Exploring the City Pt. 3

      Last night, I went out with my friend from London that I met through a friend here in Madrid. Her name is Becky. We had plans to meet at one of Madrid's only pool bars and grab a drink. I was slightly nervous, because I wasn't sure of the nature of our friendship and was afraid that she thought of our plans as a date. At first, it was a bit awkward as we played some games of pool, but after she mentioned something about her boyfriend, I felt a lot more comfortable.

      We both shared some stories of our life experiences, and in my opinion, hers seemed much more interesting than any of mine. She has lived in Asia, Africa, and was born in Europe (London, England). I was so jealous as she told me stories from her times in foreign countries and wished that my stay in Spain was longer than it is. It was her last weekend in Madrid before she returns home to work in London for some time until her next adventure in Africa. She wants to study Humanitarian Law at the University of Ghana (apparently the most prestigious school in Africa).  

      After she beat me in pool 2 or 3 games in a row(She has been playing on that table for about a year now and has become a local at that bar. The bartender seemed sad when she left for the last time.), her friend from work named Craig arrived. He said he was also from London, but Becky made sure to clarify that he is from 30 minutes outside of London. I discussed with them what I should do during my time in London after my time here in Madrid, and they gave me some solid suggestions that I plan to check out when I get there. After a few drinks, I headed out towards the metro to return home before the metro closed for the night. I am excited to catch up with her when I stay in London for a few days.

      This morning, my roommates and I went out to finish a scavenger hunt that we have to do for class. This spot here is the Origin De Los Calles (Origin of the streets), where apparently all of the roads in Spain began. 

       We then went to Retiro park, a park I had been to for a moment a few days before, and spent some time hanging out there. We walked down the walkway lined with statues of previous Spanish Kings, and I noticed this new statue of San Bruno, the newest King of Spain.

      We were looking for the Estatua del Angel Callido (Fallen Angel Statue) and thought we found it. We asked this girl that only spoke Spanish to take our photo, but she didn't understand that we wanted the statue in the shot. Thankfully, this was the wrong statue, but I still thought it was a good photo of my new friends and I.

      We made our way into the Palacio de Crystal to check it off of our list, and took a photo inside the tent that has been put up inside the all glass building.

       After this we decided to hang out in the park and throw around the Coors Light football that I brought because I was told to bring something that reminded me of home. What's more American than light beer and football?

      We played a little game in which we threw the ball back and forth trying to see how many catches we could get in a row. We set a goal of 25 catches and after a few tries, we got 43 catches in a row until I dropped it (sorry guys). It was a good time to hang out in the park and take in the sun (tomar el sol).

     The Fallen Angel that we had been looking for was inside the park, but just a little bit farther down the walkway than we had expected. 

      The treasure hunt is a really cool assignment and I am glad I didn't do all of it on my own. One of the things we had to do was grab churros with hot chocolate from one of Madrid's numerous pastry shops. This was a treasure for sure. The hot chocolate isn't like your typical hot chocolate that you would have after sledding in the winter, but a thicker liquid that is meant to be used as a dipping sauce for the churros. It was delicious.

      We had one of the workers take a photo for us. I told him it was for my class, but he seemed a little annoyed.

      After this, I met up with my friend Matteo and his girlfriend to go shopping. They took me to this second-hand store and I looked around for a while as they did some shopping and kissing and a little more shopping(The Spanish are not shy of their feelings towards one another and I really like this custom). I found a shirt I liked but had less than what they were asking for. I told the guy that was working in the shop that I liked the shirt and he sold it to me at a discount. The people in Spain are super laid back and when I return home, I hope to maintain a mindset that is similar to theirs.

      We left the shop after buying a few things, and headed to a tienda de los chinos (Chinese store- The Spanish don't mind sounding politically incorrect. They just say things how they are) and purchased a few liters of Mahou, a Spanish beer. They said that they always would hang out against this wall and drink in the shade during siesta, so I decided that I would join. The beer only cost a euro and 30 cents anyway. Matteo's girlfriend, Isa, only spoke a little bit of English and I only speak a little bit of Spanish, so it was another great opportunity that was similar to an Inter-cambio. I found myself cheating a little bit and speaking in English with Matteo more than I used my Spanish however.
     After finishing our cervezas (beers), I headed back to my apartment to relax, take a nap, and finish up with some homework. I enjoyed spending time with my new friend and his girlfriend, and in the end I made another friend out of it. In fact, I think we all may go out together sometime and grab some drink they called a YaYa(?). They said I have to try it out before my time runs out here in Madrid, so I guess that's exactly what I'll do.

As always, thanks for reading,
      RCE