Girlfriends, Glühwein and can't come up with a third word.

I had already forgotten I posted about my brother coming,

if I had written it again, I'm sure I would have told you a whole set of other things!

But another exciting week has past.

On Thursday two of my friends were coming, and the days before that were merely preparation.

I had to sort out a way to let them stay in the house and agreed with my roommates that I would sleep on the living room couch. All illegal-ness according to my contract - but as long as my roommates were fine with it...

I had a few classes on Thursday so I couldn't pick Florence and Sanne up from the airport, but I instructed them on the easiest possible way to get from the airport to my "hood". The airport is right between Alcala and Madrid, by taxi it takes you 15mins and by public transport an hour and a half so I seriously feel sorry for all my guests who opt for the cheaper option.

I expected them to share my exhaustedness by mid-day so we only went for a small walk around Alcala and a warming tea break. We were all enjoying the wonderful Alcala autumn weather. In the evening we would go out in Alcala. Our first stop was the Erasmus-regular club Gabbana. Total fail this one, either you stand outside because this place is so crouded or you share the dancefloor with two other people. Tonight was one of the latter. Thankfully we had already poored some drinks at home, because here, the tequila tasted like water and we needed some liquid distraction from pushy Mexicans. Although I didn't mind talking some Spanish, and I admired their courage to come and talk to us. I even took a spin on the dancefloor with one of them. I'm glad to say his "latin rhythm" was as horrible as mine :D

After a while we continued our journey to ManaMana, escorted by the Mexicans. This place was pleasantly packed, I even saw some friends from class which was refreshing. We drank some more and danced some more until my friends were nearing a coma, so we went back home.

The next morning we embarked on a Madrid adventure.

I took them to Xanadú, Madrid largest shopping center, where we shopped till we dropped. Literally. On the back seat of the bus. That night we cooked a good spaghetti with enough leftover to feed an army of Marjans. :)

And on Saturday we went back to Madrid, this time for some sightseeing. I took them round to see Sol, the Palacio Real and the Plaza Mayor.
Also this weird street artist thing that's a glitter monster and a goat all at the same time. I haven't figured that one out yet...

We had some churros at the famous San Gines, walked through some shops and ended up at, you guessed it, the louboutin store!

Lastly, we took a stroll through Retiro, which was even busier this time, and filled with Mickey Mouses and dancing SpongeBobs.

 

That evening I was a complete wreck. I had a nasty cold and some lingering stomach flu. All bad timing since we were celebrating my roommate's birthday and I wouldn't have the living room to myself until all the guests had left.

All week long, everybody had been preparing for this big party. Anna-Lena's grandma had sent us homemade cookies, Julia had baked a cake, muffins, chocolate mousse and Jessica a delicious spinach quiche. They had also stocked up on bottles of gluhwein to give it a traditional German christmas twist.

Sanne and Florence were invited as well so we enjoyed the rich buffet that was displayed in the kitchen. Even some of the guests had made some incredible apple pies and cakes. 

Like traditional Spaniards, the party didn't start until way late and by that time I had a fever, migraine and everything in between. At twelve, the girls went to sleep, and I tried as well, on my yogamat, on the floor...

After and hour I woke up feeling sick, despite the fact that I hadn't eaten to keep my stomach calm. The party was still going strong so I put on ALL my clothes and went for a walk, which ended up being relatively pleasant at 2 in the morning so I made it quite a long walk.

When I came back I sat in the kitchen for awhile, until guests started to leave. By three o'clock, I could finally lay my head down on the couch. But just for an hour, since I had to get up for the girls to leave for the airport.

Eventhough I was sick to the core, and that night felt like it would never end, I was so glad I got to see my friends, have a lot of fun and explore more Alcala nightlife.

When I finally laid my head down in my own bed at 5 in the morning, I vowed not to get up EVER again... 

until my class on Monday morning.

Muchísimas gracias

I would like to dedicate this post to all my readers.

Whether you're a one timer or a regular, I truly appreciate everyone taking out the time to read about my adventures.
I never considered myself to be a good writer, but I've always prefered to write in English.
There are many more ways to describe emotions in English than there are in Dutch.
Anyone can be a poet in English :)

I do promise, to myself and my readers, that soon, I'll have a lot more to write about.

A big thanks to all the people who've posted a response.
Also, those of you who haven't posted a response yet, you still have 7 more months to do so!

Baby it's cold outside!

This is the second time I've managed to lock myself out of the house. Unfortunately, it's much colder now and I wasn't prepared.
Me and Julia were just on the patio, cutting her hair, and this normal affair quickly turned into a fit of utter panic.
We waited for almost 45mins and when someone finally showed up, it was like seeing water after walking in the dessert for days. Eureka!!

The past week was the busiest one since I got here.
I was so happy when my brother and his girlfriend arrived. I was excited to show what Alcala had to offer and also the opportunity to finally visit Madrid's diamonds.
The first day was already colored by the massive national strike. I definitely think Madrid saw the worst of it. In Alcala we had a preview of what was yet to come.
Earlier in the morning, my class was cancelled and they had barricaded the door to the school. Thankfully, everything was still open, so we visited Alcala's cathedral, my school and the Cervantes Museum. And then the Alcala tour was pretty much over. :)


We walked to my house (due to the lack of busses), a nice place I was proud to show off.
Later, after we managed to get a bus to Madrid, we went to visit the Royal Palace of Madrid. A mini version of Versailles really, and a place I'm definitely revisiting with a guide. Who knew my visitors were more of the in-and-out kind of people :)
Madrid was a mad house, throughout the day, we saw some pretty extreme expressions of anger. Anyone or anything that didn't go on strike had to suffer. There were stickers everywhere, on all the busses, cash-machines, restaurant windows. An ugly side to the strike, which poisoned the purpose of the whole thing really. I later learned some massive fighting broke out also, not far from where we were. I could write a book about what I think about this whole strike thing...

Tourist-wise I saw a whole other side to Madrid - still in awe of all the older, left over culture, I also saw a more modern side. The restaurants and rich mansions reminded me of why I like London so much: the exclusivity of it all.
In the evening we met up with a friend of Kristiaan's. After walking all day, I wasn't really capable of doing anything else but sitting down anyway.
The next day, we continued our tour past the Banco de España, the Prado museum, through the botanical gardens (no less beautiful during autumn) all the way up to the Retiro park. Which I must say was one of the most beautiful things I've ever seen in my life.
It looked so unreal, it might as well have been photoshopped. The trees covered every color in the fall spectrum, with areas so cozy, just like the movies. I could've sat there all day.
And so many other people were enjoying the park as well, joggers, cyclists, couples walking, rowing a boat, people walking there dog. It was impossible not to feel genuinely happy in that moment.

It was also impossible not to feel genuinely happy looking through the Louboutin display, even my brother was impressed. It's sort of a cult thing for any person I guess...
I was also glad to see another neighbourhood of Madrid called Chueca. Informally the 'gay' side of town, this side was full of life, night or day, with fashion boutiques all over, second hand stores and retro bars by the dozens. For dinner we had the most delicious Mexican food in Alcala!

These two days of Madrid had already given me so much, I decided to let my brother have the other two days he had left to discover Madrid on their own.
I want to keep some secrets undiscovered until other friends visit. But it's made me all the more excited!

I don't think I've ever been this impressed by autumn. It's just warm enough here to actually enjoy this season. I feel like here in Spain, people would give anything to be outside, while in Belgium it's the other way.
I'm curious to see what winter brings...

Shoulda Woulda Coulda

So the elections are over, but they are far from erased from my mind.
The election night was absolutely amazing!

First thing, with my personal invitation and ID I waited in line for the metal detector along with other partygoers in chic suits and dresses. I instantly felt so important!
At the entrance we received a whole package of stuff,
pins with Obama and Romney's face on it, a Spanish/American flag pin, background profile about the candidates, a student badge, information about the ambassador and the party.

Of the two other Alcala students I knew only one, and once I found them we basically chased the ambassador for half an hour to get a picture and squeeze in a question.
I actually got to bond for a minute with the first lady ambassador - over lipstick of all things!

There were carton cut-outs of Obama and Romney, already it was pretty obvious which candidate was most popular. Lets just say, Romney stood lonely in a corner for most of the night...
We saw a lot of Obama pins, and the 15% of Romney fans were too afraid to wear theirs :)
There were about 300 guests of which 50 American students and 50 students from all over Spain. The ambassador prided himself on that. He wanted the night to be all about the future, so inviting students seemed logical.

We got vouchers for drinks and a sandwich and there was a popcorn stand. Everything was America themed, plastic cups in red/white/blue, typical popcorn cups, flags for all the States, etc.

Dozens of tv and radio crew walked around the room all night to interview both Americans and Spanish on their ideas. I tactically avoided interviews, I think my Spanish would've completely ruined it.

I knew I wouldn't be staying until 6am but after my schoolmates left at 12 I decided to stay a bit longer. Unfortunately my feet were already killing me so I'd have to try and socialize sitting down.
Which I have to say, worked pretty well. The first question everybody there asked was: who do you think's gonna win? - there were a lot of shrugging shoulders on that one.
So it came to no surprise when a Spanish reporter asked me that same question. We got talking and it turned out he once studied in Leuven for a year and he had a lot to say about Belgium. Small world...

Later, I made contact with 4 all-American guys, also students in Madrid. Pretty quickly I felt very comfortable and we had a good time.
Suddenly a Spanish lady walked up to me, asking me where I was from and what I do. She wanted to introduce one of her students so we could pick up a conversation. Apparently she was going around coupling her students with strangers. That way, I started talking with a Mexican fellow who gave me my portion of Spanish convo for the night. He immediately invited me to come join him and his friends for a Mexican dinner some time.

In the mean time, large screens would project the progress in the election results, and the ambassador would interject a speech now and again, in Spanish, with a beautiful American accent. He gave it a good shot though :)

When I left I took a taxi, then a night bus to Alcala, which took 45mins, and then another taxi from the station to my house. My next class started in 5 hours 34mins, 33mins, 32mins... zzzzz...

If I had worn different shoes, I might have stayed longer. If I didn't have class the next day, I would've stayed longer. If I had stayed longer, I would've met a lot more people. If I brought a camera, I could've taken some good pictures...

But all in all I had a really great time - I really have an itch for the corporate world which was even more obvious tonight!

Election Time!

So in a few hours I will be leaving for Madrid to "assist" in the American election night.
Tonight, students and oficials from all over the country are invited to follow the results closely, while in the meantime Tweeting and Facebooking about it.
I do not have a smartphone however, a small detail I overlooked when I requested my invitation - that's right, requested. Apparently it's been quite the battlefield getting hold of invitations.
Luckily my teacher has connections :)

The evening will be hosted in a fancy hotel with food and drinks and government oficials in formal attire. I'm so exiiiited, and I just can't hiiiide it!
Did I mention this could be a stepping stone for my future carreer?

Now apart from all that, I wanted to share my personal opinion on the race to the oval office.
First of all, I was quite disappointed when Mitrom announced his candidacy, especially after his 47% remark. I feel the republicans are poisoning their image with this guy. The debates didn't do them any good. Mitrom had solid point, we just never got to hear them. He never really elaborated on how exactly he was going to help the American people, ALL of them...
If I were American, I'd tend to be more democratic. Though this year, I wouldn't gladly vote for Obama either. He's walking on his toes not to make a mistake and it's made him way to careful in this campaign.
Altough I must commend him on all the things that have gone right in the past 4 years, you can't expect progress to happen overnight anyway.
Obama has lost my sympathy in that he's the president of Hollywood. As most of you know, I follow the American tabloids and "boekskes" every day. I'm telling you, there's not a single concert, talk show, Hollywood event that he hasn't gone to.
I don't think a president's rightful place is in Jay Leno's chair, or Michele doing push ups with Ellen Degeneres. I think it has stripped him from credibility.

I understand that Hollywood's money is as good as any to fund a campaign. And I see how celebrities can easily reach and influence voters. I just don't think they portray 'the American people'.

I am honestly not convinced of either one's victory tonight, it could go either way. 
But if I could vote, I'd go green.
That's right, Obama and Mitrom aren't the only people running for president...