Worthing Beach

 Today I spent the day with my dad and Valerie at Worthing Beach in Christ Church, only a few minutes from Valerie’s house.  The air temperature is 85ºF and the water temperature is an average of 78ºF.  The water is clear and blue and just beyond the beach there is a reef.  There are no fish or marine life in the shore part with the exception of two big turtles.

After laying out, we went to Carib Beach Bar on the sand where we ordered flying fish, the official national fish.  It was served fried in batter on baguette with a side of lime and fries.  Delicious!

 

Naz and my second cousin, Peter Sheppard (from Trinidad), met us at the restaurant.  Peter is an artist who paints stylized realism island landscapes.

 

A WARM Welcome to Barbados

I arrived in Barbados a few hours ago. It is really humid and warm, 77ºF. I was welcomed by my dad and his girlfriend, Valerie, whose home I am staying at in Christ Church. It was such a relief finally arriving after starting my day so early with heightened security at LAX. A man in line for security told me that they were even doing random security screenings of cars in the drop-off zones. He also said that after the Delta flight incident it is now up to the pilot’s discretion to determine what is and is not allowed on the airplane. Apparently the man’s friend was on a flight where nothing was allowed, no blankets and not even a book because they wanted to make sure people’s hands were visible at all times. I asked a security officer what to expect on my way back from Barbados to Miami and he said to arrive three hours early to the airport and that carry-ons (if allowed) will most likely need to stowed the last hour of the flight. Thank you, Mr. AbdulMutallab. Your bomb attempt may have failed, but you successfully made my airport experience a miserable one.

Bicycle Diaries

Our third day in Holland, we rented bikes. We rode the bikes through a huge field called De Bussumse Hei (Hei refers to the purple Heather plant in Dutch). We made a stop to get near some cows that were roaming around on the field. Then, we rode our bikes to a restaurant called La Place, where we met my aunt and uncle, Ineke and Wim.

After eating lunch we biked on to the Poffertjeskraam. It is a seasonal restaurant that only opens in the summer. It is a portable wooden building that used to travel around to different cities during the year, but now only stays in one spot. The restaurant only has two things on the menu: poffertjes and wafelen. Poffertjes are like mini-mini-pancakes and wafelen are big waffles. The oven where the waffles are baked is 100 years old. After they are made they are topped off with a slab of butter and tons of powdered sugar. Mmm...

Later that evening, after taking a long nap to recuperate from the biking we went to work with my dad. My dad wanted to show Matt the studio he works at where they record the news. He showed Matt how everything works. We even took pictures on the set.

Northern Holland

Our first full day in Holland we took a "road trip" to Northern Holland. We made the following stops, starting in Bussum (where my dad lives): Bergen, Bergen aan Zee, Schoorl, Afsluitdijk, Workum, Sloten, and Urk.


We made a complete circle around the Ijsselmeer, a fresh water lake that was created by blocking off part of the North Sea (salt water) with a man-made dike that was fully constructed by 1933. The dike is 20 miles long and is called the Afsluitdijk. Also, on the east and south of the Ijsselmeer (lake) there is reclaimed land, Flevoland (South) and Nordoostpolder (East) as a result of the dike. We drove along the Afsluitdijk and made a stop on it to climb the tower that has a view of the dike, the lake, and the North Sea (England is across the sea). On the satellite map you can see the long, straight line is the dike in the middle of the top-half.

We stopped at two beaches, Bergen aan Zee and Schoorl. Both were extremely windy, but we wanted to give Matt a feel for what the Dutch coast looks like. Then we went to a couple small towns and had traditional Dutch pancakes. On our way back we stopped in a little town called Urk that used to be an island until 1939 when the dikes and land reclamation connected it to the mainland.


We had a great time driving through all the different cities especially because we listened to a radio station that featured the top 40 hits from November 7, 1998. It was fun because Matt and I knew all the songs like Aerosmith's "I Don't Wanna Miss a Thing" and Savage Garden.

El Rastro, Part II

Today, Matt, Albert and I went to the El Rastro flea market. I went mainly to take pictures for my photography final project. We walked up and down the streets crowded with tons of people and performers. There were a lot interesting people with mullets, dreads, and various other not-so-stylish styles. We had a great lunch at a pizzeria on one of the side streets. It was a hot day, but we still had a great time people watching and enjoying our last Sunday in Madrid. Boy, how time flies!

Six days until Holland!

Evian Roller Babies

Annie Leibovitz

On Friday, Matt and I went for lunch at the Hard Rock Café. It was delicious! I was so excited for my chicken tenders and Matt got a burger. I really felt like I was in the US (except for the awful service).

After Matt left, I went to five photography exhibits throughout Madrid called PHotoEspaña. My favorite was definitely Annie Leibovitz’ exhibit. Her work is amazing! It ranges from silver gelatin prints of family members to color portraits of celebrities to photos of genocide in Rwanda. I admire her work because she can take any situation and create a beautiful photograph of it. You might recognize a few of her photographs:

Brad Pitt

Demi Moore in 1991 pregnant with her daughter, Rumer Willis (father, Bruce Willis)

John Lennon and Yoko Ono

When I got back I googled her and found that she is the one behind the beautiful Disneyland ads I’ve seen in magazines. She took celebrities and dressed them up as Disney characters for her “Disney Dream Portrait Series”. Her photographs were in magazines in 2007 advertising Disneyland’s “Year of a Million Dreams”. Do you recognize the celebrities?

Jessica Biel as Pocahontas

Mikhail Baryshnikov as Peter Pan
Giselle Bündchen as Wendy
Tina Fey as Tinkerbell

Beyoncé as Alice
Oliver Platt as the Mad Hatter
Lyle Lovett as the March Hare

Julianne Moore as The Little Mermaid

Scarlett Johansson as Cinderella

David Beckham as Prince Phillip from Sleeping Beauty

Jennifer Lopez and Marc Anthony as Jasmine and Aladdin

Annie Leibovitz also did a beautiful fashion spread in Vogue called Alice in Wonderland. It's an artistic take on Lewis Carroll's classic. This collection features Russian model, Natalia Vodianova, as Alice.

Vodianova in Dior Couture

This reminds me... I am so excited for Tim Burton's new Alice in Wonderland movie to come out in March of 2010.

Johnny Depp as the Mad Hatter

Helena Bonham Carter (Burton's wife) as Queen of Hearts

Gay Pride Parade & 4th of July

On Saturday it was the Fourth of July in the US, but we also brought it to Madrid …and the Gay Pride Parade. A big group of us all dressed in red, white, and blue and represented good ol’ Amurica (a lot of us talking with hick accents). This included singing the Star Spangled Banner obnoxiously loud in the metro and drinking Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Whiskey (not me though, no thanks). There was a huge parade during the day, but to avoid the crazy crowds our group of friends just decided to take the metro to the gay district called Chueca. Matt stayed in that night. The Gay Pride celebration is a week-long event in which the parade is the last night. Matt had gone to the first night of the festival and said he couldn’t imagine it being any crazier.


We all had a great time dancing to music and taking pictures with strangers. Americans, Spaniards and various other foreigners wanted to take pictures with us because all of us matched with the 4th of July theme. There were a lot of “interesting” characters there to say the least. I’ll let the pictures speak for themselves…

-Laila

Motorcycle Accident

This morning I witnessed an awful motorcycle/pedestrian accident that I will never forget. The face of the pedestrian that was sprawled out unconscious in the intersection is an image that is permanently engrained in my mind. I will never forget that woman’s face with that blank, lifeless expression. I walked over to help the passenger of the motorcycle and as I was rubbing her back I watched her as she wiggled her toes and fingers covered in blood. It wasn’t until she turned around to see the woman that she had hit that it really hit me. As I was holding her she was asking in a trembling and panicking voice, “¿Mueve? ¡¿Mueve?!” (“Is she moving? Is she moving?!?”). It was so surreal. We both looked over and the pedestrian, with her eyes open, wasn’t moving and was just staring at the sky. I put the lady’s arm over my shoulder so she could hobble over to the woman lying unconscious on the asphalt. By that time the police had already arrived and encouraged everyone to step asid.

It was so crazy to be walking to school and all of a sudden see three people flying through the air directly in my line of vision. I panicked, but at the same time it seemed like everything around me stood still. The intersection that minutes before was filled with speeding cars was all of a sudden filled with people flocking the scene. I was very shook up after this situation, and since my help was no longer needed I realized I had to keep on my way to school. The metro ride to school was a strange experience because I kept wondering about that woman’s condition.

I have always been afraid of motorcycles and other accidents. Some childhood friends of mine’s father died in a motorcycle accident, a student from my high school died in a skateboarding accident, my friend’s aunts/uncles/cousins got in a fatal accident on their way to a theme park, and some students from my high school got in a car accident on their way to a school dance. I think a lot of these incidents have contributed to my fear of driving. Being responsible not only for the people you’re driving but also those around you just seems so scary to me. I guess I should start practicing so I can get good at it and not worry. Easier said than done though.

-Laila

Sant'Agnello

I quite like it here. I find our hostel, though that is a demeaning word I would not diminish our stay with if I had the choice, seems to be a haven of relaxation for me. I laid on the roofs of our building, which have been converted to decks, sprawled on one of the many lawn chairs and couches that are strewn about the area. From here, I am able to see the imposing blue ocean (a thing I had since forgotten and taken for granted, having lived in the middle of Spain for some three weeks), and I watch the surrounding mountains hold off the ominous clouds which I am sure are to bring rain right after we have escaped back to Madrid. A forgiving breeze blows every couple of minutes, allowing me to cool down and remain on the deck with my book in hand, not worrying about what time it is, or where I have to go or the things I must see while I’m on the trip. It is truly my first day of vacation. I feel incredibly grateful to have this time out from reality, a day where time stands still, and my only concern being if those mountains will no longer be able to fend off the looming clouds.


When I get too hot, I am able to retreat to our room, to be greeted by something which is a luxury that I have not been able to enjoy in Europe: air conditioning. It revitalizes me, giving me back energy that had been previously sapped away by the Italian sun. Our hostel also gives us access the internet for free, so I am able to write and post my experiences as they happen, rather than when we get back.

Laila went out exploring on her own today, and I am sure that she will have an amazing time and I cant wait to see the pictures that she has taken. Hopefully, as we did last night, we will be able to walk down into town and get dinner at one of the restaurants located on one of cliffs overlooking the sea. It should be an amazing end to an amazing day. I am envious of the people who get to live here, although I doubt they get to spend their days in the fashion that I have spent mine. As much as I am enjoying myself in Italy, I am fairly certain that the mosquitoes here are enjoying me more. I have an upward of seven bites already, with three making a kind of interesting triangle pattern on my bicep. I hope they go away soon, as I also have two on my face that look rather unpleasant and I will be happy when they are gone.

Anyways, I am going to return to my book, and lose track of time again. The sun is still waiting for me, inviting me to get lost in the picturesque setting that can only be offered by a place in the sun surrounded by mountains, tropical trees, and an ocean in the distance. Tomorrow will bring with it travels, a return to the life in a busy city, and schoolwork. But today, today I will try to make it last as long as possible, out in the sun, not worrying about tomorrow.

-M

Venezia

Ciao tutti-- Matt and I arrived in Venice this morning at 10 AM. We had a very empty flight so Matt and I were able to spread out and sleep on the 2 hour flight. We took a 20 minute bus ride to Piazzale Roma and from there we had a “5 minute walk” to the hotel. Hmmm… well, I guess it would’ve been 5 minutes if we knew where we were going or maybe if there were more than 1 in 8 streets actually marked on the map. It didn’t help that on one side of the street the numbers were 81, 82, 83 and on the other side there were the numbers 29, 30, 32. We finally found our hotel, Al Gallo, and were greeted by a very kind, old Italian man, Giuseppe. He was extremely friendly, but equally slow. He asked to see our passports to “make a copy” (which we assumed to be a photocopy) and 10 minutes later he was still writing down the information. He asked Matt his “origins” because he noticed his middle names “Christian Charles” on his passport. He commented on how he also has two middle names and how it is completely normal for an Italian man to have the middle name María.

He walked us to our room which has a bathroom in the hall that we share with another room. Our room also has a nice view of neighboring apartments. After taking a couple hour nap (since we only got a few hours of sleep last night because we had to leave at 5:30 AM for the airport) we asked Giuseppe for directions to the main square. He pointed us in the direction of Rialto and Piazza San Marco. It was a beautiful day and it was really nice walking along the canals filled with gondolas. Rialto is a zone in Venice famous for the Ponte di Rialto (Rialto Bridge). Piazza San Marco is the main square where the Basilica di San Marco, built in 828, is located. After walking through the square we walked along the waterway between the part of Venice we were on and a neighboring island.


After walking around the cobblestone streets and alleys all day Matt and I returned to the hotel to rest a little before dinner. Then we went to a restaurant and ordered authentic Italia pizza which Matt was definitely excited about. We just finished dinner and now we are at a bar called Café Blue where we (and by ‘we’ I mean Matt) are watching the Brazil vs. South Africa soccer game. While he is watching the game I am taking advantage of the free wi-fi to update the blog.


Well, the game’s almost over and Matt is going to use the computer. We leave Venice at 10 AM tomorrow and will be flying to Naples. From Naples we will be taking the Circumvesuviana train to Sorrento because my mom would kill me if I took the bus that goes along the steep, winding roads.

Thanks for reading and hopefully I’ll be updating the blog when we are in Sorrento. Unfortunately, I won’t be posting our pictures until Sunday or Monday.
Wish us nice weather!

Oh boy! The karaoke’s starting… (Matt is rolling his eyes)

-Laila

Pool at Casa de Campo Park

Today after school Matt, Albert, Christine, Justine and I went to Vips which is a restaurant similar to Denny’s. It’s right across the street from our school and it’s relatively inexpensive. After lunch Matt, Albert and I took the metro to a huge park called Casa de Campo where there are public pools at a facility called Instalación Deportiva Municipal Casa de Campo. The entrance fee is €4.35 but it’s well worth it to escape the heat and just relax. There is a large outdoor pool in the center with various grass areas all around it. The areas are covered with trees offering both sun and shade. There is also a snackbar where you can buy cold beer and other items. All in all we had a nice couple hours resting and cooling off at the pool and enjoying the tranquil environment.


Matt and I will be leaving for Venice tomorrow morning. We will arrive at 9 AM and have the entire day and night in Venice. We will leave the next morning at 10 AM to fly into Naples (on the Italian coast) and then we’ll take the Circumvesuviana train from Naples to Sorrento. We are staying at the Seven Hostel in a little town right outside of Sorrento called Sant’Agnello. I am really bummed because the weather forecast isn’t looking too good. It says that tomorrow night there will be thunder showers and an 81º high. Friday it is supposed to be sunny with a high of 84º and thunder showers are expected on Saturday and Sunday. We’ll see how it goes. It should be fun nevertheless.

-Laila

He Loved Me First

Today is Father’s Day and although my dad doesn’t “believe” in Father’s Day, I still felt like his unconditional love for me deserves at least some recognition.

I really like this stanza from John Mayer’s song "Daughters":
So fathers, be good to your daughters
Daughters will love like you do
Girls become lovers who turn into mothers
So mothers, be good to your daughters too

It really is true that dads teach you how to love. I was also listening to the song “My Father’s Eyes” by Eric Clapton. I’ve always really loved that song probably because I’ve always grown up listening to Eric Clapton’s “Layla”. But today was different. I actually listened to the lyrics and although I’ve always thought that I could relate to this song because I have “my father’s eyes” I realized that it doesn’t mean what I’ve always thought it did. I read that Eric Clapton was inspired by the fact that he never met his father. This song has a whole new meaning for me now. Taking from the little biographical tidbit I learned, I now see the song as Clapton preparing to have a son and looking for guidance, but doesn’t have a father-figure as a model and is left lost and confused. He sings:

Where do I find the words to say?
How do I teach him?
What do we play?
Bit by bit, I've realized
That's when I need them,
That's when I need my father's eyes.

However, this is just my interpretation and the great mystery of music is that we never know the exact intention of the artist.

This song has made me realize how lucky I am to have such a wonderful dad. Both last summer in Guadalajara and this summer in Madrid, I have stayed with host families consisting of a mother and a 17 year-old daughter. It has made me feel so fortunate for having been raised by both parents and although they are divorced now I know their love for me has never diminished in the slightest.

My dad once sent me the Dutch short film called “Father and Daughter.” In 2000 it won an Oscar for Best Animated Short Film as well as 21 various other awards. It’s a simple black and white animation yet it holds a lot of meaning to me. In the beginning of the clip the father sails away. Seasons pass and the Dutch landscape changes and the daughter consistently returns to the spot where her father departed from. She gets older and has children, but still looks for her dad. This short film speaks to me metaphorically. Although my dad lives across the sea and I get older everyday, a daughter always longs for her father.



A daughter may outgrow your lap, but she will never outgrow your heart

As the daughter in the clip, I am also growing older and now I have a new man in my life. But it’s funny because the other day I was lying down with Matt and I asked him to stroke his hand gently over my forehead. My dad always did this when he put me to bed and it has always comforted me. But my papa loved me first and that will never change…

But I loved her first and I held her first
And a place in my heart will always be hers
From the first breath she breathed
When she first smiled at me
I knew the love of a father runs deep
And I prayed that she'd find you someday
But it's still hard to give her away
I loved her first

Marriage is still a long way away, but metaphorically the song shows how dads do have to give their daughters away to the future as they grow up and become more independent.

Steven Curtis Chapman sings a beautiful song called "Cinderella" about the relationship he has with his daughters. I especially like it because I love the fairytale theme.

So I will dance with Cinderella
While she is here in my arms
'Cause I know something the prince never knew
Oh, I will dance with Cinderella
I don't want to miss even one song
'Cause all too soon the clock will strike midnight
And she'll be gone...

Someday I may find my Prince Charming, but my papa will always be my king.

I love you, paps <3

El Rastro

This morning I left my house at 8:30 AM to go to El Rastro, Madrid’s biggest open-air flea market where new and used items are sold. I was advised to go this early because any time later it would be too busy. I looked up online how to get there and most websites recommended about 4 different metro stops. I just figured I would get off at Sol (the very center of Madrid). The websites said, “follow the crowds”. Well, I should’ve put two and two together because at 8:30 AM there were no crowds, only drunk people passed out in the metro station from the night before. So I’m carefully looking around the plaza waiting patiently for a crowd to come out of nowhere so I could follow them.

No crowd and four sets of directions later, I finally found the market. There weren’t many people and not all of the stalls had been set up yet. I kind of regret coming that early because I wasn’t there to buy things, but more to people watch. I love walking around the Kobe Swap Meet in San Diego looking through all the used junk, not in hopes of finding a treasure, but I just like seeing the things that end up there. I always imagine the stories behind the items and wonder if anyone would ever buy something like a “hotties of the 80s scrapbook”, a single beat-up shoe, a doll with broken arms, or even a marathon trophy with someone else’s name on it. I always imagine that someone must’ve died and someone gathered all of their belongings and sprawled them out on a blanket to be picked apart by strangers to make a few bucks. It seems very strange to me, but at the same time very fascinating.


It was funny to walk by stalls with no shoppers at them and then all of a sudden see a group of people huddling around a blanket as if they were picking through rubies and diamonds. Then I sneak my way through the huddle to see what everyone is looking at only to see another pile of junk that looks the same as the neighboring blanket vacant of interested buyers. I’ve noticed that one person stands around a blanket long enough that another person comes up and then people start to see that there is interest until soon a crowd develops.

After walking up and down all of the busy streets multiple times, I decided to walk back to the house instead of taking the metro. However, the map in my Moleskine journal conveniently doesn’t show the streets outside of the El Rastro neighborhood; the streets that I needed to get back to the house. So walking I hopped from bus stop to bus stop reading the posted maps to get back. Along the way I saw many of what looked like prostitutes-by-night selling garlic by day: “¡1 Euro!” It was quite peculiar in my opinion.

On my walk back I walked through the Atocha train station. They have a beautiful tropical garden there with water misters to cool off passersby and a turtle habitat for décor and entertainment. ¡Por fin¡ Finally, I made it back to the house and took my long-awaited siesta.

Photo España

On Tuesday I went to the Photo España exhibit with my digital photography class. The pictures were interesting, but my favorite part was browsing through the photography books for sale at the exit. I stumbled upon a Spanish photographer named Chema Madoz who is known for his black and white surrealist photographs. I found them really interesting. Below are a few of his works.

Tomorrow there is photo marathon in Madrid where everyone brings their digital cameras, a theme is announced, everyone walks around and takes pictures and then uploads them at various stations. At the end a winner is announced. I still haven’t decided if I am going. It looks like tomorrow I’ll be taking care of Matt who got food poisoning. Pobrecito ☹

La Cucaracha

A cucaracha (cockroach) welcomed me home from Paris…on my bed! I chased it for a few minutes with some fruity hairspray until I gave up and just switched rooms. We have three vacant rooms on our floor so I moved all my belongings into the room adjacent to mine. It’s bigger and nicer in general than my previous room. Now we refer to my old room as the cucaracha room, and our friend Keith likes to take siestas in there after school.This weekend all four of my roommates went to Lisbon, Portugal and I am here by myself. But no worries, Gloria, my host mom, told me to call her if I was scared, lonely, saw a cucaracha or a ghost and she would come up and sleep with me (Sound familiar, mom?).

-Laila

¡Que calor!

It is sooo hot here! I feel that the figures reported on the weather website are completely inaccurate because it feels so much hotter! Right now it says it's 99º F. I just bought a €20 fan for my room and I honestly think it is the best investment I have made in my life (besides my precious computer). The €20 hairdryer I bought here …not the best idea. I don’t know what I was thinking when I thought it would be a good idea to buy an object that blows even hotter air onto your body that is already on fire. Another not so good idea… my pre-US-departure purchase of “luminous moisturizer.” I’m sure that is self-explanatory.

My next carefully thought out purchase will be an abanico. An abanico is a Spanish fan made out of wood, plastic and/or fabric that folds for easy mobility. They are very traditional here and typically seen held in one hand by flamenco dancers. All of the women in the metro have them in attempt to keep themselves cool (impossible). On Sunday I plan on going to El Rastro, Madrid’s most popular open air flea market. I can almost guarantee Matt will not be accompanying me because I was advised to go at 8:30AM to beat the crowds and the heat. Hopefully I’ll return with an abanico in my hand.

Last night Matt, my roommates, a couple other friends and myself went to a club called Café Orange where the theme of the night was Pool Party. And yes, there was a pool in the middle of the dance floor. It was an above-ground pool and extremely cold, but it felt so good escaping the heat for a few minutes.

Well that’s all folks.

¡Hasta la próxima vez!

-Laila

Paris

DAY 1
Our first night in Paris, Matt and I met up with our friend Rachel and her friend who are studying in Paris for the summer also through a USD program. We went to Place Saint-Michel and got ham/cheese and butter/sugar crêpes (freshly-made, thin pancakes that are sold by vendors on the streets). Then we walked across the Seine River and took pictures outside the Notre Dame. Rachel wasn’t feeling well so after she and her friend left Matt and I continued to explore the Notre Dame.

Later that night we took the metro to the Eiffel Tower. It was so beautiful at sunset and when it became dark the tower lit up and started to sparkle with lights. Everywhere we went in the vicinity of the Eiffel Tower there were vendors rattling Eiffel Tower key chains in our faces. Apparently it’s illegal to sell them there because all of a sudden we would see a swarm of African men running in one direction with tons of key chains jingling and dangling from their arms.

Then we walked to a carousel behind the Eiffel Tower and I took some long exposure night photography shots of the carousel with the Eiffel Tower behind it for my digital color photography class. I will be posting these pictures later.

DAY 2
First we took the metro to Montmartre to see the Basilique du Sacré-Cœur (Sacred Heart Basilica). It was extremely hot and crowded with tourists. It wasn’t until we climbed to the top that we noticed the funicular (an elevator that brings people to the top). There was a nice atmosphere there though. There was a man playing the guitar and singing songs on the steps leading up to the basilica. Everyone was sitting on the steps singing along or just watching. After visiting the basilica we wandered around looking for a cheap place to eat. Finally we could only find a nice restaurant where Matt ordered a croque-madame which is a grilled sandwich with ham, cheese and a fried egg, and I ordered an omelette .

We took a nap before going out again, and we were definitely glad we did. We took the metro to the Trocadéro (an area across the river from the Eiffel Tower). We watched some really amazing street performers there and walked from there to the Arc de Triomphe via Avenue Kleber. We visited the Arc de Triomphe and then walked along the Champs Élysées (the main street that the Arc de Triomphe is on) on our way to the Tuileries Garden. On our walk we passed many dimly lit parks and bushes, and Matt got annoyed with me for not wanting to walk on the side of the bushes. I can thank my mom for that paranoia, well paranoia in general. My uncle Lu once told me, “Paranoia will destroy ya.” Truer words have never been spoken. I absolutely hate being paranoid! Sometimes I wish I could be a little more carefree (I’m sure Matt feels the same way about me).

Upon arriving to the gardens we noticed they were already closed for the night, but we continued to walk until we got to the Louvre Museum. The Louvre Pyramid was beautifully lit up.

We were extremely exhausted after walking so far in the heat that night. We decided to walk everywhere that day to save money instead of buying metro tickets to go from monument to monument. We only took the metro out into town and back to the hotel and walked everywhere in between. On the metro we saw a man with an afro and a pet rat crawling in it. Sooo disgusting! And believe me, we weren’t the only ones on the metro that thought so.

Anyway, by walking all day it took us a lot longer to get back to our hotel and by the time we got there all the nearby restaurants/eateries were closed. There was only one restaurant still serving food and it was inconveniently expensive (for us at least). Our plan failed. So instead of saving money from walking we actually ended up spending more money than we wanted to by having to eat at this very expensive and confused restaurant. Confused? Yes, it was called Taverne Karlsbrau (sounds German right?) and then we get inside and it’s a seafood restaurant with Chinese wall décor, Dutch plates, Chinese customers, and French waiters. Hmmm…

DAY 3
The next morning we got an early start to our day because we had to check out at 11 AM (which is early for us). It was pouring rain outside so we decided to see a movie at a theater we had seen when we were walking on the Champs Élysées the day before. Before the movie we stopped at McDonald’s for an American meal (with European prices) and shelter from the rain. Then we watched the original version (English) of Angels and Demons (the adaptation of the Dan Brown sequel to The Da Vinci Code) with Tom Hanks. For all of you who know me at all, I’m sure you are thinking “Did Laila actually stay awake during a movie?” and the answer is of course, no. I saw part of the beginning and part of the end with a big nap gap in between, but hey, at least I was dry from the rain so it wasn’t a complete waste of money. Once the movie was over the rain had cleared and we took the metro to the Tuileries Garden again which was open this time. We walked through the park and through the Louvre square again and then along a shopping street called Rivoli.

We found our way to the Hôtel de Ville (Town Hall) which I had wanted to see so badly since my favorite photograph is Le baiser de l’hôtel de ville (Kiss by Hôtel de Ville) by French photographer Robert Doisneau. I even had the poster of the photograph in my dorm freshman year.In front of the Hôtel de Ville there was a very interesting nature exhibit called Jardin éphémère parisien promoting biodiversity. It almost looked like compost but put together in an artistic way. There were sculptures made out of leaves and branches. It definitely reminded me of my auntie Lola and her organic fruits and veggie garden.

Since we had already saved a lot of metro tickets by walking everywhere all day, we decided to keep it up and walk back to our hotel. We did pretty well finding our way there with the help of a map and a detour to get butter/sugar and Nutella crêpes in Place Saint-Michel again. From out hotel we grabbed our backpacks and took the train to the airport to return to Madrid on only a 2 hour flight.

à la prochaine fois – Until next time.

-Laila

Segovia

After visiting La Granja, we had a 10 minute bus ride to Segovia. The buses dropped us off at Acueducto de Segovia (Aqueduct of Segovia) built by the Romans around 50 AD. What is interesting is that there is no mortar holding the brick-like granite blocks together. The pillars and arches were built just by stacking the large stones. After seeing the aqueduct we walked through Plaza Azoguejo and a few shopping streets, and sat down for lunch at a cafeteria/bar. We had some delicious calamares a la romana (calamari). We had a few hours of free time to leisurely stroll around the streets of Segovia and see Catedral de Segovia (Cathedral of Segovia) built in Isabelino Gothic style. Then we all met up in the Plaza Mayor and walked together to the Alcázar de Segovia (Segovia Castle). The Alcázar is a stone fortification that was originally an Arab fort. It was then taken over by Spanish Christian monarchs and rebuilt.
What I loved most about the Alcázar was that it was Walt Disney’s model for the Disney logo. There is a large moat surrounding the castle and drawbridge to the entrance. We walked around the rooms gilded in gold, reflecting stained glass, and filled with knights’ armor. Then, we took a narrow spiral staircase to the top of one of the towers. It was incredibly hot and incredibly claustrophobic, but the view was worth it! ¡Vale la pena! We saw a beautiful panoramic view of the countryside, downtown and cathedral of Segovia. The walk down the tower was quite an experience considering it is the same stairwell used to climb the tower. It even got to a point where no one was moving and we were stuck in the stairwell with only tiny windows covered with bars (I was just happy I wasn’t sharing this claustrophobic moment with my mom who would have exponentially increased my anxiety). After our visit to the Alcázar we headed back to Madrid by bus and got a good night’s rests after a long day of walking around beneath the sweltering sun.

Click here to view our photo album of Segovia.

-Laila

La Granja

Today Matt and I went on a day excursion with the USD program to La Granja and Segovia, like Toledo also a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Since today is the Catholic holiday, Corpus Christi, in Madrid, we were glad we were able to go to a nearby city where shops (mainly food vendors) would actually be open. First, we took about an hour bus ride to La Granja in Ildefonso (a town in Segovia). La Granja means “farm” in Spanish and is a royal summer palace. The students in our program were divided into 5 tour groups: 3 in English and 2 in Spanish. Matt and I joined the Spanish group as Isabel led us through the palace.

Having been to King Louis XIV’s palace of Versailles in France, I found La Granja equally fascinating especially because of the connection between the families and the architecture. If you don’t like history don’t read the rest of this paragraph… King Louis XIV “Sun King” of France built his lavish palace of Versailles in a country village, now a suburb of Paris, in 1682. He was married to Maria Theresa of Spain. They had a son named Louis, le Grand Dauphin (meaning “dolphin” in French, referring to the animal they bore on their coat of arms). He got married to Anna of Bavaria, know as Dauphine Victoire, and had a son named Felipe (Phillip) who would become King Felipe V of Spain. Felipe V was born at the Palace of Versailles in France. He grew up in Versailles surrounded by the ornate paintings, décor, furniture, and gardens that his grandfather, Louis XIV “Sun King” of France, had included in his palace. The Sun King was known for being a generous spender and a great patron of the arts. When Felipe V’s summer palace near Versailles burned down he bought a site in Spain surrounded by hunting grounds from monks in 1719. He began building a new palace and gardens modeled after Versailles in the Baroque and Rococo style. The palace started as a retreat, but became a center of royal government.

Ok, so enough with the history… It was really interesting to see the similarities between Versailles and La Granja. Unfortunately, we were not permitted to take pictures inside the palace. The intricately carved wall decorations were gilded with gold, enormous detailed tapestries covered the walls, expensive paintings and portraits hung throughout every room, and many bronze fountains and statues were carefully placed throughout the various gardens. Overall, I thought the sights were beautiful and I was relieved to not have to return to the bus with vomit on it. Next stop: Segovia!

Click here to view our photo album of La Granja.

-Laila

Toledo

Today Matt and I went on a day excursion to Toledo, a UNESCO World Heritage site. The excursion was included in the program and everyone from the program went. We left Madrid at 9 AM and took about an hour bus ride to get there where we were split up into tour groups, each with a tour guide. We visited the Gothic monastery called Monasterio de San Juan de los Reyes, the cathedral called Catedral de Toledo, the Plaza de Zocodover, the Goya museum, and wandered through various quaint cobblestone streets. As you will see from the pictures, it is a much more historically and culturally rich city than Madrid. The architecture reflects Moorish, Jewish and Christian influences. In my Cultural History of Spain class I took last semester I did a presentation on the architecture of Spain. It was very interesting to finally see these structures in real life. I was able to recognize the different architectural styles such as Baroque, Gothic, and Mudéjar (Muslim influence in Christian territory). The tour that Matt and I joined was led by María, a director from the Fundación Ortega y Gasset. She was wonderful at explaining clearly and concisely the history behind all of the monuments.

The Catedral de Toledo started being built in 1226 and was finished during the reign of the Catholic Monarchs, Queen Isabella I and King Ferdinand II, in 1493. My favorite part was the 200 kg (440 lb) monstrance encrusted with jewels, including Queen Isabella’s diamond cross pendant in the center above the host. This huge vessel is carried around the city on the national holiday of Corpus Christi on Thursday (no class!). The streets that will be displaying the monstrance have white hanging tarps to protect the monstrance from the sunlight. The homes on those streets also hang colorful tapestries outside of their windows and balconies to celebrate the holiday.

Monstrance -->

At 2:30 PM, we ate lunch in a courtyard in the Fundación Ortega y Gasset in Toledo. It was buffet-style with traditional Spanish cuisine. It was a nice break from having walked around on the cobblestone streets all day. After lunch, we strolled around the Plaza de Zocodover and then got back on the buses. The buses took us to a viewpoint of the city before heading back to Madrid. We were back in our homes by 8:30 PM. It was a long day, twelve hours total, but well worth it.

<-- View of Toledo

-Laila

Our First 24 Horas in Madrid

Ok. Day one in Madrid. [I choose not to count yesterday, as all I did was take a taxi from the airport to my host house, and proceed to sleep for the next several (read: six) hours.] Today we had to travel to our school for a pseudo-orientation as well as a guided tour of the city. The city itself is amazing. I went on a metro for the very first time, which was quite an experience. I think I like public transportation. OH! On the way into the metro, there was this big poop on one of the steps down to the boarding area. I'm guessing some homeless person couldn’t wait anymore, but anyways... I got a chuckle out of it. The city has a mix of elements I have never experienced together before. There were many beautiful trees mixed with amazing architecture. It has the feeling of a bustling city similar to that of New York. The only thing I didn’t like was the constant fear (although that term implies a graveness to the expression I don't intend) about getting my things pick-pocketed. Our tour was not so interesting. Well, let me clarify, the sites that we saw were breathtaking. However, I find myself enjoying the sites themselves (the sheer immensity of the architectural as well as the inherent elegance), and not the historical significance that they represent. Laila digs that stuff though, so I am glad that we got to do the guided tour of Madrid. Toward the end of the tour we decided to excuse ourselves and made our way back to Laila's house where I got to meet her host mom who is a very nice lady. I guess I should tell you about my living situation, seeing as Laila will very likely describe hers.

Laila and me in the Plaza Mayor -->

I live in a house with three generations of women. I have an abuela (grandmother) named Concha, and my host mother, Rosa, and her daughter who is six years old named Sofia. Sofia turns 7 on the 12th and if I understood correctly, we are having a birthday party for her on Monday. She is a cute little girl, and out of everyone in the house, I enjoy talking to her the most (probably because she doesn't intimidate me with speaking Spanish). Me and my roommates were lucky enough to each get our own rooms, with internet to boot! For breakfast it looks like we will be making ourselves toast for the next six weeks (a small breakfast is traditional in Spain), which I am fine with, seeing as I usually am not up in time to eat breakfast anyways.

I don't really know what else to write... I have only been experiencing Madrid for a couple hours, and so far those are my impressions. I love walking around the city with Laila (and not having to follow a tour). We are going to go out to get lunch soon, and Laila is trying to get a hold of one of her friends that she wants to meet up with. If I don't write another post, our next big journey is tomorrow to Toledo, and I am both excited and nervous about it at the same time. One mistake I wont make again that I made today was not bringing my camera with me. No worries though, Laila brought hers, and took pictures of everything. Although I forgot my camera (actually chose not to bring it), Laila forgot her cell phone and keys in the house!). Luckily, her Señora was just getting back from grocery shopping, and was able to let us into her place. Ok. That’s it. I’m done talking.

-Matt

<-- Gloria, my host mom, with Blanquito her gatito (kitten)

First, I’ll start by explaining my housing situation (it’s the best part of being here). My señora (host mom) is the sweetest lady! Her name is Gloria and she works during the week driving to clinics and picking up biopsies to be tested for cancer. She has a daughter, Lucía, that is seventeen and a bit shy. Gloria and Lucía live on the first floor of our apartment building with their 2 adorable one-month old gatitos (kittens), Rubita (Blondie) and Blanquito (Whitey). I’m not a fan of cats and I’m allergic as well, but who doesn’t find kittens cute? They all live on the first floor and the five of us USD girls live on the fifth floor of the apartment building. We have the entire floor to ourselves. Four double bedrooms, two single bedrooms, a fully-stocked kitchen, two full bathrooms (one covered floor to ceiling with 70s brown and orange flower power tiles), and a dining room (with a somewhat frightening portrait of an older woman that stares at us as while we eat).

This weekend there are three other foreign students staying on our floor that will be leaving by Monday. One is a boy from Germany named Axel and two girls from North Carolina. There are two USD girls in each of two double rooms and I have a double room to myself. There are two beds, a closet, a desk, and a chair (as shown in the picture to the right). As you can probably tell, we really lucked out with this setup. Most host families host one to three students in their home. This house reminds me more of a dorm or hostel in regards to the setup.

My bed and closet -->

Gloria comes up to make us dinner every night and sits and talks with us (well, mostly to me because the other girls don’t speak Spanish). Gloria is always calling out “¡Laila! ¡Ayuda!” (Laila, help!) so that I can translate for her because she doesn’t speak English. We all love her. She’s a very happy person and whenever she is on our floor she is singing. I have really enjoyed the meals so far. The first night we had Paella, a traditional Spanish dish consisting of seasoned yellow rice with green beans and chicken. Tonight we had a type of chicken noodle soup, mashed potatoes, and grilled chicken. She cooks everything very simply which we all appreciate.

So that was the setup of the housing situation. Now I’m going to briefly add on to what Matt previously said about our day today. After orientation and the city tour, Matt and I met my friend from high school, Andrea, who has been studying at a university here in Madrid since January. We ate some lunch at Cervecería 100 Montaditos. It was a really cool setup. When you grab a paper menu when you walk in you write your order on it. You write the number of “montaditos” you want of each kind. Montaditos are little baguette-like sandwiches filled with cheese, sausage, ham, tuna, salmon, meat, shrimp, chicken, bacon, eggs etc. measuring only a little more two inches each. This chain restaurant is really popular because each of the 100 different types of mini-sandwiches only cost 1 Euro each and so do the drinks including soda, beer, and wine. Everyone orders a bunch and they come on one big platter. Today I also tried Tinto de Verano from a tap. It’s a mixture of red wine and Sprite. I enjoyed it. It was nice having lunch with Andrea because she gave us tips on Madrid since she has already been here a few months.

Well, it’s almost 3 AM here and we have to be at the bus by 8:45 AM to go on a 12 hour day trip to Toledo tomorrow. I’m really excited to take some great pictures, but at the same time I know I’ll be exhausted. I’ll be posting pictures soon, but I need to get some rest first ☺

-Laila