Tinto!

Fans, readers, followers, another update from Madrid! Again packed full of adventures, so start reading …

On Monday I have my usual classes, which are often too early to give yourself the feeling that you are actually learning something. It are the most interesting subjects of the five, so I try to be a good student and participate as well as possible. The professor at Strategic Management was as unclear as always, so we did not know what we actually had to study for today’s review test.

It turned out to be a case which you could prepare at home, where we studies his PowerPoint sheets. Yeah, we could have if we would have known that. Kind of frustrating, because life could be so much better if he was a bit clearer. It is the opposite of Organizational Economics, where everything is known on beforehand. He gives strict information about what to do and when to do it. I personally really like that, because then there cannot be any misunderstanding. Another review test here, but this one was easy and I think I did it quite well. I can so far summarize Carlos III in one word: miscommunication.

Tuesday is the day of the two most uninteresting subjects, Operations Management and Human Resource Management. It is not because of the materials or the contents, but because both professors teach in a way that makes those classes uninteresting. The professor from Operations always gives homework which we discuss in class. You might think, what is wrong with that? Well, the fact that he is discussing multiple choice tests, that is wrong! The correct answers are given after you make the test online, so what is the point of giving the answers again in class?
The professor at HRM does not do the things stated above, but he first asks students about a subject they do not know anything about and then shows the corresponding PowerPoint sheet with the answer. Why would you waste time asking students if the correct answers are on his PowerPoint sheets? Both ways of teaching are so different than at Tilburg University, where the level is much higher. Students are obligated to do more things by themselves, whereas Carlos III looks almost like high school.

That day Kelly and I also switched mobile phone provider, because Yoigo is much cheaper than Orange. So we got a new number once again. Then we decided to head to Retiro and enjoy the sun. We walked to our usual chilling spot and saw Marlies with a girlfriend from Holland lying there, so we joined them. She told us about some good restaurants for pizza and tapas, so Kelly and I went out for dinner that night. We went to a street close to Puerta del Sol, where we found the restaurant Marlies recommended us. The terrace was full however, so we sat down at the neighbours. Well, sat down, we first had to wait an hour at the bar before we could get a table outside. So we immediately ordered some pizza, because we were starving. It turned out the be not that great, so we went back to the place we initially wanted to sit. There we order some patatas con ali-oli, which is a superb dish. It was nice to discover some good places to eat. I still am surprised that almost all Spaniards eat out every day of the week. I thought the country was in a financial crisis; we do not notice anything of that here.

Wednesday we normally have only one class, but we decided to skip that one, because travelling there takes more than one hour. Instead we came out of bed at 1 and we went to a Dutch phenomenon, namely the Primark. For the guys, it is a supercheap shop where you can get almost everything on clothing. It also has a male collection. Going there by metro, it turned out to be in the middle of nowhere; it was located in an outer district of Madrid. The shop was located in a big shopping mall, so we spent a few hours there. But as Dutch as I am, I did not spend anything.

The next day I had the longest and most boring day of the week. Today I did not skip any class and I even managed to survive them all. That evening, Merel came over for dinner. We ate ‘student pasta’ and drank Tinto de Verano, which is sangria with bubbles. Afterwards, we went to Sol where we met the others and we went for a drink in an Irish pub. We were again offered a free shot. I still think it was alcohol free. We did not like it at all, so we went to the ESN-bar, Enbabia, where there was a numbers party. But it was way too crowded, so we went on time to Joy, where there was some kind of student night. We could get in for free and three drinks were 10 euros, so it was a cheap evening. With drinks I mean that you could drink everything, so you do not order a bear, but of course a mix. A great atmosphere and a nice group of people meant a fantastic night.

The whole weekend I just made some homework, watched some great Dutch TV-shows and laid a bit in the sun. Studying is also something that needs to be done, especially here in Spain, if you want to get a good grade. Unfortunately, the weather continues to be nice, so the incentive to do anything for the university is not that high I have to admit. It is much nicer to be outside now it is still possible.
Hasta luego chicos!