Semanas 1 y 2 en España

Things are starting to feel normal now.  During the first two weeks, I was in this state of mind where everything was brand new and so exciting.  I was kind of shocked and amazed with everything that was going on around me.  This past week my thoughts have been settling; I´m realizing I don´t need a map anymore, I'm completing homework, I'm building relationships with patients at my internship and I'm actually able to listen and comprehend the majority of what people say to me!

Classes are going well.  I have five classes with all female professors, they're so fun!  My classmates are only from Loras, no other international students are with us in class.

-Composition and Portfolio

-Tradition and culture in Contemporary Galicia

-Culture and Civilization

-Spanish Language

-Varieties of Spanish

My favorite class is probably Tradition and Culture in Contemporary Galicia or Spanish Language  because the professors are so nice and well the Spanish Language class is pretty easy and the Tradition class is really interesting. So far we haven't dove into much of the traditions but the introductions have showed us a lot of great places to travel inside the region of Galicia, where I live.

Outside of the classroom, the program I'm a part of takes us on mini excursions throughout the city every Wednesday night.  The first Wednesday we went on a tour around the Cathedral and learned about  the history of how the cathedral and all the surrounding buildings were built.



Convent of Saint Francis




cathedral again



This was the night that I met all the other international students attending classes at the University of Santiago de Compostela.  People from Saudi Arabia, Brasil, Japan, South Korea, and more from the US.  We quickly connected and that weekend we all went out to the discotecas together.  It is so cool to talk with them, first of all because I'm forced to speak in Spanish and secondly because they were born in such a different culture and their viewpoints are so different than mine!  I had one conversation with a guy from Saudi Arabia; we talked about equality between men and women and what it's like for women in his country from his viewpoint.  He said women are treated like royalty, and they are comfortable having to cover up their entire bodies except their eyes, anytime they're out of the house.  ...what a different world.

With the program at the university, I am required to complete 50 hours of service and 85 hours at an internship they set up for us according to our major.

I've clocked 15 hours so far at a Physical Therapy Clinic, called Fisiogal, (the Spanish word for physical therapy is fisioterapia).  I sit at the front desk and greet the patients and sometimes I get to assist the physical therapists with different tasks.  This internship is probably my favorite experience so far in Spain.  I'm learning a lot about how the clinic functions.  I can really see myself working at a clinic similar to this in the future.  This is one activity that really challenges my Spanish skills, many times when patients walk in they don't know that I'm not fluent, yes I don’t look like a native Spaniard, but they start speaking to me very rapidly and it's quite the challenge.  The physical therapists are extremely nice and accommodating, so I never feel uncomfortable. The two I work with are also very young so it's fun to be in this atmosphere.  I'm just so happy at this internship!!!

Friday I started my community service.  I'm volunteering at a mental institute where different classes are offered for people with mental disabilities.  Friday morning I attended a literature class for more advanced people who like to read.  Friday afternoon I attended a class which helped people practice daily chores such as cleaning and making a grocery list.  It was a tough day and now I need to decide which class I would prefer to help with.  I think I liked the afternoon class better it's just inconvenient to have something scheduled on a Friday afternoon when I don't have class in the morning and I want to travel.

Speaking of traveling…

Yesterday, Saturday, the whole Loras group and one new friend we made who is also from the US went on a day trip to a city on the western coast called Vigo.  It was a little chilly but the sunshine never stopped, we all got a little sunburnt on our faces! :)

Our day consisted of mostly basking in the sun, admiring the beautiful ocean and shopping.  We could find a beach, I think it was too far away to walk to.  I learned that when I go on a day trip I want to do something more than just shop; it got old fast.  We weren't very prepared for the trip, we should have researched cool things to do like visit an art museum or take a boat ride, but it was still fun.  Here are some photos of the views we had along the water :)



palm trees in the street, ocean in sight!




My classmate Alice and I soaking up the sun




failed to capture them when they were out on the water






Cosas Distintas y Interesantes entre España y EEUU

These are few things I´ve noticed so far about the simple cultural differences in Spain.

Spaniards eat food with forks in their left hand and not their right, they shovel the food with their knife from their right hand into the fork in their left. It seems very proper and I like that about it but it´s hard to get used to! I could just eat the way I normally do, with fork in my right hand, but I want to fit it.

This is a picture of my lunch one day. The food on the right is the main dish called empanillas, they´re the little version of empanadas. There´s pulled beef inside and i think they were fried on the stove in a skillet. A decent amount of the food she makes is cooked in olive oil. yummmm. The food on the left is the starter, a soup like bean mixture with some type of beef added for flavor. It´s very good! We usually have a soup of some kind to start off the meal, since it´s usually rainy, warm soup always hits the spot!

This is my kitchen! It is super modern! One of the cabinets on the bottom is a dishwasher! The refriderator is hidden like this too! sooo cool!

During the day at school, we have classes from 9:30 until 11:30 followed by a 30 minute break, most students then meet in the cafeterias on campus to have a coffee or pastry or whatever. Then we resume classes from 12:00-14:00 (everything is in military time here, but people speak as if it's not in military time, they'll say two o'clock but write 14:00) After 14:00 I'm free to go home for lunch, many people probably know that it's the biggest meal of the day and that following that there's a siesta. But I have yet to find someone that actually sleeps after lunch before returning to work.  The siesta is basically a myth, no one sleeps, unless you went out late the night before :)

The preferred drink of choice here is local to the region, they have this beer everywhere! It's called Estrella Galicia. It has a strong and a bit bitter taste, which is good for me, because I can´t drink many in one night!

Galicia is the name of the region that I live in, where the native language is called Gallego. It is similar to Spanish but has more of a historical background. There are four languages spoken in Spain, Castellano-which is regular Spain spanish, Gallego-my region, Catalan-region containing Barcelona, and Vasco which I believe is in the southern region. Everyone knows Castellano but mostly the older generation speaks in Gallego.

This picture is of this version of peanut butter on the far right, a chocolate and white chocolate mix in the middle and a plain chocolate spread on the left side. We eat it on toast, but the peanut butter is very uncommon and my mother bought it for me, I didn't ask her to but she found it anyway. (I probably shouldn’t talk about foods in the US because then she probably feels forced to buy it for me! Oops!)

The attitude of the Spanish is really kind.  All the adults I've been in close contact with go over the top to be nice to each other and us, students.  It kind of shocked me at first because they are all soooo incredibly kind.  But it is really easy to get used to. Another thing that is easy to get used to… I'm treated like a queen, all women are! It's quite great. There's some chivalry in the states but here it is way more noticeable.  Guys are always holding the door for you and asking you what you would like first, things like that.

I haven't been posting very often on this blog so I'm going to try to change that. I hope you are all well in the United States, if you feel like letting me know what's up, I'd love to hear! My email is becky.suckow@gmail.com   :)

¡Finalmente en España!

These first few days in Spain have been like a dream. Although it has rained everyday I'm fascinated by the architecture of the city, there's an old part and a new part to the city. The old part surrounds the cathedral, where St. James the apostle was burried. The cobblestone streets are so close together that no cars even drive through the area. It's a really popular area for bars and cafes. The new part does have streets where cars can drive, though its nothing like traffic in a big city in the US. They call the new part the ugly part of the city "más feo"  but I don't think it is ugly at all. There are atms (cajeros), cafes and cell phone stores everywhere!!!! There is also a lot of shopping in the new part; all the stores have big sales (rebajas) right now until the end of the semester. :) I'm still exploring the city; everything is new and exciting! I saw a latin salsa dance club last night that looked like fun, looks like my sister Jackie will have some salsa competition when I return home! And just so everyone knows, yes, every Spaniard, male and female is drop dead gorgeous :)

Traci, a classmate from Loras, and I at La Alameda, a big park in the middle of the city 

So here´s a quick list of all the things I did this past weekend:
napped
walked around a lot, for at least 3-4 hours on Saturday
window shopped in clothing stores and candy stores!
drank coffee in a café built in 1873
napped more
spent time getting to know my family, mom-Mila, sister (12) marta y brother (10) Alvaro
ate lots of delicious authentic Spanish food, Mila loves to cook and is really REALLY good at it!
got lost walking around the city alone, only for 20 minutes!
napped even more, jet lag is killing me!
purchased my first beer at a bar (it only cost 1,80 euros!), while watching fútbol on tv :)

So far, my favorite things about Spain are my family and the beautiful ambiance of the city, among all the rain.
My mother is very accomodating yet very laid back, she gives me a lot of freedom which is nice. My siblings are oh-so-adorable. Their ages are really fun: 10 and 12. Tonight i was in my room and I heard Alvaro just singing nonsense words and making a song, and he was belting it out! They just do things that are so typical for kids that age, I forget that it's normal for kids even in different countries to be the same (so that moment was kind of a stupid wake up call that no matter where you grow up, we're all the same) but Alvaro and Marta are so much fun, they fight with each other yet get along really well and are just super goofy. Another thing, I gave them oreos as a welcoming gift and they freaked. Those cookies were gone in three days! My mom loved her present, an Isabel Bloom snowman (my mom, Mary Kay thought it would be a good present to demonstrate a little bit of Iowa's culture) which she thought was so adorable even if they dont have snow here.

This is my room! I love it! lots of natural light