Dum dee dum dee dum

It’s going to be four months that I’ve been here soon. The days go by so slowly, but thinking that its already been four months is mind blowing. Lately I’m just taking everything day by day, one thing at a time. Not a ton has changed, but there have been a few interesting days. My birthday passed, on November 22^nd. That was an interesting day. Also we celebrated Thanksgiving, or Dia de Gracias, as people here call it. That was something I probably won’t ever forget! Other than those days, things have been going pretty normally. It’s holiday season, and of course, I really miss my family. Setting up the Christmas tree here almost made me cry, because that’s such an important tradition my family at home has. Every year, my family would put up the ornaments, each kid putting up their favorite ornament first, and of course, my mom being herself, would take a picture of us putting up “the first ornament of the year!!!”. We would always make some kind of Christmas sweet, and listen to Christmas music. I missed home a lot that day. I think what made me miss it so much was that what we did was so similar! Here, we had on Christmas music, my host mom made us a special chocolate drink, as she explained it, “tee-pee-cal espanish”. At one point the song came on that says, “I’ll be hoooome for Christmaaass… If oonly in myyyyy dreamssss…”  I was thinking, “seriously, if only.” So I guess you could say I’m experiencing a little bit of homesickness! But, don’t get me wrong. I still love it here. I would not go back even if I got the chance. It’s only that everyday things seem to get harder and harder. But I need to remember that this is normal. Most people get a little homesick around the holidays.

My birthday was pretty good, actually. I got to skype with my whole family! I finally opened my birthday box, which they sent me way before my birthday. I was getting sick of just looking at it sitting on my dresser for the past month and thinking that my birthday would never come! I wasn’t really expecting my host family to do anything for me, so when my host mom handed me a birthday present, and then even made me cake, I was so happy, words cannot explain. I had just figured since I’m not their daughter, they wouldn’t really care that it was my birthday. The cake she made was actually pie. Apple pie. I asked her why she made apple pie, and she answered, “ Eres Americana, estaba segura que te gusta tarta de manzana!” Which translated, means, “You’re American, I was sure that you like apple pie!” I was laughing at that for like ten minutes straight. There are some really funny stereotypes people have about us, I’ve found.  

Thanksgiving was pretty interesting! Rotary was nice enough to give a Thanksgiving dinner for us Americans. Our entire meal consisted of some corn soup, cooked carrots, potatoes, and a patty that contained a mashed up mix of some (undercooked) turkey, bacon, chicken, and pineapple all mixed into one little hamburger looking thing. But it was a really nice gesture towards us Americans, trying to make us feel more at home.

Next month, I’m going to Barcelona! It’s a class trip, and I am SO excited. I remember signing up for it, and thinking, “Wow, its in January? That’s so far away, it’ll take forever to come!” And now it’s practically here! Time is going by so quickly, I feel like sooner that I think, my exchange year will be over, and I’ll be thinking of all of the things I wish I would have done and experienced. Those thoughts scare me. I don’t want to have any regrets! So from now on, I decided to take every single opportunity available to try something different, or go somewhere new, or make new friends. I’m just trying to cram in everything possible. It’s crazy how I’m almost saying that I don’t have enough time, and this year is only a third of the way over. I wish I had more time. Sometimes I feel like if we had more than a year here, we would be able to make deeper relationships with people, perfect the language, and really let the culture sink into who you are. At times, I feel like I just moved somewhere new, with no culture difference, and I’m just kind of living here, like it’s no big deal. But I know that when you go to a place like Spain, it takes a while to even learn what the culture differences are, and a much longer time to be able to feel like you’re a part of it. For me, at least. Yes, I’ve adapted, and I am absorbing everything that goes on around me, but I just want to feel like a part of everything.

I think once January comes, everything will go by. I think that I’ll blink, and everything will be over. January first, I’m going to Granada, for New Years. January 8^th, I change host families. Which will be interesting, and maybe take away some of the stress and anxiety I’ve been going through. Then, on the 24^th or something like that, I’m off to Barcelona. Then, in February, I’m trying to travel to see another exchange student, maybe two! That’ll take up a lot of time.  Then in March, my family is visiting! And right after that, I may go to Madrid for a while! In May, my sister is visiting, and then in June, we have the big Rotary trip, around Spain and Portugal, which is for 15 days. And then July is summer, so of course that is going to go by fast. So when you think about it, I really don’t have that much time…

My host parents always ask me how I’m doing in school, and how I do on my exams. I don’t know why, they know that I don’t have to do work! So, when I would answer them honestly and say, “Oh, I don’t do anything in class besides talk and doodle, and my teachers don’t even call my name in attendance,” they would get really upset and say LINDSAY YOU STILL HAVE TO TRY. I do try, honesty, when teachers assign me work, I do it. The thing is they never assign me work. Sometimes they even tell me that I don’t have to go to class. For example, the other day, I walked into class, and when my teacher saw me, she automatically said, “ What are you even doing here, Lindsay? Go to the library.” It’s cool! But anyways, lately I’ve been answering my host parents’ questions about school by saying good, but that I fail all my tests. THEN, today, my host mom was like, “You know when we get your grades here were going to send them to your parents in Florida!” And, they know that I don’t do anything. That’s not what I’m worried about! I didn’t know report cards even existed here. I didn’t think they would ever be able to see them… My grades or my attendance records. Oh well, I’m not really doing anything bad.

My Spanish I feel like, has skyrocketed in the past month. I can understand everything, and can speak back understandably. The best feeling in the world, is when you’re just sitting in the classroom, or at the dinner table, not even paying attention or concentrating on what anyone is saying, and you realize that you are understanding everything that is being said, without even having to try. I had my first dream in Spanish a few days ago. It was way to long and weird to try to explain here, but, I HAD A SPANISH DREAM YEAH!

Ok, I’ll write more later. Also sorry for not posting anything in foreveeerr!

almost two months (:

It's almost two months since I got here?! September? It went by sooooo slowly. Longest month of my life. Not because it was bad, but because I did so many new, different things! But now, October has gone by ridiculously fast. It really seems like it was just yesterday that my host mom was telling me that, "Manana es un mes LindsAAAAy!" She pronounces my name like that hahahah! Everyone does; "Leensay".  I pretty much gave up on people pronouncing it correctly the second day I got here, I got tired of spending twenty minutes with ever person I met teaching them how to say my name.
BUT
A few things have happened since the last time I wrote here. I kind of have gotten into a normal schedule of doing things, I finally have a regular, everyday, normal life. Well maybe not normal (: Every morning, or most mornings, I wake up and go to school. Sometimes my school starts at nine, and sometimes later. It's really irregular and it changes a lot, and that has been the cause of some stares when I walk into the classroom an hour late. But, after school, I go home, eat lunch, and most days, take a "siesta". School is really tiring. I used to complain about being tired for school in America, but I had no idea. Even though I don't have to do work in school, just listening to different language(s) all day long and having to translate in your head is mentally exhausting. It's like an overload of information. But as long as I have my siesta, I'm fine (: after I wake up, after about an hour, I do different things depending on the days. Mondays, usually I go out with some friends and walk around, or go to the port and hang out. Tuesdays and Thursdays, I go work out with my friend to train for a triathlon that we're doing! On Wednesdays, I have a Salsa dance class with my exchange friend from Canada (: and then on Fridays, I go for a run along the beach/port, come home, shower, and usually go out with some friends. That's my schedule for the week at the moment, but I'm sure it will change soon. Me and my exchange friend right now are looking into a "Spanish for Beginners" class, where they teach us Spanish basics, like vocabulary, grammar, and different tenses, and we teach them the same in English! I'm excited, I think it will be really good for me. We're also looking into yoga, and pilates.  I am up for any kind of exercise, because, as any other exchange student can probably relate, my pants have been getting a litttttlee bit tighter these days. But I'm trying to convince myself that they all just shrunk in the wash.
I have a pretty good group of friends here. All of them are super nice, and really funny. Well, I think they're funny. I can't understand everything, and some things that I find absolutely hilarious, no one else laughs at so I end up doing some kind of snort/cough noise in order to hold back my laughter. A lot of the people I hang out with speak English. I always tell them to speak Spanish to me, but sometimes its really difficult, because it's almost impossible to be yourself in a language you can barely speak. I think that I speak more Spanish here than English, but I honestly think that the amount of english that I speak here is affecting my ability to learn and speak Spanish. It's something I need to work on. One thing that I realized today though, is that I can have an in depth conversation in half english/half spanish! I spoke the english, clearly. But that today kind of motivated me, and bumped up my confidence level about my ability to understand. I get yelled at daily by my teachers here, which isn't normal or good, but it doesn't really bother me because when people yell at me I can't even understand one word they're saying, especially if its not even in Spanish, which happens daily in my Valenciano class. ( everyone here speaks two languages, Spanish, and Valenciano, the dialect spoken in Valencia and surrounding cities) Teachers here aren't the same as in America. They are more casual, or in other words, rude. I understand more than they think I can, and so many times I hear them talking to the whole class about me, sometimes making fun of me. It hurts my feelings, sometimes even scares me.
There have been many very difficult things I have had to get through, and I'm sure plenty to come. But I came with Rotary, so I am prepared (: So, to any future exchangers reading this, know that this is not a year long vacation. You are going to get sick, you're going to cry, you're going to miss things back home, you're going to be upset with your host family, and them with you. This, I have come to realize, is actually going to be life changing- hard, but worth it.
On to a more joyful note, I'M GOING ON VACATION! There are I think three trips my school is doing, and I realllly want to go! I probably wont be able to go on all of them, because money doesn't actually grow on trees, and as once again, as other exchange students can probably relate, I blow my money so fast once I get it, it's not even funny! I need to practice saving... But it's so hard... The clothes are so cute... Anyways, yeah. Three trips with the school. One to Barcelona for four days, one to Germany for TEN days, and then a cruise!!!! YAYYYY! The cruise has five destination points, right now I can only remember two, we leave from Barcelona and stop in Italy and Greece + three other awesome places that I don't know... omg right? Yeah. It'll be cool. I'm excited. And also the Rotary trip to Portugal! This is beyond exciting. Yay (:
Okay, well I have to go to a meeting about the cruise now ( ! ) BYE

ps: I went to another bull thing in the streets, and got this epic picture. Just thought I should share (:

BYE

Updating, once again (:

This is kind of long, but it’s more about how I feel than what I’ve done.

I love everything about it here. The smell of the grocery stores, the happiness of the people, the cleanliness of the streets, the huge smiles from strangers, the language…Everything. Everything about Spain, I love. There have been so many good times, and I know that these memories I’m creating every day with be forever engraved into my brain. Though there are not-so-great things here, I’m learning to embrace it; to embrace this different culture.

The first few weeks that I was here, I saw no differences. Of course, the style, and the place, and how the people look are different, but I had no idea how different this place truly is, beneath all of the tangible things. People act different here. I’m not talking about table manners, (although I have embarrassed myself numerous times due to those), I’m talking about their expectations of you. They expect you to be able to do mostly everything on your own. Get to and from school, if you need something somewhere pretty far away (or close for that matter), you’re expected to be able to get it yourself, and take care of all of your paperwork for school and whatnot. I’m not really used to doing those things for myself (I love you Mom!). On the other hand, there are things that you are not expected to do, which have almost been just as difficult as being expected to do something. I’m not expected to clean my room, do my laundry, wash the dishes or make my bed, which are hard habits to break, as I’ve been doing most of them for almost 16 years, and those are considered polite in America. My counselor explained to me why this is. She said that it was because if I did those things myself, it’s inferring to my family that I don’t think that they can afford “help”. Understandable, but different.

I have so much freedom here. Most of the time I love it, but there are some times where I wish my family would tell me what to do, and what they want of me. I don’t have a curfew here. WOOHOO! Right? Not so much… I feel like when I get home very late, that I’m in some way disrespecting my host family. I might be crazy, but that’s how I feel. A few weeks ago, my host mom picked my friend and me up from a birthday party at three in the morning! If I had known that she was going to be staying up that late anyways, I wouldn’t have felt so guilty, but I didn’t know at the time that she stays up that late regardless. My mom in Florida doesn’t like driving me places past about nine p.m., so it’s pretty different here I think.

School here is really similar to school in America. But there are also some pretty noticeable differences. The teachers are more lenient, there’s no dress code, there’s no tardy bell, and kids never stop talking in class. But the teachers don’t seem to mind. There’s no dress code?!? WHAT??!! Before school, when I asked my host family what I could and couldn’t wear to school they looked at me like I was weird. I understand why now, though. In America, if there was no dress code, you’d have to look at even more trashy clothes all day long. Here, people dress totally normally. I think that’s where the saying, “It’s only a big deal if it’s against the rules,” comes in. Spain is so smart. I think that school just isn’t as serious here. The other day, a boy in my class caught a pidgin during “patio time” or lunch time, put it in a bag, and was putting it in my and other people’s faces all during class. Disgusting? Yes. Did the teacher care? No. All the teachers just laughed! Crazy! I have made a lot of new friends, which makes me really happy! And I’m at a point in my Spanish that I don’t have to get my friends that speak both English and Spanish, to call my mom and ask her if I can hang out with them. I can ask her myself!

Sometimes, my lack of knowledge of the Spanish language frustrates me. Actually a lot of the time. I feel like a baby having to learn how to speak. But it’s normal for a baby not to be able to talk. But I’m fifteen, and I really enjoy talking! And about eighty percent of the time I’m explaining myself, stuttering, and talking so slow even I get bored with what I’m saying. I’m used to talking all of the time, with my friends, with strangers, with anybody! A lot of times here, I feel completely discouraged and helpless. Sometimes, I doubt that I can even be successful in learning another language and making new friends. Especially in school, I find myself trying to blend in with everyone (although it’s tough seeing at I’m one of maybe 2 blondes in the school) and try not to get called on or spoken to. I’m trying to break that habit though! And every day that I talk more, I notice myself speaking more clearly, faster, and with words that I didn’t even know I knew. It’s an awesome feeling.

There are so many times when I have absolutely no clue what someone is saying to me. When I don’t understand something, I just smile as nice as I can, nod my head and say, “Si, si.” I need to either learn Spanish, or stop saying si because I have dug myself into so many graves! The first or second day I was here, I think everyone was asking me if I loved orange juice. I actually hate it, but I was like, “OOHHH SIII!” because I had no clue what they were asking me. Now they buy orange juice daily, and they always ask me why I make a funny face when I drink it. It’s because I don’t like it!!!!!!! But I don’t say that, and I’m slowly but surely getting more used to the flavor, and I even drank some yesterday, BY MY OWN WILL. There have been so many instances similar to this. A few weeks ago, family friends asked me if I liked cow testicles. I only understood cow, because normally I don’t think that a Spanish two class is taught the words testicles. So I told them that I loved it. Schools should re-think that, because knowing that could have saved me a lot of mouthwash when I figured out what I had just eaten.

Spain is more amazing than I could have ever imagined. I have been through so many different feelings since I’ve been here. I’ve been through happiness, excitement, nervousness, EXTREME nervousness, relief, self-doubt, anger, regret, and fear. But I always get past all the negative feelings, and remember how lucky I am to get to do this. I have not been here long at all, and I feel changed. I feel like a new person already. Not only because I can communicate with people in a different language, but also because I’ve learned how to rely on myself for things. Already I feel more responsible; more independent, more confident, and more and capable of doing things I never would have thought I could have done before. I will be forever grateful of everyone that helped in giving me this life changing opportunity.

p.s. I got my book you sent me mom, thank you so much (:

I'll have been here for twenty days on Tuesday !

On Tuesday, I'll have been here for twenty days! Sometimes it feels like I've been here for a lot longer than that, and some days it feels like I've only been here for a couple days! But no matter how I'm feeling at a certain time, the fact that I love it here and am already dreading saying goodbye to this amazing place stays the same. There is so much to say and to tell you, but not enough time in the entire world to give you all the details. So I'll just give you the highlights (:

I'll start with the flight here. I went most of the way, (besides to NY) with my friend Nicole, who is living in a town close to mine in Spain. I don't know what I would have done without her that day, because, as my family knows very well, I am terrible with directions. Add lack of sleep, hunger, anticipation, soreness, headaches, grumpiness, and unbrushed hair to the mix and you have two very lost teenage girls. But we managed! By the time I arrived in Alicante, met my host family, and drove down to Denia, I had been awake and traveling for over thirty hours. But that didn't matter! I was so pumped when we arrived I wasn't tired at all! I stayed up for four more hours meeting all the family and walking through Denia. That night, I slept nineteen hours.

My host family is more than I could have ever expected. They're so nice, and they help me so much- not just with learning Spanish, but they helped me with finding some really good friends, organize my classes in school, help me try to learn my way around town, and much, much more. I have a sister here, and two parents. Alicia, the eleven year old daughter, who seems really shy, but she's warming up to me little by little. Vicente, my host dad, and Maria Angeles, my host mom (who I call Angie for short). I love them and could not ask for anyone better!

I have done a countless number of cool things so far. I'll start from the beginning. The third day that I was here, we went to a wedding! Really different, but awesome. Before it started, everyone in the family got two hotel rooms, because the women didn't want to wear their dresses in the car. It was probably the nicest hotel I've ever been in! Two five star hotel rooms for just thirty minutes to change into dresses you ask? Yeah I don't know. But it was glamourous (: We threw rice at the couple! For food at the wedding, or "la boda", it was...different. I had no idea what I was eating the entire time. The food just kept coming and coming! It lasted hours. The wedding began at nine in the morning, and we got home at one... a.m. 


A few days later, on September 7th, I met my first real friend! I've spent most of my time here since then with her and other new friends, other than being with my family. That night, we went a see the "torros"! So many people before then, told me that if I'm going to live in Spain, I HAVE to see the bulls. When my friend asked me if I wanted to go see the bulls, I didn't understand at all. When people asked me, "Quieres ir a los torros?" Every time, I understood "todos" instead of "torros". So I kept saying "Yes. YESS!! Quiero ver a todos!!" Because I really did want to see everything, I just didn't know why people kept asking me. But, once we got there I realized my mistake. There, I think I experienced my first time of utter shock. The poor bulls. The people would hit at it, and taze it, just to get it angry so it would run at them. My first thoughts were: Oh my gosh I'm living with barbarians. But then I caught myself, remembering that this is a different culture, and that this is just how it is. 


A lot of the days, I just spend my free time walking around the main street, window-shopping and people watching. Where I live is just a few steps away from it! It's called Calle de Campos, and it has restaurants, clothing stores, a Mercadona, McDonalds (of course), and so much more. The street is marble! it gets blocked off after six so people can relax about cars and "motos" and whatnot. I started school two days ago. The first day, Angie drove me there, thank God, because there is not way I could walk there without getting extremely lost. School was good. It was not a whole lot different from school at home! Besides it being ninety degrees inside the classrooms. I had to walk back! It should be about a twenty or thirty minute walk, but I managed to make it into three hours. Phrase of the day? Estoy perdido. Ayudame? I probably said that over twenty times! Eventually, when I still couldn't get home, I started simply asking where the ocean was. I can only imagine how stupid people thought I was, but I don't care!!!!! I knew, that if I got to the ocean, I could find Calle de Campos and then find my way home. I had never felt and probably will never feel again the success and pride that I felt when I caught the first glimpse of that apartment building. I went from not being able to get to the grocery store in Tampa after living there for four years, to finding my own way home from school in a brand new city with people that don't speak my language. I smile just thinking about it (: 


There are still so many things I have to learn, not only the Spanish language, but about the culture here, and why things are the way they are. Right now, there is a very veryyy long list of things I do not understand. 
1. Why soccer is played on cement
2. Why, that when you're sick, you go to the dentist
3. Why the dentist writes prescriptions on sticky notes
4. Why there are rooms with no windows, but with curtains and blinds
5. Why maids come every day to clean the house.. how can a house get dirty in a day?
6. Why there are air conditioners in the schools but they are never used
7. Why people would want pictures with a dead turtle
8. Why we go grocery shopping daily
9. Why I have to wear slippers at all times in the house
10. Why there are no pancakes

Plane ride there (:

ALMOST THERE

The castle

more castle... this is on the other side of town.. its big

out my window

My first friend!

The beach (:

more beach

the street that they let the bulls loose in!

LOS TORROS

The house I stayed at for the first week.. there were more

friends (:

more!

Calle Diana, a street my house is on.. I think

The main street, Calle Campos, at night. I'll get a better quality one at some point (:

PACKING !

Otis doesn't want me to go!! I'm officially leaving in FOUR DAYS !!! 

I cannot wait. I'm traveling with Nicole, my good friend who is also going to Spain. She's gonna be pretty close to my town, so we're gonna stick together through this whole process (:

 I GOT MY VISA !!!!!

I finally got it (: ! Now there's no more paperwork to do, and nothing else to send in. All there's left to do is wait !

Getting excited !

I bought my suitcases the other day! They are MASSIVE. I hope that there's room for them in my host family's little European car (: ! I leave in a little over three weeks now, and everything's starting to become real to me. Sometimes I find myself thinking, "Oh my gosh.. I'm gonna leave for a y e a r ." The reality of everything is really starting to sink in, and every day I get more and more excited and nervous. I went to a rotary meeting today, and I presented a speech on "What it means to me to be an American". Here it is !

When I first started thinking of what it means to be an American, I immediately thought of freedom. That’s what we hear all the time- in school, at home, in the media- that’s what we are taught. We are taught that America is freedom. But then I began thinking that I am not exactly free. Yes, I can say whatever I want, and I can believe in whatever kind of god I choose, or I can choose my own career, and make my own money. But as I travel more and more, and meet people from very different places, I have come to believe that we as Americans are locked in an image seen around the world as elitists, or obese, or ignorant.  

            So, what does it mean to be an American? I think every United States resident would have a different answer to that question. They may say freedom. They may say that it means being the “top dog”, or that being an American is all about patriotism. Some might even say that they are embarrassed to be American. But to me, being an American means a few different things. The first is hope. The hope that we can gain a reputation known around the world based on being open-minded and accepting. We can hope and work to create a better tomorrow. I have an exchange student living with us right now, and through him I have come to think that one of the biggest differences between America and most other nations is that we see no limits in what we can accomplish. Most kids his age here in America, when asked about what they want to be when they grow up, would say that they want to be a doctor, or a lawyer, or a pilot. We asked him if he wanted to do any of those jobs and he quickly said that he could never do that, and that he wasn’t smart enough. While other countries may be influenced by various factors, Americans reach for the stars when setting career goals or personal goals of any kind. The second is pride. Even though other people may have very different and not always good perceptions of us, we have to stay proud. We must be proud of our nation as a whole. There is a saying, “Pride goeth before a fall,” because pride is one of the seven deadly sins. But pride can be justified. It does not always have to lead to a downfall, but it can also be the evidence of accomplishment. Americans need to show people that evidence of their accomplishment. The last thing that comes to my mind about being an American is bravery. Normally, when people think about bravery, they think about a super hero, or a war hero. But super heroes are not the only people that can show bravery. I see bravery every single day. I think that when you are American, often times you may encounter some one that insults your nation. You must be brave to stand up for your country!

            To other people, being an American could mean a plethora of things. I think America is too big to properly answer such a question. There are way to many different cultures in America to decide what it means for everyone else. To conclude, most Americans would agree that America is awesome. I just believe that we need to work very hard to make non-Americans think that too. 

After the speech, my Rotary club gave me a picture book all about Tampa to give to my host family. I cannot think of any better gift that they could have given me! It is perfect, and I can"t wait to show my new family where I'm from!

We are pretty much all done with the process. All I have to do now is get pins to give to other exchange students I meet in Spain, and then just wait !

My new home (:

I cannot get over how beautiful this place is.. 

It seems like a dream that I get to go there for a whole year!

Runnin' into some trouble !

I haven't even left yet and I'm getting in trouble already!! Out of all of the 976592652365247697 thousand things I have to do, I forgot one.

Stupid me!

I forgot to send in an essay on culture, UGH! Anyways, now I have to do a "delinquent assignment", which I'll have to present in front of everyone at the second orientation this weekend. It's a six minute speech on an Indian Rotarian. Blahhh. 

This is my first time so..

I've never blogged before, but I can't wait to start. I made this so the people I care most about can see what I'm up to during my year abroad! I am beyond excited. I hope you all enjoy (: