Jamon, Jamon, y mas Jamon!

The people from Madrid love cerdo (pig)! I could see this from week one here. Most little bars give you a tapa or little snack when you order a drink. My guess it about 89% of the time it's from pig. Chorizo, Lomo, Bacon, Panceta, and Jamon just to name a few. There are lot's of shops in the center that are dedicated to just pig meat. One of which is called Museo del Jamon (Museum of ham). I was just curious to see how many Museo del Jamon are in Madrid so I Googled it for my area and to my surprise I found eight close to me! In these Museum they had rows and rows of pig hips and legs hanging down from the ceiling to cure the meat. Not only is it a surprisingly large amounts of meat in the shops, it's also where people sit down for a beer and snacks right where the meat is hanging.

Another aspect of the food I found really surprising was the markets. I went to Valencia last weekend with a group of friends and we went in one of the biggest markets in all of Spain. I saw every type of meat hanging around you could think of and more. The photo posted above is actually a quite modest picture compared to ones I was considering of posting but even I couldn't stand to look at them again. Things like: small animals completely whole and skinned, brains of an animal next to the skull, whole goose, chicken heads, and skinned frogs just to name a few. And this was before we went into the seafood section. They had everything you could think of and more. Whole fresh octopus and squid, live eels in a swallow pool, and lots more. Needless to say it was definitely a cultural shock from what most Americans are used to from packaged food bought at the supper market. However, the fresh fruit and vegetables was a nice sight to see.

The food is great in Madrid, and was as well in Valencia, but I would recommend trying new things and not just the things you are used to. There are of course a large selection of food from all over the world here but if you eat pizza, or McDonald's while your out here you not really experiencing the culture or the food. The Spanish people know how to cook Spanish food; so eat that. Eat pizza in Italy and just stay away from McDonalds in general is my opinion. I always ask the waiter what he or she recommends and from this I had one of best things I've eaten here... also the worst thing too- that's just because I don't like anchovies and other salty fish on top of potato chips. However, I tried to eat as much as I could because I didn't want to waste it and she was so eager for me to try it she gave it to me for free.

The city that never sleeps (and not New York)

Madrid has a lot to offer any type of person from all over the world. The city is rich in culture, art, great food, and nightlife. Oh yes nightlife. I thought I stayed up late in the United States but so far nothing compares to Madrid's nightlife. Not only are the Madrileños aware of this, they are proud of it. One of the first questions I get after telling a Madrileño I'm from America is "have you been out clubbing yet?" or "how do you like the night life?" always with eagerness. After living here for just about a month I feel like I can finally go out like a proper Madrileño. I learned fast that there is some short of "right" system to really fiestar como un Madrileño.

I know this is a blog for university and I really shouldn't be giving out "how to party tips" but it's not really like that. To people in Madrid it's actually a very social thing and really makes up a large part of their city, culture, and economy. I had a short two and a half week Spanish class to improve my Spanish before I started school since all of my classes are in Spanish, and one of the first things my teacher taught the class was the culture of the nightlife and how time is different here. It actually was very helpful, I just wish I knew it earlier.

Step one: Start everything later; do everything different from before. You have to remember that the scheduled that the locals are on can be very different from yours. All of the times the people do things are very different from what I was used to in the United States.  The first time I went out with my German friend we arrived at the bar at around  11 or 12pm. There was literary three other people in there. We thought- wow we must have pick the wrong place. We left and went to a few different place; all of which were vacant. We thought we must have picked the wrong night, but by around 2am the streets were packed. Every bar, club, discotheque all packed. The next day I was telling someone from Madrid that I met about this and they couldn't believe how early we went out.


When we were in the first bar at 12pm, the local people were still finishing up dinner or tapas and drinks. We didn't know this then but all of the people do everything so much later, and for this the hours of a lot of stores and shops are very different from what I was used to. The people usually don't head to the bars or clubs until 2-3am, but stay out till 6-7am or even later! The metro closes pretty early at about 1:30 and doesn't open back up till 6am -I think this maybe one reason people stay up so late; so you don't have to take a taxi home. I know that is one reason for me. I live with three Spanish people and I was talking to them about this and my roommate, Maria, told me her and her friends stay up that late enough para desayunar "to eat breakfast". That has now become a reoccurring theme with me and my friends now as well. I remember the first time I talked on the phone with my parents and told them the times I was getting home they thought I was crazy, but in reality I was just assimilating.


 It's not just the times of the bars that are different here. It's just about everything. I literally had to make a time scheduled in my notes because certain types of shops have very different hours from the United States. For example, I went to go by my bus and metro pass in Atocha (a very nice, large Barrio in Madrid) I thought I had everything I needed to get my bus pass: my ID, the forms all filled out, a passport photo, and money. Once I got there I was ready to get my pass but I was missing a copy of my passport. So, I traveled back to my flat which is about 20minutes each way. By the time I returned to the station it was closed! And it was only 2pm! I must have went to that shop three or four times that week until I learned that, like a lot of shops in Madrid, opens in the morning, closes for a few hours between 14:00 to 15:00 and then reopen for the night until about 22:00. Lot's of stores are like this, but so far I haven't found system that is consistent.


One person I met from Madrid, Enrique, told me that this city parties "domigo a domigo y lunes a lunes"  Sunday to Sunday and Monday to Monday. So yes I think this really is "the city the never sleeps". I even looked it up on line to see how it compares to New York City. According to NDJWorld, New York City is ranked 32nd. Cairo, Egypt was ranked number one, and Madrid was ranked 6th. However, Spain was ranked the country that never sleeps because it has six cities in the top ten cities that never sleep. (NDJWorld 2011)

Another man also agrees with me. His name is Ernest Hemingway and he said "To go to bed at night in Madrid marks you as a little queer. For a long time your friends will be a little uncomfortable about it. Nobody goes to bed in Madrid until they have killed the night. Appointments with a friend are habitually made for after midnight at the cafe". This is a short quote taken from Hemmingway´s book “Death in the Afternoon” about Spanish bullfighting. This book was published in 1932 and this quote still holds to be very true.

A Bit of Background, A Bit of Backtracking

Hello fellow internet users! My name is Andrew P, I am Junior at University of Northern Colorado studying at the Monfort College of Business. I am currently majoring in Business and Spanish with an emphasis in Market with a Global Business Minor. I have always been a big fan of traveling and seeing new cultures so I thought to myself what better way to incorporate my love of travel and my current studies by getting out of the United States to see how business works on a global scale. I also thought what better way to learn Spanish then in Spain. So I decided to study at the Universidad de Carlos III de Madrid. This Univerisdad (now will be referred to as UC3M) also offers some great business classes in coordination with UNC and Monfort College of Business.

I arrived here in Madrid the 22nd of August with very little plans and high hopes for a new city. I was so excited the day before I couldn't even sleep. Mostly due to the fact I was still packing a little, as I like to do most things last minute. I've traveled about three or so months all together in South and Central America but this is my first time jumping across the pond to Europe. I had no idea what to expect or even what to pack. To say I was excited was an understatement. I gathered an eclectic collection of clothes as I didn't know what to expect. The majority of the clothes I packed were dress clothes as I am attending a business school. However, I was watching the weather the whole week before and weekly forecast consisted mostly of 100 degree weather. I was thinking to myself- How am I going to wear a button up shirt and long pants in that kind of heat!?

 After I arrived I quickly learned that the weather wasn't terribly hot as it sounded. There always seems to be a cool breeze and the metro is kept fairly cool. What makes everything so hot is the fast pace of the metro. I felt like it was a race to get off the metro, race to the next connecting line, and if you are in the way you will surely know with a slight tap on your body. When I landed in Madrid I had a piece of paper with directions to the hotel I would be staying at the next three nights until I found an apartment or flat to live in. I was fortunate enough to meet a Spaniard about my age in the Heathrow airport who ended up helping my buy my tickets to the metro in Madrid and well as briefly showing my how to use it as well. My first trip in the metro was sort of a shocking one as we do not have the kind of public transportation in Greeley like this. I followed the line of people like a sheep being herded from one place to the next. Upon transferring from one line to the next I walked up the stairs only to see a little kid peeing in the corner. That's interesting and not very conspicuous I thought as everyone could clearly see him.