Dos besos

Today is a fiesta day of some sort, so I don't have classes and I'm taking the opportunity to update my blog. I think I've mentioned the custom of two kisses in an earlier post, but just to rehash -- it's really rude to not kiss someone once on each cheek when you first meet them.

Anyway, I did go out on Saturday night as I had planned, and we hit up four or five different bars or clubs, did some tequila shots, drank some Lemon Fanta and vodka and danced (some better than others. Hint: I fall in the "others" category).

At one bar, one of the guys from our group told a Spanish guy he should dance with me. His side of the conversation went something like:

1. "Hola, qué tal?" (Hey, how are you?)
2. "Cómo te llamas?" (What's your name?)
3. "Tienes novio?" (Do you have a boyfriend?)
and 4. "Puedo darte un beso?" (May I kiss you?)

Uhh, no. No, you may not kiss me. That was my initial reaction. It also didn't help that in Spain personal space is not as great a concern as it is in America, and he was lingering about 2 inches away from my face during the course of this conversation. Of course, after I left the bar, I realized he had meant the greeting kisses. Oops. Will remember next time not to be so rude.

My friends and I stayed out until 5 a.m. so we could get chocolate (hot chocolate, very thick) and churros (a fried pastry). Mmmm.

Sunday, I think it goes without saying, I slept in. Woke up just in time for paella, a traditional Spanish dish. My mom in my homestay here makes it with shrimp, mussels and chicken. It also has rice, olives, peppers and some sort of unidentifiable delicious sauce. Later, I found a DVD case for Dirty Dancing in my room, so asked our mom about watching it at dinner (la tele -- TV -- is always on during meals). After my inability to call it anything other than "Dirty Dancing" (hey, that's what the Spanish DVD case said) and my housemate's failed attempt at describing it as "El Bailando Sucio" I retreived the DVD case from my room. She looked for the DVD but said one of her daughters must have it. But, don't worry, because we could watch another American movie about dancing. Horror images of Richard Gere in "Shall We Dance" or Julia Stiles in "Save the Last Dance" rushed through my head. Surely I would not be able to stomach them in another language. But when our mom popped in a VHS tape, I figured it would have been older. It was Footloose. Watching a dubbed version of Kevin Bacon asking, "Podrías decirme cuál es tu problema?" was significantly more entertaining than even the English version.

Monday, real classes started. This is, as opposed to the fake intensive Spanish classes we'd been taking for the previous two weeks. I had political systems of Spain and Portugal to start, and a Spanish grammar class. Typically, I would have also had an economics class, but it doesn't start until Feb. 5. Searched for a laundromat for about an hour with a friend, but were largely unsuccesful. (We found the laundromats, but they were both closed.)

Tuesday, more real classes. A history class about the Franco regime. Finally was able to make it to the laundromat while it was open. Haven't done laundry in two weeks, so it's going to set me back 14 euro. Oh well. I get to pick it up tomorrow. Yesterday was also my first and only class with other Spanish-speaking students -- a third-level political science course about the institutions and laws in the European Union. Sounds fun, right? Apparently the time had been moved back by an hour, unbeknownst to me. But I did get to have the first conversation with a Spanish guy that a) lasted more than 3 minutes, b) did not occur in a bar after 2 a.m. and c) did not contain the question, "tienes novio?" We talked about school and the like for 15 or 20 minutes and before I went to leave the classroom for an hour, he cautiously gave me dos besos to make sure I wasn't going to freak out about it. Because, he said, American girls do sometimes. Go figure.

Uno, dos, cha, cha, cha

OK, so I've been a bad blogger. (Who reads this, anyway?) Possibly have been a bad American too, seeing as I went to a salsa dance class instead of watching Obama's inauguration...

Anyway, here's the rundown of what I've been up to, and I hereby PROMISE to update more regularly.

Last Saturday: Went to Segovia, saw the castle Snow White's was supposedly modeled after, the aqueducts, cathedral...and ate a lot of awesome food.

Sunday: Went to el rastro (flea market) on the edge of the city. Bought a cute bufanda (scarf) and una bandera de Espana (Spanish flag) to hang in my apartment next year. P.S. Becca, you should get one from Ireland! Took a long siesta.

Monday: Intensive Spanish class. Flamenco class -- this may come as a surprise to all of you, but I'm very bad. Went to The Irish Rover (a pretty Americanized pub) and had a pizza party with the group. Stayed for a while to dance, but did not partake in the weekly Monday night beer pong.

Tuesday: Intensive Spanish class, salsa class. Even worse at salsa. More hip-shaking. However, was right behind male instructor, so I got to watch him shake his ass for about an hour.

Wednesday: Intensive Spanish class. Signed up for this semester's classes: political systems of contemporary Spain and Portugal, the Franco Regime and the transition to democracy, intensive grammar, economic development in Spain: 1939 to the present, and institutions and laws of the European Union. Sounds fun, no? Am very excited about no Friday classes! Also, went out that night. Weekly karaoke night at the Irish Rover. Sang "Mrs. Robinson" with a friend. Scared a lot of locals and probably some Americans as well.

Thursday: Intensive Spanish class. Karaoke with the group. Went worse than Mrs. Robinson the previous night. Went out for tapas (small plates, like appetizers) with some friends.

Friday: Final intensive Spanish class, with oral exam. Passed, I guess. Went to a buffet for la comida at the mall just outside of the city. Did some shopping, bought a cute shirt for 4 Euros. Went and saw "El Valiente Desperaux" ("The Tales of Desperaux?"). Kind of cute, but strange. Easy to understand. Some others went and saw "Siete Almas" (Literally: Seven Souls, but "Seven Pounds"). I'd seen that already in English and didn't think I'd be able to stand seeing it again, in another language nonetheless. Was going to go out, but it was raining. BUT, booked a cheap flight for Semana Santa (Holy Week a.k.a. spring break) to Dublin. Am SUPER psyched!

Saturday (Today): Went to Toro and Zamora. Saw una bodega (wine cellar) in Toro and did some wine tasting. Not bad, not bad. Went to Zamora and saw a lot of old buildings. Had a very small conversation with an old man who wanted to know where we were from and whether we actually spoke Spanish. Luckily, I know enough to respond to what he was saying and not look like an asshole. Went to the shadiest restaurant ever in the middle of nowhere and had a lot of fun. Ate some chorizo (like sausage), bacon, ham... Drank some wine and did some shots. Am planning to go out tonight with some friends late tonight, and stay up until 5 a.m. to get churros.

There. More to follow soon, possibly about my adventures tonight if they stay G-rated enough.

This is terrible

So, I have another hour before I have to go back to orientation, so I thought, I'll catch up on my shows. Watch some 30 Rock or some Grey's Anatomy or something. But no. Apparently, only people within the United States can watch the free episodes online, at least on ABC and NBC. So, when I got really desperate, I thought maybe I could watch Gossip Girl, but apparently I can't do that either. So, I'm very sad, but maybe it's a good thing that that's probably the worst thing that's happened to me so far.

Cool Song (I think)

I'm not really sure if this is popular, but I think it might be because I've seen it twice on TV now -- once while i was eating lunch yesterday and once while I was having coffee this morning during the break in my class. Anyway, I like it, so I thought I would share.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1YTiE4LVwME

Cultural Differences

Vale. Our program had a discussion this afternoon about all the cultural differences between the United States and Spain, and I thought I would share some of the more interesting ones.

- It's not OK to smile at guys on the street here. It means that you want them.

- That said, it is perfectly OK to simply stare at other people walking through the streets. Good to know, because I was starting to get really creeped out. I thought it was because they could tell I'm American, but it's just the thing to do around here.

- You have to ask for the check at restaurants, and you don't leave a tip unless the service was exceptional. When you do tip, it's perfectly OK to leave 1 Euro for a meal that cost 20 Euros or to leave whatever change you don't want to bring with you -- a very small tip is not offensive.

- Lunch (la comida) is at 2 or 3 in the afternoon and dinner (la cena) is at 9 or 10. Lunch is the main meal of the day and university classes break and shops downtown are closed for the most part.

- PDA is way more common, and most women would find it offensive if their boyfriends were not very affectionate in public.

- It's rude to walk around the house barefoot or in socks. Everyone either wears slippers or their shoes inside.

- It's considered bad manners to eat with your hands. This includes sandwiches, fries and fruit. But it's rude to not have both of your hands (or at least your arms) resting on the table. It would be unusual if one of your hands was in your lap while eating.

- Saying "gracias" frequently is considered rather strange. Whenever I thank my host mom for food or for holding the door or something like that (out of habit) she essentially tells me to calm down.

- Whenever you meet someone for the first time, you give them two kisses -- one on each cheek, starting from the left. The kiss more or less goes into the air, but your cheeks touch.

That's all I've got for now. Hasta luego.

He llegado en Salamanca

Y estoy en Salamanca! Tengo el Internet en la casa, apparently. Which is pretty awesome since we were told we wouldn't have it in the homestays. The trip to Spain was more or less uneventful -- a little bit of a delay with the flight, but it was OK. Met a few other people from the program as we were all frantically running for the baggage claim and calling IES begging them to hold the bus for us. I'm not as jet-lagged as I thought I would be considering I haven't gotten that much sleep since the flight. Lunch here is at about 2 or 3 in the afternoon and dinner isn't until 9 or 10. They're both filling meals, especially lunch -- about four courses each. It's kind of unreal. My host mom asked my housemate and me if we wanted diet pills in our coffee this morning. (At least, I'm pretty sure that's what she asked us. I'll get back to you on that.)

I somehow managed to place myself in the advanced class of the three levels of intensive Spanish orientation classes we have during the hour-long test and 45-second oral exam. So, that's a mistake and should be interesting. I'm not really sure how many people I've told or have been told about this crap blog, but I want to know how much English/Spanish anyone cares to see. I just wanted to get this blog up before my computer dies.

Hasta luego!

And I'm off. Next post -- and first real post -- should be (barring any disasters) from Spain!