Two weeks ago today I was on a plane thinking, “What the heck am I doing?” And now… I’m thinking, “Why the hell didn’t I come here sooner?” Madrid so far has lived up to all of my expectations and more. The first week here was spent finding an apartment to live in. This is no easy task when the maps aren’t accurate, you don’t speak Spanish very well, and you don’t have a local cell phone. Luckily, we were fortunate enough to have two teachers from the school helping us. Within 5 days we had walked almost every city “block” (nothing is in a square, who are we kidding?!), called numerous apartments, seen every neighborhood, chugged coffee like it was nobody’s business, took far too few naps, drank way too many beers, ate far too many tapas and finally… found a place to live! We were rewarded with a couple days to relax on the rooftop pool of our hotel before our movein date.
Last Sunday my roommate Allie and I moved into our apartment. It’s a fabulous place, very spacious for downtown Madrid and located right in the city center. For those who have been to Madrid before, we are one block off of Plaza Mayor and directly across from the Sol Metro, which is the hub of all travel to and from the city. As I’m beginning to realize (and should have been prepared for after living in Puerto Rico for two years…) nothing is an easy task. With 4, 70lb suitcases, I trekked up the stairs (who needs an elevator?) to my third-floor apartment. It’s moderately furnished but will never have enough space for all my clothes and shoes, no surprise! We have two balconies that look out over our pedestrian-only street. One would think this would mean less noise, which is typically the case, until our neighbor wakes up and dances to his techno beats for hours on end. It’s a good laugh to watch but luckily I won’t be spending too much time at home! I was also fortunate enough to get to experience a trip to Ikea and subsequent trip back home on the metro. Let’s just say the looks on people’s faces and the bruises left behind on my shoulders were enough to never again allow me to take public transportation home from a shopping trip. Small grocery stores, coffee shops, clothing stores, restaurants, souvenir shops, tapas bars and everything in between can be found within a 2 block radius of my house, so luckily I won’t need to go too far for anything my little heart desires.
The American School of Madrid is going to be a fabulous place to work! I’ve been going to school for the past week for meetings, orientations and classroom time. Professionally, this was the best decision I could have ever made. I’ve been given total control of my curriculum and will be piloting a new book for my 6th graders and a new online program for my 8th graders. I’ll also be using a Clever board for the first time which should be interesting. All of my lessons will be online and I’ll be able to incorporate many more technology-oriented activities into my teaching since we have a never-ending supply of computers. It will be a lot of hard work, long hours and far too much planning but hopefully it will give me the experience I need to further my development as a teacher. The math department is great and as I’m beginning to see, one of the more fun and entertaining departments in the school (isn’t that always the case?) My classroom is huge and full of sunlight; what a nice place to get to come to every day. I have never felt more unprepared for a school year in my life… but I’ve also never been more excited. It should be an interesting year!
Our group of new teachers has ventured out to many different restaurants, cervecerias, tapas joints, and pubs. I can honestly say Madrid is not lacking in the eating and drinking departments. When beer and wine are cheaper than a bottle of water… you know you’re going to be getting into trouble! It will take some time for me to become accustomed to the constant presence of cigarette smoke but then again, it will also take some time for me to become accustomed to their late morning and even later evening hours. People in Spain definitely know how to let loose; our foreign crew can’t hold a candle to the locals. One of my favorite sights to date has been walking around the city around noontime and seeing 80-yr-old women drinking a beer at a terrace along the plaza. What a relaxing way of life!
Madrid is a fascinating city for those who have never been. It is full of history and beautiful architecture. The people of Spain are very proud of their culture and as the saying goes “Work to live, not live to work.” I think many people in America would be much happier if they adopted this way of thinking. Although it is a huge city (6 million and growing…) I could wander the streets of Madrid for eternity is seems and never go down the same path twice. Surprisingly, I have been getting along great with my limited Spanish abilities. Madrinos are very easy to understand in comparison to Puerto Ricans but none-the-less, I look forward to my weekly Spanish lessons to further my vocabulary and conversation skills. With world-famous museums and amazing parks, I could spend an entire year here and never feel like I’d seen it all. Early morning runs and late night strolls have allowed me to see the city and with time, will hopefully get me more acquainted to my new home.
As with any move, I have times of loneliness and times of yearning to be in a familiar place with familiar faces. But since this isn’t the first time, it’s been a much easier transition and I’ve found myself being the strong one amongst my friends here since for many of them, this is their first time teaching overseas. Luckily, I’ve been placed in this crazy city with a group of amazing teachers from around the world who have the same outlook on life and the same zest for exploring this amazing continent. Already in store are a trip to Munich (to visit my old roommate and good friend Agnes for Oktoberfest), a visit from my Mom (yay for the rest of my things!), the Canary Islands, Dublin, and a few small trips around Spain. It should be a very busy Fall but I look forward to all that is in store. Bring on the cold weather!
Hope all is well in whatever corner of the world you are living. Hope to hear from many of you soon.
Cheers.
New Address:
Lindsay May
C/ San Cristobal 11, 3C
28012, Madrid
Spain
Cell Phone: 65-663-7981
Skype Name: lmmay1
Last Sunday my roommate Allie and I moved into our apartment. It’s a fabulous place, very spacious for downtown Madrid and located right in the city center. For those who have been to Madrid before, we are one block off of Plaza Mayor and directly across from the Sol Metro, which is the hub of all travel to and from the city. As I’m beginning to realize (and should have been prepared for after living in Puerto Rico for two years…) nothing is an easy task. With 4, 70lb suitcases, I trekked up the stairs (who needs an elevator?) to my third-floor apartment. It’s moderately furnished but will never have enough space for all my clothes and shoes, no surprise! We have two balconies that look out over our pedestrian-only street. One would think this would mean less noise, which is typically the case, until our neighbor wakes up and dances to his techno beats for hours on end. It’s a good laugh to watch but luckily I won’t be spending too much time at home! I was also fortunate enough to get to experience a trip to Ikea and subsequent trip back home on the metro. Let’s just say the looks on people’s faces and the bruises left behind on my shoulders were enough to never again allow me to take public transportation home from a shopping trip. Small grocery stores, coffee shops, clothing stores, restaurants, souvenir shops, tapas bars and everything in between can be found within a 2 block radius of my house, so luckily I won’t need to go too far for anything my little heart desires.
The American School of Madrid is going to be a fabulous place to work! I’ve been going to school for the past week for meetings, orientations and classroom time. Professionally, this was the best decision I could have ever made. I’ve been given total control of my curriculum and will be piloting a new book for my 6th graders and a new online program for my 8th graders. I’ll also be using a Clever board for the first time which should be interesting. All of my lessons will be online and I’ll be able to incorporate many more technology-oriented activities into my teaching since we have a never-ending supply of computers. It will be a lot of hard work, long hours and far too much planning but hopefully it will give me the experience I need to further my development as a teacher. The math department is great and as I’m beginning to see, one of the more fun and entertaining departments in the school (isn’t that always the case?) My classroom is huge and full of sunlight; what a nice place to get to come to every day. I have never felt more unprepared for a school year in my life… but I’ve also never been more excited. It should be an interesting year!
Our group of new teachers has ventured out to many different restaurants, cervecerias, tapas joints, and pubs. I can honestly say Madrid is not lacking in the eating and drinking departments. When beer and wine are cheaper than a bottle of water… you know you’re going to be getting into trouble! It will take some time for me to become accustomed to the constant presence of cigarette smoke but then again, it will also take some time for me to become accustomed to their late morning and even later evening hours. People in Spain definitely know how to let loose; our foreign crew can’t hold a candle to the locals. One of my favorite sights to date has been walking around the city around noontime and seeing 80-yr-old women drinking a beer at a terrace along the plaza. What a relaxing way of life!
Madrid is a fascinating city for those who have never been. It is full of history and beautiful architecture. The people of Spain are very proud of their culture and as the saying goes “Work to live, not live to work.” I think many people in America would be much happier if they adopted this way of thinking. Although it is a huge city (6 million and growing…) I could wander the streets of Madrid for eternity is seems and never go down the same path twice. Surprisingly, I have been getting along great with my limited Spanish abilities. Madrinos are very easy to understand in comparison to Puerto Ricans but none-the-less, I look forward to my weekly Spanish lessons to further my vocabulary and conversation skills. With world-famous museums and amazing parks, I could spend an entire year here and never feel like I’d seen it all. Early morning runs and late night strolls have allowed me to see the city and with time, will hopefully get me more acquainted to my new home.
As with any move, I have times of loneliness and times of yearning to be in a familiar place with familiar faces. But since this isn’t the first time, it’s been a much easier transition and I’ve found myself being the strong one amongst my friends here since for many of them, this is their first time teaching overseas. Luckily, I’ve been placed in this crazy city with a group of amazing teachers from around the world who have the same outlook on life and the same zest for exploring this amazing continent. Already in store are a trip to Munich (to visit my old roommate and good friend Agnes for Oktoberfest), a visit from my Mom (yay for the rest of my things!), the Canary Islands, Dublin, and a few small trips around Spain. It should be a very busy Fall but I look forward to all that is in store. Bring on the cold weather!
Hope all is well in whatever corner of the world you are living. Hope to hear from many of you soon.
Cheers.
New Address:
Lindsay May
C/ San Cristobal 11, 3C
28012, Madrid
Spain
Cell Phone: 65-663-7981
Skype Name: lmmay1
Hi Linds! I just found your blog through Laura's new one. What an amazing opportunity you have teaching in Spain! Hope all is well. Keep in touch!
ReplyDeleteLooks like things are going well for you in Spain! That's so cool; we'll have to visit next summer. Check your Google mail, though! We need your help for some stuff for Vivienne in her new school in Indiana.
ReplyDeleteOh, also: I'm assuming you've already checked out El Prado, but it's a fantastic museum. It's been a loooong time since I've been to Spain, but boy did I enjoy it back then.
ReplyDeleteIncidentally, Agnes and Vivi and Orion were in Vigo and La Coruña, Spain on their way to Budapest earlier this summer; lots of fantastic pictures from there!