As weird as this is to write, this is my last post about a
trip from study abroad! There will be no more weekends of just jetting around
Europe! However, as much as I feel blessed to have been able to have all the experiences
that I did and see all the beautiful cities and places that I did, I am definitely
very ready to just have to get on one more plane in ten days: the one that will
take me home.
Madrid started off rainy, and when Brent and I met in the
airport on Thursday, it was quite wet and dark outside, much to our dismay. However,
that didn’t stop us from going out and exploring! We checked into our hostel, and
then went out and explored a little bit of the city. We stopped for a snack,
since Brent had to try some typical Spanish cuisine: Chocolate con Churros!
Also, we had one of Brent’s favorite lunches: Cien Montaditos! After, we went
to Plaza Mayor, and then explored a cool open air market. Not as cool as the
one in Barcelona, for the record! We walked up the Paseo del Prado, and walked
through Parque Retiro, which was very nice, but would have been much better in
the sun! We went to the Museo de Reigna Sofia, which is one of the modern art
museums in Madrid. I really liked it because not only did they have modern art
pieces, and rotating temporary exhibits, they also had classic pieces like “Guernica”
by Picasso! It is much more amazing than I could have imagined in person. There
were also several works by Dalí, Miró and Calder. Surprisingly, even Brent
enjoyed himself at the museum. There was an exhibit related to economics and he
liked that one a lot. After we left the museum, we made our way back to the
center of town, and after looking around for awhile in the rain, we had some
amazing tapas for dinner.
Friday, we got an early start and had some great Spanish
breakfast at a café near our hostel. We also did a little bit of shopping in
the main shopping district; however, we cut it short since we wanted to see
more sights! We were planning on going on the free walking tour with our
hostel, but it was such a joke that we dipped out after five minutes. After we
decided on our final shopping purchases, we made our way to Templo Debod, which
is an Egyptian worship temple that was donated to Madrid after Spain’s help in
some war of theirs, way back when. After words, we went to the Palacio Real,
which is where the Royal Family lives! We explored it a bit, and then we went
to Montaditos once again for a feast of a lunch. We then rode the metro two stops
down to the Estadio Vicente Calderon, where Atletico Madrid Futbol Club plays.
We wanted to see how much tickets would cost for the game on Saturday night (we
didn’t end up buying them, anyway, even though they were pretty reasonably priced).
At this point in the story comes some semi bad news. After we left the stadium,
we rode the metro back to the center, indenting to go to the Museo del Prado,
which I was of course really excited about. However, once we got off the metro,
I realized that my camera had either gotten lost, or stolen from my jacket pocket.
Sadly, there is not a happy moment here, where I can tell you that after
looking, I realized that I had it all along, because this is not the case. I did
not find it, and it is still lost forever to Madrid. At this point, I was
really upset about losing my camera, but I didn’t want to let it ruin my
mood/our great weekend, so we still tried to go to the Prado. However, once we
got into the really long line, we realized that it was during the free public
visiting hours, so we left, deciding to leave the museum for Saturday. Then, in
search of something to do, we tried to go to the Thyssen Foundation, another
art museum, and they said that it would take three hours to get through, and
they closed in two, so that was a bust. Since we were both a little down after
this, we just decided to save a little money and make dinner in the hostel that
night, so we bought some wine and some pizzas and ended up just staying in and
talking all night, which was actually very nice and cheered me up. Brent is a
very good person to talk with.
On Saturday, we hit the ground running, determined to get
everything in on our last day. We started off with another huge breakfast,
complete with churros and horchata, and then we went to the Museo del Prado
right when it opened. It was even more amazing than I could have imagined, and
we walked through rooms and rooms full of Titian, El Greco, Goya, Cranach the
Elder, Bosch, Velazquez, Bernini, and more and more and more! It never ended! It
took us about 3 hours to get through the entire museum, but it was well worth
it, and I loved every second of it. After the Prado, we went back to the hostel
for a moment to rest our feet and eat our leftover pizza. Then we were off
again and we went to El Estadio Santiago Bernabeu, where Real Madrid Club
Futbol plays! We went on a tour of the stadium, which was really really cool
and I enjoyed it a lot. Best futbol club in the world! After we left, we went
to Starbucks and sat outside just spending some time just enjoying the sunshine,
the weather got a lot better after the rain on Thursday! We ended up going back
to the Palacio Real and walking around the Royal Gardens and then we just
walked allllll over the city, exploring all of the “nooks and crannies” and
doing some window/souvenir shopping. That evening, we sat in the hostel lounge
and we watched Chelsea play Liverpool and win the FA Cup title! After that, we
went back out to get tapas for dinner, which were amazing and a delicious way
to end the weekend.
This morning, we had to get up early because my flight back
to Sevilla left at 8:20am. Brent went with me to see me off, and then he went
back to the hostel to sleep for three more hours until check out. His flight
didn’t leave until 4:30, so sadly, he had the afternoon to himself in Madrid. I
always hate saying goodbye to him, even if it is only another 3 to 4 weeks
until I see him again once we’re both back in the states. I hope that he makes
it back to Prague alright! Overall, despite the camera loss and the rain, we
had a great weekend, and I always enjoy every moment that we spend together. It
was a great final trip for both of us to end our study abroad semester on.
On the other hand, both of us are ready to go back to the
states for the summer. We agreed that as much as we have loved everything we
have seen and everywhere we have been, there is no place in the world like
being home with all your family and friends. Every trip that I have taken this
month has made me more and more anxious to go home. In just ten short days, I finally
get to go home! As much as I will miss Spain, I am ready! I just have to make
it through four days of class this week, and then 2 days of final exams next
week. This weekend, some girls and I might go to the amusement park in Sevilla
for one last time to hang out together.
Congratulations to everyone at CMU on graduating this
weekend! I am jealous that you all are done with exams and on summer vacation
already! I can’t wait to see everyone so soon :) Just pray that I make it
through classes, finals, and packing in the next ten days!
xoxo
