Feliz año!

So I have been absent from the blog for quite a while. Once the holiday season hit, it was a solid month of holiday activities.

Being in Madrid for the holiday season was definitely difficult. I really missed home! The holidays were celebrated a little bit differently here.

First of all, Spain obviously doesn't celebrate Thanksgiving, which is what I think kicks off the holiday season at home.  However, I, along with 4 of my American friends, made a Thanksgiving dinner on the night of Thanksgiving and invited my Spanish roommates and a few of their friends. The food was delicious, and it was definitely a Thanksgiving to remember! And my roommates and their friends thought the food was delicious. The only thing was that we ate at 9 pm (a terrible idea on Thanksgiving) and I was really upset to be working the next day with my food hangover! Never again.  One good thing- waking up on Thanksgiving morning, there was a little bit of snow! So I felt like I got a taste of home.

This is a picture of me with my roommates and one of their friends!!

 And this is some of our delicious food!! 

Right after Thanksgiving the holiday season started. There were so many Christmas lights up all over the city. Madrid also had a bus, called the NaviBus, that takes you around to look at the lights in the city.

Christmas lights on a famous shopping street in Madrid, Calle Preciados

Lights at Banco de España

Christmas lights at the Christmas market in Plaza Mayor

We continued the season with a gift exchange with holiday cookies! Then we were back to preparing for our trips!

For the holiday season I went to Amsterdam for 3 days and then to Paris for 5. I went with three of my friends, which was perfect! The trip was nice because I hadn't been to either city before. Paris was nice, but I absolutely loved Amsterdam!

First canal shot in Amsterdam!

Amsterdam was a really beautiful city! It was a really nice to start out there. The first day that we were there, we got in early and stayed near the Vondelpark, which is a really big park in the city. One thing that we needed to get used to was that there are so many bikers in the city! They have special bike paths on every street and do not stop for pedestrians! We wanted to bike, but unfortunately it rained our entire trip so we didn't. 

An example of all of the bikes!

We spent a lot of time just walking around. We saw the Vondelpark, the floating flower markets, Christmas markets, Dam Square, the Red Light District, the I Amsterdam letters, and more! We also went into the Anne Frank House, the Van Gogh museum, and the Heineken museum. We took a boat ride on the canals, and ate some great food! Overall, I thought it was one of the most beautiful and interesting cities I had ever been to. And it was very cozy for Christmas!

Our next  stop was Paris on the 23rd.  I hadn't really ever wanted to go there, but I thought it would be good to go one time! Two extended stays in Europe and never going to Paris would be kind of weird.  There was a lot to do here, too. We stayed near the Moulin Rouge and Sacre Coeur. 

Me and my friends in front of the Arc de Triomphe

Our first stop was walking down to the Arc de Triomphe from where we were staying through Parc Monceau! Then we walked down a really famous street, the Champs-Elysees, and saw the Eiffel Tower for the first time.  We went to the top of the Arc de Triomphe that day as well, which was really cool. We spent the rest of the day walking around the Christmas markets on the Champs-Elysees, drinking hot wine, eating macaroons, and finally trying some French Onion soup for dinner!

First glimpse of the Eiffel Tower

View from the top of the Arc

Christmas Eve was a little weird! We did a lot of  things during the day, such as going up to the top of the Notre Dame, going to the Sainte-Chapelle, and going to mass at Notre Dame. Christmas Eve is my favorite day at home, so I was really sad (and may have cried at mass). Going to mass at the the Notre Dame was a really great experience, but was kind of the opposite of home- in a  cold, old cathedral in a language I didn't understand. Whereas at home, I think mass is very cozy and familiar. I don't mean to sound ungrateful! It was just more difficult than I thought it would be.

View from the Notre Dame

Christmas day was nice! We had a Secret Santa in the morning, went to breakfast, and took it easy during the day, ending it with a nice Christmas dinner.

 Though it was sad for 2 days, on the 26th it was strange-- I wasn't sad at all anymore.  The 26th, we went to the Eiffel Tower and to the Louvre and to Napoleon's tomb. The 27th we went to Versailles, which was incredible! And I ended my time in Paris with a last meal of Chipotle (there are only Chipotles in London and Paris so I made sure it was part of my trip!) and I nearly cried. The food in Spain is bland and it was probably the most delicious thing I have eaten in four months!

View from Eiffel Tower

By the end of my trip, I have been to 11 different European countries! I would like to get to 15 before I leave-- we will see if that happens! Just an obscure goal.

After my trip, my friends continued on but I was back to Madrid to prepare for the best reunion ever! My friend from America (who I met while studying here) came to Spain for 1.5 weeks! Another one of our friends is living in another part of Spain right now, and she came for the visit as well. It was very nice, I got a taste of home (and a little bit of food, thanks Mom!), and my roommates were all at home, so it was the perfect situation. We did a whole lot of hanging out and doing exactly what we did when we studied abroad.

During their visit, it was New Years! In Spain, New Years Eve is called Nochevieja and it is a family oriented day with a big meal for dinner. Then at midnight, they eat 12 grapes and make wishes for each month of the year. My friends and I stayed at my house for dinner and the countdown, and then went out at about 2 am! This is very normal in Spain, but on New Years it was very weird to not be at our celebration at midnight!

Spain also celebrates Día de los reyes on January 6th. This is actually a bigger deal than Christmas.  It is when the kids get their gifts (Santa doesn't always come here) from the reyes magos.  There is a big parade in Madrid before, which we went to as well.

So that was my last couple months!

Moving forward, I am planning a couple of more trips within Spain and hopefully one outside for spring break (during semana santa, or holy week).  I am trying to decide if I will be staying here for another year, or what my next move will be! If anyone is bored, please visit me in Spain :)