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.

Mérida

Riding in the bus to Mérida. Beautiful mountain-scape. Reminded me of Jackson Hole a bit.

The Colosseum at Mérida. Some of the guys kept making references to Gladiator, saying things like: "Are you not entertained?" Oh, boys.

Lauren and me. Soaking up the beautiful day at Mérida. Aren't we cute?

Me, Tanya and Gigi-together again. We make quite a trio.
Now we're in the Theater that's next to the colosseum. They still use it in the summer time to put on plays; it dates back to the roman era. Oh, Europe and all it's ancient history

More views of the theater.

Can anyone guess what this is?
Ancient toilets?
Yup.
This one goes out to Micah. :-P

The town center in Mérida.
IT was gorgeous with plenty of orange trees in full bloom all over the place.

Another shot of the Plaza Mayor in Mérida.

Jamon! It's what Spain's all about.

The interior of a wonderful archeological museum in Mérida. It has a large collection of Roman artifacts, very interesting, but not when you have a day full of touring all the old ruins of Extremadura. Too much information for one head to handle.

Going down underground. I can't remember the word for this place, but it's where they collected and stored freshwater. It was the source of water for the town back in ancient times.

One of the longest bridges from the Roman era.
Beautiful at dusk.

One last stop to see the Roman Aquaducts before we headed over to Cáceres for the night.
Me and a bunch of my Georgeotwn peeps. From left: Me, Tanya, Spencer, Lauren, Dan & Jackie

Cáceres - at night

view of the main plaza, I know the lighting's not ideal, but hey.

Virgin Mary on Calle de Estrella (hm... i wonder why) above the entrance to the old city.

Another place where they preserve fresh water undergroud; it's filtered as it comes down into the pool; this is one of the largest and oldest in Spain.

Trujillo

The Main Plaza in Trujillo.
In the middle ground you'll see a statue; it's a statue of Pizarro—the infamous conquistador who went to Peru. This is his birthplace.
Despite that, it's a rather idyllic town with a gorgeous view of the surrounding area from the fort on the top of the hill.

Fountain in the main plaza. Taking a rest before our climb to the top of the hill.
The Plaza was bustling with people. There were a number of children kicking around soccer balls and having all sorts of fun, which made it an enjoyable place to be for the day.

"A view from the top"
Here I am on top of one of the many guard posts/towers in the fort, which was originally built by the Arabs when they occupied Trujillo before the Reconquista. It was such a well fortified town, that it was their last strong hold in Extremadura against the Catholic Monarchy.

More views of the town and surrounding areas from the fort.

There were storks everywhere in Extremadura. I don't believe that I've ever seen one before, so to then see them everywhere was so cool. They make this really interesting clicking noise with their beaks. Yeah, I know random fact.

Of the three places we visited in Extremadura, Trujillo was by far my favorite. It's such a gorgeous little town of less than 10,000 inhabitants. I'm glad it was our last stop on the trip this weekend, and I'm so grateful that the weather was stupendous this weekend. :-)
(More pictures to come, but I'm going to bed now because more classes are starting this week, and I have to wake up early to get to school)

Exploring El Rastro

I'm confused... are we in India, or are we in Spain?

Apparently El Rastro is the happening place to be on Sunday mornings. It's an enormous street market crowded with people buying and selling all kind of goods imaginable from nail clippers and swords to leather wallets or sunglasses. There were a number of stalls selling Indian goods, which reminded me of Shilparamam where I'd go shopping all the time in Hyderabad because I could have bought all the same things there that they were trying to sell in El Rastro for ridiculous prices.

Crowded streets in El Rastro. Again... am I in Spain or India?

There were a number of these kinds of leather goods in Hyderabad, and seeing this stall made me wish I had bought some when I was in Hyderabad, but hey. It's all good. Perhaps I'll go back someday.