Caballerizas Reales

After a short night sleep, this morning started out far earlier than I would have liked, though it was necessary to get to my 9am class. History of Photography sounds like it is going to be really interesting, and will also give me a little bit of formal photography training. Today was another preliminary day, just the PRESHCO students, for us to talk over the syllabus and feel situated before the Spaniards arrive at our first class next Thursday. 

After class, I walked back to the house, put on my swimsuit, and spent some time at the rooftop pool alternating between sleeping in the sun and cooling off in the pool. The sun here is strong, so even with frequently jumping in the pool I didn't last long before I moved my nap inside. I slept most of the afternoon, with the exception of a small lunch break, until it was time to get ready to go to dinner. 

Dinner tonight, which was again more like a cocktail hour with a few finger foods and lots of drinks, was at Las Caballerizas Reales, the former royal stables that were built in 1570 by Philip II. All the PRESHCO students went with thier host families, and we got a formal welcome from the Dean of UCO and lots of the professors. The mayor of Cordoba was supposed to come, but he had to fly somewhere unexpectedly and was unable to make it. As a welcome gift, we each got a book about ancient Islamic manuscripts that's written in Spanish. I know can read Spanish well enough, but reading about Islam in Spanish might prove a bit difficult....

But more importantly, the architecture of the stables was amazing. The side we were on has been opened up to accommodate large groups while still keeping the architectural integrity and masonry of the original stone. I was skeptical when I heard where we were going (which is also conveniently one block from my house) but it turned out the be pretty nice!

Stables lining the hall

Welcoming Committee 

I love the lights!

Once the cocktail house ended, however, I was still hungry. Most of the foods had meat, so I couldn't eat them. As it turns out, this vegetarian thing is much harder in Spain! So when Kim and I left the party, we went to a little restaurant around the corner that serves a plate a cooked asparagus with olive oil for only four Euro. It was so worth it to have some yummy veggies and balance out the bread-y hors d'ouvres. I can easily see myself going there every day just to have some asparagus and blowing my entire semester's budget.  

Even after sleeping most of today, I'm still tired. It's 11pm here, and I'm going to bed. This is the earliest I've been ready for bed since at least a few weeks before I left Massachusetts for Spain. Also, while I've been here I don't think I've gotten more than seven hours of sleep on any given night.  Hopefully in approximately 60 seconds I'll be asleep; I think I will be. My brain is ceasing to function and tomorrow, like every day here, is going to be busy.