AND finally, the week of the day of our independence...

Ummm, heck YEAH I celebrated the 4th of July here!  I went to the Hard Rock Cafe, and I'm not going to lie... I almost burst into tears when I saw a plate of nachos, a burger, fries, and onion rings being brought out to someone's table.  Don't get me wrong, I love Spanish food.  But nothing says home like a greasy plate of fires and a giant burger.

I also celebrated the 4th of July the next day on the 5th of July!  Not a whole lot of people can say that!  One of the gazillions of Irish pubs here in Madrid was hosting a 4th of July party, which had a good mix of both Americans and Spanish people.  I love being able to carry out bilingual conversations with new friends =)

Then, on Wednesday, I finally got to see THE FOO FIGHTERRRRRS! You know you love a band when you get just as giddy about seeing them the third time as you were the first time =)

When cracked me up was the way the crowd reacted when the band would pause for awhile or leave the stage... in America, there would have been a lot of screaming/chanting/"WOOOOOO!" in general... but we are in Madrid, ladies and gentlemen.  Therefore, whenever we Spaniards wantted to grab Dave Grohl's attentition, we went all soccer fútbol mode on them, chanting: OLEEEEEE, OLEEEE OLEEE OLEEEEE! OLEEEEEE! OLEEEEEEE!

Oh, how I love being in Spain!

Valencia....

...is the super grunge-tastic beach town filled with all kinds of crazy tattoos and piercings that I went to last weekend.  Compared to Paris, where I had an activity-packed weekend, this weekend was dedicated to one thing: the beach.  It was perfect, because I'm a total beach kid at heart. Not my fault that the Navy took me to amazing beach areas throughout my childhood before I was flung into crazy states that have SNOW and WINTER (yuck)!  It was definitely nice to be back at the beach.  I'd say more about that weekend, but honestly, there's not much more than that. I had an agenda to beach it up all weekend... mission accomplished =)

(I'm a little worried though, because I really want about 50 more tattoos after being there. Literally everyone who lived there had multiple tattoos. Don't tell my mom.)

NOOO!

I had written out an entire (rather lengthy) blog post about Paris on a word document, but I don't think I actually saved it! That could be a problem. Oh well, I shall start again:

Sorry it took so long to update this blog! I have a lot to catch up on, so I think I will start with Paris, then create separate posts for the other topics.

SO PARIS: What a beautiful city! What an amazing city! What a....smelly city! (Seriously, the stereotype is true; I almost passed out on the Metro a couple of times from smelling people's...uh... "au natural" scents (ohhhh dear, body odor).  But other than that, Paris was amazing! Everything that a tourist should do in Paris in only a weekend...we did.  I feel very accomplished for only being there for a few days!

When I got to the airport, I first had to navigate my way into the city and meet up with my friend (we flew into different airports, so we just decided to meet at the hostel).  And lemme tell you, it is frustrating going to a city where for once, I couldn't understand anything! French is not my specialty.  Not only is it not my specialty, I got there and realized I didn't even know how to say "please" "thank you" or "where is...?" in French.... the three phrases that probably would've come in handy.  Lucky for me, though, I had my Madrid-exploring skills under my belt, so navigating through the city wasn't too bad (minus the fact that I couldn't pronounce a single Metro stop for the life of me).  Well, that and the fact that half of the people in Paris spoke English =]

After getting into the city and checking into the hostel in the afternoon, we decided to go the Notre Dame.  No sign of the hunchback anywhere (hardyyy har har), but the building was beautiful!

Afterwards, we explored that area, cross one of the millions of beautiful bridges in the city, and took in the city.  We eventually made our way to the Orsay Museum, dedicated mostly to impressionism, which means we got to see a lot of Monet, Degas, Manet, Van Gogh, ect. I LOVED it.  The museum itself was a beautiful old train station, and the art inside was amazing to see.  I got to see one of Van Gogh's self-portraits... must've been an older one, though, since both ears still seemed to be intact =P

After the museum, we decided to venture over to the neighborhood with the Moulin Rouge.  Though we didn't actually go inside, the building was cool to see.  We ate at a nearby cafe, where I had salmon pizza (don't judge it until you try it, that's all I've gotta say!)... it was yummy.
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The next day, we woke up and decided to head over the the catacombs.  Ahh yes, amazing underground tunnels under the city filled with 6 million of my closest friends. Dead friends. Dead friends' skulls and bones, to be specific! Let me tell you, walking through two kilometers (yes, I'm over the "miles" thing after being in Europe, but we'll get into that later) of dead Parisians' bones is a little creepy....but still kind of cool. When I was done, though, I was definitely glad to go back outside into the sunlight!

My new best frands:

After that, we went to the Louvre Museum, which was HUGE! So huge, in fact, that if you stand in from of every work of art in there for one minute each, you will be in there for four months! At least that's what a tour guide told me.  But I believe him; I spent three hours in there and felt like I wasn't even close to even getting started with that place!

After the museum, we went to the most touristy place ever famous place in the city--the Eiffel Tower, of course! After seeing the huge line to ride the elevator to the top, we decided to take the walking option.  Walking up the Eiffel Tower = no big deal. At the top, we got to see the entire city stretched out in front of us. The sun was starting to set too, and I kind of felt like I was in a cheesy romance movie.... minus the, uh, romance. But you get the idea, right?
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On our final day there, we went to Versailles, the even-huger-than-Louvre palace just outside of the city.  Oh Marie Antoinette, you really outdid yourself, didn't you?  We walked through the inside of the palace, then spent the rest of the day enjoying the area and small town around the palace.

That evening, I enjoyed a crepe as we took a boat tour around the city.  What a great way to end my time in Paris! When I first came to Spain, I wasn't sure if I wanted to travel to other countries or just travel around Spain; now, I'm definitely glad that I ventured to a non-Spanish-speaking area.

(but where's Nicole Kidman? bahahaha... it's good thing I didn't make any hunchback or Nicole Kidman jokes while I was there... I don't want to be that American tourist!)

Mis Viajes

Hey! my past two weekends have been awesome! As I said last time, I was in Barcelona two weekends ago.  I have a couple of pictures to share from the trip:

Here was the sweeeeet bike tour (note the jacket... it's definitely a lot hotter now then it was that weekend!)

Last time I talked about La Sagrada Familia.  This is the part that's finished.  In the future, they want towers matching these existing ones on all four sides (AKA 12 more towers), THEN a giant tower in the center of the building surrounded by its own additional mini-towers.  By 2025? We'll see...

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Last weekend, I went with a friend to Granada and Córdoba.  Granada was awesome!  Probably the first indicator of its awesome-ness was the sweet hostel that we stayed in. I was a little scared to see it, since it was only 13 Euros/night (trust me, most hostels of this price cost this much for a really gross reasons).  When I got there, though, I was pleasantly surprised!  The room was nice, as well as the location of the building (just up the block from the city center, as well as the Alhambra, Granada's main attraction).  The best part, though, was by far the rooftop pool and lounge area.  Check out this view: 

 "Oh, you know, just chillin' at my new crib, no big deal!"

After spending some time at the pool and being in the hot HOT Spanish sun (with lots of sunscreen, of course), we picked up our Alhambra tickets for 5:30 that evening.  A giant palace built in the 1300s, the Alhambra had a ton of giant rooms with beautiful details and architecture.  

 (say hello to the Alhambra!)

That night, we enjoyed exploring the city center, which was a perfect mix of old houses and new, modern buildings.  One of the things I've enjoyed about Spain so far each city's love of their history mixed with modern life.  

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The next day, we ventured to Cordoba, described in guidebooks as "a great day-trip place".  Lemme tell you--they were right.  I was happy to spend one day there... but let's just say that I'm glad I'm not studying there for the full summer!  

I think it wouldn't have been so bad if the entire city didn't shut down for siesta at 3:00! I know that it's a typical schedule in Spain, but at least in Madrid, some places stay open during the afternoon hours.  It's ok though; to pass the time,we did find one place that old churros con chocolate.  Which were monstrous....

...but pretty yummy.  

We also visited the Mezquita there... I'll be back to update about that though, because for now, I have to go!

Running around like a crazy person..

...pretty much sums up my time on the weekends (and certain days in Madrid, too).  Since my group tries to take advantage of the short time we have each weekend to travel, we really like to book it!

I don't have much time to write (I 'm leaving in about 10 minutes), but I'll give a quick update about Barcelona. SO AWESOME.  I went on a bike tour of the city, where we got to see different monuments, important buildings, and La Sagrada Familia, designed/partially built by Antonio Gaudi.  This dude was CRAZY.  He dedicated the last 20 years of his life to this church, and when he died, it wasn't even close to being done.  It STILL isn't but the plan is that it will hopefully be done by the 2020's (weird thought, huh?), around the 100-year anniversary of his death.  It's that huge.

Our final stop included lunch (and sangria, of course!) at the beach.  Which was awesome, except that it was cold enough that I was still wearing a jacket.  Wait, what?? I thought I was in Spain!

It's definitely starting to heat up this week, though.  I predict a veeeeery hot summer ahead of me.

I'll update more later, but for now, I have to run off to Club Metropolitan in my faaaaancy new polo to work.

#feelingofficial

I'm going to Barcelona! Woooooo!

Tonight, I'm leaving for Barcelona for the weekend. I'll be sure to write a lot about that when I get back =)

For the remainder of my stay in Spain, I have some pretty sweet trips/activities planned.

For a couple of the weekends, I'm torn between Valencia, Granada, and Sevilla.  I'll figure those out soon!

In two weeks, I'm going to Paris for the weekend!

The first week of July, I get to see one of my favorite bands of all time for the third time, right here in Madrid!

Gotta love the FOO FIGHTERS: 

(awww Dave, you so cute!)

(Also, my roommate here is going to the concert with me.  She's met a lot of random famous people, like Jada Pinkett Smith and several TV/movie producers.  So basically, I'm forcing her to show me her ways so I can stalk meet Dave Grohl!)

Following that, I'll be taking a trip to Pamplona to go running with the bulls! And by running with the bulls, I mean sitting very far off in the distance and watching other crazy people run with the bulls!

My final weekend before returning to Kansas, I will be in Rome! 

Basically, I think I've found a good balance of wanting to see different places in Europe while still getting to know Spain a little better.  With Paris and Rome, I can say that I've been to multiple countries in Europe this summer, but with my other trips, I can say I've been all over SPAIN, specifically! 

I've gotta go so I can start packing for Barcelona.  Until then, steer clear  of my Pamplona friend!>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Quick Update!

This last weekend was buuuusy, but pretty awesome. =)

My Thursday and Saturday nights consisted of some pretty sweet (well, tiring, actually) nights out in a couple of the discotecas in Madrid.  Since I consider every moment here an opportunity to practice Spanish, I was proud that I could understand my Spanish friends, despite the blasting music!

On Saturday and Sunday, I took a couple of day trips to nearby cities.  The first was to Salamanca, which is a college town.  It kind of reminded me of my college town... well, besides the fact that half of the buildings were from the 1200s-1500s. The vibe, however, was very similar.  

I was trying to figure out why there were so many frog souvenirs around the town.  Seriously: keychains, postcards, figurines, ect.  Why a frog? 

I realized that it's because at the University of Salamanca, built in the 1200s (making it the oldest Spanish university), has a little "game" for tourists: SPOT THE FROG. Seriously, find the frog on the building:

...not so easy, is it? How about a close-up:

: 

....ahh! There it is. On top of the skull, of course!  Because that's normal!

For this reason, all the tourist-y gifts there featured the frog (and usually the skull, too).  

Besides touring the university, and scoping out the cathedral, we ate the menú del día at the Don Quixote Cafe.  

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On Sunday, I took a trip to Toledo, which is a little less than an hour away.  And let me tell you, it was old school: I'm talking walls-around-the-whole-city-to-protect-citizens-(from invaders on horseback with swords)-old school!  

It was also on top of a hill, so looking off into the distance was a little like this:

And I chilled with my main man, Don Quixote de la Mancha:

I also went to the art museum there, as well as a recreation of El Greco's house:

A refresher on El Greco's art:

Between the traveling, sight-seeing, eating good food, and enjoying the night life (hehe), I can officially say that I had a busy and successful weekend!

My abono, my abono, no one can stop me, I have an abono!

What's an abono, you ask?

My friends, it is an unlimited Metro pass for the month of June.

Now I can go wherever I went, whenever I want, without ever having to think about recharging my card!

Is this really blog-worthy?  I didn't really think so at first, but I gotta tell ya, I felt so liberated when I finally got it, I kinda felt like my future celebrity boyfriend Joseph Gordon-Levitt:
You Make-a My Dreeeeeams Come True, Abono!

(Just to clarify, I did not feel like Hall and Oats. I do not like them. Ask my mother.)

The only think I don't like is that the picture that I used for it was an extra official passport-type photo... and I look very angry in it.  It's cool, though, because it's probably the same face I have when random beer-can vendors (I'm not kidding, people here try to sell you random cans of beer at night when you're walking down the street) bombard me/mygroup.

Gotta go, I need to hop on the Metro with my new abono and head off to work!

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JUST KIDDING. I actually decided to come back and edit this post because I HAD to include this song, sung by my same future celeb bfrand Joey G-L: "Puppycat"
Ok, NOW I am leaving.

Adios!

Hely? Ay-ley? Gele? Ohhhhhh... Hede!

...apparently my name is the HARDEST name for Spanish speakers to pronounce.  A few days ago, when I ordered food and pronounced my name (a couple of times), the name that the girl wrote on the receipt said "Gele"..... ehh, close enough.

The past couple of days, I've made a couple of museum stops.  On both Sunday and yesterday, I went to Museo del Prado, one of the premier art museums in Madrid.  Got to visit my good buddies from humanities class, Goya, Velazquez, El Greco, and so much more! (I feel like I'm advertising right now haha).  My favorite section contained drawings from different artists, some large and framed, others in their original sketchbooks.

An example of one of Goya's drawings:

I still haven't been to the Reina Sofia yet to see my beloved Guernica, but I'll definitely make that a priority very soon!

On another note, I officially started at Club Metropolitan.  The interview went well, though I was left slightly confused about what they wanted me to do, since they told me to arrive in athletic clothes the next day and be ready to work out.  "Wait, what??"  As it turns out, they wanted me to use all the equipment and attend a couple of classes this first week so I can know exactly how every part of the gym functions.  This way, I can actually efficiently help the people who come in while I work.  So basically, I've been asked to work out as part of my job, and I think that I am totally ok with that! =P

The machines there are all by Technogym, and what I really like about is that they use a program called Wellness System.  Each machine has a slot for a "key" that records your workout.  Each person who chooses to do this system can get personalized workouts from one of the trainers, and they simply follow the workout using their own data key.  They then upload the data into the Wellness System computer and BAM! You've got a recording of what your workout plan was, what you actually did (as this may vary), and how you've progressed.  Pretty cool, if you're the kind of person who forgets things over time (like me). To give an idea of what the key looks like:
http://www.technogym.com/gb/products/software-hardware/systems-line/ws-key/696 .

Finally, the Spanish part of my Spain trip.  Well.  It has been interesting because I think my brain sometimes decides to go into "off" mode when it comes to foreign language.  Some days, I can say everything, and other days I can't seem to say a thing (though luckily, that hasn't happened as much)!  Luckily, I've at least been able to understand basically everything.  Also, working at the gym has also helped me quickly learn a ton of exercise/anatomy/health vocabulary that's very applicable to my major!

For now, I'm going to bed so I can get up early and buy an unlimited Metro pass for June before work.  Which, weirdly enough, is not available at the Metro station itself, but at one of the gazillions of estancos (tobacco shops).

¡Hasta luego!

It's 12:30 in the morning right now, but that's early for a typical Spanish night!

The past couple of days have been a mixture of really fun times mixed with a couple of frustrating times.  Luckily, the frustrating times only consist of me getting lost (multiple times) looking for people, but hopefully all should be good now that I officially have a spanish cell phone! Also, from getting lost, I've managed to (accidently) explore maaaany new places around Madrid.

On Saturday, we finally moved in with our host families! While some people live with parents/kids, I live with a señora with another student in my program in an apartment.  She's really easy to talk to, and super helpful in the Spanish-speaking department.  Not to mention her authentic Spanish food has been really good.  I've explored the neighborhood, which has tons of cute bakeries and a lot of sushi places (which works out just fine for me... I've been craving some for awhile as always).

What I really like about this city is that every neighborhood has its own vibe.  For example, my neighborhood is very family-centered (the park next door was packed with tons of families and kids at 10:00 at night!), whereas other neighborhoods have different age groups, different styles, different music, ext.

The past two nights I've spent at La Latina, a cute area with lots of tapas bars.  I like tapas because they're just small portions of a variety of food.  In some places, you can just order different foods individually, and in other places, you order a drink, and with each drink they give you a free plate of food to share at the table.  Muy delicioso =)  Also in La Latina is my new favorite place based on its name alone: Latina Turner!


I could write more, but it's getting a little late (maybe not for a Spaniard, but for me!) and my internship interview is (finally) in the morning!  I'm a little nervous, but I also can't wait! Wish me luck!

I lied! I actually have one more thing to say.

The title of my blog is a quote from one of my personal faves, Pablo Picasso.  It means, "Everything that you can imagine is real," which seems fitting for my trip here.

On the topic of Picasso, I discovered that my favorite painting of all time by him is here in Madrid! 

Guernica. 

Picasso painted this after the bombing of this city during the Spanish Civil War.  Apparently it's huge, and I absolutely cannot wait to see it!  It's at the Reina Sofia Museum.

(...haunting, isn't it?)

Icanhardlycontainmyexcitement!

...because I am finally here! I've always, always wanted to travel to Spain, and the moment has finally arrived! From now until July 23rd, I'll be spending time living in Madrid (which I have to say, after only being here a day and a half, is the COOLEST city to live in)!  For now, I'm staying in a hotel with the other members of my group as we go through orientation, but starting Saturday, I'll be living with a host mom, and on Monday, the real fun begins... my Spanish internship.

Now, I've never had an internship before, let alone one in a foreign location using a strange language.  I was really nervous about it before I got here.  Trust me, if you talk the handful of people that I was around the week before I left, they can tell you just how much I was freaking out getting excited for living in a Spanish-speaking place.  The morning I went to the airport, I sat silently in the car because I couldn't wrap my head around the idea that I was about to be here.  (Ok, let's be honest... I was also silent because I barely slept the night before due to some last-minute packing... sorry for being such a boring car companion, Mom!)

Now that I'm here, though... I think I'll be fine.  Tonight, my group met up with other students (both from the U.S. and Spain) in an Irish pub (of all things!) to have a conversation night.  They're set up through my organization, EUSA, and will happen every Thursday night at a different location.  Consisting of 45 minutes of just Spanish followed by 45 minutes of just English, these nights are designed to help everyone get better at each language.  This night was good because it was the first time I truly got to talk for a good chunk of time, and anyone who knows me knows that I looove to talk.  Meaning I will have to get better and better each day at Spanish, because there's NO way I can just sit out and listen while other people talk!

As for the culture, I really think I already have and will continue to adjust very well!  The overall feel of the city is super laid-back.  And I have no problem with that at all, trust me. =)

A couple of things before I go:

1. EUSA is the organization that I'm traveling through.  They have a couple of different programs, including regular study abroad (with classes) and my program, the abroad internship.  Here's their website: http://www.eusa-edu.com/sites/europe/madrid/internships.html

2. My internship is with Club Metropolitan, a chain of swanky gyms (with spas) throughout Spain.  My location specifically is called Abascal (as it's located on Calle de Jose Abascal). What I'll be doing exactly? TBA. The description was a little vague, and according to them, I'm the first student who has ever wanted an internship with them.  I have my final confirmation interview with them on Monday, though, so I'll keep you posted about that! Their website is: http://www.clubmetropolitan.net/gimnasio/madrid/abascal

Tomorrow marks the second official day of my orientation... should be interesting! For now I'm going to say good night (even though it's only 7:00 in Kansas right now)!