To say "Jorge" (my Sevilla roommate's name) was never a problem. However, when I introduced myself to "mi madre" Carmen y su hija Patricia as Harrison, they jokingly said, "Oye no, no lo voy a recordar, te llama Pepe, como el jugador de fútbol" (There's no way I will remember that, I'll call you Pepe like the soccer player). And so it is, en España me llamo Pepe.
My host family is great. Carmen is a sweet lady that is probably in her late 60s. Living with her are her two children, Alfonso and Patricia who are in their mid 30s. In Sevilla, it is very common for children to live at home throughout their young adult lives - presumably until they are seriously dating someone or until they get married. From my understanding, this is just a product of having a bunch of people in a city that lacks housing. We are staying in a small apartment that is a short walk to the escuela, but requires a pretty good trek to get to the river / city center.
It feels great to finally be in Sevilla. We took the bullet train from Madrid 2 days ago and met the entire group of 66 UNC + 2 Tampa University students at the Hotel Alcazar. Then yesterday, after meeting my host family and converting my name, we finally got to explore the city. My Rick Steves book explains to me how in the early 90s Sevilla changed a lot of its most busy streets that cut straight through the city into walkways so that it would be easier to navigate on foot and because the streets were "cutting the city in half." When I read that, I could only imagine what would happen if Times Square or Peachtree St. were blocked off to cars to make it easier for pedestrians. Though I can not compare it to Sevilla in the early 90s, I can attest that the city is very walker / bike friendly. Our small group meandered through the streets and when the hot hot heat finally got to us we stopped at a tapas bar for a quick snack and glass of sangria.
I am continuously impressed by how beautiful this city is. There are dozens of large gardens and fountains and statues and plazas scattered throughout the city - the only American city I can think of that comes close to comparing is Charleston. Another perk is siesta. I honestly do not understand how it is permissible. If I want anything from a supermarket or cafe or any store at 14:01, I better wait until 17:00. In Atlanta I always ask myself, "how much money could Chickfila make if they simply opened their doors on Sunday?" Here, I wonder how businesses survive when they take 3 hours out of their day to rest. I'm by no means complaining, if I could I would bring siesta back to America with me, it is just almost too good to be true. I will say, it is almost unbearably hot, but all things considered I'm excited for the next 6 weeks I have here. I have met a lot of new people and I know this will be a summer to remember.
say my name, say my name wear it out, its getting hot, crack a window, air it out - Drake
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