Monday, August 31, 2009
The much delayed Paris video!
So I figured I'd put this up - even though it was done FOREVER ago but it is a part of my trip so it needed to be here!
much love!
Friday, May 8, 2009
Lots of Stuff!
So a lot has been going on since I left you all. I've done a ton of really cool things so I'll try and keep it short...
REAL MADRID GAME
that. was. amazing. truly incredible - seeing the stadium itself was breathtaking - it was completely packed with people and they were all crazy and dressed up and totally into the game! We got really lucky because it was a great game - really close - it was a 3-2 game - it went into OVERTIME - and Real Madrid ended up winning! It was incredible!!! SO much fun!
CORRIDA DE TOROS (BULLFIGHT)
Um. A little... different. I really enjoyed it because it was a great cultural experience - after the initial shock, I was able to see the tradition in it. But, GOD, was it brutal... In some ways it seemed so ridiculous - it's supposed to be this very masculine thing and then you see them skipping around in little sparkly pink outfits and they stab this poor bull half to death (literally) so the matador can run in and kill the already wounded animal. Very manly. I felt like I was watching bullies torture a lost dog on the playground - except worse. BUT, like I said - very cultural - I definitely had to go home and research it a little bit to understand why they do everything that they do and the rules and such - and I also learned that the bulls that die actually live an extra year longer than the ones that just go straight to the sluaghterhouse - and that they are still used for meat after the fight - so at least they don't just kill them and do nothing...
SALAMANCA
I went on an ISA trip to Salamanca which is in the northern(ish) part of Spain. It was very cute - a lot smaller, of course, but very cute and the people there were all very friendly! There's a lot of cool architecture there with the university and the churches and plaza mayor - it's all very pretty and intricate. We stayed at the CUTEST hotel - I felt like I was at a permanent tea party - it was great! We were pretty much hardcore tourists during the day and went to bars and stuff at night. It's very much a "college town" so there were a lot students there which is always fun!
OTHER
Last weekend every girl I know went out of town but I stayed here so I hung out with all my guy friends and flatmates and they were great! We went to a lot of cool places that I hadn't been before and I finally got a chance to slow down a little bit which is really nice.
I don't know if you have all heard but I am transferring to American University next year to study film so I have been trying to work out all of that business at the moment. There's a lot to do with registering and finding housing and all - and it's so difficult when you're on an 8 hour time difference and it costs like $14,000 a minute to call... So I've been pretty busy with all of that but I'm really excited too!!! I was talking with my friend Mia about how much we've learned about ourselves while we were here. The main thing we decided was that being abroad has shown us that we can do anything we want with our lives. And I guess that was part of what really inspired me to change schools. This world is so big yet it's so small. It's different in every part but I've realized that I can see it all - I can travel and study and live anywhere I want. It's incredible, really.
Anyway, going back to the film topic - last night I went to a film festival for my University. All the films were made by students who go to my school (which is called Antonio de Nebrija) and all of them were in spanish which is always fun - and then it really made me feel good about myself because watching them all, I realized that I can do all of that. I can make films just as well as they can and it's all because of what I've learned from my dad or what I've taught myself. I'm proud of how far I've come and I'm excited to learn more and see how much I'll improve!
I'm getting really really incredibly indescribably sad to leave madrid. I love it and I don't even want to think about leaving right now - but I still have my friend from home, Melissa, and my after-Madrid travels to look forward to! So that's great! It's all bittersweet - but I'm really going ot miss the people I've met here. I've made a lot of wonderful friends and it's hard for me to think that this might be the last time I ever see them in my life. It's tough on the heart. :(
pero, bueno...
c'est la vie...
REAL MADRID GAME
that. was. amazing. truly incredible - seeing the stadium itself was breathtaking - it was completely packed with people and they were all crazy and dressed up and totally into the game! We got really lucky because it was a great game - really close - it was a 3-2 game - it went into OVERTIME - and Real Madrid ended up winning! It was incredible!!! SO much fun!
CORRIDA DE TOROS (BULLFIGHT)
Um. A little... different. I really enjoyed it because it was a great cultural experience - after the initial shock, I was able to see the tradition in it. But, GOD, was it brutal... In some ways it seemed so ridiculous - it's supposed to be this very masculine thing and then you see them skipping around in little sparkly pink outfits and they stab this poor bull half to death (literally) so the matador can run in and kill the already wounded animal. Very manly. I felt like I was watching bullies torture a lost dog on the playground - except worse. BUT, like I said - very cultural - I definitely had to go home and research it a little bit to understand why they do everything that they do and the rules and such - and I also learned that the bulls that die actually live an extra year longer than the ones that just go straight to the sluaghterhouse - and that they are still used for meat after the fight - so at least they don't just kill them and do nothing...
SALAMANCA
I went on an ISA trip to Salamanca which is in the northern(ish) part of Spain. It was very cute - a lot smaller, of course, but very cute and the people there were all very friendly! There's a lot of cool architecture there with the university and the churches and plaza mayor - it's all very pretty and intricate. We stayed at the CUTEST hotel - I felt like I was at a permanent tea party - it was great! We were pretty much hardcore tourists during the day and went to bars and stuff at night. It's very much a "college town" so there were a lot students there which is always fun!
OTHER
Last weekend every girl I know went out of town but I stayed here so I hung out with all my guy friends and flatmates and they were great! We went to a lot of cool places that I hadn't been before and I finally got a chance to slow down a little bit which is really nice.
I don't know if you have all heard but I am transferring to American University next year to study film so I have been trying to work out all of that business at the moment. There's a lot to do with registering and finding housing and all - and it's so difficult when you're on an 8 hour time difference and it costs like $14,000 a minute to call... So I've been pretty busy with all of that but I'm really excited too!!! I was talking with my friend Mia about how much we've learned about ourselves while we were here. The main thing we decided was that being abroad has shown us that we can do anything we want with our lives. And I guess that was part of what really inspired me to change schools. This world is so big yet it's so small. It's different in every part but I've realized that I can see it all - I can travel and study and live anywhere I want. It's incredible, really.
Anyway, going back to the film topic - last night I went to a film festival for my University. All the films were made by students who go to my school (which is called Antonio de Nebrija) and all of them were in spanish which is always fun - and then it really made me feel good about myself because watching them all, I realized that I can do all of that. I can make films just as well as they can and it's all because of what I've learned from my dad or what I've taught myself. I'm proud of how far I've come and I'm excited to learn more and see how much I'll improve!
I'm getting really really incredibly indescribably sad to leave madrid. I love it and I don't even want to think about leaving right now - but I still have my friend from home, Melissa, and my after-Madrid travels to look forward to! So that's great! It's all bittersweet - but I'm really going ot miss the people I've met here. I've made a lot of wonderful friends and it's hard for me to think that this might be the last time I ever see them in my life. It's tough on the heart. :(
pero, bueno...
c'est la vie...
Monday, April 20, 2009
MARRUECOS VIDEO
Por fin he terminado!!!
Here it is! Sorry it's so long - I guess it was a week but still - I think it's pretty cool! :)
Mia and Eli are going to kill me for this...
Here it is! Sorry it's so long - I guess it was a week but still - I think it's pretty cool! :)
Mia and Eli are going to kill me for this...
Saturday, April 11, 2009
MOROCCO!!!
I'm home! and I am extremely tired! It's 4:18 in the afternoon and I just woke up after getting back from a 20 hour bus ride from Meknes, Morocoo to Madrid, Spain. Crazy... but let me tell you the whole story!!
So day 1:
Mi Cumpleaños!! I literally ran around all day and packed for Morocco - it wasn't anything too special because I celebrated my birthday the night before with all my friends and my parents - but Sarah was still very sweet to me and kept reminding me what day it was! Love that girl!
So at about 8 we left the piso to catch our bus to Morocco and I literally took a Lunesta and slept! Except I kept waking up - BAD IDEA. We made a pit stop to go to the bathroom and whatnot and I was right in the middle of a deep sleep and I decided to attempt a walk to the bathroom which is really difficult when you just took a sleeping pill - I literally felt like I was drunk and it was the wierdest thing - it was so funny though... So yeah, woke up then, and we had to pick up other students from Granada and some other places - like I said, I was OUT of it so I have no idea where we stopped, I just know that we stopped a few times to get some people... and the craziest part was that I ran into someone I know. In the massive group of ISA kids, I went to high school with one of them - Lauren Herrera - she graduated in Mike's class and it was crazy to see her! We both had to take a minute to remember where we knew eachother from but it was pretty fun to see her! El mundo es un pañuelo!
Day 2:
Still on the bus. Great.
After crossing the Straight of Gibraltar on a Ferry, we got BACK on the bus and drove to Fes. We made another pit stop and got some food and when we went to the bathroom, we quickly realized that we weren't in europe anymore when we saw that the toilet was literally a hole in the gorund. Welcome to Morocco.
We finally arrived at our 5 star hotel (that's right - but it was 5 stars by Morocco's standards which is more like 3 or 4 in the US but it was still very nice) at about 8 ish and we had dinner and went to bed. We can't drink the water there nor eat anything that isn't cooked - and I followed those rules very carefully.
Day 3:
But somehow I still got sick. Not horrible - Sarah was the one who got horribly sick - but I was definitely sick and that made me really mad because the food all looked really good - and then I'd eat a little bit every once in a while and by the next day I was better. But we ate A LOT of bread on this trip because we knew that was the safest thing.
Despite that, it was a really really cool day. We woke up and went to the King's palace and saw that - it was really beautiful and the city was all decorated with Moroccan flags. Then we went to the main market in Fez - the medina - and there were just rows of vegetables, fruit, bread, meat, fish, and even snails - it was crazy! There were people yelling and donkeys carrying these barrels of food and they'd seriuosly run you down if you didn't move out of the way! It was so cool to see that because it was jsut so cultural and everything was so fresh! Families don't have a way to refrigerate their food or anything so everything they eat that day they have to buy fresh that morning at the market. Morocco is famous for their rugs so we went to this place that sold rugs and they did a full out presentation for us - and gave me my first sip of Moroccan tea - SO GOOD. They give you tea practically everywhere you go and it's amazing - My dad brought some back when he came to Morocco but I usually drink it without sugar in it - that was NOT how they made it there. They put SO much in it - so yeah, of COURSE it was amazing...
But the rugs were all pretty expensive and I didn't have that much money with me so I didn't get one but they were definitely beautiful.
We went to an herb shop sort of place and they had all these different spices and medicines and creams - all very natural and exotic - the place smelled like heaven - which is pretty rare for morocco haha
We saw where they dye cloth to make rugs and other things and then we got to see some people actually making all that stuff!
Then we went to the death factory. Yes, death factory.
So Morocco uses animal skins for a lot of stuff - and we were lucky enough to see how that happens. We walk into a leather shop - some lady gives me a mint leaf and tells me to go upstairs. I walk up there and the higher up I go, the more I realize what the mint leaf is for. It smelled HORRIBLE. Like a used diaper filled with Indian food. and death. combined. We were at the top of this roof and I look over and pretty much see blood and animal skins hanging everywhere. The little animal activist girl inside of me made me turn away and I could hardly look at it - it was disgusting. but hey, cultural, right?
we also went to a ceramics place and saw how they made all these beautiful plates and fountains and then at night we went to a show and watched belly dancing, magic, and things like that - and they made me dance with them haha it was a proud moment for me...
Day 4:
Off to the desert! yay for 10 hour bus rides! How I love!
Lots of peeing on the side of the road - not a big deal after this trip. that's sad.
So we arrive to this hotel, it's nighttime by this point, and we jump in these 4x4s - like straight-out-of-a-movie safari like things and go off roading to our desert camp. It is literally a giant tent that I slept in. It's technically a hostel and so there's one massive tent and then a bunch of little tents that we all sleep in - so after our long journey we ate some dinner and went to bed because we had an early morning ahead of us.
Day 5:
It started at 5:30 to be exact.
We got up to see the sunrise in the desert. Our alarm went off at 5:30 and we look outside and it kind of looks light out - so we FLIP and everyone BOLTS up from their beds and sprints outside - all of us thinking that we missed it. We didn't, of course, it was just a little bit light out because it was starting to rise but it really wasn't that light out at all. So after sprinting up sand dunes in our pajamas without jackets (it's REALLY cold at night in the desert) we go to a top of a dune and watch the sunrise in silence and it was unlike anything I'd ever seen. It went from purple to orange and seeing it over the desert was incredible.
We went back to our tents and got ready for the day, ate some breakfast in the main tent, and I bought a turban haha - but it really came in handy a few times! then our camels arrived! I shared a camel with my friend Mia - who had never even ridden a horse before - and I'm actually scared of horses - so this was just great. We were a disaster - we were terrified but we had a lot of fun - we'd be talking about this and that and then suddenly the camel would start to walk down a hill and we'd both just stop talking and hold on for dear life. We took the camels to the tallest dune in the desert and stopped at the bottom and I got my workout for the day attempting to climb up it. The locals would follow us and if we dropped something on the camel they'd pick it up for us and they walked up the massive dune with us and would sprint down it, roll down it, flip down it - it was crazy - it's like a giant sandbox, I'm telling you...
Then we took the camels to the town and walked around there. We had a lot of little kids follow us and some of the people in my group brought candy to give to them and it felt like a warzone when someone whipped out that candy...
We also went to a school and got to play with the kids in there and naturally I fell in love with ALL OF THEM. and it really reminded me of Ecuador - which I loved. It really made me miss it!
Then we went back to our... campsite (for lack of a better word) and we played frisbee and soccer with little moroccan kids - and then I got henna!!!
then we ended up having a dance party - soley with singing and bongos - on top of the dunes as the sunset - it was so great.
then we ate dinner and a live band came and we had ANOTHER moroccan dance party in the tent and people came to sell us jewelry and we had a ton of fun - AS usual..!
Day 6:
The next morning we got up, packed, jumped in our 4x4s and left the Sahara.
We met up with the bus and before we got on a bunch of us did some yoga in preparation for the long 10 hour bus ride ahead of us again.
So after this, the bus smelled like BO and desert. That was nice.
We made a stop at this part of the area that was pretty much infested with monkeys - they were ALL over the place - you could go right up to them -but I didn't get too close because apparently they like to steal cameras... haha
We took the bus to Meknes and arrived there at about 5, I think..
We walked around and it was really kind of intimidating going around without the big group because they pretty much only speak French and Arabic and RARELY do they speak Spanish and we went in search of a grocery store for the ride home and then when we were passing through this plaza we saw this guy screaming at this old man - and then he punched him! And I felt so bad for this old man because he just fell to the ground - and we didn't know what to do - we were really close to them and so we were just like, "okay, don't look at him, just keep walking..." and it was really crazy - but later on we met up with some kids who were studying abroad in that city and they told us that things like that NEVER happen and that it's a really safe city. Those kids were really nice and we sat around with them and some other people from out group and smoked hookah and then went to a club. It was so weird because all the girls at the club are pretty much prostitutes - almost all of them. But they were nice - and everyone all dances together and it was almost humbling because everyone always puts prositutes in this low place and everyone looks down upon them so much but behind it all they're just people and they like to have fun and dance too.
Day 7:
The next morning we left early on the bus for our long adventure home - we still all felt disgusting and gross even after showers and were thankful to make it back to spain and be able to drink from the tap and eat anything we'd like! I got home at about 5 in the morning on Saturday and just crashed. It was a great trip and I'm very thankful to have been able to go on it!
Sorry this post was so long...
video coming soon.
LOVE
So day 1:
Mi Cumpleaños!! I literally ran around all day and packed for Morocco - it wasn't anything too special because I celebrated my birthday the night before with all my friends and my parents - but Sarah was still very sweet to me and kept reminding me what day it was! Love that girl!
So at about 8 we left the piso to catch our bus to Morocco and I literally took a Lunesta and slept! Except I kept waking up - BAD IDEA. We made a pit stop to go to the bathroom and whatnot and I was right in the middle of a deep sleep and I decided to attempt a walk to the bathroom which is really difficult when you just took a sleeping pill - I literally felt like I was drunk and it was the wierdest thing - it was so funny though... So yeah, woke up then, and we had to pick up other students from Granada and some other places - like I said, I was OUT of it so I have no idea where we stopped, I just know that we stopped a few times to get some people... and the craziest part was that I ran into someone I know. In the massive group of ISA kids, I went to high school with one of them - Lauren Herrera - she graduated in Mike's class and it was crazy to see her! We both had to take a minute to remember where we knew eachother from but it was pretty fun to see her! El mundo es un pañuelo!
Day 2:
Still on the bus. Great.
After crossing the Straight of Gibraltar on a Ferry, we got BACK on the bus and drove to Fes. We made another pit stop and got some food and when we went to the bathroom, we quickly realized that we weren't in europe anymore when we saw that the toilet was literally a hole in the gorund. Welcome to Morocco.
We finally arrived at our 5 star hotel (that's right - but it was 5 stars by Morocco's standards which is more like 3 or 4 in the US but it was still very nice) at about 8 ish and we had dinner and went to bed. We can't drink the water there nor eat anything that isn't cooked - and I followed those rules very carefully.
Day 3:
But somehow I still got sick. Not horrible - Sarah was the one who got horribly sick - but I was definitely sick and that made me really mad because the food all looked really good - and then I'd eat a little bit every once in a while and by the next day I was better. But we ate A LOT of bread on this trip because we knew that was the safest thing.
Despite that, it was a really really cool day. We woke up and went to the King's palace and saw that - it was really beautiful and the city was all decorated with Moroccan flags. Then we went to the main market in Fez - the medina - and there were just rows of vegetables, fruit, bread, meat, fish, and even snails - it was crazy! There were people yelling and donkeys carrying these barrels of food and they'd seriuosly run you down if you didn't move out of the way! It was so cool to see that because it was jsut so cultural and everything was so fresh! Families don't have a way to refrigerate their food or anything so everything they eat that day they have to buy fresh that morning at the market. Morocco is famous for their rugs so we went to this place that sold rugs and they did a full out presentation for us - and gave me my first sip of Moroccan tea - SO GOOD. They give you tea practically everywhere you go and it's amazing - My dad brought some back when he came to Morocco but I usually drink it without sugar in it - that was NOT how they made it there. They put SO much in it - so yeah, of COURSE it was amazing...
But the rugs were all pretty expensive and I didn't have that much money with me so I didn't get one but they were definitely beautiful.
We went to an herb shop sort of place and they had all these different spices and medicines and creams - all very natural and exotic - the place smelled like heaven - which is pretty rare for morocco haha
We saw where they dye cloth to make rugs and other things and then we got to see some people actually making all that stuff!
Then we went to the death factory. Yes, death factory.
So Morocco uses animal skins for a lot of stuff - and we were lucky enough to see how that happens. We walk into a leather shop - some lady gives me a mint leaf and tells me to go upstairs. I walk up there and the higher up I go, the more I realize what the mint leaf is for. It smelled HORRIBLE. Like a used diaper filled with Indian food. and death. combined. We were at the top of this roof and I look over and pretty much see blood and animal skins hanging everywhere. The little animal activist girl inside of me made me turn away and I could hardly look at it - it was disgusting. but hey, cultural, right?
we also went to a ceramics place and saw how they made all these beautiful plates and fountains and then at night we went to a show and watched belly dancing, magic, and things like that - and they made me dance with them haha it was a proud moment for me...
Day 4:
Off to the desert! yay for 10 hour bus rides! How I love!
Lots of peeing on the side of the road - not a big deal after this trip. that's sad.
So we arrive to this hotel, it's nighttime by this point, and we jump in these 4x4s - like straight-out-of-a-movie safari like things and go off roading to our desert camp. It is literally a giant tent that I slept in. It's technically a hostel and so there's one massive tent and then a bunch of little tents that we all sleep in - so after our long journey we ate some dinner and went to bed because we had an early morning ahead of us.
Day 5:
It started at 5:30 to be exact.
We got up to see the sunrise in the desert. Our alarm went off at 5:30 and we look outside and it kind of looks light out - so we FLIP and everyone BOLTS up from their beds and sprints outside - all of us thinking that we missed it. We didn't, of course, it was just a little bit light out because it was starting to rise but it really wasn't that light out at all. So after sprinting up sand dunes in our pajamas without jackets (it's REALLY cold at night in the desert) we go to a top of a dune and watch the sunrise in silence and it was unlike anything I'd ever seen. It went from purple to orange and seeing it over the desert was incredible.
We went back to our tents and got ready for the day, ate some breakfast in the main tent, and I bought a turban haha - but it really came in handy a few times! then our camels arrived! I shared a camel with my friend Mia - who had never even ridden a horse before - and I'm actually scared of horses - so this was just great. We were a disaster - we were terrified but we had a lot of fun - we'd be talking about this and that and then suddenly the camel would start to walk down a hill and we'd both just stop talking and hold on for dear life. We took the camels to the tallest dune in the desert and stopped at the bottom and I got my workout for the day attempting to climb up it. The locals would follow us and if we dropped something on the camel they'd pick it up for us and they walked up the massive dune with us and would sprint down it, roll down it, flip down it - it was crazy - it's like a giant sandbox, I'm telling you...
Then we took the camels to the town and walked around there. We had a lot of little kids follow us and some of the people in my group brought candy to give to them and it felt like a warzone when someone whipped out that candy...
We also went to a school and got to play with the kids in there and naturally I fell in love with ALL OF THEM. and it really reminded me of Ecuador - which I loved. It really made me miss it!
Then we went back to our... campsite (for lack of a better word) and we played frisbee and soccer with little moroccan kids - and then I got henna!!!
then we ended up having a dance party - soley with singing and bongos - on top of the dunes as the sunset - it was so great.
then we ate dinner and a live band came and we had ANOTHER moroccan dance party in the tent and people came to sell us jewelry and we had a ton of fun - AS usual..!
Day 6:
The next morning we got up, packed, jumped in our 4x4s and left the Sahara.
We met up with the bus and before we got on a bunch of us did some yoga in preparation for the long 10 hour bus ride ahead of us again.
So after this, the bus smelled like BO and desert. That was nice.
We made a stop at this part of the area that was pretty much infested with monkeys - they were ALL over the place - you could go right up to them -but I didn't get too close because apparently they like to steal cameras... haha
We took the bus to Meknes and arrived there at about 5, I think..
We walked around and it was really kind of intimidating going around without the big group because they pretty much only speak French and Arabic and RARELY do they speak Spanish and we went in search of a grocery store for the ride home and then when we were passing through this plaza we saw this guy screaming at this old man - and then he punched him! And I felt so bad for this old man because he just fell to the ground - and we didn't know what to do - we were really close to them and so we were just like, "okay, don't look at him, just keep walking..." and it was really crazy - but later on we met up with some kids who were studying abroad in that city and they told us that things like that NEVER happen and that it's a really safe city. Those kids were really nice and we sat around with them and some other people from out group and smoked hookah and then went to a club. It was so weird because all the girls at the club are pretty much prostitutes - almost all of them. But they were nice - and everyone all dances together and it was almost humbling because everyone always puts prositutes in this low place and everyone looks down upon them so much but behind it all they're just people and they like to have fun and dance too.
Day 7:
The next morning we left early on the bus for our long adventure home - we still all felt disgusting and gross even after showers and were thankful to make it back to spain and be able to drink from the tap and eat anything we'd like! I got home at about 5 in the morning on Saturday and just crashed. It was a great trip and I'm very thankful to have been able to go on it!
Sorry this post was so long...
video coming soon.
LOVE
Saturday, April 4, 2009
My Birthday!!!
So my birthday was EPIC. That is the only word I can use to describe it. I had so much fun and I have some really amazing friends here.
I pretty much celebrated it yesterday on the 3rd because my parents were here and I wanted to celebrate with them. And of course it was my mom's birthday on the 1st and they got back from Barcelona that day and we went out to this really great place to eat - the guy who owns it was friends with my brother when he was here so he gave us a bottle of cava (champagne) to share and was really great to us - after that we went to a 24hr churros and chocolate place which was pretty much wonderful. The next day we went to a thai place which made my life because the food actually had a kick to it - which NEVER happens here! (I just had to throw that in there) My parents were so great to me and my friends throughout the week and I really appreciated everything they did for me while they were here! So yesterday we got up and went to the park and threw the frisbee around for a while and it was a gorgeous day! After that we ran around getting everything ready for the night because we were going to have a party for me at my piso. So that night we had a bunch of empanadas and pizza and a cake! (and mike, we had to uphold the tradition and get some zumo de mono) My friends were so sweet and got me jewlery, a scarf, and a feather headband (my new obsession) which was more than I ever expected, and besides sarah, I live with all boys and they got me a bouquet of roses (!), one MADE ME a bracelet, and the french boys bought me a book for Paris because I'm going there in May! At midnight everyone screamed happy birthday to me and I live with Argentinians, Frenchies, and Italians so I ended up having Happy birthday sung to me in 4 different languages! (and then on the way to the club that night we talked a Chinese guy on the street into singing Happy Birthday to me in Chinese! hahaha) We all had so much fun just hanging out all night and it was just perfect! Then my parents had to leave and I was very sad to see them go but I'm really happy that I got to see them on my birthday. It was great. After they left, we all ended up going to a club and stayed there until 6 in the morning and for the first time in my Madridian career I took the first morning metro at 6am... yep. Needless to say it was a really fun night!
Now I'm packing and getting ready to go to Morocco today! We have a LONG bus ride to Africa (haha it still blows my mind saying that...) so knowing me, of COURSE I'm not fully packed yet - I mean, come on... it's ME we're talking about here - I still have a few hours though... haha
We're going to Fez and Meknes and going from hotel to hostel to desert - yep. I'm going to sleep in the desert. No big deal. Oh yeah, I'm going to ride a camel too. Just another day in the life of Kira...
When I get back I'll be sure to let you all know how my trip was! I'm really excited!
Take care everyone and I'll talk to you all in a week!!
Much love!!
I pretty much celebrated it yesterday on the 3rd because my parents were here and I wanted to celebrate with them. And of course it was my mom's birthday on the 1st and they got back from Barcelona that day and we went out to this really great place to eat - the guy who owns it was friends with my brother when he was here so he gave us a bottle of cava (champagne) to share and was really great to us - after that we went to a 24hr churros and chocolate place which was pretty much wonderful. The next day we went to a thai place which made my life because the food actually had a kick to it - which NEVER happens here! (I just had to throw that in there) My parents were so great to me and my friends throughout the week and I really appreciated everything they did for me while they were here! So yesterday we got up and went to the park and threw the frisbee around for a while and it was a gorgeous day! After that we ran around getting everything ready for the night because we were going to have a party for me at my piso. So that night we had a bunch of empanadas and pizza and a cake! (and mike, we had to uphold the tradition and get some zumo de mono) My friends were so sweet and got me jewlery, a scarf, and a feather headband (my new obsession) which was more than I ever expected, and besides sarah, I live with all boys and they got me a bouquet of roses (!), one MADE ME a bracelet, and the french boys bought me a book for Paris because I'm going there in May! At midnight everyone screamed happy birthday to me and I live with Argentinians, Frenchies, and Italians so I ended up having Happy birthday sung to me in 4 different languages! (and then on the way to the club that night we talked a Chinese guy on the street into singing Happy Birthday to me in Chinese! hahaha) We all had so much fun just hanging out all night and it was just perfect! Then my parents had to leave and I was very sad to see them go but I'm really happy that I got to see them on my birthday. It was great. After they left, we all ended up going to a club and stayed there until 6 in the morning and for the first time in my Madridian career I took the first morning metro at 6am... yep. Needless to say it was a really fun night!
Now I'm packing and getting ready to go to Morocco today! We have a LONG bus ride to Africa (haha it still blows my mind saying that...) so knowing me, of COURSE I'm not fully packed yet - I mean, come on... it's ME we're talking about here - I still have a few hours though... haha
We're going to Fez and Meknes and going from hotel to hostel to desert - yep. I'm going to sleep in the desert. No big deal. Oh yeah, I'm going to ride a camel too. Just another day in the life of Kira...
When I get back I'll be sure to let you all know how my trip was! I'm really excited!
Take care everyone and I'll talk to you all in a week!!
Much love!!
Saturday, March 28, 2009
UPDATE!
So first off - SORRY everyone that I haven't updated this in about a year and a half but it's been pretty crazy around here recently...
the story begins with LONDON...
It was a TON of fun! We packed in everything we could! Harriet - one of mike's former flatmates (who lived in Sarah's room actually back in the day) let us stay with her and she was so great - she took us all around and put up with our touristyness (yes, that is now a word - don't question) and it was really cool to see all these places that I've only seen pictures of!
fyi - the old men in the video were in a modern art museum and they're wax figures in these wheelchairs with scensors on them so they don't crash into anything - it was kind of creepy how realistic they looked!
We got to see the changing of the guard which was very cool and we got SO lucky because just as we were crossing the street they started herding everyone to the sides so they could march on through and we were RIGHT in the front! And that's a big deal because it was PACKED there.
The next weekend Harriet came out to visit us along with a few other guests which include the following:
Mike - my brother
Aubrey - Mike's girlfriend
and
Corissa - my roommate at CSU
So needless to say we had a full house but it was SO much fun with them all here! We pretty much lived at Retiro during the days and went out at night to random bars and clubs and Mike got to remenisce about the good ole days when he lived in this fabulous city. Corissa pretty much fell in love with Madrid and I think I've finally succeeded in convincing her to study abroad becuase pretty much it's one of the very best experiences of my life. As everyone else left, Em Po came to visit me too! We pretty much did the same sort of thing - lots of Retiro and lots of fun nightlife! But we also went to the Prado Museum (famous art museum) and we took a tour of the Palacio Real and it was so beautiful and intircate but unfortunatley you practically get jumped if you take pictures so I don't have any of those for you... sorry! It was SO fun to have everyone here - it was such a great fresh taste of home for me! Po left this morning and my parents just arrived yesterday - this was a giant mess - thank GOD Em was there to help calm me down or, as she said it, "my stress level would have elevated to an outrageously high level" or something along those lines... okay here's the story..
All you Colorado people know that there was a massive snow storm the other day and school got cancelled and yay no class but boo no flights - so my parents almost couldn't make it but somehow they got on a different flight and relayed to mike their new itinerary and mike told me what time to pick them up - which was at 2:15 in the afternoon - so Em and I go to the airport and sit and wait for everyone to get off this plane - eventually there was NOBODY in the terminal and some worker guy there asks me what flight we're waiting for so I tell him. He then proceeds to tell me that everyone on that flight has already left. So I'm thinking, "Oh God, they must have walked past me... or did they miss their flight...? or are they stuck somewhere...?" I have no idea but I'm panicking. We decide to take the metro back towards my part of town and check and see if they got to the hotel. Nope. not there. I ask the people at the front desk and they tell me they haven't checked in yet - I panick again. Emily suggests we go get food - which helped haha except on the way, since I was all nervous and worried, I ended up yelling at some guy who hit on me on the street because I just really wasn't in the mood for that at the moment. Finally at about 6, they called me from a payphone and explained that their plane had changed yet again and they were fine and they were going to the hotel. And all was right in the world.
OTHERWISE...
Things are going really well still - my birthday is coming up and I'm really excited because I'm leaving for Morrocco that day for my spring break!!! YAY!
Schools going well - that's what I'm here for after all - and I'm really improving with the espanol - I think. I hope. But yeah I had my first test last week about architecture actually... and knowing absolutley NOTHING about it in english made it a little more difficult to learn in Spanish but it's actually kind of interesting. I feel like a nerd saying this but I really like having class in Spanish - I feel like I'm multitasking or something. These classes aren't exactly the most important classes of my life but I really enjoy listening to people speak spanish just so I can hear it and learn from it. And sometimes I talk but I get intimidated really easily in that sense haha
I hope everyone's doin well - I hope life is good!
Love you all!
besos!
the story begins with LONDON...
It was a TON of fun! We packed in everything we could! Harriet - one of mike's former flatmates (who lived in Sarah's room actually back in the day) let us stay with her and she was so great - she took us all around and put up with our touristyness (yes, that is now a word - don't question) and it was really cool to see all these places that I've only seen pictures of!
fyi - the old men in the video were in a modern art museum and they're wax figures in these wheelchairs with scensors on them so they don't crash into anything - it was kind of creepy how realistic they looked!
We got to see the changing of the guard which was very cool and we got SO lucky because just as we were crossing the street they started herding everyone to the sides so they could march on through and we were RIGHT in the front! And that's a big deal because it was PACKED there.
The next weekend Harriet came out to visit us along with a few other guests which include the following:
Mike - my brother
Aubrey - Mike's girlfriend
and
Corissa - my roommate at CSU
So needless to say we had a full house but it was SO much fun with them all here! We pretty much lived at Retiro during the days and went out at night to random bars and clubs and Mike got to remenisce about the good ole days when he lived in this fabulous city. Corissa pretty much fell in love with Madrid and I think I've finally succeeded in convincing her to study abroad becuase pretty much it's one of the very best experiences of my life. As everyone else left, Em Po came to visit me too! We pretty much did the same sort of thing - lots of Retiro and lots of fun nightlife! But we also went to the Prado Museum (famous art museum) and we took a tour of the Palacio Real and it was so beautiful and intircate but unfortunatley you practically get jumped if you take pictures so I don't have any of those for you... sorry! It was SO fun to have everyone here - it was such a great fresh taste of home for me! Po left this morning and my parents just arrived yesterday - this was a giant mess - thank GOD Em was there to help calm me down or, as she said it, "my stress level would have elevated to an outrageously high level" or something along those lines... okay here's the story..
All you Colorado people know that there was a massive snow storm the other day and school got cancelled and yay no class but boo no flights - so my parents almost couldn't make it but somehow they got on a different flight and relayed to mike their new itinerary and mike told me what time to pick them up - which was at 2:15 in the afternoon - so Em and I go to the airport and sit and wait for everyone to get off this plane - eventually there was NOBODY in the terminal and some worker guy there asks me what flight we're waiting for so I tell him. He then proceeds to tell me that everyone on that flight has already left. So I'm thinking, "Oh God, they must have walked past me... or did they miss their flight...? or are they stuck somewhere...?" I have no idea but I'm panicking. We decide to take the metro back towards my part of town and check and see if they got to the hotel. Nope. not there. I ask the people at the front desk and they tell me they haven't checked in yet - I panick again. Emily suggests we go get food - which helped haha except on the way, since I was all nervous and worried, I ended up yelling at some guy who hit on me on the street because I just really wasn't in the mood for that at the moment. Finally at about 6, they called me from a payphone and explained that their plane had changed yet again and they were fine and they were going to the hotel. And all was right in the world.
OTHERWISE...
Things are going really well still - my birthday is coming up and I'm really excited because I'm leaving for Morrocco that day for my spring break!!! YAY!
Schools going well - that's what I'm here for after all - and I'm really improving with the espanol - I think. I hope. But yeah I had my first test last week about architecture actually... and knowing absolutley NOTHING about it in english made it a little more difficult to learn in Spanish but it's actually kind of interesting. I feel like a nerd saying this but I really like having class in Spanish - I feel like I'm multitasking or something. These classes aren't exactly the most important classes of my life but I really enjoy listening to people speak spanish just so I can hear it and learn from it. And sometimes I talk but I get intimidated really easily in that sense haha
I hope everyone's doin well - I hope life is good!
Love you all!
besos!
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Dublin Video - It's Pretty Savage (that's a good thing)
We learned some Irish slang and everyone's like "oh that's savage!" ALL the time so I had to incorporate it somewhere!
Welp - here's Ireland for ya!
Love you all!
Welp - here's Ireland for ya!
Love you all!
Sunday, March 8, 2009
MADRID VIDEOOOOO!
I was really productive today and I finished up this Madrid video today too! It's actually kind of old - as you will see but I started it forever ago so I just HAD to finish it... instead of doing homework - good decision, Kira.
Hopefully this will give you a little teeny tiny insight as to why I adore this city so much! And you get to see my little teeny tiny piso too!
LOVE LOVE LOVE
Hopefully this will give you a little teeny tiny insight as to why I adore this city so much! And you get to see my little teeny tiny piso too!
LOVE LOVE LOVE
GRANADA VIDEOOOOOO
Here it is:
I know you've been peeing your pants excited just waiting for me to put this up. It's okay, don't be ashamed - I have that effect on a lot of people.
I'm working on Dublin, London, and an old one from Madrid at the moment so don't give up on me! I WILL entertain you! I promise!!
Much love to you all!
Besos!
I know you've been peeing your pants excited just waiting for me to put this up. It's okay, don't be ashamed - I have that effect on a lot of people.
I'm working on Dublin, London, and an old one from Madrid at the moment so don't give up on me! I WILL entertain you! I promise!!
Much love to you all!
Besos!
Sunday, March 1, 2009
Granada, Dublin, and all that stuff
Hola todos!
So I'm sorry I haven't updated this in a while - it's been pretty crazy around here! Since I last left you, I have been doing a lot of traveling - kind of..
So the 19th I went to this thing with my school - it was this radio show that we could watch live and it was, of course, all in Spanish and I happen to be an idiot sometimes so people would sum up what they were saying for me - haha but it was really interesting because they talked about modern day Spain and what is going on in the country and just touched on a lot of topics. And then there was a singer there who was great - his name was Hueco and he was really good - if you have a chance you should youtube him. His music was really fun and Spanish with this flamenco and almost reggae twist.
So the 20th I went to Granada with my ISA group (the group I'm studying abroad with) and we took the longest bus ride - okay it wasn't that long - it was 5 hours but still I was pretty tired... and from there we arrived at our hotel and it was really really nice. Nicer than my piso which isn't hard to do but it was great to get spoiled that way. So when we first got there we just walked around the city and went practically everywhere and we found a good little tapas bar and got coffee and drinks - and the best thing about Granada is that if you order a drink tapas are free! I love free food! Very different from Madrid - there's only one place I know of that gives free tapas in Madrid (and I actually went there last night - very yummy). So after we walked around we all met up as a group and went to a flamenco show. It was really fun - I had seen Flamenco before but I still really enjoyed it - it's so crazy and the dancers are so intense. If looks could kill...
The next day we went to La Alhambra which is a very famous palace and is what Granada is best known for. It was so beautiful. I took pictures and video (which i promise I'm working on! Give me some more time on those!) but they can't fully show the beauty of it. But yes stay tuned for the Granada video and you will be able to see some of it.
That night we ate kebap - Granada is a very Arabic influenced city so the kebap was AMAZING. For those of you who don't know what it it - it's probably the worst food on the planet for you - it's like a gyro - meat and lettuce and tomato and sauces wrapped in a pita - SO good. Love love love kebap. So good night was had by all - kebap and we went clubbing - but the clubs weren't that great to be honest. But it was still fun because I was there with a bunch of my friends. The next day we went shopping and toured around a little more and headed back for Madrid. We had a lot of fun but Madrid is still my favorite city. :)
On Wednesday my roommate Sarah and I left for Dublin - we didn't have much time in between the two trips but that was just fine by us! We got there and got to our hostel - it's kind of ironic because if you look at where we stayed in Granada and then Dublin - they are COMPLETE opposites. That was my first European hostel experience and honestly I was totally freaked out. I'm really paranoid about leaving my stuff in the room so I ended up carrying all my valuables with me the entire time - I just felt more comfortable knowing exactly where they were. We slept in a room with 15 other people and it was weird. haha but it was cheap so that's why we chose it - and then we met some boys who live there and they told us that our hostel was the hostel that homeless people stay in. great. that was comforting. The shower was really gross, cold, and I just didn't feel sanitary haha it was bad - but other than the hostel, we had a great time. We took a free walking tour around the city and pretty much I was informed of all of Ireland's history - so that was good. but our tour guide was really funny... Irish people are just really nice in general - we only met one mean one (some guy kicked us out of his bar because we didn't want something to drink - we just wanted to listen to music) but we went to a bunch of little pubs and had some great food and Sarah and I were proud of ourselves because we only paid for one drink the entire trip. We were on a budget, you know... but anytime someone bought us a drink it was Guinness and that's not something you can drink often - kind of gross sometimes. Depends on the day. So the next day we took a tour of the countryside and it was so gorgeous I can't even explain it. We had the weirdest tour guide on earth who was very passionate about not j-walking and pretty much he'd diss Americans and then be like "But when you get down to it, we're all the same" - yeah he drove me crazy by the end. And he'd tell the most random stories and would tell us all personal stories about his friends - like how they're going through a rough time or whatever -it was weird haha but we got to see where they shot part of P.S. I Love You and Braveheart - that was very cool for me - granted I haven't seen P.S. I Love You but still...
So good fun crazy trip - except then I go to the airport and check in with the desk and they tell me that I booked my trip to leave on MARCH 28th insetad of FEBRUARY 28th. So I had to wait in this giant line and I met a Spanish girl who had the same exact problem - but both of us know that we marked February so I have no idea how it happened. Basically the guy was very short with me and very rude and was like, well you're just going to have to pay for a new ticket. And I'm like
-"Are you SERIOUS???"
~"oh yeah, umm... yeah it's pretty expensive right now."
-"So how much is pretty expensive?"
~"A lot."
-"Okay so are you going to tell me?"
~ "265 Euro"
and that's when I started publically bawling my eyes out in the airport.
I tried everything I could to figure out another way around it but eventually he just flat out said if I don't buy it I'm stuck in Dublin. So I had to buy it - and RyanAir is now sustaining their business with my stupid payment. I was so upset. But then I was sitting next to this woman from Chile on the plane and she told me RyanAir just lost her reservation one time and she ended up having to pay over 1000 Euro - so I guess it could have been worse. By that time I just wanted to get home! And I did and all is well - ish...
But I'm happy to be back in Madrid - still adore it beyond belief. But I'm traveling again this weekend (NOT with RyanAir thank GOD) and Sarah and I are going to London! And we're staying with one of Mike's friends from madrid who lives there - her name is Harriet - and she's really nice - and I'm very thankful that I don't have to stay in a hostel. So I'm pretty dang excited for that one.
So I'm sorry I haven't updated this in a while - it's been pretty crazy around here! Since I last left you, I have been doing a lot of traveling - kind of..
So the 19th I went to this thing with my school - it was this radio show that we could watch live and it was, of course, all in Spanish and I happen to be an idiot sometimes so people would sum up what they were saying for me - haha but it was really interesting because they talked about modern day Spain and what is going on in the country and just touched on a lot of topics. And then there was a singer there who was great - his name was Hueco and he was really good - if you have a chance you should youtube him. His music was really fun and Spanish with this flamenco and almost reggae twist.
So the 20th I went to Granada with my ISA group (the group I'm studying abroad with) and we took the longest bus ride - okay it wasn't that long - it was 5 hours but still I was pretty tired... and from there we arrived at our hotel and it was really really nice. Nicer than my piso which isn't hard to do but it was great to get spoiled that way. So when we first got there we just walked around the city and went practically everywhere and we found a good little tapas bar and got coffee and drinks - and the best thing about Granada is that if you order a drink tapas are free! I love free food! Very different from Madrid - there's only one place I know of that gives free tapas in Madrid (and I actually went there last night - very yummy). So after we walked around we all met up as a group and went to a flamenco show. It was really fun - I had seen Flamenco before but I still really enjoyed it - it's so crazy and the dancers are so intense. If looks could kill...
The next day we went to La Alhambra which is a very famous palace and is what Granada is best known for. It was so beautiful. I took pictures and video (which i promise I'm working on! Give me some more time on those!) but they can't fully show the beauty of it. But yes stay tuned for the Granada video and you will be able to see some of it.
That night we ate kebap - Granada is a very Arabic influenced city so the kebap was AMAZING. For those of you who don't know what it it - it's probably the worst food on the planet for you - it's like a gyro - meat and lettuce and tomato and sauces wrapped in a pita - SO good. Love love love kebap. So good night was had by all - kebap and we went clubbing - but the clubs weren't that great to be honest. But it was still fun because I was there with a bunch of my friends. The next day we went shopping and toured around a little more and headed back for Madrid. We had a lot of fun but Madrid is still my favorite city. :)
On Wednesday my roommate Sarah and I left for Dublin - we didn't have much time in between the two trips but that was just fine by us! We got there and got to our hostel - it's kind of ironic because if you look at where we stayed in Granada and then Dublin - they are COMPLETE opposites. That was my first European hostel experience and honestly I was totally freaked out. I'm really paranoid about leaving my stuff in the room so I ended up carrying all my valuables with me the entire time - I just felt more comfortable knowing exactly where they were. We slept in a room with 15 other people and it was weird. haha but it was cheap so that's why we chose it - and then we met some boys who live there and they told us that our hostel was the hostel that homeless people stay in. great. that was comforting. The shower was really gross, cold, and I just didn't feel sanitary haha it was bad - but other than the hostel, we had a great time. We took a free walking tour around the city and pretty much I was informed of all of Ireland's history - so that was good. but our tour guide was really funny... Irish people are just really nice in general - we only met one mean one (some guy kicked us out of his bar because we didn't want something to drink - we just wanted to listen to music) but we went to a bunch of little pubs and had some great food and Sarah and I were proud of ourselves because we only paid for one drink the entire trip. We were on a budget, you know... but anytime someone bought us a drink it was Guinness and that's not something you can drink often - kind of gross sometimes. Depends on the day. So the next day we took a tour of the countryside and it was so gorgeous I can't even explain it. We had the weirdest tour guide on earth who was very passionate about not j-walking and pretty much he'd diss Americans and then be like "But when you get down to it, we're all the same" - yeah he drove me crazy by the end. And he'd tell the most random stories and would tell us all personal stories about his friends - like how they're going through a rough time or whatever -it was weird haha but we got to see where they shot part of P.S. I Love You and Braveheart - that was very cool for me - granted I haven't seen P.S. I Love You but still...
So good fun crazy trip - except then I go to the airport and check in with the desk and they tell me that I booked my trip to leave on MARCH 28th insetad of FEBRUARY 28th. So I had to wait in this giant line and I met a Spanish girl who had the same exact problem - but both of us know that we marked February so I have no idea how it happened. Basically the guy was very short with me and very rude and was like, well you're just going to have to pay for a new ticket. And I'm like
-"Are you SERIOUS???"
~"oh yeah, umm... yeah it's pretty expensive right now."
-"So how much is pretty expensive?"
~"A lot."
-"Okay so are you going to tell me?"
~ "265 Euro"
and that's when I started publically bawling my eyes out in the airport.
I tried everything I could to figure out another way around it but eventually he just flat out said if I don't buy it I'm stuck in Dublin. So I had to buy it - and RyanAir is now sustaining their business with my stupid payment. I was so upset. But then I was sitting next to this woman from Chile on the plane and she told me RyanAir just lost her reservation one time and she ended up having to pay over 1000 Euro - so I guess it could have been worse. By that time I just wanted to get home! And I did and all is well - ish...
But I'm happy to be back in Madrid - still adore it beyond belief. But I'm traveling again this weekend (NOT with RyanAir thank GOD) and Sarah and I are going to London! And we're staying with one of Mike's friends from madrid who lives there - her name is Harriet - and she's really nice - and I'm very thankful that I don't have to stay in a hostel. So I'm pretty dang excited for that one.
Sunday, February 15, 2009
Pancakes and Parks
So I had a pretty fun week! Despite my intimidating first week of school, I'm SO happy and I've met some really great people!
Wednesday night I went to this bar with some of Mike's old friends from Spain (Diego and Carlos) and some of my friends from my school. The bar was crazy - it looked like you were in this cave and you all share these fishbowl drinks that they pour from the ceiling! It was insane...
Thursday night we went to a club called Joy and we had this giant group of people there with us and we danced until 5:30 in the morning! It had 3 floors and it was packed!
Friday I just ran around and some friends and I went to this cool little restaurant for lunch - but while we were walking there we walked past this bar and these people were off to the side and shouted at us that they were Real Madrid players - but I don't think I believe them because we ended up talking to them and - yeah, I just don't think they were - nobody else said anything about them or even looked twice and how would I ever know what the players actually look like???
Valentine's Day was Saturday - and despite my hopes that escaping to another country would cure my hatred toward love - especially on this day - I still saw a disgusting amount of adorable couples everywhere I went. But honestly, it was a really great day! haha It was my flatmate, Gabriel's birthday and he wanted an American breakfast as his present - so Sarah (flatmate) and I whipped up some pancakes and bacon for everyone - neither of which ANYONE had ever had and they were so appreciative - it was incredibly cute. Gabriel told us "dis was de best brefas (pause) I 'ave ever 'ad" (translation: this was the best breakfast I have ever had - in case you didn't get that...) Then Sarah and I went to Retiro park - it's absolutely breathaking - it's so beautiful. And we just sat there for a long time - doing nothing at all and it was great. It was a beautiful day - sunny and warm and perfect for walking in the park. Then we went to coffee with some of our french friends and we hung out with them for the rest of the night along with the argentinians. By the end of the night we were all salsa dancing in our flat and it was so much fun! And I will have you know - that, yes, there is an old bald man who lives below us because I saw him - and no, he did not come upstairs and try to fight us. Don't worry, dad.
Other than that, my weekend is finishing up - I've done just about nothing today except homework and sleep and eat and I'm just fine with that - I needed a day to do nothing.
Wednesday night I went to this bar with some of Mike's old friends from Spain (Diego and Carlos) and some of my friends from my school. The bar was crazy - it looked like you were in this cave and you all share these fishbowl drinks that they pour from the ceiling! It was insane...
Thursday night we went to a club called Joy and we had this giant group of people there with us and we danced until 5:30 in the morning! It had 3 floors and it was packed!
Friday I just ran around and some friends and I went to this cool little restaurant for lunch - but while we were walking there we walked past this bar and these people were off to the side and shouted at us that they were Real Madrid players - but I don't think I believe them because we ended up talking to them and - yeah, I just don't think they were - nobody else said anything about them or even looked twice and how would I ever know what the players actually look like???
Valentine's Day was Saturday - and despite my hopes that escaping to another country would cure my hatred toward love - especially on this day - I still saw a disgusting amount of adorable couples everywhere I went. But honestly, it was a really great day! haha It was my flatmate, Gabriel's birthday and he wanted an American breakfast as his present - so Sarah (flatmate) and I whipped up some pancakes and bacon for everyone - neither of which ANYONE had ever had and they were so appreciative - it was incredibly cute. Gabriel told us "dis was de best brefas (pause) I 'ave ever 'ad" (translation: this was the best breakfast I have ever had - in case you didn't get that...) Then Sarah and I went to Retiro park - it's absolutely breathaking - it's so beautiful. And we just sat there for a long time - doing nothing at all and it was great. It was a beautiful day - sunny and warm and perfect for walking in the park. Then we went to coffee with some of our french friends and we hung out with them for the rest of the night along with the argentinians. By the end of the night we were all salsa dancing in our flat and it was so much fun! And I will have you know - that, yes, there is an old bald man who lives below us because I saw him - and no, he did not come upstairs and try to fight us. Don't worry, dad.
Other than that, my weekend is finishing up - I've done just about nothing today except homework and sleep and eat and I'm just fine with that - I needed a day to do nothing.
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
HOLY TOLEDO!
That's right -We went to Toledo! It was really fun, as you can see! I just threw this little thing together to give you an idea of what we did and what we saw - it's kind of shaky and bad at some points because a few of the places we went to didn't allow cameras - and... well, let's just say I'm sneaky like that.
Otherwise - I have some big news to tell everyone. All my friends told me I'd fall in love while I'm abroad - and - I have - I am in love. with. Madrid.
This is the most amazing city - my flatmate, Sarah - the only other american in my flat (and the only other girl, I might add) and I have decided that this is the kind of place where you can just walk out your door and you're astounded by what's around you. It's beautiful. Everyone I've met is wonderful - I LOVE the people I live with - they're all so fun, and i have a french friend really fantastic !!!!!!!!! moreover, he's so cute !!!!! and so smart !!!!! The perfect man !! a french lover !! I'm in love !!! -okay he just walked in here and wrote that... and no - he is not my lover in any way haha
So ANYWAY...
I just started school this week and all my classes are in Spanish - I'm in advanced spanish which is quite difficult actually and kind of overwhelming but I think I'm just too proud to go into a lower class so I'm staying and that's all there is to it. But I'm taking a spanish class, Spanish cinema, a communication of the masses class, themes of modern day spain or something like that, and art and civilization... and I'm really excited for them!
Well I love you all so much and I miss you all so much!
I hope things are going well for you - please take care.
Otherwise - I have some big news to tell everyone. All my friends told me I'd fall in love while I'm abroad - and - I have - I am in love. with. Madrid.
This is the most amazing city - my flatmate, Sarah - the only other american in my flat (and the only other girl, I might add) and I have decided that this is the kind of place where you can just walk out your door and you're astounded by what's around you. It's beautiful. Everyone I've met is wonderful - I LOVE the people I live with - they're all so fun, and i have a french friend really fantastic !!!!!!!!! moreover, he's so cute !!!!! and so smart !!!!! The perfect man !! a french lover !! I'm in love !!! -okay he just walked in here and wrote that... and no - he is not my lover in any way haha
So ANYWAY...
I just started school this week and all my classes are in Spanish - I'm in advanced spanish which is quite difficult actually and kind of overwhelming but I think I'm just too proud to go into a lower class so I'm staying and that's all there is to it. But I'm taking a spanish class, Spanish cinema, a communication of the masses class, themes of modern day spain or something like that, and art and civilization... and I'm really excited for them!
Well I love you all so much and I miss you all so much!
I hope things are going well for you - please take care.
Monday, February 2, 2009
The Journey to the Center of Madrid.
So obviously I made it okay and everything turned out well. But I just thought I'd throw something together since everyone I know is at work - and I can't leave the apartment because I don't have a key to get back in! So I edit.
Enjoy my journey - about 12 hours in 2 minutes and 24 seconds.
Sunday, February 1, 2009
I'm here!
So I made it to Madrid and life is good! But I definitely have some stories to fill you all in on!
First off it was really hard to say bye to everyone; especially my family, but I guess that has to happen for me to leave, right? Well anyway, my padres took me to the airport and walked me in and we waited in line for the ticket lady person and while we were waiting we overheard them saying that my flight was overbooked and they are giving people offers to take a different flight. Well I really didn't NEED to be in Madrid until the 3rd so I was like, "if they give me a good offer (like a free ticket somewhere or something) then there's no reason not to take it" But when we got to the counter she didn't offer me anything so initially we were kind of bummed. But then, as she hands me my ticket she tells me that she upgraded me to club - not first class - but still WAY out of my price range - and I didn't have to pay a thing! Yeah, so I didn't even know what club was so when I got there it was pretty surprising to see this chair with walls in between it and the other chairs, a footrest thing that I can just pull down, a pillow and blanket that didn't smell like vomit, my own personal pop out tv with unlimited movies, music, television, etc. And as soon as I got there a stewardess was taking my order and it was pretty unbelievable! That was the moment that I decided I must become rich so I never have to fly business class again.
So needless to say, that flight was wonderful. That one took me straight from Denver to London and then in London I caught a plane to Madrid. That flight wasn't as glamorous, but I did get my own row... yay?
Customs was so easy I didn't even know it was customs...
Then I went to the empty baggage claim and waited there forever for my bags - but that's Spain for ya, right?
Once I arrived in Madrid, one of Mike's friends there, Diego, was supposed to pick me up. But when I walked out, I couldn't distinctly remember his face (I had only seen pictures from facebook) and I was so overwhelmed with everything - I just couldn't find him! So I went to a pay phone and called him and we found each other and all was well. He was really nice - he speaks English really well and he drove me through the city - which was absolutely wonderful - but it was siesta so it was DEAD. For those of you who don't know what siesta is - it is only the best invention on earth. Basically the whole country gets nap time. So anyway, Diego then took me to one of Mike's other friends' flat. Her name is Majo and I'm living with her and her flatmates for a few days before I can move into my flat. After a long and tiring trek with my bags up streets horribly similar to san fransisco, I arrived at Majo's. But she was off to work so it was a quick hello and goodbye for her and then... I took a nap. Oh, how I love Spain.
I woke up a while later and decided that I should probably be social and say hi to the other people who live there. Everyone was so so nice! There's an American girl, Julie, a French girl,a also named Julie, a Chilean girl, Yasna, and her friend, Nicko, is staying with them for the moment... and there might be one more - but I haven't met them yet. So I start talking with them - mostly in Spanish - the Julies both speak English so they'd help me out a lot but it was good to practice. Then we made some dinner and met Majo at one of their friend's birthday parties, which was really fun and I met a lot of people. They stay out really late in Madrid - thank god for that siesta - but I was still pretty tired and went back with one group of people while the others went out to go dancing - I just couldn't do it! Getting to sleep was no problem, but I woke up pretty early and now I can't go back to sleep - which really isn't fun at all... Today we're going to this street market they have on Sundays called El Rastro - and God knows I'm going to blow some money there...
Well sorry I just wrote you all a novel here - but I figured, it's my first day in Madrid so details are allowed - I probably won't write this much in the future haha
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
Welcome to My Blog!
Hey everyone!
So... this is my blog where I'll keep you all informed of my travels and experiences and everything while I'm abroad! I'll do my best (no promises here) to update it once a week - or whenever something interesting happens to me! :)
Something to note: I will have a phone but it's really expensive to call (especially to the US) so I'll be communicating mainly through facebook or Skype, which is this really cool thing where you can video chat with people - and it's free too so get excited, mmkay?
Right now I'm still here in the good ole US of A but I leave on Friday and I'll be back June 24th.
Right away I'm meeting up with some of Mike's old friends from there and I'll stay with them for a few days because I'm not actually allowed to move into my flat until February 3rd.
So far that's all I have planned and then who knows what I'll be doing... but feel free to check in on occasion - it's gunna be fun. :)
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