I still have many more blogs to write about from various trips, but I figured I would give a run down of normal Madrid life currently. I just finished my last final for my Spanish class, since I am auditing the last part of it. Thank goodness, because we started subjunctives today and I'm glad I don't have to take those tests. I can't even begin to explain how much Spanish I have learned. Considering I didn't know how to answer to "how are you" when I first got here, or know the days of the week, I have made huge progress. I can make my point, speak in multiple tenses, understand most of what is said to me, read the advertisements on the metro and know what they are saying not because of pictures, successfully take a cab ride home, give and receive directions, order anything including to-go on the phone, and have a decent conversation that almost lets me express myself. So when people say you really learn the language when you go to the country, they are correct. I wonder how my writing will be in my journalism classes next semester... English now seems hard.
I went to a Justin Bieber concert with my friend Nick last week. Now before you judge me for being 20 and spending money on a concert of a 15 year old, realize that Nick is 23, straight, male and went, and so me being there seemed much more appropriate as compared to him. You've got to see Bieber while he is young and in his prime. I think my 12 year old sister was a little jealous though. We stood out for multiple reasons. One, we were obviously the oldest. Two, Nick had to have been one of the only guys that wasn't a dad bringing his daughter or a brother being dragged along. Three, we're American. And four, we were the only people in the stadium that weren't wearing homemade "I heart Bieber" shirts. It was hilarious listening to the Spaniards sing along, because they don't actually know the words, they just know the sounds. Definitely a great Madrid experience and we both had the time of our lives.
The weather is finally nice and most afternoons are spent at Retiro park with Morgan, Anne and Meghan and some bocadillos consisting of cheese and chorizo. I'm going to miss these carefree days where we just soak up the sun and talk about Spain. The relationships I've formed with these girls is unlike any other friendship. We have traveled the world together, slept in airports, been challenged and had many many obstacles, dealt with language barriers other than Spanish, been foreigners, gained confidence in our traveling and been forced to grow up and figure out the hard things without parents help, gotten lost, and lost again, cried over the thought of leaving each other and Spain, and cried over missing home. I do not know what I'm going to do with myself when we have to say goodbyes and exchange real phone numbers. Once again, an example of how this semester is just summer camp for days.
Universidad Rey Juan Carlos is a funny school. If I need to find anyone, they will be in one of three places, and each of these places are a 20 second walk away. I want to say my elementary school is the size of this college. There was a fashion show on campus the other day. It drew quite a huge crowd and the fashion was pretty awful. There have also been a few protests. Being one of the only people in this program that goes to a public school and has dealt with budget cuts and angry students mad at the state, this was nothing new to me. But to everyone else, the shouting, whistles, trash and crowds was a big deal. We enjoyed being able to leave class early though because the protests made their way into the building and disrupted class, Chico's protests are much more considerate.
Speaking of school and doing dumb things for the future, I got the internship I wanted. It's for the Cal state fair and I'll be doing all of their P.R. and media relations. I'm pretty excited for it but not stoked to commute to Sac a few times a week. I also signed up for summer school. So this summer consists of school, internship, and my normal job, which means I'll be severely depressed and doing big kid things instead of playing in Europe for a few more months.
I still don't even believe I am living this life. I woke up the other morning in my bed in Madrid, Spain where I have studied for over three months and had a moment of is this a dream. I am so blessed and lucky to have the family I have that has been more than supportive and excited for me to have this experience. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity and many people can't say they spent some of their college time in a foreign country. People say your twenties are the best times of your life, and I'm still in the first year and I fully agree. I wonder if I will ever come back here and will be able to show my family someday where I lived and studied. I sure hope so. I've gotta come back to get my cafe con leche from my cafeteria boyfriend who gave me gum for 5 cents today because that was the only euro currency I had, my wallet has a bunch of dumb pounds and pence which are probably worth a hundred sticks of gum.
Can't wait to see the whole fam in almost a month. Can't believe time has passed this quickly.
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