Week 2!!

This week we had our first full week of classes. Now that we have a set schedule, we're getting into the swing of things and establishing our own little routines. Classes are going well, though you can tell that the teacher's are serious about their jobs and expect students to put in just as much work as they do. Each of our classes require a "reader" which is a booklet of articles and readings that our teachers compile personally, rather than making us spend the hundreds of dollars we normally would spend on books. Its very interesting learning about the lifestyles and backgrounds of our professors too. My Media and Politics professor was born and raised in Barcelona but studied in England, so its cool hearing his different accents as well as his different opinions and views of international politics. Tess and I also are taking a Sports in Society class which is taught by a British woman who married a Spanish man and has lived here for 20+ years. She is kind of our "go to" person when it comes to trying to figure out Spanish culture because she's not Spanish and doesn't take our questions personally. Her answers are usually pretty entertaining! We also both had our first quizzes in our Spanish classes on Friday too! We've been hitting the books from the start! (kind of...)

On Friday night a bunch of us went out for drinks at a really fun bar named Pippermints. I'm not sure if that's a misspelling of the word Peppermint's or if the Spanish people just put their own little spin on it. We met a group of boys who were raised in Mexico, go to college at Arizona State University and are now studying abroad in Barcelona- quite the mix of people. But the bar is famous for serving drinks by the table. So a whole big group of us ordered a giant drink and had a really fun night just talking and getting to know all these people. Its funny how small even a big city like Barcelona can feel. Even knowing the small group of kids that I do, I feel like I am always running into people I've met before out at a club, or kids from my classes. Its kind of comforting knowing that even in a big city of strangers, I'm still kind of surrounded by some familiarity.

Saturday morning Tess and I rolled out of bed to meet up with some friends to do "the tourist thing". We boarded Barcelona Bus Touristic and rode a double-decker bus around the city getting on and off as we pleased. It was cool to get sort of an idea of where everything was and how to get there, even if we didn't go into every museum and site. By far, my favorite place we stopped was Montjuïc. Its located up on a hill to the Southwest of the city center and has breathtaking views of the city. We didn't dive too deep into the tours or anything because frankly, we were desperate to find something to eat :). But from the outside I could definitely go back and spend a whole day there. Montjuïc is home to the Olympic Stadium (which is famous for rejuvenating the city of Barcelona) as well as the Montjuïc Gardens and Castell de Montjuïc (an 18th century fortress). While we were walking around, we noticed a large trade show being taken down from last week's "Bread and Butter Tradeshow". In Barcelona, this past week has been a huge fashion week with many parties and specials at different stores. The tradeshow had been set up around the famous Magic Fountain which leads up the hill to Montjuïc. We finally ended up at Port de Barcelona and got ourselves a late lunch. It was beautiful down by the water but SO WINDY it was impossible to really enjoy ourselves. Once we got home we found out about the danger of the winds we were in. Up on Montjuïc and down by the water were apparently two of the places to avoid according to our program warnings...oops!


Here's a picture of some of us girls on Montjuïc!

Well, that's all for now folks! We're about to do some homework and dive into the week ahead of us! No classes on Friday so I'll be headed off to London and Tess is trying to plan a trip to Madrid! We'll be in touch!!
Adios! Molly & Tess


*****It takes a super long time to post pictures up on the site so I've uploaded more of mine to a different photo-sharing site. If you want to check them out here's the link. Enjoy!!!
http://picasaweb.google.com/mollythorpe88

Week 1

Update

Week one complete and we are still alive here in Barcelona! Since Molly’s last post our knowledge of the city, which is beginning to feel more like home, has expanded significantly. As time passes, it has become easier for us to assimilate into the Spanish culture. Of course we are holding on to the fragments of American culture that are dear to our hearts such as: Grey’s anatomy, Gossip Girl, Perez Hilton, and late night snacks. However, we have become accustom to the time schedule, portion size, and public transportation here in Espana!

Everyday last week, Molly and I had 1 ½ hours of Spanish class. This proved to be very helpful for Molly, being that she had never studied the language before. She is now learning basic verbs and the rules of conjugation which have enabled her to communicate some of her feelings in conversation. I am convinced that it was her Spanish of course paired with her dashing good looks that attracted a Spanish admirer. On that topic, of course we are acting responsibly and taking care of one another.

My Spanish class (Advanced 1) was very interesting and I was happy to meet a lot of unique new friends. Unfortunately, I decided I was a bit over my head in terms of my Spanish abilities because it has been over two years since I have taken a Spanish class. I willingly chose to change my level to Intermediate 2 in the hope that I will feel more comfortable and confident participating in class.

Cultural Observations

Although we have only been here for approximately 10 days, each day we have learned something new about Spanish culture. One of the most prominent differences we observed between Spanish and American culture is the lack of attention that is paid to the service industry here. This is because, unlike America’s independent mentality, the Spanish culture is interdependent. Some might even call it socialist. This means that each profession has a minimum salary that will allow the individual to provide for themself. Therefore waiters are not motivated to please their customers the same way they are in the states. We were also quick to notice that people bring their dogs with them everywhere they go. Not only that, but the dogs are not on leashes. It’s a good thing Molly and I are not afraid of dogs or we would be living in constant fear. Another important cultural aspect to note is the emphasis Spanish people place on being environmentally mindful. This includes everything from turning off lights one is not directly using, keeping shower time minimal, buying fresh food from local markets, and utilizing public transportation. The green movement is indeed discussed in the U.S. but not translated into action the way it is here in Spain. In response to Tim’s question, everyone here is very excited about Obama being selected as our new president! In fact, there was an Obama poster on our bedroom door when we arrived here.

Family Life

Molly and I each consider ourselves very lucky to be living with such a warm, welcoming, yet easy going family. Ana (our host mother) has been sensitive to our needs and helpful in our learning of Spanish language and culture. We recently learned that she is a sociology professor at the University of Barcelona. Perhaps this provides some indication of her personality and interest in hosting foreign students. She is usually gone most of the day but always home in time to prepare a fresh cooked dinner. Speaking of which, last night she made a lentil soup for us. This was not any ordinary soup though, a few of its main ingredients include the meat from a pig’s ear and foot. This meat is apparently common for Spanish people to eat. However, Ana knew that it would be strange for Molly and I so she put it on the side. During dinner we have had many interesting conversations, which Molly is beginning to understand. Last night a conversation about bull fighting arose after our discussion about the pig ear. Alba (our sister) told us that it is no longer a popular sport here in the Catalan region but it is still a large part of Spanish culture elsewhere, especially in the south. We learned the grading scale (0-3) and customs of the audience. For those who are interested in knowing the details: 0 is equal to nothing/failure, 1 means the matador removed one of the bulls ears, 2 signifies the removal of both ears, and 3 is achieved when the bull is left without any ears or tail! Ayyy dios mio. Alba said she does not personally enjoy the sport because it is very violent and makes her feel sad for the bull. Molly and I anticipate that we will feel the same way but we expect to learn more about the ins and outs of bullfighting in our sports and society class.

I hope this has given you some insight into our lives here. Please feel free to post suggestions or questions you might have for us in the future. Hope life is great back in the states!

Hasta luego,

Tess & Molly

We're here!!!

So after hours of travel and not so many hours of sleep we have finally arrived in Barcelona! We've only been here a couple of days, but I'll try to give you a quick idea of what life is like in Barca.

Housing
We live about a 25 minute walk/5 minute metro ride directly north of downtown Barcelona in the Gracia neighborhood. The architecture around Barcelona is beautiful and full of history. Our street Carrer D'astúries is off of a major road with lots of nightlife but our street is quite quaint with many little shops and cafes. Its located right on a plaza in Gracia so there is no street for cars to drive on, just a little cobblestone walk/plaza. Tess and I live in an apartment with a family of 3. They have an adorable apartment and gave us our own little area in the basement. There is a small family room/game room in the basement along with our bedroom and bathroom.

Family
Our host family is extremely nice and so far we have gotten along wonderfully. They've hosted students for a number of years now alternating between boys and girls each semester. Our host mother's name is Ana and she speaks very little English. Tess understands Spanish quite well so she has been acting as my personal translator though I am starting to get used to picking out pieces of conversation. We also have a 17 year old sister named Alba. She is a senior in high school and speaks fluent Spanish, Catalan, English and French. She is just starting to learn Arabic and wants to go to University to study to be a translator. Though she has been quite busy with school work she is excited to take us around to show us "her Barcelona" rather than the more tourist-y stuff. We then have a 10 year old brother named Oriole or Ori for short. He is the cutest little boy imaginable and is often playing Wii in the basement. He likes having host-brothers rather than sisters but he's managing. The kids have been in and out because they both live with their Dads sometimes so its hard to know who's coming and going. Ana is dating a guy named Paul. He had been super nice and also speaks a little bit of English as well.

School

Actual classes don't start for another week but we've been having mini orientation things and Spanish classes start tomorrow (Monday). We are about a 20-25 minute walk/5 minute metro ride from school. Yesterday we went on a field trip as a group (approx. 450 kids) to Vic and Besalu. It was pouring rain and about 35 degrees all day so it was a bit difficult to enjoy but both places were full of history and would have been quite enjoyable in different weather. Both are Medieval towns from the Gothic era in Spain. Vic had a large outdoor market (in the rain...) and we toured a beautiful church and had lunch. Besalu reminded me a little of the Tower of London and was its own little town built of brick and cobblestone. So starting tomorrow we have Spanish class everyday for an hour and a half and then more orientation things like a scavenger hunt around the city and stuff. The entrance at Besalu

Food
So both of us were a little bit apprehensive about the food situation here because Tess is a vegetarian and I'm a little bit of a picky eater but so far things have worked out well. Ana serves us breakfast and dinner everyday (though I've not been awake for breakfast yet...). Dinner is usually served around 9:30 each night though last night we went out to dinner and ate from 11pm-1am. The food has been good so far with only a few strange encounters. We've had chicken (not Tess) and broiled artichokes, spaghetti with cream sauce, and an interesting pea dish. The other night they convinced me to try melon with ham on it. Not my favorite but I'm getting quite adventurous when it comes to trying new food. Tess and I ate at a little Istanbul cafe across the street from our apartment and a Lebonese Pizza place down the road. We're quite good at making friends with the waiters too.

Nightlife
We're still trying to get adjusted to the new time zone and lifestyle differences but Tess and I have managed to go out twice to sort of get a feel for the nightlife here in Barcelona. On Friday night we went out just the two of us and just stayed within a 10 minute walk of our apartment. We went to 3 different little places to get a taste of what was around. Since we had to be up early the next day we headed home around 1:30/2 am. Last night we were a bit more adventurous and after the long fieldtrip we were ready to blow off some steam. Tess and I met up with one of my friends from Hopkins, Kelly, and her roommate Stacey. We went to dinner from 11pm-1am and met 2 Spanish guys who took us to a discothèque in downtown Barca. They told us it was a typical Spanish scene and not so tourist. It was a little pricey so us girls decided to go meet up with some other people from our program. We took a cab to another club called Elephante. It was super cool and decorated with an India/Elephant theme. There were lots of Americans there from our program and other ones too. Tess and I ran into another girl from Miami on our program as well. Finally at about 4/4:30am we decided to go home. It was definitely interesting to compare the 2 different environments. A boy I know from high school studied here for a year in high school and is back for the year this year so we are trying to meet up with him to get another different view of Barcelona nightlife.

Well that's all I've got for now. I'm going to try to take some pictures of our apartment and family and stuff and get those posted here. Hasta luego!!!

Molly & Tess