The FC Barcelona Stadium
Final Score at the game
Monday, February 22, 2010
February Update: Finals, Madrid, Barcelona, and Internship
SO it has been a while since I have updated this. It has been a crazy two weeks. I got back from Barcelona at about 2 this morning and had class from 9-1 adding to my sleep deprivation.
The last time I blogged was a week before finals. I had two finals immediately after my paper and coursework were due so it was a stressful weekend. I finished my last final on Tuesday and went out to celebrate at a small chinese food restaurant with some friends. We flew out Wednesday morning on RyanAir from Stansted, one of the airports about an hour out of the city. We flew directly into Madrid and navigated the metro towards our hotel, Hotel Opera. It was right near Plaza del Sol and the Royal Opera. Once we dropped off our luggage, we went exploring looking for a small tapas restaurant. We bought a metro pass when we were on our way but it ended up not being worth it because the city was small enough that we could walk from sight to sight. Logan's room mate Dori is studying in Madrid and she met up with us for chocolate and churros Each of us had lists of different attractions in the city so we made our way through them and then headed back to the hotel for a siesta. Unfortunately, we were all exhausted from traveling and our Siesta ended up being about four hours. When we woke up it was around midnight and by the time we went looking for dinner many restaurants were closing. We picked up some snacks and went back to the hotel to sleep for the rest of the night.
Thursday we started with breakfast at the hotel and went to finish off our list of sites to tour. We made it to the Caixa Forum, the free modern art museum; toured the Royal Palace; and went to El Prado (The Spanish Louvre). After tea and cake at El Prado, we finished off our touring by walking back through the Plazas en route to the hotel. After another siesta, we got ready to go out for dinner and meet up with friends who are studying in Madrid.
On Friday morning, we had an early flight to Barcelona. Once we got to Barcelona and met up with the friends that we were staying with, we dropped off our bags at their apartment and went out in search of lunch. Barcelona's weather was beautful! We toured without our coats and it was sunny for once. We went to el Segrada Familia, a church for all religions, and walked to Park Guell to see Gaudi's work. Afterwards, we took the metro to Las Ramblas and had lunch before getting on the metro towards the FC Barcelona game. We scalped tickets and were able to sit (very high up) all together while enjoying the atmosphere at the game. They won 4-0 and there was quite a crowd. After the game we returned to my friend's apartment for dinner and got ready for the rest of the night. On Sunday, we slept in late and woke up and went to lunch almost immediately. After lunch, we walked around Las Ramblas again, had gelato, and headed back to our friends' apartment to pack for the airport.
Spain was beautiful but it was frustrating to not be able to understand what was going on. Luckily, one of our friends in Barcelona was fluent so we had no problem there. I would like to go back to Barcelona when it is warmer out. We didn't make it to the beach and I would like to spend more time there. It was also interesting how much slower the pace was there than in London. Siesta was definitely a tradition I could incorporate into my daily schedule.
I can't believe that our Spring Break is already over. I just started a new class today and Wednesday will be the first day of my internship with Gatehouse Communications. I am nervous to start but excited for the opportunity. I am excited but nervous to start the daily commute and enter into the work world (real world)
Anyways, I will follow up with pictures soon. Miss you all!
Sunday, February 7, 2010
ONE MONTH!
I cannot believe that I have already been here for an entire month. This weekend was my first weekend not traveling and I had a blast and took it easy. It is also the first weekend where I have had a lot of work to do in terms of papers and coursework. I have econ coursework due Tuesday, a paper due Wednesday, and an internet project(easy as pie) due Friday.
This week I went to see avenue Q in the theatre district and got some authentic chinese food in Chinatown after. Avenue Q was hilarious and I loved it! The next night was my friend Sam's 21st o we went to a cute Italian place near us that had the best garlic bread and bruschetta. Afterwards, we went out for the typical celebrations.
Thursday night we went to The Comedy Store for a night of stand up comedy. It is where Robin Williams started his career. It was really funny and pretty inexpensive. I had a great time!
On Friday, I did homework at Starbucks and then went shopping in Oxford Circus, which was CRAZY! It was so crowded and there are a lot of stores there but I only ended up buying a few headbands at HM.
Saturday was a really big day for Rugby matches and brits flooded the streets dressed up as all sorts of crazy things. Some people were dressed up as Kiwis (For NZ) others as smurfs (face paint and all) and bumble bees, nerds, doctors, sheep, basically everything.
Today, I am finishing up my paper and coursework. I am already half way done with the paper and 2/5 through the coursework. Unlike my older brothers, I do not like to have to work on assignments the night before they are due. We will see how that works out here. Luckily I am done with class at 1 tomorrow so I will have plenty of time to finish it.
Love and miss you all!
Arc de Triomphe
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