Tag: crstein1

By crstein1

It seems a bit as if I just pressed pause on my life at home.  Although I know it's not true, some part of me expects that I'll go home to the exact same situations as how I left them in January.  Part of this feeling comes from the fact that the weather hasn’t been too summer-ish, and I can’t associate this time of year with the warm summer, beach-weather that I love so much.  But part of the feeling also results from the time-warp of being abroad.  While I’m off exploring the world, understanding each day to be a new adventure, home has remained constant, with little variation. ...continue reading "Final Remarks"

By crstein1

This past weekend I went to my first football (soccer) game.  It’s so interesting how different the fan culture is between the United States and here in Spain.  The game was between Real Madrid and Atlético Madrid, at the Atlético stadium.  I’m a Real Madrid fan and I assumed that since both teams are from Madrid, there would be fans there from both teams.  I showed up to the game naively wearing a Real Madrid scarf.  A moment after entering the stadium I realized that there were only Atlético fans.  Fans started criticizing my friends and I for wearing Real Madrid gear.  I very quickly and discretely put the scarf in my bag.  In New York, if there was a Mets-Yankees game, regardless of the stadium, there would be fans present from both teams.  Apparently, here in Spain, fans only go to their team’s home stadium.      ...continue reading "Football (Soccer) Culture"

By crstein1

I had the amazing opportunity to meet up with my parents this past weekend.  They wanted to visit me during my study abroad semester, but had already been to Spain, so we decided on a trip to Dublin, where none of us had ever been.  I was beyond impressed with Ireland.  It’s a beautiful place, quite unlike any other place in Europe I have visited.  Instantly upon arrival it became clear that regardless of the typical gloomy weather, the Irish people are the alive and happy types, who love their pubs and their folk dancing.  I fell in love with the place that seems to exist in a perpetual Saint Patrick’s Day celebration. ...continue reading "Patriotism and Devotion"

By crstein1

I wonder why it doesn’t bother more Spanish people that much of their television and movies are done with voice-overs.  They were originally American shows or movies, sometimes British, and when they arrived in Spain, were set to Spanish tracks instead of English.  It’s obvious that the words don’t match up with the actor’s mouth and sometimes the expressions don’t exactly follow through either.  I recognize many of the more famous actors, and it’s so strange for me to hear a different voice accompanying them.  I’ve noticed certain intonation patterns are different here.  For example, many times, when people say ‘sí’ (yes) they inflict their voice in a way that seems like a question, even if they are not expressing doubt.  For example, I might say to a friend, ‘have you eaten yet’, and they would definitively respond ‘yes?’  Also, I’ve noticed Spanish speakers tend to be more abrupt with their intonation patterns, whereas English speakers tend to sort-of trail off.  To me, these differences make voice-over movies so annoying.  ...continue reading "The Voice-over Curiosity"

By crstein1

If I were to return to the States and only take away one lesson, it would be a lesson in adventure.  It seems appalling, I presume, that I could discount every other tidbit of knowledge and experience, just to sum up my time here in the one minuscule word ‘adventure’.  However, I can maintain that everything I see, every person I meet, every event I’ve witnessed, has been an adventure in itself.  With the language barrier and the differences in culture and customs, even the most routine tasks are out of my comfort zone, and for this reason, are mini-adventures.  Yet for risk of sounding overly cliché, I’ll digress… ...continue reading "A Semana Santa Adventure"

By crstein1

Normally when I travel I’m with other GW students from my program here in Madrid.   We usually stay in hostels or hotels and we speak mostly in English.  It’s great to travel with my friends and we always have such a great time.  Recently, however, I traveled to Valencia for the Las Fallas Festival with my Flamenco teacher, Ana.  Ana is absolutely the sweetest person, and she is an amazing dancer, too!  My friend Jess (another GW student in my program), and Ana’s friend from Saudi Arabia, Rana, also traveled with us.  My experience at Las Fallas and with Ana’s family was a once in a lifetime experience, and most definitely my favorite weekend of my study abroad experience.     ...continue reading "Las Fallas"

By crstein1

One of the most interesting parts of living in Spain is that I’ve had the chance to understand some of the Spanish traditions.  Of course, I was aware that Spain was famous for bullfights, but it wasn’t something I ever gave much thought to.  From an American perspective, bullfights are cruel and futile.  My recent trip to Pamplona, the capital city of Navarre, in Northern Spain, allowed me to view the traditions surrounding bulls from a new perspective.  Pamplona is famous throughout the world for the historic and sometimes controversial San Fermín festival, which occurs every year from July 6^th-14^th.  Part of the fame of this festival is due to its presence in Ernest Hemingway’s novel, The Sun Also Rises.  San Fermín was the first bishop of Pamplona and spent much of his life spreading the gospel.  He was beheaded in a preaching voyage and is considered a saint and a martyr of the Catholic Church.  The festival of San Fermín exists as a way to honor the saint and has been a large celebration in Pamplona since medieval times.  Although there is a religious component, and there is also fireworks, parades, dancing and music, the most epic and central part of the festival is the running of the bulls. ...continue reading "The Passion in Life and Death"

By crstein1

It took us about 10 seconds to drive through the checkpoint between the Spanish region of La Rioja and the region of El País Vasco (the Basque Country).  It’s interesting how borders function; they can seem so arbitrary sometimes.  For example, the difference between being on one side of the border between Maryland and Virginia seems practically the same as being on the other side of the border.  Yet the barrier between La Rioja and El País Vasco has a completely different feeling.  The Basque people are an indigenous group living in areas of Spain and France.  Despite the Spanish annexation of Basque territory, the Basque people have managed to hold onto their culture, language and traditions.  There is a strong sentiment of Basque nationalism, and the Basque people feverishly fight to maintain their customs.  Basque is the main language taught in many schools and many people consider themselves to be of Basque nationality as opposed to Spanish nationality.   Basque nationalism has also manifested into a desire for more autonomy from Spain, and the fight for an independent Basque state has at times been demonstrated through acts of terrorism.  It’s so interesting- you cross through a seemingly meaningless checkpoint and everything changes.  All of a sudden people are speaking in Basque, there’s a different political sentiment and there’s a whole separate culture.  ...continue reading "The politics of borders"

By crstein1

I’m really looking forward to the spring in Madrid.  The weather hasn’t been the best lately, as the last few weeks have been freezing and it even snowed on several occasions (which is very rare in Madrid).  Often, my mood reflects the weather- when it’s raining I feel somewhat blue, and when it’s freezing and snowy I have no energy to leave my bed.  However, I’ve felt surprisingly happy here despite the less than stellar weather.  Madrid is an absolutely amazing city, and dare I say it, perhaps more incredible than my beloved home in New York.  I’ve been trying to figure out why this city is so exhilarating, and why everyday life here seems so fantastic.  To a certain extent, I think that a lot of my happiness results from my lack of responsibilities here.  My only obligation is my classes, which don’t require the endless amount of homework and studying that is typical of classes at home.  Here in Madrid, my host mom cooks, cleans and does my laundry.  I’m able to spend my free time exploring the city, going to the theater, visiting museums, or hanging out with friends.  I wonder, if I had this luxury at school in DC, would I be equally as happy? ...continue reading "The Easy Life"

By crstein1

I’ve finally figured out what GW does with all of our tuition money- it’s spent on study abroad programs.  We live like kings and queens here in Spain.  I had this epiphany last weekend during our trip to Barcelona.  The trip, which was included in our program, was amazing.  We traveled from Madrid to Barcelona on a high-speed train (a welcomed change from the buses I am accustomed to taking) and stayed in a hotel near the beach.  Unfortunately, it was a bit too cold to spend time on the beach, but nonetheless, it was a nice area to be in.  The first day, after a bus tour of the city, which I’ll admit I was too sleepy to pay any attention to, we ate lunch at a beautiful restaurant.  When we asked if the place was nice our program director responded, “You know I take care of you guys, right? Don’t you notice that as we walk down the pier the restaurants get nicer and nicer?”  When we were close to the end of the pier we entered into the restaurant.  We sat at a table next to the glass wall which showed the gorgeous view of the city and the water.  The waiters must’ve brought out about 10 courses.  We all felt extremely fancy. ...continue reading "Where All the Money Goes"