Hello everyone! Sorry I have not updating in several weeks, I know you have been wondering how I have been and what I have been up to. Unfortunately, I don't think I will update much between now and May 19th when I leave either because I have been very busy. Tomorrow is my last day of class for this week until Tuesday. I have school Tuesday (the 3rd) and Wednesday of next week followed by a 4 day weekend. Then it's another 4-day week but the last of my classes. The following week is finals week and packing up to come home.
I wish I could share more of what's been happening, but I honestly don't have a clue myself. I'm here, but I might as well not be for as much as I understand just what I've found myself in the middle of. There's something about being here that can alter your understanding of reality. I don't mean the "hey this is great, now i have a new perspective!" I mean the "1 + 1 = 11" reality where you're surrounded by people who actually believe it. the one that not only makes it impossible for you to understand those around you, but simultaneously your own culture and even yourself. i really don't like that feeling. in any case, i am clinging to God and His word and looking forward to returning home in 3 weeks.
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Friday, February 25, 2011
Wow
Hi all!
Today was the final day of the intensive period for classes. We had a final yesterday and today we had to turn in an essay and present a short scene that we had written to complete a play that we started reading in class. There were four people in my group and I had to play a robber who falls in love with a grandma...hilarity ensued. So, what can I briefly summarize lol, there always seems to be something new happening and my mind and my body are simply moving faster than I can record what's going on. Oh and if you notice any typos in my English, oddly enough it is beginning to deteriorate haha. I am forgetting words and syntax, though if I speak slowly I can remember, it's just that I spend so much time trying to squeeze my thoughts into something that I can actually express in Spanish that my style is beginning to change. We'll see if that's permanent or not.
In the last week or so, I have gotten more comfortable with the bus system. If I get lost now, it's because I'm somewhere new, not because I just have no clue what I'm doing. There are 3 buses that leave from the station near my house: 22, 29, and 5. 22 and 29 take you to the Prado San Sebastian bus station where you can pick up the metro centro (tram) and that takes you Plaza Nueva which is about 4 minutes from my school. 5 takes you to a stop closer to the second stop on the metro centro calle Puerta Jerez (Sherry Port) and then the metro takes you to the same place close by my school. figuring this out has just about saved my life lol. to come back, 22 stops on the same street as it picks you up but on the other side of the street in a different place and 29 drops you on a perpendicular street not to far away. if you don't push the button, they won't stop. if you don't flag a bus down, they won't stop. if you're standing in front of the bus when it goes to pull off, they won't stop...just kidding. these are the little things that escaped my notice the first 2 or so weeks here haha but it's starting to click now.
I also take bus 34 to get to church, but that's not quite as complicated. i just take 5 to the stop closest to Prado and walk down the street, around the construction barricades and wait at the stop. I've also started to figure something out about the stores, everyday people buy fresh bread to eat at every meal. the bags say Polvillo and that is the name of the corner bread store. during the months of january and february there are huge sales on all the winter clothes so stock up!!! but remember that it will be sweltering here before you know it. there are orange trees everywhere, but you're not allowed to pick them. a handy little sweeper man comes around every morning to clean them up (along with any random garbage left behind from a botellón [huge outdoor drinking party which is popular here]).
let's see, what else, oh yeah for anyone who doesn't know all of my classes are in Spanish and i'm actually not allowed to speak spanish in the building (well not when anyone's in earshot anyway), but the idea is to really use our spanish. i'm game cuz there are these awards given to the students who use spanish the most and i really want one! i feel like there is a bunch of stuff that i should be mentioning that has become second nature to me that people might not know about. oh um, they eat fruit here with a fork and knife. people drive like madmen passing on the left and the right. i saw someone almost get their purse snatched but the guy didn't get it and he didn't come after me either. there's a bazillion dogs here and some aren't a leash. the only cats i've seen are strays. they have horse-drawn carriages here to take out for a ride around the city. i got to go to some roman ruins on Thursday, it's called la Italica and they were super cool!
well, i wish i could remember everything right now and explain it without rambling but that's harder than it sounds at the end of a 3 week intensive period haha. oh i did forget to say that each day my class lasted for 3 hours and 15 min with just a 1/2 hour break after the first 2 hours so trust me, my head was spinning with Spanish by the end haha. today I got to talk to Carmen who is the resident director at the center. we had a great conversation about the similarities and differences between american and spanish culture and it really helped me to start to understand some of the why behind spanish culture. she has studied in america so she understood a lot of why i was confused/frustrated. that conversation was absolutely the highlight of my entire week! i feel like someone gave me a backstage pass into a Spaniard's brain. and trust me, i'm getting that pass laminated and framed!!!! so grateful for that opportunity. well, i was gonna go out shopping tonight, but i'm beat and it's only 7:10 PM here or 19:10 for any military time fanatics out there. thanks for your prayers, they are carrying me through this experience. love to you all!
~Amanda
Today was the final day of the intensive period for classes. We had a final yesterday and today we had to turn in an essay and present a short scene that we had written to complete a play that we started reading in class. There were four people in my group and I had to play a robber who falls in love with a grandma...hilarity ensued. So, what can I briefly summarize lol, there always seems to be something new happening and my mind and my body are simply moving faster than I can record what's going on. Oh and if you notice any typos in my English, oddly enough it is beginning to deteriorate haha. I am forgetting words and syntax, though if I speak slowly I can remember, it's just that I spend so much time trying to squeeze my thoughts into something that I can actually express in Spanish that my style is beginning to change. We'll see if that's permanent or not.
In the last week or so, I have gotten more comfortable with the bus system. If I get lost now, it's because I'm somewhere new, not because I just have no clue what I'm doing. There are 3 buses that leave from the station near my house: 22, 29, and 5. 22 and 29 take you to the Prado San Sebastian bus station where you can pick up the metro centro (tram) and that takes you Plaza Nueva which is about 4 minutes from my school. 5 takes you to a stop closer to the second stop on the metro centro calle Puerta Jerez (Sherry Port) and then the metro takes you to the same place close by my school. figuring this out has just about saved my life lol. to come back, 22 stops on the same street as it picks you up but on the other side of the street in a different place and 29 drops you on a perpendicular street not to far away. if you don't push the button, they won't stop. if you don't flag a bus down, they won't stop. if you're standing in front of the bus when it goes to pull off, they won't stop...just kidding. these are the little things that escaped my notice the first 2 or so weeks here haha but it's starting to click now.
I also take bus 34 to get to church, but that's not quite as complicated. i just take 5 to the stop closest to Prado and walk down the street, around the construction barricades and wait at the stop. I've also started to figure something out about the stores, everyday people buy fresh bread to eat at every meal. the bags say Polvillo and that is the name of the corner bread store. during the months of january and february there are huge sales on all the winter clothes so stock up!!! but remember that it will be sweltering here before you know it. there are orange trees everywhere, but you're not allowed to pick them. a handy little sweeper man comes around every morning to clean them up (along with any random garbage left behind from a botellón [huge outdoor drinking party which is popular here]).
let's see, what else, oh yeah for anyone who doesn't know all of my classes are in Spanish and i'm actually not allowed to speak spanish in the building (well not when anyone's in earshot anyway), but the idea is to really use our spanish. i'm game cuz there are these awards given to the students who use spanish the most and i really want one! i feel like there is a bunch of stuff that i should be mentioning that has become second nature to me that people might not know about. oh um, they eat fruit here with a fork and knife. people drive like madmen passing on the left and the right. i saw someone almost get their purse snatched but the guy didn't get it and he didn't come after me either. there's a bazillion dogs here and some aren't a leash. the only cats i've seen are strays. they have horse-drawn carriages here to take out for a ride around the city. i got to go to some roman ruins on Thursday, it's called la Italica and they were super cool!
well, i wish i could remember everything right now and explain it without rambling but that's harder than it sounds at the end of a 3 week intensive period haha. oh i did forget to say that each day my class lasted for 3 hours and 15 min with just a 1/2 hour break after the first 2 hours so trust me, my head was spinning with Spanish by the end haha. today I got to talk to Carmen who is the resident director at the center. we had a great conversation about the similarities and differences between american and spanish culture and it really helped me to start to understand some of the why behind spanish culture. she has studied in america so she understood a lot of why i was confused/frustrated. that conversation was absolutely the highlight of my entire week! i feel like someone gave me a backstage pass into a Spaniard's brain. and trust me, i'm getting that pass laminated and framed!!!! so grateful for that opportunity. well, i was gonna go out shopping tonight, but i'm beat and it's only 7:10 PM here or 19:10 for any military time fanatics out there. thanks for your prayers, they are carrying me through this experience. love to you all!
~Amanda
Saturday, February 19, 2011
Muy de prisa (In a hurry)!!!
Hi everyone! I don't have time to post a proper update right now since Krystal, Arden, and I are going out to celebrate Arden's bday tonight. However, I wanted to let everyone know that my week finished out much better than it started. Thanks for all the prayers and advice and encouragement!
Amanda d:p
Amanda d:p
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
Here Goes Nothing
Hello all, and a Happy belated Valentine's Day! Pretty much the only references that I heard to the holiday all day were from my American friends so it was easy to forget haha. I'm going to try and take some time now to explain to everyone why so many of my statuses on Facebook seem to include sad faces. I would first like to mention some good things about being here so that no one accuses me of being a complete pessimist:
1. There's plenty of food here that I like. Even though some things are new for me, and I'm a self-proclaimed picky eater, I actually try everything I'm given and eat as much as I can fit or as much as I can tolerate. Usually, the food falls into one of these categories: ham, tortilla (which is more like an American omelet), ham, fish/seafood, ham, a bean dish, fruit, or what was it called again? oh yeah HAM!!!! And fortunately I like all that food, yes even the ham, and the only thing I don't like is the near incessant presence of vinegar which to me is rather like sucking on a lemon in the middle of dinner.
2. My señora has done a lot to help me feel comfortable and we talk everyday about what I've done in school and she explains Spanish current events to me. This is a great time to learn about the world around me and have the opportunity to clear up misunderstandings.
3. I have made friends here, both Spanish and American. I really love spending time with my 2 friends Krystal and Arden. We laugh together and rant together about things we don't understand here. If we are tired enough, we are all equally nutty and that's always a lot of fun. Plus, THEY SPEAK ENGLISH!!!! I never could have imagined just how important it would be to have a chance to explain things in your own language sometimes. Also, I've met a group of young people at my new church who is eager to talk to me and help me.
So now that I have put your minds at ease and proven that no one here is beating me or anything, I feel free to express why I'm so disgruntled.
It's been very difficult to adjust to being here. It seems as though everything that I'm bad at is what people expect of me here. For example, I'm not fluent in Spanish, I'm very precise, I like to know things ahead of time, I have high standards for how I treat others and vice versa, and I'm very serious. Anyone who knows me, knows these things about me or chances are we aren't very good friends haha. In any case, being here in Spain, people are the exact opposite of that list.
Everyone here is of course fluent, not much bothers them about life in general, no one says please or thank you because they believe it creates an artificial atmosphere between people of needing to be too formal, and (while they are passionate about life) they are not very serious about things that are important to me like faith, modesty, respect (unless it's between parents and children), and having a different opinion. As with every generalization, there are exceptions to the rule. But I have found that most exceptions are either when people first meet you and feel they must be polite (later they decide this isn't very important to continue) or they occur amongst people I've met at church and I only see them on Sundays.
The rest of the week I'm dealing with everyone else. And many of the Americans are as bad. Some students in my class are brusque and snide. I don't think they know as much as they believe they do, but would rather spend their time sounding intelligent than actually following through with being intelligent. Even so, there are some who are quite intelligent and seem to use this as a weapon instead of to help others. About 1/2-3/4 of the class is actually quite nice, or at least has the potential to be nice and I enjoy chatting with them.
I am constantly defending my faith which makes it hard to actually learn something. Do you ever see soldiers reading the Aeneid on the battlefield? No. They're too busy shooting a gun or ducking. And when I say that I believe something, people act like I've committed some grave sin by daring to appeal to a higher morality. Sorry, did I uncover your secret? I understand that for anyone who doesn't believe in Christ they live by a different (not necessarily bad, but certainly different) code of morality. What I don't understand is how so many people can sit there and not say anything when the very foundation of our society is continually and vehemently being attacked. To say that everything is relative is itself an arbitrary statement. I think the last guy who tried get away with that (Nietzsche) failed pretty badly. I don't mind people believing differently, but nothing gives anyone the right to tell me what to believe...ever.
Well, I will add just one more thing for now so as not to overwhelm anyone with my concerns. I am finding it terribly difficult to talk to people here. It is not the language barrier which causes me problems but rather an entirely different cultural paradigm at work. When you say, oh I understand that people here don't say excuse me when they bump into you because most people here don't care, but I do care and I don't like it, they say "you are judging our culture too quickly." Hmm, last time I checked that was an opinion and not a judgment. A lot of people (certainly not everyone, because I haven't met everyone yet) seem to think that if you disagree then clearly you are missing something important because "todo el mundo piensa así" (the whole world thinks that way). Funny thing is that I'm pretty sure that when they say the whole world they mean Seville, because I know for sure that "the whole world" does not think the same way. And I'm the narrow-minded one? Heaven forbid I just have a different perspective (not like that's ever happened in the US *cough cough*)
For example, if you are sick, it's because you don't eat enough. Funny, I thought it was because of pathogens in the air that invade our respiratory system...and I think their are a fair number of scientists who would agree with me. I understand the need to be hospitable and get your guests to eat more food, but there comes a point where it is more hospitable to let me eat what I can, believe me when I say I'm sick, not call me a hypochondriac, and not smirk every time I say something that sounds odd to you. BTW, everything in Spain sounds odd to me and believe me I am trying not to judge anybody. It just so happens that every fiber of my being wants to go the opposite direction as people here and it can get tough.
Well, enough for now. I just thought people might want to know why some of my days are bad and I know for sure that I needed to get that out. It very well might improve, but if anything I suspect that I will learn how to function here more than I will actually agree with how people live here. Who knows, maybe things won't bother be so much one day, but right now it's hard. Please keep praying for me!
Amanda q:p
1. There's plenty of food here that I like. Even though some things are new for me, and I'm a self-proclaimed picky eater, I actually try everything I'm given and eat as much as I can fit or as much as I can tolerate. Usually, the food falls into one of these categories: ham, tortilla (which is more like an American omelet), ham, fish/seafood, ham, a bean dish, fruit, or what was it called again? oh yeah HAM!!!! And fortunately I like all that food, yes even the ham, and the only thing I don't like is the near incessant presence of vinegar which to me is rather like sucking on a lemon in the middle of dinner.
2. My señora has done a lot to help me feel comfortable and we talk everyday about what I've done in school and she explains Spanish current events to me. This is a great time to learn about the world around me and have the opportunity to clear up misunderstandings.
3. I have made friends here, both Spanish and American. I really love spending time with my 2 friends Krystal and Arden. We laugh together and rant together about things we don't understand here. If we are tired enough, we are all equally nutty and that's always a lot of fun. Plus, THEY SPEAK ENGLISH!!!! I never could have imagined just how important it would be to have a chance to explain things in your own language sometimes. Also, I've met a group of young people at my new church who is eager to talk to me and help me.
So now that I have put your minds at ease and proven that no one here is beating me or anything, I feel free to express why I'm so disgruntled.
It's been very difficult to adjust to being here. It seems as though everything that I'm bad at is what people expect of me here. For example, I'm not fluent in Spanish, I'm very precise, I like to know things ahead of time, I have high standards for how I treat others and vice versa, and I'm very serious. Anyone who knows me, knows these things about me or chances are we aren't very good friends haha. In any case, being here in Spain, people are the exact opposite of that list.
Everyone here is of course fluent, not much bothers them about life in general, no one says please or thank you because they believe it creates an artificial atmosphere between people of needing to be too formal, and (while they are passionate about life) they are not very serious about things that are important to me like faith, modesty, respect (unless it's between parents and children), and having a different opinion. As with every generalization, there are exceptions to the rule. But I have found that most exceptions are either when people first meet you and feel they must be polite (later they decide this isn't very important to continue) or they occur amongst people I've met at church and I only see them on Sundays.
The rest of the week I'm dealing with everyone else. And many of the Americans are as bad. Some students in my class are brusque and snide. I don't think they know as much as they believe they do, but would rather spend their time sounding intelligent than actually following through with being intelligent. Even so, there are some who are quite intelligent and seem to use this as a weapon instead of to help others. About 1/2-3/4 of the class is actually quite nice, or at least has the potential to be nice and I enjoy chatting with them.
I am constantly defending my faith which makes it hard to actually learn something. Do you ever see soldiers reading the Aeneid on the battlefield? No. They're too busy shooting a gun or ducking. And when I say that I believe something, people act like I've committed some grave sin by daring to appeal to a higher morality. Sorry, did I uncover your secret? I understand that for anyone who doesn't believe in Christ they live by a different (not necessarily bad, but certainly different) code of morality. What I don't understand is how so many people can sit there and not say anything when the very foundation of our society is continually and vehemently being attacked. To say that everything is relative is itself an arbitrary statement. I think the last guy who tried get away with that (Nietzsche) failed pretty badly. I don't mind people believing differently, but nothing gives anyone the right to tell me what to believe...ever.
Well, I will add just one more thing for now so as not to overwhelm anyone with my concerns. I am finding it terribly difficult to talk to people here. It is not the language barrier which causes me problems but rather an entirely different cultural paradigm at work. When you say, oh I understand that people here don't say excuse me when they bump into you because most people here don't care, but I do care and I don't like it, they say "you are judging our culture too quickly." Hmm, last time I checked that was an opinion and not a judgment. A lot of people (certainly not everyone, because I haven't met everyone yet) seem to think that if you disagree then clearly you are missing something important because "todo el mundo piensa así" (the whole world thinks that way). Funny thing is that I'm pretty sure that when they say the whole world they mean Seville, because I know for sure that "the whole world" does not think the same way. And I'm the narrow-minded one? Heaven forbid I just have a different perspective (not like that's ever happened in the US *cough cough*)
For example, if you are sick, it's because you don't eat enough. Funny, I thought it was because of pathogens in the air that invade our respiratory system...and I think their are a fair number of scientists who would agree with me. I understand the need to be hospitable and get your guests to eat more food, but there comes a point where it is more hospitable to let me eat what I can, believe me when I say I'm sick, not call me a hypochondriac, and not smirk every time I say something that sounds odd to you. BTW, everything in Spain sounds odd to me and believe me I am trying not to judge anybody. It just so happens that every fiber of my being wants to go the opposite direction as people here and it can get tough.
Well, enough for now. I just thought people might want to know why some of my days are bad and I know for sure that I needed to get that out. It very well might improve, but if anything I suspect that I will learn how to function here more than I will actually agree with how people live here. Who knows, maybe things won't bother be so much one day, but right now it's hard. Please keep praying for me!
Amanda q:p
Thursday, February 10, 2011
Ta-da!!!
Hi everyone! Well, it has been absolutely crazy here! There's a distinct possibility that I may only be able to update on weekends, at least until the intensive period ends (2 more weeks) because it is eating up my time like I don't know what lol. What I can say, briefly, is that as most of you saw, I arrived here in Seville Spain on Thursday afternoon after a delayed connecting flight. They said it was for technical difficulties, but my guess is that there was a game of pinochle going on in the cockpit and no one wanted to save it til later to finish. Also, I am living with a family here in Spain and most of the time it is just an older lady (my señora) and I here navigating bi-cultural waters. However, during lunch, her daughter and son-in-law are over to eat everyday (which is typical here, the family really stays together) and on Fridays, her grand children eat here instead of at school.
For the next two weeks, I only have 2 classes but it feel like about 10 haha. We are beginning our study of Spanish culture and also diving into advanced Spanish grammar. I tested into the highest level grammar class (which I was excited about until I realized just how hard it is) so my work keeps me pretty busy. It's only slightly harder than my schoolwork at Eastern, but compounded with being in a new country, operating in a second language everything it can be very challenging. Plus I'm in class with students who have been here since September and it's intimidating.
Other pertinent facts to mention while I'm on here are that I am 6 hours ahead of EST (for anyone who has been trying to Skype me and didn't know what time it was here) and I eat at 2:30 PM for lunch and 9 PM for dinner. Yeah...that's been fun (not really haha). For me, the wait between lunch and dinner to eat has been harder than the actual shift from American dining habits to Spanish, but if I'm asleep during that time (taking a siesta, which is a period that lasts from about 1 or 2 to about 5 PM) then I'm not hungry at all until time for dinner which is good. And I've also found that if I do not sleep during siesta, I am exhausted all the next day!
I am currently going through a bout of culture shock (which has been made worse by lack of sleep) which makes being here unpleasant at times, so if some of my posts sound like I'm a little blue...I am haha. But everyone assures me that it will get better, so I'm just holding on and praying. We did however get to visit el Alcázar (spoken with the Spanish accent to become "Alcáthar") and it's a beautiful place full of gardens and fountains...and I even saw a peacock! That's a place I think I'd definitely like to return to. Well, it's time to squeeze in some homework before I eat. Let me know if you have any questions or comments :).
~Amanda q:p
For the next two weeks, I only have 2 classes but it feel like about 10 haha. We are beginning our study of Spanish culture and also diving into advanced Spanish grammar. I tested into the highest level grammar class (which I was excited about until I realized just how hard it is) so my work keeps me pretty busy. It's only slightly harder than my schoolwork at Eastern, but compounded with being in a new country, operating in a second language everything it can be very challenging. Plus I'm in class with students who have been here since September and it's intimidating.
Other pertinent facts to mention while I'm on here are that I am 6 hours ahead of EST (for anyone who has been trying to Skype me and didn't know what time it was here) and I eat at 2:30 PM for lunch and 9 PM for dinner. Yeah...that's been fun (not really haha). For me, the wait between lunch and dinner to eat has been harder than the actual shift from American dining habits to Spanish, but if I'm asleep during that time (taking a siesta, which is a period that lasts from about 1 or 2 to about 5 PM) then I'm not hungry at all until time for dinner which is good. And I've also found that if I do not sleep during siesta, I am exhausted all the next day!
I am currently going through a bout of culture shock (which has been made worse by lack of sleep) which makes being here unpleasant at times, so if some of my posts sound like I'm a little blue...I am haha. But everyone assures me that it will get better, so I'm just holding on and praying. We did however get to visit el Alcázar (spoken with the Spanish accent to become "Alcáthar") and it's a beautiful place full of gardens and fountains...and I even saw a peacock! That's a place I think I'd definitely like to return to. Well, it's time to squeeze in some homework before I eat. Let me know if you have any questions or comments :).
~Amanda q:p
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
Goodbye: Parts 1 & 2
Last week I visited Eastern to say goodbye to all my friends and while no one actually burst into tears it was definitely emotional. I've built so many bonds with so many people that it seems slightly ludicrous to just up and move to the other side of the world for 3.5 months haha. Then again, maybe it's just time to start working on building those same bonds with a whole new set of people. My world is certainly growing larger, that's for sure. As I figured saying goodbye was pretty hard. It definitely made it real and evident to me that my time here at home is drawing to a close. Part of me really wanted to stay at Eastern, but the other part said I don't really fit in here right now because it's time to do something different for a semester; I think I'd feel a bit cooped up at school, honestly. All the same, it was really nice to visit with everyone and know that so many people are praying for me and have my back while I'm gone.
The second part of my goodbyes happened today when I visited my old high school. I got to chat with my previous Spanish teachers who offered their advice on my trip and really helped to put my mind at ease. I also saw a number of other teachers who were just thrilled to see me and hear about my plans for Spain. It made me realize how much every step of my academic career up to this point has been sort of guided. Everything about high school was just so structured and organized. I didn't realize I was in a protected cocoon until I left it.
Even though I worked really hard and did really well, part of me wishes I could go back and try to glean some of what I missed while I was there. For example, there were so many things that I wanted to try, but I was really too scared to. I wish I had known that you really only fail when you don't try and that no one is actually standing there with a score card to make sure you do everything right. People understand that you're human and that sometimes you're going to fall short, but I guess that's where mercy and compassion come in isn't it? I guess I should use that and resolve to try new things in Spain even if I don't have a clue what I'm doing because in the end people are people and I will never know what I could have done if I don't try.
Hmm, well I probably could have mentioned before that as much as this blog will be about my travels it will also be my journey of growth and change as I travel. It will probably end up being really reflective and maybe a little heady at some points haha and if that doesn't interest you then scroll down to the smiley face...but it's that's the kind of thing that gets your brain moving like it does mine, jump on in. It's going to be a great ride!
~Amanda d:p
PS- some of my future posts will probably more stream of consciousness, and while i will try and make sure i don't skip over or leave out anything important, it may happen because i think and speak a whole lot faster than i write haha. good luck!
The second part of my goodbyes happened today when I visited my old high school. I got to chat with my previous Spanish teachers who offered their advice on my trip and really helped to put my mind at ease. I also saw a number of other teachers who were just thrilled to see me and hear about my plans for Spain. It made me realize how much every step of my academic career up to this point has been sort of guided. Everything about high school was just so structured and organized. I didn't realize I was in a protected cocoon until I left it.
Even though I worked really hard and did really well, part of me wishes I could go back and try to glean some of what I missed while I was there. For example, there were so many things that I wanted to try, but I was really too scared to. I wish I had known that you really only fail when you don't try and that no one is actually standing there with a score card to make sure you do everything right. People understand that you're human and that sometimes you're going to fall short, but I guess that's where mercy and compassion come in isn't it? I guess I should use that and resolve to try new things in Spain even if I don't have a clue what I'm doing because in the end people are people and I will never know what I could have done if I don't try.
Hmm, well I probably could have mentioned before that as much as this blog will be about my travels it will also be my journey of growth and change as I travel. It will probably end up being really reflective and maybe a little heady at some points haha and if that doesn't interest you then scroll down to the smiley face...but it's that's the kind of thing that gets your brain moving like it does mine, jump on in. It's going to be a great ride!
~Amanda d:p
PS- some of my future posts will probably more stream of consciousness, and while i will try and make sure i don't skip over or leave out anything important, it may happen because i think and speak a whole lot faster than i write haha. good luck!
Sunday, January 9, 2011
Well hello, hello!
It is 9:18 PM and I'm hanging out with my family laughing at the idiocies of television. It strikes me that I will miss times like these when I'm in Spain haha. Especially the conversation being in English. As much as I enjoy Spanish and am looking forward to immersing myself in the culture, it just won't be the same, ya know?
My checklist has shrunken quite a bit; I have some clothing left to buy, I have to set up my Power of Attorney to leave at home, and of course the actual packing left to do, but that's about it with regards to the trip. Before I leave though, I have some research to do for insurance quotes so I can start looking into getting a car. The part of the planning that hasn't gotten considerably smaller is the number of people that I need to visit before I leave haha!
Last semester, so many of my friends were abroad (some still are) that I figured the easiest way to catch up with everyone is to wait until their semester starts again and visit everyone at once. I am really looking forward to going up to Eastern, but at the same time, I'm terrified because it means that I am really leaving (as if I can avoid leaving by avoiding visiting school haha) and it means that I'm leaving soon!
Hopefully I can update more about what my plans for my time in Spain are, but for now I'm just going to relish the (somewhat) clean air of the good ol' United States of America. Good night!
d:p
My checklist has shrunken quite a bit; I have some clothing left to buy, I have to set up my Power of Attorney to leave at home, and of course the actual packing left to do, but that's about it with regards to the trip. Before I leave though, I have some research to do for insurance quotes so I can start looking into getting a car. The part of the planning that hasn't gotten considerably smaller is the number of people that I need to visit before I leave haha!
Last semester, so many of my friends were abroad (some still are) that I figured the easiest way to catch up with everyone is to wait until their semester starts again and visit everyone at once. I am really looking forward to going up to Eastern, but at the same time, I'm terrified because it means that I am really leaving (as if I can avoid leaving by avoiding visiting school haha) and it means that I'm leaving soon!
Hopefully I can update more about what my plans for my time in Spain are, but for now I'm just going to relish the (somewhat) clean air of the good ol' United States of America. Good night!
d:p
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