Star Treatment Upon Arrival

¡Hola todos!

The bear and the strawberry tree is the symbol of Madrid.

With my first week in Spain complete, I could not have asked for a better start to my time here. I arrived in Madrid at 7 a.m. and successfully made my way around the airport, to a taxi and to Jen's flat in the city!
Day 1: Although it felt like an everlasting day because of jet lag, Jen kept me up to tour me around the city to see some great sights. I also had my first caña! Cañas are little cups of beer people stop to get with some tapas and then move on to the next place.
Here is proof I was in Madrid!

Day 2: Jen and I roadtripped with our Spanish friend Victor who studied abroad at Ball State my Freshman year. Now we are in his territory! We drove through the countryside of Spain to Victor's hometown, Estella. Victor stopped on the side of the road for a nap, the Spaniards love their siestas...
That night we made dinner with some of Victor's friends at a gastronomical society. It is like a social club for eating. You have to be a member and everyone knows everyone! Delicious and fun.


Day 3: Victor's family owns a winery called Castillo de Monjardin. Today we got a tour of the winery and how everything works! It was beautiful and interesting. Besides taste-testing wine, we got to eat some fresh figs, almonds and grapes from their property. Their property is located at the start of the Camino de Santiago, which is a famous pilgrimage to the cathedral of St. James in...Santiago de Compostela, where I will be living! So I got to see the start of the pilgrimage, and soon will see the finish!

Exploring the grape fields of Victor's winery

San Fermin and I!

Day 4, 5, 6: Victor dropped Jen and I off in the city of Pamplona, where Jen had previously studied abroad. We stayed with the family of her previous roommate, Miryam. Pamplona is a beautiful city and Jen and I toured around for 3 days seeing the sights until Miryam got off work. Pamplona is the city of the Running of the Bulls, so I got to see the famous bull ring and the route the bulls run for 9 days.  Pamplona was what I pictured Europe to look like, modern parts of the city mixed with historical parts. Cobblestone streets, tall buildings lining the streets, and people out and about all the time.

Streets of Pamplona

Pamplona is also one of Hemingway's favorite spots and where he wrote some of his books. We got to stop by his favorite café and observe the plaza. I loved every minute of Pamplona but it is time to face the real world and get to my new home for the next few months: Santiago de Compostela!

Day 7: I took a train from Madrid to Santiago and arrived around 9 p.m. One of the professors that I will be working with picked me up from the train station and I am staying with her until I find a flat in the city. Everyone has been so hospitable to me here, it shows that there are good people everywhere!

Miss you all back home!