"Poco a poco"

     February is a bit of a slow month here in Madrid, just going to school, teaching my private lessons and enjoying the sunshine.  The good thing about having some down time is I’ve been able to greatly improve my Spanish skills.  This is mainly due to the help of my wonderful co-teachers, but also because of more confidence.  This sounds obvious, but after a few times of trying to speak and not being able to get your point across, it begins to make you question how you even communicate in your OWN language.

     I’ve found that I had trouble making the language switch happen quickly when caught off guard.  Again this sounds normal, but this is even when someone used to ask me questions I am familiar with!  If I was grading papers or thinking to myself and someone (my roommate, another Spanish teacher, etc.) would greet me, ask how I’m doing or what I’m up too, I would draw a blank.  Easy questions I respond to every day, but if I’m caught off guard?  It took me a good 30 seconds to process what I was hearing and spit an answer back out.    30 seconds doesn’t sound like a lot, but it is when someone is looking at you expectantly.  Everyone remembers the feeling of being called on in class by the teacher when you didn’t know the answer.   It’s like that.  But you know the answer!!!  And you’ve said it many times before!!!  It‘s frustrating and upsetting when you don’t respond quick enough, and you can’t help but feel stupid.  A few times, Spanish speaking teachers would just greet me with an accented “Hello”  because I had been slow to respond a few too many times. 

     NO MORE!  I have been working to speak in Spanish consistently with my teachers and making my Spanish roommate talk to me more.  I also have been paying much more attention when people are talking around me.  I have picked up sayings, held conversations in Spanish whenever I could, and listened to a whole presentation  on Nutrition (granted it was for a 6^th grade Spanish level, but still).  I followed the lecture completely and even had an answer when the guest speaker accidentally called on me, assuming I was a spanish speaker.  Instead of zoning out when I missed a section or someone starts talking too fast, I really try to catch what they’re saying, and even ask them to stop and explain a word, instead of nodding my head, smiling, hoping they don’t ask any questions.      

Of course, constantly translating in your head can be quite exhausting and I still am very prone to zoning out.  I’ve been told over and over again that learning a new language is full of plateaus.  You escalate quickly, but then spend a period of time at the same level and feel like you aren’t increasing.  I am excited to share with you that last week was a period of escalating! 

     Things coming up, a trip to Rome for Italy, hopefully seeing my Uncle perform over in the UK and this weekend is Carnival!  Or Spain’s version of Mardi Gras…

Madrileña

Oh Madrid…

I just finished up another week at school, and am amazed at how quickly the days fly by.  Now it’s February!  I have a new roommate named Tracy from Colorado who is very nice and sweet.  She went to Boulder College and has blonde, same as my cousin Georgia.  When we’re out together, her blonde hair gets us unwanted attention.  I do feel bad for people here in this program, whether they speak good Spanish or not, who stick out visually.  You are treated differently before you even open your mouth, in positive and negative ways.    Some Spaniards are extremely helpful and compassionate when you run into a language barrier.  Others quickly dismiss you and get visibly frustrated when you stumble over words.  We all know this can be the case in the United States too…something I will be more aware of when I return home. 

That being said I reallllllllllyyyy miss customer service from home.  For the most part I have totally adjusted to life here and don’t struggle day-to-day.  However, trying to get something done/completed/accomplished?  Good luck.  Maybe the economic crisis isn’t helping, but they rarely go the extra step to help you in pretty much ANY public interaction.  At restaurants, after they take your order, good luck trying to flag them down for salt, pepper, a drink refill…they come by give you the check and leave.  Just remember not to eat out if you’re ever in a hurry. 

In other news, school is still going well and I am getting closer to my students!  My favorite class is definitely Art of course, and English is my least.  I enjoy reading aloud to the class and answering vocabulary questions.  I hate dealing with grammar, the English teacher I work with takes care of grammar.  It reminds me of how frustrating it was as a kid, all the rules that there were exceptions too!  Anyways, there have been a couple of instances where I have been trying to explain to my students a vocabulary word they don’t understand.  It takes me a minute or two in order to think about how to explain what the actual definition is!  (Disclaimer:  I do not stand in the front of the class and go “Ummmm, like, I don’t know how to explain it!  We just say that” and look like a clueless young-adult.)  I was trying to explain to my students what a “Tantrum,” was when it came up in a reading, so I said “When a person freaks out.”  They continued to give me a questioning look and say, “What does ‘freak out’ mean?”  I was stumped for a few seconds thinking, “How do I explain this, To ‘freak out?’”  This isn’t the hardest word I’ve come across to explain, but slang words always throw me for a loop, because I assume they understand what I’m saying.  I paused and said, “For example, when someone throws a fit?”  Continued blank stares.  It came down to me demonstrating by stamping my feet…they enjoyed this charade.  I also tried to explain “Viral Video” when we were talking about YouTube.  Fun fact, In spanish, calling someone a “Freak” is our definition of nerdy.

                My weekends consist of hanging out with the friends that I’ve made and trying to speak Spanish with the locals.  One of the friends I’ve made is extremely outgoing and probably invites one person from every country to his parties.  I’ve met people from Holland, Australia, Scotland, England, Estonia and Greece.  The first time I met “The Greeks,” I assumed they were Spaniards and tried to listen to their conversation between each other.  They were speaking so fast and I couldn’t understand a word!  I felt upset for a minute because I thought my Spanish had improved to where I can at least understand what someone is talking about!  I was then formally introduced and they spoke in Spanish to me, I asked them how they had been able to speak Spanish so fast and well to each other.  They replied, “We weren’t speaking Spanish, we were speaking Greek.”  PHEW!  No wonder I couldn’t understand anythinggg they were saying.  We fondly call these parties a “United Nations” gathering.     

Inglaterra

          Here is the update about England!  Waiting in the airport by the gate was funny because everyone was speaking to me in Spanish, the air flight attendants, and the English people around.  I was flattered when the attendants still spoke to me in Spanish after I responded instead of switching to English.  After a nice nap, I met Nate in Liverpool and his Dad drove us to the train station which took us to York.  York looks like Diagon alley from Harry Potter.  That’s the best way to explain what it was like walking around, sans wizards memorabilia.  In York we went on a haunted walk, where the tour guide talked about the horrible and historical things that had happened in certain houses and streets.  The whole town was so old, but people were still using the same rooms!  Houses from the 1300, 1400 and 1500 were still standing, so was a roman wall!  People were also very friendly.  

Next we went to Whitby, which is a little fishing town on the coast.  I loved it!  It reminded me or Red Bank a little.  This is apparently THE place to get fish and chips, so that consisted of most of our meals there, thankfully that was only one night because fried fish and French fries aren’t necessarily the best combination for the waist line.  But maaaannnnnn they were delicious!  Freshly caught and served with vinegar. 

          After that we stayed at Nates parents house close to Manchester.  All of the buildings were made of stone instead of brick, but reminded me a bit of New Jersey.  His parents were very sweet and took us out for a proper English breakfast and English supper (the day after Ill talk about that in a bit).  They use the terms dinner, supper, and lunch interchangeably and “tea” can be referred to as afternoon or evening tea…where you may or may not drink tea that’s just how they refer to snack time.  Nate got me to try “pate” which was the equivalent of liver mush.  I had maybe the amount of a thumbnail and its apparently quite a delicacy…along with black pudding.  I will NOT try that and if you would like to look up what it is you are more than welcome too…

          The next day was his nephews birthday party and I’ve noticed his family isn’t big on cooking (Nate cooks the most and that usually consists of omelets or Asian cuisine.)  It was cool to see their different chips, candies, and way of celebrating.  It was very similar to any American style party, they started singing “Happy Birthday” and continued with a chorus of singing “For he’s a jolly good fellow,” and is apparently typical to extend the song.  The equivalent of our “How old are you now.”  It was interesting the differences between our English’s, there were times I didn’t understand a word!  Usually context clues can help, but these really were different words!  When I come up with some examples I’ll write them down…

          Before we left the airport I was treated to a typical Sunday lunch, which is our thanksgiving dinner.  Ohhhhhh maannnnn can you imagine my excitement?!  It was buffet style and they carved the turkey/beef/pork, onto your plate.  YUM!!!!  They thought it was crazy we only ate that once a year.  I explained that we had variations on it, but that would be their “pasta Sunday.”  The idea that we eat macaroni on Christmas baffled them. 

          It was weird being in England and seeing the rolling hills while I was on the train and in the car.  When I zoned out, it felt like I was on a car trip to New Jersey or Boone.  Which was good and bad as you might imagine.  It was nice to be surrounded by familiarity, green landscapes, a nice family, and English, but it reminded me that I wasn’t at home.  And that home is across the ocean.  In Madrid, it’s clear that I am a foreigner and am in a foreign land.  In England, I felt like I was at home, and then was quickly reminded that I am still a foreigner.  People would smile when I started to talk and immediately ask where I was from, always guessing America.  Well there's no denying it really... 

Feliz Navidad y Bon Nadal

Merry Christmas everyone!  Its Christmas morning here in Barcelona, and I am the only one awake.  I also am the only one not still dealing with jet lag and the adjustment it takes to being in a new place for a few days.  Nonetheless my Mom, Dad, brother and sister are here in Spain with me celebrating Christmas so we can all be together.  This is one big present for our family so this year won’t be as much about gift giving, but culture experiencing.  

So far we have been to a couple cathedrals and walked around the beautiful streets of Barcelona, enjoying food, wine and each other’s company.  Barcelona and Madrid are quite different, Barcelona’s main language is Catalan and the architecture is different for each and every building. 

Last night we watched “The Sound of Music,” (which is popular in Spain as well it is just called “Sonrisas y Lagrimas” Smiles and tears) and it has become a new tradition to watch on Christmas eve, as we have since my Nana passed away four years ago.  It was one of her favorite movies and it was a good way to end a day of walking around and seeing Christmas lights. Today we are having a relaxing day where the family will open MY presents too them, and we’ll head out to one of the few restaurants that will be open on Christmas day.  It won’t be my mother’s homemade Italian meatballs or anything, but Italian food will be had later on this week. 

….

To continue the previous thought, yes, we did have Italian food.  Twice.  And I will say Barcelona’s roman influence is very apparent in their Italian cuisine.  Hopefully I can find as good of a place in Madrid as we did here!  I’ve been afraid to try…

My family is back on their way to the United States and I am sitting in the Barcelona airport getting ready to fly to the UK for New Years.  We had a really nice time hanging out, and enjoying all that Barcelona has to offer.  It’s a beautiful city influenced by Romans and the Spanish, creating “Cataluña.”  We saw the famous architecture of Anton Gaudi, like the Sagrada Familia, Casa Mila and Parc Guel.  I think it’s safe to say we walked around a lot and ate our weight in tapas.  It was fun to have a “grown up” vacation, drink wine, and enjoy the nicer things in life with my parents.  That being said, it’s funny how quickly your brother and sister can transform you from an adult, to a child in seconds. 

Several times during the trip, my siblings and I let ourselves be kids and played “I spy,” in an art museum.  Complete with running around, anxious pointing and silly picture taking.  Thankfully those who noticed us smiled, and didn’t seem to be upset by the obnoxious young adults/teenager.  Needless to say that made me a little nostalgic for home and appreciate the relationship I have with my family.  It’s a long journey from the U.S. to Spain and I am happy they came to keep me company during Christmas. 

I am thoroughly enjoying Madrid, and plan to reapply for the program in order to stay in Spain one more year.  However, that doesn’t mean I don’t miss home and the people I left behind. 

It’s time to go on another adventure to a new country, the United Kingdom!  I will be traveling with a native Brit in the north of England, seeing York, Whitby and Manchester.  I’m prepared for cold and rain, so I’ll let you know if I see any sunshine!  

Munich

Here am I again sitting in Barajas Airport getting ready to go on another adventure!  By the time I go home for the summer I will have become very familiar with this airport…I am getting ready to go to Munich Germany for the weekend!  Eric has a friend from school who is studying abroad in Munich and I have met Vlad several times on my weekends in Raleigh visiting.  So naturally I had to take the opportunity to go to Germany!  I really don’t know what our plans are, but I know he will be an excellent tour guide and am looking forward to it immensely. 

On my way back from Munich now!  Had a very nice time seeing the city and enjoying what little bit of Germany I got to see.  Vlad picked me up at the airport and I met some of his friends at *, starting the evening with huge beers, pretzels and drunken singing by some overly happy British fellows.  We walked around the streets all bundled up, watching the snow and enjoyed another European city.  The next day we woke up and went to “BMW World.”  Vlad is here in Germany as an intern working at the BMW plant which is pretty cool, Munich is the headquarters.  Breakfast was at a café inside where we had *.  I was skeptical when I saw a steaming bowel of water with white sausages inside served with a pretzel and, my favorite, mustard.  (Side note: For those who don’t know I am not a fan or sausage or mustard and was a little horrified when this dish came out for breakfast).  Vlad assured me that this was quite German and that it was tastier than it looked.  I tried it.  It isn’t my dish of choice but it wasn’t nearly as bad as I feared.  A cultural eating experience for sure…

                We went to the famous Munich Christmas Markets and walked around the streets trying a crepe and hot chocolate along the way.  A side note about hot chocolate; it’s not created equally everywhere!  In the US we have heated milk with a packet of chocolate thrown in, it’s generally very sugary and not think (unless you decide to use whole milk, in which case I applaud you).  In Spain and France, hot chocolate is like drinking a melted chocolate bar.  It’s rich, thick and delicious!  I asked how they make it and it’s the same way, powder in milk, but this powder must be magically melted chocolate.  When I make it I will let you know the amazing way this hot chocolate is made!  In Germany, it is similar to that of the US, but less sweet.  Still perfect for when you’re walking around on a cold day!  Except they give it to you in an actual mug that you have to return.  Like the Gluhwein we drank as well, which is really warm, cheap wine that you pay about 4 euros for.  If you return the mug, they give you 2 euros back, otherwise you get to keep the cup!  Naturally I decided to keep it…

I bought a couple of Christmas presents and some chocolate and had an enjoyable experience despite the fact that I ended up getting sick -_-  poor Vlad.  He immediately gave me some tea and medicine but it was something I ate.  Hopefully that is the only terrible plane trip I have and wish I had my Mom with me.  I’m not too proud to admit that!  It was my Mom’s birthday so I extra missed her……..

18 days, 19 hours and 58 minutes until I see them!! 

Dia de Accion de Gracia

Yesterday was Thanksgiving!!!  Don’t worry my fellow Americans, I did indeed get to have turkey.  The day started off at school, where my students enthusiastically told me “Happy Thanksgiving!”  During English class, I answered questions they had about our day of Thanks and how it came to be.  I started off the class by asking, “What can some of you tell me about Thanksgiving that you’ve seen from T.V?”  They all pretty much immediately responded with, “You eat turkey!”  I had to laugh as they used their hands to show how big they think the turkey is that we eat.  The gestures would make you think that we eat a small cow, which was quite exaggerated.    

I explained the Pilgrims coming over to the United States and the students all had a fun time talking with me about it.  They asked why Spain didn’t celebrate Thanksgiving and were pretty amused by my elated description of my favorite Thanksgiving food, Stuffing.  I make my grandmother’s recipe and this year it turned out pretty well!  I found all the spices I needed and enjoyed making it very much. 

Many American’s who I had been talking too were worried about finding the proper ingredients to make the delicious food we’ve grown accustom too.  Those who had been living in Madrid for a couple of years, shared insight on how to have a proper thanksgiving and also a store called “Taste of America.”  This store is full of imported items from America and had canned pumpkin, bread crumbs, Duncan Hines baked goods and PEANUT BUTTER!!!  Everything was completely overpriced and I won’t be able to make it a regular part of my grocery shopping, but for the holidays it was nice to know. 

Speaking of which, Christmas is coming up around the corner!  How did this happen so fast?  I’m looking forward to it and seeing my family……as of right now, there are 22 days, 18 hours and 39 minutes until they are in Spain with me….no I don’t have a countdown on my phone that I check regularly………

Barcelona, Arquitectura

I got to travel to Barcelona this past weekend to see Corinne again and her friend Jenna. Jenna is an Architecture major at Virginia Tech and specifically wanted to see some buildings in Barca, so I decided to tag along!  We went to the Opera Friday night to see "Agrippina," it was beautiful and very cool!  But word of advice?  Don't drink a glass of wine before going...warm cozy seats and long singing in a foreign language are not conducive to staying awake.  However it was cool to follow the English translation and enjoy the ornate decorations around me.  We felt pretty classy dressing up to go to see the opera...  

It was also cool to be the individual in the group who spoke spanish and helped get us around.  I was the expert (I'm using this term loosely here!) on the food and culture as we looked for places to eat and hang out.  In Barcelona they speak Catalan as well which was prominently displayed everywhere so I had to translate that as well.  

Overall another great experience had!  Excited to show my family around the city and get to enjoy some more of its beautiful sites...

Fins a la propera!