Friends, family and food - Celebrating the 4th of July in Spain

Here´s Pedro providing a bit of history...

                                                                        The singing...

And of course, the laughs - of which there were plenty throughout the evening. As part of our celebration of the 4th of July, Honors Program students planned activities for their friends and families, including a 3-legged race, trivia and a water balloon "war." They also got to sing (shhhhhhh!!!!) the national anthem.

The highlight of the event was of course the food, combining traditional Spanish dishes and American favorites. Many students helped their families prepare for the picnic by cooking, baking or providing recipes they could make together.

                            P.S. - Yes, these hamburgers were REAL and they were delicious! :)

Who needs hamburgers and hot dogs when you can have empanadas and tortilla? - Celebrating the 4th of July in Spain

As a way to allow our students to teach their host families about the American customs and holidays, we held a late afternoon picnic as part of our July 4th celebrations. Complete with a bit of history, games, water balloons and a lot of food the park at Monte San Isidro was the ideal setting for our cultural exchange.

The flavor of the picnic was distinctly "Spanish" the students reported, but fun all the same. More pictures to follow!

Celebrando el 4 de julio (Spanish-style)

On the 4th of July, we had a special surprise in store for our students - unbeknownst to them, a bit of America was coming their way!

Each day, as part of our normal routine, we give them their choices for the menu and take their order during the descanso, or break, between classes so that the food will be ready for them upon arrival at Casablanca. Not wanting to let on to our special plan, we decided to keep things as "normal" as possible. For Wednesday´s menu, we carefully chose the WORST of the WORST, with delictable first-course offerings such as: ensalada de gulas (hake eel salad), revuelto de morcilla (scrambled eggs with blood sausage), pastel de surimi con salsa Roquefort (krab cake with Roquefort cheese sauce) and  sesos y setas a la plancha (grilled brains and mushrooms). For the second course, we listed: manitas de cerdo (pigs´ trotters),  callos al arriero (intestines with a spicy garlic sauce), trucha con verduritas (trout - in its entirety - with vegetables) and bacalao frito (fried cod). While all of these foods do in fact exist on many Spanish menús, the students hadn´t yet experienced them all. As dictionaries were pulled out, many questions were asked and eyes widened with fear. Needless to say, the students all looked to us for direction as to which option would be the safest for their consumption before raising their hands for the final count. While a few students put on a brave face and were willing to venture into the gastronomic unknown, others wanted to play it safe and ordered the salad (hoping the gulas would be minimal) and cod. No one was as anxious to get to lunch that day, but we just played it off. 

What the students found upon entering Casablanca brought on many smiles and countless sighs of relief - as not only was their Coca Cola on the table, but also plates (which never happens and it alluded to the surprise). As the first pizzas started to appear, I think I even heard a small round of applause. The toppings on the pizzas may not have been what they had expected or perhaps would order from themselves, but we had 32 very happy (and full) students.

And to top it off? A special dessert: natillas de chocolate. As you would expect, no one complained about not getting their usual yogurt. :)

As a special treat to the profesores, after lunch we had one student approach us who said that while she was immensely happy about the Coca Cola and pizza, she was a little upset about not being able to try the aforementioned "delicacies." Being a tried and true member of our Adventurous Eaters´ Club, we couldn´t have been more proud of her!

Check back soon for pictures of more 4th of July festivities...

¡ESPAÑA! - Here´s what victory looks like...

More than proud to be honorary Spaniards following Sunday´s big win and having shared in the historic celebrations, the students and a few of the staff proudly wore their camisetas to show their continued support of La Roja.

Casablanca: Home of the Adventurous Eaters´ Club in León

Inspired by the victory of Spain´s national team, our students decided to be valient themselves and try something new - lengua de ternera (cow´s tongue). As you can tell by the pictures, not everyone was impressed by the delicacy, even when artfully disguised with a sauce and vegetables.

Needless to say, I am sure the addition of the patatas fritas (french fries) to the plate could only help. :)

¡ESPAÑA! ¡ESPAÑA!

A showdown the final game was not - the better team took the advantage early and held strong from beginning to end. Much to the surprise of anxious fans across the world and the unsuspecting Italians, Spain´s victory over the team was quick and clear, scoring 4 points to their 0. Fireworks and cheers of elation could be heard throughout the city and before the broadcast of the game had even ended, many took to the streets to share in the moment as Spain´s team had garnered for themselves the unprecedented title of being three-time champs, winners of the 2010 World Cup and 2008/2012 Euro Cup . Shown in the pictures is León´s Plaza de Santo Domingo, central hub of the evening´s excitement.

Fiestas y fútbol

Last Sunday was not only the end of the local fiestas here, celebrating San Juan and San Pedro, but also the decisive final game of the Euro Cup, between longtime rivals Spain and Italy. Needless to say, anticipation was high and enthusiasm strong as everyone found their place to enjoy the game. While some students watched from home, others headed to the city center where the pre-game tension was nearly palpable.