Hola

Hola cyber world! I haven't blogged since the days of Xanga, and I'm nervous and shy as I type. I started my journey in Spain 6 days ago. The travel was less stressful than I imagined. I slept 1 hour instead of 0 hours, and sat next to a Chinese man from Buenos Aires who gave me his business card. He is the president of some sort of fishing company. This was my very first (of which I expect many) situation in which he could not speak English and I could not speak very much Spanish, and we still got along during the journey over the Atlantic. I was tickled by the Arab man to my left who couldn't stop laughing during the corny movie,Grown Ups. I was filled with excitement and hope in those moments, surrounded by the eclectic

voices of the passengers. Spain came quickly.

I've been so lucky since arriving because Kylah's roommates (Bryn, Madeline & Neomi) are all auxiliares and fluent in spanish. Bryn, from St. Louis, Missouri basically found my piso for me by translating to the landlords. Thank God. She has spoken spanish for 10 years (impressive) but is an all-American girl, and I expect that we will be great friends. Yesterday, she showed us a 4-5 minute video describing her life and city to show to the students this first week of school. What a great idea. Neomi is from Vermont and she became friends with Kylah quickly last year through this program. Madeline, from France, was Kylah's first encounter in Spain. Neither spoke very much spanish, but have overcome the barrier and are super tight now. This.gives.me.hope.

I am so eager to put together spanish sentences instead of speaking in spanglish. I knew it was coming; to be so interested in every new person I meet and having to sit quietly behind, hoping to learn a new word or too. This is so hard for me, Questions,but I imagine months down the road I will be able to say, "Ah, finally, Manoli, I get to ask you every detail I've been holding inside for all these months!"

And Manoli. She is my little guardian angel. I met her in the Plaza Mayor just hours after I arrived, and she came prancing towards me with a smile from ear to ear. We chatted slowly in English, both of us timid but curious, and by the end of our cafe con leches I felt welcomed and confident. Monday, at the orientation I sit still, understanding little of what is going on. She says "Me Maten!" (kill me!) after Juan Ignacio goes on and on about whatever important thing it is that I'm missing. I can't wait to have many laughs with this incredible Spanish woman. She is the English director at my school, Agustin Sanz, in Moral de Calatrava. My first day was today. Manoli gave me the tour of the pueblo, in 5 minutes. It looked more like a movie set against a backdrop of hills and windmills than a city. We visited the one and only bar in the town, the bar in which I will spend an hour in the morning having a cafe due to the early bus schedule. It's important to be flexible in Spain! I think I spent most of the day learning the Shakira song, Waka Waka, while dancing alongside spanish boys and girls. After school, another English teacher says, "Yes, we all go home at two. More play and less work." And that's why I'm here.

Kylah & Neomi helping haul my broken luggage across calle Toledo.

5 pisos, I got it to 1, without meeting the roommates. Buttttt, last night we came face to face, and it took 2 hours to get out about 20 main facts about each other. Ah, well, aprendo pronto! They are 2 spanish students who chain smoke in the piso but are making every effort to be friends with me. You must be adaptable in Spain!

I have spent almost every one of the 8640 minutes of time I've had here learning, being surprised, being stumped, feeling alone, feeling surrounded, having information overloads and most importantly, being inspired by this place I now ca

ll home. I have been to a weekly event called the botellon, similar to a university tailgate at night. I got a taste of spanish dance on my birthday. I hope to learn flamenco! Two nights ago I went with Madeline to a kabob restaurant with 9 others. At the table there were 2 people from Spain, 2 Colombians, 1 Italian, 1 German, Madeline the french girl, a Lithuanian girl, and me, the americana. It was exhilarating sitting amongst these special people trying my very best to get some sort of information across. When it happened, wow, that was magic. I just kept saying to Madeline, "I love this." Besides this, I have shared spanish and non-spanish

meals in Kylah's pisos with new and old friends, and laughed hysterically at Sandra's french accent interpretation of dirty American phrases. Laughter has been a prominent theme so far.

Tomorrow is my first bus trip to Moral de Calatrava. Day 2 with the kidos!

So much to learn.

A very simple piso.

Kylah, Philip, Ben, Paige, Flo y Bryn