THE PEACE PALACE IN THE HAGUE (THE NETHERLANDS)

           

Por Virginia Burke

University of Mississipi

Our Legal Studies excursion to The Hague was a trip filled with interesting meetings and sights. Of particular interest for me was the Palacio de Paz or Peace Palace. The Peace Palace is the home of the International Court of Justice or ICJ a court established by the United Nations to resolve disputes between nations. The ICJ is especially interesting because the parties have to agree to appear before the court and even have the right to set certain rules and regulations to govern the court proceedings. One of the most interesting rights that a nation has in this process is to request a judge from their own nation if a judge from their nation is not a judge of the court.

The idea of arbitration in this form was a very new concept at the time of the palace’s construction in the early 1900s. The idea arose from Czar Nicholas II’s hope for peace in an era where Russia could not continue building its army. From various peace conferences the idea for a central location to work toward world peace was developed. With donations from various governments, organizations, and wealthy partrons the Palace became a reality in 1907. One of the largest donations was given by Andrew Carnegie, while doubtful about the ability of arbitration to settle disputes among states was willing to support the idea if a library was included. That library is now the largest library for international law in the world.

Visiting the Palace of Peace was certainly a time to give thought to the idea of arbitration. The success of the method has certainly been proven through the ICJ in many different cases.  Since the concept and field of international law is relatively new this place is certainly at the cutting edge and learning more about this court has definitely helped to further my interest in international law.             

ORIENTATION OVERVIEW

By Hanz Berduo

University of Illinois at Chicago

Having the opportunity to study abroad can be viewed primarily as the ability to visit a new place and be able to instantly become accustomed to the area and live in the new country with ease. However, this is not the case. One must be introduced to the different aspects and fundamentals a new country has to offer. It also might be possible that visiting a country may cause confusion within an individuals state of mind and he or she may forget who he or she represents, their affiliations, or overall the individuals purpose of being in the enthralling new location. It must be noted that CIEE has done a wonderful job of being able to target those issues that a foreigner may feel during the first stages of a new adventure and expedition. Now living in Spain for two weeks, CIEE has made sure that the students, who have made an appearance to whichever program, feel welcomed to this new, majestic place with open arms. Students receive unconditional attention and care for unstable assurance and the many emotions a foreigner may feel during the first few stages. The transition to living in Spain from the United States has been facilitated by the comforting transition that is acquired and provided by the staff of CIEE. Thus, any paternal or maternal figure should know that his or her child is in good hands that can further be described as responsible, organized, and attentive to the needs of any student encountered by emotional distress.

            In addition, the safety of living in Spain is multiplied sufficiently by the introduction of our surroundings that create a solidified awareness of different locations as well as the importance of the country’s culture and norms. All this allows the student to avoid unnecessary confrontations with deviants of its society as well as saying the wrong thing to whoever is participating in the communication process with a foreigner. CIEE did show the student to learn to become less ignorant to the environment and as mentioned, the culture that exists as something very unfamiliar to one who has never considered such differences. This cultural education indefinitely allows the student to take a few steps further towards an enlightened form of living.

            Furthermore, with the help of CIEE, the new students are fortunate enough to be introduced to the many local attractions and areas of interest that cuts out a significant portion of time that an individual explorer must spend in finding these luminous places. All the sight seeing occurs during a faster rate so that more can be seen during, as it seems, such a limited timeframe. There is never enough to see, you just want more and more! This maintains the feelings of anticipation and surprise that allows the student to capture these moments with true significance that will be kept as memories forever. With all the benefits that CIEE has provided, it must also be noted that from all this assistance, the student forms a greater incentive to learn more about the new country and to explore much more than that individual had expected. Therefore, the journey that the student experiences, becomes more legitimate and genuine.         

PRIMERAS IMPRESIONES DE MADRID

Por Parker Wright

Wittenberg University

            Para ser honesto, España no era mi primera opción cuando decidí estudiar fuera del país. Ya había estudiado en Sudamérica, en Santiago de Chile, y me encantaba mi experiencia en ese país. En Sudamérica, la gente no tiene una opinión alta de España (algunos todavía piensan en los españoles como los “conquistadores.”). Pues, antes de llegar aquí, no había oído muchas cosas buenas sobre España y el pueblo español. Sin embargo, decidí optar por una experiencia diferente y única, la cual hasta este momento ha sido impresionante y ha valido la pena.

            Llegué a Madrid dos días antes del comienzo del periodo de orientación con CIEE. Me quedé en un hostal en el barrio Malasaña por estas dos noches, y lo pasé súper bien caminando por las calles de ese barrio y también en el área cerca del Prado y el Retiro, el área quizás más conocida y famosa de la ciudad. Al llegar a Madrid, me dió una gran impresión el hecho de que, obviamente, España consiste en una sociedad y cultura muy abierta y libre. No había pensado en esto antes, supongo. Madrid probablemente es la única ciudad en que he ido donde hay mucha más gente por las calles durante la noche que durante el día.

           Mi primera noche en la ciudad, caminé solo por las calles de Malasaña para ver la ciudad en su ápice. Me sorprendía la cantidad de gente en las calles a las horas como 4:00 de la mañana, una hora donde típicamente en los EEUU la gente ya se ha acostado. También es un poco diferente que lo que he visto en América Latina; creo que Buenos Aires es más así que Santiago, donde he vivido. Me impresionó mucho, e inmediatamente, el ánimo, la joie de vivre, de los madrileños. Aquí en Madrid, lo más importante es siempre estar con tus amigos, pasarlo bien, y vivir para ese momento. Un modo de pensamiento bastante diferente de lo que estamos acostumbrados en los EEUU, estoy cada día más cercano a este estilo de vivir.

            La vida durante la noche no es la única oferta positiva que nos presenta Madrid. Además, el alcalde y el gobierno local  hace fácil disfrutar las ofertas culturales que existen en la ciudad. Por ejemplo, el domingo después de llegar, me fui al Museo Prado, que es gratis durante las tardes de los domingos. Uno de los museos de arte más alabados en el mundo, el Prado contiene un montón de obras con temas religiosos y reales. Su colección es verdaderamente impresionante. Luego, después de la reunión de todo el grupo, nos fuimos al Museo Thyssen; su arte es más mi estilo, con obras seculares del siglo XIV y XX. CIEE  también nos facilita ir a comer, haciendo cosas como ofrecernos tarjetas de descuentos para restaurantes, museos, cines, partidos atléticos, y muchas cosas así. Quiero tomar mucha ventaja de estas ofertas para ahorros posibles. Tengo mucha emoción para asistir mi primer partido de fútbol europeo, cuando Real Madrid juega este sábado contra Getafe. Todavía quiero ir al Rastro, el gran mercado aire libre que está abierto cada domingo. Hay más barrios que quiero explorar a través de la ciudad, por ejemplo La Latina, Moncloa y Príncipe Pío. Además, espero que pueda seguir formando relaciones significativas con la gente en mi programa y también con los estudiantes que  voy a conocer en la Universidad Carlos III.

WALKING TOUR WITH A LEGAL TWIST

By Nicole Tiger

Brandeis University

Hi from Madrid! It’s only our second day in Spain and we’re already off running…or biking, I should say. After sightseeing the city from the awesomeness of our bikes, Cristina gave us a walking tour with a legal twist. We saw the buildings that house some of Spain’s most important legal institutions, such as the Congreso de los Diputados. As we learned later in our Legal language class, the Congreso de los Diputados is one of two “cámaras” in Spain’s legislative body. It contains 350 diputados, or representatives, and has more backing in its decisions than those of the Senate, o “Senado”.

While we also glimpsed sights such as the Ayuntamiento de Madrid and the Palacio Real, what really stuck with me were the cultural observations that emanated from every block. While in Plaza del Sol, basically the heart of Madrid, we learned that Spaniards are rather quiet when the clock finally strikes on January 1^st to mark the New Year because they’re busy stuffing their mouths with grapes. In Plaza Mayor, it surprised me to learn that all the balconies surrounding the open courtyard were once public property. If one were empty, anyone could simply knock on the apartment door and be led out to the balcony for a spectacular view. It’s so strange to me that you can own your apartment but not the balcony right outside.

With all of these cultural differences, it was nice to notice at least one similarity in the form of Madrid’s own walk of fame. On our walk to a picnic in the park, we passed a movie theater with about a block’s worth of stars in front. Between directors and actors, I only recognized the names of Almodóvar and Penelope Cruz. It was just nice to see a little reminder of home here in Madrid, me being from Los Angeles, California. Once at the picnic, I was again caught off guard when a “latero” came around with a bag of beers for 1 euro each. It’s so cool that because cervezas are a natural edition to any meal, you don’t have to look very far to buy one. Overall, I really enjoyed the tour and feel that it’s nice to have pictures to fit the descriptions we’ll be studying in our Legal language class.

CURSO DE LENGUAJE JURIDICO

Por Camille Valdes

Northeastern University

Tan solo a dos días después de llegar a España y comenzamos a tomar un curso de Lenguaje Jurídico, el cual es un requisito para los estudiantes de Legal Studies en CIEE. Todo con el fin de que al comenzar las clases en Carlos III no estemos tan perdidos y entendamos la jerga en el ámbito del Derecho. A pesar de que lo último que quería hacer a dos días de llegar era coger una clase, ésta no ha sido nada de como esperaba. Cristina, nuestra profesora, intenta de hacer las clases entretenidas ya sea con juegos o leyendo artículos que brindar cierto tono jocoso a términos que estamos estudiando. Como por ejemplo, hemos leído un articulo que habla sobre qué es la constitución y en algún momento del articulo habla sobre como no se celebra la constitución dando barra libre. Esto me causa muchísima gracia porque no tan solo presenta una critica pero también presenta la cultura del país. Una cultura que, por lo menos para mí, se asemeja mucho a la mía. Lo dicho no es tan solo cierto en términos de cultura sino también en el ámbito del Derecho. Varios de los conceptos ya era familiares porque se utilizan estos mismos términos para hablar sobre los distintos actores o partes del gobierno. Como por ejemplo, los conceptos del procurador, ayuntamiento, etc. son conceptos no utilizados en los Estados Unidos, pero en Puerto Rico sí. Claro está, haberlo escuchado y tener una idea de que podría ser son dos cosas muy diferentes. Ahora pienso que podría explicar mejor que antes el significado de estos conceptos y cual es su rol en el Derecho. Sin embargo, hay conceptos que son nuevos como Audiencia Nacional, motivación, entre otros. El resto de las palabras estudiadas por el momento son similares a esas utilizadas en EE.UU.

Como cualquier curso, este también tiene pruebas y ya tuvimos la primera.  Todos estábamos muy preocupados sobre como sería o que Cristina iba pedir de nosotros pero resulto ser una manera muy divertida de evaluarnos. A través del juego Taboo teníamos que explicar cual término teníamos en nuestras manos para que así los otros adivinaran cual era el concepto. A veces fue un poco frustrante porque sabía cual era el concepto pero por alguna razón no me podía acordar de la palabra. Pero al final, Cristina nos dijo que habíamos hecho buen trabajo y así todos pudimos respirar y tranquilizarnos sobre como sería el curso. No estoy diciendo que va a ser fácil porque hay que trabajar pero pienso que un parte grande de entender los conceptos es atender a lo que dice Cristina.

Yo pienso que esta clase ha sido un buen comienzo a nuestro trayecto durante estos cuatro meses no tan solo para nuestros cursos en Carlos III (que estoy segura va a ser una ayuda inmensa) pero para el día a día aquí en Madrid. Leyendo el periódico, viendo noticias en la televisión, entre otras actividades en las cuales se podría topar con todos estos conceptos serán mejor entendidos debidos a esta clase. 

LS ON A BIKE

By Virginia Burke

University of Mississippi

CIEE did not wait long to take our group to the streets of Madrid in a very memorable bike tour. While I’m sure our large group of bicyclists was a sight to behold, our tour was very eye opening and beneficial for all of those involved (especially me since I hadn’t been on a bicycle in probably ten years haha).

Our tour guide, Professor Cristina Ruiz, did a fabulous job of highlighting various famous places and areas in Madrid many of which were relevant to legal studies.  The tour began at El Congreso de los Diputados and I somehow managed to narrowly miss at least ten different people on the way there. At this site we learned about the two different houses of the legislature, which make laws and amend the Constitution. El Congreso de los Diputados is considered the lower house and the representatives are elected directly. El Senado is the upper house, which is partially elected and partially appointed. This was particularly interesting for me since this differs greatly from the legislative system in the United States where all representatives are directly elected.

After gaining some confidence in my bike riding skills we arrived at la Plaza de la Villa de Paris where three of the most important courts in Spain are located. First, we learned about La Audiencia Nacional. This is one of the highest courts in Spain that can rule on many different types of cases from criminal to constitutional conflicts. Next, we saw El Tribunal Supremo, which differs greatly from the Supreme Court of the United States in that it is the highest court that can rule on non-constitutional matters. Finally, we heard about the Tribunal Superior de Justicia de Madrid which rules in matters of civil, criminal, and social law.

By the end of the bike tour I was actually starting to get the hang of riding a bike again. After seeing the sede del Partido Popular or seat of the popular party and Tribunal de Cuentas or fiscal court, we returned our bikes and began a walking tour. Overall the bike tour was a great way for us to see a large cross section of the city and Cristina did a great job of giving us an overview of many of the important government buildings in Spain.