revision: dining and splitting tips

When I was in Spain I quickly learned something about the way in which Spaniards eat--it is never done alone. Meals, and particularly coffee breaks, are a time to enjoy the company of your friends. Because of this, it is very atypical to see people eating on the go, or in class. I rarely even saw an option at coffee shops for a "to go" cup. I think that this comes from their value of friendship and taking time in the day to enjoy the people around them. Another thing I noticed about the value of peoplea nd relationships through dining was how bills at restaurants are handled. Instead of receiving separate checks, like we do in the United States, large parties and even parties of two are split down the middle. Even fi one person technically "owes" twenty euro and another owes 10 euro, the bill is equally split. When i asked my Spanish friend about it, she said, "the few extra euros, what does it matter? it will all even out eventually, and i'm here to be with my friends. You can't put a price on that". I couldn't help but wonder why we don't do this in the United States. In my opinion, our values as Americans are different than those of Spaniards. In the US, we value work, independence and money. This is reflected in how we handle restaurant bills because of the idea, "what's mine is mine, what's yours is yours". We want to be responsible only for what is ours, not for our friends. This mindset in America is something that I have grown to resent since coming home. I wish that our culture was more collaborative so that our individual successes don't interfere with our relationships.

culture: (may 9) temple in Spain

ever since i decided to come to spain, i thought it would be interesting to go to a temple and sit through a service. a temple in spain, you ask? right. hard to come by. dont worry, i did my research.

my friend evan and i sent an email to the temple, saying we wanted to come. after giving them our passport numbers and other information, they gave us the address. turns out it was a street over from where i live. never have i ever seen a temple, in my whole time here.

so we went, dressed up, for friday night services. and there we were, 19 calle whatever. and it was an apartment building. no sign, no nothing. we buzzed ourselves in.

the “temple” was a floor of the apartment building, folding chairs and a torah and candles. the service went by super fast. we rushed through the blessings and prayers, mostly in tunes i wasn’t familiar with. but then, (dad you’ll love this), we did the vish sham roo one! and it was the same! i sang my heart out.

when the service ended, everyone wished each other a shabbat shalom. and i mean everyone. i double kissed everyone, from the rabbi to the 90 year old woman sitting behind me.

after services theres usually an oneg, a blessing over the bread and wine. at home, we break the bread, everyone takes a piece, chats for a few minutes and leaves. here, all 20 of us sat around a long table, broke the bread, poured wine, passed around little sandwiches, and sat and chatted for about 45 minutes. we made friends with an old couple from denmark, a spunky englishwoman on her way to israel next tuesday, and the spanish rabbi.

fantastic evening.

something else i discovered: playground near my house…drain in the ground, definitely not a drain. its a secret trampoline. and its awesome.

only one final left, and then my life will continue on the beach.

Culture: (Feb 17) How to survive in Spain, so far

it’s taken a month, but i think i’ve finally caught on to some of the most important aspects of spanish culture:

1. how to get on the bus when you’re out of money:

swipe, hear the 3 beeps, look at the bus driver and pretend you dont know spanish. continue walking. (make sure you’re in the middle of the line for this one, not at the end.)

2. how to get the check at a restaurant:

yell.

3. how to refuse food from a determined spanish mother:

tell her you have a stomach ache and if you eat one more bite you might explode, or worse, throw up on the table.

4. how to peel an orange:

must use a knife. make circular cuts around the top and bottom. remove, including soft core (successss). now you have a band of peel around the orange. make slits all the way around. pull them off with the knife. clean off all extra white parts. split open. enjoy. repeat.

5. how to answer a phone call:

DIGAME.

6. how to get alcohol after 1030 pm:

its behind the counter at the drug store. ask for it discreetly, hide the bag once your’e out of the store.

7. how to excuse yourself from class for a few minutes:

say you need a coffee.

8. how to avoid being trampled on the bus:

stand against the wall opposite of the exit door. unless by an odd chance of luck there is an empty seat, then by all means sit down. but be respectful of the elderly and let them sit first. obviously.

9. how to get exercise:

walk home from school. with a backpack full of books.

10. too much olive oil in your dish?

wipe it up with your bread. enjoy.

11. how to navigate alicante:

downhill always takes you to the beach. coming home, the castle should always be on your right. if its on your left, you’re on the wrong side of town. if you’re suddenly going up a steep hill, you’re probably on the castle.

12. how to successfully book a ticket on ryanair:

still unknown.

more to come. besos, todos.

culture: (march 7) "bar scene" in alicante

last night was just a mogellón de fun. kendra and i decided to avoid the usual scene and bar-hop around the barrio.

to quickly fill you in, the barrio is a little neighborhood of TONS of bars, little alleyways etc just filled with bars and people going from place to place. we decided we’d try to just explore and find new places to spend our weekdayend nights.

first stop, a bar with neon lights on the outside. i was skeptical going in, because it was very obvious that there were no americans there, but hey, thats the point, right? so we ordered two cañas (cups of their “house” beer) for a euro each and situated ourselves upstairs looking over the bar. there was a bachelor party going on. in spain, they take their bachelor parties seriously. the lucky guy was wearing a chicken suit, and when we saw one in granada, the guy was riding a donkey through the narrow streets. they know how to do it here.

next bar. i dont even know the name of it but it was a great time. the futbol game was on, madrid vs. sevilla. alicantians love madrid. good thing they won or else i would have been a little worried for my life. so we sat ourselves down, got another caña, and also ordered some food. patatas con 4 sabores is now my new favorite dish. its just potato wedges, and they had 4 sauces to dip them in. a bleu cheese, (gross) a sour cream and onion (yesss) some other white cream and a sweet and sour type of sauce. it was fantastic, and quite the hit becuase pretty much every table in the bar had one.

we returned to the barrio barrio after that and were beckoned by bar tenders to try out their establishment. thats the other thing. there are young people who work at bars standing outside in the little tiny streets where everyone walks saying “where are you guys going?” and they have little coupons for their bars. now, i have a feeling that if i was a spaniard, these would be the people i would avoid. like in the mall when those people try to get you to try their hand lotion. (no, you cannot ask me a question, my hands are just fine, thank you). but since i am american, and i do not know where i’m going, i let them lead me anywhere. in the safest way possible, of course. one led us to an empty bar where we got a deal for shots and a drink. another led us to a bar, also empty, where we got mojitos.

by then it was late and we decided to call it a night. and now its sunday and just like any other sunday, in spain or the united states, i dont want to do anything. siesta anyone? i think so.

hasta luego, everyone, and have a happy start to your week.

culture (march 20): shorts, scenery and castles

something i’ve learned since being abroad:

lots of olive oil, fried food, churros, principe cookies, and chocolate filled croissants + no real exercise besides walking = inflamation.

so today i dragged myself out of bed early, put on my exercise attire (my poor tennis shoes have not been touched in months) and headed to the puerta. time to run.

i dont know if i’ve ever mentioned it, but in spain, they dont wear shorts. even if they are exercising, they wear pants. i mean, there is the acception for the very intense men who wear biker shorts and sweat bands, but i dont think i’m at their level yet. anyways, it is extremely rare to see bare legs. well today the pedestrians of alicante got an eyefull, because i sported my nike shorts and a tshirt. i dont know if it was my imagination or if it was real, but i think i got some stares and definitely a few smirks. (they just wish they were as dedicated to exercise as me, right? yeah).

it was the perfect day to run. it wasn’t hot, but it was comfortable to be out in the clothes i was wearing. it was overcast, so the sun wasnt beating down on me. i ran along the boardwalk that is right by the beach, so i had great scenery the whole time. when i got to the end, i sat by the shore and stretched. ran back, repeat. repeat. repeat. i hurt. so. much.

then i decided i was going to subir the castle (climb up). its so big, and on top of a giant cliff, that i honestly had no idea where to go to start the journey. someone had told me to go up this white ramp, and through a neighborhood. so i began my adventure by climbing that ramp that is over the highway, and then i was in a neighborhood. they were just a bunch of apartments, dull colors, gates, like the rest of alicante. but then i turned the corner… and it was like a whole different world.

a wall covered in the most colorful, beautiful graffiti artwork i’ve seen. little houses and apartments were on top of a huge hill, right under part of the cliff to the castle. i figured this was probably some back way to get up, so i started climbing. these houses were amazing, brightly colored, windows open, balconies with flowers. i was so distracted by them that i didnt realize until i had reached a dead end that i was definitely in someones private property, not on my way up the castle. so i quickly scampered down and went on my way.

i tried three different routes to get up to the castle. fail. fail. fail. i don’t know why its so hard. but i got frustrated, and decided to come back a different day when someone could show me the way. it was a good effort, at least.

this is the view i had the whole time trying to subir:

once i make it to the top, i’ll show what the view looks like. apparently its incredible.

happy saturday everyone. almost spring break time

Culture: las fallas

something great about spain is that they have endless crazy holidays. yesterday, our group went to valencia, to see las fallas.

what are las fallas, you ask? well, i learned from madre that its a much much MUCH bigger version of las fogueres, what paco’s the president of. there are huge floats, flowers, a virgin statue and churros EVERYWHERE. but the details?

its a four day festival, from the 15th-19th of march. apparently, during this whole time its an ongoing party in the streets. valencia is absolutely packed with people (really, you cant move). churros are the food of choice sold on the streets. each community creates a float, and the people of valencia vote on which one is the best. the rest are burned on the last night.

and let me just say, that if you are a jumpy person (like myself), brace yourself for las fallas. at any given moment in the street there will be a loud explosion and your heart will skip about 3.56 beats before you realize its just a firecracker.

yesterday we got to see the masceltá. during the week, they make mascletas, or little dolls. and yesterday, at exactly 2 pm, they set them all off via fireworks. people are literally packed in the streets, and it is the loudest sound ever created. it was so loud that we were advised not to plug our ears, but keep our mouths open to help the pressure. it was INCREDIBLE. i felt the vibrations of the sound in my legs, the ground was shaking, we couldnt hear each other talk. my chest felt like there was a drum inside of it and all anyone could do was grin because it was just the most ridiculous and crazy experience. take a look:

i think this is from the opposite side that i was on, and you cant see much, but its still really cool. people were standing out of their balconies to watch, some of the fireworks landed on us, and i have never seen so much smoke collected in one area in my life.

culture: "guapa"

I noticed right away when coming to Spain, that people greet women as "guapa" which means beautiful. When the girls in my group and I were meeting our families for the first time, they all approached us with an "hola, guapa!" Throughout my time here I have heard it more and more. Young and old women say it to their friends and family members on a regular basis. I thought this was interesting because, in English, we don't necessarily say hi to our friends by calling them beautiful, pretty, or even cute. In fact, as a culture we almost seem modest about looks, or at least talking about them.

But not only do friends say it to each other, men shout it on the streets. If a woman passes by a group of young men, it is not out of the ordinary for them to just say "guapa", or "hola, guapa". I have also heard this a lot from homeless beggers, and street vendors trying to get my attention.

I was talking to some of my friends about this today and one brought up an interesting point. She said she learned that it is actually a historic cultural aspect, dating back to Franco. She said that when he was in power, men and women were not allowed to interact on the streets. I too, have learned this in my pop culture class. But what she learned was that people would learn to sneak around Franco's rules. Instead of interacting with women on the street, men would just shout out the word "guapa" if a pretty woman walked by.

I think that it is so interesting that something like phrases people use here were developed from Franco. It is amazing how much impact he had on this country, and how even years later, his laws still affect the people of Spain and the way they think and act.

language: menu

These past 3 weeks, I have been on my spring break, traveling around Italy and then around Spain with my family. I spent 10 days with my family, translating everything all day. It wasn't as hard as I thought it would be, and I think that my Spanish skills were at their very best. The only thing I had trouble with was translating menu items.

Here are some menu items that I learned while traveling with my family:

mejillones: mussles

almejas: clams

mayonesa: mayonnaise

calamar: squid

congrejo: crab

mariscos: seafood

bocadillo vegetal: vegetable sandwich

bocadillo de pollo: chicken sandwich

bocadillo de jamon y queso: ham and cheese sandwich

culture: education system

On Friday, I observed an elementary classroom for a day to see how it compared to the American school system. It was such a good day, and the teacher invited me not only to return every Friday that I can, but he also wants me to teach a lesson or two, and gave me three lesson books to choose from.

In only one day, I saw so many cultural differences in the classroom. The most obvious was the school day schedule. They started at 9, just like most elementary schools. But then they had a small "lunch" (which is called media día here) and recess for 20 minutes. They returned and had more lessons until 1, when they had an hour and a half for lunch and recess, and then came back and had more lessons until five, when class was dismissed. 

I personally think that this would be difficult for me as a child, because I was always very tired by the time I got home at 3. But children here are raised to have their days run longer. It is nice that they have so much time to eat and play during the day.

Another difference I noticed was the relationship between teacher and student. The most obvious was that the students all called the teacher, David, by his first name. I really like this. I think that it breaks a barrier so that the teacher is more approachable. In the United States, we see this as a lack of respect, and almost making the professional barrier non-existant between teacher and student. But from what I saw in the classroom, the students had so much respect for this teacher because they felt comfortable with him. I think that this is essential to creating a good learning atmosphere. Another difference I noticed with the teacher-student interaction is that it was acceptable for teachers to have physical contact with the students. I have learned in almost all of my education classes that it is extremely illegal for a teacher in the United States to touch a student. But here, kids were running up to their teachers for a hug, and the teacher would lift them up and twirl them around. Again, I think that this shows how important relationships between the student and teacher are, and that not all physical contact is inappropriate.

Something that was shocking to me was how the students began their day. I came to the classroom at 8:45, class started at 9. No one was there. the lights were off, nothing had been touched. I had seen children coming into school, so I was very confused as to where they could be. I looked out the window and saw that they were all playing outside. But class was starting in 10 minutes! So I waited and waited... and finally I heard them storming down the hallway and they all burst through the doors of the room. I was greeted with lots of "holas" and smiles, but the teacher was still nowhere to be found. The kids were playing, talking, singing, scampering all over the room and I had no idea what to do. So I waited. All of a sudden a song came on over the loudspeaker. Everyone stopped what they were doing and headed to their seats, and by the end of the song everyone was silent. And then the teacher walked in.

I think that this is such an effective way to start the day...that is, if the students were to cooperate. The only thing I can think of for this to actually work is that they have been trained since an even younger age that this is how the mornings work. In the United States, it is rare that a classroom of young children is left unattended, let alone that the children are allowed to go from an unofficial recess to class on their own. I think that if this were to be initiated in the US, it could be a disaster.

In only one day, I saw so many cultural differences in the classroom. I plan on returning, and even teaching. I am looking forward to what else I can absorb from this amazing class.

language: this and that

The other day, my madre and I were looking through the fridge deciding what to eat for dinner. She asked if I wanted a yogurt. We had two types to choose from, so I pointed to the one I wanted and said "yo quiero esto, no eso." (I want this, not that). But she still handed me the one I did not want. Then I realized that to express this, it is done differently in Spanish.

What I should have said, was "eso, no. esto yo quiero" Let's call the yogurt I wanted Dannon, and the yogurt I didn't want Greek. So I originally said "yo quiero Dannon, no Greek," but what my madre understood was "Dannon, no. Greek, si." In spanish, to say "not this", they put "no" after the subject. This can go for many things:

No dogs= perros no

not me= yo no

not here= aquí no

etc. Now that I've figured this out, I will be able to correctly say what I'd like for dinner.

language: death

Last weekend, my "padres" brother passed away. From talking to them, I learned a lot of new vocabulary about funerals and death.

funeral- entierro

cremate- incinerar

tomb- tumba

sympathy- compasión

wake- velatorio

Las Fallas was also this weekend, a celebration with a lot of fireworks. Here are some words I learned from the festival:

fireworks- fuegos artificiales

sparkler- bengala

sunflower seeds- girasol

culture: transportation

At home, I live in a suburb where everyone has a car. Teenagers look forward to their 16th birthdays to get their shiny new vehicle-- and are almost identified by what they drive. I drive my car everwhere. I never take public transportation, and walk simply for the exercise. That is, until I came to Alicante.

   Alicante is a small city, so a major part of the daily grunge is riding hte bus. Every day to get to school, I walk to the bus stop, wait for the blue 24 bus to come roarin down the street and take me on my way. Once on hte bus, forget about personal space. People squeeze in until passengers are literally on top of each other. I always stand instead of sitting, because I have grown up knowing that other people need to sit down more than I do. But in the culture here, it is definitely a "first come, first serve" attitude. I saw a woman, very unsteady, who couldnt have been younger than 85 climb onto the bus. At least three young people were sitting, and watched her look around helplessly for a seat, yeat no one relinquished theirs. She waited until someone got off at the next stop.

Even though busses are greatly utilized here, I have heard that by percentage, Alicante has the most cars in Spain. But unlike our cars in the United States that are washed and waxed and sitting proudly in our driveways, the cars here sport scratches and dents, and may not have been washed in years. Cars parallel park so closely together that they actually touch, and when trying to leave, it is a game of bumper cars. But this is the norm. Here, if the car carries you from point A to point B, it is a good car. No pasa nada. 

Another difference is the abundance of motercycles and how they rule the streets. Tons of people here have them, and I can see why. The weather is usually nice, it is easy to park, and not to mention, being able to weave through traffic like magic. Another thing I have noticed is the variety of people that drive them. In the US, motercycle drivers have a steryotype (men, leather, tattoos, etc) here, those stereotypes don't exist. Men, teenagers and young women drive them, and it is completely normal. 

After using public transportation for 4 months, I can't help but wonder if I will be able to remember how to drive when I come home.

language- parecer

The word "parecer" means "to seem". In daily conversation with my family, I have needed to use this word, and have realized over time that there are many ways to use it. 

The first way it can be used is to describe something as "seems". For example, you can say, "este parece facil" (this seems easy)

Another way to use parecer is with expressive opinion. For example, "vamos a la playa. ¿te parece?" (let's go to the beach. what do you think?)

Parecer can also be used to give an impression. "Parece que fue ayer" (it seems like it was yesterday)

The most recent example of parecer that I have used is to compare people, in which it must be used as a reflexive verb. "el bebé  se parece a su madre" (the baby looks like his mom), or "se parecen mucho" (they are very similar).

language: health

My gastronomy class is learning about health right now. Here are some words that I have acquired:

health- salud/bienestar

work out- hacer ejercicio

vegetables- verduras

thermometer- termómetro

fever- fiebre

anorexia- anorexia

bulimia- bulimia

obese- obeso

overweight- demasiado gordo

underweight-  de peso más bajo que normal

blood test- análysis de sangre

"I don't feel good" - no me encuentro bien.

This can be confusing, because my initial thought was to say "no me siento bien," but that means "my feelings aren't good".

Culture: Work

In Spain, the work system is different from in the United States. The first thing I learned in my culture class here was a set of phrases that described the differences. It is: "En Estados Unidos, se viven para trabajar. En España, nos trabajamos para vivir". This has a very strong, clear meaning. It translates to "In the US, they live to work. We work to live." In the United States, we identify ourselves and take pride in our work. We choose a job according to our interests, but more importantly, based on the salary. In Spain, work does not identify a person. Here, a person can work very hard and perform well, but still not get paid well. According to my professor, the ideal job for a Spaniard is to bea  teacher, because of the hours and vacations. Speaking of chours, the work schedule in Spain is also much different. The day begins at 8 or 9, like the scheudle at home. But the big difference is that Spaniards get a break from 2-4, where they come home to eat lunch with the family, and return to work until 7. It is also very easy for a person in Spain to lose their job. There are currently 4,000,000 unemployed Spaniards in the country. The good news, however, is that becuase it is so common to lose your job, if you are in that position, you receive 60% of what you originally made for two years so that you can find a new job. Opinons of this vary. Of course, it is very fortunate for those who lose their jobs and their families so that they have financial support while going through a tough transition. However, there are some people that argue that this makes Spaniards "lazy," I have even heard someone say that people will get injured on purpose so they have to take a year off, and then they receive their 60% pay to do nothing. I can see how this would be feasable, and it makes me wonder what would happen if this was the case in the United States.

language: sports

Sports are a great conversation topic. Here are some words to keep the conversation going:

fútbol- soccer

gol- goal

futbolista- soccer player

competedor- rival

ganadores- winners

voliplaya- beach vollyball

arbitro- referee

juego sucio- foul

temporada- season

camiseta- jersey

capitán-captain

equipo- team

partido- game/match

Language: movie observations

In one of my classes we have been watching a lot of movies. In the United States, if i have a class that consists of movie watching, I see it as almost a waste of time. But since I am learning the language, it has been extremely helpful to picking up new vocabulary.

From the movie Te Doy Mis Ojos

Orejas- ears

darle perdon- tell them youre sorry

reconocer- recognize

coño- damnit

cucho- shot (drugs)

chiquetes- kiddos

From the movie Volver

un rato- a while

que te pasa- what's wrong?

ya no- not anymore

A lot of these are phrases that aren't of huge importance, ones that haven been big parts of tests. but in conversation i have always wanted to express things like "a while" and "not anymore". Watching movies is a great way to pick up these phrases.

Lanugage: Passive Voice

The passive voice is used to describe things that are impersonal. For example, when describing a restaurant, a person says "they close at 10", referring to "they" because it is impersonal. Also, the passive voice is used wehn asking, "How do you say...?" This is passive voice because they are not literally asking how do YOU say it, but "how is it said" in general. There are two parts to passive voice:

1. Used with Ser

2. Used with Estar

Example:

SER

When using ser, the passive is always plural and the "lo" or "la" agrees with the subject.

-los coches los fabrican.     

Fabrican will be plural no matter what, and the "los" agrees with "coches"

- Ese tipo lo venden.

Again, the verb is always plural, and the "lo" agrees with the subject.

Another way to construct passive voice is with the use of SE

Example: 

-las puertas se cierran por la mañana.

unlike using lo/la, the subject will always agree with the verb.

se vende, se dice, se usa....

culture: going out to eat

Similar to Americans, Spaniards like to go out to eat. Like everything else though, there are a few noticeable differences. Let me take you through a normal dining experience in Spain. Upon arrival, one rarely is seated by a hostess. it is very common to find a seat outside and wait for someone to take your order. The waitors are pretty casual. While eating, its common to order a beer, no matter what time it is. Meals, especially with a group, can last a long time--up to three hours! People just keep ordering new courses and drinks. The waitor never checks int o see how you are doing or how the food is. If you want something, you have to wave them down or call for them. This goes for the bill, too. I learned this the hard way. If you're ready to go, you have to give the waiter a head's up, or else you'll be sitting htere for a while. When you do get the bill, don't expect spearate checks. And if all you have is a credit card, you're in trouble. In Spain it is custom to split the bill equally among diners, no matter who ate or drank waht. If i got a salad, for example, and you got chicken and wine, we would pay the same. Because to spaniards, they eat together to be together. Money doesn't matter. (I am quoting my gastronomy professor on this). 

The last major differnece is that in Spain, it is not custom to tip. People dont tip waiters, cab drivers, hair stylists, nothing. It makes me wonder how much money I have spent in my life on tips, but at the same time I feel bad that these people don't get a little extra money for their hard work.

Dining out in Spain is definitely different than in the United States. Sometimes I like it though, because it is more casual and comfortable. 

Language: Accent

When speaking a different language, it is important to study the vocabulary and grammar. But just as important is the accent. I have learned here that I can use the right words and form my sentences perfectly, but it is still difficult at times for people the understand me. I have noticed, however, that over the past two months, my accent has improved because I hear it all the time. Recently I have been paying very close attention to how their accent sounds and how I can change my words to match. I have been noticing specifically what the differnece is between an American accent and a Spanish accent. I have figured out that a lot has to do with the placement of the tongue.

Something I have figured out is that in Spanish, the tongue is placed more forward in the mouth than in English, creating a different sound. I noticed that just based on where my tongue is, the same word can sound a little different, creating an accent. 

For example, try this:

Tapas. 

American Accent: Notice that when saying "tapas," the tongue is placed right behind the teeth for the "t" letter. 

Spanish Accent: Now try saying "tapas," but placing the tongue in front of the teeth (so the teeth rest on the tip of the tongue). It sounds a little more like "thapas".

De.

American Accent: Same as "t" sound. We put our tongue behind the teeth to make the word sound like "day"

Spanish Accent: Same. Place the tongue under the teeth, and the word changes to sound like a little like "they"

I think that if I pay attention to not only the words I am saying, but how the words are said, I can really improve the way I speak.

Language: Por/Para

In Spanish, there are two words to express the word "for". Spanish students affectionately know this phrase as the difference between "por" and "para".

Por and Para have two separate meanings:

POR

1. through time and space:

caminé por la calle- I walked through the street.

Caminé por 2 horas- I walked for two hours

2. Expressing the cause of an action

Me Caí por la nieve- I fell because of the snow

3. Supporting

Soy por Obama- I am for Obama

4. means of transportation

Fui a Alicante por avión- I went to Alicante by plane

5. Set expressions. 

por ejemplo, por supuesto, por que...

PARA

1. "In order to"

Estoy aqui para ver mi hermana- I'm here to see my sister

2. With a noun, for the benefit of the noun.

Este es para ti- this is for you

3. To, or in the direction of, when talking about a specific place.

Me voy para Barcelona este fin de semana- I'm going to Barcelona this weekend

language: pet names

Similar to English, in Spanish, people use pet names for their loved ones. I have noticed this a lot with the baby that my host madre takes care of. She calls him a few things that I have caught on to:

cariño-honey

nene (nay nay)- I'm not sure of the actual translation, but I do know it is used for grandchildren.

guapo- handsome

chiquitin- cutie

campeón- champion (when he finishes his food)

amor- love

señor- sir

Something else I learned today is that here, people do not commonly say "lo siento" (I'm sorry) the way we do in the United States. My host parents actually called me out on it, and said that I have no need to say "I'm sorry". The way they described it sounded like saying "I'm sorry" was a very strong, serious phrase insatead of the casual "I'm sorry" I am used to. (When bumping into someone, getting in someone's way, spilling a drink...)

Instead, they told me to use words like:

disculpame (excuse me)

perdoname (pardon me)

de acuerdo (got it, when being "scolded")

or nothing at all.

culture: child rearing

In my homestay, my host mom takes care of her grandson every morning through late afternoon. I have been able to observe how they care for children here, and how it differs from that in the United States.

My mom at home is a parent educator, which means she works with babies and their parents up until age three. She knows all about development, milestones and what is best to help the baby grow properly, emotionally mentally and physically. Personally, I think that our way of rearing children in the United States is very effective with little flaws. Something we emphasize at an early age is independence, and I think that this is very important.

Something I have noticed here is that people treat babies differently than in the United States. For example, at home, many parents praise their babies with tickles, big smiles, and saying how "good" the baby is. Here, i hear so much "eres malo! eres malo, sabes?" (you're bad! you're so bad, you know that?) I'm not sure if they mean it in a serious way, because the grandma also talks to the adults about what a good baby Paco is (he is very good). Nevertheless, the thing to say to a baby is "eres malo". 

Another thing I have noticed is the lack of stress on independence for babies to allow them to grow. Baby paco is 6 months old, yet I have never seen them allow him to sit on the floor. I have learned from my mom that babies need to explore and grow by learning to roll from front to back, sit up, and then crawl, and pull themselves up on an object, and finally take steps. However, this baby is either being held by my "madre", or in a stroller. He never gets to have that experience of being left to defend for himself. I can tell, also, that he is dying to move! he kicks all the time and squirms like crazy when his grandma holds him. It kills me to watch him want to move so badly and be trapped.

Similar to the United States, there are many baby songs. There are three that I have memorized, all having a similar tune. Palma Ponitas, Cinco lobitos and Pobrecito. 

The other thing that really bothers me about how my "madre" rears this baby is her way of feeding him. I don't know if this is cultural or just her, but she is not satisfied unless he finishes a bottle. This means that even if he is refusing the bottle, choking and crying, she will still keep it in his mouth. I know from experience that it is important to give a baby a breath during feeding. But she never lets him breathe, and I have never seen her burp him. I feel like its borderline child abuse, but I know that she is a grandmother and has raised three children, so she must know something. I just feel bad for baby Paco sometimes.

language: false cognates

In Spanish, like many languages, there are cognates. This means that the word in English and Spanish are the same, and have the same meanings. Some examples are:

menú

telefono

actor

papaya

mango

It gets tricky, though, when cognates are false. I have had some embarassing instances when guessing translations before speaking. Here are a few examples of false cognates:

embarazada----->pregnant, NOT embarassed

sopa---->soup, NOT soap

constipada----->congested, NOT constipated (i was very confused when my padre asked if i was constipada)

biblioteca---->library NOT bookstore

pretender----> try NOT pretend

preservativos----> condoms, NOT preservatives.

it's good to think before you speak when in a different country :)

language post: daily conversation

Since I've arrived in Spain, I have learned a lot of words that are used on a daily basis in normal, casual conversation. I've realized that a lot of the things we learn in high school about conversation are just basic and standard, and there are so many other phrases to keep conversation interesting.

buenas- hi

que tal- how's it going? or simply "que"

digame- when answering the phone, literally "tell me"

madre mia- oh wow

no me digas- you dont say?

no pasa nada- don't worry about it (said for EVERYTHING)

que guay! - how awesome

de puta madre- really awesome (a little vulgar, not horrible)

borracho/a- drunk

ciego/a- drunk

dar un vuelta- take a walk

Culture: Carnaval

Every year in the United States, we celebrate Mardi Gras as the kick-off to lent. The streets are filled with people celebrating and doing everything that would be prohibited for the next forty days. In Alicante, they have a similar celebration, but it is called Carnaval.

The biggest difference between Carnaval and Mardi Gras is that Carnaval comes decked out with costumes. As my host family explained to me, Carnaval is very similar to the United State’s Halloween. Everyone from babies to adults dress up in creative costumes and go out to celebrate. On the night of Carnaval, the streets of Alicante came alive. There were so many people on the main street that it was hard to move. I could barely push my way through the vampires, pirates, giant babies and clowns. But it didn’t even matter because I could hear the music, drums and people from a mile away. There was a parade with floats, dancers performing and people playing instruments. Lights were strung between palm trees and everyone was drinking.

I learned in my Pop Culture class that Carnaval has a significant historical meaning beyond the parties and costumes. Carne, which means meat, is one of the main parts of CARNaval. A long time ago, during Lent, Spaniards could not eat meat. So it was during Carnaval that they would eat as much meat as they could before it was prohibited. Since then it has become a great celebration like that of Mardi Gras.

language post: subjunctive

In my opinion, one of the hardest things about Spanish is learning the subjunctive tense. I think that this is because in English, we don't have anything similar that we use on a daily basis. Therefore, we can't have anything to compare it to, or anything to link it to. But I managed to memorize when it was used and how to use it. Something I never learned in high school Spanish, however, was how to create the future subjunctive. For example, if I wanted to say "I hope i studied enough" I would have to use the subjunctive for the verb "to study".  This is how it would look in Spanish:

"espero que estudiera suficiente." 

In order to change the verb "estudiar" to the past subjunctive, the verb is put into the third  person, with the -ron taken off. -a, -as, -a, -amos and -aron are then added, depending on the noun.

The imperfect subjunctive can also be used to describe things that could possibly happen in the future. this is most commonly used with sentences beginning with "if".  For example, if I wanted to say, "If I have kids one day...." I would have to use the future subjuntive for "to have" because there is a slight chance it would not happen. It would look like this:

"si tuviera hijos algun día..."

Because it is not a definite statement, the future subjunctive is used to express uncertainty.

language post: going to the doctor

Before going to Spain, I was diagnosed with mononucleosis. I still have not been feeling well lately, so by the advice of my mom, I went to the doctor today. Before the visit, I had to be sure to prepare myself to explain how I was feeling. Here's what I learned:

throat: garganta

head: cabeza

pain: dolor

fever: fiebre

liver: higado

spleen: bazo

blood test: analysis de sangre

thermometer: termometro

Also, as a holiday called Carnival is coming up in Alicante, I need dress up. While sitting in the waiting room at the doctor, I discussed the following with a director of the program:

costume: disfraz

mask: mascara

culture post: meal time

At home, I have a very scheduled meal time that I plan my day around. I have breakfast when I wake up, lunch is around noon, and dinner is between 6 and 7. And like many other people in the United States, I snack pretty much throughout the whole day.

In Spain, it is a lot different. During our orientation, I was surprised to see on our schedule that dinner would not be until 10 pm. I soon learned that this was absolutely the norm. It wasn't until I started living with a family though, that I understood more about the timing of meals in Spain.

People eat breakfast here at the same time we would eat breakfast in the United States. However, lunch is not until 2 or 3 for most families. I have realized that this is because of their cultural value of family. At 2, all businesses close down for a "siesta" where workers can go home and have lunch with their families. When I come home from school around 2:30, I am greeted by not only my madre and padre, but my brother and sister-in law, and their 5 month old son. We all sit down together around 3 and eat a large lunch. Afterward, everyone sits around and talks until it is time to return to work.

Because the lunches are so large and filling, Spaniards do not eat again until 9 or 10, for la cena. This has still proven to be difficult for me. I am so used to having my filling meal at dinner time instead of lunch. The light dinner we have of soup or salad and bread every night leaves me kind of half-expecting more food, because it is what I have grown up with. But it is interesting to see that their main meal of the day really is lunch. They usually have all food groups, and more.

As rumor has it, this mediterranian diet and Spanish schedule is apparently "healthier" for the digestive system. I don't know how I feel about that yet, considering my family has fed me Thanksgiving-sized meals every day. However, I can see how leaving the smaller meal for the night would be beneficial, as they don't have a full stomach churning while they sleep. Perhaps when I return to the United States, I will be a lean, mean, late-night dinner eating machine.

language: la comida

After traveling to Granada for the weekend and eating in restaurants, I have learned a lot of words regarding food:

bacalao: cod

berenjenas: eggplant

caracoles: snails

chorizo: sausage that is spicy

pulpo: octopus

allioli: a garlic mayo, i had it with potatoes, and it was called "patatas con allioli"

tortilla española: a mixture of eggs and potatoes fried into a very thick pancake. (delicious!)

caqui: dates

tenera: beef

jamón: ham

Almejas: clams

"botella de agua": waterbottle

Agua frio: in a glass

fresa: strawberry

language post 3

It's amazing how much Spanish I have learned just from living with a family. They told me that they have been hosting students for about ten years, so they really understand that my purpose of coming here is to learn, and they help me a lot with vocabulary and understanding grammar.

yesterday, my host dad taught me two very practical things.  First, I learned a little bit about time. They always ask me when I'll be going somewhere: por la manana (in the morning) or por la tarde (in the afternoon.)

so he told me that por la manana= antes del almuerzo (before lunch)

por la tarde= despues del almuerzo

I also learned words for eating utensils, which is great for when I need an extra something as I'm setting the table:

spoon: cuchara

knife: cuchilla

fork: tenedor.

Culture Blog 1

After only my first night in the family stay, I was amazed to realize how sheltered I am in regards to world news and conflicts. At home, I try to watch the news regularly, and I have always felt like I knew what was going on if a crisis arised. Before leaving, there was a lot of news coverage on the Haiti earthquake. As saddening as it was, I did not feel an emotional attachment to the victims and their families. I knew there were thousands killed and people still trapped under rubble, but I never felt the ache in my heart for them that I would soon feel, upon entering my host family's home. During dinner, the family was watching the news (this is very typical) and they had Haiti coverage. As I was watching, I realized with horror that I was looking at dead childrens' bodies with flies swarming around them, women that were unidentifiable from the debris and blood. I was shocked that this was allowed to be shown on tv, but then I glanced at my host parents to see that they weren't even flinching; whereas I had completely lost my apetite. 

In Spain, the news is more "real"--nothing is censored, and everything is shown. I have noticed that even local news can be disturbing. Uproars and conflicts become very public--I saw a man's home invaded by police for a drug bust, while he was sobbing and yelling at the camera crew. I also have seen a lot of things that make my stomach turn, such as the victims of Haiti, along with other dead bodies from various accidents and blood on walls. 

Watching the news here has made me realize how "sugar coated" our news production is. It makes me wonder how this affects our country. Are we less aware of reality? Are we more able to brush off crises around the world? Having seen a more realistic perspective of issues around the world has made me more aware of and sensitive to the issues that people face every day, that I may have not even thought about.

Language 2

In my intensive language class, I have picked up on a lot of useful phrases, especially the parts of speech that come naturally to native speakers. For example, I know how to say "I woke up". But I have never learned how to say "I just woke up". Here's how it goes:

acabo de + infinitive.

For example- acabo de levantar. I just got up. 

Surprisingly enough, I have learned a lot of slang and cultural swear words in this course. Something I found interesting is that there are multiple ways to describe someone as "drunk". For example, you can say someone is "borracho", but you can also say that they are "ciego". Similar to English, Spanish uses a lot of slang to describe common words.

language post 1

In only one week, I have picked up on a lot of Spanish phrases. Something interesting about Spanish is that there are different phrases that are specific to each country in the world. Words that mean something in one Spanish-speaking country can mean something completely different in another. I have picked up on a few of these examples just this past week:

pasta=pasta. In Alicante, pasta=dinero (money)

tio/tia=aunt/uncle. In Alicante, tio/tia means guy/girl.

There are also phrases that are said frequently that may not mean anything in a different country. For example, "que rollo" is something I had never heard before, but it is said very frequently here. It has multiple meanings. It can mean that something is "awesome", in which case the person would say "que buen rollo". It can also mean that something is bad or unfortunate, in which cause the person would describe something as a "mal rollo". 

In Spain, there are a lot of new phrases to learn. Hopefully by the end of the semester, I'll be comfortable using a lot of them!