I hear where you're coming from

I skyped with my parents yesterday and we talked about what we did for Thanksgiving. Since I moved to New York eight years ago, I haven't had Thanksgiving with my family. I've had Friendsgiving in New York. Although this post is not about what I did for Thanksgiving, the story is relevant to what this post is about. My mom asked me if I remembered my first Thanksgiving in New York. I was 19 years old. My brother and a few friends were in town visiting me. We had dinner with Katie and Elliott Walker in Herald Towers on 34th Street. My mom said I called her asking how to make Mama's chicken and dressing a few hours before we were supposed to eat. I don't remember much about how the food turned out, but I do remember feeling so thankful to have good friends while adjusting to living in New York. And I find myself feeling that way now as I continue adapting to life in Madrid. 

Two weeks ago my friend Evan stopped in Madrid while traveling around Europe. He was in Barcelona before he flew to Madrid. He talked about staying in a hostel and all the cool people he met. We talked about how surprisingly easy it is to meet people while traveling. When Evan and I were at Mercado de San Miguel to get something to eat, we ran into Joanne, a girl he met in Barcelona who was also traveling around Europe! 

We spent the rest of the day together, seeing the Royal Palace,

the Cathedral

Sharing a mojito and tapas at El Tigre, having Tupperware to ourselves because it was Sunday night,

 eating chocolate con churros at San Gines Chocolateria

wandering around Retiro Park,

and seeing an exhibit at Reina Sofia.

And to top it all off, my friends Jarod and Liz from Norman, OK were on vacation in Madrid the same weekend! We had dinner at Public and drinks at their hotel bar. 

I remember feeling so torn when I first moved to New York. I felt like my heart was in two places at once. And now that I'm in Madrid I feel that my heart is in three places at once. It's easy to feel anonymous when in a new city. That's exciting and lonely all at the same time. It's exciting because you're outside your comfort zone and eager to have new experiences. And it's lonely because all the people who know you the most are always a phone call or text away, but making real time to talk can be tricky with the time difference and busy schedules. Don't get me wrong, I've made good friends here and found people that I feel superconnected to, but there will always be someone to miss. I'm also thankful for the small things, like Evan and I seeing Joanne at San Miguel. I mean, what are the odds that in a city of four million we happen to be at the same place at the same time! It's a reminder that "these eskimos might be much more than they seem" (This is Water by David Foster Wallace).

I started reading The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood, per my friend Caroline's suggestion after seeing Hunger Games and discussing dystopian literature. I'm only a few pages in, but I can't put it down. 

"I know what you mean, we'd say. Or, a quaint expression you sometimes hear, still, from older people: I hear where you're coming from, as if the voice itself were a traveler, arriving from a distant place. Which it would be, which it is."

There's a certain slant of light

So November flew by. I'm struggling to keep my blog updated, but here are some highlights from the first few weeks of November. We had a harvest festival at school. All the students and teachers ate roasted chestnuts. I'm still not exactly sure what we were celebrating, but I can now say that I like roasted chestnuts. Here I am with Justin and Yolanda (and Joiner on the left, one of my favorite 3rd grade students.)

Carlos kindly played the bagpipes for us. And yes, he does play bagpipes in a band. We had a blast dancing around with the students.

 Right now my favorite way to study spanish is reading Harry Potter. My friend James let me borrow his copy of Sorcerer's Stone. I am learning some interesting vocabulary. 

Two weeks ago, I went to Toledo. It's an easy 22 minute train ride away from Madrid. Although the weather wasn't ideal, cold and rainy, I enjoyed my visit and hope to go back again when it's warmer. As soon as I started walking from the train station to the city, I met a Spanish couple who come to Toledo often. They were super helpful and told me where I should go and how to get there.

 I went to the Cathedral of Toledo and spent an hour or more there. Going to cathedrals can become common place when in Europe. I try not to force myself to feel anything special. In Toledo I was overwhelmed by the beauty and grace of the cathedral. I was reminded of Emily Dickinson's poem "There's a Certain Slant of Light"

There's a certain Slant of light,
Winter Afternoons –
That oppresses, like the Heft
Of Cathedral Tunes –

Heavenly Hurt, it gives us –
We can find no scar,
But internal difference,
Where the Meanings, are –

None may teach it – Any –
'Tis the Seal Despair –
An imperial affliction
Sent us of the Air –

When it comes, the Landscape listens –
Shadows – hold their breath –
When it goes, 'tis like the Distance
On the look of Death –

 Toledo is the land of Cervantes, El Greco, 

 and marzipan. Although it's not my favorite dessert, the marzipan of Toledo is pretty good, especially when made by nuns. This picture is for my dad, since Forrest Gump is one of his favorite movies.

 Since Toledo is up on a hill, there are a lot of places to look out over the city. I still somehow managed not to take any very good pictures of the entire city.

All right, y'all. That's it for now. Soon I'll write about friends visiting Madrid and Thanksgiving in Malaga! 

Weekend in Amsterdam

The last weekend in October, I went to Amsterdam for a long weekend. It just so happened that my friend Betsy and her fiancé Tobias were having their going away party the same weekend. I'm so glad I got to see them once more before they moved to Ethiopia for the year. Betsy and I have only met a few times through mutual friends (Rachel Stuckey Slaton and Jordan Fisher Strayhorn) but talking with her is like catching up with a dear friend. We both grew up in Arkansas. I seem to find Arkansans where ever I go. 

Compared to Madrid, the weather in Amsterdam was very cold. It rained and hailed! There were a lot of uprooted trees from a storm the weekend before. But the weather never deters the good people of Amsterdam from riding their bikes. EVERYONE rides a bike ALL the time. However, when my umbrella broke from being pelted by hail, I opted to take cover at the Amsterdam EYE and saw a movie because all the exhibits were already closed. 

There are also a lot of bridges, canals, and boats. Most of the pictures I took are of bridges and canals. I only included my favorites. 

I took a ferry boat around the city with my friend Anton. We thought about waiting in line for the Anne Frank House (several times because I read that it's a MUST SEE!), but the wait was about two hours. If you go to Amsterdam, try to buy your tickets online before you go to avoid the line!

We spent a lot of time walking around Jordaan and De 9 Straatjes. Everyone in Amsterdam speaks English and people are insulted if you ask them if they speak English. I only made that mistake once. 

Per recommendation of Michelle Reynolds, I went to Cafe Proust in Jordaan. Since it was a Sunday night, I was one of three customers there. I chatted with the bartender, read a magazine in Dutch, and enjoyed a hot bowl of tomato soup (which was much needed after the hail).

This is Dam Square. It's near the center of the city. 

This is En Waag (The Weigh House), one of the oldest buildings in Amsterdam.

Although I planned to go to so many museums, we ended up only hitting Stedelijk at Trouw, a modern art exhibit, and Amsterdam Museum which covered the history and evolution of the city.

 I think one of my favorite things about Amsterdam, which I didn't expect, was finding so many crooked, old houses. It might be hard to tell from the photo, but the house on the left side of the street is  definitely leaning. 

Lastly, I went to a thrift store that had new and old clothing. I pretty much wanted to buy everything in this store, especially because I left most of my favorite oversized sweaters in New York. But I kept picking out dresses to try on that had the same label: KLING. When I checked out, I asked about the label and she told me it's a Spanish store! So of course once I returned to Madrid, I found the store and bought this and this (the skirt). I'm slightly obsessed.

Exhibits, Bar, Park, & Halloween

So finally, here is photographic evidence of what I've been up to over the last few weeks in Madrid!

First, I went to an exhibit called data.path by Ryoji Ikeda. 

If you find yourself in Madrid before January, you should definitely go!

Then I went to a bar called El Tigre. Buy a beer and get tapas. Lots of restaurants are like that, especially in Andalusia. But they are harder to come by in Madrid. And take note that this is a picture when I was finished eating!! Needless to say, there are always a lot of international students at El Tigre.

 Every Wednesday I go to an Intercambio (language exchange) at Cafe Galdos off of Gran Via. It's a beautiful street, and sometimes reminds me of New York.

I also went to Matadero, another museum close to where I live to see the exhibit Cenotes by Magdalena  Atria. 

And I go to Retiro Park as often as possible. It's about a ten minute walk from where I live!

This is the Crystal Palace. Here I am with my friend Michelle, and two of her roommates.

 This is the church I've been going to in Malasana called San Anton. 

And lastly, for Halloween we put on a haunted house for the students! It was a lot of fun and something we wouldn't be able to do at a public school in the United States. 

This is me and Lia, the bilingual coordinator at my school.

And here I am with Justin, one of the other language assistants.

We made a few kids cry and one third grade class was too scared to even come in!

I will be adding another post soon with pictures from my trip last weekend to Amsterdam!