So...to back up a bit...once I finally left the airport, Paula almost immediately found me and we proceeded to taxi to her apartment and lug my suitcases up 5 flights of stairs (no elevator). The apartment is super cute...but very small compared with those in America. Sure, it has 2 bedrooms, a kitchen, a living room, and a bathroom, but most of the rooms are small and all of the appliances seem tiny compared with those back home. See the following pictures:
After calling Mom to let her know that I had arrived and chatting for a while, Paula and I began getting things done. We made a list of things to accomplish and then began with filling out the application for this transportation ID I have to obtain in order to be allowed to purchase a monthly metro pass (which will ultimately save me a lot of money). So we worked on that...and then came lunch. PB&J sandwiches...but here the bread is small, like French bread in the U.S. And Paula had blueberry jelly...mmm yummy!
We spent the afternoon walking around el centro (the center of the city). We did a bit of window-shopping, browsed around at a quaint market, and walked around various streets and plazas. The city is on the whole quite quaint and picturesque...seriously, I absolutely love it already!!!!! See the pictures below.
After el centro came dinner - pasta - with Paula's friend Sonia. Also good. Then we just chilled out until bedtime (about 10:30 Spain time) for me. I thought I had this whole Spain schedule thing almost figured out...I was pretty awake until bedtime, and then fell asleep almost immediately...only to wake up at 2 or 3 am and not be able to go back to sleep. I finally turned on the light and began reading. And soon Paula came in - she couldn't sleep either! What a nightmare!!! Both of us up at 3 am...uggh! Needless to say, we slept late and were a bit groggy this morning. But after breakfast (toast and yogurt...yogurt here is good, less dense), I perked up a bit.
Today's challenge is to speak only in Spanish (yesterday, we spoke mostly in English). So far, this is going fairly well, though I can't always find the words I need.
Here are some pictures of our adventures yesterday. Enjoy! Will write again soon.
Peace and Blessings,
Melanie
Spanish Words of the Day: plaza = plaza, calle = street :)
3 comments:
Melanie,
Can I say, I love your photos. First of all, because it's a great reminder of World Youth Day. But mainly because it's nice to see all those places the way they are "normally" i.e. not with a million young people around.
You have to go see the cathedral (if you haven't already) it's right next to the palace.
And there was this other church, I think it was called San Francisco. Completely breathtaking! Sadly, you can't take photos or videos inside.
And then my last suggestion. I'm sure they have these sorts of things all over the city. But if you get off at Canal on the red line, and walk like less than 2 blocks. There's a church there (pretty inside) with a super awesome courtyard in front of it. Perfectly shaded and channels the wind beautifully. Trees that magically connect to each other. It's pretty much heaven, right in front of a church! We stayed at the school right next to the church.
Hope you enjoy Spain!
Katie Troup
Wow, that's impressive...stringing canopies between the buildings! Great idea. And it gives the street a very cool look!
Katie, Thanks for the advice! I actually might go to Mass tomorrow (technically today on Spain time...) at San Francisco. And just so you know, this is not how the city normally is...apparently it's kinda dead in August, so there are usually more people than what you see in my photos. But I'm sure not as many as there were during World Youth Day. I miss you tons!
Melanie
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