at them. There were several floats and bands making their way down the street before those of the Magi. Music was playing, people were dancing, and everyone involved in the parade was wearing costumes. Candy was flying everyone and some even hit me. No one should underestimate the strength of little kids!

By the time the Melchior, Gaspar, and Baltasar arrived, the crowds and children erupted into cheers and excitement. The kings waved and gave more sweets to the crowd. Los Córdobeses went wild! It was awesome.

The cabalgata was definitely a fun and unique celebration and I would love to see it again in the future!

 

 

Back home in the US there is a huge blizzard.  The meteorologists said that it was going to be the “Storm of the Century” and they have predicted over 30 centimeters of snow!

All our family and friends have spent the past few days preparing for the storm, filling up their cars with gas, buying extra blankets, and stocking up on food and fresh water.  The governments in the states of New York, New Jersey, Maine and Massachusetts, as well as many other states, have issued travel bans, shutting down public transportation and preventing anyone from using their cars.

All of the schools in the city of Boston and New York have been closed for a “Snow Day”.  Also flights going in and out of the northeast have all been canceled, delayed, or rerouted to other airports.  I’m so happy to be in Spain right now! ☺

The first trip I made outside of Spain this past semester was to Morocco. It was easily one of my favorite weekends during the first half of my year abroad. It was the most unique and exciting trip because of how we traveled to the country and the things that we did there. I remember waking up early on the first day of our trip to take a three hour train ride from Cordoba to Algeciras, the southernmost part of mainland Spain. Once my friends and I arrived in Algeciras, we went on a large ferry that took us across the Strait of Gibraltar into Ceuta, a Spanish city located on the northern tip of Africa. I never knew that a part of Spanish land stretched into a different continent. This was something that amazed me.  Although it was technically part of Spain, the culture of Ceuta was just so different. It was incredible to witness. Not to mention, being able to physically see Africa and Europe from a boat was a one of a kind experience.

The transition from Ceuta into Morocco was surprisingly easy. My friends and I simply walked through a security gate, showed our passports to the officer, and then crossed the border into Morocco. That was all it took! The culture change was even bigger on this side of the border. I knew that we were no longer in Spain and the feeling was so exciting.

We spent the night in Tetouan with a Moroccan friend and her family. I remember hearing the Islamic call to prayer around 8 p.m. when the sun went down and the night became chillier. Hearing the call was so beautiful and peaceful and it was one of my favorite things about Morocco. The next day was spent in Tangier, a bigger and more touristic beach city. It was nice to be so close to the ocean. The breeze and open air were so refreshing. The four of us girls took a taxi tour around the city and we passed by major sites such as the royal family’s residences and Tangier’s ports. We made a stop for camel rides, which was a bit scary, but also super fun. One of the goals of the weekend was to celebrate the International Day of the Girl, a campaign that my friends were actively a part of. We worked on a video project that honored this special day and we included our thoughts about the importance of celebrating young girls around the globe. It was a very rewarding experience.

The following day was full of relaxation and celebrations. We spent the day preparing for a traditional Moroccan wedding later in the evening. We decorated our hands with henna, a temporary dye used to make designs on the body, such as flowers or patterns. Then we tried on different traditional dresses, which were so beautiful and full of vibrant colors. The wedding itself was amazing. It took place in a large, decorated hall full of women in their own colorful outfits. There was music and several rounds of food. The celebration was very different than anything I had ever seen, nonetheless, it was such a fantastic experience and I am grateful to have been a part of it.

Morocco was an awesome country with so much culture and beauty and it is definitely a place I would love to visit again in the future!

This January, Elise and Asrie will be interning at Academia Manhattan.  Find out more about them below:

Asrie Karma

Hello! My name is Asrie Karma and I am from Queens, New York. I study architecture and Spanish at Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts. This year, I am living and studying in Córdoba with the PRESHCO program.  In my free time. I love to draw and paint, watch movies, and exercise. I also like to travel a lot especially in Spain because it is my favorite place. I hope to improve my Spanish during my time here and I am excited to meet you all. See you soon!

¡Hola! Me llamo Asrie Karma y soy de Queens, Nueva York. Estudio la arquitectura y el español en Smith College en Northampton, Massachusetts. Este año, vivo y estudio en Córdoba con la programa PRESHCO. En mi tiempo libre, me encanta dibujar y pintar, ver las películas, y hacer ejercicio. También, me gusta viajar mucha especialmente en España porque es mi lugar favorito. Espero mejorar mi español durante mi tiempo aquí y estoy emocionada de conoceros todos. ¡Hasta pronto!

 

Elise Tiani

Hi everyone! My name is Elise Tiani and I am an American university student. I am from Boston, Massachusetts and am studying law and society and Spanish at Oberlin College in Ohio. This past semester I lived and studied in Cordoba, it is a very beautiful city! I love Spanish culture, in particular the tapas and the tradition of the siesta. Some of my hobbies are reading books, running, and going hiking and rock climbing. I am so excited to meet you guys and help teach this month. See you soon!

Hola! Me llamo Elise Tiani y soy una estudiante universitaria estadounidense. Soy de Boston, Massachusetts y estudio el derecho y el español en la Universidad de Oberlin en Ohio. Este semestre pasado vivía y estudiaba en Córdoba, una ciudad muy bonita!  Me encanta la cultura española especialmente las tapas y la tradición de la siesta! Algunos de mis pasatiempos son leer libros, correr, y hacer escalata y senderismo. Estoy muy emocionada para conoceros y ayudar a enseñar este mes! Nos vemos!

Our Experience in Villanueva de Cordoba

By the Academia Manhattan Interns

Maddie, Jess, Julia and Dani

Living in Villanueva de Córdoba has been an amazing experience, and one that we will never forget. During our summer here we have all fallen in love with the delicious foods, the gorgeous countryside, and above all, the amazing people we’ve been lucky enough to meet. You all have welcomed us into your town so generously and graciously, and we cannot thank you enough.

Some highlights of our time in Villanueva have been our long walks in the countryside, our traditional Thursday night pizza at Volao, tasting the typical foods, and, of course, working at Academia Manhattan.

Walks through the countryside:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Whenever we had the time, we all loved to take walks through the beautiful countryside that surrounds town. We enjoyed wandering down the dirt paths lined by stone walls and fields full of cows and sheep.

There is really nothing like this near where we live in the United States. From certain paths you can look back and see the whole town. At sunset, these walks were even more incredible.

Pizza at Volao on Thursday:

Every Thursday night we would meet at Volao and eat tons of delicious pizzas. It became a wonderful tradition! We would look forward to this dinner all week long. We enjoyed chatting and laughing with good friends and eating pizza after delicious pizza. Our favorite kind was the kebab pizza (sometimes we would even order two of them). This tradition will be greatly missed!

Eating traditional foods:

Of course, we ate more than just pizza during our time in Villanueva. All of the traditional foods here are so tasty! Some of our favorite dishes that

we tried were salmorejo, tortilla española, bocadillo de lomo con pimiento frito, berenjenas con miel, ensaladilla, queso, pan, tinto de verano, and jamón ibérico de bellota (of course!). We’ll try to cook all of these foods back in the US, but we’re not sure if it will ever be the same. Some of our favorite restaurants that we ate at were La bodega de Lucman, La encina de Lucman, KA Dulce, La puerta falsa, Franmer, and Volao among many others. Sometimes at night we would go to El chaparral for drinks and sit on the beautiful patio, under the trees, while listening to fantastic music and laughing with each other.

 

Working at Academia Manhattan:

It was truly an honor to work as interns at the Academia Manhattan. Working with Lucy (who we believe is actually superwoman) was an absolute pleasure. She runs the school with such grace and poise, and we were always inspired by her compassion and care for her students. As interns we had the opportunity to meet and work with nearly all of the students. We enjoyed all of the deep discussions we were able to have with you and the many games we had the chance to play. You are fantastic students and we know that you will continue to improve your English skills in the future. Though we were the teachers, we ended up learning so much from all of you. This really was the best internship ever!

     

The night of the Star Party was a night of surprises. Firstly, we found out that the Macarena was composed in Sevilla. We played it and everyone danced the Macarena together. I felt like I (Jess) was a kid again dancing, singing and playing silly party games with my friends. I was extremely happy to find out that the Macarena came from Spain and in the spirit of Spanish culture I asked my Academia friends to teach me how to dance the Sevillana (an amazing Spanish tradition). I followed along step-by-step but at the end I still wasn’t able to dance the sevillana. I think I need a lot more practice before I can go out on the dance floor. However, I loved learning a little more about Spanish culture and as great as it is to teach others, it is even more fun to be the student!

After dancing, we played a few games. The interns taught everyone the game of musical chairs, an American party staple. In the game, the group circles around a group of chairs while music plays. When the music stops, everyone must find a chair to sit in. The person who does not find a chair is out. The game continues until everyone but one person is out. A few of our friends taught us their own version of the game, which seemed like a cross between the American games of musical chairs and hot potato. The players dance in couples and try to pass around a broom (in our case, a tube of lipstick) while still holding hands. The couple holding the lipstick when the music stops is out. I really enjoyed the game, but was way to klutzy to be anywhere near competitive!

Later we walked out into the fields that surrounded the bed and breakfast and gazed at the millions of stars that sparkled in the night’s sky. It was incredible! I (Julia) had never seen so many stars all at once. We were able to see Mars, Saturn, the Milky Way Galaxy, and several constellations. Juan, an expert in astronomy, gave us a very interesting lecture on the universe. He was able to present in both English and Spanish, which was very impressive to all of us. We stood, huddled together in the field, stunned by the expansive universe above us, and never wanting to leave.

We ended the night with the biggest and most wonderful surprise of all. In a small ceremony, the ayuntamiento of Villanueva presented us with going away gifts. We received a Villanueva de Córdoba pin and key chain, both of which we will use and wear with pride for this amazing town. It was a true honor to be recognized by the ayuntamiento as well as by our students and friends. We were deeply moved by this gesture, and as we gave short speeches, we tried not to cry. Villanueva is an incredible town with such kind and caring people. Thank you for welcoming us into your town and making us feel as if we were at home. None of us could have imagined a better experience – it has been a summer that we will never forget. We wish you all the best in the future and hope that one day we can meet again.