Valpo Voyager

Student Stories from Around the World

Tag: Study abroad (page 6 of 13)

¡Estoy Aquí!

September 8, 2013 / / 0 Comments

I have tried to start this post in so many different ways, but there’s only one way to say it- I’m here in Granada! I still can’t believe it and I’ve been here over a day and a half already. So far the city has been beautiful. The adventure it took to get here, however, was much more of an “I’m going into the African bush with nothing but the clothes on my back” kind-of adventure rather than the “I’m going for a nice camping trip in my RV” kind. What do I mean by that? Well, to be honest, despite all of the emails, google searches, and Spanish grammar review, none of us really knew what we were in for when we got off the plane. I was able to capture most of it in a (hopefully) entertaining video for you all, but to fill in the details before I post it, I’ve written the whole saga down below.

Amanda M.(another girl from Valpo) and I were fortunate enough to run into 3 other girls studying with Central in Granada who were taking the same flight. That was about where our luck ended, however. After getting our luggage and making it through customs in Madrid, one of the girls, Amanda K., and I decided that the next logical step was to hit up the ATMs and get some Euro. There was just one problem. Neither of our cards worked. After a brief moment of panic, we realized we were using the ATM for European cards and not the one for MasterCard/Visa/etc. After switching ATMs Amanda was successfully able to withdraw the amount she needed. My card, however, was still being repeatedly rejected. Thank God (literally) for the other girls. They were successfully able to stop me from bursting into tears and booking the next flight home and reassured me that all would be well. After my panic moment was over, I realized that right before leaving O’Hare I had downloaded an app to my touch that allowed me to make international calls to the US. After purchasing wifi and call time, I was successfully able to call my Waukesha bank. Turns out that even though I notified them of my upcoming travels, they were never put on my record. The bank had thought that someone stole my card to use in Spain and had therefore shut down my account. Luckily, they were able to confirm that it was indeed my trying to use my own card in Spain. All was well and I was able to withdraw my money. *Insert large thank you to dad for convincing me to purchase said iPod here*

 

Unfortunately, that was only the beginning of many struggles to come. Our program director had sent those of us flying into Madrid a very detailed email documenting all the ways to get from the airport all the way down to Granada. We decided to go the cheap route, which, unfortunately for us was also by far the most complicated. From the airport we bought train tickets. We almost bought the wrong ones, potentially broke one of the ticket gates, and definitely thought we were waiting at the wrong platform for a moment, but in the end, we ended up on the right train. We also ended up blocking off an entire train car because of the amount of luggage we had between the six of us. We managed to get off at the right station, but struggled getting out, because, fun fact, in Spain you MUST save your train tickets and reuse them to open the doors to exit the station. It’s a great way to ensure that everyone pays their fare, but it’s not so great when you’re an ignorant American student who has no idea about said system. Thankfully we all made it out.

 

Finally out of the train station, we were ready to conquer the world that is the Madrid bus station. We were able to find the right bus company fairly quickly, but found out that we had just missed the early bus and were going to have to wait for 2 hours to catch the next one. Excellent. We were able to successfully talk with several Spaniards while we waited and even learned the meaning of the mysterious “tío/tía bueno” expression we had been hearing (for those of you that don’t speak Spanish the expression literally translates to good uncle/aunt. Apparently in Spain that’s what they use to describe good-looking people. So confusing, but hilariously and graciously explained to us by an older Spanish woman). The 2 hours actually flew by and before we knew it we were boarding the bus.

 

Right before we got on, I spotted another college-age girl also sporting a huge suitcase and a Vera Bradley duffel (usually a pretty dead give away that one’s American). She came up and asked if I was also going to Granada, and turns out she’s a Central Abroad student too! After that crazy chance encounter, I settled in for the 5+ hour bus ride to the south of Spain. I missed the entire first 2ish hours of the ride catching up on sleep, but from what I saw of the last 3, the Spanish countryside is beautiful! I’ve never actually seen mountains before in my life, so being able to drive straight through the Sierras was incredible. The foliage here is so interesting. I can’t wait to take advantage of all the hiking around Granada and climb some of these mountains myself!

Anyways, we arrived to the bus station on the outskirts of Granada safely and without much event. Once again though, we had a little trouble figuring out which form of public transportation we should try next. When given the option between a city bus and taxis, we decided to take the “easy” way out and grab a cab. Diana, Amanda M., and I were staying in a hostel vs. The Hotel Melia Granada like the rest of our group, so we took a separate cab. Though the hostel was right behind the famous store Zara,  only a few blocks away from Hotel Melia and should’ve been relatively easy to find, our cab driver mistakenly left us off 2 blocks early. Luckily, the owner of another hostel was able to point us in the right direction and we made our way safely there- heavy luggage and all. Even better, the woman and her husband who own the hostel are AMAZING. They took such great care of us! If any of you are thinking of coming to Granada (You all should!) and need a cheap place to stay, Old Town Hostel is literally the best money can buy. €12 for a night’s stay, a hot shower, breakfast, and a rooftop terrace. You can’t beat it.

 

To say the trip was long is an understatement. I definitely had more than one moment of, “What in the world am I doing here?! I can’t function here for one day, let alone an entire year!” but being in Granada and meeting the other girls made it all worth it. Amelia, the girl we ended up meeting on the 2:00 bus, because we missed the first one? Turns out she’s my roommate for fall semester! She’s also a huge answer to prayer, but that’s a story for another blog post. For now, I need to head to bed. Tomorrow we see more of the city and take our first level test. *Gulp* ¡Hasta lluego!

 

 

I Understand More than I Thought I Would!

September 7, 2013 / / 0 Comments

First day in Tuebingen..finally seeing this beautiful view in person!

Guten Abend alle!  Ich bin letzte Woche in Tübingen angekommen und ich habe schon viel gelernt!  Translation: I arrived in Tubingen last week and I’ve already learned a lot!  I’m really loving it here so far, and I can’t wait until I meet more people and get to know the city better! A run-down of what’s happened since I’ve arrived:

The professor who oversees VU’s programs in Germany met me at the Stuttgart airport when I landed on Friday  and we took a bus to Tubingen.  His help getting to Tübingen was such a blessing since I was exhausted after three flights and wouldn’t have been able to find my dorm alone on my very first day.  After I got my dorm I met the Wohnheimtutorin (similar to an RA except without as much discipline power) for my building, and she is awesome!  She speaks English very well, and therefore is really patient with my learning German and helps with some vocab and tips for living in Tübingen.  Not many of my floor mates have moved in yet since classes in Germany normally don’t start until October.  Until then, more kitchen and bathroom space for me!

I spent most of my first week in Tübingen exploring and getting to know the city.  This past Saturday I met up with the students from Valpo’s program in Reutlingen for a soccer game, which I enjoyed a lot!  I loved mingling with “real Germans” in the stands and reconnecting with people from Valpo studying in Reutlingen.  After a day of being mostly by myself figuring out where to find/buy necessary things in Germany, relaxing and socializing at the game was a fun time (although I can’t say the same about learning the train system to Reutlingen and back).

On Sunday I attended a service at the Stiftskirche St. Georg, one of the more recognizable churches in the city.  The inside of the church was gorgeous (see for yourself).  I mentioned earlier that last summer I had an internship in Chile.  I remember the first church service I attended in Chile as well, and I know that I didn’t understand nearly as much of that service as the service in the Stiftskirche.  I didn’t have a lot of confidence with my German when I came to Germany, but each day I’m learning to look for opportunities to speak and to learn, and I know that I’m getting better each day!  Sounds cliché, but it’s completely true!

In my next blog post I’ll talk more about Deutsch-Kompakt, the intensive German language course that I’m enrolled in.  Class started on Monday, but I’m waiting to post about it until after the “arrival in Germany” post because I don’t want to minimize how much fun I’m having so far in the course and with the people I’ve met in it.  Since everyone is in the same situation (living in Germany for a semester/year, feeling a little iffy about German language skills), we’ve created a community of internationals that adds and extra, wonderful spark to life in Tübingen.  We’re taking a trip next week to Blaubeuren, a town near Ulm, so follow my future posts for more detail about the class and our Abenteuer (adventures)!

View from the window in my room! Love looking at this and drinking tea every morning!

Honestly, I still can hardly believe that I’ve really arrived in Germany to stay for a year.  After so much planning and worrying over the past year, being here feels like both a breath of fresh air and something intimidating that I’ve never experienced before.  Anyway, it’s been a fantastic past few days, and I’m excited to see what the rest of this year will bring!  Check back for more updates!

Peace.

After packing! Well, give or take a few things left to throw in :)

A Year in One Suitcase…Here I Go

August 28, 2013 / / 0 Comments

Before packing...

Hallo alle!  I’m Hannah, a Valpo junior from Pittsburgh, PA double majoring in German and Spanish.  I’ll be spending the 2013-2014 school year studying in Tübingen, Germany, a small city in the province of Baden-Württemberg about an hour away from Stuttgart.  I’m an incurable language nerd with a passion for travel, and I feel so blessed to study at a place like Valparaiso University.  At Valpo, I’ve been able to have unforgettable international experiences that have improved my language skills and allowed me to see places that, before college, I could only dream about and write on my bucket list.  Last summer, I spent two months serving as an intern at the YMCA in Valparaiso, Chile.    In Chile I made great friends, improved my Spanish, and really learned how to live in and experience another culture firsthand (Want specific details? Read my blog!).  This past winter, I also had the opportunity to tour China performing with VU’s orchestra (I play cello :)).  Seeing places like the Great Wall and Hangzhou’s West Lake were once-in-a-lifetime experiences that I know I wouldn’t have gotten at any other school.

Now that I’ve told you a little about myself and how much I love Valpo, it’s time to get to the reason you’re reading this blog which is…THAT I LEAVE TO GO TO GERMANY FOR A YEAR TOMORROW.  Yes, it’s now 12:14am on August 28th, and after a summer of working 40 hour fast food weeks and wondering how I am even going to begin to prepare for so long a trip, the countdown to the 29th is almost over and I am excited, stressed, and in little bit of denial that I will be gone for a whole year, which is pretty terrifying.  But I’m not terrified in a bad way at all; I have the typical scared/anxious feeling that comes from knowing that you are entering an experience from which you will come out a changed person with a new perspective.  I will miss my family and friends at home and on campus so much, but I know that I’ll gain and experience more from going to Germany than I can even comprehend right now.  Amidst all the changes and confusion that come from living in a new country and learning a new language, God never changes. No matter where I am in the world, I know that I have a home in Christ and that He will care for me wherever I go and lead me to where I can best serve Him.

So now to the real hard part of studying abroad for a year…PACKING.  Two days ago I couldn’t have told you how I planned on fitting a year of my belongings in one suitcase, but it’s finally been done!  I figured that no matter how hard I try, I won’t be able to bring enough clothes or American toiletries, etc. to last me a year.  If I forget or need something, I’ll easily be able to get it in Germany (as if I needed another excuse to go shopping).

After packing! Well, give or take a few things left to throw in 🙂

The next time you hear from me through this blog, I’ll be on my adventure, which is a scary and exciting thought!  I’m planning on making this blog more than just writing.  Maybe some video blogging to come soon?  Check back soon for another post and follow me on Twitter @HannahinGermany.  I’ll be tweeting my study abroad happenings throughout each day as well as announcing new blog posts!  Bis bald!

Peace,

Hannah

 

 

 

Cultural Expectations

August 27, 2013 / / 0 Comments

Tonight I want to share two experiences from the last week or so, and think a bit about the exact nature of culture changes and which differences result in what they call culture shock. First, the two experiences:

My landlady initially described this washer as a "flintstones machine." I don't really disagree!

1. My apartment’s appliances. Over this last summer I was fortunate enough to have an apartment built in the last year or so, with brand new appliances. When I say brand new appliances, I mean the really nice stuff. My current apartment is quite different, however. The fridge is half the size of an American one, and has no dedicated freezer door. The oven and stove are both lit with matches, and you need to hold the gas dial for an undisclosed-but-seemingly-fixed-but-also-random amount of time, and even then it sometimes goes out. The shower has the water heater directly attached, and sometimes the pilot light can go out, requiring it to be lit again with a match. The shower also has two knobs for hot and cold water, but if the hot knob is stationary then the flame might go down, causing the temperature to oscillate between scalding and ice cold. While these appliances clearly are different than the American ones I used this summer, they feel as European as the rest of the flat and I’ve had absolutely no problem adjusting to them as part of my home.

Look at what all I got charged for and the relative prices.

2. Hungarian interpretive food. Sure, Hungarians have their own unique dishes just like any other culture. What I find fascinating though is to taste the Hungarian interpretation of another cultures’ food. For example, in America we have “Chinese food” that we know isn’t really food from China, but more of an American interpretation of Chinese food. In a sense, American Chinese food is an American dish, part of our own culture — we have expectations for how it should taste. Likewise, Hungarians have their own Chinese food. In this segment, however, I want to concentrate on the Hungarian McDonalds I visited. First off, the few McDonalds I’ve seen in Hungary are two (or even three) stories tall. They differentiate from the food from the coffee, giving each their own floors and dining areas. Sitting down in a McDonalds for a while, I noticed that not a single Hungarian had a cup larger than the very smallest cup available, which was a stark contrast to the super-size American cups. Listening to the radio mingling through conversations, I heard a European voice singing in broken English the words “we stand strong for the red, white and blue.” Well, Hungary is red, white and… green. Perhaps this place isn’t so much a Hungarian interpretation of American food as much as an attempt to bring America to Eastern Europe. Not so much a surprise, all things considered, but I walked out thinking that this McDonalds experience felt very different from the American one; it didn’t feel right.

While these two tidbits are somewhat interesting on their own, I want you to think a bit about the contrasting feelings I walked away with. The first one felt very different from what I’m used to, and yet I had no difficulty adjusting. On the other hand, the McDonalds felt very alien from the expectations I’ve developed from experience. In a sense, you could say I had more culture shock going into a McDonalds than I did settling in a European flat. Does this statement seem counterintuitive?

For a few days I chewed on these thoughts and I think I’ve finally pieced together the difference: expectation. I’ve never lived on my own in an apartment in America for more than a few months at a time, I’ve never researched and chosen appliances, or even used them long enough to feel really attached to them. Coming to Hungary, I expected to live in a European apartment where I knew different cultural aspects like shopping more often affect the living style (having a smaller fridge, etc.). My expectation for the living arrangement was that I wouldn’t have an expectation for the details. On the other hand, I had an expectation for McDonalds! I have a cultural expectation for what a fast food joint looks like, smells like, feels like; I know that ketchup and napkins and straws are all free and also know that Americans like to grab as much of these as they want. But to be charged for these items, and to see the local Hungarians understand this system and adapt to it? All of a sudden my expectations were broken and I was able to observe the culture directly, respectively. That’s kind of cool if you ask me.

At the end of the day, what is culture shock? If you asked me right now I’d say it’s the feeling that all expectations you have will be broken. You expect (subconsciously) to speak English but are greeted with a foreign language. You expect to be able to buy your favorite foods in grocery stores, then find out the country doesn’t carry the items at all. Perhaps the best way to manage culture shock, then, is simply to contain it. Understand what you should expect and what you shouldn’t, and walk into situations with an open mind. It’s not a meaningful experience if you don’t learn something new, right?

Saying Goodbye

May 7, 2013 / / 0 Comments

This past weekend was our last weekend of freedom, so to speak, since next weekend we have a group excursion to the Lake District.  That made this weekend our last opportunity to travel where we wanted and say our final goodbyes to London.  Somewhere I really wanted to go back to, which was, coincidentally, where we spent our very first weekend while abroad, was Edinburgh, Scotland.  We had had such an amazing time in Scotland the first time around, and there were still a few things I didn’t get a chance to do the first time that I wanted to go back and explore.

I do have to say, since it was the only place, with the exception of London, that we went back to, it was funny walking out of the train station and knowing exactly where we were supposed to go.  We already had a hang of the city and where everything was located and we already did the walking tour and learned all about the city, so now we could just go and do whatever it was we wanted.  One of the first things we did was climb to the top of Arthur’s Seat, a tall mountain/hill in Edinburgh.  Accidentally, Emelie and I ended up climbing up the higher, much steeper mountain right next to Arthur’s Seat, in the wind and the rain.  Whoops.  It was still quite an experience. From up there we could see all of Edinburgh below us.  It allowed us to actually realize how close to the North Sea Edinburgh actually was.

Something else I really wanted to do ever since that first weekend was to go on the Covenanter’s Prison Tour of Greyfriar’s Cemetery.  Ever since hearing all of the stories about the prison and researching it once I returned to Cambridge, I have wanted to go back and see what all the hype was for myself.  The history behind the prison, and that cemetery itself is remarkable.  So many horror stories have come from authors who were inspired by the cemetery, such as Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, and Dracula.  Naturally, nothing supernatural occurred while we were there, but it was still something I had to experience on my own.  Our tour guy himself was enough of a show for me.  He was a bit nutty and hopped around the cobblestone the entire way there refusing to step on any cracks.

  

Since it was Bank holiday, meaning we didn’t have any classes on Monday, Emelie and I came back from Edinburgh on Saturday and headed for our last hoorah in London for Sunday and Monday.  It was nice having just a little more time to see everything in London we saw on our very first trip there, such as London Tower and Tower Bridge, Piccadilly Circus and Leister Square, and even Big Ben and Parliament.  We even did the same telephone booth pose that we had from week one by Big Ben!  Luckily, a women from our hostel mentioned that we should go to the market in Camden Town, somewhere no one had previously mentioned going to, and we headed there on Monday.   This market, literally, just went on and on and on.  It never ended.  There were shops that sold anything you could think of and even a huge courtyard with different tents of food from mini pancakes served with Nutella, to paella, wraps, chicken burgers, cheesecake, pineapple smoothie in a pineapple, and even options of kangaroo.  As for crafts, there was a man that sold candles in the shape of wine bottles and cheese, that would melt in the most amazing looking ways.  The market itself was a sight to see and somewhere I would definitely tell people to go to.  It was bursting with people, especially since most of the people had off work.

     

Hopping off the tube for the last time Monday was pretty hard to do.  I have grown to love the city so much and especially the tube!  Once you have lived and experience London, you’ll understand too.  It is my favorite city in the world, one that I would love to come back and move to one day in the future.  Saying goodbye to Cambridge these next nine days is not going to be easy either.  It is unbelievable how fast these past four months have gone by.  As much as I want to see my friends and family, I’m dreading hopping on that plane for the long nine hour journey back home, knowing that I really don’t know the next time I’ll be back again.  So I’m going to make sure to live up these next few days and do everything my heart desires, going home with no regrets and nothing left undone.

Big Ben and Parliament

London’s Calling

April 19, 2013 / / 0 Comments

Big Ben and Parliament

I have always dreamed of visiting London; seeing Big Ben has always been towards the top of my bucket list. Last weekend, I finally got to make that dream a reality. Of course I wanted to see as much as possible in the three days that I was there, so I arrived with a long list of sights to see. Unfortunately, I didn’t realize how big London is, and I didn’t get to cross everything off my list during this trip. As soon as we walked outside of the train station, I instantly knew that I was in London. Everywhere I turned, I could see red double-decker buses and telephone booths, and as I listened in on conversations on the street, I could clearly hear British accents. I can’t describe how nice it was to finally be surrounded by English for a change!

When we arrived, the weather was a bit rainy, so we didn’t get to see many sights at first. Instead, we spent our time mostly indoors on Saturday, first at the world’s largest Ripley’s Believe It or Not Museum. I had been to one before in Wisconsin Dells, but this one was undoubtedly the best of its kind. I personally love everything bizarre, so I had to go inside once I heard it was the world’s largest Ripley’s museum. They had all sorts of strange items, including a prehistoric shark’s set of teeth, an iron maiden, and shrunken heads. It may not have been worth the 22 pounds that we paid (even with a student discount), but it was a nice was to pass the time out of the rain.

Bre and I in front of Buckingham Palace

The highlight of my weekend was without a doubt seeing The Phantom of the Opera at Her Majesty’s Theatre. I am a huge fan of the story; I have read the original book and many other fanfiction novels about the Phantom, and I have seen the both original and most recent film countless times. I adore the soundtrack and can sing you any song you choose by heart and play it for you on the piano (not necessarily at the same time!). During the show, I couldn’t help but mouth the words along with the actors. I was completely blown away by the quality of the singers’ voices and the special effects. When the chandelier went up at the very beginning and the organ started wailing the main tune, I had a mini heart attack and had the widest grin on my face. I believe that the Phantom of the Opera is a very important part of London’s broadway history, and I am so happy that I had the chance to see my favorite musical on stage in the best place in the world to see it performed.

After two days of rain, the sky finally opened up on Sunday and made way for a unbelievably beautiful day. My friend and I spent the entire day walking around London sight seeing. Our first stop was Abbey Road, made famous by the Beatles’ album of the same name. There were many tourists there literally stopping traffic just to snap a photo like the Beatles, and of course I became one of them. We then headed toward the River Thames, where we passed Buckingham Palace, Big Ben, Westminister Abbey, and a lot of other really cool buildings. I was really surprised by how many great tourist spots were all clustered together in the same area. It did make for an easy sight seeing tour, though! After that, we saw the Globe Theatre, Millenium Bridge, St. Paul’s Cathedral, and the London Bridge, just to name a few.

I was completely amazed at how much there is to see in London, and I’m sad I couldn’t see it all in three days. Now that I know how great London really is, I am itching to go back and take a closer look at all this city has to offer.

Millenium Bridge and St. Paul's Cathedral

London Bridge

Oslo and Norwegian Constitution Day

May 27, 2012 / / 0 Comments

I recently took my last trip in Europe and I couldn’t have picked a better time to do so!

I went to Oslo, Norway for 5 days to visit a few friends I met in Zaragoza and while I was there, I got to see the Norwegian Constitution Day. Oslo’s a little city (a little smaller than Indianapolis) and is quiet and easy-going. Coming from a bustling Madrid, it was quite the comparison. Nonetheless, Oslo is a great city and I think it’s mistakenly overlooked as a great travel destination.

Getting to experience their Constitution Day was something I’ll never forget. There are hundreds of street vendors selling everything from traditional Norwegian food to Arabic food and thousands of people in the streets in traditional clothes (called a bunad). There are also a number of younger people in red overall-type get ups. They’re referred to as russ which is a part of their graduation tradition there. The picture to the right is of my Norwegian friend Christina in her bunad with my other friend and her boyfriend Jørgen. Some men also wear traditional-style clothes but many nowadays just wear a suit like Jørgen. The traditional dress also depends on what area of Norway you’re from so Christina’s dress is different from a typical dress from another region of Norway. In addition, I got a quick glimpse of the king of Norway and the royal family of Norway as they were waving to the crowds from the balcony of the palace.

One of the things that surprised me about Norway was the prices. Everything is extremely expensive. Going to a normal cafe to buy a caramel macchiato and a muffin cost me around $11. It’s not just the restaurants either. Everything in the grocery store is more expensive as well and in some instances, the clothes in an H&M, for instance, were about twice the price as in Spain. Something else that surprised me (but in a good way) was that because Norway is so far north, the sun began to rise around 3 a.m. when I was there. I suppose I should have realized this before going but it was so cool looking outside at 3 in the morning and actually being able to see the streets lit up but empty. During the summer, there is very little darkness and in the winter, there’s not much light at all. This was just one of the few oddities that made Oslo even more interesting for me.

In all, I had a great time there and I’m so glad I got to visit my friends Christina, Jørgen, and Sandra. It’s a really beautiful place to visit and I can’t speak highly enough about it!

Thanks for reading and if you’d like to follow me more closely, I have a Twitter account. If you’d like to see ALL of my photos, I also have a Picasa account.

The Cathedral located at the far end of the Royal Palace.

Madrid Part 2 – Prado, Reina Sofia, Palacio Real

May 24, 2012 / / 0 Comments

I thought the best way to cover what I actually did in Madrid would be to make a short list and include some basic information since I did so much there.

The Cathedral located at the far end of the Royal Palace.

Reina Sofia

This is a fairly standard museum and one of the 2 major museums in Madrid. There’s a variety of paintings with a considerable amount of works from both Dalí and Picasso. They were both Spanish painters so naturally the Sofia has several of their respectable masterpieces. By far, the most famous painting in the museum is probably Picasso’s Guernica. This particular painting is famous not just because of who painted it but also because of its subject matter depicting the bombing of the city of Guernica during the Spanish Civil War. In any case, the museum is fairly straightforward, free for students, and you could expect to spend maybe 4 to 5 hours there.

Outside the front of the Prado.

The Prado

The Prado is the top-rated museum in Spain and one of the most famous in the world. I enjoyed it but having already went to the Reina Sofia the day before, I was honestly a  little tired of museums at that point so my opinion of it might be a little biased. The two major collections here are from Velázquez and Francisco de Goya. I enjoyed both of those exhibits but I thought the film section was a bit boring. Some people might take a liking to the short, artsy films but I honestly was bored after about 20 minutes. I much prefer the paintings there. Like the Reina Sofia, it’s free for students and just a few euros for everyone else. You could spend a few hours there as well depending on how much of a museum person you are. Even if you never go to the museum, the area surrounding it is definitely worth seeing.

El Palacio Real (The Royal Palace)

The Spanish Royal Palace is absolutely stunning and it’s one of the must-see things in Madrid. I’ve heard people say it’s one of the greatest palaces in Europe and I can’t argue with that. In my previous blog post, I posted a picture of the side of the palace as seen from the royal gardens. On the opposite side is a big church of which I’ll also add a photo somewhere in this post. Unfortunately, I didn’t get to go inside because it’s randomly closed certain days of the year but I think it costs around 6 or 7 euros to enter and I’ve heard it’s extremely luxurious so it’s probably worth it.

Me, outside the gates of Palacio Real (Royal Palace).

Other Areas

Two other areas that are must-sees in Madrid (and that I frequently traveled to) are Puerta del Sol and Plaza Mayor. They’re both very close to each other and basically constitute the center of Madrid. The area is very touristy and there are several restaurants and tapas bars so if you’re planning to eat there like I did, you’ll probably have to search a bit to find a less expensive place. They’re not too difficult to find it’s just a matter of finding something different from everything else. Most of the tapas places and restaurants serve very similar food so they’re almost all indistinguishable from one another next to their respective names. The only real things to see in Puerta del Sol (other than any protests that are going on which are frequent) is the fish-shaped metro station and the famous bear/tree statue. This is the statue that is on the city seal and is most associated with Madrid. One last place that I went to kill some time was the Royal Botanical Gardens. It’s next to the Prado so if you’re into flowers and such, I highly recommend it. They have an extensive garden and it costs around 2 euros to enter. If for nothing else, it’s good to just relax and smell the roses.

That’s it for my blog on Madrid. I hope it didn’t feel too rushed because of my blog limitations so if anyone ever has a question, send me a message or something. I’m always happy to help!

Thanks for reading and if you’d like to follow me more closely, I have a Twitter account. If you’d like to see ALL of my photos, I also have a Picasa account.

Spanish Royal Palace in Madrid as seen from the Royal Gardens

Madrid Part 1 – Demonstrations & Protests

May 22, 2012 / / 0 Comments

The last week has been a bit hectic so I apologize for having such a large gap in between my posts. I’ll also be posting quite a few this next week.

Spanish Royal Palace in Madrid as seen from the Royal Gardens

As you might know from my Twitter updates, 2 Saturdays ago I finally had the opportunity to do the “touristy thing” in Madrid rather than just going to the airport or Atocha Station like I normally do there. The other Americans from Valpo flew back to Chicago last Monday but I opted to stay longer so I stayed in Madrid until Wednesday when I went directly to Norway to visit a few friends. A Norway blog is forthcoming as well but I thought it would be better to start from the beginning of this extended trip.

Central Madrid

We all stayed in a hostel fairly close to the city center which many consider to be Puerta del Sol which is also fairly close to Plaza Mayor. The first night we were there we noticed that the area surrounding Puerta del Sol wasn’t exactly normal. We learned over the next few days that because of the education cuts ordered by the Spanish government, there have been almost constant protests and demonstrations in the area over the last few days/weeks.

There were a few thousand people there at sporadic periods during the day and since I’m not really informed of their agenda or demonstration times, many times we were forced to cut through the crowd to get where we wanted to go. Even though it was a little intimidating at first, we didn’t have any problems and everything seemed very peaceful for the most part. There were a number of police officers on hand to keep everything under control and even they seemed to be quite relaxed. In addition, this area was crawling with foreign tourists so we never felt alone. In any case I had a great time there and I’m glad I finally got to experience Madrid since, you know, it is the Spanish capitol and all.

Some of the places I visited include the Royal Palace, Royal Gardens, Puerta del Sol, Plaza Mayor, Reina Sofia, the Prado, and several other locations. In my next blog, I’m hoping to detail some of the more touristy things I experienced in Madrid followed by a post on Norway and a farewell blog. Check back soon for that!

Thanks for reading and if you’d like to follow me more closely, I have a Twitter account. If you’d like to see ALL of my photos, I also have a Picasa account.

 

I took this photo at one of my places in Britain: Tintern Abbey. This majority of this abbey, destroyed by Henry VIII, still stands today.

The Cambridge Experience

May 17, 2012 / / 0 Comments

Growing up one constantly sees and hears about London, Paris, Italy, and all of the other dream European destinations.  But, (at least for me) thinking about my chances to actually go and live at one of these locations for a period of several months always made them seem a million miles away.  Thankfully, I’ve had the surreal experience of not only visiting many of these locations, but also of living in Cambridge, England for the past semester.  Over the course of my previous blogs I’ve written a lot about what I’ve seen and done, but little about the actual experience.

I've decided to adorn this blog with a few eclectic personal favorite photographs. This is an iconic Cambridge photo taken from the back of Kings College.

From the beginning the feeling has been an odd one.  The entire semester has felt like one incredibly long vacation.  After flying over in early January, it was as if Christmas Break forgot to end and continued for several months.  Then, by the time the Christmas Break feeling had gone we were packing for Spring Break.  Before we’d barely finished unpacking from Spring Break it was the eve of Easter Break.  And from the last Thursday of Easter Break it would only be four short weeks before we would be boarding a plane destined for the US.  If fact, it would be fair to say it “hit me” that I was going home in less than a month before I fully realized that I had even arrived in Europe.

I took this photo at one of my favorite locations in Britain: Tintern Abbey. This majority of this abbey, destroyed by Henry VIII, still stands today.

Although I describe the semester as a “vacation,” perhaps this isn’t the best term.  The word makes me think of time spent without a place to call home.  However, only weeks into the semester Cambridge felt very much like home – the familiar (and, in a pleasant way, somewhat boring) pathway from the railway station to the Student Centre was a welcoming sight following a weekend of travel.

Instead of “vacation” maybe a better word is “break.”  The semester provided the opportunity to get away from normal difficulties and in stepping back view them from a rather detached perspective.  In fact, you might even say living in Cambridge was almost like living a separate life.  The very ritualized schedules of college were replaced by an expectation to have a good time and allow yourself to learn through the adventures your curiosity brought you to.  In England some problems seemed much further away (you don’t have to stay in shape for sports), while others felt far more pressing (like the difficulties of signing leases and registering for classes from overseas).  Yet “break” really isn’t the right word either.  The courseload was relatively light compared to my previous semesters.  Yet, after factoring in 2-3 credits worth of time planning upcoming trips and another 2-3 for experiencing the city of Cambridge itself the total amount of hours required to take full advantage of my time overseas came up to about 20 credits’ worth.  Not what I’d describe as a light semester.

During my travels around Europe my favorite city was Paris. This photo is of one of the lock bridges, Pont de l'Archevêché.

Another fitting word might be “change.”  As opposed to the monotonously ritualized pattern of usual schoolwork, learning through experience and immersion into another culture was a refreshingly different challenge.  The entire nature of the task changes.  Can I navigate public transportation to get where I need to go?  Can I plan this trip successfully?  Is it even possible for me to communicate with others, or do they speak as little English as I do of their language?  Other challenges are less precise.  Learning how members of a different society think (especially in regards to Americans) and how they interact is a type of education with absolutely no equivalent in the States.  Even more than this our challenge was to not only learn this information, but to know it well enough to (on occasion) integrate into this culture and hopefully view the rest of the world from within it.

One of the highlights of the semester was visiting relatives that live in Wales. This is my nephew and I walking along the road by my aunt and uncle's house.

Although I’ve been to some of the most amazing places in the entire world, I think some of the smallest and most “normal” things have actually been some of the highlights of the semester.  For example, I absolutely loved cooking not only for myself, but also for other members of my dinner group.  I loved watching the rain fall as I sat in the 3rd floor window holding a guitar and a glass of wine.  Using the “break” aspect of the semester as a chance to take a pause from life and simply think and reflect was fantastic.  Also, as you may have noticed, I have often used plural pronouns in describing the semester.  Rather than attributing this to my careless writing I think this is evidence that the 17 of us from Valpo could not have gotten luckier in our selection of housemates to share the semester with.

And now, as I’m packing to return to America, this is also the end of my blog.  I hope you’ve enjoyed following me as I’ve experienced living in Cambridge, England and traveled around Europe.  If you’ve missed any of my trips or want to know what else happened in Cambridge please feel free to check out my past blogs or my roommate’s blogs.  Also, don’t forget to take a look at the pictures I’ve posted from the semester.  Goodbye, and thank you for reading!

Cheers!

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