Apologies

Dear Reader(s),

I´m so sorry I have neglected the blog in recent weeks. Please forgive me.

Anyway, the time is flying by. It feels like I blinked and we were halfway done. There are two different Sevillas for me - the February Sevilla, where everything and everyone was foreign, I needed a map to get around, I couldn´t understand anything that was said. And then there´s the Sevilla of everything after, where we have a favorite spot to get montaditos (they´re a euro for these little sandwiches at this chain place, they´re so good), I know how to manuever public transportation (even in a foreign language, it´s so easy to get around), and I can carry on conversations with locals.

Erika and I were talking the other day about becoming ex-pats. I would live here in a heartbeat if my language skills improved just a bit more. Janelle and I met this friend of Rachel´s who is German and didn´t know any Spanish before she got here in September. She´s studying law at the Universidad de Sevilla, taking exams in Spanish, working, etc. It´s amazing. She speaks so well, you would never know. Which leads me to believe that if I was here, living on my own without any English speakers, I would learn. If I had only Spanish friends, only spoke in Spanish, etc. etc.

I´m really excited to come home and see everyone, but at the same time I feel an enormous sadness about leaving. I think part of it might have to do with how I´ve tried, for four months, to truly be sevillana, and leaving is kind of the ultimate slap in the face in that respect.

But anyway, enough. I managed to get my haircut in Spanish! I think what helped was that I brought a picture, and plus I could anticpate the questions that the ladies were going to ask me, even if I didn´t understand the question. It was actually the best haircut I´ve gotten. The Spanish like a lot of layers, etc. Except my big fear when I was sitting in the chair was about the tip. The tip has been a topic that has plagued us all semester, because it is mostly included in the IVA, a tax you pay on food and services, etc. But I wasn´t sure, because Conchi had told me when she went to get a facial one of the ladies followed her for the tip. So there I was in the chair, craning my neck trying to determine if the other ladies were tipping or not. I should also add I was the last customer of the day on the eve of a holiday, and I was a walk in nonetheless. So I was caught between seemings like the obnoxious American that doesn´t tip or insulting them by giving them money. Sometimes you can´t win.

Also, I know I´ve talked about it before, but the people here are so well-dressed. I was telling my mom the other day how the small children are always dressed up, and that sometimes when I stand next to them I look like a slob, despite my best efforts.

We have another break coming up in a week, for Feria. I´m really excited for Feria - I´ve been learning the bailes sevillanos the entire semester and now it´s go time. They are a lot of fun, except there are four, and in the fourth there is a lot of spinning. I have my class right after lunch, so I´ll just let you do the math on that one. Anyway, my exam for the class (it´s pass fail for a credit) is next Wednesday. I´m not too worried because to fail you have to really not have a clue what´s going on. However, Conchi wants to come watch me. As in, my Spanish mom wants to come to school, to my class, to watch me dance. I´ll let you know how that goes.

Paddleboats and more

I am still attempting to recover from Zivic´s visit this weekend. What a weekend. Paddleboats on the river, the Cathedral, the Giralda, Alcazar, beach...lots of fun times. It was good to see him, and I´m really looking forward to going out to London to see some more familiar faces in a month.

We only have six weeks left here in Sevilla. I can´t believe how quickly this semester has evaporated before my eyes. Two of these six weeks are breaks too. We´re headed off to Ireland this weekend for five days before Semana Santa, which means I´ll have to register for classes next year from a foreign foreign country (and I´m really not looking forward to this experience with all of the recent Homer problems). Excitement here has been building to fever pitch for Semana Santa, Holy Week. I´m hoping to post some video of the pasos, which are floats of the Virgin Mary and Jesus carried by men from churches all around Sevilla. There are at least 114 pasos, if not more. I´ve seen them practicing, it´s pretty crazy.

In prep for Semana Santa, Conchi bought a new outfit, including a silk jacket. She got her hair done nicely last night for the pregon, which is the official annoucement of Semana Santa. And Sunday, for Domingo de las Ramas, Palm Sunday, she is going back to the hair dresser for a touch up. Tomorrow she´s got a facial appointment too. I knew it was a big deal, but this is huge. A facial for church. In other news, our 80 year old neighbor Paquita has broken her wrist, this has been worrying Conchi a lot. Danielle hasn´t been able to hear out of one of her ears since we got back from Granada, she had to go to an ear specialist. I´m cruising, although I have only recently come to the realization that I have to pound out four papers in Spanish in the next three weeks, so that´s a little bit of a stress. I think homework is a real downer on the abroad experience.

I really got to get my act together with my pictures. They are sitting on my laptop, which is such a pain and a half to bring to school. Hopefully I will figure out where to post them because I have a lot of good ones that are just wasting away on my hard drive.

I need to get my hair cut. I don´t think this is going to materialize before Semana Santa.

I hate Wednesdays

I have been remiss in updating in a long time. I need to load my pictures from Granada onto my computer, for now just a brief overview will have to suffice. After a harrowing bus ride, we finally arrived. Granada is a mix of Arab and Spanish influences with lots of teterías (tea houses) and apparently a great night life scene - it has a relatively small population but a ton of students. Friday we saw the Catedrál (got to love the Cathedrals) and the Capilla Real, which is where Ferdnand and Isabel, the Catholic monarchs that united Aragon and Castile, are buried. Super cool. We also went to the Mirador de San Nicolas, with spectacular views of Granada.

Saturday was the Alhambra. Lots of fountains and panoramic views. We headed back to Sevilla Saturday night. I always find that coming back here to Sevilla is always the best part of the trip. I´m halfway through with the semester, and this makes me really sad, because I can´t imagine returning back to the States after living here for four months. And I´m starting to think in Spanish and understand more of the lanuage. This will be quite a downer.

I still don´t have anything lined up for this summer. My contacts have been slow to get back to me. It´s almost April. I need to find housing for wherever I´m going to be. I know for certain that my plans do not include going back to Buffalo, unless you are going to be around the last week in May I won´t be seeing you this summer (so for those three friends, sorry).

I hate Wednesdays.

Ronda

This was one of the many beautiful vistas from Ronda, the Ithaca of Europe. Minus the hippies of course. Although today, while walking with a professor to buy a screenplay for my cinema class (16 Euros! And the exchange rate is getting worse) I found the ecologically-friendly, indie-art scene of Sevilla. Reminded me of Ithaca, except minus the lack of English and gorges.

There was something really interesting I had to post here and now I forget this great story I had to share with everyone. Sigh. It will come to me later.

This whole daylight savings switch is the most bizarre thing I have ever heard of. I'd like to know who came up with changing the clocks back earlier than normal in the states. And on the topic of energy conservation, I'd just like to say that I'm most likely going to be taking a class about sustainability and the environment next semester. I'm also looking into investing in a bike. I use both sides of the paper, I'm pro-alternative fuels, I recycle when I can, and I never met a carpool I didn't like. So I'm just warning anyone that wants to try me again about how I'm unsustainable to back off. Sustainability does not equal watching "An Inconvenient Truth."

The other morning I really wanted pancakes, and in my half-awake, half-sleep state I actually thought my mom was downstairs making them. Imagine my surprise when I was greeted by diet peach marmelade and toast. I miss the pancakes...and I guess my mom too....

Granada this weekend. Woo ancient Arab history!

Everybody´s working for the weekend...

Yesterday was my first day at my volunteer position. I am going to be working with autistic kids once a week for three hours. It is kind of difficult because I´ve barely worked with children in English, I like the viejos personally, but I don´t have the language skills here to work with senior citizens. Also, I have no special education experience. However, the words are simple enough, direct, concrete actions, and there is also a sign language component. I just worry about making a mistake and messing up someone´s shakra you know? Pablo is my favorite. He´s two years old and so cute, like a little monkey, and ironically the word for monkey and cute in Spanish is the same - mono.

I´m really loving the Conchster. She´s got all of the answers to life´s problems. We danced the baile sevillano last night and rocked out to some Kelly Clarkson while Danielle was packing for Milan. I have no one to harrass in the room now that she is gone until Monday morning. Eeks. Last night also involved one of the most bizarre adventures in Sevilla yet involving Janelle´s missing (but now found) cell phone, a man on a bike, an Internet café, and some questionable websites. When I see you in person next, remind me to tell you. I cannot convey the insantiy of the event here.

Today we had the day off, joy no classes - they are starting to become a real downer. This morning Juan, my intercambio and I went to the Catedral and the Giralda with the most awesome views of Sevilla (there is an unspoken agreement not to build anything in the center of the city higher than the Giralda - so everything was clear). Pictures soon to follow. Juan and I were also talking about the situation here with ETA, which is a nationalist group in the Basque Country that started out under Franco as an independence movement but has morphed into a terrorist operation. Tomorrow in Madird there is going to be a huge protest over the release of De Juana, an ETA leader who killed 25. He was released after a supposed four month hunger strike and allowed to go home, which has caused outrage all across the country. The right wing party here, Partido Popular, has organized a massive demonstration. Zapatero, the president and the leader of the Partido Socialista Obrera de España (PSOE) has had to defend his decision. Also Sunday is the three year anniversary of 11-March, the train bombings in Madrid, which PP (Partido Popular), the party that was in power at the time, blamed on ETA. This mistake cost them the election. Anyway, point is that he´s going tomorrow to the protests, as are a lot of people. Conchi almost went herself. ETA and De Juana have been dominating the headlines lately.

We were talking in my class about the parlimentary election system here in Spain and I can´t imagine having to accept the entire party ticket, meaning when you vote, you vote for a party, and not an individual. I just think it lacks a sense of personal responsibility, although if one were to look at the U.S. and the current jockeying for the presidential race over a year in advance, one could see the merits of the system here. And speaking of U.S. politics, I really resent sometimes having to represent my country all the time. Whatever I do, wherever I go, I´m an ambassador. And it´s tiring because sometimes I hate asking for things in a restaurant, even if I´m getting crappy service, because then I´ll just be that American.

Juan and I were also talking about what we do on the weekends in the U.S. This was a question that stumped me. Outside of going out at night, most weekends we do homework, someone has to film a project, Newswatch, radio committments, etc etc. Here, the university doesn´t even offer many classes on Friday so people can go home for the weekend and enjoy themselves. In this spirit, I´m yanking myself off the computer and taking leave of you until Monday. Hasta luego.

Un Viento Fuerte

I finally caved today and bought a new hairdryer. Our other one broke. Which just goes to show you that you should always buy the more expensive product first because the cheaper one is sure to break.

Ironically, today it has been very, very windy. This is the curse of Spain. I finally have a good hair day and it's windy.

Also, the Conchster (that's what Danielle and I have been calling her, obvi not to her face) has a cleaning lady. Now I don't feel so bad about the rearrangement of my toiletries into a perfectly organized row.

I bought a red trenchcoat, it's slamming. However, it' s been leaving red on my clothes. This is a problem.

The Run-down

Again, another post full of misc. information that is not enough for one post.

1. I'm really glad people in Europe drink Fanta. I always got worried during the movie previews about who actually bought Fanta, because I know of no one in the States who drinks it on a regular basis. And perosnally, Fanta de limon is one of the best things about Europe.

2. I managed to secure one of the five bottles of conditioner in Spain. Just like no one here in Spain trips, no one gets knots in their hair.

3. I have been able to witness some household phenomenons that normally I am at school when they occur. First, the arrival of the groceries. I like how they just deliver it right into your kitchen. Secondly, the arrival and subsequent issues with Conchi's new mueble, a new entertainment set. Very spiffy. Third, the other night I was looking for tin foil and came across the stockpile of food. Relating back to the first point in this bullet, I guess Conchi's grocery order is the same thing every week. There was like three cows' worth of milk and I'm not even kidding - six to seven bottles of ketchup. When in your life you would need this much ketchup, I don't know, but I can rest assured that Conchi has it. Just in case there is a shortage or something.

4. I went to the beach this weekend and got some color on my face. Meanwhile, people on the boardwalk were still walking around in winter clothes.

5. Saturday night had to have been one of the worst nights here in Sevilla, but I think I finally realized that no matter hard I try I will not be accepted here. First, I was called ugly. Then, my Spanish abilities were insulted (two separate people here, both boys around my age). And yes, I know that I'll always have an American accent and my pronunciation isn't where it should be. But I try very hard everyday and that just kind of blows you know. Meanwhile, the guy who told us our Spanish sucked only learned certain phrases in English so he could pick up girls. And his English was horrible, and should he ever go to an English speaking country they'll clearly know he is not a native. After these events, I feel like I'm at the point where I just don't care anymore if my Spanish blows or not. And I think that's where I need to be to get the most out of this experience.

6. The tuna pizza made a reappearence last night. I did not die of a toxic tuna overdose. I think there was less tuna in there this time.

7. I have not missed my friends yet as much as I have missed them this weekend.

8. Blogger takes forever to load here, impeding the updating process, because I have no patience.

9. I'm going to buy a bike for this summer/next semester. Everyone should think about this, take their time, and think of some really good joke about me on the bike. I know this is perfect material for you all. Get back to me.

10. I wish I had brought over some DVDs. Danielle and I were talking about Good Will Hunting last night and I could have really gone for watching the movie. Speaking of TV, the other day I finally found the remotes (Conchi hides them, I'm not even kidding, we can never find them) and she came home and it looked like I was going to get my head cut off for watching the Disney channel. Mighty Joe Young had never looked so appealing, my friends.