Fans of the hit MTV reality series The Real World who enjoyed watching the cast of Key West on their Spanish getaway to Spain can live it up just the same. STA Travel is sharing the cast mates fan-tab and totally top-secret 10-day itinerary for the world to see and experience for their own. I’m sure this doesn’t really sound all that appealing to the older, more sophisticated non-MTV watchers out there, but it’s still a trip to Spain and the itinerary doesn’t look all that bad. Stops include Madrid, Seville, and Barcelona with packages starting at $605. Check out STA Travel for more details.
Word for the Travel Wise (07/17/06)
Going to the post office in foreign places is almost as common as going to the airport these days. Chances are (if you’re like me) everyone you know back home will be begging for a piece of your exotic vacation package and the best (or least) you can do is send them a post card. I don’t know what it is about foreign postage that gets people all wild up? Anyhow, to make your journey into a post office in Spain, where let’s say they only speak Catalan, I’ve provided you with this Catalan jewel.
Today’s word is a Catalan word used in Spain:
franqueig – postage
Resources on the web are many for Catalan. Check out Ominglot first for history and a fantastic list of links to keep you chugging along in your studies. Some of the best in my own opinion include this Intercat site which has a University conversation guide with audio, a section titled ” 30 Tips Catalan in Catalonia,” and other additional tools. BBC has a short summary about Catalan and a few helpful phrases.
Pamplona: Of Bulls and Saints
What is the true name of Pamplona’s Running of the Bulls?
Most people have no idea what the festival is truly named. Nor, for that matter, what exactly is being celebrated.
Unbeknownst to most machismo-infused bull runners, the annual festival in Pamplona is actually a religious festival called San Fermin. The festival technically honors the saint of the same name whose relics are carried on the first day of the festival in a solemn procession from the Church of San Lorenzo to the Cathedral of Santa Maria. And then, if you’ll excuse the sacrilege, all hell breaks loose.
“San Fermin would be crying if he could see what’s going on at his feast,” Padre Jesus Labari told the author of a Smithsonian article which discusses the festival and the role religion plays–despite widespread ignorance amongst foreign celebrants who only embrace religion during the festival when a wild bull is bearing down on them.
Running of the Nulls
Here we go again. Time again for he running of the nulls…I mean bulls…in Pamplona, Spain. Yes, legions wine-stoned youth with lofty notions of self will pit them selves against animals four times their size in a heart-throbbing frenzy to see who is the most “courageous”.
And as happens every year, at least one poor dolt gets himself hurt or killed. It’s always a toss up to determine whether this is serious travel or some form of gene pool selection: i.e. the Darwin Awards with horns.
Already we have seen some injuries: A New York man suffered potentially paralyzing injuries when he was thrown by a young cow in a mock bull fight Friday at the end of the first day of the event. There will be more, I assure you. Stay tuned.
Sounds to Sail to the Islands
Sit listening to my music collection on party shuffle for an hour and you’ll find I’m all for jarring sound transitions. Follow me closely here. Music is about movement. It’s about the flowing, swaying, and gyrating movement of bodies rocking harmoniously on packed dancehall floors in places with little ventilation. Sometimes it’s sudden and spur of the moment while others it’s calculated. Most of us find music takes away in the comfort of our homes allowing our limbs the freedom to burst out in the most unlikely body gestures and some will set adrift to discover music exotic places. I’m for the later idea.
Here’s a few of my own top music picks to help you skip to the islands this summer including concert and festival happenings around the area:
5. Sail to: Portugal’s Azores islands, Europe
When: July & August – several music events happening throughout the islands.
Song: Island of Wonder – Nelly Furtado (album: Folklore)
4. Sail to: Barbados, West Indies
When: July & August – for the island’s popular five-week Crop Over festival with origins tracing back to the 1780’s.
Song: A Girl Like Me – Rihanna (album: A Girl Like Me)
3. Sail to: Oahu, Hawaii
When: August 4-5, 2006 – 13th Annual Hawaiian International Jazz Festival.
Song: Moana Chimes – Jon Brion (album: Punch Drunk Love sdtk)
2. Sail to: Ibiza, Spain
When: July & August – Clubs and clubs galore! Dance in the day or dance at night. If you’re a bit on the mellow side, lay out in the sun at Playa de Ses Salines where DJ is sure to be spinning a record or more.
Song: Wake Up With Me – Be Noir (album: Undiscovered Ibiza)
1. Sail to: Jamaica, West Indies
When: August 3-6, 2006 – The world’s greatest Reggae festival, Reggae Sunsplash, returns and the roster looks as promising as ever. What better island to be jammin’ on than Jamaica?
Song: Sun is Shining – Bob Marley & the Wailers (album: Kaya)