'Twas the Week before Christmas

An update on the week before Christmas (in case you couldn’t tell from the title):

On Tuesday, we did our Secret Santa gift exchange in English. When we drew names for it last week, I of course (because I have no luck) drew Toni, a punk-rocker, long-hair, chains-on-his-pants kind of guy who is very nice, but I don’t know him very well. In the end, though, I bought him chocolate and a mini gumball machine, and it turned out just fine. My Secret Santa, Sandra, gave me an assortment of turrónes (Spain’s famous Christmas sweets) and a necklace that I love. The highlight of the gift exchange was when Salva, a chronically late boy in my class, unwrapped an alarm clock. Apparently it was payback because last year he gave his Secret Santa a pizza cutter. Haha.

After the gift exchange, I left school for part of the day to go to the police station with Stephanie to get fingerprinted for our student cards. It was my third police station visit, and we have to go back again in January to pick them up. A slightly funny story...When I was getting fingerprinted, the lady kept saying "sueltala! sueltala!" and I wasn't paying attention and thought she was telling me to press my finger harder on the inkpad. She was actually telling me to lift it off...


Stephanie and her finger that got fingerprinted!

On Wednesday, we technically had school, but it was some sort of movie/sports day so none of the bachillerato students went. Instead, I hung out with David and two of David’s friends who don’t go to our school, Marta and María. I officially love Marta. She had me hooked when she asked me “Do you like Harry Potter?” Haha. That day, we climbed 205 winding stairs to the top of the Torre del Micalet with a gorgeous view of Valencia from the top. I could have stayed up there all day!! However, we had reservations at an Italian restaurant at 2, and afterwards we spent the afternoon walking through the city and the river (which really isn’t a river- it’s a giant park because the river was drained decades ago because of flooding). David, Marta, and María took the bus back at 7:30, but I stayed to pick up a last minute Christmas gift. I also took a look around the bookstore at Nuevo Centro (a huge mall) and had a really funny moment where I suddenly realized “Hey! This is so cool! All the books are Spanish!” so of course I bought one. 20 euros. Ouch. But it’s a bestseller so it’s worth it right? I’ll let you know once I’ve read it.


Valencia


Valencia again


Lunch at the Italian restaurant- it came wrapped as a swan!

Oh, an interesting tidbit- at one point that day, we stopped to watch the Christmas lottery being announced (or rather, sung) on TV. Spain’s Christmas lottery is a big deal here. Every year on the 22nd, children from an orphanage in Madrid sing the winning numbers on TV for hours. It’s kind of cute, but gets annoying after you’ve heard them sing “Mil Euuuuros” for the umpteenth time.

I’ll save Christmas for a different post, since it will be a long one and then I’ll also have to post about Rome! We’re leaving tomorrow and I’m way excited!

Besitos to all! I hope your Christmases were wonderful!

Paige

Ha llegado la Navidad!

On Friday, Paula and I decorated for Christmas. My host parents went to bed early, but we stayed downstairs to get the house ready for Navidad. I must be honest, our decorations…are a bit sad. Our tree is reminiscent of Charlie Brown’s in size, and besides the tree, there really weren’t any other decorations. (Although the maid did tack a piece of tinsel to my bulletin board!) The nativity scene, however, was huge. In Spain, every single house has a nativity scene. Not all houses have a Christmas tree, but a nativity scene is a given. Paula and I had fun listening to Christmas carols (in Spanish, so I didn’t know any of the words), decorating the tree, and setting up the nativity scene. When we were finished, we turned the lights off so we could plug in the tree lights and get the full effect. Since the lights were off and the Christmas carols were blasting, we had a small dance party in the living room. It’s moments like those that I won’t forget.


Belén



The tree!


Setting up Belén

The following week, my host mom was in Madrid for business and my host dad was sick, so Paula and I ate dinner alone that week. Paula was thrilled that there was no one to tell her to eat her vegetables, and although I considered telling her to eat them, I realized ‘Hey, I’m her sister, not the babysitter.’ I think we got a bit closer that week. We watched Patito Feo (sort of like Hannah Montana for the Spanish speaking world) during dinner and I silently laughed at how dramatic it is. Paula would never tell her friends she watches it, but everyone in the family knows it’s her favorite show.

On Saturday, it was Paula’s 13th birthday party, and she and 10 girls from her class went to a laser game place and then out to eat at Foster’s Hollywood, which is an “American” restaurant. I was spared from playing laser game, and then my dad came to pick me up in time to eat. Amparo, Ambrosio, and I sat at a separate table from the eleven 13-year-old girls. Overall, it was fun, and it was nice to see Paula so happy. Although she did mention after everyone left that she wished she had been given some toys. That’s Paula for you : ) ¡Feliz cumpleaños Paula!

The cake


Presents! (a sweatshirt and candy from me, and a set of toiletry cases from her mom and dad)

And finally….I have some exciting news. Over Christmas break, we’re going to Rome!!!! I’m crazy excited- I’ve obviously never been to Italy, and so I’m so grateful to my host family for planning this trip. Roma here I come! We’re leaving on the 27th and coming back the 30th. I can’t wait!

Besitos,
Paige

I'm freezing and I'm being followed by schnauzers: Part 2

Part 2: I’m being followed by schnauzers

It all started last week during the long weekend when Paula and I went over to Fran and Ester’s house to say hello to Julia. Paula is obsessed with Julia, so she often asks me to bike over to see her. Ester has 4 or 5 sisters, each with 2 or 3 kids, so at any one time there might be a dozen or two people at her house. Paula and I happened to arrive at what was apparently peak visiting hours, because there were tons of small children running around. Halfway into the afternoon, the doorbell rang again and I heard a dog barking. And in came…a miniature schnauzer! He was so cute. I miss my little schnauzer back home. I think this dog knew it because he came right up to me and started licking my hand. Awww. They told me his name was Alf, I think.

The next day, I was out running, and passed 2 more schnauzers out walking in the park. Then the next day I saw 3 more. Then the following day I was waiting at the bus stop, and a lady with a schnauzer sat down on the bench next to me. The next day, as I was walking home, contemplating the number of schnauzers I had seen that week, I turned the corner to see an enormous standard schnauzer on a walk with his owner. This continued all week. And they were all different! I think I saw upwards of 12 or 14 schnauzers.

It’s confirmed: I’m being followed by schnauzers. My mom said it must be a sign that soon she’s going to get so sick of my dog she’s going to mail him to me. And I quote: “If the box comes and the thing inside just flops around…I’m sorry.” Oh mom.

Besitos,
Paige


Snickers I promise I will come home!

I'm freezing and I'm being followed by schnauzers: Part 1

No, the title of this post is not some strange analogy. It is, rather, an accurate glimpse into my life right now. Let me explain.

Part 1: I’m freezing.

When I found out I would be living on the Mediterranean, I pictured sun, beach, and warmth. It’s true that it’s like this 75% of the year. However, right now, it’s 39 degrees. Now, before all you Wisconsonites start saying “Hey! It’s -15 right now! 39 degrees is balmy!” let me tell you something. The. Heat. Is. Not. On. You know that post I wrote a couple weeks ago mentioning how excited I was that my family and school had finally turned the heat on? Yeah…apparently that was a special occasion or something. My host parents only turn the radiators on every once in a while, and unlike central heating, it really doesn’t do much. Especially since our whole house is tile. I’m honestly more cold in the winter here than I ever was in Wisconsin (inside at least). Spain, you’ve betrayed me.

Now, in school, the heat is on most of the day. It’s a tiny radiator in the corner that does nothing to heat the room, but luckily (or so I thought) I sit right next to it. However, since the kids in my class seem to be INSANE, they like to open the windows. Just when I’ve inched my chair close enough to the radiator to be warm, someone opens the window. Who opens the windows when it’s 39 degrees out??!! At one point I asked “Why are we opening the windows?” and someone answered “To ventilate the room.” Oh, okay. Because that makes sense. Not. The thing is, I know that everyone is cold, because they all huddle in the corner by the radiator between classes. So why do we keep the windows open? I’m so confused. I wear my coat inside. I need to buy mittens. And a scarf and a hat. When I see someone coming over to open the window, I have a sudden urge to yell “Touch that window and I’ll cut off your hand!” But I don’t, because I’m a good exchange student.

This is not me being wimpy about the cold. I am honestly freezing. As I write this, it is 32 degrees. That’s the point when water turns to ice. There is frost on my window. Yet the heat is not on.

You see that on my window? I assure you it's not mist or dew. It's frost.

Weekly News and Small Victories

Just thought I’d mention, in case you don’t watch the news, that on Friday the 3rd, the air traffic controllers went on strike and there were no flights in or out of Spain. It was insane- President Zapatero declared an “estado de alarma,” (state of alarm) throughout the country. It was announced on a loudspeaker throughout my neighborhood. I must admit, it was kind of cool being here for what was definitely a historical moment for Spain.

In other news, on Wednesday, since I still didn’t have school, I went over to Stephanie’s house to help make a French dessert for her French class. When I told my host family I was going over to cook with her, my host dad joked that it might be a bad idea. His exact words were “Cooking? Given your past experience, you’re allowed to cook with Mika, but not Stephanie.” Haha : )

I got to her house and we made a delicious lemon tart that turned out great! We did some “improvising” again, which made me a little nervous, but it actually worked this time! (unlike a certain pumpkin pie…). We even made fresh lemonade from the leftover lemon juice. Yum!

I then had to rush back to the city from her house because we were eating around 2:00 at my grandma’s house. My host dad’s brother came as well, with his wife Ester and of course baby Julia. I hadn’t seen Ester for a while because since she’s a doctor, she’s been studying for a test to enter in a program to specialize in something. It was good to see her. I love Fran and Ester- they’re both hilarious. I brought one of the lemon tarts Stephanie and I made, and everyone loved it! I’m thinking Christmas cookies are up next!

Paula and I at a park in Valencia before lunch at Grandma's

It was back to school as usual on Thursday, although I did surprise myself in History on Friday. The teacher asked, “Paige, what was the reign of Isabel II like?” and at first I kind of blinked stupidly at him (teachers don’t really call on me here, for obvious reasons). I was hoping he would just ask someone else, but he was persistent. I was about to revert to “Lo siento…no lo sé,” when I realized ‘hey! I actually know this!’ and answered, “Well, it was very difficult, with many changes in power between the progresistas and moderadistas.” Yes!

Hey, small victories are what count here : )

Besitos

Paige

First Days of December

Let’s rewind to after Mika left:

I spent the week limping around because apparently the boots I wore walking around the city with Mika were REALLY small. They didn’t feel small when I bought them, but now I’m thinking they’re at least 2 sizes too small. I could hardly walk all week. I had a huge purple bruise covering my entire left foot. At first I didn’t tell my host parents about it, but after awhile I was seriously considering asking to get a foot X-ray because it wasn’t improving all week. But good news, it’s better now. The bad news is that I can’t wear those boots again, which is too bad because I really loved them.

On Wednesday, I stayed home from school because I wasn’t feeling well. Okay, so I just had a cold and my throat hurt a little. In high school in the U.S., I definitely would not have stayed home. But since this is a gap year, I decided there was no reason to go to school not feeling well when I didn’t have to. When I wasn’t better on Thursday, my host parents told me to stay home again. My host dad even left work for an hour to come home and check on me. It was so cute! He brought me up a tray with orange juice, medicine, warm milk, and bizcocho (Spanish sponge cake). Mmmmmm! He asked me if I wanted him to take me to his mom’s house so I wouldn’t be alone all day. Awww! I said no, I would be fine, but I kept saying thank you over and over again. I don’t think he really knew how much I appreciated being taken care of.


Amparo and I in Peñiscola

There was no school Saturday through Wednesday because of Constitution Day and the Day of the Immaculate Conception so on Monday we drove out to Peñiscola, a seaside town about an hour away. On the way we stopped at the Caves of San Jose, which are these underground caves filled with water. We took a boat ride through the caves, and it was so cool!! I had to keep ducking my head inside the boat since I’m so tall and the ceiling of the cave was really low at some points. Everyone kept yelling “cuidado!” at me, as if I didn’t see that I was about to smack my head against the ceiling…




When we got to Peñiscola, we ate a delicious lunch of fresh mussels, paella, and chocolate tart. Then we toured the famous castle of Peñiscola that was once home to the pope, Papa Luna. The castle was built on a tiny peninsula, so when you looked back to the town, you could see the beach on both sides of you. Gorgeous! The views of the sea were incredible. I must have at least 5,000 photos of the Mediterranean at this point, but it never gets old. It is said that Papa Luna’s bedroom window looks directly to Rome across the sea, so of course, I waved hello to Rome. It was one of those perfect days that you never want to end.


Paula and Papa Luna

Okay, well, I’ll stop now and write another post later, since this one is getting long. Besitos!

Paige

Pumpkin Pie Part 2: Success!

If you haven't yet, read Pumpkin Pie Part 1 first :)

On Friday, Mika came to stay the weekend, something I had been looking forward to for weeks. When I first asked to invite her, my host mom realized that it would be Thanksgiving weekend (because her daughter is in the U.S.), and said we must have a Thanksgiving dinner on Saturday with Mika. That was why I originally wanted to make the (disastrous) pie on Wednesday.

When Mika arrived on Friday, I had to explain why we would not be eating pumpkin pie the next day. She laughed at my pie fiasco story, and we decided we would think of something else to make. We were going to go out that night, but Mika had a really bad cold (okay, that’s an understatement…she looked like she was about to die) so we decided just to stay home and look up recipes. We decided on chocolate chip cookies, and also found recipes for mashed potatoes, stuffing, and cranberry sauce for our “Thanksgiving dinner” the next day.


Mika and I in my room

After breakfast on Saturday, we went to this little grocery store by my house to get the ingredients. When I got the ingredients for the pumpkin pie on Wednesday, I went to a huge grocery store in Valencia, because I figured it was sure to have everything. However, while walking around in this tiny hole-in-the-wall grocery store in my neighborhood I spotted….a pie crust!! There was still a ton of pumpkin left from the original pie attempt so I decided it was fate: we had to attempt the pumpkin pie again. Then we went looking for cream and I found…sweetened condensed milk!! Yes!

When we got home and told my host mom we were going to attempt the pie again she was (understandably) reluctant. But I had a good feeling it was going to work out this time. We converted the recipe to grams and milliliters and measured everything perfectly. Then we waited to bake it because everyone started showing up to eat.


the pie before putting it in the oven

the cooks!

In the end, we didn’t make the stuffing, mashed potatoes, or anything else, because everyone brought a ton of food. Apparently my host mom went all out in making sure I had a Thanksgiving dinner this year, which was incredibly sweet of her. My host dad’s mom and brother came as well (with baby Julia! She is such a cutie!), so in the end there were nine of us. We didn’t have turkey, but we had chicken, which was just fine. It was even stuffed with something (when I say “something” I mean I really have no idea what it was…).

It was a wonderful meal, even though poor Mika was feeling really sick at that point. My host dad’s brother is a doctor, though, so he gave her some medicine. He promised it would have no side affects other than making her hair fall out and making her speak fluent Spanish. I told him I wanted some as well.


What a cutie!

The food

Everyone at the table (minus Paula, who's taking the picture)

My host dad cutting the chicken

Mika and I decided to go out that night, and just before we left, the pie had cooled and we all tried it. Success!! It was perfect, and everyone loved it. My host mom even asked if she could take some to work to share with her friends. Yes! We were very proud of ourselves.


Success!!

Our night out was rather uneventful due to the fact that it was absolutely pouring, but it was fun nonetheless. We got back early, around 2:30am (early for Spain, that is), and went to bed. The next day we walked around the city a bit and took pictures, and then I took Mika to the bus station. It was sad to see her go; we have so much fun together. But we’re going to our beach apartment for Christmas, so we'll see each other soon.


Under the umbrella on Saturday night

On a random street in Valencia


Well, that’s all for now. Besitos!

Pumpkin Pie Part 1: Failure

On Wednesday, I invited Stephanie (the other exchange student in Valencia) to my house to make pumpkin pies for our host families. I loved the idea of sharing a truly American tradition with my host family, and promised them that I am a good cook. Maybe this jinxed it or something because things definitely did not go as planned.

When I went to buy the ingredients, I ran into several obstacles. Since they don’t have pies in Spain, I could not find a pie pan or pre-made piecrust. The first was solved easily because after digging around in the kitchen, I found a quiche dish that was perfect. The piecrust, however, was more challenging. I decided to be “creative” and make a graham cracker crust, since we only had a couple of hours and making piecrust takes awhile. However, there are no graham crackers in Spain either. I ended up buying some little cookies that looked like Teddy Grahams. Once they’re crushed up it won’t matter right? Then I went looking for canned pumpkin, which also is nonexistent in Spain. Luckily, I found real calabaza dulce (sweet pumpkin) in the vegetable section and bought two. Pumpkin pie from real pumpkins- how perfect, right? When I tried to find cream or half and half, though, there was no such thing, so I ended up just buying whole milk. A few minor substitutions won't matter....

When we went to make the pie, we discovered my host family does not own a blender, so making the pumpkin puree and crushing up the cookies was significantly more difficult. We put the cookies in a bag and gave it to my host sister to whack around the kitchen. But the darn cookies would not break!! Seriously, they were indestructible. It took almost 45 minutes to crush them. I could’ve just made a regular piecrust in that time. Next we had to microwave and boil the pumpkin to soften it, and then use some sort of hand-cranked metal device to make the pumpkin puree. The maid told us it’s used to make mashed potatoes, so I figured it would be fine. Then we realized there aren’t any English measuring cups, so I had to estimate all the measurement. I must have messed up the estimations because the filling turned out extremely watery. We tried adding flour to thicken it since there isn’t cornstarch but it didn’t really solve the problem. Can you see where this is headed?

I seriously can’t describe, though, how much fun we had making this pie. Stephanie and I were laughing to the point of tears at many points that night, and I am so glad we did it, even if the pie turned out a disaster. Let’s just say we spent over three hours trying to make a pumpkin pie that turned out with a crust burned to a blackened crisp, and a completely liquid filling with bits of flour floating up the top. Yummy.

Here are some pictures from the night. Stay tuned for Pumpkin Pie Part 2: Success!


Stephanie and I in the kitchen

Stephanie, Mamen (our wonderful maid, who's really more like family), and Paula

Softening the pumpkin in the microwave

Pumpkin puree

The pie...epic fail

5 Good Things

Here’s a quick update on five good things about the week!

1. Last night I saw Harry Potter!!

I went with Emma, a girl in the grade below me who’s from Ohio but has lived in Spain for four years due to her parents’ jobs. I met Emma my first day here, but since she’s not in my grade we don’t have any classes together. However, I happened to see on her Facebook that she liked Harry Potter, so I asked if we could go together. It was so great to speak English for the night and hang out with her!! Plus, Harry Potter was completely amazing, even in Spanish.

2. They turned the heat on in my house and my school!!!

I feel like such a wimp, but I have definitely gotten used to the weather. It is 12 degrees Celsius (52 Fahrenheit), but it feels like it’s freezing! Everyone in school was bundled up in scarves and coats until they finally turned the heat on this week. Luckily, I sit right by the radiator. Plus, my host dad finally decided to turn the heat on in the house as well. The rest of the family had been begging him to do it for weeks, and he finally gave in. Before my host mom mentioned it, I wasn’t even sure if we had heat in the house. But it turns out we do, and the radiator in my room is keeping it nice and toasty.

3. I actually contributed at a Rotaract meeting!

I enjoy going to my Rotaract club on Fridays, but I never feel like I really do anything. Mostly I sit and listen as they make plans for food drives, charity benefits, and other such things. But on Friday I actually contributed. I volunteered to make the poster for a food drive that we're organizing for a local school, and I also suggested we make the food collection a competition between the classes. Everyone loved that idea, and it felt nice to finally be participating in the club. I've yet to meet my actual Rotary club that's sponsoring me, but hopefully that will happen soon.

4. Mika is coming on Friday!

My host parents offered to have Mika stay for a weekend in Valencia, so of course I took them up on it. Mika is coming Friday afternoon and staying through Sunday, and we’re going to try to make a “Thanksgiving” meal for my host family. More on that to come!

5. My Spanish is definitely coming along.

I can pretty much say what I want to say in Spanish now, and can understand everything as long as I pay attention. This is very good news. After Mika leaves, I’m planning on going on a no-Skype no-Facebook no-email purge until Christmas with the hope that the complete lack of English will help my Spanish really start to click.

Hasta luego!

Besitos,
Paige

Oranges, Other News, and Harry Potter

Orange season has officially arrived. If you didn’t know, Valencia grows only two things: oranges and rice. If you see a field, it’s a rice field, and if you see a tree, it’s an orange tree. Even the trees lining the streets in the city are orange trees, although it’s not recommended to actually eat those oranges. But anyway, I arrived home last week from flamenco to find the kitchen absolutely overflowing with oranges. There were oranges in the fridge, on the counter, and in the cupboards. We will literally be eating oranges for months.

Right now, the oranges are extremely acidic. Borderline lemon, I would say. My host mom loves them this way; the rest of us cover them in honey so we don’t die. My host dad promised the really incredible oranges would come in December, so I’m excited for that.

In other news, I went out with my friends this weekend to a really cool Hawaiian themed juice bar to celebrate Rebeca’s birthday. I had a splitting headache at the beginning of the night, so decided to just order a banana smoothie. But of course, because it’s me, I ended up throwing it all up on the sidewalk when we left. I’m assuming it was a combination of the headache and possibly food poisoning because I haven’t felt that sick in a long time. I was so embarrassed to throw up in front of all my friends, but they were all really sweet about it, and I got about a million messages the next day asking if I was feeling better.

A word about this picture: A) Patricia (left) cannot keep her eyes open with flash. We took about 15 pictures and this was the best one. She may look like she's on drugs, but I assure you, it's just the flash. B) The large lines across the photo are reaaaally long straws. They were cool. C) Nobody in Spain smiles in their photos. It kind of bugs me. They all try to look all cool and serious, but I prefer a smile any day.

And finally…this weekend I’m going to HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS!!! I’m very excited, if you couldn’t tell. However, nobody here seems to like Harry Potter. I’ve asked and asked, and apparently it’s something extremely dorky. I mean, in the U.S. it may be dorky as well, but we embrace it. I was trying to explain at dinner last night how fanatic people can get about Harry Potter in the U.S., but my host parents did not get it. My host dad said, “Even people who are 18 years old like it? It’s more of a thing for younger kids here.” I tried to explain that yes, many college kids love Harry Potter, and even many adults, but I don’t think they believed me. Oh well.

Well, that’s all for now. I’ll try and post again this weekend.

Besitos!
Paige

I just had to show you this...

Is this not the cutest snack you've ever seen?? It's a cookie shaped like a hippo, and filled with chocolate mousse. I feel like it just doesn't get any better than that. Yes, I did take 4 pictures of it....

"What does awkward mean?"

You’re in luck, it’s a double-post day.

Seeing as the last post was a little more reflective, this one will be more…not reflective…?? Aaaand my English is officially deteriorating.

On Friday after school I went with David, Patricia, and Rebeca, to buy a present for Nuria’s birthday. We picked out a jacket and two shirts for Nuria and all split the cost. Afterwards we had McFlurry’s at McDonald’s (yes, I know I’m in Spain…I did not pick out the restaurant), and then I took the metro to a Rotaract meeting at 8:00. It was my second meeting, and I’m really enjoying it. Basically it’s Rotary for the “younger” crowd, and although I’m the youngest one there (most are in their twenties), none of them believed me when I told them I’m 18. At school, everyone thinks I’m 17, and at Rotaract, everyone thinks I’m 23. Interesting. Right now, the Rotaract club is planning their fundraiser to buy Christmas presents for underprivileged kids. It’s a very international club, consisting of, in addition to the Spanish members, a German, 2 Italians, a Brasilian, and a Venezuelan, who all found themselves living in Valencia for one reason or another. It’s a fun group, and definitely something I’m going to continue.

Last night, my friends from school and I all went out for Halloween, because lucky for Spain there’s no school on November 1st due to All Saint’s Day. We met at Miguel’s house to dress up in coordinating zombie costumes. All the girls wore black leggings and black shirts, and then we had fun semi-destroying XXL white t-shirts with scissors and fake blood, aka ketchup. Let’s just say we smelled rather….tomato-y all night. We all ate dinner together, and then went to the Plaza de la Virgin, which was absolutely packed with people. There were hundreds and hundreds of people there, and all my friends were worried I was going to get lost in the crowd. It got kind of funny after awhile because Rebeca and Patricia took turns holding onto my arm. “Who has Paige? Who has Paige?” “She’s right here, with me!” “Okay good!” Haha. I think the highlight of my night, though, was this conversation with Nuria (it was in Spanish, obviously):

Nuria: Do you have grammar classes in high school in the U.S.?

Me: Not the same way you have them here. We have “English” classes, but it’s more literature and writing based than learning the actual structure of the language….Why are you smiling?

Nuria: It’s just that…your Spanish…is really good, Paige. I was thinking back to when you first got here. It was really awful then.

Me (by now I’m not thrown off by Nuria’s bluntness): Thanks, Nuria.

Nuria: Hey, I’ve been meaning to ask you- what does the word “awkward’ mean in English.

Me: Haha that’s a good question! Awkward…it’s like….if you’re with a group of people you don’t really know, and no one can think of anything to say and you’re just sitting there staring at each other in complete silence. That’s an awkward situation.

Nuria: Okay….

Me: Okay, that was a bad example. Awkward is….it’s when…umm…let me think on it Nuria. I’ll let you know when I have a good definition.

Nuria: Say something in English

Me (in English): Right now we’re sitting at the bus stop waiting for your parents to pick us up.

Nuria: Ahhh…it’s so pretty. I want to be able to speak English with your accent, Paige.

Me: No you don’t Nuria. Get a British accent, not a Midwestern one.





Okay, well, I hope you found that a little entertaining. I’m going to go to bed now and mentally prepare for new week. And a new month as well! Here’s to a great November!

Besitos,

Paige

Personality

This week was a good week, for the most part. I must admit though, I’m definitely out of the “honeymoon” stage of my exchange, with all of the “oh-wow-isn’t-this-great-everything-is-new-and-different” that goes along with it. I’m now at the point where certain differences are starting to bother me, where I’m getting impatient waiting for the language to really ‘click,’ and where I sometimes just want to curl up in my own bed in my own house with a good old Harry Potter book.


(Nocilla: Spain's version of Nutella. So delicious!!)

I had a long conversation about this a couple days ago (via Facebook) with Mariah Hennen, the exchange student from my district in the U.S. who is in Poland this year. I love Mariah. We both say it’s a lucky thing that Spain and Poland were in the same country group at the orientations. I remember at the first orientation in January, Mariah happened to be sitting next to me when all the outbounds were in a room waiting for a presentation on something. We all were talking while we waited, and I remember at some point our conversation went something like this:

Mariah: My parents keep saying things like “when you’re in another family’s home, you can’t leave your room a mess like this.”

Me: Me too!!! My mom says that all the time, and I’m getting so sick of it! Hey, what country are you going to?

Mariah: Poland. Where are you going?

Me: Spain

Mariah: Haha, we’ll probably see a lot of each other, because Spain and Poland are in the same country group for the orientations.

Me: Really? How random is that! Yup, look the sheet says “Spain, Italy, and…Poland.”

Anyway, I always love talking to Mariah, but I especially loved talking to her the other day because we got to discuss a lot of the same things we’re going through. We talked about how one of the hardest things right now is the fact that at this point, no one truly knows who you are.

I don’t mean that in a dramatic “no one understands me!” way, but the fact is simply that although I have great friends here who talk to me, and invite me out all the time, they really don’t have any idea who I am as a person. I feel like if someone here were asked to describe my personality, they would have no idea what to say. Okay…that sounds like I have no personality in Spain, which isn’t true, but hopefully you have some idea what I’m saying here.

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(My favorite cheese and the bottle of olive oil that is never empty)

Without fully being comfortable here yet, and without fully having the language to be able to express yourself, it’s difficult to let your true personality show. I’m a talker, I’m assertive, I’m awful with directions, I love telling stories, I over analyze things people say to me, I’m sometimes very selfish, I’m a hard worker, I love to laugh, I almost never cry in front of people, I sing loudly when no one's around, I’m extremely indecisive, and I’m very independent. Whew. Okay, well, now that’s that’s all out, I think I’ll wrap up this already lengthy post. And then maybe I’ll write another one about what has actually been going on this week in Spain.

Besitos!

Paige

These things only happen to me

Today I had plans to meet up with Stephanie (the other exchange students in Valencia) to go into the city to buy shoes for flamenco. School got out at 3 since it’s a Tuesday, and I decided to go home before the bus came. I figured I would have a relaxing lunch and enjoy having the house to myself. Let’s just say that’s not what happened.

Because I was planning on leaving in 45 minutes, I didn’t bother locking the gate to our courtyard. I went to put the key in our front door next, but it didn’t budge. Thinking that our maid, Mamen, must be inside and had bolted the door from the inside, I rang the doorbell. No answer. I rang it again. At this point I can hear the alarm inside the house going off.

Let me tell you what my host dad told me when he first explained the alarm to me:
“It’s really easy. When the alarm goes off, you just punch in the code. If you don’t punch in the code, the alarm company will call. They will say the code word ‘Sierra Nevada’ and you respond with ‘Pyreneos.’ If you don’t answer, they will call me. If I don’t answer, they will call Amparo, and if she doesn’t answer, they’ll call the police. So you don’t have to worry about the police ever coming if you set off the alarm because someone will figure it out before then.” Yeah right.

When Mamen didn’t answer, I walked all around the house, peering in the windows to see if she was perhaps inside with the radio on and couldn’t hear me. When I realized Mamen wasn’t there, I went back to the front door to try again. Of course, the door opened this time with no problem. I entered the code and the alarm finally stopped. Then I went upstairs to drop my backpack off and then into the kitchen to start making lunch. I had just finished toasting the bread for my sandwich when the police came bursting into the house.

I ran from the kitchen and, still clutching the bottle of olive oil I was about to drizzle on my bread, said the only logical thing to say to a pair of Spanish policemen who just come in expecting to find someone robbing the place. “Hola.”

After I explained who I was and what had happened, the police were actually really nice. They did, however, have to check my passport and call my host mom at work to verify that I actually live here. How embarrassing. I can only imagine what my host mom was thinking when she answered the phone.

The good news is that I didn’t miss my bus to Valencia, and Stephanie and I had a good time buying our flamenco shoes. The shop was so cool- we both decided we want to get good enough to justify buying a flamenco dress. When I got home, I had to explain to my host parents what had happened with the alarm, and we all had a good laugh about it.

I swear these things only happen to me.

Besitos,
Paige


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What a Weekend

This weekend, my host family decided to go to their beach apartment in Oliva, which is about 45 minutes from Valencia. Why you need a beach apartment when you already live 10 minutes from the beach is a mystery to me, but hey, I’m not complaining ☺ We left Saturday morning, and got there around 11, after a quick stop for bocadillos at a little café on the way. The apartment is literally on the beach, and there are views of the sea from every window. It is gorgeous. Who needs tv when you watch the Mediterranean perfectly framed in your living room window? We spent the day walking along the beach, and I have to admit, it was better than the beach in Valencia in the fact that it was completely private. We walked along the beach for a couple of hours (Paula and I hunted for the best seashells), and then we went back to the apartment for la comida.



The view from our apartment in Oliva


I have to admit, I had an alternative motive for being so excited to come to the apartment this week: my friend Mika, who I met on Facebook last spring and in person at the Madrid orientation, lives in Dénia, and we had made plans to meet up that afternoon. Dénia is about 10 kilometers from our apartment in Oliva, so my host parents said it was no problem to drop me off to hang out with Mika. Her host parents even said I could sleep over, and I had been looking forward to it all week. We drove into Dénia at six, and met Mika at the bus stop. I can’t tell you how good it was to see her. We gave each other a huge hug, which was much needed because no one hugs in Spain. You give everyone a kiss on each cheek to greet and say goodbye to someone, but sometimes you just need a hug, you know?







Mika and I walked around Dénia that night and shopped, drank café con leche, and had Chinese for dinner. Around midnight her host dad came to pick us up and take us to her house. We stayed up until at least 4 am talking and laughing and taking pictures. Mika and I are so similar in a lot of ways. I suppose I should be thankful she doesn’t live in Valencia because I probably wouldn’t hang out with anyone else, but I still really wish Mika and I were in the same city. I have plenty of wonderful friends in school, but it’s definitely not the same, at least at this point when the language still isn’t quite there yet. I feel bad saying it, but it was probably my favorite weekend here so far. However, we will be back to Oliva for Christmas break, and my host parents have also invited Mika to spend a weekend with me in Valencia sometime in November.



My host sister Paula and I


My host parents picked me up in the morning from Mika’s house, and then we went on a drive through the mountains near Dénia. It was incredible. There were all these little scenic outlooks to stop and look at the sea, and it was even more beautiful from the top of the mountains. We drove back down to sea level for la comida, and ate incredibly fresh seafood at a restaurant on the beach. By the time we got back to the apartment in Oliva, no one wanted to leave. We all were wishing we could just stay there forever and not go back to school or work. But all good things have to end sometime, so around 6 we packed up the car and drove back to Valencia. It feels like a much longer weekend than it was, although we really only spent one night there. Tomorrow (Monday) it’s back to life as usual. Well, as usual as life can be for an exchange student anyway.








Besitos,

Paige