Colegio

WARNING: this post is really long, and I often get off topic. But it's mostly about school here.

 To begin with, school goes from 8:30 in the morning to 2:10 in the afternoon, with a 25 minute break in between the first three classes and the second three. Classes last about 50 minutes, and we don't change classrooms that often (the teachers do instead). And, to make it just a bit more confusing, every day my schedule is a bit different. There are as many as 36 kids in some of my classes.

Oh, and the bathrooms are so disgusting. It's not even funny.

On Monday I had my first full day of colegio (just a note: they don't say escuela here very often/at all). My first class was English. Lucky, right? No. First off, the teacher talked a lot in Spanish, and I was not prepared for how actively I need to listen to things to understand. Then she passed out an assignment which was basically to read a paragraph (that would actually be very difficult if you don't know a lot of English) and answer some questions. A lot of the questions were about grammar, things like phrasal verbs. I have no idea what a phrasal verb is. (If you're reading this and you do, then please explain them to me). Other questions were about vocabulary and it was at this moment that the enormity of the amount of Spanish I do not know slapped me in the face. Luckily, no one else understood the worksheet either and so instead the teacher told us to write a composition on one of the three common English phrases she wrote on the board. I wrote mine on "Honesty is always the best policy", or at least tried to. I wasn't exactly sure what I was supposed to be doing.

Next I had Dibujo Artistico. I had to change classrooms for this, which was a little confusing, but man I adore the classroom this is in. It's 20+ easels and a bunch of statues and other things to use as references. And the teacher is really awesome too. He told us what all we needed to buy for the class (because here YOU have to buy ALL of your supplies. The school doesn't provide any. No books, pencils, nothing. This sometimes ends up costing as much as 300-400 euro, so thank god AFS pays for this) and I didn't understand any of it but a nice girl let me copy her list. Then he gave us paper and told us to find and easel and to draw anything we wanted, because he wanted to observe our different styles. He really liked what I drew, and said it was really good. I think he was surprised.  On Mondays and Thursdays I have this class for two periods in a row before break, which is fantastic.

Anyways, after Dibujo Artistico it's snack time! The teens here eat so unhealthy. Basically things like twinkies and such are considered appropriate and suitable snack food. Also juice boxes and bocadillas (sandwiches). ( I usually take a fruit or vegetable and whatever else I can find that won't get smashed in my backpack. On Wednesday I took a red pepper (pimienta) to eat whole, like an apple, like Noor does at FALA. People do not like eating peppers raw here, and everyone stared at me.) Did I mention that my classroom is on the third floor of the school? That's a lot of stairs everyday for someone who is not used to stairs. During break some kids go out front to smoke but most kids go to the courtyard area or like where the basketball court is. The girl who let me copy her list earlier asked if I wanted to eat lunch with her and her friends and I was pretty much like YES PLEASE THANK YOU because eating alone is terrible. Her name is Paula (only pronounced pOWla) and the other two girls are Amanda and Laura (lOWra). They are all very sweet.

Making friends is SO difficult with a language barrier, not to mention that I'm not good at making friends anyways. This first day everyone seemed rather indifferent towards me and didn't talk to me at all, but since then I have realized that this is just the normal "first day of school everyone is scared and a lot of people are new and nervous" type of thing. Since then my classmates have definitely warmed up to me a bit and to each other and people smile at me and say "hola!" now. (Some of the kids in my class are 18 (maybe older?!). Here it is totally normal to have repeated a grade. This makes some people very intimidating, though. Also, everyone has piercings. A lot of piercings. And some terrible, TERRIBLE hair cuts. And fashions. Some of the guys wear these athletic-type pants that are cinched at the ankle and oh gosh it just makes me want to laugh at them. Other than that the styles are fairly similar, SO many people wear shirts with English on them!)

To continue with the first day, though. After break I had Cultura Audiovisual (which I have so much trouble pronouncing). I am so excited for this class, which is basically all about photography and developing pictures and the history of film and comics (?!) and story-boards and things like that. Unfortunately, what with all the necessary vocabulary for this class it can be very difficult to understand.

After this I had Filosofia (Philosophy). I do not enjoy this class very much. Maybe if I understood what was going on I would, but even the other kids in my class are super-confused. Luckily, I moved seats and was sitting next to Amanda, who let me copy her notes, because this teacher just talks and talks and talks and expects everyone to write down what she is saying. Whenever I think I understand something in this class, she says it's wrong. Madre mia.

My last class of the day was Lengua, which I thought was also going to be super difficult. So far, it hasn't been! The teacher is so sweet and nice. The first day she went over some rules but then she just chatted with the class for a good 20 minutes or so, and joked around with them and such.

Unfortunately, the second day I had a bunch of NEW classes to adjust to, because of the weird schedule. It went something like this:

First I had Ciencias del Mundo Contemporaneo, which I did not understand at all. Honestly, until right now, writing this post, I had forgotten all about it because I only have it twice a week (Tuesdays and Fridays). First hour has been most difficult for me every day because my brain has been thinking in English all night. I thiiink this class is like Social Studies. We talked about the Universe and what is in the Universe (I think). [After I wrote this my host mom came home from buying my textbook for this class and it seems to be an overview of astronomy/biology/health/environmental studies/etc.]

Next came Dibujo Tecnico. This is taught by the same teacher who teaches my other drawing class. It appears it will involve a lot of geometry, so I'm glad I learned it last year. I understood most of what he said! I have this class everyday but Monday and so far I've liked it and understood it every time.

After that I have Volumen, which I learned is basically like the 3D Art class at FALA. I think it will be good, and the teacher for this class is also my "Home Room" teacher. I'm the first exchange student she's ever had to deal with (I think I'm the first exchange student ever at this school...) but she's really kind. Actually, all of my teachers are really kind, even though I can't talk much. I hope they don't get frustrated with me. Anyways, Volumen. Here I learned that we will do soap carvings and work with wood and things like that. Cool stuff.

Break again.

Annnnd...I have Volumen after break too! On Tuesdays and Wednesdays. Honestly though, on this day I just sat in class and teared up because I had suddenly gotten very homesick and sad. I don't think exchangers talk enough about being homesick, because we feel like we shouldn't be or shouldn't let people know or something. But I get homesick a lot. And this doesn't mean I think to myself  "Oh golly gosh I just want to go home and have the nice American things I'm used to," it means that I miss living a life that is substantially easier, filled with the people I've come to understand and adore. It is really difficult to feel clueless 90% of the time. But I was able to cheer myself up and I think it made some of my classmates take pity on me.

(Someday I will write a post without ever getting off topic, but apparently not today.)

After Volumen I had Educacion Fisica (Gym). We didn't do anything because it was the first class and all, and I couldn't understand the teacher at all because the gym was echo-y. The only thing I understood was something about working up to being able to run 20 minutes (*sarcastic gasp*) and how two gym classes a week was just not enough. I nearly fell asleep because being at school makes me exhausted.

My last class was Lengua again, and I understood a great deal of it. We talked about communication. If I was religious (Catholic) and my family wanted me to, I would have to take Religion as a 7th period class on Tuesdays and Thursdays. I am glad that I don't have to, not because I have anything against it, but because it's one less class to worry about. Also, by the time I get home, around 2:30, I'm very hungry for lunch and exhausted and I can't imagine having that one extra class some days.

The next two days (Wednesday and Thursday) went pretty well. I understand a fair amount of what my teachers say, and my classmates seem to be warming up to me! I think I made it sound like my teachers are difficult, but they all seem like good people, and the next English class I had was much better. They aren't used to American-English accents here, because they're closer to Britain. English was actually really helpful because everyone's learning English vocabulary and so it helps me learn Spanish vocabulary.

That's pretty much all I've got for now...

In summary: I'm so happy to be taking arts classes. It's so exciting to be learning again. I get homesick but I also am glad to be here glad to be with a family who is so kind and glad to have loved ones back home who are all wonderfully supportive. I'm am trying not to stress about things and just be open to all these new experiences and smile at everybody.

my schedule

proof I'm doing fine

Poco a poco

"Poco a poco" is something my host mom says a lot, and I say it to myself a lot. It means "little by little".

I have been in Spain for one week now, and tomorrow it will have been one week since I met my host family and they brought me into their home. I feel so grateful to be here with them, because they are honestly some of the sweetest, kindest and most patient people I have ever met. 

I have been a little homesick, in part because I've been a little bored because I didn't start school until today! And on the first day you only go for an hour. Instead of being in the Social Sciences course like I originally thought, I'm in the Arts course! I'm so excited for it. Instead of History, Math and Economics, I'll be taking Technical Drawing, Artistic Drawing and I think Sculpting. Also, possibly Photography.

In general I have been doing very well. In the evenings I go running, either through town (they have something like the Urban Trail) or in one of the giant parks they have around town (kind of like Buffalo Park). I've also spent a lot of time exploring the city and trying to learn the layout. Every time I get a little less lost (:

These are a bunch of differences between the U.S. and Spain I've noticed so far:

1. Language: obviously. But I would also like to point out that their accent here is COMPLETELY different from the Spanish accents we have in the states. Sometimes I'll be trying to understand someone and I realize that I know the word they are saying, but the way the pronounce it make it hard to recognize. The main phrases I use are "Vale!" (Okay!) "Si" (Yes) "Me gusta" (I like it) "Yo quiero" (I would like) and "Voy a..." (I am going to...). I'm slowly getting better at speaking, and already I understand a lot more than originally. 
2. Driving: If you can, you walk, but if where you need to go is farther away you usually drive. The drivers here honestly scare me to death. They use roundabouts here, and there aren't a lot of lights or speed limit signs. There are a lot of crosswalks, and basically you just walk out into them and expect all the drivers to stop. 
3. Parking: the Spanish are so good at parking. Holy cow. They can back up into tiny spaces and get within a centimeter of a wall without using their side mirrors at all. In fact, side mirrors here fold in when you park so that when people drive by they aren't just ripped off the car. They are equally good at parallel parking. I have no idea how they do it sometimes.
4. Roads: the roads here are really narrow. REALLY narrow. And there's generally two separate roads for each direction. This means that sometimes you have to take little detours to get to places because of all the one-way streets.
5. Graffiti: It's everywhere. Literally. 
6. Schedules: There are a lot of different things I want to say about this. One of the biggest things that effects the schedules people have here is that it doesn't get dark until 9 (!!). People eat breakfast between 7 and 11, lunch between 2 and 4, and dinner between 9 and 12, and adults generally have coffee after breakfast and lunch and at random other times (I'll talk more about coffee and food later). Kids go to school (generally) from 8:30 until 2:30, and then have activities later, for example my brother David has soccer practice three times a week at 7 in the evening. People are most active (they go shopping, hang out, etc.) around noon and in the evenings and at night. If you go out running or anything right before or after lunch they will think you are crazy. People really do take siestas (naps) and in general just relax in the afternoons.
7. Food: My host family actually eats fairly similar to how my family eats at home. For breakfast I have fruit and sometimes toast with peanut butter that I brought from home (they don't have peanut butter here) or else some yogurt. Sometimes breakfast "cookies" with milk. For lunch, which is the biggest meal, we have fresh bread (bought daily), generally some sort of meat like turkey, chicken or fish, pasta or rice and salad. I've heard that to a lot of families lunch is the most important part of the day and they're very serious about all eating together and such, but my host family isn't like that. For dinner, we usually have leftovers and salad. Dessert here can be fruit, pudding, yogurt or chocolate. For a snack my sister Marta will sometimes have a nutella sandwich, but I usually have cheese or yogurt or something like that. They definitely do not snack a lot here.
8. Coffee: they drink coffee in really small amounts. Just a very small shot, usually with cream and sugar or honey. One of the things I miss the most is having a big cup of coffee in the mornings.
9. Bathrooms: the toilets work differently. Also, in our bathroom we have a bidet, but I don't think anyone uses it.
10. Laundry: we have a washer, but no dryer. I think this is pretty common, because you see clothes racks on balcony's a lot. We do a little bit of laundry each day.
11. Affection: when you meet someone here, you greet them with a kiss on each cheek (unless they are your teachers or something like that). You don't shake hands at all. At first this was something I was really nervous about, but it comes very naturally. Also, you always kiss LEFT then RIGHT. This is important. In general, though, they are much more "touchy" here. There are not the physical boundaries that we are accustomed to in the U.S.
12. Old Folks: I think there most be a Spanish rule somewhere that simply says that older folks can do whatever the hell they want. I sometimes see caution signs, like the ones they put by the road in areas where there are a lot of children, with a stick figure of a hunched over man. This is because older folks will just walk into the road when they want to cross. Also, if a child is being loud or misbehaving, they are entitled to say something about it and even tell the child/baby to quiet down. There is a lot of respect for them here.
13. Crosswalks: if there is an actual walk/don't walk sign, then you can cross when it is green. If it is blinking green, then if you can run across. If it's red, you can cross and hope that no one will hit you. If there's no sign, then you can cross and the cars are supposed to stop for you.
14. Pedestrians: do not expect people to make room for you on the sidewalk if you are walking towards each other (or running, or biking). There is no sense of courtesy in that aspect.
15. Runners: there are a lot less female runners, especially in the city. Also, when you are running people will stare at you. If you are running over the bridge that crosses the highway, truckers will honk at you.
16. Dogs: people rarely clean up after their pets.
17. Nudity: is much more accepted here. If you are a girl under the age of 10 it's perfectly acceptable to not be wearing a shirt. People also don't try as hard to hide nudity from children (see number 18)
18. News: the news program here is 10x more informative than our programs. It is also much more graphic. I was watching it the other day and it showed images of people who had been shot in the head in Iraq, also a man being attacked by a bull. At one point it was talking about dildos.
19. TV/Music: They have a lot of American shows dubbed in Spanish (ex: Adventure Time, Spongebob, iCarly, Castle, Law&Order, Parenthood) and it is perfectly acceptable to download movies and shows from the internet. They also play A LOT of American pop music on the radio.
20. School: there are the primary grades (I'm not sure how many), then four years of E.S.O, then two years of Bachillerato. Once you get to Bachillerato, you choose a more specific course of study. I haven't had a full day of school yet, but I'll update this later when I have.
21. Teens: they are super stylish here. Piercings are also super popular it seems. I think teens and preteens generally stay out pretty late. I think my brother's curfew in the summer (and remember he is 12) is 1 AM, but it's earlier now that school has started.
22. Clothing: like I said, people tend to be very stylish. There is a lot of clothing with english writing on it, even though not a lot of people speak english. Not a lot of people wear flip-flops out and about, or sweatpants or things like that.
23. Shopping: if you ever need ANYTHING there is sure to be at least a few stores where you can get it. Stores here are very small and specific, with the exception of a few supermarkets. To buy bread, you go to the Panaderia. To buy fruit, you stop at a store that sells fresh fruit. If you want shoes you go to the shoe store, etc. I swear, there are at least a dozen Hair Salons around town. I have no idea how they all stay in business.
24. Attitude: at first, everyone you meet seems very stiff and judgmental. However, people warm up to you very quickly. I am still having trouble reading people's emotions, but I've found that Spanish people laugh a lot and are very expressive with their movements and gestures.They are also very loud.
25. Drinking: it is perfectly acceptable to sit outside at a Bar and drink and talk anytime after 11 in the morning. People sit with their kids and their parents and smoke and talk and talk.

Wow, sorry this turned out so long. If you have any more questions, feel free to ask! There is a nine hour time difference, but I am trying to find times to talk with people. Hasta luego (:

Arrival

Last tuesday, around 4:30 in the afternoon, I said my final goodbyes to Flagstaff and the people I love there. It was very difficult, but I also felt ready for this adventure. My mom and I drove down to Phoenix and spent the night at the most generous Geoffery Gooby's house, because my flight to New York left at 7 the next morning. We had to get up at 4 so that we could be at the airport a little after 5. It was hard to say goodbye and get on the airplane alone, but I was also extremely excited.

I arrived in New York about 45 minutes later than planned because of some weather delays. Me and a boy going to Italy got our luggage and took the AirTrain in JFK to the shuttle area, to be picked up by the Hotel's shuttle. I was nervous because we were on our own, but it all turned out fine. At the hotel we got our room keys and another AFS booklet and an agenda for the orientation. The orientation wasn't that bad. The next day it was only until about 12, and then we had lunch and waited. I played ukulele with a girl going to Italy who also had a ukulele and a boy going to Ghana who had a banjo. We left the hotel at 5 and were all waiting in the terminal by 7. My bag was exactly 44 lbs, or 20 kilos. At 8:30 we boarded the plane - it was the largest I've been on. There were three rows, the outside rows had two seats and the middles row had four. I was in the middle row in one of the middle seats. There were tvs for each seat and we were able to watch some movies that were in theaters this summer. They also served us dinner and breakfast. Some people were able to sleep, but I couldn't at all. It was about an 8 hour flight, but we arrived in Zurich around 10:30 the next morning.

At the Zurich airport we took the airport train and went through customs, which was basically just handing over your passport and having it stamped and moving on. The Zurich airport was very nice and kindof fancy. We waited there for awhile and some people bought some Swiss chocolate. Then we got on a smaller plane and were finally off to Madrid!

It was so exciting landing in Madrid, but I was a little nauseous too from all the flying. In the Madrid airport we collected our luggage and went to find the AFS Spain volunteers. They were very excited to see us. We waited at the airport for awhile and then all got on a bus to go to the Youth Hostel where the last orientation would be held. There, we were given rooms to share with other kids who were going to be in our area. I shared a room with a guy from Sweden, a guy from Thailand, and a girl from Finland. At first, the fact that boys and girls were sharing rooms and bathrooms was startling, because it would never happen in the U.S. However, I really liked the people in my room.

Another thing that would never happen in the U.S. is the first game we all played. There were about 80 students there by that point, the kids from Asia hadn't arrived yet. The game went like this: one person would sit in the middle of a giant circle and call out two numbers. Everyone in the circle had been given a number. The two whose numbers were called had to run up and try to kiss the person in the middle on the cheek before the other person who was called. To make it more amusing, the person in the middle had to try not to be kissed. All the U.S. students thought this was pretty strange. All of the other games we played were very...physical as well. The volunteers were trying to get us accustomed to how "touchy" the Spanish are. After games we sat through a quick orientation and then ate dinner. After that, everyone just hung out. I played my ukulele and talked to the Swedish guy, Erik. I was telling him about my life in Flagstaff and he says, "You're really a hippie, aren't you?" I thought it was hilarious. He dressed very "hipster" as my friends would say - thick glasses, stylish button up, etc.

I slept like a rock because I don't think I had slept for something like 32 hours. The next morning we got up and went to breakfast, then played more games. Host families arrived around 10:30 for the kids staying in Madrid, but we didn't get to meet them until 2 because they had to sit through an orientation. When we finally got to meet them, the volunteers told us to smile really, really big. When we entered, all the families applauded. Then volunteers called out the family name and our name (Spaniards have some trouble reading mine) and we walked up to each other and gave each other two kisses, one on each cheek. then I met my liaison and got to go home!

Alcorcon wasn't far from the hostel. It was a little awkward in the car, I'm just glad my host dad, Jose, knows some english. I live in a 7 story apartment building, my family has an apartment with a room above and a patio on the roof. It's very nice. They are all making me feel very at home. Yesterday, after I got there they told me that there was a party that would be going on till 3 in the morning in the courtyard, to celebrate the last days on summer, I think. We ate lunch and Jose's parents were there. They were also very nice. After, I took a nap because I was still very tired. When I woke up I talked with my host mom, Ani. Later, we ate some dinner and went down to the party. They were playing games and then started blasting mostly American pop music, and everyone started dancing. Jose hurt his back earlier this week at work, so he and I left early because, once again, I was tired. Ani and Marta and David (my little sister and brother) stayed downstairs until 3:30. I unpacked and fell asleep.

I am so excited to be here. I think I'm going to have an amazing time.

airport train in Zurich

flying over Zurich

in Madrid

Youth Hostel room

view from my bedroom

 

Last Post from Flagstaff

It's noon here, and in just a few short hours I will be on my way down to Phoenix with my mom because I need to be at the airport tomorrow for my flight to New York at 5 AM. It's hard to believe that I won't sleep in my bed, eat at our table, or draw at my desk for 10 whole months. I have spent some time being sad about this, but I'm not anymore. I am excited (and probably not nearly prepared enough!) for this adventure. Besides, I'll be back in what will probably seem like no time at all.

I spent my last full day in Flagstaff yesterday climbing to the Mt. Humphrey's summit with Blake. It was the perfect way to spend my last day. It took us 6 hours for the whole hike, and afterwards we just about collapsed. I'm am going to miss beautiful Flagstaff and the trails so much, but it will be so fun to experience city life

I think I am finally done packing. I'm glad that I can bring along my ukulele (thanks again Simon I love it so much, and thanks everyone for signing it <3). Last to pack is some art things that I'm still using...

I am so grateful to my mom for helping me with everything. I could not have done it without you. I'm sorry I've been snappy, I hope you know how much I appreciate your help and how much I'm going to miss you.

I'm not good with goodbyes, sorry guys. Goodbye seems too final. But I will miss you all, and can't wait to see you again in 10 months! Have a great year.