todo aqui está jeeeeevy

Hola!

Here are the topics for this entry:

1. Snow storm last week
2. Awful internet connection
3. Difficult living situation
4. Going out in Madrid



1. As I promised in the last update, I would talk about the snowstorm. Two Fridays ago (just a few days after I arrived) there was a “serious” snowstorm. It must have been about 5 or 6 inches. Being from Wisconsin, I really didn’t think anything of it until I began to notice everyone else’s reactions. First of all, two days of orientation were canceled. All public transportation was shut down (including taxis) and a few bridges around town were closed. On Monday, I showed up for a class but it turned out that our professor cancelled it because she was at home sick due to the extreme cold weather (about 25 degrees Fahrenheit). Additionally, the students in the Resedencias were going crazy. It looked like a scene from a movie in which a bunch of young people were out in the snow laughing and frolicking, building snow men and having snowball fights. My housemates were especially excited because they either had never seen snow in their lives or just not this much. My roommate from Panama went out and took pictures for hours while my other housemate from Cuba looked out the kitchen window bundled in her winter jacket and hat proclaiming “ ¡Ay mi madre… por dios!”
Everywhere you went, people would be complaining about the weather. “Its just unbearable!” When we would pass one of those LED signs that flashed the time and the weather, there would be people on the bus that would gasp and point to the sign “Negative -2!” like the end of the world was coming. And remember that’s Celsius so it’s only about 25-30 degrees Fahrenheit for us. So overall, it was quite a funny sight.
Now it’s in the 40s and 50s and birds are chirping. This is the Spain I was looking for. Still, people are complaining of the “cold.”

2. In all those culture shock manuals, they tell you that you’re going to go through a phase where you start hating anything “Spanish.” Well I think I’m starting that phase because I HATE THE INTERNET HERE. Any new building you go to (say, the building where we take classes or an internet café), you have to “reconfigure” your internet settings. And in some cafes with wireless, you get a card with a password that lets you connect for 30 minutes. And wireless only works for simple things like checking emails or going on Facebook. I can’t connect to skype, MSN, upload pics or do video chat. ¡QUE COÑO ES ESTO! So much for keeping in touch with all of you on Skype. ☹


3. My living situation is getting difficult. Reason being, I tend to get caught up in conversation, watching TV with my housemates, helping them with English, or just hanging out with them in the living room when I really should be getting some reading done or updating this blog like I’ve been saying I would do for a few days now. I now know what people mean when they say its very distracting to study at home. I never really had distractions in my other living situations, but here, there’s always someone to talk to, listen to (which I’ll explain in a minute) or watch TV with. I’m really glad that I’m not living in a host family because most people who live in host families have just their Señora to chill with.
I don’t know how this happened, but I think I was placed in the perfect Resedencia. If you know me, you know I love to sing and I love music in Spanish. Well, my one of my housemates (Mexico) recently bought a guitar from the flea market in Madrid and will not stop strumming it. This causes another of my housemates to join in singing and then it’s just a domino effect. Cuba joins in with a song from her country then Dominican Republic joins in and then its not like I can just sit there without joining in myself. Last Friday night I was planning on going out to the bars in Alcalá, but when I came out to say bye to everyone, I got sucked in. It turned out that all I did was sit around all night singing, drinking wine, and eating tapas. GOD BLESS LATIN AMERICA!
One a another note, one of my housemates told me last week that he really wants to learn English for his job (computer sciences) so every night M-Th we decided to sit down and do 20 minutes of English for him and 20 minutes of Spanish for me. We’ve only had two “sessions” so far, but they have been really helpful for both of us. Another one if my housemates is also learning English and I’ve been helping him with his homework. I really like to help with English because it helps me with my Spanish too. Just another reason why I’m super lucky to live where I do.
That is to say, I have much more contact with Spanish and Spanish speakers than do a lot of other people on this program. Some people live with other Americans who refuse to speak Spanish or some have roommates who are married couples who mostly keep to themselves.

4. Last Saturday, I went out in Madrid with some girls on the program. I was finally able to meet up with my friend Sam Sandifer who just recently arrived in Spain. We went to a popular club in Madrid called Teatro Kapital with SEVEN FLOORS. The main floor is house music, then there was R&B and a Salsa/Reggaeton/Spanish pop floor. TOO MUCH FUN. But I am glad that I live in Alcala because going out in Madrid is superrrr expensive. First the ride there takes about an hour, and then we paid 15 Euros just to get in the club. Luckily we got a deal because someone had these discount cards which allowed us to get two free drinks and a discounted entry. So it was a good experience for one night, but I think I’ll have to limit these Madrid escapades to one night a month. Plus, we either have to leave at 1:30 (when the party hasn’t even started), or wait until 6:10 am when the commuter train back to Alcalá starts running. Probably not the most producting thing sleeping til 3:30 pm the next day…

HAPPY OBAMA INAUGURATION DAY! My roommates and I are going to throw a mini-party tonight and watch the ceremony. There will, of course, be wine and tapas.


Hasta luego!