A Spanish Bull Fight

      Today, some of my classmates and I went to a Bull Fight at Las Ventas stadium. This stadium is prestigious in Spain and only the best of the best are awarded with 2 ears (the president awards the matador with an ear or two ears if they do an exceptional job fighting the bull). According to our guest instructor, throughout the last 30 fights, only 2 matadors have received 2 ears. I had to buy a hat, because our seats were located on the side that was exposed to the sun. This photo shows how goofy Maisara and I looked outside of the stadium with our new hats on.

     The stadium was packed to the brim with 24,000 people. The structure of the stadium is interesting and actually shows a little bit of Spanish history and culture in it. The arches that you can see here are typical of Muslim architecture and for centuries, Muslims had control over the peninsula.

      This guy has a huge impact on the bull fight as he is the first one to inflict injuries upon the bull. During one fight, the crowd was angry at this guy for stabbing the bull too many times. This photo shows the guy upon the blindfolded horse as he prepares for the first stage of the fight.

     I'm sorry about the gruesome photos, but a bull fight is what it is. All six bulls died today, and I am not quite sure how I feel about it. This photo shows the second stage of a bull fight in which the short darts are used to slow down the bull and ultimately lower his head in preparation for the kill.

      This matador was the best by far. He had the whole crowd yelling "Ole!" as he maneuvered his cape and subsequently the bull as well. Our instructor said that if he would have finished the bull off in his first attempt with the sword, he would have surely received at least one ear for his performance. However he didnt, and he ended up receiving nothing. This photo shows the matador during the third and final stage of the fight.

       I can only imagine how wild it would feel to be face-to-face with this 600 kg giant bull. This photo shows the matador just before he goes in for the kill.

      I didn't think about it before going, but the way they get the bull out of the ring is by dragging the body from behind three horses and into the tunnel. It seemed a little harsh, but I guess that probably is the quickest and easiest way to get a giant bull's corpse out of the ring.

     After this matador's performance, he walked slowly around the ring as he accepted cheers from the crowd. Many people began to throw their hats, shirts, and even a few roses into the ring as he continued his way around.

      In total, there were 6 bull fights today. The first one was the most gruesome after the bull was mistakenly stabbed in the lung, causing him to spew up large amounts of blood all over the circular sand pit. The crowd wasn't happy about this and you could tell by their reactions even if you didn't speak Spanish.
     The second and third bulls were killed much more efficiently, but the matadors weren't as entertaining to watch. They didn't have nearly as much style or as many difficult maneuvers when it came to tiring out the bull with the red cape.
     The fourth fight was the best as it was the one with the most infamous and stylistic matador. He put on a pretty entertaining show in my opinion and the crowd's opinion as well.

     It was during the fifth fight that my hopes came true when the bull pinned down one of the men that was fighting. I know it seems messed up to hope that upon someone, but then again so is killing 6 bulls for entertainment (even if they say it is an art form, there were plenty of people there for sheer entertainment). The man was pierced by the bull's horn in the area of his groin and after the bull stopped pinning him to the ground, he was quick to get up and out of the ring. I came to the event trying to decide if I was rooting for the matador or the bull, and this moment felt slightly satisfying since I felt sorry for the bulls.
      The sixth and final fight was quite boring. Our instructor said it was a great bull, but the matador wasn't so great. I was more than ready to leave after the final bull was killed.
      Overall, it was a great cultural experience, but I can say with confidence that I will never sit in the sun for two and a half hours, crammed in between two people in the smallest seat I have ever had in a stadium, to watch 6 animals mercilessly killed for the enjoyment of 24,000 people. I have learned that many Spaniards are against the art of bull fighting and that if it came down to a referendum, bull fighting would most likely be banished in Spain. However, this is not the case and these kind of events happen on a daily basis in cities all across Spain. Sitting in front of us was a family of 6 with 4 kids under the age of 12. I was shocked by how little the deaths of these animals effected them. If I would have seen an event like this when I was in elementary school, I would have reacted totally different, but thankfully this isn't something that we do back in America.

Thanks for reading,
      RCE

Becoming a Futbol Fan?

      Yesterday I did some shopping. Okay yeah, maybe a little bit too much shopping, but still I'm happy with my purchases. I started off by spending some of the accumulated change that I had on some 0.05cent candies at this candy store I have been going to. I bought an ungodly amount of candy and the lady behind the counter actually laughed a little bit when I came up to the counter to pay.

      After that, I walked around and tried to haggle with a number of the African street vendors to get this Barcelona soccer jersey. Barcelona played Juventus last night in the championship match of the UEFA Champions League, so I figured I'd buy a cheap jersey and feel a little bit more a part of the game. I heard that the jerseys get sold for around 5 euro through the Spanish news channel on our TV in the apartment, and I wanted to pay that much. Apparently, I must have heard that wrong (probably because my Spanish listening skills are still not the best), because when I tried to offer 10 euro for a jersey, each consecutive African would shoot me down. They have a pretty interesting lifestyle, and I want to learn more about them before I leave. They cannot legally sell things on the street, so they have all of their goods set up on these white towels with cords ingeniously wired through the outside of the towel. They do this so that when the cops come their way, they can snatch up all their goods in one swift motion and run off. After realizing that I wasn't going to get the deal that I originally intended for, I began to raise my offers. I walked up to this one after getting shut down, and he spotted a cop as I was trying on the jersey. He took me down an alley way and I wondered what would happen if I just walked off towards the cop without paying. I didn't make any risky moves however, because I'd rather not get killed over a 20 euro soccer jersey.

      My roommates and I watched the game with a couple litronos of Mahou and Barcelona won 3-1. The game was close at 2-1 until Neymar finished it off by putting them up 3-1 in the last few minutes. When the score was 2-1, I was actually hoping Juventus would score so that we could watch overtime. I guess that shows you how legit of a Barcelona fan I am.
      After the game, we met up with some of the girls in our program and headed out to a bar in the Tribunal district. My friend Matteo suggested that I try a drink called a Yayo at a specific bar in the district and when we got there it was packed. Apparently this drink is a trademark kind of thing at this bar, Casa Camacho, because no other bars make them. The bouncer told us that we couldn't enter when we arrived and as we were walking away to find another bar, we hear the man yelling at us from down the street. A group of people had just walked out and there was now space for us to go in.

     We ordered a round of Yayos, and I snapped this photo of Ryan as the bartender made our drinks. I tried to figure out what exactly the drink was, but I couldn't figure it out even after watching the bartender pour the drinks. I think it might be some kind of secret.

     Salud! (Cheers!)

      The bar was super cool and all the people in there were really laid back. This sign was hanging up in the bar and I thought it was funny and pretty true as well. A rough translation is "about 90% of your money goes to games, wine, and women. The rest just kind of disappears."
      We met some new Spanish friends named Juan and Alvaro who were from Pomplona. I asked them if they ever ran with the bulls (because Pomplona is the infamous town that holds the running of the bulls), but they said that only the drunk idiots do that. We all enjoyed our Yayos until the bar closed at 2 AM. Afterwords, Juan bought a bunch of beers off another kind of illegal street vendor. With the economic situation that is going on here in Spain, roughly 25% of the population is out of work. One way people make money is by buying six-packs of beers and selling them individually for 1 euro on the street late at night. Before Juan popped his beer, I suggested we drink them in an American fashion (he was fascinated with everything American). I told him to wait as I popped the beers open at the bottom so that we could all do a shotgun together. He was giddy like a little kid after he figured out what we were going to do, because he had never done it before and had heard so much about it. It was funny to see such a big dude acting like that.
      All of us guys shotgunned our beers and afterwards, Alvaro told me what they call this in Spain. He said that they call it Hidalgo which he translated as "a motherfucker who lifts something" (sorry for the profanity, but these guys really liked to use their limited knowledge of English curse words) I wrote that down in my iPhone so I wouldn't forget it and then showed them how it is basically defined in America. Shotgun- the act of drinking a beer very fast through a hole in the side of the can. We all laughed and then headed out to a discoteca to dance.
      At the discoteca, I met the most beautiful girl I have ever talked to in my life. Her name was Maria. I don't know what it is about alcohol and language, but you could have sworn I was from Spain the way I was just spitting out the words without a second thought. A lot of people were asking if I was from Barcelona because of my jersey; I got some good reactions as well as some bad ones because Real Madrid and Barcelona are huge rivals. You could say the locals weren't too keen on my attire for the most part. This girl thought it was funny however, because I told her I only bought it to watch the game on TV. After talking with Maria for awhile, I had to tell her goodbye and regroup with my friends before we headed home.

      Before we made the long walk back to the apartment, we had to get a photo with our new friends Alvaro (left) and Juan (right). During the walk home, we were approached by some prostitutes, but we quickly shut them down. I know I will remember this trip for my entire life already, I don't need an STD as a reminder. However, we did fall influence to McDonalds on the way home. 

      It was a great night out on the town and I owe so much of it to my friends that I have met here in Spain, Matteo, Alvaro, and Juan. 

Thanks for reading,

      RCE

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

Toledo

      On Wednesday, our group headed out for a day trip to Toledo. We arrived outside of the city and at the base of the mountain there was a wall that overlooked the entire city. Looking out over the city of Toledo, the girls used their selfie-sticks and adjusted their hair as they tried to capture the perfect photo for their Facebook albums. After getting a quick photo of my own, I sat off to the side with my iPhone in hand and began to write.

      Our hotel was located in the middle of the maze that is Toledo. Outside on the balcony of our hotel room, this was the view of Toledo's famous Cathedral.

       Toledo was the capitol city of the Iberian peninsula for a long time before the peninsula became the countries of Spain and Portugal. It was the capitol during Roman times around 200 BCE, in Visigoth times around 711 CE, as well as during times when the Muslim's had power over the peninsula up until the reconquest by the Christians in 1085 CE.
       The capitol changed to Madrid when Phillip II took control and became King. He wanted to restructure the country in order to be able to maintain power and control easier. He decided to move the capitol to a more central location. At the time, Madrid was a small villa, but there was plenty of space around it to build upon. Toledo is located south of Madrid and is placed within the mountains leaving not much room for expansion. Despite not being the capitol anymore, this city has a lot of heritage that has been influenced by Christian, Jewish, and Muslim cultures.

       This here is the Cathedral de Toledo. It took generations worth of architects, artists, and builders to build this massive structure. The cathedral is dimly lit on the inside and feels like a church session is already going on upon walking in. It was surprisingly quiet despite there being a number of groups touring inside. The building originates around 1226 CE with renovations and additions being done up until the 16th century.

      The inside of this place was breathtaking and this photo doesn't begin to do it justice.

      The streets of Toledo are incredibly thin and not the least bit straight.

     After a night out on the town with my new friends and classmates, my roommate Maisara and I decided to check out some monuments we didn't get the chance to see during Wednesday's class.

      This place was called the Santa Maria la Blanca Synagogue. It was located within the Jewish Quarter of Toledo and has deep religious history. It was once used as a Synagogue, and then much later used for Christian worship around the year 1405.

      Many shops within the Jewish Quarter sell these intricate gold plates. I wanted to buy one, but even the smaller ones cost upwards of 300 euro (way out of my budget).

      As we were exploring, a bunch of armed men in uniforms came down the street in horses as they prepared for the day's special religious event.

      This photo is of the inside of another historic church, Iglesia de los Jesuitas (Church of the Jesuits). It had two huge towers on the top of it and we were able to walk up and view the city from above.

      This city is super cool and if you ever find yourself in Spain, I would highly recommend it. The beautiful buildings aren't the only thing this city has to offer, as you can see, the surrounding countryside is quite breathtaking.

      La Puerta del Sol (Gate of the Sun) is this really cool structure on the outskirts of the city. Maisara and I wondered around using our all-access pass to check out the city's numerous museums and monuments.

      As we made our way back to the hotel to catch the bus back to Madrid, we ran into the crowds that filled the plaza celebrating Corpus Christi. This guy was all dressed up and I asked him, "Puedo sacar un photo de tu?" (Can I take a photo of you?) He agreed. I think he was excited to show off his attire to an obvious foreigner, because he quickly struck this pose. Afterwords, he asked Maisara and I a question, but I didn't understand (No comprendo, this is a phrase I have used quite a lot when conversing with local Spaniards). He put it more simply by saying in Spanish, you are Muslim and you are Christian, as he pointed to Maisara and I. I had never thought of it like that before, but yes, this was true and it had a lot of relevance to the culture of Toledo.

      We were fortunate enough to be able to come to Toledo during it's most exciting time. There was an event going on called Corpus Christi. The event has deep religious ties and people really came out to show their support to my surprise. In America. religious events never get nearly the same amount of public presence that this event had. Maisara snapped this photo of me just before we headed out towards the bus to go home.
      I was worn out and slept all the way back to Madrid. When we got back, I threw in my headphones and got onto the metro to go back to my apartment. As I got off and began to exit the station, Be by Common came on and the moment in which the beat dropped, I was walking out of the metro station and into the sunny streets of Madrid. It put a huge smile on my face as I realized I was back in my "home" city. "I want to be as free as the spirits of those who left...(the first line of Common's classic song)" I thought to myself about how lucky I truly am to be given this opportunity. I have learned so much over the past two weeks and cannot imagine how sad it is going to be to leave Madrid for good. Hopefully one day, I will be able to return.

Thanks for reading,
      RCE
   

A Day of Class Pt. 2

      Today in class, we returned to some plazas and learned about their cultural relevance. We all met up at Puerta del Sol in the morning and our instructor began class from there. Puerta del Sol literally translates to Gate of the Sun. This plaza dates back to medieval times. Our instructor, Luis, informed us that during the NYE celebrations in Madrid, everyone gathers in the Puerta del Sol and the clock that is up on one of the surrounding buildings is watched during the countdown. I could almost imagine being packed into this plaza with thousands of people anticipating the new year.
      After this presentation, we headed out towards Plaza Mayor, which earlier I mistakenly said translated to the oldest plaza. The word mayor means older in contemporary Spanish, but in this situation it means biggest. The Plaza Mayor is the biggest plaza in Madrid. The plaza dates back to the 16th century and has a statue of Phillip III in it's center. In previous centuries, this plaza was used as place for executions. Some ways in which people were executed there ranged from fire, ax, and even a device similar to a guillotine. The execution style depended on the status of the criminal and the severity of the crime. I found it interesting that at other times, this plaza was used as a market place to buy and sell local goods.
      We also went to Plaza de la Villa, which is next to Calle Mayor, or the oldest street. However, nowadays, it is not main street in Madrid anymore. In fact, it is just another commonly sized street. Within this plaza there are buildings from the 15th to the 19th century. One of which was a Moorish tower that showed signs of Muslim influence. Before the reconquest, the Muslims had control over much of common-day Spain including Madrid. Also in this plaza was the old City Hall. It has recently moved to a new location in the last few years, but is now a monument.

       We also went to check out this tower. If you can see, in the middle of the tower there is an arched window, a classic sign of Muslim influence. This tower is quite tall and dates back to centuries ago.

This cathedral has Catholic ties. It is said that the soldier's would have their weddings here.

       Our instructor told us a story that I thought was quite good. Since Madrid wasn't originally a Roman city like many Spanish cities were at one point, the plumbing was (and still is to some extent) very poor. The Romans were much more advanced than other societies during their years of control within Spain. Because of the plumbing situation, people used to bag up their feces and throw them off their balconies after warning those down below. If you can imagine, that made the city smell rather awful. One story went that there was a famous poet named Francisco Quevedo that had a favorite spot to urinate at in the street. This bothered another man to the point that he decided to put a cross in the location with a sign that said, "You do not pee where there is a cross." Quevedo, being the poet that he was, crossed out the sign and wrote, "You do not put a cross where I pee." 

        Finally, class ended in this little garden as we discussed plans for tomorrow's excursion to Toledo. I stuck around for a moment and took some photos of this beautiful garden. This city is built extremely close together and it's not often that you get to see this much greenery in one location.

      After class, my roommates and I decided to check out this cool local market.

      Inside you could buy anything like whole fresh fish, a variety of fruits and vegetables, a number of different meats, and there was even a few stands that sold Spanish literature. I wanted to find a book that I might be able to read, but they didn't really have anything like that. I should probably go to some children's book store.

      You could tell this market was classic, because it was filled with elderly people buying groceries.

       After the market, we headed back to the apartment to do homework. This mural is across the street from our apartment and I had been meaning to take a picture of it for some time. I spent the rest of the day reading until it was time to head to a lecture about the Art of Bullfighting. 

       At the lecture, the Spanish instructor compared his time in America and his experience with the Super Bowl to our upcoming experience with Bull Fighting. This event is optional, because the program understands that some people may not be comfortable with the whole ordeal. According to the lecturer, bull fighting is not a sport. It is considered an art form. He made the comparison between a painter and his paint brush with a bull fighter and his flag, sword, or short darts.

      In Spanish culture, the bull fighters, also known as "matadors", can become very prestigious people if they are successful with their craft. Also, due to their public display of bravery, many of the finest women pursue matadors. According to the lecturer, a matador takes over 15 minutes to get dressed and they cannot even do it on their own. He must get help with little screw-like pieces that keep his suit together. 

      The bulls that are in the fights are raised freely and given a solid 5 years of life before they face the matador. Novillos are 4 year old bulls that weigh around 450-550 kilograms. Toros are 5 year old bulls that weigh in at around 550-650 kilograms. Toros are the bulls that are brought to the bullfights. The lecturer made the comparison to American factory farms and how that seemed much more cruel than what the Spanish do with bull fighting. I thought this was a great way to show that the Spanish aren't as brutal as it may seem.

      There are 3 stages within a bull fight. The stage of Varas is the stage in which the Matador's assistants stab the bull with a pike, or a long stick with a point. The second stage, the stage of Banderillas is one in which the matador begins to use his short darts to weaken the bull. Finally, the stage of Muleta, or the stage of beauty and art, is the stage in which the bull is killed using an iron sword. 

       Afterwords, the presidente judges the matadors performance and this is based on how efficient he was in killing the bull and how much suffering the bull went through. The less suffering makes for a better performance. A good performance is rewarded with one of the bull's ears. A great performance is rewarded with both of the ears. To get 2 ears in Madrid is a really prestigious accomplishment and establishes the matador within all of Spain. The next day after the bull fight, the bull's meat can be purchased outside of the stadium. 

      At the end of the lecture, the lecturer showed us a video and one of the people that was in attendance simply couldn't handle the brutality as she walked out in tears. I found that I was a little shocked initially, but after thinking back to last semester when I studied ethics, I realized that I should approach this situation with a sense of cultural relativism. Cultural relativism, put in simpler terms, means that different cultures have different ethical standards. I sat through the video and signed up and paid to attend the bull fight this upcoming Sunday. You can expect an upcoming post about my experience at the stadium.

Thanks for reading,

      RCE

     

      

Meseums, Exploring, and Skateboarding

    Today in class, we went to an art museum (Fundacion Lazaro Galdiano Museum) that was filled with hundreds of old artifacts, paintings, sculptures, and other forms of art. It was over-whelming how much this place had. I couldn't take photos inside this museum, but here is a photo of the cool little garden they had outside.

      After class, I went skating around the city for awhile. At one point, close to Puerte del Sol, I saw a group of Africans all with their huge bags of discount sunglasses, soccer jerseys, and fake name brand purses. I don't know first-hand that the purses are fake, but that is just what I have heard. The whole group was walking across the street and I felt like I was in the filming of a movie scene. After the group had crossed the street, a number of cops began chasing after them, as they all split off into the crowds. It was an intense moment to say the least. It lasted only a few seconds, but I couldn't walk away after it happened. I just stood there for awhile trying to contemplate all that had just occurred. Afterwords, I did some shopping, some exploring, and even started on an assigned scavenger hunt. This is a photo of me with the lions outside of the Spanish Congress building.

      I went a bit farther than I had gone in previous excursions, and found the Parque de Madrid.

      This park is huge. From all that I saw (which wasn't even half of the park), it has a lot of walking trails, historical statues, places to relax, and even some famous and picturesque locations. This walkway was lined with statues each depicting historical Spaniards. I was kind of in a hurry to get home and this was my last stop before returning to my apartment, so I didn't do much more than walk through the park.

      In the back of the park, there was this small lake with this cool structure that has been plastered on postcards to be sold in every souvenir shop within Madrid. I wasn't there long enough to make it over to the other side, but I did manage to take my own postcard photo.

      Within the park, there was this incredible structure called the Palacio de Crystal. It was almost made entirely of glass.

      After taking this photo, I began to make my way home. I had plans to hang out with my friend, Matteo, and go skateboarding. I met up with him and his friend Samuel (pronounced Samwell and not like the American name, Sam) at the Atocha Train station, and we headed towards a park outside of the city. This was the first time I had gotten on a train other than the metro and I became excited when we got inside this cool train station.

       The skatepark was called Parque de Leganes. I never would have made it all the way out here without help from Matteo and I told him gracias probably 10 times or more. The locals were super good and I was definitely the only American there.

This kid had some exceptional talent. This back smith was pretty smooth.

        It was incredibly hot and sunny, but thankfully I still had my 1 euro water bottle that I had purchased in a tienda de china, which translates to Chinese store. In the states, a water like this would cost 2 dollars or more, and surely, there would be some soda pop offered for less. Thankfully, Spain isn't as idiotic with their water prices.

     Samuel doesn't speak that much English, but Matteo is basically fluent because of his time that he spent in Tennessee. The whole time we were skating, Samuel and I would try to use our second languages. It was basically a skate session and an inter-cambio at the same time. What a great opportunity to practice my Spanish, right?

      We were there for quite awhile. By the time we left, the lights came on and the park cleared out. We all put in a few last tricks and then headed back towards the train station. I was tired, hungry, and sore, but the skate park was more than worth all of this. This park reminded me a little bit of Potrero Skatepark in San Francisco (mostly because of the graffiti). In total, we were at the skate park for over 4 hours. 

       Sitting in my bed tonight has been rough. It has been hard not to shut off this computer, quit reading my homework, and fall asleep, but I have to finish my homework and I felt like this day was worth sharing with you all.

       I was extremely grateful for my new friends (Matteo and Samuel) for showing me a local skate park. I never would have had the confidence to try and find this skate park if it wasn't for them.

Thanks for reading,

      RCE