Pie, Museos, y el Templo

I’ve been sitting here for the past five minutes, trying to think of something witty or funny to start off this blog post, but I’ve got nothing. Sorry folks. This has been such a chill week. Nothing super exciting to report. Just life in Spain. Ok, yeah, that in itself is pretty darn exciting. But it seems so normal! And it is completely normal to the 45,957,671 Spaniards who live here. Does that make me a Spaniard now?? Ok, maybe that’s a stretch, but I am feeling quite at home here.

Report on my Spanish: better. For a while, I definitely felt like it was steadily getting worse. I understand so much more now, and I’m using my blank, I-don’t-understand face less and less. Progress! Speaking? Eh… it’s coming. Not as quickly as I would like, but really, that’s a whole ‘nother ball game.

What was on tap this week? Well, this has been the first (and last) week where I’ve had four days of classes. Wow, my life is sooooo hard. :)

Monday I went to the grocery store for the first time (they’re basically the same as American grocery stores) and bought ingredients for an apple pie. I wanted to make an American dish for Mari, and like mom says, you don’t get any more American than an apple pie. It was difficult to explain this dessert to Mari because they don’t have pie here, so there are no words to describe it. Try to imagine life without pie. Yeah, I don’t know how they do it.

Tuesday was mall day. Let me tell you, going to the mall in Spain is so much more exciting than going to the mall back home. Now I finally understand why all my foreign friends are always super excited to go to our malls. So I bought myself the cutest, red leather jacket. And it was 30 percent off to boot. Bam. Watch out boys, how can you resist a girl in leather?!

This was also a momentous day, because I tried Happy Hippos for the first time. Basically, they are heaven in your mouth, and if I could, I would bring back just a suitcase full of them. Luckily, I can purchase them on Amazon!

Wednesday was the “Day of the Museums” in Madrid, meaning that every museum was open for free! But first, Erin and I made the above mentioned apple pie. After a lot of guessing on measurements (we couldn’t find any measuring utensils. But really, who measures anyway? I prefer throwing things together, and it usually turns out better), our masterpiece was complete. And it was delicious. Like one of the best apple pies ever, made right here in Spain, a country that doesn’t even have pies. What a crazy concept. Mari loved it. Abuelita ate her piece in 30 seconds. It’s too bad we can’t capture flavors like we can capture pictures. Someone needs to get to work on that.

So we really only went to one museum. Well, maybe one and a half. The one is called El Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza (don’t ask me to pronounce it, especially in Spanish) and is another art museum. I actually enjoyed this one a lot. It featured many landscapes, which are the best, and many impressionist artists, such as van Gogh and Monet. I definitely wouldn’t mind hanging some Monet in my home someday. Impressionism is a 19^th century movement originating in Paris. Artists used small, thin, visible brush strokes of mixed and pure colors, rather than perfectly blended colors. It’s beautiful.

The half was La Biblioteca Nacional (National Library). I say half, because we were only there for five minutes. We went in expecting to see the book collection. I don’t know if that part was closed or what, but we couldn’t go in. So we looked around the “museum” part, which, let’s be honest, just isn’t the same, and left. The end.

Perhaps the highlight of the week was going to the Madrid Temple. This was my first time going through a baptismal session all in Spanish, and it was so cool. There is just something about the peace and calm in the temple. It was exactly what I needed. Plus, the temple is gorgeous. It’s interesting to see the Muslim influence on some of the decorating (Spanish culture has been heavily influenced by Muslim culture, since Muslims ruled Spain for centuries). Another great example of how the church is the same everywhere, yet so personal at the same time. If you would like, I highly suggest reading this devotional given by R. Kirk Belnap. About two-thirds of the way down it talks about the Madrid Temple and the importance of Islam in laying a foundation for the restoration. You won’t be disappointed.

Well, half my time in Spain is officially up. Where did all that time go? The older I get, the faster it goes, and I’ve heard that never stops. But I don’t mind. It helps me appreciate the time I do have in these experiences.

Alcalá de Henares

Yeah, so much for resting today, but I think I beat the jet lag anyway. I’ve been feeling pretty amazing, although that may have to do with the fact that I’m chilling in paradise. Just a guess.

Today we went on a mini tour after our test (it was freaking hard, but I guess they need to know what I don’t know, which apparently is a lot). The lady talked super fast so I didn’t understand too much of it. Luckily a bunch of us went on an impromptu exploration of the city later. Alcalá is technically part of Madrid. It’s like what the Bronx or Manhattan or Queens are to New York. I often find myself forgetting that I’m walking down streets, not sidewalks or pathways. In the center especially, most of the streets are cobblestone. So much care is taken to keep the city beautiful. There are people hired specifically to clean the city. Although, there is graffiti EVERYWHERE (except on important monuments and historical sites). Maybe it’s considered an art? Or maybe it’s because I’m a white girl from North Idaho and I never see graffiti. Who knows, but it looks cool.

I think what I love most about the people here is that they are so relaxed and they take so much time to just enjoy life. They only work to live, instead of only living to work. The career is a much larger part of our culture than of theirs. I sometimes wonder if they even work at all! There are so many people outside, walking around with friends and family, right in the middle of the day. And of course there is the siesta. Between 2:00 and 5:00 almost all the shops are closed so the owners and workers can go home and rest. Could we please introduce this tradition to the US?

So it turns out that I have one class a day for an hour and a half and no class on Friday. Heck yes! That means lots of free time, which hopefully translates into lots of exploring. Alcalá is actually quite large. I’ve really only been to el centro. El centro is the main part of the city with all the historical sites and most of the cafés with tapas! Tapas are a wonderful thing. When you go to a restaurant here, you usually order tapas. They are like appetizers to us. I’m sure you could order an entire meal but most people go for these tapas. Usually they are finger foods and you can sit at tables outside in the plazas and eat them. On a side note, they go great with Fanta! It’s very fun and a big part of the social life here. Supermarkets are highly uncommon. You won’t find a Walmart or a Target anywhere, at least in Alcalá. Maybe if you go to a bigger city, like Madrid. Anyway, they have little shops with specific needs. At a carnicería you’ll find meant. At a frutería you’ll find produce. At a panadería you’ll find bread, and also ice cream strangely enough. But there are also heladerías for that. There are so many of these shops that you never live far from one. So the people don’t stock up on things like bread and meat. They often get it fresh for the day.

I saw the Museo de Arqueología. It goes through much of the archeology they have done in Spain. It’s rumored that los vascos (Basques, a group of people in Northern Spain) are descended from Neanderthals so there is some pretty old stuff. They’ve also uncovered things like elephant remains. Hannibal did go up through Spain in his invasion of the Roman Empire, maybe that’s how they got here?

I also went in la Catedral Magistral. It’s a Catholic cathedral dedicated to los santos niños Justo and Pastor, who were martyred by a Roman emperor. It was breathtaking. You walk in and the entire structure is made of marble. As you walk around the perimeter there are multiple alcoves dedicated to different saints (possibly the patron saints of the city, but I’m not sure). There are places for the people to pray to each saint, and in the center of the large hall are lots of benches. I believe they still hold mass. In the back is a little shrine for los santos niños. It’s interesting, since the rule of Franco when everyone was forced to be Catholic, Spaniards have become very apathetic toward religion and many avoid it, but there is still a lot of devotion to the patron saints. Each city has a holiday and festival for its saint. I guess any reason for a fiesta is a good one!

It was Madrid versus Barcelona today in none other than fútbol. Unfortunately, I couldn’t go to the actual game. That would have been sick. So I did the next best thing. Watched it on TV in Spain, obviously way cooler than watching it on TV in the US. Some other members of the group and I tried to find a restaurant or something to watch it in, but the one we ended up at was basically empty. Boring. You have to watch soccer with a bunch of crazy fans. So I ended up going back to their house to watch it with their familia. The family was rooting for Barcelona so I did to. I didn’t want to get kicked out! You just don’t mess with those rivalries here. But we have to keep that on the DL, because being so close to Madrid, naturally the majority of the city roots for them. Barcelona dominated 2-0. Better luck next time!

Here are some other photos of Alcalá. Enjoy!

¡Bienvenidos a España!

Oh my freak, I’m in Spain. You know that moment, when the realization that a long-anticipated event is really happening hits you like a ton of bricks? Well, that realization finally hit me as I stepped off that stuffy plane and breathed in the sweet, Spanish air. What an interesting trip it has been getting here.

First, yesterday doesn’t even seem real. If I didn’t have a blog post to prove it, I would have thought that I dreamt the entire thing. Of course it may have something to do with the fact that this has felt like one long, continuous day and that I got somewhere between only 30 minutes and 3 hours of sleep on the plane. Yeah, I’m kinda exhausted. But I’m trying to fight that jet lag by making it until hopefully 9:00 tonight (Tuesday). I’m not entirely sure I’ll make it.

Second, right after that lovely realization hit me, it quickly faded away as we proceeded to spend the next five hours at the airport. Our plane arrived at 7:50 AM, Madrid time (for all you Pacific Standard Timers out there, that is 10:50 PM, your time). Our bus was supposed to pick us up at 10:30 but somehow didn’t appear until 1:00ish. Let me tell you, sitting around in one airport does not feel any different from sitting around in another airport, whether it’s foreign or not. At 10:30 our group progressed outside. Luckily, it was sunny and beautiful, but I felt like I was in California, not Spain.

Now finally, as I’m sitting on my bed at the home of my host family, I really do feel as if I’m a long way from home. I’m definitely not in Kansas anymore, or Utah, or Idaho, or anywhere else familiar for that matter. And there is so much Spanish! It’s a little overwhelming, but I have a feeling that I’ll get used to it real fast, since that’s all I will be hearing and speaking. The city I’m living in, Alcalá de Henares, is so beautiful. The entire city is like a giant work of art. It’s also the city where Miguel de Cervantes, author of Don Quixote, was born and lived. There is so much rich history here. I can’t wait to learn more!

The family I am staying with is very sweet. The woman’s name is Conchi, or Mari. She says either one works. Her mother lives here as well. I think her name is Concepción, but I couldn’t really tell. She’s a little difficult to understand but she is adorable. Mari has two daughters, both married, and three grandkids. I met one of them, Hugo, who just turned one. She has a little dog named Mafí and a parakeet. She is one of the most thoughtful women I’ve ever met! She is going to all this trouble just to get the internet set up here at the apartment for us. She knows it is important for me to stay in contact with mi familia.

I’ve always wondered what it’s like to live in an apartment in the city and now I get to find out. I like it so far. I feel so connected to everything that is going on because I am right in the middle. I’m not sure how close her apartment (or piso as they call it) is to the school but she says it’s an easy walk. Here is a view of our bedroom.

And a view from the window.

Not too bad, eh? I think I could get used to this. Bonus, we travel to a different city every weekend! Sooo cool! Tomorrow, we’ll go to the university and take an aptitude test. If we fail, they kick us out and send us home. Not really. That would be terrible! Our professor just wants to know where everyone is at so the other professors can teach appropriately. Then we have the rest of the day to keep resting. Thursday is the start of classes for us. I think usually we’ll have four class days a week and then travel the other days.

Mi compañera, Erin, arrived a while after I did. 

I think we’ll have lots of fun being roommates and we’re both taking the same classes too. She seems like a very sweet girl and I can’t wait to get to know her better. Plus, it kinda makes me feel like a secret agent, knowing that I can slip into another language to discuss secret affairs. Not that we will. It’s strictly Spanish here of course.