The First Two Days

DAY 1: My first day in Madrid was nothing short of exhausting. After being awake for well over 24 hours before even making it to my apartment, sitting around and waiting for hours at a time is much more taxing than one would think. Three planes and two bus rides later, though, my 7 roommates and I made it to our apartment, which is right off of the Opera metro stop, and a short walk from places like the Opera House, Plaza del Sol, Plaza Mayor, and the Royal Palace, which happens to be my back yard. Our apartment is big - much bigger than what I had imagined - which is good because I was constantly worried about how 8 girls were going to fit in an apartment in the middle of the city. We have a nice living room, decently spaced kitchen, and two full bathrooms.

Although this is the longest I've ever gone in my life without sleep, I was determined to beat jet lag and refrained from napping or falling asleep for good. We decided to go out and explore our neighborhood and surrounding area, and after over an hour of walking, getting lost, and not being able to find a store with shampoo that was under 8 euro, we finally managed to find a tiny supermarket and a restaurant to eat at...eating food was also something that hadn't happened in hours as well. The language barrier was difficult to deal with, especially in restaurants even though most waiters speak English. Spaniards speak SO quickly at first it's hard to believe they're even saying anything recognizable at all. That plus jet lag makes for frustration and immediate homesickness, it's all very overwhelming, especially for someone who is a huge homebody.

DAY 2: After what felt like the best night's sleep of my life, I had to pry myself out of bed for a few hours of orientation. My school is about 8 metro stops away, and the Metro is life changing. Although line 6, or the silver line, is about 5 escalator rides deep into the earth, the trains and stations themselves are unbelievably clean, fast, and organized. Basically the exact opposite of the T in Boston. It's going to be hard to switch back to the elusive T once I come home...it's almost cruel how nice the Metro is. Afterwards, two of my friends from Boston came back to my apartment to explore the area again, this time in a better mindset than yesterday after getting some sleep. Everywhere you turn here, there is a street or a building that you can't help but stare at. The architecture of every building here is so unique and beautiful, something you don't get to see very often in the US. The Royal Palace, which is the largest in Europe, is so wonderful in the literal sense of the word. It's more an experience than anything else. The three of us sat down at an outdoor restaurant type place, and I had my first legal beer. We sat and chatted and admired all of the beauty that is everything around us, and decided that while pictures are nice, even the best picture really can't capture what it's like seeing these places in person. We also spent half the time arguing over who would ask our waiter if they had wifi or not. It's hard to go from having data and being addicted to your phone and social media to only having it a few hours a day. Turns out he also spoke English and most likely heard Karina yelling at as to ask him so we would practice our Spanish. So there's that.

Later on in the evening, after an interesting meeting with our landlords who are an adorable older couple who speak barely any English at all, I met Delaney and she brought me to a famous Chocolateria where I had first churros con chocolate ever and the world will never be the same. Those things are dangerously delicious. She also showed me Plaza Mayor, another one of her favorite little plazas, and La Latina. La Latina is the oldest or one of the oldest (I'm not sure which) neighborhoods in Madrid, and it's also home to the world's oldest restaurant. I don't know how they know that for sure, but it's in the Guinness Book of World Records, so if that counts for anything. We also walked around a very pretty, very popular market place. It was nice having someone there from home who is also familiar with Madrid. She's full of helpful tips and is my insight to spanish slang, thanks to the little kiddies that she teaches. Once I got home I found out that I couldn't fit under the shower head in our shower, so I decided to sleep before things got any worse.