Dear All,

Dear Mozaico Flamenco,

It is my final week here in Seville and I changed apartments to the El Arenal district in the centre of Seville. My new apartment is in a newly renovated building on Valdes Leal, off Calle Adriano. It is a comfortable, Ikea designed studio suite. I am enjoying this location because it is much closer to my classes in Triana, 2 minutes to the Giralda, 5 minutes to Barrio de Santa Cruz, 5 minutes to the walking/shopping streets and Calle Sierpes, and only 5 minutes from El Corte Ingles! For those of you who have never been to Spain, El Corte Ingles is one of the top 4 retailers and is a department store with supermarket. This week is the week before Feria and I am a kid in a candy store shopping for flamenco stuff. Girls! Imagine picos, flowers, fringe, earrings, dresses and accessories in all the colours of the rainbow!

For a flamenca, El Corte Ingles is accessory shopping heaven. In fashion this year is the innovative and economical, "fringe around the neck". I do not know the name for this, but "es la moda ahora". It is not a manton or a pico. Rather, it is fringe with macramé that ties around your neck and the long fringe drapes down in front and over your shoulders. I think it is a GREAT invention and what a way to spice up a costume? I have seen this "fringe" from 9.50 euro to 82 euros, with the fringe quality and design determining the price. I only have three more days here, and I feel compelled to go shopaholic and buy all the different colours.

I was fortunate to be here for Semana Santa, or Holy Week, aka Easter holiday. I was surprised to see the streets clogged with finely dressed men, women and children in their church clothes. On Thursday and Friday, I saw finely dressed women in black dresses, the large combs (peinetas) in their hair and fine lace veils (mantillas). Young women and mature women alike wore these fine costumes. They reminded me of brides, but wearing black! I must also comment that men in Spain are generally very well dressed in conservative suits but colourful ties of turquoise, lime green, pink and orange.

Apparently orange is the new red. Everybody is wearing orange this year; burnt orange, pastel orange, mandarin.naranja is IN. They also dress their children very well, girls in sweet dresses and boys in matching overalls. You will not find kids dressed in t-shirts and jeans here. I don't even think I have seen kids wear runners. Lastly, Burberry's is the brand of choice here in Spain. People wear Burberry scarves, purses, coats, umbrellas, shirts, etc. They are crazy about Burberry's. Between me, Burton and Doug, we have counted 98 Burberry's wearers during this trip to date. I will reward myself with ice cream when I reach 100.

Semana Santa here in Seville may be the largest Catholic celebration in a nation. I met some foreigners from Italy that say this is a large celebration even in comparison to their country, where the tradition of the brotherhood is dying out in the north. Semana Santa in Seville has been celebrated for more than 400 years, using the same figurines and floats. Spain also boasts large Catholic brotherhoods that make up the processions. The Nazarenos (members of the brotherhood) carry candles and banners, wear tunics, an antifaz (mask) and capirote (coned hats). On Thursday afternoon as I was walking in the bare streets before procession, I felt like Clint Eastwood in a deserted town with the wind blowing the garbage from one side of the street to the next. As I strolled down the walking street, a tall Purple Nazereno with hat, mask and cape came towards me from the other end of the street and really scared me!

Think: big purple klukluxclan man with imposing Batman cape waving behind him. What an image. Later I learned that this is the costume of the brotherhood. Each brotherhood wears a different colour: Black, purple, blue, light blue, red, white and green. There are also members, Penitentes, who do not wear the cone hats, but perform an act of penitence such as walking barefoot or carrying the cross. Pat Keith, fellow Mozaico Flamenco, came to visit for the weekend. We witnessed the processions on Saturday La Virgen and images of Christ. We went to the Giralda on Easter Sunday and saw the Archbishop and priests enter the church.

Pat and I also caught two shows at La Casa de la Memoria, a flamenco show in tablao style. We caught Pastora Galvan, daughter of Jose and sister of Israel Galvan, performing Tarantos and Solea por Bulerias. She is generally considered a traditional flamenco dancer, but I can see some modern influences from Israel in her dancing. For 12 euro, I would say this is a very good show to see in comparison to shows at La Carboneria or Los Gallos or other tourist locations. Many nights they showcase Premio and competition winners, so you get to support talented young flamenco artists from Seville. They are located in quaint Barrio de Santa Cruz. Shows are in a beautifully decorated courtyard with Sevillan tile and flowers. The dancer dances on an 8 by 8 foot wooden stage. There are two shows, one at 9pm and one at 10:30pm. You must
get tickets at the box office or call to make a reservation. It is an intimate setting with only 100 audience members. Tel: 954-560-670.

I have now been studying in Seville for a month. This is my final week at Escuela Matilde Coral and it's GARROTIN WEEK. Now that I have my bata de cola choreographies and exercises under control, this week I'm focusing on my new hat dance. Garrotin is a cante chico flamenco palo which is traditionally danced with a sombrero (hat). This is another dance that this Sevillan school is famous for teaching and choreographing. So far I have "mimed" my hat actions in class, but this week I finally broke down and bought not one, but TWO. These hats are Sombreros Sevillanos, not Cordobes. Apparently, they differentiate between Sevillano hats from Seville (with shorter hat cup) and Cordobes hats from Cordoba (with deeper hat cup). My teachers insisted on Sevillano hat so Sevillano it is. My hat buying experience was a huge expedition at Antonio Garcia hat shop on Calle Alcaiceria near Plaza Alfalfa.

There are quite a few hat shops, but I would say that this shop is the most reputable and has enormous inventory. Edie, fellow Mozaico Flamenco and Vancouver Hat Queen of Edie's Hats, will be importing these hats to Vancouver! Anyway, this store is always packed especially now, right before Feria. When I arrived at the store, I took a numbered ticket and waited my turn to be served. WOW, an organized queue in Spain! (For those of you who have never been to Spain, there are NO line ups and everybody just mobs, and generally the loudest people get served first. I hate to say it but line ups are very rare here.) In my half hour wait, I observed whole families with mom, dad and grandmother bringing their small boys (aged 3 to 7) to get outfitted in their first caballero costumes. They were so cute, so I couldn't resist taking photos of these kids. This store outfits men and women in the Spanish version of cowboy costumes. Suits are made to measure. Hats come in all colours black, expresso, brown, camel, beige, dark grey, light grey, red, khaki, straw, etc. Apparently, there are different grades of hats ranging from my economical 42 euro hat to 150+ euro hats made of cow fur and rabbit fur. I momentarily debated buying an expensive hat, but I figure in the course of dancing, I will probably drop my hat several times in rehearsal, I'd better go with something I wouldn't lament stepping on. Edie is probably cringing at this choice, but what can I say, I'm practical. AND two hats is better than one. So now I have one red hat which makes me look like a Tio Pepe girl and one black hat that will go with the rest of my wardrobe.

Regarding food, Pat and I also discovered a Freidura in my neighbourhood with Pescado Frito (fried fish). These are small shops are the Spanish version of McDonald's fast food. You can go in there and order your fried fish by the kilo. Bacalao, merluza, puntillitas, calamari, choco, adobo, sardines, croquetas, etc. Basically any Spanish fish or squid you desire, they fry it by the kilo. They also sell about 6 varieties of olives and potato chips too. So I guess it is the Spanish equivalent to our Fish n Chips.

If you come to Andalucia, you must try the Banos Arabes or Arab Bath. Seville's Banos Arabes is called Aire de Sevilla and is located in the Barrio de Santa Cruz. It is extremely popular because it offers the Arab Bath and also spa and massage. I went to the bath with Stephanie (Vancouver singer who is now living in Sevilla). She had been there before, so she taught me the ropes. First, you have to put blue plastic baggies over your shoes before entering the change room area. You slip into your bathing suit and put cotton sockettes on your feet; you must wear them during your entire stay at the bath. After a shower, you proceed to the various pools. There are four pools of various temperatures of water. One bath is cold, then lukewarm, medium and hot to stimulate the blood circulation. They also have a eucalyptus-spearmint steam room. During 1.5 hours you can visit any of the pools and the steam room. You can also pay extra for a 15, 30, 45 minute relaxing or therapeutic massage. The bath itself will make you very relaxed but a massage will probably put you to sleep. All the baths contain the original structure of
the Arab bath from hundreds of years ago. In a tranquil, candlelit setting, you will bathe under Arab columns and archways. If you get tired of the bath, you can sit down and have a chilled tea. The bath costs 24e. Any other services cost extra. You MUST make a reservation in advance. This place is always packed. Call 955-010-024 or visit www.airedesevilla.com.

Lastly, I would be remiss if I did not mention something about catcalls, which are very prevalent in Spain. Young men, old men, middle aged men, businessmen, construction workers, teenagers.all men have ways of calling out to women on the street. Catcalls can be friendly, a polite greeting or simply rude, depending on the situation. On Wednesday, I decided I would tour the town and take lots of digital photos. In my new dusty orange Zara t-shirt and evergreen skirt, I was greeted by men on the street with about a dozen "Hola Guapa!" or "Guapissima!" which means "Hi beautiful!". As a Sagittarius who does not embarrass very easily, I at first did not know how to respond except for a smile and a polite "Gracias". After nicely saying "thank you" several times, I decided to take on another strategy. So, walking down the street, some construction workers (PS: everything is under construction in Sevilla and in Spain for that matter, a real nuisance for dust allergy sufferers.bring
your antihistamine) called from their platform as I walked by:

Dressed in jeans and muscle tank top, the dark stocky Spanaird with Top Gun hair calls out, "Hola, China Guapissima!"

Kasandra looks up the scaffold and replies, "Hola! Este es mi ultima semana en Sevilla. Puedo sacar tu foto por que tu eres muy guapo y tengo que mostrar mis amigas en Canada."

TRANSLATION: "Hi, this is my last week in Seville. Can I take your photo
because you're really good looking and I have to show my friends when I get home."

HAHAHAHAAA! He turned red and was pretty embarrassed when I took his picture. TIP TO GIRLS: If this happens to you, you can turn it around and the guy will probably be at a loss. Anyway, most catcalls are friendly.

Sometimes they are not, but you can usually tell the difference. In a way it is kind of nice to be acknowledged in this culture, because this rarely
happens at home since it is politically incorrect and could be construed as harassment.

That's all for now. Next stop, BACK TO JEREZ for some more Gitano Flamenco. I will be in Jerez for 10 days to study Bulerias again.

For those students out there who wish to know when I am teaching again, I am BACK TO THE STUDIO AND TEACHING on Wednesday May 17! Be there or be a ballerina!

Hasta Luego,
Kasandra

Email: kasandra@mozaicoflamenco.com