After missing travel something fierce for the last couple of years, we have boldly gathered a group of intrepid students who are up for an adventure and we are heading to Spain! I am so excited and I am dreaming of having the chance to experience flying with Jettly.

To continue, the class is “Islam and Migration in Contemporary and Historical Spain” and we will be visiting Madrid, Toledo, Granada, and Salobreña over the next twelve days. In this blog, the students will be contributing one post each to document our journey and all we learn along the way.

Leaving Little Rock!

By Scott Filek

Leaving Little Rock and going to Spain will be an exciting and upmost experience for me. This will be my first time leaving Little Rock and traveling to Spain, so I am excited to finally have the chance to Study abroad and have a great time! To me, leaving Little Rock was a challenge. Not only was it difficult to check in luggage at the airport but the TSA security check in was confusing and took a long time. After the check in and TSA security check, I and the rest of the class walked to our boarding flight to wait on our flight to Chicago O’Hare airport. During that time, I met sincere students, such as Owen, Kenedy, and other students one of which even helped me do my boarding pass on the American Airlines App.

The trip from Little Rock to Chicago aboard the plane was quite fun; I ate cookies which were delicious and even received more cookies when asked. I even fell asleep on the plane with no issues. When we arrived at the Chicago O’Hare airport, the class decided to go tour the city of Chicago while I stayed and looked for our terminal. Upon finding terminal K16, I immediately headed to the American Airlines Admirals Club which I stayed until it was time to board the flight.

I have to say the Admirals club is wonderful! It has full size meals you can eat, coffee, water, Coke products, and even a full-size food bar! However, I had packed my own food. I had started cooking recently and I found a website that has great recipes. After I left the Admirals Club, I ventured off to terminal K16 waiting for Dr. Glazier and my friends. I was glad Dr. Glazier had stayed connected with me or otherwise I may have missed my flight.

After boarding our plane, which was much easier than the first time boarding our plane in Little Rock, there was a meal to eat for dinner and breakfast, even movies and games on a screen which I enjoyed during my flight to Spain. As the flight landed, and everyone departed, I was halfway through the walkway when I realized I had left my scrub jacket aboard the plane. As I walked back to the plane to grab my scrub jacket one of the coworkers found it for me. We then all met to go through the passport process repeatedly. I asked myself when is this going to end? Dr. Glazier then brought us to a subway which reminded me of the Chicago subway, and we took it to the other side of the airport to pick up our luggage. After that, we just sat at the deli to wait for Maria Angeles. Overall, I enjoyed the flight, met people along the way, and even saw student nurses.

Welcome to Madrid!

by Torri Richardson

Today the Islam and Migration in Contemporary and Historical Spain Study Abroad Program set out for adventure into new beginnings for everyone in Madrid, Spain. We started our trip with a quick flight to Chicago International airport, where we spent our layover exploring the downtown scenic area and enjoyed their famous deep dish pizza’s from Giordornos in Millennium Park. Soon after the group packed up and headed for our flight to Europe.

Upon our exploration in Madrid we met with Academic Programs International(API) residential director Maria Angeles, who later guided us around the area in which we will be lodging during our stay here in Spain. During our initial walking tour of Madrid, we immersed ourselves in awe of the Spanish Architecture, Plaza de Espana, and discussed our culture shocks as we viewed the city that is much different than our own.

Maria Angeles lead us to a fresh meat cut sandwich shop, near the park where we then
debriefed over our first class reading, by Aacantnrn–Paa and Ruiz- Sanchez, “The Framing of Muslims in the Spanish Internet” from a special journal issue on the Pragmatics of Othering: Stereotyping, Hate speech and Legitimizing Violence.

The class discussion included an open dialogue of the questions from our discussion leader Madison, who picked at our thoughts over the perspectives of how to differentiate between the identities of Spanish Muslims in a derogatory sense. Classmates drew upon the notions given within the readings, challenging the idea that you can be both Muslim and not identify with the false narratives and stereotypes placed on this religious group. In question, we came to understand freedom of religion can be seen as a controversial topic when it has grouped Muslims into hate groups due to some individual’s actions.

After a great discussion we viewed the Royal Palace of Madrid courtyard, then dismissed for a quick break. We then regrouped for orientation in the hotel’s meeting area and prepared for the following days and another walking tour by API’s staff. We viewed and discussed historic architectural buildings as well as enjoyed the food and culture in the markets. Our walk stirred up an appetite for dinner. We then ate at a local restaurant near the hotel, preparing us for plenty of rest for tomorrow’s adventures. Can’t wait to see what tomorrow brings.

Life’s a Chocolate Box

by Steve Abouem

Sometimes you wake up, and you stumble into a fantastic day.  It all started at the Catedral de Santa Maria de la Real de la Almudena. We went down the street in a line all the way to La Muralla Islamica de Madrid. There, we learned that Umayyad Emir Muhammad de Cordoba founded the city of Madrid. In fact, important pages of Spanish history have been written by great Islamic figures. Our guided visit to the Islamic Cultural Center provided us with rich information on Islam and the views of Muslims in today’s Spanish society and the world. Corrupted by the inciting weather, we decided to walk to Plaza de Los Toros, unfortunately, the main event was scheduled for 7 pm, we decided to simply tour the arena, and hop in the Metro of Madrid (that we are slowly getting familiar with) to new ventures. Expensive lunch (life of a tourist), little shopping, and we were on our way to the Prado Museum.

Kenedy bravely led the class into a daring topic that forced us to challenge our minds and sparked an intense discussion.  At 6 pm, we finally entered the museum (God bless the free tickets), the Prado is so rich in history, hidden artistic gems, and more. Dinner En la Calles de Madrid, and the final touch? A stop at the local gelateria. A few scoops of dulce de Leche, pistachios, chocolate, and vanilla, and we were back to the hotel. Even the weather was clement to us today, we were steady in the 70s with an adorable breeze.  Life’s a chocolate box, will we get another great piece tomorrow? 

Check out some our adventures for today in this 2 minute video!

Another Day in Beautiful Madrid

By Alex Shahegh

Good morning and buenos días, welcome back to another day of exciting adventures in historical Spain!  A lovely Friday filled with eager exploration and cultural experiences awaits us as we first embark from our hotel to meet with the local nonprofit organization called Arco Forum.

Arco Forum is an association based in Madrid that aims to foster cultural and religious inclusivity through mutual respect, community cooperation, and constructive dialogues.  Temir Naziri, the director of Arco Forum and our wonderful guide for the visit, explained to us the goals and ideals of the organization including extensive projects such as CommUnity and InclusiveEU, which seek to improve the integration processes for newly arrived refugees and migrants.  Afterwards, we were generously treated to traditional Turkish desserts and chai tea in a beautifully decorated room as we discussed European politics and religious history in Spain. 

Go check out Arco Forum at their website or follow them on Twitter! http://arcoforum.es @ArcoForum

After our morning trip, our class engaged in a passionate and enlightening discussion led by Owen Haynes on the roots of public attitudes towards Muslim individuals and Islamic communities.  We discussed our personal views on the related scientific journal evaluating the equality of religious rights and treatments towards Muslims, particularly when comparing the cultural situations before and after the tragic September 11th attacks by Islamic extremists.

After this educational discussion ended, our class decided to visit the local San Isidro museum to find out more about the rich history of architecture, artifacts, and religions in Madrid.  We learned about the origins of the city dating back to prehistoric times through the Paleolithic era up until the modern day, spanning across almost 500,000 years of Spanish history!  We looked at fragmented pottery and faded murals detailing the lives of everyday people during these ancient times and providing perspective on how they survived and thrived without the modern conveniences available to us today.  My personal favorite exhibit was of a colossal mammoth skull dwarfing everyone present, provoking feelings of awe and a sense of scale of how large the magnificent creature truly was during its reign over these lands.

As the day was coming to an end, our class rested at a local fountain where we engaged in our second discussion of the day led by Nick Junker.  We discussed the comparisons of political trust and satisfaction of native-origin, first-generation, and second-generation migrants in Europe as well as our personal beliefs on equal and effective political integration for communities of all ethnicities and religions.

Today was a fantastic day as we learned about cultures and history while admiring the beauty of scenic Madrid.  My classmates and I definitely look forward to many more adventures during our time in beautiful Spain.

A Day in Toledo

by Misty Roberts

Hello from Spain; it’s 0930 am, and what a wonderful morning it is. Today’s journey began a little rough: our bus driver pulled over as we were waiting for him and out of nowhere you hear several honks and the car behind gets out. To all our surprise, our bus driver collided with the honking car. No worries though, no one was hurt, after exchanging information, off we went. I enjoyed the hour-long ride, which included views of the hills and countryside as well as a field of red flowers. Finally, we arrive in Toledo. Daniél, our tour leader, was waiting for us. He did a fantastic job of showing us around. Toledo is known as the “City of Three Religions,” as it is home to Muslims, Christians, and Jews.

In Toledo, we had the opportunity to see three distinct historical sites. The Mosque of Cristo de la Luz, commonly known as the Christ of the Light, was the first. Built-in 999, the Old Mosque, now known as the Ermita del Cristo de la Luz, is Toledo’s oldest existing landmark.

The Church of Santo Tomé was the second historical site. Even though he was not born in Toledo, El Greco is eternally associated with the city. For Christianity, one of the artist’s most famous works was painted on a massive scale; the cathedral may be seen in the Catedral Primed.

Santa Mara la Blanca, arguably Europe’s oldest complete synagogue building (now a museum), takes you to another period, a refuge of serenity in the loud world we live in today.

 We didn’t get to walk across The Alcántara Bridge, which has been spanning the Tajo River since the Romans constructed it to provide access to the city, but we did get a good look at it.

Following the tour, the group went on a lunch quest and did some shopping. After that, the class met at a nearby park for a discussion, which Armando led. It was time to depart after the discussion to return to Madrid. But the story doesn’t end there. After returning to the hotel, everyone grabbed a bite to eat before gathering to watch the last football match between Real Madrid and Liverpool in the city. The crowd erupted as the score read 1-Madrid, 0-Liverpool.

What an incredible experience this was. 

A Day Free to Explore Madrid

by Owen Haynes

For our Sunday in Madrid, it was scheduled for everyone to do whatever they wanted in Madrid, so for this blog post, only my experiences can be reflected. Everyone went on their own adventures. Most of the group got up for breakfast surprisingly early, but not everyone went to the outing that made us get up so early. Dr. Glazier took Alex, Maddy, Misty, Scott, Nick, Armando, and me to a flea market that takes place weekly in the center of Madrid. The first stand we encountered was a fruit stand, where I had the opportunity to try what I assume is some type of Spanish nectarine. Many of the other stands were selling second-hand clothes or locally made art. I was lucky to purchase some trinkets as gifts, and for myself, I got lapel pins and a tote bag. Others in the group got small decorations, souvenirs, and Dr. Glazier was fortunate enough to score a really cool backpack. 

In order to make it to the Reina Sofia art museum before they closed, we had to leave the market by noon and drop our things off at the hotel. The museum was very interesting, especially because we were able to see Picasso’s original Guernica! Besides that breathtaking mural, I was able to see other pieces from Picasso and even Dali, but the fun couldn’t last long, because before we knew it, we were kicked out of the museum–it closed earlier than we thought. We were all ushered out of the same door, except Scott, whom we lost for a while. Us museum-goers, along with Isaac, went to the tapas market. I got fresh strawberries with whipped cream and then went back to the hotel.

Against the advice of our study abroad guides, I took a two-hour nap. A parade celebrating last night’s futbol win woke me up. Because I only had strawberries for lunch, Alex and I opted to go try a Spanish fast food restaurant, which was unsurprisingly not that appetizing. I finished the night off with the European delicacy: hot chocolate but without the churros. Some light gift shopping was the final errand I did before heading to my room and preparing for bed.

Visiting Casa Arabe

by Maddy Ellis

On our final day in Madrid, our schedule was less jam-packed than usual. A group of us set out on an early morning adventure that included riding an incredibly packed Metro train, a visit to the Reina Sofia art museum, and trying to find office supplies. We were successful on all fronts. 

For our afternoon class, we rode the metro together to Retiro Park. This park was recently declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in collaboration with other monuments in the area. And for good reason – this park was massive, included multiple monuments and elaborate fountains, the “Glass Palace” of Madrid, and was incredibly busy. We were lucky enough to snag some benches looking over the gardens of the Prado Museum for our class discussion. Today’s discussion was led by Alex, who helped us talk about why different nations may or may not let asylum seekers into their country.

After our class discussion, we found our way back out of the park and met with Alicia to go to Casa Arabe. Casa Arabe is a public institution that works to build relationships between Spain and nations that are members of the Arab Union. This organization works as a diplomatic mediator between western nations and the Arab world, while also contributing work as an education and cultural center. The office we visited today also doubled as a conference center, an art exhibition space, a theater, and a classroom. Olivia Orozco de la Torre, our Casa Arabe host, was gracious enough to give us a tour of their facility, give us a presentation on the work that they do, and diligently answer all of our questions.

A gelato trip was organized to celebrate our last night in the city. Bye, Madrid!

Arrival in Granada 

by Kenedy Kuchinski

Our class arrived in Granada around 2:00 p.m. on Tuesday, May 31. We stayed in our hotels until around 3:45. Dr. Glazier, Torri, Alex, Nick, Misty, and I ate lunch at D’Plato’s. We enjoyed various tapas dishes of Spanish cuisine. An exploration of Granada began after lunch at 4:00; our helpful guide, Nicholas, guided us to the Royal Chapel of Granada to learn Spanish history related to Islam. The Chapel was a late gothic church filled with naturalistic portraits and Muslim/Christian-inspired architecture. Though we could not take pictures, we vividly remember the iconic symbolism within the artistic statues. Nicholas described to us the constant fear and threat that Christians had towards the religion of Islam. The majority of the Chapel’s Christian art lies beneath Islamophobia- literally portraying Muslim figures beneath the feet of Christian’s horses.

The second Cathedral, the Cathedral of Granada, Nicholas pointed us to another gothic-style Cathedral. Crowded with Christian art, the famous Cathedral also had distinct characteristics of Muslim architecture. There were large wooden doors with Christian crosses and Islamic stars. This cathedral was surrounded by Christian prejudices. Christians banned Muslim music and held the malignant idea that Muslims were evil to society. Christian’s learned Arabic to try and convert Muslims for years. After our tour of the two historic Cathedrals, Scott confidently led our discussion at Plaza de Mariana Pineda. His article was about providing insight on prejudice and Islamophobia. The article conducted research on the inclusivity of Spain towards Muslims, compared to other countries in Europe. We added our experience in Spain, how mosques were once destroyed and built over, then created into modern historical sites. Mosques and Muslim architecture is progressing, as we are seeing with our own eyes that Spain is recognizing Islam’s impact in Spain throughout history. Both the preserved wall in Madrid and the old architecture in Toledo, connected our discussion to Islam’s historical recognition in today’s Spanish society. In Scott’s discussion, we also expressed the significance of religious tolerance. While religious tolerance can provide appreciation to values and beliefs, it can also belittle religions to outsiders.

After our powerful discussion, the majority of our group bought tickets to see the Casa Ana: Centro Flamenco Tablao show. The astonishing talent, as well as its cultural element was worth the Euros. We finished the night off with Helados La Abuela. The ice cream shop had the richest, most thick ice cream an Arkansan has ever tried.

Overall, our experience in Granada was a first for everyone on the trip. Our tour guide taught us political and historical issues Muslims have faced throughout Spanish history. I am deeply intrigued about our upcoming adventures in Grenada and the multiple historical facts we get to learn whilst looking at beautiful works of art.

La Aventura en el Alhambra

by Armando Arellano

Well, this is our second day at Granada as we continue to follow our syllabus schedule. I got up at 7:30 in the morning to get ready while my roommate Scott woke up thirty minutes later to get dressed for breakfast at the Hotel Carmen Granada. I ate just a small breakfast with Steve, Misty, and Maddy. I didn’t take too long to get my most necessary items within my backpack which includes my charger for my electronic devices and passport, as some places would require it for entrance. It felt a bit chilly once we got out of the hotel to proceed with our road to the building. We all got prepared for the tour of one of the greatest historical buildings in Spain: the Alhambra. Andrea also came back to help us with our journey along with the very helpful and informative guide Nicholas.

As we walked to the castle, the guide Nicholas gave us history on what impacted Jewish and Muslim communities that lived during the era of the neighborhood located nearby the Alhambra. Previous empires before Spain occupied the area that put influential cultures which the neighborhood uses today to describe the history of three religions within the Spanish communities. As we walked up in the upper hills, there were fascinating views that used Roman architecture to bring points of influence that lasted for centuries up to the present day. Of course, the tour guide was still friendly as yesterday, and provided us a lot of information using theological analysis he brought from his mind.

Once we arrived at the building around 9:30, we were given a device that we could use to listen to the audio guide for inside parts of the building. We got inside using our identification and we got to see various parts that have Islamic architecture in the walls along with the floors that were significant. We even got to see three or four cats living at the Alhambra as they drank from the pool! The Alhambra was a government building designed by the Moorish empire and managed to rule it for centuries before it became a historical monument.

According to Washington Irving, the Alhambra has gone through a series of conflicts of not just war or persecution, but rather personal as well as familiar and valuable. The Alhambra is a magnificent sight for travelers and scholars to explore the message of the previous multicultural empires with many capabilities of demonstrating the worth of history and its significance for all people. The Alhambra has a lot of beautiful Arabic artwork within the very walls of the castle, and it showed its unique type of art that can make people visualize the historical movement which is always present despite the change of empires and cultures several times before. Of course, the Alhambra could have a lot of issues of leadership and tolerance, but it also showed that even a mixture of cultural appropriation over the centuries can bring forward new ages of welcoming everyone abroad as if it was a bridge.

After our walking tour, we took a break and discussed our next schedule for today and a few days later. We then went on to different palaces of the Alhambra. We went to a local store full of valuable items that were made out of wood and metal that were later polished to be turned into tables, chairs, plates, etc. Then, we went to a shady place to discuss our plans for lunch as well as new objectives.

It took us 4-5 hours of walking to the Alhambra and the tour, and several of us (including me to a minimum) got very tired of walking around as we sat down to listen to Isaac’s discussion. Now, the discussion was not boring or controversial, it is just that we could not get answers straight. After some food and rest, we had another class discussion at 5pm, when we went to a nearby park to complete Torri’s discussion. Some members of the class strongly yet calmly debated against each other based on the topic of hypotheses about violence against Muslims, though it cooled down by the end. Just about 10 minutes later, we went for a small tour to a local building that used to be sort of a trading post and a hotel combined into one. After a longer walk up the hill once again, we got to see the Mosque of Granada, even though the inside was closed to the public.

The team dinner took place at Cervezas Alhambra, a local restaurant full of options which includes chicken and salmon. After Andrea left, we were eating some appetizers before our preferred meals came by. Meanwhile, we had funny conversations that involved several topics that everyone likes to talk about, which includes movies, movie characters, and even the recent past events that remain even more funny. This day might be our second before the last day tomorrow for us to visit Granada, but I feel confident that everyone of us had a very good time.

From Grenada to Salobreña!

by Nick Junker

Buenos dias from Granada! We had about half a day here, started by our first (and only) breakfast discussion led by Steve. After a great discussion, the group split up for one last adventure in Granada. Many of us went shopping, both in tourist center shops and through little open-air stores in the side-streets. Just as always with Granada, the city was gorgeous and the weather was nice (if a bit dry).

At noon, the class gathered to say farewell to Granada and hop on an in-between bus to take us to the actual bus station. At the station, we had about a 10-minute-long wait to get ourselves situated before the hour-long bus ride to Salobreña. On the ride there, we got treated to a view of the Spanish countryside, which was absolutely beautiful.

Once we arrived in Salobreña, we had a bit of a hike to our hotel. We took just about an hour to get ourselves situated there, and many of us decided to go to the beach afterwards. From here on out, the group split up and, finished with our class meeting for the day, we had some free time. Most of us enjoyed the beautiful beach just as much as we enjoyed the Airlie Beach Queensland when we were on a trip to Australia. The water was absolutely freezing, but some of us were brave enough to let the waves crash over them (notice Isaac sans-shirt, as either the wind or a seagull or some unknown force of nature stole it away from him. Truly a mystery of our time).

Some of the group decided to eat lunch a bit earlier, some of us decided to stay on the beach for a while, and some did a bit of both. I joined Torri, Owen, Maddy, Isaac, Alex, and Armando to grab a late lunch, which was delicious.

Owen, Kenedy, Maddy, Torri, and I stayed on the beach until quite late (about 8:30), while some took the opportunity to take a siesta at the hotel, and others went to grab dinner. Owen and I made a sand castle. Hopefully it’ll still be there tomorrow.

Afterwards, the five of us went to grab dinner, and got some amazing Italian food. By this point the sun was set so after some quick wandering, we went back to the hotel to get ready for our beach day and castle visit tomorrow.

Personally, Salobreña is one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever visited. Overall it was another great day in Spain, with the added benefit of being a beach day, which never hurts.