Viva Espana!

Hi everyone! My name is Nan. I am originally from Alabama but my mom is from Brooklyn so I have been going to New York several times a year since I was born. I love New York and definitely consider it my home since I never leave. I am a junior in Gallatin and my concentration is International Media and Marketing with an Emphasis in Sports. I play soccer for NYU and I am trying to work for Real Madrid while I am studying in Spain this semester. I have an interview on Thursday with someone who has connections to all of the soccer clubs in Spain and I have been in contact with someone at Real Madrid, so we will see how that works out. I came to Spain because I want to improve my Spanish. I have studied for several years, but I feel that you can only learn so much in a classroom and the only way to really become fluent is by immersing yourself in a culture. More and more people in the world are speaking Spanish, and this summer when I worked for Major League Soccer I realized how helpful it is to be bilingual in business, particularly for working in sports. I live in an apartment in Tirso de Molina with one of my best friends. It is a really cool part of Old Madrid that is very close to the Prado Museum, the Puerta del Sol, and Plaza Mayor, among other popular attractions. I have met some Spaniards and have been able to practice a little bit, especially in the restaurants and markets. We went grocery shopping at an authentic market where you have to ask them for what you want and they weigh it out. It requires a ton of vocabulary and knowledge of the metric system, which is definitely a challenge. Last week everyone in the NYU program took a trip to Segovia, which is an old and historic city that is well-known for a castle called Alcazar. The city is next to the mountain chain that separates the north of Spain from the south, and now many people live there and commute to work in Madrid. Otherwise it is a tourist attraction, as its business has been “sleeping” for the past 200 years. In February I am taking a trip to Grenada and Cordoba with NYU, and I also plan to go to Barcelona at some point on my own.