Untitled.

I have the hardest time coming up with titles for these posts. It's so hard to sum up an entire week in only a few words. I initially thought I would be writing on here more than once a week. However, the weeks here fly by... I guess time really does fly when you're having fun.

As I mentioned in my last post, this week was yet another abbreviated work week for me. Monday was a holiday in Dos Hermanas so I enjoyed a 4 day weekend for the second week in a row. While sleeping in was a nice substitute for walking to the bus stop in the dark at 7 a.m., I have to say that I think I would have preferred going to work. I have always been the type of person who needs structure in my daily life and I like to have something to occupy my time during the day. I guess that learning how to fill my free time and enjoying a slowed-down Spanish lifestyle is just another part of my living here for a year.

My three days at work this week were pretty standard. I am finally beginning to get a better idea of what is expected of me and how I can best serve the teachers and students I am working with. I have a clearer idea of the teachers' strengths and weaknesses in their English abilities and thus can better prepare for our one-on-one time together. I have been printing out articles for us to read together, which provides them with an opportunity to practice their pronunciation as well as learn new vocabulary words. For those who want me to review grammar, I have also been finding handouts and practice exercises online. It is also a good chance for me to review grammar as I think that the last time I studied English grammar was in high school.

I only got to spend one hour in class with the students this week, which was kind of disappointing because I really enjoy working with them. Most of them are very eager to improve their English and I really appreciate the ones who take the time to ask me questions. The random middle-aged man in one of my classes, who I was a little wary of at first, really surprised me this week with his efforts to improve his pronunciation. Even though most of the students hate having to read aloud in English, he voluntarily read an entire handout out loud and took the time to ask me questions about pronunciation. It is little moments like that that make my work here seem worthwhile.

This week marked the beginning of my giving clases particulares, or private English lessons. When I first started working at the school, I was approached by Antonio, a teacher from another department who was interested in having me teach a group of 5-6 year old kids. This week we finally got started. After a miscommunication on Tuesday, I finally found my way to the correct metro stop in Montequinto, where Antonio picked me up and took me to his house. When we got there, I met his wife (whose name I cannot for the life of me remember) and the three kids I will be working with--Paco, Isabel, and Raquel. Antonio then showed us to his office upstairs where we are going to be spending our time together. I had planned a lesson on the ABCs and for the most part it went off without a hitch. We reviewed flashcards of the letters and I then had them color in the flashcards. In order to get a new letter to color, they had to tell me the name of the letter in English. Afterwards, we played an alphabet Bingo game. I had to help them out from time to time in identifying the letters but all things considered they did a great job. It was an adjustment working with little kids instead of teenagers but it was a welcome change of pace. When our hour was over at 7 p.m., they didn't want me to leave, which I guess was a good sign! Luckily, I'll be going back every Tuesday and Thursday, so they will be getting their fill of me.

I can already tell that my time in Montequinto will be just as beneficial for me as it is for my new students. While making a little extra money is a nice plus, I am looking forward to getting some extra teaching experience and to having more commitments to occupy my time. It is also interesting to see a glimpse of Spanish family life in the suburbs. In a lot of ways, the neighborhood that the family lives in reminded me of what I can imagine life would have been like in the 1950's in the U.S. All of the houses are really close together, so everyone knows all of their neighbors and they are constantly socializing in the streets. After our class was over, the kids went out to play with their friends in the street, something that I don't think happens nearly enough in the U.S. these days, partly because kids would rather be inside watching TV or playing video games and partly because of safety concerns. More than anything, getting to experience Spanish family life was comforting and reminded me a lot of home. I am hoping that I can get to know Antonio and his family better over the coming months and that in some small way I can become like part of the family. It's a lot to wish for but I don't think it's completely out of the question.

In other news, I have all of the details of my trip to visit Alice in Italy ironed out. I have booked a hotel for Friday night in Rome, near the train station, so that I will have a place to stay when I get in late that night. Per Alice's advice, I found a bed and breakfast in the medieval section of Viterbo, which is very reasonably priced and looks to be very charming. As much as I love Sevilla, it will be nice to have a brief change of scenery and of course to have some much needed family time.

That's about all of the news from here. In true Spanish fashion, I have no idea what my plans for the weekend are. I pretty much just have to fly by the seat of my pants and see what happens. So, on that note, hasta pronto.

I can't believe it's time for another weekend in Sevilla. Especially given the fact that I am coming off of a 2-day work week. Yes, that's right... only two days of my week included face time at I.E.S. Torre de los Herberos. Is the Junta de Andalucía really paying me to live this surreal life? You betcha.

My week started out Monday morning with my long awaited appointment at the Oficina de Extranjeros (Office of Foreigners) at Plaza de España, where I was to take the first steps in applying for my identification number and card. I left my house extra early to make sure that I got there on time for my 9 a.m. appointment and that I knew exactly where I was going. When I arrived around 8:30, the sun still wasn't up... yet there was a huge line of people waiting to go about their business just like me. Even though I knew that CIEE had set up my appointment for me and that I wouldn't need to wait in any lines, I asked the security guards outside where I needed to go if I had an appointment. In typical Spanish fashion, each guard that I asked told me to get in a different line. Eventually I ended up in the shorter of two lines. However, it wasn't long before another one of the people in line, a nice Latino man, informed me that if I was turning in my application I needed to go to an office that was on the other side of the plaza. He kindly showed me there, assuring me that he had turned in his own application at that office. I waited there for a little while with about 3 other people who were there to do the same thing as I was. However, as time passed and 9 a.m. approached, I started to get the feeling that this wasn't right. So, I decided to text some of the other participants from my program who I remembered had already had their first appointments. I ended up getting in touch with another girl who also had her appointment on Monday, who just happened to be waiting in the correct location with several other CIEE participants. So, after some minor confusion, I found my way to the right place and met some new people in the process.

It turned out that my appointment was with Sebastian, a friend of one of the staffers from the CIEE office here in Sevilla who was responsible for making all of our lives much, much easier. By some stroke of luck, I ended up being the first person to go in and present my application. A process that I thought would take a couple of hours ended up lasting only 10 minutes and was much less painless than I had anticipated. Sebastian merely entered my information into the computer, asked me a few questions (mainly for the purpose of small talk), and informed me about the next steps in the process. Like most Spaniards I have met, upon learning that I am from Tennessee, he responded, "Oh, like Jack Daniels!" I guess at least they have heard of our wonderful state... Anyways, I have an appointment November 4 to get my fingerprints taken at the police station and turn in my passport-sized photos and will need to pay a small fee for my I.D. card at some point before my appointment. I have to say that I can't wait to get all of this bureaucratic mess out of the way! That said, it really hasn't been all that bad. It's all just part of the experience of moving to a new country and like everything else I have had to go through I am taking it with a grain of salt.

After getting my appointment out of the way, I had the rest of the day to goof off, as I had already told the school that I wouldn't be making it in that day. I got some things done around the house--laundry, grocery shopping, etc.--and had time for not 1 but 2 siestas. Adulthood--so far, so good.

Monday night I met up with some other people from my program, some of whom I already knew and several of whom I didn't. Tuesday was a national holiday in Spain, so none of us had to worry about getting to bed early in preparation for work the next day. We went to a really neat tapas bar in el centro, although because I had already eaten at home I didn't get to try it. I'll definitely be going back though... the food looked really good! Afterwards we went to Alfalfa, which is a very popular area for young people at night. As always I enjoyed getting to talk to other people who are having the same experiences I am. You really can't have too many friends, especially when living in a foreign country, so I hope that I will see some of the people I met again in the future.

As I mentioned before, Tuesday was a national holiday. As far as I can tell, it is basically the Spanish equivalent of Columbus Day. I enjoyed waking up at an hour when it wasn't pitch black outside and then went for a long walk over to Cartuja, across the river, where there is a really beautiful park/garden and a great walking path, part of which actually goes out over the water. I spent the rest of the day relaxing and walking around a bit. Apparently there were parades to celebrate the holiday but unfortunately I missed out this time.

Wednesday was the first of my two days of actually working and I was glad to get back to school and see Cefe, Cristobal, Javier, and Ricardo. I finally gave my passport and bank account information to Mercedes, the school secretary, so that I can get paid at the end of the month. Cefe and I also took care of more paperwork, which the Spanish really seem to love. During my first hour, I worked with Cefe on finalizing course materials that had been translated from Spanish to English either by me or by the previous year's assistant. We went over the finished products so that Cefe could practice pronouncing the words and so that I could explain the changes I had made. Then, in my one-on-one session with Ricardo, I went over irregular verbs, a topic that we had started to get into last week. We practiced pronunciation and went over the meanings of the verbs, which he seemed to find very helpful. We had an interesting cross-cultural moment about midway through the hour when we came to the verb "to come." Ricardo looked at me and said, "Oh, like 'Come Together.'" I just nodded my head and smiled, which I seem to do a lot of these days. He then proceeded to launch into a feeble rendition of the famous Beatles' song, at which point I announced that I am a huge Beatles fan. We then had a discussion about the group and he was very proud to tell me that he had visited the site of John Lennon's assassination in New York. Moments like that--where I find common ground with someone who I didn't think I shared many interests with--make everything I am doing over here truly seem worthwhile. My Wednesday ended in the classroom with the first year students. Cefe had to go downstairs to take care of some paperwork during the first 10 minutes of class, so I was left in charge while the class started to read and translate one of the English handouts I had helped prepare. A couple of the students were bold enough to ask me questions, which I really appreciated. Not surprisingly, it was my only 2 girl students! When Cefe got back, the students took turns reading the document aloud (in English). After each section, I would re-read the text so that they could here the correct pronunciation. In the last part of the class, we worked together to translate the handout into Spanish. The whole process was a little difficult as the students' levels of English range from zero to pretty good. However, I finally felt like I was getting an opportunity to connect with them and actually impart some wisdom to them. I was a little nervous and intimidated standing in front of a room of 17-18 year olds. However, now that I have gotten over the initial hurdle, I think I will adapt to my duties in no time.

Thursday was a rather uneventful day at school. I was already on the bus to Santa Justa when I got a call from Cefe to tell me that Ricardo wasn't going to make it in for our 10:15 session. However, because I was already in transit I decided to go ahead and go in. After recreo, I had class with Cristobal and the second year students. As in Wednesday's class with Cefe, we went over a handout that I had translated into English, practicing pronunciation and then translating the text back to Spanish to make sure that they understood what they were reading. After we had finished going over the worksheet, one of the students, a random middle-aged man, started asking me questions (although I never really understood what the problem was). Before I knew it, Cristobal and the entire class were in a furious discussion in very fast Andalusian Spanish. I thought they were talking about having me review English grammar. However, after about 5 minutes of this, Cristobal turns to me and says, "They want to be your friends." Then two boys in the front row, who seem to be the ringleaders of the group, said, "We want to party with you on the weekend." I started laughing but they were actually serious. It seems that in Spain something like going out on the weekends with your students isn't unprofessional. I'm still not sure how to take their request but it was definitely an interesting cultural moment. My week ended with a laid back session with Javier, who was in and out dealing with Ricardo's students. We read an article I had printed out from the Nashville Scene about the Murfreesboro mosque controversy, which has been very prominent in the local news over the past several months. I think it was a good opportunity for him to get an idea of the issues that dominate conversation in the States, especially in my hometown. It was also interesting because he was able to make comparisons between that story and a similar one that occurred in Sevilla a few years back. When it was all said and done, my work week was short but incredibly rewarding nonetheless.

Thursday night I met up with one of my new American friends and headed to Plaza del Salvador to celebrate the end of the week. Funnily enough, I ran into Cefe there and enjoyed talking to him for a while outside of work. After a few cervezas, we went to grab some tapas, which I haven't done nearly enough of since I've been here! We then went back to Salvador to meet up with some Spanish friends. It was a lot of fun and my Spanish definitely got a work out!

It turns out that my 2-day work week will be followed by a 3-day work week, as Monday is a holiday in Dos Hermanas in honor of Sunday's Romería de Valme, one of the most famous religious celebrations in all of Spain. There is an all-day processional in honor of the Virgin of Valme that begins in Dos Hermanas and goes to the neighboring town of Bellavista. All of the locals get dressed up in traditional garb and eat and drink a lot along the path of the processional. All of the teachers at my school were telling me about it and I think I will have to go to see what it's all about!

My other big news is that I have booked my first trip of the year... the first weekend in November I will be traveling to Italy to visit my sister, Alice, in Viterbo. I will fly into Rome on Friday night, probably spend the night there, and then make my way to Viterbo Saturday morning. As is usually case, it was much cheaper to fly back to Sevilla on Monday rather than Sunday. Luckily, my school sees no problem with me taking the day off for travel, so I will get 2 full days to see Alice in her element and enjoy all that Italy has to offer. I have to admit I am really looking forward to indulging in some pizza, pasta, and gelato!

I would also like to take a moment to pass on the news that my (step) grandmother Betty Long (affectionately known as Granny Betts) passed away this week after being sick for several months. We all knew that she didn't have long but that doesn't make it any less emotional. It is at times like these that I realize just how far I am from home and my family. I wish that I could be there to give everyone, especially Wardie (my 9-year-old sister), a big hug. However, I am glad that I have been able to talk to everyone over the course of the week and let them know that I am thinking of them. As Shelley (my stepmom) reminded me, Granny Betts would be proud of what I am doing. I only wish that she was still going to be around when I get home next summer to hear all about my experiences.

So, on that note, I will end this post. It turned out to be rather long but then again it has been a while since I last wrote. Un saludo...

One Week Down, Many More to Go...

It's official... I have now completed my first week of work as a Language & Culture Assistant. The job isn't exactly what I imagined it would be... but that isn't to say that it's bad or that I don't like it. In fact, with each day that has passed this week, I have come to appreciate my responsibilities and daily routine more and more. After all, how can you complain about being paid to work only 12 hours a week in Spain? Exactly. You can't.

Although I've only actually spent 4 days at the school, I can already tell that the best part of my job is getting to work with such a great group of teachers. The four that I work with on a daily basis--Ceferino, Javier, Ricardo, and Cristobol--couldn't be nicer or more patient and have gone above and beyond the call of duty in making me feel welcome. Every day from 11:15-11:45 the entire school has a break, called recreo, when the students go outside to socialize and eat their morning snacks. During that break, those teachers who aren't overseeing the recreo gather in the teacher's lounge to tomar un café and catch up with one another. On Monday, my first day, I I went off campus by myself in search of coffee and got back to the school mid-recreo. Locked out of the department office, I decided to sit in the hallway and wait for the next class period to begin. When Javier found me sitting by myself, he was totally shocked and insisted that from then on I spend the break with the others teachers in the lounge. Thursday was by far my best day yet in terms of feeling like a part of the school culture. Javier bought me a café con leche and I sat and then I sat and talked with Ceferino about where he has traveled and where he wants to go in the future. Experiences like that seem insignificant at the time but are invaluable in terms of not only improving my conversational Spanish but also in bonding with my co-workers. I feel like a little kid again but I think recess just became my favorite period of the day!

In terms of actually fulfilling my duties, I am slowly figuring out what I am expected to do and how best to go about doing it. In my one-on-one sessions with the 4 teachers I mentioned above, I either help translate course materials from Spanish to English or review English grammar and vocabulary. The translation is proving to be difficult because it deals with telecommunications and information technology--things I don't know the first thing about in either English or Spanish! The English teaching part is also challenging, but manageable. On Thursday, Ricardo asked me to review all of the verb tenses we use in English. I really had to rack my brain but seemed to do an okay job! My session Javier went a lot smoother and was very enjoyable. I had printed out a travel article about Nashville, which he read outloud and then translated. More than anything I enjoyed sharing about my hometown and the culture I come from. He really surprised me, in a good way, with his level of English and seemed to enjoy learning about where I come from. I'm definitely going to try to incorporate similar activities into my future sessions with Javier and the other teachers.

I'm still trying to ascertain what my role in the classroom is. Thursday was the first day that I spent an entire period with the students in class, as my first few days the teachers simply introduced me and had the students ask me questions. Thus, Thursday's class period with Cristobal and the second year bachillerato students was a trial run. Basically, I just read some terms out loud in English and then observed the rest of the lecture, which was carried out half in Cristobal's feeble attempt at English and half in Spanish. I can only imagine that the situation will improve with time as both the teachers and I figure out how my abilities can best be used.

During my time at the school this week, I also had the opportunity to meet the teachers of the English department, who, like everyone else at I.E.S. Torre de los Herberos, are incredibly nice. I have to say that I kind of wish I was working primarily with them instead of with the technology department... but that's neither here nor there. I am, however, going to look into possibly sitting in on some of their classes, either on Fridays (when I technically don't work) or on Mondays (when I have about 2.5 hours of free time). I'm really curious to see how English is taught here and also how the students respond. It would be great if I could contribute a little to the classes but honestly I'd just be happy to be a bystander. I figure that any experience I have here in Spain will only add to what I get out of this year.

Apart from work and commuting, I haven't had the time or energy to do much else this week. Most days I come home from work, eat lunch, and then take a siesta before going to the gym. On Tuesday, I did choose to walk home from the train station rather than taking the bus and happened upon a really cool open-air market (I guess I would compare it to a farmer's market) on Feria, a main street really close to my house. I have always loved markets like that, both for shopping and just perusing. One of the coolest things I did last time I was in Europe was spend some time in the Boqueria market in Barcelona. You really can learn so much about a culture from visiting a local marketplace. Even though the market on Feria doesn't come close to the Boqueria, I still enjoyed walking through it and definitely plan on making it a regular part of my routine. I bought some delicious peaches and tomatoes there and plan to go back soon as I try to learn how to cook!

That's about all the news from here. I have no idea what I'll do this weekend but I'm sure whatever I end up getting into will be lots of fun. I hope that everyone back in the States has a wonderful weekend! Hasta pronto...

Success.

I apologize for the incredibly long-winded, somewhat negative post I wrote last Thursday. I figured it was the best way to let my family know what I had been through, plus I needed to vent. Socialized healthcare is very frustrating... but that's a discussion for another day. Anyways, I thought I would give an update on what I have been up to since the now infamous toe injury.

After the disjointed day I had on Thursday, I got up Friday ready to get down to business. I went back to the Centro de Salud first thing in the morning to have my toe re-looked at and re-dressed, which turned out to be slightly more complicated than I expected it to be. Nonetheless, it was a lot quicker and less stressful than my first experience there. After another trip to the bank to pay for my visit (this time it was a little cheaper... go figure), I finally saw a nurse, who actually remembered me from the day before. I was in and out by 10 a.m., which left me plenty of time to accomplish my goals for the day by 2 p.m., when everything in Spain shuts down for lunch and siesta.

First up, I went back to La Caixa, the sight of my toe incident, to deposit this month's rent in Fátima's bank account. Don't worry--I was very careful in opening the door. Afterwards, I went back to Cajasol by La Campana (where they actually know me by name now and can correctly pronounce my last name) to attempt opening a bank account. Although I initially thought that banking at La Caixa would make transferring my rent each month easier, I ended up deciding that Cajasol was the best option, mainly because there are so many branches and ATMs around the city. I ended up talking to a lady at the information desk, who got the process rolling. Unfortunately, there was some sort of a glitch in the computer system that held up the opening of my account and I had to leave for about an hour while she waited for someone to fix the error. That gave me just enough time to walk very quickly to Plaza de España, where I visited the Oficina de Extranjeros (the Foreigner's Office) and picked up the form I will need to turn in when I apply for my NIE (número de identidad extranjero). As is the case with most government offices, this one was packed with people and there was a very long line that freaked me out a little. The good news is that when I go back to actually apply for my NIE I will not have to wait in any lines. CIEE has connections at the office and was able to make us appointments ahead of time. My first appointment (one of two) is a week from today. I will definitely be glad to get that ball rolling.

Anyways, after my brief visit to the Oficina de Extranjeros, I returned to Cajasol, where I hoped that the computer glitch would be solved and the nice lady at the information desk would be ready to finalize the opening of my account. Luckily, she was and after 2 days of trying I finally had a Spanish bank account. Unfortunately, until I get paid at the end of the month, there will be no money in it...

After such a crazy two days, I was definitely ready for the weekend. After a night out on Friday night with some of my new CIEE friends, I spent the rest of the weekend alternately relaxing and continuing to explore my beautiful Spanish hometown. I also did a little bit of shopping in my neighborhood... there are some really cute boutiques, which is good for my aspirations to be fashionable like Spanish women and very bad for my pocketbook. Priorities.

With the end of the weekend came the beginning of my time as a gainfully employed college graduate. By the time Sunday rolled around, I was getting excited to head back to I.E.S. Torre de los Herberos and start work. That excitement soon wore off, when I realized I would have to wake up at the unheard of hour of 6:30 a.m. to get ready and begin my commute to Dos Hermanas. For those of you who have never been to Spain, life here doesn't start until at least 8 a.m. When I left my house at 7:15 this morning, it was still completely dark out and there were no other people in sight. Nonetheless, I made my way to the bus stop, and then the train station, and finally to Dos Hermanas.

My workday started at 9:15 a.m. with Javier, one of the teachers I will be working with in the Department of Electronics. It's random, I know, but if they want to learn English, I will do my best to help! Anyways, today was basically a get-to-know-you type of day and Javier spent a little time (okay, a lot of time) telling me about his background, his knowledge of English, and what he expects from our one-on-one time together. It seems that he wants to focus primarily on pronunciation and other speaking activities, as well as on listening. I can't say that I blame him... English pronunciation is hard and doesn't always make sense. Plus, in my Spanish studies, those have always been the areas I have struggled with the most. Anyways, after our hour together, I came away with a sense that Javier is very enthusiastic about learning English and I'm looking forward to working with him.

After my time with Javier, I had about 2.5 hours of free time. I killed some of that time looking for pronunciation activities online and trying to figure out how to go about teaching English. Then, I decided to get a little fresh air (I was getting very sleepy at this point) and venture out into Dos Hermanas in search of coffee. Let's just say that Dos Hermanas, or at least the part where my school is, doesn't have much to offer. I did eventually find a little bar where I had a quick café con leche and drew lots of looks from the locals, who were no doubt confused about the presence of a tall, blonde American in their bar. After that, I headed back to school, where I spent some time talking to Cristobal, one of the other teachers I will be working with both in class and one-on-one. He is a little older and speaks very hard to understand Andalusian Spanish. Still, he was incredibly nice and took a lot of time to explain what he expects from our time together this year. He even suggested that sometime all of the teachers and I get together for a meal or a cervecita. I am so thrilled to be working with such an enthusiastic, welcoming group of teachers!

After my time with Cristobal, which wasn't officially on my schedule for the day, I spent an hour with Ricardo, yet another teacher from the Department of Electronics. He made a point to speak slowly to me, which helped a lot! He asked me lots of questions about my life in the States and my family, which I was more than happy to share. He then told me some about his own family and Dos Hermanas, where he has lived his entire life. The highlight of our session was when he told me that I spoke very good Spanish. So, I guess my Vanderbilt education has paid off! He also introduced me to another teacher who works at the school who might have a job for me giving private English lessons to a group of 5-6 year old kids in Dos Hermanas. I know I could certainly use the extra income and I am always looking for ways to fill my time here, since I only work 12 hours a week!

My workday ended with Ceferino, who is the bilingual coordinator and the person with whom I have had the most contact. During the last period on Mondays, I will be assisting him in his class with students who are in the second year of their bachillerato. From what I can tell, we will be reviewing information they have already learned in English. The class is made up of about 12-15 17 and 18 year old boys (that's right...no girls) which is somewhat intimidating. Nonetheless, they seem like a great group of students. Ceferino introduced me to the class and then had them go around and introduce themselves. Just about everyone was named either Rafa, Joaquin or Paco. Their English language abilities range from nonexistent to middle-of-the-road and I was very impressed overall. They asked me some questions about myself, my studies, and where I am from, and then Ceferino let me go for the day.

By the time I got on the train to head back to Sevilla, I was exhausted, mentally and physically, but in a good way. Yes, it was a lot to take in in one day. That said, I loved getting to know the teachers from the department and also getting to meet some of my students for the first time. Although my time thus far in Spain has been pretty busy, it felt nice to have some structure to my day and to actually accomplish something. I am also starting to get a better idea of what my duties will be as a Language & Culture Assistant. I won't be spending as much time as I anticipated actually in the classroom with students. However, I am excited to work with the teachers and improve their English as well, in the hopes that they will be able to pass that knowledge on to the students at some point down the road. Overall, I would say that it was a very good first real day of work.

Well, this has been an incredibly long blog post... what can I say, my life is pretty eventful these days! Kudos to those of you who made it this far. I will post again at the end of the week with an update on how things are going at work. I also hope to take my camera one day and get some photos of the school, the teachers I am working with, and some of the students. In the meantime, shoot me an e-mail if you have a chance! Hasta pronto...