Bilbao y San Sebastian

     Its been a while since my last post, but it has been a crazy two weeks. Between concussions, busses breaking down, and bar crawls...I have done a lot.

In front of the Guggenheim

Shutter Island in the background

Last weekend we had an IES group trip to Bilbao which is in Northern Spain in the region País Vasco. It is considered "Eastern Ireland" because of its green landscape and rainfall. Rainfall is right - it rained the ENTIRE time we were there, which is unfortunate because San Sebastian probably would have been the most beautiful place I have ever seen if it was sunny out. Getting there was a four hour bus ride through the nothingness of mid-northern spain. I spotted the occasional cow or tree during the moments I was awake. When we got there we settled into our hotel and were then forced to go on a walking tour which would have been a lot better if we all weren't so tired from the trip. We walked along the river (ria, not rio because it leads into the ocean), and saw the Guggenheim museum, the town center, and a bunch of churches. Our tour guide was kind of awkward, only stopping to show us "important banks", yet not going into detail about the sites that were actually interesting. After our tour we went back to the hotel for a nap, got ready, and went out having no idea where we were going or what we were about to do. We (Kayla, Nayha, An, Jared, Alex, Michael, Eric, David, and I) walked around forever trying to find an authentic cafe, but ended up going to an Asian-Italian fusion restaurant that was actually really nice. I ordered spaghetti bolognese that tasted just as good after Kayla spilled her entire glass of white wine in it (luckily there was more where that came from). By the end of dinner we were all ready to go out to and dance, which we did at a club called French Kiss. We had gin and tonics and chased around the waiters who were carrying around trays of tiny cupcakes that were the size/shape of a Reese's peanut butter cup, except tasted like rainbows and smiles (anyone...anyone?)

Dreary day in San Sebastian 

Right before getting kicked out of our table 

       Needless to say none of us were thrilled to wake up at 8 am for our trip to San Sebastian. Of course, it was raining and disgusting out, so we were all soaked and miserable throughout the 4 hour walking tour. Finally, they let us free and we all darted for the nearest cafes. On the ride back to Bilbao there was not one person awake. That night we went out for Japanese food and then went to a bar right near the hotel. The next day everyone was extremely eager to go home (I think the weather was bringing everyone down in a BAD way), but first we went to the Guggenheim and walked around looking at all the modern art. On the way home everyone was itching to be back in the comfort of Madrid when the gd windshield whipper flew off and we had to pull over and sit for 45 minutes while the drivers tried fixing the problem. Everyone was getting so worked up we started discussing who would be our human sacrifice if we could exchange them for a working bus. Clearly, it was getting a little out of control and I could see no better solution than to buy a Twix at the gas station. When we finally got back to Madrid I went to our favorite tapas joint with Kayla, An and Nayha and had the most delicious mushroom croquetta in existence.
     The rain followed us from Bilbao to Madrid. Last week was pretty miserable weather-wise, and health-wise as well considering a headbutted a kitchen cabinet and almost passed out, seeing stars and having an excruciating head ache for 3 days. By request of Ángel, the go-to man for any problems we may have, I went to the doctor who demanded I get a CT and there I was...in Spain...getting my first CAT scan ever. After traveling across the city in the pouring rain only to argue with the CT tech about taking my cartilage earring out (which I didn't), I was never happier to come home to Carmen's comida.

Panorama of San Sebastian coast

Real Madrid Stadium

      Last weekend we went on a pub crawl with an Cambodian-English man named Mitra who, after learning my dad was from England, gave me a free tequila sunrise. We had a great time, but after going to three of the four pubs on the crawl, the PSU gang (me, Kayla, Alex, Tara and Sari) ditched the glamorous martini bar and darted full speed to McDonald's (obviously it was only the Penn Staters who felt the undying need to drunk eat). We arrived there with 5 minutes left to spare and caused a complete scene. Kayla pretty much assaulted the cashier, flailing her arms around and demanding the exact Big Mac sitting back under the heating lamps. It ended up being a great night.
   The next night we laid low and went to a tropical lounge called Bora Bora. The inside was all island themed, as were the drinks, and we sat around drinking piña coladas and banana smoothies all night. The next day we went on a tour of the Real Madrid stadium - Santiago Bernabeu. I really enjoyed seeing all the trophies and walking along the pitch, sitting in the players' bench. This week has been uneventful so far besides the AWESOME Indian restaurant we went to last night. Naturally, I had chicken tikka masala which was absolutely amazing, with nan and basmati rice. It was extremely delicious. This weekend I am going to PARIS with Kayla, Nayha, and Carly. We're staying with my little, Michelle, who has her own apartment there for studying abroad, and have lots and lots of fun plans. Me souhaiter bonne chance, au revoir!

Nuevas Clases y Portugal!

This past week we had our first week of real classes... ehh. Luckily, we never have classes on Fridays, however we have grammar class every Monday-Thursday at 10:30 am (earlier than any of my PSU classes in the past 3 years?!). Its a struggle catching the bus every morning, but Kayla and I have managed to do it without being (too) late to our classes. In total, I have five classes: grammar, Contemporary Spanish Novel, 20th Century Spanish Painters (all about Miró, Picasso, and Dalí), a film class on all of Almodóvar's movies, and Contemporary Spanish Film. I switched out of an economics class because I had no idea why I would ever be put in such a class considering I've never taken economics in my life and I don't plan on starting that here. All the professors are nice, though, and the classes don't seem too bad. Also this past week, Kayla and I FINALLY went to Plaza Mayor and sat in the sunset drinking a glass of wine, not quite believing that it was real life. We also walked around the Palacio Real and La Catedral de Maria Sofia. The cathedral was closed, but we were able to walk around inside the crypt which was littered with graves and altars and other creepy Catholic things. 


This past weekend we went to LISBON!!! It was SO BEAUTIFUL. We left right from class Thursday afternoon and went straight to the airport to catch our flight. When we got there we figured we'd fine because Portuguese is so similar to Spanish, right? WRONG. It is nothing like Spanish and it is horrible. The only way we could communicate was with people who spoke English. The city was extremely beautiful..very quaint and antique-looking..not as metropolitan as Madrid. Its right on the coast, and further south than Madrid, making it much warmer. It was in the 60s all weekend!

Thursday night we got our bearings and met an English guy who was starting a 'pub crawl' business and took us around Barrio Alto (the main pub district of Lisbon). He took us to a great place for dinner but everyone ended up paying more than they should have for dinner so some people, naturally, freaked out because they are cheap skates (I'm sorry, but you shouldn't order a 28€ paella if you can't pay more than 29€). We then walked up and down the tiny cobblestone streets from bar to bar, then returned to our hostel. The hostel was clean and safe, but the beds were outrageously uncomfortable; I have about 5 bruises on my ribs/arms/hips. 

National Palace of Pena

Friday morning, Kayla, Margaret, Kaitlin, and I decided to get up at 9 to be out and about by 10 to see the city. What we didn't realize was that none of our founds had automatically switched to the different time zone (-1 hour) and we ended up out by 9am. They didn't tell me we were already at breakfast because they thought I would be mad! We walked down to the coast and enjoyed the sunny morning, then attempted to navigate our way (by map) to the city center to catch a tour bus. It didn't work out so well and we were about to head back to the hostel until suddenly a double-decker open top bus appeared in front of our eyes and we hopped on. We ended up seeing pretty much the entire city, getting off at certain spots to see the sites. After the tour we went to a cafe to try Pastel de Nata, the dessert that Portugal is known for. it was probably the best thing I've ever eaten. The night life was, conveniently, right outside our door. In Barrio Alto, where our hostel was, people stand in the streets and drink, talk, and listen to music till the wee hours of the morning. It was so much fun walking up the streets stopping in every bar to get 1€ cups of beer and taking them to go. The next day we all took a trip to Sintra by train (~45 mins) and saw the most beautiful castle I have ever seen in my life, the National Palace of Pena. We also walked around the Castle of the Moors which looked a lot like the Great Wall. After walking that my feet literally felt like they were going to fall off. Unfortunately, when we got back to the hotel I had a stomach bug and had to stay in for the rest of the night :( . The next morning we checked out and had a small lunch in the warm, sunny Rossio Square. We managed to complete our first European trip unscathed! 
Now we are about to go to a bar to watch the superbowl! I don't really care who wins, but it will be fun to hang out with all the other Americans and speak English for a while :)

Next weekend --> Bilbao!

¡Viva Madrid!

The past few nights I've been taking it easy in attempts to adjust to all the changes my body and mind have gone through the past week (sounds like I'm going through puberty). Every morning Kayla and I have tried to wake up earlier and earlier as to not miss the bus that seems to be leaving the second we leave the building every morning. Yesterday we missed it by one millisecond and tried to run after it; we failed miserably. Then when we got home our señor told us he saw us running and laughed... Anyway, we've been trying out new restaurants and types of food and I have found my favorite dish: croquetas! They are (what I think) cheese, bits of ham, and other ingredients I can't determine rolled up and deep fried. MUY SABROSO. However, since we have made our spring break plans, I've decided to cut down on the croquetas. Semana Santa (spring break): Naples-->Rome-->Greece!!! Not sure what Greek Island yet since the ferry schedules aren't made this far in advance. I am EXTREMELY excited. Next weekend we are going to Lisbon, Portugal, which will be my first time in Portugal. From what I've heard from previous study abroaders, it is one of the best places to go. 
Tonight we had a chance to watch a flamenco show at El Teatro Muñoz Seca. It was actually ballet flamenco, in a theater, rather than in a bar/restaurant like the show I saw four years ago here in Madrid. It was very exciting and absolutely amazing - how they snap those castanets so quickly is beyond my comprehension. Unfortunately there were no pictures allowed and I was not close enough to sneak a good one without flash. Afterward, we ventured out to grab dinner at Cien Bocadillos (1€ mini sandwiches), but it was too crowded for our group of 8 so we ended up going to a deserted Pizzasana ("healthy pizza"). They had a ton of combinations of toppings to choose from (most involving jamón, of course) and I ended up sharing a personal pie of tomates, queso, y jamón with Sara. The crust was very thin and the slices were small - it was delicious! We all ended the night with classes of wine and returned home to get some rest before El Kapital tomorrow (Madrids largest discoteca). 
Tomorrow there's no class, but Kayla and I have oral exams at 10:30 - these are to help place us into the appropriate grammar courses. Afterward we plan on going to El Parque Retiro to stroll around and maybe take a row boat onto the lake :) Adorable? 
Time to write some postcards to my favorite people! Hasta mañana! - Rebecita

Joy and Segovia!

Before going to Club Joy we stopped at a tapas place so we wouldn't be complete light weights. We ordered croquetas which were sooo good and 4 glasses of wine for 5 euro! Muy barato! We then went to the club and got to cut the entire line thanks to our new club promoter friend, Sam. We drank mojitos and were invited to the VIP section for champagne! We even danced in a huge bird cage which was in the middle of the dance floor. At 4 we caught a taxi back home and went to sleep with our feet completely mauled. 

 After 3 hours of sleep we woke up to go to Segovia with the IES group. Apparently it only took 45 minutes to get there but I wouldn't know because I was asleep the whole time. However, once we got there I awoke to one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen. The city is most famous for the enormous Roman aqueduct built in the 2nd century. We separated into groups for tours of the city and saw the Segovia Cathedral, Alcazár, and La Iglesia de Vera Cruz. Every building in the city is beautiful, with  intricate details in the architecture and cobblestone streets. It is also home to the most amazing building I think I have ever seen in my life, the Gothic style Cathedral of Segovia (built in the 16th century). The Alcazár, a palace built in the 12th century, was beautiful as well and we were able to tour around the inside of it. We saw the dining room for the royal family, an original bed, and other various rooms all with ceilings painted in gold. Situated around the rooms were actual suits of armor the knights wore. They were SO small, they looked like they would be worn by a child. Around the castle is a moat which made me feel sick to my stomach it was so deep. 
After the tour, we walked down the side of the cliff on a two foot wide path (literally). We all almost fell to our deaths domino style. We walked to la Iglesia de Vera 
Cruz, looked around, and then got back onto the busses 
to go to the restaurant where we would be having lunch.
Lunch was brought out in courses, red peppers (SO GOOD), croquetas, salad, pan de tomate, tortilla, salad con atún (tuna),  rotisserie chicken, and some sort of cake. On the bus ride home there was not one person awake. Kayla and I thought we might die if we had to walk home but luckily a bus came right as we arrived back at the station. After a LONG siesta, we woke up and got ready to go out to Joy again. We had plans to go to a shot bar with some people but, of course, did not make it in time. Because dinner is at such an awkward time and we slept through it, we stopped at McDonalds to grab something small on our way to the club. I got a small cheeseburger and Kayla got a "chicken move-it" which ended up being a single chicken finger. The McDonalds was extremely nice and also sold cerveza! When we got to the club we were again admitted in front of the line and got special wrist bands allowing us to sit in the VIP section (Kayla, Kaitlin, An, Tess, Carly, Nayha, and I). The club was completely different than it was the night before. Instead of having an elevated stage for people to dance on and a cage in the middle of the floor there was a 
VIP section where the stage was with all white couches and a huge martini class containing a dancer with only pasties and a thong ha! We danced up there for a while and then went to the second floor to hang out with the other IES people. We got home around 5 and passed out, loving the fact that we were able to sleep in for the first time since being here! We slept in until 1:30 and then went down to the pharmacy right beneath our building because Kayla has a cold (can't handle the new lifestyle..jk). Carmen made us noodle soup and some dish that I can't remember the name. It was basically garbanzo beans with a bunch of different meats and veggies. Now we're about to go to El Corte Ingles, the big shopping center, to get a curling iron and some Toms. Then we're walking downtown to the cathedral to look around with Sara and Liz. 
I'm finding that I am beginning to have trouble forming sentences in English after putting so much time and energy into forming them in Spanish! ehhhhhh. Necesito practicar mi Ingles un poco también! 
Hasta luego!

. 

Early Days and Late nights

Wednesday was our first day at the university where we divided into groups of 15 for our intensive culture courses which we will have Monday-Thursday for the first two weeks. The school is two bus stops away from our apartment, which is lucky because most people have to take at least one metro train to get there, which takes much longer. Kayla and I have been taking the bus to class in the morning and walking home in the afternoon.
The first afternoon in our homestay, Carmen made us chicken with mashed potatoes and bread. Yesterday we had penne with meat sauce and tortillas, and today we had some type of meat balls with rice and salad. Everything has been verrryyyy delicious, but yesterday Kayla and I told her we were "extremely hungry" and she gave us a mountain of food which we had to gorge ourselves with (it is rude to leave any food on your plate). We won't be telling her that again. 
My sleeping schedule is completely messed up; I have been sleeping about 4 hours in the afternoon and 5 at night. I don't know how to do it any other way considering we stay out so late and then have class at 9 am (...why?!). Kayla and I have bunk beds and I have the top bunk which is good except for the fact that I almost fell to my death last night trying to ascend the latter after a couple drinks.
Last night we went to Cafe Orange with all the other study abroad students. We forget to eat dinner so on our way we stopped at a cafe and got croissants (which we thought were plain) to go. They ended up having ham and cheese on the inside with a sweet croissant and it was probably the best thing I've tasted since being here. When we got into the club we checked our coats and got a cup (11:30-12:30 was an open bar). They ended up only having beer, sangria, and moto (?) which is a mixture of wine and coke. After some pushing and shoving and screaming in Spanish we were able to get some drinks and meet some of the other people we hadn't met yet. Some of our guy friends bought rounds of shots and thats when the night really started. Since I suddenly cannot drink vodka anymore (?!) without getting deathly ill, I was taking GREAT tequila shots while everyone else suffered through their vodka. Our friend An met the club promoter and he bought us all rounds of shots and glasses of champagne. We danced for the rest of the night (having to fend of some creepers), then took a taxi back to our apartment. We took off our shoes and crept into the house as to not wake our family because our senora doesn't want us coming home "borrachadas". 
Waking up is ridiculously hard considering its still dark until about 8:30. Today we had to be at class at 9:30, so naturally we didn't wake up until about 8:45. After class Kayla and I came home, at lunch, and took a nap with the aid of our black metal shade (almost like a garage door) that closes over our bedroom window making it completely oscurro. When we woke up we walked down to the mall which is right up the street to look for Toms to wear tomorrow on our trip to Segovia since we will be doing a lot of walking. Of course, we didn't find them but ended up buying a few items in H&M (whoops) and a soy chai latte at Starbucks :). Now we are getting ready to go out for tapas with the girls and then to Club Joy        where we'll be on the VIP list since An has been texting the club promoter (taking one for team). Esta noche va a ser muy divertido!
Hasta mañana  

Deferencias entre Espana y los Estados Unidos...

1. The food comes in much smaller portions
2. The elevators are MINIATURE (mucho claustrophobia) 
3. The beer is better
4. You can only take one shower a day
5. Lunch is the big meal, dinner is not a big deal, and breakfast is only coffee and either a muffin or toast
6. The McDonalds/ Burger Kings are very nice with marble walls and columns outside the door
7. The Metro is extremely nice, with televisions, vending machines and it is very clean (the best in the world*)
8. Dinner isn't until 11 and no one goes out until 1 or 2 am. The bars and clubs stay open until the next morning.

First Days!

       After a surprisingly painless plane ride (thanks to an entire bag of combos and The Social Network) I arrived in Madrid Barajas Airport with no problems at all! I was shoved into a cab with a guy named Eric and before we knew it we were scammed by the first Spaniard we ever spoke to. Who knew you had to pay 5 euro for having a backpack (..wait you don't). We finally arrived at El Hotel Huesa Princesa where I met up with Kayla and had a HUGE lunch of chorizo, vegetales y bistec. I then went to purchase a cell phone which ended up being 19 euro and the size of a bottle of nail polish. After some info sessions and scoping out of my fellow students I took a 3 hour nap to relieve some jetlag. For dinner I went with Kayla and my new friends (An, Sara, Liz, Melissa, Caitlin, Will, Thomas) to El Restaurante Parque and ate tortilla con choriza which was AMAZING. Also, we split some manchego cheese and a bottle of wine (all coming to around 11 euro!). Then a little tipsy, we all made our way to Chapandas, a bar made to look like you're getting drunk in a cave...stalactites and all! We had some drinks and then stumbled back to our hotel for a good nights rest.

        It was more like a not-so-good nights rest, being as we were all hung over and had to rush through breakfast which most of us ended up losing anyways (whoops). We then sat through some painful talks about classes before meeting our señoras. Ours is named Carmen and she is muy buena! She has a husband, Miguel, and a daughter, Celia. They are all very nice and have a gorgeous apartment on the west side of Madrid. Kayla and I have bunk beds and amazingly fit all of our clothes in the closet (Carmen was not readily convinced that we would). After unpacking we went to the IES Abroad center for a comprehension test to determine which level of grammar courses we would be placed in. It was surprisingly easy (hopefully all the classes will be this easy - doubt it). Kayla and I then made our 15 minute walk back to the apartment, met with Carmen, and got the metro to the center of Madrid where we met with some more people to walk around the city a bit. We found an amazing cafe, Cerveceria Montaditos, which had a billion tiny french bread sandwiches to choose from. We ordered some of jamon, chicken, chorizo, and (drum roll...) the BEST hot dog I have ever had in my entire life. We would've enjoyed the 1 euro beers if our stomachs weren't still in recovery mode from the previous night. We also saw a bunch of prostitutes...? Anyway, we then got the bus back to our apartment and are about to pass out for a MUCH needed sleep.

Hasta Luego!