So the first 48 hours will not officially be complete for another 3.5 hours, but I hope to be asleep at that time. My cafe con leche at 11:00 pm and my OCD to get my first blog post completed before bed may thwart my intentions to rest soon, but I will not abandon hope. I WILL abandon this blog post, however, if it fails to go through. My first one was lost in cyberspace, but I am hopeful and determined that this one will be successful (aka stubborn and obsessive).

The weather here is beautiful! It is warm, but pleasant because there is a nice breeze. We have been very comfortable spending time outdoors all hours of the day. And since dinner time isn’t until around 9:00 pm (at the earliest) we really have been out at all hours! When we were in Florence we frequently didn’t return to the apartment until about 10:30 pm, but dinner was slightly earlier there, so we will probably be out much later in Madrid. Griffin is ecstatic about his later bedtime!

Although we have been jet lagged and had to attend some orientation meetings, our first two days have been enjoyable. The company that is assisting Berry with the study abroad program has been fantastic and it has been an easy transition thus far. Our first solo adventure was facilitated by an easy ride on the Metro system to Plaza España, one of the main areas of the city. We enjoyed soaking up the sun and were amused by some young men that were insistent upon kicking the football into the large fountain and made a large production of retrieving the ball each time. Curt got to see more of the city than Griffin and I did because we crashed at the apartment before the afternoon walking tour offered by the study abroad company. After he returned we enjoyed a quiet night in our apartment. (Until Curt started snoring, that is.)

Today Curt and his colleagues taught their first class in the morning and they seemed to be in great spirits. I think it helped that they found a nice café in which to meet and enjoy their cappuccino. This has become their tradition over the past three trips and I fully expect that they will be on first name basis with the staff before long. After a quick lunch we met to learn some of the customs in Madrid and received some help with language questions. We are picking up a little bit of Spanish as we go but our first instinct is to use the Italian that we learned on our last two trips. We are trying, however, and people have been patient with us. We have asked Griffin to call us madre and padre. Anyway, after the orientation we spent more time at the café and then decided to check out Retiro, a large park in the city. We will definitely be spending a lot of time there; there is a great playground and tons of green space, trees, and gardens. There is also a small lake with boat rentals, a pond with ducks and turtles that are insistent upon being fed, and a beautiful glass structure that I want to learn more about its significance. Last but not least, should I remain committed to running, there is a nice track around the perimeter of the park. I know there is more that we didn’t even see, so we will go back to explore. Plus, Griffin was the only one that played on the cool playground. I saw some things that I would love to try out next time when I have more suitable footwear. Griffin had a great time at the park and was excited to meet a boy that could communicate with him in English. Which is good, because one of Curt’s coworkers tried to teach Griffin to ask for all of someone’s money in Spanish. 😜 After our visit to the park, we walked to Puerta del Sol, a very busy area of the city, to meet the students and other faculty for dinner. We had a great time socializing with each other. As always, the students were gracious enough to listen to Griffin’s musings, play along with some of his games, and to entertain him as well. Our fantastic day was topped off by the conquest of chocolate churros. Griffin could not get enough!