La Moraleja Hotel Alcobendas

This is a selection of photos taken in the second week of August. I was staying st La Torre but also visited Condado de Alhama and also took both interior and exterior shots of both the Jardines apartment style and the penthouse style which is the same as will be built at Terrazas. I ...

... tried to check-in and nope, we got a quick - "a las dos" - meaning it was now 11 AM, no checking in until 2 PM (or 14:00h as they say...this military time thing is going to drive me bonkers!). They held our bags and we had a great idea, let's walk and get some food. Let me share a little bit about where we stayed - in Alcobendas - not quite a "tourist" area. So, we walked, no food, we saw a Toys R ...

... We went to the Museum--Galería El Gayo Arte. It was nice, but we weren't able to see half of the paintings. We mostly saw paintings by famous Spaniards, but we have free reentry 6-8 the rest of the week. We plan to go back. We then walked around much of downtown Madrid and viewed the sights. Almost every little window has a balcony---but not all of them are even accessible in any ...

... fluorescent shade of green that they get during the spring rains. On Sunday, we spent a few hours in El Parque de Buen Retiro , a very lovely park in the city center where many madrileños spend their weekend afternoons. The park itself is quite interesting because the trees are planted in order to make the space feel much more enclosed than your typical park. As such, it provides a very nice escape from ...

... the end of my time in Espana! I had a whole lot of fun, especially because I was with Laura the whole time. Spain was very different than any of the other countries I've visited. The people, sights, and attitudes are very different. I feel like it is in general a rougher and more relaxed country than France, for example, but that makes it a lot of fun and crazy at times. Speaking of France, that was my next stop...I can't get over how lucky I am...

... there and have no interest in the subject. Dealing with behavioral problems and maintaining order in the class is an ongoing challenge. The language barrier is also difficult. It is challenging to get used to a new language and reach a point where you feel comfortable and can communicate effectively. It can be extremely frustrating and discouraging at times, but it is also rewarding." This experience is ...

... ride up to the sanctuary and after paying our tribute to the Madonna we took a funicular higher up the mountain to Sant Joan where we hiked a bit taking in spectacular views breathing fresh mountain air. If any of you do visit this peak please look out for a small polished rock with our names and ' keep the faith' message dated 29 Aug!

... We did get to see the major modern art museum which was fantastic with tons of Picassos and Miros but we still missed out on the second best collection in Europe in the Prado. I am going to try and wake up early tomorrow and see a little of it before we go to Salamanca. With my luck, it still might be closed! Tomorrow we are off to the University town of Salamanca and then the cheap living of Portugal. I´m excited to see more but disappointed to leave Madrid.

... into our own backpacking world. After a buzz of pick pocketing around the hostel it came closer to home, a guy from Montana, Kalen had his Digital SLR, passport, Ipod and backpack stolen from a fast food joint and Amilia from Australia got her wallet ripped off. So we felt we need to give a little moral support and fast acting happiness in the form of cheap sangria. We drank the day away. Later to agree that swimming in the prominent fountain, dead center ...

... they were envisioning me with a face that was ready to explode or something, which felt true, but didn't really look THAT bad. So, to appease them, and to quiet my own slightly hypochondriac fears, I convinced Jennifer to go with me to the public hospital. Good lord. Jennifer and I took a taxi there and went into the emergency room. No one spoke English-no more than a few words (despite what my guidebook had said). I tried to give them my insurance card, but they ...