Into Cartagena and Onto the Next Chapter

Post and Photos by Lily Sampson, Summer 2023

Our study abroad trip is coming to a close. Today is the second to last day of the program. Soon, everyone will be returning to their individual lives— going home or continuing their travels—with the knowledge, friendships, and experience that we have gained over the past month.

*Cartagena’s port and the start of our tour.*

Today, we went to the coastal city of Cartagena, just an hour-long bus ride away from our home-base in Murcia. Before we headed to our city tour, we fueled up with coffee and pastries at a local coffee shop. On the tour, we learned about the rich history of Cartagena. Starting at the oceanside, our tour guide, Vera, explained that Cartagena played a major role in the Spanish civil war because of its port access. Cartagena fought Franco’s regime with the aid of supplies sent by the Allies through the port.

After looking at the harbor and learning about the Spanish civil war, we walked to the Roman theatre. Vera had us imagine ourselves as Roman men wearing togas before we entered the theatre. Then, she explained that the ruins were recently discovered and made accessible to the public. Historically, the theatre served many different people. It was a marketplace, and then a Moor neighborhood; it was reconstructed and built upon so many times that no one knew what was beneath the surface until the late 20^th century.

After the Roman theatre, we walked past a shrine of the virgin of solitude on Calle de la Soledad. Vera explained that soledad means solitude in Spanish, but is also a name for Spanish women. Women are called solitude. Dolores, another name for women, means pain in Spanish. Because of the Catholic history of Spain, women were admired for their stoicism amidst solitude and pain, so much so that they became common names for women. Fishermen would pray to the virgin of solitude each day before they went to work because they didn’t know how to swim.

For the last part of our tour, we visited the ruins where Roman people used to wash themselves. Every 9 days, women would go to the wash house with ointment. At this point in the tour, Vera told us to imagine ourselves as Roman women, going from cold room to warm room, from hot bath to cold bath, talking amongst ourselves. This was the final stop of our tour.

As we walked to lunch, it began to lightly rain. This is a gift, Vera said, because it never rains in Spain. After lunch we stopped at CaféLab for coffee, then went back to the harbor for our last activity of the day: a boat ride. We saw mountains and lighthouses and old military buildings and felt the wind in our hair.

*The mountains outside of Cartagena’s harbor!*

For the rest of the evening, we had dinner at the hotel and worked on our final papers. Tomorrow, we will head back to Murcia for the last time and present our final projects. Then, we’ll wrap up the program with tapas and our final round of top, flop, bob, & slop— each of us having learned so much, having gained new knowledge and friendships that will last lifetimes in journal entries and memories and photographs— onto the next journey with so much to be grateful for.

Museums, Mouth-Watering Meals, and Mutual Support in Murcia!

Post and Photos by Hutchie Thomas, Summer 2023

As we approach the last few days here in Murcia, I have much to be grateful for and reflect on!

Things have been slow since yesterday, as I am attempting to soak up any and all of Murcia before heading home. That being said, I packed my day full of some of my favorite things. Today in class, we tested our knowledge of Murcia with a trivia game. Congrats to Izzy and Olivia, who know the cathedral had 8,000 pipes? After our final class, I headed to the popular local coffee spot, CaféLab, to finish up some assignments. I basked in the sun and enjoyed an iced cappuccino while finishing up some assignments.

After leaving CaféLab around 3pm, I decided to have a quick workout at Hotel Pacoche’s gym. I walked on the treadmill looking out the open windows in front of me. There was not only a lovely breeze coming through, but also an amazing view of our street. I watched pedestrians go by during this workout. I returned to my room to prepare for one of our final group outings which was the city museum of Murcia. Upon our arrival to the Museum of the City, we were met with a beautiful garden where we enjoyed more sun before our tour officially began.

*Lily, Marty, and Ethan underneath a canopy of flowers examining pieces of local art showcased in the outside portion of the museum*

I was instantly captivated by the content discussed throughout our tour. Because the museum had a chronological setup, it was easy to follow along with Murcia’s history. Our guide pointed out events or objects that she found to be important. I am shocked every time I remember that Murcia was established in the 7th century. The city was officially founded in 825 by a Muslim king who was drawn initially to the river. I found out today that the city can be traced back to 209 a.c. It is incredible to learn about regions that date back this far.

*A common household item unique to Murcia. It was used to store goods such as wheat, and Dr. Faw compared it to the modern-day Tupperware*!

We worked our way throughout the various centuries and eras of Murcian culture. My favorite piece of art came from the 1980s and was done by Mercedes Martinez, a local Mercian woman. The piece depicts a beautiful outside landscape, though the artist’s perspective comes from behind a window, symbolizing the lack of artistic recognition gained by female artists in the 20th century.

*The vibrant painting by the talented Mercedes Martinez from Murcia.*

*Cat basking outside of the city musem.*

After the wonderful museum tour, Libby, Paloma, Dr. Faw, Olivia, and I decided to find a sweet treat before dinner. The night air was perfect, and many folks were roaming the streets and experiencing pre-dinnertime Murcia. Libby, Olivia, and Dr. Faw decided on gelato next to the cathedral while Paloma and I got mochi. I had been craving this special treat for over a week, and I finally saw the store open! We had a lovely time munching on our treats before our final dinner at casa Pacoche.

We concluded the night with a fine group dinner where we partook in my favorite activity, the bop, slop, top, and flop. This entails explaining our best and worst parts of the day, our song of the day, and our best meal or food item of the day. Paloma even made a playlist that holds each bop mentioned! I am grateful to have a musical journal of this trip, and will miss Casa Pacoche and nightly rounds of bop, slop, top, and flop!

Greetings from Granada!

Post and Photos by Izzy Henry, Summer

Buenos Dias! This past weekend, our group ventured to a popular mountain town know as Granada (which is the word for pomegranate in English). On Friday, we took the bus from Murcia and after dropping off our bags at the hotel, we walked to grab some lunch. As someone with celiac disease, which means I can’t eat gluten, finding food can be tricky and frustrating! Especially in new places. Luckily enough, we found a great restaurant group with plenty of options for us. I got to eat pasta for the first time this trip and have to say it was a pretty big moment. Later in the weekend, I even had pizza for dinner and lemon cake for dessert. That might not seem like a big deal to many people, but those with food restrictions will understand my excitement.

Following lunch, we took a bus to the Alhambra. It was pouring rain, which seems to be our thing – tours in a downpour. “It’s just water” though, as our tour guide said, and we ventured into the gardens of the Alhambra Generalife. These gardens were full of beautiful fountains, climbing vines, trees shaped into archways, and had a truly stunning view of the city. As our group wandered through the first palace, we learned about the history of this monument and its significance. The Alhambra belonged to the Moors, and in the Islamic religion, seven is a holy number; we saw it symbolized everywhere! The craziest part to me was how intricate and thought out each part of every palace, garden, and room was. Everything had deeper meaning and implications, and there were stories attached to even the smallest things. I have to say, my favorite part of the tour was the gardens, and if it wasn’t raining, I truly could’ve spent hours wandering them!

*Ideal study spot in the garden (minus the rain)!*

The next day, we walked through the historic Albaicin neighborhood with the same guide as yesterday. We started at the top and wandered down tiny streets and alleyways as Noelia shared with us the complicated history of the area. This area is historically an Arabic neighborhood, but we saw different parts where Catholicism had taken over and built over certain things. Many of the mosques were converted into churches, and much had been covered up. We came across this one market overlooking the city and the Alhambra, and there was live music and women dancing, everyone was in such a joyous mood. I wish we could’ve sat there for longer! As we walked towards the city center, we stopped into a church and saw three nuns praying. No matter what time of day it is, there is always at least one nun praying at the altar. Noelia also showed us a few other markets and warned us not to take rosemary from random women who might come up to you. Our group stood outside of the second biggest cathedral in Spain and learned about the controversial statue inside.

After the tour through the Albaicin neighborhood, we had the rest of Saturday and then Sunday morning to explore on our own! Granada is quite different from Murcia, but I did enjoy getting to wander the streets and pop into little shops. Our feet are definitely sore from all the walking we did this weekend, but it was incredibly worth it. I’m about at my word limit, but there is so much more I could share! It was truly a special weekend and exciting to see more parts of this beautiful country. We’re heading back to Murcia now to finish up our last week in the program. It has honestly flown by so fast. Thanks for following along! Keep an eye out for another blog later this week. Adios!

Best of Both Worlds: Learning and Living in Murcia

Post and Photos by Paloma Rodello, Summer 2023

This past week in Murcia has been a whirlwind. Our group has been so busy working, playing, and eating. Though we are in Spain where the pace of life is typically much more relaxed and at ease, our American mindsets seem to be subconsciously creeping in—there is simply so much to do and so much to explore! Our school week has been filled with great conversations, good progress on our final projects, and lots of fun activities. On Monday, I was tasked with taking over the CSU Communication Studies Instagram account to show potential study abroad students what a day-in-the-life of a CSU student abroad looks like. This was a day full of studying, reading, and catching up on homework together.

*Matcha latte–salud to getting out our assignment!*

On Tuesday after class, we completed a scavenger hunt finding landmarks all around Murcia. My legs still hurt from sprinting all across the city!

*One of the designated landmarks for our scavenger hunt was our home away from home, Hotel Pacoche.*

Wednesday was a day full of fun—we took two tours of local media stations in Murcia. The first media visit after class was a tour of Onda Regional Newspaper. We learned all about how news is disseminated across the web and through the airwaves. We even got to hear snippets of news programs and got firsthand access into some of the control rooms. The second media visit was to Canal 7 TV Station, where we were taught how news programs on television are made. We got to view the green screen room, step onto the stage where reporters work every day, and even view the first 5 minutes of the news program. If you’ve been following along with our blog, you might remember that it’s been raining an abnormal amount here in Murcia. Can you guess what the news program was covering? If you guessed the extreme weather conditions, you’re spot on. Canal 7 TV reports that this has been the rainiest May of the last 62 years.

Media visits—behind the scenes at the local radio news and tv stations.

Today, June 1, was another eventful day for our group. We had a jam packed class learning about how advice giving as a form of social support can be both positive and negative. After class, Libby and I did something special to commemorate our time here in Murcia. We got tattoos! I got an orange, and Libby got a double orange leaf, due to the city’s vast production of fruits and vegetables, particularly citrus fruits. The double orange leaf indicates a bitter orange, whereas if it has one leaf, the taste will be much sweeter. It is bittersweet (get it?) that we will wrap up classes soon now that we only have one week left here, but we will now have a forever memory of this beautiful city and all it has to offer. Though our time in Murcia is close to an end, I am so thankful for the friends I have met, the memories I have made, and the knowledge I have gained from being apart of this amazing, once in a lifetime study abroad opportunity.

Búsqueda de Tesoros: A Scavenger Hunt Around the City

Post and Photos by Libby Gath, Summer 2023

*Scavenger Hunt Team #1 posing in Plaza de las Flores.*

Today’s activity revolved around competing in a scavenger hunt throughout the city of Murcia, Spain. Dr. Faw, our trip leader, broke us up into two teams and we raced around the city solving riddles to lead us to our next destination. Once each team solved a riddle about a local spot, they headed to the location for a silly photograph to send to our professor as proof of figuring out the riddle before moving on to the next one. This activity was solely a fun way for us to show how much we have gotten to know the city over the past week and a half and have a healthy dose of competition (which everyone in our group loved).

My team was led by team captain Izzy and consisted of Catie, Hutchie, Ethan, and me. Once we got the list of riddles to figure out our destinations my team was off with a running start. We quickly made our way to the cathedral which was our first destination. Once there we took a silly photo where I pretended to marry Hutchie and Ethan in front of the cathedral as it is a popular local spot for weddings.

*A pretend wedding between Ethan and Hutchie in front of the cathedral!*

From there we raced back and forth across the city, crossing the main bridge that connects the city somewhere around five times! Anecdotally, I think walking across the bridge from our hotel to the major of destinations around city (mainly class) is what I will miss most when we leave. It is a beautiful old bridge over Rio Segura with stunning views of the cathedral and Murcia. It also comes with a rich history that includes dangerous stories of making it to the other side.

*Fun photos on the “Risky” bridge and with one of the waitstaff at Casa Pacoche!*

While Murcia is a relatively small and walkable city my group surely felt like we were getting our steps in as all of our locations were scattered, and it was a hot and humid day outside. We did however get to go to some of our favorite places along the way such as Mercado de Correos which is an old post office that was turned into a glamorous food hall and Plaza de Santa Domingo, one of the main plazas in the city known for its vast array of red flowerpots. This plaza is always bustling with something going on. We even got to make a quick stop at the restaurant where we eat our meals, Casa Pacoche, and get a picture with one of our daily waitresses. She was very confused as to why we wanted a selfie with her, but she seemed happy to see us, nonetheless.

After an amusing afternoon spent running around the city, we ended our scavenger hunt at everyone’s favorite coffee shop, CafeLab. There, Dr. Faw was waiting as our team sprinted to the finish, beating the other team with around five minutes to spare. Once everyone had arrived at the finish, she awarded our team with a prize for winning: a box of chocolate eggs with small toys inside each egg. While this might seem silly this treat is very popular for children in Spain, so it was fun to pretend to be a kid again. In the wake of our win, both my team and the other celebrated with yummy drinks from CafeLab as we all discussed our time running around the city.

*Posing with pride as we receive our trophies from winning the scavenger hunt!*

Life and Food in Murcia

Post and Photos by Catie Marqua, Summer 2023

Today officially marks my tenth day here in Murcia, Spain. I have had so many spectacular experiences and opportunities in just under two weeks. From climbing to the top of the city’s cathedral, visiting a local winery in Jumilla, hiking to a castle in Alicante, and exploring different museums. It would take much more than one blog post to discuss them all! So in this blog, I plan to focus on food and the various meals and dining experiences I have had on this trip thus far!

A significant aspect of Murcian culture that our study abroad group has been embracing is the different Spanish culinary traditions. In Spain, the time of day that people typically eat meals differs greatly from in the States. Here in Murcia, people usually eat lunch around 2 PM, take a siesta, and have dinner after 10 PM.

On our first weekend in Murcia, Roberto, the director of international programs at Murcia Universidad took our group to Taparia Las Mules to have the tapas experience. Here we tried some incredible dishes such as montaditos, patatas, caballitos de mar, and much more. I left with a full stomach and a happy heart.

*The whole group (plus Roberto) at the Taperia Las Mulas–learning about tapas and food culture in Murcia!*

While sharing tapas, Roberto explained that going out and sharing meals with friends and family is a vital aspect of life in Murcia. Whether over a cup of coffee or sharing tapas, carving out time to spend with loved ones is something people in Murcia prioritize.

The emphasis on socialization and sharing meals is one aspect of the culture in which I have been fully immersed in. Our group eats lunch and dinner every day at the Pacoche restaurant. In the U.S., I am used to eating most meals by myself, in a rush, or while doing something else like watching tv. So having this much time to spend enjoying the company of others and trying new foods is a part of the Murcian culture I have very much been enjoying.

*Typical Murcian Arroz (Paella) served with lemon and eaten family style!*

In Spain, meals traditionally consist of three courses. The starter, the main dish, and a dessert. So our group typically spends more than an hour eating together during lunch and dinner. With this time, I have gotten to know the other students on this trip very well.

Rarely do I slow down and make time to eat and share stories with friends in the U.S. However, this is a part of the culture I want to integrate into my life upon returning home. Whether it be just sharing one meal a week with roommates or friends. This journey has enlightened me to the true value of these moments, which I cannot afford to relinquish amidst the hustle and bustle of my everyday life in the U.S! Afterall, these are the moments we will truly remember and cherish when we look back on our lives.

From the Vine to the Table: A Day at a Winery in Jumilla

Post and Photos by Olivia Birg, Summer 2023

**The whole group at the Hacienda del Carche winery in Jumilla!**

Today we spent the day in Jumilla at Hacienda del Carche which is a winery about 45 minutes from Murcia. The day began with a tour of the vineyard as our guide explained the modern process of making wine in this region. The surrounding landscape was absolutely stunning as it is surrounded by miles of grape vines, olive trees, and mountains in the distance. Everything was incredibly vibrant and green as it has been raining recently. In fact, this region has been getting an unseasonable amount of rain in the past two weeks which has caused the winery to need to scale back the amount of water they give the plants. I guess the winery has had to adapt to the rain just as we have! I also thought it was interesting that even with modern technology, this vineyard prides itself on hand picking their grapes. Our guide explained they have to pick them at night because harvest is in the Fall and most days in Jumilla during this time of year are 40 degrees Celsius or hotter. I think this use of human-power rather than machine-power speaks to the Spanish culture of polychronic time. They do not sacrifice the flavor of their wine because it’s a longer process and less efficient. They prioritize working for a better product because they do not view time as money in the same way we do in America.

**Looking for the grapes among the vines.**

After learning about the modern winemaking process, our guide took us back in time to the museum to learn about how wine was made in this region about 50 to 60 years ago, before modern technology. It was fascinating learning about all the different tools and plants people used to make wine in the past. The richness of Spanish wine culture was evident throughout the museum as workers from decades ago and their practices were displayed showing how, while the winery has adopted modern technology they have not strayed from their roots. My favorite part of the museum was the section with all the aromas. They had these stations set up with the aromas they use in their wines for visitors to smell and guess what the smell is. These included aromas such as honey, almond, strawberry, and many others.

Once we understood the winemaking process, it was time to try some wine! They had these beautiful and delicious charcuterie boards set out for us to snack on while we tried different kinds of wines and explained which would pair well with them. They even made a gluten free charcuterie board for Izzy and me! One by one we tried the wines they produced at the winery beginning with a white wine and then moving into four other red wines. My favorite was the unfiltered red wine or infiltrado which is a house specialty at this winery. They taught us how to swirl our wine glasses and why we do that as well as how to smell the wine and try to identify which aromas were associated with which wines. We are now wine connoisseurs. It was such a fun and informative experience and I’m extremely grateful we had the opportunity to see another part of Spain and another way of life.

***The group with our wine and charcuterie.***

Mobbin’ Around the Museum in Murcia

Post and Photos by Marty Conway, Summer 2023

Que pasa vatos! My name is Marty Conway and I am a communication major with a minor in history, and I have the privilege of being a part of this abroad program in Murcia, Spain. While this is only the second blog post of our trip, I still have so much to share about my experience here in this absolutely beautiful country!

It has been an absolute blur since we all arrived here about a week ago, however the things we have experienced and the memories we have made will last forever. Yesterday, the entire group made a trip to a museum in Murcia. This museum is on the backside of a current Convent and has a very deep history revolving around the differing religions that have controlled the city of Murcia. The tour of the museum started out with us in the downstairs area of the museum where we got a fantastic view of the current convent where nuns reside to this day. With this beautiful view of these nun’s abode and their beautiful fountain pool that coincides with their fruit trees gathered around the glamorous water source, we began to learn about the history of this sacred place. Our wonderful tour guide started to inform us that this city was actually created by Muslims who had made their way from North Africa, and because of this fact the place where we were standing was actually originally the palace of an Islamic king named the wolf king.

In this museum, we got the privilege to take a look at some of the original foundation for the wolf king’s temple as well as some artifacts from this period of time. The artifacts we observed were particularly interesting because of the scope of how old these artifacts were. Many of these artifacts found were coming from the 10th-13th century, which was astounding to observe given that some of these objects were over 1,000 years old! The artifacts were a look into the lifestyle of the Islamic people that ruled this land 1,000 years ago. One artifact that I thought was particularly interesting and honestly funny was a pipe used to smoke hashish that dates back to the 12th-13th century. I find it fascinating and hilarious that people were smoking weed in this city that long ago. After we had observed the Islamic artifacts and learned the history of Muslims and Catholics competing for control of the city, we learned that eventually the Catholics won control of the city and thus won control of the then palace, which is what remained until it was turned into a convent hundreds of years later. The group, led by our tour guide, then ventured upstairs to the section with Catholic artifacts dating back hundreds of years. We started our venture upstairs by observing some very old artwork that was absolutely beautiful, and very very old! Our tour guide gave us the full rundown on the history of these paintings; who painted them, what they depicted, and when they were painted. After we had observed some artwork the group began to go and observe some sculptures made for this catholic convent. One sculpture that caught my eye that was very interesting and a little gross to be honest. This sculpture was of the Virgin Mary and a tiny baby Jesus. While the sculpture itself was objectively beautiful, what I found a tad bit gross was the fact that the sculpture was made using real human hair. While a bit unsettling, this exhibit was still fascinating and it was interesting seeing hair that was hundreds of years old. Overall it has been a wonderful first week in Spain and I look forward to more weeks like this one!

Life in the Great City

Post and Photos by Ethan Wood, Summer 2023

I don’t even know where to begin, this trip has been amazing. The people, the places and the food make it so I never want to come back home. The fact that you can get a two-person apartment down here for around 700 euros is absolutely crazy. Maybe I will save up for a few years and make the big move. As of now, it is day 5 and it has been flying by. I feel as if we are always up to something fun for class or when we have free time.

After class today we all collectively decided to take a nap to recharge and then when we woke up, we went to the mall for some much-needed clothing. For some reason in my mind, I packed as if I was going to a festival or something, so I legitimately only have three shirts. But thanks to the mall and the good prices, I am up to five without breaking the bank. The part of this trip that I find the funniest is the restaurants they have here that are originally from the US. As of now, I have eaten at Burger King and KFC. These two places are like fine dining to me. The food is incredible and 100 percent organic. I had KFC today and, for $11, I was able to get a huge sandwich with a side of bacon fries and a drink. That is incredible! At home, that would be $20.

Yesterday we went to the beach. Bus tickets were extremely cheap, and the drive was only 40 minutes. When we got down there the view was incredible, amazing buildings all around with little mountains in the background even though we were on a beach. The beach was so nice too. We all posted up and were chillin’, catching some rays when a massage lady came by offering her gentle hands. I have to say, that massage almost put me right to sleep.

To top this all off, we got dinner with Dr. Faw’s good friend who works at the college where we have classes (the University of Murcia). The dinner was fantastic, and we could all personally decide on a dish and share it with everyone. I’m telling you, I couldn’t take another bite! If I had to pick my favorite, I loved the shrimp and the potato slices with a bacon-like topping. This whole trip has been so much fun, and I am extremely grateful I get to take part in this experience.

Cruisin’ Through Cartagena

Post and Pictures by Aubrey Johnston

Hola a todos! My name is Aubrey and I’m a second year Communication major with a minor in Spanish. I’m extremely sad to say this is the last blog of our study abroad program in Spain. But, I have a ton of fun things to share about our last week in this beautiful country!

Earlier this week, we climbed the bell tower in the cathedral in Murcia. We see the cathedral almost every day as we stroll through the city streets, but now was our opportunity to get an inside look to this picturesque building. Our calves ached slightly as we hiked up ramp after ramp, which eventually took us to the top room, where the enormous bells ring every hour. From there we could see vast views of the city we had spent so much time in.

After that, we took a mini-vacation to Cartagena, which is about forty-five minutes from our residence hall in Murcia. It’s an amazing city on the coast of the Mediterranean, with a large military port and bright blue water. It has a rich history, as there are many ruins from Ancient Rome.

On Wednesday morning, we all grabbed our backpacks and hopped on the bus to Cartagena. Once we got there, we went by our hotel and then walked down to the port to go on our boat tour. The group of us stood on the roof of the large boat, looking at the astonishing views and enjoying the sunny weather. During our voyage, we heard facts about the history of the city and saw different military ships in the port. We also got a lot of artsy pictures. We couldn’t resist, we had to make our Instagram followers jealous of the amazing place we’re in!

Pictures at the port and on the Mediterranean Sea
#picsoritdidn’thappen

After that, we had delicious tapas with Roberto, who is a faculty member from Universidad de Murcia. He has guided us through our stay in Spain. We know that when he comes to lunch or dinner, we can trust him to order some really good food!

That afternoon we took a city tour and saw a variety of Roman artifacts, which included physically walking through an ancient town square and Roman theater. We got to stroll among the ruins and visualize what people were doing multiple centuries ago. We also climbed into an old fort and saw breathtaking views of the entire city. That’s where we saw peacocks who were just hanging out. They seem to be used to all the tourists, so I got close enough to take a picture!

That night concluded with more Spanish food and our group’s absolute favorite dessert – gelato! We all laughed and enjoyed our treats while we walked back to our hotel. Knowing these are the last few days has been pretty sad, but we’re trying to make the most of our final moments in Spain!

Views from our tour of Cartagena. Just “roman” around, as I like to say!

The next day we returned to Murcia to finish up our class and work on our final projects. Soon we will all be presenting what we learned about social support in Spanish culture, which I believe is going to be pretty interesting. We all fell in love with Murcia. From the people, to the great restaurants, to the beautiful architecture, this place has left us in awe and it will truly be missed. But hey, maybe we will get to come back, who knows! I sure hope I get the chance to. Hasta Luego!!