Cathedral in Granada

Ok, I'm terrible at keeping my blog up to date. I try to write in my journal that I carry with me everywhere and turn those notes/feelings/happenings/opinions/etc into blog posts when I get a chance later on. Apparently I haven't had many spare moments to post! I've been traveling almost every weekend and spending weekdays in class, homeworking, and living the Spanish life. I apologize friends and family for not keeping you updated! I'm working on getting everything posted since my first weekend trip in September so here goes! 

Friday September 23, 2011

First day in Granada, Spain:

As I sit in the Cathedral of Granada, Spain I feel obligated to write in my journal but have no words to truly describe its beauty. I am speechless, sitting on the front pew, marveling at each detail of this cathedral. A trend in European cathedrals, everything is made of gold. Paintings of saints mixed with gold statues fill the front of the church. You find new details that have stories and reasons behind them, that you didn't notice the first five times you looked at the same statue or painting. 

I have snapped about a hundred pictures of this Cathedral in a failed attempt to capture its beauty. The chipped paint that wore off over the past hundreds of years, the missing limbs of statues, the tarnished color of pure gold, the creaky sounds of each wooden pew as people sit in astonishment. It is frustrating because although I want to take pictures of everything to show what breathtaking beauty I find myself in front of, it still doesn't do justice.No photo or remake could ever resemble the actual beauty of these works. The scars of time obvious on each statue, painting and piece of gold. That only adds to the beauty of the art.

During my trip I'm taking pictures not only for myself so I can remember what I've done and where I've been, but to share with you, my friends and family. I feel as if I should apologize though. As you see the beauty in these pictures I post, just know that the real thing is a gazillion times more amazing. You will have to visit these places in person to experience what I am at this very moment. You have to be here for this to take you breath away, for it to stop you in your tracks, for it to make you so speechless that you have to actively search for words. You will marvel at each work and notice those details each time you look closer. This is real art, real history, real life.