As an American, when it comes to international news, I am some-what stuck in the U.S. bubble. Actually, in general, I never know what’s going on in the world. However Spain opened my eyes a little. My host dad and I would watch the international news almost every night and I learned a lot about current news, but also a lot about Spain, its economic crisis, and its culture.

One of the events that I leaned about was M-11, a terrorist attack in Madrid done by Al-Queda on March 11 using the Renfe Trains that connect Madrid to the cities on the outskirts. Alcala de Henares is one of these trains, and this line was actually the line used to transport 3 bombs into Madrid’s main station, Atocha.

Most of the people in Alcala know someone who was on one of the trains that day. It seems that terrorism isn’t just a problem in the United States. After 9-11, Spain and the U.K. stood behind the United States’ decision to fight terrorism, but what exactly have we done to help Spain? I’m not saying that I know everything about this, but it’s definitely something to think about.

Location: Madrid, Spain