Adios, Madrid

Well, if you know me, you know that I'm AWFUL at saying goodbye. This whole week has been so bittersweet between saying goodbye to professors, students, other people from my program, and my host mom. I have a liiiiittle bit of a hard time with change. I'm so excited to go home and see my family but it makes me sad that I'll never be here again in the same way that I am right now. But, such is life, I suppose.

When you study abroad, people always tell you how much you'll learn about the language, the culture, other people, etc. But I didn't realize how much I would learn about myself. Sounds cheesy but it's true! I feel like I have a much better idea of what it is I want to do with the rest of my life and how I want to do it. I've changed and grown in ways that I didn't expect. I feel incredibly lucky to have had this experience.

My sister sent me this quote a few days ago: "A man travels the world over in search of what he needs and returns home to find it." -George Moore. Incredibly appropriate, don't you think? As much as I love Madrid and have loved being here, I've realized that this isn't where my life is. I was here to learn and grow but I'm supposed to go back home, home to my family. It's funny that one of the things I've learned from being here is that I belong somewhere else.

Oh! The link I posted on this blog is of one of my favorite songs- it's quite fitting I think! You ought to listen to it. It just might be the story of my life ;) And here are a few pictures from the week.

Frozen yogurt run

Two more of my girls- Marta and Meiki. Clearly I cried when we said goodbye.

My classmates at Complutense. So many fun memories!

Complutense Campus

Our last night out with almost everyone in our program and friends from class, too.

Sunset at Templo de Debod with Alex. What a beautiful place I have lived in.  

Sorry for the most sentimental and emotional post! I've so enjoyed keeping a blog (Sophie always told me I should keep a diary, I wish I would have done it before now! She's always right...) and I hope you've enjoyed reading it too! Happy, happy holidays :)

Te echare de menos mucho, Madrid. Ha sido fantastico. Todo bueno llega a un fin- todavia no estoy lista! Pero eso es lo bonito de la vida. Nunca sabes que te espera. Enves de estar triste, ponte a pensar que es lo que sigue.

"Let the beauty we love become the good we do." -Rumi

One more week...!!!

Friday was such a busy day. Our flight got into Madrid around 10:00 am and I got home just before 11:00. Right after class I headed to off to teaching with Sara (my favorite). We listened to Justin Beiber, practiced for her exam on Tuesday, and pretended to go shopping. Really quite successful! Then I went straight from teaching to a play with the Dr.’s Boeck. It was called “Tres” and was a comedy about three middle-aged women who are high school friends, each of which is looking to have a baby. It was really funny and something different- lots of fun!

In comparison, the rest of this weekend has been very calm. Last night the five of us from the Amsterdam/Dublin trip went out for sangria and tapas for a couple hours. But mostly, Saturday and today I’ve been busy catching up on my sleep and updating my pictures and, of course, this blog.

News Flash! I will on a plane on week from right now. Such a strange feeling. It's just so odd to think that we had our last paella Sunday today and that Blanca will only do my laundry once more and that our last dinner all together as DePaul students here is on Thursday... But anyway! Hope you enjoy all the new posts from my vacation this past week! See you soon!

Just one of my favorite pictures from Dublin.

Dublin: Day 2

Thursday, the last of our trip, was an amazing one. We did and saw so much and the five of us had such a good time together. It’s just unreal that here I am in Europe, able to travel to three different countries within a week, with great girls and have a fabulous time. I am so lucky! Time seemed to pass so slowly during our trip and, at the same time, it seems like it just flew by, as if it were a dream. Study abroad is really just an amazing, life-changing experience. Again, I am SO lucky! Okay, now back to Dublin!

We woke up early Thursday morning and ate breakfast in the hostel. We left our bags there for the day and went, first, to Trinity College, which is basically like the Oxford of London. Can you imagine going to school there?! How cool! We looked around the campus and then went to see the Book of Kells. It is one of Ireland’s most prized artifacts- an ancient book containing handwritten and illustrated versions of the four gospels. The exhibit lead you through how the Book of Kells was made and has been maintained. So interesting. And then at the end we could see the actual book, which is beautiful. Then we walked up to the old library, the “Long Room,” in Trinity College, which is filled with over 200,000 books and historical documents pertaining to things like Ireland’s declaration of independence from Great Britain. Seeing Trinity College was a great learning experience.

Street view along our walk

And one of the river, too

Trinity College campus

Second, we went to see St. Patrick’s Cathedral. On our way, we walked past Christ’s Church and the Dublin Castle. The cathedral was founded on stones from the river where the saint baptized pagan Irish. It’s a beautiful space that we were lucky enough to be able to take pictures of- first time we could ever do that in a place of worship. St. Patrick’s Cathedral was full of both Christian and historical monuments- it was really interesting to see how the two played together. After the cathedral, we walked around the park adjoining it to snap a few more pictures and then went to a café. Lovely little place. One of the places where I felt the “I’m so lucky” feeling. The five of us chatted and ate, felt relaxed, calm, and content.

Inside of the Cathedral

And another

View of St. Patricks from the park

SOLD.

Cutest place of my life

After we had thoroughly warmed up (Ireland was cold and covered in ice), we walked to the Guinness Storehouse. This was one of the moments where we must have looked pretty lost. An older man stopped us on the street corner and asked if we knew where we were going. We told him and he informed us, in his sweet Irish accent, that we were going in completely the wrong direction. He then proceeded to lead the five of us to the Guinness Storehouse, which was probably about a thirty-minute walk, chatting all the while and stopping to tell us about different places along the way. When we arrived, he shook each of our hands and said, “If I were a young man, I would be chatting you up!” It was one of my favorite moments in Dublin J

The Guinness Storehouse is serious business! People are intense about their beer in Ireland. It is a 7-story museum of sorts that tells you all about how Guinness is made and its history. It was very interesting the space was really cool. At the end of the self-guided tour is a bar on the 7^th floor, a sky deck of sorts, with panoramic views of the Dublin. Since I can’t drink beer, I sipped a delicious glass of orange Fanta and enjoyed the views!

On our way back to hostel we stopped at a department store called Penney’s where I purchased the best thing of my whole life: a Sherpa. It’s a man’s flannel shirt with sheep’s wool on the inside. It’s so comfy and so warm, I don’t even care that I look like a lumberjack in it. We headed to another pub for dinner then to a second pub for Irish coffee and cider, where they were playing live music. We chatted for a few hours, ended up asking a man to take our picture who happened to be from Chicago. Then, off to the airport around 10:00 pm for another restless night before our flight at 6:30 am.

Sherpa loving

So much fun with the five of us!

Really, just the best vacation.  

Dublin: Day 1

We left for Dublin on Wednesday morning. I slept like a rock on the plane (SO tired!) and on the bus from the airport into the city. My first impression of Dublin is that people who live there are incredibly kind. Every time the five of us looked at a map or appeared a little lost (which I’m sure was quite often), someone would ask us if we needed directions or where it was we were going. Such great people. We got to our hostel around 1:00 pm. By far the best hostel I’ve ever stayed at. It was SO nice. Our first meal in Dublin was fish and chips, so cliché, then we took a power nap.

So. Much. Food.

Afterward, we went exploring, always a classic, and headed to the archaeological museum that the Drs. Boeck had told us we should see. It was in a great location- we passed by the Bank of Ireland and Trinity College on our way there. The museum was so strange but so interesting too. I learned a lot about Irish history there! After the museum, we walked around the shopping district, which was strung with lights similar to Amsterdam. But in comparison, Dublin is so much bigger and busier than Amsterdam- two totally different feels.

Street view along the walk

Museum

Christmas lights in the shopping district

And more

Then came my favorite part of the day:  meeting up with my roommate Laney!!!!! I haven’t seen her since we moved out of our apartment in June and she’s been in Ireland since I’ve been in Spain. I was so so so excited to see her! We got a little lost along the way, but when we finally found her and her friends at one of their apartments, we all had so much fun together. It was so wonderful and I was so happy that I was able to see her! We all chatted at the apartment and then headed out to an Irish bar, Flannery’s. Such a great night!

Reunited and it feels so good :)

Amsterdam: Day 2

Our second day in Amsterdam was a productive one! We woke up around 8:00 am to meet up with our friend Lauren, who had been with her dad the night before. Our first stop was the Anne Frank House. Going there was a truly amazing and moving experience. It is definitely something that everyone should put on their bucket lists to see. The museum is extremely well done and it’s so strange and eerie to see the space that the Frank family lived in. There is no longer any furniture in the house but Anne’s room is covered in the original wallpaper that is posted over with pictures that she chose to put up. Very moving space, a must-see.

Statue of Anne Frank

Second, we went to a café for lunch, where Alex and I shared a delicious and traditional-Dutch pea soup and a chicken avocado sandwich (sans bread for me). We walked through the shopping district, where I happened to buy a hat that makes me look absolutely silly but that I LOVE. After that, we all walked to the museum campus in Amsterdam, similar to the museum campus in Chicago. We decided on the Van Gogh museum, which was amazing. The museum was so well-done; as you walked through it, it told the story of the artist’s life and described each painting, which I liked because then I actually knew what I was looking at. The museum also featured artists that influenced or were influenced by Van Gogh. Very cool place!

Yummy lunch!

Shopping district

View of the non-foggy canal. Really quite beautiful!

Van Gogh Museum

After walking back to our hostel, we decided to do a progressive dinner, which ended up taking about three hours since we walked around the city between each place (we found the second Christmas plaza along the way!). We started with some hot chocolate at a little pub, then to a Mexican restaurant for nachos (I know, strange combination), then to an Irish pub for the yummiest potato leek soup EVER. Oh, and some fries. The pub was so cozy and warm and Christmas-y. I just loved it. Such a great way to end our second day.

If you’ve never been, you have to go. I feel like all people think about when they think of Amsterdam is that “everything is legal there.” But the city is so much more than that- it might be my favorite place I’ve ever been in Europe. It’s absolutely beautiful, there is so much to do and see, the people are friendly, the food is great- I have absolutely no complaints. I love Amsterdam.

Amsterdam: Day 1

Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday were all Spanish holidays. Technically there wasn't a holiday on Tuesday but the holidays on Monday and Wednesday joined together to form what is called a "puente," or bridge, so that I had a five-day weekend. Thank youuuu, Spain. I had planned a trip to Amsterdam and Dublin with Lindsey, Alex, Pam, and Katie (all girls from my study abroad program) about a month or so ago- but I didn't feel like I was ACTUALLY going until Sunday!

Off we go!

In order to save money (and, much to my horror and dismay... I don't want to talk about it) we spent the night in the airport on Sunday night. Our flight took off around 6:00 am Monday morning, so our only other option would have been to cab it to the airport in the middle of the night. So, there we were, all ready to go with tons of snacks and our backpacks, in a little corner nook of the Barajas Airport. Things like this- hostel showers, airport sleeping- are things I would have never, EVER done at home. So I suppose it's a good thing that I'm moving outside of my comfort zone...

Snacks & Stuff

Anyway, our flight ended up being delayed by two hours, once we were already on the plane, of course, due to the weather in Amsterdam. Fortunately, this was somewhat of a blessing in disguise as Alex and I passed out on top of each other once we found our seats and got some solid sleep- something we had been unable to do on the airport floor the night before.

We got into Amsterdam around noon. My first impressions of the city were that it was clean, quiet, and so quaint. It was decorated head to toe for Christmas and the more I thought about it, the more I realized I felt like I was in the North Pole. That's the best way I can think of to describe it! We checked into our hostel, which was quite lovely, really, and went straight to find something to eat. Amsterdam has an amazing selection of food. There were restaurants all around our hostel. We went to a place called Walk the Wok for Indonesian food- SO YUMMY!

Tram & Train Station upon arrival

Yes, I ate all of it.

After lunch, we decided to explore. We all knew we wanted to go to the Anne Frank House the next day, so we went to go see if we could buy tickets in advance. If you didn’t know, (which I didn’t!) Amsterdam is a canal city. Almost every street has a canal running through it and tons of boats are docked in it. We walked for about an hour through the quiet, foggy city. It was incredibly beautiful but also so different from anywhere else I’ve ever been. I just really loved it. Oh, and we realized that nobody drives in Amsterdam. Everyone and their mother bikes, even though its wintertime, and their public transportation is a tram rather than busses and trains. Another reason why I think the city is so precious.

Bikes galore!

Foggy Canal

Street View

We stopped in a coffeeshop to warm up, then went back to the hostel for a few snacks, left over from the night before, and a power nap. We took another walk to see the palace (which is, unfortunately, under restoration) and Amsterdam’s national monument. We stopped at Louis Bar, “the smallest pub in town,” for a drink, then it was off to eat, again. It seems that my blog always revolves around food! We went to a delicious little Dutch restaurant on the corner across from our hostel that was full of strange and funny locals. Finally, we walked around a little bit more and stumbled upon one of the two Christmas plazas in Amsterdam. It was a small, open space filled with stands selling delicious, warm food and drinks, an ice skating rink, and tons and tons of Christmas decorations and lights.This is why it felt like the North Pole! We ended the night there with a couple of yummy desserts then, off to bed!

National Monument

Louis Bar

Christmas Plaza

Granada- The Alhambra- Saturday, November 27th

Saturday was dedicated to the Alhambra. The space was originally a Muslim palace complex, a city all in itself, built at the top of city in the 14th century. When Granada was overtaken by Ferdinand and Isabel at the end of the 15th century, the Islamic space was converted into a Christian one, but it was kept and maintained as a testament to its beauty. It fell into disrepair in the 18th century but its magic was revived, oddly enough, by Washington Irving, who lived in the palace complex and wrote stories about its rooms and gardens. Now, the Alhambra is one of the "must-see" and most-visited sites in Spain. Its decoration is exceedingly beautiful and ornate and it is famous for its poetic inscriptions that speak, in first person, about the buildings.

The Alhambra was truly amazing to see. My pictures don't come anywhere near to doing the space justice. The day was rainy (as all of our traveling days have been, or so it seems!) but it was still breathtaking. We had a lovely tour guide, Carmen, who became my fast friend (this was beneficial because I could ask her all the questions I wanted!), and told us all about the history of each building. After seeing the Alhambra, we walked along the roads, through the gates and gardens, and up to the palace the Carlos V built. The morning at the Alhambra was so, so wonderful.


Here is a picture of the tops of the pillars- so much detail!



Entrance to the Alhambra- one of the doors leads to the Hall of the Ambassadors but the other is a trapdoor of sorts. When the palace was in use, unwanted visitors would be taken (and executed) through the door on the right.

Ceiling in one of the rooms of the Alhambra- wood and painted tiles.

Hall of the Ambassadors- it is the large space off of the Court of the Myrtles where the ruler would greet important visitors.

Picture of the repeated carving that covers the Hall of the Ambassadors. It's proclaiming the power of Allah- Carmen showed us the inscription for Allah- it's the one farthest to the left, she showed us by putting her three fingers on top of the "W" shaped letter.  

One of the windows in the Hall of the Ambassadors. You can see the carving well in the upper right-hand side of this one!

There are multiple closet-type rooms off of the Court of the Myrtles. No one really knows what their purpose was but no matter how small they are, the are incredibly ornate.

Ceiling- one of the amazing examples of mathematics in the Alhambra! Each piece of the ceiling was carved and brought, piece by piece, into the room to be put together. It has an almost stalagtite type look- amazing detail.  

Court of the Lions- unfortunately, the fountain in the center surrounded by twelve carved lions is being restored so we weren't able to see the courtyard in its full glory

Pillars in the Court of the Lions- I can't remember how many pillars there are in the entire courtyard but its a beautiful sight, they're all slender and made perfectly the same

Ceiling in the Hall of the Two Sisters- there are seven layers to represent the seven heavens in Islam 

Hall of the Two Sisters- named for one of the stories that Washington Irving wrote about the Alhambra of two Muslim princes pining away for Chistian knights

View from a hallway window into a courtyard

View from the Alhambra's rooms, looking down over the city and across to the mountains

Part of the garden complex outside of the Alhambra

Courtyard in the palace of Carlos V

Hope you enjoyed the pictures! Definitely look the Alhambra up online- there is so much more to say about it that I didn't cover and you would get to see some even better pictures!