It's definitely getting colder! Well, in the mornings anyway. Have been meaning to write this post for a few days now, just so I don't forget what I've been up to. It's been just over a week since la Vuelta and I don't really know where the time has gone!
Monday was a pretty dire start and frustrating start to last week. I arrived to catch the bus at my normal time but there was a much bigger number of people waiting in the queue than normal - había personas por un tubo! A phrase I learnt from a Spanish friend called Igor; I hope I've used it correctly... Basically I had to catch a second bus because the first one was full, and the second one just happened to arrive 45 minutes late, meaning I missed a lot of my first class starting at 08:30 - theories of democracy. But when I arrived I wasn't allowed to enter because I'd arrived late - even though it was through no fault of my own! This was made even more frustrating by the fact that if you miss 3 classes you fail the module... As a result I've started taking the cercanías Renfe, which as it happens is actually a bit quicker if I time the trains correctly! So every cloud has a silver lining I guess.
On Thursday I met some more people at the CityLife Meet and Speak and we all went out together on Saturday night on a bar crawl organised by an international student company which was super good fun! 10 euros for entry to four clubs with a free drink in each of them in the heart of Spain's capital - outrageously good value if you ask me. One thing I found interesting is that most of the people in the first club were as sober as we were when we arrived - I don't the the Spanish must do pre-drinks as hard as the Brits? Getting home was so much easier than I thought it would be - Madrid has a fleet of night buses (called Búhos, which mean owls - quite amusing really) as the metro shuts at around 01:00. After a short walk to Cibeles it took about 20 minutes to get home!
On Sunday (other than sleeping) I met up with Igor and went around the Rastro again, and learnt I a lot more Spanish phrases! I also witnessed him order a bocadillo de tortilla - a massive sandwich (carbs) filled with a traditional Spanish potato omlette (more carbs) - amazing. I love the Spanish. I got my lunch at La Huerta de Almería, a little organic wholesale food shop near the Rastro that also offers incredible vegan options where I had the best seitan (wheat meat) I've had in a long time.
Turning the clock back a few days, Friday night I went to an all you can eat vegan Chinese buffet (for 11 euros, also incredibly good value) at a place called Shi Shang which is only a short walk from Sol. Although I've met a fair few vegetarians here (mostly international students) and one or two vegans as well, I've still yet to find one who will eat as much as me so had to go it alone. The food was soooo good. Very greasy, but that's exactly what I look for in Chinese food. Will definitely be back.
On Saturday I was supposed to be doing the hiking activity organised by Aluni that was cancelled the week before, but I hadn't received any details confirming it and the weather looked a bit pants anyway. But after not receiving a reply to my email and being unable to find the activity which was previously listed on their website I presumed it had yet again been cancelled and I was not notified. Starting to get used to it now though.
And last night I went with two of the people I went out with on Saturday (Jorge and Heidi) to a salsa class in the middle on town which was also a massive laugh! I have to say I nailed the hips but the feet and arms and turns and pretty much everything else let me down. There must have been about 200 people there and the class is only just over an hour, so the instructor has to teach the steps at a pace a bit too fast for my liking. But nonetheless, I hope to go back at some point and try and improve.
I should probably get on with some actual work now, so that's all for now - hasta luego!
Monday was a pretty dire start and frustrating start to last week. I arrived to catch the bus at my normal time but there was a much bigger number of people waiting in the queue than normal - había personas por un tubo! A phrase I learnt from a Spanish friend called Igor; I hope I've used it correctly... Basically I had to catch a second bus because the first one was full, and the second one just happened to arrive 45 minutes late, meaning I missed a lot of my first class starting at 08:30 - theories of democracy. But when I arrived I wasn't allowed to enter because I'd arrived late - even though it was through no fault of my own! This was made even more frustrating by the fact that if you miss 3 classes you fail the module... As a result I've started taking the cercanías Renfe, which as it happens is actually a bit quicker if I time the trains correctly! So every cloud has a silver lining I guess.
On Thursday I met some more people at the CityLife Meet and Speak and we all went out together on Saturday night on a bar crawl organised by an international student company which was super good fun! 10 euros for entry to four clubs with a free drink in each of them in the heart of Spain's capital - outrageously good value if you ask me. One thing I found interesting is that most of the people in the first club were as sober as we were when we arrived - I don't the the Spanish must do pre-drinks as hard as the Brits? Getting home was so much easier than I thought it would be - Madrid has a fleet of night buses (called Búhos, which mean owls - quite amusing really) as the metro shuts at around 01:00. After a short walk to Cibeles it took about 20 minutes to get home!
On Sunday (other than sleeping) I met up with Igor and went around the Rastro again, and learnt I a lot more Spanish phrases! I also witnessed him order a bocadillo de tortilla - a massive sandwich (carbs) filled with a traditional Spanish potato omlette (more carbs) - amazing. I love the Spanish. I got my lunch at La Huerta de Almería, a little organic wholesale food shop near the Rastro that also offers incredible vegan options where I had the best seitan (wheat meat) I've had in a long time.
Turning the clock back a few days, Friday night I went to an all you can eat vegan Chinese buffet (for 11 euros, also incredibly good value) at a place called Shi Shang which is only a short walk from Sol. Although I've met a fair few vegetarians here (mostly international students) and one or two vegans as well, I've still yet to find one who will eat as much as me so had to go it alone. The food was soooo good. Very greasy, but that's exactly what I look for in Chinese food. Will definitely be back.
On Saturday I was supposed to be doing the hiking activity organised by Aluni that was cancelled the week before, but I hadn't received any details confirming it and the weather looked a bit pants anyway. But after not receiving a reply to my email and being unable to find the activity which was previously listed on their website I presumed it had yet again been cancelled and I was not notified. Starting to get used to it now though.
And last night I went with two of the people I went out with on Saturday (Jorge and Heidi) to a salsa class in the middle on town which was also a massive laugh! I have to say I nailed the hips but the feet and arms and turns and pretty much everything else let me down. There must have been about 200 people there and the class is only just over an hour, so the instructor has to teach the steps at a pace a bit too fast for my liking. But nonetheless, I hope to go back at some point and try and improve.
I should probably get on with some actual work now, so that's all for now - hasta luego!
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