I owe you all posts about:
- the Blues Festival on Saturday (which I'll try to write in Bilbao today)
- a few great things about being here
- my favorite new Basque word
- my trip to Chicago tomorrow!!
Coming soon, I promise.
Tuesday, July 12, 2011
Thursday, July 7, 2011
Now is not the time ...
Now is not the time to get a cold, but I'm afraid it's here. I've been sniffling, sneezing, and wheezing for about 24 hours now. As much as I would like to blame it on the crummy weather we've been having, I'm afraid there is no excuse. I'm also just feeling sort of generally crummy. Hopefully, I can get rid of whatever this is sooner than later. Flying while sick is really no fun at all, and if this cold does what it normally does and migrates into my sinuses, I will almost certainly be dealing with ear pressure and general face pressure early next week, which is REALLY lame for flying.
Procuring things like vitamin C and zinc here is a really pain in the butt, so I'm going to try to tough it out for a day or two, buy a ton of orange juice, and sleep as much as I can. Or at least more than I have been. Even though my friends have been out of town this week, I've not managed to get into bed before midnight or to fall asleep before one this week. When I typically wake up at 7 am, I am definitely dragging, especially since last night was FREEZING so I had to get up to get a sweatshirt and socks at around 2:30 ... but then that was overkill so I woke up really warm at about 5:30. At least no mosquitos attacked last night (which they did on Monday and Tuesday of this week).
Anyhow, fingers crossed that this crumminess is just weather related and I am totally recovered so I can enjoy being in the US!
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
The Office
I heard a great interview with Javier Bardem on Fresh Air from a couple of weeks ago. I found him super charming because he is SO Spanish and his accent is so Castillian. If nothing else, I can tell speakers from South America apart from those from the peninsula just by accent (and by attitude, quite honestly). Anyhow. He said this thing about acting (and speaking more generally) in English, and his statement summed up exactly how I feel about speaking Spanish here.
"It's a totally different situation. It's like here, I'm trying to express myself, and share some opinions and be relax, and there's this office in my brain full of people working at the same time that I'm talking to you trying to not be wrong with the intonation, with the words. So it's very exhausting. If I speak Spanish, that office is closed. There is nobody in the office. I'm fine by my own."
This statement is so perfect because it IS exhausting. And it is like having an office of people running around, grabbing files, trying to type your script and hand it to you in the milliseconds it takes to say something. And it shows perfectly that even with the office up and running (and even with a much more proficient speaker than I am) mistakes happen, and it is very, very hard in your non-native language to "be relax" and to be "fineby my own".
My "office" is further complicating things because it has decided that Spanish and French are basically the same thing, so words from one must be interchangeable with words from the other. So in addition to not remembering words, and saying crazy things in half-English, I also speak this SpanishFrench mashup that few people (besides my two friends who speak both Spanish and French) understand. I'm a little worried that not having Spanish classes until September will cause the office to go out of business, but I'm trying to keep it up by going to my intercambio and making my Spanish friends speak to me more and more in Spanish. My non-Spanish speaking friends also speak more and more in Spanish because we're around other Spanish speakers more and more, which is also good practice. And, apparently, now I'll be practicing with my nun friend in the morning too (see below).
"It's a totally different situation. It's like here, I'm trying to express myself, and share some opinions and be relax, and there's this office in my brain full of people working at the same time that I'm talking to you trying to not be wrong with the intonation, with the words. So it's very exhausting. If I speak Spanish, that office is closed. There is nobody in the office. I'm fine by my own."
This statement is so perfect because it IS exhausting. And it is like having an office of people running around, grabbing files, trying to type your script and hand it to you in the milliseconds it takes to say something. And it shows perfectly that even with the office up and running (and even with a much more proficient speaker than I am) mistakes happen, and it is very, very hard in your non-native language to "be relax" and to be "fineby my own".
My "office" is further complicating things because it has decided that Spanish and French are basically the same thing, so words from one must be interchangeable with words from the other. So in addition to not remembering words, and saying crazy things in half-English, I also speak this SpanishFrench mashup that few people (besides my two friends who speak both Spanish and French) understand. I'm a little worried that not having Spanish classes until September will cause the office to go out of business, but I'm trying to keep it up by going to my intercambio and making my Spanish friends speak to me more and more in Spanish. My non-Spanish speaking friends also speak more and more in Spanish because we're around other Spanish speakers more and more, which is also good practice. And, apparently, now I'll be practicing with my nun friend in the morning too (see below).
Settled
I am trying to remember how settled I feel here for when I come back from my trip and, inevitably, feel like I'm not settled anymore. But now I have my routine. I see the same people on the bus and on the street. I remember to dodge the poop on the sidewalk up the hill to the bus stop.
And today, I had another breakthrough in feeling settled here. I'm not sure if I've mentioned before, but I'm pretty sure there is a convent near my house. Nuns (not in habits usually, but in very simple clothes carrying rosaries, etc.) are always all over the neighborhood. One in particular always stops and talks to the locals at the bus stop. Typically, this was the two little kids who waited for their private school bus with their mom, or the guy who also works in Parque Miramon (the technology park where my office is) and has apparently lived here forever. And she typically ignores me, or just says hello quickly on her way past. Well, today, she sat down next to me at the bus stop and chatted away until the bus came. I only understood about 50% of what she was talking about. I had been knitting when she came by, and she talked a lot about her mother who used to knit, and also something about the weather, I think. I did a lot of nodding and saying "claro," "bueno" and "vale" (great words for any spanish conversation - basically meaning, "of course" or "right" or "yeah"). She was also convinced that I am from the UK - as many, many people are. Apparently, according to people other than the nun who have made this mistake, I don't "seem" American, whatever that means.
I hope I can settle back into the routine I have quickly when I get back ... and I hope the time in Chicago doesn't fly by too quickly (though I know it will). A week from now I will be an hour away from boarding my plane to Chicago. It's sort of sad, but I am actually really psyched that my whole travel day, from leaving the hotel to getting into Chicago will only be about 15 hours, instead of the 23 or so hours I traveled on my last trip across the Atlantic. And 3.5 hours of that is layover in Madrid where I can window shop in the mall! Can't WAIT!!
And today, I had another breakthrough in feeling settled here. I'm not sure if I've mentioned before, but I'm pretty sure there is a convent near my house. Nuns (not in habits usually, but in very simple clothes carrying rosaries, etc.) are always all over the neighborhood. One in particular always stops and talks to the locals at the bus stop. Typically, this was the two little kids who waited for their private school bus with their mom, or the guy who also works in Parque Miramon (the technology park where my office is) and has apparently lived here forever. And she typically ignores me, or just says hello quickly on her way past. Well, today, she sat down next to me at the bus stop and chatted away until the bus came. I only understood about 50% of what she was talking about. I had been knitting when she came by, and she talked a lot about her mother who used to knit, and also something about the weather, I think. I did a lot of nodding and saying "claro," "bueno" and "vale" (great words for any spanish conversation - basically meaning, "of course" or "right" or "yeah"). She was also convinced that I am from the UK - as many, many people are. Apparently, according to people other than the nun who have made this mistake, I don't "seem" American, whatever that means.
I hope I can settle back into the routine I have quickly when I get back ... and I hope the time in Chicago doesn't fly by too quickly (though I know it will). A week from now I will be an hour away from boarding my plane to Chicago. It's sort of sad, but I am actually really psyched that my whole travel day, from leaving the hotel to getting into Chicago will only be about 15 hours, instead of the 23 or so hours I traveled on my last trip across the Atlantic. And 3.5 hours of that is layover in Madrid where I can window shop in the mall! Can't WAIT!!
Monday, July 4, 2011
As if the Basque Country couldn't get weirder ...
I walked from the bus to the BCBL today with a guy who is visiting from the US for a month. We walked past the open lawn that is in front of one of the buildings to find 3 horses grazing, and 3 security guards, hanging out at a distance watching them. No fences or borders of any sort keeping them from bolting into the street where cars go rather quickly. Nothing to keep them from making a break for any of the wooded areas nearby. Weird, weird Monday morning.
Sunday, July 3, 2011
End of an era
I completed Stripey Blanket today. It is so beautiful, I can hardly stand it. The edging turned out a little funky in the corners, so I quickly stitched up some tiny crocheted flowers and leaves to sort of flatten out the edging. I'm pretty sure I still should block the blanket (get it it wet and stretch it out, so it's all even, etc.) in order to make it perfect, but that's going to have to wait 'til I can figure out how to do it practically. I love, love, love it. Photos to come tomorrow.
Friday, July 1, 2011
Rebajas. And Mullets
I'm ruminating on two very Spanish (or Basque) things: Rebajas and mullets.
Rebajas are the twice yearly sales that happen in Spain. Basically, places can have "ofertas" or "propociones" at any time, which is a single item or two on sale. Rebajas happen only in July and January at the same time for all shops - think a week of "Black Friday" sales in the US. I really want to go and check them out, since I haven't been able to do much shopping since I got here. I'm a little scared it's going to be nightmarishly busy, but I think I'm going to try. I'll definitely go to a couple of housegoods stores to try to finish stocking my house with what I need. I'm going to try to get my Spanish friend to come with me so that I won't be too overwhelmed by myself.
The other thing that deserves mention is the mullet. I'm not sure if I've talked about it before, but the Basques LOVE their mullets. They are EVERYWHERE. Largely, it's associated with the nationalistic movement (the non-violent, independence movement) here. They're equally popular on men and women. Here are some of the other popular additions to the mullet: very, very, very short bangs (almost like there aren't bangs, but they're there and just very short), asymmetric bangs, mullet plus extremely long braid in the back, mullet plus long curl down the side. To top it off, many people here have thick sort of curly hair - giving everyone the permed mullet look.
Most Spanish/Basque things I can get on board with. Dinner at 10, eating a lot of my meals standing up and going from bar to bar, an extreme fondness for wine, lots (and lots) of walking, respect for kids and elders, rebajas, only working 'til 2:30 on Fridays, short work days in the summer, at least 6 weeks of paid vacation every year, etc. But the mullet? Not so much.
Rebajas are the twice yearly sales that happen in Spain. Basically, places can have "ofertas" or "propociones" at any time, which is a single item or two on sale. Rebajas happen only in July and January at the same time for all shops - think a week of "Black Friday" sales in the US. I really want to go and check them out, since I haven't been able to do much shopping since I got here. I'm a little scared it's going to be nightmarishly busy, but I think I'm going to try. I'll definitely go to a couple of housegoods stores to try to finish stocking my house with what I need. I'm going to try to get my Spanish friend to come with me so that I won't be too overwhelmed by myself.
The other thing that deserves mention is the mullet. I'm not sure if I've talked about it before, but the Basques LOVE their mullets. They are EVERYWHERE. Largely, it's associated with the nationalistic movement (the non-violent, independence movement) here. They're equally popular on men and women. Here are some of the other popular additions to the mullet: very, very, very short bangs (almost like there aren't bangs, but they're there and just very short), asymmetric bangs, mullet plus extremely long braid in the back, mullet plus long curl down the side. To top it off, many people here have thick sort of curly hair - giving everyone the permed mullet look.
Most Spanish/Basque things I can get on board with. Dinner at 10, eating a lot of my meals standing up and going from bar to bar, an extreme fondness for wine, lots (and lots) of walking, respect for kids and elders, rebajas, only working 'til 2:30 on Fridays, short work days in the summer, at least 6 weeks of paid vacation every year, etc. But the mullet? Not so much.
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