Feria de Sevilla

Learn some Spanish and dress like the Spaniards do were two of the biggest pieces of advice I found on the internet before going to the fair in Sevilla this weekend. I knew there would be tents set up and in another area there would be rides and games. But other than that little bit of information, I really didn't know what to expect. [Aprender a hablar un poquito de español y vestir como los Españoles eran los dos partes de consejo mas grande que encontré en Internet antes de asistir a la Feria de Sevilla ayer. Sabia que habría casetas y en otra parte las atracciones. Otro que esas cosas, no sabia que encontraría.]

A Ferris Wheel and other rides
 at the Grant County Fair, 2011

These are some of the prizes visitors can
win while playing games at the Grant
County Fair, 2011.

Another common ride at fairs in the United States.

In the United States the fair consists of concerts, junk food, rides, games and livestock shows. So, overall, a lot was actually the same. In the photo to the left, people are riding horses down the main street in Sheridan, Arkansas in 2011. Even in Sevilla there were people on horse back, all over the city. There were really only about two main differences: the livestock shows are replaced by family and friends getting together. It is like a big party. [En los Estados Unidos, las ferias son construidos de conciertos, comida frita, atracciones y animales. De todos modos, muchas cosas eran el mismo. En la foto a la izquierda, la gente monta en caballos en la calle principal de Sheridan, Arkansas en 2011. También, en Sevilla había gente quien monta los caballos en toda la ciudad. Solo había como dos cosas de diferencia: la enseñanza de animales no existe; en su lugar hay familias y amigos reuniendo juntos. Era como una gran fiesta.]

It was around 8 p.m. when we finally arrived and found my friend who is from Sevilla. He invited us to join him, his family and some of his friends. There was music, live at times, dancing (mostly traditional Spanish), and an overall good time. It was about 3:45 in the morning when we left from that part and went to see the "attractions" and eat Churros with Chocolate. And finally we arrived at the hotel around 5 a.m. [Era 20 h, mas o menos, cuando por fin lleguemos y nos encontramos con mi amigo de Sevilla. Nos invito con su familia y amigos. Había música, aveces en viva, bailando (bailes típicas de España por lo general) y sobre todo un buen tiempo. Era 3:45 cuando salíamos para ver las atracciones y para comer churros con chocolate. Por fin lleguemos al hostal a las 5.]

Being a nerd

Photo compliments of HEXrpg.com

Lets face it, I am a nerd. I like a lot of things that are most likely considered "uncool." I am 23 years old and still absolutely love the Harry Potter series. I have read all seven books, several of them up to three or four times. I have even read the first book in Spanish. I have seen all of the movies. And when I was in high school I began playing on a Harry Potter Role Playing website called HEX. That stands for "Hogwarts Extreme."

A few years later, in my junior year of high school when I became a part of newspaper staff I didn't have a lot of time on the internet. So I gave a lot of the items I had earned on the website away to other users and went inactive. That inactivity lasted for about five years, until last week.

Last week I didn't even remember my password. I had to email the website staff in order to retrieve it because I no longer had access to the email address I had used to sign up. But within a day I had my password and was back online.

Many things had changed within those five years, but many things stayed the same. I won't go into a lot of that, I will simply describe what it is all about. First and foremost, it is a Harry Potter website dedicated to role playing. Some features are very similar to an old website called Neopets. Users can create their own stores, a club, and even a dormitory. They can play games, make friends, and collect items. The areas and forums on HEX are mostly named after places from the Harry Potter series. There are common rooms, the great hall, the quidditch pitch and many other locations.

One forum is dedicated to all RPGs. And for those who still don't know what RPG means, that is "Role Playing Games." Users pretend to be in the fantasy world and they make up their own plots. It is often in a story-like format. I was amazed at how quickly I picked back up after five years with no role playing.

Another common activity is attending classes. Every "term" new professors are selected to teach classes at Hogwarts. Users buy the textbooks and required items and then do homework based on an RP the professor posts. The points they get from that homework goes toward winning the house cup.

Then there are contests. And games. And I am not going to say much more. If it sounds interesting to you, check it out at www.hexrpg.com. As for me, I am going to go be a nerd some more.