My last full week in España!!

IF you would like to know more about my experiences and what I told Tandem while I was there about my experiences or are interested in attending Tandem school in Madrid. Here is a link to my experiences and the Tandem website.

 http://www.tandemmadrid.com/blogs/2015/09/testimonials/summer-spanish-business-seminar-testimonial-brianna-zury/ 


This was a week full of wonderful activites and a lot of things to do to keep my mind off of the fact that I am coming home on Wednesday! I finished classes this week, rocked a presentation about a business I made up, and visited Segovia. All to help me finish off a wonderful experience here in Madrid!

As part of the business program, we had the opportunity to visit the Cámara de comercio which is essentially the chamber of commerce here in Madrid. They are in charge of helping all business located in Madrid with anything you would think of; setting up a business, helped in exportation and importation, etc. We went with our professor to this amazing old palace where they have recently moved the chamber of commerce to. Although it was a short meeting, there wasn't anything too different that they do with their business compared to the USA. I did learn, however, that they don't do a lot of trading with the USA because of all the barriers that they have set up in the US for trading. 

Zury and I with our professor, Ana, in the Chamber of Commerce in Madrid. 

A picture of me after giving my presentation on Friday about my business. I created a business to help my little sis out so she could have a store to sell her handmade items! I did very well, but I'm glad that the classes portion is over with! 

The school also puts on a lot of activities for the students that are studying in the program! Here is a picture of my friends Tanja and Valerie at Karaoke on Thursday evening! In the school, there are now 80 American students studying Spanish because they are beginning their teach for Spain program where they will be teaching English in Spain. Let me tell ya, they were Americans getting crazy. One guy even thought it was funny to drop his pants up on stage.. My poor European friends didn't even know what to think.

Friday after classes, my friends and I went shopping to get the last few minutes gifts for family and friends and ourselves! Then we went to a cocktail museum on Gran Via. Despite it being slightly expensive, I had a very enjoyable time hanging out with my friends that night as well. I had an Ava Gardner which was white chocolate and orange flavored. We just sat their and talked the night away about anything and everything!

Saturday was a big day for me as well! I went to Segovia with the school and got to see the city and the famous Roman Aqueduct! It was such a beautiful site and I enjoyed being able to spend my last few days with my friends from Europe! One of my favorite professors took us on the trip too. Her name is Sonia and she is just very easy to listen to and talk to. She also knows quite a bit about the history of pretty much everything! Zury and I also had the opportunity to go to a Real Madrid game! I think I have become a fan. I'm not quite sure what else I have been doing in my life, but I should have been watching soccer more. We also got interviewed by a Youtube channel and then another reporter. I was not very helpful because I literally know nothing about the sport or the people playing in it. However, I enjoyed the experience and now will have to find this Youtube channel and hope they aren't making fun of me! ;) Real Madrid ended up winning their game 5-0! Although it wasn't very good competition, that was definitely something that I will remember forever as well since it is such a large part of the Spanish culture!

The famous Roman Aqueduct in Segovia with Zury, Sonia, Lisa, Tanja, Me, and then Lindsey!

Hala Madrid!!

Until next time! Only 3 days left in this lovely city!

Much love, 

Brianna

España: Paris Weekend!

This past weekend, Zury and I had to opportunity to visit Paris. Even with a two hour delay and having troubles trying to find our hotel once we got there, we still were able to have an enjoyable time!

We basically had one full day to tour everything and we bought a bus ticket of a tour company in Paris to help us out a little with getting around. I was able to see Notre Dame, the Eiffel Tower, and so much more of Paris that I have heard of! The  bus really helped us get a look of everything and learn about the history in such a short amount of time and I felt like it was worth my money. As an economics student, I was clearly thinking about this. In all honesty, I didn't know if my money that I spent on the trip was going to be worth the time that I was going to be there! I was glad, however, that it was definitely worth my time and gave me a glimpse of what Paris has to offer! I am definitely coming back in the near future with my love and my parents. I kept telling Zury how cool I thought it was that at around the same time that I was in Paris, my mom was there years before. 

On Sunday we realized that our airport was about 16 hours away from where our hotel was walking. Thankfully, with the help of my mom, we were able to figure out which metro to take to get to a shuttle bus that would take us to our airport. There was a mall near by so we went and checked that out. Everything in this mall was VERY expensive. There were brand names and designers such as Armani, Valentino, GAP, etc. Paris is definitely the fashion capital of the world. On Saturday, Zury and I even had the opportunity to walk down a very expensive and upper class part of Paris with a lot of stores like this as well. I looked for some famous Americans, but not much luck in encountering any. Next time I guess!

We were able to take a flight with RyanAir and EasyJet which are cheaper options of flying throughout Europe. I definitely recommend using them if you are traveling throughout Europe just be careful that you know how to pack smart. They threw away a lot of our stuff including my toothpaste and were very serious about a one or two bag policy. If your bag exceeded the size of fitting in a the cabin, you had to pay big money to put it under the plane. Smart business people though finding ways to bring people in and then getting them to pay money for other stuff!

I only have a week left and there are a lot of things planned this week within the program and homework wise. I'm excited that I have a lot of things planned this week because it will help me get my mind off of how excited I am to be able to see everyone back in the United States again. Although I have absolutely loved my time here in Spain and am very thankful for the opportunity that I have been given, I'm defintely excited to get back and begin my last year at Illinois College!!

Zury and I on the tour bus in Paris!

Anyone know what this is? Me either... ;)

Notre Dame

The Love Lock bridge. I have heard rumors that it is coming down because of its weight, but I am not sure yet. They were all still there! I didn't get to put one on there, but when I return, if it still exists, I definitely will!

Much love, 

Brianna

España: El Palacio Real, My First Few Business Classes, and Paella!

This week has really been a busy one and when I did have time to write a blog post, I really didn't have much to write about. 

On Monday, Zury and I were able to visit el Palacio Real for an evening. It was only five euros for us to enter and look around. We were trying to find our friend Tanja, but were not able to so we just went in and looked around. Internet and phone calls are a problem here. People don't always have internet and we cannot call someone who does not have a Spanish phone number. So we just hoped that Tanja was okay-- which she was! We were not allowed to take photos inside because of the artwork and other stuff, but let me just tell you, I found my future home. It's fit for a queen (sorry Nathan ;)). The current queen and king do not live here anymore, but they do use the palace for official things such as the declaration of the king Phillip 6 when his father gave up the thrown last year. 

On Tuesday I learned to play Mus.. Or should I say struggled to learn Mus. It was a frusturating and confusing game that made me want to pull my hair out and laugh all at the same time. I still might have a chance to play one more time just to figure it out, but that was a hard day and a hard time trying to learn it! On Tuesday we also began our new business classes with a different professor. It was a slight adjustment for me just because it was more of a one-on-one experience for me and just the language in general has been adjustment. However, I can say that I feel more adjusted to it and have successfully made it through my first week of business classes! Week 3 of classes are almost completed!

On Wednesday evening, my host mom taught Zury and me how to make Paella with chicken! It was absolutely delicious and now I have a recipe to make for my mom and dad, my potluck nights with my friends, and just for dinner in general! My host mom even said that she would give me several pre-made paella mixes as a gift. 

Then on Thursday evening, I made my way to la Reina Sofia. There is a famous painting in this museum that was painted by Picasso. I have actually heard of this painting before because of some Spanish classes, but I actually got to see the real thing in person! And of course, I cannot remember the name at this moment! That was a wonderful opportunity for me.. but of course, no photos. So if you want to see it, buy a ticket to Spain! ;) Zury and I also had to go around and talk to some workers of two Spanish Stores, el Corte Ingles and Zara. We had some questions that we had to ask someone for our business class and then we have a summary due on Monday about our experiences and what we learned. Let me just say, I thought about buying some clothes from Zara, but after the way that they treated Zury and me, I have decided not to. They were very rude and it took us about 30 minutes to find someone that actually wanted to talk to us and didn't roll their eyes at us. 

This weekend Zury and I are heading to Paris. Although I am nervous about traveling and perhaps not as excited as I know Zury is, I know it will be a really fun time with lots to do and see! We will return late Sunday evening around 11:30 or so and then start our last week of business classes on Monday! 

Espana: Escorial and More

On Friday evening, we had a scavenger hunt in el Parque del Retiro and that was so much fun! We had to ask people around us questions about the city, where things were, and then we had to take selfies. It was a great way to see things and still have a little fun at the same time. My team got third place, but hey, we all clearly enjoyed ourselves!

Zury, Tanja, and me!


On Saturday morning/ afternoon we were given the opportunity to go see a small city near by called Escorial. This city was built by King Phillip II for proper burial sites of Kings, Queens, and other royal family members and additionally to have another get away from Madrid. The main part of the entire city is the monastery which is where the royal family members are buried now in a chamber under the church. In addition to this burial site and the church, there are rooms for the king, the queen, and his children to stay when they came and visited that were right next to the church. This way they could hear music and sermons all without having to get out of bed. There is also a monastery attached to this which is still in use today along with the church. This would have been an absolutely beautiful place to live despite the rooms just have the basic needs (not something that a normal king would be like, but since he wanted to be known for being attached to the church, he did not look for many luxuries in his living arrangements). The gardens were my absolute favorite next to seeing the burial chambers for past kings and queens of Spain. From the gardens, you could see a lot of the beautiful landscape and mountains that Spain has to offer. It was an absolutely lovely day filled with new memories and friends in Escorial!

The monestary

 Outside the Monestary

 The beautiful view from the gardens!

Later on Saturday evening, we went to Kapital, a dance club in Madrid. I had a lot of fun just dancing and hanging out with my new friends from the program!

Then despite not getting back to my apartment till about 5 am, we all headed out around 11 am and went the el Rastro for some shopping. Lots of people and a lot of things to look at there!

Much love,

Brianna

España: writers, and painters, and fiestas oh my!

Channeling my inner Wizard of Oz today with my blog title. :)

These past few days have been full of new things including new things in class. As I stated last time, it was a pretty frustrating week with classes just because it was new stuff for me (for the most part) and everyone else with the exception of one other girl speak a language that allowed them to understand the grammatical things we were working on. However, despite these frustrations, I have finished my second week of grammar classes! I will only have one more class like these on Monday and then on Tuesday, Zury and I begin our business study classes with a different professor. What we have been told is that we are going to have normal class sessions from 9:30-11 and 11:30-1 like we have been and then afterwards the professor will take us around to other businesses in Spain. We will still be able to go on the planned activities that the program has, but we won't have classes with everyone else like we have been. 

On Wednesday night, the school had an activity called Paseo por Madrid. With this activity, we walked around with a professor and saw where many authors lived many many years ago and learned why they lived where they lived. Addditionally, we saw the house of Sorolla, a famous painter in Spain and all around the world and saw many of his artworks. Our  professor said that many of the writers moved to Madrid because this is where the capital of Spain ended up being. Madrid was where the money was for artists once Madrid became the capital. However, for Sorolla, he actually didn't do so bad for himself. While many artists died very poor, he did not. He travelled a lot to get the best image of the beach, certain cultures and areas in Spain, and the gardens. I  even got to see a painting of his that he never completed and much thanks goes to his wife for allowing their house to get preserved whenever he died so people could tour it! I got to see it in basically the same way it was once he past away. 

Group Photo After the Paseo de Madrid

The house of Sorolla and many of his works

On Thursday evening, some of my friends from the program and I went out to the Fiesta de la Paloma in La Latina. There was wonderful music, performers, a ton of food and classic drinks that you would believe Spain to have. I had my first sangria here in Spain last night and it was delicious. My friends and I jsut danced and people watched mostly. We might go back on Saturday evening after we go and see Escorial-- a city very close to Madrid. 

The Fiest streets- there were a lot of people there for a Thursday night ( or at least that's what I thought- These Spaniards like to party)

It's going by quickly, but I am okay with that. I am taking in every moment and enjoying it to my fullest ability just because I know in about two short weeks, I will be back home giving a huge hug to everyone that I have wished was with me here and sharing my wonderful experiences with them. What a wonderful thing to look forward to in addition to the next two weeks!

Much love, 

Brianna

España: Some frustrations

I still have classes this week for language which is great because this is exactly what I want to work on. Although I have pretty much the same class this week there are two new girls in my class. Although I can understand pretty much everything that people are saying to me, I still have a hard time replying back. I think it's more nerves then anything just because I know they know the language so well and will correct me in front of others. This morning I felt a touch of home sickness and frustration when I realized that I was getting frustrated with another girl in the class and what we were working on in the class. For anyone who knows me well, I get angry when others don't allow other people to speak especially in the classroom setting. I was frustrated because this girl has been answering all the questions in class and others haven't been given the chance to talk and practice the answer speaking. Then what we were working on just does not exist in the English language so I felt behind others in the class because it does work in their language.

 However frustrating it is, I'm working really hard to just try and practice speaking. I was able to have dinner with my host family last night and practice speaking with them which was really nice. They haven't really been eating dinner with me so I haven't been able to talk to either of them much and eat dinner with them. So I'm glad that i was able to do that and practice more. My ultimate goal out of this is to become much better at speaking and understanding the language. I also bought a book in Spanish for me to read the last few weeks that I am here just so I am even more immersed in the language! I know that I'm catching on some since I woke up and realized that I was speaking Spanish in my dream last night. 

Last night I also went out with a few of my friends from the program for happy hour and got a Tinto de Verano which is wine and soda. It was delicious! I did learn, however, from my host mom, that every tourist loves that drink.. Oops! 

Much love, 

Brianna

Espana: Barcelona time!

Zury and I had the wonderful opportunity to be able to visit Barcelona this past weekend. Although it was humid, it was an absolutely beautiful city with a lot of things to see and do. We got there by Renfe Ave which is the high speed train here in Spain. We could see all the beautiful countryside in between Madrid and Barcelona. We sat next to a little girl and her mom and the little girl just absolutely adored Zury mostly because Zury gave her water, but either way it was a fun trip talking with the little girl.

Zury and I have sort of been noticing some cultural differences that I would like to touch on too. For example, this little girl was probably about two years old and in the middle of the train her mother just began to breast feed her with no cover. This is not something that you see frequently in the United States as most women are pressured to cover up or feel the need to cover up. No one in the train made any fuss about this and it was only Zury and I who even looked somewhat shocked by it. And then additionally in the train, there was a couple that just began to make out with each other to the point that if they had been in a private room, I think more would have happened. This is something that I rarely see in the United States as well and if it did happen many people would make the comment "get a room!". I saw this many times in Barcelona and have seen it several times in Madrid as well. I think it is kind of nice to see this. I feel like people in the United States are so focused on themselves that they don't think about showing off their significant others, their parents, their friends, their siblings, etc. Everyone is so very affectionate to the people they love here and they take the time to show it to them too. Even at lunch or supper time, I rarely see people here on their phones unless they are taking photos. They are just taking the time to enjoy life rather than always be on a hurry and to show their real appreciation to their loved ones and to the life that they were given. This is something that I plan to carry with me back to the United States. I want to be in the moment with my friends, family, and loved ones and help them to know that I truly appreciate their existence.

The first night Zury and I got to Barcelona, we go lost. What's new though? We ended up walking about 27,000 steps that day because we couldn't find the hostel and then we couldn't find our way back to the hostel once we got away from it. The hostel was lovely and very clean and if you are ever in Barcelona, I highly recommend Equity Point Centric. We had a girl in our room from Colombia and then a few other girls were in their as well except we didn't talk to them much because they slept all day and stayed up all night. The second day we made our way by the Sagrada Familia and then went to the ocean. We went on a speed boat and got to see the beaches and the coast of Spain. That was probably one of the best decisions that we made because it was a lot of fun and was very cool. Then we made our way to the beach. Unfortunately, it was raining so everyone was leaving the beach, but it was still nice to step foot in the water there for a quick minute. We ended up heading to the beach the next day after we went to a famous shopping center in Barcelona, La Rambla. Although the shopping center was great, it was a very touristy part of Barcelona, so it wasn't my favorite place to be, but I did get a few things. The beach was lovely the next day and was very warm, just right for beach goers. One cultural shock that Zury and I experienced were women without swim tops. I know that it happens, but we were still both pretty shocked to just see it. This is not something that I would personally enjoy doing, but hey, at least they have confidence in their bodies to do that. That's something that I can appreciate.

We made our way back Sunday evening and got back to the dry heat of Madrid. Then off to classes the next day bright and early again!

Much love,

Brianna

Palau Nacional- Majestic Fountains (although they were not on)

Espana: Day 9

Today I had classes again! It's crazy to think that I am already almost completed with my first week of classes here in Madrid. The professors there are very kind and I feel like I am learning a lot or at least getting reminded what all I have previously been taught. 

During the evening I went to a movie outdoors with some other people in the program. I believe that there was  about a group of 10 or so that went with one of the professors at the program. It was a Tim Burton movie and I don't remember the title of it, but it was really good. I tried not to notice that the film was originally in English and someone just put Spanish words over it, but I could still tell. Depsite that it was still really good and enjoyable!! I am making friends from all over Europe here! Many from Germany, some from Austria! It's very nice to be able to meet so many people. 

This weekend Zury and I are heading to Barcelona! We leave today so positive thought and prayers that we get there safe and know what is going on! We bought our tickets nad have a hostel, let's just hope we get their fine! I willl try and post a blog while I'm there, but if I don't, I will get one up by Sunday with some photos of the beautiful Barcelona! One more day of classes and then it's the weekend!

España: Day 8

Does anyone else understand how incredibly difficult it is to find and buy plane tickets, hostels, and train tickets? Today was probably one of the most stressful days I have had since I have arrived and it was all because we were trying to buy tickets so we could go visit other places while we are here! After what felt like forever, but was really maybe only 4 hours, we found hostels that we liked and train and plane tickets that we liked and that were cheap for us. So this weekend we are headed to Barcelona and then in a few weeks we will be on our way to Paris for a quick weekend trip! 

I had classes again today and then Zury and I went to Steak n Shake to eat. Trust me, it's very different. For example, there is alcohol on the menu and the place is very modern. Which is much different than in the US. Also, the fries are different and the burgers are not quite the same. Regardless, it was still delicious for lunch. After that I went to a program at the school where we listened and watched the news. Although they spoke very fast for me, I was able to catch words here and there in the news. I am now able to keep full conversations with people in Spanish and that makes me very happy. I am beginning to understand what they are saying despite how fast they talk here. 

Much  love, 

Brianna

España: Day 7

I had my second day of classes today and I very much enjoyed them! I am beginning to understand what others are saying and feel much better being in a class of people who are learning Spanish too. They understand my struggles!! I also went to the Museo del Prado which come to find out Zury and I have actually walked up on it before. It was beautiful and I got to see paintings from the 17th and 18th centuries by Velazquez and Goya. Some of these paintings I recognize from classes in the past in high school and college, so it was great to be able to see them in person. As most museums of art go, I was unable to take a photo to prove I was actually there... But trust me, I saw the painting and they are a must to go to if anyone visits Madrid in my opinion. I think that next week we are going to another art museum that is much smaller, but I am not sure of the name so I'll keep you posted!

Everything is incredible here and I love it, but I do miss my parents, my sister, my boyfriend, my friends, my cats and dogs, ect. I have had my moments where I cry and am anxious to get through the day to get back home to all of them, but I know that this will be something that I never forget. One thing I'd like to talk about is my interesting home situation. My host parents are very nice and they let me have my privacy and cook me dinner. I do wish though that they would come get me and talk to me more rather than me feeling like I'm invading their space. They would be great tour guides but have never given me the option to go with them anywhere. With the exception of the first two days I have ate dinner by myself. I even had to eat dinner in my room last night because they had friends over and I couldn't eat with them. I was a bit shocked because I thought that that would have been a great learning experience for me both culturally and with the language. Although I am not sure how many other people this has happened to, I asked Zury what her host mom thought about it and she said that this is not a cultural norm. I am not letting this get to me though because I still have a bed to sleep and they give me food (which I never turn down because it's delicious). I just think for a well rounded trip, i would have loved to have a family that just was more interested in me as a person rather than just a person that pays them to stay in their house for a month. 

Such is life! On to the next adventure and the next day!

Much love, 

Brianna

España: day 5&6

I haven't reallly had much to post about Sunday and I was going to post yesterady and completely forgot, so now I'm just probably going to post two times today! 

On Sunday, Zury and I woke up around noon because we got back around 5 in the morning from the dance club. The dance club was a lot of fun, but it was incredibly hot in there and it was expensive. They said it was 30 euros but it really was like 50. On Sunday we were going to go to Rastro which is a bunch of small shops, but by the time we had woken up and were ready to go it was going to be closed so we ended up just going back to our houses and going swimming that day. Which was a nice way to finish off our first week in Spain. 

On Monday, we had our first day of classes. I really enjoyed mine because I was able to understand them and know what they were talking about. There was some grammatical stuff that they were teaching that I have known since I was in high school, but it was a good reminder. Then we talked about movies and one of the movies, "Mar Adentro", I knew because of my Spanish through Film class and was able to read the summary outloud to the class. Thanks Dr. Gardner! I met a few new friends in this class. Some were for Italy, some from the United States, some from Germany, etc. There were a variety of different ages there too. Some were much older than me, but others were at least 4 years younger than me! After class, Zury and I and our new friend, Lisa from Austria, went out to lunch and I got spaghetti which was really good! Afterwards, Zury and I started walking home and ended up getting slightly lost (what's new!). However, this walk was actually quite nice because we ended up walking up onto El Palacio Real. We did not go inside but took several pictures outside the building which is beautiful and huge. We joked that we would get lost living in the building. Depending on if it costs, I might be interested in going back and seeing what my future house looks like. ;)

Until Next Time!

Much love, 

Brianna

El Palacio Real

Espana: Day 4

Today Zury and I decided to find our way to the Retiro which is a famous park in Madrid. We hopped on the Metro near our homes and made our way to the plaza del sol. Little did we know that we would miss the plaza del sol and end up walking all the way to the park. We even arrived at the park and didn't even realize that that was the park! We took a lot of photos today in the park and on our way there. At one point we even ran across a roundabout that was busy just so we could get some good pictures! We laughed A LOT about this. So much in fact that I was snorting, which my family and friends know is very normal for me.

We spent most of our day in the park and then we made our way back to the Plaza del Sol. We were able to figure out the metro enough today that we took it from the park back to the plaza. Here, we went shopping and then got some frozen yogurt. Everything is on sale this time of year. I know when I see the word "rebajas" it's a good thing! I bought a few things for myself and a few regalos (gifts) for some family and friends.

Tonight we are going to try and go to a club that a friend of ours who studied abroad here liked! We just want to experience some night life that they have in Spain! I'm excited, but also nervous as even in the United States I am not much of a night life kind of girl. Maybe I'll like it and have a change! We shall see! :)

Much love,

Brianna

In el Parque Retiro