Hola everyone!!!

Sorry its been so long since my last post, but I’ve hardly had a chance to sit down and write an entry I’ve been doing so many wonderful things, and making loads of trips to Madrid airport! Here is a brief (ish) update of what I’ve been up to since January.

Flew back out to Madrid on 5th Jan with my friend Alison and we went to watch the 3 kings parade (which is when most Spanish kids get their main Christmas presents) and this was lots of fun.

I was only back in School a week before I jetted off to Cambridge for the first time since I’d left the summer before. I had a great time there – it was lots of fun to be back and see all of my friends without having to work - hehe! I also went to the Minack reunion dinner from when I went down to cornwall last summer to do Yeomen and that was a good night too.

I think I actually may have had a few weekends to relax in Madrid after this – which is very rare, and to catch up on the work I should be doing for my Year Abroad project (oh well, I can always do it when I’m stuck in UK over the summer!) But I did go on some lovely walks in the mountains and I also managed to get a tan whilst sitting in the park for 4 hours (in February!!!)
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2293478&id=36919385&l=cce4ed2603

Mummy came over to visit late February and we went to the “Carnaval” parade (like in Rio but not quite as impressive) and then out into town to enjoy the Carnavalesque atmosphere that Madrid is so famous for.
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2294839&id=36919385&l=ede151078a

The weekend after I was back in the jet setting life and flew off to Paris to spend a weekend with the girlies – and it was a fab weekend too. We did everything – saw all the sights (the popular ones like the Eiffel Tower and the ever so slightly fashionista sights like the Louis Vuitton flagship store and the Jimmy Choo shop Carrie visits in Sex and the City). We also had the most amazing lunch of Moule Frittes which was fabulous and I kept everyone amused with my amazing knowledge of the French language!
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2297206&id=36919385&l=cbc50828a4

The next Saturday it was time for our first road trip and the Cambridge crew (all 8 of us) hopped on a coach to Salamanca to meet up with another friend and learn a little more about a different part of Spain. It was a beautiful city with loads of lovely buildings and lots to do. We sat out in the Plaza mayor most of the afternoon on Sunday and got ever so slightly red!
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2298611&id=36919385&l=798277d6cf

You would think I’d be ready for a break by now…but no!!! The Friday after Karen arrived and we had loads of fun exploring Madrid and sitting out in the sun in Plaza Mayor and el Retiro. We went to my now local flamenco Tavern to watch the show – its one of my favourite places to take people now. I’m also still going with the flamenco (although I have started tap classes too now so I can go to a class that I can actually do without being shouted out for not putting my arm in the right place or whatever). I must say I think the flamenco teacher is starting to like me because she has started to say “muy bien eso es” (very good, that’s it) so I must be getting somewhere…

The next weekend was a good weekend because we had “Puente” (bridge) which means there was a national festival on the Thursday (father’s day believe it or not) so they decided to give us the Friday off to so we got a 4 day weekend…and I went to the beach! I flew up to Santander on the north coast to stay with Georgie and we had a beach party and hired out bikes to go and cycle along the promenade and we hiked up to a lighthouse on the cliff (not to mention the partying too!) and I loved my beach weekend – was like a proper little holiday. The only problem was that most of the kids at school had also been to the beach and so returned to school all bronzed and I wasn’t jealous at all (although my tan is quite good considering I’m a guiri (non Spanish person). I have got a wonderful nickname from school though “strawberry shortcake” because of my rosy complexion and ridiculous amount of freckles from being in the sun!
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2300935&id=36919385&l=43cc848d3a

The weekend after I had another visitor – a friend from my theatrical escapades in Cambridge came and we did all the tourist things again – the only problem is that if you don’t like shopping or museums or sitting out in the sun with a nice cold beer, there isn’t that much to keep you occupied for more than a few days! We have loads of nice buildings like the palace and the Puerta de Alcala, but we don’t have a leaning tower or an Eiffel tower or statue of liberty. I also spent rather a few hours singing this weekend as I had my first choir concert! It was really good. We sung Handel’s Dixit Dominus and Handel’s Coronation anthems (including Zadok the Priest which is the Champions League theme song!!!) Marisa, one of the teachers from school, also sang with us which is great fun – I told her things became a lot more enjoyable when she came to sing, especially because we sit together and make all kinds of jokes – I have just about mastered Spanish humour now! Also – where Trish would tell us at BOST not to sing like Britney Spears or like Ladies of the Wirral, they’re constantly being told not to sing like flamenco singers with all the ornamentation which I think is rather funny! My musical vocabulary in Spanish has increased so much from sitting through 4 hours of choir a week and also from teaching piano in a Spanglish kind of language!

And that brings us up to this weekend just gone. I finally broke up for Easter on Thursday and was very happy – 10 days in Madrid, without work to enjoy all the things I haven’t done yet! I went to Primark on Saturday (but it was no where near as good as English Primark – they only sell the rubbish things!) and yesterday we had a party in the park with Sangria and tortilla and all spanishy things like that while we baked in the sun. Mum, dad and Sam are coming over on Thursday to see some of the famous easter parades and so I can show them some more of Madrid. The flamenco tavern is a must and there are lots of other places close by that are worth a visit.

I do apologise to you busy people for the essay – (and I hope I have given you non-busy people something to do!) but you are now fully up to date.
I’ve also copied the links in to some of the photos from my visits so you can see what fun things I’ve been up to (I apologise for the vast amount of photos but I can only post the whole album) and I will definitely write to you all again soon before I come home on 10th June (although I have applied to do some work experience out here too so who knows where I’ll be spending the summer.

Anyway I wish you all a lovely Easter – Feliz Semana Santa! And I look forward to seeing you all soon xxxx