#6 Andalusía

Andalusia lays in the southern part of Spain and is a dream coming true for anyone that wants to see Spain as it is shown in any other country. If you´re looking for an amazing weather, high temperature, beaches, flamenco, corridas and good-looking guys (ekhm.. people) this is a place you have to visit! Forget about all the ´places-you-have-to-see-before-you-die' listed in the travel books - THIS is the region you gotta travel to!

My trip lasted for over 2 weeks and those so far have been the best weeks of my life! The places I visited, the amazing new people I met on the way, new friends, memories and contemplation that happened everyday made it all so amazing! The travelers will understand me here: the feeling you get while travelling is not expressible. This little something you feel somewhere inside you, the feeling that gives you strength and courage to do things normally you are not capable of!

Feeling apart, let's go back to the trip. After almost missing the train at 6.25 in the morning while running through the whole city with my backpack I got to Madrid. I planned on visiting it while going back but my plans changed on the way and I stayed there only for a couple of hours (without seeing Museo de Prado though...) but since my trip was about something different, I decided that museum and skyscrapers I have where I live normally. My apologies to all the Madrid lovers but if you don't live there, there's no much to see...
At about 11 PM I got to Granada where my friend, also Erasmus, was living. Apart from the greatest parties we had there, the Alhambra truly is amazing! I advise all the ones that want to go there to get tickets beforehand (a month!!!) otherwise they (just like me) will have to stand in the line for 2h and if they're lucky they will get tickets to enter right away (I had to go back in the afternoon which is not recommendable during the summer due to the high temperature and sun).
And if you're ever in Granada you gotta go to Mae West - great party!!!

Next stop was Sevilla! Sevilla is... different! The fact that I was travelling during the Holy Week was another thing but the Sevillans feel... special. And so do they dress. It was a Sunday also, but never have I ever seen EVERYONE on the streets dressed up just like for a wedding!

Sevilla is famous not only for it's people but also for the processions they have during the Holy Week (that I will explain in the next post) and the high temperature. I was there in March and I was already sunburnt from Granada so sightseeing was a little hard.

Next stop: Málaga!
Málaga is my favorite Spanish city! I'm not kidding, I'm moving there whenever I get a chance - it's amazing! Has a beach, Picasso comes from there, amazing wine and Alcazaba de Málaga is absolutely charming! In Málaga I did my second Couchsurfing and Paco was an amazing host! He showed me places less available for the tourists and told me stories about the city. I fell in love with Málaga from the first sight! So many good things happened to me there, that might be the reason, but anyways it's a place to go! Granada and Málaga are my two favorite places but Málaga wins!!

When it comes to party you have to go to Sala Gold Official - might seem little, but believe me, it's great!! Once in Andalusia you also have to try their gazpacho which is different from the original one, they usually serve it with tuna fish. And you can't miss the chance to try the Málaga flavoured ice-cream :P

When it comes to Alcazaba... My experience was a little different. Instead of sight-seeing everything alone I got to meet the craziest Korean-American-Spanish guys who wouldn't leave me alone for a second. Literally.

The most amazing thing that happened though was meeting my Mexican friend, Manuel, who was also travelling in Andalusia but we were always in differet places and we finally met in Sala Gold ;)

Next stop was unexpected, it wasn't anywhere in my plans but Paco talked me to going to Giblartar!!!

One advice: don't go there. And if you do, don't stay more than one day. Apart from the big mountain and the monkeys there's nothing to see and it's extremely expensive. What happened in Giblartar though was that I met two Italian girls living in Alicante and we continued travelling together for the rest of my trip!

Todether with Giulia and Carla we then went to Cádiz! In Cádiz we met with some friends the girls had over there. Cádiz was hot but very nice, once you're with the Italians everything is nice haha We met an Italian waiter that was helpful and nice enough to host us during one night when we didn't have a place to sleep. In the Italian way of course - pasta at 5 AM!!

My last stop was Córdoba and after 2 weeks of crazy travelling, partying and sight-seeing I just needed to relax. Córdoba is so pretty, it's the cherry on the top of Andalusia! There's a Mosque-Cathedral that is very impressive although after living in Muslim Azerbaijan for 5 months not much can still impress me ;)

After eating the traditional food and looking at the stereotypical houses I came back home... :(