Day One

I finally arrived in Madrid today!! The flight was a long 8 hours, and although I only slept 4 hours the night before, I couldn't sleep on the plane. I sat next to a lovely girl who was traveling to Greece, and we talked for hours. I was also fortunate enough to sit near 3 crying babies, which is another reason why I couldn't sleep. We were served a hot dinner and healthy breakfast. The tv screens on the plane continuously showed a map with our current location as well as how many miles we had traveled, the current temperature, what time it was, etc. I arrived in Madrid around 8am and was astounded by their beautiful airport. The airport looked fairly new and all the signs were written in Spanish and English. Since it was so early, there weren't very many people at the airport, so I wasn't worried about my luggage or purse.

 My jumbo plane!

                                                                   Chicken & Rice!

Deusto representatives met us at the airport and took a group of us on a bus to the hotel. We were grouped into three's and assigned a room. My roommates and I were so exhausted that we took a little nap before meeting the whole group for lunch. There is around 100 people in the program and maybe only 1/3 of them are guys. After we ate lunch, we boarded two charter buses and went sightseeing throughout Madrid. We stopped at the Royal Palace and toured the inside. This is where the king and queen used to live. Then, we walked around the old downtown of Madrid and visited several different plazas. It was around 100 degrees outside with no breeze and no clouds in the sky. Let's just say I was sweaty, exhausted, and thirsty. After the tours, we went back at the hotel for a meeting and then dinner at 9pm. Can you believe it that it's still light outside after 10pm?!? Well time for bed! I have another busy day tomorrow!

                                                          Madrid Soccer Team Stadium

                                                                       Royal Palace

                                                             Beautiful architecture

                                                             Olivia and I in the hot sun

                                                                       Plaza Mayor