Sunday, March 1 // Domingo, 1 de marzo
This weekend was my first trip without the program. Four friends and I joined together because we wanted to experience Carnaval at Cádiz! Carnaval is a celebration that takes place before Lent that is reminiscent of Mardi Gras and Halloween rolled into one. Cádiz, an island city on the southwest coast of Spain and the oldest inhabited city in Europe, is known for Carnaval.
So, a few weeks ago, we booked our train tickets and a hotel for two nights. All of the places to stay in Cádiz were either sold out or very expensive, so we decided to book a hotel in a nearby city called El Puerto de Santa MarÃa, literally translating to the Port of Holy Mary. I figured we could take the ferry right across to Cádiz, which was only about 3 euros. I was also relieved we were able to find a cheap room that fit five people.
Then, we learned that if we wanted to fully immerse ourselves in Carnaval, we were to if dress up in costume for the event, as it is known for street performances and costumes that can be funny, political and/or controversial (I have been reminded many times that political correctness is a thing of the U.S. - it does not really exist in Spain). My friends and I went to a costume store in Sevilla to hunt down things to pull our costumes together. Arianna and I bought matching wings so we could be "dark angels," aka an excuse to create a cool makeup look. I was fully on board with that plan. My other friends went as animals - Charissa and D'Nydia as cats and Talia as a donkey!
After my last exam on Thursday, I was feeling good because I thought all of my exams had gone well. It was just a bit of a boring week because I had studied a lot and I was too worried about my first exams. The next exam week will be significantly better because now I know what to expect and how to study in order to be prepared for the exams. Thankfully, I could forget all about school because I had packing to do! I planned a few outfits for the weekend and filled my school backpack to the brim. I was ready.
Talia and Arianna had earlier train tickets than the rest of us, so I walked to the train station with Charissa and D'Nydia met us there. I had not taken the train yet so we were a bit nervous and got there way too early. However, I was comfortable because when I was in Europe last summer Jo and I took the train often and even through some mishaps we always made it to our destination. The trip there was quick and easy - only about one hour and fifteen minutes. I wrote an entry and did some relaxing doodling in my journal.
When we arrived, we took a cab to our hotel in el Puerto de Santa MarÃa, and we were shook to find that we could not enter our hotel - all the doors were locked, all the lights were out, and all the phone numbers on the door were not connecting us to anyone. I shoved the thought "our cheap hotel was a scam" to the back of my mind and we proceeded to try and open the door. After about five minutes of struggling, we saw a light turn on. Hope! A mother and her daughter, about our age, were exiting the hotel and opened the door for us! Finally then our other friends on the earlier train arrived - they had walked - and we all went into the hotel only to find out there was nobody at the reception desk. At least we were inside, I thought, we won't be sleeping on the street in a random city! Hooray!
We checked the upper floors and waited on the steps. About 20-30 minutes after our arrival, the reception employee, about our age, came through the front door with grocery bags full of fruit and helped us check in. I didn't immediately trust her but of course I had to give her my ID for processing and pay for the dang room.
While it may have started out mildly sketchy, it was all good from that point on. Although she gave us the wrong room key and the TV remote didn't have batteries, I felt bad that she was even working the day before el DÃa de AndalucÃa and on one of the final days of Carnaval, so I gave her a break (Each autonomous community has a day of celebration on its date of creation, and AndalucÃa, the southernmost "state" happens to have its birthday on February 28).
Our hotel room was very nice and the decoration reminded me of a room for massages. That night, we went to the store down the block and got some snacks and bottles of wine and just had a chill night in our room together.
The next day was the big day, though. We were to get up, eat our free hotel breakfast, explore the small town, then take the ferry to Cádiz for Carnaval! It went according to plan, for the most part.
The breakfast was a great spread of typical Andalusian food: pan tostada (toast) with olive oil and jamón (ham), marmelade, cheese, etc. There was sugary coffee - great for me, a coffee wimp - and orange juice that reminded us of the States. We definitely took some fruit and bread for later. Ratchet but you gotta do what you gotta do.
El Puerto de Santa MarÃa is very pretty. We ducked in and out of stores looking for things that we absolutely must purchase (lol), but we were more excited to get to Cádiz.
The line for the ferry was very long - we had to wait an hour or so to get tickets and board because everyone was going to Carnaval. The ride across the bay was beautiful and quick; it only took about 30 minutes. We were so energized and goofy that it felt like seconds.
Carnaval was not what we thought it was going to be.
I expected parades and groups of comical singers and organized events, but the areas that we checked out were filled with groups of citizens drinking and laughing and having a good time even if there wasn't any entertainment.
On Friday, we found a restaurant and had some tapas, then went to La Caleta Beach and took in some amazing ocean views. I collected a few cool coral pieces as a memory.
Walking back to the ferry on Friday was when we saw more of the Carnaval that we were expecting: crowded streets, lights adorning the narrow walkways, vendors selling Carnaval themed trinkets and laughter in the air.
We went on Saturday too - it was much busier on Saturday - and we experienced lots of costumes, singing, drumming, photo-ops, and bustling. The busiest area we stumbled upon was in front of the Cádiz Cathedral. There were groups of performers that would switch off and impress the large group of people, and some would charmingly ask for coins in return for the extraordinary entertainment.
One of my favorite parts of the weekend, though, was in el Puerto de Santa MarÃa, when we were having lunch as we waited for the ferry to Cádiz. We were seated outside the restaurant at a table when a small parade of youth Carnaval performers stormed the streets with songs and confetti. They threw an endless amount of confetti onto us and our table and stopped in front of us to perform. All of us had the biggest smiles on our faces. Some were dressed as traveling gnomes, some were dressed as little shrimps. It was the CUTEST thing of all time and you have to watch the videos I took - coming soon on my website below!
When they were done performing, we were sad and wanted more. We looked around and noticed that none of the other tables were covered in confetti, while ours, along with our clothes and hair, WERE! They loved us.
The other best part about the trip was my friends. Even in moments of tension, they were fun, caring, and easy to travel with. I would much rather laugh at simple mistakes and promote flexibility - especially since traveling comes with a lot of little spontaneous, impromptu decisions - than argue about the little things that happen along the way. I'm so thankful to have met people that are empathetic and adventurous; it makes my time here so much easier. It's no wonder the days are flying by. Tell me why it's already March - American spring break is coming up FAST and there's so much left to discover here!
All in all, Carnaval showed me some amazingly hilarious things. Where else are you going to see a European man dressed as Donald Trump one day and another dressed as the Coronavirus?? Both pictures are below. The pictures that are not below are of the people dressed as pregnant nuns, creepy priests, men and women dressed as Disney princesses, Frida Kahlo, and lots of people with red dots on their cheeks - I still don't know what it means but I can guess that it's part of the tradition or if you can't come up with a creative costume.
Unfortunately, I did not take many photos on Saturday, so most of the photos below are from Friday during the day and at the beach. Maybe more will come if my friends have any good ones!
I will try to get back on the blog train this week - I have not been as motivated but you are wondering what I am up to so I will try my best! Sometimes the days that I think are boring are the most interesting to readers. More to come soon!! xoxo
If you read this, leave a comment on this blog post!! I need the motivation... :D