Mi Primavera en España 2007...

The Beginning of the End..

2007-06-13T02:26:00.000-07:00

Been spending the past few days hanging out with the girls and trying not to think about having to say goodbye to everyone. We've really been enjoying ourselves though- nights out, dinners, brunches, and we've also been spending a lot of time at the pool- really the only way to enjoy the heat in Madrid. Plus being students we get a discount, so it's a great way to save money!

Other than that I haven't been doing a whole lot. I finished up with school last Friday, which was awesome, so I've mostly just been bumming around, waiting to hear back on my grades. Kate left yesterday for 12 days in Italy, so I've had the room to myself. It's weird though, and kind of lonely. My other roommates are so in and out because of their work, so it's just been me here, really. Not that I'm complaining- but it's still weird. I'm so looking forward to next year though, since Kate and I both go to Purdue. It will be awesome having someone around who went through the same program as me, who I can talk to if ever I feel nostalgic- I really couldn't have made it through without her.

I guess overall I'm feeling very conflicted about leaving. I sent my mom an email attempting to explain all of this:

"Spain was so challenging and frustrating..but it's weird to think that I am leaving it- and all of my friends. I've adjusted so much to the schedule, the layout, the people, the language...and at the same time I feel like I am still lost sometimes and haven't learned a thing. And it's weird because I have no idea when I'll be back- in Spain, and in Europe. But I am also so ready to come home and be back in familiar territory, with the people who know me the best, and try
to assume a life of normalcy again. I feel like I am going back to the real world after living in a dream land for 5 and a half months and I am not quit sure how I feel about it.

But I do want you to know that I have loved it here- the good, the bad, and the really bad- it was all such an experience and one that I believe has changed me for the better. I have been spending a lot of time with the girls and trying to get out as much as possible in Madrid. I'm really looking forward to London, and to see Whitney- I think it will be a nice
transition into hearing English all the time, and it will be so nice to see a familiar face from home."

So I guess that about sums it all up. I'm leaving for London on Thursday and I can't wait to see Whitney! After that it's really adios, and I'll be heading home for good. When I get back I'll update my photo site, and update my blog with stuff from London. Looking forward to seeing everyone at home!

Less than 20 days left? Woah baby!

2007-06-05T10:49:00.000-07:00

Hard to believe that my time here is seriously winding down, and this will be even more official after this Friday when I take my last exam. Having school completely done will be so great, because then I can completely relax and do nothing- which I plan on fully doing.

My other finals were all last Monday and Tuesday, and I think they went fairly well. The class that I learned the most from (and the one that I'm really glad to be done with) was my Latin American History class. It was extremely interesting, but as a Psych major I don't really have the history background that I needed for the class material. My Prado art class was pretty cool, but it got fairly redundant considering the art was all from the Barroque period, and pretty much looked the same. I definitely recommend the Prado museum though, and especially all of the works by Goya, my favorite painter that we studied. My spanish film class was self explanatory and not too challenging, and the movies were all pretty good- if you haven't seen "Volver" yet it is a must!

For my complutense classes, my Greek Mythology final was on Tuesday and it was an oral exam with our professor, which I was very nervous for. In our classes there is very little student participation, so we don't get to practice a lot of our spanish. Speaking with him was intimidating, but I knew the material and was prepared, which is all that matters! He said I did very well and he was happy to have the Americans in his class. My final on Friday is for my Grammar/Syntax class and I am a little nervous for it- I'm basically just hoping to pass this class and be done with it, so hopefully that will work out.

We had our final group dinner which was really fun- it's so funny to think back to the first dinner we had, our first week here. Everyone was so nervous and shy- and so lost! I felt like I was so overwhelmed and not going to do well in my new environment. Crazy how six months later, we're sitting at dinner laughing, visiting with all our friends, etc. I feel very comfortable here, which is exactly what I wanted to achieve.Today we went to a pool near our piso and layed out all day- it was a beautiful day and I got some great color- which is awesome because come on! I AM in Spain! If I came home pale, people would be disappointed, haha. It was fun though to people watch- saw way too many old men in speedos and young girls sunbathing topless than I had planned, but such is Europe.

Going to London VERY soon to see Whitney which I can't wait for!!! It will be the perfect end to my time abroad.

Mmkay all for now! Congrats to my little brother Joey for graduating high school! Welcome to the "We Survived New Trier Club!" Love you!

Quick Update!

2007-05-19T05:33:00.000-07:00

Well since I've been back in Madrid, not too much has been going on. Everyone in WIP (myself included) has been busy preparing for final exams and working hard on final papers (10 pages about the Trojan War...in spanish...woo!) We've been able to find time to get together though, which has been nice, since once finals are over everyone will start to go their separate ways :(

Last week we celebrated our friend Kali's 21st by having a Mexican feast followed by a fun night at a "cave bar" in Madrid. Just as Kali's festivities were winding down, it was time to celebrate Kate's 21st! We had a fiesta here at the piso with the roomies and all the girls, and then went out dancing at a fun bar off of Gran Via that played American oldies!!

The next day (Tuesday) was "El Festival de San Isidro" and everything in Madrid was closed (including school!) so we celebrated in the park with the rest of the "Madrileños" and even got to see some fireworks! The whole day was so much fun and relaxing. Tonight we're having a "graduation party" for our friend Yvonne, a senior from Purdue who had her last semester here in Spain. Should prove to be another fun WIP get-together.

Until then I'll be working on a paper for my Prado class, which is due this week. It's weird to start having to do work all of a sudden, but once I get myself organized I'm hoping it won't be too bad. The academic component of this program has been my biggest concern while I've been here, so I'm hoping to pull through with somewhat decent grades. It's not that I have work and I'm just not doing it; it's the spanish system itself and how frustrating it can be. I don't want to bitch and moan about it too much, sufice it to say that I'll have a lot of constructive criticism for my program evaluation.

Not wanting to end on a downer, so I hope all is well with everyone at home! Can't wait to see all of you so soon!!

I call it Spring Break Part II...

2007-05-09T09:12:00.000-07:00

I've been bitten by the travel bug and I just can't stop! So yes, here's another blog entry about my trips..you know you love it.

I left Madrid on Thursday the 26th for Edinburgh, Scotland to go visit my cousin Katie who has been studying abroad there since September and it was so much fun!! Katie had come with everyone to see me in Madrid, but we didn't really have that much time to spend together while she was here, so it was so great to see her. On Thursday we hung out at her flat for awhile before going out for a few drinks and some amazing pub food. We hit up a few more pubs that night and I got a chance to meet some of her friends and see the Edunburgh night life. We ended up getting back to her place at around 5:30, but it had been such a fun night it didn't even matter!
Friday was filled with sightseeing and more cousin time. Edinburgh is absolutely beautiful, and I can see how Katie would never want to leave. It's amazing that even after almost a year there, she is still so in love with the place. I loved having her show me around, and meeting all of the people she spends her time with. We made dinner on Friday night and pregamed a little before heading out to the pubs! The night took us to "Dropkicks" where there was a live band playing. We finally made it back to Katie's after a long walk home that included lost phones, a huge crowd in the street, a stolen street sign, and an avoided arrest by the Scottish Police. All in all, a great vacation! :)

Saturday we headed to the airport for our flight to Dublin! Since it ended up being delayed for a few hours, we browsed through the Duty Free shopping and picked out a new perfume for Katie. Once we arrived in Dublin, we settled into our hostel before heading out for a quick meal and then the "Literary Pub Crawl"! This popular and well organized pub crawl took us through Dublin, with our two guides acting out scenes from famous works written by Irish authors, sharing interesting historical facts, occassionally singing, and there was even a quiz! It was so much fun and a great way to spend our first night. We also went to the famous "Temple Bar", for a few pints of Guiness, the only thing we drank (besides water) the entire time we were in Dublin.
On Sunday we did sightseeing, including Trinity College, St. Stephen's Green, the Temple Bar Neighborhood, St. Patrick's Cathedral, and the Guiness Brewhouse. After the tour, we went to the "Brazen Head", the oldest pub in Ireland! When we got there they weren't serving food, so we ordered a pint and waited around for the kitchen to reopen. We were finally served, and the food was well worth the wait! After that we headed back to the hostel to take a nap before heading out to Doyle's, a great pub a little outside of the Temple Bar area. We were there for the whole night (the bartender who looked like Heath Ledger didn't hurt either) and then headed back to the hostel to rest up for our 4 hour bus ride in the morning to Galway!

Monday was our bus ride which was fine and we got to see the beautiful Irish countryside on the way! We met up with Eileen! at the bus station and walked back to her place to drop off our stuff and catch up. She then took us on the (brief) tour of Galway which included such highlights as the statue of the Wilde brothers, the bay, and the Spanish Arch. She then took me and Katie for our first meal of fish and chips, which was amaazing. After getting ready back at her place, we headed out to Bar 903 where we had a few pints and listened to a live band. The night was great! Tuesday we bummed around for most of the day (it was nice to just relax for awhile) and then walked around the bay area. We picked up some food at the grocery store and made a mexican feast for dinner at Eileen's! Delish! During the day we had run into Eileen's friend John (she knows him through her boyfriend Colin) so that night we met up with him and some of his friends and hit up a few pubs. Good times, good times.
Wednesday we took the bus ride from hell into Dublin so we could all catch our flights (Eileen and I to Amsterdam, Katie back to Edinburgh) but we had missed our original bus and therefore all ended up missing our flights. Several hours later, Eileen and I made it to Amsterdam, and Katie made it back home...only to find out she had fractured her foot and needed a cast and crutches! Yikes! Eileen and I made our way to the hostel and the creepiest, steepest set of stairs in the world! I tried to take pictures that reflected this, but they can't even do it justice. Needless to say, we didn't spend very much time at the hostel as a result of these heinous stairs.We were pretty tired when we got there, so we walked around for a little bit on Wednesday night before heading to bed. Thursday was absolutely beautiful (actually, I got really lucky with this whole trip- there was sunshine everyday and it was never very cold) so we spent the day at Vondel Park people watching and chatting. We got some food later on and then walked around the "Red Light District" which was quite interesting, to say the least.

Friday we did a ton of sightseeing and a ton of walking. Even with a map it was still pretty difficult to find everything so there was a lot of trial and error. We weren't in any kind of rush, though, so it worked out perfectly. We went to the Heineken Brewery, the Anne Frank House, and the Van Gough Museum, plus walked around the city center and Dam Square. The city is so beautiful and it's one that I would definitely want to visit again, now that I have a better sense of where everything is.

Saturday we took advantage of another beautiful day and went to the ZOO! :) It was actually a lot of fun and we saw a ton of animals. Afterwards we had a few beers in Rembrandt Square, right by our hostel, and enjoyed our last day in the Dam. We went for dinner at 'Wok to Walk", this really great Chinese place and strolled through the Red Light District some more before heading to bed. Sunday Eileen took off for Dublin and I caught my plane home to Madrid. I can't believe how quickly the time flew by, but it was also really nice to be back at my piso and see my friends from the program.

And now we've come to my favorite time of year, finals time. For the next two and a half weeks I'm pretty much going to go crazy with studying and paper writing. The Spanish system is different, in that we never have any assignments so our entire grade it based off of the exams or a final paper, which makes it really stressful. But I'll get through it.
Oh! I also have an update: On June 22 I'm flying into London to visit my roomate from home, Whitney, who will be there for an internship this summer. And then on Sunday the 24th I'm flying from London to Chicago! Yup- home a little early, for several reasons. The hardest part of all of this is thinking about saying goodbye to everyone, and to this place, my new home. Ugh. But mmkway all for now! Hope you liked the entry!

So this one time when I went to Prague...

2007-04-25T12:52:00.000-07:00

I've been meaning to write this entry for awhile, but I had a lot of schoolwork to catch up on this week...

So anyways, in perhaps the most spontaneous decision in my entire life, I went to Prague this past weekend. I had been talking to my friend Dan, from high school, and he mentioned that he had heard from Eileen and that she would be in Prague Thursday-Saturday and (half-jokingly) suggested I come too. Now normally I would have said no, however this all seemed too perfect: I had the weekend free, all of my girlfriends from my program were out of town, one of Dan's roomates was out of town so I would have a free place to stay, I would get to see people I haven't seen in awhile, and most importantly I would be surprising my best friend by visiting her...in Prague, a city I had really wanted to visit during my time abroad.

So I did it! I found a flight, got directions from Dan to meet up with him, packed, and left. Friday April 20-Sunday April 22 were perhaps two of the most amazing days in my entire life.

I got in on Friday at around 5:30 and after waiting forever to get my bag, a bus, two metros, and wandering the neighborhood looking for a tram, I finally made it to Dan's place at around 8. We hung out for awhile, had a beer, and then took off to go meet up with some people for dinner! Eileen was completely floored- she obviously had absolutely no idea I would be there, but we both agreed this was one of the coolest things we have ever done as friends. Dinner was amaaazing- it was so nice to have a break from Spanish food, and everything is so cheap! My meal, with drinks, was no more than 200 crowns (which is about 10 US Dollars...gotta love that exchange rate!) After dinner we went to this crazy Czech bar that was made up of all these different rooms, and tunnels, and big Czech beers! Fuun times!
The next morning I met up with Eileen and her roomate from Galway, Katie, for breakfast at "Bohemia Bagel" where we had blueberry pancakes!! Delish. The girls had to leave after that (caught a train to Krakow, no big deal) and I headed back to Dan's to get ready for my day of sight seeing! Lemme just say that Prague is one of the most beautiful cities I have ever seen- had I not spent the past 11 years of my life studying Spanish, I would have really thought about studying here.
It's a big city, but still really managable, and we got to see everything: the Prague Castle, St. Vitus Cathedral, the Charles Bridge, the Old Town Square, the Astronomical Clock, the Jewish Quarter (6 Synagogues and a cemetary, woah!), the Lennon Wall, and Wenceslas Square.

After walking around for a few hours, we stopped in off of Wenceslas square to get a quick snack and relax for awhile, before heading back to Dan's to get ready for the night! We went out with my friend Evan and Eric to eat some authentic Czech cuisine, and then went to "Star Bar"- a sports bar off of Wenceslas square where we watched the BULLS win Game 1 of the Playoffs. After the game we wandered around for awhile (stopping at a street vendor to do some shots, of course)
before going into a club called Lucerna- awesome night there, considering it was 80's and 90's pop night- does it really get any better? I met up with my friend Christa, who lived on my floor freshman year, and we danced the night away!
Got up fairly early on Sunday to meet up with Christa for yet another amazing meal, before walking around some more, and then finally heading to the airport and back to Madrid. My trip could not have worked out any better- I had such an amazing time in only two short days, and it helped me realize how much I really have grown during my time in Europe. In the fall, if you had told me that I would be traveling alone, to Prague, I would have thought you was out of yo damn mind- but after this trip, I feel so much more confident about traveling in Europe, and in the U.S. I'm so glad I decided to do this!!

Well, to continue on with my traveler's attitude, I don't have school again until May 7th (thanks Madrid for having Festivals on Monday and Tuesday, the only days I have school!!) so tomorrow I leave for Edinburgh to see my cousin Katie!! :) I am SO excited to see the city she has called home since September- we're going to have an amazing time. Then we're off to Dublin, and then Galway to see Eileen, and then Eileen and I are off to Amsterdam- should be a crazy 11 day trip (wow! Spring Break Part II?), but I know I will continue to have to time of my life-Hopefully I'll get the chance to update a little while I'm traveling!

Ho-la

2007-04-19T03:30:00.000-07:00

Just a quick little update for now.
Last weekend I played tour guide for an old friend from high school who is studying abroad in Paris and was visiting Madrid for a few days. It was great to catch up and hear all about his study abroad experience. It also made me realize how absolutely in love I am with Madrid, and how much I love showing it off- it's such an amazing city, and one I really can't wait to come back to visit in the future.

This week us Purdue kids have been celebrating Grand Prix, which is one of my favorite Purdue traditions. This Saturday there is a go-kart race, but the week leading up to it is just full of crazyness and partying. It's so much fun though, and there's no way any of us wanted to miss out. On Sunday we went to Christine and Ariel's piso for some pizza and shirt decorating. It was a lot fun just hanging out and got me really excited for the whole week!

On Monday I had class all day and then met up with everyone for Happy Hour. We wore our shirts there, and had a great time. Our bartenders liked the idea of Grand Prix so much that they just started giving us free drinks, and there was a group of old Notre Dame grads that did the same. All in all it was a crazy time for a Monday.

Tuesday was pretty tame- class all day then met up with some of the girls for dinner at this great place called "Rey de Tortillas" (Tortilla King). We all had some great food and ordered this giant sangria dispenser called a "Metro" for 15 euro. Very fun.
Yesterday I had my Prado tutorial with Madison and then afterwards we met up with the girls at the park to hang out and bask in the sun. The weather in Madrid is absolutely gorgeous right now- mid 70's and nothing but sunshine. I looove it.
Last night the whole group went to Chesterfield's, a discoteca, and danced the night away- soo much fun.
Today I'm just hanging out, running some errands and doing some homework before meeting up with everyone tonight for more fun! I swear I actually do some studying (B+ on my midterm! ha!) buuut for now I'm really trying to enjoy that rest of my time here, especially considering the fact that the majority of the kids on my program don't go to Purdue...I can't believe I'm not going to be able to see them everyday! boo

Well anyways, all for now- I'll update more after this weekend...should be a good one...! ;)

PS My thoughts are with the Virginia Tech campus and community...this has become international news (all the papers and tv stations here have been reporting on it) and it's been interesting to see the European perspective. Such a senseless tragedy that really shook all of us up. As college students (and especially as college students abroad) we have so much freedom, and a love for life, that we often forget how quickly it can all be taken away. I've been keeping in touch with my friends at home, and it's amazing to see the amount of support being given to VT from colleges all over the country.

Semana Santa

2007-04-07T09:53:00.000-07:00

This is post number 3!

Our last group of visitors arrived on Sunday April 1st and it was really great to get to spend time with part of Kate's family. Her mom Cindy and her sister Amanda went with Kate to their hotel for Sunday night, while I hung out at the piso and packed up for our trip. We left on Monday for Alicante and after a few mishaps with our first train, we finally got on one for 6 pm. The train ride was actually really fun (the sangria didn't hurt either) and after a little more confusion over where our hotel was, we finally checked in later that night.

The rest of the week was spent laying out by the beach or pool, grabbing some food, walking around the area, hanging out/showering in the room, having dinner, playing cards (Eileen- I am FINALLY learning how to play Euchre- tourney this summer?) drinking at the hotel pub, watching Amanda hit on some German golfers, going to bed around 1 or 2 each night, and getting up early for the complementary breakfast, only to do it all over again.

Our hotel was in a pretty remote area, so we definitely all spent a lot of time together. It was fun though and 3 days was the perfect amount of time for the trip. It was also really relaxing, which is exactly what I needed after the whirwind Portugal trip. I loved getting to know Cindy and Amanda better, and it was nice see how Kate is around her family. All in all it was a really great beach vacation.

We got back into Madrid Friday afternoon and grabbed some tapas at a little place down the street from our piso. Amanda and Cindy had a really early flight on Sunday, so we hung out here last night, watching some movies (and of course LOST) before going to bed fairly early. Saturday Kate and I were pretty much bums, which is exactly what we deserved. Playing tour guide/translator is great, but we're both in agreement that not having any visitors for awhile will be a nice break. Seeing everyone from home was also exactly what I needed- homesickness seems to be a thing of the past, considering we have less than three months left here...

Sunday was Easter, and while Kate and a few other girls from the program went to church in the morning, I slept in (lol)! But it was still a great day since I got to meet up with them for brunch afterwards. We had an AMAZING Easter feast and spent the rest of the afternoon catching up and hearing about everyone's break.
No school today which gave me some time to catch up my homework- all in all a great weekend.
Whelp- that's about all for now! Hope you've all enjoyed the three-part summary of my last few weeks!

Besos-
Nicole

Obrigada, Portugal!

2007-04-07T08:43:00.000-07:00

This is post number 2!

We (Mom, Joey, Amy, Kari, and Diane) got into Lisbon on Thursday afternoon and got a little bit of a tour/some brief history from our driver on the way to our hotel. When we got there we waited for Kate to come meet up with us, before walking around the city. Lisbon is SO beautiful and so old...there were so many gorgeous sites and monuments to see.

We spent the whole day sight seeing and doing a little shopping before heading back to the hotel to clean up and get ready for dinner. We went to this great little italian restaurant which had amazing pasta and incredibly fresh sea food. It was great to relax and socialize and get to see Lisbon at night.Early Friday we met up with our tour guide to go see the nearby cities of Sintra and Cascais, both of which were amazing. In Sintra we toured two palaces and the remains of a castle. There was a LOT of walking involved, and the pictures from all of this can't even do it justice. The views from the castle were amazing, and I was so proud of the moms for even attempting to climb up the whole thing. The palaces were also beautiful and overlooked the whole city.

On the way to Cascais we stopped by to see some amazing cliffs and get some lunch. We also got to see the "Boca del Infierno" (the mouth of hell) which was pretty spectacular.Cascais is a small town right on the coast, and there were a ton of boats in the harbor. It's a cute town and we walked around for awhile, but at this point we were all pretty tired so we headed back to Lisbon.

Friday night we went out for dinner to a Fado restaurant, which was one of the most interesting things I've ever seen. It's a restaurant, but while your meal is going on these performers are telling stories and folklore through song. Even though I couldn't understand any of the Portuguese, it was still really beautiful.

Saturday was another busy day. We met up with a different tour guide to see all of Lisbon. He took us to the oldest part of the city, the Alfalma, where we walked through the streets seeing all the old buildings and churches. Next we drove down the coastline to see the Monestary and other monuments in the city.

We also visited an old (and famous!) bakery to have some delicious Portuguese pastries. After a stop by the water for some photo ops, we went to see the oceanarium, the second largest one in Europe! It was soo much fun- the sea otters and Nemo were definitely my favorites.

After the aquarium we made the mistake of agreeing to go to the large, new shopping mall for lunch. Needless to say it was all downhill after the meal...but it was decided by the group to strike the outing from the record! (lol)Our last night in Portugal we went to "las docas" (the docks) for dinner and drinks. The area is really cute and there are a ton of restaurants and bars. It was a really nice way to end our trip.

Everyone left on Sunday :( and Kate and I headed back to Madrid to greet her mom and sister who came here to spend a week at the beach with us!

Back in Madrid

2007-04-07T08:02:00.000-07:00

Hanging out in the piso right now, looking at pictures and relaxing after a crazy but fun two weeks. This is post number 1!
My mom, Joey, Diane, Amy, Kari, Jayne, Eileen, Katie, and Sara all got here on the 24th and it was so nice to get to see everyone. Saturday I took them around Gran Via, the palace, and the Plaza Mayor. We hung out for awhile and then went to a delicious dinner down the street from their hotel (this is when the moms realized that free table water doesn't really exist in Spain...oops). After dinner we drank some more in the hotel lobby before going to a "Belgium Beer Bar" for a little bit. All in all a busy but great day.

Sunday everything is closed in Spain so we went to the Rastro in the morning and Retiro in the afternoon. The weather is Spain was pretty cold, but still sunny and it was nice to relax and not have a definite plan for the day, considering mostly everyone was still recovering from jet lag. Sunday night I took the kids out for euro bocadillos and then they met up with the mothers to go to a flamenco show. Unfortunately I had to miss it...stupid 8:30 class. Monday they went to Segovia while I was at school and then we all met up again at Happy Hour!! :) Afterwards we went for a delicious Mexican dinner in Chueca and then some of us continued the night at Dubliner's.

Tuesday the gang went to Toledo where my brother bought a sword- clearly he had a great day! (lol) When they got back I walked around with mom a little before meeting back up with everyone (incluing Colin!) to go out for an amazing paella dinner. On the way to dinner we passed by a movie premiere.......needless to say, almost catching a glimpse of John Travolta pretty much made my year. (lol) After dinner we ended up in some tiny bar close to the hotel before heading back for the night and saying goodbye to Jayne. Wednesday was everyone's last day/night in Madrid so when they got back from a day trip to Cordoba, we hung out at the hotel (in the VIP lounge, of course) before saying goodbye to the backpackers: Eileen, Colin, Katie, and Sara.
It was sad seeing them go but I'm going to get to see them all in a month when I go and visit!! Wednesday night we went out for a nice italian dinner ...and then headed back to the hotel to get ready for our vacation to Portugal!!

It's almost April?

2007-03-22T07:15:00.000-07:00

Well hello everyone! Sorry I haven't blogged in awhile. There hasn't really been too much going on here in España, but I'll provide an update anyways!

Since we've been back from Paris, I've pretty much just been going to class and hanging out with the other WIP kids. Kate's boyfriend Jesse got to Madrid on the 10th, and unfortunately she couldn't come with us on a program-planned excursion to a region of Spain called "Extremadura". It was weird traveling without her, but it also gave me a chance to get to know the other kids in the program- I'm especially getting close to a few girls from Madison, who are all so fun and sweet- I really can't wait to roadtrip there next year!!

Extremadura wasn't too bad- it was a very roman-esque trip: we saw a lot of ancient ruins and walked around the different towns, learning about their history and culture. The weather was wonderful though! Extremadura is the region of Spain right next to Portugal, so there were a lot of palm trees and temperatures in the upper 60's! We all got some sun, and spent a lot time just sitting outside enjoying the days.

After checking into our hotel, we had about an hour to relax before dinner. The program had everything paid for us, so of course we took advantage and our table decided to enjoy all of the free wine. It was one of the funnier moments I've had in Spain, having our program director come over to tell us we were cut off. (he was sort of kidding though, so it wasn't a big deal- just really embarrassing) The next day we walked around some more and saw some amazing views of the Spanish countryside.

This past week Kate and Jesse were in Mallorca, and island off the east coast of Spain, so I spent most of the week over at my friends' Whitney and Andrea's apartment. It was a really fun week- I love, love, love only having classes Monday and Tuesday- it frees up my entire week! I just wished I liked my classes more- they're not so bad content wise, but it's always really hard to follow the professors, and they're an hour and half long which is longer than I'm used to. I'm taking an art history class about the paintings found at the Prado, and then on Wednesdays I get to go to the Prado museum for free for two hours to actually see the paintings we've seen in class and learn more about them. This class is definitely my favorite. I'm also taking a Spanish Grammar class (as a review), a class about Greek Mythology, a Latin American History class, and a Spanish Film class where we watch a different movie each week and then write reviews about them. This class is pretty cool too, and there are a ton of the WIP kids in it.

Saturday we celebrated St. Patrick's Day: Madrid Style! We spent the majority of the beautiful day outside at "Parque Oeste", drinking sangria, socializing, and having a great time. A kid on my program, Pat, had his dad in town so he spent the day with us too. It was so awesome having our first parent visit- I'm so excited to meet everyone else's families and friends. In true Irish fashion, we left the park, got some food, and hit up some pubs! I was so excited to meet back up with Kate! All in all it was a really great day.

This week I've been hanging out, getting some errands done, studying for my midterm I have on Monday, and preparing for everyone's arrival!! I am SO excited to see everyone on Saturday- it's going to be an amazing week- and we leave for Lisbon, Portugal on Thursday, which is somewhere I have wanted to go for forever, and now I get to go with all the people that I love. The timing works out really well too, because after my fam leaves on the 1st, Kate's mom and sister come here, which will also be really fun.

I can't believe that it's almost Spring Break- this is what I have planned for the rest of my time here:
after Kate's family leaves we have about two weeks before our awesomely planned trip to Edinburgh and Glascow, Scotland, Dublin and Galway, Ireland, and Amsterdam. Then it's May, where I am planning on going to London to visit my Purdue roomie, Whitney, who will be there for the summer- hopefully getting to see my friend Ray from Liverpool also! Then we finish classes and take finals- finals are done in June, and then anytime after the 25th we are off to Greece to spend the rest of our time with Kate's family friends at their place! Home on the 3rd o July! Woah! So surreal..

All right, gotta go study! Keep in touch everyone- I've loved all the emails! And be sure to check out my photo site for more pics from Madrid and my trips.

Love you all!
-Nicole

PS MY MOM AND BROTHER ARE COMING TO VISIT!! YAY!! I AM SOOO EXCITED!! :)

Bonjour!

2007-03-02T08:08:00.000-08:00

Oh my goodness, Paris was amaaazing! Loved every second of it and I already can't wait to go back again someday. Besides the crazy weather everything went really smoothly for our trip, which is great considering this is the first time I've left Spain since getting here in January.

Here's what we did:

Tuesday: I got home from class around 5 and bummed around/packed/hung out with the roomies until Kate and I had to leave for the metro. The metro closes at 1:30 so we left the apartment around 12:45 to take it to the airport. Not a bad ride at all- except that our flight wasn't until 5:45. So, we basically had to sleep on the airport floor until the check in counters opened at around 4. We were both tired and crabby by the time we actually boarded our flight, but that's to be expected. (Ryanair is also really tricky, because there are no assigned seats so when they announce that they are boarding, everyone pretty much just bum-rushes to the front of the line, pushing others out or the way, in order to get seats together- now that we've gone through that experience once, we'll be more prepared for the next cheap flights we take)

Wednesday: We landed in France at around 10:30 then boarded a bus to take into Paris (also really easy- our tickets were cheaper if we flew into an airport about an hour outside of Paris). We took the Metro (bigger and a little more complicated than Madrid's) to our hostel, checkedd in, changed, and headed out to explore the city. Our hostel was about a 20 minute walk from the Eiffel Tower!!

It was pretty cool to see in person- I wish the weather hadn't been so crazy (cloudy, then sunshine, then downpour, then sunny, then rain again) but we ended up being able to get some really pretty pictures. After the Eiffel tower we walked all around the area and down the Champs Elysees. I talked with Melissa before we left and we had scheduled to meet at the Notre Dame at 2, and not knowing how far it was from the Eiffel Tower to Notre Dame, we walked....(woah baby that was faaar) but we got to see so much along the way and got some more great pics.

(Nice view of the Arc de Triomphe , the Louvre, and Notre Dame)
When we finally made it Notre Dame where we met up with Melissa!!! I haven't seen her in god knows how long and it was so surreal being there with her in Paris! By this time Kate and I had worked up quite an appetite so Mel took us to this random Greek restaurant which was amazing. The decor was a little random though, but it was fun.

After the meal we walked around some more and then Kate and I headed back to the Hostel to nap and get ready for the evening. "3 Ducks" is a great place to stay, if only to check out the bar: fun times and good people. We met a few people from Paris, England, Mexico, Brazil, and Australia. Melissa and dHung out there for awhile and then headed to bed.

Thursday: We woke up early, grabbed breakfast at the hostel, and then walked around some more til we met Melissa for lunch at 12. She took us to this great bagel/sandwich place and then we headed north on the Metro to Montmartre area (home of the famous Moulin Rouge!)

After that, Melissa took us to the beautiful Luxembourge Gardens where we relaxed and enjoyed the sun. The gardens were so gorgeous, and literally right down the street from Melissa's place.

We walked towards Melissa's area, ate some delicious crepes, then grabbed some wine and snacks and spent the rest of the night hanging out at her apartment. We were fortunate enough to not only have wine from a bottle, but individual "wine boxes", a true French delight! ;) After going to get crepes (again) we headed home on the Metro, woke up early Friday morning to catch our flight back to Madrid, and spent the rest of the day bumming around, looking at pictures, and catching up with our roomates.

All in all it was a wonderful trip- very relxing and fun, and Melissa was an excellent tour guide/translator. I'd love to go back to Paris: two days was definitely not long enough! I have tons more pictures on Facebook, and I'll post them on my other picture sight as well. This weekend we're working on some homework, doing laundry, and hanging out with the WIP kids before classes start again on Monday. On the 10/11th the program is taking us on a trip to Extremadura, Spain. I'm not sure what to expect but I'm very excited! (plus it's already paid for!) Kate's boyfriend Jesse is coming into town then, so they'll be hanging out in Madrid- what am I going to do without my travel buddy?? Haha, okay...entry has been long enough!

Ciao!
-Nicole

Ohh Carnaval!

2007-02-26T14:37:00.000-08:00

Hola Amigos!

So yeah, it's been a while since the last post, but not too much has been happening. Piso life is still good, although it has been an adjustment for Kate and I to get used to living with 3 guys. (not as clean as we would hope- sort of becoming little housewives, lol) It's working out great, though- having roomies who work at restaurants means that they'll cook for us every now and then, and take us out (free drinks and food!) whenever they get a chance.

Classes are probably the worst part about the whole experience (I know, I know, it is called Study Abroad) but they're actually really difficult. I'm trying to pay attention as much as possible, and take good notes, but the spanish the teachers speak is obviously more advanced, and it's usually hard to keep up. It's only been a few weeks, though, so I'm hoping that I'll get used to the pace. (5 1 hour and a half classes in a row would be brutal for anyone, even in english...so I'm not being too hard on myself)

This past weekend Kate and I (and a few other girls from WIP) all went to Cadiz, Spain for Carnavale! It was a mix of Mardi Gras, Halloween, New Years- pretty much any big party that we have in the U.S. times 5! There were a ton of people there (from all over the world) just having one big crazy party in the streets- not to mention Cadiz is right on the Atlantic- it was absolutely beautiful! We left Madrid on Friday at 2 and took the looong 9 hour bus ride to Cadiz at around 11, checked into our hotel, changed into our costumes, and headed out (with our awesome pirate tour guides) to enjoy the night!

Friday night was really fun, but not very crowded- we came home earlier than everyone else because we knew we wanted to sight see during the day, so it worked out really well. Woke up Saturday for our complimentary hotel breakfast (which was AMAZING- Spaniards don't really have big breakfasts, usually just some toast or a pastry with coffee, so having cereal, scrambled eggs, fresh fruit, etc. was sooo perfect) then headed towards Cadiz to enjoy the beautiful day.

After walking around the town for awhile, we headed to the beach- sorry in advance to everyone at home, in the snow/ice...these are going to make you all pretty jealous.

We then headed back to the hotel to nap, shower, and get ready for Saturday, the last night of Carnaval. This time, we went a little more crazy with the costumes: flamenco dancers!! It was such a fun night- there was a live band that played (once again I didn't know any of the words), food and drink vendors all over town, huge crowds of people in the street, and really fun bars and clubs open late. It was a great, last minute thing but I'm so glad we went!

Next up: Class all day tomorrow, packing, then heading out again- this time we're leaving Spain and going to Paris!! We've booked our hostel for two nights, and my friend from highschool, Melissa, is studying in Paris and is going to show us around and translate for us- pretty helpful since I'll probably get nervous and start speaking spanish (ha) I'm so excited!!

I'll write more after France- hope all is well with everyone! Love and miss you guys!

-Nicole

Good times with the roomies!

2007-02-16T08:13:00.000-08:00

Well, we have definitely settled into our new place and it is starting to feel more and more like home. Only having classes two days a week is fantastic- the days are very long, but it is more than worth it to have the rest of the week free to do whatever we want. Kate and I have done a little more shopping (stuff for the piso, and of course clothes for ourselves- right now in Spain they are having "Rebajas" which means that EVERYTHING is on sale- this started in December, right after Christmas, and lasts for only another week- so of course we have been taking advantage!)

We have also been hanging out with the other WIP kids, who are all awesome. On Wednesday (Valentine's Day) we decided to be little party planners, and got a group of about 16 to go with us to Happy Hour at Friday's. (yes, the same Friday's we have in the U.S.- it's okay though, because I have wanted to try those giant drinks for forever...and now I can...legally! Plus our roomate Arturo works there, so we got to see him which was nice!) After Happy Hour a smaller group of us went to this little restaurant that sells small sandwiches (bocadillos) for 1 euro each..you get this little sheet an just mark off which ones you want, and then they call your
name when they're ready- cheap and delicious! Que bueno! Here's some pics from the day:

Overall we had a really fun time celebrating the holiday, even without our boyfriends, lol!
Thursday we walked around Chamberi some more and did some shopping, then came back to our piso to get ready to go out with two of our roomates, Cristian and Arturo! They took us a to a delicious Peruvian restaurant where we got to try new foods and got to know the guys better! It was a really fun night. There was a man who worked at the restaurant playing the guitar and singing to everyone- people got up and started dancing and it was so funny- SO Spain! After dinner we went to a club where a Spanish band was playing. Dancing the night away with our gay roomies could not have been more fun- we're such a cute little family- Arturo calls us his "hermanas" (sisters) all the time, and we really could not have gotten luckier with our piso find!

Today we're been bumming around, recovering from last night (haha) and trying to get in touch with some people from the program to see what's going on for tonight. Next weekend I think we are going with two other girls from the program, Katie and Maggie, to Cadiz, Spain for "Carnivale" which is supposed to be like a crazier Mardi Gras!! I really hope that all works out and we get to go..it sounds like an amazing time. Then the weekend after that is Paris (sorry to keep rubbing it in, Mom) and then a week after that we will have our first visitor: Kate's boyfriend Jesse! So many things to look forward to! (and yes, I do actually have school work so there is some studying involved in this study abroad, haha)

Hope all is well! I love the emails I've been getting- thanks everyone!! Hope to send out some postcards soon! Love and miss you all!
-Nicole

Dum de dum dum

2007-02-11T10:35:00.000-08:00

Hello all!

Well, yesterday Kate and I move into our new home and we have spent today getting settled and do some much needed vegging out. We've been unpacking, done a little grocery shopping, and walked around the area, getting to know our new barrio.

In other news now that I have Wi-fi (yay!) I was able to start using Skype which is very fun- talked to my mom, Ryan, and Eileen! I also got a chance to talk to Melissa today which is awesome since Kate and I have just booked our trip to Paris- can't wait! It will be so awesome to see the city, and get to spend some time with Mel. We're also planning a trip to Ireland for the first week in May, with a possible side trip to Amsterdam with some of Eileen's friends from school. Should be a crazy week but it's definately something to look forward- I love being able to travel! We're also talking with some of our friends here about other trips to take, mostly to other parts of Spain.

Tomorrow I have class, including some of the Complutense ones...should be interesting. Right now I am taking a break from writing a paper for my Spanish Film class- I know right? My first assignment and I'm procrastinating already.

I can't believe how quickly the time is passing- once we started looking over our calender to figure out travel dates, I realized that Spring Break and all my visitors will be here before I know it! (Can't wait for that though- didn't realize until yesterday that so many people were coming! I love it!)

I'm happy to have internet though- it makes the homesickness not so bad, now that I can keep up to date on what everyone is doing and get a chance to talk to my friends back home. I can also keep in touch better with people on my program- we're all scattered now, living in different places, and this will be a better way to chat and make plans.

Anyhoo, just a brief update for now- pictures are up! (see the link in the post below!) I don't have that many from Madrid yet, but I'm feeling safer here and will most likely start bringing my camera out with me more.

That's all for me- more updates to come!
-Nicole

2007-02-05T10:50:00.001-08:00

Oh yeah, and here's some info!

Nicole Fabrizio
Programa de Indiana, Purdue y Wisconsin
Facultad de Geografia e Historia
Edificio B
Ciudad Universitaria
Madrid 28040

(write me! send me stuff! lol)

Spanish cell phone: 01134-675-999-067

Pictures online! http://new.photos.yahoo.com/nicole_fabrizio/albums/

(also on Facebook- more to come I promise!)

Piso hunting? Done and Done!

2007-02-05T09:05:00.000-08:00

Oh that's right! We found an apartment!! YAY!

It's in a barrio (neighborhood) called Chamberi which is pretty centrally located and our place is near several Metro stops which is great because we can get around to everywhere we need to go. Our place has a pretty big bathroom with a washing machine and a nice sized kitchen too. There's also a living room with some couches, tv, and stereo. Kate and I are sharing a room which isn't huge but it does have a large window with a little balcony which will be so nice once it gets a little warmer! We also have two roomates: Cristian from Spain, and Freddy from Columbia- both very nice (and both gay- how fabulous!) We're like a cute, little, disfunctional, Spanish family but I think it will work out really well! The guys are really laid back and when we went to see the place and take care of rent payments, Cristian took us out for drinks at a local bar and then back to the apartment for more drinks! We ended up spending 5 hours with the guys- just chatting and getting to know each other- they're very patient with us when we try to talk with them so it's relaxing and fun- pretty much makes the whole apartment hunt worth it. (and we'll have internet!!! yay!!)

To celebrate Kate and I decided to treat ourselves to a little vacation. We booked a trip to Segovia, a small town about 45 minutes away from Madrid. It is SO beautiful and quiet there- very easy to get around and the people are very friendly. We did sight seeing during the day on Friday and then went out to explore the Segovian night life. Very, very fun place! The only downside was trying to find something to eat- the Segovian specialty is "roast suckling pig": perfect if you're my brother, not so good for two vegetarian chicas. We ended up finding a small cafe that served veggie lasagna. There's a huge, beautiful, gothic cathedral that we had gone into during the day, and the cafe we ate at had a gorgeous view of the church. All in all a great success for our first trip! (Well, Toledo was technically our first trip but this was the first one we planned on our own. The only frustrating part was trying to find the damn bus station, haha)

Last night (well technically this morning) we got together with other kids from our program to watch the Super Bowl. The Bears scored in the first 14 seconds people! Come on! Anyways...that's all I'm going to say about that. (One girl from Chicago was pretty funny though. She turns to me after the game and goes: "I'm just not used to Chicago not winnning when they're in the finals. I mean, Bulls, White Sox, Bears...it's just a given that if a Chicago team makes it to the finals they will win!" Oh well. Next year.)

Today was the first day of our Reunidas classes (the ones with other Americans). I have three of them Monday and Tuesday and then I'll have two Compluense classes, also on Monday and Tuesday. Those start next week. For now I'm taking an art history class that includes trips to the Prado museum, a Latin American history class, and a Spanish film class (we're watching our first movie tomorrow!) While I'm not the biggest fan of getting up early to go to school, it's nice to get a routine started. (Plus, only having classes two days a week means soooo much time to travel! Working on a trip to Ireland as we speak)

Overall I'm finally feeling adjusted to life in Madrid. It's a pretty crazy place, but once you know your way around you find it's really not that big and actually very easy to figure out. I think having two Spanish roomates will help too- showing us the local bars, fresh fruit and vegetable markets as well as the grocery stores, and helping us get acquainted with our new home. Now that the other kids have found apartments we'll all be able to get together more and hang out more outside of class. Study Abroad 2007 is finally underway and I'm so glad to finally get out there and relax and live it up!!

Much love to everyone at home!! I miss you all so much! ( I actually had a dream about my dog last night...weird) Mom, Dad, and Joey- don't worry- I miss you guys more than Abby!

Keep in touch! Only one more week until permanent internet!!
Hasta Luego!
-Nicole

Gotta love that Wi-Fi

2007-01-28T09:22:00.000-08:00

So here I am, being very European- drinking coffee in a cafe and using them for their internet...it's fabulous- maybe I'll become a regular?

Things are starting to progress here in Madrid. Kate and I are still searching for an apartment...possibly the most frustrating experience of my life! It's not enough of an issue to find a place that we might like, but having to call the people, ask about the apartment, set up an appointment, and then actually try to find the place is such chaos... I'm really hoping we find something soon (and don't worry Mom, we're not being that picky)

My homestay is still going very well, though. Rachel and I are getting along great and have gone out together several nights. There's always so much to do here, especially at night, and it's been a great way to get out, meet new people, and practice speaking spanish. Most nights we've been going to the "Sol" area- the center of Madrid, where there are plenty of bars, clubs, and restaurants (most open til 5 in the manana) but a few nights we've gone to other areas and have found some great spots to party- pricy though (usually 7-8 Euros for a drink, 3-5 for a beer)

I'm most likely going to be getting a Spanish phone soon, so as soon as I get that number I'll post it on here (and Facebook). I also have some pictures from a trip our group took to Toledo last weekend (which by the way was so cool- Toledo is this old, Medieval town about 45 minutes away from Madrid- it's absolutely beautiful and a perfect day trip to get away from the craziness of Madrid) so as soon as I get a chance I'll put them online. Since we don't have internet at our homestay, I can't really use Skype yet, even though I'd love to- but I check my email every other day or so, so please send me an email to stay in touch! I'd love to hear from everyone!!

As soon as I get my schedule I'm going to start planning some trips. So far we've talked about going to Ireland, England, Scotland, Paris, Italy....how exciting to have this opportunity!! I know it's going to be hard for me for a few more weeks (until I get settled) but I am definitely loving it more and more each day.

Well, all for now!!
-Nicole

One week down...

2007-01-23T08:38:00.000-08:00

TONS more to go!

Anyways, hola everyone! I finally caved in to paying two euro per hour and am at a small internet cafe right by my homestay. This place is really crazy- the radio just played ¨It´s Raining Men¨ and there are little kids running around all over the place. It´s nice to be able to connect to the outside world, though.

Right now the WIP-ers (that´s what they like to call us at the university: Wisconsin, Indiana, Purdue) are in the middle of orientation and ¨piso¨(apartment) hunting. It´s extremely stressful because the apartments in Spain are very small and do not offer very much. Kate and I are trying to find one with two single rooms available, hot water, a somewhat working kitchen, and internet (Wi-Fi) and so far no luck. At worst we´d have to share a room, which wouldn´t be too terrible and definately cheaper, but most of the apartments have multiple people living in them right now, so we might end up feeling a little crowded.

I will be taking classes at Complutense, a HUGE university in Madrid (the campus has over 100,000 students!) I´ll be taking three classes taught in Spanish, with all American students, and two classes actually offered from the Complutense- these classes will be much more difficult as they are meant for the Spaniards and not us extranjeros. Should make for an intersting semester, but if these classes don´t help me improve my spanish then I don´t know what will!

Overall, Madrird is a pretty crazy place- it´s a huge city with tons of people and it´s very easy to get lost here. Spaniards are on a very different schedule: up early for work, everything closes around 1 for a siesta then open up again around 4 or 5. They don´t get home from work until around 7ish, dinner doesn´t start until 8 or 9, and clubs and bars are practically dead until midnight, and the metro closes at 1:30 and doesn´t open again until 6....

Besides adjusting to the schedule and frantically trying to find an apartment from speedy spanish talkers, I am enjoying Madrid. The other kids on my program are very fun and it will be nice to get to know more Americans, Spaniards, and other foreigners as the months go on.

Hope all is well with everyone!! Missing you all like crazy!!

-Nicole

PS: GO BEARS!!! We got to watch the games on Sunday night at an Irish pub called ¨Dubliners¨where there were a ton of Americans- the place was packed! I cannot believe I´m not at Purdue for all the Bears-Colts madness, but you all know I´ll be doing the Super Bowl shuffle in spirit!

Hola Amigos!

2007-01-18T03:51:00.000-08:00

So I only have a few minutes until I have to be at orientation but I wanted to let everyone know I made it to Madrid safe and sound-

My homestay is going well- the señora is so nice and funny and seems to love taking in American students every year. There is another girl living with me who goes to MIT- her name is Rachel and she is also very nice, but busy with her program during the day so I usually only see her for dinner.

Madrid will take a lot of getting used to- good thing I have six months to do so.

If anyone wants to give me a call, my number is: 001 847 917 0823

K, I´ll write more later when I have more time!

Muchos besos a todos!

-Nicole

Only a few weeks left...

2006-12-26T19:59:00.000-08:00

I leave for Madrid on Saturday January 14th

until then I'll be spending time with my family and friends at home and definately finding a time to go visit my second home, Purdue.