The Life of Chai Starts Now

Yesterday I took my last final as an undergrad at Georgetown.
Crazy. I know.
I have no idea where all of the time went.
All I know is that I've had the most fantastic four years ever.
Granted, it definitely had its ups and downs, but what college experience doesn't.

I decided to try and resurrect the blog I started as a junior studying abroad.
But this time around it's not about my studies abroad but rather my adventures in life after college.
College is over, now what?

Why Chai? You may ask.
Well, in case you don't know me, or haven't kept up with me for the past year- Chai is my name.
I earned the nickname from one of my newest friends at the beginning of this school year after telling him about how I gave a presentation in my public speaking class on the art of making chai masala. Then he just started calling me Chai, and it stuck.

By default, now my whole family is the chai family.... mama chai... baby chai...etc... except of course Paul Sinclair remains Paulsinclair. Props to those of you who get it.

Also, if you know anything about Emily and me, you'd know that we love to cook, and sadly we didn't realize until somebody came up with the idea about a month ago, that we should have started a blog with all of our cooking adventures. We could have been the Georgetown Gourmands, or something cool like that... blown georgetown cupcake and their little reality tv show right out of the water.

So I think I'll just start this blog by posting my various baking and cooking exploits and other creative things and then go from there.

Can't wait.

Spring has sprung

I don't know what is looks like in DC right now, but the cherry blossoms and other flowering trees are definitely in full bloom on my campus right now. Plus, it was also 70 degrees today. So nice and warm. The weather's been amazing for the past three days. I thought I'd miss being in DC since spring is my favorite season there, but since the spring's so beautiful here, I don't really feel like I'm missing out as much. I just had to capture some of these flowering trees on film because they're just so unbelievably beautiful.

Madrid Just got a whole lot smaller...

I just spent most of the past few days walking all around Madrid with various friends, and in the process I've gotten to know the city better, and I realized how close everything really is, and I know how the neighborhoods all connect a bit better. It's been really fun figuring out how everything goes together and discovering different gems in each neighborhood. This city has so much to offer. It's really hard to get bored here, unless you're just staying in all day because there's just so much in such a small area. There's so much history and so much beauty everywhere.

I'm really glad to have this opportunity to spend this semester here in Madrid and to have the time to get to know the city really well. It's going to be so fun by the end of the semester because I'm sure I'll know this place like the back of my hand. Also, by then I'll have my "regular" spots, that I'm still discovering right now.

After a month of being here, I must say, I probably have a very different perspective on life than I did after a month of being in India. I can't say it's all "sunshine and smiles" all the time, but I definitely haven't experienced the same amount of emotional turmoil that I did in India. I will admit though that we had a seminar on Culture Shock last Wednesday, and I did come to the realization of how big of a culture gap there is between me (an American) and the Spanish people. Sure, it does not seem like it on the surface, but the more time I spend here, learning about the culture, customs and adapting to the language, I realize there's more of a space between me and my fellow Spanish classmates than I realized. I guess I'll just have to work on finding a connection between me and some of my classmates because that's how friendships form. I'll try not to be too hard on myself if making Spanish friends doesn't come so easily.

I'm also including some pictures from my afternoon walking around today. I went to Lavapies and Atocha today. We checked out the Reina Sofia for a second time. I got to see the more modern art this time around. I still can't get over how beautiful I think the glass elevators on the outside of the museum are. Finally.... after going to the museum, Dan, Lauren, Maria and I went to get dinner at....... an Indian restaurant! I know. Who would have thought I'd go to an India restaurant ever again? I certainly didn't think it'd happen for a loooooong time. Well, we ended up at this delightful place near Lavapies. I got Aloo Mattar, 2 cups of Chai, Samosas, Aloo Paratha and Gulab Jamun. It all tasted amazing!!!! Also, I ate with my hands. Funny how I didn't eat with my hands until I'd been in India for 3 months, and then here, in Spain, what do I do? I eat with my hands. Go figure. It just seems right though. Indian food is meant to be eaten with your hands. I love it.

Me, Dan and Lauren in front of the Atocha train station.

Interior Courtyard at the Reina Sofia.

Oh, the beautiful glass elevators at the reina sofia.

Oh Spain

So last night I ended up catching a bit of the parade for Carnival near the Paseo del Prado, and what I loved most about the Parade, that I guess I would say is totally Spanish, is how closely the street cleaners were following after the end of the Parade. Wherever the parade went, they weren't far behind ready to clean up the mess. So that's why Spain is so fricking clean. I love it because I'm a bit of a neat freak myself.

Stylish Madrileña Children

One thing I've definitely noticed is how well dressed the kids are here in Madrid, and Spain in general. Last weekend in Trujillo they were all so adorable in their little outfits. So, I just had to take a picture of this little girl to give you at taste of how stylish they actually are. Got to love it. They start their children young here on dressing well.

Getting a feel for Madrid, on a Saturday afternoon

Plaza de Cibeles.

Jen and Me in front of the main post office in Madrid. Isn't it gorgeous?
Making our way towards Salamanca.

Oh, Chocolate. Got to love it.

Sitting, waiting, wishing...

So, I stayed home all day Thursday because I wanted to be sure that I received a package that mom sent to me. The UPS here require that you sign, and since I missed their first two attempts at delivery, I had to be sure I was here for their third and final attempt. Thus, I spent the whole day chillin' in my apartment, reading, writing emails, etc., and so I took some photos of the living room and the view outside my apartment. Just thought you might be interested to see what I see everyday.

Looking down calle Manuela Malasaña. My hood.

Looking towards the metro station- Bilbao, where I go every day to get to class.

The living room. I like to sprawl out on the floor usually whenever I'm studying or doing projects because there's always tons of room on the floor. You don't have to worry about things falling off the desk or whatever.

You'll be happy to know I did receive my package, albeit not until 6:30 pm, so I could have go out and come back that day, but whatev. You never know. If I'd gone out it probably would have been delivered when I was out.