Inheirting Spanish traits...

Sorry for the delay but it looks like the Spanish life style has gotten to me... I'm literally living the phrase "the art of doing nothing" like in Eat Pray Love. I've grown accostumed to a world where worries do not exist, people walk 2 MPH, and beer and wine are cheaper than water. The past weekend our program went to Cadiz. Here's what I got..

Carnaval..... Every year, Cadiz has a carnaval. This year it's March 3 - 13 and it's when everyone dresses up and drinks on the streets. They also decorate the whole town.
Astonishing views at the top of the tower in the cathedral... You can look over Cadiz and the ocean.
Dramatic buildings... Cadiz is filled with unique buildings that line the streets.
I ate the best chocos fritos at a marisqueria... if you are a fan of calamares, you must try chocos fritos!
Zzzzzzzzzzz..... everything closes at siesta time just like Sevilla from 2 - 5.

The beach

View from up top

My roomate and I overlooking the city of Cadiz

The beauty of study abroad classes

	LUNES	MARTES	MIERCOLES	JUEVES	VIERNES
9:00-10:00		PRACTICAS 9:00-11:00
11:00-13:00	CULTURE & CUISINE IN SPAIN 11:00-12:30		CULTURE & CUISINE IN SPAIN 11:00-12:30	PRACTICAS 11:30-14:25
13:00-15:00	CINE ESPANOL CONTEMPORANEA 13:00-15:00		CINE ESPANOL CONTEMPORANEA 13:00-15:00
15:00-17:00
17:00-19:00		METHOLODGY OF TEACHING SPANISH 17:00-18:30		METHOLODGY OF TEACHING SPANISH 17:00-18:30
19:00-21:00		PROFESSIONAL TEACHING DEVELOPMENT 19:00-20:30		PROFESSIONAL TEACHING DEVELOPMENT 19:00-20:30

Note:
1. No class besides my "practicas" are before 11 AM!
2. No Friday classes!
3. All classes are totalmente en espanol!

What are practicas?

For part of my program, teaching development, I get to go to a school twice a week (four hours cumulatively per week) and teach English! This will definitely be a huge difference from teaching Spanish last semester at an Iowa City public school and maybe a prospective future (hopefully). The first five weeks are observation & collaboration with an English english that is a true Sevillana and the last five weeks I'm the main teacher! I will be teaching Juniors in high school. Hopefully, these students won't be as chaotic as the students I encountered in my direct enrollment class.

Culture and cuisine in Spain

is probably the best class that anyone has ever created. It is solely dedicated to food, its history, and its traditions. Last week, we learned about Spain's "triada sagrada". 1. Bread 2. Oil 3. Wine. There is probably no other time that I can take a class about Spanish cuisine, so I'll make sure I'll take advantage of the food samples and jot down where I can get the best EVOO (extra virgin olive oil).

Contemporary Spanish Film

We watch a movie every day. It is probably the most relaxing class ever. No papers and no homework. Just two tests.

Now the important classes....

Psychology of Learning a Second Language

The name explains it all - psychology of learning a second language.

Teaching Development

It's a mix of psychology and methodology. Basically, a mix of the classes I took last semester, but all in espanol, por supuesto!

One day excursion on a budget: Wine tasting in Jerez

Total cost of trip: 27 euros

Round trip bus from Sevilla to Jerez: 11 euros
Tour of bodega + wine tasting + tapas: 16 euros

Overview

This day trip suits all people who enjoy a relaxing excursion to the small and pleasant town of Jerez. Equipped with beautiful weather, palm trees, and quaint plazas filled with tapas bars, this day trip is definitely worth it.

Before the excursion

You can make a reservation for the amount of people in your party. It isn't absolutely necessary to make a reservation, but if you're a planner, you'll probably do it anyway.  You can find a list of tours and their descriptions here.

How to get there

Take a bus from the Prado de San Sebastian bus station located accross the Universidad de Sevilla. Ask for a billete a Jerez para IDA y VUELTA (round trip). Also ask "Cual anden" (Which platform?) so you won't get on the wrong bus.

Arriving to Jerez

The bus ride will last about an hour, unless, you have unbelievable traffic like we did, which then can last about two hours. But, hey, it's kind of like driving downtown on a Friday night, right? When you get there, as you walk into the bus station, there should be an information desk on your right. You can ask them where to find the bodega, and they will supply you with a FREE map. It is almost impossible to get lost on the way to the bodega because you'll only one street. It will take you about ten minutes to get to the bodega, and if you're slow or get side tracked very easily, 15-20.

La bodega

Once you get there you can retrieve and pay for your tickets. You can choose to have only wine tasting, without the tapas. But if food is one of your great three loves in life like me, along with shopping and traveling, pay the few extra euros for some jamon iberico, manchego, pan, y and patatas fritas.

My experience

This day excursion was a lot of fun and definitely worth the twenty seven euros. The walking tour wasn't too long and the jamon y queso were VERY delicious. I'm not a very big fan of sherry wine; I thought it tasted more like rubbing alcohol that anything else but the sweet wine was great. I once thought that wine tasting was something only rich people did, like Lisa from the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills; but in Espana it is the complete opposite. As a college student, this excursion will make you feel atleast ten years older, with the thought of red plastic SOLO cups and watered down keg beer feel millions of miles away.

The sherry

Salud!

In front of the barrels of wine with mi companera

A class with all Spaniards.... quite interesting

A regular public university clasroom:

Students talking before class starts. Professor starts talking. Students stop talking. Professor starts and leads class. Students are quiet. Professor ends class. Students start talking.

What I experienced today in a regular public university classroom in Sevilla:

Students talking before class starts. Professor starts talking. Students continue to talk. Professor starts and leads class. Students are loud and obnoxious. Professor still keeps on talking and doesn't mind the obnoxious chatter about how Juan Antonio broke up with his girlfriend or what Alejandra did last weekend. Professor the stops talking and just sits on chair and starts playing on his cellphone. (It was probably Angry Birds). Professor ends class 30 minutes before it ends. Good class right?

Some facts and little background information of what I had just described:
Class name: Sociology of Education
School: School of Education (Facultad de las ciencias de educacion)
Consists of: The future teachers of espana 

My take on the situation:

I wish I taped it. I was so confused when everyone just started talking and once I finally figured out what they were talking about I realized it had nothing to do with sociology or education whatsoever. The professor didn't seem to care and so the students just kept on talking. It was a perfect example of classroom management gone wrong; which, is really intersting considering this is a class about education and I would think the students would be a little more focused on it since they are all going to be future teachers. Anyway, I have to drop atleast one of my classes this week since we're only allowed to take four and sadly this might be one of them considering what happened today. Very different from the classes I take over in the Lindquist center back in Iowa...

My Crib

Buenas tardes!!!

So, for all you curious little readers, I've decided to post pictures of the apartment.

Description: 4 bedroom & 2 bath, this charming european modern apartment sits on Calle Arroyo and is a half hour walk from "El Centro" (Plaza Nueva). It is located right next to a primary school and a small mercado. On the first floor of the building there is a zapateria (shoe store - not good quality though... most of the shoes are made in China) and a bar/cafe. Around noon time, this bar is filled with parents waiting to pick up their children as they drink their beers and glasses of wine... quite different than the average PTA meeting.

My roomies (roomates): Maria Angeles is my main senora... the lady I go to with all my questions and concerns such as asking where their scissors are or what we are having for lunch. She's a very good cook and knows how to cook the perfect tortilla con patatas and even cooks us very good frozen pizza. Her younger sister, Rosa, works in Huelva (beach town near by) and is obsessed with her telenovelas and programas. She has a dog named, Jara, which I wrote a whole blog post about. Then there's Alex, my Spanish & education classes buddy, who accompanies me on all my adventures.

Alright so here are the pictures. Sorry, I know it's not all HGTV House Hunters International but these pictures give you all a good idea of what the apartment looks like.

The bathroom
Very IKEA-esque

Notice how the bold orange color adds a POP of color... very cute & European chic

My bed.... I know you're all jealous of how comfy this bed looks

My closet & and dresser

The kitchen... the place where her delicious tortillas are made

Lovin' her updated cabinetry

Living room/family room/dining room.... very versatile

The dining room table

So it's not a flat screen... but it still does the job! :)

*WARNING FUTURE STUDY ABROAD STUDENTS.... Europeans' "short walk" is equivalent to a hike

Invest in the best walking shoes.... and if you're lucky, maybe you'll find some cute ones. Because I sit here tonight in our little apartment with THROBBING feet. And it isn't just me with the foot pains.. it's also my roommate. In Sevilla, and throughout most of Europe, there is a incredible amount of walking. I thought a pair of TOMS and ballerina flats would do the trick, but I am afraid that they don't. Now, I didn't even bring a pair of gym shoes because none of my outfits would match with my running shoes but luckily I did buy a pair of walking shoes over in Triana three weeks ago. If all of you are wondering what a typical walk is I've listed the popular destinations and the relative amount of time it takes to get to each place...

CIEE Study Center: 25 minutes
Cathedral: 35 minutes
University: 35-40 minutes
Plaza Alfalfa (some bars we go to): 25 minutes
Calle Sierpes (best shopping): 30 minutes