Guest blog: R.I. Students Abroad

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March 11, 2006

Life in Madrid

Everything is going well in Madrid. I am currently enjoying one of the most relaxing semesters of my college experience. I'm not sure whether that's a good thing or a bad thing. As I have mentioned before, the pace of life is much slower and the people more easy-going. Unfortunately, I have still not gotten used to how slowly people walk. It drives me crazy when I want to go somewhere and I end up either stuck behind someone who is strolling along, or waiting for some of my fellow program participants who have eagerly adopted this trait.

I am living with a host family in a suburb of Madrid. Technically, we are still inside the city limits, but we are a bit removed from the actual "city center." Sometimes, it takes 40 minutes via Metro to get to school!

We live near the Casa de Campo, which is a large park that spans for miles along the southwest border of Madrid. It reminds me a lot of Rock Creek Park in Washington, D.C. The Casa de Campo has hundreds of entrances along its perimeter, with trails inside that are good for running, biking or taking a stroll. Many housing developments have sprung up near the Casa de Campo in recent years. There are also basketball courts, tennis courts and playgrounds that have been constructed in the area. Below, I have some pictures I have taken of our neighborhood and some of the things that my housemate Jeff and I see every day when we walk down our street to the Metro station.

Street%20View-400.jpg

This is the wall along the perimeter of the Casa de Campo. There are many "tags" and pictures or murals along the length of the wall.

View%20from%20Park-400.jpg

I think this view is beautiful. What do you think?

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