Flores en Madrid?

Im sorry I havent been updating this tumblr, but I really should start updating more regularly especially for all my amazing family back home.

School is going great so far. I actually had my first major assignment today. I gave a powerpoint presentation to the class and afterwards conducted a class debate over the topic. Im pretty sure I got a great grade!

Homestay is still going really well. Although, I had to request that my meal portions be smaller. Mercedes seems to think we need more food than we actually do. She hates seeing food go to waste, so when she gives us a huge portion, we are obligated to finish it. Id much rather, get half the amount that she gives us and then once Im dont with that decide if I want more. 

A lot of the other students are moving out of their homestay for various reasons; food sucks, their homestay is too far away from the bars or school. For some students, their host parents never eat with him. Instead, they the students a meal and prepare a different meal for themselves. Mercedes never does that with us. She always eats the food she cooks. With us, at the table. I feel like this is how it should be. Im so grateful to have a family feeling during lunch and dinner. We all sit down, all 6 of is, and eat and discuss our days or what we are watching on the TV.

Excursions My host mom keeps telling me I need to travel more. I agree, but Ive never really planned a trip all on my own. I know I need to do it though. So far, Ive already boughten a plane ticket to visit Barcelona at the end of October. I have a friend from ASU whos studying abroad there and I plan on staying in his residencia, similar to dorms. There are too many cities to choose from!

Tapas This may seem random, but I want to share this with everyone. Here in Spain, when you go to a bar, you order a drink and with your drink comes TAPAS. Tapas range from anything from potatoes with some red sauce on it, chicken wings, bread with chorizo, rice with chicken, croquetas which are almost like little cheese balls and even pieces of ham. I think they are made to help prevent you from getting too drunk. Maybe the tapas help manage the alcohol. Whatever the reason, they are delicious! Heres a few pictures of some tapas that Ive received with one drink. Typically, you get a plate of tapas for every drink you order. 

FIRST NIGHT OUT: A group of about 10 of us met up at Puerto del Sol. For some, it’s a 15-20 minute light rail ride, but luckily for James and I, it’s a simple 4-5 minute walk. We bought a beer for 1 Euro from some guy selling cans of beer off the street and started to explore. As we entered the clubbing/bar area, we were immediately approached by several club promoters. Each of them wanted us to go into their club to drink. Some of them even offered free “shots”. Those were the only ones we actually went to. Although I could definitely tell the free “shots” were severely watered down and tasted practically like sweetened water. After about 2-3 of those, we decided to drink a few beers at what looked like a restaurant/bar. The inside was all wooden and the seats were small square stools. We ordered a round of beers and a few ordered glasses of wine. After we were finished the waiter gave us each a complimentary shot of something brown. It tasted like black licorice so I think it was something like jagermeister. We continued to explore and continued to be hustled by club promoters. We finally found a club that would let us in for 6 euros and would give us 2 free drinks. One mojito and vodka/sprite later, everyone was dancing on the dance floor. At around 2am, a few of us decided to head home because we had to leave for Toledo, España at 9am. 

When we got back home, our 60 year old host mother was hosting her own fiesta! She had a few of her friends over hanging out in the living room drinking wine. James and I drunkenly talked with her and she gave us a talk about the importance of drinking within “moderation”. I’m not sure what “moderate” means to her since she drinks wine with every meal and even when she takes her pills and vitamins! Wine is such a huge part of the Spanish culture here. Wine and besos (kisses). She was shocked to hear that my parents only kiss the top of my head and never my face.