Only a Week?!!

I can't believe I have only been in Seville a week. It seems much longer than that. It's not like I've done a whole lot, but I feel very settled and happy here.

My first few days I was spending a lot of time avoiding the heat. I think I am adjusting. I think it's also cooling down a bit. Instead of being 98 or 99 degrees at its peak, it's only going up to 93. Whew, I need a sweater!

Yesterday I started off my day by going to the gym. There is a small gym a few blocks away called Sevilla Gym (what else would it be called?) They have rates for daily, weekly, monthly and yearly memberships (as well as 2 months, 3 months, etc.) All I did was tell the guy I wanted to pay for a month, he took my money, my name, my picture and then I had to put my finger on this little thing to take a picture of my fingerprint. When I return today, I place my finger on this pad on the turnstile and it lets me in. Wow, so high tech!

The gym was nice. It wasn't very crowded, they have good machines and equipment and it was quiet. There was no loud music playing. Also, unlike the gym I went to in Argentina, there weren't a bunch of trainers standing around the floor. It was just a few people working out, first guys when I arrived, and later a few women showed up. I like it.

After that, I went to the market on Feria Street and got some fruit and more olives. I really like the market and think I will start shopping there more than at the supermarket, even though it's a little intimidating. At the supermarket I just pick things up and put them in my basket. At the market I have to speak Spanish, but that is why I am here, right?

I came home and had lunch and took a little nap because I was feeling really hot (maybe from working out and then walking around) and then went to the Arab Baths.

The inside of the bath house was beautiful. I get the impression that the building is old, maybe from the time when the Moors controlled Spain. There is a restaurant I found nearby that is inside an old Arab bath house, so I am guessing they were pretty common.

I had an hour and a half to enjoy the baths and then a 30 minute massage. It was nice. I was beginning to get bored and ready to leave when they rang the little bell letting us know our time was up.

From there I stopped and had my first taste of tapas. I found a little restaurant on a side alley. I told the waiter it was my first time and asked for a recommendation. He recommended the ham. I really wanted something more exotic than ham. He also recommended sangria. I thought people drank sherry with tapas.

So, I ordered the ham and sangria and also a little stew. The stew was amazing - some kind of very tender meat (maybe beef) with carrots and shoestring fried potatoes on top. The combination of flavors was out of this world. The ham was okay. It was kind of like a prosciutto. The color was a deep red. It came on a little thing that looked like an English muffin. It was a nice snack.

From there I rode my bike through the center instead of taking the bike path home. I was hoping to find a bandana that I could wear because my hair is going through an awkward stage. I went to H&M and instead bought a t-shirt, a hat and a necklace. Then I went to a store called Mango and bought some big funky sunglasses. I think I look like a pimp with the hat and sunglasses. Maybe I can work outside with the ladies who work the street outside my window during the day.

Oh, yes, the ladies on the street.

Ralph, the guy who owns this building told me it used to be a bordello. There are 3 African women who stand outside in the middle of the street during the day. They are apparently there for the construction workers. But it seems to me that there are many more women working in this neighborhood. I see them sitting around outside a house up the street. It doesn't seem like Amsterdam where it is regulated. I wonder if prostitution is legal here. In fact, the first thing I noticed when I arrived were big signs in the airport and then along the roads as we came in, saying "paying for sex is investing in violence". It seems to me the signs are not working. Maybe the Dutch have the right idea. Legalize prostitution and take out the middlemen (the pimps and traffickers) and let the women form unions and be in control and out of danger. Who knows. It's a very complicated thing I guess.

Last night I rode my bike and found the train station. It's not too far away. From there I will be able to take some day trips to nearby towns. I'm also planning a longer trip to Cordoba and Granada, two towns that have magnificent Islamic buildings from when the Moors were here.

So in spite of the heat, and the construction noise during the day, I'm having a good time here. I'm eating well, getting exercise and loving the experience of living a simple life in Spain.