All things Sevilla

Saludos family and friends,

We arrived in Sevilla last night after a day hiking and taking photos in the Alpujarra hills just below the Sierra Nevadas. We stopped at the Playa de Granada on the way south to take our first dip in the Mediterranean Sea and soak up the sun. We ate a tapas dinner and then held a night photography session around the Cathedral de Santa Maria. After wandering the narrow streets of the city, we headed to bed around midnight.

This morning we had a guided tour of the Cathedral and were able to contrast the views of stained glass and Gothic architecture in the daylight with the evocative evening shots of the night before. After a picnic lunch in the Parque de Maria Luisa we made our way back to our hotel to take refuge from the afternoon sun and focus on our On Assignment projects. There has been much photo editing and writing this afternoon and tonight we are headed out to explore the Triana neigborhood, 'the gypsy quarter', across the Rio Guadalquivir.

Tomorrow we're off to Cordoba to take in the Mezquita!

Hasta luego,
Ben and Megan

Photographs below are from the group's time in Granada, taken by National Geographic Expert Tino Soriano.

Una Foto

The group, with National Geographic Expert
Tino Soriano, at Cuidad de las Ciencias

A goodbye to National Geographic Expert Tino Soriano

*This blog post was written by several students.

Yesterday was our final day with National Geographic photographer Tino Soriano. We began the morning with a delicious breakfast of toast and coffee. Tino ended his visit with a lesson about photographing architecture and amusing situations at the Parque De Las Ciencias. We photographed exhibits on poisonous animals, the human body, and Andalucian culture along with many other interesting topics.

Tino shared his last few words of wisdom and we said our goodbyes-- we will miss him! We ended the day by working on our On Assignment projects. Before bed our "Theater Group" performed a hilarious skit they prepared for us recounting many past trip events. Then it was off to our rooms for sweet dreams all around.

More pictures to come from our last days in Granada.

Hasta luego!

An update in fotos

Granada

Hello all,

National Geographic photographer Tino Soriano has been leading us around Granada for the past few days teaching us some of the many secrets of Andalusia. We've had the privilege to visit with the dancers from a flamenco troupe and to photograph one of their rehearsals. We've climbed to the top of the Albaicin both in the morning and in the evening and we've searched through the markets for trinkets and other sundrys. Best of all, we had the chance to visit with the owner and horse trainers at the Picadero de Nuestra Senora Terrocio.

More photos and details about our adventures to come . . . for now, Adios!

Saludos,
Ben and Megan

An update in fotos

Madrid's Palacio Real

Night photo shoot near the Atocha train station

Picasso's Guernica at the Prado Museum

Group shot in front of the Prado Museum

plaza and sky view

Gaspacho is the perfect antidote for southern Spain's heat!

Griffiti overlooking Granada's tiled rooftops

From Madrid to Granada

Hola de Granada!

We have made the jump from Madrid to the south and all is well in the Andalusian hills. Our time in Madrid was action packed. We visited the Prado and Reina Sofia, spectacular museums with works by view the masters Goya, Velazquez, Dali, and Picasso. One evening we went out on the town for some night shooting practice around the Atocha train station.

Before we left la mancha we took a day trip to Toledo where we gained entrance to a damascene steel workshop, visited the physical setting for Edgar Allen Poe's 'The Pit and the Pendulum', examined the famous mosque of Santa Maria de la Blanca-- a building whose history has seen it used as a synagogue, office building, church, and police headquarters. We also had the opportunity to visit the majestic Cathedral of Toledo and do a bit of curio shopping before heading back to Madrid for our final night where we saw a flamenco adaption of the opera Carmen. Ole!

Granada is hot. Very hot. People disappear during the heat of the afternoon until early evening. We have adjusted to this afternoon siesta schedule quite nicely! Our favorite meal in Granada so far was in a cafe in the plaza near our hostal. There was nothing better than starting our Saturday with churros y chocolate-- long thin sticks of fried dough dipped in molten cocoa. Later that day we broke into our On Assignment teams to explore the city for ideas to develop into magazine-like photo stories and articles. We plan to include some of the fruits of our labors (fotos!) in this blog soon.

Our National Geographic expert, Tino Soriano, arrives tonight. We'll write more soon to update you on our excursion to the Alhambra and other adventures. . .

Saludos!
Ben and Megan