BULLFIGHTS- where mexican matadors almost die!

Went to a bullfight today.

holy shit.

It was epic.

Ps, Kevin came for a visit this weekend, which was awesome. We hit up the Prado, Reina Sofia, Templo de Debod, Palacio Real, Plaza Mayor, Plaza de Espana, aka all the usual Madrid sites.

But today, was the bullfight at Ventas in Madrid.  AND IT WAS CRAZY. 6 bulls died, the 18 year old spanish bullfighter almost got seriously injured, the French bullfighter got his hand stabbed, and to top it all off, i was FREAKED Out when the Mexican bullfighter got throws into the air, and then like basically mauled by the bull.  It was like being in the coliseum during the Gladiator matches.  I was horrified. But, he finished the fight, and was on 2 feet when he walked off, but still; epic. 

Also, i felt bad for the horses that were blindfolded in the bullring, bc sometimes the bull got up underneath the horse and its armour, sad face.

SO EPIC

I was Born in Dusseldorf, and that is why the call me Rolf!

In continuation with the Great Schlep of 2009, I made my way all the way out to Germany last weekend for the long weekend...and it was glorious.

The journey was off the a hysterical start as I realized that we were taking a BUS to the airplane..bc it was that small.  I feel hoodwinked by Luftansa, but oh well.  So, we walked onto the plane, which i was not entirely happy about, but i got over it quick enough.  I also finally got my italian food ive been craving in the form of ravoli and tomato sauce.  I also discovered a wonderful way to cope with my fear of flying...lots of wine.

We landed in Dusseldorf at like 1030, and our friend Lisa was there to pick us up. From there, we drove on THE AUTOBAUN, u know, the one with noooo speed limit to her house in Coesfeld, which is like 50 minutes outside of Dusseldorf in the beautiful german countryside.  Her house was ADORABLE.  We slept in the loft above her media room, which was soo cool.  In the morning we sat down to a traditional German bfast, aka like so much food and sooo goood, and met her mom, who doesnt speak much english.  Then, we took a tour of Coesfeld and saw some of the sites.  I was historically very happy bc the town was one of hte ones that was bombed in WWII, and some of Lisa's family members fought during the war, so it was really interesting to hear about that!  In the afternoon, we returned for lunch at her house, and then went to her Grandma;s farm to walk around there.  It was so pretty, and we ended up staying at her gmas house for a while, even tho her grandma only spoke a slightly arcaic form of german, which was even cooler.  Then, we went to see the big mansion in the city, and went home for dinner.  After dinner, we went to the local brewery to sample german beer.  It was a gooooood night :)

On friday, we were up early to go to Essen, which is where Lisa goes to uni, and then to Munster, which is a pretty famous city.  Essen had a super cool metro, and lisa's school was so cute.  We met up with a few of her friends there and went out to lunch at doner :) and walked around the city center.  Then, we caught the train to munster, which is FULL of bikes.  its considered the bike capital of germany.  We saw the room where the peace of westphalia was signed in 1648... look it up its sooo famous, and we went to a few old churches, one of which had cages outside on the bell tower that they used to kill Anabaptists in the middle ages.  So cool.  After that, we meet up with her friend Christina and went to a GERMAN CARNIVAL! That was sooo cool, and we rode bumper cars bc ive never done it before.  Then we got coffee and caught our train home, where we ate dinner and chillaxed with the fam.  

On saturday, we took a day trip to the netherlands with lisa's sister Uschi and her friend Annuk, whos Dutch.  We went to the market and ate traditional fishy food and these fries with peanut sauce on them...aka SO good.  Then, we went to another small town that's famous for all of its old book stores, and we happened upon a really old Dutch mill...so we went for a closer look and the owner, Martin, happened to be there, speak english, and gave us a private tour of the mill!  That was really cool.  Then on the way back into germany, we stopped at the border to take pictures, bc it was kind of a big deal. Then, we had dinner, got ready to go out, and pregamed while watching Deutchland Superstar, germanys American Idol, and one kid is 16 and sings like James Blunt.  Then, we went out to a discoteca which was like amazing and had like 3 different clubs, one of which was like a skater boy/death metal club called the basement, and everyone down there was like in a mosh pit and like being super hardcore.  We called it a moderatly early night at 3am, and headed home for some sleep.

Sunday was a surprise day, and it really was a surprise because we went to the place where lisa's sister rides horses and got a like 2 hour long tour of hte german countryside from the back of an old fashioned buggy.  The horses were these 2 beautiful black males and they sometimes wanted to go alot faster than our driver let them...but i mean come on dirt roads are realllly bumpy.  However, it was an amazing experience, and afterwards we fed them and got a tour of the farm, which included Cows, calfs, pigs, and bulls.  Then we went back to Coesfeld for the annual spring fest, and we chilled there for a while.  Our last lunch was this amazing fest consisting of all this traditional german food that her mom made, including schnitzel, which was SOOOO good.  For dinner, we had currywurst and fries, which was also super good.  Then we just chatted, said goodbye, packed, and got ready for our 4am wakeup call.

We left at 430 the next morning, and were back in spain by 930.  Overall, it was one of my fav trips ive taken so far, and it inspired me to take german next semester bc its a really awesome language :)....

hasta luegooooooo

Portugal, Europe's Secret Jewel

So, I've come to a decision.  Everyone needs to go to Portugal. its an amazing country.  literally.  Also, when you all go, you must must must stay at Living Lounge Hostel.  Best place ever. I seriously fell in love with the country.

Friday was a whirlwind kind of day, starting with a 930 train to the airport.  Our flight left at 1235, and at 1215 portuguese time (1 hr ahead of Espana! :))  we landed.  Lisboa is beautiful.  Rights next to the Atlantic ocean, it smells salty and looks like a combo of Rome (its built on 7 hills), Rio de Janeiro (big jesus statue and all), San Francisco (sister of the Golden Gate bridge is in Lisboa, along with tons of street cars), and Costa Rica (the ocean was TURQUOISE!).

We hopped the bus to Rossio Square, and schelpped to our hostel, which was right around the corner from an elevator that looks like the Eiffel tower, bc the guy who built it studied under Gustauf Eiffel!  Living Lounge was AMAZING.  IT was so clean, artsy, and had a great crowd of ppl working there.  We were in a 6 person room with 2 Germans, Sebastian and Olivia, who were staying there for a month to do their graphic design thesis project.  so cool.  

We then went to the part of town called Belem by trolly, which was awesome.  We saw Vasco da Gama;s tomb, the monument to the Explorers, had famous portuguese pastries, and went to the tower of belem, which ended up being closed bc the workers were on strike.  typical.  We also went to like a war memorial for all the soldiers who died fighting for portugal which was cool, and then headed back to the city center.  I was not feeling so hot tho, heat and all, so i went back to the hostel for a nap before dinner, which was at the hostel.  Then, we ate, which was an AFFAIR.  We met a girl named Jane from houston, who flies free everywhere bc her dads a pilot, and ryan and and were HAPPY off of wine.  I then tried Port Wine, which was nast, and we hung out with a bunch of irish people and some french people in the hostel for the night over a few beers.  It was awesome.

Saturday, by Jane's suggestion, we caught the train to Sintra to see castles and creepy mansions.  The place was like a fairy tale.  we caught a bus up the mountain to the moorish castle and spend a while walking up and down and around the torrents and towers of the muslim fortress.  We could see for miles.  Halfway thru, we met 2 older Canadians who were traveling thru Portugal and we chatted with them for a while.  After the castle, we bused down and walked to this creepy old house that was like built by this guy obsessed with mysticism and the occult.  It was so cool...one room had mirrors on the floor so it made u feel like u were gonna fall when u walked over to the sides.  After that, we discovered a chapel on the grounds and took pics, and then for a bit we were underneath the chapel trying to decide if we could walk down this creepy passageway.  However, with the help of camera flashes and ipod lights, we deemed it not worth the effort.  We then climbed a few more ruins of towers and saw more of the grounds of this place, and then caught the bus to Caiscaos, which is where the beaches are!

The bus was pleasant enough, and the beaches were so worth it.  We all walked through the agua, which was FREEZING, and yet there were still ppl swimming.  We eventually ended up sitting out on a stone dock that jetted out into the ocean and watched surfers do their thang.  We then stayed for sunset and went home.  Before we had dinner, we rode the Eiffel tower elevator thing, which was cute....but way overpriced. 

Dinner was another awesome affair at the hostel.  We met a girl who lives in Madrid, Jessica Carter (same as my roommate! so FUNNY) doing what i hope to be doing after college, aka fulbright scholar, and her friend, who's from Bombay, Ruchi.  They were both really awesome, and we had a great convo with them.  Then, our german roomies, Sebastian and Olivia were chatting it up with us too, along with Antonio, who was the half portugues half indian hostel worker who was making dinner.  I had to order veggie both nights, bc i DONT eat fish, and both nights my meal was indian food, which i had never tried before, but found very interesting.  After dinner, everyone wanted us to go out, so we went to a bar/club in barrio Alto for a while.  There, i met 2 girls from paris, and we chatted (in FRENCH!) about our lives, which was so cool!!!  Then me ryan and jess went back bc it was 2 and we were beat...funny, all the madrid kids who normally stay out till 6am are going home early.

Sunday we got up and checked out, and then headed to the St. Georges' Castle at the top of the hill in Lisboa.  The view were incredible, and once again, we were just allowed to play atop ruins of old shit. so cool.  Also, there were random cats and PEACOCKS just walking the grounds.  So cool.  Then we bought really cool coin necklaces from this lady who was speaking to us in a combo of english, spanish, and portuguese. 

Then, we headed down to take a ferry so that we could see the Christ the King statue across the bay from Lisboa.  The ride was so pleasant, and then we bused up to the top of the hill, where the views were GORGEOUS. Then, we continued the big schlep back to the airport. 

Twas another lovely weekend trip, and in summation, i am now OBSESSED con Portugal.

Besos, y hasta luegoooo

Mejor Dia en Madrid

Hola todos!

Today was a lovely dia aqui en Madrid.  Sunny, probs near 70 degrees F.  Beautiful.  To celebrate, Jill and I went to Madrid's famous Espidrills store, the oldest one here (opened in like 1854 :)) and bought some CUTE shoes...2 pairs...for under 12 euro.  NOT bad.  Then, we went to Retiro, and rented a row boat and rowed on the big man made lake in front of Alfonso X's tomb.  So cute...and so sunburnt.

After class, we went back into the city for some shopping, stopping at a restaurant in Plaza Mayor to stop and chat with our new Spanish friends :)!  We also got ice cream from McD's...for 80 cents. Again, not bad.  Overall, it was a beautiful and relaxing day where we really came to appreciate the city even more.

I really do love it here...however im SO excited to hit up Lisbon for the weekend.  Hilarity will ensue!

Hasta Domingoooo

Mas Cuentos de Madrid

Hola!

Well it's been epically long since my last post, so i figured I'd update on my vida. Monday was alright; i was still a bit tired from Paris, but hey, whateves.

On wed, right after school, Jill and I went to see Jess and Mimi, who had just gotten back to Madrid from Marsailles, and we took them to an awesome kebab place near Opera.  I however left them to their own devices and went home at 10:30, as i had school the nxt day...and I'm so proud of them bc they had a legit Madrid party night, ending at 530 am.  Welcome to Madrid ladies!

Thursday is when epic things started.  We meet Jess and Mims for lunch at Malespina, our FAV tapas bar, for amazing tapas and sangria.  Exciting.  Then they came with us to the Getafe to see Carols III, and then Jill and I had class...ugh.  However, that night, we all met up, along with Teresa Taylor!!!! and Ryan and I took them to the Office aka O'Connells for an amazing night.  Katie met up with us there, and her and me along with jess and mims did a Irish Car Bomb, much to the dismay of Rob, the Irishman from their hostel, who claimed we were ruining Guinness.  Ryan had made friends with British people, and came and got me so i could b their friend as well.  We met a bunch of awesome brits, our fav being Marc, basically a billionaire, who dropped 200 euros on 4 bottles of top shelf tequila, which he dolled out to anyone who walked his way.  4 shots later, Katie and I were pretending that we were from Harvard, along with Ryan (who was wearing a Harvard tee shirt), but alas my fun was cut short bc me ryan and teresa needed to catch the metro.  Oh best/worst part...Jill showed up with Ashley and Nick who were visiting Andy, and Marc took Nick by the hair, sat him down, and gave him a tequila shower.  Horrific.

Friday, we lunched at a kebab place, and then took the ladies to Corte Ingles so they could experience it, and then to Parque de Buen Retiro.  I then went home to do my hw, but 11pm found me and everyone else at Sol and later still back at O'Connells...where Kevin was waiting, already INCREDIBLY intoxicated.  Then Sondie came, which was magnifique, and we all sat around chit chatting...until Marc showed up again, and bought a bottle of tequila for our table!  After a few shots apiece, he decided he wanted to marry me, but over the summer in Vegas....i was like whatever lol (aka umm im never seeing u again so it dont matter to me).  Then, i peaced to get the metro home, saying peace out to jess and mimi! 

Yesterday, we went to Valle de los Caidos, which is Franco's burial ground, for a class field trip...this was after the first round of the field trip, which included a visit to Museo Reina Sofia, where i saw Guernica and a bunch of other really famous not so old stuff.  Jamie, Lulie, Jill, Katie, and I had a major bonding sess over Thai food (well i had already eaten a kebab), and it was basically epic love sess.  Then, we went shopping, where i found the PERFECT pair of skinny jeans and my own pretty gladiator-esque sandals. 

Today was a quiet day, as i think i have the stomach flu. I was suppose to see Lourdes with the girls to get coffee, and then go to Patricia's house for a cooking fest, but alas, i was mildly stuck to the bathroom :(.  However, i wrote a paper and did some research for one of my final projects, so it wasnt a total waste!  Also, Claudia and i had an epic bonding sess, where she told me about when she was a little girl and couldnt draw well, and how everything she did draw was ugly bc she didnt stay in the lines, but how now shes better.  And then she was like well i wont tell my mom bc ur not suppose to speak english, but how do u say Princesa in english?  We played that game for a while.  Then she told me i spend too much time on my computer.  I swear, shes the most precocious child i think ive ever met. The little Castilian accent really is just the icing on the cake. 

well, thats all for now...

HASTA LUEGO

Ahh, Paris- where one eats crepes and plunges one's own hostel shower

Well, its 2:08 Madrid time, and im going to post about my bday present from my parents...a flight to Paris! The trip was amazing!

Jillie and I hustled out of Lit on thurs afternoon, and made it to the cercanias train in 10 mins...not bad.  Before we knew it, 7pm rolled around and we were at Barajas waiting for our plane!  I wasn't too tooo bad on this flight...im starting to get better?...sorta.

Anyway, an hour and 20 mins later, we landed in Orly, Paris.  We made our way to the Orly bus...and waited for liek  943084309 hours, bc it was midnight, and buses run reallllllllly slow at night.  After the epic bus adventure (where we didnt pay for our ride bc we didnt know how..) we got to Denfert-Rochereau and walked to Ave Des Gobleins, where Oops hostel is located.  We managed to pass it at first (mostly bc it was next to a construction site lol), but we got checked in...and then went upstarirs only to find out that we were roomming with 2 annoying Sweds who didnt speak a word of engligh, or spanish, or french... so we parked it and slept.

Friday started off balling.  We got trad french bfast at the hostel (bread, brread, and a crossiant) and started the 3o min walk to Rue Monge and over the Pont Neuf to see Notre Dame.  That place was AMAZING.  Also- free to go in....i think it was the first time i didnt pay to see a church in europe...seriously. 

After that, we schelpped over Ils de Cite to the Louvre museum. Along the way, i saw a naked women being dragged by police into a hospital...typically french.  The louvre was also amazing.  Deff better than the Prado.  I chatted it up with some old french guy, and was really suprised by how much french i still retain.  We got in and saw all the uber famous stuff- Mona, Venus, and a bunch of other stuff.  And, we really managed to do a great deal of the museum in just under 3 hours, which was brilliant.  We then walked through the IMMENSE gardens to the Obliesk at Place de la Concord.  From there, we took a few pics with the Tour Eiffel in the bkround, and then walked up the famous Champs Elysees!  We stopped for lunch at a little sandwitch place, and continued walking till the Arc de Trioumph.  That was really cool, and we lingered for a few so i could touch history.  Then we walked to the Invalides, where Napolean is buried, and then worked our way back towards home, stopping for paninis and crepes on the way. 

This was the start of a hysterical night...as our swedish roommates were gone, and repaced by 2 guys who didnt know each other...Milano and Ignacio.  After an awkward meeting with Milano (we never did figure out his real name), he left to go out (and we never really met ignacio, bc he was spanish ergo always out partying till 6am and sleeping till 4pm), and we went to shower.  However, about 40 seconds into Jillie's shower, she realized it was flooding bc it was CLOGGED with hair...so gross.  So we went to the front desk, and what did we come back with?...but a plunger.  We were told to plunge the hair out...so we tried for like shits and giggles, and then went back and managed to shower in another room...on the 7th floor..with AN AMAZING balcony.  the best shower ive ever taken, hands down.  

Sat was Versailles day, and it was BEAUTIFUL.  We got the extended tix so we could see Marie Antoniett's palaces too.  We took a tour of the main building, ate our baggie lunch (of churizo and petits pains) outside in the gardens, and then did all the Marie stuff.  My feet were killing me however, which sucked, but oh well.  It was so pretty; literally like outta  a story book, and she used some DIVINE colors to decorate the palace...too bad she like bankruped the french monarchy and was responsible for the starvation of thousands of french peasants lol.  On the way out, i grabbed a fresh squeezed OJ from a CUTE french guy, who complimented me on my french and impecible accent.  He was so amazing that i was american that he made me say 'une jus d'orange' again just bc he was amazing that my french accent was baller. :-). After Versailles, we hopped on the train back to Champs de Mar/Tour Eiffel.  This was my fave part.  We got to the tower when it was still off, and then saw it get turned on. Its' really a site to see at night.  And, on the hour, ever hour, it sparkles for 60 seconds! Amazing.  We ate at a cafe down the street from the tower, and then started our ascent to the top.  We took the elevador, bc my feet were dying.  However, that shit was on an angle and really bumpy..so by the time we reached the second floor, i was a little on edge.  I had about a 10 min long LI hissy fit where i contemplated just going right back to solid ground, bc the FJ in me forced me to the top.  That elevador ride was alot better, and God bless Jillie, bc she was really great with me and my irrational fear of tall imposing and high things.  The view from the very top was SO worth it; amazing; and we took some baller pics up there.  Then we went back down, and metro'ed it home. 

Sunday, we schlepped out to Sacre Coeur after checking out.  Its in the Monmontre neighborhood, and it was my fave place in the city.  We went it and stayed for the second reading and the Gospel, saw the Nun choir sing, and then we peaced out.  On the way back down, we got ACCOSTED by annoying and pushy sengaliese men who cornered us on the steps...ugh so annoying.  I pulled a NY, grabbed Jillian, and forcefully pushed past the pack of them...they should really know not to grab a lady without her permission.  From there, we walked up the famed sex district to the Moulin Rouge, and took some more pics, b4 grabbing quiche and pastries at this little bakery for lunch.  Then, we people watched in Luxembourg Gardens for a while, soaking up its beauty, and finally, we went to the Catacombs...which i have to say were better than Rome's for the sheer fact that all the bones were still there, and u were allowed to take pics.  IT was also self guided...and they were really big...1.7 km under the city.  So Cool.  Then, we headed to a supermarche and bought goodies for the plane, and then picked up our luggage, said goodbye to oops, and got crepes with Nutella b4 catching the bus to the airport.  

All in all, it was a balling weekend, were i did many historical things :)....however, i have class in like 10 hours, so im gonna sleep!

HASTA MANANA!!

Cumple de 21 Anos!

Hola todos!

Well..it was my birthday.  and it was lovely.  Classes were chill, i didnt have hw, and Ryan, Jill, Luli and I went out for drinks at the Office.

Best day ever.

Also- i learned this from a spaniard in the Office (aka O'Connells) 

When you wanna say cheese in Spanish, like when you're taking a pic, you say Patatas!

LOVE IT!

Also, lola made me tortilla espanola and broccoli, LOVE IT!

Adios