The Blue Lagoon

Thanks to Icelandair (seriously, no sarcasm), I had a long layover in Reykjavík on my way home, which allowed me time to get to the Blue Lagoon.  It's actually just a quick bus ride from the airport, and you can get tickets online ahead of time.  (You actually should do this, as spaces to visit fill up well in advance.)  I planned this little day trip well before I left Madrid, and it was the perfect way to relax and pass the time on a long journey home.  

The geothermal pools in the Blue Lagoon are actually man-made, which is a common misconception, and are filled with runoff from the nearby geothermal plant.  The silica in the water is what gives it a chalky color, and then the reflection from the sky makes it appear blue.  

The entire pool is surrounded by lava rock, which just blows my mind.  (Hey, I'm a small-town girl, okay.)  You can see the white from the silica that have stained them over time.  There are swim-up bars where you can get silica masks, and you will see that most bathers do this.  You just rinse them off with the water after 5-10 minutes, and they make your face feel super smooth.  

I did not get my hair wet while in the pool, because I had several hours of traveling to do, but you should apply the hair conditioner that is in the restroom if you want to do that.  Otherwise, the silica can damage your hair.  There is no need to bring a bathing suit or towel if you don't want to, as you can rent them there.  There is a cafe, restaurant, spa, steam room, and all the space to bathe for hours if you like.  Venture throughout the pools to find the warmest spots and relax!

The Blue Lagoon is a must-see stop if you're ever in Reykjavík, even for just a layover.  There were all kinds of people there, from families with young kids, to older couples, ones on their honeymoon, and even a bachelor party.  What is most authentic about it to me is that Icelanders regularly go there as well, together or alone, to relax.  It's well worth the money if you ask me.

Mil gracias al NSE

I cannot say thank you enough to the National Spanish Exam for awarding me this scholarship.  I was concerned with already having studied here previously that they might grant it to someone who had never had this experience before.  Although it would have been great for that person (because everyone should have the chance to spend time in Madrid), this opportunity truly was not wasted on me.  My heart is here. 

This language. 
This culture. 
This food. 
These people. 

Spanish is my passion, and I am so fortunate that I get to teach it to young people every day.  I'm even more blessed that I get to show them the world through travel.  We just started planning our next trip to Spain for 2019, and it looks like it's going to be our biggest group yet!  (Yes, I'm writing this blog post in November... I'm the worst.) 

I am so thankful to have had this opportunity, to learn at one of the best universities in all of Europe, and to have met some really wonderful people.  We laughed.  We studied (a lot).  We danced.  We walked all over.  We relaxed with vino tinto.  And we learned.  This will be a summer I'll never forget.  Thank you.

Una despedida a Madrid

Los jardines del Palacio Real

The gardens of the Royal Palace

Ya termina nuestro tiempo aquí en Madrid.  Aunque ya haya pasado mucho tiempo en esta ciudad por los años, nunca quiero regresar a casa.  España es mi "lugar de alegría."  Madrid, con todo su esplendor, encanto y carisma, siempre ha sido un espacio tranquilo para mí.  Desde que vine a España por primera vez en 2004, sabía que parte de mi alma se quedaba allí.  Kim y yo pasamos por algunos de nuestros lugares favoritos (en todo el calor de julio en Madrid) para una tarde perfecta.  Aquí están unas fotos.

La Plaza del Oriente

La estatua de Don Quijote y Sancho Panza en la Plaza de España

La corrida de toros - Las Ventas

El Templo de Debod por la noche

El Templo de Debod es un templo egipcio del siglo II que está cerca de la Plaza de España.  El templo fue un regalo (en los 1970) a España del gobierno de Egipto.  Fue el lugar perfecto para pasar nuestra última noche al anochecer, disfrutando de la gente y la atmósfera en Madrid una vez más.

Celebrando nuestra última noche en Madrid

Después volvimos para hablar y rememorar nuestro verano aquí en España en el patio de la residencia... pero las maletas nos esperan...

Our time here in Madrid is coming to an end.  Even though I have spent a lot of time in this city over the years, I never want to go home.  Spain is my happy place.  Madrid with all of its splendor, charm, and charisma, has always been a calm place for me.  Ever since I came to Spain for the first time in 2004, I knew that part of my soul would always stay there.  Kim and I went to visit some of our favorite sites in the city (in all of the Madrid July heat) for one last perfect afternoon.  Here are some of our pictures.

The Templo de Debod is an Egyptian temple from the 2nd century that is near Plaza de España.  The temple was a gift (in the 1970s) to Spain from the Egyptian government.  It was the perfect place to spent our last night at sunset, enjoying the people and the atmosphere of Madrid one more time.

Afterwards we returned to talk and reminisce about our summer here in Spain in the patio of our residence hall... but our suitcases await...

Nuestra graduación de la UCM

La Facultad de Filología

Universidad Complutense de Madrid

Nos graduamos del Curso Superior para Extranjeros por la mañana del 28 de julio 2017 en el Centro Complutense para la Enseñanza del Español de la Universidad Complutense de Madrid.  Fue una ceremonia corta pero linda.  Para mí, fue un momento especial en que redondeábamos un verano increíble en Madrid.  Abajo están mis clases y notas... ¡todas sobresalientes! 💁🏼🤓

Variedades del español. El español de América - 10

Nuevos enfoques para le enseñanza de la sintaxis en EL2 - 10

La atención a la forma en la Competencia Gramatical en ELE - 10

La literatura como auxiliar en la enseñanza de ELE - 9

La enseñanza del español: la pronunciación y la ortografía - 9

Palabras y diccionarios del español - 10

La enseñanza de ELE: la comprensión y expresión oral - 10

Análisis de textos y significación - 9

Jeanette, Claudia, Jane, Kimberly y yo

Las recipientes de la beca de NSE con Celestino Ruiz, director del programa MLSA

We graduated from the Superior Course for Foreigners on the morning of July 28, 2017 at the Complutense Center for the teaching of Spanish at the Complutense University of Madrid.  It was a short but nice ceremony.  For me, it was a nice way to wrap up an incredible summer in Madrid.  Below are all of my classes and grades... all with distinction!  🤓💁🏼

Varieties in Spanish.  Spanish of America - 10

New Perspectives for the Teaching of Syntax in EL2 - 10

Attention to Form in Grammatical Competency in ELE - 10 

Literature as a Resource in Teaching of ELE - 9

The Teaching of Spanish: Pronunciation and Orthography - 9

Words and Dictionaries of Spanish - 10

The Teaching of ELE: Oral Comprehension and Expression - 10

Analysis of Texts and Meaning - 9

La paella

Taberna el Arco

Por todo el verano, hemos hablado de encontrar la mejor paella en Madrid... y os digo, ¡la encontramos!  Taberna el Arco fue increíble, aún la fachada parece que es pequeña y nada especial.  Sí es pequeño, pero no es nada normal.  Su paella mixta (de mariscos y pollo) es riquísima.  También compartimos una ensalada mixta y goxua (un postre cuyo nombre significa "dulce" en vasco). 🤤

Un almuerzo fantástico a la Taberna el Arco 

La mejor parte de todo es la cultura de un almuerzo sin prisa.  No hay que comer rápidamente y salir casi sin disfrutar de la comida ni la compañía.  Pudimos quedarnos allí por mucho tiempo, charlando, aprendiendo sin preocupaciones.  ¡Es genial!

All summer we've been talking about finding the best paella in Madrid... you guys, we found it!  Taberna el Arco was incredible, even if the facade makes it seem small and ordinary.  It is small, but there is nothing normal about it!  Their paella mixta (with seafood and chicken) is absolutely delicious!  We also shared a salad and goxua (a dessert whose name means "sweet" in Basque). 🤤

The best part of the culture here is meals without being in a rush.  There is no need to eat quickly or leave without enjoying the food or company.  They're not trying to turn your table over to increase tips.  We could set there all afternoon, chatting, learning, without any worries.  It's wonderful!

Un día de aventuras

Kim y yo en el metro

¿Cómo puede ser que ya estamos en el último fin de semana de nuestro tiempo aquí en Madrid?  Ayer, Kim y yo empezamos el día con TODOS LOS ZAPATOS en la Casa Hernanz.  Hoy, fuimos a ver partes de la ciudad que nunca habíamos visitado antes.

Para mí, una chica que crecí en un pueblo pequeño, Madrid siempre ha sido una ciudad con lugares interminables para descubrir.  Me encanta el metro y transportación pública.  Aún en Indianápolis, una ciudad de casi un millón de personas, sólo tenemos buses, y no es un sistema bueno.  El transporte en Madrid es uno de los mejores en toda Europa.  Es tan fácil aprender y utilizar.  Siempre me siento segura.  Por eso, cuando aprendí de un museo en el metro, me decidí visitarlo esta vez en Madrid.

La estación de Chamberí (Anden 0) fue una estación del metro, en la línea 1 entre Bilbao y Iglesia, desde 1919.  En 1966, cuando se extendieron los trenes y muchos de los andenes, Chamberí no podía continuar ser parte del metro por razones logísticas.  Se quedó cerrado por décadas hasta que se lo abrieron al público como museo y transportación al pasado en 2008.

Me encantan las obras de azulejo.

I love the tile work!

Sólo habían siete estaciones en la línea 1.

There used to be only seven stops on line 1.

Los anuncios originales de azulejo.  Otros tenían los números de teléfono de solo cuatro números.

The original advertisements in tile.  Some even included the original four-digit phone numbers.

Después de nuestra mañana en el museo, fuimos de compras (las rebajas son geniales en julio) y a explorar la Puerta del Sol.  

La librería San Ginés 🤓

The San Ginés bookstore - the cutest thing I've ever seen

Anuncios para las rebajas en El Corte Inglés cerca de la Puerta del Sol.

Advertisements for the sales going on at El Corte Inglés (the biggest 

department store I've ever seen) near the Puerta del Sol (center of Madrid)

La estatua del Oso y el Madroño, el símbolo de Madrid.

The statue of the Bear and the "fruit-bearing shrub" (it doesn't really translate to English), the symbol of Madrid.

Kilómetro 0 - el origen de las carreteras radiales en España.

Kilometer 0 - the origin for the highways that run through Spain.

Las Ventas - la plaza de toros de Madrid

Las ventas - the bull ring in Madrid

No importa cuántas veces que visito a Madrid, nunca me agotaría de explorar esta ciudad encantadora. ❤️💛❤️

How can it be that we are already in the last weekend of our time here in Madrid??  Yesterday, Kim and I began our day with ALL THE SHOES at Casa Hernanz.  Today, we went to see parts of the city that we had never visited before.

For me, a girl that grew up in a very small town, Madrid has always been a city with endless places to discover.  I love the metro and public transportation.  Is that weird?  Even in Indianapolis, a city of nearly a million people, we only have buses, and it's not a very good system.  The transportaion in Madrid is one of the best in all of Europe.  It is so easy to learn and use, even for us small town girls.  I always feel safe, which is very important to me.  For that reason, when I learned that there was a metro museum, I decided I had to visit it this time in Madrid.  

The Chamberí station (Platform 0) was a station in the metro, in line 1 between Bilbao and Iglesia, since 1919.  In 1966, when they extended the trains and many of the platforms, Chamberí could not continue to be part of the metro system for logistical reasons.  It remained closed for decades until they opened it back up to the public as a museum and a trip back into the past in 2008.

After our morning in the museum, we went shopping (the sales are amazing in July) and to explore La Puerta del Sol.  This is the center of Madrid, and it looks like the rays of the sun from above, due to the origin of the main roads that go throughout the country.

It doesn't matter how many times I visit Madrid, I will never get tired of exploring this charming city. ❤️💛❤️

La Plaza Mayor

La Plaza Mayor de Madrid... uno de los sitios más viejos y más encantadores de toda la ciudad.  Cuando Felipe II se trasladó la corte a Madrid, La Plaza Mayor empezó su cambio de un mercado a lo que es hoy en día.  Por los siguientes años, fue el marco de muchas coronaciones, corridas de toros y autos de fe durante la Inquisición.  La Casa de la Panadería es muy bonita con pinturas frescas.  Hay una estatua de Felipe III al centro.

La Plaza Mayor tiene muchísimas tiendas y restaurantes en sus alrededores.  Una de las más famosas es la Casa Hernanz, una alpargatería y cordelería.  Es una tienda familiar que está en su cuarta generación desde que se abrieron las puertas en 1840.  Siempre hay una fila para entrar.  Fuimos allí, y compré tres pares de zapatos 🙈

También fuimos de compras para unos recuerdos y a comer en un café en la plaza.  Fue un día bonito con muy buen tiempo y ningún estrés.  Fue para disfrutar de esta ciudad maravillosa.

The Plaza Mayor of Madrid - one of the oldest and most charming sites of all the city.  When Felipe II moved the court to Madrid, the plaza began its change from a market to what it is today.  It has suffered several damaging fires through the years, but several elements still remain.  Over the years it was the setting of many coronations, bull fights, and many religious acts (including burning of heretics) during the Spanish Inquisition.  La Casa de la Panadería (behind me in the picture) is very beautiful with all of its frescoes, and there is a statue of Felipe III in the center of the plaza.

The Plaza Mayor has tons of stores and restaurants that surround it.  One of the most famous ones is Casa Hernanz, a sandal and rope shop.  It is a family store currently in its fourth generation since opening its doors in 1840.  There is always a long line to get in.  We decided to visit, and I may have bought three pairs of shoes... 🙈

We also went shopping for souvenirs and to eat at a café in the plaza.  It was a really nice day with beautiful weather and zero stress.  It was just spent enjoying life in this wonderful city.