This was our last week of classes in Cordoba (at least in theory—my environmental science class actually meets Monday and Tuesday). This past Monday feels like forever ago, but like every week here, this one has gone by fast.
I had plans to rent bikes and toodle around with my friend Heidi on Monday afternoon, but it turned out that in order to borrow bikes from the city-owned stations, we’d have to register in-person at an office that only opens 8:30-10 am during the week. It was also more than 90 degrees out. So we met up after my dance class and toured El Corte Inglés, an expensive, six-story department store. The grocery store on the sixth floor had a bunch of fun vegan stuff. Heidi and I got dairy-free Breyers and ate it outside, talking about our summer internship plans.
On Tuesday, our host mom took me and Charlotte to tour her boyfriend’s olive oil farm. It was beautiful. We climbed up a tower that was built in 1472, rode through the olive trees in a 1979 Land Cruiser, and saw the machines that turn olives into oil and put the oil into bottles.
A selfie aboard the Land Cruiser
Torre de Villaverde, built in 1472
Though it was past my bedtime, we had to stop and see some of the boyfriend’s cars, because they were right there. He has a 1956 Mercedes. The steering wheel was so big!
Hanging out in a 1956 Mercedes
Wednesday afternoon brought my final dance class. I’m proud of myself for sticking with it for all five weeks, twice a week. We squeezed a lot into only ten classes. We danced in front of all our host families at the end-of-term party yesterday, and I’ll admit, it was kind of fun.
Last night, after the lunch/party, I went to the fair with some friends. I always have a hard time spending money on rides, but I definitely had more fun on the rides I did than the one I sat out. We were 240 feet high at one point, looking out over all of Cordoba. And then we got thrown around in circles. Spinning around, to reel myself in, I focused on what I felt: my sweaty palms gripping the bars across my chest and the wind tearing at my sandals. The most dangerous ride, which Heidi also thought was the most fun, was the Super Olla—a huge spinning circle in which we tried to stay on our feet and ended up rolling around into each other and strangers.
Before losing a bunch of brain cells on amusement park rides
This morning, I finally hit the Sunday outdoor market. There were an overwhelming number of clothing and shoe vendors. I ended up buying sunglasses and new underwear, and my friend bought churros to share (definitely better than the churros I brought home from Madrid… churros do not store well).
This time next week, I’ll be home in Massachusetts.