Flamenco Dance

While in the city of Seville, our group decided to watch a flamenco dance at a local bar. The show was free as long as you bought a drink or something to eat. Flamenco is a Spanish Folk dance that is performed by a lady while a man sings and claps to a guitar playing. The dance involves heavy tapping of the feet, clapping, snapping, and singing. It is believed that the traditional dance was brought over by the Gypsies. The words are sang with great emotion and talk about feelings and emotions. Our group enjoyed the music and tapas very much that night.  

Food in Spain - Module 4 and 6

Exploring Spanish cuisine while in Spain was my favorite part of the trip. The fresh produce, cheese and meats made walking into any supermarket an exciting experience. Restaurants had mouth-watering menus to choose from and although I am Muslim and can only eat halal foods, I did not find it difficult choosing something off the menu.

Cultural influences were obvious when walking into different restaurants. Fish was served at almost all restaurants we ate at. It is customary for Jews to eat fish for Shabbat dinner every Friday. Many kosher restaurants lined the streets of Barcelona to accommodate tourists and Jewish communities in the area.

Finding a restaurant or tapas bar that served hamone, or ham, was fairly simple. Ham is considered to be one of the most popular meal ingredients in Spain. It is sometimes served with cheese as an appetizer or incorporated into rice dishes, such as paella. The Christian influence on Spain made hamone well liked through out the country. Because I am Muslim, my religion forbids me to eat pork and therefore I was unable to try the hamone while on my trip.