Finally, another blog entry! Now that I'm back in the United States and had some time to reflect upon my experience, here's what I have to say:
First of all, my passion for Spanish has certainly grown while abroad. I have a new energy and even stronger desire to become better at speaking Spanish and to continue utilizing it here. When I came to the University of Michigan, I originally planned to only minor in Spanish, and even when I decided to double major, Spanish definitely did not hold the same importance as Neuroscience. Now, my two majors are about 50/50 in my mind. Don't get my wrong, I still LOVEEEE science (and I realize now how much I missed science classes over the summer), but I really take pride and pleasure in my Spanish studies as well.
Next, I have realized how my language skills have improved while abroad. They have probably faded in the month I've been back (it's only been a month?!?), but my listening skills have significantly improved. I didn't think my speaking had improved that much, but being in my Spanish classes in the United States has demonstrated to me that my speaking skills are above other students in 300 level classes and on-par with those in my high 400 level classes. I feel more confident in my speaking abilities and definitely actually WANT to speak more in class.
Besides all of that, I have a stronger appreciation for the United States, but also a deeper understanding and acceptance of other nations as well. I think of foreign countries in a different way and I find it interesting to see and experience how they are different from the United States.
While I was gone, I also gained a desire to learn more languages. I would really like to learn Portuguese and am considering taking a Portuguese for Spanish-speakers class here at U of M. I found it almost a fun challenge to try to decipher Portuguese and Italian since they share similarities with Spanish. It was interesting being in a place where people don't speak English readily. It makes you think about things differently. It makes you less self centered and realize the other cultures and ways of life out there. It humbles you when you can't communicate with others and you have to find another way. It makes you more creative, and more able to solve problems.
Adapting to a foreign country wasn't too difficult for me. I think by not having many ideas of what to expect, I was able to more accept things as they came because I didn't have any idealizations to compare them to. Everything I saw was new and exciting. Being able to communicate with someone in a store, or with my host family felt like little accomplishments. I was astonished by the architecture, the layout of the streets, the charm.
Returning to Spain is definitely something I want to do as soon as possible. I would love to visit my family in Salamanca, and I also want to go to other regions of Spain such as Andalucia. Traveling has definitely opened me up to other places and I want to experience other places of the world as well besides Europe.
Saturday, September 24, 2011
Wednesday, August 10, 2011
The Good & the Bad
Things I will not miss about Spain:
1. Absence of breakfast: gimme some eggs!
2. No one on the streets say "excuse me/ perdóname" when they are coming through; they also walk really slow sometimes
3. Businesses being closed during siesta
4. Stuff is expensive/ euro conversions
5. Club promotors harassing you every night
Things I will miss about Spain:
1. My host family, including little David, the cutest baby ever
2. Being able to speak Spanish with natives at your disposal
3. TAPAS and other delicious things
4. The drinking age
5. The architecture is absolutely incredible
6. Being together with everyone
1. Absence of breakfast: gimme some eggs!
2. No one on the streets say "excuse me/ perdóname" when they are coming through; they also walk really slow sometimes
3. Businesses being closed during siesta
4. Stuff is expensive/ euro conversions
5. Club promotors harassing you every night
Things I will miss about Spain:
1. My host family, including little David, the cutest baby ever
2. Being able to speak Spanish with natives at your disposal
3. TAPAS and other delicious things
4. The drinking age
5. The architecture is absolutely incredible
6. Being together with everyone
Monday, July 25, 2011
Much Needed Update
So basically, here's what's been happening in the past two weeks in a nutshell.
I took a two-week long Flamenco dance class through the University here which was so much fun! We learned two whole routines which were pretty extensive, but it was really great to learn about the dance culture and it was a great break to hang out with friends. I can't wait to see a real Flamenco show in Barcelona because I think it would be incredible to watch professionals. My dance teacher seemed like she was pretty good; really graceful and you could tell she had so much passion for it.
Last weekend, I went to Lisboa, Portugal. This is probably my favorite place I've been so far in Europe. I just wish I knew Portuguese so I could communicate with everyone, but it didn't matter; most people spoke English. It also wasn't that difficult to get a general gist for the language; it's similar to Spanish in some ways. I enjoyed the challenge of figuring it out. Lisboa is such a gorgeous city. Awesome monuments, pretty much like everywhere else on this continent. But what I enjoyed most was the coast. I think I'm spoiled to have basically grown up on Lake Michigan, but I couldn't get enough of being on the water. I think when I grow up, I need to live in a big city with a coast... Chicago? The first night in Portugal, my friends and I got dinner at a restaurant outside. You could feel the breeze off the water while we were eating and it was just perfect. I loved the atmosphere. There's also a much broader sense of diversity in Portugal. It was more like Madrid in that sense. I like being surrounded by a bunch of interesting people all the time. The second day in Portugal, we went to the beach in Cascais. Also incredible. This was more of a beachy town, but I loved it. The ocean was decorated with boats, and the sand was hot. People were going topless at the beach. I think it's interesting how in Europe that kind of thing isn't over sexualized or anything. Like it's normal for people to just lay out at the beach like that and no one cares. It's definitely more relaxed than the United States.
Classes are going pretty well. I did awesome on my first paper for my U of M class, and I got a pretty good score on my first translation exam.
This weekend, I went to Segovia with a great group from Umich. We saw the aqueducts, more cathedrals (starting to get sick of them haha), and ate at a really good and fancy restaurant with great cochinillo (like a roasted pig). The skin was so crunchy and flavorful. It was seriously DELICIOUS. I also got a really yummy salad. I feel like vegetables are really not that accessible here, so I was really happy to get that salad! Yesterday, I also hung out at the pool with some friends from U of M. This weekend was really relaxing and I've really enjoyed everyone's company. I'm seriously so glad to be here and I wouldn't trade this experience for anything!
In just a few, I will be (finally) eating lunch with Rosa and her family. There are 20 people here. It's a national holiday today, and so we don't have class and all the stores are closed for the most part. Today in the plaza, when I went running, they were putting up a flag on top of the plaza and setting off fireworks. I'm so glad this was a long weekend, it was much needed and it helped me remind myself why I'm here and why I love it so much!
I took a two-week long Flamenco dance class through the University here which was so much fun! We learned two whole routines which were pretty extensive, but it was really great to learn about the dance culture and it was a great break to hang out with friends. I can't wait to see a real Flamenco show in Barcelona because I think it would be incredible to watch professionals. My dance teacher seemed like she was pretty good; really graceful and you could tell she had so much passion for it.
Last weekend, I went to Lisboa, Portugal. This is probably my favorite place I've been so far in Europe. I just wish I knew Portuguese so I could communicate with everyone, but it didn't matter; most people spoke English. It also wasn't that difficult to get a general gist for the language; it's similar to Spanish in some ways. I enjoyed the challenge of figuring it out. Lisboa is such a gorgeous city. Awesome monuments, pretty much like everywhere else on this continent. But what I enjoyed most was the coast. I think I'm spoiled to have basically grown up on Lake Michigan, but I couldn't get enough of being on the water. I think when I grow up, I need to live in a big city with a coast... Chicago? The first night in Portugal, my friends and I got dinner at a restaurant outside. You could feel the breeze off the water while we were eating and it was just perfect. I loved the atmosphere. There's also a much broader sense of diversity in Portugal. It was more like Madrid in that sense. I like being surrounded by a bunch of interesting people all the time. The second day in Portugal, we went to the beach in Cascais. Also incredible. This was more of a beachy town, but I loved it. The ocean was decorated with boats, and the sand was hot. People were going topless at the beach. I think it's interesting how in Europe that kind of thing isn't over sexualized or anything. Like it's normal for people to just lay out at the beach like that and no one cares. It's definitely more relaxed than the United States.
Classes are going pretty well. I did awesome on my first paper for my U of M class, and I got a pretty good score on my first translation exam.
This weekend, I went to Segovia with a great group from Umich. We saw the aqueducts, more cathedrals (starting to get sick of them haha), and ate at a really good and fancy restaurant with great cochinillo (like a roasted pig). The skin was so crunchy and flavorful. It was seriously DELICIOUS. I also got a really yummy salad. I feel like vegetables are really not that accessible here, so I was really happy to get that salad! Yesterday, I also hung out at the pool with some friends from U of M. This weekend was really relaxing and I've really enjoyed everyone's company. I'm seriously so glad to be here and I wouldn't trade this experience for anything!
In just a few, I will be (finally) eating lunch with Rosa and her family. There are 20 people here. It's a national holiday today, and so we don't have class and all the stores are closed for the most part. Today in the plaza, when I went running, they were putting up a flag on top of the plaza and setting off fireworks. I'm so glad this was a long weekend, it was much needed and it helped me remind myself why I'm here and why I love it so much!
Sunday, July 10, 2011
Pasando el Día con la Familia de Rosa
Today, Rosa's family came in and celebrated her son-in-law's birthday. I met a lot of people and spent a while with the whole family. There were both of Rosa's daughters, the older one's husband (it was his birthday) and their son, David (he is so cute!!), Rosa's other daughter's boyfriend, Rosa's sister and her two kids, and another couple (not sure how they were related), and another older woman (also not sure how she was related). We had paella for lunch and cake, too. Everyone was really nice, but they spoke so fast! I couldn't really tell what they were talking about at all! So difficult. I want to get a lot better at listening in the next four weeks. It's totally different listening in class and listening to native speakers have a conversation around a table with ten other people!
One of the couple's had a dog named Chispi and they brought him over a bit later. Chispi was a little Yorkie dog I think and he was so precious. He liked to play with the balloons around the house. We would blow up a balloon and throw it to him and he would jump up and hit it with his nose back to the person. David, the little boy thought this was really funny. That kid is so precious!
Today at dinner, I got to practice more Spanish as well. I'm pretty sure it's Rosa's sister with the two kids but she has been speaking to me a lot so it was nice to practice. I also showed her the postcards I brought from Michigan which she really liked to see.
It was a unique experience getting to spend some time with an entire Spanish family, but it was cool to hang out for a while and learn about them and their culture. It also showed me that trying to listen to native speakers having a conversation is NOT EASY AT ALL and I look forward to improving on this aspect of my Spanish.
One of the couple's had a dog named Chispi and they brought him over a bit later. Chispi was a little Yorkie dog I think and he was so precious. He liked to play with the balloons around the house. We would blow up a balloon and throw it to him and he would jump up and hit it with his nose back to the person. David, the little boy thought this was really funny. That kid is so precious!
Today at dinner, I got to practice more Spanish as well. I'm pretty sure it's Rosa's sister with the two kids but she has been speaking to me a lot so it was nice to practice. I also showed her the postcards I brought from Michigan which she really liked to see.
It was a unique experience getting to spend some time with an entire Spanish family, but it was cool to hang out for a while and learn about them and their culture. It also showed me that trying to listen to native speakers having a conversation is NOT EASY AT ALL and I look forward to improving on this aspect of my Spanish.
Just Ate One of These Bad Boys!
El camarón. It was served to me like this in my paella and you have to peel it all off yourself! Hello little creature!
Lista de Vocabulario
While here, I have been learning some new vocabulary and grammar. It hasn't been that much but it's actually a lot harder to pick up on this kind of stuff than you would think. Also, it's conflicting because we learn Mexican/Latin America Spanish in the United States, so there are a lot of phrases and conjugations we are not familiar with here.
First and foremost, the use of vosotros. In high school, and even kind of in college, we completely ignore all conjugations for vosotros (you plural), but here in Spain, it is super prevalent! I have never learned vosotros commands before, but you kind of just end up going with it and figuring it out. I think I'm better at listening to vosotros conjugations than actually forming them myself, but oh well.
Also, everyone says "vale" here for "ok" instead of "bueno." Obviously I know what it means, but it feels unnatural for me to say it for some reason.
Also, people rarely say "por favor" here. I've learned that people usually shorten it with "porfa" or don't say anything at all. Rude! Hahaha.
Some other words I should make note of:
oso=bear
abeto=pine tree
cabras=goats
cogerse de la mano=to hold hands
guau=bark (sound of dog, but ladrar is the verb "to bark")
cubiertos=silverware
melocotón=peach
la ciruela=plums
bocadillo=sandwich
el guisante=peas
el pepino=cucumber
berenjena=eggplant
aguacate=avocado
lavandería=laundry
lavadora=washing machine
detergente=detergent
aliñar= to dress (as in a salad)
asar=to roast
batir=to beat
dejar reposar=to let cool
cocer al horno=to bake
congelar=to freeze
freír=to fry (they do that A LOT here!)
hervir=to boil
pelar=to peel (they also do that a lot here, my señora always peels her fruit while I just eat it all)
rallar=to shread
tostar=to toast
la brocheta=shish kabob
la chuleta de cerdo=pork chops
el solomillo de cerdo=tenderloin
el chorizo=type of sausage, SO GOOD!
el camarón=shrimp
el pulpo=octupus
el calamar=calamari, squid
el bogavante=lobster
la vieira=scallop
el fregadero=kitchen sink
el lavabo=bathroom sink
el grifo=faucet
la cocina=stove, also kitchen
la placa=stove burner
el horno=oven
la campana=fan over the stove
la nevera=refrigerator
la sartén=frying pan
la cacerola=pot, the large kind with two handles
el cazo=one handle, standard pot
la cafetera=coffee pot, tea pot
la taza=mug
el cuenco=bowl
la bola=scoop (of ice cream), this world has a lot of meanings
There's definitely still so much to learn! Vocabulary is the hardest part. I've never really had a problem communicating with my grammar (they probably think I sound like an idiot sometimes!), but it's definitely difficult when you don't even know the word you need to use. Sometimes you just have to describe it, but that can get confusing too. I can't wait to learn and be able to use more vocabulary. Another difficult thing is that they just use different words than for example in Mexico or Latin America. For example they use zumo for juice instead of jugo. Oops messed that up a few times!
First and foremost, the use of vosotros. In high school, and even kind of in college, we completely ignore all conjugations for vosotros (you plural), but here in Spain, it is super prevalent! I have never learned vosotros commands before, but you kind of just end up going with it and figuring it out. I think I'm better at listening to vosotros conjugations than actually forming them myself, but oh well.
Also, everyone says "vale" here for "ok" instead of "bueno." Obviously I know what it means, but it feels unnatural for me to say it for some reason.
Also, people rarely say "por favor" here. I've learned that people usually shorten it with "porfa" or don't say anything at all. Rude! Hahaha.
Some other words I should make note of:
oso=bear
abeto=pine tree
cabras=goats
cogerse de la mano=to hold hands
guau=bark (sound of dog, but ladrar is the verb "to bark")
cubiertos=silverware
melocotón=peach
la ciruela=plums
bocadillo=sandwich
el guisante=peas
el pepino=cucumber
berenjena=eggplant
aguacate=avocado
lavandería=laundry
lavadora=washing machine
detergente=detergent
aliñar= to dress (as in a salad)
asar=to roast
batir=to beat
dejar reposar=to let cool
cocer al horno=to bake
congelar=to freeze
freír=to fry (they do that A LOT here!)
hervir=to boil
pelar=to peel (they also do that a lot here, my señora always peels her fruit while I just eat it all)
rallar=to shread
tostar=to toast
la brocheta=shish kabob
la chuleta de cerdo=pork chops
el solomillo de cerdo=tenderloin
el chorizo=type of sausage, SO GOOD!
el camarón=shrimp
el pulpo=octupus
el calamar=calamari, squid
el bogavante=lobster
la vieira=scallop
el fregadero=kitchen sink
el lavabo=bathroom sink
el grifo=faucet
la cocina=stove, also kitchen
la placa=stove burner
el horno=oven
la campana=fan over the stove
la nevera=refrigerator
la sartén=frying pan
la cacerola=pot, the large kind with two handles
el cazo=one handle, standard pot
la cafetera=coffee pot, tea pot
la taza=mug
el cuenco=bowl
la bola=scoop (of ice cream), this world has a lot of meanings
There's definitely still so much to learn! Vocabulary is the hardest part. I've never really had a problem communicating with my grammar (they probably think I sound like an idiot sometimes!), but it's definitely difficult when you don't even know the word you need to use. Sometimes you just have to describe it, but that can get confusing too. I can't wait to learn and be able to use more vocabulary. Another difficult thing is that they just use different words than for example in Mexico or Latin America. For example they use zumo for juice instead of jugo. Oops messed that up a few times!
El Rastro
This morning, I went on a run with my friend Katherine. We ran around the central city on a main road, and then ended up running to el Rastro. This is a huge market, where many people come to set up stands and sell their goods. You can find some pretty nice deals on things there. We didn't have any money, so we just looked around. It happens every Sunday, so many I will have to go back.
Some of the things I saw were: cheap sandals (only 6 Euros), underwear, fake or maybe real Ralph Lauren, Lacoste, and Porsche polos for cheap, bathing suits, dresses, baby toys, kids books, leather bags and other goods, sunglasses and more. It was a pretty big event and lots of people were there. It was also kind of overwhelming because everyone yells at you to come buy their stuff. "¡Tengo la moda, muy barrato! ¡Pruebalo!"
All of the other stores are closed in town, so el Rastro is a big attraction. On my way home, I noticed all the main stores in town were closed, even including Carrefour, which is basically the equivalent to Meijer but a lot smaller. It's kind of interesting how they close all the stores here on Sunday. Quite the contrast to the fast-paced American life. Also, my friend noticed that as she was running over to meet me at around 10AM, hardly anyone was even out yet! People are definitely on different schedules here for the most part.
Some of the things I saw were: cheap sandals (only 6 Euros), underwear, fake or maybe real Ralph Lauren, Lacoste, and Porsche polos for cheap, bathing suits, dresses, baby toys, kids books, leather bags and other goods, sunglasses and more. It was a pretty big event and lots of people were there. It was also kind of overwhelming because everyone yells at you to come buy their stuff. "¡Tengo la moda, muy barrato! ¡Pruebalo!"
All of the other stores are closed in town, so el Rastro is a big attraction. On my way home, I noticed all the main stores in town were closed, even including Carrefour, which is basically the equivalent to Meijer but a lot smaller. It's kind of interesting how they close all the stores here on Sunday. Quite the contrast to the fast-paced American life. Also, my friend noticed that as she was running over to meet me at around 10AM, hardly anyone was even out yet! People are definitely on different schedules here for the most part.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)