What is Malaga?

Monday, February 22, 2019

What is Malaga?

            To be honest, I have never been to Malaga, Spain in my whole life and for the longest time it has been in the back of my head for a long time. For some random reason I booked a trip to travel down to Andalucía once again and this time I visited Malaga. The whole process was nice and easy. I used an app on my phone called Go Euro which is a universal travel agency that finds you the cheapest flights, trains, buses etc. I was able to find a bus for round trip that cost 30 euros and then for accommodation I used Airbnb to rent a room for 3 nights which cost $48. 

            One of the things I wished I did was do a little research on the area and what to do. Instead, I show up at this beach city and right away I was lost and had no idea what was cool to do in Malaga. My first day I went for a walk into the center of town and just looked around. I was a bit disappointed right from the start and asked myself about why I chose to come to Malaga. Soon I decided to walk down the city and on the far left I saw an area where you can hike up and get a great view of the city. I decided to hike up. As I hiked up, little by little more and more things started to unravel. I found out where I was hiking up to the castle of Gibralfaro which right off the bat gave me a hint that it was an Arab castle. I still have yet to look it up on Google to confirm but I am very keen with architecture and know when something was built by the Moors or not. This place was and it only served its purpose to the tourists as a place to just get a great sight out of Malaga. One of my best pictures taken come from this discovery I made. After I did that, I learned that there was another castle nearby called the Alcazaba and it was near a Roman theater. Things just got better for me already for this Malaga trip. I literally traveled blindsided into this beach city and was able to get that virgin experience of seeing something for the first time. It was great. I had the opportunity to see the Alcazaba and Roman theater. By the time I made those big discoveries, I found out that Cadiz was famous for the castles, the Roman theater, the Pablo Picasso museum, the Cathedral they have in the center of town and of course the beach. I then decided to leave the Cathedral and Pablo Picasso museum for Sunday. Later on, Saturday I ran into an international cinema. I was so blown away because the ticket prices were 6 euros and was cheap. I decided to watch The Green Book which eventually won Best Picture at the Oscars the next day for 2019. I saw the beach first and then went to see the film. That whole day was jam packed. The lesson I want to highlight about it is that when you are heading towards a specific destiny, observe and jump into things you see along the way because sooner or later you learn the purpose. I learned the whole purpose of how to travel in the city of Malaga. It is a place I will only go back to if my family goes with me. I will not go back there alone. 

            For Sunday, I went through the Pablo Picasso museum which was split up into different phases of the artist and his styles. I loved every minute of it. After that I went inside the Cathedral and it was not that impressive to me. I liked it but I feel like because I have seen so much of Spanish Cathedrals, it has me phased. And, I also ended up watching another film. All in all, the trip was great! I learned so much about Spain and about myself. I am glad it happened the way it should have. 

The Roma Effect

Monday, February 18^th, 2019 

The Roma Effect

            I am still blown away about how awesome it was visiting the city of Rome. There is nothing better than actually stepping foot in the city and taking a stroll around to see all of the iconic Roman ruins and monuments tourists pay to see. Since the beginning of this trip, it has been a culture shock for me. It all started when I left the Madrid Barajas airport and boarded my flight for the Rome Ciampino airport through RyanAir.

            I arrived in Rome around 8PM more or less. As I got off the plane, I noticed that the airport was very slow paced and small. Small like a local airport you would find in Provo, Utah. Even the local airport located in Orange County, John Wayne Airport, was sort of bigger. And, I walked through baggage claim. I remember hearing in the speaker phone that the airport was going to close from 11PM to 4AM. I was shocked and wondered “How weird that a big city like Rome has to close their airport down.” I get outside and I could not find any train signs. I was under the impression that just like the airport in Madrid, Spain that I would be able to catch a Metro or Train. Nope, that wasn’t the case in Ciampino airport. I asked an Italian lady who didn’t speak English and preferred to speak in broken Spanish/Italian. I understood everything and was told that I needed to take a shuttle from Ciampino to some train station. I didn’t know which one. So, I was lost and again, culture shocked. 

            Since I am very good with my instincts, I decided to ask and figure out which bus goes to the Termini stop. Ciampino was another stop that buses went to. I chose Termini and the shuttle driver told me that it would be 5 euros. So, I got on that shuttle and waited there for about 30 minutes before the bus took off. During that time, my friend Alessandra called me and sounded a little nervous. She was like “Sal, I just found out that you are not in the right airport. There is going to be a big change of plans.” She then said, “Find a shuttle and take it to Termini. Does that make sense?” I then explained to her that I figured everything out and would be there in no time. She was still nervous and kept pushing on wanting to talk to the driver so she can get an exact location of where I would be. I then explained to her that, it’s all good. On the bus ride there, I met a group of Irish guys and they explained to me that Rome has 2 airports. The Fuichino airport and the Ciampino one. The Ciampino one is what RyanAir always uses. Either way, it was all good. The other airport had access to a train and the Ciampino just had the option for taking a shuttle. Either one was fine. So, on the bus ride there I was scared inside and still culture shocked. I could not believe that I was taken out of my comfort zone. It was nerve-racking. I realized in that very moment that Spain is my home base. 

            Finally, I get to Termini station. It is such a big facility and close to the center of town. I was impressed. It is like the Atocha station in Madrid. Pretty much all the train and metro lines go through that center point. Definitely a good thing to know since I may be coming back to Rome again. At the Termini station I found my friend Alessandra who introduced me to her friend Ester (a very attractive Italian gal). Then, two other friends showed up who were Mattias and Francesca (she was also pretty.) From then on, we tried to catch a metro that would take us to a train line which would take us up north to Alessandra’s house, where I was staying. On the way over there, we missed the 10PM train so we had to wait for the 11PM train. We got to her home by midnight. I got to know everyone in the group. Ester was coming from Florence, Francesca and Mattias were both from Milan. So, it was a cool melting pot of Italians. They were all planning on going to the last open house visit for the Rome, Italy LDS temple on Saturday, February 16^th, 2019. 

            When we got to Alessandra’s home, it was pretty far away from Rome. She lived in an actual house in the outskirts of Rome, near like a forest area. It was cool nonetheless. The weather was chilly in Rome, similar to the cold in Madrid. I met Alessandra’s mother who is named Ana Maria. She only spoke Italian, so I actually did my best to use my Spanish and turn them into Italian words. It was a big sleepover party to be honest. Ester immediately invited me to watch a movie with the group. It was the best set up ever. There was a girl to guy ratio where there were more girls than guys. And, I have been looking forward to having a movie night with young good-looking girls. I was already picturing it already, me chilling side by side with new friends. However, I was tired because the night before on Thursday, Feb 15^th, I went to bed late and slept 4 hours., So, on Friday I was wanting to sleep. I rejected the offer that Ester gave to me about watching a movie. I regret it to this day. I wish I would have sucked it up and went to watch that movie with them. They even had it set up in English specially for me since I didn’t speak Italian. But there is this saying, “The spirit is willing, and the flesh is weak.” I went to sleep like a baby and slept really good at the cost of not watching a movie with some cool friends late at night. 

            The next day, it was Saturday, February 16^th, 2019. To summarize that whole day, we all got up and took off in the car to the temple. It was an amazing experience to be in Italy visiting one of their very own temples. I met more Italian people, I even reunited with friends that I met in Madrid when Alessandra was visiting the city with them. It was a big day for me. I pretty much spend hours there and walked around. I had the temple tour, the inside and out of the temple. I loved the pictures that I took. It was great. The end of that day, Ester and the rest of the gang went back home. Alessandra and I stayed in Rome. I had a chance to see the city later that night. Then, I went home, and Alessandra’s mother cooked for us friend pizza and it was delicious. It was so good. For the first time in my life, it was awesome to just hang out and talk with my friend. It literally brought back childhood memories of when I used to have sleepovers with my friends, and we would have so much fun. That was pretty much the experience with Alessandra. 

            The next morning, I went to church with Alessandra and her mother. I met other members there and also saw familiar faces of people who were volunteering at the open house. I again was culture shocked at church again. I was reminded about how I do not speak, nor do I understand Italian. It brought me back to when I was newly 21 years old in the missionary training center of Spain, July 2014. Back then I was humbled and became a new man. Being in Italy reminded me about how even though I may have conquered the Spanish language in Spain along with its culture, that was not the case for Italy. It was great to feel that again. I never thought that I would find myself in an uncomfortable situation again. Pretty much throughout that day I was able to pick up on Italian and even learn some phrases. If I was honestly given another opportunity to learn a new language and culture, I would select Italy. 

            During church I also took pictures and chatted with some people. It was great. Then we went home, ate some more of Alessandra’s mom’s famous cooking. Then, we went to a birthday party. After that, Alessandra and I toured more of Rome together. We saw a lot of cool things. We even went to see this famous fountain called the Trevini Fountain. The legend behind the fountain is that when having your back facing the fountain and tossing a coin over you into the fountain, the first coin brings luck that the person who through it will return to Rome. I through a coin and had Alessandra record. The other cool thing about that legend is that, a second coin guarantees a new romance and a third coin thrown in there brings the luck of marriage. So, I already feel that I am going to come back to Rome, Italy. I definitely will remember to throw in 2 more coins into the fountain so more good luck will come to pass for me. After that, I went home with Alessandra and we ate her mom’s famous pasta. It is unbelievable how good that woman cooks her food. It was better than anything in the whole wide world. Better than any restaurant and I wish I could eat that every day. 

            Monday was my last day in Rome. I had to catch my plan in Ciampino airport around 4:30PM. So, Alessandra and I woke up super early and got dropped off by her mother around 8PM near the temple grounds. From there on we toured the Vatican and more of Rome. It last about 4 hours. Then, it was time to go back to the airport for me. Again, that was an awesome day. I didn’t realize how lucky of a guy I was to have such a good friend like my friend Alessandra. She did good and pretty much shared her culture with me. I wish I could repeat the whole Italy trip again. It was so far my favorite I have ever taken. 

            The reason I named this blog, “The Roma Effect,” is because there has been a cultural trend happening lately in the world revolved around the word “Roma.” First, the whole world has been talking about the Mexican film directed by Alfonso Curron which is found on Netflix. And, there has been international talk about how the LDS church finished building the Rome Italy temple and had a 2-week open house to the public for the viewing. So, my trip to Rome was surreal and hit me on the face just like the film did. To summarize the whole trip, I pretty much flew into an airport that I did not anticipate landing in (it was scary), I met beautiful Italian girls, I saw a majestic temple, I saw a majestic city, I learned a little bit of Italian, I fell in love with the country and at the end of everything I told myself that this is called, “The Roma Effect.” 

Spanish Cemetery

Monday, February 11, 2019 

Spanish Cemetery 

            One of the highlights of living in Madrid is about the cemeteries that exist in Spain. In particular, Madrid in general and other city centers of Spain do not have the typical American cemetery with the size of lots all over the place or a vast horizontal stretch of grass. To answer that question, the majority of Spain is filled with apartment complexes all over the nation. I have seen apartments all over Madrid, Andalusia, Castile and Leon, Castile of the Mancha, Galicia, Basque Country and the Canary Islands. From my observations of observing the living situation in Spain, it is common to live in an apartment. Older Spanish families have houses in little villages hours away from the city, but, in general the majority of Spain has the housing situation set up apartment style and sometimes even like a town home. The common American way of having a house with a full 360 degree turn all over the yard is rare and not common.

            This brings me to the curiosity of how they take care of the dead. Since Spain is crowded and bundled up with apartments all over their major cities, how are the dead treated after death. Just like the rest of my observations, I went to visit a cemetery in the village of Azuqueca de Henares. Azuqueca de Henares is an area that belongs in Castile of the Mancha and in other words the little village that didn’t make it in the boundaries of belonging to the community of Madrid. I would describe the area like living near John Wayne airport or South Coast plaza in Southern California because those areas are near border cities and don’t really represent the zone they belong too. They are either fighting to be in Costa Mesa, Santa Ana, Irvine, Newport or Tustin. Well, Azuqueca is sometimes referred to by the locals as the “outskirts of Madrid” even though it no longer is in the community of Madrid. 

            So, when I went to the local cemetery in the area, it was located somewhere north of the city and isolated from the center of town. As I arrived there, I noticed how that environment was mainly concrete and just the look of a storage warehouse. As I entered in there, I didn’t get that feel like I did with the Southern Californian cemeteries. The Southern Californian cemeteries were big, green and there was hardly any concrete. The only artificial that existed was the head stones of the grave and the pavement of the roads. The local cemetery in Azuqueca is a representation of what a Spanish cemetery is like. When I entered, I noticed that the graves were in marble blocks and above ground level. So, no one was buried underground. It looks like the coffins were placed on top of the ground in permanent marble cases. Each grave looked personalized and decorated with Christian symbols such as a cross or a crucified Christ. 

            In terms of what I saw, I will have to say that there is a strong correlation with the apartment lifestyle in Spain correlating with how the graves in Spain are not big and small. I did hear from a citizen from Spain that a lot of people donate their body and organs to science, or they get cremated. Besides that, I think I made an interesting cultural find in Spain once again. 

One Month Story-telling of My Job/Internship in Madrid

Monday, February 4, 2019

One Month Story-telling of My Job/Internship in Madrid

Just to clarify what I am doing in Madrid. I am a language assistant which is known as an “auxiliar de conversación” in Spain. It isactually aprogram that has been around for more than ten years. It is something offered by the Spanish government inviting native English speakers to work as a language assistant in Spain with a monthly stipend and benefits such as medical and dental insurance. So, BYU has a good connection with Spain, they gave BYU special permission to allow their students to participate in the program. Normally the program is 10 months long and, in this case, BYU come in when there is 6 whole months left in the school year. BYU makes this program possible for their students since they allow students to do it for academic internship credit which goes towards a degree that a student is working on. I am studying Spanish with a minor in international cinema and this language assistant program actually counts towards my Spanish degree. Besides that, I am an employee in Madrid, Spain just with special privileges through the language assistant program. It is actually open to everyone. Every February the application opens and closes on April. I won’t go into how the application process works, I just think it’s neat that college graduates can apply for it and come out to Spain to teach if accepted. 

Language assistants are technically not teachers. We are presented as a professor to the children in the school and the whole school recognizes us as another professor in the school. However, we technically assistant teachers which is something that is common for a student working on getting their teaching certification. We work with different age groups and different classrooms. It usually comes down to a teacher of a classroom who conducts the class and they use the language assistants as a resource to work with the kids’ oral English skills. The age level from kids usually will be first through 6^thgraders. 

In terms of my responsibilities, I work with 1^st, 2^nd, 3^rd, 4^th, 5^thand 6^thgraders. The 5^thgraders are probably the hardest class to help out with English because the 5^thgraders I work with have a bad level in English and they do not want to talk or practice. The best class is the third graders since they are proficient and love to use me as a resource to better assist them. There isn’t much new to say than what I have already explained. 

I think that this program is a great way to try out the teaching route if someone wants to go into the education system. 

Other than that, I will need to write and dedicate more blogs about what I am doing in the language assistant program.

Sincerely,

Sal Galvan 

 

Plaza Mayor (Calle Toledo) 

Cadiz Excursion

Monday, January 28^th, 2019

Cadiz Excursion

Cadiz is known to be one Europe’s most ancient cities that has ever existed hundreds a years before the birth of Christ. It was a city named/known by the Romans as “Gadir.” So, when reffering to the ancient city, it is okay to call it “Gadir” to be cool. Currently the city is known as Cadiz and has a lot of culture and history to it.

When entering into this city, there are 3 ways of entering into this neat city. 1, you can drive there by car, 2 you can arrive there by train or 3, you can arrive there by bus. It takes about 5-6 hours average, depending on traffic of how to arrive there. By bus you will need to spend about 8 hours on the bus and by train which is the fastest way will take you about 4 hours. Out of all of the 3 options I had the opportunity to use an app in Spain called “Blabacar” which is a carpool app where you pay a driver heading to a specific place you are wanting to head to. I also looked into the bus options and was not a fan of wanting to sit on a bus for 8 hours. Which lead me to pay for a train ticket that would cost me 4 hours of my time. 

When I arrived in Cadiz, I was able to observe that the city itself is a peninsula. It is surrounded by water. If you start on one end of the city and walk around the whole city to other side, you will notice how you have walked a peninsula. The city is not big, it is big enough to walk around the whole peninsula surrounded by water. Within the city, there are two parts separated by an ancient gate that is one of the sites tourists are recommended to observe and take pictures of it. Anything within the gate is the ancient past of Cadiz and from the outside gate and going backward, you are in the new part of Cadiz. So, when referring to hanging out, some people will refer to the old part of town or the new part of town.

Inside the old part of Cadiz which is where all the tourists go to see the neat architecture that still stands. They have a neat plaza where the town hall is located along with narrow and beautiful facades located outside of the buildings. And, to summarize the rest you will see a beautiful cathedral that has a Baroque and Neoclassic type of architecture to it, along with another building on the coast called “La Caleta,” and other monuments within the city. The Cathedral of Santa Cruz has an interesting yellow dome on the back side of the building that gives it a “mudejar” feel to it which is a type of architecture that existed when the Christians built buildings under the Musilm rule and the “mozarabe” style was around when the Muslims built among the Christian rule. 

I went to this city mainly to location scout for a short film I wanted to create. I was not able to take the iconic pictures that most tourists take of the city.

Besides that, you can also take a train to go around other parts of Cadiz that are located outside of the city or you can take a boat that will cross over the other parts. 

Other than that, I plan to return to return to the old city and take note on the cathedral and its historic monuments. 

Sincerely,

Sal Galvan