I am now in Valencia, which is about a 3-hour train ride south of Barcelona, still on the coast. The main purpose of my trip was to come here and do an intensive Spanish course for two weeks (30 hours a week). I started on Monday, joining a group of students who have been here now anywhere from 3 weeks to 3 months. You can join the program for any length of time you wish, and it gets cheaper per week the longer you stay. I'll admit I was a little anxious about what kind of experience it would be, and I have to say that I couldn't be more impressed with the program. I opted for the Home Stay accommodation, and I am staying with a woman from Argentina, an artist, who has lived here for 18 years. The apartment is a 5-minute walk from the school and is located in one of the many little plazas scattered throughout the city. It's surprisingly quiet given its proximity to the center of town. Another student from the school, Gertrude from Germany, is staying in the other room in the apartment. I was psyched to meet her because it meant that I wouldn't be the only older student here. I was not thrilled by the idea of being in a class with a bunch of teenagers (the minimum age for students is 16). Not that I dislike teenagers, it's just that I work with them during the school year and in the summer I like a change of pace. While there are some younger students, most are in their 20's at least and relatively mature.
Before you arrive at the school you take an online test to help them place you in the appropriate level. Then when you arrive you have to do an interview, to make sure your ability to communicate in person matches what you can do on paper. I placed in an intermediate level, and the class I joined is actually moving on to the advanced intermediate level next week. I did my interview with Ishmael, one of the teachers, and although I was nervous, I think I was even more taken aback by how beautiful his Spanish sounded. It was like I had just tuned in to a classical music station on the radio, listening to the dulcet tone of his voice and his clear enunciation. I was kind of hoping he would be my teacher, but alas that wasn't the case. Instead, my teachers are Juan and Elvira. (I'm not sure where these names are coming from; apparently here in Spain, as in the U.S., parents are trying to outdo one another by finding the most unique name possible.)
We have our first class in the morning with Elvira, where the topic has been physical appearances and people's hang-ups about how they look, which has led to many interesting discussions ranging from piercing and tattooing to plastic surgery. After a half-hour break we have another class with Juan, where we have been discussing current events. The first day it was all politics and we talked about the political corruption that has been happening here in Spain. I was in heaven as I am kind of a news addict, so I was beyond excited to be talking and figuring out how to talk about these things in Spanish. From there I head over to the other building where I have a culture class, followed by a conversation class. It's kind of a marathon, but I love it. Learning about languages and culture is easily my favorite thing to do in life.
There are 8 students in the class: myself; Natalie from London; Stefi from Detroit, but living in Germany for many years; Georgia from Cyprus, who has been my partner on several occasions and is super cool save for her severe disdain for Turkish people (she lives on the Greek side); Adam from New York; Eva from China; Marie from France; and Alex from England, who is a scholar of Latin and Greek and often shares his extensive knowledge of language. It's a humorous adventure as we all try to muddle our way through Spanish and express our thoughts and opinions on a wide range of topics. Today Adam caused Juan to buckle over with laughter as he attempted to translate "fake boobs." I'm not sure how we found our way to the topic of physical appearance in our current events class, but alas, you never know where a class discussion will go!
Speaking of political corruption, there was a small protest in La Plaza de la Virgen the other day. This sign reads: "The workers are not the guilty ones," in reference to the sentiment that the average Spaniard is having to pay for the sins of the corrupt members of government, who are pocketing Spaniards' money for their own benefit, stashing it away in some Swiss bank account. The sign is in Valenciano, the local language here, and protesters were switching back and forth from Spanish and Valenciano as they took the bullhorn.
Before you arrive at the school you take an online test to help them place you in the appropriate level. Then when you arrive you have to do an interview, to make sure your ability to communicate in person matches what you can do on paper. I placed in an intermediate level, and the class I joined is actually moving on to the advanced intermediate level next week. I did my interview with Ishmael, one of the teachers, and although I was nervous, I think I was even more taken aback by how beautiful his Spanish sounded. It was like I had just tuned in to a classical music station on the radio, listening to the dulcet tone of his voice and his clear enunciation. I was kind of hoping he would be my teacher, but alas that wasn't the case. Instead, my teachers are Juan and Elvira. (I'm not sure where these names are coming from; apparently here in Spain, as in the U.S., parents are trying to outdo one another by finding the most unique name possible.)
We have our first class in the morning with Elvira, where the topic has been physical appearances and people's hang-ups about how they look, which has led to many interesting discussions ranging from piercing and tattooing to plastic surgery. After a half-hour break we have another class with Juan, where we have been discussing current events. The first day it was all politics and we talked about the political corruption that has been happening here in Spain. I was in heaven as I am kind of a news addict, so I was beyond excited to be talking and figuring out how to talk about these things in Spanish. From there I head over to the other building where I have a culture class, followed by a conversation class. It's kind of a marathon, but I love it. Learning about languages and culture is easily my favorite thing to do in life.
There are 8 students in the class: myself; Natalie from London; Stefi from Detroit, but living in Germany for many years; Georgia from Cyprus, who has been my partner on several occasions and is super cool save for her severe disdain for Turkish people (she lives on the Greek side); Adam from New York; Eva from China; Marie from France; and Alex from England, who is a scholar of Latin and Greek and often shares his extensive knowledge of language. It's a humorous adventure as we all try to muddle our way through Spanish and express our thoughts and opinions on a wide range of topics. Today Adam caused Juan to buckle over with laughter as he attempted to translate "fake boobs." I'm not sure how we found our way to the topic of physical appearance in our current events class, but alas, you never know where a class discussion will go!
This one is pretty self-explanatory. I love the expression he made as he posed for the photo.
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