Today is the last day I have until all the madness starts. I'm excited! I had my appointment today at 11am at the National Police station for my NIE (Number for identification of foreigners). I was late, but no biggie, I'm in Spain. No one cared and they didn't even ask if I had an appointment! I didn't know that I needed to make photocopies of everything so when I got there the man was telling me I needed photocopies of all this stuff. (So I had to run across the street to a quick print store and make the stupid photocopies.) When I came back the disgruntled worker gave me a ticket with a number to wait in line. I got two forms I had to fill out, and I didn't have a pen. I went back in line to ask if I could borrow a pen, the grumpy attendant replied, "No! This is mine." Alright then! Luckily I found a lady with a large purse and asked if I could borrow one of her pens and she so kindly handed me one. This place was like the United State's DMV. No one wanted to be there, there were lines to things that make no sense, and not enough seats or room to stand while waiting for your number to be called on. When my number was finally called I went over to the table to find a nice lady asking me for all my paperwork. She went through all my papers and said I was missing my photocopy of my visa, which they did not tell me to make a copy of. She made the copy real quick and then we had a printing disaster. For some reason this department thought buying two printers that look like ones you would use for personal use at home would be sufficient. Apparently not, they spent a good half an hour holding everyone up to fix their printers. I sat there listening to a chinese couple try to speak Spanish. It was a strange accent.
They gave me my temporary N.I.E. card which is a number that I can use while in Spain for things that I couldn't do if I was just a tourist. For example, I wouldn't be able to buy the discount train/metro tickets without this. I can also open a bank account here for direct deposit for my stipend from the school. I'm crossing my fingers hoping that everything goes through ok and in 40 days I get to go back to the mad house to pick up my ID. Can't wait for that trip!
Susana had the bike fixed that I'm going to use. I picked it up today from the bike shop and it was in worse condition than when we left it there. It wouldn't change gears right. She went with me back to the shop to yell at them, and I did not understand a word they were saying because it was a fast talking argument but she got some of her money back and the bike fixed. Apparently they had put a chain that was not the correct fit on it, so it would slip when I was biking up and down hills. She takes the time to explain things to me, even in the middle of an argument to make sure I'm understanding what everyone is saying. She will also tell people I am learning Spanish and to speak slowly to me. Haha! It was weird at first, but I like it because Spaniards are very helpful when it comes to trying to learn their language.
Tomorrow I have orientation at the University of Alcalá. It will be nice to meet everyone in the program and figure out where everyone is living and who is teaching in what schools. I think we are also touring Madrid, which I'm sure is the same tour I had when I was here for undergrad at the University. I'm still excited though! Then on Friday I have orientation at the private school I'll be teaching English in. Then I have the weekend, and school starts Monday!
Thanks for reading! Feel free to post as many comments as you want! Haha!
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
Saturday, August 27, 2011
Its a great start!
I've been a little bored these past couple of days, but I'm slowly getting to know my "roommates" or "family" here in Majadahonda, España. They've been treating me really well and I am really starting to feel like I am part of their family. Susana had me go with her to walk the dogs today because she was worried that I would get lost running in the park, so she wanted to show me what routes to take, and when to turn around before I run into the next town. We took bikes out and the two dogs, León y Lilu. Susana does this every so often, but it was hilarious to see her tying the dogs to the bike with a 2 foot leash. They did great. She let them loose once we got to the park. The park here is like a desert, it was hilarious to hear her referring to landmarks like the "stream", that were actually completely dry. It looked like a trench. She said, "well its a stream because in the winter theres water in it sometimes, and sometimes after it rains, but only for a little bit." At least I know where to run now. I'll be watching for any collection of water in this desert like stream. She's been so nice and keeps telling me to let her know if she's being to bossy. She says I know I'm not your mother, but I know your mother would want you to eat better while your here and plops food on my plate that she's prepared for the family. I feel bad and tell her no, but she says she would feel bad if I reject it and to eat it. If I say I like it I get more, so I've been trying to just say "its good," instead of, "I like it."
Hugo wanted my help looking for apartments for his studies in London. He is going for 6 or so months to do his "internship" with an accounting firm from Spain, but in their London office. He almost picked a flat that was a scam, but Hugo copied and pasted the e-mail he received from the landlord into a google search to find that it was a huge scam. She wanted him to send £500 by western union but in his name just to make sure that he had the money up front. It seemed like there was no way she would be able to collect the money, but apparently its a huge scam that somehow works in London. I think he's still looking and wants me to help call and talk to a few people for him tomorrow.
Ivan is finishing his final exams for the summer and has been helping me learn how to cook spanish foods with Susana when he has time. I'm trying to get to know him a little better since I will see him more than Hugo. Susana is thinking we are going to be best friends. She has high hopes. He doesn't know any English, so he will randomly ask me how to say things in English like, "Whats up?" or other greetings. Tonight we watched "The Blind side" (Un sueño posible) and it was funny to try to explain the rules of football in Spanish to him. He was very interested but I was struggling with trying to tell him what was going on.
Also Hugo and Ivan are hilarious when they teach me new words. They keep teaching me Spain slang words like, "vaya patuki" which means, "hey there honey." They do it in front of their Mom who is always scolding them for teaching me these things! Haha! They also teach me all the spanish cuss words I could ever need. Susana is always right there saying, "but don't say that!" Haha!
As for Carlos, the Dad, he's always gone on some business trip or golfing expedition with his friends. When he is here, he is always asking everyone to come eat together or watch the news during siesta. Its funny to hear Hugo talk about him, because he says that his Dad tells everyone that he speaks English, but he hasn't said a word to me yet in English. Hugo said he thinks knowing how to say, "Hello" and "Goodbye" makes him fluent. He's always asking me things about home or school when he is around though.
Well thanks for reading yet another blog. Sorry no pictures in this one. I've just been around the house. I need to get a picture of everyone before Hugo leaves so I can put it on my blog for you all to put a face with a name. Hope everyone is staying safe from all earthquakes and hurricanes going on over there. The weather took a turn here and it has been gorgeous. In the high 80's during the day and high 60's at night. No need for AC in this weather, or I've just stopped sweating because I couldn't possibly sweat anymore than I already have. Annnnd that's enough for tonight! ¡Buenas noches!
Hugo wanted my help looking for apartments for his studies in London. He is going for 6 or so months to do his "internship" with an accounting firm from Spain, but in their London office. He almost picked a flat that was a scam, but Hugo copied and pasted the e-mail he received from the landlord into a google search to find that it was a huge scam. She wanted him to send £500 by western union but in his name just to make sure that he had the money up front. It seemed like there was no way she would be able to collect the money, but apparently its a huge scam that somehow works in London. I think he's still looking and wants me to help call and talk to a few people for him tomorrow.
Ivan is finishing his final exams for the summer and has been helping me learn how to cook spanish foods with Susana when he has time. I'm trying to get to know him a little better since I will see him more than Hugo. Susana is thinking we are going to be best friends. She has high hopes. He doesn't know any English, so he will randomly ask me how to say things in English like, "Whats up?" or other greetings. Tonight we watched "The Blind side" (Un sueño posible) and it was funny to try to explain the rules of football in Spanish to him. He was very interested but I was struggling with trying to tell him what was going on.
Also Hugo and Ivan are hilarious when they teach me new words. They keep teaching me Spain slang words like, "vaya patuki" which means, "hey there honey." They do it in front of their Mom who is always scolding them for teaching me these things! Haha! They also teach me all the spanish cuss words I could ever need. Susana is always right there saying, "but don't say that!" Haha!
As for Carlos, the Dad, he's always gone on some business trip or golfing expedition with his friends. When he is here, he is always asking everyone to come eat together or watch the news during siesta. Its funny to hear Hugo talk about him, because he says that his Dad tells everyone that he speaks English, but he hasn't said a word to me yet in English. Hugo said he thinks knowing how to say, "Hello" and "Goodbye" makes him fluent. He's always asking me things about home or school when he is around though.
Well thanks for reading yet another blog. Sorry no pictures in this one. I've just been around the house. I need to get a picture of everyone before Hugo leaves so I can put it on my blog for you all to put a face with a name. Hope everyone is staying safe from all earthquakes and hurricanes going on over there. The weather took a turn here and it has been gorgeous. In the high 80's during the day and high 60's at night. No need for AC in this weather, or I've just stopped sweating because I couldn't possibly sweat anymore than I already have. Annnnd that's enough for tonight! ¡Buenas noches!
Wednesday, August 24, 2011
"Mock" Commuting
Today and yesterday I did what I like to call my "mock" commute. One of the reasons I came early was so that I could figure out how to get to and from my school efficiently and without being late or lost the first day!
Yesterday was the train commute. To sum this one up, it was horrible. The pictures in this section are worth a thousand words. It already sucks that this school is literally in a desert, but what makes it even worse is that there are no people around in this town at all.
Check out the picture of the train station "Las Zorreras" in Navalquejigo (the town which is part of El Escorial)
NOTHING....
More of nothing...
And then something... oh no wait, nothing still...
But then you get to this beautiful large private school that I assume parents must drive their children to and from and they have to be loaded with some € cash money!
So today I did a bus commute which works great! It only took me 40 minutes to get there and the bus takes you right to the door of the school. Everyone looked at me funny when I got off at the school stop because no one is in school right now and the school is in the middle of nowhere. I looked up walking directions because I wanted to see what little the town had to offer. It looked like a short walk to the train station, but actually took me 40 minutes. I definitely won't be taking the train or walking from the train station. The town also only had one restaurant which I couldn't even tell if it was open because I didn't see anyone around it.
I decided to walk to the train station to just see how far it is from the school, but also to go into Madrid and sightsee a little bit. I ended up going to El campo del moro. Which were the gardens of the arabics when they invaded Spain. It was a nice place to just relax a little after all that walking, and I decided to walk around the town a little more, check out some stores, and then head back home for lunch and siesta.
Here are some pictures of how cool the gardens were...
Susana has also started giving me cooking lessons. She thinks I don't eat enough and I'm not cooking the "right" things. So she wants to teach me how to cook Spanish food. Its pretty cool, and it is true. I don't really know how to cook. Last night we made "Lomo con queso" Its Iberican Ham (Jamon iberica) with a spanish aged white cheese on top. The ham is prepared by frying with a pinch of aceite or olive oil. We also made potatoes in the microwave and then put olive oil and salt on them. We also made a salad with, guess what, olive oil, salt, tomatoes, tuna, balsamic vinegar and a pinch of garlic powder.
Oh I also forgot to post pictures of my favorite Spanish dogs León y Lilu... the bigger one León is my favorite. He always comes to meet me at the gate when I walk in.
They don't come in the house, but sometimes León the bigger dog will when its just me and I don't say anything... but I don't think he's allowed!
Yesterday was the train commute. To sum this one up, it was horrible. The pictures in this section are worth a thousand words. It already sucks that this school is literally in a desert, but what makes it even worse is that there are no people around in this town at all.
Check out the picture of the train station "Las Zorreras" in Navalquejigo (the town which is part of El Escorial)
NOTHING....
More of nothing...
And then something... oh no wait, nothing still...
But then you get to this beautiful large private school that I assume parents must drive their children to and from and they have to be loaded with some € cash money!
So today I did a bus commute which works great! It only took me 40 minutes to get there and the bus takes you right to the door of the school. Everyone looked at me funny when I got off at the school stop because no one is in school right now and the school is in the middle of nowhere. I looked up walking directions because I wanted to see what little the town had to offer. It looked like a short walk to the train station, but actually took me 40 minutes. I definitely won't be taking the train or walking from the train station. The town also only had one restaurant which I couldn't even tell if it was open because I didn't see anyone around it.
I decided to walk to the train station to just see how far it is from the school, but also to go into Madrid and sightsee a little bit. I ended up going to El campo del moro. Which were the gardens of the arabics when they invaded Spain. It was a nice place to just relax a little after all that walking, and I decided to walk around the town a little more, check out some stores, and then head back home for lunch and siesta.
Here are some pictures of how cool the gardens were...
Susana has also started giving me cooking lessons. She thinks I don't eat enough and I'm not cooking the "right" things. So she wants to teach me how to cook Spanish food. Its pretty cool, and it is true. I don't really know how to cook. Last night we made "Lomo con queso" Its Iberican Ham (Jamon iberica) with a spanish aged white cheese on top. The ham is prepared by frying with a pinch of aceite or olive oil. We also made potatoes in the microwave and then put olive oil and salt on them. We also made a salad with, guess what, olive oil, salt, tomatoes, tuna, balsamic vinegar and a pinch of garlic powder.
Oh I also forgot to post pictures of my favorite Spanish dogs León y Lilu... the bigger one León is my favorite. He always comes to meet me at the gate when I walk in.
They don't come in the house, but sometimes León the bigger dog will when its just me and I don't say anything... but I don't think he's allowed!
Sunday, August 21, 2011
Heat wave is getting old!
So the days continue here in Madrid with temperatures reaching up to 103 degrees, and some how I am still able to nap (siesta) with the windows open and no AC! Good thing the next couple of days the temperatures will drop to low 90's/high 80's!
I took a couple of pictures of the house outside and in of where I am staying. I like it, but I am starting to get a little homesick. I just think its been hard now because I haven't started my program so there isn't much to do. I thought finding an apartment was going to be a lot harder than it actually was as well as time consuming. But I'd rather be prepared than rushing to find a place and not satisfied with my living conditions for the school year. Well enough of that, here are more pictures! Enjoy!
Here's the street walking down from the bus stop on my way to the house... really nice neighborhood!
Can see part of my window, its right behind that giant tree!
Calle jardín Nº-1 Majdahonda 28220 Madrid Spain! Susana gets so mad that they haven't picked up the organic trash she left from her yard clean up!
The front door! We don't use this door!
Courtyard walking to the kitchen side of the house where we come in and out of.
More courtyard (looking out from my bedroom window)...
Living room...
Kitchen!
Thanks for checking out my blog!
I took a couple of pictures of the house outside and in of where I am staying. I like it, but I am starting to get a little homesick. I just think its been hard now because I haven't started my program so there isn't much to do. I thought finding an apartment was going to be a lot harder than it actually was as well as time consuming. But I'd rather be prepared than rushing to find a place and not satisfied with my living conditions for the school year. Well enough of that, here are more pictures! Enjoy!
Here's the street walking down from the bus stop on my way to the house... really nice neighborhood!
Can see part of my window, its right behind that giant tree!
Calle jardín Nº-1 Majdahonda 28220 Madrid Spain! Susana gets so mad that they haven't picked up the organic trash she left from her yard clean up!
The front door! We don't use this door!
Courtyard walking to the kitchen side of the house where we come in and out of.
More courtyard (looking out from my bedroom window)...
Living room...
Kitchen!
Thanks for checking out my blog!
Friday, August 19, 2011
So I moved out of the hotel I was in... Confortel Atrium (Great hotel if you plan on visiting Madrid ever!) Heres a picture of my room I snapped before I left...
Its official! Just moved into my new place today with Carlos and Susane (husband and wife), their sons, Hugo 24, and Ivan 22 and two dogs Leon and Lilu. The dogs like me and don't bark when I come in and out on my own.
My address is:
Calle jardin Nº-1
Majadahonda 28220
Madrid, Spain
Its a freezing 102 degrees Fahrenheit right now here in Madrid, and the new place doesn't use their air conditioning... SO EXCITED TO BE HERE! Its really not that bad because its a well shaded house, and they take their siesta time seriously so everyone sleeps from like 3-6pm. Downstairs is much cooler.
Here is a picture of my room in the house. I'll put pictures up on the house later. I can't really find a good spot to take a picture of it since its all hidden by trees. It's nice and blazing hot in here right now, the wind is cool, but when its not blowing through its hotter than hell. I'll get used to it, I hope!
There is my desk, I have a little closet and a bookshelf that I use for clothes and two books.
Hugo took me around the town today to show me where the bank I need to go to is, the supermarket, the main square area and where the bus stops are.
I got some things at the supermarket and Susana had cleared a spot for me in the fridge and two cabinets with more than enough room to put things. She also made lunch for me today which was really nice. We had a spaghetti with vegetables and chicken.
Thanks for reading! Hope all is well back home!
Its official! Just moved into my new place today with Carlos and Susane (husband and wife), their sons, Hugo 24, and Ivan 22 and two dogs Leon and Lilu. The dogs like me and don't bark when I come in and out on my own.
My address is:
Calle jardin Nº-1
Majadahonda 28220
Madrid, Spain
Its a freezing 102 degrees Fahrenheit right now here in Madrid, and the new place doesn't use their air conditioning... SO EXCITED TO BE HERE! Its really not that bad because its a well shaded house, and they take their siesta time seriously so everyone sleeps from like 3-6pm. Downstairs is much cooler.
Here is a picture of my room in the house. I'll put pictures up on the house later. I can't really find a good spot to take a picture of it since its all hidden by trees. It's nice and blazing hot in here right now, the wind is cool, but when its not blowing through its hotter than hell. I'll get used to it, I hope!
There is my desk, I have a little closet and a bookshelf that I use for clothes and two books.
Hugo took me around the town today to show me where the bank I need to go to is, the supermarket, the main square area and where the bus stops are.
I got some things at the supermarket and Susana had cleared a spot for me in the fridge and two cabinets with more than enough room to put things. She also made lunch for me today which was really nice. We had a spaghetti with vegetables and chicken.
Thanks for reading! Hope all is well back home!
Thursday, August 18, 2011
Pope is here? Oh, really?
So on my day of doing nothing around Spain, I was awakened by the power outage that kept turning the AC on and off, on and off. I think thats why I slept in so late, until 11pm (and because I'm still adjusting to the time change) and then I kept hearing helicopters and sirens outside the window. I then looked out my window and realized that the highway Avenida de America was closed off. I turned on the news and apparently the Pope was supposed to be here. He definitely passed by the hotel and I was snoozing! Ha!
For lunch I had Ensalada Mixta and Gallo de Andaluza. The ensalada was great, it was just a salad with romaine lettuce, green and black olives, tuna, onion, tomatoes, white asparagus and then topped with spanish olive oil and vinegar. The second course was something I randomly ordered because I didn't recognize anything else on the menú. It was a white fish with the skin and bones still on it. It was way too hard to eat, so I spent the next half an hour trying to dissect and eat the fish. It came with circular fried potatoes (circular flat french fries) and green beans with red pepper, and mushrooms in olive oil. It was good, just very difficult to eat!
I wanted to show everyone how far and what a pain my school placement is compared to where I am living and going to the university for my classes (Some of the map didnt fit, so you'll have to move the map left and right with your mouse to see how far the distances are)...
Here is the google image of where I am going to live for now... Its the brown house dead center without a pool!
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This is the distance from the house I'll be in to the local train stop... looks far but its only a 10-12 minute walk.
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This is how far the school where I will be teaching is from the house...
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This is how far the house is from the University I will have to go to every other weekend for lectures! (VERY FAR!)...
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I'm going to wrap up my day with a workout that I attempted earlier but for some reason the power was turning on and off this morning, so I ditched the workout.
For lunch I had Ensalada Mixta and Gallo de Andaluza. The ensalada was great, it was just a salad with romaine lettuce, green and black olives, tuna, onion, tomatoes, white asparagus and then topped with spanish olive oil and vinegar. The second course was something I randomly ordered because I didn't recognize anything else on the menú. It was a white fish with the skin and bones still on it. It was way too hard to eat, so I spent the next half an hour trying to dissect and eat the fish. It came with circular fried potatoes (circular flat french fries) and green beans with red pepper, and mushrooms in olive oil. It was good, just very difficult to eat!
I wanted to show everyone how far and what a pain my school placement is compared to where I am living and going to the university for my classes (Some of the map didnt fit, so you'll have to move the map left and right with your mouse to see how far the distances are)...
Here is the google image of where I am going to live for now... Its the brown house dead center without a pool!
View Larger Map
View Larger Map
This is the distance from the house I'll be in to the local train stop... looks far but its only a 10-12 minute walk.
View Larger Map
This is how far the school where I will be teaching is from the house...
View Larger Map
This is how far the house is from the University I will have to go to every other weekend for lectures! (VERY FAR!)...
View Larger Map
I'm going to wrap up my day with a workout that I attempted earlier but for some reason the power was turning on and off this morning, so I ditched the workout.
Wednesday, August 17, 2011
Apartment searching today!
Today was an all day apartment searching day. I only saw two but it took that long to coordinate and find out where and how to get to all these places. I feel in love with the first one that I saw in Majadahonda on Garden St (Calle jardín, 1). Its right off the main road in a very cool collection of houses. The town is on the Northwest side of Madrid where I was looking for housing because it will be close to the private school where I will be teaching English. The owner, Susana showed me everything from how to open the doors to where to put my food in the fridge. She was great and excited for me to want to see the room. She has a husband (whose name I already forgot) and two sons (Hugo and I forgot the other). They are 22 and 24. Hugo is leaving for London to study for 6 months and the other son apparently does a lot of outdoor activities. Hugo knows a lot of English, but he is the only one that studied it. They have two dogs that were really nice and excited to see me. The Dad came home later, he works somewhere but I didn't understand where. There is also a Doctorate in Arts (couldn't grab what they were telling me) student that lives on the 3rd floor of her house. The mom does not work but she sure was excited to talk to me and ask questions about my program and why I decided to do that. She has a good family and I felt comfortable being there.
The second place I went was horrible. It started off by Nuimna (however you pronounce that) saying well I know you saw these pictures in the listing, but that isnt actually where your room would be. She took me into what used to be a garage turned into a bedroom, smelt like gas, and I would be living with some other 30 year old do nothings that apparently smoke in the house. I decided quickly I would not be staying at this place. It did look a lot nicer online than the first place. She was asking 400 some Euros a month and then utilities on top of that. This place was a good example of what I don't want to rent! Thanks for that Nuimna! Talk to you never!
I was going to go see a third place but it was in an apartment for the same price as what Susana wanted. I went ahead and cancelled because the pope was here in Madrid today and I knew it was going to be a hassle to get back. I'm glad I got on the metro when I did because shortly after they just closed a couple stops and the sign read, "NOT ACCEPTING PASSENGERS" on the train and metro I needed to ride back on. I was smashed in one of the corners and had to lower my shoulder and bulldoze people over to get out of the train at my stop.
So I don't think I could find a better place to live, and if for some reason it doesn't work out, I can always move because there are no contracts to sign! I'll have to update with pictures when I get there. She also offered me placement immediately which was hard to find in the other rooms. I'm planning on moving all my stuff in on Friday when I check out of my hotel. Thanks for reading! I'll keep you all updated after the move! Tomorrow is just a fart around Madrid, workout and sleep day!
The second place I went was horrible. It started off by Nuimna (however you pronounce that) saying well I know you saw these pictures in the listing, but that isnt actually where your room would be. She took me into what used to be a garage turned into a bedroom, smelt like gas, and I would be living with some other 30 year old do nothings that apparently smoke in the house. I decided quickly I would not be staying at this place. It did look a lot nicer online than the first place. She was asking 400 some Euros a month and then utilities on top of that. This place was a good example of what I don't want to rent! Thanks for that Nuimna! Talk to you never!
I was going to go see a third place but it was in an apartment for the same price as what Susana wanted. I went ahead and cancelled because the pope was here in Madrid today and I knew it was going to be a hassle to get back. I'm glad I got on the metro when I did because shortly after they just closed a couple stops and the sign read, "NOT ACCEPTING PASSENGERS" on the train and metro I needed to ride back on. I was smashed in one of the corners and had to lower my shoulder and bulldoze people over to get out of the train at my stop.
So I don't think I could find a better place to live, and if for some reason it doesn't work out, I can always move because there are no contracts to sign! I'll have to update with pictures when I get there. She also offered me placement immediately which was hard to find in the other rooms. I'm planning on moving all my stuff in on Friday when I check out of my hotel. Thanks for reading! I'll keep you all updated after the move! Tomorrow is just a fart around Madrid, workout and sleep day!
Off to Madrid!
Hello everyone! This is my blog that I’m going to keep while studying, living and enjoying Madrid, España! Please feel free to forward to family and friends that I did not include (mainly because I don’t know their e-mail address) and leave comments. I am still reachable by my cell phone number (540-435-6248). It is set to forward to my skype phone number (540-908-3048) in Spain and if I'm not at my computer to answer Skype it will forward to my Spain cell phone (+34626365208). Thanks for reading!
So my travels begin to Madrid to start my Masters in Bilingual and Multicultural Education. I’m on my way to the hotel Confortel Atrium until I can find an apartment. Although I’m only going away for the year and I’ll be back for Christmas, I still felt pretty sad leaving my home. My Mom, Mike, Victoria, and Cristina all came to the airport to send me off and enjoy an American beer before I left.
It was so nice to have the help packing my suitcases last minute in the airport since they were extremely overweight. Cristina totally worked the system by illegally shoving things back into a suitcase that was already emptied and weighed. The lady at the airline counter had no clue how we got all the weights down so fast in the luggage and accepted them. Way to go Cristina! As far as seating went, I lucked out and got the emergency row aisle seat and sat beside a guy named Andrew who was on his way to London for business. We made fun of a guy that kept getting up every time the fasten seat belt sign was on and one of the flamboyant airline stewards kept scolding him and sprinting down the aisle to block him from getting up out of his seat. We don’t think he understood English and it may have been his first time on a plane. Very smooth flight anyway, great food and we even arrived in London ahead of schedule. My lactose intolerant self decided that I could eat strawberry cheesecake that they had served for dinner and I soon found myself using the facilities on the plane. Major downfall on my part! During the rest of the flight I enjoyed no sleep while watching the movies, Limitless, Just Go with It with Adam Sandler and Jennifer Anniston, and Source Code with Jake Glyenhall about a bomb on a train. My connecting flight to Madrid was delayed by maybe half an hour. It was the most cramped plane I have ever been on. There was a screaming baby behind me, the air conditioning must have blown out and there were no drinks being served! Made it to Madrid nonetheless and to my hotel by taxi since I had a zillion bags to carry with me. The hotel is very nice. Its called the Confortel Atrium on Calle (street) Emilio Vargas, 3 y 5 in Madrid.
Its brand new and fairly cheap for such a nice place. I settled in and went out to go shopping for a Spain cell phone from Movistar cell phone company. I bought a Samsung slide phone that will work just fine for a year. No need in getting some schmancy iphone! Now everyone can get in touch with me just by calling my old cell phone number no matter where I am! I'm finishing up my exhausting day by searching for apartments that I want to see tomorrow and sending out this blog to everyone! I hope everyone enjoys it! Let me know what you think! Pictures will be coming as soon as I can learn how to work this blog thing.
¡Gracias!
Andy
So my travels begin to Madrid to start my Masters in Bilingual and Multicultural Education. I’m on my way to the hotel Confortel Atrium until I can find an apartment. Although I’m only going away for the year and I’ll be back for Christmas, I still felt pretty sad leaving my home. My Mom, Mike, Victoria, and Cristina all came to the airport to send me off and enjoy an American beer before I left.
It was so nice to have the help packing my suitcases last minute in the airport since they were extremely overweight. Cristina totally worked the system by illegally shoving things back into a suitcase that was already emptied and weighed. The lady at the airline counter had no clue how we got all the weights down so fast in the luggage and accepted them. Way to go Cristina! As far as seating went, I lucked out and got the emergency row aisle seat and sat beside a guy named Andrew who was on his way to London for business. We made fun of a guy that kept getting up every time the fasten seat belt sign was on and one of the flamboyant airline stewards kept scolding him and sprinting down the aisle to block him from getting up out of his seat. We don’t think he understood English and it may have been his first time on a plane. Very smooth flight anyway, great food and we even arrived in London ahead of schedule. My lactose intolerant self decided that I could eat strawberry cheesecake that they had served for dinner and I soon found myself using the facilities on the plane. Major downfall on my part! During the rest of the flight I enjoyed no sleep while watching the movies, Limitless, Just Go with It with Adam Sandler and Jennifer Anniston, and Source Code with Jake Glyenhall about a bomb on a train. My connecting flight to Madrid was delayed by maybe half an hour. It was the most cramped plane I have ever been on. There was a screaming baby behind me, the air conditioning must have blown out and there were no drinks being served! Made it to Madrid nonetheless and to my hotel by taxi since I had a zillion bags to carry with me. The hotel is very nice. Its called the Confortel Atrium on Calle (street) Emilio Vargas, 3 y 5 in Madrid.
Its brand new and fairly cheap for such a nice place. I settled in and went out to go shopping for a Spain cell phone from Movistar cell phone company. I bought a Samsung slide phone that will work just fine for a year. No need in getting some schmancy iphone! Now everyone can get in touch with me just by calling my old cell phone number no matter where I am! I'm finishing up my exhausting day by searching for apartments that I want to see tomorrow and sending out this blog to everyone! I hope everyone enjoys it! Let me know what you think! Pictures will be coming as soon as I can learn how to work this blog thing.
¡Gracias!
Andy
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