Warning: Long post!!

So, I want to give prior warning that this post could be lengthy... I guess we´ll see if it truly is or not. I haven´t posted in a few days, so I thought I would tell about my weekend trip to Madrid. I am very excited that today is a day of rest. No getting ready for class; no getting prepared to go on a tour; nothing. And I must say that I quite enjoyed sleeping in today. Nevertheless, I surely wish I could go to church... I could always attend a Catholic Mass, but to this, I have to say politely, ¨no thanks.¨ Not today...

I had class this past week on Wednesday and Thursday as usual. Friday morning, I awoke early to get ready and walk to meet the bus in the plaza in the center of the city where we always meet the bus. It is about a ten minute walk from this house. We loaded the bus early around 8:00 am and headed out for Madrid. After a stop for coffee, etc. of which I had none, we finally arrived to Madrid a little after 1:00 pm, I think. We unloaded the bus and entered the hotel only to discover after a few minutes that we were in the wrong hotel. Luckily, the correct hotel was adjoining and the lobby was only about 30 steps down the hall. We checked in and found ourselves in a very pleasant hotel. Amanda and I shared a room. It was quite large. There was a big entryway and two very comfy beds and armchairs... plenty of space and plenty of mirrors. The bathroom was a nice size, and we even had two sinks! It was a nice place to rest.

We met some of the other girls downstairs soon after checking in to go out for a bite to eat. We got lunch at a little cafe; I had chicken. Then we decided to shop for a little while. We have found there to be a vast array of very brightly colored clothing here... and I like it! Alas, I bought nothing. Amanda and I decided to return to the hotel to shower and dress for dinner. Our group met downstairs and we all headed out walking towards where we would eat. We found ourselves finally in Plaza Mayor, which for those of you who have seen it, is the place (Amanda informed me) that the movie Vantage Point was filmed.

It was a very big place with lots of shops and restaurants all around that was housing a variety of people. We saw quite a few human statues and entertainers.

One was a mud statue... another was man dressed in all black who chained himself to a pole by the ankles, wrist, and neck and leaned forward holding a torch... I just knew he was going to choke himself to death or suffocate while making his money... there were a few gestures and also another man putting on some type of western show type thing while making bird whistling noises... I must say, it was an interesting place. Later after dinner, we returned to the plaza to see a musical performance on a giant stage that had been set up in the plaza. It was very interesting!!

When we decided to leave, we took cabs back to our hotel. Amanda and I rode together; we had a very nice cab driver but also one who happened to have no idea where our hotel was. We told him the street name which was Serrano Jover. So, he managed to take us all the way to Serrano street because he said he thought that they were two streets that intersected... he turned off the meter after the first few minutes because he didn´t know where it was... Amanda told him it was near a Starbuck´s, and so every one we passed, he asked if this was the Starbuck´s our hotel was near... there are probably a few hundred Starbucks in Madrid... Anyways, he asked some other cab drivers at stop lights, etc. and finally found out where it was... I don´t know who this guy was, but apparently he was inept at using his GPS system... so I said whatever... as long as we get back to the hotel, I am fine with it.

Saturday, we were able to visit two of the art museums in Madrid. We went to the Reina Sofia museum and looked at modern art there where we were able to see work by Picasso. Then we went to the Museo del Prado and were able to see famous works by Spanish painters such as Goya, Velázquez, and many others. I found it to be fascinating! I did thoroughly enjoy it! We hung out for the couple of hours afterwards taking pictures and doing whatever until our bus arrived about 6:00 pm. Then, we made our journey back to Jaén. We arrived a little after 10:00 pm and made our way home. Then, I got to sleep!! :)

Today, I am reading for class, doing some homework, and watching a movie. I am looking forward to the week ahead, for it will be significantly less busy than the one past. However, before we leave Spain, we still get to go tour some fun places... such as an olive oil factory, the giant castle on the hill above here in Jaén, and I fail to remember what else at this moment... but until I post again, I thought I would leave you with a few interesting facts about this lovely place...

1. If my life was shortened by one minute for every whiff of perfume I catch here, I probably would have died about 10 years ago.
2. It is impossible to walk down the street without catching a whiff or many breaths of cigarette smoke.
3. The pastries here are delectable!!
4. Supposedly, this area of the country is HOT... well, we must have brought the cold and rain.
5. Going out at midnight is a very common occurrence.
6. People WILL run you over here... they have no patience for those who tarry in the crosswalk.
7. It is very possible to walk into the kitchen and find a bowl of living, crawling snails waiting to be cooked and consumed.
8. The distance between cars when stopping is mere centimeters.
9. The city is closed down on Sundays, so no shopping on my free day.
10. I am not sure hairspray is commonly used... my host sister asked me if I used the stuff they use for weddings to fix my hair.
11. No one smiles on the street.
12. Beware at any moment while you are using a pay phone because an angry little old lady may walk up behind you and shove you in the back.