Still a TON to Learn

After a few people started to heckle me about another post (you know who you are), I decided to reflect on this past week and how I've adapted, learned, and essentially "set up camp" for the next four months. Though its only been five days since I've arrived in Madrid, I feel like I have already experienced a ton! In this post I will even talk about some of the goals I talked about in my first post have already been completed! But let me find a good starting point.

I truly think it seems as though I have already experienced a lot because I am being a sponge. I am taking in as much as humanly possible at all times. By the time I get back to the United States I will feel like a master of Madrid and Spain! Lets see what I have experienced so far:

Food: One thing I am super proud of myself for is not planning anything when it comes to food. This means not planning where we decide to eat and what I decide to eat. For example, just yesterday my roommate Matt and I wanted lunch so we decided to explore and find a new place to eat. We wandered and took random turns that looked promising and found a little place called Miladama. At first sight this little place doesn't seem like much. However it quickly turned out to be my favorite and possibly my regular lunch place every Thursday! We decided to order and I picked two random plates just for the heck of it. This ended up being the BEST decision I could've made and have decided to follow this philosophy while I am here in Spain! The food I ate was incredible and I probably wouldn't have ordered it if I had known what it was.

Culture: This part has been somewhat more difficult than I imagined. The language, though coming back to me slowly, is still a little rusty and I find myself searching for words I have forgotten since my last Spanish class in high school. The eating schedule seems to throw a lot of students here, including myself. A small breakfast in the morning, a large lunch from 2-4 where everything closes in town (yes literally everything), and then dinner around 10-11 pm. I still find myself hungry around 5 or 6 pm and sometimes find myself a snack. Hopefully I will get on this schedule soon so I don't get hungry every 3 hours. And the night life, which is a huge part of life here in Madrid, is really quite intense (not sure if that's the right word I'm looking for...). Spaniards make sure to dress up much more than we would back in the states for a similar outing. Also, some of the locals go out very late (we are talking not leaving their houses til 11:30 or midnight) and don't come home until the metro opens again at 6 am. Personally I don't see how that would be do able and haven't tried myself. With all of that being said, I am doing my best to immerse myself into the culture as much as possible, though I still get hungry easily and find English slipping out because of habit though I'm speaking Spanish. 

Soccer: Yes. Absolutely amazing. In its every form. Being able to walk into any sports bar or restaurant and know that soccer will be on is a blessing. Another experience that was different than I expected: playing soccer. I went and played with the SLU Madrid Soccer team and had a blast. Of course I always do but I also got to experience playing with 4 other nationalities. It was really interesting playing and listen to German, French, Spanish, and Hindi at the same time! Finally, my favorite experience so far............seeing a professional game in Santiago Bernabéu Stadium!!! That's right! I decided to go see Real Madrid play Celta Vigo here in Madrid. It truly was a spectacle I will never forget.

As you can probably tell, I've already experienced a ton. But I have just scratched the surface on this amazing trip. I have already completed multiple goals I set for myself in my first post: I have played soccer, watched soccer, worked on my Spanish, and been enthralled. Though it may seem obvious, my excellent adventure has only just begun.