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Laura Hanson


22 Blog Entries
1 Trip
67 Photos

Trips:

Un Semestre en EspaƱa

Shorthand link:

http://blogabond.com/hanson712




Ultimo Fin de Semana

Bilbao, Spain


So it's the last weekend in Spain, and the weather here seems to be reflecting exactly what we're all feeling here...sunny and warm at moments, and then suddenly, freezing and rainy. This past week and weekend have been amazingly fun, but still veiled with the sadness that we will never be able to do this again.

The festivities began on Wednesday with Cinco de Mayo. Summer and I headed over to our ISA friend Arielle's dorm for authentic Mexican food and beers before we headed to the Athletic Club soccer game. It was rainy and cold, but we had great seats and I really enjoyed the ambiance and clear love for the game that these Basque people had. A highlight of the game was at halftime where we looked around and EVERYONE had packed a bocadillo (sandwich) to eat for dinner...it was almost comical as the stadium was filled with the sound of ripping aluminum foil and plastic bocadillo bags rolled across the field in the wind like a tumbleweed. On Thursday, Summer and I headed out for the night early and headed out to one of our usual clubs for the weekly Erasmus Party. Since it is our last weekend out, the club was packed, and it was fun spending time with many of our friends. On Friday, we spent the day relaxing and unsuccessfully tried to do homework. We met up with two of Summer's friends from Texas that night and headed to a pub crawl in Casco Viejo. Something I love about Bilbao, is how it is a big city, but you still run into people you know everywhere you go...on the metro, in a random side street, in a bar or restaurant. always. It makes living there so much more comfortable knowing that wherever you go, you'll see someone you know. The pub crawl was a lot of fun and packed with people inside and outside of each bar. On Saturday was our very last weekend night out and Summer and I wanted to see everyone that night. It was amazing how many people came out and it was a sight to see with 50 or 60 Americans all out roaming around. We finally made it home and in bed by about 7:30am this morning, marking a successful last night.

In the last couple days, people have become much more sentimental and reflective about their last couple of months abroad, and it has lead to many long talks and revelations between us. To me, there really is no greater experience than being able to spend time in another country, being a part of their culture, and meeting new people along the way. Being here has changed me in a way inexplicable to people who have never studied abroad before. There is just something about the culture here that is so warm. Here, life isn't about looking to the future or being obsessed with getting ahead in your job or life; it's about enjoying the little things everyday, eating dinner with your family, and spending time with your friends. Why are there so many benches here? Because people take time to sit and talk and enjoy their surroundings. Why is there a siesta during the middle of the day? Because being at home with family is more important than making a little extra money. Honestly I really have never been in a place so accepting and non-judgmental than here. People don't care what you wear (thus the blue hair, piercings, and crazy clothes), what you do, or what you believe...all they care about is being happy and doing whatever it is that makes them happy, and that truly is something to live by. Sure, I came to Spain to learn Spanish, but I will leave Spain with some of the most important keys to life: a greater confidence, independence, acceptance, and tolerance...you can't ask for much more than that.



permalink written by  Laura Hanson on May 9, 2010 from Bilbao, Spain
from the travel blog: Un Semestre en España
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Athletic Club

Bilbao, Spain


So this weekend has been so much fun! On Thursday night we made it out to one of our favorite clubs for the usual Thursday night Erasmus party. It was 80s night or something of the sort, so it was fun listening to Michael Jackson and the usual 80s hits all night. On Friday morning, Summer and I met up with Geno and Ellen and went to the San Mames futbol stadium where the professional team plays. We got a tour of the stadium and saw the lounge where the president of the club sits, the locker room, stood on the Field, and sat on the bench where the team sits during the games! It was definitely a highlight of the weekend for me, and I hear that Bilbao has some of the best fans so I can't wait to see a game! On Saturday, Summer and I finally got out of the House and downtown, only to find out that like every other week, it was a day of fiesta and all of the shops were closed. We had fun though walking around town, sitting out side the museum talking, and grabbing beers and wine at a cute, little bar next to the river. That night, we went out with Camille and some other kids in our program, which was fun. Since it's the end of the semester, school work is really piling up, but hopefully there's enough time to continue enjoying the city and people during these last couple of weeks!

permalink written by  Laura Hanson on April 30, 2010 from Bilbao, Spain
from the travel blog: Un Semestre en España
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Good Friends, Good Times

Sopelana, Spain


So with only 17 days left in Spain, the realization and ultimate panic begins to kick in..we're leaving soon! We're all are experiencing conflicting feelings of excitement, nostalgia, sadness, and panic...soo much to do, so little time! The last couple days I have been trying to take advantage of all my free time, shopping or walking around Gran Via during my breaks and after class, taking a little extra time to look up and take in my surroundings, and spend quality time with my friends here. Thankfully, the weather here as been perfect lately, 75+ degrees and sunny, with the sun not setting until about 9:15pm. Yesterday, Summer and I spent the afternoon going on a long walk to the beach, just talking about life and enjoying the day. Today after class ended, we all went up to Sopelana, a bigger surf town a couple metro stops past where we live, and spent the afternoon at a beautiful beach. It was super warm today, and it looked like everyone had skipped work and school to come out and enjoy the day. It was amazing just spending the afternoon walking up and down the beach, swimming in the sea, and watching the surfers Battle the waves. Also, that particular beach was interesting, because it happened to be a clothing optional beach and we saw many nude beach-goers confidently wandering around. This evening we went to the ISA office to learn about Bilbao's urban exhibit in the Shanghai world fair, and it's awesome to learn how globally recognized my town has become! Afterward, it was fun chatting with the girls and eating pizza in the office with Geno. On our way home, Summer and I were talking about how Spain has changed us and how amazing this whole experience has been. It was great really taking advantage of the little time we have here, but I know that these next couple weeks will speed by. I must continue to take advantage of these great moments in time with some really great friends.

permalink written by  Laura Hanson on April 28, 2010 from Sopelana, Spain
from the travel blog: Un Semestre en España
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Last Excursion

Santander, Spain


Today we had our last ISA excursion! We went to Santander, which was actually the location of our little bus incident a couple weeks prior. Once we arrived, we took another bus to the Real Racing Club soccer stadium to watch their open practice. Unfortunately, we arrived at the very end, so we didn't get to see more than a few minutes, but it was still cool being in a stadium, and so close to all the players! After the practice, we walked along the beach, which was beautiful, and went to get ice cream at a famous heladeria where the king has even bought a cone! We walked to the peninsula of the city, where this is a park with a little zoo with penguins and seals that were fun to watch. After, we went to this packed bar, where we all got to try our first taste of "green cheese", which seems to be a version of blue cheese, but a little stronger? We had free time for the rest of the afternoon, so Natasha, Summer and I went and found a little cafeteria to have lunch in and did some shopping until the bus arrived. The city is apparently one of the most beautiful in Spain, and it was a very nice last excursion! I have really enjoyed spending time with my ISA friends, and I'll definitely miss our trips...they were all some of my favorite days in Spain!

permalink written by  Laura Hanson on April 23, 2010 from Santander, Spain
from the travel blog: Un Semestre en España
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Kayaking

Bilbao, Spain


School started again this week, and it felt good to get back into my Normal schedule and see everyone after their trips! The week, like usual, sped by and last night we all went out to my favorite bar/club called the Loft for the Erasmus party. This morning, we woke up to a beautiful day and as Fridays are "Dia de deportes" (day of sports) with ISA, Ellen, Summer, Natasha, Geno, Ellen's friend, and I all met up to go kayaking on the river. I found out that kayaking here, isn't like kayaking in Minnesota, the boats are kind of like canoes, but with the standard kayak paddle. Whew! I forgot how much of an arm workout paddling was, and Summer and I were struggling against the current within meters of our start out point, but it was still amazing to see everything: the Guggenheim, our university, even our favorite mall, from a different perspective. It was great spending time with the girls and doing a different activity. Afterward, Natasha, Summer and I went for lunch at our favorite buffet; the perfect ending to a great day. Only 30 days left, and we still have a lot more activities to do! So many things, so little time!

permalink written by  Laura Hanson on April 16, 2010 from Bilbao, Spain
from the travel blog: Un Semestre en España
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Spring Break Part 2: Alicante

Alicante, Spain


So yesterday morning we returned from a great week in Alicante, a town in southern Spain right on the Mediterranean. I got back from Paris, had a day to pack, and on the 1st I went with Summer, Natasha, Destiny, and Camille to the beach for Semana Santa. We flew in and out of Santander, a town about an hour bus ride away from Bilbao, and wow...it is seriously the smallest airport I have ever seen! Once we arrived in Alicante, we were picked up by the caretakers of our apartment. Hours before we left, we found out there was problems with our original apartment, but they found us a 3 room/ 1 bath apartment that ended up being really nice! In total, we had four great days where we went to the beach or the pool by our apartment. The other "cooler" days (it was still consistently 60+ degrees our whole trip), we went to the internet cafe or spent way too much time watching old, Lifetime channel-like movies - enjoying the fact that we finally had TV channels in English. Summer stated that the whole week was pretty much just a giant sleepover; we all stayed up way too late, ate great meals, constantly snacked on junk food, and had lots of really great conversations. We really only have a month left together, so this trip was a great opportunity to bond and spend time together as a group. Highlights of the trip for me were going to the beach and swimming in the Mediterranean sea, running on the beach at sunset, and dancing to a satellite radio station on TV called "Gaydar radio".

Here's a fun anecdote from our return trip to Bilbao...So when we booked our ticket back from Alicante to Santander, no one really looked up bus schedules from Santander to Bilbao. Therefore, when we flew in to Santander at 10pm, there was no more buses leaving to our city the rest of the evening. We were essentially stranded. To top that off, we found out that the airport closed at midnight and re-opened at 6am...so we originally thought we were stranded for 6 hours, outside, with all of our luggage. great. But once we landed, and asked a couple of people, we discovered that we could take a bus into the central part of Santander, where there was a bus leaving for Bilbao at 6am. Once we got on the very last bus leaving for the central part of town, our driver told us even greater news - that there was a bus going to Bilbao at 3:45am. We got to the central bus station around 11:15pm, and found a Chinese restaurant open until midnight conveniently situated next to the terminal. So we went for a late dinner and tried to stay there as long as possible, still anticipating hours of being stranded outside until the bus came. Once we finally left, we found that we could sit inside the bus station until 1am when they closed. We found a great spot on the floor to sprawl out on, and found free wi-fi so, like anyone deprived of free internet for a week, all the girls were in heaven. However, at 1 we were kicked out, and still had to spend 2 hours sitting outside until the station opened again at 3. We were a sight to see - five girls, all dressed for the beach, laying outside the station with beach towels thrown over them for warmth. Everyone basically pulled everything they owned out of their suitcases and threw on layers for our impromptu outdoor "camping" trip. Good thing Santander seems to be a safe town, and the rest of the night went without a hitch, and Summer and I finally made it home around 5:30am. It was a unplanned adventure, but made for a night we wont forget anytime soon!

Now, we have the weekend free to hang out and school starts again on Monday. Last night we went to a reggae bar, which was interesting, and today I think we're going to the beach. I've really enjoyed this long break, but it will be nice to go back and see everyone at school again, and get back into my routine. Only a month left!



permalink written by  Laura Hanson on April 10, 2010 from Alicante, Spain
from the travel blog: Un Semestre en España
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Wine + Cheese + Crepes = Paris

Paris, France


Well I just got back from Paris, and it feels good to be home! The trip was very fun, and it was nice to spend sometime with family and friends. I left Thursday afternoon, took a 2 1/2 hour bus to Biarritz, France, had a layover, took the plane to Paris, waited FOREVER for the airport shuttle to come, and finally made it to the apartment where my parents were staying by 12:00am.

The next morning, we woke up and took the metro to the Opera House, and then the Eiffel Tower, which was really fun to see in person. The metro here is crazy...super complicated and dirty, but after a while I think we all got the hang of it. The Opera House was amazingly pretty, and it was nice out, so it was fun hanging around outside and enjoying the streets of Paris. We went to the Orange Museum and that was amazing to see huge Monet works (one of my favorite artists), walked down the Tuleries and went to the Louvre and saw the Mona Lisa and the Venus di Milo. It was crazy there though and the museum was huge and overwhelming. Kjell came to visit, which was fun, and that evening the two of us met our friends Sam and Masera from Morris for a night out.

The next day we went out to see the Notre Dame and the Luxembourg gardens. I loved the area where the Notre Dame is...with musicians playing in the streets and Parisians riding their bikes all around the island. The Luxembourg gardens were also in a great area, and after visiting, we ate at a cute outdoor cafe in a bustling neighborhood. That evening, Kjell and I met up with Masera and some of her friends and went to a bar called Cafe Oz, where they line up all these tables against the walls and people dance on the tables. It was really fun hanging out with familiar faces and I loved catching up with everyone!

On Sunday, Mom, Dad, and I went to the D'Orsay Museum, which was also very cool. They had an amazing selection of some of my favorite painters: Monet, Van Gogh, Gaugain, and Renoir. It really is truly amazing to see these works of art in person, being able to examine every brush stroke and use of subtle differences in color to create a masterpiece. We walked back to our apartment in the Le Marais district, and made sure to grab a falafal from the famous stand in the Jewish Quarter.

My last day in Paris was probably my favorite day of the trip. We woke up earlier than usual, and headed up to the northern part of the city to see the Moulin Rouge and the Sacre Cour. The Moulin Rouge wasn't much to see, but the Sacre Cour was really amazing. It sits on top of a hill where you can see the whole city, and even though it was busy there, it wasn't in the crazy touristy, sell-out way other monuments around the city were. The inside of the church wasn't the most magnificent interior in the world, but the hundreds of candles that people lit that sat around the Cathedral is really something to see. That afternoon, I met Masera and we went shopping at Les Halles, which is a pretty interesting shopping mall. We visited her favorite crepe stand, and I got to experience my first Paris crepe, which was super huge and very sweet. The rest of the afternoon, we just wandered around the city by the Pompidou center. Later, we met up with Sam and the three of us walked along the Avenue de Champes-Elysees to see the Arc de Triomphe. It was nice catching up with them, and we got to see all the famous designer stores as we walked to see the Eiffel Tower lit up at the Trocadero. I think that seeing that monument lit up, next to the lights of the river and the surrounding city, was the defining moment of the trip. It was absolutely stunning.

Today, I unfortunately had to wake up at 3:30am to meet the shuttle. The trip was long, but I thankfully made it back to Bilbao without a glitch and to warm, sunny weather. I think the only thorn in my side to the travel today was this one couple that took the bus from Biarritz to Bilbao with me. No wonder people always say that American tourists are some of the worst crop. This couple was just awful. When we reached San Sebastian, the bus driver asked all of us to leave the bus for a 15min bathroom break, so he could go refill the bus with gas. This couple didn't think to grab their coats, even though it was clearly raining, and continued to blame the bus driver for this. Once they got on the bus, they continued loudly complaining to anyone who would listen how the driver "wouldn't let them grab their coats" and how the driver was a jerk because "he clearly knew that we didn't understand him speaking french" (the bus driver was speaking Spanish). Having to get off a bus for 10 minutes apparently added "too much extra stress", even though the 80 year old Spanish lady who was traveling with us didn't seem to have a problem with this simple request from the driver. If you travel, please don't ever do this, it's horribly annoying and ruins the experience for everyone else who has to listen to you. Thank you. Alicante in two days with the girls, so I'll have another update soon!

permalink written by  Laura Hanson on March 30, 2010 from Paris, France
from the travel blog: Un Semestre en España
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Spring and Some Thoughts about the Metro

Bilbao, Spain


So it is finally spring here!! The past couple days have been amazing this week, yesterday it was 72 degrees out, and amazingly yesterday when I checked the weather, there was a 0% chance of rain, which was a miracle in itself. In my lit class, my German friend keeps asking if I would want to play on his soccer team here, and so I finally agreed to play on Monday cause the weather was perfect for playing. Turns out that most of the guys on the team are friends in my program, so it was fun getting back out on the field. We were suppose to play 7 v. 7, but the other team only had a couple guys show up, so we just divided in two and played a pick up game. It was a little intimidating at first, because I was the only girl playing, but eventually everyone got in a good rhythm and we ended up playing for almost 2 hours.

Another thing that I haven't talked about yet, is a very important part of my day...transportation. Each day, I have to walk 10 minutes to the metro, ride the metro 25 minutes to the Deusto stop, and then walk an additional 10 minutes to school from that stop. It is a very long commute compared to my commute in Morris, but it makes for great people watching. Since I usually take the same metro, I usually see the same people each morning...I avoid sitting with the older, gray haired man who clears his throat constantly, I always like sitting by this girl who wears huge headphones and has a pair of leggings that I'm dying to buy, and I always look for the cute guy who gets on at the Lamiako stop and who I'm pretty sure goes to my school. Apparently in Spain it's socially acceptable to stare at people, so I take advantage of that and I really do see some very interesting things and people. On weekends, especially Saturday when the metro runs all night, I always see at least a handful of middle-aged couples heading home around 5 or 6 am after a night of partying with the rest of the young crowd. My favorite time to ride the metro is on Monday and Wednesdays when I'm done with class at 11am...all the people I ride home with are cute, elderly people, which means the ride is usually very quiet and with lots of open sitting spots.
There are some key do's and don'ts of riding the metro:

DO:
- bring your ipod, especially if you are stuck next to someone who clears their throat, blows their nose, or talks loudly.
- learn how to predict where the metro doors stop, so you can effectively jump on before the crowd in order to get a seat.
- learn how to balance effectively on the metro if standing...there is nothing more embarrassing than falling on or into people.
- learn how to pick a good seat...learn how to judge your fellow sitting companions before you sit, especially during weekends. There is nothing worse than sitting in the same section as an overly drunk person, who may or may not throw up all over where you're sitting.
DON'T:
- eat food on the metro. Trust me, these people don't snack, so they'll all stare at you like you're crazy.
- have an emotional conversation on your phone on the metro..I saw some lady have one, followed by her crying alone and it wasn't very enjoyable to witness.
- fall asleep on the metro without a designated companion that will wake you up before your stop. A couple of weekends ago, Summer and I were coming home around 6am and both dozed off...we would most likely of missed our stop if it wasn't for a nice man who woke me up to ask what stop I needed to get off at.

It's St. Patrick's Day today, which means that I need to finish my homework before we go out tonight to celebrate. It's also the perfect day (68 and sunny), so I think some of the guys and I are going to meet up for some beach soccer this afternoon. Spring break starts in a week so there will be a new update soon!

permalink written by  Laura Hanson on March 17, 2010 from Bilbao, Spain
from the travel blog: Un Semestre en España
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The City of Churches

Burgos, Spain


So I haven't written in a while, but I guess that's because not much has happened since my last entry. My friends and I have planned our 2 1/2 week spring break; I am going to Paris the first couple days to meet up with the parents and some friends, and the girls and I are heading to Alicante (southern Spain) to hopefully lay on the beach the second half of break!

On Friday, the ISA girls and I headed to Burgos for a day trip. The weather this week has been unusually cold, and my language friend informed me the day before our trip that Burgos is the coldest city in Spain...great. The trip is about 2 hours on bus, and I was thankfully able to sleep the whole way, because the night before we had been out late at a fiesta. Once we arrived, we grabbed some coffee before we started our tour. At first the weather wasn't too bad, but then the wind picked up it was freezing! Coming from Minnesota, I'm usually the hearty one on the pack...but after spending a couple months here in 50 degree weather, I'm afraid I have gotten soft and the 30 degree weather was almost unbearable. Geno, our program director, is from Burgos so it was nice having her as our tour guide. We walked around the town, and she told us some history of the city and we walked up this hill where there is a castle that Napoleon stayed for a while and such. Afterward, we went to this small modern art museum, which only locals really know about. We saw this exhibit by a french artist named Georges Rousse, who might be my new favorite artist. His work is a mixture of paint, architecture, and photography which is put together in a way that makes almost optical illusion type art...it's amazing so you should all check him out! After the museum, we walked around a little, and I had heard from my host mom that Geno's family owned a restaurant in Burgos so I asked if we could go visit it. Well, it turns out that Geno's family owns one of the most famous, upscale restaurants in Burgos and the prince has even ate there! We didn't get to eat there because it was too expensive, but we got a tour of the place from her aunt, plus some free pastries so that was fun! For lunch we went to a little bar down the street that served a sorts of little sandwiches and tapas for 1 euro. After lunch, we went to the Cathedral, which is what Burgos is known for. It was absolutely huge and elaborate. I'm not a huge fan of exploring churches and such, but the guide was nice and had fun and interesting little facts that made the tour a little more bearable. We finished our excursion by going back to Geno's families restaurant for churros and chocolate.

We have been here for two months, so I pretty much feel acclimated to the culture here, but there are still some weird things about Spain in general that are hard to get accustomed to. After I got back from Burgos, I found out that Summer had invited our three other friends over to our house for a girls night in. We didn't think that this would be a problem at all, because we had friends over in the past without a problem. However, we found out after a long lecture from Jone, that guests who are not family are really only allowed to stay over for under an hour, and it is completely unacceptable for anyone to ever sleepover at the house. Our mom is usually very laid back, it was a big surprise to see how adamant Spaniards are about people in their living space. After this surprise, we decided yesterday that we should have an American day, because everyone was getting a little homesick. We went to a huge mall in Portugalete, which is basically mirrored exactly like an American mall, food court and everything. We ate nachos with fake cheese, slushies, and ranch chicken wraps with french fries. It was nice spending a day with the girls in the same way we would be if we were in the US..a definite cure for homesickness! I have a lot of homework piling up for this week, but only a couple short weeks until break! Can't wait!

permalink written by  Laura Hanson on March 14, 2010 from Burgos, Spain
from the travel blog: Un Semestre en España
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San Juan de Gaztelugatxe

Bermeo, Spain


What a perfect Sunday! This morning Summer, our host mom Jone, her friend Fernando, and I took a day trip to Bermeo, about 40 minutes from Bilbao, to visit San Juan de Gaztelugatxe. The day was beautiful, around 60 degrees and sunny, and the drive there was very scenic. Once we arrived, we drank coffee at a little restaurant at the beginning of the hike. The hike down to the start was very steep and rocky, but it was totally worth it. San Juan de Gaztelugatxe is a basque treasure. The view of this tiny church located on top of a little island in the middle of the sea is breathtaking, an absolute must see if you're ever in Basque Country. We hiked up a 200 or so stairs to the top of this island, where the church is located. Once we arrived, we took an hour or so to enjoy the view, eat sandwiches while looking out at the sea, and take a nap on a grassy knoll at the top of a cliff. A special part of this church is the bell; according to legend, if you make a wish and ring the bell three times, your wish will come true. The views from every direction were breathtaking, and this place is truly special to everyone who visits.

After we had hiked back to the car, Jone told us that she had made plans to stop by her daughter Ana's House for coffee. Ana lives Halfway between Bilbao and Bermeo, and is the first person I've met in Spain so far who actually lives in a House. We spend the evening sitting out on the patio, eating cheese and chocolate. It was really fun spending time with Jone's family, and we all planned a dinner soon, when her third daughter comes to visit. It was the first time we spend the day with Jone and I really enjoyed getting to know her and her family better!



permalink written by  Laura Hanson on February 28, 2010 from Bermeo, Spain
from the travel blog: Un Semestre en España
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