Every Great Day Begins With Miel Pops

Today I had nothing to do, so I explored some more of the town of Alcalá de Henares. I found the University of Alcalá which is about ten minutes from my apartment on foot. I milled about here taking pictures and got asked by a Spaniard with a cigarette for a light. No tengo un fuego, lo siento. The university was founded in 1496 by Cardinal Cisneros, a powerful figure who brought many religious and political reforms to Spain during the rule of Fernando and Isabel. The university still functions and I actually met a girl from Dresden, Germany while I was taking pictures who was visiting the campus and planning on enrolling in the engineering program. Here are some photos of the university:

After leaving the university, I wandered through some more back streets and finally chanced upon the birthplace of Miguel de Cervantes. Outside his house were statues of the main characters from his masterwork, Don Quixote, Don Quixote and Sancho Panza.

After this, Cody and I went grocery shopping at the local supermarket, Hiper Usera, and I bought a type of Basque sausage and bread casserole and some Spanish omelettes. It was a very relaxing day. Tomorrow I start work, then have a three-day weekend after that.

The First Day

Cody and I arrived in Madrid today around 8:30 in the morning. After arriving at the airport we took a bus to Alcalá de Henares, which lasted about twenty minutes. We got off the bus in the center of the town and searched for our hotel with the use of maps and bus schedules posted at stops. We passed the Universidad de Alcalá de Henares, an old university founded in 1499 where the playwright Lope de Vega once taught, and the Plaza de Cervantes, which was surrounded by trees and shops. In the center of the plaza stood a statue of Cervantes. I'll write more on these two locations later when I visit them some more. The hotel

is far from the city center in a fairly new commercial and residential district. Here is a nearby street:

We slept for a while after arriving, then looked online for some apartments. After that, we walked around area near our hotel, La Garena, and ate at a small restaurant called Carena Real. There was a Real Madrid soccer game on the television, so several people were sitting, eating tapas and watching the game. I had a sandwich made of jamón iberico, a local type of cured ham. The restaurant was also a bakery, so the bread was very good. It was toasted with a tomato rub.

Tomorrow we will look at some apartments and will also look for the school at which we will be teaching.

I'll post more soon!