Tuesday, July 7, 2009

Trip to Madrid

I finally made it back to Madrid for a visit. Not much has changed, really. They've inaugurated the new Cercanias station in Sol -- something which would have been VERY useful when I was teaching English -- and some bars and restaurants have bowed under the pressure of the "crisis". But there was still a fair share of MadrileƱos (native or not) out enjoying the terrazas despite the unbearable heat!


A few pics from my recent trip:


A percussion concert at the Reina Sofia as part of the European Music Day celebrations (June 21).



A fish stand at the new and improved Mercado de San Miguel (near Plaza Mayor).


Images taken from the rooftop terrace of the Cirulo de Bellas Artes.


Statues in the Retiro.

2 comments:

Emily Flowers said...

Hi,

I'm a Virginia girl who is thinking about going the same route you seemed to go on your Spain adventure (i.e. paperless) and I stumbled across ttMadrid which promises to enroll you in a program helping you get a student visa from which you can legally work 20 hours a week, and then helps you get employment. Just wondering if this is bogus. Ever heard of them?

musica said...

Hi Emily,

I have heard of them but don't know anyone who's done the course, so I can't vouch for whether what they promise is true or not. If you look on some of the forums, you'll find posts supposedly from former students, but it's hard to know whether they're real or just marketing. Here's one:
http://www.spainexpat.com/spain/forum/viewthread/6423/

In theory, what they're proposing is legitimate -- if they can get you a student visa, you can then legally stay in Spain for the duration of that visa and work up to 20 hours/week. The question is whether they can actually get you that visa. I would suggest trying to contact some of the former students in the forums. You could try the forums on SpainExpat, Notes From Spain, and MadridMan.

Good luck -- and please let us know what you find out!