More from the past...

Still trying to catch up to current events.  Here we go.

The first weekend everyone stayed in Toledo, testing the waters here.  We found O'Briens Irish Pub and spent too much time there because it was the easiest and first place we found.  Also, during the first couple weeks, many of the bars/nightlife places weren't open because it was still considered to be the summer season.  Since then, however, many places have opened as the students of La Universidad de Castilla La Mancha have come back to Toledo.  We've spread out and tried many different tapas bars/clubs. (Tapas bars are places that serve tapas...like a little appetizer with your drink...usually people go there before dinner, so at like, 8PM)

There is also a lot to see during the day, of course.  Besides just wandering the streets--which you could do for days without retracing the same path--there are so many buildings, plazas, tourist-type stores, etc.  For one of my classes, Arte de Toledo, we go on a tour of a different site every week and then learn about the art and architecture in our afternoon (read, "after siesta") session.  That's been interesting and worthwhile because our teacher gives the tours and shes the one who literally wrote the book on el arte toledano.  I would also recommend going to the Iglesia de los Jesuitas to get a great view of Toledo from the top of the towers.  From there, you can see La Catedral and Al Alcazar, the two most recognizable buildings in Toledo. Two weeks ago I went on a walk with some other kids (you can see the pics on one of the links I just posted) down by, and across, the Río Tajo, from where you can see the whole city.  Again, great views that have changed very little since the time of El Greco (a painter, originally from Greece, who lived in Toledo in the 1500's).  Last Friday, I went to the Prado for one of my classes, Grandes Maestros de la Pintura Española, and saw a painting of the city's skyline and it was easily recognizable and easy to point out many buildings other than just the Cathedral and Alcazar.

The second weekend, we went to El Palacio Real in Madrid for a guided tour.  Then we had a guided bus tour around the city and stopped for lunch at El Museo de Jamón (yes, that's the Museum of Ham...Spaniards love their ham).  I stayed in a hostel for Friday and Saturday night with a big group of other kids from the Fund.  Friday night we were standing outside of a bar waiting to get in when a couple of us struck up some conversation, in Spanish, of course, with some locals.  We ended up walking around with them the whole night until about 3:30 AM when we returned to our hostel.  That was the early night.  Saturday, we walked. And walked. And walked.  El Parque del Retiro, a big Central Park type park, was enormous (I've posted pics of that) and we walked around that for about 3 hours.  After that I met up with a different group of students after walking for about an hour to find them.  Later, we went out to dinner at about 10:30PM for a girl's birthday. That was the first real meal I had eaten since lunch on Friday because the other group of kids just went to the convenience store and bought baguettes and water.  So, this meal, spaghetti and shrimp, was awesome.  When we finished around 11:30 PM, there were still people coming in to eat!  We later went to a discoteca, which was ridiculously expensive, but in the end, worth it.  We didn't get back to our hostel until around 5:30 AM!  I have also posted pictures of this dicoteca...if you haven't seen them, you should really check 'em out.  We returned to Toledo on Sunday completely worn out.  But hey, catching up on sleep is the reason they invented siestas.

The following weekend, I went with a group of about 30 to Ávila and Salamanca.  Most of what I have to say about those cities is described in the captions of the pictures I posted.  We only spent about 4 hours in Ávila, including lunch.  It was a cool city with some good sights, but that's about all the time you really need to spend there...Once you've seen the wall completely surrounds the city in one continuous ring, the rest is easily trumped by Salamanca.  Salamanca, much bigger than Toledo, is home to the oldest university in Spain.  Friday, we wandered around taking in the sights and sat for some drinks and people-watching in the main plaza, creatively named, Plaza Mayor.  Saturday, we had 4 or 5 hours of tours, which were no doubt interesting, but may a little winded.  Saturday night, we discovered Salamanca's chupiterías.  (Aside: in Spanish, when you take a noun and chop off the final vowel, then add -ería, it turns the meaning of the word into, "store that sells BLANK."  For example, zapatos means "shoes".  Thus, a zapatería is a shoe store.  chupito is a shot of alcohol.)  That's right, a shot bar...this means that most of their shots are around 1 Euro.  A great deal makes for a great night.  And, surprisingly, not a bad morning.

Last Friday, as I already said, I went to the Prado for one of my classes.  I spent Saturday reading a book for a class and Sunday writing a paper about that book.  Of course, one paper wasn't enough, so I had to write another one, also due on Monday and for the same professor (different class) about Spanish cinema in the Franco era.

That pretty much sums it up.  I'm sure I'll randomly remember things that I did and I'll update accordingly.

This weekend, I'm going to the Prado again for the same class on Friday.  I'm gonna stay on Friday night and go to Elena's house on Saturday for some paella with her familia!  Ok, I'm caught up.