Illegitimate Sun

This trip is already different than my previous ones.

I’m both going to school, doing freelance work, and putting in as much quality time as possible with the Amy.

It’s leaving very little time to tour.

Saturday, instead of relaxing and settling in, was spent hasseling the airport to retrieve my luggage. Exhaustion and frustration were the majority of my accomplishments that day.

Sunday was spent catching up on sleep, attending orientation, and unpacking. I needed a three-pronged adapter for my laptop (Something, I foolishly forgot to even think to buy). It turns out everything is closed in Spain on Sundays.

You’d think a mostly Catholic country wouldn’t have that problem.
Still, I was able to buy one from a novelty store. Internet has also been spotty, until I got an ethernet cable from the school’s IT department. They had to crimp it from scratch for me.

You can see my room here. That picture is the whole room; it really is that small. Still, its adequate.

My class schedule is not allowing me to have a lunch break. I’m always in class while food is being served, except for dinner. Dinner is from 7:30 until 9:00. They serve it early to accomodate Americans.

The food has been tasty, dorm food. Most of the sauces have been tangy. Tonight, we had stewed beef with chickpeas, couscous, some chicken dish in a white gravy (?), and a fish dish with baked tomatoes on top. A handful of vegetables are available, along with tuna in oil. The tuna is available at every meal, including breakfast.

Monday was spent in class, buying a souveneir, and working late into the night. I finally finished my work and school reading around 2 AM.

Still, I had no classes on Tuesday until lunchtime. So, a handful of students and I went to the Museo de Prado for the morning.

There, we wandered through galleries filled with works by El Greco, Titian, Velazquez, Goya, Reubens, and Bosch and others. After three hours of absorbtion, I still hadn’t seen half of the collection and had to leave for class.

My favorite pieces were the Las Meninas by Velazquez and The Garden of Delights by Bosch.
It was a rush navigating the Metro to class. I still arrived 5 minutes late.