time just keeps on slipping, slipping, slipping...

So, let me start by saying the thing that has been occupying my mind for the last couple of days, I have LESS THAN 3 WEEKS LEFT. ACK! I have such a mix of feelings about this, I am at once elated that the day is approaching when I get to see my home(s) and family and friends and sad that my time here is quickly winding down. I've done and seen and learned so much but there is forever more to do and see and learn! In any case, I will be aprovechandome (taking advantage) of the time I have left here in Salamanca to continue getting the most out of this experience [or at least trying to do so :) ].

Last weekend I went to Madrid with my housemate, Katie, and another of the Gettysburgians here, Allison. The city was awesome, easily my favorite of all the big cities I have been to. We ended up staying at Way Hostel, which I highly recommend if you are ever travelling to Madrid! The hostel has such a great vibe, it was very clean and comfortable, and we met some wonderful people there. Apart from the hostel, we saw a lot in the city (we also walked a LOT). In about two and a half days we saw el Real Jardin Botánico (Royal Botanical Garden), El Prado museum, Palacio Real (the Royal Palace), an authentic (albeit displaced) Egyptian temple, beautiful vistas of the city, innumerable tiny side-streets with cozy cafés and bars, Gran Via (the main shopping street), calle de Alcalá (famous for it's imitation of the architecture and street planning in Paris), a whole ton of elaborate beautiful buildings, la Plaza de Cibeles (a plaza with a giant fountain of the Roman goddess Ceres that is kind of iconic of the city), el Oso y Madroño the symbol of the city (a female bear eating fruit from a strawberry tree), el Palacio de Comunicaciones (the former post office, now you can take tours of the building and go to the lookout on top for a great view of the city), lots of prostitutes, the Plaza Mayor, demonstrations against 20-N (the presidential elections) replete with a whole ton of policía in full SWAT gear, street performers, homeless people, a National Geographic store (we were really excited about this), and lots of people! I'm sure I'm forgetting some things but those are basically the highlights. Unfortunately as I didn't have my camera I only have a few pictures; they were taken with my LG camera phone so the quality is not that great, but better than nothing!

 The Egyptian temple

Not sure exactly what this building is but I liked it.  

Part of the Royal Palace 

Snapshot of the Royal Botanical Garden

Thursday was of course Thanksgiving, and we had our own little IES family Thanksgiving dinner which was delicious. I of course missed all of my fam at home but being able to share the evening with great friends and great food here was wonderful. All of the following pics are stolen from Joe Sharp; if you want you can check out his blog here: http://lifeisnotawaitinggame.blogspot.com/

 wine (of course), water, gravy, and blueberry sauce (apparently arándano, the Spanish word for cranberry, is also the Spanish word for blueberry, oops!)

 yum :)

 It was a good try Spain, but your pumpkin pie just does not compare with that back home. Although edible, it was a little heavy on the pumpkin and light on any other kind of spices. 

 ¡hermanas! 

Our table :)

I've just been enjoying a quiet weekend here in Salamanca, catching up on news in the US, writing postcards, and walking around through the city. Something I've come to realize: I see more dogs here on a daily basis than I have seen children in the entire 3 months I've been here! So many dogs, so few I can pet. 

Today I went for a stroll through the city attempting to get lost and discovered that it is nearly impossible, at least within the city center and surrounding area. However, I did find some cute streets that I had not been on before and it was just nice to be out and about enjoying the city without having any particular place to go. 

I'm not sure if this counts as full-fledged creeping or not, but my neighbor in the building across the street is a painter (who frequently leaves the blinds open when he paints) and occasionally while I'm here at my desk working I watch him paint (reminds me of countless hours of watching Bob Ross as a child). Today he was painting a portrait of a man with sunglasses who looked scarily like John Belushi. I can't say for certain, but I'm pretty sure that's who it was. 

Anyway I hope you are all enjoying your weekend and successfully recovering from Thanksgiving/Black Friday. Until next time, ¡love and un abrazo! 

ps. it is 22:33 here as I am finishing this. neat! 

pps. I also discovered this week that there is a significant population of Jehova's Witnesses here in Spain, who knew??