Baiona - Spain

In 1492 Columbus sailed the ocean blue...... And then he came back to Spain.  On his trip back on the trusty "Pinta" ship, the first city they landed in from the Americas was Baiona, Spain.  This means that the town of Baiona was the first town to hear news of the new world.

Baiona is situated a short bus ride away from Vigo, and some friends and I decided to visit.  It's a gorgeous city located right on the coast.  There is a massive fortress on a small peninsula right close to the water.  The beaches are gorgeous, and there is a towering statue of the Virgin Mary overlooking the city, the ocean, and las islas cies. Check out some of my pics from the trip!

This monument was one of the first sights we saw.  It commemorates the meeting of two worlds, the old and the new.  

Typical Galician boat.  Blue.

This is the actual anchor from the Pinta that sailed to America and back.  It is put on display along with the tiled plaque to the right showing Columbus' arrival into the port.  

Port and Mountains.  

Fishing in Galicia.

Monument to Alfonso IX that stands at the entrance to the Monterreal Fort.

Here is part of the Monteferreal Fort with the Atlantic Ocean in the background.  

Siobhan and Zoe having a picnic in Parque de A PALMA. 

This is a Herreo.  It is used as a grain bin or grain storage in the north of Spain.  It is definitely a symbol of Galicia.  For more info.... CLICK HERE!

This monument is called Virgen de la Roca.  It overlooks the town of Baiona

As you can see, her hands and face are made of white marble.

After explore Baiona's sights, we were wandering around town and stumbled upon this church with its doors wide open.

The church is called Santuario de Santa Liberata. 

The inside was gorgeous with gold details as you can see above.

And I'd just thought I'd end this post with my favorite flower =) 

I have fallen a bit behind on my blogging so I hope to get on it this week! Keep checking in to see what else I'm up to!

~Erin

Porto, Portugal

This last weekend Cassondra and her roommates, Eleanor & Jackie, and I went to Porto, Portugal.  We took the bus from Vigo on a 2 1/2 hour ride to Portugal.  It was gorgeous! Porto is famous for its beautiful views of the Rio (River), surf beaches, beautiful monuments, and delicious food.  I'll let the pictures speak for themselves from here on out.  

My first view of the Rio Douro in Porto.  Breathtaking. 

Me, with the beautiful view in the background! 

So gorgeous! Love the red roofs.  

The houses here have beautiful tiles of all colors on the front.  

These are just a couple examples (can you tell I love the blue and white the best?) 

This statue is in the Praço da Liberdade on Avenida  Dos Aliados.  The statue is of  Dom Pedro IV (Dom Pedro I), the first ruler of Brazil.  He was known as Dom Pedro the IV as a member of the royal family in Portugal until the country was invaded by French troops.  He and his family fled to Brazil, their largest territory where he became the first emperor of Brazil.  

Igreja de Sto Ildefonso.  This Roman Catholic church was built in 1739.  I think the most amazing part is the gorgeous tile-work on the front.  

Another shot from the Rio! 

This is the Catedral in Porto.  I feel like every big city has one, and they are all magnificent to look at.  

Oh just some ruins, hanging out in the metro....Wait? Are those ruins in the metro¡?Ç!?¡?#Ç¡!Ç?!¡Ç?

Jackie and Eleanor enjoying a refreshing Super Bock on the beach! 

"She Changes" sculpture in the middle of a roundabout by the beach.  

America! You´re out there somewhere. 

The Surf Beach.  It was a gorgeous day.  Not warm enough to go into the water, but that didn´t stop these surfing Portuguese.  

Jackie with the Sao Francisco Xavier behind her.  We didn´t take the time to go it, but apparently built in 1661, this fortress served as a naval defense for Portugal.  

Check out this surfer! Totally Rad DUDE!  

This reminded me of the story "The Little House" So cute! 

Eleanor, Me, Jackie, and Cassondra at the beach! 

El Rio Douro from the other side.  

The four of us at our wine tasting near the bodegas of Porto.  

I couldn´t pick one good view from the river.  This picture you can see the line of beautiful houses along the Cais da Ribeira.  

A glimpse into the Calem Bodega.  Look at all the wine! 

When in porto, do as the portoans do? Drink Port Wine! We went to a wine tasting where we had the opportunity to taste 5 different types of port wine.  My final evaluation, the longer it ages, really does make it taste better.  There was a wine sold at this place that was 5,000 Euro a bottle! The wine was good, but definitely not something to guzzle down.  Very sweet =) 

Cais da Ribeira.  There was a market on the street that day.  You can see all the umbrellas they have set up selling towels, jewelry, and much much more.  

My last piece of excitement.  This is the library where Harry Potter was filmed.  I didn´t get to go inside because it was closed when we got there, but I´m still very excited I got to take a peek inside.



Here´s a clip of some street music on the Cais da Ribeira! Enjoy!

Lunch in Cangas

So this last Saturday a couple friends and I decided to cross the Ria de Vigo and head to the town of Cangas on the other side.  We planned to have lunch there and do a bit of exploring.   Unfortunatly we were pretty tuckered out from the night before so we didn't get too intense in our explorations, but we did find some interesting things while we were there.  

This is the Puente that I cross every day to get to my school.  It was a bit foggy Saturday morning but some of the locals told me it looks like the San Francisco Bridge.  

I love taking pictures of all the random boats tied up at the port.  They all seem to be so colorful.  

While walking through the town we came upon a church with this memorial on the side of it.

Now many of you may not be familiar with the political history of Spain, but this memorial is honoring the soldiers that died while fighting under the command of general Ferdinand Franco.  The era of Franco lasted from the mid 1930's until his death in 1975, and can be a very uneasy topic to talk about with Spaniards.  While Franco was essentially a dictator of Spain that worked in conjunction with Mussolini and Hitler during the 1930's.  His rule of Spain encouraged the practice of the Catholic church, and discouraged all other religions.  This right-winged dictatorship dealt ruthlessly with opposition.

After Franco's death in 1975, Spain has developed into a very liberal country.  There is now an overwhelming amount of acceptance and tolerance of varieties of people.  There are some families who are uneasy with their families pasts of whether they helped Franco or not.  Because of this, I have very seldom seem any memorial or monument of this nature.

"Fascistas Asesinos" Literally means Assassinated Facists.

"Ni Olvido, Ni Perdon" Literally means Never forget never pardon.

The graffiti and paint splatter on the side of this Catholic church is a strong representation of the feelings felt toward this time in history.

This statue was on display across from the monument on the church.  It is much older than the history of Franco, but is still interesting to look at.  

After lunch and exploring Cangas, we came back to Vigo.  I took this quick picture to show one of the busiest streets in the city, Calle Principe.  Spaniards really do enjoy taking a stroll through the shopping district.  

Sunday in Vigo

Well I know I am a little late on posting something new, but last Sunday morning I decided to take a nice refreshing stroll through my new city.  You may or may not know that, a Sunday in Spain is a completely different world than a Sunday in the U.S.  The term "Sunday Drive" has a whole different interpretation here.  I would moreso call it "Sunday Walkers".  The streets are filled with people walking around town enjoying the nice weather.  There are tons of cute old couples taking their time walking down by the water.  The only businesses that are open on Sundays are bakery's and restaurants/cafeterias.  Everything else is closed.  Sunday here really is a day of rest, relaxation, and good eating.  I have to resist the urge to post the 75 photos that I took last Sunday, but here is a little taste of Spain... enjoy!  

This is the street right next to my piso (flat).  It's very narrow, curvy, and "Spain" like.  

A statue that is on display in front of Parque Charlie Rivel.   

View from the top of the hill overlook the Ria de Vigo.  

Down by the water these are some fishing boats docked up.  Apparently fishermen go on a "deadliest catch" type trip to Argentina and back.  They catch a variety of shellfish including lobster, crab, prawn, and barnacles.  

A view of the city where I am teaching across the Ria de Vigo - Tiran.  

I just love these old red roofs! 

Graffiti is a very controversial topic in Spain.  To some it is beautiful art.  To others it is destruction of property.  

No dryers here.  All clothes are line dried.  

This was a too cute of a moment not to take a picture of this cat balancing on the railing.   

The Port of Vigo.  

Anchors on display in front of the Centro Comercial near the Ria.  

More fishing boats! 

I am still trying to find the significance of this.  Very interesting statue in front of the Centro Comercial by the Ria.  

Too good not to post.  I'm hoping you can translate this on your own.  (It also says NARNIA in parenthesis under Hogwarths) 

Fishing nets at the harbor.  

Spectacular view of Moana.

And this statue on display near the porto do sol.