After a few days in Madrid…
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 also had my first day of classes on Friday, July 4. I’m taking three classes, but on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays, I only have two. I start my day off with the History of Spanish Art (Velazquez – Miró). There are only four students in the class, including me, but because it was our first day, a quarter of the class had gotten lost and hence didn’t show up for the first day. I’m finding the metro system very easy to navigate, but multiple people have gotten a bit confused throughout these days. I guess I just have a knack for direction once you put a map in front of me! I think I am going to really enjoy my Art History class. Although the first lecture focused on basic art history knowledge, and the progression from Greco-Roman art to the beginnings of our course, I thought the way the professor explained various terms and ideas was different than I’m used to, and it added a sort of freshness to my knowledge. For example, I really enjoyed how she described the progression of art from the Renaissance: the Italian Renaissance was founded on ideas of beauty, symmetry, and humanism, where as the Northern Renaissance was ultimately a result of the invention of oil paint, a technique rather than an idea. The combination of the southern “idea” and the northern “technique” is what pushed art forward into the modern age. I am the only student who has taken a legitimate art history class, so it was interesting hearing the reactions of the other two girls (we’re all girls there!). When learning about linear perspective, our professor drew an example on the board. Jaws dropped!
My second class is Spanish Conversation. I decided to add this class into my schedule on orientation day. I had taken a Spanish placement exam in order to see where I currently stand with the language, and found out that I’m actually pretty proficient! Having not studied Spanish since 11th grade, I was placed into Track IV (don’t ask me what that means) and Conversation II (the highest level of conversation offered in my program). I’m hoping that the class will ready me for some great talking when I get to visit my family in Malaga!!!
Lastly, I will be taking a Spanish Culture class, but alas, I cannot write about my experience until tomorrow when I have my first session.
I’ve made several friends, here, already, and I’m really enjoying my time. I have been trying to keep myself quite busy, but it is difficult to constantly be awake. The days are really long, and so are the nights. On Friday, I stayed out from 8:00 in the morning until 1:30 at night (only quickly stopping home to drop things off). Because of this long day, I wasn’t able to fully awake until 2:00 in the afternoon the following day! I’m learning that I need to pace myself. Just because I am in Spain and with people who like to stay out and go to bars all night, it doesn’t mean that I always have to go out as well. It is also a bit difficult to stay up late, here, because the public transportation (excluding the night bus, which I don’t know how to use) stops running at around 2:00 AM. If I did decide to stay out late, I wouldn’t be able to get home, and if I wanted to leave a little earlier than my friends, I would end up having to travel alone. So now I’m thinking that I’ll have only one late night per week, if that!
Places Visited So Far
Quite nearby my apartment is a large park called El Parque del Buen Retiro. I would compare it to Central Park, as it has a big lake where one can rent a paddle boat, and various other areas with fountains and stalls at which to buy souvenirs. I’m surprised how green it actually is, considering I don’t usually associate Spain with greenery.
Every week, Gabriela, our housing coordinator, sends the USAC students a list of things to do on the weekends. Included on the list are the times during which various attractions are free to the public. Yesterday, I decided to check out the Museo de Escultura al Aire Libre de Alcalá de Henares, a place listed in our e-mail as “always free.” I was imagining a park filled with sculptures. A little disappointing, it ended up being a collection of sculptures and installation under an overpass. Finding it was a bit difficult, as my friend, Catherine (there’s a little shout-out for you!), and I walked in a big circle before stumbling across it.
This is a bit awkward… I was just looking up the museum online (so that I could include a link for you), and it turns out I wasn’t in the right place. Though the sculptures I saw were probably some of the sculptures from the museum, the Wiki page states that there are 58 sculptures on site. I think I might have to go back now!
El Rastro! Yesterday I decided to take a walk in the area that the HUGE FLEA MARKET would be located. The streets were empty, the stores were closed. Today, however, the scenery had totally changed. Stalls marked every inch of the place, and there were crowds of people blocking my every movement. Many of the stalls sold similar things – shirts, souvenirs, you name it! But there were some cool and unique things to find. Here, look at what I got!
This week was Gay Pride Week in Madrid. The gay district, Chueca, is jam packed with people and bustling bars. The other day, I was welcomed home by loud music. Turns out, the street right by my apartment was the site of the Gay Pride Parade! What a pleasant surprise.
