Through Sid's Eyes

Travel: Toledo, Spain

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 30 Jul 2017 20:16:00 +0000

On our third day in Spain, we were given a "free day" so to speak. Most of the other groups decided to spend time in Madrid, but my group and I decided to catch a bus to Toledo. Toledo is a small city about two hours south of Madrid (by train). Toledo is quite mountainous which made for some unique and picturesque locations. The city, as aforementioned, is very small, so small in fact, that it would probably be possible to walk it's perimeter in an hour and a half. The inner city streets reminded me of a typical European street. Small, Narrow, paved with stones, and small shops on either side. The buildings which rise up on either side of the street provide a nice shade. The architecture of the city is something worth paying attention to. The central church would make any architect's day with high arches and domes. It is truly an amazing city. The significance of the city was not made clear by our guide, but from what we gathered, Toledo, due to its elevation and bulwark was impregnable by invaders which caused it to be one of the longest standing cities. From the plateau on which the city is located one can look down and see farmlands for as far as the eye can see. We paid about 20 euros for the entire day tour, but we were joking as a group, that just the first photo location on our drive into the city was worth it. I would thoroughly suggest visiting this beautiful city. While I wouldn't necessarily stay the night in the city, it is definitely worth at least a few hours. More content to come! Till next time!

Review: Grey's Anatomy

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sat, 29 Jul 2017 17:35:00 +0000

Grey's Anatomy is, has been, and will always be, my favorite show ever... Ever...EVER! Grey's Anatomy follows doctors at Seattle Grace Hospital (which eventually becomes Seattle Grace Mercy West, and finally Grey Sloan Memorial). As the series continues, you see the main characters move up through the ranks of the hospital, starting as interns and moving on to become attending surgeons. Grey's anatomy has been going strong for the last 13 years, and the 14th season is to air in September. Grey's and its amazing cast and crew have won countless awards for both the series and fort their acting. Grey's is the brain child of Shonda Rhimes, who is also the creator of Scandal, and How to get away with murder. Grey's is definitely a binge worthy show, and I recommend it to anyone who has nothing to watch, enjoys medical dramas, or is even remotely interested in the show.

Below, I have attached a link to Shonda Rhimes's TED talk. It is one of my favorites, and I hope you will enjoy it too! Fun fact: the year she delivered this talk, it was the third most viewed.

Click here to view Shonda Rhimes's TED talk.

More content to come! Till next time!

Story: Raging Rain Storm

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sat, 29 Jul 2017 16:49:00 +0000

This year, I decided to take a history course over the summer. Our day normally ends at 3:15 PM, and I am back home at 5:00 PM. Yesterday, just before school ended, administration came over the PA system, and called a shelter in place for ten minutes because of the heavy rain and lightning. This means that no one is allowed to leave the building. At 3:20, they came back on the PA and asked teachers to dismiss at once. I made it outside just as the rain was starting to pick up. Since I had an umbrella, I ferried other students on my bus to the bus. Finally, we were all on the bus, and it was raining harder than ever. Being the first bus in the line, we initiated roll out and as we got to the entrance/exit of the school, we realized that there was a car accident blocking the entrance. So we circled the school, and left using the alternate entrance. However we were unable to join the normal route because the police had blocked the road to clear a felled tree. We drove for what seemed to be about twenty minutes, making many turns to avoid flooded and/or blocked roads. Soon, we realized we were turning back into the school. Our wonderful driver told us that she came back so that she could talk to administration about the route back home, and in the mean time, we could use the restroom and get water. Within five minutes, we were back on the road. We made it home about an hour after I usually do, mostly because of all of the blocked roads. It was one of the craziest rides home that Ive' had so far. Comment some of your scary drives/rides. Stay tuned for more! Till next time!

Travel: Madrid, Spain

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sat, 29 Jul 2017 16:08:00 +0000

As soon as school ended, I left for a trip to Spain organized by my school. We visited six cities in Spain, but this post is only about the first city, Madrid. The posts about the other cities will follow. We landed in Madrid airport and went to our hotel immediately. The room reminded me more of a hostel than a hotel room because it had a kitchenette and even a washing machine and dryer. The accommodation was very comfortable. After freshening up, we went out to explore with the other groups. We first went to "El Plaza Mayor" which roughly translates to "The Grand Plaza". It was huge and very pretty. After eating dinner, we returned to the hotel and slept. Still tired and jet lagged, we woke up early the next day and hopped on a bus to go on a photo tour of Madrid. The bus took us to the third largest bull fighting arena, Real Madrid's soccer stadium, Miguel De Cervantes's statue, and an Egyptian temple that overlooked the city. After this, we were dropped off at the Royal Palace where we toured the inner rooms. We were also given time to explore the armory which had weapons from yesteryear. After the royal palace we stopped for lunch, and then we were back to exploring. The next stop was the Prado museum of art which featured some beautiful artwork. However, I am not one who really enjoys art, so I spent my time walking around for the most part with some of the other members of my tour group. That evening, we went to a tapas bar that was at the top of a building. We had a great view and enjoyed some amazing food. We concluded our day by walking around the busy city center and visiting the busy "Mercado de San Miguel" (Market of Saint Miguel). We took the metro back to the hotel that night. The next morning, we had the day to ourselves to explore the wonderful city. We however, decided to go to a neighboring city called Toledo, which will be the subject of the next travel post.

A quick note on the subject of the Madrid Metro System. In Madrid, the metro was a very useful method of transportation. Unlike in other countries, the metro was clean, straightforward, on time, and easy to use. While the stations weren't spotless, they were, for the most part well maintained and clean. When you enter, one enters a card into the machine, and a base fair is charged regardless on the duration or distance of the trip. The trains were for the most part, on schedule. The longest we had to wait for a train was probably 5-7 minutes. And when there was a delay, announcements and electronic signs displayed the delay. And last, the metro stations were a maze of corridors to get to the platforms (even the small stations were mazes). But one would simply have to find the name of the station they were headed to, then follow the signs to get to the platform. At each turn, two boards would list all of the stations that trains from that platform would go to. One would simply have to turn the right direction. I would highly recommend using the metro.

Stay tuned for more content. Until next time!

Review: Downton Abbey

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 27 Jul 2017 22:59:00 +0000

I just recently started watching Downton Abbey, and already, I am in love with it. There is something about the show that draws an anglophile such as I in. Set in the 1920's, the show consists of a aristocratic British family and their house staff. The show follows the day to day affairs in the house. We see politics played, scandals, and of course, forbidden romance. The unique characters are played by an all-star cast who do a wonderful job conveying emotions as so you feel you are really entangled in all of the drama. Viewers of the period drama include the royal family, Katy Perry, Tom Hanks, John Krasinski, and Patton Oswalt. The show is truly marvelous and I would definitely recommend it. The show has won numerous drama awards and the actors have also won awards for their performances on the show.

Welcome!

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 27 Jul 2017 00:30:00 +0000

Hello! Welcome to my blog. My name is Sid. I am a high school student who enjoys rather many of the same activities other high school students do. But what sets me apart; what makes me unique, is perhaps an unlikely passion. I love aviation! Any and everything related to aviation, I will read and want to know about. I love to travel, and I like to think I do it often. Unlike many others, I care very much about what airline I fly. You see, for me, the airline is more than a way to get to the destination. Something that people find interesting about me, is that I have a favorite airline. I am obsessed with Emirates Airlines. Enough about my passion for aviation! Here is a little more information about the blog itself!
If you care to stick around, which I sincerely hope you will, you will be able to read about the following. My unique perspective on issues, aviation and my recent travels, reviews of movies and shows I have seen recently, and any number of other topics. For the most part, this will be a mash up of posts in no particular order. Also, there is no specified posting schedule. When I have free time, and something on my mind, I will share. I hope to share more soon! Until next time!