Let's start with the most important news first: Fatty finally got her chocolate fix. (I hadn't had any since my arrival here and it was simply unacceptable.) Yesterday a friend and I found an excellent local chocolateria and bought churros. They were heavenly-- though I'm still a bit partial to funnel cake.
It's hard to believe I've been here for under two weeks. Since I've been here, I've seen a flamenco show, gone on tapas crawls, visited five museums, met a Spanish Nascar fan, seen all kinds of Roman ruins, visited the third largest cathedral in the world, tried a glass of the best wine I've ever had, tried a glass of the worst wine I've ever had, seen Christopher Colombus's grave, watched Scooby Doo in Spanish, walked around inside the third-largest mosque in the world, learned more about Spanish history than I'd ever expected, gotten hooked on a telanovela, walked on a 2000-year-old bridge, been inside two royal palaces, and made innumerable social faux-pas.
In other news: I really need to start making a concerted effort to speak more Spanish here. With Spaniards, it's generally not a problem because very few of them speak English, but with other American students it's very hard to resist. Mainly because my Spanish limits me to the following: "My name is Laura. I'm from Texas. What's your favorite color? I'm hungry. I'm sleepy." It's hard to be interesting and make friends when you're stuck with less than 10 phrases.
However, my new resolution: after the first day of regular session next Monday, no more English. Not one solitary word unless I'm asking someone how to say it in Spanish. To top it off, I will also start listening to Spanish music exclusively. (If anyone has recommendations for artists, by all means share!)
Ok, well I'm off to go explore one of the local parks with a friend. Pictures of my trip thus far are forthcoming!
Sunday, January 31, 2010
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
It's my week-iversary!
Ah, I've now been in Seville for one glorious week and I would be remiss if I didn't update with a summary of the things that have happened thus far.
Mi Senora
As you may know, I decided to live with a host family to get the "authentic Seville experience". Definitely a good idea. I was assigned a senora-- one woman, no spouse/kids/pets. She's a ~60-year-old lawyer who works at the Universidad de Sevilla. In a word, she is... scatterbrained? Her hair is always a mess, she's constantly running around, she microwaves everything, she talks to herself, she stays out later than I do literally every night, and she's pretty dang awesome. She calls her deaf 94-year-old mother every night and yells Spanish phrases over and over at maximum volume into the phone. She also doesn't speak a word of English, which makes our mealtime conversations much more interesting. We like to watch telenovelas together.
Mid-update update: she just came by and asked what I was doing, and my attempts explain the word "blog" to her were completely futile.
The Classes
Here's how classes go on our program: we start off with a two-week intensive Spanish course (three hours, M-F) and then take four classes during the regular session. Due to what I can only assume was a computer test-grading malfunction, I was placed into the advanced Spanish course. It's really awesome because each day we talk about Spanish history for a bit and then FIELD TRIP! Today we went to Seville's first mosque, built around 800 A.D. Yesterday we went to a museum that featured authentic Roman mosaics from the first century. Yes, that's right, the first flipping century. I'm completely beside myself at all of our field trips because I can't comprehend how old everything is. In America we flip out if anything's more than 200 years old, but here they have things that are THOUSANDS of years old just chilling and no one bats an eye.
The Food
If I have communicated with you at all over the past week, it's 100% certain that I've complained about the food at some point. Well, it's not so much what they eat (I will eat literally anything, and the food isn't bad) as it is when they eat. Average day of eating for a Spaniard:
Breakfast= 9:00 am
Lunch= 3:30 pm
Dinner= 10:00 pm
Throw in that their idea of breakfast is just toast, and I am ravenous literally all the time. Including right now FOR THE LOVE OF GOD JUST GIVE ME SOME HAM OR SOMETHING
Seville by the Numbers:
Times I have gotten incredibly lost: 5
Times I have gotten somewhat lost: Around 20
Times I have eaten something questionable: 4
Times I have been mistaken for a Spaniard: 1, hell yes!
Ok, I'm sorry this isn't longer/more coherent but I've got to start doing some homework. Hasta luego!
Mi Senora
As you may know, I decided to live with a host family to get the "authentic Seville experience". Definitely a good idea. I was assigned a senora-- one woman, no spouse/kids/pets. She's a ~60-year-old lawyer who works at the Universidad de Sevilla. In a word, she is... scatterbrained? Her hair is always a mess, she's constantly running around, she microwaves everything, she talks to herself, she stays out later than I do literally every night, and she's pretty dang awesome. She calls her deaf 94-year-old mother every night and yells Spanish phrases over and over at maximum volume into the phone. She also doesn't speak a word of English, which makes our mealtime conversations much more interesting. We like to watch telenovelas together.
Mid-update update: she just came by and asked what I was doing, and my attempts explain the word "blog" to her were completely futile.
The Classes
Here's how classes go on our program: we start off with a two-week intensive Spanish course (three hours, M-F) and then take four classes during the regular session. Due to what I can only assume was a computer test-grading malfunction, I was placed into the advanced Spanish course. It's really awesome because each day we talk about Spanish history for a bit and then FIELD TRIP! Today we went to Seville's first mosque, built around 800 A.D. Yesterday we went to a museum that featured authentic Roman mosaics from the first century. Yes, that's right, the first flipping century. I'm completely beside myself at all of our field trips because I can't comprehend how old everything is. In America we flip out if anything's more than 200 years old, but here they have things that are THOUSANDS of years old just chilling and no one bats an eye.
The Food
If I have communicated with you at all over the past week, it's 100% certain that I've complained about the food at some point. Well, it's not so much what they eat (I will eat literally anything, and the food isn't bad) as it is when they eat. Average day of eating for a Spaniard:
Breakfast= 9:00 am
Lunch= 3:30 pm
Dinner= 10:00 pm
Throw in that their idea of breakfast is just toast, and I am ravenous literally all the time. Including right now FOR THE LOVE OF GOD JUST GIVE ME SOME HAM OR SOMETHING
Seville by the Numbers:
Times I have gotten incredibly lost: 5
Times I have gotten somewhat lost: Around 20
Times I have eaten something questionable: 4
Times I have been mistaken for a Spaniard: 1, hell yes!
Ok, I'm sorry this isn't longer/more coherent but I've got to start doing some homework. Hasta luego!
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
First thoughts on Seville!
So this is my third night in Sevilla and I'm still getting my bearings.
Highlights/lowlights from the flights over:
Lowlight: Seven-hour layover in Newark. Made the terrible mistake of eating New Jersey's version of Mexican food for lunch, which was mind-blowingly bad.
Highlight: Couldn't sleep at all on the overnight flight to Spain, but used the sleepless hours to watch three movies and play some games. Having a TV for each seat is, by far, the best aviation-related invention in recent history.
Lowlight: For five terrifying minutes, SpanAir representatives wouldn't let me get on the flight from Barcelona to Seville. I think I now have high blood pressure based on that one incident.
Highlight: While buying a sandwich at the airport, I attempted talking to the cashier in Spanish and she laughed at me. Solid.
Thoughts on Spain:
- Firstly, everything is beautiful. Walk along any street in central Seville and I guarantee that you'll find something breathtaking within five minutes. "Just walkin' along to get groceries OH HEY there's a 700-year-old cathedral!" I can't believe places actually exist that look like this. Even the abandoned buildings with broken windows have a certain charm to them. Europe: making decaying buildings look good since before your country existed. That should be the EU's new slogan.
- Secondly, everything is smaller. The apartments, the showers, the stores, the cars, the sidewalks, etc. If I was two inches taller, I wouldn't fit in this bed. On the flight from Barcelona to Seville, my knees were touching the seat in front of me. The elevators fit three, maybe four people. I feel like Andre the Giant in basically all indoor spaces. (One exception to the "everything is smaller" observation: churches. The cathedrals are like nothing I've ever seen.)
- Thirdly, everything is just sliiiightly different. Cashiers in the stores are sitting down. Street names are on the sides of buildings, not on signs. The floor above the ground floor is the first floor. Doorknobs are sometimes in the middle of the door. Plugs are shaped differently. White pigeons. Euros instead of dollars. No ice in drinks. The metric system. Military time. Throw in the different language and it's like some bizarro version of what I'm used to. It's awesome because it's making me think about some of the things Americans do that I've always considered natural. Yeah, why the heck DO we make cashiers stand up all day?
Well, time for bed. I'd like to reiterate that I am having a beyond excellent time, and any complaints stem more from my ardent love of whining than from actual problems I'm having. I'd also like to note that about five minutes ago, my host mother came in and made fun of me for going go sleep so early, then proceeded to go eat dinner with her friend. She's like 60 years old.
Highlights/lowlights from the flights over:
Lowlight: Seven-hour layover in Newark. Made the terrible mistake of eating New Jersey's version of Mexican food for lunch, which was mind-blowingly bad.
Highlight: Couldn't sleep at all on the overnight flight to Spain, but used the sleepless hours to watch three movies and play some games. Having a TV for each seat is, by far, the best aviation-related invention in recent history.
Lowlight: For five terrifying minutes, SpanAir representatives wouldn't let me get on the flight from Barcelona to Seville. I think I now have high blood pressure based on that one incident.
Highlight: While buying a sandwich at the airport, I attempted talking to the cashier in Spanish and she laughed at me. Solid.
Thoughts on Spain:
- Firstly, everything is beautiful. Walk along any street in central Seville and I guarantee that you'll find something breathtaking within five minutes. "Just walkin' along to get groceries OH HEY there's a 700-year-old cathedral!" I can't believe places actually exist that look like this. Even the abandoned buildings with broken windows have a certain charm to them. Europe: making decaying buildings look good since before your country existed. That should be the EU's new slogan.
- Secondly, everything is smaller. The apartments, the showers, the stores, the cars, the sidewalks, etc. If I was two inches taller, I wouldn't fit in this bed. On the flight from Barcelona to Seville, my knees were touching the seat in front of me. The elevators fit three, maybe four people. I feel like Andre the Giant in basically all indoor spaces. (One exception to the "everything is smaller" observation: churches. The cathedrals are like nothing I've ever seen.)
- Thirdly, everything is just sliiiightly different. Cashiers in the stores are sitting down. Street names are on the sides of buildings, not on signs. The floor above the ground floor is the first floor. Doorknobs are sometimes in the middle of the door. Plugs are shaped differently. White pigeons. Euros instead of dollars. No ice in drinks. The metric system. Military time. Throw in the different language and it's like some bizarro version of what I'm used to. It's awesome because it's making me think about some of the things Americans do that I've always considered natural. Yeah, why the heck DO we make cashiers stand up all day?
Well, time for bed. I'd like to reiterate that I am having a beyond excellent time, and any complaints stem more from my ardent love of whining than from actual problems I'm having. I'd also like to note that about five minutes ago, my host mother came in and made fun of me for going go sleep so early, then proceeded to go eat dinner with her friend. She's like 60 years old.
Sunday, January 17, 2010
Pre-departure thoughts
STATUS UPDATE:
All necessary items = purchased.
Six months' worth of clothing and supplies = crammed into one large backpack.
Gift for host family = pralines (thanks for the suggestion, Alexis!) wrapped in a Texas bandana. Yee-haw!
Emotional state = mild panic, kept in check only by sleep deprivation.
It's the night before I leave, and as expected, I can't sleep. I have to wake up in four hours to catch my plane, but ain't no way unconsciousness is happening because I'm an ungodly mixture of nervous and excited. Oh god, just thinking about my imminent attempts to communicate with my host family and the country at large are making me cringe. I don't know how to say any number of crucial things. And to make things worse, I don't have a guidebook. But it'll be an adventure!
All necessary items = purchased.
Six months' worth of clothing and supplies = crammed into one large backpack.
Gift for host family = pralines (thanks for the suggestion, Alexis!) wrapped in a Texas bandana. Yee-haw!
Emotional state = mild panic, kept in check only by sleep deprivation.
It's the night before I leave, and as expected, I can't sleep. I have to wake up in four hours to catch my plane, but ain't no way unconsciousness is happening because I'm an ungodly mixture of nervous and excited. Oh god, just thinking about my imminent attempts to communicate with my host family and the country at large are making me cringe. I don't know how to say any number of crucial things. And to make things worse, I don't have a guidebook. But it'll be an adventure!
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
FAQ
Wow, I've been impatiently waiting since May but now there's less than one week until I leave for another continent.
Emotional state: slightly terrified.
Spanish: still abominable.
Packing: not started.
Overall: completely unprepared, but ready for a change of scenery.
Instead of doing important things that must be done before I leave, how about I make a quick FAQ section about this trip? Sounds good!
Frequently Asked Questions
Where are you going?
I’ll be in Seville, Spain from January 18-May 15, taking classes. After classes end, I’m going to travel around Europe for a month.
Where is Seville?
See the map to the left-- it's in the bottom left of the country, in the province of Andalucia. Spaniards call the city Sevilla (seh-VEE-ya).
Here's its Wikipedia page if you're interested: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seville
When are you leaving?
My flight leaves January 17 OH GOD THATS LIKE TOMORROW
When are you coming back?
Umm... never? I'm currently scheduled to return on June 12, but I may stay longer.
Where are you going during your month in Europe?
Currently undecided—definitely France, Germany, Portugal, Italy, and England. I'm open to suggestions/recommendations!
Where are you taking classes?
I'll be taking classes with my program and at the University of Seville (Universidad de Sevilla).
What classes are you taking?
Well, first of all there is a two-week intensive Spanish course after orientation. After completion of this course, we take four regular classes. It may change once I arrive, but right now I'm signed up for the following:
Advanced Spanish Grammar II
The Image of the U.S. in Spain: 100 Years of Myths and Stereotypes
Comparative and Contrastive Syntax
Spain on the Cinema Screen
How can I contact you?
Fools, I will not have a phone! Thus, your options are e-mail, Facebook, Skype, this blog.
Have you ever been to Spain before?
Nope, I’ve never been to Europe at all.
Have you read [X Guidebook to Spain/Europe]?
I don't know what it is about guidebooks, I just can't finish them. The only section that ever holds my attention is the one describing their food.
Do you know anyone who’s going with you?
Nope.
What are you going to do in Spain besides classes?
The typical stuff, I suppose: see a bullfight, go to festivals, take pictures of everything, eat copious amounts of ham.
Are you going to get a SPANISH BOYFRIEND?!?!?!
I imagine I'll be too busy with the ham.
Still have questions? Comment here and ask me! Remember to keep everything family-friendly because it appears my grandma will be reading this. (OMA IN DA HAUS)
Emotional state: slightly terrified.
Spanish: still abominable.
Packing: not started.
Overall: completely unprepared, but ready for a change of scenery.
Instead of doing important things that must be done before I leave, how about I make a quick FAQ section about this trip? Sounds good!
Frequently Asked Questions
Where are you going?
I’ll be in Seville, Spain from January 18-May 15, taking classes. After classes end, I’m going to travel around Europe for a month.
Where is Seville?
See the map to the left-- it's in the bottom left of the country, in the province of Andalucia. Spaniards call the city Sevilla (seh-VEE-ya).Here's its Wikipedia page if you're interested: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seville
When are you leaving?
My flight leaves January 17 OH GOD THATS LIKE TOMORROW
When are you coming back?
Umm... never? I'm currently scheduled to return on June 12, but I may stay longer.
Where are you going during your month in Europe?
Currently undecided—definitely France, Germany, Portugal, Italy, and England. I'm open to suggestions/recommendations!
Where are you taking classes?
I'll be taking classes with my program and at the University of Seville (Universidad de Sevilla).
What classes are you taking?
Well, first of all there is a two-week intensive Spanish course after orientation. After completion of this course, we take four regular classes. It may change once I arrive, but right now I'm signed up for the following:
Advanced Spanish Grammar II
The Image of the U.S. in Spain: 100 Years of Myths and Stereotypes
Comparative and Contrastive Syntax
Spain on the Cinema Screen
How can I contact you?
Fools, I will not have a phone! Thus, your options are e-mail, Facebook, Skype, this blog.
Have you ever been to Spain before?
Nope, I’ve never been to Europe at all.
Have you read [X Guidebook to Spain/Europe]?
I don't know what it is about guidebooks, I just can't finish them. The only section that ever holds my attention is the one describing their food.
Do you know anyone who’s going with you?
Nope.
What are you going to do in Spain besides classes?
The typical stuff, I suppose: see a bullfight, go to festivals, take pictures of everything, eat copious amounts of ham.
Are you going to get a SPANISH BOYFRIEND?!?!?!
I imagine I'll be too busy with the ham.
Still have questions? Comment here and ask me! Remember to keep everything family-friendly because it appears my grandma will be reading this. (OMA IN DA HAUS)
Wednesday, January 6, 2010
You can't teach an old blog new tricks
I feel compelled to update this thing but, seeing as I am not yet in Europe, nothing has happened to me. The most exciting part of my day today was going to Target. Thus, I will post my predictions for the trip.
TEN PREDICTIONS:
1. I'm going to hate it for the first two weeks or so, before I get acclimated to only speaking Spanish and different meal schedules and such. After I stop being a massive baby, I'll have fun.
2. On that note, I'll spend progressively less and less time on the Internet (and on this blog) as the trip goes on.
3. My host family will consist of one older woman (60 or so). She won't speak English at all, and thus our conversations will consist mainly of weather and food-related topics. Also her house won't have Internet access.
4. At some point, something in my possession will get stolen. I'm just too careless and untraveled for it not to happen, and my money's on my terrible old camera.
5. I will fail to learn to appreciate wine. People keep telling me that Spain is going to change my mind, but at the moment I think it tastes like nail polish remover.
6. I will take an unbelievably excessive number of pictures. Like, pictures of shrubs and random people and passing dogs. Hopefully I upload them to a computer before my camera gets stolen (see prediction 4).
7. The hotel we are staying at for orientation actually has a KFC across the street from it. For a while I was indignant about it, but now I can say with about 90% certainty that I will be hitting that place up.
8. Though I'll be in completely over my head in all of my classes, my favorite class will be "Perceptions of the U.S. in Spain: 100 Years of Myths and Stereotypes."
9. My favorite country will be Italy. My least favorite country will be Morocco, but if we're limiting it to Europe it will be France. I am basing these predictions 100% on stereotypes and stories I've heard (Morocco, you are one scary country, just saying).
10. My favorite things about Spain will be the language, the food, and the architecture. My least favorite things about Spain will be the lack of air conditioning/heating, their eating schedule, and the distance at which they talk to each other. (It's uncomfortable! I'm not a close-talker!)
OK, that's it. A few days before I come home, I'll do a recap of how accurate these predictions were.
COMING SOON: Frequently Asked Questions about the trip
TEN PREDICTIONS:
1. I'm going to hate it for the first two weeks or so, before I get acclimated to only speaking Spanish and different meal schedules and such. After I stop being a massive baby, I'll have fun.
2. On that note, I'll spend progressively less and less time on the Internet (and on this blog) as the trip goes on.
3. My host family will consist of one older woman (60 or so). She won't speak English at all, and thus our conversations will consist mainly of weather and food-related topics. Also her house won't have Internet access.
4. At some point, something in my possession will get stolen. I'm just too careless and untraveled for it not to happen, and my money's on my terrible old camera.
5. I will fail to learn to appreciate wine. People keep telling me that Spain is going to change my mind, but at the moment I think it tastes like nail polish remover.
6. I will take an unbelievably excessive number of pictures. Like, pictures of shrubs and random people and passing dogs. Hopefully I upload them to a computer before my camera gets stolen (see prediction 4).
7. The hotel we are staying at for orientation actually has a KFC across the street from it. For a while I was indignant about it, but now I can say with about 90% certainty that I will be hitting that place up.
8. Though I'll be in completely over my head in all of my classes, my favorite class will be "Perceptions of the U.S. in Spain: 100 Years of Myths and Stereotypes."
9. My favorite country will be Italy. My least favorite country will be Morocco, but if we're limiting it to Europe it will be France. I am basing these predictions 100% on stereotypes and stories I've heard (Morocco, you are one scary country, just saying).
10. My favorite things about Spain will be the language, the food, and the architecture. My least favorite things about Spain will be the lack of air conditioning/heating, their eating schedule, and the distance at which they talk to each other. (It's uncomfortable! I'm not a close-talker!)
OK, that's it. A few days before I come home, I'll do a recap of how accurate these predictions were.
COMING SOON: Frequently Asked Questions about the trip
Sunday, January 3, 2010
I'm bloggin it, Pat, I'm bloggin it!
This is my first (and probably last) blog, so I'm not really sure how to kick it off. Breaking a bottle of champagne over the computer sounds exciting but a little counterproductive, so I'll just say welcome! I'll be documenting my travels over the next six months: five months taking classes in Seville and one month gallivanting around Europe, giving them a bad impression of Americans.
I leave on January 17, giving me about two weeks to get everything together and brush up on my woefully inadequate Spanish. (We're not allowed to speak English unless we're on fire or something equally drastic. It's going to be basically a six-month-long game of charades.)
Issues left to resolve before I leave:
1. What the hell am I going to pack? They don't really wear T-shirts over there, and the weather is all over the place.
2. What present should I bring my host family? I need something small and Texan that won't be confiscated by customs. Ideas are welcome.
IMPORTANT: I am not bringing my phone to Spain. I am, however, bringing my gargantuan laptop and I'll have access to internet on campus. If you need to contact me, e-mail, Facebook, and Skype are the ways to do it. Or you can always comment on this blog. It'll make me feel popular.
To conclude my first post, I'd like to send a shout-out to my mom for A) forcing me to start a blog, B) being my only reader, and C) creating the title for it.
I leave on January 17, giving me about two weeks to get everything together and brush up on my woefully inadequate Spanish. (We're not allowed to speak English unless we're on fire or something equally drastic. It's going to be basically a six-month-long game of charades.)
Issues left to resolve before I leave:
1. What the hell am I going to pack? They don't really wear T-shirts over there, and the weather is all over the place.
2. What present should I bring my host family? I need something small and Texan that won't be confiscated by customs. Ideas are welcome.
IMPORTANT: I am not bringing my phone to Spain. I am, however, bringing my gargantuan laptop and I'll have access to internet on campus. If you need to contact me, e-mail, Facebook, and Skype are the ways to do it. Or you can always comment on this blog. It'll make me feel popular.
To conclude my first post, I'd like to send a shout-out to my mom for A) forcing me to start a blog, B) being my only reader, and C) creating the title for it.
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