October 28, 2011
Wow. I can't believe two months have already passed. And to think that I am already a quarter way through makes me extremely sad. Even more reason to make the most of every day. It's crazy to think that when I got here and couldn't say something I wanted to or watch a movie in Spanish or read a book I just said, Oh I'll just wait two or three months. Now that's here and the other day in class I realized that I really am understanding most of what is going on. It took me by surprise when I realized I understood the teacher when I wasn't completely and full energy listening. Well if everything stays the exact I could ask for more, but I have a feeling things will start to get even better, not quite sure how that is possible.
Saturday, October 29, 2011
Thursday, October 27, 2011
A Hike and a Fair, all in the Same Day
October 22, 2011
Well today was quite a jam-packed day. The first thing on the agenda was a hike with the Rotarians and other exchange students in Zaragoza. It was absolutely gorgeous, and the peak of foliage. It was nice to take a little break from Spanish but every time the four of us in the Zaragoza club getting together more and more things are said in Spanish. We are going to try only speaking in Spanish after Thanksgiving. The hike was eventually to a waterfall called La Cola de El Caballo (the tail of the horse). Along the way there were so many other waterfalls and jaw dropping views. We brought our bocadillos (sandwiches) with us so we could all picnic at the top. It was absolutely gorgeous.
Afterwards I got dropped off in Biescas, one of the smaller towns in my valley. There was una Feria del Otoño, the Fall Fair. I met up with a bunch of my friends for the evening. In one part of the fair was animals. There were cows and horses and sheep and goats. Another part was all food, products of the animals, mostly meat and cheese. We all ate dinner from all of the tasters in the booths. They were all soooo good and fresh. And when I got home I watched a movie on the tele with my host brother, in spanish. What a great end to a great day.
Teatro
October 21, 2011
Tonight I went to a comedy show at the local theater all the ladies. I understood so much! And it was really funny. The first part we were all thinking that we made a mistake coming but once the story started it was extremely clever and funny. A lot of the jokes I understood completely, very surprising for me.
Tonight I went to a comedy show at the local theater all the ladies. I understood so much! And it was really funny. The first part we were all thinking that we made a mistake coming but once the story started it was extremely clever and funny. A lot of the jokes I understood completely, very surprising for me.
Thursday, October 20, 2011
Tapas
October 19, 2011
In Jaca, a city 15 minutes away, there is one week in November dedicated to tapas. There are 45 restaurants who participate in the competition for the best tapa. Tonight I went with my neighbors and host mom. We went to 3 different restaurants. Each one has the tapa/s they have made especially for this week. There are different categories you can win in like presentation, taste or significance. At every place one tapa and a drink is about 2.50 (euros that is). The first place we went there were two tapas. The first one was shrimp with some kind of pate it tasted like and a cracker kind of thing. The other was vegetable rice with squid and a crisp with a lot of foam, not sure what made it foam. Although they were tasty, I think they looked a little better than they tasted. The second place we went to was my favorite. First we had baby mussels in a really good sauce, probably some of the best mussels I've had in my life. After there were two tapas. One was a mini crepe with a piece of meat and foie, all with a orange, caramel flavor. The other was a calzone of some sort but much lighter with jamon (prosciutto) in a vegetable puree. All of them were SO good. The last place I think was going for significance or presentation. There was this huge structure and story all for a little tapa with potato and some fish eggs. There was a rock with a glass of bubbling and exploding white, liquid with a seashell underneath. Then the tapas were displayed on a bridge next to it. It was supposed to symbolize Jaca, the white exploding stuff being the mountains and snow melting under the bridge (there is a famous bridge in Jaca) and then the shell is the symbol of the trail of Santiago (a trail that goes all through the Spanish Pyrennes that takes about 25 days and the middle of it where the Cathedral of Santiago is is Jaca). The tapa was pretty good but definitely overpowered by the inedible things. We ended up voting for the second place. The whole buzz of the city was so great, everyone so excited to go eat great tapas all night.
In Jaca, a city 15 minutes away, there is one week in November dedicated to tapas. There are 45 restaurants who participate in the competition for the best tapa. Tonight I went with my neighbors and host mom. We went to 3 different restaurants. Each one has the tapa/s they have made especially for this week. There are different categories you can win in like presentation, taste or significance. At every place one tapa and a drink is about 2.50 (euros that is). The first place we went there were two tapas. The first one was shrimp with some kind of pate it tasted like and a cracker kind of thing. The other was vegetable rice with squid and a crisp with a lot of foam, not sure what made it foam. Although they were tasty, I think they looked a little better than they tasted. The second place we went to was my favorite. First we had baby mussels in a really good sauce, probably some of the best mussels I've had in my life. After there were two tapas. One was a mini crepe with a piece of meat and foie, all with a orange, caramel flavor. The other was a calzone of some sort but much lighter with jamon (prosciutto) in a vegetable puree. All of them were SO good. The last place I think was going for significance or presentation. There was this huge structure and story all for a little tapa with potato and some fish eggs. There was a rock with a glass of bubbling and exploding white, liquid with a seashell underneath. Then the tapas were displayed on a bridge next to it. It was supposed to symbolize Jaca, the white exploding stuff being the mountains and snow melting under the bridge (there is a famous bridge in Jaca) and then the shell is the symbol of the trail of Santiago (a trail that goes all through the Spanish Pyrennes that takes about 25 days and the middle of it where the Cathedral of Santiago is is Jaca). The tapa was pretty good but definitely overpowered by the inedible things. We ended up voting for the second place. The whole buzz of the city was so great, everyone so excited to go eat great tapas all night.
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
Wild Card on the Dinner Table
October 14, 2011
I sat down at dinner and there was a plate of something i have never seen before. When i asked what it was my host dad and brother said something I didn't understand, so I asked if it was animal. They both burst out laughing and were like, No no it's a vegetable. Ok I can do that so i picked up a piece and tried it. There wasn't much flavor and kind of a weird texture. It wasn't bad but it wasn't amazing. They were like, Do you like it? They seemed very intent on it so I was like, Yes, it's good. Then again they both started hysterically laughing. When they calmed down I asked them what was so funny. "You just ate pig's blood." Oh god. It turns out it wasn't a vegetable at all but rather a blood tortilla of some sort, not sure how to translate it into English. Then they told me to have another since I liked it so much. At this point we were all laughing, and I made it clear that now I don't think I like it so much. Haha. Although I can't believe I actually ate pig's blood and it really grosses me out thinking of it, I'm kind of glad they lied to me or else I never would have tried it, and I guess it is something they eat a lot of in this part of Spain. Just going along with the Spanish ways, but maybe only for one day with this one.
I sat down at dinner and there was a plate of something i have never seen before. When i asked what it was my host dad and brother said something I didn't understand, so I asked if it was animal. They both burst out laughing and were like, No no it's a vegetable. Ok I can do that so i picked up a piece and tried it. There wasn't much flavor and kind of a weird texture. It wasn't bad but it wasn't amazing. They were like, Do you like it? They seemed very intent on it so I was like, Yes, it's good. Then again they both started hysterically laughing. When they calmed down I asked them what was so funny. "You just ate pig's blood." Oh god. It turns out it wasn't a vegetable at all but rather a blood tortilla of some sort, not sure how to translate it into English. Then they told me to have another since I liked it so much. At this point we were all laughing, and I made it clear that now I don't think I like it so much. Haha. Although I can't believe I actually ate pig's blood and it really grosses me out thinking of it, I'm kind of glad they lied to me or else I never would have tried it, and I guess it is something they eat a lot of in this part of Spain. Just going along with the Spanish ways, but maybe only for one day with this one.
Sunday, October 16, 2011
Little Pueblos on the Hillside
October 15, 2011
Today my host family and I drove even farther into the Pyrennes to see all of the beautiful foliage. It was gorgeous. Very comforting as well being surrounded by something so familiar to me. We went to about three different little towns, all so cute and from what I understood without out electricity, but I am not sure about that one. All of the roads in the U.S.A would have barely passed for a one way street, but of course they were all two way, barely able to squeeze in between the car on the other side of the road and the cliff/rock/river on the other side of you. Then we met up with another family for lunch. The mother of that family and my host mom grew up together in Sabi. They now live in the part of Spain that speaks basque. The son who is the same age as me spoke it for me and it is insane. I am so glad I don't have to learn that language. Every other letter is a k or a x. Lunch was fabulous of course, I think it would be hard to find bad food here. The format of a lot of the restaurants is cool, they give you 3 or 4 choices for the first course and the same for the second course and then they bring out platters with the amount of food for the amount of people that ordered that choice all on one dish. Then we raced home becuase it was one of my friends birthday and we had a surprise for her and then went out to dinner, very fun.
Today my host family and I drove even farther into the Pyrennes to see all of the beautiful foliage. It was gorgeous. Very comforting as well being surrounded by something so familiar to me. We went to about three different little towns, all so cute and from what I understood without out electricity, but I am not sure about that one. All of the roads in the U.S.A would have barely passed for a one way street, but of course they were all two way, barely able to squeeze in between the car on the other side of the road and the cliff/rock/river on the other side of you. Then we met up with another family for lunch. The mother of that family and my host mom grew up together in Sabi. They now live in the part of Spain that speaks basque. The son who is the same age as me spoke it for me and it is insane. I am so glad I don't have to learn that language. Every other letter is a k or a x. Lunch was fabulous of course, I think it would be hard to find bad food here. The format of a lot of the restaurants is cool, they give you 3 or 4 choices for the first course and the same for the second course and then they bring out platters with the amount of food for the amount of people that ordered that choice all on one dish. Then we raced home becuase it was one of my friends birthday and we had a surprise for her and then went out to dinner, very fun.
Pilar
October 12, 2011
October 12th is the Saint say of Pilar, as well as one of the biggest festivals of the year in this part of Spain, 10 days and 9 nights. In Zaragoza, the city that my dad and brother work and go to school in which is about an hour away, is where the cathedral of Pilar is, making it the center of festivities. This year Pilar was on a Wednesday so it ended up only being 4 nights here, but in Zaragoza they just took of the whole week. Many things go on during this week and a half, none of which include much sleep. On the day of Pilar, everybody gets dressed up in traditional costume of Aragon, the region, and there is a big parade that you can be in if you are wearing the dress. Also in the plaza of Pilar there is a huge structure with the symbol of Pilar on top. Throughout the day from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. there is probably a kilometer long line of people in traditional dresses with flowers, all waiting to put there flowers into the structure so by the end of the day it looks like it is made of flowers. The act of putting flowers on the structure shows their devotion to the Virgin Pilar. Last year they said there were about 450,000 people who participated. Another activity is at 8 in the morning there are bull fights. You might think this is quite early but really it's quite late. People stop by for the bull fights on their way home from the parties. At 8 they put out baby bulls and let the people can play amateur bull fighting, always with a Spanish band playing. Something for the younger generation is something called interpeñas. This is a place where there are a bunch of huge tents set up, each playing with a different band. Every night there are about 50,000 people there. My host mom and I went to Zaragoza on Tuesday night and stayed Wednesday for the festivities, so I went to interpeñas with one of the exchange students living in Zaragoza and all of her friends. It was so fun. It was like 6 or 7 huge disco-techs. On the weekend before I celebrated it in Sabi with all of my friends. It is definitely a lot mellower but still so much fun. There is a great band that plays in the polideportivo, like a municipal sports center, and we all went out for breakfast an the walk home, at 8 in the morning. Spanish fiestas are a little different from ones in the U.S., haha. I am so glad I got to be a part of such an outstanding event that is such a huge part of this region.
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| The traditional costume of Aragon |
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| The offering of flowers |
Monday, October 3, 2011
Up, Up and Into the Pyrennes
October 1, 2011
One Month Already Passed
September 28, 2011
Wow! One month today since I landed in this wonderful country. Time goes by so fast. It seems like I just got here yet my Spanish is already SO much better than only 30 days ago. It already makes me sad to think that I only have 9 more of this amount of time. One month and I can't think of one thing that I would change. And so far I've only cried once! (when I was chopping onions for dinner, haha). Although a year seems like a long time it is going to be over before I know it. Now I just have to figure out how to fit as much as I can into a day, while still trying to take the absurd amount of sleep that I somehow need, I think twice as much as any normal human.
P.S. Sorry again for my English being so bad. I guess it only means my Spanish is getting better!
Wow! One month today since I landed in this wonderful country. Time goes by so fast. It seems like I just got here yet my Spanish is already SO much better than only 30 days ago. It already makes me sad to think that I only have 9 more of this amount of time. One month and I can't think of one thing that I would change. And so far I've only cried once! (when I was chopping onions for dinner, haha). Although a year seems like a long time it is going to be over before I know it. Now I just have to figure out how to fit as much as I can into a day, while still trying to take the absurd amount of sleep that I somehow need, I think twice as much as any normal human.
P.S. Sorry again for my English being so bad. I guess it only means my Spanish is getting better!
All Exchange Students Love Other Exchange Students
September 22 - September 25, 2011
So this weekend I went to Madrid along with all of the other Rotary Exchange Students in Madrid plus some Rotex (Spanish people who went to the U.S. in past years). I had such a good time. No matter who the person is, if they are on Rotary exchange you already have so much in common with them. At the end of the weekend I had no voice from talking so much. It was the first time I was talking in English with people who understood everything I was saying, very weird. At first I kept saying things in Spanish and then realizing that they were in Spanish, i guess that is a good sign for my Spanish, but not so much my English. I met so many cool people, all already planning ways we can see each other again. At night we had a talent show kind of thing and my room made and performed a rap about exchange. So fun! I think over the three days I only got 5 hours of sleep, there were just way too many stories to tell and new people to meet. And now my blazer is covered in pins!
So this weekend I went to Madrid along with all of the other Rotary Exchange Students in Madrid plus some Rotex (Spanish people who went to the U.S. in past years). I had such a good time. No matter who the person is, if they are on Rotary exchange you already have so much in common with them. At the end of the weekend I had no voice from talking so much. It was the first time I was talking in English with people who understood everything I was saying, very weird. At first I kept saying things in Spanish and then realizing that they were in Spanish, i guess that is a good sign for my Spanish, but not so much my English. I met so many cool people, all already planning ways we can see each other again. At night we had a talent show kind of thing and my room made and performed a rap about exchange. So fun! I think over the three days I only got 5 hours of sleep, there were just way too many stories to tell and new people to meet. And now my blazer is covered in pins!
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