uhhhhh

For all my faithful followers... sorry I haven't written about anything in forever! Class has kept me busy busy busyyyy! Almost done though... only a week more to go! I'll actually write something more interesting within the next few days but I just wanted to say... for all my people hanging out in the freezing cold of Chicago... it was over 50 here yesterday and today I'm goin to the PARK! ;) Be jealous.

1/4

I am officially done with 1/4 of my certification class...not that 1/4 is really significant at all. To update those who I haven't talked to or emailed, it's all going well so far! My class has about 15 students in it, and everyone seems pretty cool. There are several from the States, and several from the UK as well. There are also a few students that aren't from an English-speaking country but learned it living elsewhere. The class is intense and fast-paced but we get certified in 4 weeks so what else could be expected? Yesterday was our first "practice class"...practice in the sense that it's part of the certification class... we still have "real" students who are learning English. They participate because they receive the classes for free. I taught a beginner class on "A Day at the Park" yesterday and today I had intermediate and taught "Leisure Activities". The students who attend these classes are all very nice and eager to learn. They come because they want to learn so that of course makes it much easier to teach!
My apartment is great and my roommates are all awesome. If you haven't read any of my other posts, here's a refresher. I have 4 roommates, all from Spain. There are two Laura's, and the two guys are Dubra and Borja. They are all really nice & helpful and fun to live with! We have dinner basically every night together which is nice because as much as I love the food here, I go to the grocery store and realize I have no idea what to actually COOK for myself!
I've done a lot of "errands" after class which usually turns into me going to one place for something I need, and then wondering around to see yet another area of Madrid. Yesterday (Saturday) I went walking for several hours...maybe 5 or so!...and explored more of the old area of Madrid. I better be dropping a few pounds with all this walking I'm doing!
Anyway...I know this isn't a really interesting post and there aren't any funny stories to share, but people have been telling me to write something so I at least wanted to give everyone an update!
Below are two pictures of me with my roommates from last night.

Burnt Toast

First a few random comments...

-My first day, my hair dryer got way too hot & started smoking, which then made my room smell like burnt toast. Needless to say, I stopped using it and bought one from here so I don't have to use my converter.
-I told my roommate "You are going to bed", instead of "I am going to bed." Clearly I majored in Spanish.
-Saw a hard core mullet the first day, and a few more "Spanish" ones the 2nd day...today. Sweeeet.

Today was beauuuutiful. It was about 55* and sunny...not a cloud in sight. Last night I planned a bunch of things to go see today, and I was able to get to all of them! I brought the love of my life along with me for the adventure...my Nikon D80. I went to Sol, Plaza Mayor, Plaza de Cibeles, Plaza de Castilla/Torres Kio, and checked out the area where my class will be (starting tomorrow). There really isn't much to tell about my day other than it was great and I hung out and lounged around in Retiro and remembered one of the reasons I love Madrid so much. :)

Since there aren't any great or exciting stories to share, just take a look at my pictures instead! I have posted some to my flickr account (the link is on my block). The majority of them, however, are on facebook, so I will include the link for those of you who do not have it.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2157915&l=470a9&id=22000288

Enjoy!

FYI...

Just so everyone who is wondering knows... I made it to Madrid safe and sound. I also already have my cell & abono (metro pass). Trying to get on top of things so I don't have to worry about it later!

Notes from my flight:
Layover in London.... they have potato chips in the following flavors: "Lamb & Mint" and "Prawn Cocktail". WHAT ARE THOSE?!?!?!?! If someone can please explain either to me, I will be your best friend.

I have a flat!

Shared flat, that is. After a long time searching and stressing about where I would live while in Spain, I finally found what seems to be a great place! It is 4 bedroom, 2 bath, with 2 people living in one room together, so there will be 5 of us all together. Including myself, it's 3 girls and 2 guys, all of whom I believe are right around my age. The 4 of them are Spanish, which I'm really excited about! When I studied abroad in Spain, I found it difficult to meet and make friends with Spaniards, so hopefully having 4 roommates from Spain will help!

Check out the area! www.googlemaps.com --> Virgen del Portillo, 21; 1º; 1ª
(try looking at the street view, too!)

Also, save that address because I expect an abundance of letters and gifts at all times! :)

Possible Summer Plans...

Originally my plan was to stay in Spain through the month of July (July29 return day to be exact). However, I was looking around at "free" volunteer programs (many programs charge you a LOT of money just to go volunteer for them). I found one in Peru that seems like it was made for me! So I am now considering leaving Madrid a month early, and heading to Huanchaco, Peru, for 6-7 weeks. The program is called FairMail...check it out! http://www.fairmail.info/. The position I would be fulfilling is called the Photography & Creativity Trainer. For those of you who don't know, I am obsessed/in love with photography. I even just recently bought myself the Nikon D80 with 2 lenses and loveee it! Through this position with FairMail, I would get to work with a group of teens in Huanchaco, a small town right out of Trujillo, Peru. I'd help them with their photography skills, creativity & ideas for photos, photoshop, etc...basically everything that I love working with! They then take these photos and sell them as greeting cards both in stores and on a virtual store on the website. The youth FairMail selects lives in relatively poor circumstances. As far as the earnings from the photo cards are concerned, 50% of the profit goes to the personal education of the photographer. They can also use 25% for improvements to their housing conditions. They receive 40 soles per month for their medical insurance fund. They also receive an hourly wage that can be used however they choose. I would hold classes, workshops, etc., and can also take them on excursions to give them different photo opportunities. The even bigger bonus for me: This all has to be done in Spanish! :)

I've been in contact with the woman who runs FairMail, and everything looks set for me to start there on July 10. I applied by answering some questions in Spanish, along with submitting a Spanish version of my resume. I have to set accomodation up myself, but she offered me a few suggestions that look great...and cheap! I just have to figure out if I can afford to change my return flight from Madrid and then get from Chicago to Lima.

This is all tentative until the flights are booked. Does it sound good? Thoughts??









Beach in Huanchaco :)

does anyone have a stress ball?

...or 10 of them? I think stress accounts for about 85% of my emotions right now. I took some time to organize everything I've been working on though, and made some wonderful lists as we all know I love to do, so I'm feeling a little better about everything now. I'm basically trying to juggle working towards my Spanish student visa (getting all my materials together is harder than it may seem!), finding a place to live once I get to Madrid, and applying for grad schools for the fall! As far as the grad school thing is concerned, most applications for the fall term aren't due until at least the middle of March, but my own deadline is before I leave for Spain, because I know I won't want to be worrying about all of that once I'm abroad!

So here's an update on my progress:

--Deposit for TEFL certification is paid for. I'm officially registered in the Jan 5 program.
--Plane ticket is purchased! This is new as of this past Thursday. I discovered that it was much cheaper in the end to set a return date rather than purchasing a January or February return date (and hence a cheaper ticket than a return date in the summer) and then paying $200 + the difference in ticket to change my return date once I was in Spain. That sounds confusing but basically I booked my entire flight as follows: January 1 - July 29. Shorter than originally planned but I have my reasons...the main one being grad school!

Other than those two, I am just in the process of, like I mentioned, collecting everything for my student visa. I think all I have left really is the police report/certificate and passport photos. As far as grad schools, I'm looking in and around the city... so anyone who has suggestions about a great Education program anywhere around here, let me know!!!