Montaditos miércoles!

28 Sept 2011
I had a pretty uneventful day. One of my host teachers was gone today and so technically I only had one class that I needed to help my other host teacher with. However, I decided to help out with the other teacher's afternoon classes. For these classes, I got to be the "expert" on counting and saying the abc's. Although my aim for this blog is to try to write about Spain and its culture, today I learned more about British English. My students and I were singing the alphabet and I heard them pronouncing the letter "z" in a slightly different way. This isn't completely out of the ordinary because there are a number of English sounds (especially the vowels) that are very hard for a Spanish speaker to pronounce. For example, a speaker of Spanish might be more likely to pronounce the word "ship" the same as "sheep." In Spanish, every vowel corresponds to only one sound. It doesn't matter where you put it in a word because it will always have the same sound. In contrast, in English, there are long vowels and short vowels. Pronunciation of vowels depends on what other vowels are with it and where it falls in the sentence.
Apparently, the letter "z" has a different pronunciation in British English versus American English. For example, we pronounce "z" as zee (rhymes with bee). However, in British English, "z" is pronounced as zed (rhymes with head).
Today was also Montaditos miércoles (Montaditos Wednesday)! As I wrote in a previous blog post, there is a chain restaurant that has basically everything for one euro on Wednesdays. The restaurant specializes in montaditos--which are small sandwiches. You only really need 3 or 4 and some chips to fill you up! As a special treat, we decided to get their ice cream sandwiches as a dessert.

"Have got" and valenciano

I prepared my first classroom activity for my 6th grade students today. Since they are practicing with "have got," I decided to have them do any interactive activity where they would need to ask other students questions using "have got." For this activity, each student got a slip of paper with two animals written on it (these animals were review from last year). They had to get up and ask each student if they had the same animals or not. For example, if I had a lion and a zebra, I had to ask other students, "Have you got a lion? Have you got a zebra?" Once they found their partner, they had to sit down and write a sentence about what they had. For instance, my partner and I would have written, "We have got a lion and a zebra." I thought this would be a fun activity for the students because they generally do most of their work at their desks and it forced students to use the grammatical structure "have got" a lot! It went pretty well for my first activity on my own! Since my teacher had asked me to keep it short, I didn't add any other follow up activities, but she ended up adding a few exercises related to my activity.
After school, I went to the Escuela de idiomas (School of Languages). As part of my side project here, I'm planning on studying valenciano (Valencian) and the cheapest place to do this is at the Escuela de idiomas. This school is sponsored by the government which allows them to offer classes at a much lower rate. However, classes have already started so I can't register at the moment. Nevertheless, on October 3rd, they will opening the classes back up if there are any vacancies. So on Monday morning, I'm going to go early to see if I can get into an evening valenciano class!

Bureaucracy Rant

26 Sept 2011
I have to rant just a little bit today about all of the bureaucracy that I have run into today. As I have explained before, I'm working on applying for my identity card in Spain so that I can stay here for another 9 months. This requires me to go to a police station or office of foreigners in order to present my application. However, I've run into some issues with finding the right place to go.
This morning I got up really early (it's my day off so any time before 9 is early) so that I could get to the police station on Isabel la católica in time to get a number. Apparently, at this station, they hand out 100 numbers and if you aren't lucky enough to get there early enough to get a number you won't have an appointment that day. So I got there at about 8:00 AM and got to be number 17! I thought to myself that I was very fortunate and that maybe I'd have time to go to the beach that afternoon. I waited about an hour for my turn to talk to the nice policeman. He looked at my documents and told me that I needed to go to a different office and that I couldn't apply for my identity card there. He was nice enough to look up the office and give me a map with the office marked with an "X."
Then, I trekked to the far edge of the city to the Office of Foreigners. Once there, I had to get in line to get a number and prove to the information people that I had my documents ready to go. However, they looked at my documents and didn't seem to know what to do with me. Consequently, they gave me a number for the more information line. I waited in this line for THREE HOURS! Once it was my turn, I thought that I would finally have this taken care of and I could continue on with my day. Sadly, the lady behind the desk told me that I would have to go to yet another office! I'm not entirely sure why I couldn't do this at any of these offices, but a former Fulbrighter friend of me assured me that the address the lady gave me is indeed the office that I have to go to.
I was in a pretty bad mood after all of this--mostly because I had wasted a perfectly beautiful day inside waiting. However, I met up with a Fulbright friend for crepes (with Nutella--yum!) and drinks. I started to feel much better about my day! I'll head to this new office next Monday and finally put all of this behind me.

Valencia Part II

25 Sept 2011
After heading back to the City of Arts and Sciences, we're heading back to Alicante. This was a pretty short trip, but I'm sure that there will be others. Although I have Monday off, I have plenty of errands (applying for my identity card and going to the grocery store!) that I need to take care of today and tomorrow.
Around 11 AM, we went to the Museum of Science in the City of Arts and Sciences. This museum was pretty interesting. It had a lot of interactive experiments and games. There was one room full of the typical experiments you find at a children's museum--such as experiments dealing with light, sound, and movement. This room was full of kids--which meant that we couldn't really try out anything. Then, we went to an exhibit that talked about well-being. As you entered, your picture was taken and as you went from one section to another the screen would recognize you. For example, one of the sections talked about muscles and I was able to test my muscle strength. When I left, I could print out a report about my general well-being.
Next, we went upstairs--where the most interesting exhibits were! The first exhibit (and probably the group favorite) was about soccer (fútbol) and the muscles/strength necessary to play. You could test your strength by doing pull-ups and find out how high you can jump. This floor also had a Marvel comics exhibit. I'm not entirely sure what this has to do with the sciences--other than most of the comic book characters have some sort of bizarre encounter with science in order to get their special powers.

Lastly, the floor had an exhibit about genes. There were a ton of different sections that discussed different organs, diseases, mutations, etc... I really liked one of the displays. It says, "Why do we say that the flame of a candle isn't alive?" In the middle, it's says, "Life," and it's surrounded by all the things that we characterize as part of life--"growth," "ages," "dies," "breathes," and "moves."

After going to the museum, we had lunch and returned to the train station--which by the way is beautiful. This train station is like a work of art. It has magnificent stained glass windows, mosaics, and tile work. 

Vamos a Valencia!

24 Sept 2011
We arrived in Valencia at about 9:20 AM this morning--having taken the 7:21 AM train from Alicante. We caught the metro in Valencia--which was actually pretty neat. They have some really beautiful mosaics at some of the station. Plus, the metro has some adorable cartoon mascots.

These indicate which are the fast/slow lanes. Aren't they cute?

Soon we met up with the other Fulbrighters! Since most of us were pretty tired, it was decided that a trip to Starbucks was in order before heading over the City of Arts and Sciences. La ciudad de las artes y las ciencias (the City of Arts and Sciences) is a set of museums located in the park in Valencia. The park is absolutely gorgeous. Apparently, the park was once a river that ran through Valencia. However, the river was diverted because of terrible flooding in 1957.
So now the park is a great place for people looking to run or bike and tourists wanting to visit some interesting museums.

Apparently, the City of Arts and Sciences was only built 10 years ago as a way to try to draw tourists to Valencia. All in all, it includes an oceanographic center (i.e. aquarium), a science museum, an art museum, and an opera house. Since there are so many museums to see and not enough time to see them all, we decided to the Oceanographic.
The Oceanographic actually has Europe's largest aquarium. We were able to see seals, penguins, sharks, beluga whales, AND DOLPHINS!
We waited a while for the dolphin show, but it was worth the wait. The pre-show announcer was hilarious. He chose 6 children to be volunteers for the show. However, in order to choose 3 of the children, he made the parents dance to Don Omar's song Danza Kuduro (which is super popular here! check it out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7zp1TbLFPp8). The parent with the "best"dance could choose a kid to be in the show. Let me tell you there were some very "talented" dancers amongst the dads...

Secrets of the Teacher's Lounge...

23 Sept 2011

As a kid, I always wondered what teacher's talked about in the teacher's lounge. As a classroom tutor the last four years, I never had the opportunity to discover what it is that teachers talk about.
I can't reveal ALL the topics that teachers talk about in the teacher's lounge, but I can say that travel advice and good-natured teasing were shared today. One of the teachers asked me what I've visited so far in Alicante. I had to admit that mostly I've been to the beach and shopping. At which point, all the teachers wanted to give me all sorts of suggestions of places that I need to visit while I'm in Alicante. Of course, the castle and the Archeological Museum made the list. However, one teacher told me that I needed to visit a particular town. Another teacher interjected that you can't reach that town by train and that I would need a car. The teacher joked that I just needed a Spanish boyfriend with a car and I could go. Then, the teacher added that having a Spanish boyfriend would also help me improve my Spanish...
Tomorrow, I'm planning on taking a trip to the city of Valencia. A couple of the Fulbrighters in Valencia have invited us to go with them to the Ciudad de las artes y las ciencias (The City of Arts and Sciences). I don't know much about this place--other than it includes a number of museums complexes. In order to get to Valencia by 10 AM, we'll have to take the 7:21 AM train...

Working with 1st graders (in any country) is like trying to herd cats...

22 Sept. 2011

Today was an exhausting day! On Thursdays, I work with two 1st grade classes back-to-back in the afternoon! It can be difficult to work with them because the class size is so big. There are 27 students (!!) in each of the classes! Also, it's late in the day, and students are starting to get tired and cranky. Furthermore, they are in an English class for the first time. I'm sure they are a little frustrated not to understand what is happening part of the time. Consequently, on any given day, it takes us a while to get the students settled down. Then, we get maybe 20 minutes to work with them on English before we need to put everything away. This just takes more out of me than working with the older kids.
After work, the other Fulbrighter in Alicante and I tried to go to the Office of Foreigners to apply for our identity cards. Once we managed to find the office, we were disappointed to find out that the office is only open 9AM to 2PM. Later, we also found out that you have to get to the office by 8:15 to actually get a number for an appointment. Apparently, they only see the first 100 people.
In order that our mission not be in vain, we decided to go to the Chinese restaurant a few blocks away from the office. It's not the best Chinese food by any means, but it a lot of food for a low price. You can get a spring roll, fried rice, an entree, and a drink for 6 or 7 euros!

"Have you got?" Mania

21 Sept 2011
If you've been following my blog, you know that I've already mention how much some of the British phrases my students are learning are throwing me off. Today, I had the opportunity to work with one particular British phrase for nearly two hours. My teacher wanted to give the 6th grade students a chance to review the grammatical structure for "have got" as in "Have you got any brothers and sisters?" If you're accustomed to British English, I'm sure this sounds perfectly natural. However, for me, it just doesn't sound like anything I would actually say. Instead, I feel like I need to correct each student with "Do you have any brothers or sisters?"
So today, students had to write down two questions using "have got" and then ask their partner for an answer. My job was to go around the room and help students with their questions. This is actually hard work for students! First, students needed to figure out the right agreement and then the right word order. (Ignore the rest of this paragraph if you have no interest in linguistics because I'm going to get a little technical.) In English, there is very few overt differences in conjugations for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd person as well as singular versus plural. For example, with the sentence "He went to the store" and "I went to the store" you can see that the verb "go" is conjugated as "went" and is the same in both sentences. In fact, conjugations in each tense are the same for person and number--except in the present tense. In the present tense, 3rd person singular is marked with a -s. For this reason, you have the following sentences "She loves cats" and "I love dogs." During today's activity, students had to figure out if they needed to use "have" or "has." Then, they had to determine the correct word order--by inverting the auxiliary (helping verb) and subject. For instance, it is not grammatical to say, "*Has got Tom a bike?" You might say, "Tom has got a bike?" However, the only way to make this sentence into a question is to use a questioning (i.e. rising) tone. The most common phrasing would be, "Has Tom got a bike?" with "Tom" between "has" and "got."
I studied the technical structure behind these sentences in a syntax class this last spring so I know how this type of question works, but of course you can't just explain this to 6th graders... let alone 6th graders learning English.
I also spent a lot of time correcting 5th graders on a small stylistic rule. The 5th graders are learning about a bunch of different countries. Some of the students are having trouble remembering to capitalize the first letter in the title of a country. Part of the problem here is that students (American students too) can be lazy about remembering to capitalize letters. I've tutored in enough American schools to know that this is true there too. However, in Spanish there is an added complication. Not everything that we capitalize in English is capitalized in Spanish. For example, in a title, only the first letter of the first word is capitalized in Spanish. As a result, you have a title like Cometas en el cielo instead of The Kite Runner. Also, nationalities are not capitalized. So I would say, "Soy americana." Around 50% forgot to capitalize the first letter of at least one country.

Me empadroné!

Me empadroné! Today, I've completed the first step in getting my NIE (Foreigner Identity Number)!
As I've explained earlier, the visa that the Consulate in the US issues is only good for three months. After which, you have to go home or you're illegally in Spain. If you plan to stay more than three months, you have to apply for the NIE within a month of entering Spain. First, you must go to a office of empadronamiento (registration) to register that you live at an address in Spain. So I had to take the contract for my apartment with me. In this contract, my landlady verifies that I live in the apartment that I've rented. Lucky for me, the office for empadronamiento is just around the corner from my apartment. And I mean just around the corner. I can actually SEE if there is a line in the office from our balcony!
Next step in the NIE process is to bring all my documents to a meeting at the Office of Foreigners--where I'll be issued my NIE number while my application is processed. I'll share more on this later!
I thought I'd share a few pictures of my apartment so you can see what it looks like!

My room!

the view!

Close up of the view from my window! Hola, mar

Catch Up Day

19 Sept 2011
Since I only work 4 days a week, today was my first day off. Did I do anything exciting--like go to the beach? Unfortunately not. I'm still feeling sick and I had a lot of household things to catch up on.
First, I went shopping for some more basic things. I headed back to Al Campo (the Spanish Wal-mart) for things like laundry detergent, a rug, a drying rack, etc... I wasn't able to find everything that I wanted--either because it wasn't where I thought it would logically be or because the store didn't have it. For example, for the life of me, I couldn't find regular rugs--like you might put in a bedroom or living room. I found kitchen rugs and bathroom rugs, but no regular rugs.
My second task of the day was to figure out how to use the Spanish washer. I know how to do laundry, but this washer had a LOT more options than my washer at home. That, and I had to figure out what temperature in CELSIUS(!) was safe for my clothing. No pasa nada. It wasn't a big deal, but I was a little worried that my clothes would shrink. However, everything turned out fine. Then, I had to figure out how to dry my clothes in my room. Most Spanish homes (including my apartment) don't have dryers so you have to hang them outside on a line on the balcony or in your room. Since I don't have a balcony, I had to wait forever for them to dry in my room--which was unfortunate because I really wanted to put my sheets on my bed... 

Sick Day

18 Sept 2011
Just goes to show you that when things finally settle down and you're ready to relax, you always get sick. I'm not sure if my current ailment is just my seasonal allergies or if I've already caught something from the primary school students. Regardless, I decided to take it easy today.
The other Fulbrighter and I went out for a (cheap) lunch at a restaurant on the Calle Mayor. After lunch, we decided to go shopping! Both of us had to admit that neither of us packed the right kind of clothes for the weather in Alicante. As a Midwesterner, I own a lot of clothing more suitable for -20 degrees. However, it is super hot here still--today was probably 92 degrees--and so we need to get some more sundresses. So not only is it hot temperature-wise, but the other factor that makes this weather so hot is that few places have AC. Some stores and restaurants have AC, but I'm actually considered really lucky because my apartment has it.

But what we discovered was that stores are not open on Sundays. Nada. Nothing. Not even the Corte Inglés--which is sort of like a Macy's. So we had to change our plans and we decided to hang out in the park. There is a park called Parque de Canalejas not too far away from the beach. This park has more of the neat trees (I guess they're called banyan trees) that are in my favorite plaza. This plaza also has some cool lion statues guarding the entrance.

Economic Situation in Spain

17 Sept 2011
Today, a Fulbrighter from Madrid came for a visit! Her school is currently on strike and won't be starting up again until Thursday next week. The secondary schools in Madrid are striking because of educational cuts made. As of today, 19,000 teachers are protesting from 320 different schools. If you can read Spanish, check out this article in El mundo: http://www.elmundo.es/elmundo/2011/09/20/madrid/1316484346.html.
The last 6 months have been particularly tough for Spaniards. In May, a large scale (peaceful) protest broke out in Spain--beginning in Madrid and spreading to other major cities. Organized largely by social networking sites, civilians (belonging to various political parties) came together to protest against the current government and their failure to do anything about rising unemployment (21%--one of the highest in the EU), political corruption, etc. While the protests have not had the effect that Spaniards would like, it did unite Spaniards of all different backgrounds and show that people are fed up with the political system.
In the last month, the Pope visited Spain--which sparked more protests in Madrid. Hosting the Pope and World Youth Day has cost Spaniards $71 million--though the Vatican says that much of this cost is covered by pilgrim registration fees. Given the current economic situation in Spain (like Greece and Portugal), hosting this event angered many Spaniards--who would rather spend that money helping those who are unemployed. These protests even reached as far as Alicante. While out walking around Alicante, I saw some grafitti that said "Yes to the pope's visit." However, you could clearly see where the "no" had been crossed out.

On a more positive note, while our Fulbright friend from Madrid visited, we took her to see some of the highlights in Alicante. First, we went to the Mercado (market). This is a gigantic farmer's market! It runs every day (except Sunday), and people come in with fresh fruit, vegetables, breads, meat, fish. We bought a little snack (an orange and a pastry) to take with us to munch on at the beach!

We spent a couple hours at the beach--enough time for my back to get burned! Then, we had to take our Fulbright friend to the train station! While waiting for her train, we did a little shoe shopping and I actually managed to find a pair of shoes that I liked! I've been in desperate need of some shoes because all the shoes I brought from the US either hurt my feet or make my feet feel too warm for Alicante. What I really needed was some sandals!

What's your name? ¿Cómo te llamas?

16 Sept 2011
My second day working as a Teaching Assistant was much better than my first day! While I was still mostly observing as I figuring out the workings of the class, I felt like I was also more useful! It's hard for me to sit there observing when I'd like to be helping students. However, as a TA, I'm in an awkward situation. I'm not actually the teacher so it's not up to me how the class runs. Nevertheless, I'm not a student, and as an English speaker I have some expertise in the English language that I'd like to share.
Today, I introduced myself in English to the older kids. I passed around some pictures of me in the United States to show them what home is like for me. I tried to include some pictures of things like snow (because it doesn't snow here!), Halloween (because they don't celebrate it here), and my family. The students asked me loads of questions!
Kids--no matter what country you are in--want to know the same things. I got the usual questions you get from kids: how old are you? what's your favorite color? However, I also got some weird ones. I had a picture of me as a kid and one student asked if the man in the picture was my marido (husband). I explained that no, it was a picture of me as a kid with my sister and my dad. In another class, a student asked if I was the sister of the English teacher (because we both speak English?).
Later, I helped one of the teachers by practicing numbers with the students. Part of the purpose of my doing this is to give student the opportunity to hear a legitimate accent in English. I think it's really helpful for the students for two reasons. First, neither of the teachers I'm working with are native speakers of English. Second, the book and audio that the teachers use is British English. I can't even begin to tell you how much it's driving me crazy to hear all these British English phrases--like "He's got a ball. He's got brown hair."

First day of school! First day of school!

15 Sept 2011

            I’ve just finished my first day of working at the primary school. It was quite an overwhelming day. Class sizes here in Alicante (and much of Spain from what I understand) are just bigger than what we are accustomed to in the United States. Each of the classes I was helping with had about 27 students—which makes for a lot of names to remember! We also did a lot of switching classes! Here English class is considered a specials class (just like you would consider Art, Music, Library, etc). This, combined with the fact that the September schedule is different, meant that I worked with four different classes during a half day!
During the months of September and June, the schools in Alicante have a shorter schedule. Students are in school from 9 AM to 1 PM--meaning that classes are approximately 45 minutes with a 30 minute recess in the middle. In October through May, students will go to school from 9 AM to 12:30 PM. Then, they will have the option to eat at school or go home for lunch. Classes resume at 3:30 PM and last until 5:00 PM. While it would seem that they are in school less time than American children, you have to remember that they don't have as many holidays off as we do, and students have to go to school until the end of June. In the end, they spend just as much time in the classroom.

I actually managed to arrive at my school without getting too lost! I was immediately recognized as being the Fulbright Teaching Assistant and was directed to the director. I've been talking to her throughout the month of August about my questions about the school, and she has been incredibly kind and helpful! This morning , she gave me my schedule for the rest of the year. With the Fulbright, I only work four days a week--16 hours each week. With my extra time, I'm supposed to pursue a side project or volunteering. I plan to do some volunteering, but I also plan to study valenciano (Valencian) as my side project while I'm here in Spain.

Since it was my first day, I spent most of the day observing the two teachers that I'm working with and getting accustomed to their teaching styles. As I was warned, the teachers I'm working with are complete opposites—which will give me different opportunities when working with the students. One of them seems to be a little more traditional. According to what I’ve heard about the Spanish education system, there seems to be a lot more lecturing and they go page by page in the books. In contrast, the other teacher seems to be more open to doing things a little differently.

          

Last day before school starts!

14 Sept 2011

            Since today is my last day before my Fulbright grant actually starts, we decided to enjoy the day in the best way possible—the beach! This time I even took pictures! Since it’s a weekday and most people are working, we were able to find a spot fairly close to the water. The sea was just gorgeous. The water was this amazing greenish blue color, and you could see down to the sea floor. Today, the wind was stronger than on Sunday—creating some larger waves that almost knocked me over.

            We decided to have an early dinner/evening snack and went to a restaurant that Fulbrighter from last year recommended. This restaurant is a chain restaurant that has little sandwiches for a euro each on Wednesday nights. It had some funny advertisements for this special night. I took a picture of one. It says on it “Euro Mania. May the euro be with you.”   

Spanish Wal-Mart

13 Sept 2011

            Today, I was able to accomplish the second big thing on my list of things to do when I reached Alicante—open a Spanish bank account. Since we didn’t seem to be having any luck with Santander, we decided to try Banesto (another big name bank found throughout Spain). It took a while, but the lady who helped us was very nice! She explained all of the complicated legal language to us and showed us how to use the online banking system--which is kind of complicated. We were also able to do it all in Spanish! Just goes to show you that the time that we spent on banking skits in my Spanish TA session are actually useful… sort of.

            Later, we met up with the Fulbrighter who was here last year to head to this Chinese place that she knows. It’s pretty cheap and has decent food. It’s not as good as the Korean place in my hometown, but it’s probably one of the few places in Alicante where you can order out or take leftovers home. 

            Then, I desperately needed to go grocery shopping—so I met up with my roomies to go together to the Mercadona. It’s the main chain supermarket and most things are pretty cheap. I got some of the basics to get me through the rest of the week. I have to walk there and back so I didn’t want to get so much that I couldn’t carry it all. 

After grocery shopping, I needed to go buy some towels and sheets. Lauren took me to Al Campo—which is sort of the equivalent of Wal-Mart in Spain. It was kind of a surreal experience. We took the TRAM to the stop for the centro commercial (mall). When I entered the centro comercial, I felt like I was back in the States. Based on my experience, there just aren’t that many mall-like places in Spain. I know of one in Madrid near Principe Pio. Other than that, there aren’t really any malls—mostly because stores tend to be specialized. You might find a huevería (egg store and indeed there is such a place in Madrid!), lechería (milk product store), carnecería (meat shop), etc. But you don't usually have malls. This mall even had some American stores! I saw a Foot Locker! I was able to get some decent sheets and towels for a pretty cheap price and headed back to my apartment.

Logistics

12 Sept 2011

            Unfortunately, this post isn't very exciting and will instead be part II of taking care of logistical things. I've taken care of one of the most important things: finding an apartment. Now I need to open a Spanish bank account so that I won’t be hurt so much by the exchange rate and ATM fees. As we were getting ready to go to Santander (one of Spain’s largest banks), I felt like I was in one of my Spanish TA sessions—only this time the scenario was real. This spring when I was TA-ing, my students had to make skits using a scenario from a bank. They were supposed to be able to ask a banker to open an account, talk to the teller about traveler checks, etc. This time it was my turn, and the situation was real.

            Fortunately, the banker was super nice (everyone is nice in Alicante—except for one taxi driver… you can’t be mean in such a beautiful place!). We started out the process by using Spanish, but then she told us it might be easier if we switched to using English. I was a little disappointed to switch to English, but frankly speaking this is pretty important to get right. It’s not like in the classroom where if you make a mistake everyone can laugh and shrug it off. However, ultimately, we were told that we would not be able to get a bank account with Santander until we have our NIEs (a Spanish identity card). So tomorrow, we'll try another bank to see what can be done.

            I finally got the chance to meet me new roommates! They are both from Germany and super nice.They are both here in Spain to take classes at the university in Alicante as part of the Erasmus program. This is an European Union program that enables students to study at other universities in other countries or pursue some sort of internship. 

Tengo un piso! I have an apartment!

11 Sept 2011

            I’ve had a day of firsts. Today, I swam in the Mediterranean Sea. Six years ago when I visited Spain for the first time, I was able to just stick my foot in the Mediterranean Sea because it was March and the water was way too cold to swim in. However, today I was able to fix this. A former Fulbrighter and I left for the beach at around noon. As we walked, we passed by a plaza that was having a little book flea market. We found a table selling classics in Spanish for only a euro. My Fulbright friend ended up buying Lord of the Rings and Lolita.

Once at the beach, the experience became very surreal. I went out into the water to swim and the water was the perfect temperature. The water was super clear compared to the beaches I’ve been in the US. The sand was smooth and there were no rocks or shells in the water to hurt your feet. In a word: perfect. But that’s not even the best part. I turned around to look at the city and from the beach there is a fantastic view of the Castillo (castle). I thought to myself that this must be a dream because there is no way that I could be on the beach in Spain with a real castle just hanging out in the background. Frankly speaking, it also makes me feel a little guilty. I am in this amazing place where it’s warm and there’s a beach 5 minutes away from my apartment… And I just can’t believe that people actually get to live here! Though I guess the people who live here don't appreciate the beach nearly as much as I do because it's always been there for them.   

We spent most of the day at the beach—alternating between lying out on the beach and swimming in the water to cool off. However, around 5pm, we had to leave the beach so that I could go rent my first apartment.

One of the most stressful things for me so far has been trying to find an apartment. I’ve never gone apartment hunting before and so I felt like I didn’t know where to start. Thankfully, the other Fulbrighter in Alicante has been super helpful in assisting me. Originally, we planned on living together, but apartments have been going really fast because the university students are returning. However, we are still living in the same neighborhood and we have a cute little plaza that serves as our meeting place.

So I took care of the logistics with my landlady and am the proud resident of a piso (floor/apartment) in Alicante. I'll post pictures of it later! I spent most of the evening unpacking all my stuff and I was happy to do so. It’s been a pain trying to live out of my suitcase. I could never find anything that I really wanted to wear or I just couldn’t remember where I put something… My sleep schedule is still pretty off—so I’m planning to go to sleep early so that I can get my body to be on a Spanish schedule.

Bienvenidos a Alicante! Welcome to Alicante!

10 Sept 2011
I got up early this morning to catch my train to Alicante. At the station, I met up with a former Fulbrighter (who was placed in Alicante last year)! She's going to show the other current Fulbrighter and I around the city--so we'll know the best restaurants and the best places to buy things! I was also able to talk to her about her experiences with Fulbright. It was nice to get some reassurance about some of the things I've worried about.
I absolutely LOVE traveling by train! There is so much more space and a lot less noise. I also love that you can more easily watch the countryside as you travel. Around the city of Madrid, the land is much drier and more desert-like. As we head closer to Alicante, I see fields that remind me a lot of my home state. Here, they grow what I think are olive trees, but I also see rows of some sort of green plants. There is also that tan grass that grows everywhere on the prairie in the United States. Here's a picture from the window of train so you can have an idea of what I'm talking about. This is the first picture I've taken in Spain and the only one for a while since my camera battery died.

In the distance, I can see a controlled burn. Other than the fact that at home there would be corn aplenty growing, this place could almost be home... you know if you squint a little.
Later this afternoon, the other current Fulbrighter and I are going to be looking for apartments. We have a couple appointments to see some pisos (literally: floors; but usually used to say apartment). We're really hoping to find some place in the centro (the center of city and also the oldest part) near the beach!

Atención. Estación en curva. Al salir, tengan cuidado a no introducir el pie entre coche y andén…

9 Sept. 2011

            Today marks the last day for orientation in Madrid. I’m sad to see all the other Fulbrighters go. Most Fulbrighters are placed in Madrid and so I won’t see them until the mid-year conference. Many of them have already left to go to other cities, move into their apartments, or move into their hostels which they still look for apartments (which is the case for me!). However, before I make my way to Alicante, I am enjoying the last day my visiting some of the places I commonly visited while living in Madrid.

            Earlier in the day, a few of the Fulbrighters and I went to a cafeteria/café just around the corner from the Colegio. We ate a fairly simple lunch of bocadillos (sandwiches—although here they are served on baguette), but mostly everyone was just happy to not have to eat the food at the Colegio. When our group broke up, I decided to head to el Parque de buen retiro in the center of Madrid. 

I know that it sounds silly, but I did take a slightly longer route to Retiro because I wanted to be able to follow the route I used to take two years ago when I went to the Instituto where our classes were held. I started in Arguelles and changed lines at Sol so that I could get off the metro at Banco de Espana. It was amazing how I fell right back into the rhythm of everything. However, what I did notice were the changes to the city. 

Anyone who has been to the city in the few years could tell you how spooky the tunnel at Banco de Espana was. It was the dirtiest and creepiest metro stop. Now, they've painted it white and blue and put up some sort of fake stone wall art. It looks so much nicer, but already has some graffiti about an ingreso in September. 

Then, I walked by the Instituto and the Ritz (where we would see protests several times a month). Once at the park, I tried to just relax and enjoy the moment. The last few years have been really stressful as I worked to complete my degree in Spanish as well as write my thesis. It's really hard to stop and know how to enjoy life. This is something that Spaniards do much better than Americans. 

In the United States, people live to work. We spend hour in the office--some people eating while sitting at their desks or standing up during a ten minute break. We work this way so that when we retire we can enjoy our "free time." However, by that time we don't really know how to relax or we are too infirm to do so. The Spanish have the opposite attitude--they work to live. So much about Spanish culture is about the idea of enjoyment or disfrutar (literally: to take the fruit; meaning: to take enjoyment in something). Take for example the long lunches or siestas (naps). My school has a 3 hour lunch break (!) during the day in which students can go home, eat lunch, maybe take a nap.

So since graduating from college, I've had to ask myself, how do you truly relax? When I have free time, I often don't know what to do or if I do something I feel guilty because I'm not doing something "productive." Even in sitting here writing, I'm worrying about finding an apartment and figuring out what I need to do when I reach Alicante. Hopefully, I'll get better at relaxing...

Volunteerism in Spain

8 Sept 2011
Today was our last day of orientation in Madrid--which seems hard to believe. I've met some really neat people--most of whom I won't see again until our mid-year conference.
This morning we had a couple of session--one of which was about security and the other about volunteerism. The security session was a little daunting but necessary. Spain doesn't have a very high crime rate (in the Spanish sense; interestingly enough there are two separate words relating to crime. crimen refers to murder and delito more often refers to petty crime), but does have a lot of pickpocketing. In fact, you are probably safer in Spain than in some US cities!
The session on volunteerism turned out to be very interesting! Many of us in the US volunteer at one time or another. For instance, I've volunteered as a tutor at my sister's school as well as at my public library (to name a few). During the session, when asked how many of us had volunteered before, most (if not all) hands went up. This is a very common phenomenon in the US. We have a culture were lending a hand is expected and colleges look favorably on volunteer service. However, in Spain (AND much of Europe), only 16% of Spaniards say that they volunteer on a regular basis (and 24% of people in the European Union)! 
This is not because the Spanish people are not kind (in fact, they are very kind and always willing to help out a stranger) but rather a difference in culture. Where we would look for volunteers to help, Spaniards look for the government to intervene.
The city of Madrid has made a great push to change public opinion about volunteer. They have met with some success--the percentage of madrilenos (people who live in Madrid) who volunteer is greater than the 24% average for the EU!

And so it begins!

7 Sept 2011

            Fulbright orientation officially began today! During our morning session, I met the other Fulbrighters who—like me—will be in the region of Valencia. There are ten of us who are placed in ten primary schools throughout the region.

*Side note: For those of you not familiar with Spanish geography, Spain is divided into 17 autonomous communities—which are similar in a way to states in the United States. However, as the name suggests, they have a lot more autonomy than our states. Many of these communities were actually once their own kingdoms with separate rulers and laws. However, over time, these kingdoms joined and gave up their sovereignty. Nevertheless, many people identify more with their autonomous community than Spain as a whole. Each community is very unique--they have different traditions, cultures, and sometimes even completely different languages!
The autonomous community of Valencia is divided into 3 provinces—Alicante, Valencia, and Castellón. Valencia has two official languages--castellano (Spanish) and valenciano (Valencian). 

During our session, we were able to talk a bit about the logistics of moving to Spain as well as hear about the experiences of a 2010-2011 Fulbrighter. There are a number of things we have to take care within our first month of being here in Spain--finding an apartment, opening a Spanish bank account, and applying for the NIE.
Since we are going to be in the region of Valencia, we learned a little bit about the school system in Valencia. Since the region of Valencia has two official languages, there are a number of different schooling options. First of all, students can start school much earlier in Spain than in the United States. Students can begin with the first cycle of primary school at age 3. This is not obligatory but it is paid for by the government. Then, at age 6, students start primary school. This is free and required by the government. Once they are 12 years old, students begin secondary school until the age of 16. Then, students can finish a Bachillerato--which enables students to apply to a university.
In addition to these differences, all schools in Valencia teach more than one language. There are 5 basic types of language programs that can be found in Valencian schools.

1. Content in Valencian with Spanish introduced later (for students whose mother tongue is Valencian)
2. Immersion--Valencian is used in lower grades and Spanish is introduced as a subject
3. Content is taught mainly in Spanish and Valencian is introduced later. Science is taught in Valencian.
4. English is introduced when students are 3-5 years old
5. A foreign language is used to teach students from the beginning

If that sounds complicated to you, believe me it's a little confusing to me. The school that I'm working at is the 3rd type of program. Mostly everything is taught in Spanish. However, all the science classes are taught in Valencian. This is pretty controversial amongst the teachers--which I'll discuss later when I talk more about my school.
At my school, they also have English class as a specials class (like art, PE, library, etc are in the United States). 

Fulbright

Before I go any further, I feel like I should explain what the Fulbright is and how this blog fits in with the mission of Fulbright.

            The Fulbright Fellowship was started by Senator J William Fulbright. After World War II, Sen. Fulbright saw a great need for there to be greater understanding between countries. For this reason, he petitioned Congress to start the Fulbright program. The Fulbright—funded by the State Department—gives students and teachers the means to go to a foreign country in order to conduct research or teach. It is the hope of the Fulbright program that in doing so Fulbrighters will gain deeper insight into the culture of that country and that the people of that country will learn about the real, non-stereotypical United States from the Fulbrighters. In short, the Fulbright seeks to promote understanding between countries so that conflicts/wars like WWII can be avoided. As Sen. Fulbright once said, "The Fulbright Program aims to bring a little more knowledge, a little more reason, and a little more compassion into world affairs and thereby increase the chance that nations will learn at last to live in peace and friendship."

            There are generally two types of Fulbright fellowships—Research and English Teaching Assistantships. Research fellows propose some project that they’d like to research while in the country. Fulbrighters in Spain are doing everything from researching bladder cancer in Spain (related to the issues with smoking in Spain) to the idea of masculinity and the art of Flamenco. I’m in Spain as an English Teaching Assistant—which is pretty self-explanatory. I’m going to be the “authority” on English and give the kids an authentic accent to listen to. I’ll teach my students about American holidays—such as Halloween, Thanksgiving, Valentine’s Day—none of which exist in the same way here in Spain. They’ll hopefully pick up some of my accent (though some people would disagree whether they should pick up my Minnesota influenced accent…).

            My reasons for writing this blog are twofold. I want to keep in touch with everyone at home so they know what I am up to while I’m gone. Logistically-speaking, there is only one of me and many of you. Furthermore, in keeping with the mission of Fulbright, I’m hoping to share with you all some of the things that I am learning about Spanish culture so that you might also learn more about Spain and its people.

           

Jet Lagged...

6 Sept 2011

            Today was my first full day in Spain. I was way too exhausted to write much yesterday. Once I got to Madrid, I mostly hung around the Colegio—meeting other Fulbrighters. I was able to meet the other Fulbrighter from my home state (who will also be in the region of Valencia), the Fulbrighter assigned the same city (different schools) as me, and the Fulbrighter that I met on my first visit to the Chicago Consulate.

Today, I did a bit more exploring—or rather re-exploring—since many of the places I visited were places I knew from when I studied abroad in Madrid two years ago. I woke up much later than I intended! I set my alarm to go off at 8:30 but woke up then and changed it to 9:00. Then, when I woke up at 9:00, I decided to completely shut my alarm off and ended up waking up at 9:50. Once I was able to get up, I set out to accomplish one of my many logistical goals for the day: get a Spanish cell phone. I went to Cuatro Caminos (a metro station/neighbor in Madrid) with a few other Fulbrighters to get phones at Yoigo—which seem to be the cheapest option. While we were there, the employee asked why there were some many Americans around. Laughing, we explained that in talking amongst ourselves everyone with phones mentioned having visited that particular Yoigo store because it was so close to the Colegio.

Next, I was off to Atocha (Madrid’s train station) to get my train ticket to Alicante, Spain. Unfortunately, the ticket machine wouldn’t take my card. This is a fairly common occurrence. Most of the time when you use a foreign credit/debit card you have to show your passport. So we had to wait in line to buy our tickets in person. There were 26 other people in front of us! However, I was finally able to get my ticket without any problem, but I felt a little like I was back in Spanish 102 again.

After which, the other Fulbrighters wanted to visit the Parque del oeste (Western Park) and the Templo de Debod. Interestingly enough, the Temple of Debod is a legitimate Egyptian temple that was given to Spain as a gift! We met up with some German friends of one of the Fulbrighters, but soon we were headed back to the Colegio for an informal get together and then dinner.

*On a side note, the Spanish schedule is different that what we are accustomed to in the United States. In some places, people eat 5 meals--if you count snacks as a small meal. Breakfast is before work just as we are used to. However, sometimes there is a snack around 10 or 11. In Alicante, this is sometimes called almuerzo (which in other places refers to lunch). Lunch is not until 2 or 3 in the afternoon and is referred to as la comida (the meal). Then, you might have a snack—usually fruit—at around 7pm, and dinner is between 8 and 10. Spaniards also typically stay up later than we do—mostly because they have a siesta (nap) after lunch. 

See ya USA!

I arrived in Spain yesterday after a fairly smooth journey! I’m pretty beat though!

I left for Spain from Omaha around 1:15 in the afternoon—making my connection for my international flight in Chicago. From there, I went to Warsaw. Yes. Warsaw! I even have my passport stamped there and everything. By my standards, you haven’t visited a place until you’ve set foot on its soil. However, I did get my passport stamped—so I think that “counts” as my having visited Poland!

            The flight to Warsaw was pretty good as far as international flights go—meaning I was actually able to sleep. I was sitting next to a Polish man who didn’t speak any English though. It was hard because I knew he was trying to communicate with me—using Polish and some gestures—but I just couldn’t understand him. It made me uncomfortable to not be able to say even the basic courtesies.

            Once in Warsaw, I went to the gate for my flight to Madrid. While waiting, the gentleman sitting next to me noticed that I was American and struck up a conversation. It turned out that we had both been on the same flight from Chicago! He was heading to a conference to give a presentation. Then, he was going to go back to the States for a several days and come back for another conference in Prague!

            Once I reached Madrid, it was like a sort of second homecoming. I got my luggage (which thankfully got to Madrid. I checked my baggage with American Airlines and then flew through Polish LOT and was terrified that it wouldn’t make it!), and made my way to the metro. Taking a taxi from the airport to the city is about 30 or 40 euro so I decided to take the metro because it was lots cheaper and I actually know how to navigate it. Even as exhausted as I was, I was still tickled pink when I got on the metro and a wave of familiarity rolled over me. Two years ago, I would take the metro to my apartment almost everyday. Hearing the words “Atención. Estación en curva. Al salir, tengan cuidado a no introducir el pie entre coche y andén” (the Spanish equivalent to “Mind the Gap”) just brought back so many memories of the last time I was in Madrid.

            I successfully navigated the metro to my stop at Metropolitano. However, leaving the metro was another matter. I had printed out some instructions from GoogleMaps for how to get from the metro stop to the Colegio Mayor Mendel. The Colegio is the place where our orientation is taking place. It apparently is a private all boys dormitory. I don’t have any idea why we have orientation there, but I’ll refer to it as the Colegio in the rest of my posts.

While the directions seemed straightforward, they were not particularly helpful. They said that the Colegio would be just to my right once I got on the correct street. Unfortunately, it was right up a hill and then on the right. After wandering lost around the neighborhood for a bit, I had to lug my big bag all the way up the hill! Thankfully, I only had one bag--unlike most of the other Fulbrighters!

Visa Part II

The following day, I made my way to Chicago for my appointment at the Consulate in Chicago. I’ve never been to Chicago—at least not in the actual city of Chicago. I’ve been in both of the airports quite often, but that doesn’t count in my book. I arrived in Chicago hours before my appointment so I decided to explore Millennium Park—which is a couple blocks away from the Consulate.

            If you ever get the chance to go to Chicago, you definitely need to go to Millennium Park! It’s a park that has a lot going on! It has the famous bean sculpture! There is a concert area—and there is usually something to listen to even during the week! There is also a garden where lots of people take off their shoes to soak there feet in the water.

            Soon enough it was time for my appointment—which I was super nervous for! I sort of expected (pardon the reference) the Spanish Inquisition. However, the people at the Consulate were super nice and took care of everything pretty quickly. I was out of there in less than 10 minutes! According to what I’ve heard from other Fulbrighters, despite the hold up with my documents, I definitely had an easier time than some people. Some other people had to have all there documents translated. Others had to go back and get new letters from their doctors.

            They told me that they would call or email when I could pick up my passport with my visa in it. Normally, this process can take between 4-8 weeks. However, since I’m a Fulbrighter, my visa was expedited. In fact, it only took 5 business days for my visa to be processed! However, I decided to wait a little later in the month before returning to Chicago for my visa—helping me to get a slightly lower airfare.

            So on the Tuesday before I was supposed to leave for Spain, I once again made my way to Chicago. I visited the Consulate as soon as I arrived and was able to pick up my passport with my Spanish visa. However, the process doesn’t completely end here! That would be too easy! This visa is only good for 90 days. Within the first month that I am in Spain, I have to establish a residence and apply for the NIE (Número de identificación de extranjeros). This is good for a year and can be renewed later.

When I visited Chicago this time, I was able to do a little bit more exploring. I visited the Chicago Cultural Center—which is in the old public library. It has a beautiful concert hall with a beautifully restored glass dome. The inside of the hall has quotes from all the greatest writers and even has their names listed. For my Carleton readers, you’ll appreciate that Schiller’s name was included amongst these names!

            The Cultural Center also had an interesting exhibit of movie posters from Ghana. They were painted on canvas and included vivid imagery that included Christian and indigenous religious themes. There was also an exhibit about Americans at war—including artwork made by soldiers.

            Next, I visited the Chicago Institute of Art—which was a pretty nice way to end the day. I started out in the modern wing—but as some of you may know—I don’t really care for modern art. It’s hard for me to consider a blank canvas art. However, eventually, I came across the European wing! This was where I was able to find some Spanish art by artists such as El Greco, Picasso, Miró, Dalí, Goya, etc.

I made it!

I just wanted to quickly post that I've made it to Spain! Orientation starts today and I'm excited to hear more about what I'm supposed to be doing this year! I plan to blog about it as soon as I can, but the place where orientation is being held only has Wifi on the first three floors--meaning I don't have access to the internet from my room. However, I'll post more in a few days!

Visa--CHECK!

I have just returned from Chicago with my visa to Spain! It's been a long journey with multiple trips across the country and a few nail-biting moments...
The visa process is a complicated one. It requires a lot of different documents--such as a FBI background check with the Apostille of the Hague, a medical certificate, proof of acceptance and financial means, etc. Some of these documents are fairly easy to get together, but others--like the FBI background check--can take MONTHS to get back.
The visa process to Spain is even more time consuming this year because it is the first year that the FBI background check (with the Apostille of the Hague) is required. For this reason, I started the visa process within days of learning that I had received a Fulbright Fellowship.
To get started on my FBI background check, I went down to the local police station to get finger printed--which I just have to say is extremely interesting! I had visions of it being really old school and that they would get out ink and paper to take my prints, but it turns out most places use computers now. The lady who helped me was kind enough to answer my questions as we went! I learned that I have a little scar on one of my fingers, and I have no idea when I might have gotten it. That same day, I sent my finger print card and my request for an FBI background check. Typically, it takes 8-12 weeks to get a FBI background check back!
When they say that it takes that long, they really mean it! I got my background check back in just under 8 weeks. At which point, I was starting to get a little nervous about whether I would even be able to apply in time to get my visa back before I was supposed to leave for Spain! My problem was that I still had to get the Apostille of the Hague affixed to my document. The Apostille of the Hague is issued by the State Department and I would say that it is sort of an internationally recognized notarization. Unfortunately, it takes more than 4 weeks to get the Apostille if you mail it in!
Consequently, at the beginning of August, I had a whirlwind trip to D.C. (to get the Apostille in person) and then go to Chicago to present my visa documents to the Spanish Consulate. While in D.C., I waited to get the Apostille for 3 hours in the Office of Authentications. I went right at 7:30 AM (when it opens) and I still behind a bunch of people. Apparently, people sometimes get there at 5:30 AM! After getting the Apostille, I decided to do some sight seeing before my evening flight to Minneapolis. I've been to D.C. a couple of times, but I'd never been to any of the Smithsonian museums. So I decided to see the American History Museum. This seemed appropriate since it houses many American cultural artifacts and I'm going to be teaching Spanish students about American culture! I got to see the ruby slippers from the Wizard of Oz, the Star Spangle Banner that inspired Francis Scott Key's song, and the chair set from All in the Family.