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...