Shifting into fifth gear.

I cant believe it is already February. It seems that just because this is going to be my last semester, it is also going to be my fastest semester. Time is flying by and everything is happening so quickly. My classes are 2 weeks away from Mid-terms and believe it or not I am extremely happy with my classes, I am starting to know what it feels like to study something one is passionate about. In student council we are already raising money by selling valentine`s day carnations. The business club seems like it is going to be very exciting, the team is coming up with great ideas and hopefully we will start implementing them very soon. Today for the first time this semester we played ping pong. Ever since student council was able to by the ping pong table last year, it has been one of my favorite things to do during breaks. Today the weather allowed us to have a little tournament and believe me when I say me being rusty is an understatement. However it is still nice to play. Tomorrow a large chunk of my friends are heading off to Granada on the Suffolk Trip. It is going to be quite with out all of them, but hey Granada is a must!!
So far everything is going smoothly, or it maybe that after 3 semesters I have grown accustomed to this place. Either way I know I will miss it immensely.

The Beginning of the end.

I am finally able to get back to my blogging. We have been back in Madrid for a 3 week now. Being student ambassadors we had to be here a week earlier than the rest of the students to prepare for their orientation. We were scared that because of the recent fickle weather some of our students would be delayed, but to our great fortune everyone made it in one piece and more or less on time. The orientation trip to Seville was wondrous. I have been there many times over the course of the past 3 years, but every time I love it more. This trip instead of taking the bus, we made our way to Seville on the bullet train. A 7 hour trip was condensed to 2 and a half hours of beautiful scenery. I must say I was very impressed with the bullet train. The picture is the tower of the cathedral in Seville. The view from the top is amazing. Today was our fourth day of classes and it was a very exciting day. I am taking politics of the middle east and it seems as if it is going to be an extremely enjoyable class. We have so many students from various backgrounds, some related to the middle east and other are not. Being such a controversial area of the world and me being from there, it feels like we will all get to see new perspectives. The semester is just starting but knowing that it is my last in Madrid I don't want to end. it is nice to be back in Madrid (home).

It is that time of the year.

That time of the year has come and as much as I would like to say I mean Christmas, It is exam time. Despite the fact that Christmas is beautiful in Madrid with lights everywhere and people being jolly, exams have to be done with so I can enjoy it. I went down to Sol (downtown Madrid) this past weekend and they had turned all the Christmas lights on, including the giant tree. It was a sight that just makes you feel cozy right away, all that was missing was a fire place, my family and some hot chocolate. I have to say it is something to look forward to after these two weeks.

Business Club

This semester my business professor started a new club, the SUMC Business Club. He appointed me as the "marketing guy", which means I am in charge of letting every one know what events we are planning to host. It is nice being in a club that is similar to a small company. We have a chairwomen and then other positions such as finance, trips organizers, business games staff...etc. This weekend we have put together a trip to Mahou (a Spanish brewery). I have to say I am proud of the job we did because that bus is full, with more people wanting to go. We will be going to see the second largest brewery in Europe. It is fully automated and one of the most ecologically friendly breweries. I am excited. Last week we invited a couple of guest speakers from the Instituto de Empresas (the best business school in Spain and the 5th in the world for Masters Programs). The lecture was a success and almost all business students attended it. Over the last couple of weeks we have been hosting a business product game, where students come up with a product and whoever has the best product wins a cash prize. To no one`s surprise that was a huge success and someone did indeed win. I really enjoy being part of the Business Club because we are doing things that really attract the students. It is not routine by any means and every new idea someone comes up with turns into a different experience for us to explore. So far the only thing that has been happening over and over again is Success and I hope it stays that way. I look forward to seeing what the SUMC Business Club will offer next. Let`s get down to business.

Family Reunion 2009

Yesterday, my mum called with great news. She bought me a plane ticket to Lisbon this coming Friday as a surprise. My sister who lives in Canada along with my other sister who lives in Geneva are both going to be in Lisbon for that weekend and my lovely sweet mother decided to ship me over there for a mini reunion. I am very excited that I get to see my sisters and mum. We are going to just relax, do little bit of bonding and have delicious heart warming mum made food. I am looking forward to seeing my friends whom I haven't seen since June because they were away for the summer. Every time I go to Lisbon I have the hardest time switching from Spanish to Portuguese and just as I get used to it again, I find myself back in Madrid speaking Portoñol (Portuguese-Spanish). It is confusing but i am not complaining, I get to practice my Portuguese and test my Spanish. I love having something to look forward to. A trip to Lisbon is good fun anytime. A trip to see my Family tops any of my lists. The two combined is just PERFECT.

Routine is in?

Today was the first day after the last day of mid-term exams, WHAT A RELIEF!
Generally speaking the mid-terms are fine but it is just the atmosphere that comes along with it that is stressful. Thinking of it now, I believe I did pretty well. I have gotten a few grade back and I am proud to say that nothing has been below an A so far (Fingers Crossed). It is a good feeling to see that hard work pays off. The weather in Madrid is not getting any colder, which is quite nice. We still get that warm fuzzy sun for at least a couple of hours a day. I just started getting the hang of my weekly routine. Be it work , activities, studying or simply having fun, everything has somehow found its spot in my week and is working out great. I get most of my things accomplished before hand or just in the nick of time, either way it works. The second half of the semester has begun and so far it seems to be going absolutely great. Soon a Halloween party will be hosted by the SUMC student council and that is something to look forward to, along with every adventurous weekend here in Madrid. Even though the routine is during the week, every weekend is a novel of its own. The coming weekend is always different than the one before and I love it. I make it a point now to always do something for the first time on the weekend, that is a tradition I hope I can carry on for a long time.

Galicia for a weekend!

I have never been more upset to be in Madrid! We just came back from Santiago de Compostela. This is a major city in the north of Spain and man, was it fun. The seafood was just heavenly. The first day there we had lunch at this amazing restaurant, we liked it so much that we went there again on the last day. The second day we took a ferry to an island a few hours away and visited Europe`s best beach in 2007. This island was just paradise on earth. My friends and I just laid around the beach all day, until the hot weather convinced us that swimming in our shorts is not that big of a deal. That water was cold! But it got better and better. We just swam from the shore we were on, to another one that you could not get to by foot and we climbed the cliffs and just enjoyed the stunning view (photo) I was overwhelmed by the beauty of the place. Later that night as we left our hotel to go get a feel of the night life we sat down an had us a little snack, only to discover that EVERYTHING is delicious in Galicia. The people we met were extremely friendly and we all put our Spanish to the test trying to understand the different accent, I think we all succeeded. The next day we visited the main sites in the city. All in all ,it was a once in a life time trip. I have a lot of sleeping to catch up on but I would give up that for a trip like that any day. I can finally and proudly say that I have been to the north of Spain. I can tell you right now it wont be my last visit because I got a taste and I am going to want seconds very soon. What´s next? Santander? A Coruña ? San Sebastián?
Time can only tell and I can't wait to find out!!