Cold Showers and Warm Milk

The first week of classes has finished!

(Back to school picture)

 My schedule wound up looking like this:
-Siglo de Oro (Golden Ages) a literature class starting in the Renaissance - The professor is very cute and the readings are interesting so far
-Composition and Intermediate Spanish - a ridiculous but required class in which I am learning how to ask Spanish people to drink coffee with me.
-Sociology -This is also pretty easy although it is an actual course that Spanish students take.  I did not know the sheer amount of textbooks that are American.  The one we are using was translated from English to Spanish by my professor.  In some classes I even have readings in English because they are much more available/better.
-Art History-Half of my classes are in a classroom and the other half are at museums.  It will be awesome to go to all of the fab museums here (Reina Sofia, Prado, etc)

(La biblioteca, cool, but not as awesome as Vassar's)

Last night we all went out to celebrate the end of classes (there are practically no classes on Fridays in Spain (best idea ever)).  Los monitores took us to dinner and such as it was the last night of our Madrid orientation.  We went to lots of bars and drank lots of Sangria.  It is so delicious.

I randomly saw a girl that I went to high school with in the bathroom of a sports bar.  It was so bizarre.  Before bed, we went out for chocolate con churros, it was incredible.And after sleeping very late, Rachel and I (and some other people) tried to find historical literary places (ie Lorca's house, where Cervantes was buried, and Lope de Vega's house) but they were all closed.  

This is unrelated but I would like to dedicate some space in this blog post to the differences I have observed between Spain and the US and between my home NJ home and my Spain home. An orderless list:

1. There seem to be very few clothes dryers here, most of the clothing is dried on a line outside
2. The milk here is shelf stable.  It is so bizarre and pretty gross to eat Corn Flakes with warm milk, but that is my brekkie every morning
3. PDA (public displays of affection) is OUT OF CONTROL!!!  People of all ages at all times of day make out EVERYWHERE!!  It is shocking and pretty grotesque, but I think I am becoming immune.
4. Time is much more elastic here; being on-time equals being very early.
5. People here are generally more direct.  If they don't want you to do something, they tell you.  For example: yesterday I was severely scolded for bringing a washcloth to the gym.
6. Many more people here smoke in public and in bars and restaurants and such, smoking is allowed.
7.  This is specific to my house here, but my madre turns off the hot water at night and if i get up too early I have to take a cold shower (and then eat corn flakes with warm milk).
8. Also specific to my house here.  I have to eat my breakfast in the kitchen on the washing machine.  Yes, it is so odd, and when the washing machine is on my brekkie rattles around.
9. Ham is everywhere!  It is on everything!
10. Veggies are a bit scarce. My madre keeps telling me that I don't like vegetables, I cannot convince her that I do.
11. Spanish people stand quite close when they are talking, the amount of personal space is much smaller here.
There are many more, but I cannot recall them now.

Tomorrow we are off to Toledo for the day and then back to Madrid for the Noche en Blacno (some kind of festival-more to follow)

Hasta la Vista,

Hilary