Broadway, Tango and Guggenheim

April 25, 2012

Last Friday I fulfilled one of my goals which was to take a dance class, in Spanish, in Spain! Check, check and check! The first class I took was Broadway. Broadway style of dance usually involves jazz hands, spirit fingers, exaggerated facial expressions and box steps. I’m all for it, but I couldn’t convince any of my friends to come with me. The first 10 minutes of the class certainly fit that description, until the teacher instructed us to grab chairs from the corner of the room. I was a little confused and assumed it was a different technique for stretching. The moment she turned on Christina Aguilera’s song “Burlesque” and told us to let our hair loose, I knew the chairs weren’t for stretching.

On the academic side, I learned how to follow commands in Spanish as she would shout things like “point your toes”, “kick your right leg”, or “turn our head.” On the dance side of things, I learned how to do chair tricks and the technique behind it. It was just what I needed after a stressful week. At the end of class I thanked the instructor and asked when her next class was because I don’t want to miss it. When I approached her she didn’t even let me begin to ask my question before she asked me if I was classically trained. She noticed how graceful my movement is and how I carry myself. It was a wonderful compliment. I was proud of myself for taking a dance class where all the instruction was in Spanish and my ability to follow it with ease. It felt so good to get back into a dance studio use dance as my creative outlet.

After Broadway, Natalie met up with me and we took Argentine Tango. It was a little slow and a little less engaging than Broadway. The elderly couple teaching the class spent the first 20 minutes describing the history of tango and the theories behind it…. Yawn. Natalie and I looked around the room and noticed that everyone came to the class with their boyfriend, except us. Fortunately the instructor and his music assistant took turns dancing with Natalie and I so we weren’t wall flowers the whole time.

The assistant was around my age and his big ego didn’t match his abilities. He was constantly correcting me and belittling me so he could show off his 2 or so years of dance experience.. When I encounter people like this I demonstrate my 12 years of dance knowledge in a tactful way by asking genuine questions using technical dance vocabulary. Because I don’t have this vocabulary in Spanish, I just kept my mouth shut. At one point I couldn’t handle it anymore and felt facetious. I told him that even though I’m not an expert at Tango, I have enough dance experience to know that looking down at your feet the whole time you dance isn’t proper dance technique. He argued that he was watching my feet to make sure they were correct…. Bologna! He would know if my footwork was wrong, because if it was, I would have been stepping on his feet. Besides, when he demonstrated with the female instructor he was staring at the ground. I’m positive her footwork was correct.

On Saturday April 21 I went with Erika, Geoff, Margarita, Natalie, Danielle, and Michelle to the Guiggenheim modern art Museum in Bilboa. It’s about an hour bus ride from Santander. The museum is designed by North American architect Frank O. Gehry.

My favorite exhibits were The Matter of Time by Richard Serra, Mrs. Lenin and the Nightingale by George Baselitz and Installation for Bilbao by Jenny Holzer. Installation for Bilbao was my all time favorite because it brought tears to my eyes. It wasn’t just a painting on the wall to look at. It wasn’t a stand still sculpture.  It was an experience utilizing LED lights, poetry, and movement through space. You could pass through the 9 columns of LED lights to stand on the other side of the room that was a deep shade of blue. The columns reminded me of a jail cell. The poem was a variation of Arno which is a body of writing originally composed for an AIDS research project. The poem had lines like “I say your name, I save your clothes, I kiss your lips.” Her intention was to evoke themes of intimacy, death, and loss. I read the poem as it climbed up the columns and trickled back down the other side of the room. It was an extremely moving experience reading the poem, with the lights, in that space and it brought tears to my eyes. 

Here's a cool panoramic picture Geoff took of Installation for Bilbao

Bilboa!

We walked through the Parque de Dona Casilda on the way to the Guggenheim

The tiles of Parque de Dona Casilda and my cute shoes

Erika and the fountain at Parque de Dona Casilda

Erika, Danielle, Michelle, Geoff, Natalie and Margarita

Natalie y yo

Fountain at Parque de Dona Casilda

Pics infront of Guggenheim

Geoff, Erika, Natalie, Michelle

Me infront of Guggenheim

The giant flower covered cat outside of Guggenheim which is a symbol of the city

The cat again

Margarita, Michael, Natalie and Oresta

We went to Mercado Este to watch the Madrid v. Barcelona soccer game

Margarita, Nikko, Michelle, Marisol

Celebrating the victory for Madrid at Mercado Este

Michael, Natlie, me and Geoff at Mercado Este



Tres Triste Tigres Tiemblan en la Tempestad

April 18, 2012

Tres Triste Tigres Tiemblan en la Tempestad
(Three Sad Tigers Tremble in the Storm)


Today I had my first meltdown. It has been two weeks and all the little things are adding up and I’m feeling overwhelmed. I’ve been feeling like staying in my room and sleep all day long. I put pressure on myself to explore Santander and meet up with friends because I don’t want an opportunity to pass me by or feel like I’ve missed out on an opportunity. Even when I’m at home I feel exhausted having to be “on” all the time. When I leave my room I make small talk with my host family and have to think hard about what I want to say in Spanish. I’m a guest in their home so I have to be polite, interact with them, tell them where I’m going, when I’ll be back, and make sure to say please and thank you.

Several times today I’ve just wanted to scream in frustration! Talking and listening in Spanish is overwhelming, school is getting harder, some of my classmates are wearing on me, I miss my friends and family back home, all I want to do is eat, I don’t feel as confident as normal, I’m tired and stressed about being stressed. I think it's time for an intervention when I eat two servings of dessert at lunch, buy sour gummies for an afternoon snack, go through an entire bag of chocolate and still want more. I think I’ll regret that tomorrow.

In the real world, this would be called stress but since I’m in a foreign country I get to call it culture shock. I know it will pass in a few days, or weeks, but I have to be patient with myself and acknowledge the feelings I’m having. There’s a part of me that’s like “those are stupid things to worry about and just get over it, you’re in Spain!” but after talking to my mom on skype, she reminded me that it’s part of the process. I’ve been thrown out of my comfort zone where everything about the situation is new. I’m speaking a foreign language, meeting new people, navigating a new city, trying new foods, so it’s only natural to feel overwhelmed. Talking with her made me feel better.

After talking to my mom, I met with some friends to work on some homework and felt even better. In talking about it with friends I felt like I was at an AA meeting because we’ve all gone through the same experience but are all at a different stage in the process. A couple of them were impressed it took so long for my culture shock to sink in because they had meltdowns within the first couple days of being here.

Well… ¡Viva España!

¡Tengo 21 Años!

MY 21st BIRTHDAY

I started my birthday with my host family as they excitedly greeted me with "¡Felicidades!"and kissing me on each cheek. They teased me about being “old” since I’m considered a full fledged adult in the US. My host mom gave me a beautiful scarf that she picked out for me because of the warm summery colors. It’s the perfect combination of green, orange, red, yellow, and pink.

 At school my friends all wished me a happy birthday and sang me “Cumpleaños Feliz” which sounds just like the “Happy Birthday” song we know, except in Spanish. Marian taught us that singing “Feliz Cumpleaños a Ti” is too American and snobby, so naturally, they sang me the non-snobby version. To continue the celebration, I invited all my friends to go out with me later that night. I knew it was a Monday night, we had a quiz in gramatica the next day, and half the people were feeling sick so I only expected my closest friends to come. To my surprise, of the 16 people I invited, all 16 of them came!

Even though we’ve only known each other for two weeks, they’ve been there when I need to vent, when I need someone to help me navigate my way around, when I need a partner in class, when I want some ice cream but don’t want to indulge alone, when I need someone to have my back when I can’t find the words in Spanish, or when I need a wingman when talking to strangers. Basically, we’ve gotten close. I was so happy they wanted to celebrate with me. I know all my friends back home would have done the same, but since traveling to Spain wasn’t in their budget, they flooded my Facebook page with messages and funny pictures instead. I felt so special and loved!

When Natalie, Erika, and Alex arrived they gave me a sparkly tiara and matching sash that said “Miss Birthday Girl” and “Birthday Princess”.  I instantly put it on and modeled for some pictures. I thought it was ironic being 21 years young (let’s be real, I’m not old) getting my picture taken in front of the cathedral of Santander which was built around the 12th century. (Photograph to the right)

Wearing my crown and sash, we went to El Rio de Pila and got the party started. I enjoyed some drinks, laughed with my friends, took lots of pictures, and even danced a little. I was the life of the party! The bartender liked us so much he gave me and my 16 closest friends shots on the house. I couldn’t have imagined a better way to spend my birthday. I was in a sappy mood, so during my walk home I looked up at the stars shining over Santander and started crying. I was crying tears of joy thinking about how lucky I am to have wonderful friends and how lucky I am to have this opportunity of a lifetime.

 I designated the job of photographer to one of my friends for the night so there were lots of pictures! Here are the best ones:

One of my favorite pictures of the night with Natalie, Erika, me, and Alex

Photo credit: Natalie's camera

Natalie, Me, and Erika. They were so sweet for buying me a tiara and sash. I think they were real diamonds

First chupito of the night with (from left to right) Danielle, John, Natalie, Erika and I

Uno, dos, tres, patatas! (It's "patatas," not "cheese")

Front to back: Erika, Danielle, Michelle, Nikko and others

Nikko and I (with Michelle photobombing in the back)

Why yes, I am Miss America

                                                    "Birthday Princess!

Anyone hungry for Pringles?

Los Chicos! From left to right: Nikko, Geoff, Michael, Me, Dan, and John

My Crew

John, Margarita, Natalie, Erika, Me, Asha, Nikko, Alex, Maura and Marisol

Oresta, Danielle, Jen, Margarita and Michelle

Erika "photo bombed" Natalie and I

I love these chicas! Natalie, Erika, me and Alex

Alex, me and Nikko dancing. Not sure why Nikko was dancing with his umbrella

Alex, me, and Nikko

Photo credit: Natalie

Nikko told me to "rep the sash" and this is what I came up with.

Gettin gangsta up in hurr

Me and the bartender

Cheers to 21 years!

American Culture 101

April 15 2012

Last night my host brother Diego invited me to hang out with him and his friends in the basement. My host mom Lourdes insisted that I go hang out with them I should change my clothes, brush my teeth, and then she would take me downstairs and introduce me. She even warned me that they were a little shy but gave me suggestions of topics to talk about. I felt like she was setting up another play date for me. Diego had 5 friends in the basement who were playing cards, playing video games, and watching football. Basically it was “bro time” until I got there.

When I arrived, it turned into American Culture 101. One of the guys was extremely interested in hearing about the movies, music, politics, sports, food, and celebrities in the US. He drilled me with a million questions and was genuinely interested in what I had to say. It made me feel like a mini celebrity. He kept on asking me about my opinions about Obama and different decisions he made during his presidency. I’m not politically savvy, and in the moment I wished I was because he knew way more about my culture than I did.

At one point I had a conversation with one of the guys about business because he’s studying business administration. He would speak quickly to the other guys explaining the stocks he invested in and break down the difficult words for me. I don’t speak the language of business in English, but somehow I understood business jargon in Spanish. 

Another thing they couldn’t stop asking questions about California because they see it portrayed in movies. I would explain that I live in Oregon which is “norte de California” so I don’t have experience living in that culture. They didn’t ask about Oregon, either because they couldn’t pronounce it, or there aren’t enough movies that take place in Oregon.

The best part of the night was when I turned the tables and challenged them to speak to me in English. Diego had already been showing off his skills but the others were too shy because they’ve only studied it for a few years. I always roll my eyes at people when that’s their excuse because I have the language abilities of a 3 year old and I can still have basic conversations. They disregarded my comment and complemented me on my Spanish and said I have good pronunciation.

When the first guy finally built up the courage to speak in English, he said slowly with a Spanish accent “you are a beautiful person.” The second guy said “your hair is pretty” and the third said “I like your blue eyes.” I responded with “¡Dime más!” I like what the English teachers in Spain are teaching their students. Forget dumb phrases like “what’s your name” or “nice weather we’re having today,” they’re learning pickup lines!

The night ended at 2 a.m. and the guys enthusiastically asked if I would hang out with them again. They said that next time my American girlfriends are invited, so they can learn more about American culture of course!

Host Grandpa

April 14, 2012

Yesterday when I got home for, lunch host grandpa (whose name I still don’t know) was shuffling things around the kitchen like usual. This time he was making coffee. He walked over to me and held up the coffee filter and asked if I wanted some. I politely refused because I already had coffee that morning. When he finished making his coffee he walked back to where I was sitting and chuckled to himself as he, plunked his cup of coffee on the table, plunked an open fifth of gin on the table and said to me “mira”. He pointed from the gin to the coffee and shared his secret recipe with me. He explained that he substitutes water with gin when no one is home. Lourdes doesn’t let him drink or walk anywhere to get one, so he has to be creative. I couldn’t help but laugh with him and be thankful I didn’t accept his coffee offer. Sneaky little grandpa!

Cave of Castillo and Altamira

Friday April 13, 2012

Today we went on our first excursion to visit the cave of Castillo and the cave of Altamira which was a short bus ride out of Santander. In both of the caves we had the opportunity to see the Paleolithic art which we learned about in our art history class. La Cueva de Castillo was amazing! The natural beauty took me by surprise and looking at the drawings of hands, bison, and deer painted on the walls of the made it even more amazing. My favorite cave drawing was of a bison that was painted on the wall which was strategically placed on the natural contours of the cave to create its shoulders and the dimensions of its body. I could see the thoughtfulness the prehistoric artist put into their work and was amazed to be standing inside the same cave a caveman was in hundreds of thousands of years ago.  We were not allowed to take pictures inside the cave but I took pictures of the pictures posted at the entrance.

The view from outside Cueva de el Castillo

The Welcome Sign

The door to enter the cave. We weren't alowed to take pictures beyond that point

Here's a picture of a picture of two deer

Here's a picture of a bison on the upper left hand corner and impressions of hands on the lower right hand corner in red 

Natalie and I after our cave adventure

The second cave we went to was La Cueva de Altamira which is one of the most famous caves in the world. It is significant because it was the very first cave to be discovered with prehistoric cave paintings in the 1800s. It was opened to the public in the 1880s and there was no precautionary action taken to preserve the art. Over time, the carbon dioxide the tourists would breathe out started to ruin the cave art so officials have closed the cave to the public. To compromise, they made a replica museum so people can still appreciate the history. It is a controversy today as to what action should be taken with the original cave. Should it be restored? Left alone? Reopened to the public with restrictions?

Seeing the replica of Altamira was not quite as amazing as seeing the real cave of Castillo but I tried to pretend I was seeing the real thing. I got a little bored after a few hours and tried to reconnect to the art by imagining Paleolithic dancing. I was waiting for the Paleolithic tutorial dance video in the museum. Although there wasn’t a dance video, there was a display showing what pop culture was inspired by these discoveries which included a Flintstones display. It reminded me of my childhood, and that I need to take my daily vitamins.


Another thing we got to do today was learn the prehistoric techniques of how to hunt for deer and bison.  We had long spears made of wood with a sharp tip and a feather tail. You would load the spear into a wooden throwing device that helped with aim and the momentum of the spear. We all took turns practicing our new hunting skills by throwing our spears at targets. The first time I tried throwing the spear I was using it backwards so our hunting instructor laughed and used me as the example of what not to do. Thank goodness for evolution and grocery stores, I wouldn’t be able to feed myself with my Paleolithic hunting skills

Cafe con leche with Nikko before the museum tour

The targets- Do I want buffalo for dinner or deer?

Alix our hunting instructor showing us our tools

Practicing the propper throwing stance

Retrieving the arrows

Uno, dos, tres, tirar

(I'm the third one in from the right with perfect stance)

No buffalo but I'm still strong

Tocame! Tomame! Dame!

April 11, 2012

Yesterday in class we practiced our clothing vocabulary and played store as if we were kids. Natalie and I were partners and we were asked to present in front of the class. To spice things up, Natalie pretended she was shopping for underwear from my underwear store. Even though we are all in our 20s, everyone giggled. We had just learned how to use commands and how to explain when something is wrong with what you’ve purchased. In Spanish culture it’s not rude to give commands to a stranger, as long as you use the proper tone of voice. Since Natalie and I were trying to entertain the class, we acted as melodramatic as possible. She dramatically said to me, after she pretended to try them on, "¿Por qúe tú tocame los calzoncillos con un rasgón?” What she meant to say was "why did you give me underwear with a hole?" What Natalie actually said was "Why did you touch my boxers with a hole?" Everyone was dying of laughter!

Natalie tried to recover from the situation by saying "tocame y tomame" which means “touch me and take me.” Her eyes got big when she realized what she said was wrong again and the class laughed even harder. By this point I was in tears. Third time is the charm, as she said through laughter "¿Por qúe tú dame los calzoncillos con un rasgón?!" "Why did you give me boxers with a hole?" When everyone wiped the tears from their eyes and stopped laughing, the teacher told Natalie she had been refering to mens boxers instead of womens underwear the whole time and taught her the correct word. I admired Natalie’s creativity and persistence in the moment because she didn’t give up or let her mistake hold her back from what she really wanted to say.  She also gave the class a good abdominal workout.

Half way through the school day  Natalie and I looked at each other and commented on how much we liked each other’s outfits. We accidentally matched our clothes- white shirts, denim button ups, a scarf, black pants, boots and our hair up in a bun. I always thought it would be great to have a twin!


After siesta Danielle and I met up with our Spanish friends Jamie and Mario at the Tennis country club for dinner. It was a pretty fancy place and we were wearing raincoats and were dripping wet after walking in the rain it added to the humor of the night because most people there were over the age of 65 and dressed nicely. We ordered dinner- I asked my friends to pick the most authentic “Spanish” dinner on the menu which was a bocadillo with some type of fancy cheese and meat. They also ordered fried calamari from Santander which was so good! I love how much fresh seafood they serve and I’m glad I’m not a picky eater. We talked about lots of funny things over dinner and told “yokes.” The word in Spanish is “broma” which means joke but the Spanish people have a hard time pronouncing “joke” so it sounds like “yoke.”