Welcome to week 3 at El Escorial! I have officially completed 15 days in San Lorenzo de El Escorial, Spain. It’s a small town about a 40 minute bus ride from Madrid, and home to one of Spain’s most well-known historic sites El Real Monasterio de San Lorenzo de El Escorial (The Royal Monastery of San Lorenzo).  It’s a beautiful and historic and a cultural symbol of the Spanish monarchy. And to top it off, our dorm area is attached to the monastery, which is as unique as it is amazing. This is the view from my bedroom window.

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All 54 of us Alabama students have spent the past two weeks taking classes, building relationships, and exploring this amazing country. We have been to Toledo, Segovia, Cuenca, Madrid, and the adventures continue tomorrow with an overnight stay in Córdoba. (Which I’m SO excited about!) Here is one of my favorite shots from Toledo, featuring me and a group of my fellow UA students. The view was one of the coolest things I’ve ever seen.

 

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Even though the travel and the living situations are unbelievable, probably my favorite part is the Conversation Partner program. Smaller groups of us are paired up with local college students and they join us (and lead us) on many of our excursions. My partner is named Manuel. He’s 23 and is a Television and Film student at a university in Madrid. He loves 60s rock and roll and speaks pretty good English, even though we’re not supposed to use English with him. He spends time with us multiple days a week and is a ton of fun. We have developed a great friendship with him and are trying to convince him to follow us back to Bama. I have already had many unforgettable experiences, and I can’t wait to have even more over the next two weeks!

 

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This is my conversation partner group. Manuel is the one in white!