Thursday, July 26, 2012

Madrid

This past weekend Shaun and I got to visit Roma, Italia. It was a dream come true. Both of us had been wanting to visit Italy for a long time. Walking around Madrid you see many old buildings that are amazing. But nothing can compare to Roma. Seeing the Colosseo was awe-inspiring. It is astonishing that they could create something so magnificent in 80 a.d. Everywhere you look in Rome is gorgeous. We went to the top of the museum of the fallen soldier. We had an astounding view of the city. Also the food in Roma is so delicious. I have never had such succulent pizza and wine.
We are finishing up our classes this week and will be taking our tests on Monday. I feel that my Spanish has greatly improved from the immersion, but there is always room for more improvement. We have had such a great experience here, it will be a bittersweet departure.

Saturday, July 14, 2012

Madrid




         We have had the opportunity to visit two wonderful museums so far. We went to the Prado first which was art before the 20th century. Next we got to visit the Reina Sofia museum, which has more modern art. The most impressive piece of art to me was the Guernica by Picasso. When you see it in textbooks it doesn’t look anywhere near the size it actually is. The painting is massive and so emotional.  They even display progress photos of the painting. The Guernica didn’t make it to Spain until the 1980’s. Picasso had said that the painting was for the Spanish people but he didn’t want it there until there was a true democracy. We also got to see some Salvador Dali paintings. He was very eccentric with most of his work. Though one of my favorites of his is of his sister, standing looking out a window at the ocean.  It is amazing how much history is in Spain. 
         On Sundays in Madrid they have an open-air market, which is known as El Rastro. We went and it was very fun walking around and seeing all the different venders items. They have everything you could think of; clothes, old records, antiques, books, bags, posters an much more.
         I really enjoy taking classes here too. At first it was a little overwhelming because they insist that you don’t speak any English at all. Now that we are farther along I feel much more comfortable. I think I am learning a lot. 

Monday, July 9, 2012

Madrid


Hola from Madrid,

         Shaun and I have been exploring Madrid each day. We picked the best time to come here. There is always something exciting going on. The first weekend we arrived, there was a Gay Pride celebration.  On that weekend they had a Gay Pride parade, there were literally millions of people in the streets. We could barely move a block down the road.
         Then we got to experience Spain’s soccer team win the Euro Cup. We took a walk through the park the night of the game. We didn’t even have to watch because each time they scored there was an eruption of cheers that could be heard for miles. The following day the soccer team rode a bus through Madrid. Once again the streets were absolutely packed with millions of people. People take great pride in soccer here.
        







Each building in Madrid is beautiful. They are so detailed and well made. The Palacio Real is the most gorgeous building I’ve ever laid eyes upon.  We also got to go the Prado museum, it was so amazing to see all the classical art. It’s interesting because the King and the royal family picked all the art pieces that are in the museum. So the collection is very unique.

Ciao.