Week Nine: PARIS!!!!!

Hi again! Okay so yea I had midterms and teaching this week BUT I WENT TO PARIS!! Okay pretty much this was the best place I have ever been to. Yes, it is possible to fall in love with a city! I have so much to say about this place like WOW.
Alright so we left early Friday morning. Well, we had to get to Barajas early, we didn't land until about 3 in Paris. So when we got there we went to grab some food. Dani, Lisa and I went to a little sandwich shop and wow it tasted good, it's true what they say; the bread is better in France! So after that Lisa and I grabbed some pastries because when in Paris that's a must! After that we headed back to our hotel which was very centrally located so we could shower and get ready for the night. So we had a lovely tour of the Louvre which was AMAZING! We were there for roughly two hours and saw a lot but considering the size of it, we saw only a fraction. Obviously seeing the Mona Lisa was must. But my favorite part was the one of the ballrooms in the Louvre where special occasions were held. The ceiling, paintings, crowning, architecture and attention to detail here was mesmerizing. Also, we got to see an Egyptian sphinx and that was incredible noting how old it actually was! The view from inside the Louvre was also amazing, words cannot describe. So after the tour, Lisa and I met up with Catie, who also goes to Stonehill and is studying in Paris through API. She has an apartment and we took a cab there and met some of her friends. It was so nice seeing a Stonehill face! So when Catie and her friends went to a club we headed back to the hotel. Of course we called it a night!

Louvre!

Louvre!

Saturday we started the day with a three hour bus tour of the city. We got to see amazing sights, the Eiffel Tower, the Military Hospital, the Latin Quarter and many more places! We were able to stop for pictures at some of the sights which was lovely! We ended the tour at Notre Dame which from the outside was insane. A group of us; Lisa, Courtney, Dani and myself got lunch at a cafe right outside the cathedral. It was such an experience. So after we ate then the four of us went on an hour boat tour up and down the river. The sights we saw were just stunning! After ending that, we went inside Notre Dame and got to see the famous cathedral. It was as beautiful as people say let me tell you! So after that we went back and got ready for dinner and our climb to the top of the Eiffel tower. So for the night it was Lisa, three boys in our program and myself. We went and had a lovely dinner at a cafe. The people I was with tried snails...ew. After dinner we went to the Eiffel Tower! On the way there we saw it sparkle which was awesome! We got in line, bought our tickets and sucked it up and climbed to the second level. What a hike that was! So worth it though. We waited in line for the elevators to the top and once we got to the top it was the craziest and most beautiful thing I have ever experienced! First of all it was so windy and cold, but it was worth it because the view was fantastic! Something I will never forget that I can tell you. So we all got a cab back and by the time we made it home it was midnight. Exhausted from the day we went to bed.

Eiffel Tower!

View from top!

Notre Dame!

Courtney, Dani, Lisa and I

Lisa, me and Dani

Sunday was our last day but we packed it full of fun that's for sure! Catie met us at our hotel and showed us around. We first went to the Arc de Triomphe, a military tribute to lost and fallen soldiers. Then we went to the Luxembourg Gardens. After that we went to the Pantheon which was so beautiful! We went into the underneath and got to see the tombs of all the famous people, a little creepy but definitely enjoyable. After that we got macaroons and gelato, so yummy! Sadly after that we had to leave Paris. So sad to go but I can't wait to come back someday!

Arc de Triomphe

Pantheon!

Gelato!

Write back soon!
xoxo,
Michelle

Week Eight: Santander!

Hello! So I forgot to blog last week so I'm going to pretend that I wrote this last week...
Alright, so this week we had midterms. As always they were such a drag but I made it to the end, (only to realize I had three the following week).
We actually got to meet up with some of the API Barcelona kids from Stonehill who spent a weekend in Madrid. I can't tell you how nice it was to see those familiar faces! As we had to get up early the next day Lisa and I met the Stonehillers at a common spot in Sol and we all caught up, shared stories and reminisced about Stonehill!

STONEHILL! Sheriden, Lisa, Tori, Me and Jovan

So after a week of studying and teaching, the fun began!
We went to Santander, in the north of Spain for the weekend! Basically it was a blast. I saw some of the most breathtaking sights I'd ever seen! Santander is a beach town/city where the Royal Family used to go because they had a beach estate there. So Saturday when we got there a few of us wandered around down to the beach. Of course we took pictures and laughed and enjoyed ourselves very much. After that we met back at our hotel, which was very nice I might add, then met up with the group and took a tour led by our awesome director, Quique! We went over to the Royal Family's estate first. Then after taking in the astonishing building we walked down a hill as the state was on top of a huge hill overlooking the sea, where we saw the replica ships that Christopher Columbus used to sail and find India which turned out to be America. Then after the ships we got to see a bunch of sea mammals which are kept in somewhat of an outdoor aquarium. Relectunatly we had to leave the animals and we ventured over to the down town area which was quite the walk.  There we saw a fracking protest and had dinner. The food wasn't anything special but we got ice cream after which hit the spot. So by this time it was around 9 and we headed back to the hotel.  As always Lisa and I called it an early night and did some studying in our hotel room while all the other kids went out.

Lisa and I

The estate!

Me!

The Harbor!

The next day we had an amazing breakfast provided by the hotel then we were off to the caves at Altamira! So these caves were some of the oldest and best persevered caves on the Iberian peninsula. We did not get to see the actual caves but we got to see the replica which was incredible! The detail and precision of the painting were unreal. After the caves were done we headed into a little town called Santillana. It was the quaintest little tourist town. After we finished up our lunch, which was AWFUL, we headed back to good old Madrid.

View from the cave! 

Santiallana!

So that was my fantastic eighth week!
xoxo,
Michelle

Week Seven: Brrrr!

Hello everyone!
Okay so first I must say that wow time is really flying by here.  I can't believe I am already half way through October and in exactly two months from today I'll be back in the United States for a few days!
Let me think, this week was a pretty good week. Teaching my classes and my students is going well, school at Suffolk is going great minus the fact that we have midterms these next two weeks, and my living situation is wonderful! During the week nothing really eventful happened however, Thursday night was awesome. Lisa and I decided we wanted to go out Thursday and maybe venture to a club, but then when we were sitting in our last class until 7:15 we had the brilliant idea of going to TGI Friday's instead. Best choice we've made. So we enjoyed dinner together then came back to our room and slept so we could get up early and do homework all day. Yes, Friday we did homework the entire day and then Friday night we let the fun begin!
I'm sure you all know what an ice bar is, well they have one in Madrid so a group of girls from API ventured there Friday night. it was fun, don't get me wrong, but it was very cold so we only stayed for maybe a half hour. But it was an experience not many people can say they had so I'm glad I went. After that Lisa and I called it a night and the other girls headed to a club.

Me!

We had to take a picture with him!

Lisa and I with an ice sculpture!

Saturday Lisa, myself and a girl in our program, Rose, went to the Royal Palace only to find that there was an event so no tours were taking place, such a disappointment. But not to worry we still took stunning pictures from the outside of Palace. After that we met up with Dani and went to our favorite spot ever, El Tigre. We enjoyed good conversation, tapas and even got free hats...probably because we're such frequent goers. Sunday was uneventful as we did homework and went for a run.

Royal Palace!

Another view of the Royal Palace.

The lone croquetta at El Tigre.

Me in front of the gardens.

The gardens at the Royal Palace!

So that about sums up my week, I look forward to blogging again soon!
xoxo,
Michelle

Week Six: Trips on Trips on Trips!

Hello!
Okay so as promised I am blogging this week and OH MY GOSH I HAD SO MUCH FUN THIS WEEK! I took so many day trips, it was fabulous!
Okay so Monday for my business class we went to a new cafe in Sol, the center of Madrid, to do a SWOT analysis. Okay, that's actually really boring so let me just tell you the good parts, so we didn't have to go class, and the only thing we were required to do was sip on delicious smoothies with our professor. Most Mondays are awful but boy I can't complain about that!

The cafe

So then on Wednesday I took a trip to the Botanical Gardens of Madrid for my EES class.  Not going to lie, I had hoped that these gardens would be comparable to the ones in DC but sadly that was not the case. Don't get me wrong, it was a really pretty trip but DC definitely trumps Madrid in this area.  Also, my Professor Raul Martin is honestly the most lovely man I have ever met. He's so nice and just so passionate about the environment it makes it easy for me to learn and get excited about the subjects we learn!

My week ends on Thursday so Lisa and I decided we would be social and we went out. Haha, let me tell you that that was enough for me for the duration of my stay in Madrid. Don't get me wrong, getting all dolled up was fun but it was tiring. We went to a place called Star Studio 54 and they had great music which we danced to and had an awesome time! I'm just happy I can finally say that I "did Madrid night life" now. 

Rose, Lisa, Courtney and myself on Thursday night.

Okay, okay, here's the best part of my week...I went to Toledo! So for those of you who don't know, Toledo is in Castile–La Mancha although it is an autonomous community. It was one of the most breathtaking places I have been too. I'm just going to say a little bit about the day and then let you look at the incredible pictures that I took while there. So we first had a bus tour where we made a stop to take scenic pictures overlooking the old city. Following that, we had a walking tour of the city where we visited each religious quarter and were able to see different places of worship.  Then we took a break for lunch, did a little shopping and called it a day. It was probably one of my favorite days in Spain so far, so much culture in such a beautiful place.

This view...

One of the Cathedrals!

Marzipan, what Toledo is famous for!

Lisa and myself with the city behind us

Gorgeous.

Inside the church!

Okay, so that's all for this week! I'll be sure to post next week!

xoxo,

Michelle