Tag Archives: Madrid

Comida Coma

Let me start by asking, why in the world isn’t Spanish food more popular in the United States? I live in two cities where Spanish is widely spoken and where the cuisine would be widely accepted, but I still have yet to come across any Chocolate con Churros places in the East Village. I digress.

Mercado San Míguel

The food here is absolutely amazing. I have yet to have a full meal per se, but don’t let that fool you. I think the only thing we’ve really eaten are tapas and croissants for desayuno (breakfast) that we split among ourselves – we look back on our days here and realize we forget to eat full meals most of the time because we snack here and there (but once again I’m going to blame the extremely warped sense of time here). Madrileños typically have a Café con Leche (Espresso coffee with steamed milk) for a breakfast around 8 or 9, which is followed a few hours later by a brief break where they are free to grab another coffee or snack. Around 2:30, they head out to lunch which can either be menú del día (prix fixe) or just sides of things – we usually have been snacking on pincho de tortilla and other tapas like items. What seems like a million hours later, but is actually only 10PM , dinner is usually served. It’s an extremely awkward time, or so it seems to eat dinner, but seeing as most Madrileños don’t go to bed until the wee hours of the morning, it only seems natural.

A cup of café con leche

Wine flows as freely as water here

So far, the girls and I have pretty much have had the same foods from the same restaurants because we are obsessed but here’s our top choices since being here.

Chocolate con churros – Jess and I have frequented the most famous Chocolatería in all of Madrid known as San Gínes. In no less than seven days, we have indulged ourselves five times. The waiters know us (I’m sure by the name las chicas locas americanas) and have begun to give us porras gratis, which are thicker delicious versions of churros FOR FREE.

Our favorite Churro Place

Pincho de Tortilla – This Spanish delicacy is composed of egg, onion, and potatoes. It can be served either hot or room temperature, though I prefer the warmer pincho. Accompanied with a side of bread, this comida (food) is always a favorite. When munching away at our local Mercado de San Miguel (the NY version of Eatly), Madrileños can be seen eating this as a late breakfast, lunch or dinner side. This is definitely one recipe I need to learn before returning home!

Pincho de Tortilla

Croquetas – I’m not entirely sure how to explain this tapa, but when I asked my roommate, Alinah, to help me come up with some descriptive words, she said, “Oh those fried balls?”Essentially coquetas are a mix of potato and jamón, but are particulary creamy and deep fried. Can anybody say YUM? I’m so excited to try and make these at home!

Croquetas

Paella – As if it wasn’t already the most famous food of Spain, I am in love with Paella (and I’ve only had it once)! Jess and I are on a mission to find a really good plate, but are honestly waiting to go to Barça and Valencia to find our new favorite place 🙂

That’s about all the food for now, but I promise to keep updating my facebook with my latest food adventures 🙂

P.S. Enjoying our American food!

McDonalds in Europe? Don’t ask!

I Made It

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Estoy aquí! I arrived in one piece, barely awake, but nonetheless extremely excited to go out and conquer Madrid. In typical Megventure fashion, our plane arrived an hour late which set us back a few hours for everything else I did that day. After taking a shuttle to Terminal 1 to meet NYU, a large group of us boarded a coach bus headed into Sol where we then proceeded to catch a taxi to our apartments. I’m living with three other girls from NYU and absolutely love the place. It was definitely nerve racking signing a lease in a foreign language, but after going over it lentamente (slowly) in Spanish with our lovely landlady, Patricia Mateo, everything was smooth sailing from there.

Roomies

After unpacking we explored around Sol (the city center and where we live), and found La Puerta del Sol, La Plaza Mayor and a cute little café where we nibbled on some Café con leche y croissants (Coffee and Croissants). We then took to the metro and embarked on a NYU walking tour to smooth over the jetlag (which is thankfully currently nonexistent). Much to my amazement, the metro system in Spain is incredibly efficient, easy to navigate and super clean. We took la línea amarilla (Yellow Line) to Argüilles from Sol and walked down Calle Princesa to the Templo Debod which is a marvelous Egyptian Water Temple given to the Spaniards in 1968. After getting a panoramic view of West Madrid from the end of the Templo, a group of us living in Sol trekked back to our apartments but not before walking past the marvelous and extremely beautiful Palacio Real, the residence of King Juan Carlos and Queen Sofia. For being a pretty spread out, non-English speaking city, Madrid is extremely easy to navigate – on maps everything seems miles away but in reality, everything is really close to each other.

Sol

El Palacio Real

Later that evening the girls and some guys from Amherst decided to go out and see Sol some more, which turned out to be a complete fail, not because it was a Sunday night, but because it was too cold for Madrileños. This city just gets me, its unbelievable: not going out because its too cold, siestas, wine all day, tapas instead of full meals, and the laid back attitude of la gente (the people). It’s an absolute sueño (dream) to live here and I can already tell that I will not want to leave (lo siento Mom and Dad).

The following morning (Monday) we all had orientation at the NYU Madrid campus which is located off the Santiago Bernábeu (aka the Real Madrid Stadium) metro stop. I myself was incredibly happy when I found out that we get to pass it every morning, but I guess thats just the inner soccer fanatic within. Although the commute is rather long – a little less than an hour – I’m so glad we live in Sol because it’s really the center of it all for us. Orientation is similar to welcome week: you meet a bunch of people, go out, forget names, take placement tests, sit through lectures on being safe, etc. It’s very relaxed and a great setting to meet a ton of people.

After orientation, NYU sponsored a Paella lunch at cool restaurant called Muuuu north of school. Los Díos! The paella was absolutely amazing. I was apprehensive at first to try it because I didn’t know what was in it, but it was so good. Words don’t even begin to describe it. Though the paella was apparently the best in the city, I cannot wait to travel to the coast and try paella in Barçelona because I heard it is unreal there.

That night, a group of us decided to head out to Sol again, except this time it was a lot more fun! We wound up at a lovely tapas bar that is very popular with both Americans and Madrileños – El Tigre. They provide drinks and numerous tapas for only 6 Euros. Trying the tapas brought me back to my “Fear Factor Days” of living in Japan because we didn’t know what was on any of the plates, nor could the server, Alberto, explain to us what they were. I still probably couldn’t explain to you what they were, but my favorites were the pan y jamón and las patatas (bread and ham, and potatoes). The jamón is very different here, but is absolutely one of a kind. There are Museo’s de Jamón in almost every barrio (neighborhood), and the Spaniards are very proud of it. I don’t quite understand, but I’ll take it.

Patatas Bravas

Following El Tigre, we headed out again to this place called Joy Eslava located in Sol. It was great place to dance, the weird thing was that it was completely empty until about 3 or 4 in the morning. Madrileños have an extremely warped sense of time that will definitely take some time getting used to, but as a night owl I’m sure I’ll really love it.

That’s all for now, off to day two of Orientation. Hasta Luego!

Hola Amigos

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Hey friends! Welcome to another Megventure! The countdown has officially begun for Madrid. Less than 12 hours until I plant my feet firmly on Spanish ground and begin my next world adventure. It is still incredibly surreal that I’ll be living in a foreign country for the next FIVE MONTHS – I’m sure when the jet lag catches up to me is when everything will hit me. Living abroad is nothing new to me, but exploring, adventuring, and forging a path on my own is incredibly fresh and novel to me – it makes me tremble in my boots (but just a little bit). The fact that I won’t be able to communicate fluently and that stores won’t be open 24/7 will provide just enough culture shock to settle me down.

I’m currently sitting in the Dallas-Fort Worth American Terminal nibbling on a banana, charging my iPhone (not that it’ll be of much use in Spain), jamming out to some music Phebe picked out for me, and typing my life away. This morning was an early one beginning at 0430 when American Airlines called to confirm my flight. Less than an hour later I was awoken by Bandit and Bear for the last time this break and made my way downstairs with my bags. I think everybody would be surprised to hear that I fit ALL of my clothes into a single suitcase and the rest of my shoes and toiletries into my NYU duffle. YES. You heard right, ONE SUITCASE. Let’s not recall the numerous times I have overpacked, but I think I deserve a crown or something for that. Unfortunately my reign as Packing Princess did not last long because as soon as I checked my bags I was told a) my suitcase was 4 pounds over and b) I did not have two free bags. Thankfully enough my bright eyed smile came to the rescue and the woman felt bad and upgraded my seat on my flight to Madrid (though I did have to pay for my bags).

No Idea How I Fit It All In There

After getting through security with a quick pat-down of my hair “because it’s beautifully poofy” (yes, the TSA agent really did say that), I made my way to my gate and promptly was asked by a soccer Mom if I really did play soccer (as if the soccer jacket and lovely thunder thighs didn’t give it away). We talked soccer for a long time, which always puts me in a good mood, then I boarded the plane where I sat next to a huge Everton fan. It was a quick two hour jaunt over to Dallas, where I quickly made my way to the Admirals Club. As soon as I sat down, a replay of a Liga game was on at the bar and two Barça fans were smoothly speaking Spanish – discussing Messi’s recent Balon D’Oro win (Go Barça!).

There’s really something about the beautiful game that makes it so unique – it transcends age, gender, race, everything. I can be anywhere in the world, and fútbol never ceases to find me. I am truly a lucky individual to not only be a student of the game as a player, but a fan, and hopefully a teacher of the game. To my amazement and incredibly disappointment I have heard from numerous sources that women’s soccer is not a commonality in Spain. I’m going to take this as my opportunity to make an impact and hopefully spread soccer to the female population because it has had such a definite and huge impact on my life.

Missing Them Already

I’m getting ready to eat some almuerzo (lunch) so I’ll finish here.

If anybody is in Spain or Europe for that matter, please do not hesitate to contact me – I’d love to meet up.

For more updates, check out my twitter @megpatten and my instagram @mpatten1

Palabra del Día (word of the day): Aventura – Adventure

Hasta Luego

Health and Happiness

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It’s been awhile. It’s been a really long time actually. My fingers lost their place under the covers the last couple of weeks and today I am finally returning back to the computer and the neglected blogosphere. I hope everybody had a FANTASTIC holiday, I know I loved coming home and seeing friends and family! Christmas was very simple – I was surrounded by friends and family, which brought me down from my “New-York-skyscraper-high”. After Christmas, my Dad and sister headed out to Florida for a soccer tournament (in typical Patten fashion), which left my Mom and I to bond over our love for seafood, the beach, and being social. Unfortunately for her, I came down with the crud which turned out to be a nasty kidney infection and we wound up in the ER on New Year’s Eve. Twas quite the eventful end to the year, but it made for great blogspiration. As I bent over to receive a very much dreaded and painful antibiotic shot in the left butt cheek, the only thought in my mind was “Thank God I’m not sick enough to stay here. Thank God I’m healthy.”

Looking forward, this year (for me) is about health and happiness. I head out to Madrid in a few days and turn twenty (yikes!) in less than a month. It’s a little frightening to think that I’m embarking on a new stage of my life, but hey it’ll be another adventure in the making. As I “Eat, Pray, and Love” my way through España over the next few months, I’ll be focusing on finding myself and carving my own path. Over the holidays I was asked multiple times by friends and family, “What are you doing with your life” – I hope that this jaunt abroad will help me find purpose in life (though I’m not ready to settle down on anything yet).

I’m looking forward to my adventures overseas and I hope you are too! To follow me abroad check out this blog I made specifically for my time spent in Madrid:

http://megenmadrid.blogspot.com

If anybody is in Spain or Europe for that matter, please do not hesitate to contact me – I’d love to meet up.

For more updates, check out my twitter @megpatten and my instagram @mpatten1

One Hot Mes!

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So for those of you who don’t get the title, please ignore my crude Spanish humor. It’s a play on words – I’m currently a hot mess with finals and there’s one month (un mes) left until I leave for Spain. Get it? Okay, probably not but anyways, as I was saying…

ONE MONTH. 31 DAYS. 744 HOURS. 44,640 MINUTES. 2,678,400 SECONDS.

I honestly cannot wait to be Madrid bound in one short month. Although my time spent in San Diego will be very limited, my time in Madrid spent away from the city, friends and family will be worth it (or at least I hope so). I have my Visa appointment tomorrow morning (yikes!), and just finished securing an apartment – everything is happening so fast! The one thing however, that I am not looking forward to is packing everything up. I have a tendency to overpack (to say the least) and stuffing five months worth of clothes and belongings into two suitcases (with room for goodies) will be a challenge – but a challenge I’m up to nonetheless. Let’s rewind to last Christmas Eve – one of my bags was 30 pounds over and the other one was 15 pounds over so Twist and Sam had to wear some of my coats on the plane and we had to completely repack my bags – it was a sight to see (and I’m sure the staff at American Airlines had a good laugh). I’m home in a week, and in Spain in a month. Phew! Time really does fly when you’re having fun!

A box of cupcakes, 2 suitcases, a duffle bag and one backpack later…

In other news, I’m going to Wicked tonight. I’m sort of nervous but very excited because a) I already know all the words to the soundtrack (Popular! I’ll help you be Pop-uuuu-larrr) and b) it means I get to cross another thing off my “list“. Anyways, I gotta go – I’ll upload some pics later tonight with a full critique of the play.

Meg In Madrid?

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¡Hola Amigos! So if you couldn’t tell by the title, or the introduction, or my Instagram, or my Facebook status – I got accepted to NYU Madrid. Although nothing is 100% confirmed at this point, I am beyond excited about the possibility of going to España in the spring.

Not much has transpired since my last post, except for buying a couple bunches of bananas ( currently obsessed with them). After I found out, I spent the afternoon dreaming of life abroad, googling Madrid until my fingers felt like they wanted to fall off, and going over verb conjugations in my head, as if I would forget everything I had learned over the past eight years in Spanish classes.

I can’t contain my excitement – I can’t stop smiling and jumping around like a five year old.

I can’t wait to take artsy pictures like this. And take siestas. And to live like a madrileño.

Madrid, I’m coming for you.

Tráigalo Encendido.

Jam of the Day: “Vamos A La Playa” – Loona

Going Bananas!

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Hey Everybody – sorry for not posting lately! I‘ve found myself to be busier than I ever thought possible – I’m literally running from class to work to practice and back to class all the time. It’s crazy to think that it has already been three weeks since the first day of school and that league play begin this weekend, but at the same time it’s great to feel like I’m slipping back into a normal routine (if you even consider my life normal!) In the past three weeks alone, our team has gone 6-2, I have made some considerable progress on my “20 Things to Do Before I’m 20” list, and I’ve found time to get a decent amount of sleep (yay!). Today’s post will mostly be an update on everything so far and a funny story or two 🙂

The Beginning of Foodie Friday (please ignore the massive white spaces)

First and foremost, I would like to say that bananas are so delicious – I do not know how I have lasted through sports so long without them! Anyways, I can finally cross off # 2, 12 14, and 15 off my twenties bucket list – four down, sixteen more to go! So far this year I’ve been cooking a ton – pretty much every single meal and have yet to burn down my room- which is an accomplishment in itself. My favorite meal so far is Amelia’s Balsamic Chicken and Asparagus Penne Pasta with fresh parmesan – it’s super easy and I’ll post the recipe soon. Another reason I’ve been cooking a lot (and learning) is because Foodie Friday has become a “thing”. It’s great to know that my friends look forward to coming over, cooking together and just catching up – it’s a great bonding experience for us as a team. This past Friday we also initiated a quote wall and a poster that lists the words that NYUWS makes up – I’m sure we’ll cover the whole wall by the end of the season!

The Quote Wall

Run a Half Marathon
Learn to Cook (Well)
Go on a juice cleanse for a week
Go to a college football game
Donate Blood
Go to a Broadway Show
Watch Every Episode of Friends
Go to All Five Boroughs in One Day
Go To Mexico
Start a Revolution
Submit a piece or photograph to a major publication and get it published
Start a Tradition – Foodie Friday is really taking off – people have come to expect it now!
Break a Record
Withhold Myself From Shopping (But For Only One Month) – Current streak is five weeks 🙂
Try Bananas, Mushrooms, or Yogurt (Or all three) – Bananas are yummy. Up next: Yogurt!
Fly
Visit Ellis Island and Look For Any Relatives
Watch a live surgery
Get Scuba Qualified
Make an Impact

Aside from trying new food and withholding myself from shopping, I’ve also had my fair share of “Meg Moments”. Just the other morning I was headed to my internship, walking across Union Square towards 14th St., when all of a sudden a homeless man comes running up to me, stomps on my sandal-clad foot and runs away. I am not kidding. But really, who the heck does this?

Cooking!

Going Bananas!

In other news, I applied to study abroad Madrid on a whim, we’ll see if anything happens. I would love to go but I love New York City so much – I would be absolutely torn. I’ll know if I got in by Oct. 1st! Oh yeah, and our team is going abroad in August… wait for it… Yes, London, England, as in my birth place. I am beyond excited! When I found out, I was in the ice bath and started splashing everything around me – one of my finer moments if you ask me.

Ar and I are super excited

Speaking of soccer, we’re headed to Cleveland this weekend to play Case Western. It should be a great game and you follow the stats online 🙂 Oh and here’s an update and excerpt from my NYU Blog which can be found here:

“At the beginning of the year, our coach quoted Paul Elrich “The fluttering of a butterfly’s wings can effect climate changes on the other side of the planet,” which explained to us that everything we do is connected and influences everything else we do as a result, either directly or indirectly. Now that we’re a few games into the season, it’s amazing to see everything starting to come full circle since our first day…

I keep finding myself spotting butterflies everywhere I go, and thinking about how just the slightest flap of the wing can change the weather in South America. The same holds true for this season, and for years to come – every ounce of sweat we put in now will affect us down the road, hundreds of miles away at a UAA game.”

I’ll end on that but I hope everybody has a fantastic rest of their week 🙂 Until next time!

Jam of the Day: “She’s So Mean” – Matchbox Twenty

Meg Patten

Creative Project Manager. Sports Marketer. Event Specialist.

Tag Archives: Madrid

Comida Coma

I Made It

Hola Amigos

Health and Happiness

One Hot Mes!

Meg In Madrid?

Going Bananas!