We are on the go all the time.....

I should never let the blog go for this many days - there is so much to write about! Here goes!
On Thursday we had a tour of Estadio Bernabéu - the stadium that is the home to Real Madrid football team. Real Madrid is best known as a football team, but in reality it is an entire conglomoration of sports - tennis, golf, basketball and others. The stadium is huge and seats approximately 70,000 fans. We saw the history of the club, trophies, videos, team photos, shoes, balls and all manner of memorabelia. The trophy room is expecially spectacular. We couldn´t quite get down to the pitch level as they were stripping the turf with a very interesting little machine that just lifted the turf right off the field and loaded it into a little wagon that was then transported to a waiting truck outside. After our tour, I walked by the pile of turf and was actually tempted to grab a little tuft...until I realized that I had no idea what I would do with it....temporary insanity brought on by spending inordinate amounts of time with teenage boys. The highlight, I think was the chance to sit in the team seats on the sideline. They are SO comfortable that you just want to relax there for hours! And I have no idea why, but the locker room is always a hit... like they never saw one before! The tour ends in the Real Madrid store where everything you ever dreamed of owning (and some things you NEVER) dreamed of owning, has the RM logo on it. Televisions, action figures, underwear, stuffed animals, pet beds, bed linens...you name it!

On Friday afternoon the guys were supposed to have a salsa/merengue class... but it kind of turned into a "hip-hop" class with a young instructor who was quite the dancer. He ended is hour of instruction with a short demo using "Billie Jean" and "Thriller" in tribute to Michael Jackson. He was quite the amazing dancer!

Then, I took the guys to see the Manzanares river, the original border of the ancient city of Madrid. Since they had been to the Prado on Tuesday and had seen the work of Francisco de Goya, we also went to see the church of St. Antonio de las Floridas - one of the first churches that Goya was commissioned to paint in Madrid and the site of his tomb. It is no longer used as a church, but rather they built an exact replica (isn´t that redundant?) along side that is now used for Mass. The church itself is just a museum, with mirrors so that you can easily view the frescoes in the dome and the vault. After that visit, I sent them home as we were going to have a very busy weekend!

Our Saturday excursion was to Alcalá de Henares, a suburb of Madid just about 30 minutes away by commuter train. It boasts a wonderful University founded by Cardinal Cisneros, Cardinal of Toledo and personal confessor to Queen Isabella. He also became the Chief Inquisitor, so famous, or infamous, he is quite an important figure in spanish history. We got a great explanation of the entire university from a recently graduated law student. Her knowledge was excellent, although her Spanish was a little fast for the students to understand. We did get to see the room where Ignatious Loyola failed his examinations and was sent out in disgrace! Fortunately, he went on to have success in other ways....

The other important figure to have studied at the University there was Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra, author of El ingenioso hidalgo Don Quijote de la Mancha. We went to visit his home, which has been restored as a museum with many of the first transcripts of his work in a variety of languages. It also houses many of his original furnishings and the house is a typical example of the mudejar style with which the boys will become so familiar as we begin preparation to head south to Andlucia in a couple of weeks. Mudejar is the Christian use of the Moorish art, arquitecture and style and includes tile (azulejo), horseshoe arches, central patios with fountains that are open to the sky and geometrical designs decorating the ceilings and walls.

Following lunch and a some free time to wander about the city, we returned to Madrid for an evening of social activity at one of the most famous of the Madrid discotecas, Kapital. Now most of the boys were reluctant to go... since for some reason they were under the misconception that this was going to resemble a Prep mixer. However, to a man, they agreed that it was not at all what they expected and that at least, it was not the worst thing they every had to do, and some even had a lot of fun! Discoteca light occurs on Saturday nights in Madrid from 7 to 10:30 pm and is for young people under the age of 18. No alcohol is available, and the music is geared toward their age group. All the kids go - it is a great time! Some of them even met spanish girls whom they met the next day at the flea market. At 10:30 the club closes and reopens at 11 for the adult crowd featuring 7 floors of different kinds of music to suit nearly every taste. The discotecas in Madrid stay open usually until dawn. They are extremely strict about ages and everyone is expected to have identification - including the young people. No one under 14 is allowed to go.

On Sunday morning, I met a group at the Rastro. We went there the first Sunday, but some students wanted to go again. It was kind of a "free day" - they have had their time very structured - so some slept in, and others met me. They went home for dinner, a first for many of them, eating the main meal of the day at home with their families. We then met a 5:30 at the Plaza de Toros to buy our tickets for the bullfights. After getting the tickets, I spent about 10 minutes explaining how the bullfight goes; I think it is important that the students understand some of what they are seeing. It is a fascinating spectacle; some of the boys appreciated it, others did not. I do not make anyone come to the bullfights if he does not want to, nor do I make them stay if, after watching it, they prefer not to see anymore. However, it is an important part of spanish history and culture and so I make it available to them.

We had a few days of rather nice weather - warm, but not oppressive, but now the heat is returning to Madrid. The temps are in the mid-30s and the air quality has dropped somewhat. Everyone with allergies is feeling it.

After classes on Monday, some of the boys wanted to go to the swimming pool again. I gave them time for that and others met me to go to see the Iglesia de Santiago and the Catdrdal de Nuestra Señora de la Almudena. Almudena is an arabic word pertaining to the moorish section of the ancient walled city of Madrid. The area near the river Manzanares, the Palacio Real and the Cathedral is where the original moorish city existed. The legend is that the Virgin appeared at or near the city walls"al-medina" which is now almudena. The Virgin of the Almudena is the partroness of the city of Madrid and the Cathedral is new, consecrated in 1993 by Pope John Paul II. It is in direct contrast to the Gothic cathedrals they will see in Toledo this weekend and in Sevilla in two weeks.

From the Cathedral we walked to the Plaza de España to see the monument to Cervantes and El Quijote and then we went to the teleférico to ride the gondola over the city to the Casa de Campo. It has fantastic panoramic views of the city and Casa de Campo on the southwest side including the amusement park, the zoo, the river and the lake.

The students are much more familiar with the city now and have taken to walking much more than in the beginning. That is how they become familiar with their surroundings. They realize that the distances between metro stops is often short and they can stay above ground and get a good look at the wonderful sights and arquetecture of the city instead of riding everywhere. One of the things that I have learned is the cost of text messaging! I never texted on my Spanish cell phone - always called. However, this group began texting me and so I responded in kind. I went through 80€ in two weeks! I have never spent 80€ ever with my spanish cell phone so when I recently recharged it, I made a point of inquiring as to the cost of texting here. It is at least double, sometimes triple the cost of a call! The kids text each other the same way they do at home - as if they have unlimited texting. Additionally, many of them have american cell numbers so every text is an international one - I have told them to stop texting and to only use their phones when needed. However, many are so wedded to their phones that it is nearly impossible for them to stop. Please be aware that if their run out of minutes on their phones an cannot make calls, you can still call them. They can always receive calls, even if they cannot make them.

Today we have a tour of the Palacio Real. More tomorrow.

Well, I completely fouled up the plan for yesterday! We didn´t go to the pool (that´s today!) but rather to the Prado Museum in the afternoon. The Prado is a huge museum that houses Spanish art up to the end of the ninteenth century ending with Francisco de Goya. In the museum the boys saw the"big three" Spanish painters, El Greco, Velazquez and Goya, but also works by Murrillo, Ribeira, Fra Angelico, El Bosco and a special exhibit of Sorrolla. We spent about two hours there and I will return, taking anyone who wants to go with me. They get an explanation of the art, and although many of the students are overwhelmed (read bored) by staring at paintings by old masters, they do get a sense of appreciation for the art. Many of them have seen pictures of the artwork in classes and it is really wonderful for them to see the work in reality.
Today is the feast day of Saint John, a very important feast day here in Spain. The fiesta began last night at midnight with fires, queimada, fireworks and general celebration. Ted and Max went with their Señora to a celebration where she jumped over the fire (they graciously declined) and tasted the quemada - a blue, flaming drink typical of the celebration.
I watched fireworks from my window at midnight - they were occurring all over the city. It was impossible to sleep when they were everywhere, but watching from my high window was quite enjoyable. I´ve learned a new way to keep in touch with my niños - I´ve learned how to text on my Spanish phone!
Today is the swimming pool... and it is still hot!

The Zoo and kebabs.

Sorry, no photos today. I came to Spain without the battery charger for my camera, so I am completely without photos and am depending on the students to supply me with photos. We spent yesterday afternoon at the zoo/aquarium and I know they took tons of photos, but as yet, no one has given me any to upload. NOTE: Having posted that yesterday, I now have gotten some photos so am editing the post!
The Madrid zoo is located outside the city in the Casa del Campo. It is a huge zoo, with a dolphin show, birds of prey show and a large assortment of strange and unusual animals. The students alsways find it strange to see animals that we take for granted, such as the Canadian goose, or the north american duck in a zoo. It is a particularly enjoyable day, as the animals are in open habitats, at eye level and separated from the human viewers by a moat or a fence as opposed to cages. The boys particularly enjoyed the limurs, bears and various birds that came wandering over to us looking for treats. Apparently everyone feeds the animals as they were clearly well accustomed to getting peanuts. The birds, monkeys and limurs came right over to us as we stood outside their enclosures.
We spent the entire afternoon at the zoo, until it was time to go home for dinner. It was not crowded at all, and we strolled and spent as long as we wanted at each exhibit. It is pleasant to wander under the shade of the trees going casually from exhibit to exhibit, continent to contenint. Although we spent about 4 hours there, I know we did not see it all.
All over Spain, but particularly in Madrid, kebabs are very popular. Now I have never tried them and some of the students, familiar with kebabs informed me that I had no idea what I was missing! So, I enlisted them to choose a kebab restaurant that they liked and to take me for kebabs, which we did after dinner. How these boys can have dinner, and one hour later eat a kebob is beyond my comprehension. They were huge! But really good. So now they are teaching me! It´s all good.
The heat wave continues with temperatures reaching 37 degrees (98 F) in Madrid today. We are going to a swimming pool....

Weekend Adventures

Well the students are all back in class this morning with lots of stories to tell of their weekend adventures! On Friday evening we sampled some tapas and went to some of the "cuevas", caves in and around the Plaza Mayor. They sampled local specialties like patatas bravas, calamares, tortilla española, gambas al ajillo and we topped it off with churros and chocolate. The chocolate is more like a melted semi-sweet, thick chocolate - not drinkable in my opinion, so it never ceases to amaze me when the students consume it out of a cup! Heaven forbid anything sweet should be left behind!
On Saturday we met our guide at school and traveled in bus to San Lorenzo del Escorial a town about 50 km outside Madrid. It was built by Philip II as a palace, basilica, monastery, museum, library and pantheon for the Spanish kings. Today it is a school and monastery, and the basilica is still used for Masses. It is a massive, imposing granite building set into the side of the Guardarrama mountains. Our tour lasted about 2 hours - I think that was all the boys could take! They had some free time to wander around the town and then we were off to the Valle de los Caídos, also a basilica and the final resting place of Generalissimo Francisco Franco. It is imposible in photos to really get a sense of the awesome size of the basilica at the Valley of the Fallen.
The basilica is very dark and austere inside: filled with demonic angels and dark images. Although it is still used regularly for masses, it is primarily a mausoleum. The students seem to like the modern lines and the fact that it is cavelike in that it is carved into the mountain. The 150 metre high marble cross is atop the main altar and rises out of the rock into the endless blue, spanish sky.
We continue with the blistering hot heatwave, but I must say everyone has been really good about drinking plenty of water and as far as I can tell, no one is suffering inordinately from the extraordinary heat.
On Sunday I took the group to Segovia, an important roman town about 100 km north of Madrid. To get there we crossed the Guardarrama again emerging on the north side of the mountains and getting a great view of the meseta as it stretches across Castilla Leon as far as the eye can see. The highlight of the Segonian skyline is the Baroque Cathedral, rather small by Spanish standards, but beautiful nonetheless.
As we climbed into the fortressed city, we got a great look at the original "murallas" or city walls that surrounded the entire city during midieval times. We suddenly heard music and followed the sound. Turns out there was a festival going on and we got the full benefit of the parade and the giant figures that are carried in procession through the streets. What a great surprise for the kids!
We followed the parade up into the Plaza Mayor and then continued down through the narrow streets of old Segovia until we arrived at the Alcazar. An Alcazar is different from a castle in that it was a palace fortress. Not only used to defend a city, but a royal residence as well. This particular alcazar is important also because it was the model for the Disney Kingdom castle in Disneyland, CA. It is also the place where Isabella was crowned queen of Castilla in 1474 and the boys got a great visit of the throne room, chapel, armory, bedroom and finally got to climb the tower to the top of the Alcazar. One of my favourite things about this particular castle is that the students can take as many photos as they want of the interior. In so many places no interior photos are permitted... but in Segovia there are no prohibitions at all.
After the Alcazar, we found pizza for lunch (that was a hit!) and then went to the Cathedral for a visit. It is on the Camino de Santiago route from Madrid. Although I have not walked this particular route, I showed the boys the chapel of Santiago in the Cathedral and they were fortunate enough to be able to get a "pilgrim stamp". I asked at the entrance if they would allow them to see the stamps that pilgrims receive when they visit the places along the pilgrimage route. Each of them received their own pilgrim stamp on their entrance ticket! From there we walked down to the roman acueduct which was in use until the 1980s. It still works, bringing water 13 km from the mountians into the town of Segovia, but has been turned off in recent years. It is a dry structure, no mortar or cement in the lower part and it over 2000 years old. We got back to Madrid at about 8:45, just in time for them to get home for dinner. It was a long day and a long weekend, but I think they enjoyed it. The teachers have told me this morning that the boys had many things to talk about and are much more animated in their classes. They are beginning to ask to visit certain museums and asking lots of questions (besides, "Can we eat now?"). And they are starting to keep up with me - soon, I´ll be the one lagging behind!

Busy days!

We have been busy! And so it has been a few days since I´ve been able to write. To catch everyone up.... on Tuesday afternoon we went to the movies as a respite from the heat. I don´t know how much of the film they actually understood, but we were in air conditioning, and they were getting lots of Spanish! We had some thunder storms later that evening, but they did not help to alleviate the heat!
On Wednesday afternoon the "afternoon activity" was a flamenco lesson. All the Prep students in addition to some of the other students at International House joined in a lesson of the basic steps and hand movements of the traditional music and dance of the Spanish gypsies. Their class lasted an hour and a half and my experience is that when we eventually get to see flamenco, having had the lessons gives them a particular appreciation for the complexity of the art.
The favourite passtime that has emerged is to play frisbee in the park. They purchased two frisbees and have begged to spend the afternoon "downtime" between the activities and dinner in the Parque de Retiro playing frisbee under the trees.
Today, while they are in "club de conversacion", I wandered in to see what was going on, and they begged me to escape to the park! We will head out there later.
Our weekend will be very busy - tomorow we will go to the Escorial and the Valle de los Caidos in an excursion provided by the school. On Sunday I shall take them out to Segovia to see the aqueduct and the Castle.

First day of classes yesterday! After all the trepidation about the test and leveling, they all survived! Cell phones have been obtained, and so they are all back to their usual tricks of calling each other around the corner. Oh well, they´ll learn soon.

After classes and lunch, our afternoon activity was to go rowing on the "estanque" in el Parque Retiro. We were accompanied by a young German who, after 45 minutes of rowing around the little lake, took us walking around the large city park as well. Retiro was originally a park for the relaxation and enjoyment of the royal family, but it was ceded to the city of Madrid so that all the citizens might enjoy its fountains, paths, shade trees, gardens and various lakes. It is a huge park in the center of the city, not unlike Central Park. People rollerblade, ride bikes, run, stroll and just relax under she trees. On weekends it is filled with puppet shows, mimes, music and is a great place for people watching.

The crystal palace, is constructed entirely of glass and azulejo tiles, the typical painted tiles of Spain. It overlooks a fountain, waterfall and small pond filled with goldfish, turtles, ducks and geese. It provides at least a little visual respite from the intense heat of the afternoon.

Following our afternoon outing, I sent the boys home for a rest and dinner and we met at 10 pm in front of the Opera House to take a little evening walking tour of the city after dark. The buildings and statues are illuminated and the white marble and granite are in beautiful contrast to the dark skies. We visited the Royal Palace and the Cathedral de la Almudena where we paused for a little history lesson - the nice thing about walking around in Madrid is that they are always anxious to sit down somewhere so I get a captive audience when I want to tell them stories about what they are seeing! There is a method to my madness!

We then walked up the Calle Mayor through the old city to the Plaza Mayor. After the heat of the day, it was really a pleasure to be out in the relative coolness of the evening and they boys are beginning to understand why Madrileños come out at night! We continued on to the literary section of the city - locales frequented by Cervantes, Miquel de Unamuno and Ernest Hemingway. Then on down through the main street, the Gran Vía to the Plaza de Cibeles and the post office.
Since the metro is underground in all parts of the city it is not unusual to walk over air vents from the subway below. Usually they are a quick blast of cool, conditioned air on the hot street and I am so used to them that I take no notice! Unfortunately last night, I wandered over one while wearing a rather full skirt and had a Marilyn Monroe moment as the blast of air came up out of the metro! What a surprise! Fortunately, the boys were so busy in their respective conversations that they did not notice and I was quickly able to gather my skirt. I must remember to be more careful!

After about an hour and a half of evening sightseeing, I was tired (they were probably getting their second wind!) and I sent them home! I am happy to report, that all were bright eyed and on time for classes this morning. There is a full week of events planned - a mixture of culture and fun (don´t tell them, but they´ll be learning during the fun stuff as well!) Today, swimming in a community pool, tomorrow, flamenco dancing, Thursday the Thyssen Museum and on the weekend, Saturday the Escorial/Valle de los Caídos and on Sunday I shall take them to Toledo. ¡Nos vemos!

Hello everyone! After a little bit of a rocky start, we finally all arrived! Our flight out of JFK was delayed one and a half hours due to weather. We finally got out around 7:30 pm and the flight itself passed quickly and without incident. No problems on arrival... all luggage got in just fine and while our driver took the boys to their respective homes, I collected Alex and Max from their flight. They were then dropped off at their homes. Our afternoon meeting plans were thrown into a bit of chaos when I got a call from Tomek and Marek in Warsaw that they had had problems with their flight getting out of NY and missed their connection to Madrid. The only connecting flight they could get was through Munich, arriving in Madrid at 9:30 in the evening. Apparently they had departed from the gate, were second in line for takeoff and a passenger stood up, announced that he was having an anxiety attack and needed to get off the plane. They had to turn around, return to the gate, remove the passenger, then his luggage and after that, more passengers became agitated that they were afraid he had left something on the plane and didn´t want to fly! They finally calmed everyone down, after the captain threatened to cancel the flight for 48 hours... and took off. These two poor guys were traveling for more than 25 hours. However, they were troopers and arrived smiling and cheerful- I don´t think I could say the same had it happened to me!
We met in the Puerta del Sol on Sunday morning and went to the Rastro, the wonderful flea market that occurs every Sunday morning in Madrid. We rode the metro together, I showed them where the school was, we got telephones, we walked around "Old Madrid". They have learned how to order food, use an ATM, buy metro tickets, use the metro map to find their way around, where the street signs are, how to ask for directions. They now know where to get water and they rapidly learned how much they hate to wait for part of the group when they don´t arrive ontime. So they have learned how to be ontime! I am extremely happy to report that they were ALL on time or even early for the first day of classes today!
Yesterday was the feast of Corpus Christi and outside the Royal Palace was set up for an outdoor Mass and solemn procession. While these are common in Spain, you have to be in the "right place at the right time" in order to see one. We went to the Mass, and after the Mass had front row spots for the procession. There are some wonderful pictures. Unfortunately, I don´t have any as I couldn´t find my camera battery charger...I´ll get some from one one of the students and get some photos posted.
The boys are having a little trouble keeping up with me. They seem to tire (of walking) more rapidly than I (go figure!!!!) But I bravely press on! There is so much to see and do, that I just keep going and they have to keep up!
Today is their first day of class. They have all been tested and are in classes... but they will be moved according to their various abilities once the teachers get to know them. They all tell me they are speaking so much Spanish in their homes and already feel that they understand so much more!
I have a couple of more phones to get today and they will be all set. By the end of today, they should have all had the chance to send emails home.
I am sending the link for the blog to Prep so it can be placed on the Prep website for easier access. I´ll try to add every couple of days! But don´t worry, they are all fine and having a great time!