After a busy weekend in Madrid, I have spent the last week trying to relax and catch up on some sleep! I feel like I have been burning the midnight oil for too long and now it is finally starting to catch up with me. With only two weeks of classes left, I really have to buckle down and focus on my studies. I just finished a 1500 word paper and I have three more to write before the end of the semester has concluded. The classes that I have been taking in London, albeit fun, have been very challenging and demanding. I am in fact learning a lot of interesting new things from each of my classes and I can honestly say that I will be more knowledgeable when I get home.
   We have been in class for over a month but the local college is just getting back in session. As students of FIE we are also honorary members of Imperial College located just down the street. The students just came back and so they had their annual ‘Freshers Fair’ on Tuesday. This is a fair where all of the clubs and societies set up tables and try to recruit new students to join. I actually played lacrosse for Drexel for four years and because my eligibility was up and I could no longer play, I was able to study abroad this semester. In fact, this semester marks the first time that I haven’t played lacrosse or at least some sort of competitive sport in about 15 years! I thought that I wouldn’t miss playing, but I actually really do so you could understand my excitement when I saw Imperial students walking around with lacrosse sticks. I asked to join right away and even though I am leaving the UK before their official season begins they were very excited to have me come out and practice with them when I can. Our first practice is this Saturday, and I am super excited to play again and meet local British students who share the same passion that I do! There was seriously a club for every sort of thing you could possibly be interested in. The girls that I went to the fair with signed up for other clubs including dance, ultimate Frisbee, swimming, self defense, and even a club where you cook food for homeless people each Sunday. A bunch of us also joined the Imperial Cheese Society where you have cheese lunches and tastings every Thursday afternoon. This was a really afternoon and I look forward to making some new British friends! (I didn't really have a great picture that coincides with the Freshers Fair so I am attaching a picture of the delicious tapas that we had in Madrid - I totally recommend a trip to Spain for all who travel to Europe if only to enjoy the cuisine!)

   Last night I got back from my first international trip since studying abroad. I went with my flatmate, Alex to Madrid, Spain for the weekend. One of her friends from high school, Grace is studying abroad in Madrid this semester and had a three bedroom place for us to stay the weekend for free. Grace was a life saver this weekend because I unfortunately know very little Spanish and she happens to speak Spanish fluently. She also had an amazing weekend planned out for us and we managed to see all of the highlights of Madrid in the three short days that we were there. We went to two museums, the Reina Sofia and the Prado and saw some incredible Spanish paintings including a few from famous artists such as Salvador Dali and Pablo Picasso. In the first night, we went to one of the museums, saw the Royal Palace, the Royal Cathedral, an Egyptian ruin that was donated in the 1960’s to Spain, Plaza Mayor, and Sol. It was so much walking! The nightlife in Spain is unlike anything I am used to. People don’t go out to the clubs until about midnight or 1 am and then the clubs close at 6 am. We went to one of the most famous clubs in Spain called Club Kapitol which is a 7 floor club with a beautiful roof top bar and a very fun dance floor on the ground floor. I noticed that no one really gets intoxicated in Madrid and everyone just goes out to have a good time and dance. In fact, there were more men on the dance floor than women which is the exact opposite of what happens in the US!
   The next day we attended a bull fight. I didn’t exactly realize what I was getting myself into when I purchased the tickets for the fight, but what happens is the matador ends up killing 6 bulls. After watching, I still honestly can’t say how I feel about bullfighting. I completely understand that it is a huge part of Spanish culture and has been for hundreds of years; however it was extremely gruesome and cruel in my eyes. It was definitely something that I am glad that I got to witness (especially because bullfighting is becoming illegal in many areas) but I can honestly say that I will never attend a bullfight again. On Sunday morning we attended one of the biggest markets in Europe called El Rastro and walked around and saw some beautiful Spanish clothing, jewelry, leather, and other beautiful Spanish designs. I ended up buying a Spanish leather purse for only €15!
   My blog wouldn’t be complete if I didn’t mention all of the Spanish food that I got to try. Experiencing Spanish cuisine was definitely my favorite part of my trip. In Spain, lunch is the largest meal, usually consisting of a couple courses and then for dinner you usually get tapas, which is like an appetizer to share amongst a few people. I tried traditional Spanish foods like Paella which is a rice dish with seafood, croquettas which are fried balls of cheese and ham, gazpacho, flamingo eggs, and Spanish fries. Everything was so delicious and super cheap! Our three course lunch meals including a glass of wine only cost us €10 each!
All in all, my trip to Madrid was amazing. I barely slept, walked around for hours and hours, but I saw and experienced one of the most beautiful cities in Europe and made some really amazing new friends. In London, I never really feel too far out of my element and always feel moderately comfortable, but in Spain I did feel uneasy at times. The main reason was because I can’t speak any Spanish at all and barely anyone in Madrid spoke English so it was extremely hard to communicate with the people. I felt like my independence was limited and I couldn’t really completely get by on my own. Thank goodness we had Grace there!