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You know, things would be so much better here if I had someone here to share it with.
A friend or someone I could laugh with.
Coge este botella de vino en Chinchon por 1,50e. (cerca de $3) Es San Valentine y he estado un buen dia con unas sopresas. Ahora estoy viendo “Que Querien Las Mujers” es espanol. (What Women Want- haha, No estoy suguro si es la traduce correcta.) Mi companera de cuarto y yo estamos celebrando juntos. A nosotros!
Eh, sorry.
So, I havnt been updating for a few different reasons.
1. I went to Italy recently. Holy moly it was freezing! Flew from Madrid to Rome and saw all the famous monuments. Its incredible that you can just walk around and see that stuff. Met some great people at the first Hostel in Rome(Felix and Sara) went to the Vatican to escape the blizzard..oh Ill do a whole post on it.
2. I was having issues with my hosting situation. There where a lot of reasons I wanted to move, and it ended up being a sticky situation in the end becuase my host mother convinced me to stay (I said I would mostly cause she is sooo real, loving, and makes amazing food) but the arrangments where already made and I couldnt change my mind. The new place is wonderful. Its way more spacious, small rooms wouldnt have been a problem if there wernt 7 ppl in a small flat. There are three students in the house, and one host mother. She lives byherself here and I like her a lot. Plus, I am in a great location. 20 min walking from the city center, 6 min to the sunday market, 3 to the Reina Sofia…in which case the Prado and Retiro Park are not too far eaither.
3. I’ve honstly been in a slump a little. Letting my mind and feelings get the best of me but no more of that! I am in a new place that is lighter(literally, the walls arnt dark here) and it lifts my spirits to actualyhave sun coming through the windows.
All and all, I am going to enjoy this weekend and Ill be back on track this week. :)
Lat weekend I went to Toledo. A one hour bus ride outside of Madrid. This little town is situated on top of a hill and surrounded by the Tagus on three sides (perfect for protection against enemies). It was once the capital of the Spanish Empire a place of coexistence of the Christian, Jewish, and Muslim cultures. This clash of cultures is apparent in the food, the names of the streets, the crafts that are sold and the fact that in this cloistered area on top of the hill there are several Christian and Catholic churches, and more than one Mosque and Synagogue. After our tour with Mario (a native of Toledo and I wish I would have gotten a picture with him because he was so knowledgeable, super funny, and made all the information fascinating, because he was fascinated by it!) we walked around the city. It is pretty much what you imagine a small town in Spain to be. The way you romanticize it in your head is not just a dream, it exists. Small streets, the cars cutting through the crowd. Its hard to not feel enchanted here, even if you are alone. The wrought iron spirals forming every balcony are exactly what I feel like right now; whimsical and moving freely. Im definitely going to come back here before my time here is over.
Official!
Def. taking art studio classes here.
Went to use the bathroom at school and found this. I like it here.
Today some of us went to the Museo Del Prado. It is huge, we spent two hours in there and only saw half of ONE FLOOR! Luckily, it’s free for students all the time. So I know Ill go there often. Unfortunately, we were not permitted to take pictures inside but I managed to grab a few. We will be going again with a large group from my university here, so maybe Ill be able to take better ones then since the guards will be distracted. hehe. I wrote this in my journal after looking at a 8x8 foot oil painting of the Three Kings and a bunch of other ppl bringing goodies to baby Jesus.
“In the Museo del Prado….the most beautiful paintings I have ever seen. Every painting has a story; a most beautiful story. I have a favorite one. It is of Saturn eating his son alive. The baby looks in terrible pain as his father tears off his flesh with his teeth. Its gruesome, but beautiful. The things that people imagined. Zeus was the only child to survive and fulfilled the prophecy, taking over the kingdom of the Gods.
What was life like back then? We get a glimpse here. Life was more fascinating, no one knew why the stars were in the sky. There was no knowledge of gasses and forces, so they created stories. The Milky Way was a path of breast milk given to Hercules, leading to Olympus; the home of the Gods, should he ever return. Now we know too much. Our stories are not as romantic. The stars are nothing but zeros and ones now. Where is the mysteriousness, the sacredness? This is why I love art from this era. Life was fascinatingly beautiful and my modern brain cant help but feel like this took place in some imaginary place, in some other world. Its hard to think that the people in these paintings are essentially the same people walking beside me.”
