Our tour was in completely in Spanish so one of our students translated everything. Our tour guide kept yelling in Spanish at us to stop taking pictures; several students were scolded.
The cave reminded me a lot of the Harry Potter movies. I know it sounds completely cheesy, but it is true!!! The scene in the Harry Potter movie where Dumbledore and Harry Potter are underground in a cave is exactly the scene that I felt like I was experiencing down in the caves. Everyone kept commenting this is just like Harry Potter!! In fact, the movie "Journey to the Center of the Earth" was filmed down there. I don't know the movie...but a lot of the kids did!
The caves are located directly under the Aracena Castle. We really wanted to climb the hill the Castle was on top of, but we did not have enough time. Even so, I got some pictures of it from far away.
The legends says that the caves were discovered by a boy chasing after a runaway pig. He stumbled across the magnificent caves and the rest was history. While in the caves at one point we were as far down as 100 meters underground. There were pools within the caves as well. The pools were formed by the caves and were so clean you can actually drink out of them. The water was clear blue and absolutely breathtaking. The largest pool was 12 meters deep. A lot of the structures in the caves defy gravity our tour guide explained. Hundreds of scientists have come to the caves to study it and yet no one has an answer to how the caves even exist.
There were different rooms in the caves and each room had different names. One room was called the Cathedral because the way the cave was formed it actually looked like a Cathedral. Another room had a structure formed by the caves that people all over the world come travel to see because it looks like the Virgin Mary holding baby Jesus.
The Aracena caves are one of those things you can't ever describe, but need to see with your own eyes. They are spectacular and it is unbelievable that they are not man made. I love tours like the one we took that are so informative, yet the structure itself really does all of the talking.
Before our underground cave tour we had about three hours of free time in Aracena. It is a beautiful small town overlooking the hills of Spain. It was a little cloudy while we were there, but we enjoyed our time anyway. Our advisor, Raul suggested we eat the Iberian Ham which Aracena is known for. I am not much of a meat eater, but since the town is famous for it I decided to give it a try.
Raul brought his six year old daughter along named Abril along too. She was so cute! A group of us; Adrian, Anthony, Dana, Sean, Stefany and Alyssa got lunch at a place named Tio Pepe. Raul and his daughter just happened to be eating at the same place. I got a Jámon Sandwich with french fries. Much to my surprise it was DELICIOUS! The ham hear is called Iberian ham and comes from a different kind of Pig. It was in very thin slices and very salty. If you ever go to Aracena... I suggest the ham!
We did some walking around as well. There was an interesting water system in the middle of the street in Aracena. At first we were not sure what it was. It was a man made stream running down the center of the street. It was made like a waterfall so the water could trickle down. Lined with Orange Tree's it was a beautiful sight.
Later on, I learned that the water lead to water basin in the center of town. It is a washing area that serves the people of Aracena and dedicated to the caves because the water comes from the caves. Here you can wash clothes or dishes, etc. I do not think it is in use anymore and is more of a historical site in Aracena. It is just another part of Aracena that adds to its beauty.The arhictect that completed the project was Anibal Gonzalez.
I find myself very bothered by the way meat is handled in Europe. Aracena was so exception (wait until you read my Blog about Africa!!!!) In nearly every window is massive animal legs. It is disgusting in my opinion. I keep telling Adrian if I don't turn Vegetarian by the end of this trip it will be a miracle!
As I mentioned earlier Raul's six year old daughter Abril came with us on the trip. I learned from Raul while in Aracena that she speaks a little English, fluent in French and Spanish. I could not believe it. He also said she started learning English from Dora the Explorer. Here in Spain Dora the Explorer teaches English to Spanish speaking children. He said the same goes for in France. Dora teaches English to French speaking children. He said it is actually pretty strange because Dora is from Mexico teaching English to French speaking children and so on...but his daughter loves the show anyway. In fact, she started singing the "Backpack" song in Spanish. It amazes me how young they start teaching the children different languages here. His daughter is just six years old and already FLUENT in French and can understand English... She is working on speaking it. I really wish my elementary school started me with Spanish in Kindergarten. I really feel like America is failing their children when it comes to language. Now, here I am a twenty year old college student...struggling in basic Spanish. I see the bonuses of being Bi-Lingual has for Adrian and I am determined to make sure my own children become Bi-Lingual early on.
After shopping at a few vendors the day in Aracena came to a close. The bus ride back was relaxing and rather interesting too. I watched out the window as we passed farm after farm. The pigs here are not pink like in America, but black!! I saw a lot of baby piglets too...they were cute! There are soooo many farms here in Spain, even more then in Italy it seems like.
I am starting to really enjoy my online class. As I have mentioned in other Blog posts it is about the European Union (still a TON of work though!). Right now I am focusing on Spain. I have learned so much about Spain, the failing economies of Europe, how Europe got to this point and more. I wish I had time to write all of what I have learned, but maybe that will be a whole knew Blog someday! I have learned though my class that the farming industry in Spain used to be massive, but when they joined the European Union France required they cut back on their agriculture industry so they did not harm the rest of Europe's economy. In return, Spain's main industry plummeted and hurt their economy very much. In fact, Spain has about a 23 percent unemployment rate among adults currently and 50 percent among youth.
I have also learned a lot about the women here in Spain as well and the fact domestic abuse is still a MAJOR issue and very prevalent. On the other hand, Gay Marriage is legal in Spain. Spain is a fascinating country, my time here is flying by. I am currently writing this Blog post outside in 75 degree weather...life doesn't get much better then that!!
Well, I must begin my Blog post about Morocco in-between lunch and class! Goodbye for now! Have a wonderful work week! love you all!
XOXO Shann
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