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Tales from Spain

By Andrea Monk
Thomas Jefferson School of Law

There are three things I learned from my Study Abroad program trip in Spain.

  1. It’s the height of insanity for anyone who needs eight hours of sleep a night to function to even consider living in a dorm full of 20-something students who have just survived the stressful first year
  2. Despite the dire warnings to the contrary that almost every participant received, most Europeans do not hate Americans or assume that we all agree with the present administration. Most people in Madrid are eager to learn English – signs advertising English “schools” and private lessons were everywhere
  3. If you have a poor sense of direction and are constantly getting “turned around,” this will be 10 times worse in a foreign country

Putting such problems aside, it would be very hard to spend month in Madrid and not have a great time. Along with about 60 other American law students from across the country and a few Spanish law students, I studied civil law and comparative constitutional law last July through the Summer in Madrid program offered by the College of William and Mary School of Law. Other courses offered included Legal System of the European Union, International Environmental Law, Human Rights in Europe, and others.

Classes were held in the morning, while students used the afternoon for shopping, visiting cultural attractions, or getting a head start on Madrid nightlife. Students sampled Spanish tapas and sangria and also found Mexican, Peruvian and Middle Eastern restaurants, as well as a variety of music. One woman even caught a Bruce Springsteen concert as he stopped in Madrid during the middle of his European tour. On the weekends, groups of students headed for Toledo or Barcelona, Spain; Paris, Rome and Morocco by plane or on one of Spain’s many high-speed trains.

Madrid is a paradise for art lovers. The famous Museo del Prado was a “must” for everyone. The Museo Nacional Centro de Arte and the Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza are located in the same “golden triangle of art,” a plaza in central Madrid. All three feauture the painting of the European masters. Admission was free on one weekday and on Sunday evening.

Shopping was also a popular pastime. Madrid has dozens of shops and boutiques, as well as American and European designer clothing, and everything is in walking distance of a Metro stop. July is the top month for “rebajas” (sales), and the women in the group made some real finds in the latest styles of clothes and shoes. There are also interesting flea markets, and the shops at the Metro stops sell cheap, tourist-y clothing, accessories and toys. Most shops and restaurants close from 2 to 4 p.m. for “siesta,” but those that are most popular with English-speaking tourists are starting to stay open all day.

Our home base was a very rundown, but clean and safe, undergraduate dormitory of a private Catholic University in the Ciudad Universitaria (University City) area of Madrid.

Our classroom building was just a couple of blocks away, and the nearest Metro (subway) station was just a few steps away. The Metro and literally “pounding the pavement” were our main forms of transportation, with a few taxi rides thrown in. I wore out two pairs of shoes on the trip. William and Mary advised against renting a car in Madrid, and after a few hours there, everyone understood why.

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