As you all know, music is my life. I love stumbling upon new artists or waiting for a new record from one of my favorite artists to come out. I think a varied spectrum in music can lead to open-mindedness in other areas of life. I have one of the widest musical collections you can find. Every now and then I will review new music I stumble upon, new music that comes out, or just one of my favorite records and try to share with you how I experience music, my passion.

So this past weekend some friends and I decided to go to Portugal for the weekend. I really didn't have any expectations of the trip because I knew absolutely nothing about Portugal except that it shares the Iberian Peninsula with Spain. I thought it would be a good idea to check out a few European cities not as well known as Rome, Paris, or Madrid. The flight took only 55 minutes to arrive, and in reality, it only took 5 real minutes due to the time zone Portugal is in. We stayed in a hostel in Lisbon, the capital of Portugal. The hostel we stayed in was great. Awesome service, breakfast included, a mini-bar, internet, and even ESPN on the televisions. They definitely get an A+ in my book. If anybody out there is thinking of staying in Lisbon, look up the Travelers' House Hostel. The architecture in Lisbon is similar to that of the Andalucía region of Spain; this is because the Muslims had total control of the Iberian Peninsula from the 8th through the 15th centuries. Lisbon is a very pretty city to walk around in; it is similar to San Francisco with all the hills and its suspension bridge.

So this weekend a group of friends and I took a three day excursion to the city that once was the capital of the world, Rome. This was a trip from my dreams. I studied Latin and Classics in High School and I knew that while I was in Europe I had to make the trip to the birthplace of civilization. Traveling throughout Europe is so easy and cheap if you use one of the small cheap airlines. For Rome I used the airline RyanAir and my two-way flight cost around 80 € (around $120). After getting in the plane I soon realized why the flight was so cheap based on its size and quality of seats. After a two hour flight in the ghetto RyanAir plane, we arrived in the city of Rome. We arrived at around 12:30 p.m. so when I checked into my Hostel all of the other random people staying in my bedroom were sleeping. I hope I didn't disturb them as I got situated. The whole hostel situation was kind of strange at first, me living in the same bedroom as 5 other strangers for a weekend, but I eased into it. Also it helped having three of my friends stay in the same bedroom as me when they arrived a day later.

We started off just by walking around the city. There are many old buildings in Rome with ancient style architecture I can't even name them all. The first thing I noticed about Rome was that there are so many motorcycles and mopeds in the city. It looked like the primary source of transportation around its narrow and windy roads. We passed by the Four Fountains of Rome, which mark the highest point of its hilly landscape until we landed in the Quirinal Plaza. There we found a great view of the city and the Quirinal Palace, where the current President of the Italian Republic lives. We then made our way to the Trevi Fountain. It was more beautiful in person than what I've seen in pictures. We each threw a coin over our right shoulder into the fountain so that we can return to Rome soon. We then walked over and up the Spanish Steps. We found many Egyptian obelisks that were stolen by the Romans and placed in various locations throughout Rome to show the empire's conquest. Then we entered the Basilica of Santa Maria. The structure is just phenomenal on the outside, but the interior was more magnificent. To show the splendor of your faith, you build the biggest and most ornate of buildings. We also visited the Basilica of San Giovanni di Laterano. This used to be the papal residence until 1308. It is officially located outside of Vatican City, but is now a special territory of the Vatican. After that we walked around the city, ate a lovely Italian dinner, and went to bed for the second day.

This past weekend the BC in Madrid group took a day trip to Toledo and also attended a Spanish bullfight. First, I will discuss the trip to Toledo, and then I will voice my opinion on the bullfight. After an hour long bus ride, we arrived in Toledo, Spain. This was an organized trip through our Spanish Culture and Civilization class with Ana and we had to take notes throughout our excursion. We started off with a general introduction lecture to the city and a panoramic view across the Tajo River. We first visited the mosque of Christ the Light. You may wonder what a mosque is doing with a Christian name. Before the Jewish and Muslim exile of 1492, Toledo was the capital of what was once a beautiful mixture of the Christian, Jewish, and Muslim traditions. After the Christian Reconquest of Spain in 1492, all of the remaining mosques except for two were destroyed. One of them was the mosque of Christ of the Light, which was turned into a Christian church after the Muslims were expelled. After this, we walked through the Puerta del Sol and the Plaza de Zocodover before heading to the Cathedral of Toledo. There as actually a street named "Street of Toledo, Ohio." Toledo, Ohio linked with Toledo, Spain as sister cities in 1931, creating the first Sister Cities relationship in North America. It's kind of ironic that I live so close to Toledo and actually flew out of the Toledo, OH airport on my flight to Madrid.

The Cathedral of Toledo is a beautiful gothic structure which boasts of the immense power the Catholic Church had in the time it was built. You can see my photos of the cathedral and the rest of my trip here. After walking through the cathedral and learning about its architecture and art we took a break for lunch. After lunch we visited a few museums and two synagogues with Muslim influenced architecture. Our final visit was the church of the Catholic Kings of Spain. Our trip to Toledo was almost a walking tour through a textbook. The city is so full of history and rich with culture. It was a very informative yet beautiful day trip in one of the oldest cities in Spain.



Now I will discuss our trip to the bullfight. The photo you see above is of one of the bulls that was killed in the bullfight. You can see the waterfall of blood fall from its body. Every bullfight that occurs, six bulls die. I only ended up staying for three. My expectations were far from what I felt afterward. Going in, I knew that this was a cultural tradition in Spain that has survived hundreds of years and that bulls did die, but after watching the event I associated the bullfight mainly with animal torture. The matadors (matador literally means 'bull killer') would tease the bull with their red and pink flags and aggravate it while slowly letting it bleed to death through a series of stabbings until they finally stick a sword through its skull. It is also interesting to note that the first death was the hardest to watch of the three I saw. I came to the conclusion that although there is art in the choreography of the matador as he evades the bull, the bull still suffers severe stress and a slow tortuous death. The species of bull used, the fighting bull, is only bred for bullfights. If it weren't for bullfights, this species of bull wouldn't exist anymore. It's sad to see that this animal is grown with the intent of torturing it to death after it is four years old. The majority of bullfighting fans are 40 years old and older, but I was surprised at how families brought their kids to cheer on the torture of a bull. It was interesting to experience, and I am glad that I attended, but I'd rather not attend another bullfight. What do you think? Are Spanish bullfights more culture or more cruelty?

"Mi corazón esta en tus manos / Porque todo te lo he dado / Y entre tanto sufrimiento / Creo que se me ha maltratado."

So this is another John Mayer post, but its not just another John Mayer post. This is more a post about technology and the future of the music and film industry. As stated in the video above, John is filming his music video for his new song Heartbreak Warfare using a form of technology known as augmented reality. This is more than just a normal music video, this is an immersive 3-D experience. The article on Wired.com describes how it works. "When you hold a printout of a specially designed augmented reality 'marker' in front of your computer’s webcam, it triggers the start of Mayer’s 3-D music video. The webcam will then transmit images of your face into the onscreen tableau so you appear as an extra, perched behind Mayer as he sings about heartbreak and betrayal."

I find this technology fascinating and it is moving the music and film industry into areas never seen before. The first thought I got when I saw that John was using this technology for his music video was a big F you to MTV and VH1. You probably know how I feel about MTV and VH1 turning music from an organic industry of expression to a fraudulent industry of marketability. John is a reminder that there still is real music being made today and the fact that he is utilizing this interactive technology for one of his music videos means that he is in this solely for his fans and not for making money or having the top video on MTV. With John as the groundbreaking artist for this new technology, one can only imagine where the music and film industry will be in the next 10 years. It is an exciting process to see happen and I can't wait to see how the industry evolves.

On October 19th the music video will debut on John's website and everyone will be able to individually experience it. The process of song writing will always be the same, but the medium in which we deliver our expression to others is dynamic and it is exciting to see where it will go.

"Work it harder, make it better / Do it faster, makes us stronger / More than ever hour after / Our work is never over."

If I could sum up my entire Morocco experience in two words they would be: real and organic. Warning: This is a very long post due to the many amazing experiences I had.

After the 9 hour bus ride from Madrid with some sleep aids, we arrived in the port city of Algeciras on the southern coast of Spain at 5 a.m. After a 3 hour waiting period in the ferry terminal we took a ferry ride across the Mediterranean Sea and across the strait of Gibraltar to Tangier, Morocco under the guidance of Arnd, our very German yet very amazing group leader. Arnd actually founded the Morocco Exchange program and was also training former Peace Corps members to lead in the future on this trip. After a brief orientation bus ride through the city, we visited the women's resource center, DARNA, and partook in a discussion with three Moroccan students about cultural diversity, education, and the movement towards women's rights in Morocco. The history of women's oppression in Muslim/Arabic countries is a sad one. It has been ingrained in their culture for so long that only recently have women started to go to school or find work. So far Morocco is the leader in the movement towards modernism of all the Muslim/Arabic countries, but they still have a very long way to go before they even sniff the independence and freedom of women in the western world.

After a tremendous lunch of Chicken Tajine at DARNA we drove to the city of Asilah for a quick walk and a surprise waiting for us on the beach. We got to ride camels on a Moroccan beach. At first I noticed them hanging out on the beach, and then I realized when we stopped in front of them that we were going to go for a ride. It was an absolute blast. Now I can check off of my bucket list: ride a camel in Africa. After the camel ride we continued our bus trip over to the city of Rabat. When we arrived in Rabat we met with our host families (I lived with Sean) for the next two days and took a walk through the Medina (market) with our host brother before eating dinner and going to sleep.

After a shower and breakfast the next morning with the family we went to a Moroccan school to have a discussion with a woman teacher about the differences between the Western and Islamic worlds along with stereotypes, prejudices, and women's rights as well. This was some stimulating discussion and it made us reflect on our lives as Americans and the prejudices and stereotypes we make without rational thought. After our discussion we visited the ancient Roman ruins of Chellah and the Mausoleum of King Mohammed V before returning for lunch with our homestay families. Friday is usually couscous day in Morocco so we ended up sharing a large bowl of couscous with chicken, potatoes, and vegetables.

When Sean and I returned home for lunch we met a student (he shall remain nameless) from Skidmore College, a small liberal arts college in Saratoga Springs, NY. At first we were excited to meet an American who had already been in Morocco for a month and will continue to study abroad there for the rest of the semester. What we hadn't been expecting was a pretentious devil's advocate who would ask ridiculous pie-in-the-sky questions in a condescending voice to make us seem inferior to him.

After lunch the group explored the Andalusian (southern Spain rich in Arab history) neighborhood in the Kashba and the street life in the Medina market. Afterward, we met up with a group of Moroccan students from AMIDEAST/Rabat University who took us around the town and comparing life in Morocco to America. One of them gave me a gift of some Moroccan cologne; now I can smell like a true Moroccan. After the walk the group met up for discussion about the Peace Corps and the experiences the former volunteers had. During group discussion, Arnd invited the Skidmore student to join us. After high-energy and happy individual introductions from the group, the Skidmore student dropped the energy by talking about how terrible the homestay family had been treating him prior to Sean and I arriving.

After the group discussion, we had the option to participate in the public bath known as the Hammam. The Hammam consists of three distinct rooms. The first room was as hot or hotter than a sauna and all of us (the men's Hammam) put on this brown soap/paste made from olives. It was quite a bonding experience soaping my friends. After we sat in the hottest room with soap soaked into our pores, we moved into the next room which was warm, but not as hot as the first. There we would each be scrubbed intensely by a Moroccan man to the point of exfoliation. After being scrubbed we each were stretched by a sort of massage therapist and then rinsed off in the coolest and final room of the Hammam. It was probably the most clean I have ever been and probably one of the most liberating and unique experiences I've ever had.

After the Hammam we returned to our homestay for dinner before bed. That night Sean, the Skidmore student (who seemed to have cooled off a bit from before), and I had some very stimulating, deep, and frustrating conversation. He still came off as pretty pretentious and pie-in-the-sky, so we let him know how we felt so he could possibly change, but it was still a pleasure to meet him. I haven't had conversation like that in a while, even though he kept to the wrong side of an argument just for the sake of argument.

The next morning after breakfast with the family, we took off for the Rif Mountains. The bus ride was a front row seat to the part of Morocco as a developing nation. We ate lunch with a family who lived in the mountains and partook in some good arousing conversation about education, the simplicity of life, economic challenges in rural Morocco, and the custom of marriage in Morocco compared to that in the western world. After some Moroccan music, dancing with the family, and soccer with the kids, we packed up for the city of Chefchaouen.

After settling into our hostal, we were able to meet up with one of our good friends Christine who is studying abroad in Morocco this semester. We walked through the Medina and I was able to purchase a few things to bring home with me. Later we met up for a celebration dinner at a very nice restaurant in the Medina. I ate Pastilla, which is baked chicken covered in cinnamon and almonds which was delicious. I also enjoyed a great conversation with Arnd about the exchange program, my life and goals, and his experiences before he started the program. He really inspired me to pursue some sort of volunteer work after I my undergrad before I go on to graduate school. I will definitely keep in touch with him in the future.

That night we had a reflection time before our last night in Morocco. In the morning we drove over to the Moroccan/Spanish border at Ceuta. Ceuta is an autonomous city of Spain located on the North African side of the Strait of Gibraltar, on the Mediterranean, which separates it from the Spanish mainland. The originally Moroccan territory was conquered by Portugal in 1415 and taken by Spain in 1640. When Spain recognized the independence of Spanish Morocco in 1956, Ceuta and the other plazas de soberanía remained under Spanish rule as they were considered integral parts of the Spanish state. We actually walked across the border because our Moroccan bus driver wasn't allowed to cross with us. We then took a ferry back to Algeciras from Ceuta, and then another 9 hour bus ride back to Madrid.

This was one of the greatest experiences I have ever had. The hospitality of the Moroccans was unbelievable and rather than a volunteer service or tourist trip, this was purely for immersing ourselves into the Moroccan culture. The two best words I can use to describe my weekend are as I previously stated: real and organic. The most important thing I learned about this trip was all of the things that make us human. People are all the same regardless of religion, race, economic background, social background, tradition, or culture. This trip really helped me become aware of the things innate to being human. When you are thrown into something so new and so different from what you are used to, all of your perceived identities and American social bullshit are stripped away from you down to the real core of your self. It is when you are stripped of the pressure to fit into your usual identity or social norm that you are used to, that your true, real, and organic self comes alive.

I hope you enjoy learning about my Morocco experience. Photographs will be up soon on http://picasaweb.google.com/djruemenapp. I'm going to go write a song now.

"We're never gonna win the world / We're never gonna stop the war / We're never gonna beat this / If belief is what we're fighting for."