Coming to Madrid I was very nervous because even though I had studied the culture of Spain for an entire semester I felt very unprepared and nervous that I would not be able to fully acclimate. While I have lived in other Spanish speaking countries for most of my life, I knew that this would be a brand new and exciting experience that I would need to put myself out there are say yes to all the opportunities that would come my way.
The very first day was very calm because everyone was arriving and doing some of their own exploring. A group of us went down to the street and went on Telerifico, which was like a ski lift that overlooked the entire city. Then we went to this gorgeous park filled with all different kinds of roses called Parque de Oeste, while I may be allergic to pollen and could not smell the roses, basking in its beauty was good enough for me. From then on I continually fallen in love with the architecture, food and ambiance the country brought. It had given me a sense of awe because never had I seen such beautiful sights and how close I was staying from this historical landmarks. From being able to walk around Plaza de España, Palacio Real de Madrid, and Plaza Mayor, these locations were nothing less than perfection. In Plaza Mayor, I was able to eat tapas and tinto de verano, which is red wine with seltzer lemonade, with friends for the first time and it has been a so far tradition that we do on wednesdays after class. Though I might have been exhausted and recovering from jetlag, I was going to take the picturesque views and foods as much as possible and since then I have been to all three locations multiple times.
