Study Abroad 2007

This week went by fast and already today, Monday, I have had my first exam of the semester, Spanish! Ashlie and I decided that we would head to Salamanca for the weekend. Renfe (the train company) gets you there in 2 1/2 hours. My accounting class was cancelled on Friday so we planned to catch the 11:00 train. We were sadly mistaken though and when we got up to the window we were informed that there were no tickets available for ANY departures to Salamanca all day. What a bummer! We had our bags packed and everything. We decided to not lose face and bought tickets for the following day at 8:45. We went home and planned to be productive, but ended up reading into the afternoon. Around 3:00 we went on a walk around the city. We try to find a different route everywhere we go. We went to Retiro Park and had a picnic and found a part of the park we had never seen before. There is a strange building made solely of glass filled with "art" erected in the middle of the park. I refer to it as "art" because Ashlie and I weren´t really sure what everything was and I don´t really consider wooden walls in a square to be artsy. We found a beautiful cave with a waterfull and took several pictures in the water. The policia were everywhere in the park and it was rather odd that they kept appearing wherever we were. After the park we found a great little market and I bought a few Goya replicas and a new shawl. Around the corner we found a park with a swing set and decided to stop there for a good half an hour of fun. We were off to Salamanca in the morning. The train was 30 minutes late and all of our rushing was for nothing. The train ride was beautiful and we passed El Escorial (a giant castle-like monastery) and then passed through the city of Avila where the carmelites lived. Once in Salamanca we sought out tiny little hostel, more like an inn, where we could drop our bags and continue sightseeing. Salamanca is the home of one of the first universities in Europe and back in the day was among other prestigious universities such as Oxford and Cambridge. We went to the Cathedral and the Art Deco museum. We walked around the entire city and it was a perfect day. For dinner we found a vegetrian italian restaurant called "Stravaganza." The polenta was delicious and they had ravioli stuffed with squash. Ashlie and I have already planned to try and replicate the meal when we get back to the states. The following day was a rainy one and after breakfast we made the trek back to the train station. We were soaked by the time we got there but we able to find a nice cafe with hot chocolate (not like the hot chocolate here, this is actually melted chocolate, hmmm...). Back in Madrid, it was time to study for Spanish and get ready for next weekend when we are off to Cadiz (South-western Spain on the coast) for Carnival celebrations. The first week of Midterms starts next week. I can´t wait...

Another week has gone by and the calendar seems to be getting smaller. We are still trying to plan a few more trips. We have a friend in Edinburgh and are hoping to visit there for a few days. Lisbon, Portugal was our plan for Easter but I think 450 € is a little steep for La Semana Santa. I think the train is more than the airfare. I have decided I need to learn French, Italian, and Portugese. These Europeans are ahead of the game; I haven´t met one yet that doesn´t know at least 3 languages. This week was fun and a few friends and I found a place that pays 12 € an hour for babysitting/tutoring so I am just waiting for a call now for my days and hours. My roommate gets to watch two little Spanish boys, 2 and 4. How cute! It will be a nice way to earn a little extra spending money. My metro pass still hasn´t come and it has been 2 weeks. I hate buying these 10 passes. By the time I get my abono, it will be nice enough to walk everywhere. Oh well. Ashlie and I are going to try and walk to school one of these days. I had to tape my map up because it was so torn from all the use it gets walking around the city. Last weekend my roommates, Ashlie and Whitney, and I went out to Chueca with Whitney´s boyfriend, Guillermo, and her visiting cousin, Nicole. We had a blast and met the funniest Spanish guys who kept asking us if we liked "Saved by the Bell" and "90210." It was hilarious. I went home at 6:30 am when the metro opened back up because I was beat, but they stayed out another 3 hours. Whitney´s purse got stolen which was such a bummer because it had her keys, phone, and credit cards. You have to be so careful here. We have explored more of Madrid and usually take a walk every night after dinner. It has been fun having Nicole here because she is from Colorado and lives in Indiana. I always hear about Indiana from my two roommates back home and now I live with another one (Whitney) and now her cousin. I think of all the people I have met here from the states, the most popular states are Colorado and Indiana. Who would have thought that? We went out again on Wednesday night around La Latina and found a cute little place with funky furniture. We met this Spaniard named Javier who looked excatly like John Cusack. Ashlie and I took a cab home but Whitney and Nicole stayed out. Come to find out the next morning, they were held up and Nicole´s pruse was taken. I am so glad we decided to go home. Not only did Nicole lose here camera, but credit cards and her I.D. I am glad that mom bought me my pepper spray. I guess you just have to gauge where you are and be careful. Don´t worry though, I never take a purse with me. On a lighter note, we are off to the Reina Sofia museum today and the Museo del Prado on Sunday. The Super Bowl is on at 1:00 am here on Monday morning, so we´ll see if I catch any of that! Until next time.