Update: Not so Boring :p

Sunday: The day to clean, relax, and prepare for the week ahead. 

So far, I have had a great time in Madrid! I have met so many friends and have learned so much. My host mom has helped me so much whether is was cheering me up when I felt home sick or re-assuring me that everything will be okay and that It'll just take time to adjust to the changes. I feel like I am adjusting very well so far!

Yesterday, I spent some quality time with my host family. First, we started to go for a walk but it was too cold and windy so we only went for about 10 minutes. We then drove to a large mall about 30 minutes away from the house. The mall had some American stores such as Guess and Hollister. We spent a lot of time in the Apple store playing with the electronics and taking silly pictures on photo booth. After the mall, we returned home and my host mom prepared a delicious meal for us consisting of crab, egg, and vegetables.

Below are pictures of the mall and dinner last night.. 

Shalva and host brother(Diego)

Shalva and host father(Julián)

Bob Esponja!! Jaja :p

Delicious Dinner

Update

I realize I have not updated my blog in a while, that is because there is not much to say. The past 2 weeks, I have been getting my classes figured out and finally have a set schedule! I have been attending my classes and they are all quite interesting. I am taking a total of 12 US credits. Two of my classes are in English and 2 in Spanish. Here is what I think about my classes:

• Marketing- This class is in Spanish so it is a little difficult. We do a lot of group work and all of the members in my group are really nice(only one is a native spanish speaker)
• Happiness: The Art of Living- This class is also in Spanish so is also a little difficult to understand sometimes, but it is very interesting. The class is mostly lecture but the Spanish students like to participate and add comments. I am too afraid to say anything in class since I am still improving my Spanish
• Contemporary History of Spain- Also an interesting course. This class is in english so easier to understand. My teacher is really nice and I enjoy learning about the recent history of Spain.
• Organization Behavior- Class is in English and also a lot of group work. It is a little odd because Mondays are group days/practical work then Thursdays are lecture days but they are different teachers!

Overall, I like my schedule, especially because I only have classes 3 days per week! This is nice because I always have 3 day weekends! :) 

(Sorry this entry is kind of boring, just haven't done a lot lately)

National Prado Museum

On Friday, I went to the National Prado Museum in Madrid. For those of you who do not have much interest in art, the Prado museum is one of the most famous and spectacular museums in the world; featuring art by Francisco de Goya and David Velazquez. It features one of the world's finest collections of European art, from the 12th century to the early 19th century, based on the former Spanish Royal Collection, and unquestionably the best single collection of Spanish art. I met up with a group of other students from UC3M and we got to tour the museum for free! The art was spectacular and I was astounded by the various works of art. Unfortunately, we were not allowed to take pictures. Not even words can describe how amazed and impressed I was by the wonderful art! We were only there for 2 hours, but I still got to tour almost half of the museum. Next time, I shall visit the other half.

Before the museum, on the way there, I took some pictures of a library and a fountain which I found very beautiful. Pictures are below: