"y tal" is a new favorite Spanish expression of mine, which means "etc." it is very useful, just like all of the other great expressions and words I have been learning in my intensivo. As of tomorrow, our intensivo is over. Monday starts a fresh batch of classes, the classes we will be taking for the rest of the semester. I suppose in a way its the "real" beginning of this semester. I have to say that 2 weeks of intensive went by much quicker than I imagined it would.
This weekend we are headed to Toledo y Segovia, the home of El Greco and many beautiful mosques and cathedrals. I am excited to explore and tell you all everything I discover!
I still find the culture of food and eating to be the most interesting part of living in Spain. Every meal is like a surprise! Even if the food we eat is familiar, there is always something slightly different, like french fries cooked in olive oil or shepherd's pie with green and red peppers...all fantastic, I think. The only food I haven't quite liked was rice with tomato sauce topped with an over-easy egg. Yet I tried it, and ate most of it...so there you go.
I find myself adjusting to siesta schedule fairly well, although I rarely sleep during siesta time. I am even getting over the fact that I don't eat my beloved Oh's or Cracklin' Oat Bran every morning...and am becoming quite enamored of galletas con marmalade de fresas y cafe con leche. Caroline and I absolutely love the galletas (small, flat cookies) our madre puts out for us, and we each usually smuggle about two each afternoon for a quick snack before "comida" (lunch)
The language barrier still exists, but I find myself able to convey what it is that I want to say...and I am quite anxious to work on my accent and pronunciation.
I also look forward to having visitors in the coming months! Mom, Dad, and Marc in February and Alex in March before Spring break. This semester is sure to fly by too quickly.
Thursday, January 31, 2008
Monday, January 28, 2008
Portugal
I have literally just arrived home from Portugal, but for fear of forgetting anything, or worse, losing my internet connection ( a new development) I think I'll go ahead and recount this amazing weekend right now:
We stayed in the capital, Lisboa, for our first two days. At first glimpse, Lisboa seemed slightly unfriendly and daunting, but a few amigas and I decided to counter the general unfriendliness of the city by being extremely touristy: and heading to McDonald's for a quick snack. It actually proved to be quite funny and an interesting albeit small-minded cultural experience.
On Saturday most of the group who went to Lisboa (about 25 of us) decided to yet again be unabashed tourists and take a open-top tour bus around the city. I don't think we could have made a better choice. The bus went to all the important and beautiful areas of Lisboa, and gave you the opportunity to stop at a site you were interested in, and then pick the bus up later. Some chicas and I decided to stop on the shore, where we walked, took pictures, and grabbed a lunch of bocadillos con jamon y queso. It was brilliant.
The amount of beautiful, old buildings in Portugal is staggering. Decorative tiles are very popular in all of Portugal, so many of the facades of old buildings were adorned with intricate tiles, sometimes in a repeating pattern, other times in a picture. (Once I figure out how to put pictures on here, I can show examples). Even some buildings in total disrepair were more beautiful than anything i've seen in America!
Although Saturday was so fantastic, Sunday was by far my favorite part of the trip. We took an excursion to two areas, Estoril and Sintra. Estoril is on the coast, and we stopped at a gorgeous beach on an even more gorgeous day. It was warm enough for us to take our shoes off, and we galavanted and relaxed in the sand for about an hour. Apparently kite-flying is popular in Porugal, as one man proved by literally chasing us with his.
Sintra was ineffably fantastic. I'm running out of adjective and adverbs here, but It deserves a more eloquent description than I can give. Its a small, tourist town that seems rich with history and very tranquil. The buildings are incredible there. All slightly worn, crowded along hand laid cobblestone streets. It must be built into a mountain, because almost every road we turned on was an extremely steep hill. Just getting around the small town was quite a workout. Just walking around was enough for me, We even got to see two old women chatting, one from a second story window and one from the street, which seemed like the perfect thing to do in a quaint town like this. I can't wait to put up pictures of Sintra, it was magical. I can see this being the type of place you'd sell all of your posessions to live in. A simple, decadent, relaxed lifestyle.
Regardless of the amazing time we had in Porugal, it is nice to be back in Salamanca, Caroline and I missed Capilla and her ninja like speed when she cooks up delicious meals (We swear she's magic...we can never find any remnants of cooking, and yet she always has something fresh on the table), and I have to say, it is nice to hear people speak spanish again. (maybe i'm finally getting better...!)
besos, besos, besos, and mucho amor!
Lindsay
We stayed in the capital, Lisboa, for our first two days. At first glimpse, Lisboa seemed slightly unfriendly and daunting, but a few amigas and I decided to counter the general unfriendliness of the city by being extremely touristy: and heading to McDonald's for a quick snack. It actually proved to be quite funny and an interesting albeit small-minded cultural experience.
On Saturday most of the group who went to Lisboa (about 25 of us) decided to yet again be unabashed tourists and take a open-top tour bus around the city. I don't think we could have made a better choice. The bus went to all the important and beautiful areas of Lisboa, and gave you the opportunity to stop at a site you were interested in, and then pick the bus up later. Some chicas and I decided to stop on the shore, where we walked, took pictures, and grabbed a lunch of bocadillos con jamon y queso. It was brilliant.
The amount of beautiful, old buildings in Portugal is staggering. Decorative tiles are very popular in all of Portugal, so many of the facades of old buildings were adorned with intricate tiles, sometimes in a repeating pattern, other times in a picture. (Once I figure out how to put pictures on here, I can show examples). Even some buildings in total disrepair were more beautiful than anything i've seen in America!
Although Saturday was so fantastic, Sunday was by far my favorite part of the trip. We took an excursion to two areas, Estoril and Sintra. Estoril is on the coast, and we stopped at a gorgeous beach on an even more gorgeous day. It was warm enough for us to take our shoes off, and we galavanted and relaxed in the sand for about an hour. Apparently kite-flying is popular in Porugal, as one man proved by literally chasing us with his.
Sintra was ineffably fantastic. I'm running out of adjective and adverbs here, but It deserves a more eloquent description than I can give. Its a small, tourist town that seems rich with history and very tranquil. The buildings are incredible there. All slightly worn, crowded along hand laid cobblestone streets. It must be built into a mountain, because almost every road we turned on was an extremely steep hill. Just getting around the small town was quite a workout. Just walking around was enough for me, We even got to see two old women chatting, one from a second story window and one from the street, which seemed like the perfect thing to do in a quaint town like this. I can't wait to put up pictures of Sintra, it was magical. I can see this being the type of place you'd sell all of your posessions to live in. A simple, decadent, relaxed lifestyle.
Regardless of the amazing time we had in Porugal, it is nice to be back in Salamanca, Caroline and I missed Capilla and her ninja like speed when she cooks up delicious meals (We swear she's magic...we can never find any remnants of cooking, and yet she always has something fresh on the table), and I have to say, it is nice to hear people speak spanish again. (maybe i'm finally getting better...!)
besos, besos, besos, and mucho amor!
Lindsay
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
Intensivo, Intensivo
Buenos Tardes from Salamanca!
As the week begins here, I feel like I am starting to adapt to the interesting Spanish schedule, and am in the process of creating a schedule of my own. On Monday the JMU group went to La Universidad de Salamanca to take placement tests for our 2 week "intensivo". For the next two weeks, we will only have one class, four hours a day (with a small break in the middle), in order to heighten our conversation skills. After we took the test we were seperated into two groups of equal size, and began class immediately! I already feel a bit more confident about speaking, and really enjoy my classmates and my ruggedly dashing professor, Javier. Our class focuses on understanding cultural and colloquial terms for the most part, so we spent the entire day today comparing insults and curse words...as well as some rather useful conversation fillers. We had a fun class full of laughter and not a little immaturity.
Yesterday, 3 girls from my group and I attempted taking a jog around Salamanca. It was an extremely interesting experience. Running through a crowded street in the middle of "tapas" hours is the perfect way to proclaim that you are American...no one runs for exercise here. I had to run by myself for a few blocks to meet up with the other chicas, and I think I was probably quite a sight to see... Una alta rubia (tall blonde) darting through old men with canes and fast-paced madres with strollers. We had a good time and got a chance to discover a park that is really quite beautiful, so even though it was a little bit embarassing, I think we are planning on making a routine of it. I am excited to have some regularity and familiarity in my schedule.
Things are very different here and it is still a little bit hard to adjust. The eating schedule is what is most strikingly different, and it is extremely pervasive, as most activities during the day depend upon when you eat and when you will next eat..etc. Our madre, Capilla, proves to be a pretty good cook and we've had a pleasant amount of variety. We have fruit at lunch and dinner, which is lucky for us because we have heard that not everyone here has been able to get fresh fruits and vegetables.
This weekend we have Monday off, so about 20 of us have decided to go to Lisboa, Portugal. I am very excited because this will be an entirely new experience for me (as if living in Spain isn't new enough!) We will have a relaxing time and hopefully get to know each other better. Maybe pictures soon!
I miss you all very much!
Besos,
Lindsay
As the week begins here, I feel like I am starting to adapt to the interesting Spanish schedule, and am in the process of creating a schedule of my own. On Monday the JMU group went to La Universidad de Salamanca to take placement tests for our 2 week "intensivo". For the next two weeks, we will only have one class, four hours a day (with a small break in the middle), in order to heighten our conversation skills. After we took the test we were seperated into two groups of equal size, and began class immediately! I already feel a bit more confident about speaking, and really enjoy my classmates and my ruggedly dashing professor, Javier. Our class focuses on understanding cultural and colloquial terms for the most part, so we spent the entire day today comparing insults and curse words...as well as some rather useful conversation fillers. We had a fun class full of laughter and not a little immaturity.
Yesterday, 3 girls from my group and I attempted taking a jog around Salamanca. It was an extremely interesting experience. Running through a crowded street in the middle of "tapas" hours is the perfect way to proclaim that you are American...no one runs for exercise here. I had to run by myself for a few blocks to meet up with the other chicas, and I think I was probably quite a sight to see... Una alta rubia (tall blonde) darting through old men with canes and fast-paced madres with strollers. We had a good time and got a chance to discover a park that is really quite beautiful, so even though it was a little bit embarassing, I think we are planning on making a routine of it. I am excited to have some regularity and familiarity in my schedule.
Things are very different here and it is still a little bit hard to adjust. The eating schedule is what is most strikingly different, and it is extremely pervasive, as most activities during the day depend upon when you eat and when you will next eat..etc. Our madre, Capilla, proves to be a pretty good cook and we've had a pleasant amount of variety. We have fruit at lunch and dinner, which is lucky for us because we have heard that not everyone here has been able to get fresh fruits and vegetables.
This weekend we have Monday off, so about 20 of us have decided to go to Lisboa, Portugal. I am very excited because this will be an entirely new experience for me (as if living in Spain isn't new enough!) We will have a relaxing time and hopefully get to know each other better. Maybe pictures soon!
I miss you all very much!
Besos,
Lindsay
Saturday, January 19, 2008
Estoy aqui!
Buenos Tardes!
its about 4:30 here in Salamanca, and my roommate Caroline and I have just finished eating Almuerzo (lunch) with members of our host family. The eating schedule is a bit different in Spain, but so far I feel no major inconveniences. Lunch is a bit larger, breakfast is quite small, and dinner is pretty late in the evening (anywhere from 9:30 to 11ish.) The appartment I am living in is tiny, but very fashionable and clean. There are 3 bedrooms, a bathroom, a small kitchen and a quaint living area. All of the bedrooms are off of the main hallway, so basically immediately inside the front door, you encounter my madre Capilla's room. My roommate and I have had sort of an interesting experience so far with our host family. We were picked up in Salamanca by a youngish woman who we assumed was our "madre". She told us on the walk to the appartment that she in fact was not, but was her sister. She offered no explanation for this. When we came home we assumed we'd meet our madre there, but she was nowhere to be found. Her sister proved accomidating and quite nice. Later in the day we met yet ANOTHER member of our Madre's family...her rather old but very sweet mother, Manuela. We ate dinner without having met Capilla once, and both being quite exhausted, went to bed.
It was only this morning (Saturday) that we finally met our elusive hostess. Bearing a striking resemblance to her sister (at least initially), I didn't question her presence and she offered no introduction until a bit later. She is in her forties or fifties, pleasant but not necessarily nice, and very active. As she was not there for our arrival, she was not given maps to give us (although every other host family seemed to have them) and she offered to walk with us to the plaza this morning, but only if we hurried. For the entirety of breakfast she paced up and down the small living room, claiming "estoy nervioso" After a brisk walk to the Plaza, and a hurried goodbye, Caroline and I were still a little perplexed. We have not seen our hostess since, and are assured that she will be back in the evening, though she is supposed to be in the house today to meet our program director, but we were told that she is in class today. I feel very out of the loop in a time when I was hoping to feel slightly more encouraged. This is all very confusing, and would be much clearer if we could speak just a littttle ingles!
Regardless of this strange turn of events, I've had a really lovely time thus far (2 days!) Today we all met at the Plaza Mayor, which is beautiful and quite old. There is a street called La Calle Toro that is strictly for pedestrians, and its littered with great stores. Some I've never seen before and am excited to poke around in, but there are also familiar names such as Sephora, The Body Shop, H&M, and of course, Mcdonald's. I'll have to post pictures of the Plaza, it truly is beautiful. It is a giant square surrounded by large buildings with the busts of famous Spaniards on the walls. There is a giant reloj (clock) with a big bell that rings every 15 minutes and on the hour, of course. The entire group walked over to the Universidad de Salamanca (10 minutes or less from La Plaza) and although I didn't get to see the Universidad in its full, it seems quite beautiful. The buildings are very old, and there is very intricate, almost caligraphic writing on most of the buildings that lets you know what they are. We met with our program director (Jesus) who explained to us how classes will be held during the semester. Tomorrow is our tour of the edificios importantes de la Ciudad (the important buildings in the city!!!) I'm very excited for that.
So far, I am pleased to say my group members seem really friendly and I really like our program director. I was also very excited to discover that we can connect to free wireless internet from our house, which is QUITE a hot commodity among our peers. Caroline and I are trying not to gloat, but it makes things much more convenient. We start our intensive spanish communication class on Monday, and it goes for two weeks. After that I hope to be speaking spanish much more coherently (though I'm doing ok so far) Sometimes I have trouble understanding my madre's sister and her mother...but they have been extremely patient with me.
There are more anecdotes and I'm sure there will be even more soon, but I think I'll save them for next post.
Besos!
Lindsay
its about 4:30 here in Salamanca, and my roommate Caroline and I have just finished eating Almuerzo (lunch) with members of our host family. The eating schedule is a bit different in Spain, but so far I feel no major inconveniences. Lunch is a bit larger, breakfast is quite small, and dinner is pretty late in the evening (anywhere from 9:30 to 11ish.) The appartment I am living in is tiny, but very fashionable and clean. There are 3 bedrooms, a bathroom, a small kitchen and a quaint living area. All of the bedrooms are off of the main hallway, so basically immediately inside the front door, you encounter my madre Capilla's room. My roommate and I have had sort of an interesting experience so far with our host family. We were picked up in Salamanca by a youngish woman who we assumed was our "madre". She told us on the walk to the appartment that she in fact was not, but was her sister. She offered no explanation for this. When we came home we assumed we'd meet our madre there, but she was nowhere to be found. Her sister proved accomidating and quite nice. Later in the day we met yet ANOTHER member of our Madre's family...her rather old but very sweet mother, Manuela. We ate dinner without having met Capilla once, and both being quite exhausted, went to bed.
It was only this morning (Saturday) that we finally met our elusive hostess. Bearing a striking resemblance to her sister (at least initially), I didn't question her presence and she offered no introduction until a bit later. She is in her forties or fifties, pleasant but not necessarily nice, and very active. As she was not there for our arrival, she was not given maps to give us (although every other host family seemed to have them) and she offered to walk with us to the plaza this morning, but only if we hurried. For the entirety of breakfast she paced up and down the small living room, claiming "estoy nervioso" After a brisk walk to the Plaza, and a hurried goodbye, Caroline and I were still a little perplexed. We have not seen our hostess since, and are assured that she will be back in the evening, though she is supposed to be in the house today to meet our program director, but we were told that she is in class today. I feel very out of the loop in a time when I was hoping to feel slightly more encouraged. This is all very confusing, and would be much clearer if we could speak just a littttle ingles!
Regardless of this strange turn of events, I've had a really lovely time thus far (2 days!) Today we all met at the Plaza Mayor, which is beautiful and quite old. There is a street called La Calle Toro that is strictly for pedestrians, and its littered with great stores. Some I've never seen before and am excited to poke around in, but there are also familiar names such as Sephora, The Body Shop, H&M, and of course, Mcdonald's. I'll have to post pictures of the Plaza, it truly is beautiful. It is a giant square surrounded by large buildings with the busts of famous Spaniards on the walls. There is a giant reloj (clock) with a big bell that rings every 15 minutes and on the hour, of course. The entire group walked over to the Universidad de Salamanca (10 minutes or less from La Plaza) and although I didn't get to see the Universidad in its full, it seems quite beautiful. The buildings are very old, and there is very intricate, almost caligraphic writing on most of the buildings that lets you know what they are. We met with our program director (Jesus) who explained to us how classes will be held during the semester. Tomorrow is our tour of the edificios importantes de la Ciudad (the important buildings in the city!!!) I'm very excited for that.
So far, I am pleased to say my group members seem really friendly and I really like our program director. I was also very excited to discover that we can connect to free wireless internet from our house, which is QUITE a hot commodity among our peers. Caroline and I are trying not to gloat, but it makes things much more convenient. We start our intensive spanish communication class on Monday, and it goes for two weeks. After that I hope to be speaking spanish much more coherently (though I'm doing ok so far) Sometimes I have trouble understanding my madre's sister and her mother...but they have been extremely patient with me.
There are more anecdotes and I'm sure there will be even more soon, but I think I'll save them for next post.
Besos!
Lindsay
Monday, January 14, 2008
Packing Therapy
Well, I'm officially off on Wednesday! Flying out of Dulles on Thursday in the evening and then arriving at The Madrid Aeropuerto at 7:20 AM...leaving me 7 hours to spare before my meeting time with the other JMU students in my program. I am slightly unsettled by this delay, and am not sure exactly what I will do to make the time fly. My one hope is that there is a sweet Spanish version of People or some other trashy magazine...so that I can update myself on the Spanish celebrities I should know all about in order to make conversation with my madre.
My madre appears to be fairly normal from the description provided.. she is a woman who lives alone and has two older kids who "viven independientes" in the city. I am excited to learn more about her and her family.
I think this will be my last post before I am actually in another country! After many days of preparation, I am down to my last day in Chapel Hill...one last day to make sure everything is packed and accounted for. I strangely find packing very therapeutic and have oddly been enjoying packing and making packing lists. At least I can relish in simple pleasures in the face of being uprooted and plopped in a foreign land, yes? I have also been feverishly applying for summer internships, whihc has been another layer of stress...I can only hope that my hard work pays off and that I will be getting art merch at a discount from the MoMA design store this summer!
adios, mis amigos, mi familia.
hasta pronto!
linds
My madre appears to be fairly normal from the description provided.. she is a woman who lives alone and has two older kids who "viven independientes" in the city. I am excited to learn more about her and her family.
I think this will be my last post before I am actually in another country! After many days of preparation, I am down to my last day in Chapel Hill...one last day to make sure everything is packed and accounted for. I strangely find packing very therapeutic and have oddly been enjoying packing and making packing lists. At least I can relish in simple pleasures in the face of being uprooted and plopped in a foreign land, yes? I have also been feverishly applying for summer internships, whihc has been another layer of stress...I can only hope that my hard work pays off and that I will be getting art merch at a discount from the MoMA design store this summer!
adios, mis amigos, mi familia.
hasta pronto!
linds
Wednesday, January 9, 2008
This is my blog
I am taking a page out of many travelers' books and trying this blog thing out. Clearly I am not out of the country yet, but I'm hoping to post regularly so that anyone who wants to can keep updated about the aventuras I'll (hopefully) be having in beautiful Spain!
Adios!
Lindsay
Adios!
Lindsay
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