Maybe its a little less than that by now. I leave for the airport in half an hour, and I'm sorry I didn't write more about Sweden and the end of madrid before, but now there'll be more to talk about!! I'm assuming you all wish me a safe flight home, and seeing as I now count as two people in the world (officially have a swedish passport), we will see you soon. [View Full Entry]

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I have a lot to catch up on, and I´ve recently learned the par of a good story from the Irish, and so there´s no better place to start than with the death of two bulls. A couple weeks ago Laurel and I went to a bullfight. A traditional Spanish Intelligence versus Strength man versus beast macho elegant bullfight. If that´s what you want to think about Bullfights for the rest of your life, or if you have a weak spot for bulls, stop reading....here. Because heres what really happens. The Bull comes out into the ring, seeing light for the [View Full Entry]

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Today is presidential Election Day in Spain. It's between Zapatero and Rohoy, meaning basically Mr. Socialist or Slightly Less Socialist. I don’t think they actually even let Republicans past customs, Dad. Anyways, Election day here reminded me of Election day there, and how I can vote this year, and how technically that makes me Old, but even though my best friend turned 21 last week and I have the haircut of a 40 year old, I still feel like I do a lot of quite childish things amidst my seemingly adult life. According to my resume, I’m an adult. I have [View Full Entry]

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I'm editing this phrase. Doing as the Romans do is undoubtedly code for wear sunglasses any time you're awake and eat the third grader's dream diet (pizza and ice cream). You may all safely assume I fulfilled my when in Rome duties for four days straight. I left on Valentine's day. Supposedly romantic, right? To be in Roma during the commercial holiday of love. But unfortunately for the Italians there was already a high standard upon my arrival, because my valaurelentine surprised me with homemade chocolate covered strawberries before my flight that afternoon. Still, I appreciated the convenience of the novelty. [View Full Entry]

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I stole some of Laurel's pictures online and for those of you who don't have facebook, here's some highlights of last semester. There's not many, but at least you can get a better visual. http://picasaweb.google.com/sacha.kirsti/MyYearAbroad [View Full Entry]

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They say that Madrid is a relatively safe place to live. You might be the victim of a pick-pocketing, but no one is going to seriously maim you for your metro pass or anything. If you would have asked me last week if I´d agree completely. The only danger I´d been subjected to as of then was my own clumsiness, mainly while cooking (I don´t think I have any feeling left in my fingers). Not that I was going for a run in back alleys at night or anything, but still. Safe. Until Friday happened. On Friday, I was the victim [View Full Entry]

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Apparently, to get your English teaching experience in, you have to leave the english speaking countries first. Before getting back into gear for our second semester abroad, Laurel and I spent the week in Valladolid (a two hour ish drive north of Madrid) helping run an intensive english program for a group of Spanish people that work for Vodafone (like the Spanish verizon). It was 6 on 6, as in 6 members of each native language. We met the Spaniards at a four star hotel called Lasa Sport, and played a few break the ice games that I´ll definitely take back [View Full Entry]

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So this is the new year. I'd like to measure the month of December in tickets. Ticket #1: Jesus Christ Superstar Our first ticket of the month was to Jesus Christ Superstar in Spanish. The night of the play, Laurel and I seized the opportunity to dress up, making it a dangerous commute, as it was the first time I've worn heels since I got here. But we made it there unscathed, and it was probably the greatest play I've ever seen. The Spanish twist was a nice touch, too, and the voices were JUST like the ones in the soundtrack [View Full Entry]

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My advent calendar this year is Winnie the Pooh, a gift from Mary Geisler from when she and her friend Christy came to visit us last month on their way back from Japan. Laurel's is disney princess themed. We are thrilled about them. And not just because it's free chocolate, but because it's free chocolate that reminds us every day that it is Christmas season. Also the most wonderful reminder of Christmas season: My very first care package from home. It was the earliest Christmas I'd ever had. The door man gave it to me and I ran up five flights [View Full Entry]

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Happy Thanksgiving family! Laurel and I are making mashed potatoes, stuffing, turkey, and cranberry sauce in our medieval kitchen tonight (complete with a Thanksgiving centerpiece and a that Laurel's mom sent us along with the stuffing)...at least it will be true pilgrim style. If that fails, though, we're also going to Hard Rock Cafe for dessert, because there is no way I'm even attempting to make pumpkin pie. Things that moving to Spain has made me grateful for: Working Appliances. This category isn't against Spain, but my apartment. Appliances include a cold fridge, a dishwasher that isn't my own two hands, [View Full Entry]

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