BWCA - Superior Bike Tour

For five days my Father and I engaged in our BWCA - Superior Bike Tour across wild and untamed Northern Minnesota! We faced just under 350 grueling miles and five days of forests, lakes, rivers, hills, wild timber-wolves, lynx, moose, and the unruly white tailed deer!

 My Dad and I at the end of the trip

Somehow we survived and lived to tell the tall. The route was great with a good diversity of flats, hills, lakes, forests, and even the Embarrass Mountain. The toughest day by far was the 70+ very hilly miles between Orr and Ely on the Echo Trail, which in addition to the hills has over 35 Miles of dirt road (not fun for a road bike!). Overall I would recommend the route to anyone who wants to see more of northern Minnesota and is willing to engage in some slight (or some might say extensive) physical activity!

Below is the route we took. If you would like to see pictures from our ride just click here. If you want to hear more about the trip or doubt my tall tales just check out my father's blog as well.

Duluth to Hoyt-Lakes: 68 miles

Hoyt-Lakes to Orr: 65 miles

Orr to Ely: 70 miles (The Infamous Echo Trail!)

Ely to Silver Bay: 67 miles

Silver Bay to Duluth: 50 Miles

Gander Newfounland!

In order to fly from London to Minneapolis with Sun Country Airlines we had to stop in Gander Newfounland and refuel! (as a Boeing 737 does not have enough range to go non-stop). Gander is a very small town and airport but with a big history. From being the main refueling stop for transatlantic flights in early aviation history, to being a huge military base during WWII, to the amazing story of "The Day the World Came to Town" on 9/11 the place has a rich history!

Cadiz & Travel

I decided after all my studying and traveling it was time for a relaxing break. So a friend from my hostel and I took a day trip to the beach in Southern Spain. We went to the town of Cadiz, while the town does not boast an impressive history and major landmarks (that I am aware of...) it does posses huge beaches on the Atlantic Ocean, amazing sunny weather, and it is only just over an hour by bus from Sevilla. Thus it was a perfect destination for a lazy day.

Beach in Cadiz

While I have been living in sunny, hot, and desert Fez in Africa the fact that most my persuits occured inside I have aquired very little color thus far this summer. Despite the furious application of sun screen, sun burn still managed to get the better of me. Still despite this slight drawback it was a really nice day at the beach.

Right now I am in the London Stansted Airport. My flight from Sevilla was delayed several hours, much to tha annoyance of most of the passangers. To me it made little difference as it just ment less time bumming around in the Stansted airport. I eventually did make it to London around 1 am where I found a lovely bit of floor and curled up for the night for some sleep! Now in about 6 hours I will get on my plane and head back to Minnesota!

Bullfighting

So as you may of concluded from my hint in the previous post I went to a bull fight here in Sevilla. Sevilla is one of best known places for bull fighting along with the town of Rondo (also in southern Spain). As most people know bullfighting has become a bit of a contentious issue. Barcelona converted their bullfighting ring into a mall and the bull ring in Madrid sees less and less usage as any bull fight is met with big protests there. It seems that Bullfighting is likely on the decline and will not persist for much longer. Thus I was not going to miss a chance to get to see part of Spanish Cultural before it potentially disappears.

The bullfighting Ring in Sevilla

The poster for the bull fight I went to, notice that the first Matador is actually a woman (Veronica), this is not very common.

I went to the bull fight with several other people from my hostel. The fight was not actually a part of their "Normal Season" of bull fighting, this fight was instead a fight for young bullfighters who are new to the sport. This meant that the Matadors were between the ages of 14 - 18! I have not idea how a 13 year old tells his parents he wants to be a bull fighter or what sane parents would say yes! As the bullfighters are younger and less experienced that means they are often less effective at killing the bull. Thus it often took several tries in the fights we watched for them to finally kill the bull. A side affect of this is that it tends to get a bit more bloody. In all there were six bull fights on the evening we went (one for each of the six young matadors), some went quickly and some took longer depending on the skill of the matador and the size and strength of the Bulls. The last two matadors we watch both got a bit more friendly than they probably would of liked with the bulls, with one getting gored and the other going for a ride on the head of the bull before being tossed into the air. Both matadors to their credit jumped right back into the action and finish their fights.

Watching the bull fight was quite the experience. I can see why there are plenty of people who oppose them, but I can also appreciate it as Spanish Culture. I will leave it up to others to make the judgment call as to which should prevail. Below I have some pictures and video footage of the bull fight.

Inside the Bull Ring

Bullfighting

The Matador and his assistants after a successful fight

There are three major parts of a bull fight. The first part is called "Tercio de Varas" (The lancing third) and is the part in which the bull and the fighter are brought into the ring. During this the Matador attempts to rile up the bull with his red cape and get the bull to make several runs at him. The second part is called "Tercio de Banderillas" (The Third of Flags) in which the Matador and his assistants attempt to place Banderillas on the bull (in other words stab the bull with the Banderillas). The final part is called "Tercio de Muerte" in which the the Matador and his assitants will deliver the final blows and kill the bull.

In the video you will see bits of each of the three parts. Please be forewarned that you will see the bull stabbed and you will see the bull die. Thus the Movie can be a bit graphic at times. If this will offend you then I suggest you do not watch it.

Sevilla

Well I am now on to my last several days abroad before I head back to the United States. I have parked myself in Southern Spain for the remainder of my time abroad. Specifically I am staying in Sevilla. When I backpacked Europe two years ago I had planned to come down to Sevilla, Granada, and the Southern Coast of Spain, but opted for a soccer match in Barcelona instead. So this is my chance to see the places after all! I am not sure I will make it to all of them but I have no doubt I will enjoy my time here regardless.

Yesterday evening and so far today I have spent my time wander and exploring Sevilla. Here are some photos and commentary of what I have seen and done so far!

Plaza de Espana in Sevilla (it was being renovated, but still was a neat place/park)

More Plazza de Espana, I swear I see the Spanish Flag everywhere here (not just at official places like this), I suppose it has something to do with their recent world cup exploits (as it is kind of a big deal here!)

University of Sevilla

Alcazar Palace

Plaza de Toros (Sevillas Bull fighting ring)

Guadalquivir River that runs through Sevilla

Me standing in front of the Cathedral, it is the 3rd largest in the world behind St. Peter's at the Vatican and St. Paul's in London

As with most Cathedrals and Churches in Europe the Interior was quite impressive

According to Legend (and "Lets Go Europe") the people who built the Cathedral in Sevilla wanted to make it so impressive and extravagant to display their religious devotion that "Those who came after us will take us for madmen." I think they succeeded, as the Cathedral is indeed very impressive.

The Remains of Christopher Columbus are also entombed within the Cathedral

More of the Interior of the Cathedral

Looking out over the Cathedral from its tower

Sevilla from the Cathedral Tower

As you can see Sevilla is a very nice attractive Spanish city. I have some ideas as to what I will do during the rest of my time here, probably involving a beach on the Mediterranean, but also have some free time as well to either relax or find new areas to explore.

I imagine my next post will be quite exciting! The only hint I will give is that if you ever have in the past or considered donating to PETA you should probably skip my next post!

Daily Life in Fez

It is hard to believe that two months in Morocco has already come to an end and my studies here are over. In just 24 short hours I will be in Spain and then in several more days back in the United States. At this point I have basically been abroad for an entire year (minus 10 days at Christmas) and the idea of going home still seems a bit foreign to me. Still with a new family member to meet and family and friends to catch up with I am very excited to return home.

Before I leave though I want to share a little bit of my average daily life here in Fez with you. I have gotten quite used to it, but in many ways it is a completely different world here and even the mundane daily life activities like taking a bus or walking home through the souks (shops) of the old medena (city) is quite the expearience. So I have posted a number of pictures to give you a glimpse of what life is like here in Fez as an Arabic student living in the old medena.

My bedroom at my homestay, notice the lack of a door instead I have a curtain!

The road/path outside my homes door (one of the 9,000+ roads in the old medena of Fez)

Food Markets right by my house

The Racif part of the Fez old Medena (where I generally live)

Bus stop. Bus to the new city is $0.30 and a taxi is $1....not bad! Taxis come with the bonus of random Arabic conversations with Drivers and other passengers!

I do not have any photos of my actual school but here is a picture from one of my classes we were studying Arabic case endings (Nomative, Genative, or Accusative)....and I thought English grammar was hard!

Fountain on the main drag of the Fez new city

And of course your local American Imperialist and Capitalist center...I like that McDonalds is also written in Arabic script, talk about a cultural mixture!

One of the Kings Royal Palaces in Fez

Souk (market) in Fez, how good are you at haggling! You can also see a mosque minaret in the backgroung

More Souks

One of the Kings private garden's in Fez...it is a shame it is closed to the public as it looks really nice.

One of the Many Babs (gates) to the Old City of Fez

Street shops, food, and more gates.

Wall of the old city

There are literally Kittens and Cats every where in Morocco. I probably see hundreds of stray cats each day, they are cute but watch out for their claws, these are street cats not house cats!

Entrance to the ALIF (my arabic institute) Riad in the Old City where I enjoy internet while drinking their free tea before heading home each night.

In conclusion Fez is a really neat place to study Arabic and I have really enjoyed my time here. My host family has been absolutely amazing, the city of Fez is always fun to explore (and get lost in), and the people here are very open and welcoming. I would encourage anyone studying Arabic to come spend some time here to study in a country where they actually speak Arabic (even if it is a dialect and not Modern Standard Arabic). If I ever have the chance to study Arabic abroad again in the future I would consider coming back to Fez for sure, but at the same time I would probably prefer to try a new country and city simply for the excitement of a new adventure! Still I will always treasure my time here in Fez.

Ifrane

Life in my home here in Morocco has picked up considerably again. After the hustle and bustle of the wedding, things really quieted down as it was just basically me and my host mother living in quite a big house (good for Arabic practice though). Now though there are two new exchange students living here, Immanuel and Josha (not sure if that is how it is actually spelled). Immanuel English and Italian, she actually lived in Bologna for the first eight years of her life! So naturally we had quite a bit to talk about. She just finished up university at Oxford and is now planning to spend a year studying Arabic (both here in Morocco and Syria). The Dutch fellow, Josha, studies Arabic on and off more as a hobby and is currently still in university. Surprisingly he had absolutely no interest in the world cup final despite the fact that his country was in it! Hard for a crazy sports fan like me to comprehend...I guess some people just do not like sports (weird!).

This past weekend I spent a lot of time with my host family, which was fitting as it was my last weekend here in Morocco. On Saturday one of my host mother's sons, Salah came home for the weekend (he lives and works as an accountant in Casablanca). My host mother, Salah, my host sister and her new husband, Immanuel, and I all went to a pool on that afternoon (Josha was gone traveling). Let me tell you after weeks on end of basically 100 degree weather a pools is basically heaven sent! It was an amazing way to relax. Later that evening then we all drove to a town called Ifrane which is around an hour from Fez and in the Mountains. Ifrane is very different from the rest of Morocco and often called a little Switzerland because it is much more western in style and is of course in the mountains. Ifrane was lovely and the temperature there was probably 20 degrees cooler then Fez, which again was just what the doctor ordered. In Ifrane we spend most our time hanging out in a park by a mountain stream (where you could ride horses and donkeys...see pictures below), and then in a cafe having some tea.

The park in Ifrane

Me on my trusty Moroccan Steed!

Fatima and her Husband

Me with my Moroccan host family

The rest of the weekend was spent preparing for my exam on Monday (which went just fine), and then watching the world cup final on Sunday night in a typical Moroccan Cafe, which is always quite the experience! To top things off in just one day I will be in Spain and will be celebrating with the victorious Spaniards in person!

Summer Heat!

Its getting hot here! And there is no relief in sight! Looks like I will be getting all of the hot African sun during my last week in Fez. Hard to believe that in just over a week I will be flying on to Spain for a couple day vacation and then on to London to catch my flight back to the states!