The night I didn't meet my future husband...

So a lot of people know that the main reason I decided to study abroad in Spain was to meet my Spanish Flamenco-dancer husband.

Last week I finally got to work and went to a Flamenco Spectacular with my program. We had a lecture/ chat beforehand, and learned about the history of the dance. Flamenco has several cultural influences, and is a passionate dance often used as a form of social protest. There are several types of Flamenco and several dances with similar roots, such as "la Sevillana," the native dance of Sevilla, which is what I am learning in my dance class.

The show was absolutely incredible. While I had seen a male dancer at Lehigh, I had never seen a woman dance the Flamenco. I've never seen someone move her feet so rapidly; it was almost inhuman.

There were four people who performed that night. First, two men and a male guitarist. One man sang, and the two who weren't playing guitar performed "palmas" (claps) and "tacones" ("heels"- sounds made with the shoes) while seated. I couldn't understand a word of the song, but the rhythm was so energizing. Next, the woman danced as the three men played guitar, sang, and created the rhythm again with palmas and tacones. So elegant. Next the guitarist performed by himself. Finally, a man and the woman danced together. I wish I had words to describe the experience. So incredible.

Unfortunately, I did not meet any of them. I guess I'll just have to go back again! Oh darn.

Getting ready for the show, at la Casa de la Memoria



The one on the left sang, and the one on the right danced.





More casual dance after the show, since we couldn't take pictures during!

 

Flamenco was definitely one of the things I was looking forward to most about coming to Spain, and it has met all of my expectations. Definitely making another trip to Casa de la Memoria!


While I have been up to numerous exciting activities lately, such as this Flamenco Spectacular, this past week I really started to miss home. I guess I'm not in that honeymoon phase anymore. I am loving Sevilla, but I started to get slightly frustrated for the first time, which put me in a little bit of a rut. Trying to communicate with others, something that I take for granted in the United States, is sometimes an exhausting task here, especially with the Sevilliano accent-- they don't pronounce the ends of words many times and mumble a bit. Some very minor things kind of stuck out to me and left me feeling stupid and tired.

I am so glad that I got my package from home when I did. It was just what I needed for a little pick-me-up-- some of my favorite snacks and sweets. I had a movie night with some of my friends too, which made me feel a little more at home. Sometimes just a little reminder does the trick!

I am so grateful for my study abroad experience, and am enjoying all of the opportunities I've been given. However, I am so lucky to have the very best family and friends to go back to in the United States. The time will fly, I'm sure, so I definitely need to make sure that I make the most of my time here for the next two months.

I can't believe it... only two months left?!