El Rocio and Alcazar

Yesterday we got to see El Rocio an event that only occurs once every year. El Rocio is a religious party and one of the most important pilgrimages in the Christian world. It is in honor of the Virgen del Rocio. Los romeros (people on the pilgramage) walk for days and various distances to get to a city called Rocio. This is where the remains of the Virgin are. People ride horses, ride in carriages that are decorated, and walk long distances to get to their final destination. We got to go with our class and professor to see the event. It was a unique experience because everyone is dressed in traditional garb. We stayed and watched for at least 30 minutes taking pictures and listening to the music. Yesterday we also met with my intercambio (speaking partner) for over an hour. He was very chatty and we walked a long distance to see him. We ended up visiting a giant mall and seeing the other parts of the university that are away from the river. We also got ice cream and he said one of his favorite flavors is goat cheese...

Today we got to see the Alcazar in Sevilla with our class. It was very cool to see. Sadly H's feet were hurting and we were running low on energy so we didn't get to spend as much time there as we would have liked. (After our class had left) However we did manage to get some cool photos. When our parents come to see us at the end of our trip we will definitely take them to this wonderful place.

The palace is a 10th century palace built for the governors of the local Moorish state. This building still functions as a royal palace- the oldest in Europe that is still in use. Interestingly Game of Thrones has been filmed here. The palace is considered Spain's best example of the Mudejar style. What was really exciting was the gardens and the bath. We want to go back Monday night when it is free and the light is cool to go and take some black and white photographs with our film camera. But for now these pictures will have to do.

Fun facts:
Today we ate eggs again...
We also talked to a few neighbors in the elevator. One an older woman who wanted to know where we were living and another who advized us of where the best place to eat was.
One of our friends at the center told us why no one likes to walk barefoot in the house (they are afraid that they will get foot diseases if they walk barefoot).