It is the last day of classes, and all that awaits me tomorrow are finals and goodbyes. I thought it would be a good opportunity, as I have finished all of my coursework, note-taking, museum visits, and presentations, to reflect on my experience in the most enjoyable class of the three in which I enrolled: Spanish Art History II – 1700 to the Present. § Read the rest of this entry…
The second organized trip on which my program took us was to a small town outside of Madrid, San Lorenzo de El Escorial (the town simply named El Escorial is a neighboring village). Within this small area resides a humongous palace, built by King Philip II of Spain. Within the large complex there is a school, a monastery, a library, a church, and the old king’s residence (until the mid-19th century). Today, the monastery and school are still functioning, though the monastery only holds 21 monks as opposed to 200 at its peak. The original library of El Escorial was so large, it was second only to the Vatican. Unfortunately, most of the books were destroyed in a fire. But, let me give you a brief overview of my time in the austere edifice.
My study abroad trip includes two weekend excursions! Our first journey was to Segovia on Saturday, July 12. All I knew about the small, historic city was that it featured a very scenic, fairy tale-looking castle, so I was pretty excited to go learn some more! I woke up at 6:30 AM, a full thirty minutes before my normal wake-up time, because the bus was set to leave la Universidad Rey Juan Carlos at 8:45. Like usual, I awoke before my roommate and left as she was emerging from her room with sleepy eyes. The bus ride is only about an hour long, but I’m not exactly sure the true duration as I slept all the way there.
Itinerary:
El Alcázar
Plaza Mayor – Free time
(I went to the Gothic Cathedral, watched a dance performance in the plaza, and visited the church in which Queen Isabel I of Castille got crowned the Catholic Queen)
Lunch – Cochinillo
Roman Aqueduct
As I mentioned the other day, I went to the International Student Identification Card office to receive my ISIC card this past Tuesday. While I was there waiting for the woman to get off the phone, I looked around the office and found a lot of information for tourists and travelers in Madrid. I picked up a book with information on museums, shows, restaurants, and parks, and decided to take it with me. Along with a list of the above mentioned attractions, there were also pages dedicated to current exhibitions. I bookmarked several pages that interested me, and planned a solo-journey to one of them for later that day. § Read the rest of this entry…
Not everything can be pleasant on a month-long trip to a foreign country. I think it would be unfair to only document the positive things on my trip, as it really isn’t an accurate portrayal of my time. Don’t get me wrong, I really am enjoying myself in Madrid, but sometimes I have down moments or experience some questionable things. Okay, let’s get started! § Read the rest of this entry…
Hey all! I’ve been in Spain for about a week now, and I guess a lot has happened. On Thursday (July 3), I had my on-site orientation at the Universidad del Rey Juan Carlos campus, where the directors of the program explained Spanish norms, rules, and safety tips. The weather was quite horrid that day, as it rained and even HAILED!
I can finally say that I’ve been to Europe entirely on my own! I’m not with family, friends, or college acquaintances (though I 
actually found out that there are some people from QC here). I’m totally on my own! After being left off at security by my parents, the trip was quite easy. No luggage to carry, no family to get in a fight with. The line through security went surprisingly quickly. I was hoping to be diverted to the quick lane, but that wasn’t even necessary! JFK has finally found a system that works! But, because I popped through in no time, I had two hours to spare. I guess I was kind of missing company at that point, and I would have loved to turn on my cell and call someone, but… I wanted to start the on my own experience in the most authentic way possible – no contact until I arrived! § Read the rest of this entry…
