La Aljafería

Today was a super busy day! In the morning we had culture class as usual, but afterwards my group went to visit La Aljafería. La Aljafería is a medieval Islam palace built in the 11th century. In the 700s, Arabs began their invasion of the Iberian Peninsula, which includes Spain and Portugal. La Aljafería was home to Abu Jaffar Al-Muqtadir, who ruled the Islamic taifa in Zaragoza. A taifa is an independent Muslim-ruled principality in the Iberian Peninsula during this time period. Because of its Islamic history, La Aljafería is a perfect example of the Muslim influences in Spanish architecture.

In 1118, Alfonso I of Aragón recaptured Zaragoza, and the Christian kings and queens of Aragón took up residence in La Aljafería. In this period, La Aljafería became a great example of the mudejár style, or the style of art and architecture of the Muslims who stayed in Spain after the Christians reconquered the Iberian Peninsula. Queen Isabella I of Castille and King Ferdinand II of Aragón, the Queen and King who paid for Columbus's voyage to America, lived in La Aljafería as well.

I really loved seeing the mixed influences of Islam and Christianity in the architecture. It really demonstrated the progression of Spain's history. One detail I liked in particular was the beautiful ceiling designs. They're made of real gold!

After leaving La Aljafería, the crew bussed back to school, which is called "colegio", and everyone dispersed for siesta. I went home to eat with my host family. Their grandmother often comes over and makes lunch. She's really sweet! Then, back to colegio for afternoon classes. We did have to sit through a language/grammer/vocab class, but we were let out early due to the USA world cup game! My friends and I proceeded to find a tiny Tex-Mex restaurant to watch a little bit of the game. We also had an American flag while walking down the street, and although we got some funny looks it was fun to show our national pride for an hour before going back into the Spanish world. Plus, although the USA lost, they're moving on to the next round!

Although the majority of Spanish food is quite good, we were all pretty thankful for the French Fries! After this quick stop I went on a wild goose chase trying to figure out where and how to put more credit on my Spanish cell phone, and I didn't have any success until meeting up with my Spanish host sisters again. After accomplishing that, we walked home through the Plaza del Pilar and over the Punte de Piedra, which is a famous bridge right next to the Pilar.

After crossing the river, we continued to walk home through the neighborhood. It was pretty cool to think that I feel pretty at home both in the neighborhood around colegio and around my apartment. Then, dinner and hanging out with my host sisters until around midnight.

This weekend, I am going to the playa, or beach, with my host family. I don't believe I will have wifi, so no communication with my American friends in Zaragoza or family in the U.S., but I'm really excited to see the beaches and relax with my host family and their friends!