Madrid!

Alright, I am in love. Madrid is the most interesting place I have ever been. Between all the outdoor cafés, interesting people and DELICIOUS food I am ready to stay forever. Most of the two full days were spent walking around the very pedestrian-friendly city, but we were also able to explore the Prado and Reina Sofia art museums. The Prado was particularly interesting, as we were able to see all of the paintings we very thoroughly studied in Spanish 3. Although I'm not much of a fan of modern art, the Reina Sofia had several Picasso and Dali paintings, which are always fun to see. The most impressive sight however was the royal palace all lit up at night. It looked a lot like Buckingham palace without the guards and crowds.
After being here for only a few days, I have already had more coffee than I had in my entire life previous to this trip. "Café con leche" has become a comforting phrase after walking all day. Not only has it been a lot of coffee, but the best coffee. Every cup, even the very inexpensive ones have been so much smoother and richer than any I had had before.
I have a small tradition of trying raspberry sorbet everywhere I go. A few days ago I was able to try some at a small, all organic stand. While Montréal still has the best raspberry sorbet, this was a fairly close second. I have also been able to try creamy sheep's milk ice cream, coffee (which is just as good as the cups of coffee) and perfectly sweet strawberry.
While the treats are of course my favorite part, all of the regular food has been just as tasty. Menus here are usually set up as either tapas or a two-plate meal. It is unlike the US because multiple types of food don't come on one plate. There is no fish, vegetable and rice: each is ordered as a separate course. Another thing that is difficult to get used to is the fact that lunch is the large and most important meal of the day, not dinner. We eat a large lunch around 2pm and then a small dinner between 8 and 9. It is an interesting change, and has been the hardest part to adjust to, as we all get hungry again and are ready to eat a large dinner.
I have very limited Internet access, but will continue posting as often as possible!

Until then,
Buen Camino