La mia famiglia

As happy as I am to be abroad, there are definitely aspects from home I miss, most importantly my family. I just wanted to take the time to thank my mom, dad and stepmom for all visiting me! I'm bummed my brother won't get to visit me in Italy, but I understand. Now that everyone is back in America, I realize how much I miss everyone and how much I cherished our time together. The time spent catching up went by in the blink of an eye. I was so happy to show the people most important to me my friends, my school, where I live and what I've learned. My life is inevitably changing and I'm happy that they can be part of it because they are my biggest supports! Thank you and I love you!

Spain//Part 3

New bowler!

On our last day in Madrid Mom and I went to El Rastro, a flea market (recommended by Kate!) in the center of Madrid. We got there early because we were told it gets packed. It didn't seem like there were that many stalls at first, but it's located on a bunch of streets, side-streets and piazzas. They sell everything, everything. From doorknobs, to underwear to plants, they've got it all. I've been looking for a hat for a while and finally found the perfect one! My mom bought me the black bowler that is pictured above. It's perfect for traveling! You'll be seeing alot more of it I'm sure. Around 11:30  the market looked like a rock concert, so we decided to get out of there.

We went to Reina Sofia, another art museum for a couple hours. Once again we got in for free, which makes three museums in a row! Not exactly sure why...It is solely dedicated to modern art, which was nice. We saw alot of Dali and Picasso, including the terrifying and awe-inspiring Guernica. It was enormous! On the wall behind it were pictures that were taken while Picasso was painting it which showed the process and changes. 

After the museum we went to a restaurant that specialized in sub sandwiches filled with fried calamari and nothing else. We each got one and a beer. They had us pay right when we got our food, which meant we could leave at any time. Timing worked out so well, we couldn't have planned it better. We got back into Florence around 10:30 last night and I was so exhausted! I couldn't have asked for a nicer weekend, especially weather-wise. I'll always have fond memories of it, thanks Mom!

Spain//Part 2

Suckling Pig 

Live music at dinner

Puerta del Sol, PACKED

Last night at 11:15 PM we went to dinner at the oldest restaurant in the world, according to the Guinness book of world records, El Botin. It was recommended to me by a friend studying abroad in Madrid (thanks Kate!). I got suckling pig, even though I swore a couple years ago I wouldn't eat it again. I had a moral dilemma at the table and of course the side telling me to "just get it" won. The way I figured, if I'm eating the most recommended dish in the oldest restaurant in the world, they're doing something right and it's going to be damn good. Assumption correct.

Day two in Madrid was just as beautiful as the first day! This morning Mom and I went to the Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza, which is conveniently across the street! When we went to buy tickets we learned that admission was free for people born in 1992 (what a coincidence!) since it was the anniversary of their opening. Instead of buying the full size museum guide like yesterday, we just got the pocket-sized one! I couldn't believe how many artists were in the Museum. It seems like they had a little bit of everything - Van Gogh, Braque, Picasso, Monet, Cezanne, Degas, Matisse, O'Keeffe, Pollock, Van Eyck (my favorite), Caravaggio (another favorite), Giacometti and so many more. We got audio guides which was so helpful, especially since I don't know too much about Modern art. So...funny story, there were signs everywhere for the Gauguin exhibit and I was so excited since I had learned about him in my Modern art class last semester. We had planned to go around the entire museum, have lunch and then see the Gauguin exhibit. Well we went through the museum, which took a couple hours, then had lunch in the cafe. I got a salad with tuna (real tuna!) and Mom got watermelon gazpacho. When we went to the Gauguin exhibit the guard told us it didn't open until the ninth of October....so as excited as I had been, I never bothered to look at the dates. Despite missing that, I couldn't have been happier in the Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza looking at all the amazing works!

Afterward we took a double-deckered bus tour around Madrid. We knew we weren't going to be able to see everything we wanted to in two days, but the bus trip helped alot! We got off the bus at the Royal Palace and walked around for a while. It was so much fun seeing the city from the top of an open-air bus. We were provided with headsets that gave us information about the sights we were passing too! When we got back I went to the Prado to do some sketching. Fun fact - the Prado is free from 6-8 PM, so I got into two museums for free today! I sketched Sebastiano del Piombo's Pietà di Ubeda and Agnus Dei by Francisco de Zubaran. Afterwards I bought myself a keychain of Head of a Stag by Velazquez. 

For dinner tonight we went to dinner and a flamenco show at Corral de la Moreria! For dinner I got a warm salad with goat cheese, salmon with asparagus and potatoes and lemon sorbet. Flamenco was alot of what I thought it would be (skirt twirling and bandito-style, fast guitar playing) and a lot of things I didn't expect - how FAST the dancers feet moved, the intricate footwork, the incredible poise of the dancers! It was an incredible experience and I’m so happy I got to go to one! After we got home I took a bath and packed up my stuff for tomorrow. This trip has gone by in a second and I’m sorry it’s almost over. Going to make the most of the half-day we have tomorrow though!